A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



Lea h;.- the service of the eighth part of a knight's fee 

 and the above-named payment of 6a'.' Ralph the 

 son and heir of John was forty 

 years of age, and died in 1421 

 holding the manor by the 

 same tenure and leaving as 

 heir his son Adam, thirty 

 years of age.' 



The succession is again un- 

 certain until the 1 6th century.' 

 James Clayton was followed 

 by John Clayton,' ivho by 

 his wife Elizabeth Langton 

 left two daughters as co-heirs, 

 Isabel and Ellen ; the former 

 married William Farington 

 and then Nicholas Butler, 



leaving daughters Joan by the former and Elizabeth 

 and Ellen by the latter ; Ellen, sister of Isabel, 

 married Christopher Lister, and had a son William. 

 Joan Farington first married Henry Beconsaw, leaving 



^ ^ I I ^^ — - 



Clayton of Clayton. 

 Argent a cross engrailed 

 sable between Jour tor- 

 tea ux. 



a daughter Dorothy, and then Sir Anthony Browne ; 

 while Elizabeth Butler married John Orrell ot 

 Turton, and her sister Ellen died without issue 



Numerous disputes between the heirs occurred from 

 £$50 to 1600. William Lister in 1557 sold his 

 moiety of the manor to Hugh Andcrton of Euxton,* 

 and it descended to his eldest son James/ who is 

 described as 'of Clay ton* in 1573 and later/^ and had 

 a long and active career as an official and magis- 

 trate/'* As to the other moiety John Orrell con- 

 tended that it should be divided into three part^, 

 and that his wife should have two of them, one as 

 her own share and the other as sole heir of her 

 sister Ellen/ This claim was rejected, and the 

 Orrell fourth part of the manor was in i 598 sold to 

 James son of James Anderton/ but the sale was 

 rescinded or redeemed by William Orrell in 1600/-* 

 and James Anderton the father purchased it from 

 John Orrell, son of V/illiam, in 1610,^'' This sale 

 was confirmed in 1613. James Anderton the son 

 in 1608 acquired Dorothy Huddleston's portion,'" 



Warine son of Thomas son ofWarinc de 

 Clayton in 1341 released to Adam son of 

 John de Clayton land in Whittle held of 

 Warin ; Kuerdcn MSS. iii, C 25, 



• Lanes. In<^. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 77. 

 It is stated that Sir Richard de Hnghton 

 held the manor of the king as duke as 

 of his fee of Pcnwortham. The clear 

 value was 20 marks. 



Ralph son of John son of Adam de 

 Clayton was in 1367 contracted to marry 

 Margaret daughter of William Farington j 

 Kuerdcn MSS. iii, C 21;, 



^ Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 143. 



Adam son of Ralph Clayton was in 

 1 40 \ contracted to marry Kathcrlne 

 daughter of William Charnock 5 Kuerden 

 MSS. Iii, C25. 



^ In 14+8 a jury of the view of frank- 

 pledge of Clayton was summoned to 

 recognize if 50 acres of land, &c., had 

 been settled on Robert son of Adam de 

 Clayton and his issue ; John, Thomas 

 and Alice were the children of Robert ; 

 Pal. of Lane. Writs of Assize, 4 I\!,ir. 

 26 Hen. VI. 



■* A pedigree printed in the /"'/>;>. of 

 1613 (Chet. Soc), 47, gives the descent 

 as follows : Ralph -s, Adam -5. Thomas 

 bro. James -s. William (d.v.p.) -s. John. 



Adam Clayton attested a charter in 

 1440-1 ; Add. MS. 32109, fol. 79/'. 

 Thomas Clayton appears down to 1464 ; 

 ibid. fol. 87. John Cbytnn attested in 

 149S-9 ; ibid. fol. 91. Thomas son of 

 Adam Clayton married Blanche sister of 

 Sir Peter Legh ; Kuerden, ut s;.p. 

 But see Earwaker's East. Chcs. ii, 30^. 



^ The pedigree is set out in a petition 

 for a division of Clayton made in 15 1^5 5 

 Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 196, m. 3 ; 200, 

 m. 6 d. Anthony Brov/ne, Joan his wife, 

 and William Lister v.erc summoned to 

 answer John Orrell and Elizabeth his wife 

 regarding the capital messuage called 

 Clayton Hall, &c. A feoffment made by 

 John Clayton in 1527 is cited, and John 

 is described as kinsman and heir of James 

 Clayton. Anthony and Joan Browne in 

 1^49 made a settlement of their moiety 

 of the manor of Clayton ; Pal. of Lane. 

 Feet of F. bdle. 1 3, m. 21, 



Elizabeth widow of John Clayton was 

 an out-burgess of Preston in i ^42 ■ 

 Preston Guild R. (Lanes, and Ches. Rcc 

 Soc), 10, xxv-vi. 



'' Pal. of Lane Feet of F. bJlo. 17, m. 

 48. The estate was described as a moiety 



of the manor of Clayton, and of fifty 

 messuages, dovecote, water-mill, 800 acres 

 of land, &c. 



