| 1 |
4,344, including 14 of inland water,
according to the census of 1901. |
| 2 |
Coram Rege R. 254, m. 52; the place
is called Haulton, near Blackrod. |
| 3 |
Civil War Tracts (Chet. Soc), 125;
the Parliament's men were beaten through
their magazine exploding. |
| 4 |
Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Soc. v, 93;
the initials H. D. M. may indicate Henry
Molyneux. |
| 5 |
Subs. R. bdle. 250, no. 9, Lancs.
'Nether Hulton,' with 103 hearths, was
probably part of it, for Nathaniel Molyneux's house was there, with six hearths. |
| 6 |
Lond. Gaz. 24 Sept. 1872. |
| 7 |
Local N. and Q. (Manch. Guardian),
no. 791. |
| 8 |
Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc.
Lancs, and Ches.), i, 54. |
| 9 |
Cockersand Chart. (Chet. Soc), ii,
690; the consideration named for this
grant is 'three marks of silver given me
in my great need,' but no doubt there had
been previous loans or assistance,
Thomas the Small, whose share is mentioned specially, afterwards killed a certain
Thomas de Byron; he was outlawed, and
his lands were taken into the king's hands,
the abbot making fine and recovering the
lands. In 1292 his son John claimed them
from the abbot, who called Richard [de
Ince] son of Henry de Sefton to warrant
him, and John was non-suited; Assize R.
408, m. 26 d. |
| 10 |
Cockersand Chart. ii, 688; for Henry
de Sefton see further in the accounts of
Ince and Aspull in Wigan. The abbot
was to render 1½d. to the chief lord for
all services and customs.
The Cockersand estate had been derived
from various benefactions. Hugh son of
William son of Nest granted 'the whole
third part of the vill,' with the homages
and services appurtenant, for which he
received 31 marks; ibid, ii, 678. It
is possible that this was the 'third part'
afterwards held and surrendered by Henry
de Sefton. William son of Nest had
granted to Thomas son of Ellis de Pendlebury land in Ballesley, bounded by the road
from Houghton to Aspull, Ridley brook,
Green lache, and Aldersnape head, &c.;
and Thomas, in turn, granted it to the
canons; ibid. 679.
Thomas de Houghton, clerk, made
several grants of land; between Well
brook and Town brook, and between the
latter and Ballsdean brook; in Birchley
and by his grange at Conware; and all
his land of Birchley and Sandeveshurst.
Cecily his wife confirmed these grants;
she appears to have received the lands
from Austin de Houghton, being confirmed
in them by Robert the rector of Winwick;
ibid. 680–3. This may be the land of
Thomas son of Swain for which Gilbert
de Notton and Edith his wife also granted
a confirmation; ibid. 687.
Roger son of Adam de Pendlebury gave
all his lands in Westhoughton, except
Snydale; ibid. 677. There were also
donations from the Rylands family; ibid.
685. Ellis de Pendlebury granted the
Priest's croft; its bounds followed the
Town brook as far as the road to Aspull,
then by a syke by Recingpool moss to the
lache going into Bradley brook, across
from this brook beyond the carr, and as
far as the Town brook ford lying on the
north side of Hugh's house; ibid. 688.
Robert the mercer of [West] Derbyshire
afterwards surrendered his claim to this
croft; ibid. 687.
Several rentals of the abbey are known;
ibid, iii, 1232, &c. In 1251 and 1260
the farms of Westhoughton amounted to
9s. 8½d.; Thomas de Whittleswick was
the chief tenant. The rentals of 1451
and 1461 give long lists of tenants; John
Rigby held Ballsdean; Thomas Laithwaite, Brinsop; and James Holden, Windyates. |
| 11 |
Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), i, 61. A service of four barbed
arrows, or 1d., was due from it. The
place is not named in the Cockersand
Chartulary, though it occurs in the rentals;
and the Cockersand manor seems always
to have been reckoned as one oxgang. |
| 12 |
Coram Rege R. 297, m. 121, printed
in Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Notes, i, 6. The
rating of the township at one oxgang of
hide land seems an instance of beneficial
assessment; two plough-lands would have
been more reasonable. It appears, indeed,
that in 1296 Margaret widow of Ellis de
Turton claimed against the Abbot of
Cockersand dower in a messuage and
plough-land in Westhoughton; De Banco
R. 114, m. 86.
The abbot's moiety must have been the
result of the grants recorded in the previous note; nothing is said in the suit as
to his lordship of the whole vill granted by
Henry de Sefton. Roger son of Ellis de
Westhoughton granted to Cockersand all
his claim in the waste in return for 8 acres
lying near his land of Birchley and another
8 acres lying near his land of Rylands.
This is the only grant in the Chartul.
