The unveiling of our village sign

Despite its long history, the village had not had a village sign, other than those announcing entry to the village on the roadside, in living memory.

According to Appleton Parish Council records, the idea of a village sign was first suggested by Cllr. Mike Stansfield at a Parish Council meeting in September 2006.  Sign makers were contacted but nothing progressed until Cllr. Judith Walker provided a photograph of a village sign for ‘Appledore’ at the January 2008 meeting.

This was met with wholehearted approval as a basis to move forward. From a sketch by Cllr John Price of a thorn tree within a sign headed ‘Appleton Thorn’, the design was developed by the artist / blacksmith / manufacturer for a galvanised, powder-coated sign with the leaves of the hand forged and bolted on to an oak beam.  Once agreed, approval was obtained from Warrington Borough Council in May 2009 for the positioning of the sign on the grass triangle between the Thorn Inn and St. Cross Church, which is in their ownership.

The new village sign was unveiled on Friday 16th October 2009 by Dr. Brian Axcell, Mayor of Warrington and Mrs. Dot Edwards, Chair of Appleton Parish Council. Many others attended including children from Appleton Thorn Primary School.

The sign has received many favourable comments since it was installed and now of course looks like it has always been there.