Barton, Lancashire Genealogy

England Lancashire  Lancashire Parishes

Chapelry History
BARTON, a township, in the parish and union of Preston, hundred of Amounderness, N. division of the county of Lancaster, 4½ miles (N. N. W.) from Preston; containing 413 inhabitants. It lies on the road, railway, and canal from Preston to Lancaster, and comprises 2400 acres; about 600 are arable, 500 meadow, 90 wood, and the remainder pasture. The surface is undulated, being at the foot of the Bleasdale fells, the peculiar swell of which is continued in a lower degree throughout the township; and the distant fells, and the winding, rural, and wooded lanes, render the scenery varied and pleasing. From the upper grounds are obtained extensive views over the level Fylde, with the sea beyond, embracing the Cumberland and Welsh hills when the atmosphere is clear. The soil is deep and productive, but retentive of moisture, as is the subsoil, which for the most part is a reddish clay, with occasionally marl, sand, peat, and limestone. There are indications of coal in the higher parts; and a quarry of limestone is wrought, more valuable for building purposes than for burning. The township constitutes part of the chapelry of Broughton, and there is a private chapel on the Barton estate for the convenience of the tenantry, the surplus seats being let to the inhabitants of the adjoining township of Myerscough. This chapel, which was in existence before the Reformation, is in the Italian-Gothic style, with a handsome doorway, and has a stained window enriched with the arms of the families now and formerly connected with the estate: the building was enlarged in 1845, by the late George Jacson, Esq., at a considerable expense. Barton Cross, a conspicuous and venerable ruin, which stood where three lanes meet, was mischievously pulled down by some idle persons in 1845.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis (1848), pp. 161-164. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50782 Date accessed: 25 June 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
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
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