Map of Middlewich and it’s existing designations.

© Cheshire Shared Partnerships

1.1 Scheduled Ancient Monuments

1) The Roman Fort in Harbutt’s field (SAM 12615)

2) Brine Pumps at Brooks Lane (SAM 34588) on the at Risk Register

3) Kinderton Hall moated site (SAM 13492)

1.2 Listed Buildings

Grade II* – Two— St Michael and All Angels Church on the at Risk Register and 64 St Anns Road.

Grade II – Thirty eight

1.3 Conservation Areas

1) The historic core of Middlewich Town Centre, on the at Risk Register

2) The Canal corridors— Trent and Mersey Canal, Wardle Canal and the Shropshire Union, Inc. Cledford Lane Lime beds Grade B site of biological importance.

3) Potentially the historic core of Newton.

1.4 Registered Parks and Gardens

None

1.5 Local Listed Buildings

1) Pump House No 5 on Brooks Lane

1. Heritage Map of Middlewich

Approach to the Three Locks

Brine Pumps

2. Historic Landscape of Middlewich.

2.1 Middlewich is an historic and ancient settlement at the heart of Cheshire, which dates back into pre -

history and the first hunter gatherers. The town takes pride in its heritage from the abundance of Roman

Archaeology to the Industrial Revolution and the Canals that were built to service it. Salt has always been a

common thread of life throughout the ages; the Roman Army set up a permanent fort and created a

settlement and industrial working areas. A Medieval market rose up around the salt industries and

associated trades creating a Middlewich Town that we see today.

2.2 The canals of Middlewich were shaped and defined by the geology of the area. The rocks below the ground

have a direct impact on the topography, soil type and hydrology of the region. As geology controls the

physical structure of the ground it is crucial to the engineering of any canal. The need to export the salt

deposits of Middlewich around the world efficiently and economically was a driving force behind the

construction of the canals during the eighteenth century. The geology of Cheshire and Middlewich is

predominantly comprised of Triassic sandstones and mudstones overlain by Quaternary glacial deposits. The

local Triassic rocks of the Mercia Mudstone Group were deposited in a structure known as the Cheshire

Basin. The salt deposits formed at a time when Britain was part of a huge super continent called Pangaea.

2.3 The canal system around Middlewich has over the past 240 years been of major importance in transporting

coal, dairy products and, of course salt. Although many of these industries have now either gone or goods

are moved by road freight, canals have been given a new lease of life in the form of leisure and Middlewich

is clearly at the forefront of this new revolution. Investment from the leisure industry and the dedication

and commitment of bodies such as Canal and Rivers Trust has reignited a new wave of canal users. Allied to

this growing industry is a renewed interest in the heritage value of the canal system.

2.4 By 1840 the railways had taken Britain by storm and as a result the railway network from this date

expanded considerably. By 1867 the railway had reached Middlewich, mainly servicing good trains for

industry, run by the Northwich Branch of the London and North Western Railway then later by the London

Midland & Scottish Railway. In 1868 the line accepted passengers and became a vital mode of transport for

the town.

2.5 The history of Middlewich is long and complex, a fascinating history dominated by the abundance of brine

springs and the community who settled here to produce salt. The Salt and Chemical industry remained the

main focus of Middlewich for generations, creating economic benefits and the legacy of that rich industry

largely created the town as it is today.

Fig 2.1 A Geological Cross Section of the Middlewich Area (taken from Earp & Taylor 1986).

3. The Historical Development of Middlewich

4. Character and Heritage

4.1 In the Middlewich landscape, evidence of occupation include Bronze Age axes at Oldhall Farm, Croxton Hall Farm and a surface scatter of flints and a Bronze Age axe located east of Middlewich and a crop-mark of a potential Bronze Age ring ditch. This concentration of high status finds indicates that there was activity in this area in the prehistoric period. By the late Iron Age, Middlewich lay in the territory of the Celtic tribe of the Cornovii and it is likely that by this time, route-ways converged in the Middlewich area, based on the fords across the Rivers Dane and Croco.

4.2 Evidence of pre-Roman activity, in the form of pits and ditches comes from the area east of King Street, Kinderton. There is a suggestion that salt was being extracted in Middlewich in the late Iron Age due to the discov-ery of VCP (very coarse pottery)

4.3 Some of the best evidence for salt-working in the Roman period comes from Kinderton, Middlewich. The evidence suggests that there was intense Roman activity at Middlewich during the pre and early Flavian periods and that this was also the site of a legionary garrison.

