A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



doubtful whether it was this building or some part 

 of the old chapel which after the Restoration came 

 into the hands of the Roman Catholics and was used 

 for service as opportunity offered M ; but in 1749 the 

 new lord of the manor, who owned the building, 

 gave it to the Bishop of Chester to be used as a chapel 

 of ease to Kirkham, 53 and, having provided a small 

 endowment, the right of presentation was conceded 

 to him. 44 This right has descended with the manor 

 to Mr. T. H. Miller. In 1809 the chapel was 

 pulled down and a new one was built ; this lasted 

 for fifty years, and was replaced by the present 

 St. Anne's Church in 1861." 



The following have been incumbents M : 



1 749 Edward Threlfall 



1754 John Threlfall, B.A. (Wadham Coll., Oxf.) 

 William Threlfall 



1797 Thomas Banks 57 



1842 William Birley, B.A. (Trinity Coll., Oxf.) 



1843 Leonard Charles Wood, B.A. (Jesus Coll., 



Camb.) 



In 1689 there was a Quakers' meeting-house in 

 Great Singleton. 68 



From what has been said about the Heskeths, who 

 had a domestic chapel at Mains, 69 it might be inferred 

 that all through the penal times the missionary priests 

 were able to minister in the Singleton district, and 

 direct evidence is available that even in the most 

 bitter periods they carried on their work. Thus 

 Thomas Robinson, born at Singleton, was baptized 

 in 1651 by a secular priest named Holden, and on 

 entering the English College at Rome in 1673 he 

 stated that ' his parents had suffered both public and 

 private spoliation of their property in the Civil War 

 on account of their faith.' 60 Later than this, as above 

 stated, an old chapel was used till about 1750. On 

 being dispossessed a new one was built about 1768," 

 but the lease expiring was given up when St. John's 

 at Poulton was opened in i8i3. 6> It was again used 

 from 1832 to 1860, by which time, through 

 Mr. Miller's influence, very few Roman Catholics 

 remained in the township. 63 



HAMBLETON 



Hameltune, Dom. Bk. ; Hamelton, 1176; 

 Hambleton (xvi cent.). 



This northernmost portion of the parish is cut off 

 from the main body by the River Wyre, the boundary 

 on the south-west side. It has an area of i , 5 5 3 acres, 1 

 and in 1901 the population numbered 321. The 

 village is situated near the centre, on the slope of a 

 piece of rising ground. The surface in general is 

 undulating, varying from about 15 ft. to 50 ft. above 

 sea level. 



Entry is made from the south by the Shard Bridge 

 over the Wyre, opened in 1864.* The scenery by 

 the river is very beautiful. From this point the road 

 goes north to the village, and divides into several 

 branches going in all directions ; one to the north- 

 west leads to a ferry over the Wyre. 



Dr. Charles Leigh of Singleton, writing about 

 1 700, states that the River Wyre ' affords us a pearl 

 fishing, which are frequently found in large mussels, 

 called by the inhabitants Hambleton Hookins, from 

 their manner of taking them, which is done by 

 plucking them from their skeers or beds with hooks.' 3 



The soil is various, with subsoil of clay ; wheat, 

 oats and beans are grown, but almost the whole of 

 the land is pasture. 



The township is governed by a parish council. 



