BHO

The parish of Tatham

Pages 217-225

A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 8. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1914.

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TATHAM (fn. 1)

Tathaim, Dom. Bk.; Tateham, 1202; Thataim, Thatham, 1212; Tatham, 1241. The local pronunciation is Taytam.

Tatham proper lies in the valley of the Wenning, the parish church being placed on the northern side of the river, which is crossed by a bridge; but nearly the whole area of this township-parish lies to the south of the river, occupying hilly country between the wooded valley of the Hindburn and the border of Yorkshire. About the centre of its course the Hindburn is joined by another stream flowing across Tatham from east to west; in its valley, on the north bank, is the ancient chapel of Tatham Fell; to the south are Lowgill and Ivah. The fells to the southeast end of the parish attain a height of 1,550 ft. above sea level. There is no village, the farms and occasional hamlets being scattered over the surface. Robert Hall, an ancient seat, is in the north-east part, not far from Bentham. The area measures 8,547 acres, (fn. 2) and in 1901 there was a population of 454.

The principal roads are two, which coming from Lancaster to Wray there divide, one going north-east to Wennington and the other east and north-east to Bentham. The Hellifield and Lancaster line of the Midland railway runs through the northern edge of the township near the Wenning, and has a station called Wennington at which is the junction of the branch to Carnforth.

The soil is sandy, overlying rock and gravel. Only 185 acres are arable, while 5,227 are occupied by permanent grass and 248 by woods and plantations. (fn. 3) Coal mines and quarries were formerly worked. There used also to be a bobbin mill and a corn mill.

A fair is held at Lowgill in March.

The parish is administered by a parish council.

The scenery of this hill country is frequently of great beauty. Dr. Whitaker, writing about 1820, says: 'The situation of the church, the hall, and the parsonage is delightful; as there is perhaps no point from which Hornby Castle is seen to greater advantage on the one hand, while Ingleborough at the other presents its vast and towering bulk, sufficiently near, when unclouded, to display its asperities in all their rugged grandeur. Two lively trout streams, forming boundaries of the parish on the right and left, with their fringed banks, natural copsewoods, elegantly dispersed and fertile fields of grass and corn, conspire to make this a very pleasing retreat. (fn. 4)

The history has been quite uneventful, though here as elsewhere the Scottish raid of 1322 left its mark of desolation. To the county lay of 1624 Tatham with Ireby contributed 19s. 9½d. to each £100 demanded from Lonsdale Hundred. (fn. 5)

Manors

In 1066 TATHAM was one of the four manors held by Chetel with Bentham. (fn. 6) Later it was held in thegnage of the honour of Lancaster, in conjunction with Ireby, by a rent of 18s.; its separate assessment was one plough-land. In 1346 the tenure was recorded as knight's service. The earliest lord on record after the Conquest appears to have been one Waldeve, (fn. 7) whose son Richard, (fn. 8) dead in 1198, was succeeded by a son William, (fn. 9) sometimes called Sir William. (fn. 10) William son of Richard de Tatham was in 1212 found to hold the two plough-lands in Tatham and Ireby, but several small alienations had been made. (fn. 11) King John while Count of Mortain had granted 18s. 8d. rent, viz. the service of William de Tatham for Tatham and Ireby, to Roger de Montbegon, (fn. 12) and in 1222 Henry III ordered inquiry to be made as to the tenure. (fn. 13)

Tatham Church from the South-East

The manor descended to a John de Tatham, (fn. 14) who in 1320 alienated it to Edmund de Dacre. (fn. 15) From his descendants it passed to the Harringtons, (fn. 16) and thus became joined with the Hornby lordship, and has since descended in the same manner, (fn. 17) the present lord being the heir of the late Colonel Foster.

According to Leland, writing about 1536, 'the Harringtons had of ancient time a fair manor place . . . called Tatham, now in a manner desolated.' (fn. 18) Dr. Whitaker states that its vestiges were about 1820 still visible at Hall Barn. (fn. 19)

The alienations recorded in 1212 were probably the origin of some of the later estates, but they cannot long be traced. (fn. 20) In later times the principal estate or manor was that called ROBERT HALL, held by the Cansfield family, (fn. 21) who also held lands in Cantsfield and Oxcliffe. John Cansfield died in 1515 holding messuages and lands in Tatham of Lord Mounteagle as of his manor of Tatham by knight's service. Robert his son and heir was about three years old. (fn. 22) Thomas Cansfield died in 1597 holding in socage, by a rent of 5s. 1d., and leaving a son and heir John, aged twenty-three. (fn. 23) In 1602 a settlement of the manors of Robert Hall, Tatham and Cantsfield was made by John Cansfield. (fn. 24) The family adhered to the Roman Catholic religion, (fn. 25) and on the outbreak of the Civil War John Cansfield, perhaps a son of the former John, zealously espoused the royal cause. (fn. 26) He is stated to have saved the lives of the king and his son by a decisive charge at the second battle of Newbury 10 October 1644. (fn. 27) He was made a knight soon after. (fn. 28) The estates were sequestered (fn. 29) and then confiscated by the Parliament. (fn. 30) Sir John died in 1648, (fn. 31) and his son John, born about 1642, (fn. 32) succeeded, and was the last of the male line. By his marriage with Elizabeth Anderton he acquired the estate of Birchley near Wigan. (fn. 33) He was buried 31 August 1671, (fn. 34) and his younger daughter Mary became eventually sole heiress. She married Sir William Gerard of Brynn and died in 1726; the estate has descended to Captain Frederick Gerard. (fn. 35) Anne, the elder daughter, married Richard Shireburne of Stonyhurst, and died in 1693 without issue.

