Townships: Ince Blundell

A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1907.

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'Townships: Ince Blundell', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3, ed. William Farrer, J Brownbill( London, 1907), British History Online https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp78-85 [accessed 25 November 2024].

'Townships: Ince Blundell', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3. Edited by William Farrer, J Brownbill( London, 1907), British History Online, accessed November 25, 2024, https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp78-85.

"Townships: Ince Blundell". A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3. Ed. William Farrer, J Brownbill(London, 1907), , British History Online. Web. 25 November 2024. https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp78-85.

In this section

INCE BLUNDELL

Hinne, Dom. Bk.; Ines, 1212—the common spelling to 1350; Hynis, 1242; Ince, 1360.

Ince Blundell embraces a considerable area of flat, fen country laid out in pastures and cultivated fields, where corn, root crops, and clover-hay are produced in a rich alluvial soil. The River Alt forms a tortuous boundary along its north-eastern, northern, and western edges. The low-lying fields are mostly separated by deep ditches, which serve for division and drainage. Near the sea coast, and near the mouth of the Alt, there is a narrow band of sandhills. The trees clustering about Ince Blundell Hall and village emphasize the scarcity of timber in the district, for they stand out as an abrupt mass in the bare landscape. Solitary trees here and there incline to the south-east, showing the direction of the prevailing winds. The lower keuper sandstone of the new red sandstone or trias is here entirely obscured by sand, deep boulder clay, and alluvial deposit. Beneath the alluvium, which covers an increasing extent of ground as the River Alt approaches the sea, are found the beds of grey clays belonging to the glacial drift series. The brook called Twine Pool and Hynts Brook divides Ince from Thornton. The township is nearly 3½ miles long, the area being 2,315½ acres. (fn. 1) The population numbered 392 in 1901. The village is situated near the middle of the township. There are hamlets called Carr Houses and Lady Green; North End includes Alt Grange.

The greens have been enclosed. There are crosses upon ancient bases in the village. The 'flowering' of the cross used to take place on Midsummer Day. (fn. 2) There is a sundial, dated 1744, at the hall.

Roads from Lunt and Thornton meet at the village and lead to Alt Bridge, where the road from Liverpool to Southport, which here crosses the township, joins them. The Liverpool and Southport branch of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway also crosses the northern end of the township, and has a station for the use of volunteers and others using the Altcar rifle range. An old lighthouse stands near this point.

A number of minor names are given in the Alt Drainage Act of 1779; they include Shire Lane Moss, Orrell Hill, Scaffold Lane, Hallops Hey, and Logers Field.

The township is governed by a parish council.

MANOR

In 1066 three thegns held INCE for three manors; it was assessed at half a hide and worth beyond the customary rent the usual 8s. (fn. 3) Early in the twelfth century it was included in the barony of Warrington, and by Pain de Vilers was given to Roger de Stainsby, together with half a plough-land in Barton. (fn. 4) Later, probably on the death of Roger, (fn. 5) the manor appears to have reverted to the chief lord, of whom Richard Blundell, or possibly his father, subsequently held it either by re-grant or subinfeudation made by the former tenant.

Richard Blundell appears late in the twelfth century as a witness to local charters, (fn. 6) and was succeeded by his son William, who in 1212 held Ince and the moiety of Barton of the lord of Warrington by knight's service, as the third part of a fee. (fn. 7) William made an agreement with the lord of Ravensmeols, on the other side of the Alt, as to the formation of a mill-pool. (fn. 8) To William Blundell juvenis he granted four oxgangs of land in Ince, with the three villeins who occupied them. (fn. 9) He was a benefactor to the monks of Stanlaw, giving them his mill upon the Alt, (fn. 10) and his land called Scholes. (fn. 11) He appears to have received the order of knighthood. (fn. 12)

His son, Richard Blundell, was in possession in 1242. (fn. 13) He confirmed his father's donations to the monks of Stanlaw and added to them half the land of Alt marsh which Robert, citizen of York, had drained by dykes. (fn. 14) This land was in 1240–1 exchanged for another piece nearer the land already held by the abbey; the residue of the marsh between Ince and Scholes was to remain untilled for ever, as common pasture. (fn. 15) The half of the marsh was given to his daughter Amarica on her marriage with Gervase de Pencebech. (fn. 16) Between 1257 and 1259 Richard Blundell granted to Henry de Lea and his heirs a messuage and toft at the Morhulles, with right of turbary, (fn. 17) and in 1259, to Henry de Sefton, clerk, all his lands at the Moorhouses. (fn. 18)

Blundell of Ince. Azure, ten billets, 4, 3, 2 and 1 or; on a canton of the second a raven proper.

He died before 1265, and was succeeded by his grandson William son of John Blundell, a minor, as to whose custody there was a dispute between Sir William le Boteler and Robert de Ferrers, earl of Derby. (fn. 19) John had a brother Robert, called 'Goch.' (fn. 20)

William Blundell confirmed his ancestors' grants to Stanlaw, and added something on his own account; (fn. 21) and at the same time came to an agreement with the monks as to certain approvements within the common pasture, where their rights had been restricted, and allowed them convenient access to the carr adjoining Thornton. (fn. 22) On the other hand he gave them serious cause of complaint by erecting a windmill to which he caused his tenants to take their corn to be ground, to the loss of the abbey's mill; the monks accordingly summoned the tenants, and secured an acknowledgement of suit to their mill for all corn to the sixteenth measure. William Blundell made amends by granting the windmill to the monks, and allowing them to enlarge and improve the site. (fn. 23) He died in or before 1293. (fn. 24)

He was succeeded by his son William, who died about the end of the reign of Edward II, his widow Agnes appearing as plaintiff in 1331 (fn. 25); and a little later she and her son William exchanged certain lands in Ince. (fn. 26) It is difficult to decide if the younger William here mentioned was the husband of Joan de Haydock. (fn. 27) Probably he was; if so, he was succeeded by his brothers Henry and John. (fn. 28) In the latter's time the township became known as Ince 'Blundell' to distinguish it from Ince near Wigan.

