Townships: Moston

A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 4. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1911.

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'Townships: Moston', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 4, (London, 1911) pp. 264-270. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol4/pp264-270 [accessed 18 April 2024]

In this section

MOSTON

Mostun, 1247; Moston, 1275.

The township of Moston lies on the north side of the Morris Brook, which flows west to the Irk; it measures over 2 miles from east to west and has an area of 1,297 acres. (fn. 1) The surface is hilly, a height of 335 ft. being attained near the centre. Moston village lies to the south of this, Nuthurst to the north-east, and Streetfold to the west. On the northern boundary lie White Moss (fn. 2) and the district formerly known as Theale Moor, which are partly in Chadderton. The residential hamlet of New Moston is in the extreme east of the township. The population in 1901 numbered 11,897.

Roads from Newton Heath lead north-east and north-west to Moston Church and to Streetfold, to join another road going eastward from Harpurhey to Hollinwood in Oldham. Ashley Lane is in the south-west portion. The Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's railway from Manchester to Rochdale crosses the eastern part of the township and has a station called Moston near the northern boundary.

A Roman pavement was found near Lightbowne Hall. (fn. 3)

There are various works, including a wire manufactory. In 1832 the place was 'inhabited by farmers and silk weavers.' (fn. 4) There are collieries at Shakerley Green.

In 1666 the hearth tax return shows that there were eighty-nine hearths liable. (fn. 5)

The Simpson Memorial Institute stands in Moston Lane. There is a branch library in the building.

Accounts of the people and folk-lore of the place have been issued by Mr. John Ward and others. (fn. 6)

There is a Roman Catholic cemetery in the centre of the township, opened in 1875.

Moston was included in the city of Manchester in 1890 and ceased to be a township in 1896, when it became part of the new township of North Manchester.

MANOR

Although in 1320 Moston and Nuthurst are called hamlets of Manchester, (fn. 7) the tenants there being obliged to grind at the lord's mill, in some deeds they are spoken of as lying within the township and parish of Ashton-under-Lyne. (fn. 8) It may be that the plough-land in Ashton given by Albert Grelley senior to Orm son of Ailward, in marriage with Emma his daughter, and held by a rent of 10s. yearly, was Moston. (fn. 9)

That the lords of Ashton had in early times rights in Moston also is shown by a fine of 1195, from which it appears that on a division Robert son of Bernard had Moston. (fn. 10)

Early in the 13th century the whole was in the possession of Henry de Chetham; (fn. 11) he transferred NUTHURST to the Eccles family, who, about 1260, granted it to Geoffrey son of Richard de Trafford, Sir Geoffrey de Chetham being at that time chief lord. (fn. 12) The recipient, also known as Geoffrey de Chadderton, had a son Geoffrey, who in 1340 granted to his sons Roger and Alexander all his lands in Moston with the homage and service of Richard de Moston, including a rent of 3s. payable by him. The lands were then divided between the brothers. (fn. 13) There is, however, a missing link, for as early as 1320 Alexander and Roger de Chadderton held Moston and Nuthurst of the lord of Manchester by homage and fealty and a rent of 10s. (fn. 14) The moieties descended to the Chetham and Chadderton families, who resided at the two halls in Nuthurst.

Alexander de Chadderton in 1356 granted to John de Chetham and Alice his wife all his messuages and lands in the hamlet of Moston in the town of Ashton, together with the rent of 3s. due from the lord of Moston. (fn. 15) There is little to record of the Chethams' long residence at Nuthurst; they prospered, their estate, including other lands in Crompton and Butterworth, gradually increasing. (fn. 16) Thomas Chetham, who died in 1503, was found to have held his share of Nuthurst of the Earl of Derby as of his manor of Pilkington by services unknown. (fn. 17) This statement of the tenure is repeated in the inquisitions taken after the deaths of his descendants—John, 1515, (fn. 18) Thomas, 1546, (fn. 19) John, 1573, (fn. 20) Henry, 1577, (fn. 21) and James, 1614. (fn. 22) In practice the mesne lordship was ignored and the Chethams paid their quit-rent directly to the lord of Manchester. (fn. 23)

James Chetham was succeeded by his son Thomas, then a minor. During the Civil War Thomas espoused the Parliamentary side and was a captain of infantry, taking part in the defence of Manchester in 1642 and being appointed a commissioner two years later. (fn. 24) He died in 1657. His son Francis (fn. 25) quickly mortgaged Nuthurst; dying without issue in 1678, he was succeeded by a younger brother, John Chetham of Linton in Cambridgeshire, who, after encumbering the estate still further, sold it in 1692 to Edward Chetham of Manchester, son of Edward Chetham of Smedley. (fn. 26) The purchaser's son and heir, also named Edward, ultimately inherited not only Nuthurst, but the estates of various branches of the family, and dying unmarried in 1769 his heirs were his sisters—Alice widow of Adam Bland, (fn. 27) and Mary wife of Samuel Clowes the younger. (fn. 28)

On a division Moston and Nuthurst were part of the latter's portion. She died in 1775. Nuthurst was by her will given to James Hilton, son of her daughter Mary, who married Samuel Hilton of Pennington. The trustees of his son Samuel Chetham Hilton were in possession in 1851. (fn. 29)

