WEST DERBY HUNDRED 



The area of the township is 3,039^ acres.' It is 

 divided by a brook from Ditton on the west. The 

 roads are numerous. Probably the most ancient is 

 that from Rainhill through Farnworth, and south and 

 south-west to the crossing-place into Cheshire. It is 

 joined, to the north of Farnworth, by another ancient 

 road, the name of which, Chester Lane, shows its 

 use. From the meeting-point there is a more direct 

 road to Widnes, also roads to Cronton on the west, 

 Upton and Ditton on the south-west, and Penketh 

 on the east. From Widnes a road leads west to Hale 

 and Garston. 



The London and North Western Company's 

 railway from Liverpool to Manchester passes through 

 the town, where there is a station. To the west 

 there is a junction with the same company's main 

 line from London to Liverpool, which here crosses 

 the Mersey by a great bridge built in 1868, at one 

 side of which is accommodation for foot passengers.' 

 The St. Helens line branches off from Widnes station; 

 there is another station at Appleton, and a third at 

 the northern boundary, called Farnworth and Bold. 

 The Cheshire Lines Committee's Liverpool and Man- 

 chester section crosses near the centre and has a station 

 called Farnworth, to the south of this village ; there 

 is also a branch line to Widnes town, with stations 

 there and near the eastern boundary, called Widnes 

 (Central) and Tanhouse Lane. The St. Helens 

 Canal has its terminus in the docks at the eastern 

 side of the town. Runcorn Gap was the old name 

 of the part of the Mersey between Widnes and 

 Runcorn. 



Sixty years ago there were but a few scattered 



PRESCOT 



dwellings by the side of the Mersey, but the estab- 

 lishment of chemical works there about 1850 speedily 

 brought an increase of population, and the busy 

 industrial town — the centre of the alkali trade — has 

 grown up among and around the works. There are 

 also soap, oil, and paint factories, iron foundries, and 

 copper-smelting works. There are toolmaking and 

 some minor industries at Farnworth. 



Plumpton's Cross, Simm's Cross, and Whitfield's 

 Cross show where the crosses have stood.' 



This district gave its name to the 

 BJRONr Lancashire portion of the fee of Halton, 

 known as the lordship or barony of 

 rriDNES. In 1086 William son of Nigel, lord of 

 Halton, held a hide and a half in West Derby 

 hundred, and two hides and four plough-lands in 

 Warrington hundred.* This was shortly afterwards 

 largely increased,' and at his death in 1 2 1 1 , Roger, 

 constable of Chester, held the lordship by the service 

 of four knights' fees.* In 1242 the earl of Lincoln, 

 a minor, held half a fee in demesne in Appleton and 

 Cronton, which had been assigned in dower to his 

 mother the countess.' Early in 1 3 1 1 , on the death 

 of Henry de Lacy, the whole fee passed to Thomas 

 earl of Lancaster,* and has since been held by the 

 successsive earls and dukes of Lancaster and the 

 crown." 



From patents of the seventeenth century the manor 

 appears to have been assigned as part of the dowers of 

 the queens.'" In 1699 it was leased to Richard, Earl 

 Rivers, and in 1728 to George, earl of Cholmonde- 

 ley ; " from the latter the right has descended to the 

 present marquis of Cholmondeley as lessee.'* 



' 3,110 acres, including 36 of inland 

 water. There are about 85 acres of 

 tidal water, and 223 of foreshore ; Census 

 of 1901. 



^ A transporter bridge for goods and 

 aU kinds of trafSc has recently been 

 erected to the east. 



^ Tram. Lanes, and Cha. Antiq. Soc. 

 xix, 212. 



* V.C.H. Lanes, i, 280, 303. 



' Thus Cuerdley and Staining were 

 granted before 11 17, as may be seen in 

 the accounts of those townships. 



* There appear to have been 2 fees of 

 12 plough-lands and 2 of 10 ; thus : — 

 i, Appleton and Cronton, 6 ; Cuerdley, 

 I or ij ; Maghull, J ; Astley, i ; Stain- 

 ing, 3. ii. Knowslcy, 4 ; Huyton, 3 ; 

 Roby, 2 J Tarbock, 3. iii. Much and 

 Little Woolton, 5 ; Kirkby, 2 ; Little 

 Crosby, 3. iv. Sutton, 4. ; Eccleston, 4 ; 

 Rainhill, 2, See Inq. and Extents (Rec. 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 40—3, Cuerdley, 

 having gone to the barons of Manchester, 

 soon drops out of the reckoning ; but an 

 account of the rents paid to the bailiff of 

 the wapentake about 1470, preserved 

 among the Norris Deeds (B.M.), shows a 

 total of 331. dd. 



