Parishes: Stranton

STRANTON

Strannton (xv cent.); Straynton (xvi cent.).

This parish lies in the south-east corner of Durham. The boundaries of the old parish were on the east the sea, on the south Greatham Creek, an arm of the Tees, on the south-west the parish of Greatham, on the west the township of Claxton, the boundary here being Greatham Beck and the townships of Elwick Hall and Dalton Piercy, on the north Hart, Throston and Hartlepool.

The 1831 parish contained the townships of Stranton, Seaton Carew and Brierton.

Stranton and West Hartlepool lie on Magnesian Limestone, while Brierton and the Seatons are on Red Sandstone. The coast is low-lying and bordered by sandhills; there is a low reef of rocks, the Long Scar, about a quarter of a mile off the coast between West Hartlepool and Seaton Carew, and another low reef, the Little Scar, on the coast near Seaton Carew. The sea is encroaching on the shore, and its advance has been increasingly rapid in recent years.

In West Hartlepool there are 363 acres of arable land and 100 acres of permanent grass; in Brierton 454 acres of arable land, 204 acres of permanent grass and 14 acres of plantation; in Seaton 1,388 acres of arable land, 204 acres of permanent grass and 9 acres of plantation. (fn. 1) The whole parish is a plain, and the land seldom rises more than 100 ft. above the sea level. The soil is loam, and the chief crops are wheat, barley, oats, potatoes and turnips.

Place-names of interest are Foggy Furze, between Seaton Carew and West Hartlepool, the North Gare Sands, by Seaton, Cold Knuckles and Chapel Open on the Seaton sandhills.

A branch from the Durham and Hartlepool road leads from Hart to West Hartlepool; the Stockton road leaves West Hartlepool on the south and passes through Seaton. There are roads from the various villages to West Hartlepool, but there are no other main roads in the parish. The West Hartlepool branch of the London and North Eastern Railway has stations at West Hartlepool and Seaton Carew, which were taken over from earlier local lines. (fn. 2)

The Ward Jackson Public Park was opened at West Hartlepool on 11 July 1883.

The Municipal Buildings in Church Square were opened on 1 May 1889; the Public Library adjoins them. The Town Hall was opened in 1893 and the Market Hall was opened in the same year, market day being Saturday. The Technical College was opened in 1896 and the Cameron Hospital in 1905.

On 1 June 1852 the Jackson Dock was opened, called after Ralph Ward Jackson. The Swainson Dock followed it on 3 June 1856. Subsequently two North Eastern Railway Docks were constructed. The area in Hartlepool and West Hartlepool covered by docks is at present 201 acres.

St. Joseph's Roman Catholic chapel in West Hartlepool was consecrated in 1894. Of the three Congregational chapels St. George's was opened in 1902, Bellevue in 1875, and Tower Street in 1854. The Swedish church was founded in 1884. There are two chapels of the Presbyterian Church of England, opened in 1880 and 1900 respectively, while a Baptist chapel was opened in 1867. There is a Jews' synagogue, which was opened in 1872. The earliest of four Primitive Methodist chapels was opened in 1861, a Wesleyan chapel in 1872, a Wesleyan Methodist in 1905, and the remaining three Primitive Methodist chapels in 1875, 1894 and 1897. The Friends have a meeting-house in York Road.

Saltworks were carried on at Seaton Carew from the 14th to the 16th century. (fn. 3) Fishing and agriculture are the occupations of the country inhabitants of the parish, while shipbuilding is the chief industry of West Hartlepool. (fn. 4) The Hartlepools form the fifth port in the kingdom for the import of timber; other imports are iron and provisions. The exports are coal, coke and machinery. The iron is wrought by the South Durham Steel and Iron Company and at the Seaton Carew Iron Works.

The little village of Brierton lies in the south-west corner of the old parish, and is connected with Seaton Carew by Brierton Lane.

On the coast of the parish to the south of West Hartlepool lie Seaton Carew and Seaton. At present they are two distinct townships, Seaton Carew lying within the municipality of West Hartlepool and Seaton outside it, but in earlier times the whole was called Seaton Carew. The name is derived from the family of Carew, who held the manor from the 12th century. At the beginning of the 19th century the boundary between Stranton and Seaton Carew was marked by a wall called the White Dyke, and a boundary post on the seashore. On the southern boundary of the manor there was another boundary post at Wambling's Run, a little stream at Tees mouth which divided Seaton Carew from Greenabella. (fn. 5) There is an open village green at Seaton Carew. The custom of riding the boundaries was maintained here in the earlier part of the 19th century. (fn. 6) Inland from Seaton Carew lies the village of Oughton.

There is very little to connect Stranton with general history. Traces of Roman occupation have been discovered on the sandhills near Seaton Carew in the shape of an ancient midden containing fragments of Samian ware, fibulae, &c. (fn. 7) During the rebellion of 1569 the rebels stole 'a sylver pece' from the vicar of Stranton, (fn. 8) and one man of the parish was executed as a rebel. (fn. 9) In 1597 there was a severe outbreak of the plague, which began on 21 May and lasted throughout the summer. (fn. 10) At the beginning of the 19th century there were traces of entrenchments on a hill at Tunstall, which, it was conjectured, might have been made by the Scots when they occupied Hartlepool. (fn. 11)

MANORS, &c.

The whole of the parish of Stranton at the time of the Norman Conquest formed part of Hartness, and passed by marriage to the family of Brus. (fn. 12) In 1220 William de Feugeres paid homage to the king for his father's lands in BRIERTON (Brereton, xiv cent.; Brearton, xvi cent.; Briarton, xvii cent.) and elsewhere. The Feugeres were a Norman family who held lands in the North Riding of Yorkshire, and it is probable, though not certain, that Brierton in Hartness is meant here. (fn. 13) It is not mentioned again among the lands of the Feugeres, (fn. 14) but is certainly referred to for the first time in a suit of 1305 brought by Ralph son of William against Geoffrey de Hartlepool, from which it appears that William Sayer and Margaret his wife had enfeoffed Geoffrey of the manor of Brierton, reserving a rent of £30, 40 quarters of wheat, 40 quarters of barley and 20 quarters of oats. This rent Ralph had bought from William Sayer and Margaret, but Geoffrey refused to pay. (fn. 15) In 1315 Ralph Fitz William died seised of £50 rent from the manor of Brierton; it was held by his son Robert at his death less than two years later. (fn. 16) In 1344 William Lord Greystock, grandson of Robert, had the manor in his own hands, (fn. 17) and from that date till 1652 it followed the descent of the manor of Coniscliffe (fn. 18) (q.v.). In 1653 Mary wife of Sir Francis Howard, for whose delinquency it was sequestered, obtained her fifth for the support of herself and her nine young children. (fn. 19) After this the descent of Brierton is doubtful for some years. In 1669 Robert and Brian Roper, who had speculated in sequestered lands during the Commonwealth, (fn. 20) quitclaimed Brierton to Francis Howard and Anne his wife. (fn. 21) In 1699 Charles Turner purchased the manor of Brierton from Sir William Blackett, bart. (fn. 22) The Turners used most of the property to endow the school in connexion with Kirkleatham Hospital in Cleveland, Yorkshire, (fn. 23) which had been founded in 1676 by Sir William Turner, bart., (fn. 24) and the hospital still owns a large estate in Brierton.

