Places: Winwick
Place Type
Parish
County
Lancashire
Parish
Winwick
Deanery
Warrington
Causes
EDC 5/1/7 – Agnes Rosbothom contra Robert Haryson
WINWICK
The parish of Winwick, comprising the townships of Newton, Haydock, Winwick with Hulme, Ashton, Golborne, Lowton, Kenyon, Culcheth, Houghton, Middleton and Arbury and Southworth with Croft was in the historical county of Lancashire, but parts are now in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, not far from Warrington.
The parish was said to be the richest rectory in the country and the Stanley family, earls of Derby, were patrons, owning the advowson. The wealth of the living meant that the rectors were often wealthy pluralists such as Thomas Stanley, bishop of Sodor and Man, who also held the parish of Wigan.
The existence of a church in the parish was recorded in the Domesday Book. Although some parts of the medieval building survive, there were many later additions and alterations. In common with a number of local churches the building is said to have been severely damaged by Parliamentarian troops quartered there during the Civil War when two battles were fought nearby.
The chancel was rebuilt in 1847-1849 to designs by A.W. N. Pugin, the celebrated church architect.
A grammar school at Winwick was founded in the mid-sixteenth century after the dissolution of the chantries in Winwick church and refounded with the building of a new schoolhouse in 1618-1619.
Coal mining developed in the area from the late-sixteenth century, industry such as engineering and textiles followed; the construction of the Sankey Navigation, which opened in 1757, further stimulated the coal trade and industrial development. Agriculture is still widespread in the area, however.
The black and white images are reproduced from volumes of Transactions of the Historical Society of Lancashire and Cheshire with their kind permission.
Sources:
T. C. Barker, ‘The Sankey Navigation: the first Lancashire canal’, Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, vol. 100 (1948), pp. 121-156. Available online: https://www.hslc.org.uk/journal/vol-100-1948/
James Kendrick, ‘Warrington local sketches’, Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, vol. 29 (1876-77), pp. 33-42. Available online: https://www.hslc.org.uk/journal/vol-29-1876-1877/
T. G. Rylands, ‘Winwick and Culcheth in Lancashire: their place in history’, Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, vol. 32 (1879-80), pp. 53-66. Available online: https://www.hslc.org.uk/journal/vol-32-1879-1880/
Rev. W. A. Wickham, ‘Pugin and the re-building of Winwick chancel’, Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, vol. 59 (1907), pp. 132-160. Available online: https://www.hslc.org.uk/journal/vol-59-1907/
Historic England:
Church of St Oswald, Golborne Road (1278428)
https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1278428 National Heritage List for England
‘The parish of Winwick: Introduction, church and charities’, in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 4, ed. William Farrer and J Brownbill (London, 1911), pp. 122-132. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp122-132 [accessed 28 November 2022].