Roger son of Geoffrey de Chadderton in 1340 settled his lands in Moston upon his son Roger, with remainders to younger sons. (fn. 30) The family remained in possession until the beginning of the 17th century, (fn. 31) producing one noteworthy man, William Chadderton, warden of Manchester and Bishop of Chester in 1579, afterwards translated to Lincoln. (fn. 32) In 1623 Edmund Chadderton sold his estate to John Holcroft of Lymehurst, (fn. 33) and he, a few years later, sold Little Nuthurst Hall to Nathan and Samuel Jenkinson. (fn. 34) The new owners were followed by the Sandfords, (fn. 35) who sold their estate to the Chethams, so that Nuthurst was in time united in one ownership. (fn. 36)

An estate called Sidgreaves in Nuthurst formerly existed. (fn. 37) It belonged to the Chethams of Nuthurst. (fn. 38)

The manor of MOSTON has already been mentioned as held of the lord of Nuthurst by a rent of 3s. The tenants took the local surname, (fn. 39) and about 1400 they were succeeded by the Radcliffes of Radcliffe, (fn. 40) who continued to hold the manor until 1547, when John Reddish, who had purchased from Henry, Earl of Sussex, (fn. 41) sold Moston Hall to Robert and Thomas Shacklock, (fn. 42) and another part of the estate to the Bowkers. (fn. 43) The Shacklocks held possession of the hall for more than a century; (fn. 44) in 1664 it was sold to Edward Chetham. (fn. 45) The family name is commemorated by Shacklock or Shakerley Green. The Bowkers' name is preserved in Bowker Hall on the border of Blackley. (fn. 46) Another family, the Lightbownes, have a similar memorial; (fn. 47) they succeeded the Jepsons.

HOUGH HALL

HOUGH HALL was long the residence of a family named Halgh or Hough; (fn. 48) the last of the line, Captain Robert Hough, took the king's side in the Civil War and had his estate sequestered. (fn. 49) It was purchased in 1685 by James Lightbowne, and soon afterwards passed to the Minshulls of Chorlton. In or soon after 1774 it was purchased by Samuel Taylor, (fn. 50) by whose representative it was sold about 1880 to the late Robert Ward, whose widow is the present owner and occupier.

Hough Hall is a picturesque timber and plaster house two stories high standing on the south side of Moston Lane a little way back from the road, and amid a wilderness of modern brick and mortar. The building has been much restored and the interior is wholly modernized, but the outside retains a good deal of its ancient appearance, though all the windows are new and some of its original features have been lost. The house appears to belong to the end of the 16th or beginning of the 17th century, but in the absence of any date or inscription on the building it is impossible to determine the date of its erection. The plan, as far as can be gathered, seems to follow no recognized type, and if the house is now of its original extent is probably of late date. It may, however, be a fragment of a larger building. The principal front faces south and consists of a block about 48 ft. long and 19 ft. deep running east and west, with an eastern wing 18 ft. 6 in. wide projecting 8 ft. 6 in. and with a gable north and south. With the exception of the south part of the east wing the building is constructed entirely of timber on a stone base, but the timbers are severely constructional on the elevations and any decorative fillings, if they ever existed, have entirely disappeared, the spaces having been filled with brick and cemented or plastered over. The old north front had two gables of unequal size side by side at the east end, but a third was added about 1885, when a low lean-to building formerly in the north-west of the house was raised and a room built over it. These three plain gables without barge boards now form the most picturesque feature of the house. On the east side is a large stone and brick chimney originally terminating in diagonally placed brick shafts, but these have given place to a modern stack, and the lower part has been entirely covered with rough-cast. The entrance is in the principal or south front and part of an original timber porch remains, but a modern front in brick and plaster has been erected in front of it. The south side of the east wing is faced in brick and has a modern bay window on the ground floor. The stone plinth, which on the north side is 3 ft. high, is here very low, the timbers coming almost to the ground. The roofs are covered with stone slates and the whole appearance of the building, which has a garden on the south side, is in somewhat strong contrast to its surroundings. Internally the roof principals show in the divisions between the bedrooms, the wall posts being 17 ft. 9 in. apart, and the roof ceiled at half its height. The entrance hall is centrally placed, and has a flagged floor, but the staircase is entirely modern. The outer door, however, is the ancient one of thick oak, nail studded and with ornamental hinges and ring handle. There is some oak panelling 3 ft. 3 in. high in the dining-room, but otherwise the interior is without interest. A second entrance has been made on the east side, a lobby being taken out of one of the rooms, but this is no part of the original arrangement. (fn. 51)

Hough Hall, Moston: Back View

Thomas Greenhalgh of Brandlesholme died in 1576, holding messuages and lands in Moston and 'Blakelowe' of Lord La Warre in socage. (fn. 52) Among the old families may be mentioned those of Street, (fn. 53) Rodley, (fn. 54) and Nugent. (fn. 55)

The land tax returns of 1787 show that James Hilton of Pennington was the chief landowner, he paying £22 out of £39; smaller owners were Matthias, Boulton, and Wainman. (fn. 56) In 1854 there were fifteen landowners in the township. (fn. 57)

For about a century there was constant disputing regarding Theale Moor on the border of Moston, Chadderton, and Alkrington. The Chethams were intimately concerned in the matter, not only as owners of Nuthurst but also as farmers of the tithes of Moston. At last, about 1600, a settlement was made and a division arranged. (fn. 58)

In 1850 a building society was formed which purchased 57 acres and laid out the land, the district being called New Moston. (fn. 59)

For the Established Church St. Mary's was built in 1869; (fn. 60) a school had been built in 1844. (fn. 61) The dean and canons of Manchester present. St. Luke's mission district has been formed at Lightbowne.