(691), and is no doubt that mentioned in
the text.
John son of Thomas de Houghton in
1331 did not prosecute a claim he made
against the abbot in Westhoughton; Assize R. 1404, m. 19. |
| 13 |
An account of the family, with illustrative deeds, by Mr. J. Paul Rylands, was
printed in the Gen. (1880), iv, 170–8.
The fields now called 'Ryelands' lie to
the south-west of the Quakers' meetinghouse on the road from Westhoughton to
Hindley.
John son of Robert de Rylands granted
to the canons of Cockersand all his land
in Ballesley, and followed this by a surrender of his claim in the waste, founded
on a charter by Adam de Pendlebury, in
return for 14 acres by the Wallbrook and
Warcock Hill; Chartul. ii, 685, 686.
In Fine R. 80, 10 E i, m. 10, he is
called John del Rylondes de Halughton.
He was a juror at Manchester in 1282
to inquire into the value of knights' fees,
&c.; Mamecestre (Chet. Soc.), i, 168.
The abbot and canons of Cockersand
about 1280 leased to John the Jew the
land which they had from Richard de Rylands in Westhoughton; John also held
the land granted by John de Rylands, and
another portion bought from William de
Rylands; Cbartul. ii, 694.
Richard son of John de Rylands (Duchy
Misc. 3/9) was probably a clerk, as he is
styled Master Richard in 1282; Assize
R. 10 Edw. I (Rec. Soc. xlvii, 175). He
is named in 1302; Assize R. no. 418, m.
2. He was the first witness to a settlement, dated at Hulton 3 Nov. 1338, of
Adam de Hulton's lands in Westhoughton;
Mr. Hulton's D. Richard de Rylands
was a juror re Bradshagh in 1317. He
had at least two sons, William de Rylands,
named in Duchy of Lanc. Misc. 3/9 and
Misc. R. div. 25, bdle. 2, no. 11, and
John de Rylands, who married a kinswoman of Adam de Hindley, and in 1306
was wounded in an affray at Wigan; Assize R. no. 421, m. 1 d.
William and Robert de Rylands of
Westhoughton contributed to the subsidy
in 1327 and 1332.
In the Coram Rege Roll of 1334 (R.
297, m. 83) it is recorded that the Abbot
of Cockersand successfully claimed 14
acres of wood against John son of John de
Hulton, Robert son of Robert de Pendlebury, Richard de Bradshagh and Roger and
Adam his sons, and William de Rylands.
The jurors stated that the abbot was sole
lord. In the same roll (m. 121), however, it is also recorded that William de
Rylands and Agnes his wife claimed common of pasture in 100 acres of wood, and
200 acres of moss and pasture against the
abbot, Robert de Rylands, and Roger
Walet.
In this action William claimed as son
of Thomas son of the above-named John
de Rylands, the abbot admitting that in
1262 John de Rylands had held one-fourth
part of the lordship, and that the same had
devolved by descent upon William. It
therefore appears that in the year 1334
the Rylands family still retained their
right to one-fourth part of the lordship,
and the finding of the jury was in accordance with the abbot's evidence. But it
seems probable that they were in fact
mesne tenants of the Abbot of Cockersand, though in all probability their tenure
of their lands in Westhoughton commenced at a period anterior to the acquisition of the manor by the abbey.
In the De Banco Rolls of 1333 and
1334 (296, m. 387, and 300, m. 232)
there are records of a dispute between
Ellen and Margery, daughters of Maurice
de Rylands, and Adam son of Richard de
Bradshagh regarding a messuage and land
in Westhoughton, from which it appears
that Ellen and Margery were sisters and
heirs of Richard de Rylands.
In 1348 Agnes widow of William de
Rylands granted to her nephew (nepos)
Adam son of Richard del Grange her part
of a messuage, water-mill, and horse-mill,
&c., held of the Abbot of Cockersand;
Thomas Hodgeson de Rylands is mentioned; Chart. ii, 755 (Add. MS. 32107,
fol. 190b).
In 1371–2 Robert de Maunton, chaplain, and John le Mort, executors of the
will of William son of Robert de Rylands
appeared against the Abbot of Cockersand
claiming that 30 acres of land and 10
acres of wood demised by the abbot to
William were unjustly held against the
said executors; De Banco R. 443, m.
122.
The Abbot of Cockersand in 1395–6
leased to William Rylands and Thurstan
and Thomas his sons a tenement 'upon
condition that if they die within the term
[19 years] the abbot may re-enter, and
that they shall not alien without licence,
and that they shall repair the houses during the term, and after the death of every
one to pay 13s. 4d.'; and in the next year
the abbot gave a reversion to Thomas,
Lawrence, and John Rylands; Local
Glean. Lancs. and Cbes. ii, 225, from
Duchy of Lanc. Misc. R. div. 25, Z./11.
