Thornton, Lancashire

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Coordinates: 53°52′16″N 3°00′14″W / 53.871°N 3.004°W

Thornton
Marsh Mill, on Fleetwood Road
Thornton Thornton shown within Lancashire
OS grid reference	SD339421
District	Wyre
Shire county	Lancashire
Region	North West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	THORNTON-CLEVELEYS
Postcode district	FY5
Dialling code	01253
Police	Lancashire
Fire	Lancashire
Ambulance	North West
EU Parliament	North West England
UK Parliament	Wyre and Preston North
List of places UK England Lancashire

Thornton (together with its neighbouring town of Cleveleys, known as Thornton-Cleveleys) is a village on the Fylde, in Lancashire, England, about five miles north of Blackpool and two miles south of Fleetwood. It is in the Borough of Wyre. The two communities are linked by Victoria Road.

History

Thornton is first mentioned in 1086 in the Domesday Book, where it was referred to as Torentum. At the time it covered a large area including what are now Cleveleys and Fleetwood, and had a very low population density. It is thought that a settlement had existed at the site since the Iron Age, and a Roman road passes close to the village. The area remained lightly populated until 1799, when the marshland around the village was drained and agricultural production began on a large scale.^[1]

A railway station was opened in Thornton in 1865. The opening of salt works at nearby Burn Naze by the United Alkali Company in the early 1890s, led to significant expansion of the village, with new houses and community buildings constructed. Thornton became an Urban District Council in 1900, surviving until 1974 when it became part of the Wyre Borough Council.^[1]

Transport

Thornton for Cleveleys railway station was formerly the principal intermediate stop on the Fleetwood branch of the LMS/British Rail London Midland Region railway, running from Poulton-le-Fylde, but it has been years since the station was used, and with the recent fencing-over of the level crossing in Station Road/Victoria Road East in order to prevent youths from congregating on the tracks, the glory days of Thornton are long since gone. However, a decision by an action group based in Poulton means they will finance a feasibility study into bringing the railway back to Thornton and Fleetwood.^[2]

Ameneties

Marsh Mill, a large well-preserved windmill, built in 1794, is a prominent landmark. It was commissioned by Bold Hesketh, uncle of Peter Hesketh (later Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood) who would go on to play a prominent role in the expansion of Fleetwood. Tragedy struck in May 1930, when a Miss Alice Baldwin and a Mrs Mary Jane Bailey visited the windmill with an interest in purchasing it. However, when both women stepped onto the fantail platform, the platform collapsed and the women fell to their deaths.

Thornton contains a number of schools, including Baines Endowed Primary School, Thornton Primary School, Stanah Primary School, Royles Brook Primary School, and Millfield Science and Performing Arts College in addition to a small public library.^[3]

People

Alan Taylor, former professional football goalkeeper
John Robb - musician (Goldblade), presenter, music critic. Robb was born in Fleetwood and grew up in Thornton
Victoria Hesketh ("Little Boots"), singer
William Lavery, former professional footballer
Aiden Grimshaw, contestant on X Factor 2010. Grimshaw was born in Blackpool and currently resides in Thornton-Cleveleys

Gallery

The former site of Thornton for Cleveleys railway station
Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church
County Library, at Four Lane Ends
Rows of cottages in Thornton

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 History - Thornton Through Time
↑ "Boost for plans to reopen Poulton to Fleetwood rail link". Blackpool Gazette. 8 August 2007. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
↑ "Welcome to the Library and Information web site - Thornton Home Page". Lancashire County Council. Retrieved 26 February 2008.

External links

v t e Borough of Wyre

Towns	Fleetwood Garstang Poulton-le-Fylde Preesall Thornton-Cleveleys Thornton Cleveleys

Villages	Bilsborrow Bleasdale Bonds Bowgreave Cabus Calder Vale Carleton Catterall Churchtown Dolphinholme Eagland Hill Forton Great Eccleston Hambleton Inskip Knott End-on-Sea Nateby Oakenclough Out Rawcliffe Pilling Rossall Scorton Scronkey St Michael's on Wyre Stake Pool Stalmine Winmarleigh

Parishes	Barnacre-with-Bonds Bleasdale Cabus Catterall Claughton Fleetwood Forton Garstang Great Eccleston Hambleton Inskip-with-Sowerby Kirkland Myerscough & Bilsborrow Nateby Nether Wyresdale Out Rawcliffe Pilling Preesall Scorton Stalmine-with-Staynall Upper Rawcliffe-with-Tarnacre Winmarleigh

Transport	Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramroad Blackpool tramway Fleetwood Branch Line Garstang & Knot-End Railway North Lancs Steam Navigation Preston & Wyre Railway Railway stations: Poulton-le-Fylde Disused: Burn Naze Halt Carr Lane Cockerham Cross Halt Fleetwood Garstang and Catterall Garstang Town Knott End-on-Sea Nateby Pilling Poulton Curve Halt Preesall Thornton–Cleveleys Wyre Dock

Churches	Barnacre: All Saints Bilsborrow: St Hilda Bonds: Sts Mary and Michael Churchtown: St Helen Fleetwood: St Mary St Nicholas St Peter Garstang: St Thomas Pilling: Old St John the Baptist St John the Baptist Poulton: St John the Evangelist St Chad Preesall: St Oswald St Michael's: St Michael Scorton: St Peter Thornton: Christ Church Winmarleigh: St Luke

Other buildings & structures	Beach Lighthouse Fleetwood Museum Fleetwood Pier Forton Services Greenhalgh Castle Highbury Stadium RNAS Inskip Listed in Fleetwood Listed in Poulton Marsh Mill North Euston Hotel Pharos Lighthouse Shard Bridge Winmarleigh Hall Wyresdale Park Wyre Light

Education	Baines School Blackpool and The Fylde College Garstang Community Academy Millfield High School Myerscough College Rossall School Saint Aidan's Technology College Stanah Community Primary School

Sport	Fleetwood Flyers Fleetwood Town F.C. Fylde Flyers

Media	Fleetwood Weekly News

Topography	Hills: Fair Snape Fell Parlick Rivers: Brock Calder Wyre

Politics	Council elections 2003 2007 2011 Constituencies: Fylde North Lancaster and Fleetwood Lancaster and Wyre Wyre and Preston North

v t e Ceremonial county of Lancashire

North West England Portal

Unitary authorities	Blackburn with Darwen Blackpool

Boroughs or districts	City of Lancaster City of Preston Burnley Chorley Fylde Hyndburn Pendle Ribble Valley Rossendale South Ribble West Lancashire Wyre

Major settlements	Accrington Adlington Bacup Barnoldswick Blackburn Blackpool Brierfield Burnley Carnforth Chorley Clayton-le-Moors Cleveleys Clitheroe Colne Darwen Earby Fleetwood Garstang Great Harwood Haslingden Kirkham Lancaster Leyland Longridge Lytham St Annes Morecambe Nelson Ormskirk Oswaldtwistle Padiham Penwortham Poulton-le-Fylde Preesall Preston Rawtenstall Rishton Skelmersdale Thornton Wesham Whitworth See also: List of civil parishes in Lancashire

Rivers	Calder Darwen Douglas Hodder Irwell Lune Ribble Wyre

Canals	Lancaster Leeds and Liverpool

Topics	Flag Parliamentary constituencies Places Schools SSSIs Country houses Grade I buildings Grade II* buildings History Museums Lord Lieutenants High Sheriffs

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