Townships: Alston with Hothersall

A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 7. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1912.

This free content was digitised by double rekeying. All rights reserved.

Citation:

'Townships: Alston with Hothersall', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 7, ed. William Farrer, J Brownbill( London, 1912), British History Online https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol7/pp61-67 [accessed 8 November 2024].

'Townships: Alston with Hothersall', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 7. Edited by William Farrer, J Brownbill( London, 1912), British History Online, accessed November 8, 2024, https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol7/pp61-67.

"Townships: Alston with Hothersall". A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 7. Ed. William Farrer, J Brownbill(London, 1912), , British History Online. Web. 8 November 2024. https://prod.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol7/pp61-67.

In this section

ALSTON WITH HOTHERSALL

Alston, 1292; occasionally an h is prefixed.

Hudereshale, 1199; Hudersale, 1212; Huddreshal, 1254; Hordeshal, 1256; Hudersale, Huderishale, Hodereshale, 1292; Hothersall, xvi cent.

This township is within the hundred of Amounderness. Its area is 3,078½ acres, of which Alston has 2,040 and Hothersall 1,038½. (fn. 1) The population in 1901 numbered 2,007. (fn. 2) The two portions, Hothersall being to the east and Alston to the west, are now considered independent townships. Norcross is in the south-west of Hothersall. The surface is hilly, the general slope being from north to south, and many brooks flow southwards through wooded valleys to join the Ribble. In the bends of this river lie areas of level land. There are no villages or noteworthy hamlets in the greater part of the area, but on the extreme northern edge lies a part of Longridge.

The principal road is one from Preston to Longridge, and there is another near the northern border from this town to Ribcheeter. The Preston and Longridge line of the London and North Western and Lancashire and Yorkshire Companies' railways runs along the north-western boundary.

At Hothersall Hall 'a demon is supposed to be "laid" under a laurel tree until he can spin a rope from the sands of the River Ribble, which runs near the house.' (fn. 3)

Manors

Before the Conquest it is supposed that Alston was a part of Dilworth. Afterwards, when Dilworth proper became part of the honor of Clitheroe, Alston and Hothersall remained in the king's hands, being held of him in thegnage.

In the survey of 1212 it was found that Thomas de Burnhull held half a plough-land in chief by the service of 4s. (fn. 4) This was ALSTON. It did not descend like Brindle, but became divided between the lords of Samlesbury and Lathom, each holding nominally a moiety, but the former paying 3s. rent and the latter 1s. (fn. 5) The original partition was probably in the ratio of the thegnage rents—into 3 oxgangs of land and 1 oxgang—for William son of Roger de Samlesbury about 1230 granted 3 oxgangs of land in Alston to Adam de Hoghton. (fn. 6) From this time onwards the Hoghtons of Hoghton were the immediate lords of a moiety of the manor (fn. 7) the mesne lordship of Samlesbury being frequently ignored (fn. 8); while the other moiety descended, like Lathom, to the Stanleys, Earls of Derby. (fn. 9) There are at Walton-le-Dale Court Rolls of Alston from 1672 to 1690. The Hoghton manor was in 1772 sold to William Shaw the younger, (fn. 10) and is now said to be held by Mr. William Cross of Red Scar.

In the 13 th and 14th centuries one or more families are found bearing the local name. (fn. 11) The Hothersalls had a share of Alston also, and this seems to have been acquired by the Hoghtons.12 Later some of the neighbouring landowners had estates in this part of the township, (fn. 12) but few other records of Alston occur. (fn. 13) Thomas Cutler died in 1604 holding a messuage, &c, of the Earl of Derby and Sir Richard Hoghton by a rent of 6s. (fn. 14) During the Commonwealth period two-thirds of the estate of Benjamin Eccles at Colland Banks was sequestered for his recusancy, (fn. 15) and Thomas Grimshaw suffered for the same cause. (fn. 16) Thomas Gregson and several others registered estates as 'Papists' in 1717. (fn. 17)

The family of Norcross of Ribchester and Alston was formerly of some note. (fn. 18) A branch of the Dewhursts registered a pedigree in 1665, being described as 'of Alston.' (fn. 19)

HOTHERSALL in 1212 was held by Swain son of Robert, to whom it had been granted by King John first when Count of Mortain and afterwards on coming to the throne in 1199. (fn. 20) It was assessed as 2 oxgangs of land, and a thegnage rent of 5s. was rendered. (fn. 21) Swain, living in 1226, was followed by a son Thomas de Hothersall, who died in 1256 or 1257 holding the 2 oxgangs of land in Hothersall and an oxgang and a half in Alston; Robert his son and heir was of full age. (fn. 22) The descent cannot be clearly traced, but Thomas de Hothersall held the manor in 1324 (fn. 23) and his son Robert in 1346 by the 5s. rent. (fn. 24) In 1445–6 the 2 oxgangs of land were held by the heir of Adam Hothersall by the same rent. (fn. 25)

Robert Hothersall died in 1558 holding the manor, i.e. the capital messuage of Hothersall with other messuages, lands, &c, of the queen as of her duchy of Lancaster by free thegnage and a rent of 5s. (fn. 26) John his son and heir was fifty-four years of age in 1577. John Hothersall was in 1576 reported to the Privy Council by the Bishop of Chester as one of those 'of longest obstinacy against religion,' whose resistance had encouraged many others to refrain from 'embracing the queen's majesty's proceedings.' (fn. 27) He made a settlement of his estate in 1579. (fn. 28) His successor seems to have been Richard Hothersall, who was a freeholder in 1600, (fn. 29) and died in 1610, leaving a son John, aged twenty-five. (fn. 30) John was in 1632 succeeded by his brother Thomas, (fn. 31) who recorded a pedigree in 1665, being then about eighty years of age. (fn. 32) John, his eldest son, had been killed at the siege of Greenhalgh Castle in 1645, and George, another son, lost his life at Liverpool in 1644, both fighting for the royal cause. (fn. 33)

