Lane Ends Memorial




The “Lane Ends” memorial stands on the corner of St Helens Road and Burrows Lane on the road out of Prescot. It is on the site of the old pub “The Angel” (also known as “The Sign of The Angel”).

The last recorded landlord of the pub was William King in 1907, although the date of closure and demolition is not known.

Unveiled on 23^rd July 1922, the monument is unusual in that it does not record any names of the dead, and instead contains an inscription reading

“To The Glorious Memory Of All Those From The West Derby Hundred Of The County Palatine Of Lancaster Who Fought And Gave Their Lives For Their King And Country In The Great War 1914-1918” and a second inscription reads “The Laurels Of The Sons Are Watered From The Hearts Of The Mothers”.

The memorial was commissioned by Dr. Frederick Dixon-Nuttall, whose son John had died in the war (see this page for details). The Dixon-Nuttall family had been involved in the Glass making industry for many years and were involved in the establishment of United Glass (UGB) in St Helens.

The memorial shows an officer in a steel helmet, binoculars in one hand and pistol in the other, with his foot resting on a German Helmet. A woman stands below him, holding up a laurel wreath.

Local legend has it that the solder was modelled on a surviving son, probably Major William Dixon-Nuttall, DSO, and that the woman was modelled on William’s wife, but I have been unable to obtain any evidence of this.

Dr Dixon-Nuttall was at one time Mayor of St Helens and I believe that the  Council accepted custody of the memorial after its unveiling, but this was transferred to Eccleston Parish Council in 1985.