Explore the History of St Annes

Explore some of the history of St Annes, and how the town we know today grew. Look around and see traces of the towns ancestors in local architecture.

The entire Fylde Coast is understood to have been populated since the Bronze Age, scattered with hamlets here and there. Known as Amounderness in Anglo-Saxon and Medieval times, several of today’s familiar place names appear in the Domesday Book. By the mid 1700s, nearby Lytham was already a town in its own right.

Cross Slack, named after the Norse ‘Slakki’ referring to a shallow dell, took its name from the boundary cross. Erected by Richard FitzRoger in about 1199 to mark the limits of the Lytham Parish, granted to him by the monks of Durham. The cross was at the northern edge of the village of Kilgrimol.

Then in 1875 it first got the name we know it by today – St Annes.

The Early History of St Annes

As far back as the early 1600’s, St Annes was the western edge of the Clifton family’s estate.

In the late 18th and 19th centuries, the Cliftons had been developing their hamlet of Lytham to take advantage of the increased popularity of sea-bathing. You can find out more about the history of Lytham here. Look at the earliest OS maps to see this western edge of their estate being left to the seagulls and rabbits. The only early buildings were at Cross Slack and a few scattered inland farms.

How St Annes begins to grow

St Annes began with a chapel to serve the tiny hamlet of Hey Houses at the northern end of Lytham. Built in 1873 by then Lord of the Manor, Colonel John Talbot Clifton. He dedicated it to Saint Anne in honour of his wife’s aunt, Lady Anne Bentinck.

At the time the chapel was among the sand dunes. It became the parish church of St Annes, which from the late 1800’s, continued to grow.

The railway arrives

In 1871 the Blackpool and Lytham Railway merged with the Preston to Wyre Railway. These two lines originally had separate termini in Lytham. With the lines now connected, passengers could enjoy uninterrupted travel from Preston through the Clifton estate into Blackpool. Largely rebuilt in 1985, St Annes Railway Station opened on 31 March 1925. Clifton Drive (the main road parallel to the promenade, below) opened the year afterwards.

St Annes on Sea Land and Building Company

The growth of St Annes really took off from 1874.

Mr Elijah Hargreaves, a businessman from Rossendale in East Lancashire, was on holiday in this fledgling seaside town. This investor inspired with the areas potential intended to advertise it as “the Opal of the West” – the rest is history! The far sighted Clifton family had been planning the venture since the 1840s.

Elijah saw that attracting large numbers of visitors from the mill towns of Lancashire could be highly profitable. He had £50,000 share capital and 80 acres let on a 999 year lease from the Clifton family, signed on 4 September 1874. They pledged to invest £70,000 in urban infrastructure ‘in a few years’.

After negotiating with the Clifton estate he formed the ‘St Annes on Sea Land and Building Company Ltd’ with seven others. He was the one responsible for drawing out the plan of the town. His workers began building St Annes on the Sea at Cross Slack by cutting the first sod on 2 February 1875.

Hargreaves had his own home built on what would become Andrew’s Road South, calling it the Elms. John Ogden laid the first brick in the new town.

Founding the town of St Annes

The new town received its name on 31 March 1875. The Squire’s son, six-year-old John Talbot Clifton, laid the foundation stone in the foundations of the St Anne’s Hotel. This date is considered the official founding of The Victorian planned town.

However, plenty of problems plagued those early years. There’s a general reluctance from other business people to invest in a long term plan. William John Porritt was one mill owner who did invest, building stone houses on Clifton Drive North and St George’s Road. In the 1880s and 1890s, St Annes was struggling financially. Only the building of the pier and continued investment by the likes of Porritt and other men from Rossendale saved it. Over 2,500 individual properties were built in the town between 1874 and 1971.

The St Annes Hotel, home of the town’s founding cornerstone, was later demolished. The Hydro Terrace quickly followed (later to become St Annes Square) and the railway station.

Ashton Gardens (above) was first laid out between 1875 and 1877. After a number of setbacks Lord Ashton eventually bought the park for the inhabitants of St Annes. And of course the gardens take their name from him.

Did you know? Along with Fleetwood, St Annes is one of few British towns to be built on a grid pattern of streets.

Utilities and Facilities come to St Annes

In 1878 St Annes Local Board of Health was established to oversee matters like sewerage and street lighting.

In 1894 it became an Urban District Council and, by then, St Annes had grown considerably.

By now the pier was open with steamer boat trips running from the end of it. There were new houses and hotels at Clifton Drive North and South. In 1897 the Lytham St Annes Tramway was operating gas powered trams between the towns.

Take a look at this amazing old video, from the Mitchell & Kenyon Collection. It’s a ride along the tramway from Lytham, through St Annes to Blackpool. The journey passes through St Annes Square at about 6m.

Map of St Annes from 1909

Like most towns and villages all over the UK, the streets, buildings and landmarks of St Annes have changed with population growth over the years.

The Godfrey Edition are copies of original Ordnance Survey maps from 1909. It’s fascinating to compare them with what we know exists today.

The St Annes-on-the-Sea map from 1909 shows an area which is already starting to become popular. But it’s not as residential then as it is now. There are what seem to be large garden areas and open spaces between areas of development. And plenty of farmers fields and green open spaces.

Many of the public buildings in St Annes are from the time of this 1909 map. The library, the college and the police station. St George’s Hall and Gardens – later renamed Ashton Gardens.

