A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



his estate as a ' Papist ' in 1717."* His son Thomas, 

 inheriting the manor of Claughton in Garstang, took 

 the name of Brockholes ; and ultimately Mains, like 

 Claughton, was devised to a relative by marriage, 

 and has thus descended to its present owner, Mr. W. J. 

 Fitzherbert-Brockholes. 



M41NS HALL stands in a pleasant situation close 

 to the bank of the River Wyre, and was originally a 

 house of very considerable interest, being built on 

 three sides of a quadrangle which was open to the 

 south. To some extent this disposition still obtains, 

 though the west wing has disappeared and the build- 

 ing has been so much altered and pulled about from 

 time to time that it has lost nearly all its architec- 

 tural interest, and having been for a long time used 

 as a farm-house has suffered much in other ways. 



central doorway and a projecting gable at the east 

 end. The doorway, however, is a good piece of 

 18th-century work with flat canopy supported by 

 carved brackets. The hall has been ' altered and 

 re-altered, modernized and re-modernized,' altera- 

 tions carried out in 1846 having almost gutted the 

 interior. 84 The west wing, which contained the kitchen 

 and offices, was pulled down in the first quarter of the 

 I gth century, 343 and is said to have contained a 'hall 

 part ' having a huge open chimney and wainscoted 

 with ' fluted oak of the reign of Henry VIII.' 35 The 

 west end of the main building has been rebuilt three 

 stories in height in a very plain manner, detracting 

 in a very large measure from the otherwise rather 

 picturesque appearance of the south front, a pictu- 

 resqueness produced mainly by the long line of 1 7th- 



MAINS HALL 



The north side facing the river preserves something 

 of its i yth-century appearance, having a large middle 

 gable and a smaller one to the east ; but all the 

 windows are modern, and additions have been made 

 from time to time. All the external walls of the 

 main building are covered with rough-cast and 

 whitewashed and the roofs are covered with modern 

 grey slates. The south side, or garden front, was 

 rebuilt in the i8th century, and is a rather un- 

 interesting two-story elevation with sash windows, 



century red brick buildings on the east side and the 

 inclosing brick wall to the garden. The wall is 

 about I oft. 6 in. high, with triangular buttresses on 

 the outside, and steps down at each end to the front, 

 where it forms a dwarf wall with wood railings, the 

 entrance being flanked by tall brick gate-piers sur- 

 mounted by balls. The garden is about 90 yds. long 

 by 50 yds. in width, extending some feet beyond the 

 house on either side, and is inclosed for its greater 

 length on the east by the outbuildings already men- 



Ma Estcourt and Payne, Engl, Cat A. 

 Nonjurors, 133. The annual value was 

 ^198 131. 4-|</., but allowance was made 

 for annuities. William Hesketh was son 

 of the Thomas (aged five) of 1664. He 

 married Mary daughter of John Brockholes 

 of Claughton and heir of her brother j their 



numerous children all died without issue, 

 three of the daughters being nuns. 



Some other members of the family are 

 named; ibid. 96, 135. 



84 Tram. Hist. Soc. Lanes, and Ches. 

 (i8S3) v, 59- 



Ma Thornber, writing about 1837, sayt 



186 



it was taken down ' some years ago ' ; 

 Hist, of Blackpool, 301. He describes it ai 

 ' the most venerable part of the mansion.' 

 Various 'hiding places' were discovered 

 during the demolition. 



3S Trant, Hitt. $0(. Lan(s. and Ches. v. 

 159. 



