A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



In 1066 the two Eolcstons, assessed 

 MJNORS as two and four plough-lands, were held 

 by Earl Tostig. 3 Afterwards five plough- 

 lands there are found in the fee of the barons of Kendal 4 ; 

 they were later still members of the lordship of Nether 

 Wyresdale. 5 These five plough-lands, of which two 

 were in Great Eccleston in the adjacent parish of St. 

 Michael's, had been granted in marriage by William 

 de Lancaster, and in 1 2 1 2 were held by Richard de 

 Molyneux of Sefton, William Blundell of Ince, Ralph 

 de Eccleston, Walter son of Swain and Geoffrey. 6 

 The tenure was later described as knight's service. 7 



From the subsequent history it is clear that Molyneux 

 and Blundell held LARBRECK equally, though the 

 former was principal. 8 It was rated as a plough- 

 land and a half, and the Blundell part, 9 having been 

 granted to Norreys (of Sutton), 10 descended regularly 

 till the 1 6th century, when the tenants were Moly- 

 neux n and Daniell of Daresbury. 12 The manor was 

 purchased in 1565 by William Burrow or Burgh, 13 

 who died in 1601 holding the manor of the queen 

 by suit at the court of Goberthwaite and a rent of 

 izd. yearly. 14 Richard Burgh, his son and heir, then 



aged thirty-nine, died at Larbreck in 1639 holding 

 the manor as before and leaving his brother William 

 as heir. 15 Richard had made a settlement in 1637, 

 with remainders to Alice his wife, William his brother 

 and Dorcas his sister for life, and then to his nephews 

 Peter and John Woodhouse, sons of his sister Sarah, 

 still living in 1640, when William Burgh was found 

 to be a lunatic. 16 



William Woodhouse, 17 another son of Sarah, suc- 

 ceeded, and on his death in I 66 I wa. followed by his 

 daughter Alice, who married Edward Shuttleworth. 

 They had two daughters — Dorothy, who married 

 Dr. Charles Leigh of Singleton Grange, ,s and Fleet- 

 wood, who married Richard Longworth of St. 

 Michael's. Eventually the moiety of the former was 

 acquired by Richard Harrison of Bankfield in Singleton 

 in 1747 ; while the other moiety by various sales 

 passed to the Pedders of Preston,' 9 and was purchased 

 from — Pedder of Lancaster in 1858 by Richard 

 Whiteside, father of Mr. George Whiteside, the present 

 owner.' No manor is now recognized. 



But little is known of the minor tenants of Larbreck, 

 though at one time there was a family so surnamed. 11 



3 V.C.H. Lanes, i, 288a. 



4 Ibid. 357, n. 13. 



5 e.g. Extent of 1324; Doda, MSS. 

 exxxi, fol. 39A (Ingeham de Gynes). 



6 Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), i, 2. 



7 Ibid. 154; Adam de Eccleston, 

 William de Molyneux, Hugh de Mitlon, 

 Richard de Catterall and Henry de Long- 

 ford held the same lands and Catterall by 

 the sixth part of a knight's fee in 1242. 

 The last three having Catterall, Adam 

 and William must have had the Ecclestons 

 and Larbreck, unless some names have 

 been omitted. 



8 Both were equally recognized as tenants 

 in 121 2, but Molyneux alone in 1242 (if 

 the record is perfect). In 1346 the lord- 

 ship of Wyresdale included a plough-land 

 and a half in Larbreck held by Richard 

 de Molyneux by knight's service ; Inq. 

 p.m. 20 Edw. Ill (2nd nos.), no. 63 

 (William de Coucy). William son of 

 Richard de Molyneux held the manor of 

 Larbreck in 1358, having received it from 

 his father on his marriage, paying id. 

 rent and performing suit at the court of 

 Wyresdale, held at Goberthwaite every 

 three weeks ; ?faJ. was payable for castle 

 ward ; ibid. 33 Edw. Ill (2nd nos.), no. 

 99. The clear value was given as 7 marks 

 then, and as 5 marks in 1362, when 

 William son of the above-named William 

 was heir but under age ; ibid. 36 Edw. Ill, 

 pt. i, no. 120. In other records (of 1364 

 and 1366) the tenement of William son 

 of William son of Richard de Molyneux 

 was called a moiety of the manor ; it was 

 held by knight's service of the manor of 

 Wyresdale, and John de Ashton was in 

 charge ; Memo. R. (L.T.R.), 129, m. 5 d. ; 

 Memo. R. (K.R.), 143, m. 20. William's 

 son Richard died in 1397 holding the 

 manor of Larbreck in Amounderness 

 among his other estates ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. 

 (Chet. Soc), i, 71. 



It Is possible that the 'moiety of the 

 manor ' only means the Larbreck moiety 

 of the whole township. 



9 This does not seem to have been 

 usually regarded as a manor. It is not 

 recognized in the Blundell inquisitions. 