John Blundell was still living in 1400. (fn. 29) His son William about 1387 married Isabel daughter of William de Beconsaw; (fn. 30) and William, their son, was contracted in marriage, as early as 1389–90, with Alice, daughter of Nicholas Blundell of Little Crosby; (fn. 31) further settlements appear to have been made in 1402. (fn. 32) The younger William died about 1450, and was succeeded by his son, another William, (fn. 33) who had a son and heir Robert. In 1463 a contest arose between William Blundell and Richard Ballard, one of the free tenants of Ince, concerning the division of the waste. The latter's supporters invaded the disputed land and carried off Blundell's cattle which they found there; and though an arbitration resulted in favour of Blundell, the other side gave trouble for some years. (fn. 34)

At the beginning of 1479 it was agreed between Thomas Molyneux of Sefton and William, son and heir of Robert Blundell, that the former should not enclose Ince Marsh, nor any part of it, until the death of William Blundell, father of Robert; and that then the two parties should show their evidence to counsel, and abide by their decision. (fn. 35) William Blundell the son of Robert, in December, 1504, paid 33s. 4d. as relief to the lord of Warrington and promised to do homage, but died before this engagement (fn. 36) could be fulfilled. On 12 August, 1505, his son and heir Robert did homage at Warrington in the Friars' house, and in the following May paid his relief. (fn. 37) On his death, six years later, (fn. 38) the Butlers took vigorous action to secure their right of wardship over his son and heir James, who was seized by William Molyneux of Sefton and detained, in defiance of the jury's finding, for some years, until, in fact, a writ was issued at Lancaster for the arrest of William Molyneux, with a threat of outlawry. Then James was surrendered to Sir Peter Legh, knight and priest, and by him delivered to Sir Thomas Butler at Bewsey in February, 1515. (fn. 39)

James Blundell lived till about 1541; (fn. 40) his eldest son William succeeded him and survived about six years, when, dying childless, his brother Robert, then a minor, followed. (fn. 41) Robert, having seen all the changes of the time, was living in 1585, in which year he was required, as a recusant, to provide a horseman equipped for the queen's service or pay £24 as an alternative. (fn. 42) His son, another Robert, was a temporizer, sheltering the missionary priests, and yet attending the statutory services in order to escape the heavy penalties by which they were made effective. (fn. 43) His wife was a convicted recusant. (fn. 44) He in 1596–7 secured a commutation of the tenure of the manor from knight's service to free socage, paying 1d. yearly as acknowledgement and doing fealty to the lord of Warrington. (fn. 45) He died at Preston, 22 March, 1615–6, leaving a son and heir, Robert, aged forty years. (fn. 46)

This Robert, a lawyer of some eminence in London, had been a Protestant, (fn. 47) but returned to the Roman Catholic faith, and like other recusants took the royal side in the Civil War, his sons being in arms at Preston. Consequently his lands were raided and seized by the Parliament, his wife being left without support for herself and children. (fn. 48) At last he was able to obtain a lease of his estate and afterwards to repurchase it. (fn. 49) In his more prosperous days he had greatly added to the family estates, purchasing the manors of Birkdale, Meandale, and Ainsdale, and Renacres in Halsall; purchases which in the latter half of the seventeenth century gave rise to a long dispute between the Blundell and Gerard families. (fn. 50)

He died in January, 1656–7, and was succeeded by his son Henry, who as a known recusant thought it well to retire to Ireland during the excitement roused by Titus Oates; his tenants took advantage of the difficulty by withholding rents and other dues. (fn. 51) He died in 1687, being followed by his son, another Henry, frequently mentioned in the diary of Nicholas Blundell of Little Crosby. (fn. 52) His son and heir Robert married Catherine daughter of Sir Rowland Stanley of Hooton; from which marriage resulted the possession of this manor by the present lord, who is the greatgrandson of Thomas Weld of Lulworth, by his wife Mary Stanley, a grandniece of Catherine. (fn. 53) Like his father, Robert Blundell was threatened with a prosecution for recusancy, the effect, it would seem, of personal ill-will. (fn. 54) He obtained possession of the Lydiate estate in 1760, (fn. 55) and soon afterwards retired to Liverpool, where he died in 1773. (fn. 56)

He had given Ince to his son Henry as a residence. This son distinguished himself as a philanthropist and connoisseur. (fn. 57) His life was embittered by a quarrel with his son, largely owing to the latter's refusal to marry. Henry Blundell thereupon endowed his daughters with a liberal portion of his estates. (fn. 58) The son, Charles Robert, resenting this action, bequeathed the manors of Ince, Lydiate, Birkdale, and Ainsdale, and other estates to a relative by his grandmother, as already stated. He chose as his heir Thomas, the second son of Joseph Weld, who was the son of Thomas Weld and Mary his wife; a lawsuit followed, owing to his custom of calling Joseph Weld, Edward. (fn. 59) This error appeared in the will, but the intention being clear Thomas Weld obtained possession of the estates, assuming the additional surname of Blundell. Dying in 1887 he was succeeded by his son Mr. Charles Joseph Weld-Blundell, the present lord of the manor.

Two early lists of the free tenants have been preserved. (fn. 60) The principal tenants were the Ballards, (fn. 61) who in the end established their claim to a third of the manor. (fn. 62) The inheritance had about 1560 come to two daughters of Richard Ballard, named Cecily and Dorothy, who had married respectively Richard Thorne and Thomas Massingberd. Cecily sold her moiety to Sir Richard Molyneux of Sefton, (fn. 63) and Dorothy hers to William Blundell, (fn. 64) whose son Thomas sold to Sir Richard Molyneux, grandson of the last-named Sir Richard. (fn. 65)

The Molyneux family had already possessed an interest in the township, (fn. 66) and on the suppression of Whalley Abbey (fn. 67) and the confiscation of its lands in 1537, Richard Molyneux purchased ALT GRANGE from Thomas Holt, to whom it had been granted by Henry VIII. (fn. 68) This portion of Ince still remains in the possession of the earl of Sefton. With regard to other lands an exchange was effected with Henry Blundell in 1772. (fn. 69)

Alt Grange became the seat of a younger branch of the Molyneux family, who also had a house in West Derby, known as the New Hall, and eventually succeeded to the manor of Huyton; they are now represented by Mr. Edward Richard Thomas Molyneux-Seel. The first of them was John, a younger son of Sir Richard Molyneux, the purchaser; (fn. 70) he was succeeded by his son Richard (fn. 71) and his grandson John. The latter's estates were sequestered by the Parliament for his recusancy and delinquency, and though he died early in 1649 (fn. 72) his widow was still petitioning in 1655. (fn. 73) The eldest son Richard (fn. 74) married Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Harrington of Huyton Hey, and was in turn succeeded by his son (fn. 75) and grandson, each named Richard; the last-named (fn. 76) succeeded to Huyton in right of his grandmother Elizabeth, on the death of her nephew Charles Harrington in 1720. (fn. 77) This Richard, buried at Sefton early in 1735, (fn. 78) had a son Richard, who died a fortnight after his father, (fn. 79) and a daughter Frances, whose marriage with Thomas Seel carried the estates to this family. (fn. 80) The connexion with Alt Grange seems to have ceased before her brother's death. (fn. 81)

Molyneux. Azure, a cross moline or; a canton argent.

