A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



ing in the Coke familjr*' until about 1780, when it 

 was sold to Peter Drinkwater of Irwell House, Prest- 

 wich." 



William Dauntesey of Agecroft, who died in 1622," 

 was succeeded by a son " and a grandson, also named 

 William. The last-named, a minor at his father's 

 death in 1637, was succeeded by his brother John, 

 who, dying about 1693,'* was succeeded in turn by 

 his sons William and Christopher.'* The latter of 

 these married Mary daughter of Sir Edward Chisen- 

 hale or Chisnall, and had several 

 children.^^ Edward, the eldest 

 son, was subject to fits of lunacy, 

 and his younger brother Chris- 

 topher had the management of 

 the estates, and succeeded." 

 He left a son John, in holy 

 orders, who resided at Age- 

 croft '* till his death in 181 1, 

 and bequeathed his estate to 

 cousins, the Hulls of Chorley." 

 John son of Richard Hull had 

 but a short enjoyment of Age- 

 croft, dying in 1 81 3, when he 

 was followed by his brother-in- 

 law, the Rev. Richard Buck, 

 who had married Margaret 

 Hull, and their son Robert succeeded.*" His younger 

 brother, John Buck, the next owner, took the name 



Dauntesey of Age- 

 croft. Ter Jesse dancetly 

 or and gules a lion ram- 

 pant seizing upon a 

 ivyvern erect counter- 

 changedf a bordure en- 

 grailed ermine. 



of Dauntesey in 1867,*°' and was followed by his 

 sister Katherine Dauntesey Foxton, who died in 1878, 

 when Agecroft Hall passed to Robert Brown, grand- 

 son of Thomas Hull. Mr. Brown took the name of 

 Dauntesey on succeeding. Dying in 1905 he was 

 succeeded by his brother, Captain William Thomas 

 Slater Hull, who also adopted the surname of 

 Dauntesey.*"'' 



Agecroft Hall stands on slightly rising ground on 

 the west side of the Irwell valley, where the river 

 flows southwards towards Manchester between the 

 high ground of Kersal and Prestwich on the east and 

 north, and Irlams-o'-th'-Height and Pendlebury on 

 the west. The surroundings of the house are now 

 greatly altered from what originally obtained, the 

 colliery workings of the neighbourhood and the im- 

 mediate proximity of railway and canal having almost 

 entirely destroyed the former picturesqueness of the 

 scenery. The hall, however, yet stands in grounds 

 which preserve to the building something of its original 

 country aspect, though the trees have suffered much 

 damage from the smoke and fumes of the surrounding 

 district. 



The house is a very interesting example of timber 

 construction standing on a low stone base with por- 

 tions in brick, built round a central courtyard. The 

 ground on the west side of the building falls precipi- 

 tously, the walls standing close to the edge of the 

 cliff. The three remaining sides are said to have been 



'" The manor of Pendlebury was in 

 1630 counted as the inheritance of Sarah 

 Coke, who died in 1623-4 ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. zxvi, no. 53 ; see also 

 Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 179, m. 92; 

 2 1 7, m. 20. 



^^ Baincs, Lanes, (ed. 1870), i, 599. 



™ Lanes. Inq. p.m, (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), iii, 349. The rent of is. is 

 half of the old composite rent for Pendle- 

 bury. William Dauntesey died 19 May 

 1622, his wife Anne having died in 1618 ; 

 William, the son and heir, was over forty 

 years of age. He had entered Oriel Col- 

 lege, Oxford, in 1590, giving his age as 

 nineteen ; Foster, Alumni. 



In 1613 a settlement was made on the 

 marriage of William son and heir apparent 

 of William Dauntesey and Anne his wife 

 with Katherine daughter of Lawrence 

 Crompton, late of Breightmet, and Alice 

 his wife ; Roger Downes of Wardley was 

 the principal trustee ; Agecroft D. no. 143. 

 I The subsequent fine is recited in the 

 Inq. p.m. In 1624 William Dauntesey 

 aclcnowledged the receipt of the goods due 

 to his wife from Lawrence Crompton her 

 brother ; Agecroft D. no. 147. 



83 William Dauntesey II paid ^^lo in 

 : 163 1 as a composition on refusing knight- 

 hood ; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 

 i, 215. He died 2 Jan. 1636-7, his son 

 and heir William being about fifteen years 

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

 no. 78. In 1634 he had made a settle- 

 ment of Agecroft Hall and the rest of the 

 estate, eight children being named : Wil- 

 liam, John, Mary, Anne, Elizabeth, Sarah, 

 Alice, and Katherine. A third part hav- 

 ing been assigned to his wife Katherine, 

 another third was given to his son William 

 for his maintcDance, and provision for the 

 other children was to be made from the 

 rest; Agecroft D. no. 152. His will, 

 dated the day of his death, mentions the 

 ,f 500 bequest from Sir John Dauntesey 

 of Bishop's Lavington, a kinsman ; ibid. 



no. 1^3, 317. See also Fun, Cert. (Rec. 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 202. 



