| 1 |
1,126, including 5 of inland water,
according to the census of 1901. Cronton
Heys, a small detached part of the township, was transferred to Tarbock in 1877
by L.G.B. order 7401. |
| 2 |
Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xix, 204–6;
where may be read the local story of Pexhill, the name being traced to a Peg Pusey,
whose ghost haunted the place. |
| 3 |
See the note on Appleton above. |
| 4 |
Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc.
Lancs. and Ches.), 43. |
| 5 |
Birch Chapel (Chet. Soc.), 189. The
place is called 'Grewinton Halfsnede';
so that Halsnead, now in Whiston, was
perhaps the other half of a manor originally
spreading into both Cronton and Whiston.
A grant of the lands by Richard de la
More is printed in Ormerod's Ches.
(ed. Helsby), i, 675. It appears to be the
Hospitallers' Shacht or Shaw of the Plac.
de Quo Warr. (Rec. Com.), 375,
and the 'Crompton Shaw' of their sixteenth-century rental, held by the heir of
Robert Awty for a rent of 12d.; Kuerden
MSS. v, fol. 84. Henry Awty in 1469
demised a moiety of Shaw Field in the
lordship of Widnes to Ellen widow of
Richard Bold, he having received it of
Sir Henry Bold; Bold D. (Hoghton),
n. 14. |
| 6 |
It was still in demesne in 1242; Inqand Extents, 148. Its value was 22s. 8d.;
ibid. 157. |
| 7 |
Whalley Coucher (Chet. Soc.), iii, 811.
The conjunction of Cronton with Appleton is shown by the mention of the
liberties and easements being 'within the
vill of Cronton and outside it.' |
| 8 |
Whalley Coucher, iii, 812. With the
permission to erect the mill was given an
assart which William de Cronton, son of
Ingrit, formerly held. A rent of 11s.
covered all dues except pannage. |
| 9 |
Plac. de Quo Warr. 381. |
| 10 |
Whalley Coucher, iii, 813. The compensation amounted to 4¼ acres situate
between the land Richard already held
and the hedge of Cockshootleigh and
Sikeman Sty, going down towards Tarbock; a rent of 12d. was payable. |
| 11 |
Ibid. The excepted roads were—one
by the easement (per baysiam) or 'lidyate'
of Cockshootleigh as far as Cronton; and
the other from the house of Richard's
mother, Margery, to the New Outlane,
having a width of 30 ft. After Margery's
death this road was to be restricted to a
sufficient footpath leading to Farnworth
church through the Roughead. The Shaw
family were probably tenants of the
Hospitallers. |
| 12 |
The abbot in 1292 defeated a claim
for freedom made by two bondmen; Assize
R. 408, m. 33 d. Two charters are preserved among the Norris deeds (B.M.),
n. 932, 933. By the first John de Pexhill granted 2 acres in the Middlesnape,
with housebote and heybote in Cronton,
to Maud daughter of Richard de Pilothalgh; and this was, in 1332, with her
consent granted by her husband Thomas
son of Roger Maggeson de Bradley, to
John the Clerk, of Cronton.
Richard the Clerk, of Cronton, had in
1246 resisted a claim for an oxgang put
forward by Richard son of Richard the
Ferryman; Assize R. 404, m. 8 d.
Richard the Clerk, of the Hermitage, was
a witness to the two charters of Edmund
de Lacy. |
| 13 |
Several suits were with John son
of John de Lancaster of Rainhill concerning
15 acres which the abbot alleged to be
in Cronton, and the defendant in Rainhill; De Banc. R. 352, m. 537 d.; 358,
m. 95 d. &c. to Duchy of Lanc. Assize R.
2, m. v d. The abbot lost this case, but
immediately made claim for 6 acres,
which he recovered by instalments;
Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 3, m. ix; 4,
m. 16; Assize R. 438, m. 14 d. |
| 14 |
The bounds were declared to begin
at Philip's Cross towards Ditton, and to
proceed to Waspestub, to the syke, along
this to Holywell Brook, and so to the
Mill Brook; thence by the middle of the
wood to Combral by Longley, by Longley
Brook to Wiglache, following this to the
Cartgate (way) going to Ridgate, and along
the Cartgate to the Church Shaw, to the
Mersappletree, and to Richard's Cross;
hence by the road to the Chester Road
through Sutton as far as the syke running
through the middle of Cranshaw, and so
to Sleeper's Green, towards the chapel of
Farnworth; Whalley Coucher, iii, 815–17.