The little manor of MORLESTON (Morleston next Tunstall, xv cent., xvii cent.) lay in the north of Stranton parish on the boundary between Stranton and Hart. Its situation is now so completely forgotten that it is impossible to say in which township it lay. It is not marked on the ordnance maps, and the county historians at the beginning of the 19th century do not seem to have known where it was. In 1344 Morleston was held of Robert de Clifford for life by Sir Richard de Aldeburg. (fn. 25) In 1352–3 it was found that Andrew de Markenfield (fn. 26) had enfeoffed Nicholas Gaston, chaplain, of seven messuages and 14 oxgangs of land in Morleston and Throston, and had afterwards joined with Joan widow of Richard de Aldeburgh in wrongfully disseising him. (fn. 27) In 1389 Sir Thomas de Markenfield, kt., held land in Morleston of Sir Roger de Clifford, kt. (fn. 28) Sir Thomas de Markenfield, kt., Denise his wife, Thomas his son and Beatrice his son's wife quitclaimed to four trustees ten messuages, 20 oxgangs 8 acres of meadow and 20 acres of pasture in Hart, Morleston and Nether Throston in 1396. (fn. 29) This was probably part of a sale to Sir William Fulthorpe, kt., who held Morleston of Maud de Clifford in 1403. (fn. 30) After this Morleston followed the descent of Tunstall, into which it was absorbed. Morleston is mentioned by name for the last time in the sale by Fairfax to Riddell in 1632. (fn. 31)

OUGHTON

OUGHTON (Ovetun, xii cent.; Oueton, xiii cent.; Oweton, xv cent.; Owlton, Owton, xvi cent.) is first mentioned in 1146–51, when Robert de Brus held in demesne at Seaton 90 acres which were anciently in the field of Oughton, and in Oughton itself 220 acres. (fn. 32)

In 1189 Peter Carew held one knight's fee in Seaton and Oughton, (fn. 33) but there is no connected descent of the manor. Between 1218 and 1234 Avice de Clare obtained licence from Michael the Prior and the convent of Guisborough to have a chantry in the chapel of Oughton as long as she lived. (fn. 34) Thomas de Carew (Carrow) claimed two-thirds of two carucates except one oxgang against Avice in 1269; it does not appear with what success (fn. 35) In 1358 a deed was enrolled by which Robert son of John de Sheraton granted to Richard Aske an annuity of £10 from his lands in Oughton. (fn. 36)

In 1431–2 Thomas Lambert held the manor of Oughton, and had held it for some years. Although there are several links missing in the pedigree, it seems probable that he was the ancestor of Robert Lambert of Oughton, who in 1524 received a general pardon and gave sureties for good behaviour. (fn. 37) In 1543 Nicholas Lambert, the son of Robert, settled Oughton in tail upon his sons Robert, George and Clement successively. (fn. 38) Robert, the eldest son, was attainted for taking part in the Rising of the North, and narrowly escaped execution; his lands here, including a windmill and a manor-house of stone roofed with slate, were forfeited to the Crown. (fn. 39) Oughton was leased in September 1571 for thirty-one years to William Knolls. (fn. 40) In February 1574–5 the queen granted the reversion to Edward Gresham and Percival Gunston, (fn. 41) who in 1585 received licence to alienate it to Richard Brookman. (fn. 42) Brookman sold Oughton in 1588 to Richard Bellasis, (fn. 43) who settled it on his nephew James in tailmale with remainder to his other nephews Bryan and Charles. (fn. 44) Sir Richard Bellasis, grandson of Bryan, Thomas Swinburne and Isabel Bellasis, widow, conveyed it in 1642 to Gerard Salvin and William Killinghall, possibly for a mortgage, as it had been settled on Sir Richard's son William in 1640. (fn. 45) There were further conveyances by William Bellasis, junior, and Katherine his wife to Nicholas Salvin in 1670, (fn. 46) and by Sir Henry Bellasis and Katherine Bellasis, widow, to Anthony Salvin in 1682. (fn. 47) It remained in the family of Salvin (see Croxdale in Auckland) (fn. 48) until the beginning of the 19th century, when William Thomas Salvin sold it to George Fletcher. (fn. 49) Before 1857 it had been purchased by Ralph Watson of Middleton House, West Hartlepool, (fn. 50) and it is now the property of Thomas Swinburne.

SEATON CAREW

SEATON CAREW (Setone, xii cent.; Sethon, xiii cent.; Seton Carrewe, xiv cent.; Seton Kerrowe, xv cent.) is first mentioned between 1146 and 1151, when Robert de Brus held 230 acres of demesne there as part of Hartness. (fn. 51) Seaton was not, however, held of the Brus fee. It was stated in the 13th century that Robert de Carew, ancestor of the family from which the place took its name, held his land in Oughton which belonged to his fee of Seaton in the reign of Henry I. (fn. 52) This was evidently the Robert de Carew who in 1166 answered to the king for a knight's fee of 5 carucates in the county of Northumberland, a third of which was held by his brother William. (fn. 53) Robert, who was living in 1171, had a son and heir Peter. (fn. 54) In 1189 Richard I granted to Bishop Pudsey, among the other appurtenances of the wapentake of Sadberge, the services of Peter Carew and his heirs for one knight's fee in Seaton and Oughton. (fn. 55) The fee owed castle service of 13s. 4d. to Sadberge Castle. (fn. 56) Peter de Carew witnessed a charter of 1197 or later, (fn. 57) and in 1200 his son Walter obtained from the Prior of Guisborough a grant of a perpetual chantry in the chapel of Seaton, and in return granted to the monastery 60 acres of land and pasturages for 100 sheep and their lambs in Seaton. (fn. 58) About 1212 Robert de Burgate had custody of the heir of Walter de Carew and of one knight's fee which Walter had held in the wapentake of Sadberge. (fn. 59) This heir must have been Walter's son Thomas, who held the fee in the time of Bishop Walter de Kirkham (1249–1260) and in 1269. (fn. 60) Walter, said to have been the son of Thomas, (fn. 61) was the father of John de Carew, who was found on 15 May 1337 to have died holding for a quarter of a knight's fee the manor of Seaton Carew, his heir being his son John, aged twenty-one, (fn. 62) who obtained a grant of free warren at Seaton Carew in 1340. (fn. 63) In 1342 John de Carew acknowledged that a whale which had been cast ashore at Seaton Carew was a royal fish, and belonged of right to the Bishop of Durham; he paid a fine of 100 marks for dividing it among his friends. (fn. 64) Thomas son of John de Carew died in his father's lifetime, and on 20 September 1379 it was found that John's heir was his grandson John son of Thomas de Carew, aged nineteen. (fn. 65) The wardship of two-thirds of his lands was granted to Alan Lambard and John de Seaton of Hartlepool. (fn. 66) In 1380–1 a deed was enrolled by which lands and salt mines in Seaton Carew were settled upon John son of Thomas de Carew, kt., and Isabel his wife. (fn. 67) It appears that John granted a rent from land and a saltpit in Seaton Carew to Robert de Lumley, whose brother Ralph was found to be heir to the property on 3 May 1381. (fn. 68) John de Carew died childless before 20 September 1387. (fn. 69) His widow Isabel married Robert Umfraville, with whom she leased land in Seaton Carew to Thomas Lumley. (fn. 70) She held in dower eight messuages, twelve cottages, seventeen saltpits, 200 acres of arable and 12 of meadow in Seaton Carew, and had by settlement a life interest in four messuages, 4 oxgangs and four saltpits. (fn. 71) The heirs of John de Carew in the manor were the representatives of his four aunts, sisters of his father, Sir Thomas. These sisters were Alice wife of John de Whitworth, Isabel wife of Thomas Porter, Avice wife of Thomas de Embleton, and Joan, who was unmarried at the time of her nephew's death, but afterwards became the wife of Richard Hayton. (fn. 72) No partition was made of the manor. During the lifetime of Isabel Umfraville, Joan daughter and heir of Alice de Whitworth, with her husband John de Hoton, conveyed her share to Ralph Earl of Westmorland, (fn. 73) who in March 1418–19 granted it to his nephew Sir John Lumley. (fn. 74) William Porter, son of Isabel, granted his share also to Sir John Lumley, (fn. 75) who at his death in or about 1421 was said to hold two fourth parts of the manor and also a third part which Isabel Umfraville held for life in dower, 'receiving therefrom 43 marks per annum,' of which third part a moiety was of the inheritance of John. (fn. 76) The actual state of affairs seems to have been that John Lumley held two separate fourths, part of which was included in the dower third held for life by Isabel Umfraville. (fn. 77) On her death in 1437 Thomas Lumley, son and heir of John, succeeded to half her part of the manor, (fn. 78) while the other half passed to the representatives of Avice and Joan de Carew. (fn. 79)

