Halsall

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Halsall
Lancashire
Halsall, June 2008.jpg
St Cuthbert's Church and Halsall War Memorial
Location
Grid reference: SD369101
Location: 53°35’2"N, 2°57’11"W
Data
Population: 2,057  (2011)
Post town: Ormskirk
Postcode: L39
Dialling code: 01704
Local Government
Council: West Lancashire
Parliamentary
constituency:
West Lancashire

Halsall is a village and civil parish in Lancashire, located close to Ormskirk on the A5147 road and Leeds and Liverpool Canal. In 2011, the parish had a population of 2,057 and covered an area of 6,921.4 acres (2,801.0 ha).[1] 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.

Facilities

In Halsall there is one church dedicated to St Cuthbert, which dates from the 14th century, the Rector is the Rev. Paul Robinson. 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, a financial adviser office (in what used to be the Halsall Arms public house) and a phone box, situated by the playing fields.

There are several listed buildings in Halsall including the Grade-I-listed church, Halsall Hall and a number of listed canal bridges amongst other structures. The section of canal in this area was partially fortified with pillboxes and anti tank measures as it formed part of stop line 14 in World War II.[2] The central feature in the village is the war memorial located in front of the church on what is now a traffic island.

History

Halsall Navvy by Thompson Dagnall

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, and a sculpture ("Halsall Navvy" by Thompson Dagnall) just across the bridge from the Saracen's Head pub now commemorates this. Halsall Hall still stands, but it is now divided into several houses.

Halsall built up from being a small farming settlement, and, 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.

Transport

The village is served by buses from Liverpool to Southport (and the reverse). Halsall railway station on the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway was in service between 1887 and 1938.

References

Outside links

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("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Halsall)
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