John's eldest son Thomas succeeded to Hothersall. (fn. 34) He had several children. The eldest son, John, took part in the Jacobite rising of 1715, and was captured at Preston; escaping, he managed to elude recapture, and lived secretly with his sister Anne, wife of William Leckonby. (fn. 35) This sister and another, Margery wife of Edward Winstanley, afterwards divided the estates, the manor of Hothersall falling to the former and descending to her son Richard Leckonby. On his becoming bankrupt in 1763 the manor was offered for sale, (fn. 36) but seems to have been retained in the family till the end of the century. (fn. 37) The Hothersall Hall estate was purchased in 1852 by Jonathan Openshaw, and has since been much augmented. It is now the property of Mr. Frederick Openshaw. (fn. 38) The Hall was rebuilt in 1856 in a plain modern Gothic style on the site of the old house (fn. 39) in a low situation close to the right bank of the Ribble. No part of the former house remains, with the exception of a carved stone built into the wall of one of the outbuildings on which are the arms of Hothersall, together with the initials T.H. and the date 1695. (fn. 40)

A moiety of the manor was held by the Hoghton family. (fn. 41) It seems to have been a composite estate, formed by purchasing various portions. (fn. 42) The tenure is not stated in the inquisitions, and the 5s. thegnage rent was always paid by the Hothersalls. In 1610 it was purchased by John Dewhurst from Sir Richard Hoghton and Katherine his wife, (fn. 43) and in 1621 William Dewhurst was found to have held messuages and lands in Hothersall of the king in socage. (fn. 44)

An ancient estate in this part of the township was that of the Bradleys of Thornley, (fn. 45) descending to the Osbaldestons. (fn. 46) Some smaller estates are known, (fn. 47) and the family of Naden is distinguished by the Rev. Thomas Naden, a benefactor of St. John's College, Cambridge. (fn. 48) William Rogerson of Hothersall registered a small estate in 1717 as a 'Papist.' (fn. 49)

Church

The chapel of ST. LAWRENCE at Longridge is of unknown foundation, but is named in the rental of the Earl of Derby's estates in 1522. (fn. 50) A few particulars of its 'ornaments' at the time of the Reformation have been preserved, (fn. 51) but it does not appear to have had any endowment. It probably ceased to be used for a time, (fn. 52) but was not destroyed or desecrated, though even in 1650 there was 'neither minister nor maintenance.' (fn. 53) One, Timothy Smith, was appointed in 1657, (fn. 54) but ejected in 1662. (fn. 55) Various small endowments were afterwards given to it, (fn. 56) and it was rebuilt in 1716. Bishop Gastrell at that time found that there was an income of £4 13s. 4d. for the minister, received by the vicar of Ribchester, who held service there once a fortnight. (fn. 57) Grants from Queen Anne's Bounty were obtained in 1730 and later. (fn. 58) The Hoghton family claimed to present, (fn. 59) but the advowson was purchased in 1829 by the Hulme Trustees. (fn. 60)

The church stands on the south side of the town of Longridge. The old chapel was rebuilt in 1716 and again in 1822, the building of the latter year being rectangular in plan with galleries and two tiers of windows at each side. A west tower containing two bells was added in 1841. A restoration, which was begun in 1899 and was completed in 1906, practically took the form of a further rebuilding, only the tower and the main walls being left standing. A chancel and vestry were added, the galleries done away with, (fn. 61) and the interior of the building was entirely remodelled. The churchyard, which slopes away from the building on the south side, was enlarged in 1878. It contains some fragments of the 18th-century church. There is a clock, given in 1892, with dials on the north and west sides of the tower. The register of births begins in 1760, that of burials in 1789 and of marriages in 1838. (fn. 62)

A district chapelry was formed for it in 1861. (fn. 63) The present income is £400. A chapel of ease, St. Paul's, was built in 1890. The following have been curates and vicars (fn. 64) :—

1701 Thomas Felgate
1730 Richard Dixon
1743 John Sharpe
1780 Robert Parkinson (fn. 65)
1829 George Parkin
1831 Frederick Maude, M.A. (Brasenose Coll., Oxf.)
1843 Edward Pigot, M.A. (fn. 66) (Brasenose Coll., Oxf.)
1847 William Charles Bache, M.A. (fn. 67) (Brasenose Coll., Oxf.)
1877 Fitzherbert Astley Cave-Browne-Cave, M.A. (fn. 68) (Brasenose Coll., Oxf.)
1894 Thomas Martin Harrison, M.A. (fn. 69) (Brasenose Coll., Oxf.)

For the Presbyterians Timothy Smith's house was licensed in 1672, (fn. 70) but no permanent congregation seems to have resulted. About 1717 there was a Quakers' meeting-place near Longridge Chapel. (fn. 71)

The Roman Catholic church of SS. Mary and Michael, Alston Lane, serves a mission which can be traced back to about 1700. (fn. 72) It was refounded in 1761, and the old church was built in 1765. This was replaced by the present one in 1857. (fn. 73)