St Annes Merges with Lytham

In 1916, Blackpool made a second unsuccessful attempt to get St Annes to join it in a County Borough. Six years later St Annes instead merged with Lytham to become the Municipal Borough of Lytham St Annes.

This is just a little bit of the fascinating history of St Annes and the wider Lytham area. Explore the history of not just St Annes but all of the Fylde Coast, with Nick Moore’s History of Blackpool and the Fylde Coast.

Traces of the Past

In January 2020 we received an email from a lady in a charity shop in York, specialising in vintage items. Someone had donated a dress in this ‘Camille Couture’ box. They wanted to know whether anyone knew anything about the shop?

It’s another interesting part of the town’s social history. If you can add anything, please leave a comment below, or email jane@therabbitpatch.co.uk

We asked the question on the Visit St Annes Facebook page. Four local ladies solved the mystery for us!

Sylvia Tito explains: “Camille’s was a double fronted shop between what was Woolworths (now B&M) and WH Smith. It sold beautiful couture clothing for ladies and employed girls as young as 14 in their sewing/alterations workshop. I remember buying clothes there around 1979/80 and think it closed early 80’s. Beautiful elegant clothing and a sad loss.“

Sue Neary says: “I remember that shop too. Never went in as none of it was my style. I doubt it would have been within my budget either – I don’t remember seeing any prices in the windows! I used to work in Kendrick’s Chemist a few doors along.”

And Sue Rae adds: “My mum was a seamstress for this shop many years ago.”

Paris Samples

Lauren emailed with her own memory of this shop: “I remember the shop very well. In the 1960s, when I was a young teenager, it was owned by Mrs. Samuels. Although the designs were rather expensive and for older ladies, there were a few in the current trendy styles, probably because the owner had a daughter. I always waited for the final days of the sales to have a look round – although my pocket money was non existent and I could only dream.

“I persuaded my mother to buy me three dresses which apparently were Paris samples. A striped white and yellow which really were the wrong colours for a honey blond, and a maroon and pink one. My favourite was a real silk dress and jacket, slightly padded, in white with an emerald green bodice. I think it was an actual sample from Yves St Laurent. (But I couldn’t afford the white boots.)

“It was very much in the current style of the year 1968/9 and all hand stitched. I remember it costing peanuts because it didn’t fit any other prospective purchaser – so I was lucky. I had a matching green hat, shoes and gloves for a family wedding. As it was lengthened, I even wore it for the next 7 or so years . Unfortunately our home was flooded and it was ruined, together with my wedding dress.”

War Time Memories

The information about Camille certainly sparked a lot of memories for our readers. Anthea Fraser also got in touch with her own recollections. She says “I was interested to read the item about the shop Camille, which brought back many memories. My parents were married in St Anne’s Church in 1927 and had their reception at the Majestic Hotel, where Geraldo was the resident band leader.

“My grandmother lived at ‘Mentone’, Clifton Drive, the house next to Ashton Gardens. During the war my parents took a flat in St George’s Road for the duration when the bombing at our home near Liverpool became too disruptive. We children used to play in the Gardens, and a friend and I regularly visited ‘The Radio Follies’, a variety group who performed in its little theatre every summer.

“I remember Camille and many other shops in what was then The Square (when did it become the High Street?). Including Chadwick the tobacconist, Boots with its lending library, J R Taylors the dress shop on the corner of Garden Street, and the Kiosk café. My grandmother and her friends used to meet there every morning. Happy memories!”

Look up, down and around!

There are many beautiful buildings in St Annes, and many architectural details can still be seen. 

This terracotta chap was sent in to us by Aidan Prince. He asked if anyone knew what it was or what it meant? At the time of taking the photo in 2018, the building it stands at the top of was a William Hill bookmakers.

Tony Ford gave us the answer, on the Visit St Annes Facebook page:

“The story I know is that it was put there by a local builder as a snub to his colleague who was building properties across the road. It used to be on top of a different building but was relocated when the new shops (Home Bargains etc) were created.“

Do you know anything about this ‘2&8’ detail, on one of the high street shops?

See the History of St Annes Today

• Like old photos? You’ll enjoy this gallery going back through the history of the town

• And take a look at our ‘Old St Annes’ Pinterest Board.

St Annes retains many of its original period buildings in the town and along the promenade. You can still see much of the original Victorian/Edwardian character. Have a look in this seafront video –

• If you’ve enjoyed this video, why don’t you subscribe to the Visit Fylde Coast YouTube channel?

This family friendly resort also bursts into flower each summer, just like it did when its forefathers were gardening here. You’ll also see the history of St Annes in the architecture at the seafront and promenade.

The town also has a beautiful Carnegie Library that’s well worth a visit. Find it just outside the main shopping area at Clifton Drive South, on the corner adjoining King’s Road.

History of St Annes People and Events

St Annes claims to fame include being the original home of ERNIE, the premium bond selector.

Make sure you visit the statue of the late, great, Les Dawson, laughing in the Peace and Happiness Garden on the seafront near to the pier.

Many other northern celebrities still live in the area. The late George Formby Jr was one of them.

The Mexico Disaster of 1886 is remembered with a memorial statue of a lifeboatman looking out to sea. To date, this remains the greatest loss of life for the RNLI.

Links to External Websites

If you use Facebook, you’ll enjoy learning about local history from the St Annes Past and Lythams Past groups