Chorlton-cum-Hardy Through Time

Chorlton is derived from Old English and probably means Ceolfrith’s Farm or settlement. Hardy is probably from the name Hearda or the Anglo-Saxon for ‘island’ or ‘dry ground in a well-watered land’; it may also mean ‘by the woods’ as the ancient forest of Arden Wood grew either side of the River Mersey. Despite there being no record of Chorlton-cum-Hardy as a settlement name before 1700, there was...