A History of Warton Parish
The history of Warton written by John Lucas (1684-1750) is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of our parish.
The original, handwritten version of the book is kept in the County Record office in Preston. It was abridged and published for the first time in 1931. The most recent edition with drawings by Milnthorpe artist Daphne Lester and a new introduction was published in 2017 and is reproduced with the permission of its editor, Andy Denwood.
A digital copy (pdf) is available
How it Was: A North Lancashire Parish in the Seventeenth Century
published in 1998 (out of print, but available in libraries and in second hand bookshops).
A digital copy (pdf) is available
here.
Warton 1800-1850: How a North Lancashire Parish Changed
published in 2005.
A pdf copy is available here.
Warton 1850-1900: Borwick, Carnforth, Priest Hutton, Silverdale, Warton, Yealands,
published in 2009.
A pdf copy is available here.
“Warton in the Middle Ages”
(Last stocks are less than perfect - some rusty staples) £3.50
A pdf copy is available here.
Mourholme Local History Society Book prices and outlets:
“Warton 1800-1850” £13.50
“Warton Parish.1850-1900” £13.50
Available at:
Meetings of the Society (see Events)
Carnforth Bookshop
Waterstone’s (Marketgate, Lancaster)
Information Office, Storey Institute, Lancaster
St Oswald’s Bookstall, Warton
A Society member has published two books:
The Matchless Tragedy - Simon Williams £4
The story of Morecambe Bay's largest loss of life. In 1894 the Matchless capsized at Jenny Brown's Point, with 25 of the 34 on board drowning. The inquest that followed was to prove something of a whitewash.
A pdf copy is available here.
A Morecambe Bay Tragedy - Simon Williams £3
5 men lost their life in 1850, on the return leg from Kent's Bank to Silverdale. This tragedy resulted in a fierce argument over who was to blame. The aftermath involved Elizabeth Gaskell supporting one of the orphaned children.
A pdf copy is available here.
Copies available from the Mourholme Local History Society - secretary@mourholme.co.uk
You may also be interested in Warton: the Story of a North Lancashire Village, published by the Village Society in 1976, copies now held by the Mourholme Local History Society, and available at various outlets. Price £1.5
A pdf copy of this is available here.
In and Around Silverdale
David Peter was one of the Mourholme Society’s founding fathers, and an excellent researcher, writer and illustrator. This 80 page booklet was first published in 1984, and a final publication took place in 2005. It is a highly readable account of the history of this township, and description of its landmarks and inhabitants.
A pdf copy of this is available here
Sketches of Yealand
A 1931 collection of 7 articles originally published in the Lancaster Guardian in 1911 by Helen Cordelia Ford of Yealand Manor. These offer an informal but fascinating picture of Yealand in the pre-WW1 period, together with recollections of Yealand’s past.
A pdf copy of this is available here