The History of the Parochial Chapelry of Goosnargh
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This is a reproduction of a library book that was digitized by Google as part of an ongoing effort to preserve the information in books and make it universally accessible. http://books.google.com PAROC X CHAPELI » . •• « ♦ . •• « *. * X H D O i O o a 0 THE HISTORY OF THE PAROCHIAL CHAPELRY OF GOOSNARGH IN THE COUNTY OF LANCASTER BY HENRY FISHWICK, F.H.S. MANCHESTER: CHARLES SIMMS AND CO. LONDON: TRUBNER AND CO. M.DCCC.LXXI. PRIniED nv Chari.es S Simms, Manchester PREFACE. HISTORY and genealogy must ever go hand in hand ; for as the genealogist, whilst tracing the descent of a family, cannot fail to contribute something towards the history of the places in which the various branches of that family have lived, so, when by the aid of the historian we " tread the long extent of back ward time," we summon forth a host of witnesses, each one of whom may form a connecting link long looked for by some diligent searcher after " forgotten ancestors." It is now many years since, when, in pursuit of a genealogical inquiry, I paid my first visit to Goosnargh. I there made the acquaintance of Mr. Richard Cookson, who, whilst giving me some information on the subject of my researches, told me that he thought of sometime writing a history of Goosnargh and the neighbourhood, and that, with this object in view, he had, from time to time, collected such materials as came in his way. Since then, having had occasion to consult many origi nal and unpublished manuscripts at the Record office, British museum, the registries of Chester and Richmond, Doctor's Commons, &c., I found that I had myself by this means got together (without designing to do so) matter which would — at least so I judged — go far towards furnishing materials for a history of Goosnargh ; 1V PREFACE. and finding on inquiry that other engagements had pre vented Mr. Cooksox carrying out his much cherished scheme, I commenced throwing them into shape. During the subsequent progress of my work I have, however, received much valuable assistance from Mr. Cookson, not only by his placing at my disposal such notes as he had collected, but by many friendly services which could only be rendered by a resident in the place. I have also pleasure in acknowledging my sense of obligation to the Rev. W. Shilleto, and the Rev. Thomas Benn, for the ready access which they have given me to the Goosnargh and Whitechapel church records. My acknowledgments are also due to the various owners of the estates' mentioned in this volume, as I may say without exception they have afforded me every informa tion in their power, and, by allowing me to inspect and take extracts from the title-deeds in their possession, have greatly added to the interest of this work. For the original drawings of the two views of Goos nargh church and the one of the Singleton tomb I am indebted to a lady, a native of Goosnargh, but whose name I am not at liberty to give. For the portrait of baron Rigby I have to thank Mr. William Shawe of Preston, who kindly furnished me with a photograph from the original painting. H. F. Can- Hill, near Rochdale. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAOM General History 1-9 CHAPTER II. The Church 10-25 CHAPTER III. The Curates of Goosnargh - - - 26-38 CHAPTER IV. Wh1techapel 39-50 CHAPTER V. The Records of the Four - and - Twenty Sworn Men 5 1 - 85 CHAPTER VI. The Churchwardens 86-102 CHAPTER VII. The Registers 103 -112 VI CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. PAGBS Monuments and Inscriptions - - - 113-118 CHAPTER IX. Public Charities 121 -140 CHAPTER X. Old Halls and Old Families - - - 141-195 CHAPTER XI. Miscellany 196-206 APPENDIX - - - - - - - 207-217 GENERAL INDEX 219-222 INDEX OF NAMES 223-239 CONTEXTS. vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. The ( * ) refers to Pedigrees facing the page named. Goosnargh Church (South-west View.) - - Frontispiece Goosnargh Church (South-east View.)- Facing page 19 The Singleton Tomb - ., 23 The Church of Whitechapel - - „ 46 Goosnargh Hospital - - - - ,,128 Portrait of Alexander R1gby - - - ., 146 Bulsnape Hall - ... ,,152 Figure over the door of " Ashes" - - „ 164 Arms ok Fishwick - - Page 154* „ Parker „ 189* „ Newsam ... (. 