A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



border of the township is Whitworth Park, in which 

 is an art gallery. The Royal Manchester College of 

 Music is in Ducie Street. On the east side of Oxford 

 Street is an Eye Hospital, while another hospital lies 

 between Oxford Street and Upper Brook Street. To 

 the east of the latter thoroughfare there is a Free 

 Library, opened in 1 866 ; ' also the Rusholme Road 

 Cemetery, formed in 1823 for the use of Protestant 

 Dissenters. In Plymouth Grove is a large Home for 

 the Aged. There are fire stations on the Stockport 

 Road, and a drill shed at Greenheys. 



The new Infirmary is within this township. 



In 1 666 the principal residence in Chorlton Row was 

 that of Ellis Hey, with five hearths liable to the tax ; in 

 the whole township there were forty-nine.* Chorlton 

 obtained a Police Act in 1822*" and a Lighting Act in 

 1832.* It was included in Manchester borough on 

 incorporation in 1838, and was then divided into two 

 wards. All Saints' and St. Luke's, on the west and east 

 respectively. The township, as such, has now ceased to 

 exist, and forms part of the new township of South 

 Manchester, created in 1896. 



Neolithic implements have been found.' 



Thomas De Quincey, bom in Manchester, lived 

 in his youth at Greenheys, which was built by 

 his father about 1791, and has recorded his memo- 

 ries of the place.' John Ashton Nicholls, philan- 

 thropist, was born in Grosvenor Street in 1823 ; 

 he died in 1859.' Mrs. Gaskell resided in the town- 

 ship, and in Mary Barton described the district as it 



was in 1848. Sir Charles Halle lived in Greenheys 

 for about forty years. . 



The manor of CHORLTON, which 

 MJNOR once included Beswick, or part of it, was 

 at the beginning of the 13th century held 

 of the king in thegnage by a local family ; it was 

 assessed as two plough-lands, and a rent of 20s. was 

 the annual service.' Gospatrick de Chorlton was 

 tenant in 1202, when his son Richard's widow 

 claimed dower," and in 1212, when the great survey 

 was made." He died in or before 1223, when his 

 son Brun received seisin of one plough-land in Chorl- 

 ton, having paid the king 2 marks as relief" It 

 probably escheated to the Crown soon afterwards, as it 

 became part of the possessions of the Grelleys and La 

 Warres, lords of Manchester, being held as one plough- 

 land by the old service of 20J." 



Gospatrick had lost four oxgangs of land to Matthew 

 son of William [de Hathersage] by wager of battle." 

 He had granted a further two oxgangs to his brother 

 Adam, in view of Adam's fighting for him against 

 William son of Wulfric de Withington." Four ox- 

 gangs of land also he gave to Henry de TrafFord, who 

 held a fifth in 121 2.'* 



The Grelleys, on acquiring the lordship, appear to 

 have granted it, without exacting any service, to a 

 junior branch of the family, as one Robert Grelley 

 was in possession in 1278" and was succeeded by a 

 son John, who in 1334 alienated his lands in Chorlton 

 to Henry de TrafFord.'* The TrafFords thus acquired 



' The Female Penitentiary, founded in 

 1836, was formerly on this site. 



* Subs. R. bdle. 250, no. 9. 



<» 3 Geo. IV, cap. 14. 



» 2 & 3 Will. IV, cap. 90. 



' Lanes, and Ches. Antiq. Soc. v, 328. 



7 In Autobiographic Sketches and Confes- 

 sions of an Opium Eater, 



' Diet. Nat. Biog. 



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

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 69. This place 

 occurs earlier in the Pipe Rolls, for in 

 1177— 8 account was rendered of the 

 ^ mark of aid due from it ; Farrer, Lanes. 

 Pipe R. 36. 



There is much danger of confusion be- 

 tween Chorlton in Manchester and Chorl- 

 ton (Chollerton) in Withington, as is 

 shown by Booker's Chorlton Chapel, &c. 



1" Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), i, 14 ; Ellen, the widow, received 

 for life one oxgang of land out of two 

 which Austin de Chorlton held ; also four 

 selions — two by Jordan's ditch and two 

 by Jordan's selion — in return for the 

 moiety of the capital messuage belonging 

 to her oxgang. 



Gospatrick de Chorlton occurs about 

 the same time in the Pipe Rolls ; Lanes. 

 Pipe R. 152, 205. 



^^ Lanes. Inq, and Extents, i, 69, 128. 



" Fine R. Excerpts (Rec. Com.), i, 103. 



13 In 1324 John la Warre held it ; 

 Dods. MSS. cxxxi, fol. 38^. 



" Lanes. Inq, and Extents, i, 69. These 

 oxgangs were by Matthew granted to the 

 father of Richard and Jordan le Norreys 

 of Heaton Norris, and became Jordan's by 

 agreement in 1196; Final Cone, i, 5. 

