WEST DERBY HUNDRED 



WINWICK 



the other estates of the family, to the Earl of Wilton. 

 Lord Grey de Wilton in 1787 contributed 23 to 

 the land tax of zg. 



William son of Henry de Sankey had a grant of 



KENYON. Sable 

 theveron engrailed be- 

 tween three crosses patonce 



EGERTON, Earl of 

 Wilton. Argent a lion 

 rampant gules between 

 three f Aeons sable. 



Windycroft and Snapecroft in Kenyon from William 

 de Lawton ; u he had sons William and Robert. The 

 former died before his father, leaving a daughter 



Margery, who married successively Robert de Risley 

 and William Gillibrand. 14 The Risleys appear to 

 have secured most or all of the inheritance, but 

 William de Sankey endowed his younger son Robert 

 with a portion. 15 



In the 1 4th and 1 5th centuries a minor Kenyon 

 family had lands in this and the neighbouring parishes. 

 Katherine daughter of Adam son of Matthew de 

 Kenyon was in 1366 the wife of John Amoryson of 

 Wigan." A Matthew de Kenyon left three children, 

 William, who died early ; Agnes, who married John 

 Eccleston ; and Ellen, who married Oliver Anderton. 

 The two daughters divided the inheritance. 17 



The Hospitallers had lands in Kenyon. 18 



A family named Woodhouse was seated here in the 

 1 4th century. 1 ' TheMorleys of Billington long held 

 lands here. 10 



Richard Thompson petitioned in 1653 to be 

 allowed to compound for the two-thirds of his 

 estate sequestered for recusancy." Robert son of 

 Richard Speakman in 1717 registered an estate as 

 a ' papist.' ** 



without rent ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. 

 iv, no. 36, 58. Richard Holland died in 

 1619 holding the manors of Kenyon and 

 Lowton of the lord of Newton in socage, 

 by a yearly rent of 18*. ; Lanes. Inq. 

 p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), ii, 145. 



13 Hale D. ; William de Sankey also 

 acquired lands in Kenyon from Jordan de 

 Kenyon and in Lowton from Robert 

 Banastre, in Croft from Gilbert de 

 Southworth, in Culcheth from Robert de 

 Kinknall, and in Dallam and Penketh 

 from Roger son of Jordan, whose right 

 seems to have been derived from Jordan 

 son of Roger, grantee of Robert Banastre 

 and William de Penketh ; ibid. Henry 

 de Sankey, father of William, had had a 

 burgage in Warrington from William le 

 Boteler. 



14 Assize R. 1306, m. 15 ; a suit in 

 1295 as to whether Jordan de Kenyon, 

 Adam and Richard his sons, and others 

 had disseised Robert de Risley and Mar- 

 gery his wife of their common of pasture 

 in 13 acres of wood and 60 acres of moor 

 in Kenyon ; also of mast for their pigs in 

 50 acres of wood, and wood for housebote, 

 heybote, and burning. It was alleged, 

 among other things, that Robert, the 

 younger son, when his father was lying 

 on his deathbed, went to Jordan, chief 

 lord of the town of Kenyon, and promised 

 him that if he would help him to procure 

 seisin of his father's tenements he would 

 let him have a writing sealed with his 

 father's seal ; and that Jordan accordingly 

 drew up a charter, then proffered in court, 

 which Robert sealed with his brother 

 William's seal. The jury did not pro- 

 nounce on this point, but their decision 

 was generally in favour of the claimants. 



Margery had been a plaintiff in 1284, 

 when her guardianship had been un- 

 successfully claimed by Jordan de Ken- 

 yon ; Robert de Hindley (or Risley) was 

 her guardian ; Assize R. 1265, m. 5. 



See also Abbre-v. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 

 2376 ; the service was that of two ox- 

 gangs of land where 9 plough-lands made 

 a knight's fee. From this it appears prob- 

 able that the Sankey estate was two ox- 

 gangs, which Adam de Lawton gave to 

 Robert de Kenyon to acquit himself of the 

 office of judge; Lanes. Inq. and Extents 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 73. There 

 was, however, another estate of two ox- 



gangs, which Ellen daughter of Aldusa 

 daughter of William de Lawton granted 

 to Jordan de Kenyon ; Kuerden fol. MS. 

 363, R. Ellen's father was named Gil- 

 bert. 



ls See Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), ii, 44. The Risleys' chief 

 holding in Kenyon was Broseley on the 

 border of Culcheth. 



William de Sankey, after his elder son's 

 death, seems to have regarded his younger 

 son Robert as his heir, and this may have 

 occasioned the lawsuits which followed. 