1 <>3* Inscription on Whinney Clough Barn - „ 181 „ in St. Anne's Well „ 184 V HISTORY OF THE PAROCHIAL CHAPELRY OF GOOSNARGH. CHAPTER I. GENERAL HISTORY. THE chapelry of Goosnargh was formerly part of the parish of Kirkham in Amounderness, and included the townships of Goosnargh, Whittingham and Newsham. The patronage of the church of Goosnargh was held by the vicar of Kirkham until 1846, but with this exception, the connection between the two places had for many hundred years been so slight that Goosnargh had long claimed to be an independent parochial district. It is not until the time of William the Conqueror that we find any record of Goosnargh, but we should not on this account be justified in presuming that it did not exist prior to that period ; indeed it is more than probable that long before then the neighbourhood was inhabited, and that a village bearing this name had sprung up. The name alone would lead us to this supposition, as most antiquaries (who have given an opinion on the point) agree that it is a compound of the two words "argh" or "arf" the Swedish for a ploughed field, and "goosen" the old Saxon plural of goose. The original mean- B 2 HISTORY OF GOOSNARGH. [Chap. I. ing of the word is therefore Goosefield, or perhaps, as Dr. Whitaker suggests, Goosegreen. The Romans, shortly after their second invasion of Britain, established a station at Rib- chester,1 which is seven miles from Goosnargh, and there were not less than three Roman roads passing through this part of Lancashire. The line of one of these roads was between Goosnargh and Newsham, as it passed through Broughton, Barton and Bilsborough. Roman remains in tolerable abun dance have been found at Ribchester, Kirkham, Walton-le-dale and many other places in the district, but no such discovery has been recorded within the chapelry of Goosnargh. The Romans, having held this country for nearly 400 years, finally aban doned it about the year 420, leaving its inhabitants in such a wretched condition, from their continued dependence, that they were quite unable to defend themselves from the frequent as saults made upon them by the Picts and Scots, and were obliged to call to their assistance the Saxons, Jutes and An gles. But the history of Lancashire about this time is almost a blank ; we have it however on record that, in A.D. 485, the land between Preston and Ribchester was one complete line of forest. On the establishment of the Saxon heptarchy (A.D. 547) what we now call Lancashire was a part of the ancient kingdom of Northumbria ; and in 624 Edwin its ruler, under the combined influence of the preaching of Paulinus and the entreaties of his wife Edilberga, embraced the Christian religion. As the history of Lancashire during the Saxon and Danish periods has been so frequently written, it will not be necessary to pursue the subject further than to remark that, in the frequent and sanguinary wars which occurred during the next few centuries, Amounderness suffered very severely, in fact by some ancient writers is said to have been nearly desolated ; and on the accession to the throne of Alfred the Great (A.D. 871) the whole of Northumbria was in the possession of the Danes, 1 In Roman times called Rerigonium. Chap. I.] GENERAL HISTORY. 3 after whose defeat there arose a time of comparative peace and tranquility, and then doubtless sprang up many of those villages which were found existing at the taking of the Domesday Survey. The valuable national record commonly known as "Domes day Book" was completed about the year 1086, and in order to give a correct idea of the amount of land then brought into cultivation in this district, we give a translation of the passages referring to the immediate neighbourhood of Goosnargh. " Amounderness. " In Prestune (Preston) Earl Tosti had six carucates rateable to the gelt, and to it these lands belong f Chicheham (Kirk- ham) four carucates ; Trades (Treales) two carucates ; Westbi (Westby) two carucates ; Pluntun (Little Plumpton) two caru cates ; Widctun (Weeton) three carcucates ; Pres (Preese) two carucates; Michelescherche (St. Michael-le-wyre) one carucate ; Catrehala (Catterall) two carucates ; Clactune (Claughton) two carucates ; Ncuhuse (Newhouse or Newsham) two carucates ; Pluntun (Great Plumpton) five carucates ; Brocton (Broughton) one carucate ; Witingheham (Whittingham) two carucates , Bartun (Barton in Preston) four carucates ; Gusanarghe (Goos nargh) one carucate ; Halctun (Haighton) one carucate ; Trelefelt (Threlfall in the Fylde) one carucate ; Watelei (Wheatley) one carucate ; Chipinden (Chipping) three carucates ; Actun (Alston) one carucate ; Fiscuic (Fishwick) one carucate ; Grimesarghe (Grimsargh) two carucates ; Ribelcastre (Ribchester) two caru cates ; BUevurde (Billsborough) two [or three] carucates ; all these vills belong to Prestune (Preston), and there are three churches ; in sixteen of these vills3 there are but few inhabitants, but how many there are is not known. The rest are waste. Roger de Poictou had the [whole]." ' The names of places distant from ' Thirty-nine other places are named, Goosnargh are omitted. but they are all at some distance from Goosnargh. 4 HISTORY OF GOOSNARGH. [Chap. I. The three churches were at St. Michael's, Preston and Kirk- ham. The quantity of land here mentioned as within the chapelry of Goosnargh is five carucates, viz. : one in Goosnargh one in Newsham, two in Whittingham and one in Threlfall.4 A carucate is described as the amount of land which one plough can turn over in a season, and as this must very much depend on the nature of the soil and other contingencies, it is impossible arbitrarily to fix the number of acres it contains.