Skerton, Lancashire
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Skerton is an area in the north of Lancaster,
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, England, on the other side of the
River Lune The River Lune (archaically sometimes Loyne) is a river in length in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. Etymology Several elucidations for the origin of the name ''Lune'' exist. Firstly, it may be that the name is Brittonic in genesis and deriv ...
to the castle. It was formerly a
township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...
, but in the late 1800s it was incorporated into Lancaster and the neighbouring townships.
Skerton Bridge Skerton Bridge is a road bridge carrying the southbound lanes of the A6 road (England), A6 road over the River Lune in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The bridge is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a d ...
takes the A6 southwards towards the city centre.


Origin of the name

The origin of the name is based on Old Norse sker, Skerton meaning the ''tun by the reefs'' (i.e. sand banks in the River Lune which ran through the original Township). The history of the Township to 1914 is shown in the Victoria County History. Neighbouring Lancaster annexed parts of Skerton in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when the Township was divided between Lancaster and adjacent parishes. The records, show variants the name over time, 'Skerton' (1200), 'Skereton' (1292), 'Storton' (1201), and 'Sherton' (1292). Of those evolutions of the original Norse name Skerton is the modern version.


History


1066 to 1297

After the Conquest of 1066, which saw control of the 'realm of England' transferred from the Saxon kings to
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
, the town of Lancaster was seized as the personal fiefdom of the Norman King. The historic hill that now plays host to the castle had previously been the site of a Roman fort and, following the
Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
, was designated as the site upon which to build what is now
Lancaster Castle Lancaster Castle is a medieval castle and former prison in Lancaster in the English county of Lancashire. Its early history is unclear, but it may have been founded in the 11th century on the site of a Roman fort overlooking a crossing of ...
. The land being carved up by the Norman aristocracy, the land playing host to 'Schertune' was granted to the Halton fee, of which Earl Tostig, (See
Tostig Godwinson Tostig Godwinson ( 102925 September 1066) was an Anglo-Saxon Earl of Northumbria and brother of King Harold Godwinson. After being exiled by his brother, Tostig supported the Norwegian king Harald Hardrada's invasion of England, and was killed ...
), was a member. Tostig, having been loyal to the Norman King was rewarded in this instance with personal possession of Skerton, (Amongst other rewards of land). During his possession, the Skerton was assessed as being 'six-plough lands'. After Tostig's possession, Skerton was retained in
demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...
by the Lords of Lancaster; in 1094, demesne
tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more r ...
s from Skerton were granted to St Martin's at Sees by Count Roger of Poitou, (See
Roger the Poitevin Roger the Poitevin (Roger de Poitou) was born in Normandy in the mid-1060s and died before 1140. He was an Anglo-Norman aristocrat, possessing large holdings in both England and through his marriage in France. He was the third son of Roger of Mon ...
). The land surrounding Skerton remained more or less 'Virgo intacta', an exception being made when half a Plough-land was granted to William De Skerton, (Reeve from 1201 to 1202), to be held by this Serjeanty. It has been revealed that around this time, the ancient assize rent of the vill for ten
oxgang An oxgang or bovate ( ang, oxangang; da, oxgang; gd, damh-imir; lat-med, bovāta) is an old land measurement formerly used in Scotland and England as early as the 16th century sometimes referred to as an oxgait. It averaged around 20 English a ...
s of land in bondage was seven Shillings and Sixpence, (7s 6d). By 1200, this had increased considerably to forty-two
shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...
s and nine
pence A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is th ...
, (42s 9d), or, more accurately, (£2 2s 9d). It is also recorded that allowance was made for the want of Plough teams between 1200 and 1202, at the rate of six shillings and eight pence, (6s 8d), per team. Skerton contributed to the
tallage Tallage or talliage (from the French ''tailler, i.e. '' a part cut out of the whole) may have signified at first any tax, but became in England and France a land use or land tenure tax. Later in England it was further limited to assessments by the ...
between 1205 and 1206, paying thirty-nine shillings, (39s), or, (£1 19/-). Similar contributions were made in 1226 and by 1240 to 1260, was making a contribution of around £20 per Annum. During 1246-1248, the Lune Mill, (Held by the Lords of Lancaster), the farm at Skerton and other issues of the manor were, (Over the course of a year and-a-half), of the sum total of thirty-one pounds, eighteen shillings and nine-and-a-half pence, (£31 18s 9.5d). Pleas and perquisites of the court came to sum total of eighteen shillings, (18s). Due to the possession of the land by the Lords of Lancaster, all proceeds, (and later possession of the land), ultimately came back to the English Crown. In 1297, it has been recorded that there were three free tenants, (That is to say, those not in bondage to another master but free citizens in their own right.), these being Alan de Paries, the Abbot of Furness and Lawrence, the son of Thomas De Lancaster.