The Lumleys' share of Seaton Carew followed the descent of their manor of Stranton (q.v.) till the division among the three co-heirs of Sir William Reade. (fn. 80) Two-thirds of it were in the possession of George Lord Berkeley in January 1673–4, (fn. 81) but its later history is disconnected. In 1697 John and Christopher Fulthorpe conveyed a third part of a moiety of the manor and other lands to Thomas Craggs, who left part of it to his son Thomas in 1714. (fn. 82) The younger Thomas sold it in 1725 to his brother Joseph, who in 1747 conveyed it to William, Robert and Joseph Preston. Robert Preston acquired the rights of both his brothers, (fn. 83) and must have bought more of the manor from other tenants, for in 1766 he had three-eighths of the whole. (fn. 84) In 1769 he bought the remainder of the Craggs estate, which had been left by Thomas Craggs in 1714 to his wife Elizabeth. She sold it to William Ransom, whose devisee was Elizabeth Ransom. William Elstob, son of Elizabeth Ransom, sold it to Robert Preston in 1769. (fn. 85) Another portion was conveyed in 1728 by John son and heir of Christopher Maire and Robert Forster, a mortgagee, to David Mordue, who in 1755 conveyed it to John Dent, owner already of one-eighth of the manor. (fn. 86) John Dent claimed manorial rights in 1766, (fn. 87) and sold his share in 1769 to Robert Preston. A third part of a moiety of the manor was conveyed by Robert Preston in 1779 to Peter Holford, perhaps for settlement. (fn. 88) His estate was bought in 1792 from his assignees by George Pearson of Durham, whose daughter and heir Elizabeth Jane married George Hutton Wilkinson of Harperley in Auckland. (fn. 89) In 1849 G. H. Wilkinson sold half the manor to the trustees of Lord Eldon. (fn. 90) The present earl has the only manorial rights remaining here.

A conveyance in 1731 of the 'manor' of Seaton Carew with 130 acres of land by Joseph Hall and Katherine his wife and Robert Wharton and Mary his wife (fn. 91) probably has reference to a part of the Reade moiety.

Avice, the third co-heir of John de Carew, was twice married, her first husband being Simon Langton (fn. 92) and her second Thomas de Embleton. (fn. 93) On 16 March 1425–6 it was found that Thomas Langton, aged forty, was her son and heir. She died seised of a quarter of the manor of Seaton Carew, and the same proportion of lands called Hallcroft, Chapelgarth, Stakgarth and Ryland, a saltpit, a ferry across the Tees, and rents from other lands, including a rent from a saltpit called Make-beggar. (fn. 94) Thomas Langton was lord of Wynyard in Grindon (q.v.), and his estate here followed the descent of Wynyard (fn. 95) till the division among the heirs of William Claxton at the end of the 16th century.

These co-heirs conveyed their portions about the year 1612 to Robert Johnson of Oughton, (fn. 96) who also bought the fourth quarter of the manor assigned in 1387 to Joan de Carew. (fn. 97) Joan married Richard Hayton, and in 1426 it was found that she had died seised of a quarter of the manor of Seaton Carew, the extent of which is given as in the inquisition of Avice de Embleton. (fn. 98) John, her son and heir, (fn. 99) seems to have been succeeded by Richard Hayton, probably his son, who on 5 January 1498–9 was found to have died seised of a quarter of the manor of Seaton Carew, his heir being his son Robert, aged forty. (fn. 100) On his death in January 1501–2 it was found that Robert's heir was his son Robert, aged thirty. (fn. 101) This Robert Hayton had a son William who married a certain Alice, probably of the family of Lumley of Ludworth. (fn. 102) On this marriage the quarter of Seaton Carew was settled. William Hayton apparently died childless, and the manor was reconveyed to trustees to hold for Alice during her life, with reversion to Roger Lumley of Ludworth. Alice married as her second husband Roger Booth, and after her death in 1548 it was found that the reversion of the quarter of Seaton Carew had been settled by Roger Lumley on the marriage of his daughter Anne with Thomas Trollope of Thornley (fn. 103) (q.v.). It was inherited by Thomas's son John Trollope, who in 1563 sold it to Bertram Anderson. (fn. 104) Bertram died in 1571, leaving a son and heir Henry Anderson, aged twenty-two. (fn. 105) Henry Anderson died in 1605, his heir being his son Henry, (fn. 106) who in 1621 sold his quarter of the manor of Seaton Carew to Robert Johnson, gent., the purchaser of the Claxtons' quarter. (fn. 107) In 1638 a quarter of the manor was settled on Nicholas Johnson, son of Robert. (fn. 108) The family appears to have lived at Toft House, Seaton Carew, for the rest of the 17th century. Anthony and William Johnson paid the subsidy of 1670 for Seaton Carew. (fn. 109) James Johnson of Seaton Carew voted at the Durham County election of 1675, (fn. 110) and he and his son William mortgaged their estate called Tofts in Seaton Carew in 1706. William had a son James, who added to the property and in 1730 left it to his brothers Matthias and Nicholas Johnson. The estate was sold in 1750 by Nicholas Johnson to William Metcalfe, who by his will made in 1774 left it to his nephews John and William, sons of his brother David, in trust for his niece Mary wife of his nephew George Metcalfe, with remainder to William and George, sons of George Metcalfe. In 1793 William son of George and Mary Metcalfe barred the entail and in 1828 left the property to trustees for sale, who in 1832 sold it to John Lord Eldon. (fn. 111) Robert, William, Anthony and Nicholas Johnson were freeholders in Seaton Carew in 1681. (fn. 112)