Cansfield. Or three bars gules, a canton ermine.

Gerard. Argent a saltire gules.

ROBERT HALL, now a farm-house, stands at the north-east end of the parish on high ground facing north over the valley of the Wenning. A drawing made in 1856 (fn. 36) shows the building at that time to have been of considerable architectural interest, consisting of two wings at right angles, the principal one, which faces north, being about 90 ft. long and two stories in height, with mullioned and transomed windows to both floors and a square bay going up both stories towards its east end. The shorter west wing appears to have been then much as at present, though it has probably been since more entirely modernized and now serves as the farmer's dwellinghouse. Very little but the walls of the building are now standing, nearly all the architectural features having been destroyed some time subsequent to 1856, and the house is in a more or less dilapidated condition, its eastern end, which is used as a barn, being practically only a shell. A pointed doorway near the west end of the main wing still remains, however, and one original three-light mullioned window; all the other ancient windows have disappeared, the chimneys have been either wholly or partly destroyed, and a large square opening has been cut through the front wall at the east end. A straight joint in this wall about 40 ft. from the west end seems to indicate that the original building only extended this far and that it was enlarged eastward at a later time. So many changes have taken place, however, that it is difficult to trace with any degree of certainty the original plan. The older part of the house, to which the existing pointed door belongs, may be of 15th-century date, and probably included the hall at its east end. The drawing of 1856 shows a large eight-light mullioned and transomed window to the east of the doorway which probably lit the hall, but this window has now totally disappeared. The house was most likely enlarged in the 16th century, when it would assume mure or less the aspect it had fifty years ago. An impaled shield of a Cansfield, which formerly was over the ground floor bay, is now preserved in the wall over the barn door, and is a good example of 16th-century work with scroll border. The barn measures internally 53 ft. by 24 ft. and is open to the roof, but the marks of the floor remain at a height of 10 ft., and probably the space now represented by this measurement was divided between two or more rooms, there being a fireplace both in the east and south wall, each built up and the chimneys pulled down above the roof level. On the south side there is a recess 10 ft. square. The walls are 3 ft. thick and built of local stone, and the roofs are covered with stone slates. Formerly there was a stone fence wall in front of the house on the north side inclosing a small grass forecourt, but this has disappeared. The roof runs with an unbroken ridge the full length of the main wing, with overhanging eaves to front and back and a plain gable broken by a projecting chimney at each end. There were originally two chimneys in the north front, the lower part of one of which, corbelled from the wall at the first floor level, still remains.

Robert Hall, Tatham (from a drawing of 1856)

The vaccary of LOWGILL, with which Ivah, formerly Ivetho or Ivo, seems to have been joined, was held by a younger branch of the Tatham family, and passed to Urswick and Kirkby of Upper Rawcliffe. (fn. 37) Robert de Urswick in 1376 obtained a grant of free warren for his demesne lands in Tatham, Cansfield and Upper Rawcliffe. (fn. 38) The Brockholes family long held an estate in Tatham, (fn. 39) and Hornbys (fn. 40) and some minor holders occur in the records. (fn. 41)

The abbeys of Croxton (fn. 42) and Cockersand had lands in Tatham. (fn. 43)

The lands of Christopher Nicholson of Tatham were ordered to be sold by Parliament in 1652. (fn. 44) Richard Russell as a 'Papist' registered his freehold house called Burton in 1717. (fn. 45)

Church

The church at ST. JAMES THE LESS stands at the extreme north-west of the parish near to the north bank of the River Wenning, and consists of a chancel 2o ft 4 in. by 18 ft. 6 in., with north vestry and organ chamber, nave 31 ft. by 17 ft. 10 in with north aisle 9 ft. 8 in. wide, south porch 11 ft. by 9 ft. 6 in., and west tower 9 ft. 6 in. by 9 ft., all these measurements being internal. It has apparently been rebuilt in the 15th century, but retains some portions of an older structure in the capitals of the piers in the nave arcade and in the south doorway. The tower, according to an inscribed stone (fn. 46) in the north wall, was built in 1722, but the masonry appears to be much older and the line of a steeppitched roof on the east wall above the present roof seems to prove that the 18th-century work was only a restoration or perhaps reconstruction of the upper stage. (fn. 47) During the 18th or early 19th century the church was filled with square pews, which extended halfway into the chancel, and a west gallery erected, and four narrow round-headed classic windows inserted in the south side of the chancel. In 1885 the building underwent a very thorough restoration, the old seats and gallery being removed, the south wall of the nave and chancel partly rebuilt, modern Gothic windows being substituted for the 18thcentury ones, and the north-east portion of the building entirely reconstructed. The old embattled parapet of the tower was removed at the same time and the tower itself raised, being finished with a saddleback roof and stone gables facing north and south.