1297 to 1788

During the course of the 18th century, three charities arose in connection with the settlement of Skerton...and that two of them should be geared towards the endowment of education. A school is known to have existed in Skerton since 1734, (making Skerton the second-oldest provider of education in Lancaster, after the establishment of the
Lancaster Royal Grammar School Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is a selective grammar school (day and boarding) for boys aged 11–18 in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS i ...
in 1235, some five hundred years earlier), when the trust deed of one Jane Jepson, (dated 25 March 1734), confirmed that £100 was delivered into the hands of John Housman for the fulfilment of a number of purposes; particularly, that £60 should be earmarked for either the purchase of construction of a schoolhouse, and that any remainder or surplus should be lent out at interest...and the return from this latter investment used to employ a schoolmaster for the teaching of poor children. A later endowment came in the form of Henry Williamson's trust deed, (dated 10 February 1767), when he bequeathed £100 to be used for investments that would yield a sufficient rate of return: "...towards teaching young children belonging to the township to read the Bible, write, knit or sew, and if any overplus should be, that the same should be laid out in clothing such children as would be indigent". Intervening between these two noble patronages, we are also aware of an apparently-anonymous endowment, referred to only as 'Money's Charity'...which, (we learn from Cross Fleury's 1891 history of Lancaster), had emerged under an indenture dated 13 December 1760, (in recitation of an earlier indenture of mortgage, dating from 2 November 1750), whereby 'two messuages and a garden situate in Skerton', (see
Messuage In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contracts ...
) had been mortgaged to James Rigmaiden and Peter Cook, (referred to in contemporary documentation as 'Sidesmen' of the parish), as trustees on behalf of the residents of Skerton in the interests of securing support for those poor inhabitants of the same, requiring relief...as per agreement between the aforesaid trustees and John Money, who undertook to demise same premises in pursuance thereof, for a period of one thousand years. Whilst the archaic language of 18th century land-conveyances and trust deeds would appear to ensure that much of this complex arrangement remains incomprehensible to the modern reader, it is with the careful paraphrasing of Cross Fleury that we are able to determine that the 'Money's Charity' thus primarily entailed the effective transfer of four dwellinghouses and a cattleshed to the care of the parish of Skerton; with a view to the sub-leasing of the same and the use of the rents therefrom, in relief of the poor.


1788 to 1888 (completion of the New Bridge to incorporation)

In the intervening years leading up to Incorporation of the Township of Skerton in 1888, we read of the two ' National Schools' attached to the parish church of St Luke, brought under government inspection following the
Education Act 1870 The Elementary Education Act 1870, commonly known as Forster's Education Act, set the framework for schooling of all children between the ages of 5 and 12 in England and Wales. It established local education authorities with defined powers, autho ...
, and enlarged in 1877 at the cost of around £900; with a subsequent annuity of £27 paid from the endowment of the historic Williamson and Jepson Charities, (at that time administered by the Vicar and Church Wardens of St Luke's Church, as named trustees).


1888 to the Present (incorporation of the township and later amalgamation into Lancaster proper)

The 1888 Incorporation of Skerton as a township brought with it a flurry of new buildings inclined towards the civic advancement of the people. A new county
police station A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, al ...
, (comprising four cells), was completed in 1889 and still stands today on Owen Road, (where it now houses offices for the local NHS health team). Referred to by Cross Fleury in 1891 as having cost £5,000, there are other accounts which refer to it having cost in the region of £6,400. Irrespective of the cost, it was certainly of some importance in its own time; accommodating a sizeable contingent in the form of 45 constables, 8 sergeants, one inspector and a superintendent in its heyday, and most likely serving as the divisional headquarters for the surrounding jurisdiction falling outside the precincts of the Lancaster Town Police. Tramways are also known to have run through Skerton; served by the
Lancaster Corporation Tramways Lancaster Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Lancaster between 1903 and 1930.The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis. History Lancaster Corporation started tramway operation on 14 January 1903. The depot ...
, which were in operation from 14 January 1903, until 4 April 1930...when services ceased. As around 3 miles of tramline are known to have been laid down, (and mention is made in contemporary sources dating from 1914 of a route having passed through Skerton on its way to Morecambe),For a fully referenced history see the on-line ''Victoria County History, A History of the County of Lancaster,'' Vol 8, Eds. William Farrer & J. Brownbill, (1914) pp.98-61 we should perhaps assume that this route was laid over
Skerton Bridge Skerton Bridge is a road bridge carrying the southbound lanes of the A6 road (England), A6 road over the River Lune in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The bridge is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a d ...
, on account of it being the only road-bridge across the
River Lune The River Lune (archaically sometimes Loyne) is a river in length in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. Etymology Several elucidations for the origin of the name ''Lune'' exist. Firstly, it may be that the name is Brittonic in genesis and deriv ...
, at this time.


Education

In 1235, the 19th year of the Reign of Henry III, (
House of Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet () was a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 (with the accession of Henry II at the end of the Anarchy) to 1485, when Richard III died in b ...
), the
Lancaster Royal Grammar School Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is a selective grammar school (day and boarding) for boys aged 11–18 in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS i ...
was established. Coincidentally, there has been a school in Skerton since 1734, meaning that Skerton is the second-oldest provider of education in Lancaster. The oldest existing school buildings still in Skerton are those built for the Parish of St. Luke's in 1870, making Skerton the location of the third oldest school in Lancaster. Meanwhile, the buildings that comprise the former secondary school for the area date from 1932, however
Skerton Community High School Skerton Community High School was a secondary school in Skerton, Lancaster, England. Foundation Skerton Community High School was built by the Corporation of Lancaster in the early years of the 1930s, the foundation stone being laid on 21 Sep ...
closed in 2014.


References

* {{City of Lancaster settlements Geography of Lancaster, Lancashire Former civil parishes in Lancashire