A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



masonry. The capitals and upper parts of the western 

 responds have also been much cut away at the time 

 when the galleries were inserted. 



The west tower is narrower than that originally 

 designed, built of very friable sandstone, and having 

 apparently been untouched since the i8th century is 

 in a very bad state of repair. Some refacing appears 

 to have been done on the west front on the north 

 side of the doorway and at the belfry stage, and a 

 scheme of restoration which it is proposed shortly to 

 carry out will include the refacing of the tower. It 

 has little architectural merit, being of low proportion 

 and little in keeping with the rest of the building. 

 Externally on the west face it is of four stages, with 

 rather weak diagonal buttresses of nine stages at the 

 north and south-west angles. On the north and south 

 sides the walls are quite plain up to the string under 

 the belfry windows. The west doorway, now much 

 decayed, consists of a pointed arch with moulded 

 head and jambs, with a series of hollows filled with 

 carvings, and so weathered as to be unrecognizable. 

 Between the buttresses a moulded string-course forms 

 the lower member of the sill of a large three-light 

 west window similar to those of the nave, with net 

 tracery and external hood-mould. The tracery is 

 modern, but the jambs appear to be old, and the win- 

 dow must have been moved here when the tower was 

 built. Above this again is a string ornamented with 

 four-leaved flowers which goes round the tower, break- 

 ing round the buttresses at the level of the belfry 

 window-sills. The belfry windows, which are of 

 similar detail on all three sides (north, west, and 

 south) are of two lights under a pointed traceried head, 

 and appear to be of 14th-century date. They seem 

 to have been originally intended for glass, as the jambs 

 and muUions are grooved, and probably belong to some 

 part of the monastery building either destroyed or in 

 decay when the tower was erected. They have now 

 stone louvres. Above the belfry stage there is a single- 

 light narrow window on the north, south, and west 

 sides, and on the east side one of two lights, but these 

 are now hidden by the clock face. The present clock 

 was given in 1 907, replacing an older one. The tower 

 ends in an embattled parapet with 1 8th-century angle 

 pinnacles, one only of which is perfect. The roof is 

 apparently of the same date, being in the form of a 

 stone-slated gable running east and west. There is a 

 door also on the north side of the tower in the east 

 angle, and on the south side below the string under- 

 neath the belfry window are three corbels, showing 

 that a building was set against it at this point. On the 

 face of the north buttress is a niche now much decayed, 

 with a trefoiled head. There is no vice in the tower, 

 the first floor being gained by a wooden staircase, and 

 the others by ladders, but at the belfry stage in the 

 south-east corner is a stone staircase in the thickness of 

 the wall, descending to a door which is now blocked. 

 This must have been the original means of access to 



the upper part of the tower, and from this stage a 

 stair in the south-east angle of the tower leads up to 

 the roof. The tower was evidently meant to be open 

 to the church up to 35 ft. from the ground, and at 

 this level a chamfered string, with four-leaved flowers 

 cut on it, shows on the inner face of the walls, mark- 

 ing the position of the original floor here. 



The tower arch is of two moulded orders spring- 

 ing from a 15th-century impost moulding, and is 

 filled in at the ringing-chamber stage with modern 

 glazed wooden tracery, and below with a modern 

 wooden door screen to the porch under the tower. 



The fittings are mostly modern, the pulpit and font, 

 both of wood, dating from 1882. In the north and 

 south aisles are the 17th-century bench-ends already 

 mentioned, carved with initials, names, and dates, the 

 majority belonging to the year 1635," and at the 

 west end of the nave is a good oak churchwardens' 

 pew with the names of the wardens and the date 

 1679. There is a good 18th-century brass chandelier 

 in the middle of the nave, suspended by a long orna- 

 mental iron rod. In the tower porch above the 

 north door is the board with the royal arms, dated 

 1755 ; and on the opposite wall is an oak cupboard 

 with doors inscribed with the churchwardens' names, 

 Scripture texts, and the date 1720. 



There were formerly fragments of ancient stained 

 glass in various parts of the church, but these were 

 collected and brought together in the middle window 

 of the south aisle in 1883. 



There is a ring of six bells cast by John Warner & 

 Sons, London, 1877. 



The church plate consists of a chalice 1706, a paten 

 1720, another paten 1738, inscribed 'The gift of 

 Thomas Henry Ashhurst Esqr. to the Chappel of 

 UphoUand in Lancashire 1739' ; two flagons of the 

 same date ; one with a similar inscription, but the 

 other without, and a chalice 1817, with the inscrip- 

 tion * The gift of Meyrick Bankes Esqre. to the 

 Chapel of Upholland 1 8 17.' 



The registers of marriages begin in 1600, those of 

 baptisms in 1607, and those of burials in 16 19. The 

 first volume (1600-17 3 5) has been printed."* 



During the time of Elizabeth, and probably later, 

 only a reading minister was provided ; " but an 

 improvement took place under Bishop Bridgeman,*' 

 and in 1643 Upholland was made a parish, the 

 district including also the townships of Dalton and 

 Orrell, and parts of Billinge and Winstanley.'^^ The 

 Act was treated as null at the Restoration, and Up- 

 holland remained a chapelry until 1882, when by 

 Order in Council it was made a parish." 



The income of the minister appears to have been 

 about £60 in 1650.'' The principal tithes were 

 owned by the Earls of Derby, who paid a small 

 composition to the rectors of Wigan " ; the lands of 

 the monastery were tithe-free.'° In 1724 Bishop 

 Gastrell found the curate's income about £^0, of 



™ Many have been recut and a late 1 8th- 

 ccntury date added. 



ssa Transcribed and edited by Alice 

 Brierley. . Lane. Par. Reg. Soc. xxiii, 

 1905. 



" Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 248 ; Hist. 

 MSS. Com, Rep. xiv, App. iv, 13. In 

 1598 there was no curate, but Mr. Moss, 

 unlicensed, had done service for a time ; 

 IVigan Cb. 744. 



'' It appears from the Act of 1643 that 



William Ashhurst and others had guaran- 

 teed to Bishop Bridgeman or his son 

 Orlando, that his tithes from the rest of 

 the parish should be at least ;^6oo a year, 

 if he would consent to an Act being passed 

 for making the chapelry an independent 

 parish. 



'«The Act is printed in Wigm Ch. 

 237-9. 



" Wigan Ch. 745. 



" Commmiuealtb Ch. Surv. (Rec. Soc. 



96 



Lanes, and Ches.), 60, 62. There was 

 no residence. 



" fTigan Ch. 254-59. The tithes of 

 Upholland were sold by Edward, the 

 twelfth earl, in 1782 to John Morris, and 

 those of Dalton to — Prescott. The 

 rector of Wigan still receives ^8 8j. loj;/. 

 and £^ ^. c^^d. or 19 marks in all, as 

 composition for the tithes of the town- 

 ships. 



6» Ibid. 258. 



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