The Wesleyan Methodists had a school chapel in 1854. (fn. 62) There are also chapels of the Methodist New Connexion and United Free Church.

Mass is said on Sunday in St. Joseph's Chapel in the cemetery. A convent with a chapel stands near the south-west border.

Footnotes

  • 1. 1,299 acres, including 7 of inland water; Census Rep. 1901.
  • 2. An outburst of this moss took place in Jan. 1633–4; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xii, App. ii, 43.
  • 3. Watkin, Roman Lancs. 57.
  • 4. E. Butterworth, Chron. Hist. of Manch. 22.
  • 5. Subs. R. bdle. 250, no. 9. The chief houses were those of James Lightbowne's executors, with nine hearths; Samuel Sandford, eight, and Francis Chetham, seven.
  • 6. a Ward, Moston Characters at Play; C. Roeder, 'Moston Folk Lore' in Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xxv.; E. Waugh, Sketches of Lancs. Life.
  • 7. Mamecestre (Chet. Soc.), ii, 281. The lord of Moston was hopper-free and paid one-twentieth as toll instead of one-sixteenth. The tithes in later times were paid to the college at Manchester. The lords of Manchester had little to do with Moston, but in 1418 Thomas Lord La Warre granted to his feoffees a messuage and lands in Moston called Brideshagh next Boukerlegh, lately held by Thomas le Bouker; the bounds began at the south at the gate in the side of the lane leading from the common pasture of Theale Moor to Manchester, passing the holding of Robert Shacklock, and the bounds of Theale Moor and Blackley; Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Hen. VI, no. 54. In 1322 Brideshagh seems to be reckoned as part of Crumpsall; Mamecestre, ii, 363.
  • 8. In charters of 1340 and 1356 quoted below. In 1569–70 an agreement was made between the parish of Ashton and the people of Moston, according to which Moston was taxed with Ashton, paying an eighth of the sum to be raised; Clowes D. In the subsidies of 1541 and 1622 also Moston is joined with Ashton; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 144, 155.
  • 9. a Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 57.
  • 10. b Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), iii, 172. Robert (or Roger) son of Orm de Ashton is stated to have given land at Nuthurst to Cockersand; Booker, Blackley, 135 (quoting Kuerden fol. MS. 214). In 1473 Sir John Ashton held 'Alt' Moston'—either 'the other Moston' or Alt (and) Moston; Mamecestre, iii, 483.
  • 11. He was possibly one of the unnamed heirs of Orm in 1212, or may have obtained it from Robert son of Bernard.
  • 12. Clowes D. no. 162. By it William de Eccles, clerk, granted to Geoffrey son of Richard de Trafford all the land of Nuthurst, received by Thomas, the grantor's brother, from Sir Henry de Chetham; 13d. rent was payable to Sir Geoffrey de Chetham (a witness to the charter) as chief lord. For the Chadderton family see further in the account of that township. Margery widow of Geoffrey de Chetham in 1275 claimed dower in 20 acres in Moston and Chadderton against Geoffrey de Chadderton; De Banco R. 10, m. 35. The Chetham land in 'Ashton' in a fine of 1278 probably refers to Moston; Final Conc. i, 154.
  • 13. Clowes D. no. 146. John de Chetham was a witness of this charter. In 1345 Alexander and Roger sons of Geoffrey de Chadderton defended their right to certain land against Richard de Moston, who claimed as heir of William de Moston his brother; De Banco R. 343, m. 294 d.
  • 14. Mamecestre, ii, 279.
  • 15. Clowes D. no. 149. John Chetham is mentioned as early as 1331, when he acquired lands in Butterworth; ibid. no. 86. In the following year he contributed to the subsidy as an inhabitant of Crompton; Exch. Lay Subs. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 31. Alice the wife of John de Chetham received lands from Adam de Belfield in 1341; Clowes D. no. 63. The pedigree of the family has been worked out by Mr. E. Axon, in the Chetham Gen. (Chet. Soc. new ser.).
  • 16. In 1335 John de Chetham granted land in Butterworth to Richard his son, with remainders to other sons, Robert and Roger: Clowes D. no. 88. Adam, also a son, is named in settlements of lands in Crompton, Ashworth, Royton, and Manchester in 1342; ibid. no. 98–9. Maud, a daughter of John, was in 1335 married to Adam son of William de Butterworth; ibid. no. 87. Richard son of John de Chetham occurs in 1348; ibid. no. 89. Thomas de Chetham, described as son and heir of John de Chetham and as near of kin to Adam de Lever, was in 1382 defendant to a plea by Maud widow of Hugh de Holt of Ashworth; ibid. no. 93. It appears that Thomas was slain by his neighbour, Thomas de Chadderton; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 54–6. His son John was a minor, but obtained livery of his lands in 1404; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxiii, App. 4. In 1412 John son of Thomas Chetham granted to Ellis son of John Chadderton all his lands in Nuthurst for the term of thirty years at a peppercorn rent; Towneley's MS. DD, 2222. In 1413 John Chetham made a settlement of his lands in Crompton, Ashton, and elsewhere, with remainder to his son James and his issue by Eleanor daughter of Ellis de Buckley; Clowes D. no. 102–3. Charles, another son, was living in 1465; ibid. no. 124. John Chetham was still alive in 1442; ibid. no. 91, 111. James Chetham, the son of John, married as his second wife, about 1440, Margery daughter of John Langley; ibid. no. 91, 115. James Chetham was living in 1475; ibid. no. 128. Margery was living a widow in 1480 and 1487; ibid. no. 130, 138. In 1466 a grant was made by William Heaton to Thomas Chetham, son and heir apparent of James, on his marriage with William's daughter Elizabeth; ibid. no. 125. A son Nicholas is mentioned in 1496; ibid. no. 141. By an agreement between James and Thomas his son in 1468, the latter received Nuthurst and Sidgreaves, paying £4 a year to his father; the father also had 18d., a moiety of the free rent of Moston; ibid. no. 164.