Hugh Anderton about the same time 

 purchased lands in Clayton belonging to 

 Richard Starkie ofApplcton in Cheshire; 

 Kuerden MSS, ii, fol. 239. The de- 

 forciants to the fine (1557) were Richara 

 Starkie, Elizabeth his wife, Jolin Clayton 

 and Maud his wife j Pal. of Lane. Feet 

 of F. bdle. 19, m. 77. 



^ See the pedigree in Dugdalc, Visit. 

 (Chet. Soc), 6. 



Hugh Anderton of Euxton died in 1566 

 holding a moiety of the manor of Cb) ton, 

 &c, of the Earl of Derby, Lord Mrnnt- 

 eagle, and Sir Richard Shireburne by a 

 rent of 6./. j Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. x', 

 no. 31. According to this tlie mesne lord- 

 ship of Hogliton had been replaced by that 

 of the lords of Leylandshire. 



James the son and heir of Hugh was 

 twenty-four years of age at his father's 

 death. 



His child marriage v.'ith Elizabeth 

 daughter and heir of Richard Elston of 

 Brockholes had been dissolved in 1561 5 

 Register Bk. at Chester Dioc Reg. i, 

 fol. 246. Elizabeth was married to Ralph 

 Holdcn of Holden before the sentence of 

 divorce ; Duchy of Lane. Plead, xliv, 

 A 5. J.imes Anderton was admitted to 

 Gray's Inn in 1562, He married Dorothy 

 Bardsey about 1576 ; she died in 1627. 



^^ Uuchy of Lane. Draft Decrees 

 15 Eliz. no. 21 ; Towncley MS. DD, 

 no. 19^5. Depositions made in April 

 1586 state that Roger Crook and others 

 V cnt to Chiyton Hall, being James 

 Anderton's dwelling-place, in the previous 

 month ; Duchy of Lane. Dep, (ser. 2), 

 bdle. 28, 28 Eliz,, no. 30. 



'^b He was stev/ard of the royal manor 

 of Muchland in Furncss from 1591 ; Pat. 

 33 Eliz. pt. iii, m. 40. He was receiver 

 for the possessions of Furncss Abbey from 

 1579 ; Duchy of Lane. Misc. Bks. xhv, 

 fol. 452A— 454. He was also a farmer of 

 the goods of felons and outlaws ; ibid, 

 fol, 369-71^. He was a magistrate; 

 Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 279, m. 11-13 *^' 

 He was one of the magistrates who at 

 Wigan in 1612 signed the order for dis- 

 arming recusants ; Chet. Soc. Publ. I, 2^9. 

 ^ Anthony Browne and Joan his w;fc 

 in I 550 complained that John Orrell had 

 entered into the whole of Ellen Butler's 

 share of the manor as having descended 



to Elizabeth his wife, whereas a moiety 

 of it should be given to Joan ; Ducby of 

 Lane. Plead. Edw. VI, xxv, B 21. 



John Charnock, the tenant of the 

 Brownes, complained in 1553 that he li.id 

 been disturbed byjohn Orrell and othcis, 

 who had entered armed Into his nioieiy 

 of the manor-house of Clayton, broken 

 open a chest, and taken goods away ; ibid. 

 Mary, xxxili, C 5 ; also xxxvii (n.d.), B 1 8. 



Hugh Andcrton of Euxton in 1557-8, 

 being seised of a moiety of the manor of 

 Clayton in common with Anthony 

 Browne, Joan his wife, and John 

 Orrell of Turton, owners of the other 

 moiety, complained that his cattle had 

 been driven away, and that he had n"t 

 been able to take the profits of his 

 moiety, owing to an incursion by 

 Orrell ; ibid, xxxv, A 2. 



This disturbance was due to the dis- 

 pute as to the third part of the moiety. 

 The rival claims are set out in pleadings 

 of 1560; ibid. Eliz. xliv, B31. Eliza- 

 beth Orrell in 1564, asserting her claim 

 to the two-thirds, prayed that her de- 

 fence might be made through her 

 husband ; Ibid. Ivi, O 3. 



^ Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 61, 

 no. 214. The vendor was William son 

 of John and Elizabeth Orrell. 



James Anderton the younger soon 

 complained that though he had paid f"r 

 the Orrell part of the manor he could 

 not obtain possession, William having 

 no good title ; Duchy of Lane. Plead. 

 Eliz. clxxxvil, A 26. William Orrell 

 replied that Anderton, who held a 

 moiety of the manor, and had bought 

 up much of tlie freeholders' lands in 

 the township, was now cndeniruring 

 to conceal what belonged to the Orrell 

 quarter, pretending that this or that 

 parcel belonged to one of the free- 

 holders' estates, and had altered the 

 boundaries. As the land was to be paid 

 for at the rate of £6 13^. 4,/. an acre 



Orrell desired an 



mvestlgatlon ; ibid. 



clxxxix, O 2, 



^ Close, 42 Eliz. pt. xlii (1657). 



^^ Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 7S, 

 no. 24; Pal. of Lane. Pica R. 306, m. i d. 



'^ The follov.ing fines relate to the 

 mr.nor and its divisions : — 



. 1602— James An icrton and Dorothy 

 las wife deforciants of a moiety of the 

 manor nf Clayton and a fourth part of 

 the manor of Whittlc-le-Woods ; Pal. of 



30 



