Introduction

By way of early introduction to this website I need to admit that it results from a deep sense of responsibility, and if I am honest, some guilt about not having been able to get my book on the 3rd Earl of Lathom published to date. Plus a need to find a sensible home for some of the huge amount of material that I have gathered over the last 8 years whilst researching this as yet unpublished tome.

From the local people of Lathom and its environs I have received nothing but kindness - and a willingness to share information, photographs, maps, drawings, all manner of artefacts, small pieces of garden and home furniture, title deeds, access to paintings, architectural plans, DVDs, knowledge about the sites of local events in the story of the Earls of Lathom. People have given me things as if I were a pair of secure hands and trusted me with information that they have never shared with anyone else.

My first contact with the story of the 3rd Earl of Lathom is as described in the Preface to the book shown here on the Preface page.

I acknowledge that my own knowledge of Lathom and the villages and towns of West Lancashire is limited. What I know has been told me by my wife's family who were born and bred in the area, local historians, and enthusiasts, The Lathom Park Trust, members of the Bootle Wilbraham, Baker Wilbraham and Sparrow families as well as local families with a proud heritage in the region.

I also understand more than ever now why it is that it takes so long to research and write a book about anyone of historical significance.

So as part of my bargain with the people of Lathom and beyond I intend this year (2009/2010) to lay out here all of the resources that I can share and a taste of the book I hope one day to publish.

There are some resources that I have received that will require further permission before they can be published and I will keep you advised, on the Home Page, of all developments as they happen. Other resources will probably not be released generally but will be stored under the mindful eye of The Lathom Park Trust as a resource for the future. If any of this proves to be of value to anyone then I will feel the project has been worthwhile. It may be best to start the story by looking at the pages on the family of the Earls of Lathom - the Bootle Wilbraham Family.

JohnHunter Knowles