  • 17. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, 62. He held a messuage, 34 acres of land, 6 acres of meadow, 200 acres of pasture, and 60 acres of wood in Nuthurst, together with messuages and lands in Butterworth, Middleton, Castleton, and Crompton. John Chetham, the son and heir, was thirty-four years of age. In 1487 John Chetham married Margery daughter of Ellis Prestwich; Clowes D. no. 138–9. A Thomas Chetham left a manuscript of the Gest Hystoriale to be an heirloom at Nuthurst; see note in Chetham Gen. 15; Lancs. and Cbes. Antiq. Soc. xxiii, 62.
  • 18. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iv, 6. Thomas Chetham, the son and heir of John, was twenty-six years of age. Thomas married Elizabeth daughter of John Hopwood; Clowes D. A series of rentals from 1520 to 1546 has been preserved. Nuthurst itself seems to have been almost entirely in the hands of the Chethams; there was one under-tenant in 1520 who paid 3s. 4d., and in 1524 a second appears, paying 2s. In 1524 Richard Shacklock, who had made a garden on the waste, agreed to give a bunch of leeks to each of the owners of Nuthurst. Moss Farm, with a rent of 16s. 8d., was added to the rental in 1535; ibid. no. 143, &c.
  • 19. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. ix, 5; his son and heir John was twenty-four years of age. The heir had livery in 1547; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxix, App. 552. John Chetham made a settlement of his lands in 1557; Clowes D. no. 165. Among the same deeds are rentals dated 1566 and 1572.
  • 20. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xii, 33. By his will he left to Isabel his wife his mansion house of Nuthurst, with lands appurtenant, and a messuage in Crompton, towards the bringing up of their children, and the marriage of their daughters Elizabeth, Martha, and Anne. Henry, the son and heir, was twenty-two years of age. Isabel, the widow, married William Radcliffe, and a settlement of the hall of Nuthurst, &c., was made in 1591; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 53, m. 182. Her will, dated 3 Jan. 1596–7, is printed in Chetham Gen. 22.
  • 21. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xii, 25. James, his brother and heir, was twenty years of age. The wardship was granted to Isabel Chetham, the widow; Clowes D. no. 174. Henry Chetham was drowned at Middleton, while riding through the stream there; Chetham Gen. 23.
  • 22. Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 16. Thomas, the son and heir, was under sixteen years of age. The father's will is printed in the inquisition and in Booker, Blackley, 152. The king granted to Margery Chetham, the widow, the guardianship of her son; Clowes D. no. 177.
  • 23. This is seen from a list of chief rents compiled in 1677. The total was 13s. 0¾d., including the 3s. from Moston divided between the lords of the two parts of Nuthurst; 10s. was paid to the heirs of Sir Edward Mosley. The list (Clowes D.) is as follows: L. Chetham of Moston Hall, 4s. 5½d., James Lightbowne, 3s. 4d., —Siddall, 1s. 9d., Widow Hall, 7d., Robert Haugh for Antonies, 3d., Joshua Taylor, 6½d., William Kenyon, 6d., — Worsley, 4¾d., John Gorton, 4½d., Abdy Scofield, 1d., —Hartley, 3½d., Hercules Chadwick, 2d., John Travis, 1½d., John Whitworth, 1d., John Kenyon, 1d. An early memorandum attached to a copy of the inquisition of Edward Bowker (1588) states that Moston was held wholly of the lord of Manchester by fealty and 10s. rent; Clowes D.
  • 24. Civil War Tracts (Chet. Soc.), 52, 91.
  • 25. Francis caused a pedigree to be recorded in 1664; Dugdale, Visit. (Chet. Soc.), 76.
  • 26. This part of the account is taken mainly from Chetham Gen. 27–31, 61–64.
  • 27. See further under Turton.
  • 28. See further under Broughton.
  • 29. Booker, Blackley, 151, 139. The estates included Great Nuthurst Hall, Little Nuthurst Hall, and Moston Hall, with 620 acres of land. T. W. Legh Hilton, the son and successor of S. C. Hilton, was resident in Moston in 1854.
  • 30. Clowes D. no. 147. The remainders were to Geoffrey, John, Henry, Robert, and Richard, brothers of the younger Roger. There was a limitation to male heirs in each case.