 Jordan's ditch and selion have been men- 

 tioned in a foregoing note. 



1^ Lanes. Inq. and Extents, i, 70 ; a ser- 

 vice of 3J. 4!/. was due. Gospatrick's 

 charter is in Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 165 ; 

 and Stretford (Chet. Soc), iii, 232. It 

 referred to * an eighth part of Chorlton.' 



1^ Lanes. Inq, and Extents, i, 69 ; a rent 

 of 6i. 3*/., the due proportion for five ox- 

 gangs of land, was to be rendered. As to 

 four of the oxgangs Gospatrick's grant to 

 Henry son of Robert son of Ralph de 

 TrafFord is extant ; it comprised the 

 whole fourth part of Chorlton, viz., four 

 oxgangs, two formerly held by Randle, one 

 by Steinulf, and one by Robert son of 

 Edwin — at a rent of ^s. yearly ; De Traf- 

 ford D. no. 122. The seal shows a con- 

 ventional ornament with part of the 

 legend: — sigil . , . patj . . j. charltvn. 



In the division of the TrafFord estates 

 in 1278 Chorlton was given to Henry de 

 Trafford ; Final Cone, i, 154. 



17 The grantee was perhaps the John 

 Grelley who in 1275 appeared with Henry 

 de Chetham against Jordan de TrafFord 

 and Thomas Ball, alleging an assault at 

 Chorlton ; Coram Rege R. 18, m. 8. 



Three years later Robert Grelley was 

 in possession, Peter Grelley demanding 

 against him three plough-lands in Chorlton 

 and Cuerdley ; De Banco R. 24, m. 3 ; 

 31, m. 55. In 1306 Thomas Grelley 

 demanded a messuage and six oxgangs of 

 land in Chorlton by Manchester against 

 Robert son of John Grelley, and a mes- 

 suage and three oxgangs against Joan widow 

 of John Grelley; De Banco R. 161, m. 

 481 ; see also R. 179, m. 181 d.; 183, 

 m. 398. This statement shows that the 

 junior Grelleys held nine oxgangs — the re- 

 mainder of the two plough-lands, after 

 allowing for the holdings of the TrafFord 

 (5) and Chorlton (2) families. 



Somewhat earlier (in 1302 and 1303) 

 Henry de TrafFord, Thomas son of Jordan 

 de Chorlton, and Amabel de Chorlton 

 claimed 5 acres in Chorlton against John 

 Grelley, but did not prosecute ; Assize R. 

 418, m. isd. ; 419, m. 7. This John 

 Grelley was probably the successor of the 

 Robert of 1278 and father of the Robert 

 of 1306. The suit then shows the three 



252 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



possessors of the manor contending; among 

 themselves. A later one shows them 

 uniting against the superior lord ; for in 

 1 3 1 9 Henry de Trafford, Robert de Stani- 

 street, Robert son of John Grelley, and 

 Thomas son of Jordan de Chorlton, ap- 

 peared against John La Warre, Joan his 

 ■wife, John de Strickland, Alice his wife, 

 John de Hulton, and Jordan son of Henry 

 de Oldham, respecting a tenement in 

 Chorlton ; Assize R. 424, m. 9. This 

 or a similar suit was in 1324 continued 

 by Robert son of John Grelley, Henry de 

 Trafford, Robert the son and Agnes the 

 widow of Thomas de Chorlton ; Assize 

 R. 426, m. 9. 



The only tenants of the La Warres 

 named in 1320 were Henry de Trafford, 

 five oxgangs, 6j. "^d. (part of ys.) ; and 

 Thomas de Chorlton, two oxgangs, 35. ^d. ; 

 both were bound to grind at the Man- 

 chester mills; Mamecestre, ii, 278, 279. 

 John La Warre in 1325 claimed 145^ 

 acres of land in Manchester and Chorlton, 

 in right of his wife Joan, against John de 

 Strickland and Alice his wife ; De Banco 

 R. 258, m, 3iod. 



The Grelleys of Chorlton held the 

 manor of AUerton in Childwall parish. 



18 De Trafford D. no. 124, bearing John 

 Grelley's seal. The bounds of his lands 

 in the vill of Chorlton began in the centre 

 of Shootersbrook (aqua de Schiter), fol- 

 lowed the highway from Manchester to 

 Stockport as far as the Medlock, thence 

 by the said highway to Whitacre Ford and 

 between Greenlow (Grindlow) Marsh and 

 Chorlton Heath to Greenlow Cross, and 

 as far as Greenlow Lache ; along the 

 lache between Chorlton Heath and With- 

 ington to Gooselache and by this lache 

 down to Withinshaw, and so to 'Lc 

 Heghcres' ; thence by the ditch between 

 Hulmc and Chorlton to the Medlock, and 

 up stream to the starting point. It will 

 be noticed that the whole of the later 



