A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



and from Robert del Eves lands and a fishery which 

 had belonged to Simon son of John de Garston.' 



Robert de Blackburn was succeeded by his eldest 

 son John, who even before his father's death seems to 

 have taken an active part in managing the estate.' 

 He was lord of the manor for about fifty years, 

 dying on 8 January, 1404-5,' and during this long 

 period seems to have been constantly acquiring fresh 

 portions of land.' At the inquest taken after his death 

 it was found that he had held the manor of Garston 

 of the king as duke of Lancaster, by knight's service, 

 6 oxgangs in Downham, lands in West Derby, Hol- 

 land Place in Halewood, lands in Allerton and in 

 Woolton. His heir was his grandson John, son of 

 Robert, who was then fifteen years old and more.' 



John, the grandson,* died early and without issue, 

 and the inheritance came to his sister Agnes, who 

 married Thomas, younger son of Sir John de Irel.md 

 of Hale. Thus the manor passed to the Irelands, who 

 by the same marriage acquired Lydiate, the property 

 of Agnes's mother, which they made their principal 

 residence.' Little appears to be known of their con- 

 nexion with Garston.' The inquest taken after the 

 death of John Ireland in I 5 14 states that he held the 

 manor of Garston of the king as duke of Lancaster in 

 socage for a rent of 20/., lands in Allerton of the 

 priory of Burscough by the rent of a grain of pepper 

 if demanded ; in Woolton of the prior of St. John of 

 Jerusalem in England, and in Halewood of the earl 

 of Derby.' His grandson Lawrence, in 1543, ex- 

 changed the manor of Garston and lands and water- 

 mill there and in Much Woolton with Sir William 



Norrii of Speke, taking the latter's lands in Lydiate 

 and Maghull." 



The Norris family had long had a fair holding 

 in the township, the rents in 1450 amounting to 

 £1 10/." A junior branch seems to have resided 

 there for a time." The manor continued in the 

 Norris family, descending like Speke, until near the 

 end of the eighteenth century." The dismember- 

 ment and sale of the estates began in 1775." In 

 February, 1779, the corporation of Liverpool pur- 

 chased the manorial rights of Garston, with the 

 intention, it was said, of regulating the fisheries in the 

 Mersey, but in April of the following year the manor 

 was sold to Peter Baker, a Liverpool shipbuilder, and 

 his son-in-law John Dawson, captain of the privateer 

 Mentor, which in 1778 had captured the French 

 East Indiaman Carnatic with a rich booty. Certain 

 reservations made by the corporation were afterwards 

 given up. In January, 1 791, Baker and Dawson 

 conveyed the manor to the trustees of Richard Kent, 

 a Liverpool merchant, who had died before the com- 

 pletion of the sale. Elizabeth Kent, his daughter, 

 had married (in 1786) Lord Henry Murray, son of 

 the third duke of Atholl ; and they joined with John 

 Blackburne of Liverpool " in procuring (at the latter's 

 expense) an Act of Parliament "' for destroying the 

 entail and enabling the trustees to sell the Garston 

 estate. John Blackburne purchased the manor under 

 this Act, with various lands in Garston, but exclusive 

 of the advowson of Garston chapel, the mill dale and 

 pool, and certain rights ; he also purchased indepen- 

 dently other lands in Garston, and transferred his 



'Norris D. (B. M.), 757, 771, 772, 

 783, 790. 



He had a long dispute concerning some 

 lands and the third part of a mill at 

 Garston with Roger FCenesson of Crosby 

 and Maud his wife. Katherine, bastard 

 daughter of Ellen daughter of Roger de 

 Garston, had held the tenements by fealty 

 and a rent of \(td. and Maud claimed as 

 the true heir, asserting that she had en- 

 feoffed Katherine ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Assize R. z, m. viii </. ; m. x\ d ; Assize 

 R. 435, m. 10 J m. 30 5 Duchy of Lane. 

 Assize R. 3 (j to + Duke Henry). 



About the same time Adam son of 

 Richard Hoggeson complained that Robert 

 de Blackburn and his sons John, Thomas, 

 and Robert had disseised him of his free 

 tenement in Garston — 2 messuages and 

 I 2 acres. Robert defended himself by the 

 plea that the disputed tenements were held 

 by knight's service and that he took pos- 

 session of them because Adam was under 

 age ; the jury, however, found that the 

 tenure was socage, and that Adam had 

 been unjustly disseised ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Assize R. 2, m. ii. 



^ In t^+8 John acquired lands in 

 Humbeldale from Adam de Minting and 

 in Mukelholm from Richard son of Roger 

 Dogson, and made further purchases in 

 later years ; Norris D. (B. M.), 798, 800, 

 818, 809, 812. 



