Halton-with-Aughton
| Halton-with-Aughton | |
 War Memorial, Halton |
|
  Halton-with-Aughton Halton-with-Aughton shown within Lancashire | |
| Population | 2,360 (2001) |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SD502648 |
| Civil parish | Halton with Aughton |
| District | Lancaster |
| Shire county | Lancashire |
| Region | North West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LANCASTER |
| Postcode district | LA2 |
| Dialling code | 01524 |
| Police | Lancashire |
| Fire | Lancashire |
| Ambulance | North West |
| EU Parliament | North West England |
| UK Parliament | Morecambe and Lunesdale |
| |
Halton-with-Aughton is a civil parish located 3 miles (5 km) east of Lancaster, England on the north bank of the River Lune. The main settlement is the village of Halton-on-Lune, commonly just called Halton, in the west, and the parish stretches to the hamlet of Aughton in the east. It lies in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, and has a population of 2,360.[1]
Halton
Halton consists primarily of modern housing, amongst which can be found a number of 17th and 18th century buildings. It has a primary school and there is a post office and other local amenities including a very successful Community Centre, The Centre @Halton (http://www.haltoncentre.org). Halton is also home to the new Lancaster Cohousing Project.[2] The village is on the edge of the new proposed Heysham-to-M6 link road.[3]
The 19th-century Textile Mills once harnessed the power of the Lune. Earthworks on Castle Hill show evidence of an 11th-century Norman motte & bailey castle. In the churchyard of St Wilfrid's Church stands the Halton Cross believed to have been carved by Norsemen over 1,000 years ago.
Halton Castle was situated in the village of Halton. Halton was the centre of important Anglo-Saxon manor held by Earl Tostig, the brother of King Harold before the Norman Conquest.[4] It is likely that a motte and bailey castle was constructed on the site in the late 11th century. However Halton’s prominence was lost in the 12th century when favour shifted to Lancaster, and Halton Castle was abandoned. Only earthworks now remain and it is privately owned with no public right of way.
Halton railway station was on the opposite bank of the river from the village, linked by a narrow toll bridge. The station closed in 1966, but the station building and part of one platform survive beside the cycle path along the disused "little" North Western Railway.
Aughton
Aughton was known as 'Actun' in the 1086 Domesday Book, meaning a place where oak trees grow. A riverside hamlet by the River Claughton, Aughton consists mainly of stone cottages and St Saviour's Church, which is located on Aughton Road to the north of the hamlet. The church was built in 1864 and designed by architect E. G. Paley.[5]
The hamlet is made famous every 21 years when the gigantic Aughton Pudding is baked over a celebratory weekend. The pudding is reputedly the world’s largest.
References
- Footnotes
- ↑ Office for National Statistics : Census 2001 : Parish Headcounts : Lancaster Retrieved 2009-09-18
- ↑ Lancaster Cohousing accessed 16 October 2011
- ↑ Heysham to M6 Link, Lancashire County Council, accessed 16 October 2011
- ↑ Clark (2010), p. 142
- ↑ Hartwell, Clare; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009) [1969], Lancashire: North, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 88, ISBN 978-0-300-12667-9
- Bibliography
- Clark, Felicity H. (2010), "Wilfrid's Lands? The Lune Valley in its Anglican Context", in Server, Linda, Lancashire's Sacred Landscape, The History Press, ISBN 0-7524-5587-7
External links
- Halton with Aughton Parish Council Website
- Lancashire County Council
- St Wilfred's C of E School
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