I arrived in the village at dusk. The roads were narrow and winding. I managed to find a place to park my beast of a rental car and because the sun was quickly setting, I immediately crossed the road to look at the iconic bridge and St Michael and All Angels Church. Then I went to the Wheatsheaf for a pint of cider. Although it was cold and misting rain I sat outside at a table to soak it all in.
I had not planned to visit Croston for another year or
more. But my life is in transition now, I may be relocating 1,200 miles away to
another state in a couple of months for my job. This is also the cause
of my not posting here in a while. It's been a busy and stressful time.
Starting a job in the new office also means I may have less opportunity
to travel. So when the opportunity arose to go to England during the
week of Thanksgiving I decided this was the right time to gather
information for my research and clear my head, with the plan to return
again in 2020.
After spending so much time researching this family and place, I felt weirdly
nervous going there. Would I be disappointed? Would I find anything
new?
I returned early the next morning to walk around the village and take some pictures.
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| Entering the village from Leyland |
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| Croston Village, looking toward St. Michael and All Angels Church |
I didn't have much time to prepare for this trip, but I had jotted down on a map some key places that I wanted to see. After looking at the church and bridge again in daylight, I turned around and walked up Town Road to the start of Station Road. This is the site of the Old Croston Almshouse. These cottages (once there were more of them) were the property of William and Isabell Croston in the 1600's. They likely were leased to tenants. William and Isabell donated the cottages to the poor in 1692. There is a stone sign on the remaining cottage and this the only place in the village where I found the surname Croston.
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| Croston Almshouse Cottages: Henry and Isabell Croston donated the cottages to the poor of Croston in 1692 |
Directly across station road from the old Almshouse is the site of the old Castle. The only records that confirm a castle once stood here are on several old maps. However there are physical signs that confirm its existence.
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| Site of the Castle that once stood in Croston- thought to be a wooden structure |
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| Alley called "Castle Walks" across the road from the Castle site |
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| This area has a sign that reads "Castle Orchard" |
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| The line in the grass just before the tree line is hard to make out. This is believed to be the old castle moat. |
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I walked down Station Road toward Croston Station and then looped back to the Church.
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| Monument at the center of town in the small park outside of the Wheatsheaf |
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| The Grapes Pub, Currently closed for renovations |
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| Old Rectory Gate, Grape Lane |
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| Cross Monument, Grape Lane |
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| New gate to Croston Hall. New construction of a house on the property is underway. |
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| Old Croston Hall gate |
No Crostons ever lived in Croston Hall. They did however have many legal and some social interaction with the families that lived there over the years. This didn't stop me from wanting to take a closer look. The hall was torn down in the 1960's. It is now owed by a developer who is planning to build an Arts and Crafts style manor house on the land.
I tried to walk to some of the areas where Crostons once lived but quickly found out that was not easy to do. Many of the roads were narrow with tall brambles on both sides and I was afraid of being hit by a car. Similar to Ireland they come buzzing around the corners very fast. So later I drove to those places and have saved the pictures for later when I talk about the individual families that lived here.
After the morning walk around the village I went over to the church which was having an open house that day and walked around the churchyard and cemetery. This tour of the church deserves its own post- I will write it this week while it is still fresh in my mind.
I have to say, sometimes a place just feels strangely familiar and "right". This beautiful village is one of those places and did not disappoint. I will be back!
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