Footnotes

  • 1. Alston, 2,037 acres; Hothersall, 1,056; including 46 and 24 acres of inland water respectively; Census Rep. 1901.
  • 2. Of these 1,865 were in Alston, including Longridge.
  • 3. Harland and Wilkinson, Legends and Traditions, 240.
  • 4. Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 50. Peter de Burnhull paid 4s. for half a plough-land in Alston held in thegnage in 1226; ibid, i, 139. The 4s. rent was paid to the Earl of Lancaster in 1297, but the tenants' names are not recorded; ibid. 289.
  • 5. In 1324 Nicholas D'Ewyas and Robert de Holland held a moiety of the manor of Alston by the service of 3s. yearly; the other moiety was held by Robert de Lathom, who rendered 12d.; Dods. MSS. exxxi, fol. 39. Again in 1346 Gilbert de Southworth, in right of his wife, and Robert de Holland, held the fourth part of a plough-land in Alston by a rent of 3s., and Thomas de Lathom also held the fourth part of a plough-land by a rent of 12d.; Survey of 1346 (Chet. Soc.), 48. A century later Richard Hoghton was said to hold the fourth part of a ploughland by a rent of 12d. (for 3s.), and Sir Thomas Stanley similarly by 12d. rent; Extent of 1445–6 in Duchy of Lanc. Knights' Fees, bdle. 2, no. 20. In the former case the intermediate lordship has been ignored.
  • 6. Add. MS. 32106, no. 226. A rent of 3s. 9d. was to be paid to the grantor and his heirs. The witnesses included Sir William le Boteler (who died in or before 1233) and Emery his son. In 1282 William son of Jordan de Preston and Alice his wife claimed the latter's dower in half an oxgang of land in Alston against Adam de Hoghton; De Banco R. 47, m. 49.
  • 7. In addition to the manor the Hoghtons purchased other lands in Alston. William de Bury released to Richard son of Adam de Hoghton all claim in Alston and in Elmetridding in Chipping and Goosnargh, and Richard de Bury, brother of William, in 1306 undertook to see that the sale was carried through when William should come of age; Add. MS. 32106, no. 218, 225. Other acquisitions are noticed later. In 1312 Richard son of Adam de Hoghton granted to Richard his son his manors of Alston, Hothersall and Dilworth, together with the services of all the free tenants; ibid. no. 708. At the same time he notified the free tenants concerning this gift; ibid. no. 721. A year later, by fine, a moiety of the manors of Alston, Hothersall and Dilworth was settled upon Richard son of Richard de Hoghton by Richard son of Adam de Hoghton; Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 14. Thomas son of Sir Adam de Hoghton in 1316 released to Richard son of his brother Richard de Hoghton all his claim to the manor of Alston and lands in Hothersall, Dilworth, Goosnargh, &c.; ibid. no. 710. John son of William Jonesson de Alston in 1349 made a feoffment of 3 acres lying together in the western part of his field; the bounds began at Sir Adam de Hoghton's land and went across the grantor's field towards the east 'until 3 acres of land were fully complete'; ibid. no. 217. Agnes wife of Adam de Bowland in 1350 gave 2 acres of arable land and an orchard to her husband for his life; ibid. no. 196. Afterwards (1362) she gave him all the land descending to her after the death of John son of William son of John; ibid. no. 222. Two years later Adam and Agnes granted the whole to Sir Adam de Hoghton; ibid. no. 213. In 1377 Sir Adam de Hoghton and Ellen his wife made a settlement of a moiety of the manors of Alston, Dilworth and Hothersall; the remainder was to Sir Henry, son of Sir Adam, and his heirs male; Final Conc. iii, 3. The free tenants in Alston appear to have been Robert de Alston, William Albyn, Adam de Ellel and John son of Adam de Ellel. The settlement was probably varied, for in 1386 Sir Adam de Hoghton released his manors to the feoffees; Add. MS. 32106, no. 720. Sir Henry de Hoghton does not seem to have had anything in Alston (Lancs. Inq. p.m. [Chet. Soc.], ii, 43), but Sir Richard (son of Sir Adam) de Hoghton gave to the feoffees his manors, specially naming the moiety of the manor of Alston; Add. MS. 32106, no. 718. Again in 1415 Sir Gilbert de Kighley and Ellen his wife (formerly wife of Sir Henry de Conway and Sir Adam de Hoghton) granted Sir Richard de Hoghton their manor of Alston; ibid. no. 206. Sir Richard held half the manor in 1422 by the rent of 3s.; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet Soc.), i, 146. In 1433 his successor Sir Richard granted John Elswick, rector of Ribchester, a parcel of his waste in the vill of Alston; Add. MS. 32106, no. 220.
  • 8. This moiety is supposed to be that settled upon Fromund de Norhampton and Hawise his wife in 1321; Final Conc. ii, 42. In 1363 Edmund Maunsell released his right in a moiety of the manor of Alston to Sir William de Windsor; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. x, App. iv, 226. The Samlesbury lordship was recognized in 1499 and 1519, when it was found that Alexander and William Hoghton had held a moiety of the manor of Alston of Thomas Earl of Derby and John (Thomas) Southworth by a rent of 7½d.; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 66; v, no. 66. In the later inquisitions (1559 onward) this moiety of the manor was stated to be held of the sovereign as Duke of Lancaster in socage; ibid, xi, no. 2, &c. Bridget Brown, widow, held certain land in Alston of the queen (the owner, Thomas Hoghton, being a fugitive), and also had a boat in the Ribble at Alston, and gave to her nephew George Clarkson; but at her death in 1578 or 1579 one George Cawvell (Cowell) took possession, claiming by grant of Thomas Hoghton; Duchy of Lane. Plead. Eliz. ex, C 1; exxi, C 12. The younger Thomas Hoghton in Aug. 1581 granted to Elizabeth widow of Alexander Hoghton, among other things, the capital messuage called Alston Hall for her life; Add. MS. 32106, no. 878.
