A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



A pedigree was recorded in i664. 36 Mr. Thornber 

 says : ' The traditions of the neighbourhood intro- 

 duce us to John Veale, esq., 

 of Whinney Heys, as main- 

 taining this character [of the 

 plain old English gentleman] 

 during the eventful periods of 

 1715 and 1745, when he 

 acted as a magistrate in the 

 county. His lady, Mrs. 

 Dorothy Veale, with thrifty 

 care, superintended the labours 

 of her household and en- 

 couraged by the presence of 

 herself and family the inno- 

 cent mirth and hilarity of her 

 dependants. From what I 



can gather of the pursuits of the Rigbys of Layton 

 Hall the family group, partaking of the boisterous 

 mirth and sports too generally practised by the 

 Cavalier party of the unfortunate Charles and his 

 son, formed a striking contrast to the domestic 

 arrangements of Whinney Heys ; the one family 

 employing the long winter's night in useful occupa- 

 tions, enlivened with cheerful conversation, the 

 other, according to stories still [1837] repeated, in 

 gambling, cards, dice and the drunken bowl.' 3r The 

 estate passed by marriage to the Fleetwoods of 

 Rossall. 



A few other estates occur, but no connected history 



VKALI of Whinney 

 Heys. Argent on a bend 

 sable three calves passant 

 or. 



can be given of them. 38 Warbreck occurs as a sur- 

 name. 39 Lancaster Priory 40 and Cockersand Abbey 41 

 had land in the township. 



Something has been related above 

 BOROUGH concerning the growth of BLACK- 

 POOL." A local board of nine 

 members was formed in 1853 under an Improvement 

 Act 43 ; in 1871 the number 

 of members was increased to 

 eighteen. 44 Five years later, 

 by charter 21 January 1876, 

 the town was incorporated, 

 and the council was to consist 

 of a mayor, six aldermen and 

 eighteen councillors, chosen 

 from six wards. 4 * In 1879 

 the municipal boundaries were 

 extended to include South 

 Shore and parts of Marton 

 and Bispham. 46 In 1894 the 

 part of Marton within the 

 borough was united to Layton, 

 and the whole became one 

 township, Blackpool, the old 

 names and limits being obli- 

 terated. An increase in the 

 governing body was made in 1898, and the council 

 now consists of a mayor, twelve aldermen and thirty- 

 six councillors, chosen by six wards as formerly. 47 It 

 became a county borough in 1904. The council has 



BOROUGH or BLACK- 

 FOOL. Barry ivaiiy of 

 six sable and or a sea- 

 gull -volant proper, on a 

 chief argent a thunder- 

 bolt between a fieur de 

 Us and a lion rampant 

 gules. 



1646 ; Baines, Lanes, (ed. 1868), i, 228. 

 A grandson, Edward Veale, was Noncon- 

 formist minister at Wapping, dying in 1708. 



36 Dugdale, Visit. (Chet. Soc.), 321. 



37 Blackpool, 87. In a list of the in- 

 habitants of the parish compiled about 

 1686 the whole number was 385 the 

 first place was taken by Alexander Rigby, 

 esq., his three daughters, ten menservants 

 and three maidservants ; and the second 

 by John Veale, gent., his wife, mother, 

 two menservants and two maidservants. 



38 Robert Lawrence of Ribbleton, 1524, 

 had land in Layton ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. v, no. 57. 



William Smith died in 1602 holding 

 eight messuages, &c., in Little Layton, 

 also others in Thornton and Ribbleton 

 perhaps the Lawrence estate and leaving 

 a grandson and heir Alexander Smith (son 

 of Henry son of William), aged fifteen. 

 The Layton lands were held of Edmund 

 Fleetwood as of his manor of Great 

 Layton ; ibid, xviii, no. 22. 



Lawrence Cowborne of Freckleton held 

 messuages and land in Layton and Bispham 

 in 1604 of the Earl of Derby by \d. rent 

 or ( ? by correction) of the king as of his 

 duchy by the fortieth part of a knight's 

 fee and 2.\d. rent ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 32, 45. 



The Bambers, who occur in neigh- 

 bouring townships, held land in Layton. 

