Walton on the Hill St Mary, Lancashire Genealogy

England Lancashire  Lancashire Parishes

Parish History
WALTON-ON-THE-HILL (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and hundred of West Derby, S. division of Lancashire; containing 37,917 inhabitants, of whom 2454 are in Walton township, 3 miles (N. by E.) from Liverpool, on the road to Preston. In the time of Edward the Confessor, Winestan, a Saxon, held Waletone; and soon after the Conquest a family named Waleton or Walton is mentioned as having possessions here. By a charter of the 2nd of John, the king granted all his land in Waleton to Richard de Mida, son of Gilbert de Waleton; and the same family is named in connexion with various legal acts in subsequent reigns. In the reign of Henry IV. the Fazakerleys acquired the third part of Walton, including Spellawe or Spellow House, by marriage with an heiress of the Waltons; this estate was held by the late Colonel Fazakerley, and was sold by his family to the Earl of Derby. In the 15th century, Roger Walton died without male issue, and his two daughters carried their inheritance to their husbands. Margaret, the elder, married William Chorley, of Chorley: after the rebellion of 1715, the estate of the Chorleys, which was one-third of Walton, passed by sale to the Cromptons, who subsequently sold the property. Elizabeth, the younger daughter, conveyed her portion, also a third, with Walton Hall, to Richard Cross, Esq., of Liverpool and Cross Hall. This last family terminated in an heiress who intermarried with the Briers, by whom the estate was sold in 1746 to the Athertons. From the Athertons the property passed by sale to Thomas Leyland, Esq., who died in 1827, and was succeeded by his nephew, R. B. Leyland, Esq. The parish 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
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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.

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