A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



lands, right of turbary, S:c., in Croston and Mawdeslcy 

 of Robert Hesketh by a rent of S;. 4/ ; also lands 

 in Rainford and Bickerstaffe. His son Henry came 

 of age in 1593.' The Knights Hospitallers' and 

 the priory of Burscough had lands in Croston,' as 

 also had Cockersand Abbey.* 



The freeholders recorded in 1600 were Thomas 

 Ashton, Henry Croston and John Banastre,' and in 

 1628 Thomas Ashton and \\'illiam Croston were the 

 landowners contributing to the subsidy, the latter 

 being a convicted recusant.* Several of the people 

 had their estates sequestered or confiscated under the 

 Commonwealth for religious or political reasons.' In 

 I 7 1 7 a number of 'Papists' registered estates.' In 

 1783 the principal owners were John Trafford, the 

 heirs of Thomas Hesketh and Dr. Master, the 

 rector.' 



Finney is several times mentioned.'" 



The parish church has been described above. 



There are Wesleyan and Primitive Methodist 

 churches ; the former dates from 1823." 



Nothing appears to be known of the provision for 

 worship made by Roman Catholics after the Reforma- 

 tion"; but in I 701 the Jesuits are found in charge of the 

 Croston Mission," and in 1750 the priest, who had 

 a stipend of jf 14, reported fifty general confessions and 

 ' customers ' or worshippers numbering 170." L.itcr 

 the mission appears to have been given up, but a 

 private chapel was built at the hall in 1793, replaced 

 by the present one, Holy Cross, in I 85 7. 



MAWDESLEY 



Moudesley, 1288; Moudeslegh, 1302; Mauds- 

 ley, 1327. 



This township, which was formerly closely con- 

 nected ivith Croston, has an area of 2,934 acres," and 

 the population in 1901 was 969. In the west and 

 north the moss-land is below the 25 ft. level, the 

 surface rising to 160 ft. above the ordnance datum on 

 the south-east border. The principal hamlet is at 

 Hurst Green, near the centre ; another, called the 

 Nook, lies to the north-east. Black Moor is in the 

 south-west. 



The chief road is that passing north-east and north 

 through the two hamlets mentioned ; another road 

 near the Douglas, which forms the western boundary, 

 goes to Rufford, crossing the river at White Bridge. 

 Near the same place the Lancashire and \'orkshire 

 Company's railway from Liverpool to Preston passes 

 through a corner of Mawdesley. 



The soil is a stiff clay, with subsoil of marl and 

 clay. Wheat, oats and beans are grown. Basket- 

 making and willow-growing have been important 

 industries for some fifty years. Mawdesley grown 

 rods, which are raised on dry, not marshy, land, have 

 obtained a reputation in the trade for strength.'" 



Mawdesley is governed by a parish council. 



There are remains of ancient crosses at Hurst 

 Green and near the border of Eccleston. The latter 

 is called Robin Hood's Cross, and has a well near it." 



Croston to Thomas Hesketh ; Towneley 

 MS. BB, no. 21, 18. Henry's widow Eliza- 

 beth married again by 1524; ibid. DD, 

 no. 102, 103. In 1529 Richard Croston 

 and Joan his wife made a feoffment of 

 lands in Rainford and Bickerstaffe ^ Kuer- 

 den MSS. li, fol. 13+i. In 1547 Henry 

 Croiton was summoned to render to his 

 mother Joan ^10 due to her ; he had a 

 son Hugh ; Pal. of Lane Writs Proton. 

 I Edw. VI. Three years later (in 1550) 

 Joan widow of Wiiliani Dalton claimed 

 a tenement in Croston against Henry 

 son and heir of Richard Croston ; Pal. 

 of Lane. Plea R. 189, m. 3. Henry 

 Croston in 1^6- sold a piece of land in 

 Croston to Sir Thomas Hesketh ^ Tuwnc- 

 ley MS. BB, no. 1^92. 



The plea rolls furnish but few refer- 

 ences. Walter son of Henry de Croston 

 claimed a messuage, &c., in 1278 against 

 Alice daughter of Robert son of the 

 chaplain ; De Banco R. 27, m. 38. 

 John de Croston was a defendant in 

 1 281 ; ibid. 41, m. 30 d. Peter son 

 of Peter de Croston claimed land against 

 William de la Mare in 1283 ; ibid. 

 50, m. 5. Robert son of Peter de 

 Croston was plaintiff in 1292 j Assize 

 R. 408 i m. 71 d. Roger son of Robert 

 the Potter claimed the third part of a 

 messuage, &c,, against William son of 

 John Olotson in 1337 ; De Banco R. 