 William Bamberof Pool in 1576 obtained 

 messuages, &c., in Layton and Bispham 

 from William Bamber the elder and 

 Edmund his son and heir-apparent ; Pal. 

 of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 28, m. 9. The 

 same William Bamber of Pool in 1579 

 made an agreement with Richard Bamber 

 of Marton as to a partition of lands ; 

 W. Farrer's Deeds. William Bamber 

 died in 1597 holding a messuage and 

 land in Great Layton and Warbreck of 

 the king as duke by the two-hundredth 

 part of a knight's fee. His son and heir 



Robert was then thirty-seven years old ; 

 Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc.), i, 116. 

 This is probably the Robert Bamber 

 of Warbreck who died in 1624 holding 

 lands by the same tenure, and leaving 

 a son William, aged three ; ibid, iii, 

 462. Richard Bamber died in 1609 

 holding messuages and land in Great 

 Layton of the king as duke by knight's 

 service ; his son and heir John was forty- 

 seven years old ; ibid, i, 154. Some 

 further particulars will be found in Fish- 

 wick's Bispham, 11619. 



John Anion in 1609 held messuages, 

 &c., in Warbreck of the king as duke by 

 the one-hundredth part of a knight's fee ; 

 hi heir was hi son John, aged twenty- 

 two ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc.), i, 155. 

 This son seems to be the John Anion 

 who died in 1623 holding by the two- 

 hundredth part of a knight's fee. His 

 son and heir John was ten years old ; 

 ibid, iii, 435. See Fishwick, op. cit. 115. 



Thomas Jollice in 1618 held a mes- 

 suage, &c., of the king as duke by the 

 three-hundredth part of a knight's fee ; 

 he left a son and heir Robert, aged five ; 

 ibid, ii, n i. 



John Walsh died in 1624 holding land 

 in Layton of the king and leaving a son 

 Henry ; Lanes, and Ches. Antiq. Notes, i, 

 74, where some particulars of the family 

 are given. 



Robert Crane died in 1627 holding a 

 messuage, &c., in Layton, tenure not 

 recorded ; his heir was a grandson Robert 

 (son of Richard son of Robert) Crane, 

 aged fifteen ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. 

 xxvi, no. 31. 



Robert Gaulter died in 1631 holding a 

 messuage, &c., in Little Layton of Paul 

 Fleetwood as of his manor of Little 

 Layton. His heir was his brother George, 

 aged forty-four; Towneley MS. C 8, 13, 

 p. 459. 



39 Richard Waibreck, 1628, held his 



250 



messuage in Warbreck of the king by 

 the two-hundredth part of a knight's fee. 

 Thomas, his son and heir, was four years 

 old; ibid. 1309. See Fishwick, op. cit. 

 119, 125. 



40 The priory seems to have had merely 

 an acre, given them by William son of 

 Emery le Botelcr, so that they might 

 build a tithe-barn there. This acre lay 

 by the pathway leading from the high- 

 road to the little mere ; Lane. Ch. (Chet. 

 Soc.), ii, 438. It was included in the 

 grant of the advowson of Poulton to 

 Thomas Fleetwood in 1554. 



41 William le Boteler granted the 

 canons all his part of Threplands, 

 within his demesne of Layton, as marked 

 out by crosses, with right of way to the 

 sea and the pool, excepting 25 acres held 

 by Walter son of Swain (de Carleton) by 

 a rent of 6d. ; Cockersand Chartul. i, 

 155-7. Threplands or Threfelt was 

 between Layton and Marton. The same 

 benefactor gave 20 acres in Withroom, 

 on the west side towards the mill, and a 

 rent-charge of 40*. from his camera or 

 treasury; ibid, i, 156, 159, i6t. 



42 Porter, Fylde, 311 62. Further 

 details, particularly with regard to the 

 recent changes, have been supplied by 

 Mr. T. Loftos, town clerk. 



43 There are eight later Improvement 

 Acts. 



44 Ibid. 339. The title was changed 

 from Layton-with-Warbreck Local Board 

 to Blackpool Local Board in 1868. 



44 Ibid. 355-9. The original wards 

 were Claremont, Talbot, Bank Hey, 

 Brunswick, Foxhall and Waterloo. 



46 42 &43 Viet. cap. 199. The part of 

 Bispham included was the detached por- 

 tion known as Bispham Hawes, south of 

 Layton. The boundaries of the wards 

 were altered. 



47 The township boundary was ex- 

 tended in 1896 to include the foreshore. 



