BLACKBURN HUNDRED 



WHALLEY 



This large township, having an acreage of 4,883,^ 

 occupies the northern slope of a moorland height 

 attaining 1,236 ft. above sea level. The urban 

 portion is in the north-west corner along the road 

 leading south-west from Church. On the western 

 side is Duckworth, and on the south-west boundary 

 stand Belthorn and Rann. The population in 1901 

 was 14,192. 



A number of important roads cross the township. 

 Along the northern boundary goes the direct one 

 from Blackburn to Church. Further south is a 

 winding road between the same places, leading 

 through Knuzden or Knuzden Brook, Stanhill and the 

 town of Oswaldtwistle. Whitebirk is a hamlet near 

 Knuzden. A road from Blackburn to Haslingden, by 

 way of Duckworth and Cocker Brook, crosses the town- 

 ship diagonally, and in the south-west corner is part 

 of another road between the same places. From the 

 town a road leads south-east through Broadfield and 

 Gaulkthorn to join the Haslingden road, while 

 another goes south and west by Sough Lane Ends 

 towards Darwen. The Blackburn and Accrington 

 railway and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal pass 

 through the north-east corner. 



Though in 1666 there were 128 hearths liable to 

 the hearth tax, only five houses had as many as four 

 hearths and the next largest had two.' 



James Hargreaves, the inventor, was born at 

 Stanhill about 1741. By trade he was a weaver 

 and carpenter, and without education. He in- 

 vented a carding machine about 1760 and the 

 spinning jenny about 1 764. His machines were 

 destroyed by his fellow spinners in 1768 and he then 



removed to Nottingham. He died in that town in 



''!'^^' ... . . . 



A local board was constituted m 1863* and 



became an urban district council in 1894; it has 



fifteen members chosen by the following wards : 



Foxhill Bank, Immanuel. St. Michael's, St. Oswald's, 



St. Paul's. The gas and water works belong to the 



council. The town hall was built in 1891. 



Cotton spinning and printing have long been the 

 chief industries. Coal-mines are worked, and therf 

 are also potteries and quarries. The soil is a loam, 

 with clay or peat subsoil ; the agricultural land is 

 practically all in permanent grass, viz. 3,454^ acres, 

 only 5 acres being returned as arable and 19^ as 

 occupied by woods and plantations.^^ 



Near White Ash was a cross called Hippings Cross.^ 

 The whole of OSIVALDTWISTLE, 

 MANORS which with Duckworth was assessed as 

 two plough-lands, was within the honor 

 of Clitheroe, and in 1258 was held of Edmund de 

 Lacy by a rent of 10/.' It was granted to the 

 Radcliifes of Radcliffe at an early time, but the 

 charter has not been preserved,' and in 1340 it was 

 recorded that Richard de Radclifte held two plough- 

 lands in Oswaldtwistle and Duckworth of Queen 

 Isabel as of the castle and honor of Clitheroe by 

 knight's service and a payment of 1 5^/. a year for 

 ward of Clitheroe Castle.^ In 1485 John R.adclifre 

 of Radcliffe held the manor of the king by knight's 

 service and a payment of 10/.' The manor was 

 sold by Henry Radcliffe Earl of Sussex to Andrew 

 Barton of Smithills in 1548,^" and descended to Lord 

 Fauconberg,^^ who in 1722 sold it to James Whalley 



' The Census Ref. 1901 gives 4,885 

 acres, including 62 of inland water. 



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



' Diet. Nat. Biog. ; Abram, Blackburn, 

 204. 



* Lond. Gax. 12 May 1863. Various 

 powers as to gas, &c., were conferred by 

 32 & 33 Vict. cap. 66. 



*» Statistics from Bd. of Agric. (1905). 



' Lanes, and Ches. Antij. Soc. xviii, 11. 



® Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 217. In 13 11 

 William de Radcliffe held two plough- 

 lands in thegnage of Henry de Lacy, 

 rendering 10s, a year and doing suit to 

 the court of Clitheroe ; ibid, ii, 11. 



' Adam de Radcliffe benefited by the 

 disafforesting of Oswaldtwistle in 1225 ; 

 Cal. Pat. 1216-25, p. 576. 



In the first part ,of the 13th century, 

 Roger rector of Blackburn being a witness, 

 Philip de Oswaldtwietle granted to Adam 

 de Radcliffe for 20 marks ij oxgangs of 

 land in Oswaldtwistle, excepting Wolf- 

 sykes and Foxhole, which the grantor's 

 brother Henry held ; Towneley MS. 