4.4 The Domesday entry for Middlewich demonstrates that the salt-works were in operation in the 11th century, but whether they had continued in production from the Roman period is uncertain. Also mentioned in Domesday is NEOWATUN meaning ‘new settlement’ or NEUTONE, this is the early settlement of Newton, centred on Newton Heath and Newton Bank

4. Character and Heritage

4.5 Late Norman developments in the town led to a trading centre being established in the area we now know as Middlewich Town Centre, although the main activities were centred around the new church of St Michael and All Angels. Market Street (Hightown) at the top, Halfpenny hill going down to-wards the river crossing (Leadsmithy) and Kinderton. The Lower Street to the North (Roman Road) meets Wheelock Street. Records show the main trade activity on Market Street with Wheelock developing later. By the 13th centu-ry a triangular formation with the Church at its centre was forming, with a market area (Kings Mexon), Salt-boiling and the Bullring.

4.6 To the North West of the church, on either side of Wheelock Street, are long, narrow tenements, which have been deliberately laid out. To the south west of Lewin Street, however, are irregular properties that have not been formally laid out and are perhaps the lower sta-tus tenements of salt-workers, areas of boiling and other minor craftsmen/traders. It is unclear how much of Middlewich was planned in the 12th and 13th centuries. The Letters of Patent from the King to the Baron of Kinderton may have resulted in a deliberately laid out market place and the formal lay-ing out of burgage plots in the 13th century, pointing to a period of controlled development.

4.7 In the 14th century, shops were built in the town ‘for the use of mer-chants coming in from outside with their goods’ The lord’s hall was built c 1334 and this possibly stood on the site of the later Market Hall. In the mid-14th century stalls in the lord’s hall were transferred to butchers and other merchants.

4.8 Between the 17th Century and the 19th Century the town was trans-formed by key events. The changing fortunes of the Cheshire Salt Industry, technology advancements, the building of the canals and railway for trade and the finding of Rock Salt and the brine stream which kick started a chem-ical revolution in the area.

4.9 Environmental legacies of the Salt and Chemical industry include Cledford Lane Lime Beds which is a grade B site of biological importance in the South. Croxton Park, which is a former landfill site in the North. The former Seddon’s Croxton Dairy work’s which succumbed to subsidence is now a thriv-ing wildlife area off the Trent and Mersey Canal.

4.10 Walkways and towpaths connect our water-ways via the canals and our River systems comprising of the River Dane, River Croco, River Wheelock and Sanderson’s Brook.

Fig 4.1 St Michael’s Church

Fig 4.2 Grade II cottages on Lewin St

Fig 4.3 Croxton Flash

5. Middlewich Conservation Area

5.1 Town Centre Historic Core

5.2 The Conservation Area was drawn up incorrectly and has not been observed by some since it was designated.

5.3 The conservation area includes buildings with no value and didn’t protect others with significant value; neither

does it protect the structure of the original medieval town layout. Many Burgage plots have been lost, some survive in

part, in fact only one entire burgage plot remains and that is under threat.

5.4 In some cases new shop fronts have been inserted, new rendering and tiling, unknown if permission was ever

sought. The frontage of Wheelock Street seemed the greater concern, around the back of the buildings however,

which seemly have no value, actually contain the original building features. These include architectural features and

plot layout’s such as; alleyway’s, coach entrances, courtyards, industrial outbuildings and stabling.

5.5 Some of the new buildings are not appropriate to the area, which needs addressing in the future.

5.6 The whole conservation area urgently needs a review. The exception would be around the canal system

however there are canal related buildings/structures which need some level of protection. Our canal network is the

heart of our town and it is important that we keep our ‘gateways to the town’ from the point of view of the canal

(Town Wharf) and the road system (Bull Ring).

5.7 We do have some fantastic architectural, historical and environmental values within the town centre

conservation area which we need to protect and maintain, ensuring that any future developments are sympathetic and

appropriate.

Middlewich Conservation Area

6.1 Newton Proposal

Approx. line around the

proposed new/adjoined area.

Southway, following the road

system of St Ann’s, Newton

Heath and Newton Bank.

Containing the old ‘green,’ Pin

fold, Odd fellows, Lea’s

Passage, Chester and

Nantwich roads.

The map is 1898 to illustrate

the earlier layout of Newton.

This can either link to the

current conservation area or

be a separate area

6.2 It is considered that this area still retains the original layout of the early medieval township which should have a

level of protection. We have used mapping and research to show the development of the settlement through time.

There are key buildings in this area which are C17-C19, one of which includes the unlisted Newton Grammar School of

1690.

6.3 Demolition of many town and half-timbered houses in the Newton area has resulted in late C19 and early C20

building developments. These used the same alignments of the previous building plots, thereby keeping many of the

original boundary lines in place. We hope that any future development in this area would also honour those bounda-

ries and the style of building is sympathetic to the character of the medieval Middlewich settlement. There are also

three areas of land which has historic value – The site of the Quaker House and graveyard, the Pinfold and the last

Nursery area in Newton.

