HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



John dc Clayton succeeded his father Henry 

 shortly after 12^2, when he u as suing him for a tene- 

 ment here, and was a juror on the inquet after the 

 death of the Earl of Lincoln in 1311. Lands near 

 Merelache were released to him in 1317 as lord of 

 Clayton.^- Two years before he had settled half the 

 manor and mill upon his son Henry and Matilda his 

 wife." Henry succeeded his father before 1332, in 

 which year he was the principal contributor to the 

 subsidy ; two yean later he covenanted with William 

 de Hesketh for the construction of Hesketh's weir 

 and pool of Martholme Mill upon Henry's land 

 called Oldemon Ridding in Clayton and the mill- 

 stream through his land in Great Harwood for I xd. 

 rent and the right to be hopper free and to grind his 

 grain there without giving multure. He was returned 

 as holding Clayton in 1346 and 1355 for the eighth 

 part of a knight's fee, and in 1356 passed his manor 

 to feoffees for settlement. ^^ In 1360 William de 

 Hesketh claimed damages against Henry de Cla} ton, 

 Adam de Grimshagh and others for lowering the 

 weir of hii mill on Hyndburn in Great Harwood and 

 Cla\ton, but «as non-suited because his ancestors had 

 rcmuved that mill to another site in Harivood which 

 plaintiff had abandoned in favour of the original site." 

 Henry died in or about 1361 \\ithout legitimate 

 male issue, w hen Adam dc (irimshagh of tcclcshill 

 and Henry dc Rishton of Rishton succeeded to the 

 jnheritance in right of their respective v\ives Cecily 

 and Margaret, daughters and co-hc:ri of Henry dc 

 Clayton.'* 



Adam de Grimshagh died about I 361, when his 

 Ecclcshill estate passed to his son Henry. In 1376, 

 when Henry had attained his majority, a partition of 

 the manor was made between him and Henry de 

 Rishton and his wife Margaret, by h hich he acquired 

 the hall of Clayton with the greater p.irt of the 

 demesne lands, whilst Rishton obtained the land to 

 the south-west of Clayton Hall, towards Oakenshaw 

 and Henfield, Ringstonhalgh up to Dunkenhalgh, and 

 the land adjoining the old course of the Caldcr 

 between Mergelache Clough and the boundary of 

 Altham." The descent of Rishton's part of the 

 manor follows that of Dunkenhalgfi, which is given 

 below. 



Henry dc Grimshagh married Joan daughter of 

 Henry de Shuttleworth ; by her he had Robert, 

 whose marriage to Joan daughter and heir of John del 

 Hacking of Aighton was contracted about Midsummer 

 1390, whilst Robert was still unborn.''"' Henry 

 Grimshagh died before Michaelmas 1429, "hen his 

 widow Joan released half the manor and her dower 

 lands to her son Robert. Earl) in 1442 half the 

 manor with lands in Worsthorne and Preston, and 

 the site of the old messuage of Grimshagh in Ecclev 

 hill, were settled upon Robert Grimshagh for life 

 with remainder to his eldest son Henry. Robert died 

 a few days later, and his son Henry, having contracted 

 a marriage with Isabel daughter of Richard Rishton, 

 probably of Dunkenhalgh, settled upon her his 

 estates with the exception of Grimshagh." Henry 

 Grimshagh was living in 1468. Henri his son was 

 implicated in the death of Robert Bynns of Altham, 

 and in 1466 compounded with Bynns' widow for 

 10 marks that she would never 'sue againe Henry 

 Sonne of Henry Grimishagh or any other that were 

 with him the day that Robert Bynnestokc his death's 

 wound.' In 1482, described as of Hacking in 

 Aighton, he had a dispute with his brother Nicholas 

 touching lands given to the latter for life by their 

 father. 2" In 1489 the ' warth ' on the west side of 

 the Hyndburn, above Martholme Mill, of which the 

 ownerbhip had long been in dispute between him and 

 Robert Hesketh of Great Harwood, was adjudged to 

 Henry by arbitrators, inasmuch as it was proved by the 

 evidence of ancient men that the old course of the 

 Hyndburn had been on the west side of the ' warth.' -' 

 He married Alice daughter of John Tempest of 

 Braccwcll, kt.,-^ and died I 507, as returned by an 

 inquest taken .it the halmote of Accrington, Thomas 

 being found to be his son and heir.^' 



Thomas Grimshagh married Margaret daughter and 

 co-licircss of Elizabeth daughter of John Harrington 

 of Hornby, kt., by John Stanley of Melling.^^^ On 

 16 August 1513, being evidently about to set out to 

 take part in the Scottish war which culminated in the 

 battle of Flodden Field, he made his will providing 

 portions for his three daughters and for his son, if an 

 expected child should be such.^'' Happily he returned 

 in safety, was assessed to the subsidy of 1524 upon 



the old water, and through the old water 

 to Schorte Dene, and so through thjt and 

 through Merelache to the said crou. 

