Heskin

 The name Heskin is thought to come from the old welsh "heskenn", which means the area where the rushes grow, ie. a marsh. Curiously Heskin New Hall is older than Heskin Old Hall. The New Hall is generally ascribed to the 16th century. Thurston Mawdesley, a local landowner acquired it during the reign of Charles I. The attractive weathered brick building was until recently owned by Lancashire County Council, and it now houses antiques and memorabilia stalls. The Old Hall stands on the site of a much older manor house which was demolished early in the 19th century. Blackburn House is probably of a similar age to the original Heskin Hall and contains some wattle and daub inner walls. It confronted Heskin Old Hall across the parish boundary and presumably acted as a warning to intruders. Sir James Pemberton, a Heskin born man who became Lord Mayor of London, endowed a free Grammar School in 1507. The original building still stands although the school is now housed nearby.

Rufford

 The name Rufford is believed to come from "the rough ford", perhaps referring to the point at which the Mawdesley road crossed the River Douglas. The Church of St. Mary was built in Gothic style in 1869, replacing an earlier building. It contains many monuments to the Hesketh family including one dating from about 1458 showing 11 children. Rufford Old Hall is a medieval timber framed manor house which is owned by the National Trust. The Great Hall was built about 1480 by Thomas Hesketh and contains a magnificent ornate hammerbeam roof and a carved oak movable screen. The west wing, which contained accommodation for the lord and his family has disappeared, but the east wing, which included the kitchen, was rebuilt in 1662; it is a good example of Jacobean brick architecture. The family left the Old Hall in the 1760's to live at Rufford New Hall. The Heskeths however returned to live at the Old Hall in the 1820's and the first Lord Hesketh presented it to the National Trust in 1936. The River Douglas was an important means of communication in the 18th century and by 1740 a series of 8 locks had opened the river up to shipping as far as Wigan, it was however tidal. As time went on artificial cuts or canals were made to bypass difficult sections of the river creating the Douglas Navigation Canal; none of these original river locks remain today. The Wigan-Burscough section of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and the Rufford Branch, as they are now called, are man-made as far as Sollom, just north of Rufford.

Croston

 Town Bridge, the old packhorse bridge that you cross as you enter the village is a fine example of its kind; it was built in 1672. The name Croston derives from the village cross, literally "town with a cross". It was one of the earliest religious centres in the area and was already a valuable possession at the time of the Norman Conquest when, in 1094, Count Roger de Poitou granted it to the Abbey of St. Martin of Sees. The Parish used to be much larger and included the townships of Mawdesley, Bispham, Bretherton, Ulnes Walton, Tarleton, Hesketh Bank, Rufford, Chorley and Much Hoole. The present Parish Church of St. Michael and All Angels was largely built in the 16th century but contains a double piscina believed to date from the 13th- 14th century. Croston Park stands to the south of the village. Several Halls have existed; the most recent, designed by Pugin, was built in the 19th century and demolished about 30 years ago. The Chapel of the Holy Cross stands in what were the grounds of Croston Hall. The Chapel, also designed Pugin, was started in 1854 and replaces one which was attached to the Hall; it was extensively restored in 1965. The present village cross was erected in 1953 but it stands on a much older base, the old cross was probably removed during the Cornmonwealth. The school in the churchyard was founded in 1662 by James Hyett, a puritan priest, as a grammar school, although another priest, John Bradley, had obtained permission to open one as early as 1372. There are several interesting almshouses in the village including some erected in 1692 by Henry and Isobel Croston. In the 18th century flax growing and weaving played an important part in the local economy; a number of three storey weavers' cottages can still be seen along Drinkhouse Lane and near Town Bridge.

