[Retlaw]

Originally Posted by Bob Dobson

Look on the Lancashire Family History Society's website home page. See the turquoise box and click onto it to see if any members are interested in Halsteads/ If so, you can email them.
Ask Accrington library (accrington.library@lancashire.gov.uk) to check the parish registers for Church Kirk church

Oy Dobbo if tha looks properly at his post thal see they've getten back tit 1600's fost un as I can find at Ch Kirk is 1749.
A were bashing all the parish regs into a database for Jack Broderick oer 30 years ago, an since then ave seen lods o claims as tu how far back folk ave traced theur ancestors an a large % stumbled when they changed calender from Easter to January, I reckon if them as ses they've getten back any further than mid 1700, there bigger liars than thee an me, an tha con tell sum good uns.
Before 1600's very few folk had a surname, an King wur gedding fed up wi the ammounts coming back in taxes, so to sort things out he decreed evry body had to have a surname. some picked wher th lived, others took name of their trade an then you've got the sons of, one ot best I found was William Zitherater.