Great Eccleston, The Square c.1965

Photo ref: G222059

More about this scene

Rush collecting was once a local industry here. Villagers cut rushes growing by the River Wyre; rushes were made into rush lights or stored in readiness for the rush cart, which was led in procession twice a year for the strewing of fresh rushes in halls and churches. The making of a by-pass split the two villages of Great and Little Eccleston, which had originally been joined by the winding old road. In this bustling village, which once held three fairs every year, the inns and Leckonby Hall still speak of its long history. To the far right with the Evening Gazette sign was G L Johnson's newsagent's shop. J N Kellet was next door, and then came the White Bull Hotel, facing the Black Bull; in 1823, when the licence was renewed, no cock fighting or bull and bear baiting was allowed to take place in the square on a Sunday. The gala queen is crowned here annually, and a weekly Farmers' Market is held. The lamp replaced a cast iron fluted pillar in 1936.