BLACKBURN HUNDRED 



WH ALLEY 



highest points, ranging up to 1,400 ft. and 1,500ft. 

 above sea level, are near the eastern end ; at the 

 Brun, in the west, the height is only 450 ft. above 

 the sea. The population in igoi numbered 2,324. 



A good deal of the land is moorland ; the soil is 

 clay, overlying clay and slate, and the agricultural 

 land is mostly used for pasturage. There are cotton 

 mills in BrierclifFe, and stone quarries are worked. 



The principal road is that from Burnley eastward 

 through BrierclifFe, passing through the hamlets of 

 Harlesyke, Haggate and Lane Bottom. Towards 

 the eastern end of the township it turns north 

 towards Colne, but sends off a branch south-east by 

 Higher Ridihalgh across Thursden and the Don 

 Valley where is a ford, past the remains of Widdop 

 Cross (1,286 ft.) on the boundary, into Yorkshire. 

 At Haggate the road is crossed by another from 

 Nelson, continuing south-east as Cockden Lane into 

 Worsthorne. In the northern part of BrierclifFe are 

 the houses called Windle House, Folds House, 

 Burwains, Hollin Greave and Pighole ; in its south- 

 west corner are Mustyhalgh, Walshaw and Widow 

 Green. Extwistle lies near the southern bound.iry 

 on the slope above Swinden Water. Monk Hall is 

 on higher ground some distance north-east. There 

 was a skirmish at Haggate in 1644 between Prince 

 Rupert's forces and the Parliamentarians.'" 



The township, now called BrierclifFe simply, is 

 governed by a parish council. A small part of the 

 west end was added to Burnley in 1894.' 



In the Extwistle part, on the high moorland, are 

 some tumuli and the sites of supposed British and 

 Roman camps ; there is another camp above Thurs- 

 den. Nogworth Cross stood halfway between 

 Extwistle Hall and Monk Hall ; there is a tradition 

 that a mischievous ' boggart ' which frequented 

 Holden to the south was ' laid ' under this cross.' 

 Another cross stood at Thursden. 



There was no separate manor of 

 MANORS BrierclifFe, the place being regarded as 

 part of the manor of Ightenhlll, but a 

 number of the tenements come into notice as the 

 holdings of yeoman families of long continuance. In 

 1242, after the death of John de Lacy, the value of 

 BrierclifFe was returned as 40^. id. a year.* Sixteen 

 years later some further particulars are recorded, the 

 following holding land by charter : Adam de Wind- 

 hill or Windle, half a plough-land and 30 acres. 



rendering ijs. a year ; Henry de Windle, 24 acres 

 at 1 8/. ; and Michael de BrierclifFe, 3 oxgangs of 

 land and 12 acres, rendering 2lj-.° There or else- 

 where in the manor Roger son of Peter de Brier- 

 clifte held 5 acres, paying the usual rent of \d. an 

 acre.' The fuller survey after the death of Henry 

 de Lacy in I 31 1 shows that 166 J acres'were held by 

 tenants at will at 4a'. an acre ; Robert son of Mocock 

 de BrierclifFe held 58 acres in fee, rendering 21/., 

 and Adam de Walshaw (WoUeshagh) held 51 acres, 

 freely rendering 17^.; a total rental of ^4 13/. 6d.^ 

 In 1323 the receipts were almost exactly the same, 

 for though the nominal total was £6 y. 1 d., there were 

 tenements in the king's hands which had formerly 

 yielded 2^s. 4f«'.° BrierclifFe was named in the charter 

 of free warren granted to Edmund de Lacy in 1 2 5 1 . 



Robert de Lacy near the end of the 12 th century 

 granted to Osward Brun half a plough-land in Brier- 

 clifFe and 30 acres of assart in the wood of Richlie or 

 Rudgelie, rendering 17/. a year to the lord.'" Michael 

 son of Award Brun granted all his right in BrierclifFe 

 to Adam son of Ellis de Walshaw," and though 

 Adam de Windle is named as tenant in 1258 he 

 was probably the Adam de Walshaw of other 

 deeds. A later Adam, as above recorded, held 5 I 

 acres by the ancient ijs. rent. The surname of 

 Walshaw long continued in the township,''' but the 

 estate appears to have been acquired by the Town- 

 leys of Royle, Edmund Townley, who died in 1598, 

 holding three messuages, &c., in Walshaw and Brier- 

 clifFe.'^ It has descended to Mr. Reginald Arthur 

 Tat ton, who is also the owner 

 oF Mustihalgh, Bend Hill, 

 Lower Cockden, Hanson's 

 tenement and Herd House. 