Plan of Tatham Church

The walling is of rubble masonry, and the roof is covered with stone slates and has overhanging eaves and all the windows with the exception of the east window of the chancel and a small opening at the west end of the aisle are modern. The nave and aisle are under one wide spanned roof, which is continued over the chancel, with lower gabled roofs to the organ chamber and vestry. Before the alterations of 1885 the north aisle wall continued in a straight line eastward, with a small vestry north of the sanctuary. The vestry, however, appears to have been a later addition, the whole of the north wall of the chancel having been originally an outer wall, the plinth of which is still in position. The development of the plan, however, is not clear. The chancel is 8 in. wider than the nave, the break in the wall, which is on the south side only, being marked externally by a wide buttress which finishes above the roof with a triangular head. The moulded plinth which goes all round the chancel includes the buttress also, but it is broken on the south side for a space of about 6 ft. The whole of the upper part of the south wall, however, east of the buttress and west of it as far as the porch is now new.

The chancel has a pointed east window of three lights with plain chamfered mullions crossing in the head and a plain chamfered inner arch. On the south wall are a double piscina and triple sedilia, which were discovered and opened out in the restoration of 1885. The sedilia have trefoiled arches with solid chamfered divisions, and there is a similar trefoil head ranging with them over the piscina. The sedilia arcade appears to have been a good deal restored, but the lower part remains in its original state. The three new windows on the south side of the chancel, which replace the four round-headed classic ones, are of two lights with pointed heads and Gothic tracery, the easternmost one, which is above the sedilia, being shorter than the others. There is no chancel arch, and the chancel roof is a continuation of the modern oak roof of the nave, plastered between the principals. The north side of the chancel has an 18-ft. length of wall at the east end pierced only by the modern vestry doorway, to the west of which it is open to the aisle, increased here 4 ft. in width to form the organ chamber. There is a modern oak chancel screen and one on the north side, and all the fittings also are modern.

The arcade consists of three pointed arches of two chamfered orders springing from octagonal piers and responds 6 ft. in height, with moulded capitals and bases, the two westernmost bays of which belong to the nave. The capitals of the piers and responds are apparently of late 12th-century date but differ in size, being respectively 9½ in. and 12 in. in depth splaying from octagon to square, the westernmost one having simple ornament on all four sides. The ornament is coarse and the work of an unskilled hand, and some of it may be the work of a later improver. The abaci, however, point to the date named, and all the carving may be rough work of that time. The nave is lit by a single modern three-light pointed window on the south side and the aisle by two modern windows in the north wall, and by an original narrow single-light window with trefoiled head and deep internal splay at the west. The floor is flagged, and all the fittings, including the font and pulpit, are modern. Internally the walls have been stripped of plaster and whitewash, and now show the bare rubble masonry. The south doorway, though much restored, is of 12th-century date, with semicircular arch and angle shafts. The porch, which has a plain gable with sundial in the apex, has also been restored. The outer arch is a pointed one of two chamfered orders, and in the east wall is a small round-headed chamfered opening 6 in. wide by 2 ft. 3 in. high, splaying out to 14 in. in the thickness of the wall. The roof has overhanging eaves.

The tower has a vice in the north-west corner and a modern two-light west window, but is without buttresses and quite plain in character to the height of the modern belfry stage, which has square-headed traceried windows of two lights. The tower is open to the church by a modern arch.

On the north side of the chancel is a sepulchral slab with floreated cross, sword and obliterated shield; and below the modern altar is the old stone altarslab, on which the five crosses are still visible. There is a brass to the Rev. Thomas Sharpe, M.A., rector, who died in 1699, and another to John Cansfield, esq., and Elizabeth his widow (died 1680), with the arms of Cansfield impaling Anderton.

In the top of the east window is a piece of old glass with the arms of Lancaster.

There are three bells, the oldest inscribed 'George Bruce Rector 1771,' and the others by Taylor of Loughborough, 1887.

The plate consists of an 18th-century chalice and paten each inscribed 'Parish of Tatham. The gift of a parishioner'; and a flagon of 1741, made at Newcastle, inscribed 'The gift of Henry Marsden of Wennington Hall Esqr.' Some older plate is at Tatham Fell Church.

