Scarisbrick | |
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St Elizabeth's Church |
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Scarisbrick shown within Lancashire | |
Population | 3,554 (2011 Census) |
OS grid reference | SD382130 |
Civil parish |
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District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Ormskirk |
Postcode district | L40 |
Post town | Southport |
Postcode district | PR8 |
Post town | Southport |
Postcode district | PR9 |
Dialling code | 01704 |
Police | Lancashire |
Fire | Lancashire |
Ambulance | North West |
EU Parliament | North West England |
UK Parliament | |
Scarisbrick (/ˈskeɪzbrɪk/ or /ˈskɛərzbrɪk/) is a village and civil parish in West Lancashire, England. The A570, the main road between Ormskirk and Southport, runs through Scarisbrick, and much of the village lies along it. As a result, it does not have a traditional village centre, though the junction with the A5147 is close to the geographic centre.
Scarisbrick literally means "Skar's slope" and comes from the Old Norse Skar (a personal name) + -es (possessive) + brekka ("slope"). It is thought that the personal name is Danish, though the second element suggests Norwegian settlement. The "slope" may refer to a slight incline between two streams near the site of Scarisbrick Hall. The name was recorded as Scharisbrec c.1200, Skaresbrek in 1238, and finally Scarisbrick c.1240.
In its early history, travellers tended to avoid Scarisbrick parish. Martin Mere, a large lake with associated marshlands and peat bogs, made the immediate area quite difficult to cross. Much of the flat land between Southport and Liverpool is polder reclaimed from marshes and the lake. The modern-day hamlets of Barrison Green, Bescar, Carr Cross, Drummersdale, Hurlston, Pinfold, and Snape Green were formed from the early farms and settlements that did arise in the area.