SCHOOLS 



Chorley under the Statute of Charitable Uses, 

 and a decree issued which directed William 

 Lever, the son, then of full age, either to pay 

 /350 or to convey the lands at Harwood unto 

 the feoffees named for ' the new school of Bolton.' 

 This decree on appeal was confirmed by the 

 court 28 January, 1656-7. 

 The executors then 



desired and instructed John Harper of Halliwell, 

 clerk, and Robert Lever of Darcy Lever, gentleman, 

 to take upon them the burden, oversight and care of 

 the erection of a new school at Bolton in a certaine 

 place then called the Ashton yard field. 



On this they spent ;^250 and the income of the 

 land at Harwood up to Christmas, 1657, £^^°- 

 This, together with ;^2i 2s. Sd. which James 

 Lever the nephew ' gave of his own proper 

 money ' and £^ for ' some flagges [i.e. flag-stones] 

 which were sould,' and the interesting item of 

 '15s. received forquittes [leaving gifts] at leaving 

 of the school,' showing that the school had 

 been going on at least since the war, made 

 j£43S 17^* ^'^•t ^^^ total cost of the new school. 

 By deeds of lease and release 22 and 26 Feb- 

 ruary, 1657-8-9, the executors declared that 

 they 



did think fit to make choice and bestow the gifts and 

 legacies ... by the said Robert Lever ... for the 

 building and erecting of a new Free Grammar School 

 and endowing the same. 



It was therefore agreed that the new building 



intended and then used . . . should for ever there- 

 after continue remain and be to the pleasure of 

 Almighty God employed used and enjoyed for a Free 

 Grammar School in Bolton of the foundation of Robert 

 Lever late of London gentleman deceased. 



William Lever the younger conveyed the lands 

 in Harwood to sixteen feoffees, among whom 

 were several Levers, upon trust that the income 

 should be paid 



to the High Schoolmaster and Usher of and in the 

 said New School of and in Bolton aforesaid ... for 

 or towards the salary and better maintenance of the 

 same High Master and Usher. 



This is one of many pieces of evidence that the 

 title of high master was in old times frequently 

 interchangeable with that of head, or, as was 

 then more common, chief master, and not, as now, 

 confined in practice to the two schools of St. 

 Paul's and Manchester. 



There does not appear to have been any defi- 

 nite conveyance of the old school premises to the 

 new school feoffees. But in the Private Act 

 (1784) to be presently mentioned, it is recited 

 that 



the old school together with the old revenues and pro- 

 perty have ever since the year 1656 been united to 

 the new school and the revenues and property thereof 

 and the said schools have from time to time been con- 

 sidered in every respect as one and the same school, 



and the Act definitely vested them in the 

 trustees. 



The school accounts are extant from i June, 

 1658, and fully bear out the statement in the 

 Act, including several payments made on behalf 

 of the old school (15;. 4^. and 4^. for straw, 12s. 

 for wood, I id. for ' nayles,' 4.5. i^d. for ' witeninge 

 the ould school '). The title therefore of the 

 present grammar school to date itself as a con- 

 tinuous institution from at least 1524 is un- 

 doubted. 



These accounts also make it clear that the 

 school was going on before the first entry, which 

 runs : — 



Imprimis payd to Mr. Dewhurst, scholemaster, in 

 part of his wages, £6. Paid to Mr. Bray, usher, in 

 full of his half yers wages ending 24 June, £fi. Paid 

 now to Mr. Bray per Mr. Dewhurste his part, 

 £\. \\s. dd. Paid now to Mr. John Plumb per 

 Mr. Dewhurst his part in full of all the yeare, 

 g\ Sj. (,d. 



So that it would appear probable that Dew- 

 hurst, the head master, received ^^20 and the 

 usher ^\2 a year. Dewhurst apparently departed 

 in 1658, and the usher acted as head, for we find 

 ' Mr. Bray in part of his years wages for teach- 

 inge ^9 ; Mr. Bray in full till 24 June, 1659, 

 ;^io.' ;^30 was paid 'ould Mr. Bradshawe to 

 make up his debt, j^200,' probably advanced for 

 building the new school, and Mr. Robert Lever 

 of Darcy Lever lent the money to make up the 

 deficit of ;^4 5j. 2d. The total income for the 

 two years was ;^83, so that the endowment 

 was adequate and the salaries up to the usual 

 standard of the period. Bray still continued to 

 act as head master, receiving * in full for halfe 

 yeare's wages now ended and in full of his 

 teaching schole at Bolton ;^5,' apparently at 

 Martinmas, 1660. The next master had higher 

 pay, as in 1 661 there is 'paide to Mr. Marsden, 

 scholemaster, by Mr. Andrews in parte of his 

 half yere's wages ;^I3.' He was also paid ' for 

 a book called Richardson's Photocryden, which 

 is for use of the schole, \s. dd.' By Michaelmas 

 Marsden was gone, there being paid to 'Mr. Robert 

 Boulton, scolemaster, for his quarter wages due 

 £() 10 J.' The usher at the same time received 

 nearly ^^14 a year : ' Mr. Nicholas Leige, second 

 master, a quarter's salary,' in December, 1666, 

 £1 6s. Sd. Next year William Stempe was 

 'headmaster,' but received only _^20 a year. 

 His ushers were Richard Duckworth to 1670 

 and then Timothy Dobson. In 1672 Anthony 

 Chester came for half a year, and then William 

 Baldwin, whose salary was ^^30 a year. Phineas 

 Rothwell held from 1677 to 1682, with John 

 Pendlebury usher, then Mr. Adam Coupe (1682), 

 who at first ' taughte bothe schooles,' i.e. both 

 the head master's and usher's divisions, and after- 

 wards was assisted by William Yarwood. 



A school library was added by deed of 10 

 November, 1686, by the Rev. William Board- 



597 



