Croxteth Park
Croxstath, 1228, 1297; Crocstad, 1257; Croxthat, 1330.
This township, formerly part of Knowsley but independent and
extra-parochial from the twelfth century owing to its inclusion in the forest,
has an area of 959 acres. The population in 1901 was 61.
Croxteth Hall is the former country estate and ancestral
home of the Molyneux family, the Earls of Sefton. After the death of the 7th
and last Earl in 1972 the estate passed to Liverpool City Council, which now
manages the remainder of the estate, following the sale of approximately half
of the grounds. The remaining grounds, Croxteth Park, were at one time a
hunting chase of the Molyneux family and are now open to the public.
The original house was built in about 1575, and has been
expanded in several stages in Tudor, Georgian, and Queen Anne styles. The
principal front, the west façade, was built in 1702. Queen Victoria, Prince
Albert and their children stayed at Croxteth Hall on 9 October 1851 before
visiting Liverpool the following day during torrential rain. However, the visit
started fine with 700 members of the local gentry being entertained in the Hall
grounds.
The Hall and its outbuilding are a Grade II* Listed
Building, as are 3 of the outbuildings; another 15 buildings on the estate are Grade
II. The Molyneux family lived at the Hall from the 16th century until 1972,
when the last Earl died. His American-born widow Josephine, Countess of Sefton
(1903–1980) - once a close friend of the Duchess of Windsor and nicknamed
"Foxy" for her abundant auburn hair - continued to spend some time at
Croxteth. She became the last member of the Molyneux family to reside in the
hall. When the last Earl died in 1972, a worldwide search was made for an heir
to the title but without success. Much of the original estate has since been
sold off for development, but approximately 500 acres (2 km²) remain as a
country park, which is open to the public and includes various play facilities
for children. The estate also contains the historic Hall itself, open to the public
for a small fee, as well as a maintained Victorian walled garden and a working
country farm.
The video showing the alleged Ghost
Links
For more information about the Hall and it's current use
vist the Croxteth Hall Homepage
Source
Liverpool Central Library
Liverpool Records Office
Liverpool City Council
Robert F Edwards