A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



out any manorial rights, was sold by the Formbys to 

 Bartholomew French, of Liverpool and County 

 Mayo; he died in i S68, and in 1875 his trustees 

 sold the hall to Mr. William Ripley, the present 

 owner. The manorial rights are supposed to be 

 extinct.' 



A branch of the Molyneuxes resided at the Peel ' 

 in Maghull in the first part of the sixteenth cen- 

 tury.' 



Thomas Bootle of Melling, who died in 1597, 

 held lands in Maghull of each of the lords — 

 Richard Hulme, Sir Richard Molyneux, and Richard 

 Maghull.' 



Henry Stanley of Maghull had his small estate 

 sequestered by the Parliament, but was discharged, 

 having taken the National Covenant and Negative 

 Oath in 164.6.' 



The present church of St. Andrew 



CHURCH was consecrated 8 September, 1880, and 



stands near the old site. It is in the 



early English style, with chancel, nave, north porch, 



and western tower. 



Forty years ago the chapel had ' an ancient chancel 

 with a small aisle or chapel to the north,' divided 

 from it 'by two very low pointed arches, perhaps 

 early English, with a circular pillar having a moulded 

 cap. The western respond had nail-headed mould- 

 ings.' The body of the church, built about 1830, 

 was ' unworthy of notice. . . . The interior was posi- 

 tively shapeless.' ° 



The chancel with its north aisle has been preserved, 

 and is commonly known as the Unsworth chapel, the 

 owner of the manor-house using the aisle as a mor- 

 tuary chapel. ' A careful comparison of the mould- 

 ings appears to indicate that the building does not 

 date earlier than 1285 to 1290, in spite of the 

 Norman-looking round arch, which, oddly enough, 

 has the most distinct thirteenth-century detail in the 

 moulding.' On the east wall is a trace of a mural 

 painting. There are a mutilated piscina and a prism- 

 shaped holy-water font. A Georgian baptismal font 

 is built into the wall over the modem west door.' 

 ' The chapel house nearly opposite is a good example 

 of early seventeenth-century architecture, with long 

 square muUioned windows.' " 



The origin of the chapel is unknown, but from 



what has been said above one must have stood there in 

 the thirteenth century.' A gift of five acres of land was 

 at one time made for the finding of a light in the 

 chapel.'" The building in 1 550 was valued at 30/." 

 About the same time the rector of Halsall complained 

 that he had been ousted from a close called ' Church 

 land ' at the east end of the chapel of Maghull, another 

 small piece between the barnyard and Maghull Green, 

 and four butts on the south side of the chapel." 



Nothing is known of the fate of the chapel for 

 some time after this. Melling was perhaps used as 

 more convenient. In i 590 there was ' no preacher ' 

 at Maghull;" about 1610 it was 'without service 

 or preacher.'" The registers do not begin till 

 1729. 



Under the rule of the Parliament, Maghull was 

 placed under the charge of a separate minister, who 

 had the tithes of the township, a tenth being de- 

 ducted for the benefit of Mrs. Travers, wife of the 

 'delinquent' rector. In November, 1645, Mr. James 

 Worrall was appointed to the charge of it." The 

 surveyors of 1650 found 'an ancient chapel' with 

 about a roodland of ground around it, 'fit to be 

 enjoyed therewith,' and recommended that the town- 

 ship should be made a separate parish. Mr. William 

 Aspinall, ' a painfull and godly minister,' was then 

 supplying the cure, his regular stipend being ^^45 

 clear." 



Bishop Gastrell records that in 171 7 there was 

 nothing belonging to the chapel beyond £zo a year 

 paid by the rector, and about ^^5 surplice fees ;" the 

 rector of course appointed the curate, and now pre- 

 sents the vicar. 



