A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



of Clayton, lord of the manor of Eccleshill, as to the 

 boundary between their reipective manors and for 

 the making of ditthes to mark the same.^' In 1593-4 

 John Osbaldeston, grandson of the before-mentioned 

 John, disposed of nearly a dozen small tenements in 

 the manor to a number of persons probably inhabi- 

 tants.^'' 



In 1658 Alexander Osbaldeston sold the manor 

 to Edward Warren of Poynton,'^ whose son John 

 Warren in 1699 lodged a bill of complaint against 

 Henry Hulton of Hulton, alleging that Hulton in 

 confederacy with others had endeavoured to extend 

 the boundary of Longworth so as to inclose part of 

 the manor of Over Darwen, had pastured cattle and 

 sheep and made inclosures on Over Darwen Moor. ^^ 

 The manor was advertised for sale in 1766 by Sir 

 George Warren, K.B., great-grandson of John Warren, 

 and was eventually purchased by or for John TrafFord, 

 then of Croston and afterwards of TrafFord,^' who 

 erected a house upon the eastern edge of Darwen 

 Moor, overlooking the valley of the Darwen. The 

 house, which is known as Lord's Hall, stands at an 

 elevation of 1,200 ft. above the ordnance datum in 

 a bleak and dreary situation. It is now used as a 

 keeper's lodge.^^ Mr. TrafFord did not long reside 

 in the township, and in 1 8 1 1 , a few years before 

 his death, sold the manor to George Duckworth.^' 

 Mr. Duckworth died in 1 8 1 5 and was succeeded by 

 his eldest son Samuel Duckworth, a barrister-at-law 

 and Master in Chancery, sometime M.P. for Leicester, 

 who died unmarried in 1 847, when he was succeeded 

 by his brother William Duckworth of Beechwood 

 Forest, co. Hants, afterwards of Orchardleigh, co. 

 Somerset. Mr. Duckworth died in 1876 and was 

 succeeded by his eldest surviving son the Rev. William 

 Arthur Duckworth of Orchardleigh Park, Frome, M.A. 

 Cantab., rector of Puttenham, Guildford, 1859-77, 

 and present lord of the manor. 



In the time of Henry VI Geoffrey Osbaldeston 

 gave puture to the king's Serjeants of the wapentake 

 for one plough-land here, for which in 1662 the sum 

 of 4J. i.d. was paid rateably by the inhabitants.*" 



Duckworth. Argent 

 a crost pointej sable 

 'voided or, in chief two 

 griffons' heads erased 

 each surmounting four 

 spear-heads conjoined in 

 saltire proper. 



The number of hearths assessed to the tax in 1666 



was 1 1 9.'" 



In 1788 the princip.il landowners were Mr. 



TrafFord's executors and Mrs. Walshaw Aspinall." 

 The family of Baron held 



an ancient freehold here. In 



1332 William le Baron con- 

 tributed \s. towards one mark 



levied from the township to 



the subsidy.*^ In 1345 



Richard son of Adam son of 



Alan de Derwynd demanded 



from John son of Adam Jud- 



dison and William son of 



Thomas le Baron three messu- 

 ages in Over Darwen and 



Eccleshill." Robert Baron 



was assessed upon goods 40/. 



to the subsidy of 1524 in 



Hoddlesden.*^ In 1540 



Richard Baron of Eccleshill, 

 yeoman, and others were at- 

 tached to answer Alexander Osbaldeston, kt., on a 

 charge of trespass and delivering turves at Over 

 Darwen.*^ James Baron in 1543, Edmund in 1570 

 and John in 1599 were assessed upon land to the 

 subsidies levied here. In 1574 Edmund Baron con- 

 veyed two messuages, 70 acres of land and 66 acres 

 of moor in Over Darwen and Eccleshill to trustees.'" 

 John Baron, yeoman, died in 161 1 seised of an estate 

 called ' Baron's Ouldlande ' and two other messuages 

 held of Edward Osbaldeston in socage. James his son 

 died in 1620 without male issue.** John Baron paid 

 for three hearths in 1666.'^ 



Nicholas of the Cross was also a contributor to the 

 subsidy of 1332. Richard Crosse was a trustee of the 

 Earl of Derby's chantry in Blackburn Church founded 

 in I 5 14, and was assessed upon £z lands in i 524, as 

 was Richard Crosse in i 543. John Cross living 1556 

 was the father of William Crosse who was assessed to 

 the subsidy of 1570 and was ancestor of Crosse of 

 Turncroft in Over Darwen. The last representative 



33 Towneley MS. OO, no. 1091. There 

 had been frequent trespasses committed 

 by Grimshagh's tenants within the manor 

 of Over Darwen. The boundary awarded 

 by arbitrators began at the north-west 

 corner at * Hoddleston,' parcel of Osbal- 

 deston's inheritance within ' Derwind,' 

