The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-06-23 00:00:00

H ALTON.

The village was once a market town, and was called Haw-ton
(signifying in old English the " town on the hill"), but now
Normanised to Halton. The barony of Halton was given by
Hugh Lupus, nephew of William the Conqueror, and second
Earl of Chester, to Nigel, on condition that he should, ac-
cording to one account, be constable of Chester. Another
account states that he received the barony, in conjunction
with the constableship of Cheshire, on condition that he
should lead the earl's army in the wars in Wales. Nigel had
two sons, one of whom (William) founded the priory at Run-
corn in 1133. There is nothing peculiarly remarkable in the
village itself. It contains good houses, some of them of re-
cent erection, and neat cottages, with thriving gardens. It
is exceedingly clean, and, from its elevated position, airy and
cheerful. The population of the township may be about 2000.
Although there is on parts of the hill a considerable depth of
good soil, the freestone is in others close on the surface, and
I was shewn a house, on the west side, the kitchen, some
back apartments, and the cellars.in which are dug out of the
solid rock, and are perfectly dry. There are several inns,
including the Castle Inn, the Norton Arms, and the Elephant
and Castle.

After passing through a portion of the village, the visitor,
by a road or avenue about 300 yards in length, and of great
width, leading to the left, ascends to Halton Castle.
There are several good houses, particularly on the west
side of the avenue, with gardens, shrubberies, and forest trees
of considerable growth. The finest is the parsonage, a good
two story building in the Grecian style with a porch, and
surmounted by a small pediment containing a coat of arms in
the tympanum.
Beside it is a small antique isolated stone building within a
space enclosed by a parapet wall, and having two arched win-
dowsto the road. This is a Public Library, founded in 1733,
and furnished with books, chiefly folios, by the late Sir John
Chesshyre, of Hallwood. Admission may be obtained by
strangers on application to the Rev. R. Tweddell, A.M., at
the parsonage, it being placed under the care of the minister
of the chapel for the time being. Over the door is the fol
lowing Latin inscription :
" Hanc BIBLIOTHECAM pro communiLITERATOROM USU,
sub cura curati Capellse de HALTON, Proventibus ter feliciter
Augmentatze Jon ANNIS CHESSHYRE miles Serviens D'ni
Regis at Legem. D. D. D. Anno MDCCXXIII."
The visitor may here pass a very agreeable hour amongst
the tomes both in English and in the languages of the ancient
classics bequeathed for the use of posterity, by the benevo-
lent knight of Hallwood.
Behind the library there is a row of Alms Houses, " for
six poor, decayed, and honest old servants," who are ap-
pointed by Sir Richard Brooke, of Norton Priory. These
have trees and gardens in front.

A. little further westward, and immediately behind the
Vicarage, stands the chapel of Halton, in a small enclosed
green field or yard, bounded on the west by a precipitous
portion of the hill. It is an- old plain stone building with two
long windows at the west end and a small belfry. This is a
Chapel of Ease to Runcorn, but has a separate endowment
granted by the late Sir John Chesshyre, who held the pre-
sentation. From the church-yard a charming and extensive
view is obtained of the country below. On the south, Frod-
sham, surrounded by fine enclosed fields fringed by trees,
and backed by the dark wooded Helsby and Overton hills,
while the Weaver winds its way through the rich low grounds
in front, is here seen to very great advantage. The Mersey
speckled with vessels, and the Lancashire shore equally fill
up the view in front and to the right. There is also a gram-
mar school close by for the children of the parish of Run-
corn.

Returning to the road, and passing the parsonage, the
visitor in ascending passes the Elephant and Castle, a small
but neat inn on the left with a garden behind ; and several
ancient office buildings amongst the trees on the right. A
short walk of about 100 yards brings him lo the Castle Inn,
in front of which the avenue widens out into a sort of lawn,
sloping to the east. This was in former times included within
the pleasure grounds of the Castle, and was laid out in ser-
pentine walks. Below the parsonage, too, in the palmy days
of Halton, there stood a cross, which the hand of innovation
has long since removed.