  • 9. The tenure of this moiety of the manor as recorded after the death of Thomas de Lathom (1370) is singular, but throws light on the second paragraph of the last note. It was stated that he had held it of Thomas la Warr by knight's service and a rent of 4s., and that William de Windsor held it of him by the same service; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. ii, no. 7. The moiety of Alston is named in the inquisition after the death of Thomas, second earl, in 1521. In right of Samlesbury the Earls of Derby had alao a share in the superior lordship of the other moiety of the manor of Alston. The rental compiled in 1522 (in the possession of the Earl of Lathom) shows that the free tenants paid 11s. 11½d. rent; there are named Roger Elston (formerly Richard Ellel), Christopher Norcross, Ellis Ellel, John Alston and Henry Hoghton (2s.); the Abbot of Sawley paid 3s. 4d. for leading the water from the Ribble to his mill near Sunderland Grange. The tenants at will (twelve tenements) paid £12 6s. 4d. The manor, demesne lands and water-mills had been demised to John Cowell at a rent of £7 4s.; a close in the demesne, called Roberhagh, was demised to Robert Ellel at 8s. rent. There were some small rents also from improvements of the waste. No courts had been held, nor had any heriots or gressums been paid during that year. The free rent of 12d. due to the king for the manor had been duly paid to the bailiff of Blackburnshire. After the forfeiture of James, the seventh earl, some of his messuages and lands in Alston were sold by the Parliament in 1652; Royalist Comp. Papers (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), ii, 238. The manor of Alston is named in a recovery of the Earl of Derby's estates as late as 1776; Pal of Lane. Plea R 623, m. 1a.
  • 10. Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 387. m. 114. The deforciants were Sir Henry Hoghton and Frances his wife. About 1830 the Alston Hall estate was owned by the Riddells of Cheesburni T. C. Smith, Chipping, 161.
  • 11. Robert lord of Alston granted an acre in Alston to Robert son of William de Whittingham at a rent of 4d.; Add. MS. 32106, no. 223. Mabot daughter of Robert de Alston, a widow, released to her brother Robert 'land with which she had been freely married' to William son of Walter de Penwortham; Dods. MSS. lxx, fol. 155. Roger son of Richard de Alston exchanged his part of Croneberihall in Eccleston for land in Alston with Adam de Hoghton; to this Roger Gernet, Benedict his son, Vivian Gernet and Thomas de Beetham were witnesses; Add. MS. 32106, no. 208. About 1247 Roger de Alston granted land to Walter son of Richard son of Uctred at a rent of 12d.; ibid. no. 348. The date is fixed by one of the witnesses, Matthew de Redmayn, being described as 'then sheriff.' By another charter John de Alston gave his three daughters (Joan, Maud and Katherine) all his land in Alston, a rent of 12d. being due to Walter de Alston; ibid, no. 202. Roger de Alston and Richard his son occur as witnesses; ibid. no. 197. Richard de Alston was lord in 1257; Lancs. Inq. p.m. i, 204. In 1292 Grimbald de Alston was the principal owner. William son of William de Alston claimed the sixteenth part of certain land and wood in Alston against Grimbald, who had entry through Roger de Alston, the grantee of Richard de Alston; Assize R. 408, m. 68. William son of Robert atte Yate also claimed the sixteenth part of the same land; ibid. m. 70 d. The jury rejected these claims, as also a further one by William son of William; ibid. m. 8 d. Anabel widow of William de Porta (atte Yate) released to Richard de Alston her dower right in land which Richard and Amery his wife had recovered by suit at Lancaster; William son of William the Clerk of Alston was a witness; Add. MS. 32106, no. 201; Assize R. 408, m. 31 d. Adam de Alston obtained land from Adam son of Gerard de Hothersall in Hehefield, Whitecross, Brerecroft and Whitecarr; Add. MS. 32106, no. 224. Robert son of Swain de Hothersall gave Amery his daughter and her issue all his land in Algtonfield and 2 acres in Alstonholme; ibid. no. 198. Then the above-named William son of Robert de Porta gave Richard son of Adam de Alston and Amery his wife all his land in 'Lymwelridding' in the vill of Alston; Grimbald de Alston was a witness; ibid. no. 204. Then Amery widow of Richard granted to Richard her son all her land in 'Lamewelridding' in 1321; ibid.no. 207. Richard son of Hitchcock de Alston in 1325 sold his land in Alstonholme to Sir Richard de Hoghton; ibid. no. 199. Alice widow of Grimbald de Alston claimed dower in the manor of Alston in 1308 against Henry de Rimington and Amery his wife; De Banco R. 170, m. 200 d. Swain de Hothersall gave Robert his son the half oxgang of land in Alston which Waltheof had held; a rent of 4d. was to be paid; Add. MS. 32106, no. 197. Robert son of Swain afterwards granted Sir Adam de Hoghton all his land in the Hokefield and in the Brerecroft, receiving 20s. in return; ibid. no. 215. Adam son of Gerard de Hothersall gave Robert son of Stephen de Hothersall and Roger son of Roger of the same 3 acres in Whitecarr, they releasing to him all their right in 1½ oxgangs of land in Alston; ibid. no. 205. William son of Adam de Hothersall granted half an oxgang of land in Alston (formerly held by Richard son of Adam de Hoghton) to Adam son of Adam and Amery de Hoghton; ibid, no. 211. William le Boteler, 'then sheriff,' was a witness, so that the date was about 1260. In 1373 William son of Henry de Dutton purchased a messuage and land in Alston from Richard son of John de Hothersall and Emma his wife; Final Conc. ii, 187; Add. MS. 32107, no. 203.
  • 12. The Shireburnes of Stonyhurst had land in Alston, but the tenure is not recorded. Edward Radcliffe of Dilworth in 1617 held land in Alston of Sir Richard Hoghton; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 52.
  • 13. In 1382 William Albyn of Alston and Joan his wife held a third part of two messuages and certain land in Alston; Final Conc. iii, 14.
  • 14. Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), i, 107. Thomas Cutler, son and heir of Thomas, was twenty-six years of age.
  • 15. Royalist Comp. Papers (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 270–4. Benjamin Eccles grandson of Thomas had in 1587 a lease from the Earl of Derby. Samuel King claimed the land in 1654, after the death of Eccles, alleging that his father had purchased from the earl. The sequestered two-thirds had been let in 1652 to Thomas Gregson.