In March 1731–2 Anthony Johnson and Catherine his wife conveyed four messuages and about 240 acres of land in Seaton Carew and Hartlepool with an eighth part of the manor of Seaton Carew to John Simpson, with a warrant against the heirs of Catherine. (fn. 113) This is the last occasion on which the Johnsons are mentioned in connexion with the manor. It seems probable that this part of their estate was acquired by the Chilton family. William Chilton and Anne his wife made a conveyance of the manor and 700 acres here in 1731, (fn. 114) and members of the family occur in the 18th-century lists of freeholders. In 1766 the claimants to the manor, besides Robert Preston and John Dent, (fn. 115) were John Wilson, Robert Harrison in right of his wife Ann, the Rev. James Horseman, the Rev. Thomas Drake, Cuthbert Scurfield, Nicholas Chilton of Fishburn and Robert Chilton of Carr House. (fn. 116) In 1771 John Wilson, William Metcalf, Robert Chilton, Ralph Bradley and Robert Harrison occur as freeholders. (fn. 117) The manor of Seaton Carew, again with 700 acres attached to it, was conveyed by Robert Henry Macdonald and Mary his wife and James Huntley and Anne his wife to Nicholas Chilton in 1795. (fn. 118)

Land in Seaton Carew was settled in 1706 on Thomas Davison and his wife Anne daughter of Sir John Bland. In 1719 this land passed in exchange to John Porrett, who, with Faith his wife, sold it in that year to Nicholas Bradley of Greatham. Nicholas bequeathed it in 1742 to his son Ralph, who purchased another estate here called Salvin Flat or Admire Flat in 1759 from William Croxdale. Ralph sold these estates in 1778 to John Horsley, whose assignees in bankruptcy sold them in 1789 to Thomas Short. In 1800 Short sold to John Sanderson of Stockton, who became a bankrupt in 1802. His trustees sold the estate to William Robinson, on whose death in 1807 his son Edward succeeded. Edward sold the property to his youngest brother William, who became a bankrupt in 1830, and his assignees sold the estate in 1831 to John Lord Eldon. (fn. 119)

Merton College, Oxford, holds an estate in Seaton Carew which originated in a grant from Bishop Robert Stichill in 1268 of 8 oxgangs here, which he had of the grant of Walter de Carew. (fn. 120) This 'manor' was sequestered for the recusancy of a lessee in 1654, but the college successfully claimed it. (fn. 121) In 1698 half the manor of Stillington (q.v.), with lands in Seaton, was leased by the college to Sir Ralph Jennison, and again in 1791 we find it in lease to Robert Preston. (fn. 122)

Land here called 'Maisterionland' was held in the 14th century of the lords of the manor by the family of Seton. Thomas Seton, who died in or about 1359, had a daughter and heir Alice, who married Sir Thomas Carew and became the mother of John Carew, the last heir male of the family. (fn. 123) On the death of John in 1387 it was found that his heirs on the mother's side were the descendants of Adam, the younger brother of his grandfather Thomas de Seton. This Adam had two daughters, Agnes, who married a Sayer, and Joan, who married John son of Laurence de Seton. The whole of the estate, which consisted of a waste messuage, six cottages and 100 acres, was held by Isabel Umfraville in dower, (fn. 124) though John son of Laurence de Seton was said in 1404 to have died in possession of a portion of it in right of his wife Joan. (fn. 125) His son Thomas conveyed his right in it during the lifetime of Isabel to John Lumley, whose heir was his son Thomas. (fn. 126) On the death of Isabel 'Maisterionland' consequently passed to Thomas Lumley and John Sayer, the representative of Agnes. (fn. 127) The Lumley portion no doubt followed the descent of Thomas's share in the manor. (fn. 128) The other remained in the hands of the Sayer family of Worsall (Yorks.) (fn. 129) till 1638, when Laurence Sayer had licence to grant two messuages and 280 acres in Seaton Carew to Robert Johnson. (fn. 130) It was thus united to another part of the manor.

Another small estate here, consisting of one messuage, 2 oxgangs 6 acres and a saltpit, was held in 1345 by John Kelloe of Seaton (fn. 131) of John de Carew. His son and heir Adam (fn. 132) seems to have died without issue, and another son John succeeded. The latter had a son, another John, who died in or about 1407, leaving a daughter and heir Alice, who married Robert Lambton. (fn. 133) Her estate followed the descent of the Lambton moiety of Stainton (q.v.) till at least 1612. (fn. 134) In 1461 and 1598 it included a capital messuage. (fn. 135)

It has already been stated that STRANTON formed part of Hartness. About 1146–51 Robert de Brus held 231 acres of demesne in Stranton. (fn. 136) The manor is mentioned in the fine of 1200–1 between Peter de Brus, Baron of Skelton, and William de Brus of Annandale and Hart. (fn. 137) In 1279 there was a fine between Robert de Brus of Annandale, 'the competitor,' and John Fitz Marmaduke, by which Robert granted to John 9 oxgangs of land with appurtenances in Stranton, to be held by John and Isabel his wife and their issue. (fn. 138)

Apparently Cristiana, (fn. 139) widow of Robert, claimed dower in the manor of Stranton against John Fitz Marmaduke in 1296. (fn. 140) John died in 1311, and in the inventory taken at his death a list of the goods at his manor of Stranton is given. (fn. 141) He was lord of Ravensworth (q.v.), and his descendants were the Lumleys of Ravensworth. They continued to hold a manor in Stranton, which was called the West Manor (fn. 142) to distinguish it from the vill of Stranton, which was held by the Lumleys of Lumley Castle. (fn. 143) The West Manor remained in the possession successively of the Lumleys, Boyntons and Gascoignes until the beginning of the 17th century. In 1607 Anthony Dodsworth had a grant of the manor of Stranton from Sir William Gascoigne, kt., and Barbara his wife. (fn. 144)

On 4 August 1627 it was found that Anthony Dodsworth, aged sixteen, was the son and heir of Anthony Dodsworth of Stranton. (fn. 145) Anthony Dodsworth of Stranton compounded for his estate in 1645, and received a pardon in 1651. (fn. 146) He was buried at Stranton on 18 April 1668. (fn. 147) His heir was his son Anthony Dodsworth, (fn. 148) on whose marriage with Elizabeth daughter of Henry Maddeson, Stranton had been settled in 1662. (fn. 149) Anthony and Elizabeth sold their lands in Stranton, including the West Hall, Cadcotes, Marchdykes and an eighth of the pasture called the Snuke, in 1683 to Richard and William Reed of Hart. William Reed released his interest to Richard in 1698, and by will dated 1712 Richard left his lands in Stranton to his wife Dorothy. She married Edward Surtees of Mainsforth in Bishop Middleham (q.v.) in 1715, and Stranton was settled upon their son Reed Surtees. He devised his property in 1790 to his nephew George Surtees, who sold it to his brother Robert Surtees of Mainsforth. This Robert was the father of Robert Surtees the historian, who inherited the Stranton property and died in 1834. (fn. 150) The borough of West Hartlepool now covers most of the manor, which has been broken up into numerous small estates.