Lawrence de Rylands of Wexham
Bucks., had protections on going into
France in the retinues of Sir William
Philip, Sir Thomas Beaumont, and
others, between 1429 and 1439; Dep.
Keeper's Rep. xlviii, App. The will of
Alice Rylands of London, proved in 1442,
contains a bequest to Wexham Church;
Commissary of Lond. fol. 96.
Nicholas Rylands in 1474, when
seventy-eight years of age, in Leigh parish
church, swore upon a book that he had
never made a feoffment to Thomas
Stanley and Piers Legh, or to Roger Hulton of the Park, sen., of his lands, &c.,
within Westhoughton; nor had he made
a feoffment to his son William of his
father Robert's lands in Westhoughton,
Lowton, and Pemberton; Gen. iv, 174.
The MS. containing this is now in the
Grosvenor Museum, Chester. Nicholas
had, in 1430, married Margery daughter of
Sir Thomas Gerard; ibid. 172.
Ralph Rylands in 1503–4 released to
Anne widow of Geoffrey Shakerley, and
Peter son and heir of Geoffrey, all claim
on lands, &c., in the parishes of Winwick,
Leigh, and Deane; ibid. 175.
Members of the Rylands family appear
in the rentals of Cockersand as tenants of
the abbey. In 1451 and 1461 Peter and
Hugh Rylands each held a tenement, paying what was then a substantial rent. In
1501 Peter's tenement was apparently
held by the wife of Geoffrey Shakerley,
and Hugh's tenement by Humphrey Rylands; and the latter one was held by
another Peter Rylands in 1537. Another
Peter was living at Westhoughton in
1587; Co. Pal. Plea R. 29 Eliz. no. 261,
m. 19.
Ralph Rylands of Westhoughton removed to Culcheth at the beginning of
the 17th century, and his descendants subsequently settled at Warrington, with
which town they are still identified. One
of them, Mr. Peter Rylands, of Warrington, was the Parliamentary representative
of that town in the latter part of the last
century; Ped. in the Coll. of Arms.
Other members of the family continued
to reside in Westhoughton and neighbouring townships. Peter Rylands of Daisy
Hillock, Westhoughton, agent for sequestrations under the Parliament, died in
1663, leaving a son Peter, M.A. Trin.
Coll. Dublin, who became treasurer and
vicar-choral of Limerick Cathedral, and
died without issue in 1695, having married Diana daughter of Sir Drury Wray,
bart. who was remarried to Archdeacon
Twigge of Limerick; Gen. iv, 177–8. |
| 14 |
Geoffrey son of Geoffrey de Byron
for 15 marks released to the canons of
Cockersand all the land he had held of
them at a rent of 12d.; and Richard son
of Robert de Worsley gave a quitclaim
also; Chart. ii, 690. In 1292 Richard
du Boulton, Richard son of Roger de
Worsley, William de Aintree, and others
claimed a tenement in Westhoughton
from the Abbot of Cockersand, but were
non-suited; Assize R. 408, m. 46. |
| 15 |
Lancs. Inq. and Extents, ii, 71. |
| 16 |
Mamecestre (Chet. Soc), 480. It
appears, however, that the abbot paid a
rent of 13s. 4d. to the lord of Manchester; Duchy of Lanc. Rentals and Surv.
bdle. 5, no. 2. |
| 17 |
Chart. ii, 675–6. The bounds
followed Bishop's lache to Buckshaw
brook, up this brook to its head, then
along Mother lache, between the rushy
land and the deep moss, to Winyates carr
and then to the head of Redshaw, crossing
the moss from this point in a straight
line to the syke between Rumworth and
Suynul (? Snydale). |
| 18 |
Assize R. 430, m. 6d.; Duchy of
Lanc. Assize R. 7, m. 1 d. |
| 19 |
Sir John de Ipre and John de Titterington, vicar of Mitton, desired to give a
messuage and 40 acres in Westhoughton,
held of the Abbot of Cockersand, for the
purpose named. The premises paid a
rent of 2d. a year to the abbot, who held
them of Sir John La Warre as of the
fee of the barony of Manchester in free
alms, and by the service of 1d. yearly;
Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Ric. II, no. 69. |
| 20 |
Some of the tenants it appeared had
held their lands without taking the trouble
to renew their leases; but in 1530 it
was ruled that they must renew at the
expiration of the term, paying a penny to
the abbot as 'earnest penny,' or 'God's
penny,' and another penny to the steward
as 'entry penny,' according to the custom; Duchy Plead. (Rec. Soc. Lancs.
and Ches.), i, 192–4.
