WEST DERBY HUNDRED 



ORMSKIRK 



granted it to Adam at a rent of I zd. with other lands 

 in Scarisbrick, a yearly pound of cummin to be paid.' 

 Adam was succeeded by Walter de Gorsuch, probably 

 his son, as is indicated by a grant to Nicholas son of 

 Simon de Renacres.' 



In May, 1 292, an agreement was sealed for the 

 marriage of Robert son of Walter de Gorsuch with 

 Agnes granddaughter of William Brid of Donnington ; 

 Robert, though a minor, had been enfeoffed of lands 

 by the prior of Burscough, his father binding the 

 feoffees to find food and raiment for Robert and Agnes, 

 any surplus to be kept for them and delivered with 

 the lands on their coming of age.' Robert seems 

 to have died without issue,* and his brother John 

 succeeded, marrying in 1299 Cecily daughter of 

 Richard de Culcheth.' John de Gorsuch granted 

 (about 1320) to Gilbert his son lands in the 

 townfields of Scarisbrick on the north of land near 

 the cross, held of William son of Richard de Scaris- 

 brick.* 



The family acquired lands in North Meols, Lathom, 

 and Huyton, about this time. Gilbert de Gorsuch suc- 

 ceeded about I 347 ; ' he is described as ' son of Adam 

 son of Walter.' Gilbert had no son, and settled estates 



in Longton upon his younger daughter Maud, wife of 

 William de Hurleton ; the latter also had no son, and 

 Gorsuch and other lands went to Richard de Sutton, 

 who had married the elder daughter Joan.* In 1390 

 Gilbert de Gorsuch had made a settlement or testa- 

 ment providing for the succession to a portion of his 

 lands ; ' and other deeds preserved by Kuerden show 

 that the main portion was settled on Richard de 

 Sutton and Joan his wife, with the remainder to 

 William de Hurleton and Maud his wife.'" 



For more than a century the Suttons " remained 

 in possession, and then the estate returned to the 

 Gorsuch family, for in 1 5 1 5 a marriage was arranged 

 between Margaret daughter of Roger Sutton (son 

 of John, the son of Gilbert) and Thomas son and 

 heir of William Gorsuch." Gilbert Sutton died on 

 20 April, 15 18, and the inquisition taken after his 

 death shows a considerable estate, the heir being 

 his infant great-granddaughter, already espoused to 

 Thomas Gorsuch.'' Thomas Gorsuch was succeeded 

 about 1560'* by his son James, who in 1577 

 secured from Edward Scarisbrick a right of way 

 from Gorsuch to Carr Cross in Snape, to Snape 

 Green, thence to Wood moss, near Long Wyke, to 



1 Scarisbrick D. n. l6 ; Kuerden MSS. 

 V, fol. 115, ». 9, 10. 



^ Scarisbrick D. n. 27. See also nn. 13, 

 32 ; to the former the seal is attached, 

 bearing an eagle attacking a hind, with 

 the legend : * s' walteri de goseford ', 



' Ibid. n. 37. 



■* Agnes, wife of Henry son of Randle 

 de Martin, claimed dower in Gorsuch 

 from John son of Adam de Gorsuch and 

 others, in 1315. De Banc. R. 212, 

 m. \%(^d. 



' Scarisbrick D. n. 41. Walter's pos- 

 sessions are described as * all my lands, 

 meadows, pasture, houses, mills, and mill- 

 pools in Scarisbrick, Harleton, and Augh- 

 ton.' Henry, Adam, and Richard were 

 younger brothers of John. 



* Scarisbrick D. n. 40. John de Gor- 

 such and others of the locality were in 

 1333 charged with complicity in the 

 murder at Aughton of Adam de Cocker- 

 ham, one of the canons of Burscough. 

 The accused did not appear when sum- 

 moned at three successive county courts 

 in April, May, and June, and the sheriff 

 was ordered to arrest them. At Michael- 

 mas most of them surrendered, and at 

 Martinmas they were tried and acquitted; 

 the prosecution being adjudged malicious, 

 damages were awarded. The really guilty 

 person appears to have been John son of 

 John de Gorsuch ; he at last surrendered 

 in June, 1344, but at the same time ex- 

 hibited a pardon granted by the king ' for 

 the good service which John de Gorsuch 

 has bestowed on us in this present war of 

 Scotland,' in which he had taken part 

 under Sir Thomas de Lathom ; Coram 

 Rege R. 7 Edw. Ill, ' Rex ' m. xxj d. ; 

 also Scarisbrick D. n. 6z. 



7 John de Gorsuch attested deeds up 

 to June, 1346. He had sons, Adam and 

 Gilbert, who may have succeeded him for 

 a few months ; Scarisbrick D. nn. 73, 75, 



n- 



The daughters of Henry, elder brother 

 of Adam, remitted to Gilbert all their 

 rights in the family inheritance ; Agnes 

 surrendered her right on 20 Jan. 1349-50, 

 and Amota in the following September 5 

 ibid. n. 'j'^i 79. The Black Death may 

 have brought about the irregular succession. 



