Walton on the Hill St Mary, Edge Hill, Lancashire Genealogy

England   Lancashire   Lancashire Parishes

See a List of the Parishes and Chapelries in Walton-on the-Hill

Chapelry History
The parish [of St Mary Walton-on-the-Hill] consists of the district parish of West Derby; the chapelries of Everton, Formby, and Kirkby; and the townships of Bootle with Linacre, Fazakerley, Kirkdale, Simonswood, and Walton. The area of the whole is 22,195 acres, and the lands are irrigated by the river Alt and the Rimrose brook, both tributary to the Mersey, which for the most part bounds the parish on the west: much of the soil is arable. In Walton township are 2230 acres. This locality presents an extremely pleasing appearance, and abounds in handsome mansions and villas; from Walton Hill are most extensive views, including the town of Liverpool, the Welsh hills, and the mountains of Cumberland. Among the best houses are Walton Hall, the residence of Richard Naylor, Esq.; Walton Priory, that of Robert Ellison Harvey, Esq.; and several detached mansions on Breeze Hill. On the side of the Ormskirk road is the unique establishment of Charles Whitfield Harvey, Esq., the successful rearer of prize-cattle; and Spellow House, an ancient mansion of stone, is surrounded by a large tract of land, appropriated by Mr. William Skirving to the rearing of foresttrees and nursery-plants in general, including those of the most rare description. The living is a rectory and vicarage, with a net income of £1300; patron, John Shaw Leigh, Esq., of Luton-Hoo, Beds. The church, which, up to 1698, was the mother church of Liverpool, was mostly rebuilt in 1829, at a cost of £5000; and is a noble structure in the early English style, with decorated portions, and a tower and pinnacles. From its great elevation, it is a conspicuous object in the surrounding scenery, and serves as a landmark. The interior is very beautiful, with a stained-wood roof, and east and west windows of painted glass: of the numerous monuments, one, a bust of the late Thomas Leyland, Esq., of Walton Hall, banker, is by Chantrey; another, to the father of the patron, is an elegant figure. The churchyard was enlarged in 1847. A district called Walton Breck, having a population of 1500, has lately been formed, of which the living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of William Brown, Esq., M.P.; net income, £250. The church, built in 1847, and dedicated to the Holy Trinity, is a cruciform structure in the early English style, with a tower surmounted by a graceful spire; and cost £5000. The interior is very neat, and is enriched by a beautiful eastern window of painted glass, executed by Messrs. Ballantine and Allan, of Edinburgh, and presented to the church by William Tyrer, Esq., of Breck-road, Everton; it is emblematical of the Trinity. Other churches are described in the several articles on the townships and on the district parish of West Derby. The day and Sunday schools in the parish are very numerous: in Walton is a school endowed with £43 per annum, and a house; also a girls' and infants' school, for which a house was built in 1847.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis (1848), pp. 453-457. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51374 Date accessed: 03 August 2010.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
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Census records
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Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Lancashire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
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 * England Jurisdictions 1851
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Web sites
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