STOCKTON WARD 



SEDGE FIELD 



the inheritance of Thomas de Embleton.^' Thus, of 

 William's three sons, John, the heir at his death, was 

 disinherited ; William must have died between 1366 

 and 1399, for Thomas son of William and Joan had 

 livery of his father's lands in May 1400.*- He was 

 dead in August 1 4 1 6, leaving a son and heir William,*' 

 who gr.inted the manor in 1440'* to William liowes 

 and other trustees without licence. William liowes 

 and his co-feofFees regranted the manor to William 

 Embleton before 1447, when he died seised, leaving 

 a son William, a minor." In 1450 the manor was 

 conveyed for assurance of title by William Bowes and 

 his co-feoffees to the bishop, who in the same year 

 granted it to William Embleton and his issue.*'' The 

 younger William married Margaret Claxton before 

 1450 and made a settlement on himself and liis issue 

 in January 1489-90. He was succeeded by his son 

 another William, who died in 1505.*' Elizabeth wife 

 of William Bulmer, daughter of the last William, was 

 his heir." 



Embleton now followed the descent of Tursdale 

 in the Bulmer family till 1628, when Sir Bertram 

 Bulmer and his son William sold 60 acres of arable, 

 100 of meadow and 160 of pasture to Sir Thomas 

 Tempest,^* a further alienation of 100 acres of 

 arable land and a considerable amount of meadow 

 and pasture being made to .Sir William (jascoigne in 

 168 1. ^'-^ In 1638 Isabel widow of Sir Bertram 

 Bulmer, her son William and Dorothy his wife 

 alienated to John Smith, husband of William's sister 

 Margaret,'''' 60 acres of arable and 400 acres of 

 meadow and pasture.''' His estates in Embleton, 

 known as Low Embleton and Whinhouse, were 

 sequestered in 1644-5.^- They belonged in 1667 

 and 1689 to his son Sir Edward Smith, first baronet, 

 of Esh."' Their later history is uncertam. 



The rest of the manor, known as High Embleton 

 and including the manor-house, belonged in 1644-5 

 to Anthony Bulmer, younger brother of William, 

 for whose delinquency it was sequestered.^^ Anthony 

 seems to have held for life only, for High Embleton 

 belonged in 1667 to his nephew Anthony Bulmer, son 

 and heir-apparent of William,''' who in that year con- 

 veyed to John Hickson, Robert Surtees of Ryton and 

 George Surtees of Colt Parke.'''' Crosier Surtees '" sold 

 his part in the late i 8th century to William Wrightson 

 of Sedgefield, who sold it to John Willis.''* George 



Willis, son of John, was the owner in 1823 " and his 

 representative in 1857.™ The Marquess of London- 

 derry is now the principal landowner. 