The vill of Stranton was a distinct manor belonging to the elder branch of the Lumley family. (fn. 151) It was held like the West Manor as a member of the manor of Hart. (fn. 152) It is first mentioned in 1389, when Sir Ralph de Lumley, kt., held it. (fn. 153) On 7 May 1400 King Henry IV granted to his brother John Earl of Somerset all the possessions of the late Ralph de Lumley, kt., forfeited to the king by his treason, to hold during the life of Ralph's son Thomas, also attainted, and during the minority of Thomas's heir; out of this grant, however, were excepted the manors of Stranton and 'Beautrone,' which the king had granted to Ralph's widow Eleanor for life to maintain herself and her twelve infants. (fn. 154)

In 1403 the vill of Stranton was held of Maud de Clifford by John Lumley, a minor in the custody of the king. (fn. 155)

In 1457–8 Sir Thomas Lumley, kt., and Margaret his wife had a grant of wreck within their lordships of Stranton and Seaton Carew. (fn. 156) From this time the manor followed the descent of Little Lumley until 1562, when John Lord Lumley sold his manors of Stranton, Seaton Carew and Newburn Row to Sir Thomas Gresham, kt. (fn. 157) Gresham left them to Dame Anne his wife and her heirs. (fn. 158) He died on 21 November 1579. (fn. 159) His wife survived him by nine years, and was succeeded by her son by a former husband, Sir William Reade. (fn. 160) Sir William had an only daughter Anne, who married Michael Stanhope and died in her father's lifetime. In 1622 it was found that William Reade's heirs were Jane, aged twenty-one, wife of William Wothepell, Elizabeth, aged nineteen, wife of George Lord Berkeley, and Bridget Stanhope, aged seven, the three daughters of Anne Stanhope and granddaughters of William Reade. (fn. 161) By division among the co-heirs and subsequent sales the property was broken up, and it is impossible to trace a connected line further. Part of it seems to have been acquired by the family of Gibson, who built the East Hall of Stranton. (fn. 162) Isabel sister of William Gibson married Thomas Bromley of Hart, whose grandson George Bromley left an estate here in 1737 to his wife Mary. (fn. 163) By her second husband Robert Hilton Mary had a daughter and heir Mary, who married the Rev. William Longstaff. (fn. 164) A moiety of the manor and 750 acres of land belonged in 1795 to William Longstaff, surgeon. (fn. 165) In the early 19th century this estate was held in moieties by Hilton Longstaff, grandson of the Rev. William Longstaff, and Mary daughter of William Longstaff and wife of William Lynn. (fn. 166)

Another portion of the manor called in 1731 a third part belonged during most of the 18th century to the Whartons of Old Park. (fn. 167) Part of it was sold before 1823 by Robert Wharton Middleton. (fn. 168)

The manorial rights have now lapsed.

Land at Stranton held by Guisborough Priory under grants from Robert de Brus (5 oxgangs) (fn. 169) and Bishop Hugh Pudsey (2 oxgangs) (fn. 170) was granted as the manor of Stranton in 1609 to George Salter and John Williams. (fn. 171) It was acquired from them by Robert Gibson, Nicholas Dodshon and John Dodshon, who held it in 1629. (fn. 172) Its later history is uncertain.

In 1146–51 Robert de Brus held 138 acres 1 rood of demesne in TUNSTALL. (fn. 173) After this the place is not mentioned again until near the close of the 14th century. In 1389 it was stated that Roger de Fulthorpe and Elizabeth his wife had been enfeoffed of the manor of Tunstall with remainder to their heirs in tail. (fn. 174) This Roger de Fulthorpe was a cadet of the family of Fulthorpe of Fulthorpe in Grindon (q.v.); in a pedigree of 1615 he is called the son of Alan Fulthorpe. (fn. 175) He was one of the adherents of Richard II who were impeached by the Merciless Parliament in 1388, but his forfeited lands were restored to his son Sir William Fulthorpe, kt. (fn. 176) According to the pedigree of 1615 Sir William Fulthorpe married Isabel sister of Sir Ralph de Lumley, kt., and was succeeded in turn by Roger, William (fn. 177) and Thomas, his son, grandson and great-grandson respectively. (fn. 178) On 5 October 1468 it was found that Thomas Fulthorpe had died without heirs male, having settled his lands to the use of his daughters Isabel and Philippa. (fn. 179) All his lands were divided between these two (fn. 180) and a third daughter Jane, who was not mentioned in 1468, the division being completed by 1501–2. (fn. 181)

The eldest daughter Isabel married Henry Radcliff. (fn. 182) Her heir in 1500 was her son Ralph Radcliff, (fn. 183) who left an only daughter Margaret in 1512. (fn. 184) Before 1527–8 she had been married to Brian Palmes, (fn. 185) but he was attainted for taking part in the Rising of the North in 1569, and she died childless. (fn. 186) Her heir was her cousin Roger Radcliff, (fn. 187) who died early in 1589. (fn. 188) His brothers William and Ralph Radcliff and his cousin Charles Radcliff (fn. 189) had a pardon enrolled in the same year for settling a moiety of the manor of Tunstall nigh Stranton and other lands on William Radcliff and his heirs, and in default of heirs on Charles. (fn. 190) The moiety of Tunstall was held by Charles Radcliff in 1607–8. (fn. 191) It seems to have been transferred to Thomas Viscount Fairfax of Emley, who sold it on 5 October 1632 to Thomas Riddell of Gateshead (fn. 192) (q.v.). The estate was sequestered from Thomas Riddell's son Sir Thomas Riddell, kt., a Royalist, in 1644–5, (fn. 193) and finally sold to John Tonge on 18 March 1651. (fn. 194) After this it cannot be traced further; possibly it was bought by the Fulthorpes.

