A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



The part of the township outside Stockport obtained 

 a local board in 1 872 ; ' this has now become an urban 

 district council, with twelve members. A small por- 

 tion, 16 acres, was added to Stockport in 190 1. 



Bennet Woodcroft, F.R.S., inventor and clerk to 

 the Commissioners of Patents, was born at Heaton 

 Norris in 1803 ; he retired from the public service in 

 1876 and died at South Kensington in 1879.' 

 Edward Higginson, born in 1 807, was a Unitarian 

 divine of some distinction ; he died in 1880. 



From the survey of 1212 it appears 

 MANOR that HEATON NORRIS was a member 

 of the fee or barony of Manchester, and 

 was assessed as two plough-lands. By Albert Grelley 

 the younger it was granted, at a rent of 10/., to 

 William le Norreys, whose heirs held the land in 

 1 212." These heirs were probably the brothers 

 Richard and Jordan le Norreys, who in 11 96 made 



an agreement as to a division of their lands in Heaton, 

 Chorlton, and Bradford, Jordan receiving Heaton." 

 Though the family gave a distinguishing name to the 

 township and though Norris occurs as a surname in it, 

 the manor was, about 1280, surrendered to the lords 

 of Manchester." In 1282 Robert Grelley was found 

 to have held part of it in demesne, and to have farmed 

 8 oxgangs of land, i.e., half the manor, in bondage. 

 The only free tenant recorded at that time was Adam 

 de Lever, who owed two pairs of gloves yearly. The 

 manor was held of the Earl of Lancaster for the fourth 

 part of a knight's fee." 



The manor continued in the Grelley and La Warre 

 families until the 1 5 th century," when it appears to 

 have been granted to Sir James Strangeways," in this 

 way acquiring the alternative name of Heaton Strange- 

 ways.'° In 1569 the manor was in the possession of 

 Leonard and Edward Dacre," and was afterwards ac- 



7 Lond. Gax. 23 Apr. 1872. 



* Diet. Nat. Biog. 



9 Ibid. 



l" Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.], i, 57. 



11 Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), i, 6. Jordan granted to Richard 

 that the pigs belonging to his demesne in 

 Chorlton (upon Medlock) should run in 

 Heaton Wood, quit of pannage for ever. 

 Jordan and William le Norreys appear as 

 witnesses to local charters ; Crofton, New- 

 ton (Chet. Soc), ii, 119, 300. 



1^ All the lands in the fine referred to 

 reverted to the lords of Manchester. A 

 few further particulars of the family may 

 be seen in the accounts of Denton and 

 Chorlton-upon-Medloek. 



From a pleading of 1281 it appears that 

 three years earlier William le Norreys had 

 enfeoffed John de Byron of two-thirds of 

 the manor of Heaton, and that John was 

 put in seisin, but was ousted by Robert 

 Grelley after three days ; then John went 

 to Robert's bailiff, claiming nothing except 

 for a term of six years, and on the bailiff's 

 refusal of entry, he went to Manchester 

 to talk with Robert Grelley. He offered 

 to surrender all his claim for 17 marks, 

 and brought William le Norreys, who 

 made a complete surrender of the manor 

 to Robert Grelley, as to the chief lord of 

 the fee. In 1281—2 an agreement was 

 made between Grelley and Byron, the 

 latter surrendered all his claim to two- 

 thirds of the manor, and acknowledged 

 that he owed Robert jC^oo of silver ; 

 Assize R. 1244, m. 40. The other third 

 was the dower of Cecily de Shoresworth 

 (see Denton), and in 1283 Robert de 

 Shoresworth and Cecily his wife appeared 

 against Amadeus de Savoy and other 

 guardians of the lands and heir of Robert 

 Grelley, respecting her dower in 3J ox- 

 gangs of land, water-mill, &c., in Heaton 

 Norris ; De Banco R. 51, m. 74. 



Hawise, widow of Robert Grelley, 

 claimed dower in this part of the manor 5 

 De Banco R. 46, m. 77; 112, m. 64 

 (where it is called Heaton next Wobrythe 

 Bridge). 



^^ Lanes. Inq. and Extents, i, 246-9. 

 There were 40 acres in demesne, with a 

 chief messuage and garden worth 20J. a 

 year ; a plat called the Mill Ridding and 

 the Sporth was also worth 20j. ; two- 

 thirds of the mill rendered l 35. ^d. ; free 

 tenants paid 31. loj^. The 8 oxgangs 

 of land in bondage paid 20j. 5 the bond- 

 men also gave twenty-four hens at Christ- 

 mas worth 2J., and eight score eggs at 



Easter, worth 6d. The pannage of the 

 wood was valued at 6s. %d. 



A claim concerning the * manor of 

 Heaton' made in 1305 by Richard son of 

 David de Hulton,the elder, against Thomas 

 Grelley and Thomas de Hulme may refer 

 to Heaton Norris; De Banco R. 153, 

 m. 79. The Hultons and Hulmes had 

 an interest in the adjoining manor of 

 Reddish. 



