lowergate Fri Jul 13, 2012 1:06 am
Some interesting place-names around Dean Brook: Barrow Bridge (old burial site), Halliwell (holy well – possibly pre-Christian), Halliwell once formed an autonomous township in the ancient parish of Deane named after an ancient spring which used to exist at the northern end of the township off Smithills Croft Road. In Old English it was recorded as halig wella (i.e. holy well). Over the centuries the name has been spelt as Haliwalle (1220), Haliwell (1243), Harywal (1273), and Halewell (1277–
. In Deane Parish Church registers it was spelt Halliwoe.
Deane's name comes from the Old English word "denu" - meaning valley. In earlier times Deane was written without the final "e". The stream running in the valley to the west of the present church was given the Saxon name of Kirkbroke - meaning Church Brook. The valley is also referred to as Deane Clough.
Since Anglo-Saxon times there has been a chapel at Deane in the township of Rumworth,[ the earliest record is from the year 1100. This chapel of ease dedicated to St Mary the Virgin (indication of pre-Christian site) was sometimes referred to as St. Mariden i.e. St. Mary's, Deane in old documents. Deane chapelry in the ancient Parish of Eccles (a further indication, here going back to the Roman period) was mentioned in 13th century deeds and became a parish in its own right in 1541. St Mary's Church, on the site of the original chapel, dates from 1452 replacing earlier buildings, the tower and north door are older than the rest of the building. The church has been altered at various times and restored in about 1880.
I think that the Doffcocker Cross may pre-date the C10 by a few centuries.
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