A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



seneschal.^ This descended with Clayton for some 

 time,- but at length was perhaps sold or surrendered 

 and granted out to others, becoming the origin of 

 several estates occurring in the records. Philip de 

 Penwortham made settlements of messuages and lands 

 in 1333 ^ ; part of these appears to have been given 

 to John de Ellisley in 1376,^ and in the 17th 



century ' Ellislev lands' were owned by Alexander 

 RIgby of Middleton.f^ In 1542-3 ^he following 

 contributed to the subsidy for their lands : Chris- 

 topher Charnley, Robert Aughton and William 

 Werden, clerk.® In 1564 John Fleetwood and 

 William Forshaw are named in the same way.^ 

 Ploket,^ Bower,^ Forshaw,^'^ Hesketh/^ Norris/' 



Penwortham Priory 



then Btanding on this site as a 'humble 

 edifice,' three aides of which wtre still 

 entire and inclosed by a moat. The 

 fourth or north side, which he conjectured 

 had contained the chapel, had been re- 

 built within the recollection of people 

 then alive. There was a quadrangle 

 about 40 ft. square, but the structure had 

 been bo modified by the Fleetwoods that 

 it was impossible to trace from it the 

 disposition of the original priory buildings. 



' Lanes. Inq. and Extents^ i, 33. The 

 Clayton family does not occur again at 

 Penwortham. 



2 Ibid. 149 (1242), 315 (1302). 



' Final Cone* ii, 90, 91. Two sepa- 

 rate estates were settled on Philip's son 

 Nicholas, with remainders tn daughters 

 Agnes, Katherine, Joan, Margaret and 

 Alice. 



Penwortham as a surname is found 

 much earlier ; it may have been used by 

 some of the Bussel family ; Farrer, Lanes. 

 Pipe R. 180. See also ibid. 323 ; Final 

 Cone, i, 189. William son of Master 

 William de Preston in. 13 10 claimed two 

 messuages and lands in Penwortham 

 against William the Harper, in right of 

 his mother Alice, daughter of Adam son 

 of Walter de Penwortham 5 De Banc. R. 

 18:;, m. 326. 



' Richard de Certeden (as a trustee) in 

 1365 granted to Ellen daughter of Philip 

 de Penwortham and her son John land in 

 the place called Rolegh ; and in 1376 the 

 said Ellen granted the land to John de 

 Ellisley and Alice his wife ; Towneley 

 MS. DD, no. 271-2. 



* Ralee ' occurs in a grant by Albert 

 Bussel, with the consent of Geotirey his 

 brother and Lettice his wjc, to the church 

 of Evesham ; Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), 

 xiv, 49. 



* He died in 1621 owning a messu-'gr, 

 &c., called Ellifiiey Meadow, and other 

 lands in Middlelorth and Penwortham, 

 held of Richard Fleetwood in socage by a 

 rent of \od. ; Lanes. In:^. p.m. (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), iii, 4^9 ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. xxv, no. 31. 



^ Subs. R. 130, no. 126, Lanes. 



' Ibid. 131, no. 210. 



® The name has already occurred 

 among the Lacy tenants. In 1292 

 William de Wittingham withdrew a claim 

 he had made for the fourth part of 60 

 acres of wood against Henry de Lacy 

 Earl of Lincoln and Hugh Pluket ; Assize 

 R. 408, m, 63. 



William Ploket in 1333 granted to 

 John del Wich all the land which had 

 belonged to Hugh Ploket his grandfather, 

 lying upon the Ribble between Duxupil 

 and the land of William del Scales ; 

 Kucrden fol. MS. p. 310. See also the 

 account of Longton. 



* Adam son of Adam de la Bov.tr 

 (Bure) of Penwortham in 1294 claimed 

 land against Cecily daughter of Robert de 

 la Bower; Assize R. 1299, m. 14 d. In 

 1 3 1 1 and later Henry son of Adam del 

 Bower claimed a messuage and land 

 against William the Harper, who alleged 

 a grant by Cecily * dc Camera,' grand- 

 mother of the plaintiff ; De Banc. R. 185, 

 ra. 95 198, m. 87 d. Thomas Bower 

 made a purchase from Richard Molyneux 

 and Eleanor his wife in 1556; Pal. of 

 Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 17, m. 153. The 

 Molyneux land in Penwortham had been 

 held of the priory ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. 

 p.m. ix, no 2. 



^^ Thurstan Forshaw (son of Thomas 

 son of William Forshaw) in 1453— 4 made 

 a feoffm.^nt of his hereditary lanJs in 

 Penwortham, Bokon, Tarleton and 



60 



Lathom ; Kuerden fol. MS. p. 130, In 

 1462 one messuage with a meadow called 

 Croking in Penwortham was restored to 

 Thurstan j ibid. p. 370. In 1482 this 

 was granted by Hugh Radcliffs to Hugh 

 Woodcock ; ibid. p. 357. Joan widow ot 

 William Forshaw is mentioned in a deed 

 of 1445 ; ibid. p. 410. 



James Forshaw died in 1563 holding 

 messuages and lands in Penwortham and 

 the neighbourhood, and leaving a son and 

 heir William of full age. The Penwor- 

 tham lands were held of the queen as oi 

 her manor of Penwortham in socage by a 

 rent of lu. \d. \, Duchy of Lane. Inq. 

 p.m. xi, no. 41. From disputes in 1592, 

 after William Forshaw's death about 

 1585, it seems that he held Banastre 

 House and Lower Hall, his son John 

 Forshaw making claim upon it against 

 Alice his mother and her second husband 

 Barnaby Kitchin ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Plead. Eliz. clx, F 19. The whole seems 

 to have been sold to William Farington 

 in 1595 ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 

 57, m, 160. There are several references 

 to the family in Dueatus Lane. 



1' The tenure of the Hesketh ol 

 Rufford lands is not stated in the inquisi- 

 tions ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. v, no. 1 6. 

 George, a younger son of Robert Hesketh, 

 was in possession in 1623 ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), iii, 353, 358. 

 He paid ^^lo on refusmg knighthood in 

 1631 ; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches. ), i, 21 4. An earlier George 

 Hesketh (Kirkham) had held land In 

 Penwortham of John Fleetwood ; Duchy 

 of Lane. Inq. p.m. xiii, no. 15. 



'^ Nicholas N'orris died at Longton io 

 1O41 holding a messuage and land in 

 MiJdleforth and Penwortham, and leav- 

 ing a son and heir Nicholas ascd ei^ht 



