A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



nineteen, 1 and on his death by another son, Hugh, 

 who, as stated above, acquired the inheritance of 

 the Smith family, thus making his share a sixth.' 

 He had a son Robert, 3 who was followed by his 

 son Alan.* The succession here becomes uncertain. 6 

 An Alan Ditton was living in 1481 ; 6 probably it was 

 his son Robert who was married as early as 1442-3 

 to Janet, daughter of Richard Tarleton. 7 Robert 

 Ditton had two daughters, Margaret, who married a 

 Coney, and Emmota, who married Thomas Shaw." 



Margaret Coney was succeeded by her son William, 9 

 and grandson Robert. 10 This last was succeeded by 

 Henry Coney, who died in 1569, leaving a son 

 Henry, under age. 11 Henry the younger died in 

 1598, his brother Robert being his heir;" and 

 Robert, described as of Knowsley, dying shortly after- 

 wards, left the inheritance to his brother William, 

 of Ford in Bedfordshire. 13 In some manner not 

 quite clear the ' hall of Coney ' and the ' quarter ' 

 of the manor held with it, by the agency of John 

 Ogle of Whiston, passed to William Coney of Ditton, 

 described as a son of Henry Coney. 14 William 



Coney held it in 1621," but appears to have sold it 

 to the Blundells of Crosby, whose holding thus be- 

 came a quarter of the whole manor,; it is now 

 described as a moiety, having, as above stated, been 

 increased by other purchases. 



The fate of the remainder is unknown. There 

 was about 1820 no acknowledged lord of the manor. 

 The cowgates on the marsh were merged in the 

 general enclosure. There were ' no courts, no 

 perambulation, no fishery, no wrecks.' u 



Though many of the deeds of DITCHF1ELD 

 have been preserved by Kuerden, 17 a satisfactory descent 

 cannot be made out. It appears certain that the 

 estate was the two oxgangs of land which in 1212 

 were held of Richard de Ditton by Richard son of 

 Outi. From Richard the succession was probably by 

 his son Robert 18 and grandson Richard to the latter's 

 sons Roger and John. 19 Roger son of Richard and 

 Roger de Ditchfield were witnesses to charters of 

 about the same time, so that it appears at least prob- 

 able that these were merely different names for the 

 same person. 20 