About 1520 Richard Urmston, who had
married Ellen daughter of Nicholas Holden, claimed on her behalf a tenement in
Westhoughton. The actual holder, Peter
Williamson, claimed in right of his wife,
who was a widow and married him without the abbot's consent, whereby, it was
alleged, her right was forfeited; ibid, ii,
150. The claim of Ellen Gorton, made
about the same time, has some interesting
details; ibid, i, 99. |
| 21 |
Local Gleanings Lancs. and Ches. i,
181. |
| 22 |
Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 4, m. 24.
The lands of the monastery of Cockersand, including the manor of Westhoughton, were recovered in 1821, Richard
Dashwood being vouchee; Pal. of Lanc.
Assize R. Lent, 2 Geo. IV, rot. 12. |
| 23 |
It was found in 1588 that James
Browne at his death in 1587 had held the
manor of Westhoughton and various lands
of the queen by the twentieth part of a
knight's fee; its value was £10 a year.
In 1562 he had granted it to his son
Robert, who had married Anne daughter
of John Langtree, with remainder to
Robert's son James; Duchy of Lanc. Inq.
p.m. xiv, 37.
Anne daughter of William Banaster
married — Browne of Brinshope; Dugdale, Visit. (Chet. Soc.), 25. Anne wife
of James Browne, and Mary wife of James
Browne, both of Westhoughton, were recusants in 1619; Manch. Sess. (Rec. Soc.
Lancs, and Ches.), i, 82.
In 1622 James and Robert Browne
made a settlement of the manor of Westhoughton and seventy messuages, &c.,
1,000 acres of land, 300 acres of meadow,
&c., in the township; Pal. of Lanc. Feet
of F. bdle. 101, no. 6.
James Browne held the manor by the
twentieth part of a knight's fee at his
death in 1633; Robert his son and heir
was forty years of age; Duchy of Lanc.
Inq. p.m. xxvii, no. 2. The will of James
Browne was proved at Chester in 1633.
In 1636 Robert Browne of Brinsop and
Richard Browne his son and heir conveyed
to Christopher Anderton certain messuages
on the north side of the king's highway
between Manchester and Chorley; Anderton D. no. 116. In 1655 Westhoughton
was counted among the Anderton of Lostock manors, but does not appear later;
ibid. no. 123.
In 1665 Ralph Browne obtained a verdict against James Browne for depasturing; Exch. of Pleas, Hil. 16 & 17 Chas. II,
m. 39. The will of Ralph Browne of
Brinsop was proved at Chester in 1689.
Kuerden about 1690 speaks of the
Browne of Ince near Wigan being brother
of the Browne of Brinsop; Local Glean.
Lancs. and Ches. i, 214.
The deforciants in 1650 were Sir
Thomas Smith, Dr. Edmund Mainwaring,
and Peter Leycester, all Cheshire men, and
probably trustees; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of
F. bdle. 149, m. 103. |
| 24 |
Recovery at the Lent Assizes, 1812;
William Brown Brotherton and wife, and
Thomas William Brown Brotherton,
vouchees.
Disputes concerning the inclosing of
the commons had occurred in the 17th
century between Atherton and Brotherton;
Lancs. and Ches. Rec. ii, 247, 293. |
| 25 |
Baines, Lancs. iii, 49, and information of Mr. William Roper. The Wilbraham estate consists of a number of
farms acquired in various ways. |
| 26 |
Information of Mr. Milnes Gaskell. |
| 27 |
Numerous references to these suits
will be found in the Ducatus Lanc.
In 1553 James Browne complained
that William Reeve and others had forcibly
entered two messuages and 100 acres of
land, parcel of his manor of Westhoughton,
'by reason of a feigned custom they call
tenant right.' The defendants claimed
common of pasture and turbary for fuel to
be burnt in their tenement. William
Pendlebury deposed that his father Nicholas
had had a messuage and land for the
'town's term' of nineteen years, paying
to the Abbot of Cockersand 14s. 10d.
He had succeeded his father, and paid an
'earnest penny or God's penny,' and an
entry penny, and was one of those affected
by the settlement between the abbot and
his tenants already mentioned. Others
said that plaintiff was 'very covetous,
cumbersome, insatiable, and extreme' with
his tenants and farmers, and was trying
to evade or upset the settlement. Plaintiff, who lived at Brinsop, denied this, and
said that defendants, acting on bad advice,
were troubling him needlessly. One of
them had admitted that a scholar in his
house, since gone to Cambridge, had advised him to say that 8s. he had paid was
for a fine for his house, whereas it was
for arrears of rent. Ralph Browne, brother
of James, acted as his bailiff; Duchy
Plead. iii, 145–51.