  • 16. Ibid, iii, 133–5. Thomas Grimshaw's right was derived from his wife Jane, who as widow of one Thomas Duddell had a capital messuage in Alston and lands in Thornley. Jane having died the property was in 1651 claimed by Roger Sudell, in right of his wife Grace, daughter of William Duddell, heir of Thomas. William Sanderson, another recusant, desired in 1654 to be allowed to contract for his estate; Cal. Com. for Comp. v, 3194.
  • 17. Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. Nonjurors, 102, 137, 140, 150. The other names were: Anne Hothersall, widow, Robert Tomlinson, John Duckworth (Duckett) and Anne his wife and William Walmesley.
  • 18. T. C. Smith, Ribchester, 249. James Norcross 'of Dilworth' in 1631 paid £10 on refusing knighthood; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), i, 218.
  • 19. Dugdale, Visit. (Chet. Soc), 97.
  • 20. Chart. R. (Rec. Com.), 27.
  • 21. Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 50. Swain's name occurs again in 1226; ibid, i, 139; and the payment of the 5s. rent is recorded among the Earl of Lancaster's receipts in 1297; ibid, i, 289. A charter of Swain son of Robert is cited below (note 41). Swain had several sons. His grant to Robert, one of them, has been cited above; also a grant by Robert in Alston. William Moton granted land in Ribchester to Richard son of Swain de Hothersall; Add. MS. 32106, no. 284. Alan son of Roger son of Swain de Hothersall granted all his land to Adam de Hoghton; ibid. no. 24, fol. 244. There were other families taking a surname from the place, but their connexion with Swain cannot be traced. For instance, Adam son of Gerard, Robert son of Stephen, Roger and Hugh occur between 1250 and 1260; Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 183, &c. Robert son of Stephen de Hothersall confirmed part of his land to Henry son of Geoffrey de Ribchester; Add. MS. 32106, no. 23, fol. 244. Adam son of Gerard de Hothersall gave his cousin Robert son of Stephen parcels of land in Scalecroft and other places in the field of Hothersall; ibid, no. 1. The same Adam granted his sister Godith's son William 5 acres in the vill of Hothersall; ibid. no. 14. Hugh son of William de Hothersall gave his daughter Agnes various lands, Roughley, Frendesforth, Oldfieldhalgh, Brerefurlong, Crocland and Great Hold being named. Hugh had a brother and a son each named Roger; ibid. no. 4. Roger son of Roger exchanged with William son of Hugh certain lands, the place-names including Oldfield, Reseditch, Bradleybone; ibid. no. 55. To this deed Robert son of Stephen, Alan his son, Thomas, Adam and Robert his son, all ' de Hothersall,' were witnesses. Other charters of Roger de Hothersall son of Roger are in the same collection, no. 20, 41, 51, 52. 'Thomas son of Swain ' is named in several of them.
  • 22. Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 204. Thomas is no doubt the Thomas son of Swain of the preceding note. Again, Thomas de Hothersall and Richard his brother attested a Dilworth grant (Add. MS. 32106, no. 313), and Richard's parentage has been shown. Robert the son and heir of Thomas paid 5s. as relief on succeeding; Originalia R. 41 Hen. III, m. 2. Adam de Hothersall and Richard his brother gave half a mark for a writ in 1258–9; ibid. m. 6. They seem to have been sons of Thomas. Robert chief lord of Hothersall about 1280 granted Adam de Gouldebrough a plat on the eastern side of Bradley, the bounds beginning at Bolkin (or Bolin) Brook and descending Ayothalgh, and thence by lands of Sir Adam de Hoghton and Richard de Bradley to the startingpoint; ibid. no. 47, fol. 248. Robert son of Thomas de Hothersall, Richard de Byron and Margery his wife, Robert son of Stephen and William son of Roger de Hothersall allowed Sir Adam de Hoghton to make a mill on the Ribble; ibid. no. 36. Margery was probably one of the sisters Margery and Isabel, daughters of Robert son of Stephen, who made a grant in 1288 to Robert Ward of Hothersall and Mabel his wife; ibid. no. 38. In 1292 the various disputes which had arisen between Robert de Hothersall and Adam son of Adam de Hoghton were referred to the judgement of six men of the district; ibid. no. 40. In the same year Simon son of Agnes de Ribchester and grandson of Henry son of Hawise de Ribchester claimed various messuages and lands against Thomas son of Robert de Hothersall, against Robert and William other sons, and against Adam and John, other sons of Robert, but the jury decided against him; Assize R. 408, m. 35. Edusa daughter of Thomas de Hothersall and widow of Adam de Dutton formally acknowledged that she had released to Adam son of Thomas de Hothersall her right to certain land in the place; ibid. m. 20. Edusa seems afterwards (1308) to have denied her charter; De Banco R. 173, m. 418 d.
  • 23. Dods. MSS. cxxxi, fol. 39. Thomas's parentage is shown by a claim made in 1308–9 by Robert le Ward of Hothersall respecting the eighth part of certain lands; the defendants were Master Richard de Hoghton and Thomas son of Robert de Hothersall, whose widow Ellen was joined in the defence 5 Assize R. 428, m. 1. The father may be the Robert son of Robert of 1292. Richard son of Adam de Hoghton gave Thomas son of Robert de Hothersall, in free marriage with his daughter Margery, lands in Eastwood, Uckemonsriddings, &c., in 1311; Add. MS. 32107, no. 349. In 1339 Sir Richard de Hoghton, Thomas son of Robert de Hothersall and Robert le Ward claimed a tenement against John son of Hugh de Stapleton; Assize R. 427, m. 3 d.
  • 24. Surv. of 1346 (Chet. Soc), 58. In the preceding year Adam son of Sir Richard de Hoghton, as feoffee, granted to Robert de Hothersall and Maud his wife various lands and services and the reversion of those held as dower by Margery widow of Thomas de Hothersall; Add. MS. 32107, no. 349b. That Robert was the son of Thomas appears from a suit in 1348; Assize R. 1444, m. 8. He had a brother Richard living in 1349 (Add. MS. 32106, no. 293), and to Richard son of Thomas de Hothersall had in 13 31 been granted by Agnes widow of Richard de Turnley 2 acres in the vill of Hothersall; ibid. 32107, no. 382. Another brother was Roger, to whom in 1340 Robert de Hothersall granted land in a place called the Leigh; ibid. no. 378.
