A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



If ORDEX was p.irt of 9 oxgangs of land granted 

 to the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem by Roger 

 dc Lacy, but the right of the actual tenant was 

 left undisturbed, Hugh Bussel holding in 12 12.' 

 Wordcn ' is later found in possession of a branch of 

 the Anderton;,' with whom it remained till 1534, 

 being then acquired by Sir Henry Farington.* Sir 

 Henry gave it to William his son by his second 



^■^ifc.* William Farington was trained to the law, 

 became an active magistrate in Lancashire in the 

 time of Elizabeth, served as steward of the household 

 to three Earls of Derby, and maintained and enlarged 

 his inherited estate.' In religion he w^i exter- 

 nally a conformist to the Elizabethan settlement, but 

 reputed to be in secret its bitter enemy.' His 

 descendants have remained Protestant. 



That the purchase took p'ace between 

 1615 and 1617 appears by comparing 

 various inquisitions ; Lanes. Inq.pjn. (Rec. 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.\ ii, 2lg, -3 (cf, i, 

 .69). 



' Lanes, l'!^. and Ext^i.tSj i, 33. This 

 grant may have been a confirmation by 

 Roger on his obtaining the barony of 

 Penwortham. Hugh Bussel was probably 

 one of the claimants to the barony. 



The Hospitallers' lands are named In 

 1292 i Plac. de Quo f/'ju. (Rec. Com. J, 

 375. The tenants and rents about 1540 

 v.crc the following : — The king, whose 

 undertenant was — Bushel, jj.j Nichr.'.as 

 Blackliflgc for a messuage called Bur- 

 fcough Place, 6d. ; Peter Farington, tnr 

 Brex and other landf, 12./. and 6</. ; Sir 

 Henry F;irington, for Milnhur^t, bought 

 (if Jolm Faringtin, f>f. ; the same fnr 

 Worden, late tlic land nf James Andcrton, 

 deceased, 31. ; Kucrdcn NISS. v, f'>I. 83^. 

 It thus appears that WorJcn was about a 

 third part of the lands of St. I'lin. 



'^ The old spclhng is \\''c;ilrn. It is 

 Minetimc<: called a \ ill. 



WMIiani Bii = >cl of F-iixtnn pa*, c to 

 William de Andcrton and Isabel his wife 

 ..nd 'heir heirs all his land in ihc hamlet 

 of Wordcn in the viU of I.cyland for a 

 rent of 4'., covering the rent of v- dtie 

 from the prnntor to the Hospitallers ; 

 Kucrdcn J-.l. MS. (Chct. Lib.}, 59. In 

 t ^42 the charter w.ts c'ttd as a grant to 

 \\ illiam dc Anderton and K,len his \\ifc, 

 ihcir heir being O'iver Andcrton, then 



cp?. 



living ; Dui.hv of l.anc. Uc 

 A 4. 



Thomas Bussel, Rnn of the above 

 Wilil.Tni, gave In A'iani dc Walton, his 

 lord, ccrtam land inclosed from the vnnd 

 if I.cyland and a croft ; Kuerden, loc. cit. 

 ■* .Among the witnesses t" local deeds 

 the tiillowing Andertons occur, pmbab'v 

 holders of \S'"rdcn : — Robert, seneschal 

 of Lcyland, i;i;-2^; Adam, i^nSTi 

 William son of Adam, 1^67; William, 

 T ;-9-i40i ; Edmund, 141 1 24 ; James 

 i44--7^ ; Cucrdcn D. in Harl. MS. 

 2042, fol. 116/', &c. ; Add. MS. 32109, 

 fol. 27/', &c. 



William de Anderton had a icncnunt 

 in Leyland in 1:90, when he complained 

 of injur)' by John de Walton, Robert dc 

 Holland of Euxton, William son of Alice 

 Bussel, and others; Assize R. izSls, m. 

 13 d. Alice widow cf William Busshcl of 

 Euxton in 12 84 claimed dower in Wordcn 

 against Robert son of William de Ander- 

 ton i De Banco R. ; 5, m. 98 d. In 1303 

 Robert son. of William de Anderton called 

 upon Thomas son of Adam de Anderton 

 to warrant 80 acres of land, &c., in Leyland 

 by Euxton ; De Banco R. 148, m. 211. 

