A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



rebuilt in stone and hrick, the roof covered with blue 

 slates, and the interior almost entirely modernized. 

 The front, however, which faces north, retains a good 

 deal of the original half-timber work, with a cove at 

 the line of the floor and under the eaves. The hall 

 was formerly lit by a long window of thirteen lights, 

 placed high in the wall, but now built up. Much 

 of the work is of a somewhat elaborate character, the 

 sill at the level of the first floor being richly car\'ed. 

 On the head of the door, which is slightly arched, are 

 the name and date ' Edwarde Worthington 1577,' 

 and in one of the spandrels the initials M.O. At the 

 "est end of the front a short low wing has been 

 erected against the main building, and a portion of 

 the front at the east end has been rebuilt in stone 

 and brick. The interior shows some of the old oak 

 construction, but is otherwise uninteresting. 



There are but few references to the place in the 

 plea rolls' or inquisitions.' A manor of Worthington 

 appears to have been claimed by Thomas Langtree of 

 Langtree in 1653.' 



North Hall was the property of James Hodson of 

 Ellerbeck in Duxbury, and descended to the late Lord 

 Cardwell, whose trustees are the present owners.* 



Lydia Rycroft of .\spull in l 7 l 7, as a ' Papist,' 

 registered her life estate in CoppuU mill bridge 

 tenement.' 



COPPULL 



Cophull, CophuUe, 1277; Copphull, 



1351 



CopthuU, 1374; CoppuU, 1444. 



This touTiship has the River Yarrow for part of its 

 northern bounJ.irv, the southern being formed by the 

 Buckow Brook, which divides CoppuU from Langtree 

 and Worthington. Chisnall lies in the extreme 

 western corner and Birkacre in the northern, while 

 Blainscough lies between them. The area is 2,2 So 



acres.' As the name indicates, the rising ground in 

 the centre is the main feature ; it attains over 300 ft. ; 

 on the northern slope, called Chapel Hillock, is the 

 small village. To the north-west of it is Springfield. 

 The population in 1901 was 2,940.' 



The principal road is that from Wigan to Preston, 

 going north through the western portion of the town- 

 ship ; several cross roads go east from it. The Wigan 

 and Chorley road is on the eastern side. The London 

 and North Western Company's Wigan and Preston 

 line runs northwards through the centre, and has a 

 station called CoppuU, a little north of the village ; 

 there are several mineral branch lines serving the 

 collieries in the township. 



The soil is clayey with subsoil stone ; wheat, barley 

 and oats are grown. 



The hearth tax return of 1666 gives a total of i 21 

 hearths charged. The largest houses were those of 

 Thomas Worthington, with fourteen hearths, Edward 

 Dicconson ten, and Edward Chisnall eight. Next 

 to this came William Crook's with five.' 



Roger Haydock, a zealous Quaker who was twice 

 imprisoned at Lancaster, was born at CoppuU in 

 1644 and died at Pcnketh, near Warrington, in 

 1696.' The other celebrities of the township are 

 two of the Worthingtons of Blainscough, one a Jesuit, 

 the other a Dominican, and Edward Chisnall. 



The township is governed by i parish council. 



There was anciently a cross in Kirk Lane." 

 ' Watling Street ' is named in an early Burscough 

 charter. 



This township was originally a part of 

 MJi\'ORS Worthington," and continued to be held 

 of the lords of the latter, but a manor of 

 COPPULL was granted to a family which assumed 

 the local name. Richard lord of CoppuU " was one 

 of the early benefactors of Burscough Priory, granting 

 land called Perburn." But little is known of the 



* Many of the references to Worthing- 

 ton appear to belong really to Coppull, 

 origin.iUy a part of it. 



Richard de Salfordshire and Cecily his 

 wife in 1292 claimed land in * Wrthin- 

 ton ' against Richard Sniult, alleging that 

 Cecily was daughter and heir of Hamo 

 son and heir of Roper de Ashton. De- 

 fendant said that Hamo had an elder 

 brother William, who granted the disputed 

 land, but it was alleged that William was 

 a bastard ; Assize R. 40S, m. 30. The 

 s.ime plaintiffs also claimed land against 

 Robert de Holland in * Wythington ' ; 

 ibid. 