The family of Fishburn which held the manor of 

 FISHBURN (Fisshcburne, xiv cent.) were presumably 

 the heirs of William de Fishburn, who had a knight's 

 fee in the bishopric in I 1 66."' Ranulf de Fishburn 

 witnessed charters of the late 12th century, and Ralph 

 de Fishburn answered for the knight's fee in the 

 middle of the 13th century.'*^ Sir Ranulf de 

 Fishburn was living in 1256 and was possibly 

 identical with the Sir Randolf de Fishburn, living 

 here, who was one of the knights of the bishopric in 

 1264.'^ In 1339 land in Fishburn was held of John 

 de Fishburn." Ranulph de Fishburn, presumably 

 his heir, died in or before i 349 seised of one messuage 

 and 100 acres with the 'lordship' held in chief by 

 homage and fealty and half a knight's fee.'^ His 

 daughters and co-heirs were Margaret and Elizabeth, 

 who paid relief in 1350." They seem to have sold 

 Fishburn to William Claxton of Claxton (q.v.), who 

 died in or about 1380 seised of the reversion of the 

 manor, of which he had enfeoffed John de Claxton for 

 life. It was charged with an annuity to Elizabeth 

 and Margaret de Fishburn."'' Robert de Claxton, 

 William's grandson and last male heir,"' granted the 

 manor in 1476 to Ralph Claxton and Elizabeth his 

 wife for their lives. "^ Elizabeth survived Ralph and 

 lived till 1500, when Fishburn reverted to the 

 daughters and co-heirs of Robert Claxton." It was 

 subsequently held in thirds by the representatives of 

 three of the daughters, Margaret wife of William 

 Embleton, Elizabeth wife first of Richard Conyers and 

 then of Robert Pilkington, and Phyllis wife of R.ilph 

 Widdrington.'* 



The share of Margaret followed the descent of 

 Embleton (q.v.) into the possession of the Bulmer 

 family. In 1602 Bertram Bulmer conveyed it to 

 John Ord,"' who died in possession in 1625, leaving a 

 son and heir Bertram.'- In 1649 Bertram Ord 

 granted all his lands in Fishburn to Cleinent Woodifield 

 of Mainsforth. John Woodifield acquired 60 acres 

 of me.idow and pasture land from William Crags and 

 Margaret his wife in 1658.*' In 1695 John 

 Woodifield and Jane his wife conveyed a messuage, a 

 mill and 2 acres in Fishburn to Laurence Sourby, 

 and in i 709 John Woodifield of Fishburn acquired 



■^' Dur. Rec. cl. 3, no. 2, fol. 147. 



" Ibid. R. 33, m. 23 ; no. z, fol. ly^A. 

 In a plea of 1448-g William de Elmedcn, 

 maker of the settlement, is said to have 

 been succeeded by his son William and 

 he by his son Thomas (ibid. R. 47, m. 



14-1 0- 



"Ibid. no. /, fol. 179 d. ; R. 35, 

 ra. 12. 



"Ibid. R. 46, m. 6; tile 164, 

 no. 42. 



" Ibid, file 164, no. 83 ; R. 47, m. 

 14-15. 



•• Ibid. R. 46, m. 6 ; cf. m. 15, 17 d. ; 

 file 164, no. 83 ; Def>. Keeper i Rep. xxxiv, 

 202, 245 ; Surtees, op. cit. 187-8. 



" Dur. Rec. cl. 3, R. 44, m. 11 ; tile 

 171, no. 2. 



*^ Ibid. She and her second husband, 

 Anthony Preston, held the manor in 1550 

 (Dur. Rec. cl. I :, no. i [i]). 



" Dur. Rec. cl. 12, no. i (1), no. 4 

 (2) ; cl. 3, R. 102, no. 27. 



*'» Dur. Rec. cl. iz, no. 4 (2). 



*■ Dur. Rec. cl. 3, file 192, no. 63 j 

 file 193, no. I 5. 



" Dur. Rec. cl. I2, no. 5 (i) ; cl. 3, 

 R. 109, no. 50. 



^■^ Re<. Com. for Comp. (Surt. Soc), II, 



33. 37, 34+- 



" Dur. Rec. cl. 3, R. 117, no. ii ; 

 Surtees, op. cit. iii, 54 j G.E.C. Baronetage^ 

 iii, 166. 



^« R,\. Com. for Comp. (Surt. Soc), 25, 



'37- 



** Surtees, op. cit. i, 79 ; Dur. Rec. 

 cl. 3, R. 117, no. II. 



*= Dur. Rec. cl. 3, R. 117, no. II. 



'' See .Mainsforth in Bishop Middle- 

 ham. 



'"'' Surtees, op. cit. iii, 54. 



«» Ibid. 



'** Fordvcc, op. cit. ii, 346. 



'» Re J ' Bk. of Exeh. (Rolls Ser.), 

 417. 



"' FicJ. Prior. Dunelm. (Surt. Soc), 

 19 n., 53 ;i., 124 n. ; Surtees, op. cit. i (i), 

 p. cxxviii i Egerton Chart. 514. 



'' D. in the poss. of Canon Greenwell, 

 Bk. DI, no. 6 ; Haifield'i Surv. (Surt. 



Soc), p. XT, 



" Dur. Rec. cl. 3, no. 2, fol. 17. John 

 died in or about 1392 (ibid. fol. 115). 



'* Ibid. fol. 36 d. 



[' Ibid. R. 12, fol. 31. 



"' Ibid. no. 2, fol. 100 d., 115. 



'" See Claxton. 



"' Dur. Rec. cl. 3, file i6~, no. 32 ; 

 file 169, no. I 3. 



•^ Ibid, file 169, no. 47. 



» Ibid. R. 62, m. 8 ; cf. Claxton. 



■*' Surtees, op. cit. iii, 51. He was 

 lord of a third of the manor in 161 8 

 (Dur. Rec. cl. 3, file 1S4, no. 105). 



^ Dur. Rec cl. 3, file 189, no. 137. 



" Surtees, loc. cit. (from title deeds) ; 

 Dur. Rec cl. 12, no. 5 (3). Robert 

 Farrow and Anne his wife had conveyed 

 a messuage, a garden and 66 acres of 

 arable, meadow and pasture land here to 

 William Woodifield in 1635 (Dur. Rec. 

 cl. 12, no. 4 [3]). 



