Transactions (Volume 19) (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1902 Excerpt: ... THE ANCIENT CROSSES OF LANCASHIRE. BY HENRY TAYLOR. THE HUNDRED OF WEST DERBY. THIS hundred is bounded on the north by that of Leyland, on the south by the river Mersey, which divides it from' the county of Chester, on the east by the hundred of Salford, and on the west by the Irish Sea. The extreme length from the Snotter Stone at Hundred End on the north to Hale Head on the south is about twenty-six miles, and from Astley on the east to Formby Point on the west thirty miles. The coast line between Liverpool and Preston has altered much during the last fifty years, as a comparison of the old and new ordnance maps indicates, for the wild Atlantic winds, blowing on the vast accumulation of sand brought down by the Ribble, the Mersey, and the Dee upon this shallow shore have had the customary effect in such circumstances, and many square miles have thus been added to the land. Between Preston and Southport, in the estuary of the Ribble, this change is very noticeable, indeed the mouth of the Douglas, once a viking's haunt, has assumed a totally changed appearance. Although the country between the Ribble and the Mersey is divided into two hundreds, those of Leyland and West Derby, yet geographically it is one bit of land and may almost be considered a peninsula, for it is bounded by water on three sides. Indeed, from the earliest times it has been thus regarded, for in a deed prior to the Norman Conquest (the will of Wulfric, A.d. 1002) it is described as "Landa betwae Ribbel and Mosrse," and subsequently it was known as "Terra inter Ripam et Mersham." In this district between the two rivers no less than forty-two settlements are recorded in the Domesday Survey, and amongst them we recognise many existing towns and villages. I may mention Mele (Ravens Meols), ...