NETHERTON
There is no variation in the spelling; the definite
article was formerly prefixed.
This township was originally a hamlet of Sefton, but
appears to have been recognized as a distinct township
as early as 1624, when the county lay was fixed. (fn. 1) It
lies to the south-east of Sefton, and has an area of 1,126
acres. (fn. 2) The population numbered 589 in 1901.
It is in the heart of flat, agricultural country.
The land is principally arable, producing crops of
potatoes, wheat, barley, oats, and rye, in a soil which
is a mixture of clay and sand. The country is not
interesting, for there is nothing picturesque about the
scattered farmsteads, and the trees are only large
enough to give a slight protection to the buildings
around which they cluster. The greater part of the
township lies upon the lower keuper sandstone of the
new red sandstone or trias, but on the south-eastern
side the waterstones of the keuper series occur near
the boundary of Aintree. The strata are obscured by
sand and thick boulder clay and by alluvial deposits.
The principal road is that from Aintree village to
Sefton Town. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal passes
through the township, and upon it is the village, about
¾ mile south of Sefton church. The green is enclosed
with railings.
The southern corner is crossed by two lines of railway, and contains the Aintree stations of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Company and the Cheshire Lines
Committee.
The township is governed by a parish council.
Before 1212 Richard de Molyneux had given to
his son Robert three oxgangs of land, to be held by
knight's service, (fn. 3) which, no doubt, constitute the parcel
called Arland, afterwards held by the Thornton
family. (fn. 4) Though described as 'in the vill of Sefton'
it was in Netherton, but the earliest mention of this
place by name is in a charter of Richard de Molyneux
of Sefton in 1318, granting his younger son Peter
certain lands, together with the water-mill in 'the
Netherton.' (fn. 5) A junior branch of the Sefton family
appears to have settled here, for Simon de Molyneux
of Netherton is mentioned in 1373. (fn. 6) In 1433–4
William Fairfellow and Agnes his wife released their
lands here to Sir Richard Molyneux, Agnes making
oath that she had made no feoffment of her lands
in Sefton, except to a daughter of Simon de Molyneux, named Emmote, who had died at the age of
fourteen. (fn. 7)
The township does not seem to have formed a distinct manor, but was included in Sefton. (fn. 8) A park
called the Stand or New Park was formed here early
in the seventeenth century, (fn. 9) but discontinued about
1800. Stand House preserves the name. (fn. 10)
The story of St. Bennet's Church has been given in
the account of Sefton.