The registers begin in 1558. (fn. 48)

Advowson

The church, though named in Domesday Book, seems a little later to have become a chapel of ease to Melling; Benedict the chaplain of Tatham occurs in the time of Richard I, John and Henry III, (fn. 49) but the list of rectors begins soon afterwards. The advowson has descended in the same way as the manor—from the local family through the Dacres to the lords of Hornby—the present patrons being the representatives of the late William Henry Foster of Hornby Castle. In 1246 the value of the rectory was estimated at £10 a year, (fn. 50) but was taxed in 1291 as £6 13s. 4d., (fn. 51) reduced by half after the Scottish invasion of 1322. (fn. 52) The ninth of sheaves, wool, &c., was in 1341 stated to be worth £3 6s. 8d., the small tithes and altarage amounted to £2, and the destruction caused by the Scots accounted for a diminution of £1 6s. 8d. in the value. (fn. 53) Later the income increased, and in 1527 was given as £15, (fn. 54) while in 1535 the net value was £12 5s. (fn. 55) The whole profits were returned as £52, a year in 1650, and there had been added out of Royalist sequestrations £26 13s. 4d. (fn. 56) In 1717 the certified income was £56 4s., derived mainly from the glebe and the tithes. (fn. 57) The net value is now £230 a year. (fn. 58)

The following have been rectors:—

Instituted Name Patron Cause of Vacancy
c. 1220 Richard (fn. 59)
19 Mar. 1245–6 Richard son of Ingram (fn. 60) The King
oc. 1277 Mr. Thomas le Sauvage (fn. 61)
oc. 1279 Martin (fn. 62)
oc. 1325–43 John de Urswick (fn. 63)
oc. 1350 Lawrence de Heysham (fn. 64)
oc. 1363–83 John de Hornby (fn. 65)
30 Apr. 1395 William Tindore (fn. 66) Edmund de Dacre
28 June 1420 Richard Banastre (fn. 67) Thomas Harrington
13 July 1429 Robert Littester (fn. 68) " res. R. Banastre
4 Mar. 1441–2 Roger Couper (fn. 69) " d. R. Littester
oc. 1473 John Battison (fn. 70)
oc. 1517 James Gorton (fn. 71) Lord Mounteagle
oc. 1554 Nicholas Clifton (fn. 72)
3 Apr. 1573 Richard Deyn (fn. 73) John Clifton d. N. Clifton
oc. 1610 William Dewhurst (fn. 74)
29 Apr. 1629 Gilbert Nelson, M.A. (fn. 75) Henry Parker d. W. Dewhurst
oc. 1646 Nicholas Smith (fn. 76)
21 Feb. 1660–1 Thomas Sharpe, M.A. (fn. 77) Thomas Lord Morley d. G. Nelson
3 Feb. 1699–1700 Leonard Jackson, M.A. (fn. 78) Mary Lady Morley, &c. d. T. Sharpe
7 Dec. 1726 Robert Jackson (fn. 79) Robert Gibson d. L. Jackson
10 June 1734 James Moore, B.A. (fn. 80) Archibald Earl of Islay,&c. d. R. Jackson
10 Aug. 1750 George Bruce, M.A. (fn. 81) Francis Charteris d. J. Moore
20 Jan. 1781 Richard Wilson (fn. 82) " d. G. Bruce
7 July 1794 John Tatham, B.A. (fn. 83) John Marsden d. R. Wilson
29 June 1809 Anthony Lister, M.A. (fn. 84) " d. J. Tatham
13 Aug. 1823 John Marsden Wright, M.A. (fn. 85) " res. A. Lister
1874 Richard Denny, B.A. (fn. 86) John Foster d. J. M. Wright
10 Apr. 1888 Arthur Wellesley Foster, M.A. (fn. 87) William Henry Foster and R. J. Foster res. R. Denny
1893 Frederic Walker Joy, D.D. (fn. 88) " res. A. W. Foster
22 June 1902 Arthur Senior Roberts, M.A. (fn. 89) W. H. Foster res. F. W. Joy

Little is known of the clergy of this remote district. The Bishop of Chester's visitation list in 1554 names the rector and two others—one of them, no doubt, the curate (fn. 90) and the other perhaps serving the Fell Chapel. (fn. 91) In later times there appear to have been usually the rector and a curate, but the former was not always resident. There was no endowed chantry.

The chapel of TATHAM FELL, which has just been mentioned, was of ancient date, (fn. 92) and from the beginning of the 18th century has been served regularly. (fn. 93) Its certified income was only £2 in 1717 (fn. 94); it is now £174. (fn. 95) The old chapel was rebuilt in 1840. The existing church of the Good Shepherd was built on a new site in 1888. The perpetual curate is nominated by the rector of Tatham. The following have been in charge (fn. 96) :—

1725 Christopher Hall
John Sharp
1733 William Twisleton, B.A. (Christ's Coll., Camb.)
1735 James Cock
1736 Thomas Benison, B.A. (Christ's Coll., Camb.)
1740 Thomas Head
1767 George Holden (fn. 97)
1793 George Holden, LL.D. (fn. 98)
1821 Robert Beaty
1839 John Matthias Hodgson
1862 James Chadwick, B.A. (Queens' Coll., Camb.)
1876 James Marshall, B.A. (Dur.)
1905 William Newsome Martin, B.A. (St. Cath. Coll., Camb.)
1908 Charles James Milner, M.A. (Dur.)

In 1689 Francis Beckett's house in Tatham was certified as a meeting-place for Presbyterians. (fn. 99) About the same time the Fell Chapel was held by them, but it was in 1693 recovered for the Church of England, as' an endowed ancient chapel wherein the sacraments and prayers of the Church of England have been duly ministered and used time out of mind.' (fn. 100) Quakers also were recorded in the presentments to the Bishop of Chester a little later. These Nonconformists appear to have died out. The Wesleyan Methodists have a chapel at Lowgill, built in 1866.