It will be observed that the portion of Tunstall belonging to the Radcliffs is usually called a moiety. (fn. 195) The manor seems to have been shared between the two elder daughters of Thomas Fulthorpe, Isabel and Philippa, Jane the younger no doubt receiving compensation in lands elsewhere. Philippa was the wife of Richard Booth of Durham. Their son Ralph Booth died in the lifetime of his parents, (fn. 196) leaving (5 October 1506) two daughters Anne and Jane, who were the co-heirs of their grandparents. Jane married George Smith of Nunstanton in Aycliffe, and had an only daughter Anne, who married John Swinburne. (fn. 197) In 1546 the Swinburnes conveyed their portion of Tunstall in Stranton to George Orde for the purpose of a settlement on Anne and her issue with remainder to Cuthbert Smith and his brothers William and George in tail male. (fn. 198) Anne the sister of Jane Smith married her distant cousin Thomas Fulthorpe, a younger son of the elder branch of the family. (fn. 199) Their son Christopher Fulthorpe married Mary daughter of William Blakeston of Coxhoe, and died before 1578–9, (fn. 200) when his son Nicholas Fulthorpe did homage for Tunstall. (fn. 201) In 1581–2 a deed was enrolled settling a third of the manor of Tunstall upon Anne Carson, widow, for life with remainder to Nicholas Fulthorpe. (fn. 202) Anne Carson (née Booth), who had married again, was the grandmother of Nicholas. (fn. 203) In 1612 Christopher Fulthorpe, son of Nicholas, received a grant from the Crown of a moiety of the manor of Tunstall, then in his own occupation. (fn. 204) Nicholas died seised of 'the manor or half the manor' in 1618. (fn. 205) Christopher made a settlement of the manor in 1629. (fn. 206) He married Mary daughter of Clement Colmore, Chancellor of the Diocese of Durham, and died on 25 February 1661. He was succeeded by his son Clement Fulthorpe, who married Isabel daughter of Sir John Calverley, kt., of Littleburn, Durham. They had a large family, of whom the most important for Tunstall Manor were John, the eldest son, and Christopher, the third son. (fn. 207) John's only son died in his father's lifetime, and Christopher Fulthorpe, who had a surviving son, bought the estate of Tunstall from his brother. John Fulthorpe died in 1698, and Christopher's right to the property was disputed by the representatives of John's daughters on the grounds that Christopher had taken advantage of his brother's melancholy after the death of his son to obtain the property for a very inadequate consideration. The case was tried in Chancery, but was decided in favour of Christopher, whose son, however, also died. By will dated 13 June 1707 Christopher Fulthorpe left his property to his three granddaughters Mary, Elizabeth and Margaret Ellis, subject to an endowment for a free school, (fn. 208) which was not established until 1841, (fn. 209) and with the provision that his granddaughters should either marry persons of the name of Fulthorpe or assume the name on their marriage. (fn. 210) One of the co-heirs married Robert Raikes of Northallerton, and her son took the name of Robert Raikes Fulthorpe. He inherited the estate, but sold or mortgaged almost the whole of it in separate portions, and the descent cannot be traced further. They seem to have been bought during the 19th century by Earl Egerton of Tatton (Ches.), who sold to Messrs. E. and W. Richardson, the present proprietors, in 1906.

The origin of the borough of WEST HARTLEPOOL has already been described. (fn. 211) The borough was incorporated on 12 July 1887, when it was divided into six wards. In 1901 the North-West Ward was subdivided into three. The corporation now consists of a mayor, eight aldermen and twenty-our councillors. The borough commission of the peace was granted in 1893, and West Hartlepool was made a county borough in May 1902.

CHURCHES

The church of ALL SAINTS stands on an ancient and elevated site on the south side of the modern town of West Hartlepool, but originally towards the west part of the village (fn. 212) of Stranton. The level of the churchyard is considerably above that of the road which forms its boundary on the east and south sides, but the site is now hemmed in by modern buildings on the north and west. The church consists of a chancel 36 ft. by 16 ft. 6 in., with north aisle and chapel and south organ chamber, clearstoried nave 49 ft. 6 in. by 18 ft. 2 in., with north aisle 17 ft. 9 in. wide and south aisle 12 ft. 6 in. wide, south porch and west tower 15 ft. 6 in. by 12 ft., all these measurements being internal. There are also two modern vestries on the north side.

The earliest portion of the building is the lower part of the east and south walls of the chancel, which is apparently of 12th-century date, the jamb and springing of a semicircular arch being still in situ in the east wall inside, about 15 in. from the south-east corner. Five voussoirs of the arch alone remain of what was the southern light of the original east window, the springing of which is considerably lower than that of the present pointed opening. This and the adjoining masonry are the only fragments remaining in situ of a church consisting of a chancel and probably an aisleless nave, the dimensions of which may have been approximately the same as at present. Some fragments discovered in 1889 during the construction of the organ chamber probably belong to this 12th-century church, and include two small sunk crosses —probably consecration crosses. The church has been much tampered with from time to time, but the development of the plan seems to have been somewhat on the following lines. About 1280 a north aisle was added to the nave and a west tower built, the tower arch and the north arcade being approximately of this date, and in the 14th century the chancel was apparently reconstructed, the south aisle of the nave added and the tower remodelled and rebuilt in its upper part. In the 15th century the chapel was added on the north side of the chancel, the whole of the north chancel wall being taken down and an arcade of two arches inserted. A new chancel arch was also erected, and the porch may be of the same date, and probably other alterations were made in the building at the same period, the clearstory being possibly then added, but the plan remained unchanged down to modern times. Great alterations were effected in the fabric, however, in the 18th century, when a gallery was erected in the north aisle, and the nave roof completely altered on that side. The north clearstory was then done away with, the aisle wall raised and the new roof taken at a flatter pitch over both nave and aisles on that side, the south clearstory remaining unaltered. The chancel roof was also altered either at this or some other not very distant period, the side walls being raised and a roof of flatter pitch erected. The chapel on the north side of the chancel was turned into a school, the arches being closed up, and the fabric also underwent the usual 'improvements' of the period, inside the roofs being ceiled and the walls and stonework limewashed. Surtees, about 1823, calls it a 'handsome structure of ashlar work,' (fn. 213) but Sir Stephen Glynne in 1843 styles it 'a church of some appearance but little good work.' (fn. 214) In 1852 a general restoration took place, in the course of which the chancel aisle or chapel was opened out, the piers and arches of the nave arcades stripped of their many coats of whitewash and re-chiselled, the greater part of the walls stripped of their plaster, and a vestry opening from the north-west corner of the chapel added. A further restoration of the interior was carried out in 1889, when the plaster was removed from the walls on the north side, the floor relaid, an organ chamber erected in the angle of the south aisle and chancel, and new oak seating substituted for the old pews, which were used as panelling round the walls. The larger north-west vestry was added in 1896.

The church throughout is built of wrought stone. The east gable of the chancel has been rebuilt, and the east window is a modern pointed one of four trefoiled lights with tracery in the head. The chancel roof is covered with slates overhanging at the eaves, and is considerably lower than that of the nave. The chancel was lighted on the south side by two pointed 14th-century windows, one of which remains near the east end. It consists of three lights, with flowing tracery of good design and external hood mould, but the cuspings have been cut away. The other window was removed when the organ chamber was erected and inserted in its eastern wall. It is of two trefoiled lights with a quatrefoil in the head. The chancel walls are without plinth or string-course. The only remains of the ancient ritual arrangements in the chancel consist of a piscina with semicircular moulded head ornamented in the hollow with a line of four-leaved flowers—a very beautiful piece of work. The bowl projects, and is slightly carved on the underside. The north side of the chancel is open to the chapel by an arcade of two wide pointed arches of two chamfered orders springing from an octagonal pier with moulded capital and base, and from similar responds, the western one being, however, practically a pier built up against the older masonry of the nave wall. The chapel is 17 ft. in width, but slightly less in length than the chancel, its east wall setting back externally about 2 ft., and is lighted on the north side by two 15th-century segmental-headed windows, each of two cinquefoiled lights and perpendicular tracery. The east window is modern. The chancel arch is a sharply pointed one of two chamfered orders, the inner springing on the north side from the western pier, or respond, of the chancel arcade, and the outer dying into the wall above. The arch is probably a rebuilding in the old position of an earlier one demolished when the chapel was erected. On the south side it springs from a half-octagonal respond with capital and base corresponding to the piers on the north side of the chancel. All the fittings are modern. There is no chancel screen, but the easternmost bay of the north arcade is filled with an oak screen erected in 1889. At its west end the chapel is separated from the north nave aisle by a badly-shaped wide pointed arch of a single chamfered order.

