A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



Robert's death describes the estate as ten messuages, 

 100 acres of land, with meadow, &c. in Aughton, 

 Ormskirk, and Eggergarth. In 1566 he had arranged 

 the succession as to his heirs male by any other woman 

 than Ellen Toxteth, then his wife ; ' in default, to his 

 brother Thomas and his heirs male. The Brookfield 

 was held of the queen, as of the late monastery of 

 Cockersand, by a rent of I ^d. ; other lands in Augh- 

 ton were held of Henry Starkie and Edward Scaris- 

 brick.* Thomas Walsh made sales or settlements of 

 part of his estate in 1578 and 1584 ;* and the lands 

 in Aughton were in 1595 held of the queen, John 

 Starkie, and Bartholomew Hesketh. Thomas's heir 

 was his sister Anne Prescott, aged fifty years and 

 more. 4 By the settlement, however, Thomas Walsh 

 succeeded his father. He died in June, 1614, his 

 heir being his son Robert, then twenty-eight years 

 of age. 5 



The Walshes appear to have been conformists, but 

 Thomas, the son of this Robert, took part against the 

 Parliament, and in 1653 an exact survey of his lands 

 was made by the commissioners appointed for the sale 

 of estates forfeited for treason. 6 The father survived 

 till the Restoration, 7 and Thomas Walsh died in 

 1 694- 8 Mr. Edward Wignall of Lathom is said to 

 be the present owner of the Walsh Hall estate. 



The Stanleys of Bickerstaffe had a house in Augh- 

 ton called the LITTLE HALL? 



The Bickerstath family of the adjacent township 

 very early secured lands in this. Thus Madoc son 

 of Bleddyn de Aughton granted to Simon de Bicker- 

 stath and his heirs by Margery, daughter of Richard 

 de Westhead, various lands with the usual liberties, to 



be held by a rent of 6d. w This Simon had a son 

 Simon to whom he gave three acres purchased from 

 Einion de Aughton, and to whom Madoc de Augh- 

 ton released the rent of 13^. and three peppercorns 

 due." In 1282 Simon the father settled upon his son 

 an estate, later known as MOOR HALL, of a messuage 

 and 120 acres in Aughton, subject only to an annuity 

 of 3cu. payable to the father during his life. lr 



Simon the son appears to have died without male 

 issue, and the estate came to Richard de Ince by the 

 latter's wife Dionysia. 13 She was probably the mother 

 of Henry de Ince, the father 

 of John de Ince, through whose 

 heirs the estate came to Roger 

 Aughton and Thomas Bradshagh 

 in the fifteenth century. 



After the death of John de 

 Ince, in August, 1428, it was 

 found that he had held the 

 manor of Moor Hall, of Thomas 

 de Beetham, and lands called 

 Stotfoldshagh in Bickerstaffe, and 

 some others. The next heir 

 was Roger de Aughton, as son 

 of Nicholas de Aughton, son 

 of Agnes de Ince. 14 Some twenty years later 

 division of the lands took place between Thomas 

 Bradshagh (as heir of his uncle Thomas Brad- 

 shagh), and John Aughton (son of Roger) ; the 

 former was to have Moor Hall and its demesne lands 

 together with the mill, and John Aughton the rest 

 This was confirmed in 1457-8, and in the next year 

 Thomas Bradshagh gave a formal release. 



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