Through the Cansfields of Robert Hall a shelter was provided for the Roman Catholic missionary priests during the times of persecution. (fn. 101) Names of these priests are known from about 1600 until 1811. The mission had been worked in conjunction with Claughton and Hornby, but the chapel at Robert Hall ceased to be used about 1817, when Hornby alone remained.

Of the origin of the free school nothing is known. In 1708 the churchwardens reported to the Bishop of Chester that the parish clerk was the schoolmaster, but in 1712 stated that there was no hospital, almshouse or free school in the parish. In 1716 they testified that a free school existed, endowed with £88 capital, given by James Bouskill. (fn. 102)

Charities

There are no endowments for the poor. An official inquiry was made in 1899, (fn. 103) and the charities reported were the school, the parish garth, (fn. 104) and a small endowment, now yielding 23s. 4d. a year, for the chapel clerk of Tatham Fell. (fn. 105)

Footnotes

  • 1. For parish map, see Melling, ante.
  • 2. a The Census Rep. 1901 gives 8,551 acres, including 57 of inland water.
  • 3. Statistics from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
  • 4. a Richmondshire, ii, 263.
  • 5. Gregson, Fragments (ed. Harland), 23.
  • 6. V.C.H. Lancs. i, 289a; the assessments are not separately recorded in this case.
  • 7. Waldeve son of Edmund gave land in Newby in Clapham to Furness Abbey; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxvi, App. 181. The full descent will be found in Assize R. 1042, m. 17, thus: Etheyn -s. Edmund -s. Waldeve -s. Richard -s. William de Tatham, living 1230.
  • 8. In 1181 Richard son of Waldeve complained that certain of his men asserted they were free when they were not so; Farrer, Lancs. Pipe R. 45. He attested Count John's confirmation of the Lancaster Priory charter about 1190; ibid. 299. Tatham is not mentioned in the record, but the later notices show that it was the seat of his lordship. In the same volume other 'sons of Waldeve' are named—Adam, Augustine, Gilbert and William—but there may have been more than one Waldeve.
  • 9. In 1197–8 Adam de Lancaster paid the £10 he owed the king for having the wardship of the heir of Richard son of Waldeve; ibid. 102. In 1206 William son of Richard had livery of his inheritance; Adam the Dean (of Lancaster) had had the wardship; Rot. de Oblatis et Fin. (Rec. Com.), 352.
  • 10. Cockersand Chartul. (Chet. Soc.), iii, 932.
  • 11. Lancs. Inq. and Extents (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 97; the service is given as 28s. instead of 18s. Five grants are recorded: two by William's 'ancestor,' and three by the ancestor's son William.
  • 12. Rot. Lit. Claus. (Rec. Com.), i, 215b; a confirmation granted in 1215. William de Tatham was then the tenant, but his father Richard probably held at the time of the original grant. In 1213–15 Roger de Montbegon paid 37s. 4d. (two years' rent) as the service of William de Tatham; Farrer, op. cit. 249.
  • 13. Rot. Lit. Claus. i, 509b.
  • 14. In 1226 the heirs of Richard son of Waldeve held a plough-land in Tatham and another plough-land in Ireby by a rent of 18s.; Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 141. The immediate succession is uncertain. William de Tatham may have died in 1222; Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i, 89. Walter brother and heir of William de Tatham (perhaps a second William) succeeded in 1232, paying 100s. as relief; ibid. 236. In 1241 Walter de Tatham, holding the two plough-lands, obtained a quitclaim from Richard de Rigmaiden, Agnes his wife, Alice her sister and Godith daughter of Gilbert Whithaud; Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 91. About the same time he acquired 12 acres from Stephen de Oxenthwaite, Thomas son of Alan and Lawrence his brother; ibid. He also held of the Dean and chapter of York a plough-land in Sedbergh; Lansdowne MS. 559, fol. 137/72. Walter died soon afterwards, for in 1246 John his son and heir was in the king's custody, while John le Franceys had his land, worth £20 a year, by the king's gift; Assize R. 404, m. 24. In the same year custody of the lands was given to Robert de Creppings, dower being allowed to Denise widow of Walter; Close, 60, m. 19. Denise soon afterwards married John de Halton without the king's licence; ibid. 61, m. 4. Her marriage had been granted to Roger de Brus; Excerpta e Rot. Fin. i, 460. John de Tatham held the manors of Tatham and Ireby in 1279, William son of William de Kellet granting a release of his claim in them; Final Conc. i, 156. He was defendant in 1286, when John de Ireby claimed estovers in Tatham Wood; De Banco R. 61, m. 6. He died before 1290, when Sarah his widow claimed dower against Roger de Ellershaw and others; ibid. 82, m. 66. He is sometimes entitled knight, as in a charter by his son John respecting his lands at Sedbergh in 1310; Lansdowne MS. 559, fol. 135/71. This estate was sold to Edmund de Dacre; ibid. fol. 138/72 d. John de Tatham held the two ploughlands by the