BLACKBURN HUNDRED 



and Clitheroe to Walton-le-Dale passes through the 

 township, a lane branching off to Higher Walton. 

 The noted Cuerdale hoard of silver coins was dis- 

 covered in 1 840 whilst repairs were being done to 

 the bank of the Ribble a short distance below Cuer- 

 dale Hall.^ Some relics of early man have also been 

 found here.* The township forms part of the ancient 

 parochial chapelry of Low Church or Walton-le-Dale. 

 A wayside cross formerly stood near the centre of the 

 township.^ 



In 1662 the puture rent for the township amounted 

 to 3J-. 418'. and was paid by • Richard Coope ^J., 

 Thomas Thornley's tenement ^d., John Smith 3(/., 

 John Marsden 2</., Richard Seedall ^J., George 

 Blakey 4//., Thomas Worthington 21/., John Dave 

 !</., Margaret Bruer, widow, iJ., Abraham Ernshaw 

 iJ., George Coope 2</., Robert Blakey 3a'., paid by 

 the constable jJ. 



Cuerdale was rated as one plough-land, was charged 

 with the sum of jis. lod. to the subsidy of 1332, 

 and contributed to a ' fifteenth ' i is. dd. out of 

 ^37 \s. id. charged upon the hundred.^ 



The first possessor of whom mention 

 MjiNOR is found was Warine de Kiuerdale, living 

 in the time of Henry II, Richard I and 

 John, of whose charters two have been recorded.^ 

 He had a numerous family, Gilbert, who afterwards 

 held half the manor, and Gospatric, Peter, Richard 

 and Siegrith, to each of whom he seems to have given 

 a share of the remainder. Gilbert eldest son of 

 Warine attested with his son Alexander the charter 

 of Hugh Bussel granting North Meols to the ancestor 

 of the Singleton family, which was also attested by 

 Richard de Vernon the sheriff (1189-94).* Alex- 

 ander son of Gilbert died before 1 246, and was father 

 of another Gilbert,^ who was one of the jurors from 

 this hundred at a special county court held at Lan- 

 caster that year.!*" 



Alexander de Cuerdale son of Gilbert occurs from 

 1246 to 1284. He acquired various portions of the 



Cuerdale. Quarterly 

 argent and sable four 

 leopards^ faces counter- 



BLACKBURN 



township from his kinsfolk, the most important acqui- 

 sition being that of half the manor from Ellen 

 daughter of Adam son of Gos- 

 patric de Cuerdale in 1285.^1 

 A few years earlier, and whilst 

 Gilbert de Clifton was sene- 

 schal of Blackburnshire, he 

 obtained from the Earl of 

 Lincoln remission of the yearly 

 service of 10/., which appears 

 to have been paid as farm of 

 the fishery within the manor.'^ 

 Alexander his son occurs in 

 1296, 1305 and 131 1 hold- 

 ing the manor of the Earl of 

 Lincoln by the rent of 10/. 

 at St. Giles." By his wife 

 Mary he had sons Robert and Geoffrey, and died 

 before 1323." Robert held the manor in 1327," 

 but died soon after without issue. His brother 

 Geoffrey occurs in 1306 and in 1311, when he held 

 a moiety of Over Darwen in right of his wife Alice, 

 but he died before 1314.I6 His widow afterwards 

 married William Lawrence, and was living in 1356.^' 



John de Cuerdale son of Geoffrey and Alice attained 

 his majority about 1330, and two years later con- 

 tributed to the subsidy.18 He gave lands here and 

 in Walton of 5 marks yearly value to Whalley for the 

 health of his soul, and was buried in the ' new con- 

 ventual church' there on 20 October 1345. Six 

 months after his death the manor-house of Cuerdale 

 was totally destroyed by fire." By Dionisia his wife, 

 who afterwards married John de Barton of Barton in 

 Amounderness, he had issue two daughters, Alice, who 

 married Edmund son of John Lawrence of Ashton, 

 near Lancaster, and Joan, who married Thomas de 

 Molyneux.^" 



Thomas son of Thomas Molyneux of the Edge in 

 Sefton was a man of some notoriety. He inherited 

 the Edge in Sefton, Northbrook in Walton-on-the- 



° V.C.H. Lanes, i, 258 ; Lanes, and 

 Ches. Antiq. Soc. iv, 332. 



^ V.C.H, Lanes, i, 233. 



* Lanes, and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xviii, 58. 



^ Bk. of rates, MS. penes W. Farrer. 



