IT'S just about the oddest placename in the borough, but just how did Elephant Lane, down Thatto Heath way, come by its title?

The question is posed by a reader from the Bolton area, Mrs R. Martin, who explains that the street reference popped up while she was researching her maternal family history which has a St Helens starting point.

"My grandmother's marriage certificate, dated 1895, gives her address as Elephant Lane," explains Mrs M, from 41 Dicconson Lane, Westhoughton, who is now thirsting to know more about the origins of that elephantine street name.

May I put my own two penn'orth in first, and trust that our sagely readership will put me right if I'm off the mark?

I vaguely recall, in the distant past, being told that the Elephant bit is a Lanky-twang corruption of the words Holy Font - a sacred relic of that kind having been located along that Thatto Heath stretch in bygone times.

This sounds a bit more plausible than another theory which once came my way, sugggesting that it got its name because elephants were stabled there in bygone times when the circus made regular visits to the district.

ANYONE able to provide the definitive definition? If so, Mrs M and myself would welcome correspondence on this intriguing topic.

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