The nave is of two bays with three square-headed clearstoried windows of two pointed lights on the south side, and a modern slated roof. On the north side are two blocked clearstory windows, now seen only from the inside, the later flat-pitched roof covering them externally. The line of the old roof and north clearstory is still visible in the east gable of the nave, the raised portion of which is built upon the old walling. The south aisle is under a separate lean-to slated roof. The north arcade consists of two wide pointed arches of unequal spacing. They are of two orders, springing from an octagonal pier with moulded capital and from long responds of similar type. The detail of the capitals seems to indicate a date about the middle or latter half of the 13th century. The wall is 3 ft. thick, and the openings respectively 18 ft. 9 in. and 19 ft. in width. Both arches of the south arcade are of two chamfered orders, and spring directly without capital or impost from an undivided octagonal pier and from similar responds at each end. The west face of the eastern respond has been cut away, the inner order of the arch being cut back to accommodate it, and the western arch, which, owing to its greater width, is also higher than the other, has been entirely rebuilt. The work in its original state probably belonged to the latter half of the 14th century, but it contains so little architectural detail that a later date might be argued for it.

Both aisles extend the full length of the nave. All the windows are modern. The south aisle east of the porch was formerly divided into three bays externally by buttresses with a window to each bay, but the easternmost buttress has been removed and a window inserted in its place instead of the two which formerly existed. The aisle is now open at its east end to the organ chamber, which projects externally in front of it. A piscina with plain semicircular head remains in the south wall in the usual position, but the bowl has been mutilated. Built into the wall above is part of a trefoil-headed niche with a crocketed canopy supported by small human figures of late 14th or 15th-century date. Six ancient fragments found in 1889, including the two consecration crosses, are built into the east wall above the arch. The nave and north aisle retain their flat plaster ceilings. The south doorway has a pointed arch of two chamfered orders, and the outer arch of the porch is of a single chamfered order with hood mould, and an ogee-headed niche above. The porch has a stone seat on each side.

The tower, the greater length of which is from north to south, is of three stages marked by chamfered set-backs, and has diagonal buttresses of five stages to the height of the belfry floor, above which they are continued with less projection to the embattled parapet, terminating as angle pinnacles. The lower stage is blank on the north and south sides, but has a west window of three pointed lights under a flat arch. There is a dwarf buttress below. The middle stage is blank except for a slit in the south and west sides, and the walls are without plinth except to the buttresses. The belfry windows are of two trefoiled lights with rounded head, from the middle of which rises a small pilaster shaft going up in front of the parapet, and terminating in an intermediate pinnacle. A clock dating from 1864 has a dial on each side immediately below the belfry windows. The tower arch is of lancet form, and consists of two chamfered orders dying into the wall high up at the springing. There is no vice, access to the upper stages being by an iron ladder.

An organ was erected in 1853, but the present instrument dates from 1889. In 1863 the pews were of oak and had quaint iron 'snecks' on their doors.

The font and pulpit and all the fittings are modern.

A monument 'richly executed' to the memory of James Bellasis of 'Owten,' who died in 1640, was removed from the north wall of the church in 1850 and placed in the belfry, but was broken up in 1852. (fn. 215)

There is a ring of eight bells. The fourth and sixth are old, but the rest were cast by Mears and Stainbank in 1908. Before this date there were three bells, but the third, which bore the inscription 'Clangore dulci sono psallam tibi Deus 1699,' had been recast in 1898. It was again recast ten years later, when the ring was increased to eight, and retains the old inscription. It is now the seventh. The fourth, probably by Samuel Smith of York, bears the inscription 'Venite exvltemvs Domino. S.S. 1664,' and the sixth is of pre-Reformation date, with the inscription in Gothic characters ' + S[ancta] Maria ora pro nob[is].' (fn. 216)

The plate includes a chalice of 1639 with the maker's mark C C with a column between the letters, and a pewter flagon inscribed 'Rich^d Conder A.B.

The registers begin in 1580.

The churchyard lies on the north, east and south sides of the building, the chief entrance being from the south, opposite the porch. The gates 'with pillars and steps' were erected in 1730, but the gate piers were renewed in 1844, when the burial ground was enlarged.

The church of the HOLY TRINITY, SEATON CAREW, was built in 1831 and altered in 1864 and 1891. It is a stone building in the 13th-century style, consisting of a chancel, nave, south porch and west tower. The township of Seaton Carew became a district chapelry in 1842. (fn. 218) The living is a vicarage in the gift of the Bishop of Durham.

CHRIST CHURCH, WEST HARTLEPOOL

CHRIST CHURCH, WEST HARTLEPOOL, was built in 1854. It is a building of stone in a Gothic style, consisting of an apsidal chancel, nave, north and south aisles, north and south transepts, south porch, north-east vestry and tower. The parish was formed from Stranton in 1859. (fn. 219) The living is a vicarage in the gift of the Bishop of Durham.

The church of ST. JAMES, in Musgrave Street, was built in 1868. It is a stone building in the style of the early 14th century, consisting of a chancel, nave with north and south aisles, south porch and bellturret. The parish was formed from Christ Church in 1870. (fn. 220) The living is a vicarage in the same gift.

The church of ST. PAUL, in Grange Road, was built in 1886. It is a building of red brick with stone dressings in the 13th-century style, and consists of a chancel, nave with north and south aisles, and a tower with spire at the north-west angle. The parish was formed in 1886. The living is a vicarage in the same gift.

The church of ST. AIDAN, at the junction of Stockton Road and Oxford Street, was built in 1890. It is a building of brick with freestone dressings in the 13th-century style, and consists of a chancel, nave with north and south aisles, and north porch. The parish, which includes the districts of Belle Vue and Longhill, was formed in 1891. The living is a vicarage in the same gift.

The church of ST. OSWALD, in Brougham Terrace, was completed in 1904. It is a stone building in the 15th-century style, and consists of a continuous chancel and nave, north and south aisles, south chapel, north and south porches at the west end of the aisles, and west tower. The parish was formed in 1904. The living is a vicarage in the gift of the vicar of Christ Church for the next turn, after that the Bishop of Durham.

The church of ST. MATTHEW, opened in 1902, is a building of pressed red brick with stone facings in the 15th-century style. It is a mission church served by the clergy of All Saints.