3 The writ Diem ciausit extr. was issued 

 20 January ; Dep. Keeper's Rep. zxiiii, 

 App. 5. 



* In 1357 John de Blackburn acquired 

 from Robert son of John son of Adam de 

 Garston, land in Edgefield, Wytefield, and 

 Quiodel Gate, and the reversion of lands 

 belonging to Ellen the widow of John ; 

 Norris D. (B. M.), 818, &c. 



At the end of Edward Ill's reign John 

 de Blackburn appeared in court against 

 John son of Henry del Brooks and Mar- 



garet his wife, and Joan daughter of Adam 

 de Minting in a plea concerning a messuage 

 and an oxgang of land in Garston and a 

 fishery in the Mersey j and against William 

 de Whitfield in the same claim. The 

 defendants did not appear, and John 

 recovered seisin 5 De Banc, R. 460, 

 m. 375</. 



He made a feoffment of his lands in 

 1357, including the manor of Garston, 

 with its demesne lands, mills, fisheries, 

 &c., and lands In Allerton. No remain- 

 ders are recited in the deed j Norris D. 

 (B. M.), 816, 817, 841. 



» Towncley MS. UD, 1457. 



*■ On 27 January, 1404-5, a grant of 

 the wardship and marriage of John, son of 

 Robert, son and heir of John de Blackburn, 

 was made to John de Osbaldeston, and a 

 writ of Diem ciauiit extr, on the death of a 

 Roger de Blackburn was issued two years 

 later ; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xl, App. 532; 

 xxxiii, App. 7. 



7 Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 25-6. See the 

 account of Lydiate. 



^ The feodary of 1430 states that 

 Thomas de Ireland held the manor of 

 Garston in right of his wife, paying 20j. 

 and performing suit of county and wapen- 

 take, and going with the bailiff; Dods. 

 MS. Ixxxvii, fol. 57. 



^ Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iv, n. 16. 



^^ A list of the tenants and their rents is 

 preserved among the Norris deeds (B. M.). 

 The total rent was ;^l6 2j. Sd. including 

 ' broad arrows ' valued at zd. each. 



11 In 1 326 Alan le Norreys of Speke ac- 

 quired land by the Kirkway and abutting 

 on Quindal Moor from Robert the 'lord's 

 son ' 5 continuing he later bought land 

 called 'Farthings* in Branderth, near 

 Allerton Brook, and other holdings in the 

 Brooks, securing in 1339 that of Sibota, 

 daughter of John son of Adam de Garston. 

 Other acquisitions followed j and his de- 



124 



scendants continued the same course, 

 until, as stated, they acquired the manor 

 and all the Ireland (or Blackburn) lands 

 in the reign of Henry VIII. Norris D. 

 (B.M.), 761, &c. 



i'-* In 1400 John son of Richard Ic Nor- 

 reys held lands in Garston and Speke, and 

 in 1448-9 Jtihn Norris of Garston and 

 Katherine his wife enfeoffed Thomas 

 Blackburn, chaplain, of all their lands in 

 Garston and Allerton. Two years later 

 these were released to John Norris of 

 Kirkby, son of John Norris late of Garston, 

 and he in turn transferred them to Thomas 

 Lathom of Knowsley, who conveyed them 

 to William Norris of Speke. Norris D. 

 (B.M.), 877, 903-13. 



" A large number of their leases from 

 1550 to 1680 have been preserved in the 

 collection just cited ; in some cases fish- 

 yards in the Mersey were attached to the 

 tenements ; in many ' boons and averages * 

 were required in addition to the money 

 rent, the ' rent capon ' being specially 

 mentioned. Some interesting and de- 

 scriptive field names occur ; thus in one of 

 '577 Leafurlong, abutting on the road 

 called Greengate ; Bridge Greaves ; 

 Whyndow Hey (the older Quindal, in the 

 southern corner of the township), the 

 higher lane and the way from Garston 

 chapel to Speke Hall are mentioned. 



" The Hon. Topham Beauclerk and 

 Lady Diana were deforciants of the manor 

 of Garston in August, 177+ ; Pal. of Lane. 

 Feet of F. bdle. 392, m. 64. 



^ He was nephew of the Thomas Black- 

 burne who married Ireland Greene of 

 Hale, and son of John Blackburne of 

 Liverpool (mayor, i 760). He was mayor 

 of Liverpool in 1788. Grcgson, Frag- 

 ments, 194. Blackburne House in Hope 

 Street, Liverpool, was a residence of his ; 

 Picton, Memorials, ii, 152. 

 " 33 Geo. III. 



