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Medlar-with-Wesham
Medlar-with-Wesham (locally /ˈwɛsəm/ WESS-əm) is a civil parish and an electoral ward on the Fylde in Lancashire, England, which contains the town of Wesham and the hamlet of Medlar. It lies within the Borough of Fylde, and had a population of 3,245 in 1,294 households recorded in the 2001 census rising to 3,584 in 1,511 households, at the 2021 census. Wesham is adjacent to the town of Kirkham.
The name Medlar derives from a combination of the Old English middel meaning 'middle' and the Old Norse erg meaning 'shieling'. The name Wesham derives from the plural form of the Old English westhūs meaning 'west houses'.
In John Cary's 1794 map of England, Wales, and Scotland, the separate settlements are shown as Medlar and Westham. A Topographical Dictionary of England, published by Samuel Lewis in 1848, says:
This place is stated to have come to the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem by the gift of Cicely, daughter of Roger de Gernet; the Lancasters subsequently gave it to the abbey of Cockersand. On the dissolution of monasteries, the land seems to have been granted or sold to the family of Westby; in the reign of Philip and Mary, William Westbye held "Medlarghe," "Wessham," and other property in this quarter, and his descendants long continued to reside at Mowbrick Hall, now a farmhouse. Bradkirk, in the township, was possessed in the reign of Edward III., as a manor, by a family of the same name, and was their residence for centuries: the estate became latterly the property of Hugh Hornby, Esq., of Ribby Hall, by purchase from Mr. Kearsley.
— A Topographical Dictionary of England, 1848
The area within the boundaries of the parish has been populated since early medieval times, prior to the Norman Conquest, with separate settlements at Bradkirk, Medlar, Wesham and Mowbreck. There was also a single moated farmstead at Pasture Barn midway between Medlar and Mowbreck. The present bridleway of Mowbreck Lane was the medieval route to Treales.
The modern town of Wesham is only about 160 years old, and developed as the railway expanded to serve the growing popularity of resort towns such as Blackpool. From the 1920s to the 1950s huge numbers of steam trains plied their way to the coast via the railway station at Kirkham and Wesham. Locals pronounce the name Wess-um. Situated to the north of the railway station, from 1⁄2 to 2+1⁄2 miles (1 to 4 km) north of Kirkham, in 1870–72 it had an area of 1,971 acres (798 ha) and property worth £3,441. The population in 1851 was 170 but by 1861 was 563. The increase of population was mainly due employment opportunities offered by the cotton mills. At that time the manor of Wesham, with Mowbreck Hall, belonged to J. T. Fazakerley-Westby. The hall was of red brick, castellated with stone and contained a domestic Roman Catholic chapel. It was once reputed to be haunted and had at one time been used as a Catholic school, one of whose pupils was Bible scholar George Leo Haydock.
A large school, used also as a lecture hall, belonging to the Independents, was built at Wesham in 1864 and opened in 1866. The site is now used as a retail showroom. The boundaries of Wesham were established over 100 years ago and did not change until local government changes in 1935 meant that 82 acres (33 ha) and 48 residents were transferred to Kirkham. Kirkham lost only 8 acres (3.2 ha) of land, but with no loss of residents.
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Medlar-with-Wesham
Medlar-with-Wesham (locally /ˈwɛsəm/ WESS-əm) is a civil parish and an electoral ward on the Fylde in Lancashire, England, which contains the town of Wesham and the hamlet of Medlar. It lies within the Borough of Fylde, and had a population of 3,245 in 1,294 households recorded in the 2001 census rising to 3,584 in 1,511 households, at the 2021 census. Wesham is adjacent to the town of Kirkham.
The name Medlar derives from a combination of the Old English middel meaning 'middle' and the Old Norse erg meaning 'shieling'. The name Wesham derives from the plural form of the Old English westhūs meaning 'west houses'.
In John Cary's 1794 map of England, Wales, and Scotland, the separate settlements are shown as Medlar and Westham. A Topographical Dictionary of England, published by Samuel Lewis in 1848, says:
This place is stated to have come to the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem by the gift of Cicely, daughter of Roger de Gernet; the Lancasters subsequently gave it to the abbey of Cockersand. On the dissolution of monasteries, the land seems to have been granted or sold to the family of Westby; in the reign of Philip and Mary, William Westbye held "Medlarghe," "Wessham," and other property in this quarter, and his descendants long continued to reside at Mowbrick Hall, now a farmhouse. Bradkirk, in the township, was possessed in the reign of Edward III., as a manor, by a family of the same name, and was their residence for centuries: the estate became latterly the property of Hugh Hornby, Esq., of Ribby Hall, by purchase from Mr. Kearsley.
— A Topographical Dictionary of England, 1848
The area within the boundaries of the parish has been populated since early medieval times, prior to the Norman Conquest, with separate settlements at Bradkirk, Medlar, Wesham and Mowbreck. There was also a single moated farmstead at Pasture Barn midway between Medlar and Mowbreck. The present bridleway of Mowbreck Lane was the medieval route to Treales.
The modern town of Wesham is only about 160 years old, and developed as the railway expanded to serve the growing popularity of resort towns such as Blackpool. From the 1920s to the 1950s huge numbers of steam trains plied their way to the coast via the railway station at Kirkham and Wesham. Locals pronounce the name Wess-um. Situated to the north of the railway station, from 1⁄2 to 2+1⁄2 miles (1 to 4 km) north of Kirkham, in 1870–72 it had an area of 1,971 acres (798 ha) and property worth £3,441. The population in 1851 was 170 but by 1861 was 563. The increase of population was mainly due employment opportunities offered by the cotton mills. At that time the manor of Wesham, with Mowbreck Hall, belonged to J. T. Fazakerley-Westby. The hall was of red brick, castellated with stone and contained a domestic Roman Catholic chapel. It was once reputed to be haunted and had at one time been used as a Catholic school, one of whose pupils was Bible scholar George Leo Haydock.
A large school, used also as a lecture hall, belonging to the Independents, was built at Wesham in 1864 and opened in 1866. The site is now used as a retail showroom. The boundaries of Wesham were established over 100 years ago and did not change until local government changes in 1935 meant that 82 acres (33 ha) and 48 residents were transferred to Kirkham. Kirkham lost only 8 acres (3.2 ha) of land, but with no loss of residents.
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