10 In 1318 Alan son of Henry le 

 Norreys demanded against John le Norreys 

 (of Spcke) a messuage, 6 oxgangs of land, 



&c, in Larbreck, which William Blundell 

 had given to Alan son of Alan le Norreys 

 and his issue, with reversion to Henry le 

 Norreys. Patrick, son of the grantee, 

 had died without issue. John le Norreys 

 alleged that Patrick had granted him 

 2 oxgangs of land, and the jury gave a 

 verdict for the plaintiff for the other 

 4 ; De Banco R. 222, m. 226. The 

 6 oxgangs show that the tenement was a 

 moiety of Larbreck. Notice of a similar 

 suit will be found in the account of 

 Formby. 



The same plaintiff in 1329 claimed 

 land in Larbreck against Richard son of 

 William de Molyneux and John Bon of 

 Alan le Norreys; ibid. 279, m. 330 d. 

 Two years later he did not appear to 

 prosecute his claim to twelve messuages, 

 &c, held by John Bon of Alan ; ibid. 

 287, m. 484. There may have been some 

 surrender by the latter, for the Norriscs 

 of Speke do not again appear in connexion 

 with Larbreck. 



William Danyers (Daniell) and Clemency 

 his wife (in her right) complained of waste 

 of her lands in Larbreck by William and 

 John Blundell of Ince in 1357-8 ; Duchy 

 of Lane. Assize R. 6, m. 3 d. (Mich.), 

 m. 5 (Lent). 



In 1435-6 it was recorded that William 

 Daniell held the manor of Larbreck of 

 William Blundell in socage by a rent of 

 6J. j Harl. MS. 2085, fol. 446^. 



11 The manor is named in a Molyneux 

 feoffment in 1558 ; Pal. of Lane Feet of 

 F. bdle. 20, m. 80. The object was to 

 provide a jointure for Bridget daughter of 

 John CarylL, who was to marry William 

 the son and heir-apparent of Sir Richard 

 Molyneux ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. 

 xiii, no. 35. 



12 John son andheir-apparentofThomas 

 son of John Daniell of Daresbury received 

 hj» grandfather's lands in Larbreck in 

 15505 Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A 1 3476. John 

 his son assigned to his grandfather Thomas 

 an annuity of £4 from the Larbreck lands 

 in 1564 ; HarL MS. 2077, foL 193 d. 



In 1 571 John Daniell sold his lands in 

 Larbreck, the principal purchaser (seven 

 messuages, Sec.) being Thomas Eccleston ; 

 PaL of Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 33, m. 58, 

 &c. 



18 Ibid. 27, m. 33. The deforciant, 



182 



Richard Chisnall, was one of the trustees 

 appearing in the Molyneux fine of 1,-58 

 above referred to. The sale included 

 the manor, five messuages, windmill, salt- 

 pit, fishery in the Wyre, &c. 



Chisnall had been plaintiff in a dispute 

 as to right of way, &c, in 1563 j Dutam 

 Lane. (Rec. Com.), ii, 260. 



14 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xviii, no. 

 3 7. For Goberthwaite see the account of 

 Cabus. Soon after his purchase William 

 Burgh had had a dispute with Henry 

 Butler of Rawcliffe respecting a messuage 

 and salt marsh by the Wyre ; Ducanu 

 Lane, ii, 337. 



16 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. x»r, no. 

 100. 



u Ibid. 99. Alice the wife of 

 Richard had formerly been married to 

 Thomas Holt, and she was afterwards wife 

 to John Greenhalgh, being a widow the 

 third time in 1652 ; Royaliit Ctmf.Paftn 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), iii, 111-13. 



17 This paragraph is a summary of the 

 account in Fishwick's Kirkham (Chet. 

 Soc), 183-4, where further details may 

 be seen, the 'title deeds' being the 

 authority. 



18 In a fine in 1689 respecting a mo : ety 

 of the manor of Larbreck and messuages, 

 &o, there and in Thornton, Greenhalgh 

 and Medlar, the deforciant* were Charles 

 Leigh and Dorothy his wife ; Pal. of 

 Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 224, m. 40 ; Pal. 

 of Lane. Plea R. 451, m. 6. 



19 Edward Pedder owned in 1836) 

 Baines, Lanci. (ed. 1 ), iv, 404. 



M Information of Mr. Whiteside. 



" Richard de Molyneui granted to 

 Adam son of Roger de Larbreck the 

 messuage of Girard, with half an oigang 

 of land in the lord's hands, half of 

 Thurnewaitacre ; this lay betide the 

 Wyre, and its two salt-p ti were excluded 

 from the grant. The w.tneoes included 

 Robert, rector of Garstang, and William 

 Blundell ; Add. MS. 32106, no. 354- 



In 1366 William ton of Richard it 

 Larbreck complained that Adam ton of 

 Ralph de Bickerstath had taken his cattb 

 at Cornholm in Larbreck, but defendant 

 pleaded that Cornholm was pirtly in 

 Little Eccleston, and it was here that the 

 seizure had been made ; De Banco R 4'i. 

 m. 446 d., 441 d. 



