A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



The stock for Great and Little Heaton has been 

 lost. 91 Pilkington has a share in the benefaction 

 of William Baguley, 1728 ; its poor's fund has been 

 lost, but for the hamlet of Unsworth Miss Jane 

 Margaret Birkett, daughter of a former incumbent of 

 the church there, in 1872 left 500 for the sick 

 poor. The other endowments of this township are 

 for churches and schools. 91 



PRESTWICH 



Prestwich, 1194; Prestwic, 1202; Prestewic, 

 1203. 



The township of Prestwich extends about 2 miles 

 in a north-east direction from the Irwell, which forms 

 one boundary, to the border of Heaton near Poppy- 

 thorn. The area is 1,917^ acres. 1 The old village 

 is situated on the north-west side of the township, 

 with the parish church to the south, and the old hall 

 to the north. Two picturesque cloughs distinguish 

 the western half. One of these the Mere clough 

 begins near the old hall and goes south-west to the 

 Irwell, forming, as might be gathered from the name, 

 a boundary between Prestwich and Outwood in Pilk- 

 ington. The other begins to the south of the church 

 and winds along, first west and then south, to the 

 Irwell. Near Mere dough, and about half a mile 

 apart, are the two great buildings of one of the county 

 lunatic asylums. 1 In the southern corner is Rainsough, 

 and to the east lie the residential districts of Hilton 

 Park and Sedgeley Park, suburbs of Manchester. Near 

 the boundary is Castle Hill, and Singleton's lies to the 

 north of it. Singleton Brook divides this township 

 from Broughton. On the eastern side, on the border 

 of Heaton Park, is the hamlet of Rooden Lane, and 

 to the north, on the highest land within the boun- 



daries, is Polefield. The population numbered 1 2,839 

 in 1901.* 



The principal roads are those from Manchester to 

 Bury, the Old Road to the east, near the border, the 

 New Road, formed in 1827, through the centre. 

 There are numerous cross roads ; one runs north-east 

 from Agecroft Bridge to Heaton. The Lancashire 

 and Yorkshire Railway has its Manchester and Bury 

 line through the township, with stations called Heaton 

 Park and Prestwich. A tramway, connected with the 

 Salford system, runs along the Bury New Road. 



A botanist of note, Richard Broxton, was born at 

 Sedgeley Hall Farm in 1786. He died in 1865.* 



In 1867 a local board of twelve members was 

 elected; 4 replaced in 1894 by an urban district 

 council, of fifteen members, from five wards. 



At Diggle Hill, near the centre of the township, 

 are reservoirs of the Manchester Water Works. 



There are several bleach works in the township, 

 and two small-ware manufactories. Rooden Lane was 

 formerly a great centre of the hand-loom weaving, 

 which died out about 1882." 



The wakes were formerly held in August. 7 



The stocks have disappeared, but were in use in 

 i8oo. 8 



The hearth tax return of 1666 records ninety-seven 

 hearths in the township, the largest houses being the 

 rector's with ten hearths, James Wilson's with seven, 

 and John Glover's with six. 9 



From the survey of 1212 it appears 

 M4NOR that PRESTfTICH was held of the king in 

 thegnage, and was assessed as four oxgangs 

 of land ; the service was a rent of io/. 10 Robert de 

 Prestwich occurs in 1 193," and his son Adam agreed 

 to pay 5 marks as relief on succeeding in or before 

 I2o6. 11 Adam de Prestwich was in possession in 

 1212, holding Prestwich, Great Heaton, and Fails- 



Prestwich and Lord Wilton's agent, a gift 

 of the value of "jt. being made to each 

 chosen recipient. 



Lewis Novelli in 1844 bequeathed 

 ji,ooo for poor, aged, or sickly inhabi- 

 tants 'being regular attendants at some 

 Protestant Established Church' in the 

 parish, the rector and churchwardens 

 having the distribution. After some 

 difficulties the money was paid to the 

 official trustees in 1857, and is repre- 

 sented by 1,246 consols, producing 

 3 l 3*- yearly- The benefits are now con- 

 fined to poor persons attending the parish 

 church and St. Margaret's, Holyrood. 