James Browne was again plaintiff in
1556, Adam Hulton and others being
defendants. He claimed to have succeeded the Abbots of Cockersand as lords
of the manor, and of the waste. Many
approvements had been made, cottages and
mills built, mostly long before the Dissolution. The abbots had held courts, taken
perquisites and profits, and appointed constables and other officers. The defence
attempted was that the lord of Manchester
was the true lord of the manor and of the
wastes, and that the Abbot of Cockersand
had paid a chief rent of 18d. a year for
his lands in Westhoughton; Duchy of
Lanc. Dep. lxxiv, B. 2.
Probably as a consequence of this the
jury at Manchester Court Leet in 1557
found that a rent of 18d. was due from
the township of Westhoughton, but had
been withheld; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. i,
35. Nothing further is heard of this
claim, James Browne having no doubt
justified his title. The constables of
Westhoughton were summoned to attend
the Manchester court down to the end of
the 17th century, but had ceased to appear; ibid, vi, 254.
From a summary of depositions made in
1588 it appears that the manor-house had
been the grange of the Abbots of Cockersand. The decrees previously made against
the alleged 'tenant right' were recited,
and it was stated that the old name was
'town term.' Against the claim of custom
the following reasons were alleged:—Most
of the tenants had taken leases from James
Browne the grandfather of the James
Browne of 1588; a great part of the
tenants were not the heirs in blood of the
old tenants; many of the tenements had
been inclosed from the waste; some tenants had assigned their tenements without
the leave of the lord; most of them had
committed waste; and many of the wives
of deceased tenants and their heirs had
not taken up their tenements within the
prescribed twelve months; Duchy of Lanc.
Misc. bdle. 3, no. 9. |
| 28 |
Snydale has taken many forms.
Albert Grelley, jun. gave Ellis de Pendlebury 'Sliuehale' by 12d. or by a sorhawk a year, and Ellis held the land in
121 2; Inq. and Extents, i, 58. From its
position it appears to be the Suynul or
Suinhul (? Sniuhul) of the Cockersand
Cbar. (ii, 676–7), which Roger son of
Adam de Pendlebury excepted from his
grant to the abbey.
It should be noticed that the Pendleburys had lands also in Halliwell, of which
there is a part called Smithills.
In 1320 Robert de Pendlebury held
'Smythell' for one sparrow-hawk or 12d.;
Mamecestre, 290.
Isabel Hulton and Katherine her
daughter in 1449 received £39 from the
lands called Snydale in Westhoughton for
the marriage of Katherine, from Sir Geoffrey Massey of Worsley and Margery his
wife; Ellesmere D. no. 221.
Henry son of Robert de Pendlebury
and Joan his wife had in 1363 and
later years disputes with Hugh de Leigh,
John de Leigh, and John son of Richard de Leigh, concerning messuages,
&c., in Westhoughton; De Banco R.
413, m. 100; 418, m. 315 d.; 438, m.
209 d.
In 1532 Roger Pendlebury of Westhoughton was murdered in his house. An
inquest was held, but, as his brother and
heir William averred, by the favour and
contrivance of Ralph Bradshagh the coroner, the jury found the crime had been
committed in self-defence; Duchy Plead.
ii, 51. |
| 29 |
Adam son of Roger Pendlebury in
1531 granted a lease of Snydale to Adam
Hulton of the Park; Towneley MS.
RR, n. 58.
In 1574 a settlement was made of a
messuage, windmill, 40 acres of land,
&c., in Westhoughton, by Roger and
Ralph Pendlebury; after these the remainders were to William, Nicholas,
Adam, Richard, and Lawrence Pendlebury in succession; Pal. of Lanc. Feet
of F. bdle. 36, no. 83.
A sequel to this arrangement is given
in Duchy of Lanc. Plead, clxv, P. 8.
William, a son of Robert Pendlebury of
'Snythyll,' in 1595, alleged that Roger
Pendlebury,
the son and
heir of Robert, had been seised of the capital
messuage called 'Snythull,' with barns, orchards, fishings, &c., in the parish of Deane.
Having no sons, Roger settled the estate
on his brothers successively—Ralph, William (plaintiff), Nicholas, Adam, Richard,
and Lawrence. Ralph having died, Roger
sold to Christopher Anderton the marriage of his daughter Anne, afterwards
wife of James Worthington, with the reversion of the estate should Anne die
childless. In 1613 James Worthington of
Sneithell and Anne his wife had a son
Ralph, twelve years of age; Visit. of 1613
(Chet. Soc), 126; also Visit. of 1567
(Chet. Soc), 28.
