A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



and w.-i? b.irb.:rou--.Iy executed at Lancaster for his 

 j-^riesthood, 7 August 1646/ 



The house known as Woodcock Hall is situated on 

 what was formerly known as Cucrden Green, near to 

 Lostock Hall railway station, and is a three-story red 

 brick structure with stone dressings and barred sash 

 windows, apparently of i "th-century date, having 

 three gables to the front and a projecting porch in the 

 middle going up to the full height of the building. 

 The roof is covered with stone slates and the gables 

 have been at one time surmounted by ball finials 

 which are now lying in the front garden. The greater 

 part of the front is covered with i\y, which gives the 

 house a very picturesque appearance. The interior is 

 a good deal modernized, and some of the rooms, not 

 being occupied, are in a state of disrepair, but the 

 original oak staircase with twisted balusters remains. 

 The building, described by Dr. Kuerden as a 'fair 

 built house,' is now a farm-house. 



Some other names appear in the inquisitions and 



other records, but most of the families seem to have 

 been resident in the neighbouring townships. They 

 include Blundcll,' Clayton, Cliff,=' Farington,* Langley,* 

 Langton of Hindley,* Lemon of Walton-lc-Dalc, 

 Walton,' and Whithalgh,^ with a few others.^ 



Cockersand Abbey '" and the Knights Hospitallers " 

 had lands in Cuerden. 



The freeholders named in 1600 were Thomas 

 Woodcock and Gilbert Jackson," while in 1 628 

 the landowners contributing to the subsidy wxrc 

 Thomas Haggcrston, a convicted recusant, John 

 Woodcock and Richard Jackson.'^ It was probably 

 the other John Woodcock who appears in the 

 recusant roll of that time.'* The township does not 

 seem to have had any residents who suifercd from the 

 Commonwealth sequestrations, but a number of 

 * Papists ' registered estates in i 7 1 7.'* Banastre Parker 

 was almost the only landowner in 1786."' 



At one time the Benedictines had a mission station 

 in Cucrden. '^ 



' Challoncr, Almr-.ary Pt;c<f<y no. 

 185 ; Thaddeus, F'jnciscdns in EngUniiy 

 69. His name in religion was Martin 

 of St. Felix. He was arrested early in 

 1644, and kept in prison for two years. 

 Two secular priests were executed witli 

 him. His head was preserved in the 

 cloister of St. Bonaventure's, Douny, till 

 the French Revolution. The Franciscan 

 nuns at Taunton possess an arm bone. 

 The process of beatification was allowed 

 to be introduced at Rome in 1S86. 



' The BlundcU of Preston family ; eee 

 their deeds in Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 96^- 

 1 ; - /•. 



^ J'^hn son of Alexander de Cliff ac- 

 quired land in CucrHcn in 1341 \ Anct. 

 D. (P,R.O.),A8i-4, 8i;6. Some Cliff 

 deeds m.iy be seen in the Kuerden MSS. 

 iii, Kz. Ty one of 144; William Cliff 

 Fcttlcd land on himself with remainder 

 \^ his *rin Thomas and to the lattcr's 

 son William j and by another in 1473 

 William Cliff, who had married Kathcrinc 

 daughter of John Balshav. , settled land 

 with remainder to his son John. The 

 family occurs in other townships of Ley- 

 land and the neighbourhood. 



John Cliff, who died in 1588, held two 

 mcssu.igcs, &c,, in Cuerden of Thomas 

 Langton, lord of \e\\t' n^ in socage by 

 a rent of 19-. ^^.i*. ; R:--iiard Cliff, his 

 kinsman and heir, was five years old in 

 1 ^94 ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. x\i, 

 no. 29. Richard Cliff died at Bretherton 

 in 1640, holding the same tenement of 

 Sir Richard Fleetwood ; John, his son and 

 heir, was twenty-seven years old ; ibid, 

 xxix, no. 88. 



^ Thomas Farington died in 1508 

 holding a messuage and land in Cuerden 

 of Richard Charnock by i,t rent 5 ibid. 

 iv, no. 41. He also held the Cockersand 

 lands in the township, 



* William Langley of Walton was a 

 tenant in the time of Elizabeth ; in 15S0 

 he sold part of his holding in Cuerden to 

 John Robinson j Pal, of Lane. Feet of 

 F. bdle. 42, m. 147 ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. xvi, no. 52. 



" The messuage, &e., of Robert 

 Langton in Cuerden was in 154S held of 

 Sir Thomas Langton in socage by a rent 

 of 12./. ; his son Peter's tenement was 

 in I5~3 held of Thomas Langton in 

 j'^c.ige, no rent being named ; Duchy of 

 Lsnc. Inq. p.m. ix, no. 35 ; xii, no. 14. 



' Sec Final C:t:c. iii, 36. William 

 Walton of Walton-lc-Dale held 6 acres 



in Cuerden in 1625 of Richard Fleetwood 

 as of his manor of Newton by a rent of 

 is. yearly \ Duchy of Lane, Inq. p.m. 

 XXV, no. 49. 



* Some deeds of this family (of Whit- 

 halgh in Li\cscy) are transcribed in Add. 