 The defendant was the lord of Anderton. 

 William and Robert de Anderton attested 

 a Chorley charter In i;oi ; Bailev MSS. 

 (Chet. Lib.), bdle. 32, no. 50. Robert 

 de Andcrton of Leyland contributed to 

 the subsidy in 132- (Subs. R. i;?, no. 5), 

 and appears as juror and witness down to 

 1329 ; Lu':cs. Inq. and E\:c,:t ^ II, 222 j 

 Whitaker, Jl'kaUey\ Ii, 38 v 



Adam de Andcrton appears In 1331 



(Raines MSS. xxin", 230), and contributed 

 to the subsidy in 1332 ; Exch, Lay S-jhs. 

 (Rec. Soc, Lanes, and Ches.), 52. In 1 347 

 William son of Adam son of Adam de 

 Anderton was contracted to marry Ellen 

 daughter of Adam de Clayton ; Kuerden 

 MSS. ii, fol. 240/'. Adam de Anderton 

 was made a justice for Leyland Hundred 

 in 1345 ; Cal. Par. 1343-5* F- 509- "c 

 occurs regularly down to 1361 ; Dods. 

 MSS. cxxxl, fol. 46. 



William de Andcrton attested a deed 

 at Leyland in 13S7, and in 1385 was a 

 commissioner to \^\v a subsidy; Raines 

 MSS. xxiil, 238 ; D<rf>. Keeper's Rep. xl, 

 ^,2^. William Andcrton of W^orden and 

 Edmund Andrrton of Worden are men- 

 tioned in 1400-1 ; Harl. MS. 2042, fol. 

 167^. 



Edmu'id Anderton and Margaret his 

 wife had land at Biggins near Kirk by 

 l.nnsdale in 1417 ; the remainders were 

 to Edmund's sons James (wife Elizabctl}), 

 William, J'^hn, Thnmas, Robert, and the 

 right heirs of Margaret ; Feet of F. Wt-st- 

 morland, case 249, hie 8 (2 RIc. II- 

 6 Edw. IV, no. 20). 



In 1419 Edmund Anderton of Lcy- 

 land was forbidden to Ic^y any multure 

 at the ^\.^tc^-mill he had erected lo the 

 hurt of the king's freehold in Lrylanl 

 until he had proved his title ; Dep. K'eepei 's 

 Rep, xxxiii, App. 16. Edmund Andcrton 

 and Jimes his son occur m 1429-^5; 

 Hurl. MS. 2^42, fol. 167. Edmundoccurs 

 as a witness in 14^8-9; ibid. fol. 167/'. 

 I mies Anderton had lands in Howlck in 

 1441 and in Hasllngdcn in 144^ ; P.il. 

 of Lane. Pica R. % m. 2 ; 4, m. ; d. ; 

 Farrcr, //-:/■ cf (::.;;:(,-, ^ \^ 502. He 

 and William Anderton attcfted a deed in 

 147^ ; Towneley MS. DD, no. 108, 



Wililam Andcrton of Wordcn occurs 

 In 1466 ; Pal. of Lane. P.it. R. 9, no. 29. 

 William Anderton was a surety in 1485 ; 

 Dods. MSS. liii, fo!. Q%h. He died soon 

 after, for in 14S6 his widow Isabel and 

 the other executors of his will were 

 plaintiffs; P.il. of Lane. Plea R. 62, 

 m. 2 d., 4, 6, I I, 



James Anderton occurs as witness in 

 148S; Dods. MSS. liii, fol. '6-. From 

 depositions made in 1542 the descent is 

 thus proved : Edmund -s. James -s. Wil- 

 liam - s. James, who married Anne 

 daughter of Sir William Farington in his 

 father's lifetime ; Duchy of Lane. Dcp. 

 xxxvil, A 4^. Lands in Whittington and 

 Biggins are named. It was probably this 

 James Anderton who was constable of 

 Hornby Castle 1511 to 1524; Duchy 

 Plead. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 

 i, 2 1 6-1;-, and will of Edward Stanley 

 Lord Mounteagle. 