There was a recovery of Snydale in
1585, Christopher Anderton being tenant
and Roger Pendlebury vouchee; Anderton D. no. 48. The marriage of Anne
Pendlebury the daughter had been granted
in 1580 as appears by an exemplification
at the request of James Worthington;
ibid. no. 74. |
| 30 |
The sale, or more probably mortgage, referred to in the last note, was
made in 1584, ten years after the settlement, when Christopher Anderton acquired from Roger Pendlebury and Anne
his wife the capital messuage called Snythell, with lands in Westhoughton and
Golborne; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle.
46, m. 190.
James Worthington, of 'Snithell' and
Barnard's Inn, a younger son of Lawrence
Worthington of Crawshaw, married Anne,
daughter and sole heir of Roger Pendlebury; Visit. of 1613 (Chet. Soc), 126.
He contributed to the subsidy as a landowner in 1622; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs.
and Ches.), i, 160.
His son and heir Ralph was twelve
years of age in 1613. Ralph Worthington of 'Smithells' was a member of the
Presbyterian classis in 1646; Baines,
Lancs. (ed. 1868), i, 227.
In 1690 William Worthington and
Ralph, Peter, and John Worthington made
a settlement of the 'manor of Westhoughton' and of messuages and lands
there and in Thornton; Pal. of Lanc. Feet
of F. bdle. 225, m. 53.
From William Worthington the tithes
of 'Snydle or Snythill,' &c., were purchased in 1726–7 by William Leigh;
Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), iii, 234, from
Rolls 1 & 2 of Geo. II at Preston.
William son of William Worthington
of Bolton matriculated at Queen's College, Oxford, in 1739, being fifteen years
of age; he proceeded to the B.A. degree;
Foster, Alumni Oxon.
William Worthington was vouchee in
a recovery of the manor in 1745; Pal. of
Lanc. Plea R. 560, m. 8 d. |
| 31 |
Information of Mr. Daniel Howsin
of Padiham. |
| 32 |
Adam son of Richard de Bradshagh
in 1331 acquired a messuage and land; the
remainders were to his brother Henry, and
to Richard son of John de Bradshagh;
Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.),
ii, 80. |
| 33 |
In 1311–12 Richard son of Richard
de Hulton released to the abbey of Cockersand all his claim to wastes and pastures
within Westhoughton, reserving common
of pasture and reasonable estovers for
himself and his tenants; Hulton Ped. 6.
Ellen daughter of John de Hulton
granted to Hugh de Hulton and Agnes
his wife her toft and croft called the Park
and her meadow with appurtenances in
Westhoughton; Towneley MS. RR., no.
103.
John son of Adam de Heaton in 1337
claimed a messuage and lands against
Adam son of Richard de Hulton. The
defendant said he held jointly with Roger
his son, not named in the writ. The
claim was not pursued; Assize R. 1424,
m. 9; 1425, m. 2.
In later times lands in Snydale in Westhoughton were held also by the Hultons
of Farnworth; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m.
iii, no. 26.
An agreement was made in 1521 between Adam Hulton of Hulton and
William Hulton of Farnworth respecting
lands in Westhoughton, Manchester, Barton, Lever, and Bolton; Pal. of Lanc.
Plea R. 132, m. 6.
Adam Hulton, a tenant in 1556, mentioned in a previous note, was son of
William and grandson of Adam Hulton.
In 1597 Adam Hulton and Alice his wife
made a grant of their messuage, &c.; Pal.
of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 58, m. 275. |
| 34 |
Kuerden has preserved short notes of
some deeds of this family, but they are
very unsatisfactory, dates being seldom
given and no details of the lands concerned; iii, H. 4. Among them are grants
from Hugh de Leigh to John his son and
Margery daughter of Henry de Ainsworth, — Edw. III (no. 1); from Henry
son of Laucoc son of Ranne (?) de Westhoughton to Richard son of John de Leigh,
12(?) Edw. III (6); from Mabel de Leigh
to John de Leigh of Cheetham and his son
Richard de Leigh of Westhoughton (9);
from Robert de Pendlebury of Westhoughton to Richard de Leigh, 9 Hen. VI
(16); from the trustee to Richard de
Leigh, with remainders to his sons James,
William, Roger, Thomas, Thurstan, and
John, 23 Hen. VI (18); from the trustees
to James Leigh, with remainders to Agnes
daughter of Henry Hindley, for her life,
and to Robert son and heir of John Leigh,
? Hen. VII (21, 22); from John Leigh,
senior, to Robert his son and heir, 6 Hen.
VIII (27); from Robert son and heir of
John [Leigh] to trustees, with remainder
to John his son (29); Robert Leigh was
living in the reign of Philip & Mary (35).
From the Cockersand rentals it may be
seen that Richard Leigh was a free tenant
in 1451, his rent being 21d.; James
Leigh in 1461; and John Leigh in 1501
and 1536. John Leigh of Westhoughton, aged sixty and more, was witness in a
tenant-right dispute in 1521; Duchy
Plead. i, 108.