Seel. Per fess potent counterpotent pean and azure, three wolves' heads erased counterchanged.

Of the other free tenants the most notable were the Blanchards. (fn. 82) Part of the property of the Moorhouses seems to have been sold to Henry Blundell of Little Crosby. (fn. 83) In 1444 there was a contest between John Coldokes and Ellen his wife and Richard Johnson of Little Crosby concerning land in Ince, which has points of interest. (fn. 84)

The following registered estates as 'Papists' in 1717: William Brown of Lostock; William Davy, here and at Great Crosby; Thomas Gore; Thomas Rigmaiden; and Richard Tickle, here and at Altcar. (fn. 85) Richard Blundell, of Carr-side, registered a leasehold house at Altcar. (fn. 86)

It is probable that the Roman Catholic worship was maintained here all through the seventeenth century, (fn. 87) either at Ince Blundell Hall or at Alt Grange, or both, but there seems to be no evidence of it until the end of that period. During the eighteenth century the Jesuits were in charge. (fn. 88) The church of the Holy Family, built in 1858, is attached to the hall; the baptismal register dates from 1775. (fn. 89)

Footnotes

  • 1. 2,318 acres according to the census of 1901; 24 of inland water being included. In addition an acre of tidal water and an acre of foreshore are within the boundary.
  • 2. Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xix, 176–8.
  • 3. V.C.H. Lancs. i, 284a.
  • 4. Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 7. The superior lordship remained in the barons of Warrington, though the tenure was changed in 1597, as stated in the text. In 1548 a rent of 6s. was due from Robert Blundell for Ince; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 13, m. 142.
  • 5. Nothing appears to be known of Roger, but probably he held the manor of Stainsby in Derbyshire, parcel of the Domesday fief of Count Roger of Poitou; this had escheated to the lord of the honour before 1164, and was re-granted before 1170; Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 17b; Farrer, Lancs. Pipe R. 20–21.
  • 6. Ibid. 377; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxii, 183.
  • 7. Inq. and Extents, 7; strictly the service was the proportion due from 3½ plough-lands where ten constituted a fee; but it was more conveniently called the third part; ibid. 147. William also held a moiety of Larbreck in Amounderness of the baron of Kendal; probably in right of his mother; ibid. 3; Whalley Coucher (Chet. Soc.), ii, 526. He had certain public offices between 1212 and 1237; Inq. and Extents, 2; Lancs. Pipe R. 420; Lancs. Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 12, 40, 41, 49; in the last case his name is struck through, and Adam de Bury substituted.
  • 8. Whalley Coucher (Chet. Soc.), ii, 497; this charter of Henry, son of Warin de Lancaster, which may be dated about 1210, allows William Blundell to use land on the right bank of the river, where he might find it convenient, for a rent of gilded spurs, or 4d. The privilege afterwards (1328) led to a dispute between Sir Richard de Hoghton and the abbot of Whalley; Croxteth D. O. ii, 7.
  • 9. Whalley Coucher, ii, 525. The four oxgangs of land were to be held by knight's service where 9½ plough-lands made one fee.
  • 10. Ibid. ii, 489–90. The grantor describes himself as William son of Richard Blundell; the charters gave the mill with all its appurtenances, as well in corn as in fish, and forbade his heirs to make any pool or device for catching fish which might injure the rights of the monks. The latter might remove the mill to a more convenient site on the Alt and take land for the mill-pool. In return they were to pray for the souls of himself, his wife Agnes, and his ancestors and successors. The grants were confirmed by William le Boteler; ibid. ii, 494.
  • 11. Ibid. ii, 490, 492. This land lay within the ditch of Little Crosby on the south, following it northward to the pool falling into Skippool, down this to the Alt, and following the Alt to the sea—i.e. the tract within which Alt Grange is situated—with common of pasture of the whole vill of Ince for their sheep and cows, and rights of turbary and housebote.
  • 12. Ibid. ii, 527.
  • 13. Inq. and Extents, 147. His name occurs as witnessing charters; e.g. ibid. 20.
  • 14. Whalley Coucher, ii, 494, 498. At the same time he enlarged the monks' right of pasturage and gave up his right to pasture in Sudmore; ibid. 500. Some of these charters are now at Croxteth.
  • 15. Ibid. ii, 502; Robert of York was a witness to this exchange. He also gave some of his villeins to the monks; ibid. ii, 522–4. One villein who had been transferred by Richard's father gave 20s. sterling for a confirmation of the gift, indicating how advantageous it then was to serve a religious house, as compared with a secular lord.
  • 16. Blundell of Crosby D. K. 291. Pasture as for two oxgangs was allowed. Ince is described as 'within the forest,' and the 'citizen of York' is called Robert de Preston. If Gervase de Pencebech were the same as Gervase de Ince, the daughter Amarica must be the Amabil of the Whalley Coucher.
  • 17. Add. MS. 32106, n. 577; Gilbert the Cowherd had previously held it; turbary and common of pasture were included.
  • 18. T. E. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 91, quoting an Ince Blundell charter. The author had access to these charters, of which a few have been printed in TransHist. Soc. xxxii–iv. By one of them Richard Blundell granted to Hugh son of Alan de Ainsdale a messuage on the Alt; ibid. xxxiii, 265. By another he granted an oxgang of land in Ince to Benedict son of Simon; ibid. xxxii, 190, 189. Rose, as widow of Richard Blundell, quitclaimed to the monks all her dower right in the lands he had given them, as also in the land and pasture which he had given to his daughter Amarica on her marriage with Gervase de Ince; they were to pay her a mark of silver yearly, half at Christmas and half at Halton fair; Whalley Coucher, ii, 501.
  • 19. T. E. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 93; Jordan de Derby, on behalf of the earl, afterwards resigned his right in the wardship of the heirs of John Blundell of Ince to William le Boteler; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiii, 266. As the earl's estates were forfeited in 1266 through his participation in the rebellion of Simon de Montfort, a limit is afforded for this claim of wardship.