 309, m. 313. William son of Peter 

 occurs in 1355 ; Duchy of Lane. Assize 

 R. 4, m. 24 d. 



There are a number of Croston deeds 

 in Towneley's MS. BB, above cited. 

 Some other notes on the family may be 

 teen in Baines' Lanes, (ed. Croston), iv, 

 121-3. 



' Duchy of Lane. Incj. p.m. xvi, 

 no. 31. 



' Roger de Montbegon (before 12 12) 

 gave them an oigang of land here in alms ; 

 Inj. jr.J Extcnn, i, 63. Croston appears 



in the list of the Hospitallers' lands in 

 1292 ; PIjc. dc Quo H'arr. (Rec. Com.), 

 p. 375. In 1329 the prior claimed a 

 messuage and land against Robert son of 

 William son of John de Cruslon ; Dc 

 Banco R. 279, m. i8od. About 1540 

 the tenant was John Banastre, who paid 

 a rent of 20df. ; Kuerden MSS. >, 

 fol. 83*. 



Margcr)* Banastre in 1546 claimed a 

 messuage. Ice, on Windle Hill against 

 George Nelson ; Ducalus Lane. (Rec. 

 Com.), i, 179. For a later Banastre 

 dispute see Duchy Plead, ili, 19-2^. 



' John dc la Mare, lord of Croston, 

 gave the prior and canons land here ; 

 Burscough Reg. fol. 5 3A. Adam the 

 Serjeant's oxgang of land is named in 

 this charter. In 1536 Thomas Ferrer 

 seems to have been tenant at a rent of 

 6d. ; Duchy of Lane. Rentals, bdle. 4, 

 no. 6a and b, 



* Coehnand Chartul. (Chct. See), iii, 

 1260— I ; the tenants* names are given 

 as William Croston in 1450 and 1461, 

 Edward Croston in 1501 and 1537. 



' Mne. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 

 ', 244- 



"Ibid. 16;. 



" The troubles of the Ashtons have 

 been recited above. 



Jane Dandy, widow, had had two- 

 thirds of her tenement sequestered for 

 recusancy, and in 1653 desired to com- 

 pound ; Royalist Camp. Papers (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), ii, 117. 



Elizabeth widow of William Finch had 

 her life tenement sequestered for recu- 

 sancy and * adhering to the king's party.' 

 She petitioned in 1649, but died in 1654, 

 apparently before restitution. Her 

 daughters, heirs to the property, were 

 living — Margaret wife of Thomas 

 Worsley, and Ellen wife of William 

 Hoghton. Ellen was a Protestant ; ibid. 



Cj6 



William Naylor, a ' P.npist,' who held 

 a lease of Ilarcsnapes tenement and Old- 

 field Heys, had it sequestered for recu- 

 sancy ; it was afterwards confiscated and 

 sold ; ibid, iv, 206-9 ; Index of Royatisn 

 (Index Soc), 43. 



Michael Ruttcr, of Quinton, Glou- 

 cestershire, for at first adhering to the 

 king, had houses, &c.. In Croston seques- 

 trated and sold ; Cal. Com. for Comp, iii, 

 1843 ; Index of Royalists, 44. 



Ellis Wright's tenement was sequestered 

 for his recusancy and sold ; Cal. Com. 

 for Comp. iv, 2778 i Index of Royalists, 

 4'- 



* Besides John TrafTord there were the 

 following : Joseph Bolton, Thomas 

 Dalton, William Dandy, Richard Lang- 

 tree and Jenet Worsley ; Eetcourt and 

 Payne, Engl. Cath. Non-jurors, 109, &c. 



" Land tax returns at Preston. 



'" Ducalus Lane. (Rec. Com.), iii, 303, 

 505 ; Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 283, m. 24. 

 In the Piccope MSS. (Chet. Lib.), iii, 3, 

 is an abstract of title to the estate called 

 Finney House. 



" Baines, Lanes, (ed. 1836), iii, 401. 



" There were not many recusants in 

 1628 ; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 

 '. 173- 



" Foley, Records S. J. 1, 320. Edmund 

 Smith, the priest, had a stipend of ,£5 ; 

 he died in 1727. 



" Ibid. ■/, 321. Richard Leckonby 

 seems to have been in charge from about 

 1730 till his death in 1771. 



'^ The Census Rep. 1901 gives 2,947 

 acres, including 3 of inland water ; in 

 addition there are 2 acres of tidal 

 water. 



" Hewitson, Our Country Churches, 235; 

 the writer gives an unfavourable account 

 of the conditions of the place about 1 870. 

 Kew Bulletin, no. 9 (1908). 



'' Lanes, atij Che:. Antij. Soc. xvii, 1 1 



'3- 