  • 25. Duchy of Lanc. Knights' Fees, bdle. 2, no. 20. In 1362 Adam de Threlfall, Silicia his wife, Adam son of Robert de Hothersall, Joan his wife and various others had a dispute with Sir Adam de Hoghton respecting tenements in Hothersall; Add. MS. 32107, no. 352; 32106, no. 39 (fol. 246). In 1394 Adam de Hothersall made a feoffment of all his lands, &c, in Alston; Add. MS. 32107, no. 356. Adam in 1406 allowed Sir Richard de Hoghton to alienate land for the endowment of the new chantry in Ribchester Church; Add. MS. 32106, no. 290. In 1414 Adam son of Robert Hothersall granted Aspelcarr in Ribchester to his son Richard; Kuerden MSS. iv, R 14. Adam was still living in 1427, when he gave land called the Intakes in Alston and Hothersall to Ughtred Hothersall and Joan his wife, daughter of John Catterall; Add. MS. 32107, no. 365. At the same time Adam and Ughtred made a feoffment of lands in Alston, Hothersall and Ribchester; ibid, no. 373. Ughtred was probably a grandson of Adam. He was living in 1458 (Add. MS. 32106, no. 295) and had a son and heir Robert, named several times in the reign of Edward IV 5 Add. MS. 32107, no. 361, 376. Bernard was another son (ibid. no. 383), who occurs in 1447; Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. 10, m. 42. Katherine wife of Ughtred HothersalJ gave a receipt to Ellen widow of Richard Catterall in 1468; Add. MS. 32107, no. 386. Ughtred in 1470 released to William Cottam of Alston various lands in Hothersall in Alston which had belonged to Thomas Hothersall; ibid. no. 366. In 1479 Richard Towneley complained that Ughtred, Robert and Gilbert Hothersall had broken into his close at Hothersall and cut down trees to the value of 40s.; Pal. of Lanc. Writs Proton. 19 Edw. IV. Robert Hothersall seems to have been the head of the family in 1487; Add. MS. 32106, no. 310. In 1493 John Towneley complained of trespass by Robert Hothersall, Richard Hothersall the elder and Richard the younger; Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 77, m. 2. At this point the succession is uncertain, but in 1533 John son of Robert, son and heir of Richard Hothersall, was contracted to marry Anne daughter of John Talbot of Salesbury; Shireburne Abstract Bk. at Leagram.
  • 26. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xii, no. 21. The inquisition was not made until 1577. No land in Alston is recorded, but he had held 1½ acres in Ribchester of Robert Lynalx. Robert Hothersall was involved in tithe disputes in 1536–41; Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), i, 155, 160.
  • 27. Gillow, Bibl. Dict, of Engl. Cath. iii, 410. George Hothersall, a son of John, was educated for the priesthood at Rheimi and Valladolid (1585–93); he returned to England on the mission, but was arrested and exiled, becoming a monk at Douay in 1615. It is believed that he returned to England and died in Lancashire in 1633; ibid.
  • 28. Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 41, m. 182.
  • 29. Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), i, 232.
  • 30. Lancs. and Ches. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), i, 166. 'Shuffling John Hothersall' is mentioned by the Puritan Nicholas Assheton in 1618; Journal (Chet. Soc.), 99.
  • 31. Towneley MS. C 8, 13 (Chet. Lib.), 505. Thomas Hothersall is described as thirty years of age and more.
  • 32. Dugdale, Visit. (Chet. Soc), 153.
  • 33. Gillow, op. cit. iii, 408.
  • 34. A settlement of the manor of Hothersall and lands there and in Alrton was made in 1673, Thomas Hothersall being the plaintiff in the fine and William Hothersall, with his son and heir Thomas, the deforciants; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 190, m. 70. William would be the uncle of the former Thomas. William Hothersall, Grace his wife and Thomas Hothersall were among the recusants of Alston in 1667; T. C. Smith, Ribchescer, 62. Thomas was outlawed for the same in 1679–80; ibid. 63.
  • 35. Smith, op. cit. 227. As the father, Thomas Hothersall, was living the estates were not forfeited, but were left to the daughters. The father died in 1720. His will is in the Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), iii, 204, from and-3rd Roll of Geo. I at Preston. By it he left Hothersall Hall to Alexander Osbaldeston, as trustee for the testator's daughters. See also ibid, iii, 380, from Roll 5 of Geo. III.
  • 36. Pedigree in Piccope MSS. ii, 233; Gillow, op. cit. iv, 284. The descent is thus given s William Leckonby of Eccleston in the Fylde m. Anne Hothersall -s. Richard m. Mary daughter and heir of William Hawthornthwaite of Stonyhurst and heir also of the Liveseye of Sutton -s. William -da. Mary m. (1799) T. H. Hele-Phipps of Wiltshire.
  • 37. In 1801 Thomas Ingilby was plaintiff and William Rigby deforciant in a fine respecting the manor of Hothersall and tenements there; Pal. of Lanc. Lent Assizes 41 Geo. III. Robert Parker was residing at the hall in 1825 (Lancs. Dir.) and — Martin was owner about 1836; Baines, Lancs. (ed. i), iii, 387.
  • 38. The estate, 'after passing through several hands, became the property of the late Jonathan Openshaw esq. of Bury, to whose nephew, Frederick Openshaw, esq. J.P., it now [1890] belongs'; T. C. Smith, op. cit. 227. Particulars are given of a family picture of the Leckonbys. The same writer gives the legend of the laying of the Hothersall Hall devil; ibid. 73. For an account of the Openshaw family see T. C. Smith, Longridge, 139.
  • 39. a The old house is described as having been in a 'dilapidated state' when pulled down; T. C. Smith, Longridge, 139.
  • 40. b The stone is illustrated ibid. 132.
  • 41. The Hoghton family's estate has been referred to in preceding notes. Adam son and heir of Adam de Hoghton warranted to Agnes, his father's widow, a messuage and land in Hothersall claimed by John de Church and Alice his wife. Alice was the sister and heir of William and John de Hothersall, from whom Adam de Hoghton the elder had had the land; Assize R. 408, m. 50. The estate was described as a moiety of the manor in 1377; Final Conc. iii, 3. Usually, however, no 'manor' is named in the inquisitions, and the messuages, lands, &c., are stated to be held of the king as duke by services unknown; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii, 127; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 66. In 1590 the estate is again called a manor, but the service was unknown; ibid, xv, no. 39.
