A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



of the 1 6th and xyth centuries show a number of 

 landowners, 36 but few of them seem to have been 

 resident. The Singletons at one time had a house at 

 Warton, and a John Singleton 37 died in 1592 hold- 

 ing a messuage there and land in Whittingham. 

 James Browne of Lower Birches, 38 William Dixon, 39 

 William Dobson, 40 Richard Noblett, 41 James Smalley 42 

 and John Thistleton 43 had small estates in Warton. 

 Robert Thistleton the son of John had his estate 

 sequestered ' for his popery ' in the Commonwealth 

 time ; he died in 1 65 3- 44 Two ' Papists' registered 

 estates in I7iy. 45 



The Lytham Priory lands were after the Dissolution 

 held by the Cliftons. 46 The abbeys of Cockersand 47 

 and Whalley 48 and the Knights Hospitallers 49 also 

 had lands in Warton. 



In connexion with the Church of England the 

 former St. Paul's was built in i/zz, 50 and consecrated 

 in 1725, being replaced by the present building in 

 1885-6. A separate parish was assigned to it in 

 1 846. 51 The vicars are presented by the Dean and 

 Canons of Christ Church, Oxford. 



WESTBY-WITH-PLUMPTONS 



Westbi, Dom. Bk. ; Westby, 1226. 

 Pluntun, Dom. Bk.; Plumton, 1226. 

 This township is divided into five hamlets. Westby 

 is the central one. The two Plumptons, anciently 



known as Fieldplumpton for distinction from Wood- 

 plumpton, occupy the northern part, Great Plumpton 

 lying to the north of Little Plumpton. Ballam 

 (Higher and Lower) and Brown Moss Side in the 

 south-west are considered parts of Westby. The 

 measurements are as follows : Westby, 877^ acres ; 

 Ballam, 666 ; Brown Moss Side, 1 724^-2,268^ ; 

 Great Plumpton, 665 ; Little Plumpton, 664 ; or in 

 all, 3,597^ acres. 2 The population in 1901 was 

 532. There is some comparatively high land in the 

 north, Great Plumpton being 100 ft. above sea level ; 

 but the surface falls away to the south-west, and the 

 greater part of Ballam and Moss Side is below the 

 25 ft. line. 



Two roads cross the township from Kirkham to 

 Lytham and Blackpool, and there are cross-roads 

 uniting the different hamlets, one of them going north 

 to Weeton. The railway from Preston to Blackpool 

 crosses the northern end of the township, and that 

 from Preston to Lytham runs along near the south- 

 western border, having two stations called Wrea 

 Green and Moss Side. 



The soil is clayey; about a third of the land is 

 arable, the rest being pasture. 



There was formerly a stone cross in Westby. 3 



Two presidents of Ushaw College were born at 

 Westby John Gillow, 181 1-28, 4 and Charles New- 

 sham, 1 837-6 3. 5 



The township is governed by a parish council. 



It may be added that- among the other 

 Warton benefactors of Lytham Priory 

 were the families of Midhope and Salt- 

 weller. 



36 George Kirkby of Upper Rawcliffe 

 held his land in Warton of Edward Single- 

 ton by id. rent ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. 

 xi, no. 8. 



Gilbert Latewise (Latus) in 1568 held 

 of Thomas Singleton in socage by id. 

 rent 5 ibid, xii, no. 11. 



George Allen of Poulton in 1579 held 

 of Thomas Singleton (a minor) by 

 knight's service, which Thomas held the 

 manor of Warton of the queeo as of her 

 duchy by knight's service; ibid, xiv, no. 80. 



Evan Haughton in 1608 held land 

 in Warton of the king by ^d. rent ; Lanes. 

 Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 

 126. 



James Bradley of Bryning in 1617 also 

 held in Warton of the king by the 

 hundredth part of a knight's fee, a rent of 

 6</., and suit at Penwortham Court ; ibid, 

 ii, 80. 



Thomas Worthington of Blainscough 

 in 1619 held his land in Warton of the 

 king by knight's service ; ibid, ii, 174. 



87 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xvii, no. 

 89 ; the estate was held of the queen as 

 of her duchy. Richard the son and heir 

 was four years old in 1596, and Eliza- 

 beth the widow had married Thomas 

 Walmesley. 



38 Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc.), ii, 122. 

 James Browne died in 1619 ; his land 

 had belonged to Lytham Priory, for it 

 was held of Cuthbert Clifton as of his 

 manor of Lytham by the two-hundredth 

 part of a knight's fee and iJ. rent. 

