Monument record 2454 - Lawton Salt Works

SJ 806 569. Salt works established by the Lawton family on the south(Church Lawton) side of the river in the 17th Century. SJ 805 571. Later developments on the Odd Rode side where a new 1778 Salt Works was established in 1778 following the completion of the canal. Lawton Salt Works was taken over by the Broughton family in about 1790 and Salt Union eventually took over the lease in 1888. Became Commercial Salt Co in c.1911 which merged with Palmer Mann in 1920's. Henry Seddon of Middlewich took over the freehold in about 1922. Works eventually closed following subsidence in 1926. Massive subsidence occured in 1937. Site landscaped in 1980 and now a meadow. SJ 801 574. North of the river in Odd Rode there is also a "Wich House Field" and a "Rock Pit Field". There was a brief period of rock salt mining around 1780. But the Wich House Field could be a 17th century development (1).
According to (2) brine was pumped two miles from the Church Lawton Township into Shropshire to extract the salt.

<1> Twigg G D, 1994, Salt Working In Cheshire, /9 (Report). SCH2919.

<2> Ormerod, G., 1882, The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester (Book). SCH1389.