  • 20. Richard Blundell granted to his son Robert one plough-land at a rent of 5s.; Croxteth D. O. ii, 1. Robert Goch quitclaimed to the monks of Stanlaw all the land which his father Richard had given them with his body; Whalley Coucher, ii, 503. Jordan de Derby was a witness to this charter. As Robert son of Richard Blundell he quitclaimed to William Blundell, 'my lord and lord of Ince,' all his right in lands near the Cow Holme; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiii, 266. Margaret widow of Robert Blundell was a plaintiff in 1283; De Banc. R. 51, m. 72. Margery daughter of Robert Goch married John de Meols, and was living a widow in 1311. John son of William de Meols and Margery his wife claimed lands in Ince in 1292 from Henry Blundell and Henry de Greenoll; Assize R. 408, m. 60d. For notices of deeds by John and Margery, see Lydiate Hall, 95. In 1318 Peter son of Richard de Molyneux of Sefton purchased from her an oxgang and land in Ince; Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 31. William son and heir of John de Ravensmeols granted to his brother Hugh land in the Moorhouses in Ince, 'according to the charter which John my father bought from Richard Blundell, then lord of Ince'; and William son of Hugh de Meols received the same lands in 1340 from William Blundell, lord of Ince; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 202, K. 293. The Goch plough-land probably came into the hands of the Ballard family.
  • 21. Whalley Coucher, ii, 503–4. Here he describes himself as son of John Blundell, and speaks of his grandfather Richard Blundell, son of Sir William. His own gift was a piece of meadow in Ince Marsh, around which Roger de Upton, formerly granger of the abbey, had made a ditch; it was confirmed by the superior lord, William le Boteler; ibid. 505. Confirmations were in 1283 secured from the king, who was at Aberconway in Snowdon, and from his brother Edmund, earl of Lancaster; ibid. 506, 507.
  • 22. Ibid. ii, 507. The monks had begun an action, but friends intervening an agreement was made, William Blundell giving four marks and the above piece of meadow.
  • 23. Ibid. ii, 509–11. William retained the liberty of grinding his own corn either at the windmill or the water-mill; the monks gave him 10 marks of silver. Another of his charters, to William son of Wmyr of the Moorhouses, is in Blundell of Crosby D. K. 253. Two others, to Matthew de Molyneux and to Richard Flock, are printed in Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiii, 267. From Margery widow of Gilbert de Greenoll he received a grant of four acres; ibid.
  • 24. He was living in 1292 when he appeared in support of the abbot of Stanlaw, from whom certain land in Ince was claimed by Adam son of Robert de Thornton, Adam asserting that his grandfather, Robert son of Gilbert de Thornton, had been disseised by a former William Blundell; this claim was adjudged false; Assize R. 408, m. 27d. William Blundell was at the same time a plaintiff regarding his fishery rights; ibid. m. 43. In the following year 'his widow Ellen, in conjunction with Richard de Molyneux of Sefton and another, covenanted to hold Sir William le Boteler harmless for damages or losses in regard to wardship, &c.'; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 95.
  • 25. William Blundell was witness to an agreement as to Eggergarth Mill in 1298; ibid. 44. In 1315 William Blundell enfeoffed Adam de Ruycroft, vicar of Huyton, of the manor of Ince; and this was regranted to him with remainder to his son William and his daughters Emma, Maud, and Clemency; ibid. 95. His seal, showing a squirrel munching, with the legend S. Willi. Blovndel, is appended to one of his charters; ibid. Agnes, late the wife of William Blundell, in 1331 claimed dower in lands held by John the Harper, Gilbert del Wolfall, and Peter de Molyneux; her claim was prosecuted in the next year against the two former defendants, and as they did not appear, she succeeded; De Banc. R. 287, m. 178d.; 292, m. 66d. In the same year (1331) William son of William Blundell was defendant in a case concerning lands in Ince; Assize R. 1404, m. 27.
  • 26. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 96; details are given. In the same year he allowed turbary on any common moss of Ince to William, son of Simon, son of Henry; and in 1337 he granted to John de Derbyshire the wardship and marriage of William son of William Bimmeson, with his lands in Ince; ibid. In 1337 also William Blundell of Ince, Agnes late wife of William Blundell of Ince, and others, who brought an assize of novel disseisin against Robert de Bebington and Beatrix his wife, did not prosecute; Assize R. 1424, m. 11.
  • 27. William Blundell in 1344 enfeoffed Henry de Solihull, chaplain, of his manor of Ince, and was re-enfeoffed the following year, having married Joan, daughter of Matthew de Haydock; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 96. In 1343 a lease had been granted to Henry, son of William Blundell of Ince, with remainder to John, the brother of Henry, and to Emma, Almeria, and Joan, their sisters; ibid. The pedigree of 1613, drawn up from the family deeds, gives as father of the William who married Joan, William whose wife was Ellen; this is probably a confusion with the William and Ellen recorded above; Visit. of 1613 (Ches. Soc.), 76. William Blundell and Joan his wife were defendants in 1351, 1352, and 1355; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 1, m. ij (bis); R. 2, m. iij; R. 4, m. 116. William Blundell of Ince was defendant also in claims for money due made by Sir John de Molyneux in 1357 and 1358; ibid. R. 6, m. 6; Assize R. 438, m. 18. In 1350 a violent assault with intent to murder was made upon him in Sefton; Assize R. 443, m. 7. He was witness to a charter made in 1361; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 266.
  • 28. John de Kenyon, chaplain, in 1366 granted to Joan widow of William Blundell the manor of Ince, with houses, gardens, orchards, the holt adjoining the said manor, turbary, &c.; with remainder to Henry Blundell, brother and heir of William, and Katherine his wife, daughter of William son of Adam de Liverpool; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxii, 194; see also Kuerden, iii, i, n. 312. William Blundell and Henry his brother attested a charter in 1351 granting land to William de Liverpool, clerk; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 157. Henry Blundell held the manor for but a few years, dying in or before 1370, when an agreement was made between John de Haydock and Henry de Chatherton, no doubt concerning the marriage of Katherine, the widow, with John de Chatherton, or Chaderton; the deeds of 1315, 1344, and 1345, already mentioned, touching the succession and marriage of William Blundell, are recited in it; Croxteth D. O. ii, 17. He was succeeded by his brother John, who early in 1374 made an enfeoffment of Ince; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 97. In the same year his name occurs as witness to a charter; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 292. The next year he settled £10 a year on John son of Henry de Chatherton, and Katherine his wife; this arrangement was completed in 1379; Lydiate Hall, 97; Final Conc. ii, 188. Henry de Chatherton, bailiff of the wapentake, was in 1374 charged with a multitude of offences; among others, that he had endeavoured to disinherit John Blundell. He had purchased the reversionary rights of John's sister Emma (who was married and had a son Richard); and his explanation that he had done so in order to secure his daughter-in-law's income not being accepted, he was found guilty; Coram Rege R. 454, m. 13.