James Anderton died 12 August 1523 

 holding the capital messuage called Worden 

 Hall, with other messuages and lands in 

 the vllls of Worden and Lcyland. Worden 

 Hall was held of Oliver Anderton by the 

 rent of 1 2 J., and the lands in Lcyland of 

 Hcnrj' Farington by a rent of %d. James 

 had in 1518 made a settlement of his 

 estate in favour of his wife Anne for her 

 life. Hi^ heir male was a cousin, John 



12 



Anderton, son of Richard, brother of 

 William, father of the deceased ; hia heirs 

 general were his four sisters and tlielr 

 issue, viz. Margaret wife of John Skilli- 

 corne ; Francis Banastrc (minor) son of 

 Ralph son of Ellen ; John Ainsworth 

 son of Elizabeth; Alice \\ife of Henry 

 Stokes ; Duchy of Lane. In<j. p.m. v, 

 no. 51. From the tenure liere recorded 

 it appears that the lord of Anderton was 

 mesne tenant between the actual holder 

 and the Hospitallers. 



John Andcrton, the heir male, after- 

 wards endeavoured to recover the Leyland 

 estate. He cited a charter by which Jolm 

 Walton, vicar of Leyland, and another 

 trustee granted four messuages, »S;c., to 

 James son of Edmund Anderton and his 

 heirs male by Elizabeth his wife, who 

 were parents of the abo\t.-iamcd William 

 and Richard, fathers of James and John 

 respectively; Pal. of Lnnc. Plea R, i s 1, 

 m. 15. 



A claim for the manor of Worden \\m 

 made in 1542 by the above-named Jolm 

 Ainsworth son of Richard Ainsworth and 

 Elizabeth his wife ; Duchy of Lane. Plca-I. 

 xl, A 4, Dep. xxxvil, A 4^. 



■• In ic;3i-2 Wordcn was held by Jolm 

 Sklliicorne and Anne his wife, she bcin;^ 

 the widow of James Andcrton, when fohn 

 Andcrton, described as * of Budworth ' in 

 Cheshire, the heir ni.ilc, put In his c'aim ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Dcp. xx, A z. Anne 

 widow of James Andcrton was living In 

 August I 5^4 ; Pal. of Lane, Writs Proton, 

 file 31 (Aug. 26 Hen. VIII). She is 

 said lo liavc died at the end of 15^4; 

 Flshwick, Kirkham (Chct. Soc), 191 

 (pedigree). 



^ There was a settlement of ihc m.mor 

 of Wordcn and other lands by Sir Henry 

 Farington and Dorothy his wife in 1537 ; 

 Pal, of Lane. Plea R, 162, m. 11, 

 Dorothy Farington, widow of Sir Henry, 

 and William the son and next male heir 

 of the said Dorothy and Henry, in igtjr 

 complained that Robert Farington and 

 others had endeavoured to disseise her of 

 various messuages and lands in Lcyland, 

 Worden and Whittle-le-Woods ; Duchy 

 of Lane. Plead. Edw. VI, xxix, F 11. 



Sir Henry on i May 1535 demised 

 the manor of Wordcn to his son Thomas 

 on a yearly tenancy ; Pal. of Lane. Pica 

 R. 166, m, 9 d. 



^ There is a full and laudatory account 

 of him by Canon Raines in the Introduc- 

 tion to the Stanley Papers^ pt. II, where 

 his will Is printed (pp. Ixxviii, &c.). He 

 desired to be burled in the chapel on the 

 south side of Leyland Church, known as 

 St. Nicholas' or Farington chapel, in the 

 tomb wherein his father, grandfather and 

 great-grandfather lay, 



William Farington in 1560 procured a 

 confirmation of his arms with an altera- 

 tion of the crest ; Mnc. Gen. et Herald. 

 i, 61. 



' Fleetwood, the Puritan rector of 

 WIgan, writing in 1587 to Lord Burghlcy 

 about * the notorious backwardness of the 

 whole company' of the Earl of Derby in 

 religion, specially mentions several of the 



