STOCKTON WARD 



ELWICK HALL 



selves from this obligation, which was then exacted by 

 the bailiff' appointed by the icing.''' 



On the wooded banks of Amerston lieck, which 

 forms the western boundary of the parish, lies 

 j4MERST0N (Aymuneston, xii cent.; Aimundeston, 

 xiii cent. ; Aymondeston, xv cent. ; Amereston, xvi 

 cent.). The first known lord of this little manor is 

 Gilbert Hansard, one of the feudatories of Bishop 

 Pudsey (1153-95), and a contemporary of German 

 Prior of Durham (1162-86).'* Gilbert Hansard 

 granted all his land in the vill of Amerston, in- 

 cluding a rent of 10/. which William de Boultone 

 p.iid for land in the vill, to the hospital of St. Giles, 

 Kepier, together with lands in Hurworth, for the 

 maintenance of a chaplain to celebrate mass for the 

 souls of himself and his family."* 



In 1243 the prior and monks of Finchale granted 

 to the hospital of Kepier, in exchange for other lands, 

 half a carucate in Amerston which had been given 

 to the priory by John de Rudys.'' 



During the first half of the 13th century negotia- 

 tions went on between the hospital and the monastery 

 of Durham for an exchange of 

 lands. Amerston was one of 

 the places which it was pro- 

 posed that the hospital should 

 cede, but although several 

 charters to this effect were 

 drawn up, in the end the 

 hospital kept it, and gave other 

 lands instead."* 



On the dissolution of the 

 hospital in 1 546'^ this land 

 followed the descent of the site 

 of the hospital (q.v.) until in 

 '599 John Heath of Kepier 

 conveyed to Henry Dethicke, 



Master of Greatham Hospital, the manor of Amers- 

 ton,-" which had been leased for 54 years to John 

 Franklin of Thirley, Beds, by William Franklin, Dean 

 of Windsor and Master of Kepier Hospital.'-'' In 

 161 3 Henry Dethicke died seised of the manor of 

 Amerston ; Martin Dethicke, aged twenty, was his 

 son and heir.'-- 



In 1620 Martin Dethicke sold the manor to John 

 Girlington and both he and Bernard Jackson paid 

 the subsidy of 1 624 for land in Elvvick." In 1649 

 John Jackson of Harraton, a lieutenant-colonel in 

 the king's army, when compounding for his 

 estate, stated that Roger Harker, John Brach, and 

 others held certain lands in Amerston for his use by 

 virtue of a decree of Durham Chancer)', for payment 

 of certain debts of Mr. Girlington. Girlington had 

 charged the estates with yearly payments to Martin 



\f\f\r 



DiTHlCKF.. Argent 

 a feae vairy or and guUi 

 hetivefn three tvater 

 hougeti iable. 



Dethicke for life, one Kendrith and his heirs for ever, 

 and one Slinger,-'^ but these annuities were in arrears 

 and the owners of the rent charge had entered into 

 possession of the lands. Thomas Girlington with 

 Matthew Stodart and Mary his wife conveyed a 

 messuage and 370 acres of arable, meadow and pasture 

 land here and in Sedgefield and Embleton to Thomas 

 Ashmall in 1664.^''" Indeed the various interests in 

 the estate seem to have been bought up by Thomas 

 Ashmall, originally of Aughton (Lanes.), who had 

 settled at Amerston as early as 1648.-* His wife 

 was Dorothy daughter of Ferdinando Huddlcston of 

 Millom Castle, Cumberland.-*^ 



Thomas Ashmall died in 1674,-' and was succeeded 

 by his son Thomas Ashmall, who was succeeded at his 

 death in 1723 by his sons of his first marriage, 

 Thomas, who died in 1753, and Robert, who died 

 in 1758, both unmarried. From them the estate 

 descended to Ferdinando Ashmall, a son of the second 

 marriage, who was a Roman Catholic priest. In 1762 

 he sold Amerston to Humphrey Robinson, from whom 

 it had passed before 1825 to his nephew George 

 Robinson.-" In 1857 the owner of Amerston was 

 John Robinson.-" Since then it has been purchased 

 by the Marquess of Londonderry. The present 

 Marquess is now owner. 



