Warton, Lancaster

infobox UK place
country = England
latitude= 54.1488
longitude= -2.7755
population= 2,315 (2001 census)
official_name= Warton
map_type= Lancashire
shire_district= Lancaster
shire_county = Lancashire
region= North West England
constituency_westminster= Lancaster
post_town= CARNFORTH
postcode_district = LA5
postcode_area= LA
dial_code= 01524
os_grid_reference= SD493728

Warton is a village and civil parish in north Lancashire in the north-west of England, close to the boundary with Cumbria, with a population of around 2,000. It is a village steeped in history; its earliest recording as a settlement is made in Domesday Book written in 1086. The nearest town to Warton is Carnforth, which was originally part of Warton parish. It has connections to the first President of the United States, George Washington: Washington's ancestor of seven generations, Lawrence Washington, is rumoured to have helped build the village church of St Oswald. The parish covers an area in excess of 11,000 acres (45 km²) and is predominantly rural.

History

The exact origins of St Oswald's Church (formerly Holy Trinity) and its associated parish are unknown. It is believed that the church in this parish was established well before the Norman Conquest in 1066. The oldest portion of the church is the south wall which is of 14th century origin, though the earliest recorded incumbent dates from 1190.

By the start of the 13th Century, Warton had flourished into an important staging post on the route north to Carlisle, Northumbria and Scotland. So much so, it was granted a charter for a Wednesday market in about 1200 during the reign of King John. This confirms the economic importance of Warton in those early times.

The oldest surviving architecture other than the church is the ruined rectory, built around 1267; records exist of work being carried out on the rectory until 1332. The ruins are in good condition with the gables surviving to almost their original height (around 30 ft).

Warton is the ancestral birthplace of George Washington, the first popularly elected President of the United States. Lawrence Washington, seven generations prior to George Washington and his family, arrived in Warton around 1300, and Robert Washington, Lawrence's great-grandson, is rumoured to have help build the clock tower of St Oswald's Church. The Washington family coat of arms, three mullets and two bars, can be found in the church and is said to have inspired the design of the flag of the United States.

The village continued to expand during the 16th and 17th century, a large number of houses being built to line the backbone of the village, Main Street, running through Carnforth, Warton, Yealand Conyers and Yealand Redmayne

Until the 18th century, Warton was a minor provider of limestone quarried from Warton Crag. With the invention of the steam locomotive this industry boomed, causing Carnforth, the small hamlet where the local train station was placed, to expand and outgrow Warton in a matter of decades. A number of the old 17th century lime kilns can still be found dotted around Warton Crag, disused due to their inefficiency.

The advancement of Carnforth's iron industry and locomotive progress meant that Warton expanded as a place for the workforce to live, and a number of cheap terraced housing filled up the gaps on Main Street around the turn of the 20th century. By the 1940s Warton had two council estates, a large number of shops and at least two public houses. Warton now has a cricket club since 1907 and they were crowned westmorland league champions for the first time in 2007.

References