  • 42. Many of the Hoghton charters have already been cited from Add. MS. 32106, fol. 241 on; 32107, no. 290, &c. Swain son of Robert granted Octepranus son of Ughtred an eighth part of the vill of Hothenall, to be held in free thegnage by a rent of 7½d.; Add. MS. 32106, no. 19, fol. 243. This was probably the eighth part of the vill which John son of Roger de Hothersall afterwards gave to Sir Adam de Hoghton; ibid. no. 22. Sir Adam granted certain easements in the eighth part of the vill; ibid. no. 34. Richard de Amethalgh and Christiana his wife gave their daughter Avice the lands they held of St. Saviour's Hospital. The bounds began at a broken bank by the Ribble, upon Hepewell, went north by Merecliff to Stiropeclough, and so down again to the Ribble; ibid. no. 5, 50. Avice married John de Wicklesworth, and this land was granted to Adam de Hoghton in or before 1275; ibid. no. 6, 48, 53. Alice daughter of Avice de Hothersall in 1274 gave Maud, her mother's sister, her right in lands formerly belonging to her uncle Henry; ibid, no. 13. Richard son of Hugh de Hothersall granted Adam de Hoghton the homage and service of Roger his brother and Adam del Hurst and Agnes his wife, Roger son of Hugh releasing all his right in his mother Alice's dower; ibid. no. 10, 3. The estate of Robert the Ward was also acquired by the Hoghtons. Margery and Isabel daughters of Robert son of Stephen de Hothersall gave an acre of land to Robert the Ward of Hothersall and Mabel his wife in 1288; ibid. no. 38. In 1292 Robert the Ward claimed common of pasture against Robert son of Thomas (de Hothersall) and Adam de Hoghton but was non-suited; Assize R. 408, m. 9d. It seems probable, from a suit already cited, that he had an eighth part of the manor. Robert the Ward and Mabel his wife acquired other lands down to 1322; Add. MS. 32106, no. 7, 26, 42. In 1344–5 Sir Richard de Hoghton had a dispute with Alina widow of Robert the Ward, who claimed the fourth part of a moiety of messuages and land in Hothersall. She held a fourth part of the town (or perhaps a fourth of the moiety) in common with Sir Richard de Hoghton and Adam de Hoghton, of whom the former was lord of a third part and the latter had a moiety of the town; Assize R. I435, m. 37 d., 36. It was found that Richard, Adam and Alina had approved the tenements put in view, and that Richard alone had disseised her. In 1448 John son of Robert de Freckleton claimed the eighth part of the manor of Hothersall against Adam son of William de Turnley, Margery his wife and others, including Robert son of Thomas de Hothersall, Sir Adam de Hoghton and Mabel widow of Henry de Turnley. Adam de Hoghton laid he was lord of the manor, which was held of him by knight's service. Adam de Turnley stated that Robert the Ward had had the tenement settled on himself and his heirs by Alina his wife, with remainders to Henry de Turnley, Adam de Turnley and Sir Adam de Hoghton. The claimant admitted this, but said that Henry de Turnley had released his right to Alina while she was a widow, but the verdict was against him; Assize R. 1444, m. 8. Adam de Turnley then granted to Sir Adam de Hoghton all his lands, tenements, rents, &c, in the vill of Hothersall; Add. MS. 32106, no. 8. Sir Adam de Hoghton in 1375 made a feoffment of his tenement called the Blackgreve in Hothersall in the vill of Alston; ibid. no. n.
  • 43. Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 75, no. 10. John Dewhurst had, in the time of Elizabeth, purchased the lands in Ribchester and Hothersall previously held by Crompton and Greenhalgh; see the account of Ribchester.
  • 44. Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc, Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 284. William Dewhurst and Anne his wife made a settlement of the manor of Hothersall in 1649; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 146, m. 153. In a later fine the deforciants were William Dewhurst, Anne his wife, Henry Marsden, Janet his wife and William Dewhurst, the plaintiff being Lancelot Bolton; ibid, bdle. 179, m. 142.
  • 45. Adam de Hurst in 1316 released to Adam de Bradley his right in certain land adjoining Sir Richard de Hoghton's; Add. MS. 32106, no. 43 (fol. 247). Richard de Amethalgh gave Thomas de Bradley two small plats in a field called 'Cromanhalgh ' in 1318; ibid. no. 59. In 1319–20 Adam de Bradley granted to John his son and heir all the land in Hothersall he had had from Richard son of Adam del Hurst; Parlington D. He also gave his son Thomas land which he had had from his brother Richard; Add. MS. 32106, no. 49. Thomas son of Adam de Bradley gave lands to his brothers Robert and John about the same time; ibid. no. 37, 54. To his brothers Simon and William he gave land in 'Cronershalgh '; Kuerden fol. MS. 55. John son of Thomas de Bradley of Chippingdale in 1409 received 10 marks from Nicholas de York, Abbot of Whalley, in part payment for 'divers transgressions'; ibid. Thomas Hesketh of Rufford in 1523 held 8 acres in Alston and Hothersall by services unknown; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. v, no. 16. In 1556 Thomas Bradley purchased lands in Aighton and Hothersall from Sir Thomaa Hesketh and Alice his wife; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 16, m. 12. Thomas Bradley of Bradley in Thornley in 1564 held a messuage, &c, in Hothersall of John Hothersall by a rent of 12d. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xi, no. 37; xvii, no. 28.
  • 46. Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 179.
