Dear Alf,
I have also placed a link to www.euxton.com on www.LancashireVillages.com
Regards,
Mark
2 July 02

Dear Euxton,
English Civil War(s)
There were in fact three battles at Preston, the one that is probably referred to by Chorley BC is the second of these which occurred on 17 August 1648 and was the turning point of the 'second' or 'Little' Civil War. After defeat by the Parliamentary forces under the command of Oliver Cromwell the Royalist army was broken and King Charles fled, later to be captured, tried and executed. There is a good book on the battle which sets out some of the background, the course of the battle proper and its aftermath. Bull, S and Seed, M, 1998, Bloody Preston, The Battle of Preston 1648 Carnegie Publishing, Lancaster ISBN 1-85936-041-6 This may be available internationally (try Amazon?) but if not you should be able to pick up a copy here.
The event was a military disaster for the Royalists who, having been camped on Ribbleton Moor to the north of the town centre were attacked by Cromwell's forces who had advanced up the Ribble valley from the east. The Royalist line was broken and much of their cavalry fled northwards whilst a large portion of the foot retreated south to the Ribble bridge where they failed to hold and were pushed onto the opposite side of the river at Walton having lost many men and much equipment. During the night they retreated south towards Wigan and were eventually rejoined by elements of their cavalry who had crossed the river downstream at Penwortham.
The remains of the army were harassed by the Parliamentary forces and there was another minor battle at Winwick, south of Wigan on 19 August and finally surrendering at Uttoxeter on 24 August. There are little, if any, physical remains on the battlefield and most has been redeveloped and incorporated into the modern town. Perhaps the exception to this is a small earthwork on the eastern side of town called "Cromwell's Mound" which is reputedly a place that Cromwell stood on to gain a view of that side of the battlefield - the mound itself is probably part of the water-control earthworks of a nearby moated site.
This reputation cannot be either confirmed or refuted (whereas the 'boots' story is probably an invention). The first battle at Preston was perhaps more a series of battles or skirmishes, the town being held by the Royalists in the summer of 1642 who were defeated by the Parliamentary forces on 9 February following. The Royalists recaptured it on 20 March but retreated from it in early July 1644 after their defeat at the battle at Marston Moor and from that time the Parliamentary forces held it. The final battle was in November 1715, when a force of 'Jacobites' (supporters of the house of Stuart and in particular of James Francis Edward, the son of the late King James II) who had entered the town on 9 November in the hope of raising the country in revolt. Having failed to secure the bridge over the Ribble a mile outside the town centre the Jacobites barricaded themselves into the town and were then attacked by a weaker Parliamentary force on 12 November. They resisted for that day but reinforcements for the besiegers arrived the following day and, on the morning of the 14th, the now outnumbered Jacobites surrendered.
There are a number of contemporary accounts and plans of this battle, which has some claim for being the last 'battle' fought on English soil. The town was briefly occupied by Royalist forces on 27 November 1745 when another Jacobite army led by Prince Charles Edward arrived, leaving for Manchester the following day. On its retreat north the army returned to Preston on 12 December and left heading to Lancaster the following morning. There is no report of fighting in Preston on these occasions.
Peter Iles
Lancashire Sites and Monuments Record
18 July 02

Dear Alf,
I noted that you are a Christian.  You may be interested in a site I found www.SecretWar.com it teaches stuff just like your Euxton site.
Dave Smith,
Leyland.
Lancs.
18 July 02

Dear Alf, its Me again,
Thanks, you where right, the River Yarrow does flow East to West, through Eccleston, & its downhill too ! ! !
Robin Brown,
Croston.
19 July 02

Dear Euxton Editor,
Is there anyone in your village/town enthusiastically interested in the weather or recording weather data?
I am Editor of WEATHER OBSERVERS NETWORK, a monthly weather bulletin, which began nearly three years ago. We currently publish data and text from around 150 sites in UK and Abroad, and we would welcome more sites. We are a friendly, non-profit making organisation.
For further details contact myself:
Terry Mayes,
9 Grayling Drive, Colchester, Essex CO4 3EN, phone/fax no 01206 868982 anytime,
email terry.mayes@btopenworld.com
19 July 02

Dear Al,
Regarding Euxton House Farm, the property lies just off Southport road down a dirt track ( right hand corner of the enclosed map). I understand that the farm, dating from the 1500's, has been extensively researched by its present owner Sam Watkinson. my great grandfather William Noblett moved to Euxton House from Osbaldeston House Farm, Walton le Dale in 1905, he used to deliver milk by horse and cart twice daily in the area. He was a very generous man giving free milk and eggs to St Mary's church and would frequently allow his more poverty stricken customers credit when they were unable to pay. He collapsed in the field at Euxton House while cutting hedges, he died a few days later. His obituary is very endearing. The property was owned by the Tatton Estate, I have a scanned copy of the estate catalogue when it was sold in 1950.
You may remember my father Frank Noblett he held a sawmill in water Street, Chorley were he used to make and sell fencing and garden sheds.
Please feel free to email me if you feel I can be of any help
Regards
Philip Noblett
26 July 02