  • 31. There are no inquisitions relating to them, nor was a pedigree recorded at any visitation. In 1446 Geoffrey son of Ellis de Chadderton, then under fourteen years of age, was contracted to marry Alice daughter of Richard Chorlton, and had an estate in Moston settled on him, the bounds beginning at one and a half acres near a ditch by the west part of Boothclough, and so southwards to Theale Moor and Moss Brook, to the lower part of Smallclough, to the Newearth, and between Hencroft and the Newearth to Theale Moor and so back to the start; Clowes D. no. 153. Ellis Chadderton, the father, made a grant of lands in the hamlet of Moston, the bounds beginning at Saltergate; ibid. no. 154. Geoffrey Chadderton was in possession of Nuthurst in 1483; ibid. no. 155. By 1529 he had been succeeded by his grandson Edmund Chadderton, who with John Chetham had in 1537 a lease of the tithes of Moston; ibid. no 156–7, &c. George Chadderton in 1552 made a settlement of his estates in Nuthurst and Ashton; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 14, m. 121. He again appears in 1553, and Edmund Chadderton in 1561; Clowes D. Edmund in 1573 confirmed to Henry Chetham a sale made to the latter's father, John of the New Close in Nuthurst, then occupied for life by Margery, grandmother of Edmund; ibid. no. 172. There is a brief pedigree in Booker's Blackley, 147. It appears that George Chadderton of Nuthurst (after 1529) married Jane daughter of Lawrence Warren of Poynton in Cheshire; Earwaker, East Ches. ii, 287. The will of Edmund Chadderton of Nuthurst, dated 1588 and proved in 1589, is given in Wills (Chet. Soc. New Ser), i, 206. He names Isabel his wife, Edmund his son and heir, his 'dear uncle and good lord' the Bishop of Chester, and others.
  • 32. Seethe account of Manchester Church.
  • 33. Clowes D. In a later deed (1625–6) Edmund Chadderton is described as of Wentbridge in Kirk Smeaton, Yorkshire. See also Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. iii, 76; and 31 Local Glean. Lancs. and Ches. ii, 149.
  • 34. Clowes D. dated 1626–7; Edmund Chadderton confirmed the sale in 1629. The purchasers were sons of a Robert Jenkinson alias Wilson of Failsworth. In 1631 Nathan and Samuel Jenkinson of Moston, 'gentlemen,' and Thomas Chetham of Nuthurst, gent., refused knighthood, paying £10 composition; Misc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 215–16. In 1630 Samuel Jenkinson and Elizabeth his wife released their right in Nuthurst to Nathan Jenkinson; Clowes D. There are also extant a feoffment made by Robert Jenkinson of Nuthurst in 1650, and his will of 1654; ibid. From the brief account of the family given by Booker (op. cit. 156–158) it appears that Nathan Jenkinson, who died in 1637, left his estate in Nuthurst and Failsworth to his wife Alice until his son Robert should come of age. The inventory showed goods and chattels worth £557; the house had a room called 'the Bishop's chamber.'
  • 35. See Booker, op. cit. 159–63. A pedigree was recorded in 1664; Dugdale, Visit. 253. From various deeds it appears that William the son of Robert Jenkinson sold Nuthurst Hall in 1662–3 to Samuel Sandford and that the latter was in possession in 1664 when a fine was made; Clowes D. The will of Samuel Sandford of Little Nuthurst, made in 1683 and proved in 1684, mentions Ellen his wife, Samuel his son, and Mary his wife, and other sons — Theophilus, Robert, and Daniel; ibid. Samuel the son sold Nuthurst in 1694; Booker, op. cit. 161. Daniel Sandford, of London, silkman, sold or concurred in the sale to George Chetham of Smedley; Clowes D.
  • 36. Edward Chetham of Nuthurst was sole owner in 1698; Chet. Gen. 62.
  • 37. It has been mentioned (in 1468) in a preceding note.
  • 38. a Axon, Chet. Gen. 28. There are references to it in the Clowes deeds. In 1670 Jonathan Chadwick gave it to James Scholes, and nine years later James Scholes the younger, of Oldham, gave it to Thomas Stevenson; in 1684 Robert Stevenson of Tetlow gave it to Alexander Davie. It was granted in 1693–4 by John Chetham of Nuthurst and John his son to Mary Davie and others.
  • 39. Richard de Moston attested the Manchester charter of 1301; Mamecestre, ii, 216. There is a complaint of his regarding Nuthurst in Abbrev. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), i, 124. In 1310 he put in his claim in a settlement of the manors of Manchester and Ashton; Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 5. In 1315 John La Warre granted to Richard de Moston a part of the waste, the bounds beginning at the paling of Blackley, following the stream called Doddithokes Clough as far down as Moss Brook, then up to the bounds of Moston as far as the paling up to the head of the stream; together with the Brodeshalgh and 3 acres of waste between it and the hedge of William the Harpur (Harpurhey); Manch. Corp. D. Henry de Moston occurs in Ashton in 1332; Exch. Lay Subs. 32. For some further notes on the family see Booker, op. cit. 142, 143. In 1325 William de Moston gave to Emmota his sister, daughter of Richard de Moston, land in the township; and in 1343 another brother, Richard, granted her the manor of Moston; while three years later the same Emmota granted the manor to John son of Hugh de Moston and Margaret daughter of Richard de Tyldesley, with remainders to Hugh and Robert son of Henry de Tyldesley, and William son of Robert Mascy of Sale; Clowes D. In the same year (1346) Lucy widow of William de Moston claimed dower in the manor against John son of Hugh de Moston and Margaret his wife; De Banco R. 347, m. 296 d. Light is thrown on these grants by suits of a few years later. Emma daughter of Richard de Moston, in Lent, 1352, claimed the manor (except two messuages, one plough-land, and 4 acres of pasture) against William son of Robert de Radcliffe, Robert (son of Roger) de Bolton and Margaret his wife, Alice daughter of Robert de Radcliffe, and James son of Henry de