  • 47. John Seed the elder in 1596 purchased messuages, &c, in Hothersall from Robert Dobson and Isabel his wife; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 59, m. 229. Dying in 1629 John Seed was found to have held his estate in Hothersall of the king; John his son and heir was fifty years of age; Towneley MS. C 8, 13 (Chet. Lib.), 1073. The Kuerdens of Ribchester had lands in Hothersall, Adam de Hoghton having granted a parcel in Ravenhacclough to Richard de Kuerden at a rent of 6d.; Add. MS. 32109, fol. 17, no. 57. This or adjoining land was in 1336 given to Nicholas son of Thomas de Hothersall; Towneley MS. C 8,13 (Chet. Lib.), K 18. William son of John de Walton, perhaps as trustee, secured a messuage and land from Adam son of Roger de Kuerden and Agnes his wife in 1352; Final Conc. ii, 132. The same Adam son of Roger made an exchange of lands with Sir Adam de Hoghton in 1383–4.; Add. MS. 32109, fol. 57, no. 29. Adam de Threlfall has been named above. In 14.25 Adam Hothersall released to 'his brother' John Threlfall of Goosnargh the elder all right in a messuage in the hamlet of Hothersall in the vill of Alston 5 Add. MS. 32108, no. 880. Edmund Threlfall of Ashes in Threlfall in 1617 held land of John Hothersall by a rent of 12d.; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), ii, 92. Richard Towneley of Towneley held land in Hothersall in 1408–54; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii, 59. William Cottamof Dilworth in 1475 granted land received from Ughtred Hothersall to Richard Towneley; Towneley MS. C 8, 13 (Chet. Lib.), C 108.
  • 48. Smith, op. cit. 250; A. F. Torry, Founders and Benefactors, 68. Thomas son of Edmund Naden of Hothersall was admitted to St. John's Coll., Camb., in 1669; M.A. 1676. He died in 1714 and bequeathed his lands in Alston and Hothersall to found an exhibition in the college for students in divinity. The lands, known as the College farms, were sold in 1870 and the money invested in consols; the income, about £240 a year, is given to three 'Naden students.'
  • 49. Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. Non-jurors, 105.
  • 50. There is entered '4d. of new rent of a parcel of land from the lord's waste near the chapel of Longerygge, containing ½ rood of land, enclosed by Richard Fairclough.'
  • 51. Raines, Chantries (Chet Soc.), 262, 277.
  • 52. Robert Cottam, priest, and John Tomlinson, church reeve, are named at Longridge in 1554; yet in Raines' note Robert Cottam is called a 'deacon only' in 1556. 'He was grave and chaste, could play on the musiques, and was no tippler nor diceman'; ibid. 262. His name is not given in the visitation lists. It was one of the suspicious points in the story of John Shireburne, rector of Brindle, that Robert Cottam, once curate of Longridge, had paid him a visit during an illness; see the account of Bury Church. The chapel is named, without any account of its use, in 1610; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 9.
  • 53. Commonw. Ch. Surv. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 169.
  • 54. Plund. Mins. Accts. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 202. He was nominated by the inhabitants, and a stipend was provided out of the tithes of Ribchester; ibid. 223. He had formerly been stationed at Rainford.
  • 55. The income would cease at the Restoration, so that the traditional ' ejection ' in 1662 was little more than nominal. Timothy Smith continued to preach in Longridge Chapel occasionally till his death in 1679; T. C. Smith, Longridge, 64. From entries in the Ribchester churchwarden's accounts it appears that 'the king's minister ' and others occasionally preached at Longridge from 1679 onwards; Smith, Ribchester, 108–9.
  • 56. In a dispute as to the liability for repairs in 1702 it was stated that for sixty years past it had had 'prayers, sermons and both sacraments in it.' Three benefactors had given £5 a year to a 'preaching minister,' and for that Mr. Hargrave (curate of Ribchester) preached there every fortnight in the afternoon and had 'a very great congregation'; Chester Dioc. Reg.
  • 57. Notitia Cestr. (Chet. Soc), ii, 474. A rent-charge of 13s. 4d. was given in 1657 for a preaching minister; £30 was given in 1673 and £50 in 1701 and later.
  • 58. Smith, Longridge, 60. The later grants were in 1743–5 and 1756.
  • 59. They probably gave money to meet the grants from the Bounty. Sir Henry Hoghton presented Richard Dixon in 1730.
  • 60. Smith, op. cit. 59. Since the trustees acquired the patronage the vicars have been Hulmeian Exhibitioners of Brasenose College, Oxford.
  • 61. The two tiers of windows were retained, though the windows themselves were modernized. A description of the church in 1870 is given in A. Hewitson's Our Country Churches, 93–9.
  • 62. a From 1730 baptisms 'at Longridge Chapel' are recorded in the Ribchester registers; in 1702 there was a burial at Longridge; Smith, Ribchester, 198, 202.
  • 63. b London Gaz. 8 Feb.
  • 64. The list is taken from papers at the Diocesan Registry, Chester, with additions from Smith's Longridge, 61–73, where notices of the incumbents are given. The curates have been styled vicars since 1866; Lond. Gaz. 10 July.
  • 65. His nephew, Canon Parkinson of Manchester, wrote of him: 'His income from his living rose during the time ot his incumbency from about £40 a year to £140, where it stopped. The popula tion in the meantime—of the worst kind as far as ministerial labour is concerned, being universally poor, and consisting one half of Roman Catholics and almost all poor hand-loom weavers—advanced from about 4.00 to 2,000. During his incumbency he enlarged his small chapel, without any expense to the place, so as to hold 700 worshippers, and left behind him what he did not find—a parsonagehouse. Nor was there erected (and this is a singular exception in that district) during his incumbency a single Dissenting place of worship of any kind in his chapelry'; Old Church Clock, 189. There are monuments in the chapel to him and his two successors.
  • 66. Rector of Whittington 1857.
  • 67. Rector of Alresford 1877.
  • 68. Vicar of Horton 1867, of Ellel 1869, and of Padiham 1874.
  • 69. Vicar of Briercliffe 1887–94.
  • 70. Cal. S. P. Dom. 1672, pp. 198, 200.
  • 71. Gastrell, Notitia, loc. cit.
  • 72. A. Hewitson, op. cit. 88–92. There were many convicted recusants in the township in the time of Charles II; Misc. (Cath. Rec. Soc), v, 161–3. Sir Walter Vavasour, S. J., served there at the beginning of the 18th century; Gillow, Haydock P. 63. At that time there was also a domestic chapel at Hothersall. Sir Walter registered his estate as a 'Papist' in 1717, being described as 'of Alston'; Estcourt and Payne, op. cit. 316. He was 'a reputed priest'; Smith, Ribchester, 63. A baptism by him in 1705 is recorded in the parish church register; ibid. 197. He was buried at Stidd, 1740; ibid. 203.
  • 73. Smith, Longridge, 77; a list of priests in charge is given.
PreviousTable of contentsNext