The same Lewis Novelli left about 

 1,500 for the choir and organ fund of 

 the parish church. A fund of 500 

 raised in 1890 to commemorate John St. 

 Lawrance Beaufort, postmaster of Man- 

 chester, is invested for exhibitions for 

 the scholars of Bury New Road National 

 Schools. 



James Davenport in 1882 left money 

 for the parish church and St. Margaret's 

 and the schools. William Bradbury in 

 1882 left money for St. Margaret's 

 Church, a Liberal Club, &c.; but these 

 gifts are not yet available, his widow sur- 

 viving. The Wesleyan Methodist Chapel 

 has an endowment of 58. 



91 In 1826 it was supposed that some 

 ancient benefactions were deposited in Sir 

 Holland Egerton's hands and formed part 

 of the 20 he left to the poor ; but, as 

 above stated, all this has now been lost. 



M Various donations from 1698 to 



1737 established a poor's fund of 112 

 for Pilkington. It is supposed the fund 

 was given to the overseers for the work- 

 house ; they in 1826 paid 5 as interest, 

 linen cloth being given to the poor. The 

 Pilkington Workhouse was demolished 

 about 1850, and the interest ceased to be 

 paid. 



George Hardman in 1762 left 40 for 

 linen for the poor; by 1826 half the 

 capital had been lost, but the remainder 

 produced 1 81. a year, distributed according 

 to the benefactor's desire. Nothing, how- 

 ever, is now known of it. 



A share of a gift by William Baguley 

 in 1728 was received by the poor of Out- 

 wood ; this amounted to 401. io</. in 

 1826, and was distributed in linen cloth. 

 This charity survives, and doles of calico 

 and winsey are made in January. 



Miss Birkett' s bequest brings i i 81. %d. 

 a year, which is distributed in money gifts 

 to poor persons of all religious denomina- 

 tions. 



The schools at Stand, Ringley, and 

 Unsworth have endowments, as also the 

 chapel at Ringley, and the Sunday school 

 at Cinderhill. The Hollins Young Men's 

 Institute is also noticed in the report. 



1 The census report of 1901 gives 

 3,167 acres, including 57 of inland water; 

 but in 1894 the boundaries of Prestwich 

 proper were extended to include the rural 

 portions of the adjacent townships of 

 Great and Little Heaton ; Local Govt. 

 Bd. Order 32103. A small part of the 

 township lies to the south of the Irwell. 



76 



a The asylum in Prestwich Wood was 

 opened in 1851, being built to accommo- 

 date 500 patients. It has been several 

 times enlarged, and the annexe, for 1,100 

 patients, was built in 1884. There is 

 now accommodation for 2,600. There is 

 a church attached ; see W. Nicholls, 

 Prestwicb, 1 1 6-20. 



8 This is for the extended area, but the 

 addition made in 1894 had only 461 

 inhabitants. 



4 Diet. Nat. Biog. 



5 Land. Gax. 21 Dec. 1866. 



6 W. Nicholls, Prestwicb, 55. 



Ibid. 67. A programme of the sports 

 in 1832 is reprinted. 



8 Ibid. 78. 



9 Subs. R. bdle. 250, no. 9, Lanes. 



10 Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 67. In later times the 

 tenure was by knight's service and a rent. 



11 Farrer, Lanes. Pipe R. 77. He paid 

 4 marks for having the king's good will, as 

 one of the men of the rebellious John, Count 

 of Mortain. He occurs again in 1201 and 

 1205 as a contributor to the tall age and 

 scutage ; ibid. 151, 205. 



12 Ibid. 203. This entry is in the same 

 roll as the last-mentioned payment by 

 Robert de Prestwich, showing that the 

 father died in the year 1205-6. The 

 Robert de Prestwich recorded in the farm 

 of the county in 1226 is probably the same 

 man, the name being taken from an old 

 roll like Augustine de Barton but it 

 may be the successor of Adam ; Lanes. 

 Inq. and Extents, i, 137. 



