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CROFT-The History of a village

 By Alan Sharpe, 2003  

Page 145

'Partridge Lakes' on the farmland on which he derives income from letting fishing rights. See aerial photo of Partidge Lakes."Potatoes have been important in the agricultural economy of Croft. From very early on, a number of people- not all of whom were farmers - started up in the business of producing and selling potatoes. In 1900 the Barton family moved from Hindley Green where they had been coal merchants, to 30 Heath Lane, a cottage with 4 acres.
Mr. Barton had two sons, Lewis and Edward but when Lewis died (aged 32) the business passed to his brother Edward Barton, nicknamed 'Lord Teddy' (on account of his immaculate dress and appearance and the state of his well maintained potato wagons and car). Edward had a yard in Heath Lane opposite the old brewery until 1980. Joe Dean, Charlie Seed, Roy Miller and Rodney and Frank Weir were among those who worked for him.
Another who moved into the business was James Abbey, the eldest son of Thomas Abbey's family of seven children. James started by hawking potatoes and vegetables on a part time basis, to supplement his income as an apprentice engineer at the Vulcan Foundry in Earlestown. When he qualified in 1922, he married Ethel Oultram of Culcheth in the same year and took up residence at 5 Smithy Brow for a short time before moving to 27 Smithy Brow, otherwise known to Crofters as Ruffley's Row. When the Vulcan Works started putting workers on short time working during the 20s depression, James decided to buy a small second hand lorry, build a timber shed - where 22 Smith Brow is today - and set himself up as a potato merchant. He bought out other local farmers in the business and began selling all around Warrington. His employees included Charlie and Frank Gould and Jimmy Miller. James Abbey retired in 1970 and subsequently, his son, Stuart, developed the business in Holes Lane, Woolston until he took over the Barton business at Burtonwood in 1987.
Southworth Hall Farm
The Farm has always had very close links with the main house, Southworth Hall. However, tenants rather than owner-occupiers have generally farmed the land.
I came to live at Southworth Hall in February 1974, although I still farmed in Barrow and Lowes Farm at Kenyon. The tenant before me was J&T Peters who had tenancy from 1938 to 1974. They had farms at Houghton Green and Glazebury and owned the Corn Mill at Glazebury, producing cattle, pig and poultry feed for farmers in southwest Lancashire.
Southworth Hall and the 407 acres of its land was bought by Mr. Harry Fairclough for £10,000 in 1930, along with farm horses, harnesses, carts, machinery and seed oats valued at £508 by Mainwaring and Stafford & Co., Warrington. Mr Fairclough, a builder and civil engineer by profession, was also Mayor of Warrington 1938-1939. In a partnership he formed with Mr James Lowe, Harry Fairclough set about improving the dilapidated buildings, adding a new shippon and piggery. Unfortunately, the profit he had hoped to achieve from his project did not materialise and so he dissolved the partnership and let the farm to J&T Peters.
Still further back in the history of Southworth Hall Farm, Harry Fairclough had purchased the hall and farm from Clarence Wilcox of Golborne who farmed it for only two years after purchasing the property from the liquidator of Joshua Ball's business. Joshua Ball was born into an old well known farming family at Maghull, near Liverpool and farmed at Southworth from 1884-1928 when, after 44 years he was declared bankrupt (no doubt hurting his pride at

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