 following a new ditch made by Osbaldeston 

 unto the Brydestoues to a hole made 

 amongst the same stones by the media- 

 tors, so westward to other holes and so to 

 a ' HoUing Bush ' growing in the wall at 

 the north end of a tenement belonging to 

 Osbaldeston in ' Overdarwind.' 



S4 Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 55, 

 m. 116; 56, m. 141. The purchasers 

 were : Henry Mawdsley, John Crosse, 

 Ralph Marsden, John Crichelowe, Thomas 

 Fisshe, sen., John Pylling, George Hol- 

 den, Thomas Sharpe, Ralph Fisshe, 

 Peter Waddington, William Waddington, 

 Thomas Fisshe, jun., Lawrence Heye, 

 sen., Lawrence Heye, jun., Anne Ent- 

 wisle, John Yate and William Ellison. 

 In a deed of 1612 vesting the estates of 

 Edward Osbaldeston in trustees there ia 

 mention of ' coal mines in Over Darwen ' ; 

 ibid. bdle. 80, m. 66. 



"Ibid. bdle. 163, m. 117. The 

 manorial estate included forty messuages, 

 a mill, thirty cottages, 1,200 acres of 



land, 1,200 acres of heath, ^1 of free 

 rents, and view of frankpledge. 



3^ Complainant stated in his bill that 

 his father and ancestors had been seised 

 of the manor and its members and of 

 several large uninclosed commons, moors 

 and moss grounds, parcel of the manor \ 

 that Henry Hulton was seised of lands in 

 the manor of Longworth, where there 

 were great moors ; that Over Darwen 

 adjoined Turton on the east, belonging to 

 (Edward) Chetham, esq., and Sharpies 

 on the west, belonging to Sir Rowland 

 Bellasis. The boundary of Over Darwen 

 was thus described. At * top of boundary * 

 between Over Darwen and Turton was a 

 place called Redmeris, further westward 

 another ancient mere called the Turne 

 Law or Little Law, where the manors of 

 Turton, Longworth and Over Darwen 

 all met ; westward again was a mere 

 called Oakenclough Head, and again west- 

 ward a syke or current of water falling 

 under another mere called Warcocke- 

 lowe ; thence the boundary ran north- 

 ward by the said syke or current, called 

 Darwen Head or Darwen Shield, dividing 

 Over Darwen from Bromeley pasture in 

 Sharpies ; these meres separated the parish 

 of Blackburn from that of Bolton-in-the- 

 Moors ; Duchy of Lane. Plead, bdle. 458. 



272 



3^ In 1766 Sir Geo. Warren passed the 

 manor by fine to James Watson and 

 Robert Slack 5 Feet of F. bdle. 378, 

 m. 99; in 1780 Slack passed it to 

 Richard Trafford, probably executor of 

 John TrafFord, sen., of Croston ; ibid, 

 bdle. 404, m. 80. In the meantime 

 there appears to have been a mortgage 

 upon the estate, which the heirs of Ed 

 ward Chetham passed by fine in 1775 to 

 Edward Earl of Derby ; ibid. bdle. 394, 

 m. 52. *s Abram, Blackburn^ 499. 



»» Pal. of Lane Rec R. 17, no. 13. 



*" MSS. at Huntroyde and penes W. 

 Farrer. 



*^ Lay Subs. Lanes, bdle. 250, no. 9. 

 Margaret Crosse, John Barron, James 

 Horridge, William and Roger Walsh, 

 each three hearths. <' Land tax return. 



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

 and £hes.), 84. 



" De Banco R. 344, m. 507. 



<* Lay Subs. Lanes, bdle. 130, no. 82. 



" Pal. of Lane. Writs Proton, bdle. 28, 

 no. 60. <' Feet of F. bdle. 36, m. 191. 



*' Duchy of Lane Inq. p.m. xi, 5 ; 

 iiii, 75 ; Lanes. Imj. (Rec Soc Lanes, 

 and Ches.), iii, 176 ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. ivi, 115 ; see Abram, Black- 

 burn, 501. 



*' Lay Subs. Lanes, bdle. 250, no. 9. 



