A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



manor was held by the Gerards of Ince, and be- 

 queathed in 1743 by Richard Gerard to his brother 

 Thomas, a Jesuit priest." This was no doubt a gift 

 to the society to enable it to maintain the local 

 missions, and thus Southworth came into the posses- 

 sion of Stonyhurst College. It was sold about 1820 

 to Thomas Claughton of Hay dock ; he failed in 1823,'° 

 and it was sold to Edward Greenall of Warrington," 

 whose granddaughter Elizabeth, Lady Shif&er, sold 

 it to Samuel Brooks, the banker, after whose death 

 it passed to a younger son Thomas. The latter's 

 sons, Mr. Joseph Raynor Brooks and Mr. Edward 

 Brooks, are the present owners.^' No manor courts 

 are held, nor are any manorial rights claimed. 



Aspshaw anciently gave a surname to the family 

 settled there.^' 



A branch of the Southworths was established in 

 Croft.'' About 1556 the heirs of Henry Southworth 

 and James Hey contributed to the subsidy as land- 

 owners.^' No freeholders appear in the list of 1600, 

 but in 1628 John Hay contributed to the subsidy.*' 

 James Bankes of Winstanley held some land in Croft 

 in 161 8." Christopher Bate, a recusant, petitioned 

 in 1654 for leave to contract for the sequestrated 



two-thirds of his estate in Croft." In 171 7 Eliza- 

 beth Kay, widow, as a 'papist,' registered a house 

 and 8 acres in the same place.*' 



The 'chapel of Southworth' is mentioned in 

 1292,^° but nothing further is known of it ; perhaps 

 it was a domestic chapel. 



During the last century several places of worship 

 have been erected. For the Established religion 

 Christ Church was built in 1832. The benefice 

 became a rectory by the Winwick Church Act of 

 1841 ; the patron is the Earl of Derby." 



An Independent Methodist chapel was built at 

 Croft in 1 8 1 7,^* but has disappeared. 



When the Unitarians were ejected from the old 

 Risley Chapel in Culcheth they built for themselves a 

 small chapel in Croft, opened in 1839.'' 



After the suppression of the ancient worship by 

 Elizabeth nothing is known until 1 701 of any sur- 

 vival or continuance ; but Gervase Hamerton, a 

 Jesuit, was in that year in charge of the mission of 

 Southworth.^* The private chapel in the hall con- 

 tinued to be used even after the sale ; but in 1827 

 the present church of St. Lewis was opened.'* The 

 mission is now served by the secular clergy.'" 



Lanes, Funeral Certs. (Chet. Soc), 49—51 ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xxvi, no. 58, 

 George Ireland succeeded him in the 

 Southworth manors and in Pennington ; 

 there is some uncertainty as to his birth, 

 so that he was probably illegitimate. In 

 1626 he received the manors from his 

 brother Thomas ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. 

 bflle. 110, no. 3 ; and died 6 May, 1632, 

 being buried at Winwick the following 

 day. He left by his wife Helen a daughter 

 and heir Margaret, nearly six years of 

 age ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xxviii, 

 no. 30. He had settled the manors on 

 his heirs male, with reversion to the heirs 

 male of Thomas Ireland of Bewsey and 

 his brothers ; but, as male issue was 

 lacking, Margaret his daughter succeeded. 



She married in or before 1 648 Peni- 

 stone Whalley, son of Thomas Whalley 

 of Kirton, Notts., and by him had a 

 daughter Elizabeth ; Visit, ef Notts. (Harl. 

 Soc), 118. She was the widow of Cuth- 

 bert Clifton of Clifton, but had no issue 

 by him ; Dugdale, Visit. (Chet Soc), 87. 

 See Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 144, 

 m. 17 ; 148, m. 67 (1650) ; in this 

 Alexander Breres and Anne his wife are 

 joined with Penistone Whalley and Mar- 

 garet his wife as deforciants ; also bdle. 

 156, m. 146 (1654). 



" Piccope, MS. Pedigrees (Chet. Lib.), 

 i, 119, quoting Roman Catholic deeds in 

 the Preston House of Correction j Thomas 

 Gerard was to divide the profits equally 

 with his brother Caryll (also a priest), 

 and his sisters Anne, Mary, Bridget, and 

 Clare. 



There was a recovery of the manor in 

 1761, Thomas and Caryll Gerard being 

 vouchees ; Pal. of Lane. Plea R, 593, 

 m. 4. 



20 See the note on the Winwick chari- 

 ties. He married in 1806 Maria sister 

 of Thomas Legh of Lyme, the Eastern 

 traveller ; Earwaker, East. Ches. i, 306. 

 He sat for the borough of Newton from 

 1818 till his resignation in 1825 ; Pink 

 and Beaven, Pari. Repre. of Lanes. 293. 