 The heir was a brother William, then 

 aged six years, who died in 1624 holding a 

 somewhat increased estate, including a 

 windmill and kiln, &c., in Warton and 

 Cowburn ; Towneley MS. C 8, 1 3 (Chet. 

 Lib.), 73. Elizabeth, his daughter and 

 heir, was thirteen years old. 



William Browne of Freckleton also had 

 land in Warton in 1617, held of the king 

 by a castle-ward rent of $J. ; Lanes. Inq. 

 p.m. (Rec. Soc.), ii, 87. Richard Browne 

 died in 1639 holding an acre of Thomas 

 Clifton as of his manor of Warton ; 

 Towneley MS. C 8, 13, pp. 79-80. 



89 He died in 1619 holding land of the 

 king by i%J. rent, and leaving as heir a 

 son James, aged twenty-five ; Lanes. Inj. 

 p.m. (Rec. Soc.), ii, 125. Richard Dixon 

 died in 1638 holding a messuage and land 

 of Thomas Clifton as of his manor of 

 Lytham. The heir was his grandson 

 Richard (son of James son of Richard), 

 aged ten years; Towneley MS. C 8, 13, 



P- 343- 



^ I Did. 342. He died in 1639 holding 

 land of the king. His son Robert was 

 seventeen years old. He may have been 

 of Warton in Lonsdale. 



41 Ibid. 913. Richard Noblett died in 

 1625 holding two messuages and land of 

 the king by the two-hundredth part of a 

 knight's fee. His son and heir Robert 

 was twenty-six years old. 



43 Ibid. 1069. He died in 1639, leaving 

 a son and heir George, aged twenty-six. 

 His messuage and land were held of 

 Thomas Clifton as of his manor of 

 Lytham. 



43 Nicholas Skillicorne and Margaret hi* 

 wife in 1596 sold a messuage, land, &c., 

 in Warton to John Thistleton ; PaL of 

 Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 59, m. 258. John 

 Thistleton died at Warton in 1621 hold- 

 ing of Sir Cuthbert Clifton as of his 

 manor of Lytham by the two-hundredth 

 part of a knight's fee and the rent of 6 /. 

 Robert, his son and heir, was twenty-five 

 years old ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc.), 

 ii, 249. The Skillicornes had held of 

 Beetham. 



44 Col. Com. for Camp, v, 3*17. 



45 Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. 

 Nonjurortj 89 ; they were Robert Mercer 

 and Edward Hardman. 



174 



46 Thomas Eccleston in 1592 held land 

 in Warton of Thomas Holcroft as of his 

 manor of Lytham ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. 

 p.m. xvi, no. 38. Inquisitions already 

 cited show that the Cliftons acquired 

 lands in Warton together with the manor 

 of Lytham. Apart from this, however, 

 the family had long had lands in Warton, 

 for Cuthbert Clifton in 1512 held them 

 of the king in socage ; ibid, iv, no. 12, 

 and later inquisitions. 



47 For their rentals 1451-1537 see 

 Coekersand Chartul. iii, 1262-3. 



48 William Noblett held the Whalley 

 lands at Bankhouses about 1 540, paying 

 4*. a year ; Whalley Ccuch. iv, 1234. 



49 Plae. de Quo Warr. (Rec. Com.), 375. 

 In the Lytham charters the lands of the 

 Hospitallers are named. They seem to 

 have passed into the possession of the 

 Shireburnes of Stonyhurst with other 

 parcels of the Stidd estate ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. xxvi, no. 4. 



40 Gastrell, Notitia Cestr. (Chet. Soc.), 

 ii, 427. Land called Little Moorhey was 

 given by Joseph Shaw of Liverpool in 

 fulfilment of the intention of his brother 

 William Shaw of Preston ; Chester Dioc. 

 Reg. For description and list of curates 

 and vicars see Fishwick, Kirkham (Chet. 

 Soc.), 65-6. 



51 By Order in Council 21 Jan. 

 1846. 



1 Brown Mos adjoined Lythe Carr in 

 a release of claim (by Henry de Clifton in 

 1259) ; the calendar speaks of 'common 

 in the moss called Brown Moss outside 

 Lythe Carr," but the name is not in the 

 deed itself ; Lytham Charters at Durham, 

 2 a, 4 ae, Ebor. no. 31. 



* 3,600 acres, including 15 acres of 

 inland water ; Census Rep. 1901. 



3 Foxlane Ends Cross ; Lanes, and Ches. 

 Antiq. Soc. xx, 187. 



4 Diet. Nat. Biog. ; Gillow, BibL Diet. 



EnsrL Cath. 

 P 



Gillow, op. cit. 



