There are 17 listed buildings in the village,[3] including the timber framed Grade I Church of St Werburgh, which is at least 700 years old.

[4] Among the other listed buildings are examples of architect John Douglas' work, including the second Church of St Werburgh, built in 1883.

[5] In 2006, Time Team excavated land at Moss Brow Farm in Warburton, looking for a Roman fortlet.

It has been suggested that Warburton was the site of an Anglo-Saxon burgh or defended settlement, possibly either called "Toppingburgh" orWeard byrig, established by Aethelflaed, Queen of the Mercians, in 915 during the wars with the Vikings.

Warburton grew as an agricultural town during the medieval period, and it remained almost untouched by the Industrial Revolution; this is reflected in the population change between 1801 and 1901, dropping from 466 to 403, with little variation at a time when the rest of Trafford was expanding rapidly.

[13] Warburton lies in the Altrincham and Sale West constituency, which since its formation in 1997 has been represented in the House of Commons by the Conservative MP Sir Graham Brady.

The local geology is lower keuper marl, with a ridge of sand and gravel running from Warburton to Dunham.

St Werburgh's (grid reference SJ696895) is a timber framed church and a Grade I Listed Building, one of six in Trafford.

[4] Nearby are the remains of the old village cross, complete with stocks whose wooden restraints are modern, though the supporting pillars are much older.

[9] The other church in Warburton, also dedicated to St Werburgh, was built in 1883 by John Douglas and is a Grade II Listed Building.

[20] Also built in the village by Douglas was the post office in 1893,[21] and Warburton School in 1871–72; this has been converted to a residence but still features crucks supporting the roof.

[23] The timber framed farm building on Park Road is 17th-century in origin;[24] the late-18th-century farmhouse on Warburton Lane was made with Flemish bond brick and has a slate roof.

[29] There is the base of a stone cross on Townfield Lane,[30] and wooden stocks nearby, probably dating from the 17th century.

c. ccxxvii)[41] included the diversion of the original road and the new Ship Canal bridge within the scope of the toll charges.

Featuring prominently amongst these finds were Roman artefacts including coins, brooches and a snake bracelet.

[42] At the invitation of local historian Jim Balme, Time Team excavated in Warburton in September 2006.

Though no evidence of a Roman fortlet was found, the discovery of strip lynchets indicates that there was a Romano-British farm in Warburton.