Robert Leigh son of John Leigh, and
John Leigh grandson of John Leigh, were
among the defendants in the dispute of
1556.
In 1571 ten messuages and land in
Westhoughton, Duxbury, Chorley, and
Hindley were the subject of a fine, the deforciants being John Leigh and Robert
his son and heir, the latter's wife being
named Anne; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F.
bdle. 33, m. 49.
John Leigh of Westhoughton, who
died in 1618, held lands of the lord of
Westhoughton in socage by 12d. rent, the
estate being six messuages, a water-mill,
&c.; he also had lands in Hindley, Duxbury, and Chorley. William Leigh, his
son and heir, was twenty-seven years of
age; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs.
and Ches.), ii, 133.
This son was afterwards rector of
Standish, and ancestor of the Leighs of
Singleton Grange; Dugdale, Visit. 183.
A later William Leigh occurs in 1686;
Exch. Dep. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.),
67. |
| 35 |
James Reeve of Westhoughton, aged
fifty-four, was a witness in 1521; Duchy
Plead. i, 101. William Reeve, as already stated, was a defendant in 1553;
ibid. iii, 145. Robert Reeve was frequently a juror in the time of James I;
Lancs. Inq. p.m. i, 36, &c. He is probably the Robert Reeve who died in 1640,
holding a messuage, &c., in Westhoughton of the lord of the manor, and another
at Penketh; Richard his son and heir
was fifty-three years of age; Duchy of
Lanc. Inq. p.m. xxx, 37. |
| 36 |
From the Rentals it appears that in
1451 John Sale was one of the free tenants, paying 6s. 10d.; the wife of John
Sale held the same in 1461; the wife of
John Molyneux in 1501; and Henry
Molyneux in 1536.
Robert Molyneux, who died in July
1545, held one messuage, &c., of James
Browne as of his manor of Westhoughton, by services unknown, and another of
the same by a rent of 6s. 10d.; he had
married Anne daughter of Thomas Makand, and left a son and heir William,
about four years old. Robert's father,
William Molyneux of Mouldsworth, Cheshire, had held the above tenement, and
another called Warcock Hill, which he
sold to Roger Urmston of Lostock; Duchy
of Lanc. Inq. p.m. ix, no. 32. In a later
inquisition (1561) the service is called
'knight's service and the rent of 6s. 10d.';
Anne, the widow, was then living at
Haigh, and William the son was nineteen years old and more; ibid, xi, no.
50.
William Molyneux, perhaps his son,
was frequently a juror in the time of
James I; Lancs. Inq. p.m. i, 28, &c.
Henry Molyneux of Westhoughton
was in 1646 a member of the Presbyterian classis; Baines, Lancs. (ed. 1868),
i, 227. His will was proved at Chester
in 1662.
A number of allusions (about 1690) to
Nathaniel Molyneux of Daisy Hill in
Westhoughton and some of his letters
will be found in Kenyon MSS. (Hist. MSS.
Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv). He used 'to exchange broad money for narrow' (p. 174),
according to an informer. His son Thomas
matriculated at Christ Church, Oxford, in
1683, and entered Gray's Inn; Foster,
Alumni. He was afterwards knighted. He
married Margaret More, heiress of the
Mores of Loseley, and died in 1719; see
G.E.C. Complete Baronetage, ii, 176.
His son, Sir More Molyneux, knighted
in 1724, entered Corpus Christi College,
Oxford, in 1709, aged nineteen; became
a commissioner of excise, and died in
1769. His son, Thomas More Molyneux,
of Wadham College, died in 1776; Foster,
Alumni Oxon. In 1750 John Probyn
purchased from Sir More Molyneux,
Richard Wyatt and Susannah his wife,
and Jane Molyneux, spinster, twelve messuages, 50 acres of meadow, &c., in Westhoughton and Great Bispham, and the
manor and rectory of Westleigh; Pal. of
Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 345, m. 85. For
the later descents of the More Molyneux
family see Burke, Landed Gentry. |
| 37 |
There were nine free tenants in
1251. In 1451 there were only five—
John Sale, Richard Leigh, Richard Hodgkinson, Henry Isherwood, and Margery
Chaddock. This arrangement was unaltered down to the Dissolution. Deeds
of Richard Hodgkinson, in 1457, are recorded in Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxvii, App.
175.