The king granted the wardship and 

 marriage of the heir to the widow, 

 Katherine ; Agecroft D. no. 155. 



^* He was party to an indenture of 1 5 

 Feb. 1692-3, but deceased in June 1694 ; 

 ibid. no. 159, 160. His children's 

 names are recited in the latter deed; Wil- 

 liam, Christopher, John, Thomas, and 

 Byron ; Katherine, Elizabeth, and Jane. 



^^ William entered Brasenose College, 

 Oxford, in 1686, aged 17 ; Foster,Alumni. 

 He died in Aug. 1695, Christopher suc- 

 ceeding; Agecroft D. no. 162. 



8^ The marriage agreement is dated 

 18 Jan. 1696-7. Mary Chisenhale's por- 

 tion was j^i,ooo ; Agecroft D. no. 197. 



In 1703 Christopher Dauntesey was 

 appointed captain of a militia company 

 commanded by Sir Ralph Assheton ; ibid, 

 no. 175, He was appointed sheriff in 

 Dec. 1705 ; ibid. no. 182. He died in 17ZI. 



^7 An agreement made in 1733 recites 

 that ' whereas the said Edward Dauntesey 

 hath been for several years past and now 

 is at certain times and seasons unhappily 

 visited with a melancholy or lunacy, though 

 often enjoying clear, lucid, and very sen- 

 sible intervals and as now of sound mind, 

 which continue not long enough tho- 

 roughly to manage and improve his real 

 estate to his and his family's best advan- 

 tage, whereby he is rendered incapable to 

 marry in such manner as his quality and 

 estate would and do otherwise require ' ; 

 and arranges for the conveyance of the es- 

 tates, in consideration of an annuity of ^^30, 

 to his brother Christopher, so that the lat- 

 ter may make a suitable marriage and pre- 

 vent the extinction of the name and family; 

 ibid. no. 194-6. Christopher in 1735 

 married Elizabeth daughter of Robert 

 Billinge of Ecdeston in Leyland ; ibid, 

 no. 200-3. ^y ^^3 ^^1^ dated in 1747 

 and proved in 174?, he provided for 

 annuities to his '.-iife Elizabeth and his 



400 



brother Edward ; his lands went to his 

 son John, but ;^6oo was to be paid to his 

 daughter Katherine when she came of age; 

 ibid. no. 204. 



A monument in Eccles Church states 

 that Christopher Dauntesey died 28 Apr. 

 1748, aged 44, and his wife 15 July 1791, 

 aged 77. 



88 John Dauntesey in 1779 paid the free 

 rent of 91. ^d. for Agecroft ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Rentals, 14/25. 



3^ John Dauntesey was a student of 

 Peterhouse, Camb., in 1757 ; M.A. 

 1762 ; ordained deacon in 1760, and priest 

 in 1761 ; licensed to the curacy of 

 Ashton on Mersey ; in 1780 described as 

 of Agecroft (Agecroft D. no. 205-20). The 

 will of his sister Katherine was proved in 

 1805 ; ibid. no. 221. His own will, 

 dated 10 Oct. 18 11, left sums of ,^500 

 each to two of his servants and oaiers. 

 His lands, &c., in Pendlebury, Pendleton, 

 and Prestwich, he bequeathed to John 

 Hull, son of the late Richard Hull of 

 Chorley, surgeon, with remainders to 

 John's sister Margaret wife of the Rev. 

 Richard Buck of Fletton, to their brother 

 Thomas Hull of Beverley, and their sister 

 Elizabeth Hull of Chorley ; ibid. no. 222. 

 John Hull was not a descendant of the 

 Daunteseys ; Manch. Guardian N. and Q. 

 no. 1084; see also no. 970, 998, 1042, 

 for other particulars of the families of 

 Agecroft. 



•"I Booker, Prestwich, 227. The Rev. 

 Richard Buck (who was second wrangler 

 in 1783) and Margaret his wife in 1823 

 procured an Act of Parliament to grant 

 building leases. The duchy rent was 

 purchased in 1826. For the Buck family 

 see the account of Much Hoole, and for 

 the Hulls that of Poulton in the Fylde. 



<"' Baines, Lanes, (ed. 1870), i, 599. 



■«>'' Burke, Landed Gentry. 



For an account of the Agecroft Hall 

 deeds see Lanes, and Ches. Antiq. Soc. iv, 

 199-220. 



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