Living Legends
West Lancashire is where towns and villages
with Viking names provide a platform for historic attractions,
modern mysteries and enchanting local legends.
Town tales and village life
A sense of history is tangible throughout West
Lancashire.
The wayside cross at Scarisbrick was
erected in medieval 
times as part of two
lines of wayside access which led from Scarisbrick Park. One line
lead to Burscough priory and the other led to the market town of
Ormskirk.
The parish church at Great Altcar is one of
the last authentic timber-framed buildings in the country and was
built by the Earl of Sefton in 1879. A pedestal font and stoup in
the grounds provides evidence of earlier churches on the site.
Parbold boasts a historic windmill built in
1794 and a canal-side location at the foot of Parbold Hill. Whilst
Newburgh is renowned for its village green and annual fair.
Schooners laden with goods would sail the
Ribble and Douglas from the market gardening town of Tarleton,
where links to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal once brought scenes
'like a fleet of His Majesty's Ships'.
Hesketh Bank and North Meols both owe
their names to the Vikings, the former understood to be the site of
an ancient race track and the latter related to the Scandinavian
word for sand dune.
Today a New Town, Skelmersdale, is a former
mining community which was mentioned in the Doomsday book of
1086, played host to the Romans and was invigorated by the
Industrial Revolution. One theory suggests its name derives from
the Old Scandinavian phrase meaning either "the valley of a man
named Skjalmar or Skjaldmarr".
Ormskirk's historic
market followed the grant of a royal market charter to the
monks of Burscough Priory by Edward I in 1286 and continues to
attract visitors. Like much of West Lancashire, the town retains
its historic charm, with cobbled streets and ancient landmarks.
Ormskirk’s Clock Tower, built in 1876 is a
Grade II listed building and with its Victorian “gothic” style is
nationally recognized as being of special architectural and
historic value.
Ormskirk Parish Church, one of only three in the
country with both a steeple (14th century) and a spire (16th
century).The church’s origins are in the 12th century and the north
wall of the chancel dates from this period. A small carved stone
panel depicting two men on the exterior east wall is probably
Anglo-Saxon. As with most major parish churches there are a number
of significant burials, one being James (seventh Earl of Stanley)
who was beheaded during the Civil War.
George Lyon, “The Up Holland Highwayman”, “The
King of Robbers” is said to be buried at St Thomas The Martyr
Parish Church in Up Holland. Using Up Holland as his base, Lyon’s
career spanned thirty years before he was finally executed in
Lancaster in 1815 and brought back for burial. The then landlord of
The Old Dog, which still stands on the steep Alma Hill street,
reportedly brought his body back to the village for
burial.
For further information on our villages
visit towns and villages in West Lancashire
The National Trust’s Rufford Old
Hall
200 Liverpool Road, Rufford, L40 1SG
Tel: 01704 821254
Web: www.nationaltrust.org.uk (external
link)
The hall is
reputedly home to the lady in grey - one of three ghosts said to
prowl the medieval National Trust property on the outskirts of
Rufford village. Elizabeth Hesketh, who fell ill while her husband
was at war many years ago, refuses to leave while she waits in vain
for his return.
Tourists are tempted back each year by the
great hall - a suggested site of a performance by Shakespeare - and
a collection of 16th and 17th century oak furniture, arms, armour
and tapestries. The Hesketh family's 400-year residency at Rufford
is evidenced by numerous portraits while, outside, Rufford's
late-Victorian styled grounds feature topiary, an orchard and a
woodland walk.
Scarisbrick Hall
Scarisbrick’s 100ft
tower attracts visitors from miles around.
Occupied today by the scholars of Kingswood
College independent school, the hall was home to the Scarisbrick
family until 1948. It is one of the finest examples of Gothic
Revival architecture in the country and was designed by Flemish
artist Edward Pugin and is believed to have inspired his later work
at the Houses of Parliament. Other famous features include stained
glass windows and 27 portraits of British kings and queens.
West Lancashire has a wealth of historic and
listed buildings, in addition to those already mentioned, that have
contributed to our rich and varied history. For more information
visit
Listed buildings and historical interest.
Related
information