A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



justifies the remark of William Cobbett : ' To them 

 that delight in water scenes this is the prettiest place 

 that ever I saw in my life.' 



A considerable portion of the land in 

 MANORS the north of St. Mary Extra parish lies 

 within the manor of Bitterne,' but the 

 remainder constitutes the manor of IPOOLSTON 

 (Olvestune, xi cent. ; Wolveston, xiii cent.). One hide 

 of land in Woolston, held by Tovi of Edward the 

 Confessor, was held at the time of the Survey by 

 Rainald the son of Croch from the king, its value 

 having depreciated from lot. to 5*.' Two centuries 

 later Hugh de Chikenhull was seised of half a 

 carucate of land here, which on his death in 1257 

 descended to his son Alan. 8 It was still held of the 

 king in chief by the serjeanty of maintaining one 

 footman with bow and arrow in the king's army 

 in Wales, for forty days annually. 



From Alan the Woolston estate descended to his 

 son Hugh, 9 and on the death of the latter in 1317 

 passed to John de Chikenhull, 10 who settled the 

 manor of Woolston upon a certain John Seyntcler 

 and Henry de Wayte for life, with an ultimate re- 

 mainder to Isabella de Inkpenn, sister of Henry." 



The manor passed into the possession of Isabella 

 prior to 1350, when she died, leaving as heir her son 

 John, who died in I362. la Robert his son succeeded 

 to the estate in 1375 on the death of his brother 

 John without issue," and on his marriage in 1389, 

 settled Woolston upon his wife Margery. 14 



The settlement was made without the king's licence, 

 and on the second marriage of Margery with John 

 Benet, after the death of Robert Inkpenn in 1406," 

 controversy arose concerning the validity of the deed. 

 She was eventually allowed to hold the manor till 

 her death, 16 when it reverted to her son Richard 

 Inkpenn, who conveyed the 

 estate in 1424 to his daughter 

 Alice, wife of Ralph Cham- 

 berlayne, and her issue." 



The history of the manor 

 during the next two hundred 

 years remains in obscurity. 

 Sir George Rivers, who held 

 Woolston in 1631, conveyed 

 the estate to Nathaniel Mill," 

 and nine years later Joseph 

 Debertine and his wife Alice, 

 possibly heiress to Nathaniel 

 Mill, sold it to Henry Pitt. 18 



In 1701 Thomas Macham 



and John Gilbert held the manorial rights," but 

 whether by inheritance or purchase is not clear, and 

 quitclaimed to Nicholas Winkworth. 11 In 1 766 

 Woolston manor, together with the adjoining manors 

 of Netley and Hound," was held by Thomas Dummer, 

 and has descended with them from that date to the 

 present day, 23 the present lord of the manor being 

 Mr. Tankerville Chamberlayne, whose residence, 

 Weston Grove, is within Woolston manor. 



CHAMBIRLAYNK. Gules 

 a fbeveron engrailed or 

 between three scallops 

 argent. 



One of the ancient rights attached to this manor 

 was that of the ferry over the Itchen waters, to 

 Southampton, 24 where the old ' Floating Bridge ' now 

 stands. 



A mill is mentioned in an extent of Woolston 

 manor in 1317, but no further reference to it is found 

 after this date." It is probably identical with Weston 

 Mill, which Mr. Taylor obtained from Thomas Lee 

 Dummer, lord of Woolston manor, about 1762, 

 for the establishment of his machinery for making 

 ships' blocks. The water at the mill often proving 

 deficient, the works were moved to Wood Mill, on 

 the Itchen, and Weston Mill was abandoned." 



Pear Tree House was built in the opening years 

 of the seventeenth century by Mr. Mylles of Bitterne 

 manor, and remained in the hands of that family 

 throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, 

 passing by marriage to the family of Waring in 1792. 



In 1871 Miss Margaret Waring bequeathed the 

 estate to Mr. George Atherley, a banker in the town, 

 whose son sold it to Mr. Cruickshank. 



JESUS CHAPEL as first built was a 

 CHURCHES little building ' 20$ ft. broad by 50^ ft. 

 long, fitted with a wooden chancel 

 screen, a Holy Table, a font, a pulpit, seats on the 

 floor and gallery, and a bell.' In Captain Smith's 

 will of 1630 it is called ' Jesus Chappell at Ridway.' 

 It has been enlarged and repaired again and again, 

 till nothing but part of the west end of its original 

 building remains. In 1821 it was repaired, the 

 south transept, west porch and gallery being built ; 

 in 1 847 a north aisle and vestry were added ; in 

 1866 additions were made on the east side of the 

 south transept, and in 1882 a new chancel with a 

 south aisle was built. Of its old fittings only the 

 altar table remains, and the old pulpit has been used 

 up as wainscoting in the vestry. The old bell, which 

 is said to have come from Netley Abbey, but is 

 of much later date, is blank, and not now hung, 

 and in the western bell-cot is its successor, hung 

 in 1870. 



The church stands in a crowded little churchyard, 

 its west end facing on to the open green where grew 

 the pear tree from which the district is named, and is 

 of more historical than architectural interest ; it was 

 doubtless a very plain little building at the first, and 

 the successive enlargements, made as occasion served, 

 have not tended to produce unity of design. 



The church plate consists of chalice, paten, and 

 two flagons, all dating from the seventeenth century. 

 The chalice and paten have no inscription, and the 

 former no hall-mark, but it seems probable that they 

 date from some time between the years 1620 and 

 1630. The offertory, amounting to \ izs. zd. t 

 which was collected on the day of the consecration 

 of the chapel (17 September, 1620), was ordered by 

 the bishop to be converted into a chalice, and this, 

 with its cover (i.e. paten) would almost certainly be 

 the ' church plate ' to which Captain Richard Smith 

 refers in his will of 1630. The two flagons bear the 



No. 



See South Stoneham. 

 V.C.H. Hants, i, 501*. 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 41 Hen. Ill, No. 22. 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 45 Hen. Ill, No. 9. 

 Ibid. 10 Edw. II, No. 33. 

 Pat. 2 Edw. Ill, pt. 2, m. 29. 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. Ill, pt 2, 

 116; ibid. 35 Edw. Ill, pt. i, 

 123. 

 Ibid. 48 Edw. Ill, No. 41. 



14 Cal. of Pat. 1388-92, p. 171. 



Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Hen. IV, No. 48. 



16 Cal. of Pat. 1388-92, p. 171. 



*' Ibid. 1422-29, p. 195. 



18 Feet of F. Hants, East. 6 Chas. I. 

 An extent of the manor at this time gives 

 8 messuages, 7 gardens, 150 acres of land, 

 50 acres of meadow, 60 of pasture, 35 of 

 woodland, 45 of furze, and the passage 

 over the River Itchen to Southampton. 



298 



" Ibid. Hil. 15 Chas. I. 



20 Ibid. Trin. 12 Will. Ill, 



21 Ibid. 



aa Feet of F. Hants, Trin. 6 Geo. III. 



Recov. R. Trin. I Will. IV, No. 

 163. See Netley and Hound. 



Feet of F. Hants, Hil. 1 5 Chas. 1 5 

 ibid. Trin. 12 Will. III. 



45 Chan. Inq. p.m. 10 Edw. II, No. 33. 



M Proc. Hants Field Club, iv, 3. 



