Local History

FLIXTON
 
This section of my Home page started with much enthusiasm but was halted in its tracks by ‘copyright’ problems. I asked if  I could use a photograph of the area, taken in 1935, where my house now stands (prior to building), as part of a personal Home page, but was informed copyright remains for 70 years unless you can trace the photographer and believe me I have tried! As they say ‘a lesson learned’. So apologies for the lack of  photos but  I  think  you will understand. This is only intended to be a brief study so please feel  free to contribute  further  information (or correct  mistakes), especially of  the ‘Shawtown’ area as it was known, the general area between the Roebuck pub and St. Michael's Church.
 
 
WHAT'S IN A NAME? 

There are four Flixton’s in England, two in Suffolk, one in Yorkshire and one in Lancashire. 

The two most likely name explanations are:  

Flik – old Danish name  
Tun – meaning farmstead or village  

Or  

Flux – a flowing (near);  [The river Mersey is close by] 
Tun – a farmstead or village  
  
Flixton, (Lancs) is first mentioned in the ‘Testa de Nevil’ about the 1200’s but refers to an earlier date involving land division. Robert of Lathom gave Flixton Church to his newly formed Monastery of Burscough in 1190.  

 
 
 
SHAWTOWN. 

It was believed that Shawtown derived its name from the Asshawe family but the area was known by this name well before the family took residence here. ‘Shaw’ meant a small wood, often found at the edge of the medieval manor, the modern dictionary defines the meaning as copse (coppice) – a small wood of small trees grown for periodical cutting. There is mention of Shaw Hall in 1508, and again, 1594 –“ there was a manor house on site”. “It is believed Shaw Hall was built between 1600 – 1625, possibly on a older Hall site”, by Leonard Ashawe. His family was originally from Heath Charnock, Lancs.  

In an entry from a surveyors book 1772 - 
Thos. Derbyshire sold land near Winnows Croft (near the churchyard) to widen the road towards Shawtown, (6d per yard = £2 - £6). This was to allow the people better access to the church. A ‘causey’ (causeway) was found under the soil all length.  

Flixton Sept. 6 1788  
There is mention of the Buck (Roebuck) with beds and stables for travellers.  
 
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This sent my search into another direction as I learned that certain areas, (fields), were not only named but, were written down individually on surveyors maps. The only readable copy I found was at the local studies library, it had been hand copied from the original. From 1843, the field (where my house now stands) {right} was written as Horse Copy, but from an 1818 surveyors map it reads Horse Coppice. As I was to find on numerous occasions spelling varied, but a small mystery had been solved for me. Below some information I found about the area. Click here for Full size map.
 
 
  • 1815, 1824, and 1888 Flixton Church was rebuilt.
  • 1816 - Bear baiting stopped.
  • 1823 - Public stocks removed (where the Jubilee Tree is now).
  • 1871/81 - Population of Urmston overtook that of Flixton.
  • 1891 - Flixton Golf Course was still a Rifle Range with targets.
  • 1894/95 - Township of Urmston Urban District came into being.
  • 1930’s - Datum – Urmston Owner Occupiers newsletter first published. This coincided with the growth of house building around that time.
It is at this point that I left my research (time constraint). The Local Studies Library, (Trafford), in Sale, has an excellent source of books and materials to begin researching local and family history. For my part it has been hard work but interesting and rewarding at the same time, especially reading of the customs from the period! 
 
 
 
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