In 1066 H4MBLETON was assessed 

 MANORS as two plough-lands, and was held by 

 Earl Tostig. 4 Later it was called three 

 plough-lands, and was included in the demesne of 

 the honour of Lancaster.* In 1176-7 it contributed 

 30^. to an aid. 6 The farm of the vill had been 

 increased by 24*. a year in I2OO, 7 but this addition 

 seems to have been temporary, for in 1212 the ' men 

 of Hambleton ' held the three plough-lands there by 

 a service of 24*. yearly. 8 It appears that a William 

 de Pilkington had once held the land, but in 1213 

 the king gave it to his serjeant, William de Colmore, 

 for his maintenance. 9 In 1229 Henry III granted 

 the same in fee to Geoffrey the Arbalaster, who was 

 to pay i6/. to the king and 24*. to the old tenant, 



M Thornber (Blackpool, 306) gives a 

 different account. He states that the 

 chapel of 1650 was turned into an inn, 

 and that the old chapel remained in the 

 hands of 'the Romanists' till 174.5, 'when, 

 on the suppression of the rebellion in this 

 year, the Protestants of the village cele- 

 brated the fifth of November with greater 

 zeal than usual, raising contributions of 

 peats at every door and among the rest at 

 the priest's. The refusal of his house- 

 keeper so enraged the people that with one 

 Richard Seckington at their head they 

 ejected the priest both from his house 

 and church.' This traditional account 

 must be a little wrong in the date. 



68 The chapel and chapel-yard were 

 consecrated in 1754. 



64 Deeds of 1749 and 1756 printed in 

 Fishwick's Kirkham, 47. The chapel was 

 then known as St. Anne's. William Shawe 

 gave ,200 for endowment and 200 was 

 added by Queen Anne's Bounty. The 

 curate of Singleton was to assist at the 

 parish church on Christmas Day, Good 

 Friday, Easter Day, Whit Sunday, and 

 other Sundays on which sacraments were 

 usually administered. 



In the deed of 1749 the chapel was 

 (aid to be ' then used as a popish chapel.' 



45 Fishwick, loc. cit. See also Hewitson, 

 Our Country Churches, 378-86. In the 

 chancel is an old oak chair, said to have 

 been Milton's. 



86 Church P. at Chester Dioc. Reg. 



* 7 Succeeded William Threlfall, who 

 resigned ; Consistory papers at Chester. 

 4 William ' may be an error for ' John,' 

 for Thornber states that only 'two minis- 

 ters, Mr. Threlfall and the Rev. Thomas 

 Banks,' had occupied it till 1837. John 

 Threlfall was master of Kirkham Grammar 

 School from 1744 till his death in 1 80 1 ; 

 Fishwick, op. cit. 148. 



58 Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 230. 



59 Fr. John Berington, S. J., was there 

 from 1701 to 1720 ; Foley, Rec. S. J. vii, 

 54 (Meales) ; Gillow, Haydock Papers, 

 235 ; Tyldesley Diary. 



60 Foley, Rec. S. J. vi, 421 ; he had 

 studied humanities at Kirkham, Poulton, 

 Singleton and St. Omers. A similar 

 statement was made by James Swarbrick, 

 who had been baptized by a priest named 

 Matthews in 1655 ; ibid. The convicted 

 recusants c. 1670 (including Robinson 

 and Swarbrick) are recorded in Misc. 

 (Cath. Rec. Soc.), v. 198-202. For the 

 fate of James Swarbrick see Estcourt and 

 Payne, Engl. Cath. Nonjurors, 355. 



188 



61 Thornber, loc. cit. One of the priests 

 there, Watts, became a Protestant and 

 was appointed curate of Wrea Green, 

 where he died in 1773. 



62 Hewitson, op. cit. 404. 



63 Gillow, Bibl. Diet, of Engl. Cath. ii, 



474- 



1 The Census Rep. 1901 gives 1,445 

 acres, including 4 of inland water ; there 

 are also 24 acres of tidal water and 128 

 of foreshore. 



3 The bridge is supported by thirty-two 

 iron pillars. There was previously a ferry 

 called Shard Ferry ; and at Aldwath 

 (see Poulton) there was a ford in more 

 ancient times. 



8 Nat. Hist, of Lanes, bk. i, pp. 22, 137. 



4 V.C.H. Lanes, i, 28 8 b. 



5 The adjacent Stalmine was reduced 

 from four to three plough-lands. 



6 Farrer, Lanes. Pipe R. 35. The 

 sheriff answered for ijs., the tallage of 

 Hambleton in 1206 ; ibid. 202. 



7 Ibid. 131. 



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

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 51 ; the heading is 

 ' Drengages.' 



9 Rot. Lit. Claus. (Rec. Com.), i, 136. 

 The gift was to hold good during the 

 king's pleasure, but in 1227 Henry III, 