Dear Euxton dot com,
I live in Euxton now and have apart from my army service been here all my life, I'm now 63, you have a pretty neat write up on Euxton but there are thing's not in that deserve a mention on the employment side Leyland Motor's as it used to be truck and bus and Jaguar cars, English Electric, PI fighter plane, looked like a over and under shotgun.
Then on local scene Highway’s Hostel one of the largest collections of displaced person's as they were called then, we had every nation you could think of, there we had Sunday dancing and cinema before they had it in London, also the first nudist colony, in the bowl at the back of the hostel.
Then we also had the Yanks at Washington Hall their rest and recuperation center the local pub went from The Talbot Arms to Smokey Joes their cigar's it ended up having to be demolished as the foundations were undermined by a small pond at the side of the then pub, today there's a bus stop there and the new pub is 100yds further down the road same side.
The hostel has completely disappeared now a housing estate, on the historical side the A49 was the main road for the roman's, it was also the main stagecoach route and two of the pub's (hostelries) had blacksmith's shop's alongside them and stable's to keep a change of team's, they had a hard slog going down Pincock brow and the up Charnock Richard brow.
The Euxton Mills (now) used to be the Grape's?? and The Bowling Green on Charnock brow. These are just some of the things, and as you say the center of the universe for some of us, been to Singapore 3yrs, Germany, Holland, Denmark even to the state's: Dallas/Texas, Atlanta/Georgia, Stockton/California, but alway’s came home to Euxton.
By for now, and as we say (keep your pecker up)
Best Regards
Bryan Jackson
22 August 02

Dear ....
Please include our club on this web site for Euxton.
Children’s Disco Club, every Friday night, 7.30pm until 9pm, held in the Parish Church Hall, Wigan Road, Euxton. Admission is £1.50. There is a tuck shop selling sweets, crisps and pop. The night consists of disco music, party dances and competitions. Theme nights are held once a month. All children under the age of 14 years are welcome. Membership is free. Strict rules on behaviour apply. Once the children enter the disco they are not allowed to leave until 9pm or an adult arrives to collect them.
Mrs H E Stevens
31 August 02

Dear....
I lived in Euxton from about 1941 to 1952. I attended the C of E School and in 1944 at the age of eleven. I went to Leyland Secondary Modern School (of which there does not appear to be any records). I also delivered papers from the bay horse north for a newsagent called Dick Taziker. The shop was opposite the Bay Horse. I recall a Fish and Chip Shop Behind the Bay Horse. I worked on Farms in Runshaw lane and Back Lane Leyland, Leyland Motors in Chorley and Martindales Cabinetmakers In Chorley.
Maybe we have met sometime.
I am curious.
Bill Files.
8 September 02

Dear ....
Having emigrated to New Zealand from Chorley 7 years ago, I lost my recipe for Treacle Toffee. I happened upon your site and have thoroughly enjoyed a nostalgic trip along memory lane.
Thank you - Jeanette Lloyd
6 November, 02

Dear Euxtonites
....  how nice to find this site ..
I lived in Euxton for 25 years until leaving for the USA for work .. I played soccer for Euxton and Duncan Glass's Talbot Arms team for many years, cricket for Loughery's Lovelys, (God bless you Jimmy, we had some fun .. it would have been better if you could have run  .. just kidding !!!!) , snooker at th'insti, golf at Leyland golf club, (say hello to Frank McHugh if anyone reading this knows him please), and had many, many friends in the village.
I will mark this page as a Favorite and look forward to checking in
and seeing what is happening in "God's own land" ...
PS
If anyone is going out tonight could you please have a couple of pints of
bitter for me and let me know how they tasted please ... it's been a long
time !!!    
Colin Bakewell
colinbakewell@address.com
28 Jan 2003

Dear Bill Files and anyone else   . . . . .who may remember Richard and Lucy Taziker.
Your message mentioned that you were a paper boy in Euxton for Dick Taziker. hat was my father. Mother and Father built and ran the newsagents. I have heard many a story of the paper boys.
Sadly my farther died in 1966 but Lucy is still going strong at an independent and spritely 92.
I took her back to Euxton for a look and she was amazed how built up it all was.
I will show her the message board detail and no doubt she will remember loads of stuff.
Elizabeth Charlton
29 Jan 2003

Euxton dot com ™