Halsall is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in West Lancashire, England, located close to

Ormskirk Ormskirk is a market town in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. It is located north of Liverpool, northwest of St Helens, Merseyside, St Helens, southeast of Southport and southwest of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. Ormski ...

on the A5147 and Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

Description

Historically known as Heleshala, Herleshala, (

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

); Haleshal, 1224; Haleshale, 1275; Halsale, 1278; Halshale, 1292; Halleshale, 1332; Halsall, xv century. Halsall is a large ancient parish which grew from being a small farming settlement; reflecting this background, much of the land area of Halsall is sparsely populated with many isolated dwellings. The land area (and postal area) of Halsall extends quite a way towards Ainsdale along Carr Moss Lane, to a point where the border is closer to Ainsdale village centre than it is to Halsall. Halsall village is centred around St Cuthbert's Church and the war memorial. The church dates from the 14th century. The hall is to the south-west of the church; between them was a water-mill, taken down about 1880. Near the site of the water mill now stands the former Halsall Arms public house (now offices for business). There is a junior school, St Cuthbert's Church of England Primary School with around 140 pupils from age 4 to 11. The Saracen's Head is a large public house on the banks of the canal. There is also a garage, offices (in what used to be the Halsall Arms public house) and a red telephone box situated by the former post office. The church and much of the village stand on a rocky ridge, in marked contrast to the low-lying flat peat mossland between the ridge and the sand of Ainsdale and Birkdale. There are several listed buildings in Halsall including the Grade I listed church including Halsall Hall and a number of listed canal bridges amongst other structures. Halsall Hall still stands, but it has been subdivided into a number of dwellings. In 2011, the parish had a population of 2,057 and covered an area of . A natural curiosity of the district was the bituminous turf which was found in the Halsall moss. This was known as Lit-turf and could be burnt like a candle.

The Leeds to Liverpool Canal

Halsall is where the first sod was ceremonially dug (on 5 November 1770, by the Hon. Charles Mordaunt of Halsall Hall) for the commencement of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. A sculpture ("Halsall Navvy" by

Thompson Dagnall Thompson Dagnall is a British sculptor. Born in Liverpool on 15 February 1956, he attended Liverpool Polytechnic, Liverpool and University of Brighton, Brighton Polytechnics before gaining an Master of Arts, MA at Chelsea College of Art and Desig ...

) just across the bridge from the Saracen's Head pub now commemorates this. The canal in this area was partially fortified with pillboxes and anti tank measures as it formed part of Stop Line 14 in WW2.

Transport

The village has five bus stops, served by the 300 bus route, operated by Arriva North West, travelling from

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...

(and the reverse). Halsall railway station on the

Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway The Liverpool, Southport and Preston, Lancashire, Preston Junction Railway was formed in 1884, and totaled 7 miles. In 1897 it became part of Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, and on 1 May 1901, its northern terminus switched from to . It co ...

was in service between 1887 and 1938.

Culture

Halsall plays host to the annual scarecrow festival. The festival runs from June to July. The official route for the scarecrow festival was down the main road through the village but the scarecrows have spread to the surrounding areas. The scarecrow festival is not a competition.

References

External links