Thus it would appear that Cronton then
extended further to the east than the
present township. |
| 15 |
Whalley Coucher, iv, 1215. The
lessees were Thomas Torbock, John
Winington, James Haworth, George
Cross, and others of the town of Cronton. In 1291 the assised rent of Cronton
had been £5 13s. 4d.; Pope Nich. Tax.
(Rec. Com.), 259. In 1534, when it was
worked in conjunction with Aigburth and
Garston, the assised rent of the demesne
was £18 4s.; Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), v.
229. |
| 16 |
Pat. 35 Hen. VIII, 1 Aug.; and
Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xi, n. 46. For
this and Stayning a rent of £5 0s. 11½d.
was payable to the crown; this was sold
with a number of such rents in 1680;
R. 1, pt. 2. |
| 17 |
Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 40,
m. 137. |
| 18 |
Ibid. bdle. 49, m. 18. Francis Holt
and Ellen his wife and Thomas Holt, son
and heir apparent, and Constance his wife
were the vendors. The property is described as the manor of Cronton, with
20 messuages, 2 mills, 500 acres land,
&c. Thomas Brooke had a year before
purchased part of this from Thomas Holt;
ibid. bdle. 48, m. 202. |
| 19 |
Ducatus Lanc. iii, 377. The Ireland
family had held lands here previously and
continued to hold some. |
| 20 |
Pal. of Lanc. Feet. of F. bdle. 60,
m. 284. Yet in 1615 Thomas Sutton is
stated to have held his lands in Cronton
of Thomas Brooke; Lancs. Inq. p.m.
(Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 18. |
| 21 |
Sales by the Holts are recorded to
Richard Hawarden; Pal. of Lanc. Feet
of F. bdle. 43, m. 118; to Thomas Parr
and others, ibid. bdle. 45, m. 22; to
John Gleast, ibid. bdle. 46, m. 130; to
Robert Burgess and others, ibid. bdle.
46, m. 217. In Sept. 1598, James Pemberton and Katherine his wife, and
James Pemberton, junior, the son and
heir of the former, sold various lands to
George and Hugh Gresse, Richard Wright,
Thomas and John Parr, James Lawton,
Thomas Parte, William Norman, Edward
Deane, and Edward Orme; ibid. bdle. 60,
m. 115.
Thomas Parte died in 1605; it appears
that he had had a lease of the premises
from Francis Holt in 1583; at his death
he held them of the crown in chief, by the
hundredth part of a knight's fee, and his
heir was his son John, aged seventeen;
Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), i, 37.
John Gleast's land was at his death in
1607 found to have been held in the
same manner; his heir was his daughter
Margaret Lea, aged thirty-five; ibid. i,
102.
Thomas Whike, Thomas Linacre, John
Parr, Francis and John Windle also held
lands in chief by similar fractions of a
knight's fee; ibid. i, 110; ii, 7, 182,
234, 285. John Parr had two mills in
Cronton, a windmill and a horse-mill.
William Stock died in 1596 holding
lands in Cronton of the queen by the
two-hundredth part of a knight's fee; his
heir was his sister Elizabeth, who in
1599 was wife of John Cross, and seventeen years of age; Duchy of Lanc. Inq.
p.m. xvii, n. 64. In 1628 Peter Stock
held lands here, leaving as heir a son
William, aged twenty-five; ibid. xxvi,
n. 28. |
| 22 |
Norris D. (B.M.). William Parr was
the son and heir of the John Parr just
mentioned; he was born in Oct. 1608;
Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs and
Ches.), ii, 184.
Thomas Wyke was the son and heir
of the Thomas Wyke mentioned in the
last note, who was the son and heir of
Edward Wyke, and aged twelve years in
1588. Edward's lands were held in chief
by the two-hundredth part of a knight's
fee; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xiv, n. 38.