Eccleston

 The first mention of a parish church in 'Aycleton' was in 1094, although little of the Norman Church remains, just a rounded Norman pillar at the foot of the altar tomb. The name of the village suggests an early strong connection with the church and it has been suggested that a stone resting on the altar tomb is Saxon and is possibly part of a cross. The Church of St. Mary the Virgin dates back to the 14th century, it was restored in the 18th. and 19th centuries. There are some interesting medieval items including the windows of the south west side and the font which has panels carved with signs of the Passion including nails, a spear, hammer, whip etc., it also has the Stanley arms and the three legs of Man showing it's links to the Earls of Derby. A 15th century table tomb has a brass depicting a priest. The old rectory was sold in 1956 and is now called Eccleston Hall. The Methodist Church fronting the main road was built in 1900. The original chapel, built in 1863, stands behind the present church and is now used as a church hall. The moated Bradley Hall was the manor house of the Molyneux family of Sephton, it is now a farmhouse. Brick House, a misnomer today since it has been rendered, is situated near to the Church. It was built in the 17th century and was the home of the Dicconson family. Red House gives its name to Redhouse lane although it is now covered in rough cast. The red sandstone building dates from 1673.

Parbold

There is mention of Parbold as being held by Robert Fitz Henry, Lord of Lathom, in 1189. It became part of the barony of Manchester after the Norman conquest. Robert Fitz Henry was also said to have founded Burscough Priory. The manor was acquired by a John Crisp in 1680 whose son Thomas reconstructed the earlier Parbold Hall in the Palladian style that we see today. There was a Chapel of Ease at Parbold, Douglas Chapel, sited close to Bridge 39 on the canal, all that remains now at the site is a modern cross carved from the old threshold stone. The Chapel was built in 1526 and the ruins demolished in 1878. The table, font and pulpit are now in Parbold Parish Church and the altar of Mawdesley Parish Church is made out of oak from the Chapel. Parbold was little more than a farming community until the coming of the railway in the 19th century. About this time several collieries were opened in the area, stone quarrying was also an important industry, and the area around Wood Lane was where some of the wealthy Manchester cotton merchants had their summer retreats. The Churches in the village both date from the same period; Christ Church, part way up the hill, was built in 1875, and the Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady and All Saints was built in 1884. Parbold Bottle, a stone monument sited at the top of Parbold Hill, was built to celebrate the passing of the Reform Act in 1832. It was rebuilt in 1958.

Dalton

Dominating Dalton is Ashurst's Hill which is crowned by the Beacon. As the name implies it was part of a chain intended to serve as a signal of national emergency. It was erected by Lord Skelmersdale in 1798 when a French invasion seemed imminent. A plaque on the monument records that it was donated to Wigan Corporation by Thomas Meadows, a journalist. Ashhurst's Hill is riddled with underground quarries and workings, the result of flagstone mining, once a major industry in the area. There is little surface evidence to be seen of this today. The remains of the 17th century Ashurst's Hall, a gatehouse and dovecote are to be found close to the church; the gatehouse has a stone plaque with the arms of the Ashurst family, their motto and the date 1649. Prior's Wood Hall, to be found on the north side of the hill is of similar age although not much of the original building remains. It may be the house mentioned in the Charter of Burscough Priory.

Leeds - Liverpool Canal

The scheme for the canal was drawn up by John Longbotham in 1768 and the Liverpool-Parbold section was opened in 1774. However the company ran into financial problems and the work stopped. The route should have turned north at Parbold to go to Barrowford by way of Mawdesley, Eccleston, Leyland and the Ribble Valley, but as a temporary measure the company built a link with the Douglas Navigation Canal to get to Gathurst and thus with the River Douglas giving access to the Wigan coalfields. After several years wrangling a new line was authorised to get from Barrowford to the north of Chorley, by way of Burnley and Blackburn, enabling them to link with the southern part of the Lancaster Canal to reach Wigan and the Douglas Navigation Canal and thus connect Leeds with Liverpool. This was completed in 1816. The only remaining evidence to be seen of the intended northern route is a short stub about 200yds east of the Mill Lane Bridge in Parbold.