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Walton
Walton's name.....This is evidently of Saxon origin and assumed to be a corruption of
"Welltown" i.e. from "Well" and "Ton". A name which would correspond to the large number of wells found - or known to
be in existance - in and around an extensive area from the Old Church.
As nearly all ancient sites of religious edifices appear to have originally had a sacred well, stone or tree
connected with them, it seems safe to assume the above conclusion more than probable.
In Saxon times Walton would consist of a small settlement of wooden houses surrounded by a wooden stockade.
Built on a hill surrounded by forests and marshes and getting its fresh water from one of the many wells in the area.
St. Mary's Parish Church.....The first Church on the site was recorded in The Doomsday Book which was compiled
under the direction of William the Conqueror, it does not mention Lancashire as a district, nor Liverpool. Walton itself was
described as follows: "Winestan Tenebat Waleton" - translation Wynstan held Walton, "Ibe duce carucates terra et
tres bovatae valebant octo solides" translation - there are two carucates of land and three bovates - they are worth 8s.
The Church was probably built of wood and thatch then four hundred years later the first stone church was
built and dedicated in 1326. In 1651 it was used to house Royalist prisoners taken at the battle of Worcester.
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