A claim was made in 1594 by John
Wyke, minister of Avington in Hampshire, against Thomas and Elizabeth
Wyke; Ducatus Lanc. iii, 319. The
younger Thomas was fourteen years of
age at his father's death in July, 1608;
Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc.), i, 111. |
| 23 |
James Lawton died in July, 1616,
seised of a fourth part of the manor, held,
like the rest, in capite by the hundredth part of a fee. His son and heir
was Henry, only two years of age at his
father's death; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (ut sup.),
ii, 34.
Among the manors of Richard Bold
Cronton is enumerated in 1600; but
it does not appear how it was acquired or how lost; it is not named in
the inquisition after the death of Sir
Thomas Bold in 1613; Pal. of Lanc.
Feet of F. bdle. 62, m. 112; 63, n. 170;
Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), i, 254. It was, however, in
cluded in the settlement made in 1608;
Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 73, n. 41.
Robert Burgess also had a manor of
Cronton in 1640; ibid. bdle. 137, n. 10.
He was probably a descendant of the
Robert Burgess already mentioned among
the purchasers from the Holts in 1584.
This Robert died the same year (his land
being held by the hundredth part of a fee)
and at subsequent inquisitions it was
found that his son Thomas, aged eleven
years, was heir, but the land had been
given to a younger son Richard; Duchy
of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xiv, n. 59. Robert
Burgess of Hale and Elizabeth his wife
occur in the recusant roll of 1641; and
in 1717 Robert Burgess, son of Thomas
and brother of James Burgess, as a
'Papist,' registered a small estate in
Cronton; Trans. Hist. Soc. (New Ser.),
xiv, 243; Engl. Cath. Non-jurors, 97. |
| 24 |
William Wright was the second son of
Richard Wright of Cronton, who died in
June, 1621, seised of a quarter of the
manor, held in chief by the hundredth
part of a knight's fee. The eldest son
John had died before his father, leaving a
son Richard, aged thirteen in 1621.
Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), ii, 246. He died 31 Jan. 1635–6,
leaving a son and heir John, ten months
old; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xxviii,
n. 25. This John was probably father
of the John son of John Wright of
Cronton, whose guardianship was in 1677
granted to Edward Williamson of Tarbock, John being then fourteen years of
age; Act Book of Chest. 1676–84.
A William Wright's will (at Chester)
was made in 1652 and proved in 1654,
Richard being his son and heir; the latter dying in or before 1665, administration
was granted to Thomas Wyke, husband
of Jane, a daughter of William Wright.
A John Wright of Ditton, yeoman, whose
will was made in 1718, and proved at
Chester a year later, was perhaps of this
family; he had Marsh Green House in
Ditton, which he left to his brother
Francis's children, John Wright and Mary
Sankey; the executors were 'Tremuli,
anglice Quakers.'
The next Wright of Cronton appears
to have been the Thomas whose will was
dated 10 May, 1747, with a codicil of
a year later. He had lands in Cronton,
Rainhill, Liverpool, West Derby, and
Wavertree. He had a brother Ralph.
By his wife, Jane Clayton, he had four
sons—Richard, the heir; Henry, who
married Elizabeth, and had a daughter
Elizabeth; Thomas, who married Mary,
and had a son and daughter named Clayton and Jane; and John, who died before
his father, leaving a daughter Anne by
Martha his wife.
Richard who was living in 1771, died
before 1775, when his son and heir
Thomas became administrator of his
grandfather's will. These particulars are
taken from this will, and that of Jane
Wright, made and proved in 1771; both
at Chester. Thomas Wright contributed a
ninth part of the land tax in 1785. |
| 25 |
Baines, Lancs. (ed. 1836), iii, 719. |
| 26 |
Ex inform. Mr. Stapleton-Bretherton. In Sherriff's map, 1823, Richard
Wright is named as owner of the hall. |
| 27 |
Liverpool Cath. Ann. There were in
1628 thirteen persons fined as recusants
in Cronton; Lay Subs. 131/138. |