Among the curates and vicars at Maghull have 

 been : — 



oc. 1665 — Shaw 

 1670-91 Zachary Leech "* 

 oc. I 704 Ralph Sherdley 



1777 Benjamin Whitehead '" 



1 8 1 I George Holden, M.A. (Glas.) '» 



1865 Joseph Lyon, M.A. (Trin. Coll., 



Oxford) 

 1 869 James Gerard Leigh, M.A. (Christ 



Ch., Oxford) '" 

 1884 John Francis Hocter, M.A. (Trin. Coll. 

 Dublin) 



* Information of Mr. R. E. French. 



^ Alan del Peel made a complaint 

 against Thomas de Maghull in 1548; 

 Exch. Misc. xc, m. 238. 



* Joan wife of Ralph Molyneux died 

 there in 1503, absolved and houselled by 

 Humphrey Hart, priest. The place de- 

 scended to her son and heir Richard, who 

 in 1514 arranged that his lands in Lydiate 

 and Maghull should upon his death go to 

 the use of his wife Elizabeth for her life, 

 and then to his sons Edmund and Ralph. 

 Richard died about Februarj-, 1521 ; and 

 while his body lay in the house, another 

 son, Robert, came in and sat down by way 

 of taking possession. He refused to take 

 part in the funeral, but after the ' dole ' 

 had been distributed among the people at 

 the churchyard the funeral party returned 

 to the house 'and there drank without 

 hurt or misdeameanor of any one.' Shortly 

 afterwards Robert was expelled by the 

 servants of Edward Molyneux, rector of 

 Sefton, one of the trustees for the widow; 

 Duchy of Lane. Depos. Hen. VIH, xii, 

 m. I. 



* Duchy of Lane. Inq. p. m. xvii, n. 57. 



* Cal. Com. for Comp. ii, 1483. 



* Land. Cburcbei (Chet. Soc. New Ser.), 

 37. * The chapel appears to have been 

 built at different times,* says a visitor of 

 1 823, referring to the old building, ' and 

 the exterior is destitute of simplicity or 

 architectural beauty. The interior is 

 neat and crowded with seats, capable of 

 containing a numerous congregation, 

 which, however, has so much increased 

 as to render necessary the addition which 

 is at present contemplated. On the north 

 side of the chancel is a small private 

 chapel belonging to the Unsworth family, 

 whose seat, the Manor House, lies ad- 

 jacent.' Kaleidoscope, 8 July, 1823. 



7 Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.), xi, 252. 

 Some remains are built into the manor- 

 house. 8 Ibid. 



* Lawrence Hulme was baptized at it 

 in 141 1, so that it was to some extent 

 parochial ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), 

 ii, 30. John the chaplain of Maghull is 

 named m 1461 ; Cockersand Chartul. iv, 

 1244. 



^^ Lanes, and Cbes. lUc. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), ii, 256. 



220 



^^ Raines, Chantries (Chet. Soc), ii, 

 277. For the property of this chapel in 

 1552 see Church Goods (Chet. Soc), 108. 



1^ Duchy of Lane. Pleadings, Edw. VI, 

 xxvi, H. 16 ; xxix, H. 16. 



^ Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 249. 



" Kenyan MSS. (Hist. MSS. Com.), 13. 

 In 1609 one Richard Vawdrey was curate 

 of Melling and Maghull ; Raines MSS. 

 (Chet. Lib.), xxii, 298. 



^ Plund. Mins. Accls. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), i, 10. He was transferred 

 to Aughton very soon afterwards. 



^ Commontuealth Cb, Surv. (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), 87. 



1? Nolitia Cestr. (Chet. Soc), ii, 175. 

 There were two wardens, appointed by 

 the inhabitants. 



'" Visit. Lists. ' Conformable ' in 1 689 ; 

 Keny'jn MSS. 229, 



" Also at MelUng. 



'■"' He was a justice of the peace and 

 author of several theological works. He 

 was the originator of Holden' t Tide Tablet. 

 He lived at Halsall Hall. See Diet. Nat. 

 Biog. 



^ Now rector of Halsall. 



