WEST DERBY HUNDRED 



WIGAN 



245 ft. is attained. The area is 2,894 acres. 3 The 

 population in 1901 was 21,664, including Goose 

 Green, Highfield, Little Lane, and other hamlets. 

 The whole district is unpicturesque, bare and open, 

 occupied for the most part by collieries, mine shafts, 

 and pit banks. There are, however, fields where 

 some crops are raised, potatoes and oats surviving the 

 smoke of the environs. Pastures are scattered about 

 also. The soil is clay and loam, over Coal Measures 

 and stone. 



There are several important roads. That from 

 Ormskirk to Wigan enters the township at Lamber- 

 head Green and passes through Newtown, where it is 

 joined by the road from St. Helens through Billinge, 

 and by that from Warrington to Wigan, through 

 Goose Green. This last road has a branch to Wigan 

 through Worsley Mesnes. The principal railway is 

 the Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's line from 

 Liverpool to Wigan, which has a station called 

 Pemberton ; a loop line, avoiding Wigan, goes east 

 to join the Wigan and Bolton line. The same 

 company's Wigan and Southport railway crosses the 

 northern corner of the township. There are minor 

 lines for the service of the collieries. 



The Local Government Act of 1858 was adopted 

 by the township in 1872.* The board was changed 

 to an urban district council of fifteen members by the 

 Act of 1894. It has now been dissolved and the 

 township added to the borough of Wigan, with four 

 wards each returning three councillors and having an 

 alderman. 



A hospital was erected in 1886 by the local board. 

 A public park was given by Colonel B. H. Blundell 

 in 1903 ; and a Carnegie library has been opened. 



Coal-mining is the principal industry. There are 

 stone qurrries. boiler works, iron foundry, cotton 

 mill, and brick-making. The soil is loam and clay, 

 with subsoil of clay, stone, and coal ; potatoes and 

 oats are grown, and there is some pasturage. 



The pedestal and portion of a cross exist at Goose 

 Green. 5 



There was formerly a burning well at Hawkley. 6 



At Lamberhead Green in 1775 was born William 

 Atherton, a Wesleyan divine, president of the Con- 

 ference in 1846. He died in i85o. 7 



Before the Conquest, as afterwards, 

 M4NOR PEMBERTON seems to have formed one 

 of the berewicks or members of the manor 

 of Newton. 8 It is so regarded in the inquisitions. 9 



During the 1 2th century it was held in thegnage by 

 a certain Alan, 10 whose son Alan, settling at Windle, 

 was known as Alan de Windle. At the Survey of 

 1 212 the latter was holding Pemberton, assessed 

 as two plough-lands, by the 

 rent of 2Os. and the service 

 of finding a judge for the 

 court of Newton. 11 Like other 

 Windle properties this mesne 

 lordship may have descended 

 to the Burnhulls" and Ger- 

 ards 1S ; no record of it occurs 

 in their inquisitions, but Sir 

 Thomas Gerard, who died in 

 1621, held certain lands in 

 the township 'of the lords of 

 Pemberton.' " It seems, how- 

 ever, to have been alienated 

 to the Walton family, 15 and 



so to have descended with Northlegh or NORLET 

 to Legh of Lyme. 16 



The first Alan de Pemberton had created a sub- 

 ordinate manor for a younger son, known as Adam de 

 Pemberton. 17 He in 1212 was holding it of Alan de 

 Windie, and had granted out a quarter of it to 

 Henry son of Lawrence, who in turn had granted an 

 oxgang, i.e. a quarter of his share, to Alan son of 

 Aldith. 18 Adam de Pemberton made grants to the 

 Hospitallers 19 and to Cockersand Abbey. 10 He was 



PEMBERTON. Argent 

 a chrvercn btfwtcn thret 

 buckets iablt with hoops 

 and handles or. 



8 2,895, including 15 acres of inland 

 water ; CensuD of 1901. 



* Land. Gaz. 20 Aug. 1872. 



Lanes, and Cbes. Antij. Soc. xiv, 235. 



6 Baines, Lanes, (cd. 1836), iii, 563, 

 quoting Bowen's Geog. Roger Lowe re- 

 cords that on i June 1665 he went to 

 *ee the burning well at Pemberton, ' and 

 we had two eggs which was so done by 

 no material fire ' ; Local Glean. Lanes, 

 and Cbes. i, 1 80. 



