A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



nineteen/ and on his death by another son, Hugh, 

 who, as suted above, acquired the inheritance of 

 the Smith famil)-, thus making his share a sixth.* 

 He had a son Robert,' who w^as followed by his 

 son Alan.* The succession here becomes uncertain.* 

 An Alan Ditton was living in 14S1 ;^ probably it was 

 his son Robert who was married as early as 1442-3 

 to Janet, daughter of Richard Tarleton.^ Robert 

 Ditton had two daughters, Margaret, who married a 

 Coney, and Emmota, who married Thomas Shaw. 



Margaret Coney was succeeded by her son William,® 

 and grandson Robert." This last was succeeded by 

 Henry Coney, who died in 1569, leaving a son 

 Henry, under age." Henry the younger died in 

 1598, his brother Robert being his heir ; ^* and 

 Robert, described as of Knowsley, dying shortly after- 

 wards, left the inheritance to his brother William, 

 of Ford in Bedfordshire." In some manner not 

 quite clear the * hall of Coney' and the 'quarter' 

 of the manor held with it, by the agency of John 

 Ogle of Whiston, passed to William Coney of Ditton, 

 described as a son of Henry Coney." William 



that the grantor was the Adam of the 

 Survey of 1212 } it appears that in later 

 times both the Norrises and the Dandy- 

 ions held of the descendants of Henry, 

 ion of Ralph de Ditton. The seal has 

 the legend : + s' adr de dvstes. 



Philip son of Adam de Ditton made a 

 grant of land in Whittle to John Henry- 

 ion ; Blundell of Crosby D. K.. i. 



1 Robert son of Richard Wimark of 

 Ditton died holding of the king by a 

 service of zs. ; Roger his son and heir 

 was nineteen years of age ; Fine R, of 

 18 Edw, II, m, 12; Chan. Inq, p.m. 

 18 Edw. II, r.. 6. 



^ Hugh de Ditton appears from 1332 

 to 1349 as witness to charters ; Kuerden 

 fol. MS. p. 98, He exchanged lands with 

 John Hcnryson ; Blundell of Crosby D. 

 K, 94, 



8 Robert son of Hugh de Ditton is 

 named as a landholder in 1355 ; Norris 

 D. (B.M.), n. 276 ; and to his daughter 

 Alice, on her marriage with Thomas son 

 of Alan de Haysarm, in 1386-7, he 

 made a grant of the lands in Ramford he 

 had received with Emma his wife; Kuerden 

 fol. MS. p. 96, n. 590. He enfeoffed Henry 

 de Holbrook, chaplain, of all his goods 

 and chattels in 1381-2, and was re-en- 

 feoffied in 1389-90; Blundell of Crosby 

 D. IC. 50, K.. 92. He acquired lands in 

 Applcton in 1382; Norris D. (B.M.), 

 n, 278. He is mentioned in a bond for 

 £^0 as late as 1399 ; Blundell of Crosby 

 D. K. 57. In June, 1378, licence for an 

 oratory at Ditton for two years was 

 granted to Robert de Ditton ; Lich. Epis, 

 Reg. V, fol. 28. 



■* Alan is mentioned In the bond for 

 j^4o referred to in the last note. In 

 1445, his sister Alice, widow of John de 

 Parr of Rainford, released to him all her 

 right in the lands assigned to her by 

 Robert her father ; Blundell of Crosby D. 

 K.. 104, K. 97. John Ollerton, a Domini- 

 can friar of Chester, In 1441-2 gave a re- 

 ceipt for 19 marks to Alan de Ditton and 

 Daveson de Wldnes ; ibid. K. 63. Alan 

 is also mentioned in 1420, 1425, and 

 143 I. 



* A marriage contract of 1402-3 be- 

 tween a Robert de Ditton and Emma 

 daughter of Robert de Molyneux describes 

 the former as son of Alice, then wife of 

 Henry de Ditchlield ; he was to have all 

 the lands descending to him from his 

 brother, reasonable dower being allowed 



Coney held it in 162 i," but appears to have sold it 

 to the Blundells of Crosby, whose holding thus be- 

 came a quarter of the whole manor ; it is now 

 described as a moiety, having, as above stated, been 

 increased by other purchases. 



The fate of the remainder is unknown. There 

 was about 1820 no acknowledged lord of the manor. 

 The cowgates on the marsh were merged in the 

 general enclosure. There were ' no courts, no 

 perambulation, no fishery, no wrecks.'** 



Though many of the deeds of DITCHFIELD 

 have been preserved by Kuerden," a satisfactory descent 

 cannot be made out. It appears certain that the 

 estate was the two oxgangs of land which in 12 12 

 were held of Richard de Ditton by Richard son of 

 Outi. From Richard the succession was probably by 

 his son Robert *^ and grandson Richard to the latter's 

 sons Roger and John.^^ Roger son of Richard and 

 Roger de Ditchfield were witnesses to charters of 

 about the same time, so that it appears at least prob- 

 able that these were merely different names for the 

 same person.™ 



to Henry de Ditchfield and Alice ; Kuer- 

 den fol. MS. p. 99, n. 470, 



* See note above. There is nothing to 

 show the connexion of this Alan with 

 the Alan living in 1445. 



