A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



(he Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway from Preston 

 to Southport runs through the western part of the 

 township, where there is a station called Hoole. 



The township is governed by a parish council. 



The people are chiefly employed in agriculture, 

 but there is a large cotton miO at Walmer Bridge. 



The early history of the manor of 

 MAiXOR LITTLE HOOLE is very obscure. It 

 is supposed to have been part of the 

 Warrington fee,i but was very early given to the 

 Knights Hospitallers in alms,^ and thus remained un- 

 noticed. The earliest immediate holders took their 

 surname from the place,' but it passed by 1250 to the 

 Botelers of RawclifFe,^ who held it down to the 1 6th 

 century,^ paying a rent of 6d. to the Hospitallers. 

 By Isabel, one of the daughters and heirs of John 

 Butler, it passed to her daughter Anne RadclifFe of 

 Winmarleigh, who married Sir Gilbert Gerard.' 

 Their second son RadclifFe Gerard died in 1596 

 holding the manor of Little Hoole, with windmill, 

 &c., of the queen by knights' service, and leaving a 

 son and heir Charles, two years old.' In 1624. it 

 was sold by Sir Charles Gerard and Penelope his wife 



to Thoma; Edgc.^ The new purchaser died before 

 the end of the year holding the manor and mill of 

 the heirs of John son of Augustine de Hoole in socage 

 by !</. rent ; his son and heir Richard was ten years 

 old.' By the end of the century it appears to have 

 been divided among Richard's heirs '" and disappears 

 from the records. Bridget, one of the heirs, who 

 married Samuel Fellows, seems to have had this 

 manor, and in 1783 Rice Fellows was the sole land- 

 owner in the township.^^ He was succeeded by Rice 

 George Fellows of Edmonton, who died about 1848. 

 Courts were held in his time," but after his death 

 the land was sold in lots. The manor was in 1870 

 said to be held by John McKean, a cotton manu- 

 facturer.'^ The lordship, considered to be joined 

 with the possession of the old manor-house and 

 certain land, was afterwards sold to the father and 

 uncle of the present lord of the manor, Mr. Thomas 

 Richard Wilkins of Longton.'^ 



Cockersand Abbey had lands in Little Hoole." 

 There is a Primitive Methodist chapel.'' Thirty 

 or forty years ago the Congregationalists had a preach- 

 ing station at Walmer Bridge." 



' Land. Inq. and Extent! (Rcc. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Chcs.), i, 7. 



' it occurs among the HoipitallerB' 

 lands in 1 292 ; Pijc. de Quo tVarr. (Rcc. 

 Com.), 375. 



' It will be observed that in \(>l^ the 

 manor was traditionally held of the heirs 

 of John dc Hoole. In 1292 Margcr. 

 relict of Alan of Little Hoole was non- 

 suited in a claim for dower against 

 Thomas de Sing]ct>'n and Joan his wife \ 

 Assize R- 40fe, m. zq, 



John son and heir of John Passavent 

 in 1323-4 recovered a tenement in Little 

 Hoole against Richard Prior and Alice 

 hi wife, Roger Magson and Maud his 

 wife, William de Fi^hwick and Margery 

 his wife. The wives were sisters, each 

 holding a third part ; ibid. 4.2 5, m. 5. 



* Agues widow of Robert de Hoole 

 quitclaimcJ to Richard le Boteler all her 

 dower right in her husband's tenement ; 

 Dod!. MSS. liii, fol. 95. The date is 

 about 1246, Matthew de Redmayne being 

 sheriff. 



In 1256 Richard le Boteler claimed 

 half a plough-land in Little Hoole against 

 John dc la M.ire, who granted it subject 

 to a rent of J mark in addition to the 

 srr\ ices due to the chief lords of the fee j 

 Final Cjfic. 'Roc. Soc, Lanes, and Ches.), 

 1, 124. 



Alice widow of William de Lorum re- 

 leased to Nicholas Ic Boteler in 1299 all 

 right to her husband's lands in Little 

 Hoole i Dods. Mj-S. liii, fo!. 89. Nicholas 

 had placed his mother Joan in possession 

 of the manor ; ibid. fol. 92^. 



Sir Nicholas le Boteler did not prose- 

 cute a claim he made in 1356 against 

 William son of Robert dc RadclifFe and 

 others ; Duchy of Lane. Assize R. 4, m. 

 9 d. Probably it was a boundary dispute. 

 The manor seems to have been in the 

 possession of Robert de Urswick and 

 Ellen hi^ wife in 1378 [Final C:nc, iii, 5), 

 but in 1401 John Boteler of Rawcliffe 

 ana Agnes his wife granted the capital 

 messuage to their son Nicholas and 

 Marjrrv his wife, daughter of Sir Richard 

 de Kirkby ; Dods. MSS. cxlix, fol. 115. 

 Niche las and Margcr;- made a feoffinent 

 of it in 1423 ; Final Cine, iii, 88. 



In 1445-5 N:cholas and yohn Boteler 

 held a ploii^h-lanj in Little Hoole for the 



tenth part of a knight's fee, the relief due 

 being loj. ; Duchy of Lane. Knights' 

 Yzii^ bdlc. 2, no. 20. 



