Downholland Cross

Downholland is a civil parish in Lancashire, England, on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain. The population at the 2011 census was 913. The area contains several villages including Haskayne, Barton and Downholland Cross, and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the A5147. It also contains attractions such as Farmer Ted’s. Downholland was originally a township in the parish of Halsall, becoming formally a separate parish in 1866. It formed part of West Lancashire Rural District and, since 1974, is part of the West Lancashire district. Downholland is located very near the fields that were the purported location of Argleton.

The A5147 is a road in northern England that runs from Maghull in Merseyside to Scarisbrick in Lancashire.

St Thomas' Church is in Church Lane, Lydiate, Sefton, Merseyside, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Ormskirk, the archdeaconry of Warrington, and the diocese of Liverpool. Its benefice has been combined with that of St Cuthbert, Halsall. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

Haskayne is a small village in the county of Lancashire, England, and on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain. It is to the north of Downholland Cross on the A5147 and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The village is in Downholland civil parish, and forms part of the Aughton & Downholland ward, which is represented by three Conservative Party councillors and is part of the district of West Lancashire.

Lydiate Hall was a 16th-century hall in Lydiate, Merseyside, England. The hall was a black-and-white half-timbered house, and was similar in design to Speke Hall. The hall was accompanied by a private chapel. It was a known Catholic house during the time of Elizabeth I of England, and the building contained at least three priest holes. The hall became a ruin in the early 20th century, and is now part of the grounds of Lydiate Hall Farm on Southport Road, Lydiate. It is now part of a conservation area, along with the nearby Scotch Piper Inn and St Catherine's Chapel. Its ruins were Grade II listed in 1968.

St Catherine's Chapel, located in Lydiate, Merseyside, England, and known locally as Lydiate Abbey, was built c. 1500 for the private worship of the Ireland family, who held the Lydiate lordship from 1410–1673.Its use as a private chapel probably ceased c. 1550, following Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries, though a small cemetery on the same grounds was still in use until the latter 19th century. The Chapel survives as a ruin, and is situated on the A5147, adjacent to the Scotch Piper Inn. It is now a Grade II* listed building, and a Scheduled Monument. In recent years, outdoor performances of Shakespeare have been held annually in the Chapel grounds. Markets are also held here in the summer where food and spices, face painting and carnival games are held.

The Scotch Piper Inn in Lydiate, North West, England is the oldest pub in the historic county of Lancashire. The building dates from 1320 and is a Grade II* listed building.It is located on the A5147, 9 miles (14 km) from Liverpool and 11 miles (18 km) from Southport in the ceremonial county of Merseyside. It stands close to the site of Lydiate Hall and next to the remains of St Catherine's Chapel.

Lydiate is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton on Merseyside, England but historically in Lancashire. It is located 1.5 miles (2 km) north of Maghull, with which it has a common history. At the 2001 Census the civil parish of Lydiate had a population of 6,672, reducing to 6,308 at the 2011 Census.

The manor of Lydiate is situated about 10 miles (16 km) from Liverpool on the Southport Road. From the Domesday Book it appears that: Uctred held Lydiate. There are six bovates of land, and a wood one league long and two furlongs broad. It was worth sixty-four pence. The ancient reading of Lydiate points to its etymology “lea”, a field or pasture and “ate”, a gate. We find it written “Lydyate” in very early deeds. Lydiate is one of the best-documented manors in England. Following the Norman Conquest Uctred was dispossessed and the Conqueror granted Lydiate to Roger of Poictou, a great Normal earl who accordingly gave the Manor to Paganus de Vilars to hold it under him on the service of a knight’s fee. The dependents of Paganus de Vilars took the surname of “de Lydiate”. In the early 15th century the Lordship passed by marriage into the de Ireland family and remained with the family until the death of Laurence Ireland in 1673 when he was succeeded by his son-in-law Charles Anderton. The Blundell family of Ince-Blundell inherited the title Lord of Lydiate through the marriage of Mary Anderton to Henry Blundel in the early 18th century. The title passed from Weld-Blundell to Downing and then the Forster-Dean family. The current Lord of Lydiate is Peter Forster-Dean who is thirty-second in descent from Roger of Poictou.

Barton was a railway station in the village of Barton, Lancashire, on the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway. Situated to the south of the roadbridge on Station Road (off the A5147), the station opened on 1 November 1887, and was renamed Downholland on 2 June 1924. Downholland largely served as the terminus for trains coming from Southport (initially Southport Central, then Southport Chapel Street from 1901), though through trains to Altcar and Hillhouse operated until 1926. The Barton Branch was notable for the "Altcar Bob" service, introduced in July 1906. The station closed to passengers on 26 September 1938, though the line remained open for goods traffic until 21 January 1952. The tracks were lifted shortly thereafter. The site now lies within the boundaries of a local nature reserve, and the heavily overgrown platforms can still be seen.

Plex Moss Lane Halt was a railway station between Halsall and Barton in Lancashire. The station opened in July 1906 as a halt on the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway, and consisted of simple cinder based platforms at track level which required steps to be lowered from the coach for passenger access. It was situated to the south of the road bridge on Plex Moss Lane, to which it was connected by wooden steps. The station closed to passengers on 26 September 1938 and the tracks were lifted shortly after the line closed in 1952. In 2015 the bridge and trackbed were plainly visible, the latter as a wide band of mature trees.

Altcar and Hillhouse was a railway station located on the Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway near Great Altcar, Lancashire, England. The station opened on 1 September 1884, and from 1887 to 1926 also served as the southern terminus of the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway, which it connected with at Hillhouse Junction, between Altcar and Mossbridge. Thereafter, the southern terminus of the LSPJR regular services became Barton (or Downholland as it was occasionally known). The "Altcar Bob" service, introduced in July 1906, was so named because it terminated here until that time. Altcar and Hillhouse was situated on the south side of the B5195 road, near the sewage works.