Bretton is a village in Flintshire, Wales. It is located to the west of the city of Chester, near the border with Cheshire, England. Along with the nearby village of Broughton, the population was 5,791 at the 2001 Census.
History
The placename Bretton is probably derived from the Old Norse (ON) Bretar 'relating to the Britons (historical), the Welsh (people)' and the Old English language (OE) tūn 'farm or estate' The original settlers in Bretton were Viking welshmen, possibly second or third generation expatriates, distinctive in origin, culture, dress, accent or speech, who may well have called themselves, or been described by the English (and perhaps the Welsh), as ON Bretar rather than OE Walas or OE Cumbras.
Bretton Canal (also known as Sir John Glynne's Canal) was the western end of the waterway that crossed the Saltney Marsh on a route for two miles, and then turned to meet the new channel of the Dee a short distance away. It was used to transport coal from the mines owned by the Glynne family. The canal was abandoned in 1775 after only 10 years use, it eventually disappeared with the Saltney Marsh Enclosure Act of 1778.
The village has had two public houses, The Grosvenor Arms, located adjacent to the bakery and nicknamed "The Dogs" and The Glynne Arms located near the station. The Grosvenor Arms closed in the early part of the 20th century and The Glynne Arms closed in 2007 and re-opened in 2010 as The New Glynne Arms.
Bretton also has a water pump on a roadside green. The disappearance of the pump during remodelling of the road junction was a source of concern to local residents in the 1970s, until it was traced to a council storage yard and reinstated.
Bretton Wood (south east of the village) is marked on Ordnance Survey maps of the area, in past times it was referred to as Bretton Forest, it stretches a considerable distance into Lower Kinnerton and Dodleston where it is known as Black Wood. The wood was cut into two parts when the Chester Southerly By-pass (A55 road) was constructed in 1976. Bretton Lodge was a gatehouse, at the entrance of Bretton Wood for the carriage road that led, via Balderton, Cheshire to Eaton Hall, Cheshire, evidence suggests that a lodge building was present in the 17th century. It was demolished in the early 1980s to make way for the extension to the bridge over the A55 road.
On 26 September 1976, human error brought ruin to the houses adjacent to the south side of the main Chester road (now the A5104 road). Workmen in Saltney left a drainage ditch with a temporary cofferdam in place over the weekend that caused extensive flooding when the water from a deluge of rain backed up and flooded all the houses and surrounding land.
In 2010 a residents committee was formed, Bretton Residents Action Group (BRAG), to ensure that future development surrounding the village did not adversely affect village life and to develop community activities. A link to the village website is at the foot of the webpage.
Methodist Chapel
The current Methodist chapel was built in 1859, although evidence suggests that Methodist worship was present in the village before this. In 1830 a petition was submitted to the House of Lords stating that the Members of the Methodist Congregation assembled at Bretton, in the County of Flint, whose Names are thereunto subscribed; praying their Lordships "to adopt Measures for the Extinction of Slavery, and the Extension of all the Blessings of Freedom to the utmost Limits of the British Empire; and for a Reform of Parliament:"
The chapel was extended, in 1920, by the addition of a front porch to commemorate the villagers who gave their lives in World War I. Two stone inscriptions, either side of the entrance, are dedicated to the memory of:-
Private Edward James ALLMAN 6th Battalion South Wales Borderers, died 28 May 1918, commemorated Soissons Memorial, Aisne, France. Son of George & Mary Ann Allman of Bretton Lodge Lance Corporal Henry Thomas ASBURY Royal Engineers died 1st Feb 1919, buried Murmansk, New British Cemetery, Russian Federation. Private Walter LONG 1st Battalion Cheshire Regiment, died 20th Jun 1915, commemorated Ypres (Menin Gate), Belgium. Private Jonas PATTLE 4th Battalion Royal Welsh Fusiliers, died 23 May 1918, commemorated Arras Memorial, Pas-de-Calais, France. Gunner Jack WHITELEGGE 275th Brigade Royal Field Artillery, died 31st Jul 1917, commemorated Ypres (Menin Gate), Belgium.
Not commemorated on the remembrance porch, but on the list inside the chapel entrance:- Private Arthur THOMAS Royal Welch Fusiliers died 10th Dec 1917, buried Erquinghem-Lys Churchyard Extension, France. Son of James & Ann Thomas of Bretton Lodge