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History of Gawsworth

Gawsworth’s history goes back to the 1086 Doomsday Book, listed as “Gouesurde” and belonging to Earl Hugh of Chester.

The first school in Gawsworth was built by Lord Mohun in 1707 close to the Church of St James, it was used as the village school until 1832 and is now the new Rectory. The next school was down Church Lane by the crossroads and was in use until 1966 when, owing to the expansion of the village a new school was needed.

Gawsworth Old Hall is a grade I listed building built between 1480 and 1600 it was extensively remodeled in 1701, the hall was the subject of the most famous duel in English History – between Lord Mohun and the Duke of Hamilton. Gawsworth New Hall, a grade II listed building was built in 1707 by Lord Mohun, but abandoned after he was killed in the duel. Gawsworth Old Rectory is yet another Grade I listed building, build around 1470 and noted as one of the best preserved medium sized houses in Cheshire.

Records indicate that a chapel existed in Gawsworth in the 13th century, but it wasn’t until 1430 that the Church of St James was constructed. The nave dates to this time, with the chancel and tower built in 1470. In the churchyard there is a 15/16th century cross base, with a 20th century wooden cross. Inside the church are the tombs of four members of the Fitton family who lived in Gawsworth Old Hall, one of which is Mary Fitton, a contender for the “Dark Lady” of Shakespeare’s sonnets. The Parish registers date to 1557.

The Wesleyan Methodist Chapel was built in 1892.

The Population of Gawsworth was well recorded in the 19th century, and fluctuated between 567 and 847, it boomed in the 1950’s when it reached 1,093 and in 2011 the population was recorded as 1,705.

Meaning of ‘Gawsworth’

According to the University of Nottingham, Gawsworth is an example of a hybrid name, which combines Old Welsh and Old English. It’s literal translation would be something like ‘Enclosure of the Smith’.

This comes from the Old Welsh ‘gof’ and the Old English ‘worth’. It indicates that Gawsworth was probably a Welsh settlement with possible neighbouring Old English speakers providing the worth, meaning enclosure, but keeping the Welsh name for smith as it was probably a well known name in the area.