  • 29. John Blundell is mentioned in various ways down to 1401–2; Lydiate Hall, 98; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 39; Kuerden MSS. iii. 1, nn. 319, 673. In 1375 the sheriff was ordered to arrest and imprison John Blundell of Ince until he paid a debt of £200 due to Thomas de Molyneux of Cuerdale, John, however, was not to be found within the county and therefore his property was seized, a full description being recorded. He had the manor and manor-house, with chapel, barns, &c.; orchards, arable land, meadow, and pasture (in Flick Moor), cattle and sheep, rents of the tenants and tenants at will, &c. The outgoings included 5s. 3d. a year paid to the chief lord for the manor, £10 a year to John de Chatherton and Katherine his wife; 2 marks a year to Henry Blundell of Crosby, &c. The sheriff delivered the lands, &c. to Thomas de Molyneux; De Banc. R. 460, m. 323. There followed some suits by Thomas; De Banc. R. 461, m. 41, &c.
  • 30. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 98.
  • 31. The feoffees, who included John de Beconsaw, granted to John Blundell of Ince all the lands they had had by his gift, with remainder to William his son and his heirs by Isabel his wife, and to William, son and heir of the said William, and Alice, daughter of Nicholas Blundell; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 143.
  • 32. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 98; the feoffees named are the same as those in the deed last cited.
  • 33. A step in the pedigree has been inserted here, making a succession of three Williams, instead of the two in the pedigree in Lydiate Hall, 84. As John Blundell's father died about 1330 and John lived till 1401, it seems unlikely that his son William lived till 1450; more probably this was his grandson, who was born before 1390. William Blundell in 1445 enfeoffed Sir Thomas Stanley and Henry Blundell (of Crosby) of his manor of Ince; Croxteth D. O. ii, 21. In 1447 a covenant of marriage was made by which Robert son of William Blundell was to marry Elizabeth, sister of Thomas and Henry Dawn; William Blundell, grandfather of Robert, was a party to this; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiv, 135. The elder William died before 1451, when William Blundell of Ince conveyed to Robert, his son and heir, and Elizabeth his wife, various lands at Ince; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 99. Two years after this an award was made between William Blundell and Katherine, widow of his father William, the arbitrator being Sir Thomas Stanley; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiv, 140. In 1461, Roger Sherdes and his wife Alice, daughter of William Blundell, released to William Blundell and his wife Agnes all claims; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 100. Early in the following year a marriage was arranged by Robert Blundell and Roger Asshaw between William Blundell and Joan Asshaw, their children; William Blundell, the father of Robert, is also mentioned; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiv, 138.
  • 34. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, p. 100.
  • 35. Croxteth D. O. i, 8; it would appear from this that William Blundell was very old, and incapable of business, and that Robert Blundell was dead. In 1484 William Blundell arranged for the dower of Agnes, his grandfather's widow; four years later he arranged for the marriage of his daughter Mary with Thomas, son and heir of John, son of Richard Singleton of Inglewhite; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 101.
  • 36. Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 16. William Blundell died 18 June, 1505, holding Ince Blundell of Sir Thomas Boteler by knight's service, viz. by the third part of a fee, and by the rent of 5s., with 12d. for suit at court; the clear value was £10. He also held land in Lydiate; Robert Blundell was his next heir, and thirty-four years of age; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, n. 65. He had also a burgage in Liverpool; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 102.
  • 37. Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 16. In the same year he made a settlement in favour of his wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Roger Molyneux; others followed in 1508 and 1511; Gibson, op. cit. 103–4. He also granted lands to his brother Thomas for life, in 1509; ibid. 103. This Thomas married a Ballard, showing probably some appeasement of the family quarrels, and became ancestor of the Blundells of Cardington, one of whom was raised to the peerage; Visit. of 1613 (Chet. Soc.), 77; Visit. of Beds. (Harl. Soc.), 161; G.E.C. Complete Peerage, i, 365; G.E.C. Complete Baronetage, i, 224.
  • 38. Robert Blundell died 28 Dec. 1511, James, his son and heir, being eight years of age in Sept. 1517; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iv, n. 17. The inquisition recites the feoffment of 1511, which was made for the purposes of his will, directing dower to be given to Elizabeth his wife, lands of 40s. a year value to his younger son William for life; £80 towards the marriages of his daughters —Jane, Margery, Grace, and Ellen; his brother Thomas is mentioned.
  • 39. Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 30–2; also Gibson, op. cit. 104.
  • 40. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. viii, n. 18; no change is shown in the estates; William, the son and heir, was thirteen years of age. The inventory is printed in Lydiate Hall, 105–6; the manor-house had a hall, a parlour, a little parlour (both used as bedrooms), a higher chamber, a new chamber, and perhaps other rooms not mentioned.
  • 41. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. ix, n. 39; Robert Blundell, brother and heir, was over eighteen years of age in 1547. The heir, on 15 Jan. 1549–50, i.e. soon after he came of age, was called upon to fulfil covenants made by his father for the marriage of William Blundell and Elizabeth, natural daughter of Sir William Molyneux, who had taken a second husband, Edward Holme; Croxteth D. O. ii, 28. In 1550 a settlement was made by fine; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 14, m. 324. Accounts of various settlements are given in Lydiate Hall, 107; where also may be seen the account of his killing, in his own defence, one Richard Buck of Sefton, for which he obtained the royal pardon; 108–9. Pedigrees are recorded in 1567, 1613, and 1664; they are printed in the Chetham Society's editions of the Visitations—1567, p. 114; 1613, pp. 76, 77; and 1664, pp. 38, 39; also Misc. Gen. and Her. i, 66 (1613). The change of arms in 1613 should be noticed; Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.), vi, 263; Pal. Note Book, i, 57, 109; iv, 26.