^ To his son Peter he gave i^ oxgangs 

 of land in Cuerdale and 20 acres of land, 

 viz. 10 acres of assart land and 10 acres 

 of underwood lying between Aldeschale- 

 cloht and Longesnape cloht, in free thegn- 

 age by the yearly service to the grantor 

 and his heirs of 22^^. at St. Oswald ; 

 Kuerden MSS. (Coll. of Arms), iv, K 9. 

 The service was proportionate to the 

 thegnage service of loj. which Warine 

 paid to the lord of Clitheroe. 



^ Farrer, Lanes. Pipe R. 378. Gospatric 

 son of Warine de Cuerdale gave to Gilbert 

 his brother half an oxgang of land with the 

 sixteenth partofthevill rendering yji. at 

 St. Oswald. Alexander de Cuerdale and 

 Gilbert his son were witnesses. Kuerden 

 MSS. K 9, Gilbert was probably brother 

 of the half blood to Gospatric, Peter and 

 Richard. 



' Ibid. K 14.. Before 1230 William de 

 Osbaldeston demised to Avice daughter 

 of Gilbert de Cuerdale for her life 2 oxgangs 

 of land in Cuerdale, namely, one which 

 Alice the grantor's mother formerly held 

 and one which Adam her brother (pro- 

 bably Adam son of Gilbert de Cuerdale) 

 had held ; ibid. 



^** Lanes. Assixe R. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), 6 1. 



11 In the house of the friars minor of 

 Preston in 3 Edward I an agreement 

 was made that Alexander de Cuerdale 

 should give Ellen daughter of Adani de 

 Cuerdale for her right in half the viU of 

 Cuerdale 8 marks, besides 2 marks to the 

 Chapel of the Lawe ; Kuerden MSS. (Coll. 

 of Arms) ii, 256^. Ellen released her 

 right in half the manor with the feudal 

 adjuncts which her ancestors had held 

 of Alexander's ancestors, including the 

 service of Adam Francis of I oxgang 

 of land i ibid, iv, K 9 ; K 14. Ellen 

 had brought a plea of novel disseisin 

 against Alexander at the assizes at Lan- 

 caster in 1284 ; Lanes. Assize R. (Rec. 

 Soc. xlix), 187; Assize R. 1268, m. 12 d. 



Alexander also acquired from Adam 

 son of Robert de Cuerdale an eighth part 

 of the manorial mill 5 from Roger son of 

 Henry son of Baye his right in the vill 

 and wastes, saving the right to common 

 of pasture and turbary which Alexander 

 had demised to his other free tenants ; 

 Kuerden MSS. K 8 ; from Richard son 

 of Henry de Cuerdale lands and the six- 

 teenth part of the mill ; ibid.; and divers 

 other lands from other persons. 



12 Ibid. K 9. 



13 De Lacy Compotus (Chet. Soc), 

 ii, 107 ; Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. II, no. 51. 



301 



" Dods. MSS. cxlix, fol. 41. On 

 17 Oct. 1 321, at Balderston, he settled 

 his lands in Balderston upon Richard de 

 Balderston and Alice his wife, sister of 

 the grantor. 



I'* LansdowneFeodary in Baines, /.ancj. 

 (ed. 1870), ii, 692, correcting the date. 



" Kuerden MSS. ii, 257* end ; Inq. 

 p.m. 4 Edw. II, no. 51. 



1' Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), ii, 112, 149. 



1* Exeh. Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches,), 75. The heir of Geoffrey de 

 Cuerdale paid ^od. for respite of his suit 

 at Clitheroe Court in Dec. 1323 j Court R. 

 (Rec. Soc. xli), 52. He had a daughter 

 Joan who as Joan daughter of Geoffrey de 

 Cuerdale in 1377-8 released to Thomas 

 Molyneux and Joan his wife her right 

 in the manor and family estates ; Towne- 

 ley MS. 00, no. 1532. 



19 Add. MS. 10374, fol. 142 iWhitaker, 

 Whalley (ed. 1876), ii, 335. 



^ There were legal proceedings long 

 protracted between the husbands of Alice 

 and Dionisia, the respective widows j 

 Geoffrey and John de Cuerdale, and the 

 husbands of Alice and Joan, daughters 

 and co-heirs of John de Cuerdale, before 

 their respective dowers and pourparties 

 were settled ; De Banco R. 347 (Trin. 

 term, 1346), m. 226 d. ; 349, m. 355 d. ; 

 353, m. 379 d. ; Duchy of Lane. Assize 