old service in 1297; Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 292. He was son of the preceding John, and in 1290 as John son and heir of Sir John de Tatham gave all his land of Masongill in Thornton to John de Thornton and Berletta his wife, Walter the father of Sir John being mentioned; Dods. MSS. lxii, fol. 1b, no. 22. He was under age at his father's death, Sarah the widow marrying Robert de Pickering; these with William brother ot John were involved in a dispute with Robert de Forneaux in 1301–2; Assize R. 1321, m. 8; 418, m. 15d. William son of John de Tatham was defendant to a claim for dower by Alice widow of William son of Gilbert de Tatham in 1299; De Banco R. 130, m. 99 d. In 1304 John de Tatham was pardoned for the death of Gilbert del Dispens at Tatham; Assize R. 422, m. 4. He and his wife Gundreda are mentioned in 1306; ibid. 420, m. 8. Ten years later John son of John de Tatham complained of waste by Sarah widow of John son of Walter de Tatham; De Banco R. 216, m. 127 d.; 220, m. 358 d. Plaintiff was the third John in succession, as appears by a charter quoted in note 38. Ireby was sold by John de Tatham in 1317. Walter son of John de Tatham in 1319–20 made a claim against John son of John de Tatham; Assize R. 424, m. 11.
  • 15. John granted two-thirds of the manor of Tatham and the reversion of the third part held in dower by Sarah widow of John de Tatham. Edmund was to pay 20 marks a year to the grantor and a rose to his heirs. In default of issue to Edmund the manor was to remain to Thomas and Edmund sons of John de Tatham—apparently brothers of the grantor—and to Edmund son of Sir William de Dacre; De Banco R. 246, m. 61. Thomas son of John de Tatham was a plaintiff in 1329 and 1334; ibid. 277, m. 6 d.; 298, m. 219 d.; 300, m. 160 d. Alice widow of Thomas son of John de Tatham proceeded against various persons for the death of her husband at Tatham in 1335; Coram Rege R. 302, Rex m. 6. Edmund de Tatham was defendant in 1345, when Avice widow of Walter de Tatham claimed dower against him and against Agnes de Stub. Avice's marriage was denied, but she proved that it took place at Cattistock in Dorset in 1307, and eventually recovered; De Banco R. 343, m; 405 d. For junior Tatham families see notes 35 and 37 below.
  • 16. The Dacre family has already been noticed in the account of Heysham. In 1324 it was recorded that Edmund de Dacre held Tatham by the old rent of 18s. to the lord of Lancaster; Lancs. Inq. and Extents, ii, 118, 170. He obtained a grant of free warren in his demesne lands in Tatham in 1326; Chart. R. 19 Edw. II, m. 7, no. 16. In the same year he complained that various persons had broken his park there; Cal. Pat. 1324–7. P. 284. In 1346 it was recorded that Thomas de Dacre held three plough-lands in Ireby and Tatham by the service of threetenths of a knight's fee, and that Robert de Tatham and Edmund de Tatham each held by the fifty-fourth part, rendering also 18s. at the four terms, with suit of court of county and wapentake and puture; Surv. of 1346 (Chet. Soc), 62. Edmund de Dacre and his parceners held the fourth part of a knight's fee in Tatham and Ireby in 1378; Furness Coucher (Chet. Soc.), 224. In 1375 he complained that Robert de Urswick and others had been hunting in his free warren at Tatham; De Banco R. 488, m. 393. In 1392 Edmund de Dacre claimed an annual rent of 40s. and a stone of wool from Roger de Brockholes, Thomas de Hesketh, Nicholas de Singleton the younger and John de Towneley; Towneley MS. C 8, 13 (Chet. Lib.), 170. He died in January 1401–2 holding the manor of Tatham, with the advowson of the church, of the king as of his duchy of Lancaster by knight's service and a rent of 18s.; also the manor of Heysham. Thomas his son and heir was twentythree years old; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 78. Livery was ordered to be given to the heir; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxiii, App. 3. Thomas Dacre died in 1419 holding as before and having as heir his daughter Elizabeth, aged fifteen, who married Thomas son of Sir William Harrington; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 139. Sir William had Hornby in right of his wife. Elizabeth as widow of Sir Thomas Harrington made a settlement of the manors of Tatham and Heysham in 1462; they were to descend to James Harrington, Robert his brother and Margaret, Joan, Anne, Katherine and Agnes, their sisters; Final Conc. iii, 131. This arrangement may have been altered later, for the manors descended like Hornby.
  • 17. Tatham is named in the Mounteagle inquisitions, &c.; e.g. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. v, no. 64; xi, no. 1; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 13, m. 85 (Ellen wife of T. Lord Mounteagle); 93, m. 1 (William Lord Morley); 208, m. 136 (Robert Earl of Cardigan); Plea R. 612, m. 7 (Francis Charteris). The manors of Tatham and Farleton, forfeited by James and Robert Harrington, were in 1664 granted to the Earl of Cardigan; Cal. Pat. 1663–4, p. 575.
  • 18. Itin. vi, 66.