William son of Clinkard of Goibourn 

 in 1356 claimed a messuage and land in 

 Worthington against Ralph son of Henry 

 del Burgh ; Duchy of Lane. Assize R. 4, 

 m. 7 d. The defendant called Richard 

 de Charnock to warrant him ; ibid, 5, 

 m. 4 d. Richard in turn called Henry 

 del Burgh to warrant, who summoned 

 John de Euxtoa ; ibid. -, m. 3 d. 



Robert de Prescot and Issbel his wife 

 claimed common of pasture in Worthing- 

 ton against Clemency widow of Richard 

 de Standish in 1 316, and then against 

 Hugh son of Richard de Standish ; ibid. 

 7, m. 5 ; S, m. 8. 



Adam de Dinkcdley and Joan his wife 

 in 1344 claimed dower in a messuage, 

 &c, in Worthington against Eimund son 

 of Roger Baret ; De Banco R. 338, m. 

 291 d. ; 340, m. 69 d. 



' Hugh Adlington in 1525 held lands 



in Worthington and CoppiU of Richard 

 Worthington by a rent o: 41. ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. vi, no. 73. 



Thomas Standish of Duxbury in 1599 

 held lands in Worthington, but the ser- 

 vices were unknown ; ibid, xvii, no. (;4. 



Thomas Fleetwood in 1576 held land 

 in Worthington ; ibid, xii, no. 2. Pro- 

 bably it was the Cockersand Abbey estate 

 or chantr)' lands. 



Edward Standish of Standish in 1611 

 held lands in Worthington of Edward 

 Rigby ; Lanes. Inf. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), i, 185. 



Robert Finch, though described as * of 

 Worthington' in 1610, held no lands in 

 the township ; ibid, i, 155. 



' Royali'.t Comp. Papers (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Chcs.), iv, 60. Lands in the 

 township were held by the family in 

 1519 ; Pal. of Lane Plea R. 128, m. 8. 



* See the account of Duxbury. 



* Engl. Catb. NGn-juror:^ 125. 



» 2,282, including 7 of inland water ; 

 Census Rep. 1 90 1. 



^ Including Springfield. 



^ Subs. R. Lanes, bdle. 250, no. 9. 



' See Diet. Nat. Biog. His writings 

 were published by John Field in 1700 ; 

 appended is a biography by his brother 

 John Haydock, dated at Coppull. 



"* Lanes, and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xvii, 19. 



'* It seems clear from many of the 

 charters and suits that * Worthington,* as 

 commonly used, included Coppull. In 

 1300 one Jordan son of John son of 



224 



Robert claimed 19 acres in Coppull 

 against John de Coppull, and the defence 

 was that there was no viU named Coppull, 

 this being merely a place in Worthing- 

 ton J De Banco R. 131, m. 270. Never- 

 theless, in 1332 the name of the township 

 is given as CoppuU-with-Worthington j 

 Exch. Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.}, 49. 



"He is called 'son of Thomas.' 

 Thomas de Coppull is named In the Pipe 

 Roll of 1213-15 J Farrer, Lanes. Pipe R. 

 251, He released to Alexander son of 

 John lands held of his son Richard ; 

 Kuerden MSS. iii, C 33, 



'^ Burscough Reg. fol. 47 ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Anct. D. 619-21 ; Dep. Keeper's 

 Rep. xxxvi, App. 201. The bounds in 

 one grant (620) are thus described : 

 Beginning where Blacklache descends 

 into the Perburn, up Blacklache north- 

 wards to a cross in the old ditch of Cold- 

 cotes, along the ditch to a cross in the 

 high road of Watling Street, along this 

 high road to a cross on the Perburn over 

 against the course of the great spring of 

 Langtree, and so down the thread of 

 Perburn water to another cross and the 

 said Blacklache. To this were added all 

 the grantor's part of the water of Per- 

 burn appertaining to 4 oxgangs, pannage 

 in the woods of CoppuU and other ease- 

 ments. The seal of no. 619 shows a 

 bird with the legend -|- sig. . . . icahdi 

 Di coPHTL. The deeds may be dated 

 between 1230 and 1264. 



