[4] Since Anglo-Saxon times there has been a chapel at Deane in the township of Rumworth,[5] the earliest record is from the year 1100.

St Mary's Church, on the site of the original chapel, dates from 1452 replacing an earlier structure, the tower and north door are older than the rest of the building.

When Edward VI became King in 1547, Marsh's study of the New Testament led to his appointment as a preaching minister.

[13] Under provisions of the Poor Relief Act 1662, the ten townships became separate autonomous local authorities, replacing the civil parish of Deane as the main unit of local administration,[14] although the ecclesiastical parish still remained under the authority of the vicar of Deane.

[15] In the 19th century many of the Deane townships became independent civil parishes and were merged into the Municipal Borough of Bolton or formed they own urban districts.