Various references to Nicholas and his 

 son John occur in the plea rolls of 1442 

 onward ; e.g. Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 5, 

 m, 4 ; 6, m, 6 J 10, m. 5. In 1462 

 John Boteler of Rawcliffe gave to Eliza- 

 beth witr of John son of Nicholas 

 Boteler tenements in Little Hoole for 

 life; Dods. ,MSS. liii, fol. 83A. 



' See the IT ipitallers' Rental, c. 1540, 

 in Kuerden .MSS. i", foL 84. It is note- 

 worthy that in iv'J? James Butler is 

 stated to have held * ihe moiety of the 

 manor of Great Hooie ' of the H -pi toilers 

 in socage ; it was worth clear £1 ^ per 

 annum ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iii, 

 no. 109. It is Little Hoole only in a 

 preceding inquisition ; ibid, iii, no. 43, 

 45. The partition between Great and 

 Little Hoole was made in 1552 ; Dods. 

 MSS. liii, fol. 93*. 



® John Butler died in 1 j; ^4, leaving four 

 daughters as co-heirs ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. vii, no. 4 j viii, no. 8. The 

 heir male was Nicholas Butler, who died 

 about H55 holding the manors of Great 

 and Little Hoo e ; ibid, x, no. 4. A 

 settlement was made in 1564 by Richard 

 the son and heir of Nicholas, Little Hoole 

 Manor being included ; PaL of Lane. 

 Feet of F. bdle. 26, m. 253. Henry 

 Butler as a landowner contributed to a 

 subsidy in 1564; Subs. R, Lanes, bdle. 

 131, no. 210. The division between the 

 representatives of John Butler was made 

 in I 572, the manor of Little Hoole being 

 assigned to Gilbert Gerard and Anne his 

 wife in her right ; PaL of Lane. Feet 

 of F. bdle. 33, m. 79 ; ibid. Plea R. 231, 

 m. 8. Settlements were made of the 

 manor of Little Hoole and tenements 

 there by Gilbert Gerard and Anne his 

 wife in 1583 and 1586; ibid. bdle. 45, 

 m. 74 ; 48, m. 205. Hoole is named in 

 the inquisition after Sir Gilbert's death 

 (1593), but the tenure it not distinctly 

 stated ; Duchyof Lanc.Inq.p.m. ni, no. 2. 

 ' Ibid, ivii, no. 18. Anne the widow 

 of Sir Gilbert was in l 597 living at Little 

 Hoole. The manor was held by the 

 200th part of a knight's fee. 



For the Gerard family see the accounts 

 of Astlev and Halsall. 



' Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 105, 

 no. 20. The sale included in addition to 

 the manor twenty messuages, a windmill, 

 cottages, gardens, (S;c., land, wood, heath, 

 moss, moor and marsh. 



*• Lanes. Inf. f>.ni. (Rec, Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), Hi, 460. 



Bridget widow of Thomas Edge appears 

 to have married Daniel Shetterton, and in 

 1649 Richard Edge obtained the manor 

 of Little Hoole from Daniel and Bridget ; 

 Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 146, m. 1 64. 



Thomas Edge was a London merchant 

 and his son Richard Is described as * of 

 Eltham, Kent' j Fishwick, CoojMa;-^^, 1 52. 



Walter and Augustine de Hoole 

 attested charters granted between 123Z 

 and 1237; Croxteth D. The former 

 was of Much Hoole. 



"* In 1690 Thomas Edge sought two 

 parts of the manor of Little Hoole (into 

 four parts divided) against Joseph Edge 

 and Samuel Fellows and Bridget his wife j 

 Pal, of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 225, m. 49. 

 In 1695 Thomas Wade and Susan his 

 wife held a fourth part of the manor j 

 ibid. bdle. 234, m. 8. Then in 1698 

 James Edge claimed a fourth part against 

 John Pembroke and Elizabeth his wife ; 

 ibid. bdle. 241, m. 42. Bridget, Susan 

 and Elizabeth were probably the daughters 

 of Richard Edge. 



" Land tax return at Preston. 



" Raines in Notilia Cestr. (Chet. Soc), 

 ". 377- 



" Haines, Lanes, (ed. 1870), 11, 122. 



'* Information of Mr. Wilkins. 



" Cockersand Chartul. (Chet. Soc), ii, 

 448-57. Walter de Hoole gave the 

 ' great land ' on Aldficld, the 'long land ' 

 in Waldmurc bridge (Walmer bridge), two 

 ' lands ' on Mcrefield next to those which 

 Waltheof de Poulton gave to St. John, 

 another ' land ' on Middlefield, and many 

 other parcels. John son of Ravcnkil de 

 Hutton released to the canons the land 

 he held of them. Waltheof de Poulton 

 was alto a benefactor, giving land in 

 Wridc furlong, Rainboht, Hamdlands, 

 Waldsmoor furlong, Crookland, Wet fur- 

 long and Bean furlong. William ton o( 

 Waltheof added another piece. 



'* The first chapel was built in 18 54, 

 the present in 1894. 



" Nightingale, Lanes. A'c-iein/ ii, 40. 



5 + 



