Hale Barns - History

History

What were thought to be fragments Roman tiles pottery were found in Hale Barns in the 1880s near the site of what is now St Ambrose College. The artefacts were lost before their antiquity could be confirmed, but led local historian W. Thompson Wakin to suggest there was probably a Roman villa in the area.

The first reference to Hale is contained within the Domesday Book, at the time 'Hale Barns' was just an outlying hamlet contained within the manor of Hale. According to the Domesday Book, the manor of Hale was owned by a Saxon thegn Aelfward, who was replaced by the Norman, Hamon de Massey who also gained possession of Dunham and Bowdon and would remain barons of the area until the 14th century. The manor was considered prosperous in comparison to other manors in the north west of England.

The settlements of Hale and Hale Barns are closely linked; what would later become Hale Barns spent most of the medieval period as an extension of the more dominant Hale. During this era the land around Hale and Hale Barns was used agriculturally because although the soil is poor draining, it is fertile. By the middle of the 15th century Hale Barns had established an identity completely separate from neighbouring Hale as demonstrated by the tithe barn which was established around this time. The tithe barn was for storing the tithes – a tenth of the farm's produce which was to be given to the church. Such an establishment can be seen as a sign of the area's prosperity. The original barn no longer survives, but is probably the source of the town's name. The first explicit reference to the village of Hale Barns – rather than Hale – is in a document from 1616.

The English Civil War affected all of England; even families were split over Royalist or Parliamentarian loyalties. Little is recorded over the divisions within Hale Barns, but Hale and Hale Barns did emerge from the Civil War more or less untouched by events – though there was a heavy tax to pay to support the Parliamentarian army they avoided much of the requisitioning of supplies and animals for passing armies. None of the Royalists in Hale and Hale Barns had their lands confiscated or were forced to pay fines.

Having long been agricultural land, in the 18th century the town was divided up into five farms: Tanyard, Partington, Oakfield, Broadoak, and Elm. Hale Chapel was established in Hale Barns by Nonconformists in 1723 on what is now Chapel Lane. It underwent alterations around 1880. The chapel is the earliest place of worship in either Hale or Hale Barns and is a Grade II* listed building, one of only nine in Trafford. It also houses an eighteenth-century pulpit and nineteenth-century stained glass. In 1740, a school was founded by the Unitarian minister of Hale – a time when education was a rare commodity – and can be seen on a map of 1800 along with a tithe barn, two inns, five farms, four cottages, the school house and school rooms.

In the late 19th century a building called "Manor House" was built on the site of the old Tanyard farm, for the purpose of the owner's retirement. In 2006 a timber-framed barn built around 1701 – originally belonging to the Tanyard Farm and later converted to stables for Manor House – was torn down due to lack of funds to maintain the building. The Grade II listed building – known as "Manor House Stables" – was the last timber-framed building in Hale Barns.

During the 20th century, urbanisation affected Hale Barns, turning the place from an agricultural village into the commuter settlement it is today, focused around 'The Square' – a shopping precinct. Its main A538 road – Hale Road – runs through the centre of Hale Barns and leads towards Manchester Airport and Wilmslow.