A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



Hothersall remained in the king's hands, being held 

 of him in thegnage. 



In the survey of I 2 1 2 it was found that Thomas 

 de Burnhull held half a plough-land in chief by the 

 service of 4/. 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 3^. rent 

 and the latter I/. 6 The original partition was pro- 

 bably in the ratio of the thegnage rents into 3 

 oxgangs of land and I oxgang for William son of 

 Roger de Samlesbury about 1230 granted 3 oxgangs 



of land in Alston to Adam de Hoghton. 6 From 

 this time onwards the Hoghtons of Hoghton were 

 the immediate lords of a moiety of the manor," 

 the mesne lordship of Samlesbury being frequently 

 ignored 8 ; while the other moiety descended, like 

 Lathom, to the Stanleys, Earls of Derby. 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, 10 and is now said to be 

 held by Mr. William Cross of Red Scar. 



In the 1 3th and 1 4th centuries one or more 

 families are found bearing the local name. 11 The 



4 Lartct. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 50. Peter de 

 Burnhull paid 45. for half a plough-land 

 in Alston held in thegnage in 1226; 

 ibid, i, 139. The 41. rent was paid to 

 the Earl of Lancaster in 1297, but the 

 tenants' names are not recorded ; ibid. 

 289. 



6 In 1324 Nicholas D'Ewyas and 

 Robert de Holland held a moiety of the 

 manor of Alston by the service of 31. 

 yearly ; the other moiety was held by 

 Robert de Lathom, who rendered I2</. ; 

 Dods. MSS. cxxxi, 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 31., and Thomas de 

 Lathom also held the fourth part of a 

 plough-land by a rent of I2</. ; Survey of 

 1346 (Chet. Soc.), 48. 



A century later Richard Hoghton was 

 said to hold the fourth part of a plough- 

 land by a rent of 12 d. (for 31.), and 

 Sir Thomas Stanley similarly by I2</. 

 rent ; Extent of 1445-6 in Duchy of 

 Lane. Knights' Fees, bdle. 2, no. 20. In 

 the former case the intermediate lordship 

 has been ignored. 



'Add. MS. 32106, no. 226. A rent 

 of 31. t)d. 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. 



' 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 Goos- 

 nargh, 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 on of Adam de 

 Hoghton granted to Richard his son his 

 manors of Alston, Hothersall and Dil- 

 worth, 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 Cone. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 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. 



Juhn 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 Cone, 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 (Lanes. 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 141; 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 31. ; Lanct. Inq. p.m. 

 (CheU Soc.), i, 146. In 1433 his suc- 

 cessor 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 Cone. 

 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. Ref. 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 y^a. ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 66 ; 

 v, no. 66. IB 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 Kibble 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 I ; 

 cxxi, Ci2. 



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 para- 

 graph of the last note. It was stated 

 that he had held it of Thomas la Warr 

 by knight's service and a rent of 41., and 

 that William de Windsor held it of him 

 by the same service ; Duchy of Lane. 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 also a 

 share in the superior lordship of theothtr 

 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 in. IlJ</. 

 rent ; there are named Roger Elston 

 (formerly Richard Ellel), Christopher 

 Norcross, Ellis Ellel, John Alston and 

 Henry Hoghton (2s.) ; the Abbot of 

 Sawley paid 31. 4</. for leading the water 

 from the Ribble to his mill near Sunder- 

 land Grange. The tenants at will (twelve 

 tenements) paid i 2 6s. fyi. The manor, 

 demesne lands and water-mills had been 

 demised to John Cowell at a rent of 

 7 45. ; a close in the demesne, called 

 Roberhagh, was demised to Robert Ellel 

 at 8*. 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 12 J. 

 due to the king lor 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 Parlia- 

 ment 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. la. 



lu 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 Cheesburn j 

 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 4./.; Add. MS. 

 32106, no. 223. Mabot daughter (if 