Tyldesley. Robert and Margaret answered as tenants, and stated that Richard, the plaintiff's brother, had enfeoffed her in trust that she would refeoff him with remainders to Adam de Abney and his issue and to John son of Hugh de Moston. Emma at length did enfeoff the last-named, reserving a rent of 5 marks for her life; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 1, m. vid. It appears later that Margaret was the widow of John de Moston. In 1354 and 1355 Hugh de Toft and Alice his wife, in right of the latter, claimed against Robert de Bolton and Margaret his wife twelve messuages, 200 acres of land, 60 acres of meadow, 80 acres of pasture, and 40 acres of wood in Moston by Ashton. The plaintiffs alleged that Emma de Moston had disseised Robert de Moston, father of Alice and brother and heir of Richard de Moston. It appears that Robert had sons William and Robert; ibid. R. 3, m. vi; R. 4, m. 23 d. There is a further statement of the matter in Assize R. 440, m. 1 d. In 1404 Robert son of Hugh de Toft recovered the manor of Moston against Hugh de Moston and Alice his wife; the jury found that one Richard de Moston had left issue William, Richard, Robert, Hugh, and Emma; that William dying without issue, his widow (Lucy de Morley) had a third of the manor from Richard, who gave the other two-thirds to his sister Emma, and the whole afterwards descended to John de Moston and Margaret his wife; that Alice daughter of Robert de Moston, wife of Hugh de Toft and afterwards of John de Holford, laid claim; that Hugh de Moston afterwards entered; and that Robert son and heir of Hugh de Toft entered and was seised thereof; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xl, App. 540.
  • 40. In 1353 Emma daughter of Richard de Moston granted to John de Radcliffe her life interest in the lands of William de Moston; Clowes D. In 1352 and 1353 John de Radcliffe the elder secured from Hugh de Toft and Alice his wife the reversion of a messuage, 40 acres of land, &c., in Ashton; after the death of Emma de Moston one William de Moston, who held lands for Emma's life, was present and did fealty to John de Radcliffe in court; Final Conc. ii, 134. The whole manor had come into the possession of Radcliffe trustees in 1424; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xl, App. 542. A settlement of the manor was made in 1425–6; Sir John Radcliffe was to hold it for life, the remainder being to James son of Richard Radcliffe; Clowes D. Richard de Moston in 1345 had made a settlement of all his lands in Moston with remainder to Adam son of Agnes Allimar, and to John son of Hugh de Moston; Harl. MS. 2112, fol. 155. Comparing this with the statement in the preceding note it is clear that Adam was Adam de Abney. In 1475 Nicholas Hyde of Denton, into whose possession the estate (or the claim) seems to have passed, granted to Richard son and heir of William Barlow his 'manor of Moston,' with reversion to Nicholas; ibid. fol. 154. Richard Barlow in 1483 complained that being in possession of the manor, John Radcliffe of Radcliffe and Richard his son, with many others, had put him out by force; Duchy of Lanc. Misc. Bks. xix, 122. The 'manor of Moston' is named in later Radcliffe inquisitions, but the tenure is not separately stated; see Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), ii, 121; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, 98; iv, 7. The Chetham rentals mentioned above continually record the payment of the Moston rent by Lord Fitzwalter and the Earl of Sussex. In 1522 a special record was made as follows: 'Rent service in Moston per annum, My Lord Fitzwalter, 18d.; which was paid at Prestwich kirk to my father-in-law John Hopwood before Richard Ashton of Middleton, esquire, the parson of Prestwich, and many others, by the hands of John Radcliffe, then being baily in Moston, the 7 day of July anno predicto'; Clowes D. no. 143. The Radcliffes of Ordsall also had land in Moston, as John de Radcliffe in 1394 gave his lands there to Henry de Strangeways; Clowes D.
  • 41. Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 13, m. 194.
  • 42. Clowes D. William Radcliffe of Ordsall seems to have released his claim to the Shacklocks; ibid. From the same deeds it appears that the Earl of Sussex had in 1543 made a lease of land in Moston to Adam Shacklock. There was some family disputing over the acquisition. In 1542 Robert and Thomas Shacklock complained that in the preceding year the Earl of Sussex had made a lease to them, but Richard Shacklock the elder and his sons, Adam, Hugh, and Ellis, had expelled the plaintiffs. The latter seem to have established their case, but in 1544, after the death of Richard Shacklock, they complained that forcible entry had again been made, this time by Margaret widow of Richard, Ellis her son, and others; Duchy of Lanc. Plead. Hen. VIII, xv, S 1, S 12.
  • 43. Clowes D. To Geoffrey and Oliver Bowker John Reddish sold 26 acres of his purchase, and to Nicholas Bowker he sold 20 acres.