The inquisitions post mortem of Isabel
Harrington (1519), Alexander Osbaldeston (1543), Roger Downes of Worsley
(1639), and Ralph Holden (1634) show
that they had had some lands in the township, but the tenures are not stated;
Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. v, no. 2; xxvii,
no. 54; xxvii, no. 39. The heir of the
last-named was his nephew James Holden,
son of Richard; but Ralph had a son
William. Francis Locker was in 1631
found to have held a messuage and lands
of the king by the two-hundredth part of
a knight's fee; Francis, his son and heir,
was just of age; Janet, the widow, was
living at Chorley; ibid. xxv, no. 40.
Some particulars of the Hart family's
holding are given in Duchy Plead. ii,
157. |
| 38 |
Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), i,
246–9. |
| 39 |
Ibid, i, 160. |
| 40 |
Land-tax returns at Preston. |
| 41 |
Pleas of Crown, Lanc. bdle. 330. |
| 42 |
The Inclosure Act is 11 Geo. I,
cap. 32. |
| 43 |
See Lancs. and Ches. Hist. and Gen.
Notes, iii, 80; Manch. Guardian N. and Q.
no. 638, 660. |
| 44 |
The Royal Commissioners in 1552
found at the chapel 'a chalice and other
ornaments for a priest to say mass in';
Ch. Gds. (Chet. Soc.), 27. The building itself was redeemed from the king's
hands for 13s. 4d. or 20s.; Baines, Lancs.
Chantries (Chet. Soc.), ii, 277–8.
In Mary's reign tenants of Westhoughton complained that James Browne had
caused an interruption of the service in the
chapel; Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), i, 296. |
| 45 |
Gastrell, Notitia (Chet. Soc), ii, 45.
Bishop Gastrell found the certified income
to be only 41s. 6d.; about £50 stock belonged to it, and the contributions had
been as much as £20 a year. In
1719 it was augmented with land to the
value of £200, taken from the common
at inclosure; and there was a good house
for the curate. |
| 46 |
Bolton Journ. 7 May 1887. |
| 47 |
Visit. P. at Chester. |
| 48 |
Commonwealth Cb. Surv. (Rec. Soc.
Lancs, and Ches.), 38; £40 a year had
been appropriated to it from the tithes of
Deane sequestered from Mr. Anderton. |
| 49 |
Lond. Gaz. 25 Jan. 1860; for endowments, ibid. 3 May 1844, and 14 Nov. 1873. |
| 50 |
The Church Papers at Chester Dioc.
Reg. only begin in 1700. There was a curate
summoned to the Visitation of 1562, but
he had disappeared by 1565. There was
'a minister' there in 1635; his name is
not recorded, but he would be Alexander
Horrocks; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), i, 112. |
| 51 |
Raines MSS. (Chet. Lib.), xxii, 200;
he was 'unlicensed and illiterate, and
would not allow a Common Prayer book
to lie in the chapel.' |
| 52 |
Calling himself 'minister of the Gospel at Deane' he subscribed the 'Harmonious Consent' in 1648. Two years
later he was described as a 'godly, orthodox
divine'; Commonwealth Ch. Surv. ut sup.
He is often said to have been vicar of Deane,
but this seems to be a mistake; he was
curate of Westhoughton (and Deane) and
lecturer at the parish church. He died at
Turton in 1650. See a notice of him,
with his will, in Pal. Note Bk. iii, 23. |
| 53 |
Plund. Mins. Accts. (Rec. Soc. Lancs.
and Ches.), i, 104. After the Restoration
James Bradshaw, formerly rector ofWigan
and expelled from Macclesfield in 1662,
used to preach in Westhoughton Chapel
occasionally; Bridgeman, Wigan Ch.
(Chet. Soc.), 470. |
| 54 |
Will proved at Chester, 1755. He
left £100 for the benefit of the township;
this was applied to the school. He was
curate of Horwich for part of the time. |
| 55 |
He had been curate of Walmsley in
Turton and lecturer at Bolton; Scholes
and Pimblett, Bolton, 330. |
| 56 |
He also had been lecturer at Bolton;
ibid. |
| 57 |
Was curate also of Culcheth (q.v.),
but resided at Westhoughton. |
| 58 |
Afterwards incumbent of Hornby. |
| 59 |
Author of Faith and Practice, &c.;
afterwards vicar of Bednall. |
| 60 |
Rector of Meysey Hampton, 1869. |
| 61 |
Afterwards rector of Brindle. |
| 62 |
Previously vicar of St. Matthew's,
Bolton. |
| 63 |
Lond. Gaz. 31 Mar. 1860. |
| 64 |
Ibid. 10 Feb. 1882 for district. |
| 65 |
Nightingale, Lancs. Nonconf. iv, 123. |
| 66 |
Life of Jos. Buckley, 97. |
| 67 |
Baines, Lancs, quoting Harl. MS. 360,
fol. 32. |
| 68 |
Kelly, Engl. Cath. Missions, 425. |