History of Northwich was the Stanley's, later Earls of Derby and stayed in the family’s hands until the late 18th century. That salt production continued throughout the centuries can be seen through John Leland's description of the town in 1540: Although Leland described Northwich as a market town, there is no surviving charter for a market or fair. A market still exists today. Between 1642 and 1643, during the English Civil War, Northwich was fortified and garrisoned by Sir William Bereton for the Parliamentarians. The salt beds beneath Northwich were re-discovered in the 1670s by employees of the local Smith-Barry family. The Smith-Barrys
The Rookery, Nantwich hall and flanking wings. Local historian Jeremy Lake has dated the roof timbers as late 16th or early 17th century. Sources The Rookery, Nantwich The Rookery, or 125 Hospital Street, is a substantial Georgian townhouse in Nantwich, Cheshire, England. It is located at the end of Hospital Street, on the north side, at the junction with Millstone Lane (at ). The existing building dates from the mid 18th century and is listed at grade II; English Heritage describes it as "good" in the listing. Nikolaus Pevsner describes it as "square and stately." It incorporates an earlier timber-framed house at the