  • 44. Thomas Shacklock died at the end of 1570, leaving a son and heir Robert, of full age; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. i, 137; an abstract of his will is printed in the notes. Robert Shacklock died in 1588, leaving Edward as son and heir, of full age; ibid. ii, 31. For fines referring to his properties see Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 35, m. 158; 49, m. 191. Edward Shacklock died in 1618, leaving a son and heir John, of full age; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. iii, 19. The inquisition taken after his death, embodying his will (see Booker, op. cit. 181), is preserved among the Clowes D.; his wife was Alice Cudworth, and his son John was twenty-two years of age. In 1621 an Adam Shacklock and Adam his son and heir appear; ibid. John Shacklock the elder made a feoffment of Howgate and other lands in 1628, the remainders being to his son and heir John the younger, Edward a younger son, and Daniel brother of John the elder; ibid. John the younger died before 1649, when Edward is described as son and heir apparent; ibid. A further feoffment or mortgage was made in 1655 by John Shacklock, Mary his wife, and Edward then his only son. Daughters Elizabeth and Mary are mentioned; ibid. Edward Shacklock died in or before 1666, leaving his sister Mary as his heir, ibid. The will of Thomas Shacklock of Moston, a 'cousin' of the Edward who died in 1618, is printed by Booker (op. cit. 179); he left sons Robert, Oswald, and Henry.
  • 45. Clowes D. Margaret the widow of Edward Shacklock had a claim for £500 against the estate; but Edward Chetham, the purchaser, refused to discharge it until certain deeds were given up to him. In 1669 the £500 was paid.
  • 46. Oliver Bowker, 'late of Moston,' died in 1565, leaving a son and heir Edward, of lawful age; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. i, 93. Edward Bowker purchased a messuage and land in Moston from George Bowker in 1567; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 29, m. 25. He died 20 Mar. 1585–6, leaving a son Geoffrey, then eighteen years old; his messuage and lands in Moston were held of John Lacy; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. i, 258; ii, 32; Inq. p.m. in Clowes D. Nicholas Bowker of Harpurhey and Jane his wife in 1572 sold lands in Moston to Robert Shacklock; Clowes D.; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 34, m. 63.
  • 47. See Booker, op. cit. 163–79; a pedigree is given. The family began with James Lightbowne, a successful tradesman of Manchester, who in 1615 purchased a house in (Old) Millgate; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. ii, 305. He died in 1621, leaving a son John under age; ibid. iii, 47, where a full abstract of his will is printed. The son became a bencher of Gray's Inn, and recorded a pedigree in 1664, arms having been granted to him and his brother James in 1662. He died in 1667, when his estates went to his daughter Elizabeth, wife of Francis Lindley, also of Gray's Inn. His will with the inventory is printed in Booker's work, 162–8; in his 'study' were law books valued at £22 and divinity books at £18. Elizabeth Lindley left a daughter and ultimate heir also named Elizabeth, who married George Pigot of Preston; their son Thomas died without issue; ibid. 174. It was John's younger brother James Lightbowne, aged fifty in 1664, who by his marriage with Jane, daughter and heir of Adam Jepson of Moston, acquired the estate in the township since known by his name. The Jepsons can be traced back to a Ralph Jepson of Moston, who died in 1560 or 1561, leaving a son Nicholas of full age, as his heir; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. i, 61. Nicholas died in 1595, leaving a son and heir Robert of full age; ibid. ii, 104. His will is printed by Booker, op. cit. 189–91. Contemporary with him was a Ralph Jepson of Manchester, often named in the records. Robert Jepson did not long survive his father, dying in 1601, leaving a son and heir Adam, nine years old. He held two messuages and lands, &c., in Moston of Sir N. Mosley in socage, by a rent of 18d. His will is recited in the inquisition; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xviii, 11; Ct. Leet Rec. ii, 174. Adam came of age in 1619; ibid. iii, 19. He died in 1632 leaving seven daughters, the eldest about twelve years old. His will is printed by Booker (191–3); the inventory of his goods, valued at £610, mentions the shop at Manchester and the Yarn chamber. In 1656 the Manchester jury found 'that Mr. James Lightbowne is possessed of certain lands situate and lying in Moston, which was given by the last will and testament of Adam Jepson of Moston to his daughter Jane, now wife to Mr. James Lightbowne,' and he was summoned to do his suit and service; he had also purchased lands in Moston from Lawrence Lomax and Richard Ashworth; Ct. Leet Rec. iv, 168, 169. He was a woollen draper in Manchester and the friend of Henry Newcome; Newcome, Autobiog. (Chet. Soc.), i, 144. By his will (Booker, 168–71) he left his estate in Moston, except Street Fold, to his eldest son James, who was also to have the chambers in Gray's Inn. Another son, Samuel, was to have the house in Manchester (Ct. Leet Rec. vi, 53), and the walk mill, &c., in Blackley; other sons and daughters were provided for. James, aged eighteen in 1664, in which year he succeeded his father, matriculated at Oxford in 1662 and became a barrister and bencher of Gray's Inn; Foster, Alumni. He was steward of the Manchester Court in 1681 (Ct. Leet. Rec. vi, 128), and a feoffee of the Grammar School in 1696; Booker, op. cit. 172. In 1679 he married Elizabeth Hough (Chester, Lond. Marriage Lic.) and dying in or before 1699 left a son James, who died in 1738 without issue, his heir being his sister Elizabeth, wife of John Illingworth of Manchester; Piccope, MS. Pedigrees (Chet. Lib.), i, 359. In 1759 it was bequeathed by Elizabeth Illingworth, widow, to her daughter Zenobia Ann, widow of Benjamin Bowker, after whose death it was to go to three granddaughters, Ann, Elizabeth, and Maria Bowker. These, or their heirs, in 1800 joined in the sale of the estate to Samuel Taylor, whose grandson Samuel in 1831 and 1848 sold Bluestone House Farm and Lightbowne Hall to Joseph Bleakley of Ardwick.
