SALFORD HUNDRED 



MANCHESTER 



area of 1,297 acres.' The surface is hilly, a height of 

 3 3 5 ft. being attained near the centre. Moston village 

 lies to the south of this, Nuthurst to the north-east, 

 and Streetfold to the west. On the northern boundary 

 lie White Moss ' and the district formerly known as 

 Theale Moor, which are partly in Chadderton. The 

 residential hamlet of New Moston is in the extreme 

 east of the township. The population in 1901 num- 

 bered 11,897. 



Roads from Newton Heath lead north-east and 

 north-west to Moston Church and to Streetfold, to join 

 another road going eastward from Harpurhey to HoUin- 

 wood in Oldham. Ashley Lane is in the south-west 

 portion. The Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's 

 railway from Manchester to Rochdale crosses the 

 eastern part of the township and has a station called 

 Moston near the northern boundary. 



A Roman pavement was found near Lightbowne 

 Hall.' 



There are various works, including a wire manu- 

 factory. In 1832 the place was 'inhabited by farmers 

 and silk weavers.' ' There are collieries at Shakerley 

 Green. 



In 1666 the hearth tax return shows that there 

 were eighty-nine hearths liable.' 



The Simpson Memorial Institute stands in Moston 

 Lane. There is a branch library in the building. 



Accounts of the people and folk-lore of the place 

 have been issued by Mr. John Ward and others.'* 



There is a Roman Catholic cemetery in the centre 

 of the township, opened in 1875. 



Moston was included in the city of Manchester in 



1890 and ceased to be a township in 1896, when it 



became part of the new township of North Manchester. 



Although in 1320 Moston and Nut- 



MJNOR hurst are called hamlets of Manchester,' the 



tenants there being obliged to grind at the 



lord's mill, in some deeds they are spoken of as lying 

 within the township and parish of Ashton-under-Lyne.' 

 It may be that the plough-land in Ashton given by 

 Albert Grelley senior to Orm son of Ailward, in 

 marriage with Emma his daughter, and held by a 

 rent of 10/. yearly, was Moston.'" 



That the lords of Ashton had in early times rights 

 in Moston also is shown by a fine of 1 195, from 

 which it appears that on a division Robert son of 

 Bernard had Moston."' 



Early in the 1 3th century the whole was in the pos- 

 session of Henry de Chetham ; ' he transferred NUT- 

 HURST to the Eccles family, who, about 1 260, 

 granted it to Geoffrey son of Richard de Traiford, Sir 

 Geoffrey de Chetham being at that time chief lord.' 

 The recipient, also known as Geoffrey de Chadderton, 

 had a son Geoffrey, who in 1340 granted to his sons 

 Roger and Alexander all his lands in Moston with the 

 homage and service of Richard de Moston, including 

 a rent of 3/. payable by him. The lands were then 

 divided between the brothers.'" There is, however, 

 a missing link, for as early as 1320 Alexander and 

 Roger de Chadderton held Moston and Nuthurst of 

 the lord of Manchester by homage and fealty and a 

 rent of loj." The moieties descended to the Chetham 

 and Chadderton families, who resided at the two halls 

 in Nuthurst. 



Alexander de Chadderton in 1356 granted to John 

 de Chetham and Alice his wife all his messuages and 

 lands in the hamlet of Moston in the town of Ashton, 

 together with the rent of y. due from the lord of 

 Moston." There is little to record of the Chethams' 

 long residence at Nuthurst ; they prospered, their estate, 

 including other lands in Crompton and Butterworth, 

 gradually increasing." Thomas Chetham, who died 

 in 1503, was found to have held his share of 

 Nuthurst of the Earl of Derby as of his manor of 



^ 1,299 ^cres, iacluding 7 of inland 

 water ; Census Rep^ 1 90 1. 



' An outburst of this moss took place 

 in Jan. 1633-4 ; Hist. MSS. Com, Rep. 

 xii, App. ii, 43. 



» Watkin, Roman Lanes. 57. 



■* E. Butterworth, Cbron. Hist. ofManch. 

 Z2, 



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

 houses were those of James Lightbowne's 

 executors, with nine hearths ; Samuel Sand- 

 ford, eight, and Francis Chetham, seven. 



*» Ward, Moston Characters at Play ; 

 C. Roeder, ' Moston Folk Lore ' in Lanes, 

 and Cbes. Antiq. Sae. wcv. ; E. Waugh, 

 Sketches of Lanes. Life. 