 He was the father of Dr. Thomas Legh 



Claughton, Bishop of Rochester, 1866-77, 

 and of St. Albans, 1877—90 ; and of Dr. 

 Piers Calveley Claughton, Bishop of St. 

 Helena, 1859 — 62, and of Colombo, 

 1862-71. 



21 Baines, Lanes, (ed. 1836), iii, 631. 

 Edward Greenall died in 1836 ; his third 

 son John, who died in 1850, appears to 

 have received Southworth. 



^ Ibid. (ed. Croston), iv, 369 ; and 

 information of Mr. T. Algernon Earle. 

 Elizabeth Lady Shilfner was the daughter 

 and heir of John Greenall of Middleton 

 in Winwick. 



^ In the time of Edward I are grants 

 from and to Gilbert son of Gilbert de 

 Southworth his chief lord, to and by 

 William son of John de Aspshaw ; the 

 land was in Croft. In one of the charters 

 Emma widow of Gilbert is mentioned ; 

 Towneley MS. HH, no. 1985, 1983; 

 Kuerden fol. MS. 37, no. 272. 



John son of Richard de Aspshaw was 

 in 1359 a claimant against John de Asp- 

 shaw J Duchy of Lane. Assize R. 7, m. 6. 

 In 141 1 the feoffees released lands to 

 Joan widow of Hugh Tailor and daughter 

 of Richard de Aspshaw ; Towneley MS. 

 HH, no. 2030. 



^ In 1480 there was an arbitration 

 between Robert Southworth of Croft and 

 William his son on one side, and James 

 (son of William) Hay and John his son 

 on the other, respecting a boundary ; 

 Kuerden fol. MS. 388 S. In 15 17 Richard 

 Southworth of Shenston, son and heir of 

 Henry Southworth, released his lands in 

 Croft to Sir Thomas Southworth at a 

 yearly rent; Dods. MSS. liii, fol. 18, 

 no. 16 ; Kuerden, loc. cit. 



Gilbert Southworth of Croft by will in 

 1504 bequeathed money for an obit by 

 the Austin friars of Warrington, with a 

 gift of 31. to the poor ; Raines, Lanes. 

 Chant. (Chet. Soc), i, 65. 



^ Mascy of Rixton Deeds. 



» Norris D. (B.M.). 



V Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), ii, 98. 



Among minor inquisitions preserved by 



Towneley are those of Heniy Birch, who 

 died in 1635, holding lands in Croft and 

 Southworth of Sir Richard Fleetwood ; 

 Henry, aged twenty, being son and heir ; 

 MS. C 8. 13 (Chet. Lib.), 60 ; of Thomas 

 EUam, son and heir of George, 401 ; 

 and of Thomas Goulden, who died in 

 1639 leaving a son and heir Thomas, 

 aged four years ; 459. The Gouldens 

 are noticed also under Winwick and 

 Windle. 



^^ Cat. of Com, for Compounding^ ¥,3185. 

 The inquisition after the death of Ralph 

 Bate is in Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. 

 xxix, no. 7; ; his lands were held of 

 Sir Richard Fleetwood, and he left a son 

 and heir Thomas. 



In 1727 disputes arose concerning the 

 estate of Ralph Bate (will made 1705) 

 and Ralph Bate his son (will made 1727), 

 in Croft and Fearnhead ; Cal. Exch. of 

 Pleas B. 68, 66, C. 284. 



^ Engl. Catholie Nonjurors, 117. Kays 

 appear in the recusant roll of 1641 ; 

 Trans. Hist. Soe. (new ser.), xiv, 245. 



80 Deed above quoted. 



^1 Raines in Gastrell, Notitia Cestr. ii, 

 262 ; the Act is 4 Vict. cap. 9. See also 

 Lond. Gax. 3 Dec. 1844. 



^'^ Baines, Lanes, (ed. 1836), iii, 631. 



=' Nightingale, Lanes. Nonconformity, iv, 

 255-65. 



»'' Foley, Rec. S.J. v, 321 ; his salary 

 from various sources was ,^18. In 1750 

 the mission seems to have been confused 

 or combined with Culcheth, Henry Stanley 

 being in charge ; 322. In 1767 the Bishop 

 of Chester recorded the fact that Mr. 

 Royle and Mr. Home, priests, vfere at 

 Croft and Southworth j Trans. Hist. Soe. 

 (new ser.), xviii, 216. In 1784 thirty- 

 four persons were confirmed, and there 

 were seventy communicants at Easter ; 

 Foley, op. cit. v, 364. 



*' The priest in charge was a French 

 refugee, Louis Richebeque, which accounts 

 for the dedication. For tome interesting 

 particulars see Gibson, Lydiatc Hall, 210, 

 211. 



'" Liverpool Catb. Annual, 1901. 



170 



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