 He granted to Robert his son, ' as his 

 heir,' part of his land in Kenyon, and 

 enfeoffed Jordan de Kenyon of certain of 

 his lands which were afterwards given to 

 Robert ; Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 150^/186^, 

 and Lord Wilton's D. 



" Crosse D., Trans. Hist. Soc. (new 

 ser. v, <fcc.), no. 56 ; Katherine was a 

 widow in 1369; ibid. no. 66. See the 

 account of Crosse under Wigan. 



In 1347 Adam son of Matthew de 

 Kenyon released to Adam, lord of Ken- 

 yon, all his right, &c., in certain lands in 

 Kenyon ; Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 152/188. 



Agnes widow of Adam de Kenyon, and 

 John de Liverpool and Joan his wife,were 

 in 1 374 the executors of the will of Adam 

 de Kenyon ; De Banco R. 456, m. 598 d. 

 Joan de Kenyon widow of John de Liver- 

 pool gave a quitclaim to Richard del 

 Crosse in 1432 ; Crosse D. no. 134. 



W Duchy Plead. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), ii, 99. Matthew de Kenyon was 

 the royal receiver in Lancashire in 1403 

 (or 1416) ; Towneley MS. GG, no. 

 2307. 



In 1419 Richard del Crosse, son of the 

 last-named Katherine and one of the 

 executors of Matthew de Kenyon, de- 

 livered to William son of Matthew the 

 father's armour ; Crosse D. no. 132 ; a 

 detailed list is given. ' A pair of beads of 

 white amber ' was added. 



Ralph Eccleston's lands in Kenyon 

 were in 1522 held of Thurstan Holland 

 of Denton by a rent of $d. ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. v, no. 46. The Eccles- 

 tons' lands seem to have been sold in 

 1564 and 1565 to Sir Peter Legh and 

 others ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 

 26, m. 171 ; bdle. 27, m. 133. For a later 

 yeoman family see Gillow, Bibl. Diet, 

 of Engl. Cath. iv, 15. 



155 



James Anderton was in 1552 found to 

 have held lands in Kenyon of Edward 

 Holland in socage, by a rent of zs. 4 J</. ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. ix, no. 14. 

 His son Hugh Anderton and Alice his 

 wife sold them to John Urmston in 1556 ; 

 Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 17, m. 

 100. 



18 Plac. de Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 375. 

 In 1332 the prior of St. John claimed a 

 messuage and land in Kenyon from 

 Peter de Risley ; De Banco R. 292, m. 

 354 d. 



19 John son of Adam del Woodhouse 

 (or Woodhouses) was defendant in 1292 

 respecting land in Kenyon, and lost the 

 case by default ; Assize R. 408, m. i8d. 

 Robert del Woodhouse was a defendant 

 in 1295; ibid. 1306, m. 15. Henry 

 son of Robert del Woodhouses in 1^09 

 had a release of their claim on lands in 

 the Woodhouses granted by John son of 

 Adam son of Henry to his sister Ellen, 

 wife of Henry Nightegale ; Lord Wil- 

 ton's D. ; Final Cone, ii, 6. A grant to 

 John son of Adam del Woodhouses is in 

 Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 147^/183*. Henry 

 del Woodhouses, Agnes his mother, and 

 Richard his son occur in deeds up to 

 1347; ibid. fol. 147/183 ; 156/192. In 

 1421 Nicholas son of Ivo del Woodhouses 

 was contracted to marry Katherine 

 daughter of John son of Robert de Wors- 

 ley ; ibid. fol. 147/183. William Ley- 

 land in 1467 seems to have bought the 

 lands from Otwell Woodhouse and 

 Margaret his wife j Pal. of Lane. Feet of 

 F. bdle. 6, m. 2. 



20 Final Cone, ii, 176. Richard and 

 Nicholas, sons of Richard Morley, had 

 lands in Billington, Dinkley, and Ken- 

 yon in 1448-9 ; Towneley MS. DD, no. 

 1923. In 1528 it was found that 

 Ughtred Morley had held a messuage 

 and lands in Kenyon of the lord of 

 Newton by the rent of a grain of corn ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. vi, no. 67. 

 His son Robert Morley held them in 

 1586 ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 48, 

 m. 58. 



21 Cal. of Com. for Compounding, iv, 

 2176. He and his wife appear on the 

 Recusant Roll of 1641 ; Tram. Hist. Soc. 

 (new ser.), xiv, 245. 



22 Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. Non- 

 jurors, 117, 