6.4 The area comes under the Historic England Area of Archaeological Potential and Archaeological Character

Zones – listed as a Medieval Settlement. Only one building in the proposed area is listed, Elm Cottage (Grade 2), which

is situated on Southway (Tannery Lane), another Chestnut House was taken off the listing in the late sixties, when

Grade 3 buildings lost their status. Just outside the proposed area but within yards are six Grade II listed features.

6.5 There are other buildings of note within this proposed area which are not currently under any protection; the

overall character style is cottages, with or without a dormer space and with simple brick features, quoins, cobbles,

setts and old work yards or outbuildings. Other housing is generally small terraces, as many of the larger Town Houses

are gone. Plot sizes and orientation vary; layouts follow the medieval layout along narrow passages, footpaths and

enclosures. There was a court-yard; two of the Town Wells still remain off Darlington Street, the pinfold area remains

and some of the older cottages go back to at least C17. Many houses are Victorian and Edwardian, built on the same

alignment as the previous half- timbered houses and the footprint of the original bowling green. The wooded areas,

orchards and Nurseries which were once common in Newton are now down to one area, located between Southway

and Darlington Street.

Middlewich Conservation Area

7 Middlewich Canal Corridor

7.1 Running through the centre of the town, the Trent and Mersey Canal was opened in 1777, covering a total length of 93

miles (150 km approx.) from Derwent Mouth on the River Trent to Preston Brook on the Bridgewater Canal. It was heavily

used for freight traffic, being the only good transport link between the Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool. Subsequent canal

development allowed the transportation of pottery, coal and salt between the rivers Trent, Mersey, Severn and Thames.

Wardle Canal links the Trent and Mersey with Shropshire Union.

7.2 The canal, formally known as the Grand Trunk Canal reached Middlewich in 1775. The concept of constructing a canal

link between the two rivers was the idea of canal engineer James Brindley who had surveyed the route of the canal as far back

as 1758 on land belonging to Earl Gower.

7.3 Along the Trent and Mersey there are canal mileposts which are Grade II listed:

Canal Terrace – 1819 cast iron Shardlow 75 miles and Preston Brook 17 miles.

Rumps Lock - 1819 cast iron Shardlow 74 miles and Preston Brook 18 miles.

7.4 Rumps Lock – grade II listed canal lock 1777, brick and stone walls, single upper gate and double low-er gates of timber

7.5 The canal's towpath and nearby 'Salt Line' are routes of the National Cycle Network.

7.6 Town Wharf— The building fronting the canal tow-path is a large three storey red brick wharf stor-

age building; and is associated with England’s first Trunk Canal building project essential to the running of the wharf. The

Wharf Cottage, as with the warehouse is an early build, it’s identification in 1816 is that of a house and office. The building’s

first floor openings retain splayed lintels, which are likely to be original and so is the roof. Like the warehouse, this building

was essential for the functioning of the wharf and pre-dates 1816. Both buildings are of significance in the history of the canal

and of Middlewich.

7.7 Big Lock - renovations and improvements all in keeping with the original building,

some features of the earlier build still remain including the sign and scroll work, decorated

bricks. The canal stretch between Big Lock and Croxton Viaduct is wide, allowing for the

mooring of canal traffic, next door was The General Stores which would have provided

necessary provisions.

7.8 Croxton aqueduct—crosses the boundary between East and West Cheshire, previ-

ous bridge pillars can still be seen below to the left and there’s an additional support on

the right which ties into the Flint Mill which is in the field beyond. Massive changes in

structure at this point due to a bridge and arm of the canal that served the mill.

7.9 The Three Locks Area—Top Lock (No. 72), Middle Lock (No. 73) and Bottom Lock (No. 74) occupy the top, middle and

base of the dog-leg and just south of this dog-leg is the Kings Lock (No. 71). Around this area and sited on the eastern side was

the canal smithy (next to Kings Lock) and a dry dock still in use today at Middle Lock. Next to the smithy within Brooks Lane

was another canal side public house – the Junction Inn.

7.10 Canal Terrace—This group of buildings currently includes Canal House and office, the ‘saw pit’ workshop, stable build-ing and storerooms. Many of which are contemporary with opening of the canal in the late 18th century are constructed of distinctive locally made brick. The Canal House was the residence of the Canal Inspector, who would have been employed to inspect the structure and worthiness of a particular canal stretch. Much of the building layout including Canal House and the workshop complex has changed little. Grade II listed.

7.11 Wardle Canal and Lock-side Cottage (grade II listed for both) bridge 168. This short strategic stretch of canal, also

known as the Wardle Green Section, is the shortest in Britain, extending some 30m.