 00, no. 1659. The Adam of this 

 charter was probably the lord of Radcliffe j 

 a later Adam is mentioned below and in 

 the account of Church. Adam de Rad- 

 cliffe gave Robert his son all his land in 

 Oswaldtwistle and Duckworth at a rent 

 of two spurs; ibid. no. 1661. This 

 charter was attested by the steward of the 

 Earl of Lancaster, Alan the clerk. 



In 1241 William son of Henry — pro- 

 bably the brother of Philip — acknow- 

 ledged the right of Robert son of Adam 

 de Radcliffe to 2f oxgangs of land in 

 Duckworth and 2j oxgangs in Oswald- 

 twistle, Robert allowing him i j acres on 

 the east side of Duckworth adjoining 



Dunnyshope ; Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 85. The same 

 William son of Henry acknowledged the 

 right of Roger son of Henry — apparently 

 his brother — to 4 oxgangs and 24 acres 

 of land in Oswaldtwistle, receiving if 

 acres as above; ibid. 81. Roger de 

 Oswaldtwistle was a juror in 1258 ; 

 Lanes. Jnq. and Extents, i, 213. 



Oswaldtwistle was among Richard de 

 Radeliffe's manors in 1309 ; Final Cone. 

 ii, 5. Somewhat earlier as Richard lord 

 of Radcliffe he had granted all his land in 

 Oswaldtwistle and Duckworth to William 

 his son. The following tenants were 

 named : Adam de Aspden, William the 

 Ward, Richard de Cockersley, William 

 son of Roger, Thomas son of William, 

 John de Blackburn, Adam and Robert 

 sons of William de Edgeworth, Richard 

 de Duckworth, and John de Whitaker. 

 A rent of 8 marks was to be paid during 

 the grantor's life and a rose later ; 

 TowneleyMS.OO, no. 1666-7. William 

 de Radcliffe gave the manor of Oswald- 

 twistle with a rent of 6s. %d. to his son 

 Richard in 1342 ; ibid. no. 1668. 



* Inq. p.m. 14 Edw. Ill (2nd nos.), 

 no, 31. 



' Lanes. Inj. p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii, 

 121. 



Isabel widow of John Radcliffe com- 

 plained in i486 that George Ainsworth 

 and others had cut down 200 thraves of 

 her oats at Oswaldtwistle ; Pal. of Lane. 

 Plea R. 63, m. 4. 



In 1498 Richard Radcliffe of Radcliffe 

 was summoned to prove his title to waif 

 and stray, &e., at Oswaldtwistle, and to 

 free warren in his demesne lands ; Pal. 

 of Lane. Writs Proton. 13 Hen. VII. 

 In 1500 Oswaldtwistle is again named 



405 



among the Radcliffe manors ; Final Cone. 

 iii, 148. 



Robert Lord Fitz Walter in 1527-8 

 disputed common of pasture and right of 

 way on Oswaldtwistle Moor with Gilbert 

 Holden and others ; Ducatus Lane* (Rec. 

 Com.), i, 135. 



10 Towneley MS. OO, no. 1 678, recites 

 that Robert Earl of Sussex by will of 

 17 Oct, 1542 had given to Henry 

 Northey, then his secretary, the manors 

 of Oswaldtwistle and Folds for fifty years, 

 but had charged them with certain annui- 

 ties, and that Henry Earl of Sussex had 

 sold the reversion to Andrew Barton of 

 Smithills. The deed of sale is enrolled 

 in the Com. Pleas, Trin. z Edw. VI, 

 m, 9 d. 



A few years later (1554-5) Roger 

 Rishton, entering through Henry Northey 

 by lease in 1545, claimed various tene- 

 ments, suit of court and mill, &c., 

 against a number of persons, including 

 John Radcliffe bastard son of John 

 Radcliffe of Radcliffe, who had various 

 messuages by his father's will, confirmed 

 by Robert Earl of Sussex in 1524. It 

 was stated that Roger Rishton had kept 

 divers courts, and that it was the custom 

 for all tenants of the manor to do their 

 juit at the courts and to grind their corn •, 

 Duchy of Lane. Dcp. Phil, and Mary, 

 Ixxiii, R. 16. 



'^ See the account of Smithills in 

 Halliwell. 



Robert Barton had various disputes 

 with tenants and others. Sir John 

 Southworthin 1566 purchased lands from 

 Anne and Margery daughters and heirs of 

 Edward Cottam ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of 

 F. bdle. 28, m. 1 32. Afterwards Sir John 

 in conjunction with Robert Elston aliat 



