Eccles, Greater Manchester along the route of the track linking those two cities. Eccles cakes, first produced and sold in the town in 1796, are now exported across the world. The derivation of the name is uncertain, but several ideas have been proposed. One is that the "Eccles" place-name is derived from the Romano-British "Ecles" or "Eglys", itself derived from the Ancient Greek "Ecclesia". Following the arrival in AD 613 of the invading Anglo-Saxons at Lancashire, many existing British place-names, especially rivers and hills (the River Irwell for example), survived intact. The root "Ecles", found in several village names, is an exception to
Fleming Eccles Council in 1903, and also to the local Board of Guardians. He stood down from his elected positions in 1906 as he became the Gas Workers' assistant district secretary for Lancashire, succeeding J. R. Clynes as district secretary in 1917. Eccles stood in Rutland and Stamford at the 1918 general election, taking 46.4% of the vote, and again in 1922, where his vote dropped to 32.9%. At the 1923 general election he instead stood in Bolton. This was a two-seat constituency, and his running mate Albert Law topped the poll, but Eccles could only take fifth place and again failed