A HISTORY OF L/^iN^/^onnvr. 



ham*'' passed to Dinclaybv marriage and became merged 

 in the superior manor. The Blackburn plough-land seems 

 to have been acquired at the end of the i 3th century 

 from William de Featherston,^ descending to the 

 Blackburns of Garston *' and the Irelands of Lydiate." 



The abbeys of Whalley ^ and Sawley ** had land 

 in Downham, and some other landowners occur in 

 the records." 



William Dinelay and Richard Shuttleworth con- 

 tributed to the subsidy of 1524 for their lands, and 

 Richard Brotherton in 1543.^" Sir Ralph Assheton 

 and Christopher Banastre appear in 1626." To the 

 hearth tax of 1666 there were seventy-four hearths 

 liable ; the chief houses were those of Sir Ralph 

 Assheton with ten hearths and Robert Bulcock with 



five ; hvc other houses had three hcapths.*" William 

 Assheton paid about half the land tax in 1 787 ; 

 James Whalley was the next important owner.** 



The chapel of 5'/'. LEONARD '• at 

 CHURCH Downham existed in 1296, when it^ 

 altaratje was wurth 4 marks, the custom- 

 ary stipend of the chaplain, and the tithes ot 

 Downham and Twiston were w^^nh 10 marks. The 

 land of the demesne was valued at i mark." The 

 church goods taken away by the commissioncr<; of 

 Edward \*1 included two chalices, a cross of latten 

 and some vestments." The church as it stood in 

 1800 was *a plain Gothic building, with a tower, 

 tW'O side aisles, a north and south chapel, and a 

 middle choir.' '^ The south chapel belonged to the 



Part of the land was sold by Richard 

 Assheton in 1559-61 to John Hatgill of 

 Holdcn, "^'orks. (GG, fol. 422) ; he or 

 his iron died in 1617 holding 6 acres of 

 the king as duke by knight's service and 

 loJ. rent, and ihe reversion (after the 

 ■icsth of John his lather) of 7J acres 

 called Ravcnsholmc held of Richard 

 Assheton by knight's service and v^- rent. 

 His son and heir Adam was twelve years 

 old ; Lj'-.Li. Imj. p.m. (Rec. Soc), il, 

 I 98. 



*^ William the Skinner had a iplnncy 

 in Holcliff Field from William dc FL-athrr- 

 Bton, then lord ; it descended to his 

 grandson William de * Grenawc,' who in 

 M06 granted it l" Master Henry dc 

 Downham ; Liverpool Free Lib. D. (by 

 Mr. R. (il.i'istonc, jun.). 



^^ There arc several tokens of the 

 Fcntherston manor- Walter de Wadding- 

 ton was in 1276 called to w.irr.int 2 ox- 

 pangs of land in Downham which Robert 

 de Feathcrston had given in marriage 

 \\:i\\ his daughter Sarah wife of Walter 

 dc Waddington, ancestor of the above- 

 named Walter \ Assize R. 405, m. 3d. 



In 1292 Adam de Malays claimed a 

 messuage and 4 oxgangs of land in Down- 

 ham against Robert son of Adam de 

 Wiswcll, alleging that he was son of 

 William son of one Richard dc Mnl y^, 

 \vho had married Alice daughter of Wil- 

 liam de Featherston. John son of Adam 

 dc Blackburn warranted to defendant, 

 showing that the said Richard de M.iUy = 

 had by chnrter granted the half plough- 

 land to his ancestor Adam de Blackburn; 

 Assize R. 408, m. 33 d. The claim was 

 renewed in 1 ;o;, when Robert dc Black- 

 burn called Alice, Joan and Henry Dule 

 .ind Agnc. his wife to warrant him, they 

 being next nf kin and heirs of Adam de 

 Blackburn ; Dc Banco R. 14^, m. 187 ; 

 14'% m. 14 d. 



Rnhert de Blackburn had in 1292 to 

 defend his title to one plough-land in 

 Downham against John son of Adam sonof 

 John d: Blackburn. It appeared that 

 John and Robert were half-brothers, the 

 latter bei'^g Adam'? son by a second wif ■, 

 Alice, and holding by his father's grant 

 to him; Assize R. 408, m. 2-d., 64d. 

 Alice afterwards married Adam de Pem- 

 berton, and claimed dower against Robert 

 de Blackburn; ibid, m- 56 d. In 1296 

 Adam son of Adam de Blackburn 

 claimed 4 oxgangs of land "n Downham 

 against William son of Adam de Black- 

 bum ; De Banco R. 1 14, m. 86 d. 



The following Downham charters have 

 been preserved by Towneley (MS. C S, 

 i^, in the Chetham Library] : William 

 de Featherston to Adam de BUckburn, 

 4 oxgangs of land at 47. rent — F 39 ; 



Rchard dc Malalis (M.ilsys) to Adam de 

 Blackburn, half a plough-land at 41. rent 

 and the service of the fortieth part of a 

 knight's fee — M 74 ; Adam son of John 

 de Blackburn to Ri.bert his son and Alice 

 his wJ'c, one pi nigh-land — B 290 ; Adam 

 de Blackburn to John his son, land at %d. 

 rent — B 292 ; Henry de Downham clerk 

 to Adam de Blackburn, * my lord,' land 

 and also an oxgang of land^B 41, 40. 

 In 1296 Master Henry de DownhTm 

 recovered 4 acres in Downham against 

 Robert son of Adam de Blackburn of 

 Wiswell ; De Banco R. 111, m. 79 d. 