"* Inq. and Extents^ 148 ; about the 

 same time Appleton, with the appur- 

 tenances, was valued at ^^3 "js. \\d.\ 

 ibid. 157. Henry de Lacy, in 1302, 

 paid 40s. for a knight's fee in ' Appleton 

 with its members,' towards the aid for 

 marrying the king's eldest daughter ; ibid. 

 312. 



8 V.C.H. Lanes, i, 312. 



' In the De Laey Inquest (Chet. Soc), 

 23, is an account of the rents received in 

 1311. The manor-house was worth zs. 

 a year ; 96 acres in the demesne held by 

 tenants at will, brought in 641.; 16 ox- 

 gangs of land in bondage paid 81.; and 



for works excused, and for a service called 

 the 'brede,' loj. %d. The profits of the 

 three-weeks court amounted to 6s. id. 

 Richard de Donington held 24 acres, 

 paying 2s. %d.if and Richard de Denton 

 and Roger son of Ralph held 2 acres and 

 a water-mill for los. At Upton there 

 were 8 oxgangs of land paying l6i., 

 and a windmill and water-mill worth 

 261. 8^. 



The accounts of Henry de Lacy 

 which have been published by the Chet. 

 Soc. (vol. cxii) are of various years, 

 some going as far back as 1295. They 

 give many details of interest. Besides 

 the * brede ' from Appleton, a rent called 

 sakefee produced ^i i6i. id.\ rape silver, 

 6s. 8i/.5 'cheminage' of 15 men, is. 3^/., 

 and of Randle de Widnes, 6s. 8^/.; tallage 

 of the bondmen, due every 3 years, 

 j^i3 6s. id. Oxgalt was another tax 

 payable every third year. Thistletake 

 one year produced i zs. 



Among the casual receipts were a 

 mediety of the goods of Richard de Den- 

 ton, serf of the earl, who had died, and 

 the fine of his son Richard for his father's 

 land ; a fine of Philip de la Leigh, who 

 had married the daughter of another serf, 

 Roger de Widnes, on entering her father's 

 lands ; the merchets of Amabel daughter 

 of William de Upton, Margery daughter 

 of Richard de Denton, and others, 

 amounting to i Ss. There were also fines 

 of freemen on entering land. 



The men of Runcorn paid zs. for 

 having peat ; pannage amounting to 9J. 

 clear. The forester of Widnes paid £1 a 

 year, and the Serjeant of the free court ^^3. 

 Henry le Waleys paid ys. for a rood oi 

 land and a horse-mill, ' where before was 

 a hand-mill.' 



An extent of the Castle of Halton 

 taken in July, 1328 (Inq. p.m. 2 Edw. HI, 



1st nos. n. 61), gives the following account 

 of Widnes : — 



There were in the vill of Widnes — 

 here accounted separate — 105 acres in 

 demesne, farmed out at 70i., a water-mill 

 and a windmill, worth 535. ^d. Richard 

 de Moore held his tenement at a rent of 

 ys. Certain customary tenants held 24 

 messuages, 2 cottages, 144 acres, &c., 

 rendering 445. 



In the vill of Appleton there were 

 16 customary tenants, holding 32 mes- 

 suages, 1 5 oxgangs of land and a third, 

 144 acres, &c., and paying 651. ofi. 



In the vill of Denton were 21 cus- 

 tomary tenants, with 32 messuages, 206 

 acres, &c., and paying ^^4 zs. 



In the vill of Upton were 19 customary 

 tenants, holding in bondage 29 messuages 

 and a cottage, 8 oxgangs of land, 128 

 acres, &c., and paying ^4 ys. o|i. 



All the tenants paid pannage, worth 

 6s. id. a year ; and tallage every third 

 year, worth £6 131. 4</. The profits of 

 the Halmote were worth 20s., and of the 

 free court called the court of Widnes 

 131. i\.d.; the dues of the Serjeants of the 

 peace were worth 40J. 



In 1300 the fee was reckoned as three 

 knights' fees and the 8th and 40th parts 

 of a fee ; ibid. 63. In 1346 it seems 

 to have been 3J fees, and the loth and 

 20th parts of a fee ; Extent of 1 346 (Chet. 

 Soc), 38, 40. See also Dods. MSS. 

 cxxxi, fol. 33, where the service due 

 from the lord of the fee is stated as 30J. for 

 ward of the castle of Lancaster and sake- 

 fee, and doing suit to county and wapen- 

 take. 



1" Pat. 5 Chas. 1, pt. xv ; 24 Chas. II. 



11 Duchy of Lane. Misc. Books, xxvi (2), 

 91. 



^^ Beamont, Halton Rec. 49 ; Baines, 

 Lanes, (ed. 1836), iii, 722. 



387 