  • 19. Richmondshire, ii, 263.
  • 20. Lancs. Inq. and Extents, i, 97. Bernard son of Acke had 1 oxgang of land, paying 12d. yearly; Waldeve son of Richard had a ridding, rendering the same; William son of Adam received 22 acres in free marriage with the lord's sister; Ellis de Wennington had 4 acres, and Matthew Gernet had 6 acres, for which he paid 6d. a year. In 1202 Benedict the chaplain of Tatham for 4 marks of silver acquired 20 acres in Tatham from William son of Arkill; Final Conc. i, 38. Adam de Tunstall in 1305 claimed land against Siegrith daughter of Waden son of Benedict de Tatham; Assize R. 420, m. 8. In 1314 John son of Christiana daughter of Siegrith claimed a messuage, &c., against John son of John de Tatham; De Banco R. 206, m. 93 d.
  • 21. The pedigree of this family cannot be traced, but an indication of the time and manner of acquisition of this estate is afforded by a claim made in 1376 by Robert de Urswick and Robert de Cansfield, as heirs of Walter de Tatham, for a box of charters in the keeping of the rector of Chipping; ibid. 462, m. 136.
  • 22. Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iv, no. 9. Elizabeth the widow was living at Cantsfield.
  • 23. Ibid, xvii, no. 4. In 1591 Thomas Cansfield purchased two messuages, &c., in Tatham from Robert Mercer; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 53, m. 221. He made a further purchase from Lord Mounteagle in 1596; ibid. bdle. 59, m. 323.
  • 24. Ibid. bdle. 64, no. 190. He married Isabel Ashton of Croston. In 1631 he compounded for refusing knighthood by a fine of £10; Misc. (Rec Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 220.
  • 25. John Cansfield of Robert Hall in 1629 compounded for the two-thirds of his estates liable to sequestration for recusancy by an annual fine of £30. In the following year Isabel Cansfield of Cantsfield compounded by £4. See Trans. Hist. Soc. (new ser.), xxiv, 173–4. Brian son of Thomas Cansfield, born in 1580, brought up as a Protestant and educated at Lancaster and other local schools was reconciled to the Roman Church in 1596 and went to St. Omers, and thence to the English college at Rome, 1601. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1604, and laboured in the English mission for thirty-nine years, part of the time in Lancashire. At last he was seized while saying mass and imprisoned at York. After a time he was set at liberty, but the severity with which he had been treated broke his health and he died soon afterwards in 1643; Foley, Rec. S. J. iii, 140–2; Gillow, Bibl. Dict. of Engl. Cath. i, 396. His sister Elizabeth joined the English Benedictine nuns at Brussels in 1598; Misc. (Cath. Rec. Soc), iv, 319.
  • 26. He was one of the recusants who in 1642 asked to be allowed to arm themselves; Civil War Tracts (Chet. Soc.), 39.
  • 27. Misc. (Cath. Rec. Soc.), iv, 167.
  • 28. Metcalfe, Bk. of Knights, 202.
  • 29. Cal. Com. for Comp. iv, 3101.
  • 30. Index of Royalists (Index Soc.), 49.
  • 31. He spent part of 1646 and 1647 in Rome; Foley, op. cit. vi, 633–7. His brother Charles, educated at the English college there, was ordained priest and sent on the English mission in 1645; ibid. 350.
  • 32. Royalist Comp. Papers (Rec. Soc. Lancs, and Ches.), ii, 4. His mother Anne Hansby seems to have been dead also.
  • 33. V.C.H. Lancs. iv, 85.
  • 34. Tatham Reg. Administration of James Anderton's goods was on 1 Apr. 1674 granted to Elizabeth Cansfield, widow, his daughter. She was indicted for recusancy in October 1678; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 109. The following fines refer to the manors of Robert Hall and Cantsfield: 1668— John Cansfield, deforciant; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 181, m. 15. 1692— William Gerard, Mary his wife and Anne Shireburne, widow, deforciants; ibid. bdle. 229, m. 109. 1695—William Gerard and Mary his wife, deforciants; ibid. bdle. 235, m. 50.
  • 35. Son of Frederick Sewallis Gerard (d. 1884), brother of the first Lord Gerard.
  • 36. By E. G. Paley in John o'Gaunt Sketch Bk. (1879–1885), vol. iii, plate 1. The roof of the west wing is shown very much lower than that of the main building, but this appears to have been an error or liberty of the artist. The statement that the building is 'now destroyed' which appears below the drawing is more than the truth, the destruction, which in its way is complete enough, being confined to the architectural features of the building.