*^ John dc Blackburn of Garston died 

 in 1405 holding 6 oxgangs of land in 

 Downham of the king as of his duchy 

 by knights service ; Towneley MS. DD, 

 no. 14:7. 



"John Ireland died in 1514 holding 

 Ian U in Downham of the king as duke 

 by the fortieth part of a knight's fee ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iv, no. 16. 



"^^ Gilbert son of William de Feather- 

 ston gave to Whalley Church 4 acres 

 lying between the brooks descending be- 

 tween Harcshaw and Nutshaw, in Noith 

 towards the abbey (Sawley), and near 

 Brette Street towards Chatburn ; Hlulley 

 Couch, i, 318. Henry de Cotes gave 

 9 acres of arable land and z acres of 

 meadow between Monkdyke on the cast, 

 Millbrook on the south, Cockshaw and 

 Co'.kshaw fyke as far as Ravensholme, 

 to Peter dc Chester as rector of Whalley; 

 ibid, -i, 19. 



Roger rector of Whalley gave 4 acres 

 under Grcenhow to Jord.in son of Wil- 

 liam the Skinner at zu rent; ibid. 320. 

 William de Grecnhow, probably the son 

 of Jordan '^cf. a former note), gave them 

 back for an endowment of the chapel ; 

 ibid. 321. The rental of 1537 shows 

 only two tenants paying 17J. %d. in all ; 

 ibid, iv, 1218. 



The Whalley lands in Downham were 

 granted to [nhn Braddyll in 1545 ; Pat. 

 36 Hen. Vni, pt. xi. 



^ L. and P. Hert. VUJ^ xiii (i ), p. 409 ; 

 Ducatus Lane. (Rcc. Com.), iii, 245. 



''■' Christiana widow of Robert son of 

 Robert de Downham claimed dower 

 against Henry dc Lacy Earl of Lincoln 

 in 1292 ; Assize R. 408, m. 57 d. 



Antljony Watson of Coldcoats held 

 land in Downham of the queen in 1568 

 by knight's service and 41. 4^. rent ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xiii, no. 36. 

 His son Thomas held similarly (rent 

 4J. %d.) in 1579 ; ibid, xiv, no. 28. 



Anthony Watson (son of Thomas) and 

 Dorothy his wife sold messuages in 1583 

 to Roger Dilworth and to John 

 Brotherton (? Bretherton) ; Pal. of Lane. 

 Feet of F. bdlc. 45, m. 12^, 163. 



Thomas D Iwnrth dicl in or before 

 1628 holding of the king as duke, and 

 leaving u widow Agnes and a daughter 

 and heir Janet (aged twenty-seven), wife 

 of George Shuttleworth ; Towneley MS. 

 C 8, M (Chet. Lib.), 340. Henry 

 Brotherton of Howcliff (cf. Holcliff 

 above) died in 16 17 holding a messuage, 

 &c., in Downham of the king in chief by 

 knight's service and 14./. rent. He left 

 ;i widow M.irg.iret, a son and heir 

 John (aged five) and several daughters. 

 He desired to be buried in the church 

 or churchyard of Downham, and left 

 a cupboard, an ark and a counter to 

 his son ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rcc. Soc), 

 ii, 181. 



William son of Nicholas Hancock died 

 in 1586 holding a messuage in Dnv\nham 

 of the queen as of her duchy by the sixty- 

 eighth part of a knight's fee. He married 

 Ellen daughter of Simon Haydock and 

 left a daugliter and heir Isabel, aged 

 seven ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xiv, 

 no. 57. 



James Middlcton died in 1562 holding 

 two messuages, &;c., in Downham of the 

 queen as of her castle of Clitheroc in 

 socage, by a rent of zj. iiJ</. His son 

 John, aged forty-nine in 1608, succeeded ; 

 Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc), i, 108. In 

 a later inquisition the tenure was recorded 

 as *by the 120th part of a knight's fee 

 and 21. 1 1^^. rent ' ; ibid, ii, 20. 



Richard Allan died in 1608 holding 

 two messuages, &c., of the king as duke 

 by the looth part of a knight's fee. His 

 heirs were two daughters, Isabel wife of 

 John Smithies and Sibyl wife of James 

 Oddy, aged fifty-six and fifty; ibid. 171. 

 Isabel seems to have become sole heiress. 

 She died in 1625 and her husband a year 

 or so later, holding two messuages of the 

 king as duke by the 200th part of a 

 knight's fee. Her son and heir William 

 was about thirty-four years old ; 

 Towneley MS. C 8, n, p. 1090. 



^^ Lay Subs. Lanes, bdlc. 130, no. 82, 

 125. 



^7 Ibid, bdlc. 131, no. 317. 



^ Ibid, bdle, 250, no. 9. 



®* Land tax returns at Preston. 



^OWhitaker, Whalley, i, 116. It is 

 called St. Leonard's about 1300 ; Whalley 

 Couch, i, 321. 



^' Whitaker, op. cit. i, 87. Gifts of 

 land have been recorded above. 



" Augm. OflF. Misc. Bks. clxx, m. 19. 

 Two bells and a chalice arc mentioned in 

 another account ; Raines, Chantries (Chet. 

 Soc), 271;, 269. Two other bells seem 

 to have been left at Downham ; ibid. 

 259, 263. The *ornamcnts ' were worth 

 5j. lod, ; ibid. 277. 



^' Whitaker, op. cit. li, 144, 



556 