  • 42. Lydiate Hall 109, 231 (S.P. Dom. Eliz. clxxxiii, n. 61), 227 (ibid. clxxv, n. 21). He gave shelter to B. Lawrence Johnson, and sent one of his sons to Douay; Gillow, Bibl. Dict. Engl. Cath. iii, 637.
  • 43. In 1590 he was classed with those 'in some degree of conformity, yet in general note of evil affection in religion, non-communicants'; Gibson, op. cit., 245 (quoting S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccxxxv, n. 4). In the following year Thomas Blundell released to Robert, son and heir of Robert Blundell of Ince, his cottage, hempyard, and land for a term of 100 years for a rent of 11s. 6d.; this is accompanied by a paper reciting that the grant was meant for the father, although the son's name was used; and should the queen seize two-thirds of the rent Thomas Blundell would indemnify Robert—an evasion of the statute of 1587, by which two-thirds of a recusant's property was sequestrated; p. 110. In 1592 George Dingley, a priest who had become a government informer, stated that Robert Blundell of Ince 'kept sundry years a recusant schoolmaster, that is a seminary priest named Gardiner'; and had 'lodged in his house and relieved since the last statute of 27 (Eliz.)' not only James Gardiner but the informant himself; he adds the significant hint: 'This Blundell is of good wealth and competent living and lands;' ibid. p. 111 (quoting S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccxv). Many of those who conformed outwardly under the Elizabethan persecution refused in the somewhat milder Stuart times, but this does not seem to have been the case with Robert Blundell, for in his will he directed that he should be buried at Sefton 'in the usual place where my ancestors have been buried, that is to say, under or near the form where I usually do sit, standing in the north aisle of the said church'; ibid. 113. Robert Blundell was plaintiff or defendant in numerous suits in the latter part of Elizabeth's reign; Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), iii, 184, &c.
  • 44. Ibid. 247 (quoting S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccxxxv, n. 4).
  • 45. Ibid. 111.
  • 46. Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 27. This shows the change of tenure, as stated in the text. Besides the manor of Ince and lands in Liverpool and Little Crosby he had had lands in Broughton, in Amounderness and Preston; also, perhaps as trustee for his daughter, the manor called The Hall of Garrett in Tyldesley.
  • 47. This is stated by John Blundell, who for about a year studied at the English College in Rome, after being educated at home and at St. Omer's: 'I was baptized by a Protestant minister in April 1637 … my parents and relations … have suffered great losses on account of their professing the Catholic faith. They were formerly Protestants, but since their conversion have been constant in the faith. I have brothers and sisters, and was always a Catholic;' Foley, Rec. S.J. i, 246; vi, 397.
  • 48. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 118; Civil War Tracts (Chet. Soc.), 75; Royalist Comp. P. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 199–200. His house at Preston seems to have been utilized as a prison by the Parliamentarians in 1644; Lancs. War (Chet. Soc.), 49.
  • 49. Royalist Comp. P. i, 201; Cal. Com. of Comp. iv, 3047. The manor and lands were repurchased through William West, the lawyer of Robert Blundell; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 119–20. The sale took place under the Act of 1652 for the benefit of the navy; Index of Royalists (Index Soc.), 30.
  • 50. See Lydiate Hall, 114–16; also the accounts of Halsall and Birkdale.
  • 51. Ibid. p. 125. Henry Blundell in 1666 paid the tax for sixteen hearths; Lay Subs. Lancs. 250/9. He and John Leathwaite of Ince Blundell were indicted as recusants in 1678; Kenyon MSS. (Hist. MSS. Com.). 110.
  • 52. Lyd. Hall, 127. N. Blundell records: 16 May, 1708—'Mr. Plumbe sent an express to give me notice concerning an information made against Mr. Blundell of Ince, by Parson Ellison [of Formby]. I went to Ince to acquaint Mr. Blundell therewith;' and on 26 July: 'I went to Ormskirk sessions, where Mr. Molyneux of Bold, Mr. Trafford, Mr. Harrington, I, &c. compounded to prevent conviction. We appeared in court before Sir Thomas Stanley, Dr. Norris, and Mr. Case, all justices of the peace. We Catholics that got off our convictions dined all together at Richard Wood's … and [later] drank punch with Sir Thomas Stanley;' Diary, 60–3. Henry Blundell died 4 June, 1711; ibid. 92.
  • 53. Ormerod, Ches. (ed. Helsby), ii, 416; Foster, Lancs. Pedigrees.
  • 54. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 130.
  • 55. Ibid. 131; see also the account of Lydiate.
  • 56. Ibid. 133. For a recovery of the manors of Ince Blundell, Formby, Ainsdale, and Birkdale by Henry Blundell, the son, see Com. Pleas Recov. R. Trin. 33 & 34 Geo. II, m. 45.
  • 57. See Dict. Nat. Biog. He died 28 Aug. 1810. An engraving of his monument in Sefton church is given in Gregson, Fragments (ed. Harland), 222.
  • 58. Gibson, op. cit. 134. The Anderton and Heaton estates were those alienated.
  • 59. Gibson, op. cit. 136–44, where the will is printed together with an account of the subsequent disputes. To several of his tenants he directed that leases should be given of their holdings at half the current rent; but his liberality is stated to have had evil effects; ibid. xxviii.
  • 60. In 1283 they were William Knott, Alan the Young, Gilbert Blanchard, Adam de Crosby, Henry son of William, Peter de Leylandshire, Robert de Pekko, Robert the Chanon, Alan his brother, and Simon, son of Adam; Whalley Coucher, ii, 511. Some of these occur in adjacent townships; the last-named was Simon, son of Adam de Lunt, defendant in a fishery case in 1292; Assize R. 408, m. 43. For 1344 a fuller list has been preserved; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 96.