7 By an Indenture of 1442-3 — Ditton 

 of Ditton granted the marriage of Robert 

 his son to Janet daughter of Richard 

 Tarleton ; Blundell of Crosby D. K.. 105. 

 ** ibid. K. 100, K. 107, K. 113 ; Mar- 

 garet was dead, but Emma was living in 

 1509. 



^ Ibid. K. 113. He was still living in 

 1528 ; ibid. K. 96. 



^0 Robert Coney of Prescot, son and 

 heir of William, was by his father engaged 

 in 1 521 to marry Jane daughter of Ellen, 

 widow of Thomas Traffbrd of Cheshire ; 

 ibid. JC. 1 1 1 , K. 1 1 2, K. 1 1 o. A Robert 

 Coney of Ditton was living in 1562 j ibid. 

 K. 114. 



^^ Henry was probably the son of 

 Robert. He demised to William Marsh 

 certain lands In Ditton in 1554; Ibid. 

 K. 109 ; and made a settlement for the 

 benefit of Grace his wife in 1564 ; ibid. 

 K. 102. The inquest after his death 

 (Duchy of Lane Inq. p.m. xlii, n. 24) 

 shows that he held messuages and lands 

 in Ditton of the queen as of her manor 

 of West Derby by a rent of zs. and suit 

 at the wapentake of West Derby. Henry 

 Coney, his son and heir, was seventeen 

 years of age. The rent agrees with that 

 paid by Robert son of Richard In 1323, 

 as compared with the 3^. paid by Hugh, 

 son of Robert in 1346. 



^^ Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xvil, n, 75. 

 Besides the hall of Coney and a quarter 

 of the manor of Ditton, held in socage by 

 a rent of 2i., Henry Coney held lands in 

 Rainhill, Knowsley, Huyton, and Glest in 

 Eccleston. Robert Coney, his brother 

 and heir, is said to have been forty-eight 

 years of age, which would make him older 

 than Henry. 



^ He died in 1600, his heirs being his 

 daughters Margaret and Elizabeth, aged 

 four and two years ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. 

 p.m. xvill, n. 24 ; Blundell of Crosby D. 

 K. 108. 



^^ As early as 1589, while Henry 

 Coney was still living, William Coney, 

 perhaps an illegitimate son, sold to John 

 Ogle the hall of Coney and the quarter of 

 the manor ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. 

 bdle. 51, m. 246 ; but after the death of 

 Robert Coney the whole appears to have 



400 



been transferred to William Coney of 

 Ditton, Elizabeth, widow of William 

 Coney of Ford afterwards releasing her 

 right herein ; Blundell of Crosby D. 

 K. 108, K. 103. In 1600, Anne widow 

 of Robert Coney claimed from William 

 Coney and others the capital messuage 

 called the hall of Coney ; Ducatus Lane, 

 (Rec. Com.), ill, 415. 



^^ In this year Sir Thomas Ireland was 

 plaintiff and William Coney and Elizabeth 

 his wife, John Coney and Margaret his 

 wife, deforciants in a fine concerning the 

 fourth part of the manor of Ditton, and 

 lands there ; Blundell of Crosby D. K. 

 loi. The names of the wives agree 

 with those of the heirs of William Coney 

 of Ford. As a number of the Coney deeds 

 were among the Blundell muniments it 

 appears certain that this family ultimately 

 purchased the Coney lands. 



Some members of the family seem to 

 have retained an interest in Ditton, as 

 Margery Hawarden married Henry Coney 

 of Ditton, gentleman, early in the seven- 

 teenth century ; Dugdalc, yiui. (Chet. 

 Soc), 132. A Captain Coney of Ditton 

 is mentioned in connexion with a train- 

 band levy at the beginning of the Civil 

 War ; Trans* Hist. Soc. iv, 31. 



18 Trans. Hist. Soc. xxil, 220 ; from a 

 description by Edward Eyes in 1828, with 

 additions by Joseph Boult. 



17 Vol. ii (College of Arms), fol. 247. 



^ A * Robert son of Richard ' attested 

 several charters of the middle of the 

 thirteenth century, but as there were 

 probably two of the name — of Ditton and 

 of Ditchfield — this step must be regarded 

 as uncertain. In one charter mention I* 

 made of * the land of Robert son of Rich- 

 ard' ; Kuerden fol. MS. p. 98, n. 662. 



1* 'Richard son of Robert' attested the 

 charter cited in the last note. One of 

 this name exchanged land with Henry 

 son of Ralph de Ditton, and made a 

 grant to his own son John ; Kuerden 

 fol. MS. p. 98, n. 656, 664 ; 96, n. 592. He 

 also made a grant to Ralph son of Philip 

 de Ditton ; Kuerden MSS, ii, fol. 247, n. 9. 



^ To several charters dating from about 

 1300 * Roger son of Richard' was wit- 

 ness, his name occurring after those of 

 John son of Robert, and Stephen son of 

 Adam ; Kuerden MS. fol. p. 99,n. 505, &c; 

 Roger de Ditchfield's name occurs in a 

 like position, ibid. 359, n. 423; 96, n. 

 594- 