* Scarisbrick D. n. 140 ; 'William de 

 Hurleton swore in the house of Gilbert 



de Gorsuch before me [Richard de Twis- 

 leton, chaplain] and several others as to 

 the espousals between him and Maud, 

 Gilbert's daughter, and that he would 

 never claim the inheritance of the said 

 Gilbert which might disinherit or grieve 

 Richard de Sutton or the jointure of his 

 wife in time to come.' This declaration 

 was made in 1403. 



^ This was made in Jan. 1389-90; 

 ibid. n. 134. In the following Nov. 

 lands were granted to his widow Margery, 

 with remainders according to his wish ; 

 ibid. n. 126. 



" Blundell of Crosby D. K. 65, 79. 



^^ Some further particulars of this family 

 will be found in the accounts of Eccleston 

 and Croston. Richard de Sutton died at 

 the end of 1405, and his widow made a 

 fresh settlement, the remainders being to 

 Gilbert de Sutton, Thomas, John, Richard, 

 and Henry, and Cecily and Ellen ; Scaris- 

 brick D. n. 142. "The first three died 

 without heirs, for in 1444 Joan was 

 suing Richard de Sutton, 'late of Tarle- 

 ton,' for her dower ; and in November 

 this was delivered to her ; Pal. of Lane. 

 Plea R. 6, m. 9, 9^/.; Scarisbrick D. 

 n. 161, wherein Richard is called 'the 

 elder.' 



In 1456-7 indentures of marriage 

 were sealed between Richard Sutton of 

 Gorsuch and Edward Lathom of Parbold 

 for the marriage of the former's son Gil- 

 bert with the latter' 3 daughter Margaret ; 

 Blundell of Crosby D. K. 81. In i486 

 Gilbert married his son and heir John 

 Sutton to Mary daughter of John Crosse 

 of Liverpool, making for her an estate of 

 4 marks a year and promising not to 

 alienate any of his inheritance ; Scaris- 

 brick D. n. 178. In 1481 Gilbert Gor- 

 such leased lands in Penwortham to 

 Evesham ; Man, AngL iii, 421. 



" Blundell of Crosby D. K. 60, 75, 79, 

 82. The lands were re-delivered to 

 Thomas Gorsuch and Margaret his wife 

 in 1545-6 ; ibid. K. 80. 



'8 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p. m. V. «. 67. 

 Lands in Scarisbrick and Harleton were 

 held of the prior of Burscough by the 

 rent of a pound of cummin ; other lands 

 were in Ormskirk, Aughton (rent of two 

 barbed arrows), Welch Whittle (held of 

 the Hospitallers for a rent of I2</.) 



Wrightington, WIgan, AspuU (of the 

 Hospitallers, service unknown), Penwor- 

 tham, Ulneswalton (Hospitallers, 4^.), and 

 North Meols. 



A petition by Adam Ashurst and Alice 

 his wife, the latter being the widow of 

 Roger Sutton and mother of Margaret 

 Gorsuch, describes the inheritance as a 

 capital messuage called Gorsuch, 50 acres 

 of land, 4 acres of meadow, and 10 acres 

 of pasture. After the death of Gilbert 

 Sutton the guardianship fell to William 

 Gorsuch, and on his death (Thomas and 

 Margaret being still under age) to his 

 widow Emline, who married James 

 Scarisbrick. During all this time a rent 

 of 4 marks was paid to Alice Ashurst, 

 but three or four years after coming of 

 age (about 1536) Thomas Gorsuch re- 

 fused to pay it any longer. She was a 

 daughter of John Ireland and had 50 marks 

 from her father, the last instalment being 

 paid at John Nicholson's house, called 

 Hill House, in Scarisbrick. In 1542, 

 when the inquiry took place, Thomas 

 Gorsuch had lands of izs. value, includ- 

 ing a house in Prescot, beyond his wife's 

 inheritance, and * he did not keep his 

 wife in house with him,* but boarded her 

 with his mother ; Duchy of Lane. De- 

 positions, Hen. VIII, xxxvii, A. 1. The 

 complaint was renewed in 1550, Thomas 

 still refusing to pay ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Pleadings, Edw. VI, xxv, A. 7. 



A few years later (1547) Thomas 

 Gorsuch and his wife complained that: 

 James Scarisbrick had entered their lands; 

 and molested their tenants, and moreover 

 had *made a law in his manor of Scaris- 

 brick, wherein the premises lie, that it 

 should not be lawful for any of the 

 tenants to sell any of their calves brought 

 up on their farms within the said town 

 to anybody in open market or elsewhere 

 except to him (James) for 2J., under the 

 forfeiture of zs. for every calf so sold.' 

 Duchy of Lane. Pleadings, Edw. VI,. 

 xxiii, G. 8. For a complaint by Richard 

 Halsall, rector of Halsall, as to Thomas 

 Gorsuch see Duchy Pleadings (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), iii, 127, 



^■^ Margaret Gorsuch was a widow in' 

 1565, and apparently some years earlier ;-, 

 Duchy of Lane. Pleadings, Eliz. xlix,. 

 M. 6. 



35 