  • 61. This name occurs also in Litherland and Little Crosby. Robert Ballardson contributed to the subsidy of 1332; Exch. Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 8. In the previous year Maud, widow of William Ballard, had been plaintiff in an Ince Blundell suit; Assize R. 1404, m. 27. In a similar suit Robert Ballard was a plaintiff in 1337; Assize R. 1424, m. 11. Richard Ballard in 1340 had a grant of land in Bold; Dods. MSS. cxlii, fol. 196b, n. 33. In 1351 Emma, widow of Robert Ballard, and Thomas, his son, were joined with Robert de Knoll and Joan his wife, and Lawrence Nowell and Katherine his wife in a plea of novel disseisin brought against William Blundell touching tenements in Ince. The plaintiffs did not prosecute and were non-suited, their pledges being John and William Ballard; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 1, m. ij. Richard de Knoll and Joan his wife, a daughter of John de Clough, in 1357 sold their lands to Richard de Sefton; and shortly afterwards Lawrence Nowell and Katherine his wife (perhaps another daughter) sold to the same purchaser all the lands descending to Katherine on the death of her father; Croxteth D. O. ii, 11, 10. Three years later William Blundell of Ince released all his right in the lands formerly held of him by John de Clough by knight's service and a rent of 2s. 9d., and 7½d. for relief; the new possessor was Richard de Aughton; ibid. O. ii, 12. There are other notices of these transactions in Final Conc. ii, 155; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxii, App. 337; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 6, m. 3. Thomas Ballard in 1344 bought land of Robert son of Collt of Ince; and this he sold, as bought of Robert Floke, to the same Richard de Aughton in 1364; Croxteth D. O. ii, 8, 13. A few years later Richard de Aughton made a settlement of the lands he had acquired in Ince, together with his lands and mill in Thornton, the remainder being to his son Richard; ibid. O. ii, 14–16. In 1417 Thomas, son of Richard de Aughton enfeoffed John Totty and another of his lands; ibid. O. ii, 20. There does not seem to be anything further known of these Aughtons, but their lands, as will be seen, were acquired by Molyneux of Sefton. Thomas Ballard and Margery his wife in 1355 claimed fourteen acres in Ince from William Blundell and Joan his wife; the agreement stated that Thomas Ballard should pay 15s. a year, carry with his wagons, and give services with plough and harrow like William Blundell's other tenants; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 4, m. 16. Thomas and William Ballard paid to the poll tax of 1381; Lay Subs. Lancs. 130/24. Robert, son and heir of Thomas Ballard of Ince, quitclaimed to Sir John de Bold in 1409–10 all rights to the land in Bold he had by his father and his mother Emma; Dods. MSS. cxlii, fol. 202b, n. 67. The dispute between the Ballards and Blundells which began in 1463 has been mentioned in the text.
  • 62. In 1505 Robert Ballard secured a right to a third of the waste, and in 1509 sold a moiety of his waste to William Molyneux of Sefton; Croxteth D. O. i, 1–3.
  • 63. In 1562 Richard Thorne and Cecily his wife sold to Sir Richard Molyneux their moiety of the third part of the manor of Ince Blundell, with lands, mills, &c., there and in the Moorhouses, North End, Melling, the Old Marsh, the Low Marsh, the Elcom acre, and Black carr; ibid. O. i, 4, 5, 7; also Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 24, m. 191.
  • 64. Thomas Massingberd and Dorothy his wife, a daughter and co-heir of Richard Ballard, in 1569 sold this half; Croxteth D. O. i, 9; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 33, m. 138.
  • 65. Thomas, son and heir of William Blundell, sold to Sir Richard Molyneux in 1579; and at the same time an agreement to divide the waste was made between Sir Richard and Robert Blundell of Ince; ibid. O. i, 11, 10. This appears to be the 'manor of North End' named in the later Molyneux inquisitions, &c.
  • 66. By a charter of about 1260 William de Molyneux, son of Adam, granted to Richard Flock a messuage and lands in Ince Marsh, which had descended to the grantor after the death of Richard his brother; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiii, 266. This charter is similar to that given in the Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. 12, m. 27b, quoted below. Lands in Ince are mentioned among the possessions of Richard de Molyneux in 1361; Croxteth D. Genl. i, 35. A certain John Molyneux and Katherine his wife in 1438 granted all their lands in Downholland, Lydiate, Ince Blundell and the Moorhouses, to James Molyneux; ibid. Genl. i, 53, 54. The lands of Sir William Molyneux in 1548 were stated to be held of the heirs of James Blundell in socage by a rent of 2s. 9d.; twenty years later they had grown to a 'manor,' but were still held of the Blundells, though no rent was payable; in 1623 the tenure was unknown; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. ix, n. 2; xiii, n. 35; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), iii, 389.
  • 67. The monks' official in charge was called the 'Granger of Alt' in 1283; Whalley Coucher, ii, 505. The mill was held by a miller whose right descended to his sons; Alexander, the miller of Alt, gave his son Thomas certain property, including a third part of the mill, sometime before 1250; Simon, son of Alexander, released to the monks his third part of the mill held by his father by hereditary right, the monks having paid him 100s.; and for 20s. they purchased from the widow her dower right; ibid. ii, 495–7. But little occurs to show the connexion of the abbey with the township. The abbot, from 1347 to 1351 prosecuted William Blundell of Ince and others for money owing; De Banc. R. 352, m. xxiiij d. R. 360, m. 37. At last the sheriff was ordered to distrain, notwithstanding the liberty of Henry, earl of Lancaster; Henry Blundell and John his brother were among the mainpernors; ibid. R. 364, m. 91. In 1366 John Amerison was charged by the abbot with waste of lands in Ince; De Banc. R. 424, m. 279. On the other hand in 1441 Henry Blundell proceeded against John, abbot of Whalley, for damage in Little Crosby and Ince caused by a flood, which he alleged to be due to the abbot's neglect to repair a ditch; the abbot replied that the water running by the ditch was the Alt flowing and re-flowing to and from the sea, and that he was under no special obligation to repair it; Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. 3, m. 20b. The abbot made a claim for common of pasture about 1500; Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), i, 124.
  • 68. The grant of Alt Grange to Thomas Holt was by letters patent dated 1 Aug. 1543, a rent of £4 10s. 0½d. being reserved to the crown, and he sold it in the following November to Richard, son and heir apparent of Sir William Molyneux; Croxteth D. X. ii, 1, 2, 5; Pat. 35 Hen. VIII, pt. iv. The tenant's name was Moorcroft.
  • 69. The list of the lands exchanged is printed in the Sefton Abstract of Title.
  • 70. Visit. of 1567 (Chet. Soc.), 104; and Visit. of 1664 (Chet. Soc.), 203— Molyneux of New Hall.
  • 71. Mentioned Royalist Comp. P. iv, 147. In a deed of 1632 he is described as of Alt Grange, brother and heir of John Molyneux, deceased.
  • 72. Ibid. 145–8. He had in 1634 a lease of Alt Grange from Lord Molyneux, at a rent of £4 7s. 2d. He and his wife, with many others, appear in the Recusant Roll of 1641 in Ince Blundell; Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.), xiv, 237. The estate was sold for treason under the third Act of 1652; Index of Royalists (Index Soc.), p. 43. He was buried at Sefton 3 March, 1648–9.