  • 48. The name was usually spelt Halgh. For an account of this family see Booker, op. cit. 184–8. Valentine Halgh in 1613 purchased lands in Moston of Richard Assheton of Middleton; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. ii, 285. An indenture of 1611 between the parties is recited in a deed of 1646 in Harland's transcripts.
  • 49. Robert Halgh, son and heir apparent of Valentine, in 1629 conveyed to Robert Maden of Hopwood certain fields in Moston; Booker, op. cit. 184. He compounded in 1648 (when he claimed the benefit of the Truro articles of 1646) and again in 1653; Cal. of Com. for Compounding, iii, 1836; iv, 3124; Royalist Comp. Papers (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), iii, 171, 263. His will, dated 1678, bequeathed all his lands in Moston to his putative son John Dawson alias Halgh. The will was proved in 1685, and in the same year James Lightbowne was in possession of the estate. He did not retain it long, the Minshulls of Chorlton owning it in the 18th century, and it was sold in 1774; Booker, op. cit. 186, 187.
  • 50. The purchaser by his will of 1801 bequeathed his lands in Moston and Blackley to his wife Mary for her life, and then to his son Samuel Taylor. The younger Samuel died in 1820, and was succeeded by his son Samuel Taylor of Eccleston, who dying in 1881 was followed by his grandson Samuel Taylor of Birkdault near Ulverston.
  • 51. There is an illustration of Hough Hall in Booker's Hist. of Blackley Chapel (1855), 187, showing the house as it was before the alterations of twenty-five years ago, with its two gables on the north, and before the entrance was made on the east side.
  • 52. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xii, 10.
  • 53. Booker, op. cit. 188. Richard Street of Moston died in 1582, his next of kin being William Street, then a minor; Ct. Leet Rec. i, 232. His father was perhaps the Richard Street whose heir was of age in 1597 (ibid. ii, 120), for in 1600 William Street was ordered to come in to do his suit and service; ibid. ii, 155, 162, 167. In 1624 John Booth purchased a messuage and lands in Moston from William and John Street; ibid. iii, 86. George Street of Moston died in 1588 holding a messuage and land, which he had in 1586 settled on himself and his wife Isabel for life and then on Cecily Ogden, a daughter of Richard Ogden of Moston. His heir was his brother Richard, forty years of age; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xv, 53; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. ii, 32. Cecily Ogden married Robert Kenyon; ibid. ii, 132.
  • 54. The Radley or Rodley family has been noticed in the account of Manchester. Henry Radley in 1554 purchased a messuage and land in Moston from George Kenyon and Isabel his wife; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 15, m. 129. Richard Nugent in 1589 purchased a messuage, &c., from Ralph Radley and Anne his wife, and four years later made a similar purchase from Henry Radley; ibid. bdle. 51, m. 137; 55, m. 24.
  • 55. The above-named Richard Nugent, son of Edmund, was a mercer in Manchester and served as constable and borough-reeve. He died in 1609, and left a son and heir Walter, of full age; Manch. Ct. Leet Rec. ii, 241, and note. His inventory shows that he had copies of Foxe's Acts and Monuments, Calvin's Institutes, &c. Walter Nugent in 1612 sold his Moston lands to Ralph Kenyon and Robert Wolfenden, the latter buying out his partner in 1626; ibid. ii, 270; iii, 113. Walter Nugent died in 1614, having bequeathed most of his estate to his kinsman William Wharmby; ibid. ii, 290, and note. On 28 Feb. 1625–6 Margaret Nugent of Manchester, widow, Francis Hollinworth of the same and Margaret his wife, Nicholas Clayton of Failsworth, yeoman, and Alice his wife assured to Edward Tacey of Manchester, clerk, a messuage in Fennel Street, lately occupied by Richard Nugent, deceased (Chet. Soc. New Ser. xxi, 138, Chet. evidences penes Dr. Renaud). For the Nugents see E. Axon in Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Soc. xxi, 127.
  • 56. Land tax returns at Preston.
  • 57. Booker, op. cit. 139.
  • 58. A list of those entitled to get turves on Theale Moor in 1550 is printed in Manch. Guardian N. and Q. no. 1273. There are in the Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.) many references to those disputes, and numerous documents, with plans, are among the Clowes D.; see Chet. Gen. (Chet. Soc.), 15, 21. The 'Equal' in Nuthurst was also the occasion of a tithe dispute, Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), iii, 401, 487.
  • 59. Booker, op. cit. 139.
  • 60. A district was assigned to it in 1870; Lond. Gaz. 12 Aug.
  • 61. Booker, op. cit. 141.
  • 62. Ibid.
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