 Henry the I'-ither also gave an aatarl 

 called Langcratheriding with a hillock 

 contiguous on the south side, and liberty 

 to grind his grist toU free at the mill 

 upon Kalder W ater. 



" -As John son of Henry dc Clayton 

 'bvAlvetam'j Assize R. 4cS, m. 3 d. ; 

 DD, 1615. " RR, 571. 



'* Exch. Lmj Sul:. (Rec Soc zxxiii), 

 Si i DD, 1624 ; ibid, 1629. In 1357 the 

 feoffees granted the reversion of the manor 

 to .-Mice daughter of Robert dc CunliiTc, 

 whom Henry dc Clayton had apparexitly 

 then married, and to her legitimate i;!uc, 

 and failing such with successive re- 

 mainders to W.:I.3n% Thomas and John, 

 her illegitimate children by Henry dc 

 Clayton ; RR, 565, ;Si. 



1-' Duchy of Lane. .Aisirc R. 8, m. 4 d. 

 Robert dc Lacy's charter to Richard 

 FittiOn is recited in fuil in the pleadings. 

 John son of Cecilia daughter of Adam de 

 Blacitbum, John and Thomas dc Huncotcs 

 were defendants. 



•' Hcnrv dc C'lvtm held Clayton at 



the Duke of Lancaster's death in 1361 ; 

 Inq. p.m. 35 Edw. HI, pt. I, no. 122 ; 

 DD, 1584*. 



" DD, 1636. The boundary of Grim- 

 shagh's moiety is thus described : Ascend- 

 in;^ the Walleclough from Hindeburn 

 water unto the Stonc-stcghull on the 

 cast side of Walleclough, ascending by the 

 ancient hey between the Cowehey and 

 the arable lands of the demesne unto 

 ClaycToft yate, thence beyond Hanclogh 

 to Shcpcote Clough where it is inclosed 

 towards the east, following that inclosure 

 to the new ditch of Shcpcote Clougli, 

 thence ascending the water-course of that 

 clough unto the Ringcyordc of Hindefeld 

 nigh to the Someryate of Clayton on the 

 western side of that gate, and so along 

 the Ringyordc eastward and along John 

 del Grene's land unto Mergelache Clough, 

 down the water-course there to the ditch 

 on the eastern side of the Ncthcrhcy 

 until it falls into the site between that 

 ditch and Caldcr, and so by that sike into 

 Cildcr, and so ascending Calder and Hind- 

 bume NS'aters to the foot of Wallclough. 



The Ringvard was the movable fence 

 bc'wccrj the common field of HindefLld, 



118 



now Hcn6eld, and lands commonable 

 during the open season. 



" He settled half the manor at 

 Michaelmas 1390, having no issue at 

 that time (RR, 574) ; this marriage was 

 therefore contracted before his son's 

 birth ; Clayton D. OO, 1055. 



The estate of Hacking in Aighton was 

 passed to a feoffee in 1391 and was rc- 

 granted by him to new feoffcct in 1409 ; 

 ibid. 00, 1056 j Lanci. Final Cone. (Rec. 

 Soc), iii, 37. It long descended in the 

 Grimshagh family. 



" Clayton D.DD, 1617 ; OO, 1060-1; 

 DD, 1571A. 



'"DD, 1629. Nicholas brotlicr of 

 Henry Grimshagh the younger was the 

 ancestor of the Grimshaws of Pendlc 

 Forest; DD, 1592; OO, 1067-8. 



"Add. MS. 32105, 195*. 



" Inform, of Mrs. A. C. Tempest. 



" DD, I Jfjo/ i /',»>. (Chet. Soc Uxxi), 

 3'- 



"•John Stanley was illcfritimate son 

 of James Stanley, Bishop i Ely, accord- 

 ing to Whitakcr, IVhaiUj (cd. 1876,1, ii, 

 274, but sec y.C.H. Laiui. iii, 210. 



•' Clayton D. OO, 1080. 