On the bank of the North Burn, which forms the 

 south-east boundary of Elwick Hall, lies BURN- 

 TOFT (Brintoft, xiv cent. ; Burnetoft, xiv cent. ; 

 Bromptoft, XV cent. ; Brunntofte, xvi cent.). There 

 was a mill at Burntoft early in the I 3th century, but 

 this has disappeared.^" Mill Hill is mentioned in 

 1670." 



The first known lord of Burntoft is Sir Ilgier de 

 Burntoft, who witnessed a charter of 1155.''- Robert 

 de Burntoft witnessed a charter of 1180-94.^^ In 

 1181-2 Alan de Burntoft and William son of Odo 

 laid unsuccessful claim to land in Hutton and Sessay 

 (Yorks.) against Marmaduke Darrel and Alan's name 

 occurs in Boldon Book, 1183, as holding land in 

 Edmundbyers (q.v.).''' Alan held land which had 

 once been held by Robert Burntoft,^' and he granted 

 land in Edmundbyers to Ranulf Burntoft.'"^ He 

 witnessed a charter of 12IO.'''' Odo de Burntoft 

 granted to Reginald son of that William who was 

 Odo's paternal uncle 50^ acres of land in Burntoft 

 which William had held, in return for 26 acres with 

 a toft and croft and meadow land in the north of the 

 vill which Henry had held. This charter was wit- 

 nessed by Reginald Ganant the sheriff, and is therefore 

 later than 1194.''* Its terms suggest that Burntoft 

 was held in chief, but an over-lordship belonging to 

 the lords of Dalden (q.v.) is mentioned from 1400 to 

 1620.3^' 



'• E«ch. Dcp. Spec. Cum. Hll. lojas. I, 

 no. i;. 



" Feoii. Prior. Duiielm. (Surt. S(ic.), 

 1 24-; n. 



'« Mem. of St. Cttei (Surt. Soc), lyS. 



" Ibid. 114. 



*'' Ibid. pp. XXX and 233-5. 



'" y.C.H. Dur. ii, III et seq. 



™ Dur. Rcc. cl. 12, no. 2 (i). The 

 tr.in3action was completed in 1605. Ibid, 

 cl. 3, R. 92, ni. 24 d. ; R. 93, m. 1 3. 



-' Ibid. R. 94, m. 2 d. ; Dur. IViUi and 

 Itfvent. (Surt. Soc), ii, 144 n. 



" Dur. Rcc. cl. 3, tile 18!, no. %<.. 



•' Ibid. cl. 12, no. 3 (2); Subsidy Roll 



of 1624, Spearman MSS., D. and C. Lib. 

 Dur. 



^* Cat. Com. for Comp. i, 204 ; cf. 

 Rec. Com. for Comp. (Surt. Soc), 2, 254. 



"J Dur. Rec. cl. i ;, no. 6 (5). 



-^ Surtees, op. cit. iii, 87. 



»' Foster, Du,. I'tiit. Fed. I. 



'"" Thomas Ashmall was a Roman 

 Catholic. He oH'ered * no proofe of arms ' 

 at the Heralds' Visitation of l666 [Rem. 

 of Dennis Graniille^ D.D. [Surl. Soc], ii, 

 224). 



" Surtees, op. cit. iii, 85. 



»« Fordyce, H/if. of Co. PaUt. of Dur. 

 ii, 317. 



*" Surtees, op. cit. iii, ;86, 



^' Subsidy of 1670, Spearman MSS. 

 D. and C. Lib. Dur. 



" Feod. Prior. Dunelm. (Surt. Soc), 

 121 n. The name is also spelled ' Brun- 

 coste.' 



^^ Ibid. i;3-4 n. 



>' Pipe R. 28 Hen. II (Pipe R. Soc), 

 45 ; r.C.II. Dur. i, 334-;. 



■^ Feod. Prior. Duielm. (Surt. Soc), 72 n. 



^" Ibid. I Son. »'" Ibid. 175 n. 



'*' Surtees, op. cit. iii, 386 ; I'.C.H. 

 Dur. i, 3 1 3 n. 



" Dur. Rec cl. 3, no. 2, fol. 201 d., 

 2;6 d. ; Hlc 167, no. 32 ; Ale 189, no. 19. 