ADVOWSON

The church of Stranton was granted by Robert de Brus to the priory of Guisborough between 1119 and 1129. (fn. 221) It was appropriated to the priory and a vicarage was ordained before 1234. (fn. 222) After the Dissolution the advowson seems to have remained in the Crown till the grant of the rectory in 1607 to Philip Chewte and Richard Moore. (fn. 223) They sold it two years later to John Dodsworth of Thornton Watlass, Yorkshire. (fn. 224) No grant of the advowson to the Dodsworths has been found, but John's descendant, John Dodsworth, presented in 1671, (fn. 225) and his cousin and heir John (fn. 226) conveyed the advowson with the rectory to Godfrey Lawson in 1678. (fn. 227) There was a presentation by the Crown in 1681, (fn. 228) but the Dodsworth family retained its interest, and John Dodsworth, son of the last John, presented in 1727. (fn. 229) Eleven years later the patron was Matthew White, (fn. 230) whose daughter and ultimate heir Elizabeth married Matthew Ridley. (fn. 231) Her son Sir Matthew White Ridley presented in 1796. He was succeeded by a son, grandson and great-grandson of the same name. (fn. 232) The advowson was purchased in 1885 by Thomas Robinson of Glaisdale, Yorkshire, and passed to his son Mr. Thomas Robinson of North Ferriby, Yorkshire. It now belongs to the trustees of St. John's College, Durham.

The descent of the rectory after the conveyance by John Dodsworth to Godfrey Lawson is confused. In 1769–71 certain farmers in Stranton and Seaton Carew from whom agistment tithe was claimed stated that Lawson and Dodsworth had sold the tithes to various persons. (fn. 233) On the other hand Thomas Wharton of Old Park claimed the impropriation under a conveyance of 1729 by John Dodsworth to Robert Wharton. (fn. 234) Part of the tithes of Stranton township still belonged to his descendant, Robert Wharton Middleton, of Old Park, about 1823. (fn. 235) Another part had recently been alienated. (fn. 236) The impropriators in 1849 were John Stephenson and others. (fn. 237)

A chapel at Oughton is mentioned in the 13th century. (fn. 238)

The chapel of Seaton is first mentioned in the year 1200, when a chantry here was granted to Walter de Carew. (fn. 239) In a confirmation charter to Guisborough dated 1311 it is stated that Bishop Philip de Poitou (1197–1208) confirmed the chapel of Seaton to the monastery. (fn. 240) Another confirmation of about the same date implies that this chapel was among the appurtenances of the church of Stranton granted by Robert de Brus to the priory. (fn. 241) It is said to have been under the invocation of St. Thomas of Canterbury. (fn. 242) In 1315 there was a dispute between the Prior of Guisborough and the vicar of Stranton as to whether the 2 oxgangs granted by Bishop Philip and Walter de Carew were a separate endowment for the chapel of Seaton or a general gift to the monastery, the vicar being responsible for the maintenance of the chapel. The Bishop of Durham, appointed as arbitrator, decided that the gift was made to the monastery, but that the monks must allow the vicar 10s. a year for the maintenance of the chapel. (fn. 243) Seaton chapel is mentioned with the vicarage of Stranton in 1535, (fn. 244) and in 1577–88 it was a chapel served by a stipendiary priest. (fn. 245) It was in ruins in 1622, (fn. 246) and no trace of it now remains.

CHARITIES

William Smith, by his will and a codicil thereto proved at Durham on 30 November 1874, bequeathed his residuary personal estate to his trustees upon trust that out of the income thereof two life annuities of £25 and £40 should be paid to the persons therein mentioned, and that after the determination of such life interests the income thereof should be applied in supplying food and raiment, clothing and bedding for the poor. It is understood that the income of the residuary estate was insufficient to pay the said annuities without recourse to the capital.

This parish is possessed of a parish room conveyed by a deed of 10 September 1900 to be used primarily for the purpose of a Sunday school.

West Hartlepool.

John Farmer, by his will proved at Durham on 3 January 1879, bequeathed £100, the income to be applied for the benefit of seamen's widows in the parish of West Hartlepool. The legacy with accumulations is represented by £156 14s. 3d. 2½ per cent consols, with the official trustees, producing £3 18s. 4d. yearly. The charity is regulated by a scheme of the Charity Commissioners of 6 September 1895.

The West Hartlepool Diamond Jubilee Almshouses, erected by public subscription as a memorial of Queen Victoria upon a site belonging to the corporation, consist of fourteen tenements occupied by aged men and women who have been resident in the borough for not less than twenty years. The almshouses are endowed with £2,165 1s. 9d. New South Wales 3 per cent. stock; £25 West Hartlepool 4¾ per cent. Housing Bonds; £461 9s. 2d. 4½ per cent. Conversion Stock (representing a bequest by Joseph Forster Wilson), and £2,635 15s. 8d. 3½ per cent. Conversion Stock (representing a bequest by Sir William Cresswell Gray, bart.), with the official trustees, the annual dividends of which, amounting to £179 3s., are applied in the upkeep of the almshouses.

The West Hartlepool Literary and Mechanics' Institution, comprised in a deed of 2 August 1852, was founded by voluntary contributions.

The chapel premises of the United Methodist Free Church in Lynn Street, comprised in deeds of 1853, 1861 and 1878, are endowed with premises known as the caretaker's house, let at £24 a year, and a dwelling-house known as No. 23 Farndale Terrace, occupied by the minister of the chapel at a rent of £25 a year. The rents are applied for chapel purposes.

The West Hartlepool County Borough Schools have been already dealt with. (fn. 247)

Eliza Jane Gray, by her will proved 26 October 1917, gave £3,000, the interest to be applied by the vicar and churchwardens towards the stipends of the organist, choir, etc., and others employed in services at St. Oswald Church or for purposes of divine services and cost of heating, lighting and cleaning the church, any surplus for the improvement or decoration of the church. The endowment now consists of £4,167 14s. 2d. 3½ per cent. Conversion Stock, with the official trustees, producing £145 17s. 4d. yearly.

Isaac Bundred, by his will proved 12 April 1923, gave the residue of his estate to the Mayor of West Hartlepool, the income to be applied in assisting crippled children. The residuary estate is represented by £293 19s. 2d. 5 per cent. War Stock, with the official trustees, producing £14 13s. 10d. yearly.

Helen Belk, by her will proved at Durham 26 September 1901, directed that her personal estate be sold and gave the residue to the vicar and churchwardens of St. Paul's, West Hartlepool, the income to be applied for the benefit of sick or destitute women. The endowment consists of £3,023 7s. 4d. invested with the West Hartlepool Corporation at 5 per cent. In 1925 the sum of £92 was distributed in grants to 32 women and girls. Donations are also made to hospitals and institutions of like character.

Thomas Tiplady Brown, by his will proved at Wakefield 7 June 1916, gave £200 to the trustees of Burbank Street Chapel for the trust fund. The money is on mortgage with West Hartlepool Corporation at 5 per cent., and the income is applied to the general purposes of the chapel.

The Parish Hall of Christ Church, West Hartlepool, comprised in deeds of 30 June 1894 and 25 April 1903, is regulated by a scheme of the Charity Commissioners dated 6 March 1917. The property consists of a piece of land in Brunswick Street, together with the building thereon. The vicar and churchwardens are the trustees.