Davey Crocket and his braves

Some of Lostock's best pictured here from left to right Davey Crocket John Allen,  just having a good look Mrs Allen talking to her daughter in law Johns mother 20 Townshend road, then a stern look from Alan Bramhall. just peeping through Stephen Pugh, then Bob Hayward, the lad with the specs in the back ground I cannot remember his name but he had a face you always wanted to punch his name is Michael Twiss , next the miserable looking beggar I am struggling a bit the old memory is not to good when you are an oldtool could be Brian Goulding then just at the back Franky Cook. John Allen's grandparents ran the post office today's chippy his grandfather was the local carpenter undertaker. The year 1957.

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Cranage Mill Lostock Gralam

This is a lousy pic but it is the only one I have come across I have taken it from Lenna Bickerton's  book memories of a Cheshire childhood. Cranage Mill or locals called it Heskies mill, William Hesketh was a prominent local business man he owned most of the land in the village his grandson Alfred Hesketh Bateman use to run about the village in a large pre war car. The mill was also a home Leonard Hesketh was living there with his family 1911 census, Leonard is a cousin of William. All that is left today is the bridge the brook water is classed as (a-one) boiler feed water the river dane and weaver as they approach Northwich they take on salt from natural springs rending them useless as boiler feed water. Brunner Mond needed the brook water they went to the trouble of supplying the mill with steam and engine to grind the corn. There has been a mill and lower down the brook Witton mill since medieval times. In the 1970's you could drive car down to the site and park on a tile floor which must have been part of the old mill. In my younger days 1968 I worked in the lime plant Lostock Works, the foreman rigger  was a gentleman and scholar
 called Alf Moores now when it came to a sense of humour Alf was in the the front of the queue when the good Lord  dished them out. He was born in the mill now if Alf was alive today he would about 97-98 years of age.
William Dodson Hesketh and Leonard Hesketh both had sons called William they were killed in action in the first world war. Leonards son he was a waggon maker went on to become a sapper in the Royal Engineers he lies in Feuchy cemetery France at the end of the war his mother was living in Middlewhich road and the house was called Feuchy. William Dodson Hesketh his was working as a clerk in a corn mill he went on to become a 2nd Lieutenant in the Cheshire regiment he lies along with 4600 comrades in Bailleunal British cemetery his mother committed suicide in a canal in France now to get from Lostock to France in the 1920's would have taken some doing.