7.12 Shropshire Union towpath and Bridges—In terms of canal construction the Middlewich Branch is a late enterprise, opening in 1829, although it was one of the first branches of the Shropshire Union Canal system to be conceived. The initial concept in constructing such a branch was to link the two main arterial canal networks – the Shropshire Union and The Trent & Mersey Canals. It was hoped that it would open trade with the industries in North Wales.

7.13 Nantwich Road Aqueduct 1829, of Flemish bond blue-brown brick. Deep segmental arch with stone springer’s forming rounded projecting bands; canted brick abutment; plain stone copings.

Fig 7.1 Milepost

At Canal Terrace

Fig 7.2 The Big Lock Webb’s lane

Middlewich Conservation Area

8. Open public spaces within the Conservation Areas

M1. Harbutt’s Field—Roman Fort site, Scheduled monument

M6. Fountain Fields—Opened in 1952 as a recreational area and park for the increasing population of Middlewich, formerly called the ‘Warcroft’

M29. Bowling Green—Middlewich Community Church (Formerly ICI Club House)

M30. The Three Locks Area—Maidenhills, formerly part of an orchard, bought by the Canal company. Evidence of a rope walk

Note: Open Spaces should include Croxton Park in the North and Cledford Lane Lime Beds in the South (also conservation area)

Area of Archaeological potential and Archaeological character zones 9.2 Roman Activity predominately in Zone 1

Roman Fort The fort, located in Harbutt’s field was constructed c AD 70 –80, no doubt to control the exploitation of salt. It is suggested that previous to this the Romans occupied a ‘tented or marching’ Fort. Roman Settlement A significant amount of, and variety of archaeological finds in the area suggests a

well-established and long-term Roman and Civilian settlement. Occupation dates from the late 1st

century AD to AD 400.

Roman Salt Working There is a large quantity of archaeological evidence of Roman salt working in

this Zone, including kilns for the evaporation of brine, pits for storage of brine and lead salt pans.

Roman Roads A number of Roman Roads converge upon Middlewich, including King Street, which

runs north to Wilderspool and south to Chesterton, and the road from Whitchurch.

Iron Age Activity Archaeological evidence of Iron Age activity has been identified, which indicates

that salt exploitation began before the arrival of the Romans.

Kinderton Hall The Scheduled area of Kinderton Hall Gardens is included in this Zone, which includes

a prospect mound and fishponds.

Post Medieval Industry Aligned along the River Croco were a number of salt workings and other

and Salt Working manufactories.

9.1. Middlewich Archaeological Character Zones

9.3 Salt Working Activity predominately in Zone 2

Salt Works The significance of the salt working has been evidenced

through archaeological finds dating from the Roman period to the 19th

century.

Roman Settlement Extensive archaeological evidence of Roman

settlement.

Medieval Mill A mill is documented at Kinderton from 1330. This is

thought to be located on the site of the post medieval corn mill, which

is a Grade II Listed building.

Medieval Bridges Two bridges are mentioned in the 14th century, both

potentially located in this Zone.

Post Medieval Settlement This area continued to be settled during the

post medieval period.

Post Medieval Industry Industries other than salt working were located

in this area (for instance the Gas Works).

9.4 Medieval Settlement (Newton) predominately in Zone 3

Medieval Settlement is known at Newton from the 11th century, when

it was recorded at Domesday. It was separate from Middlewich, which

at this time was a salt working centre.

Post Medieval Settlement This area continued to be settled during the post medieval period.

9.5 Planned Medieval Settlement predominately in Zone 4

Burgage Plots to the west of the Church, on either side of Wheelock Street, are Tenements long,

narrow tenements, which may have been laid out as burgage plots. To the west of Lewin Street are

irregular properties which have not been formally laid out and are perhaps the lower status tenements

of salt workers and other minor craftsmen.

St Michael’s Church contains 12th

century fabric, despite undergoing

renovations in the 19th century.

Fig 9.2 The corn Mill, Kinderton

Fig 9.1 The Roman Fort at Harbutt’s Field

Fig 9.3 Early columns in the Nave Fig 9.4 Layout of the centre of Middlewich in 1928

10. Understanding the heritage characteristics of Middlewich

10.1 It is important to consider existing heritage

characteristics when looking at any new development within or

next to either the conservation areas, scheduled monuments or

Listed Buildings. Any development and design approach must

preserve and enhance the character of the area.

Fig 10.1 Newton Heath

Fig 10.2 Southway

Fig 10.3 Newton Heath

Fig 10.4 Newton Heath

Fig 10.5 Canal Terrace

Fig 10.6 Wheelock Street

Fig 10.7 Wheelock Street

Fig 10.8 St Ann’s Road

Fig 10.9 Trent and Mersey

Fig 10.10 Towpath on the Trent and Mersey

Fig 10.11 Fountain Fields

Fig 10.12 Wheelock Street

Fig 10.13 Dierdens Terrace