Building proceeded with rapid strides; house after house sprang up in the lines of streets, which had only lately received their first coating of shingle, and in 1841, one year after the opening of the railway, the town had assumed considerable proportions. Near the entrance from Poulton road were three or four double rows of cottages for the accommodation of the workpeople, and a Roman Catholic chapel. Preston Street contained but few houses in addition to the Fleetwood Arms Hotel; thence, travelling eastward were Dock Street, with the Crown Hotel, as far as and including the Victoria Hotel; the east side of Warren Street, the west side of St. Peter’s Place, the church and Sunday school, both sides of Church Street, Custom House Lane, the Lower Queen’s Terrace, the North Euston Hotel, and the bath houses. The Upper Queen’s Terrace was in process of erection, but was not completed until 1844, after having been allowed, for some reason, to remain in a partially finished state for two years.
The church, standing on a raised plot of ground in the centre of the town and surrounded by an iron palisading, is dedicated to St. Peter, and was first opened for divine service in 1841. It is a stone edifice with a square tower and octagonal spire at the west end, and was erected by voluntary contributions, the site being provided by Sir P. H. Fleetwood, who retained the right of presentation to the living. The interior of the building is neat, and contains sittings for about four hundred persons in the body, with additional accommodation for two hundred more in the gallery, at the end of which are the choir-pew and organ-loft, the latter being occupied by an instrument constructed by Gray, of London. Previous to the alterations, which were made seventeen years since, and consisted of the erection of a gallery and the convertion of some of the private pews into free seats, the family pew of the Fleetwoods stood in front of the organ-loft, and was the only one raised out of the body of the church. The chancel window is of stained glass, large and handsome, representing a central figure of St. Peter bearing the Keys of Heaven, below and on each side of which several scriptural subjects are illustrated. This window, purchased by subscription amongst the parishioners, was inserted in 1860; and in the previous year a handsome font of Caen stone was presented by Mrs. G. Y. Osborne. Two upright tablets, the gift of the late vicar, the Rev. G. Y. Osborne, illuminated with the Ten Commandments, are placed, one on each side of the Communion table. Four other tablets are fixed against the walls of the church, the first of which was erected by a few friends as a tribute of respect to the memory of Dobson Ward, died 1859, aged 43 years, a humble but zealous worker in the Sunday school; another was placed by the Rev. G. Y. Osborne, in loving memory of his deceased daughter; the third, a handsome tablet, was erected at the entrance to the vestry, by parishioners and friends, to the memory of the Rev. G. Y. Osborne, “for 19 years vicar of this parish, who died 11 November, 1871, aged 53 years,”[83] and the last is to the memory of Charles Stewart, esq., died 1873, aged 64 years, late of High Leigh, Cheshire, and Fleetwood. The living, endowed with the great tithes of Thornton and augmented by the pew rents, was originally a perpetual curacy, but during the ministry of the late Rev. G. Y. Osborne, a distinct district or parish for all ecclesiastical purposes was assigned to the church, and the title of vicar accorded to the incumbent.
| PERPETUAL CURATES AND VICARS OF FLEETWOOD. IN THE DEANERY OF AMOUNDERNESS AND ARCHDEACONRY OF LANCASTER. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Institution. | Name. | On whose Presentation. | Cause of vacancy. |
| 1841 | St. Vincent Beechey, M.A. | Sir P. H. Fleetwood | |
| 1849 | G. Yarnold Osborne, M.A. | Ditto | Resignation of St. Vincent Beechey |
| 1868 | Saml. Hastings, M.A. | Exrs. of the late Sir P. H. Fleetwood | Resignation of G. Y. Osborne |
| 1871 | James Pearson, M.A. | Ditto | Resignation of S. Hastings |
The burial ground connected with the church is part of the general cemetery, situated near the shore in the direction of the Landmark at Rossall Point, and about one mile distant from the town.
The small building opposite the Church, now used for infants only, was for several years, until the erection of the Testimonial Schools, the ordinary Sunday school under the superintendence of the incumbent of St. Peter’s.
The Market Place, opened on the 7th of November, 1840, is a spacious, paved area, surrounded by a high wall of sandstone.
The two entrances are closed by means of large wooden gates, and lead respectively into Adelaide and Victoria Streets. The central portion of the in-walled space is occupied by a square, wooden structure, covered over with a slated roof, in the interior of which are stalls for the goods of the different farmers and traders. Friday is the market day, and the following list comprises the various commodities exposed for sale on Friday, the 10th of July, 1846, the earliest recorded, with their prices:—
| Oats, per bushel | 3s. | 10d. | |
| Meal, per load | 36s. | 0d. | |
| Beans, per windle | 16s. | 0d. | |
| Butter, per pound | 1s. | 1d. | |
| Eggs, fresh | 16 to 18 for | 1s. | 0d. |
| Peas, per strike | 0s. | 9d. | |
| Potatoes (new), per score | 1s. | 10d. | |
| ” (old), per windle | 8s. | 0d. | |
| Beef, per pound | 6d. to 7d. | ||
| Lamb ” | 0s. | 7d. | |
| Mutton ” | 0s. | 6½d. | |
| Salmon ” | 0s. | 10d. | |
| Lobsters ” | 1s. | 0d. | |
Since the date of the above quotations, Preston has gradually monopolised the chief portion of the grain trade, and consequently transactions in oats and other cereals are not of frequent occurrence at the local markets of the Fylde.