The Windle family occur 

 in BrierclifFe and in Wors- 

 thorne. Henry de Windle gave 

 to Richard brother of Robert 

 de Orm part of his land in 

 Old BrierclifFe, for which is. 

 was to be paid at St. Giles's 

 Day.'* From a pleading of 

 1284 it appears that Henry 

 de Windle's estate descended 

 to granddaughters." In i 3 I 3 



Robert son of Yacocks de BrierclifFe granted to Adam 

 de Windle land in Seneintacks in the Holt as it lay 



00 



Tatton. Quarterly 

 argent and gulesy four 

 crescents counter changed. 



aa Burnley Par. Reg. 



8 Local Govt. Bd. Order 31666. There 

 were no dwelling-houses in the part cut 

 off. The remainder was at the same 

 time constituted the township or civil 

 parish of BrierclifFe. 



^ For the crosses see Lanes, and Ches. 

 Antiq. Soc. xviii, 46-8. 



* Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 156. 



fi Ibid. 214. 



7 Ibid. 215. 



8 Ibid, ii, 6. 



9 Ibid. 192. The details of 

 gross total are not given ; those of the 

 tenements in the king's lands were : John 

 de Leghcroft, 6 acres, zs. ; Richard de 

 Windle, 53 acres, i8j. ; Robert son of 

 Dandy, 6f acres, zs. z^d. ; Richard son 

 of Ellis, II acres, 31. 8^/. ; Adam de 

 Hargreaves and Adam de Hurstwood, 

 loi acres, 3^. 6d, 



"* HarL MS. 2077, fol. 320 ; printed 

 in Wbitalcer, Whalleyj ii, 222. Among 



Soc. 



the 



the witnesses were Geoffrey the Dean 

 and John his brother. The wood appears 

 to be the later Rowley, in Worsthorne. 



" Towneley MS. C 8, 13, B 287. The 

 grantor's name is copied as ' Michus.' 

 Among the witnesses are Michael de 

 Briercliffe, Michael his son and William 

 de Rylands. 



12 In 1360 Adam de Walshaw granted 

 to Gilbert de Marsden, clerk, all his lands 

 in Briercliffe, Richard the Parker being 

 witness ; ibid. W 113. Robert Walshaw 

 of Walshaw in 1425-6 married Alice 

 daughter of Thomas Rigmaiden j ibid. 

 C 112. The feoffees of Adam Walshaw 

 in 1428-9 gave to Robert son of John 

 Walshaw Adam's lands in Briercliffe ; 

 ibid. T 114. Nine years later Robert 

 Walshaw granted to Miles Townley a 

 rent of 30J, a year (for a term) from lands 

 called Blackhouse, occupied by William, 

 James and (the late) John Briercliffe ; 

 ibid. W 1 2 1 . Blackhouse is to the south- 

 east of Holt Hill. 



^^ Duchy of Lane. Inq, p.m. xvii, no. 13. 

 The tenure is not recorded. Nicholas 

 Townley of Royle (about 1700) paid a 

 fee-farm rent of ^2 os. %d. for Hird House, 

 Shore tenement, Blackhouse Lane, and 

 Walshaw — 163 acres in all ; Folds MSS. 

 Copyhold lands were held with them. 

 Hird or Herd House stands to the east of 

 Windle. 



" C 8, 13, W 119 ; Richard and Wil- 

 liam de Windle were witnesses. 



15 Assize R. 1268, m. I2d. The dis- 

 pute concerned a messuage and 24 acres 

 in Briercliffe held (except 6 acres) by 

 John son of Randle de Fennycotes and 

 Maud his wife. The 6 acres were held 

 by Richard son of Richard the Reeve. 

 The land had belonged to Anabel daughter 

 of Michael de Briercliffe, whose daughter 

 Maud wife of Henry de Schelf was 

 claimant. John and Maud said they had 

 nothing except the nourishment of Alice 

 and Agnes, the daughters of Maud daughter 

 of Henry de Windle, who were seised in 



469 