The surveys of 1320-2 give some 

 further particulars. The bounds of Heaton 

 at that time were the Mersey, Mereclough, 

 Cringle Brook, and Saltergate, on the 

 Cheshire, Reddish, Levenshulme, and 

 Withington sides respectively, and 'that 

 road called the Saltergate,' it is stated, ' is 

 moved from its old place and is now 

 used upon land of Sir John La Warre in 

 Heaton ' ; Mameeestre (Chet. Soc), ii, 

 275. There were six messuages and 6J 

 oxgangs of land with appurtenances worth 

 32i. yd. a year ; also seventeen messuages 

 and 225 acres of arable land, worth 

 jQy lis. i^d. The meadow and pasture- 

 land could not be separated from the 

 arable. There were also 70 acres of 

 common pasture in the lord's wood for the 

 tenants of Heaton Norris and of Withing- 

 ton for six weeks from Michaelmas. 

 Heaton Wood and Heaton Moss were 

 being rapidly consumed, so that they 

 were not valued ; ibid, ii, 283, 284. 



The free tenants were : Sir Richard de 

 Byron for a messuage and Ashcroft ; rent 

 %d. Geoffrey son of Hugh de Holt, a 

 messuage and 5 acres in the Shaw Head ; 

 rent %d. Ellis de Lever (and) Sir Geoffrey 

 del Rakes, a messuage and 30 acres in the 

 Rakes ; rent, a pair of gloves worth id. 

 Hugh del Holt, a messuage and 18 acres ; 

 rent, a pair of gloves ; also ^ oxgang of land 

 formerly RicharddelYate's; ttnt^d. Adam 

 Page, a messuage and 10 acres; rent iid. 

 Robert le Norreys, a messuage and i ox- 

 gang of land ; rent i6d. ; also 2^ acres by 

 Rys'm Bridge (? Rusholme) ; rent dd. 

 John son of Henry de Byron, a messuage 

 and f oxgang of land formerly Richard 

 del Yate's ; rent I id. ; also a messuage and 

 4 acres in the Shaw ; rent, a pair of gloves 

 worth id. Adam son of Swain, a mes- 

 suage and J oxgang of land ; rent %d. ; ibid. 

 ii, 285, 286. At this time, therefore, 2J 

 oxgangs of land were held by free tenants. 



The annual value of the halmote was 

 reckoned as 35. 4^., arising from the fines 

 paid by tenants at entry, &c. ; ibid, ii, 

 286. The total value of the manor was 

 computed at ^10 loj. 6\d. Another ac- 

 count, ibid, ii, 364, &c., may be compared. 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



The mill of Heaton Norris is mentioned 

 again in 1360 ; Dep. Keeper't Rep. xxiii, 

 App. 342. 



1' In 1427 it was found that Thomas 

 La Warre had held of the king (as duke) 

 28 messuages, 1,500 acres of land, 80 acres 

 of meadow, 200 acres of pasture, 100 acres 

 of wood, 100 acres of moor, and lis. 6^d. 

 rent in Heaton Norris, with remainder to 

 James Strangeways, James Holt, John 

 Walsh, William Strangeways, William 

 Garnet, and Peter Massey (deceased) ; 

 the clear annual value was 10 marks ; 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Hen. VI, no. 54 ; see 

 Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxiii, App. 28. 



^^ He was a royal official and a judge ; 

 Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii, 47 ; 

 Foss, Judges, and pedigree in Foster, 

 Yorks. Visit. 71, and Ord, Cle-ueland, 447. 

 He was of Harlsey in Allertondale. His 

 son Sir James Strangeways, Speaker of the 

 House of Commons, is noticed in Diet. 

 Nat. Biog. 



^* There was a recovery of the manor 

 of Heaton Norris, with sixty messuages, 

 Sec, in 1 51 7, Sir James Strangeways being 

 in possession : Pal. of Lane Plea R. 

 124, m. 2. 



Sir James Strangeways the younger died 

 26 April 1540. He was the son and heir 

 of Sir Thomas Strangeways, and in 1530 

 had made a settlement of his tenements in 

 Heaton Norriswith remainders to Leonard, 

 George and Edward, sons of William, Lord 

 Dacre. His heirs were Joan wife of Sir 

 William Mauleverer, daughter of Sir James 

 Strangeways and Alice his wife, grand- 

 parents of the deceased ; and Robert Rocs 

 son of Mary, another daughter ; both were 

 twenty-six years of age and more. The 

 said Alice was daughter and heir of Thorn ;is, 

 Lord Scrope, son and heir of John, Lord 

 Scrope, brother and heir of Henry, Lord 

 Scrope, son and heir of Stephen son of 

 Henry son of Geoffrey, Lord Scrope. Sir 

 James Strangeways, grandfather of the 

 deceased, was son and heir of Sir Rich- 

 ard son and heir of Elizabeth daughter 

 and heir of Philip, Lord Darcy, of Snaith, 

 son and heir of Philip son and heir of John, 

 Lord Darcy, and Elizabeth his wife ; Chan. 

 Inq. p.m. 34 Hen. VIII, ii, 67-81. 



17 Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 31, m. 

 197. The estate was described as 'the 

 manor of Heaton, otherwise Heaton Nor- 

 ris, otherwise Heaton Strangeways, with 

 the appurtenances,' and comprised also 

 forty messuages, a water-mill, a dovecote, 

 gardens, orchards, lands, &c., and 405. 

 rent. 



The title of the Dacres, founded upon 