  • 73. Royalist Comp. P. loc. cit.; Cal. Com. for Comp. iv, 3171–2; the estate had been discharged in April, 1654, on payment of a fine of £20. The house in 1666 had five hearths taxed; Lay Subs. Lancs. 250–9.
  • 74. He joined with his mother in the petition concerning the sequestration. For his age and marriage see Visit. of 1664, p. 203. His brother, Edward, a secular priest, for nearly forty years served the mission at Alt Grange and the neighbourhood; he was found dead on the sands, 28 April, 1704, and was buried in the Harkirk ground at Little Crosby; N. Blundell, Diary, p. 21; Crosby Rec. (Chet. Soc.), pp. xxi, 81. Thomas Molyneux or Wilkinson, S.J., is supposed to have been of this family; perhaps a brother of Edward. He was a victim of the Oates persecution, dying in Morpeth gaol, of poison given by the physician as it is believed, though it was given out that he committed suicide; Gillow, Bibl. Dict. of Engl. Cath. v, 69; Foley, Rec. S.F. v, 657. Richard Molyneux was buried at Sefton 7 May, 1686.
  • 75. An elder son John, born in 1660 and baptized by Mr. Parr, a secular priest, after studying at St. Omer's, entered the English College at Rome in 1679; 'he was always a Catholic and suffered for his faith'; he went by his mother's name of Harrington; Foley, Rec. S. J. vi, 429. He was buried at Sefton 28 Jan. 1692–3, as 'John Molyneux of West Derby, gentleman.' His brother Richard, who succeeded him, was buried at Sefton, 29 Jan. 1712–13; see N. Blundell, Diary, 110.
  • 76. He registered his leasehold estate in Ince as a 'Papist' in 1717; Engl. Cath. Non-jurors, 154. He had an elder brother John living in 1719, who in a deed of this date mentioned him and his sisters Mary and Elizabeth, also Mrs. Elizabeth Molyneux, widow; Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), iii, 192, from Roll 7 of Geo. I at Preston. In 1722 John Molyneux, of Alt Grange and New Hall, was to marry Margaret, daughter of Richard Moore of Heskin; ibid. iii, 214, quoting second 5th Roll of Geo. I.
  • 77. See the account of Huyton.
  • 78. He died at New Hall in West Derby, and was buried at Sefton 23 Feb. 1734–5.
  • 79. He was buried at Sefton 3 March, 1734–5; his will, enrolled at Preston (second 5th Roll of Geo. II), mentions his wife Margaret, his mother-in-law Mary Hawarden, his brother-in-law Bryan Hawarden, his uncle Edward, and his daughter Frances; Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), iii, 256. For some monumental inscriptions, &c., relating to this family see Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.), xi, 99, 100.
  • 80. See the account of Huyton.
  • 81. Richard Lord Molyneux leased Alt Grange to John Blanchard of Ince in 1726; Richard Molyneux of Alt Grange is mentioned; also his uncle Edward and his deceased brother John, and Margaret his wife; Piccope MSS. iii, 244 (from a roll of Geo. II at Preston.)
  • 82. Richard Blundell between 1249 and 1266 granted to William, son of Swain Blanchard, two fields in his vill of Ince, at a rent of 12d.; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 247. Gilbert Blanchard occurs in the list of free tenants of 1283 given in a previous note. In 1304 Richard, son of William Blanchard, complained that Robert, son of Gilbert Blanchard, William, son of William Blanchard, and Richard Blundell had disseised him of his messuage and land in Ince; but he failed, as Robert showed that he entered on one portion, as heir, after the death of William his grandfather, and William, son of William Blanchard, by his father's gift; Assize R. 419, m. 12d. Richard Blanchard paid to the subsidy in 1332; Exch. Lay Subs. 8. Robert, son of Richard Blanchard, was one of the free tenants of 1344; Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 97. Adam Blanchard was a juror in 1375; De Banc. R. 460, m. 323. Robert and Adam Blanchard contributed to the poll-tax of 1381; Lay Subs. Lancs. 130/24. Huan Blanchard, son and heir of John, granted land in Ince Blundell in 1518; Towneley MS. CC. (Chet. Lib.), n. 807. Joseph Blanchard, of Lady Green, occurs in 1713, and Richard Blanchard was a leaseholder in 1834; N. Blundell, Diary, 109; Gibson, op. cit. 139. Families named Orshaw and Dey also occur during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; Croxteth D. O. ii, 18, 22–25. For others see Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 1, m. 29; bdle. 3, m. 9.
  • 83. In 1374 Adam, son of Robert del Moorhouses, claimed certain land from John de Ashhurst; De Banc. R. 456, m. 195; R. 457, m. 114d. But four years earlier the defendant had given to Henry Blundell all the lands, &c., he had by the grant of Richard, son of William del Moorhouses; and in 1406–7 Isabel, as widow of John de Ashhurst, released all her right in her husband's land to Nicholas Blundell of Crosby; Kuerden fol. MS. 38, n. 436, 432.
  • 84. The plaintiffs adduced a charter granted by William de Molyneux (1250– 80) to Henry, son of William del Moorhouses, of land called Ruholme in Ince, which William de Sileby formerly held of the gift of Richard Blundell, and which descended to the grantor after the death of Richard his brother, who had had the same by the gift of Sir William le Boteler. Henry, also known as Henry son of Bimme, had issue Thomas and Simon; the former had a son Roger and grandson Alan, whose daughter and heir was Ellen, wife of John Coldokes. On the other side was adduced a charter by Henry, dated 1302, granting his son Simon a moiety of his lands held according to 'the ancient charters' of William, son of John Blundell; for this gift his sons Simon and Thomas were to keep him in food and clothing for the rest of his life. Simon's moiety accordingly descended to his son William and grandson Thomas, and so to Emma, wife of Richard Johnson of Little Crosby, whose son John was joined as defendant; Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. 6, m. 26; R. 12, m. 27 b. A Thomas Coldoke was living here in 1595; Ducatus Lanc. iii, 332. William, son of Richard Bimmeson, claimed lands in Ince in 1342; Assize R. 1435, m. 48.
  • 85. Eng. Cath. Non-jurors, 108, 122, 126, 148. One of Richard Tickle's daughters had married Richard Molyneux of Alt Grange, and their sons John and Richard are mentioned.
  • 86. Ibid. 112. The Blundells of Carrside were a junior branch of the Ince family; 'their names appear in the recusant rolls throughout the whole period of persecution'; Gillow, Haydock Papers, 215, where particulars are given.
  • 87. The first missioners certainly known are Edward Molyneux, already mentioned, and Henry Tasburgh, S.J.; both in the neighbourhood from about 1670.
  • 88. Foley, Rec. S.J. v, 320, 362; the priest's residence for some time was the New House in the Carr Houses, built in 1701; and see Crosby Rec. (Chet. Soc.), 81–2; N. Blundell, Diary, 2; Haydock Papers, 213–14.
  • 89. Liverpool Cath. Ann. 1901. A Benedictine was in charge from 1826 to 1865; Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.), xiii, 168.
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