 MS. ^2104, foi. 40 on. William de 

 Wliltlialgh in 1367 confirmed to John 

 Finch and Marger)' his wife a tenement 

 In the vill of Cucrden and 6 acres in 

 divers parcels in Castlegate, Cilncgrc\c, 

 Soncrseld, Pighle and Blackhorde at a 

 rent of 121. ; ibid. fol. ^6b. Henry de 

 Whithalgh appears in 1387 ; ibid. fol. 44. 

 In 141 5 he settled his holding in Cuerden 

 on his son Uriel and other issue ; ibid, 

 fol. 43. Henry and Uriel in 1424 de- 

 mised a plot of land in Cuerden to Robert 

 Color ; ibid. fol. 46. Margaret widow 

 of Henry Whithalgh in 1430 released to 

 Uriel son and heir of Henry all her 

 right in the land?, &e. ; ibid. fol. 4^^. 



Uriel frequently occur*; ; his widow 

 Janet and her children in 1467 agreed to 

 an arbitration concerning disputes with 

 Laurence the son and heir, Katherlnc his 

 wile, and James and other children of 

 Laurence j ibid. fol. 48. To Laurence 

 and Katherine (daughter of John Ward) 

 the feoffees in 1451 regranted lands in 

 Cucrden, including 2 acres on the west 

 of a close called Hanacrcs ; ibid. fol. 44. 



James Whithalgh and his wife Isabel 

 occur in 1475 ; ibid. fol. 50, Margery 

 was his wife in 1497 and his widow m 

 1525 ; ibid. fol. 41, ^zb. Richard son 

 and heir apparent of James Whithalgh 

 appears to have married Isabel daughter 

 of Laurence Ainsworth in 1499, lands in 

 Mellor and Oswaldtwistle being settled on 

 them ; ibid. fol. 45. Richard Whithalgh 

 and James his son and heir in 1528 

 agreed that James should marry Margaret 

 daughter of Miles Marsden ; ibid. fol. 47*^. 



An exchange of land in the Broomfield 

 was made in 1568 between John Kuerden 

 and James Whithalgh ; ibid. fol. 47. 

 James Whithalgh died in the same year, 

 holding his lands, &c., in Cuerden of Sir 

 Thomas Langton by a rent of 41. ; Duchy 

 of Lane. Inq, p.m. xiii, no. 22. His 

 heir was his nephew John son of his 

 brother Lawrence. 



For the family see Abram, Black- 

 burn, 594. 



^ Elizabeth widow of Sir Henry 

 Kighley in 1524 held lands In 

 Cuerden of Thomas Langton as of his 

 manor of Walton j Duchy of Lane. Inq. 



28 



p.m. V, no. 61. In this document 

 Cucrden is described as //( Walton-Ie- 

 Dnlc. Tlicy were probably p.irt of the 

 llcskcth of Rufford lands ; ibid. -:, no. 16. 

 Ricliard SoUam in 1555 purchased lands 

 in Cuerden, &c., from Sir Thomas 

 Hcsketh and Alice his wife ; Pal. of 

 Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 16, m. 164. 



Edmund and John Burscough occur in 

 a fine respecting land in Cucrden in i 559, 

 and Peter and Roger Burscough in 1595 j 

 ibid. bdle. 21, m. 87 ; 57, m. 74. 

 Thomas Burscough, the successor of 

 Peter, in 161 1 held his land in Cucrden 

 of the king (as waste) by tlie hundredth 

 part of a knight's fee ; Land. Inq. p.m. 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Chcs.), ii, 37. 



Robert Woodroffc died in 1626 hold- 

 ing a messuage and land of Sir Richard 

 Molyncux. He left his estates to his 

 wife; Townelcy MS. C 8, 13 (Chct. 

 Lib.), 1298. 



"^ The charters have been cited above. 

 In 1451-61 the tenant was Christopher 

 Farington, in 1501 Thomas Farington, 

 and in 1537 Thomas' heir; Cockersand 

 Chartul. iii, 1260-1. 



" See Plac.dc Quo Wary. (Rec. Com.), 

 375. A grant to them has been 

 quoted. About 1540 the tenants and 

 rents were : John Woodcock for two 

 riddings on each side of smithy forge, 

 id. ; Thomas Kuerden for a toft, 12<?. ; 

 Thomas Walton, a messuage, 1 id. \ 

 James (? Whithalgh), a messuage, (s\d. 5 

 Kuerden MSS. ■., fol. 83*. 



" Mhc. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 

 i, 244-5. 

 '^ Ibid. 170. 

 '^ Ibid. 182. 



'' Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. Non- 

 jurors, 97, &c. Their names were : 

 William Dawson, Robert Hilton, James 

 Carver of Farington, William Cuerden, 

 Eleanor Cooper and Richard Jackson. 

 The estates of Thomas Clayton and 

 Robert Cooper seem to have been for- 

 feited altogether ; Lanes, and Ches. Rec, 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 172. These 

 surnames occur much earlier ; Ducatus 

 Lane. Ill, 35, 42, &c. 



" Land tax returns at Preston. The 

 family continue to be practically sole 

 landowners. 



'' Trans. Hist. Soc. (new scr.), xiii, 

 160-1. In 1740 the magistrates issued 

 a notice threatening the prosecution of 

 anyone who should ' presume or dare to 

 exercise the office of a popish priest' 