7 Diet. Nat. Biog. 



V.C.H. Lanes, i, 286. 



9 See for example Lanes. Inq. p.m. 

 {Chet. Soc.), i, 138; ibid. (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches. ), i, 105. 



10 In the Pipe Roll of 1200-1 the 

 sheriff rendered account of 10 marks from 

 Alan son of Alan for having seisin of the 

 land of Pemberton and for his relief; 

 also for a writ of right against Nicholas le 

 Boteler, formerly deputy sheriff, concern- 

 ing 40$. already paid ; Farrer, Lanes. Pipe 

 R. 132, 141. 



In 1202 Edusa, widow of Alan de 

 Windle, claimed dower in Pemberton 

 from Alan on of Alan ; Final Cone. 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 37. 



11 Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), i, 75. 



18 See the case cited below. 



18 In the inquisition made in 1447 

 after the death of Sir Peter Gerard it was 

 found that he had held messuages, lands, 

 and tenements, rents, and services in 



Pemberton, but the jurors did not know 

 of whom they were held ; Towneley 

 MS. DD, no. 1465. 



14 Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), ii, 300. 



15 Alan de Windle granted to Master 

 Adam de Walton the homage of Adam 

 son of William de Pemberton, and this 

 being transferred to Adam de Walton, 

 lord of Walton le Dale, was by him 

 granted to Thurstan de Northlegh in 

 1316 ; Raines MSS. (Chet. Lib.), xxxviii, 

 509. In 1292 Adam de Pemberton was 

 nonsuited in a claim against Adam de 

 Northlegh ; Assize R. 408, m. 43. In 

 1305 Adam de Pemberton claimed est- 

 overs as against Thurstan de Northlegh 

 and Maud, the widow of Adam de North- 

 legh, and his claim was allowed ; Abbrev. 

 Plac. (Rec. Com.), 258*. Adam de Pem- 

 berton acknowledged that Thurstan and 

 Maud had a right to housebote and 

 haybote without view of the forester, but 

 they had cut down their wood beyond 

 due measure, 93 oaks having been re- 

 moved ; Coram Rege R. 184, m. 53. By 

 a fine of 1321 7 messuages, 2 oxgangs 

 and 37 acres of land and 5 acres of 

 meadow in Pemberton were settled upon 

 Thurstan de Northlegh and Margery his 

 wife ; Final Cone, ii, 40 ; see also ii, 3 3, 

 43. Margery, widow of Thurstan de 

 Northlegh, occurs in 1346 ; Assize R. 

 1435, m. 31. 



18 Robert de Legh of Adlington and 



79 



William de Radcliffe of Smithills married 

 respectively Maud and Katherine, daugh- 

 ters and co-heirs of Thurstan de North- 

 legh in Pemberton, by his wife Margery, 

 daughter and heir of John de Walton ; 

 Ormerod, Cbes. (ed. Helsby), iii, 66 1 ; 

 Lanes. Inq p.m. (Chet. Soc.), ii, 35 ; 

 Raines MSS. (Chet. Lib.), xxxviii, 256-9. 



In 1448 Robert Cantsfield of Pember- 

 ton, holding of Peter dc Legh, had a 

 dispute with John Pemberton 5 Pal. of 

 Lane. Plea R. 12, m. 2, 14. 



In the inquisition (1528) after the 

 death of Sir Piers Legh his lands in 

 Pemberton were said to be held directly 

 of Thomas Langton ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. vi, no. 63. In right of Norley 

 the Leghs of Lyme had a chapel in 

 Wigan Church, which was given up to 

 the rector in 1682; Bridgeman, Wigan 

 Ch. 694. 



V Lanes. Inq. and Extents, i, 75. That 

 Adam was son of the elder Alan appears 

 from the Burnhull case cited below. 



18 Ibid. It is probable that one of 

 these grants is represented by Tunstead. 



19 Ibid. 76. No grant in Pemberton is 

 mentioned in the list of the Hospitallers' 

 lands in 1292 in the Plac.de Quo War. or 

 in the rental of 1 540. 



20 Cockersand Chart. (Chet. Soc.), ii, 

 668-71. He gave land called Ashbern 

 ridding, within bound* starting at the 

 Douglas and going up Whittle Brook to 

 Flax ridding ; across the carr to the syke 