« Mamecestre (Chet. Soc), ii, 281. The 

 lord of Moston was hopper-free and paid 

 one-twentieth as toll instead of one-six- 

 teenth. The tithes in later times were 

 paid to the college at Manchester. 



The lords of Manchester had little to 

 do with Moston, but in 141 8 Thomas 

 Lord La Warre granted to his feoffees a 

 messuage and lands in Moston called 

 Brideshagh next Boukerlegh, lately held 

 by Thomas le Bouker ; the bounds began 

 at the south at the gate in the side of the 

 lane leading from the common pasture of 

 Theale Moor to Manchester, passing the 

 holding of Robert Shacklock, and the 

 bounds of Theale Moor and Blackley ; 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Hen. VI, no. 54. In 

 1322 Brideshagh seems to be reckoned as 

 part of Crumpsall ; Mamecestre, ii, 363. 



'' In charters of 1340 and 1356 quoted 

 below. In 1569-70 an agreement was 

 made between the parish of Ashton and 



the people of Moston, according to which 

 Moston was taxed with Ashton, paying 

 an eighth of the sum to be raised ; Clowes 

 D. In the subsidies of 1541 and 1622 

 also Moston is joined with Ashton ; Misc. 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.], i, 144, 155. 



'* Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 57. 



7^ Final Cone. (Rec, Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), iii, 172. Robert (or Roger) son of 

 Orm de Ashton is stated to have given 

 land at Nuthurst to Cockersand ; Booker, 

 Blackley, 135 (quoting Kuerden fol. MS. 

 214). In 1473 Sir John Ashton held 

 'Alt' Moston ' — either ' the other Moston' 

 or Alt (and) Moston ; Mamecestre, iii, 

 483. 



^ He was possibly one of the unnamed 

 heirs of Orm in 1212, or may have ob- 

 tained it from Robert son of Bernard. 



9 Clowes D. no. 162. By it William 

 de Eccles, clerk, granted to Geoffrey son 

 of Richard de Trafford all the land of Nut- 

 hurst, received by Thomas, the grantor's 

 brother, from Sir Henry de Chetham ; i ^d, 

 rent was payable to Sir Geoffrey de Chet- 

 ham (a witness to the charter) as chief 

 lord. For the Chadderton family see 

 further in the account of that township. 



Margery widow of Geoffrey de Chetham 

 in 1275 claimed dower in 20 acres in 

 Moston and Chadderton against Geoffrey 

 de Chadderton ; De Banco R. 10, m. 35. 

 The Chetham land in * Ashton* in a fine 

 of 1278 probably defers to Moston ; Final 

 Cone, i, 154. 



" Clowes D. no, 146. John de Chet- 

 ham was a witness of this charter. 



265 



In 1345 Alexander and Roger sons of 

 Geoffrey de Chadderton defended their 

 right to certain land against Richard de 

 Moston, who claimed as heir of William 

 de Moston his brother ; De Banco R, 343, 

 m. 294 d. 



^^ Mamecestre^ ii, 279. 

 ^^ Clowes D. no. 149. John Chetham 

 is mentioned as early as 1331, when 

 he acquired lands in Buttei;worth ; ibid. 

 no, 86. In the following year he con- 

 tributed to the subsidy as an inhabitant 

 of Crompton ; Exch, Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc, 

 Lanes, and Ches.), 31. Alice the wife of 

 John de Chetham received lands from 

 Adam de Belfield in 1341 ; Clowes D. 

 no. 63. 



The pedigree of the family has been 

 worked out by Mr, E. Axon, in the Chet- 

 ham Gen, (Chet. Soc. new sen). 



^^ In 1335 John de Chetham granted 

 land in Butterworth to Richard his son, 

 with remainders to other sons, Robert and 

 Roger : Clowes D. no. 88. Adam, also a 

 son, is named in settlements of lands in 

 Crompton, Ashworth, Royton, and Man- 

 chester in 1342 ; ibid. no. 98-9. Maud, 

 a daughter of John, was in 1335 married 

 to Adam son of William de Butterworth ; 

 ibid. no. 87. 



Richard son of John de Chetham occurs 

 in 1348 ; ibid, no, 89. Thomas de Chet- 

 ham, described as son and heir of John 

 de Chetham and as near of kin to Adam 

 de Lever, was in 1382 defendant to a plea 

 by Maud widow of Hugh de Holt of Ash- 

 worth ; ibid. no. 93. It appears that 

 Thomas was slain by his neighbour, 



34 



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