  • 37. Deeds concerning it are in Dods. MSS. cxlix. John son of Sir John de Tatham gave his brother Robert the vaccary called Lowgill; fol. 91b Sarah widow of Sir John in 1319 released to Robert de Tatham her son all her right (by dower) in the same; ibid. Edmund de Dacre granted for life to Robert de Tatham in 1323–4 a vaccary in Tatham Fell (in monte de Tatham) called Ewardsclough, as it was inclosed and dyked; fol. 91. Afterwards he released all his right in it; fol. 92. Robert de Tatham twenty years later gave Lowgill to John de Urswick, rector of Tatham, probably as trustee; ibid. At the same time he gave Ewardsclough to his daughter Sarah and her issue; ibid. She married Adam de Urswick (d. 1361), and so the inheritance in Tatham, Hornby, Cantsfield, Wray, Kellet, &c., descended to Kirkby. In 1334 Isabel widow of Adam de Urswick claimed dower in a messuage in Tatham against John de Roeburndale; De Banco R. 297, m. 219 d. John son of Roger Kirkby of Upper Rawcliffe held land in Tatham in 1438 in right of his wife Ellen daughter of Sir Robert de Urswick and Margaret his wife; Towneley MS. C 8, 13, K 37. See also Final Conc. iii, 133. George Kirkby was in 1561 found to have held his lands in Tatham of Lord Mounteagle by a rent of 12d.; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xi, no. 8. William Kirkby in 1596 held messuages, land, &c., in Tatham, Ivo, Lowgill, Ulthwaite (Outhwaite), Roeburndale and Cantsfield, chiefly of the queen as of her duchy of Lancaster; ibid. xvii, no. 16. Part of this estate had in 1516 belonged to William Clifton of Kidsnape, who held lands in Ivah, Lowgill, Outhwaite and Kellet of John Dacre, late of Dacre, by the rent of a rose; ibid. v, no. 21. Anne, one of his daughters and co-heirs, married Bartholomew Hesketh, and Gabriel Hesketh of Aughton in 1549 sold his part of the estate in the Tatham district to William Kirkby; Dods. MSS. cxlix, fol. 96b. In 1528 the same Bartholomew Hesketh purchased from Ralph Venables and Isabel his wife the third part of messuages, lands, &c., in Ivah, Lowgill, Outhwaite, Roeburndale, Cantsfield and Over Kellet; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 11, m. 162. Isabel was the eldest daughter of William Clifton. George Hesketh had land in Ivah and Lowgill called 'Venables land' in 1566, but it was probably sold; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. xiii, no. 15. Gilbert Latus of Goosnargh in 1568 held the fourth part of certain messuages and lands in Tatham of Lord Mounteagle by a rent of 12d.; ibid. xii, no. 11.
  • 38. Chart. R. 162 (47 & 51 Edw. III), m. 6, no. 13. He had in 1374 complained of depasturing by Hugh Ward and Edmund de Dacre; De Banco R. 455, m. 186.
  • 39. The estate was probably derived from William de Tatham, through whom the family appear to have been established in Claughton; see the account of Garstang. Ellen wife of Roger Brockholes had land in Tatham in 1342; Final Conc. ii, 114. She died in 1357 seised of messuages and land in Tatham held in socage of the heir of William de Tatham by the rent of a rose; Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. III (1st nos. ), no. 12. The estate occurs in the Brockholes of Claughton deeds, but there is nothing to show its origin. Roger Brockholes died in 1496 holding five messuages, &c., in Tatham of Sir Edward Stanley by services unknown; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 73. In 1567 the estate was stated to be held by the rent of a rose yearly; ibid. xi, no. 6. It was probably sold soon afterwards. One messuage was in 1597 purchased by Stephen Sigswick from Thomas Brockholes; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 58, m. 229.
  • 40. John de Hornby in purchasing Ireby in 1317 obtained also estovers in 3,000 acres of wood in Tatham for fuel and building and for making ploughs, ox yokes and waggons; Final Conc. ii, 28. In 1354 Edmund son of John de Hornby successfully claimed common of pasture between Redsyke and the Wenning in Tatham against Sir Thomas de Dacre and others in virtue of a grant in 1318 by John son of John son and heir of Sir John de Tatham to plaintiff's father; Duchy of Lanc. Assize R. 3, m. 7.
  • 41. John Sparrow of Somerset died in 1417 without issue, holding a virgate of land in Tatham of the king as of his duchy by ½d. rent and a plat called Smerhaw of Sir Robert Urswick. He was son of John Sparrow, son of Alice daughter of Adam de Urswick, and the said Sir Robert was next of kin, being son of Robert son of the same Adam; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 136. Robert Washington of Warton had land in Tatham in 1483; ibid. ii, 116. The tenure is not recorded. In 1488 Roger Tailor of Chester acquired a messuage at Relehurst and Fetherhurst in Tatham from Robert son and heir of Thomas Alcock and Christiana his mother; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xl, App. 542. Thomas Atkinson and Margaret his wife held three messuages, &c., in 1567, which appear to have been sold by John Atkinson and Elizabeth his wife (daughter and heir of William Holden) to Robert son and heir-apparent of Oliver Tailor in 1582; Pal. of Lanc. Feet of F. bdle. 29, m. 123; 46, m. 59. John Whittington of Borwick in 1511 held messuages, &c., in Tatham of Sir Edward Stanley by services unknown; Duchy of Lanc. Inq. p.m. iv, no. 43, 86. Thomas Croft of Claughton died in 1556 holding messuages, &c., in Tatham of Lord Mounteagle by a rent of 20d.; ibid. x, no. 28. A similar statement is made in the later inquisitions. George Thornton died in 1632 holding a messuage, &c., in Lowgill of Lord Morley. His son James, aged eighteen, was heir; Towneley MS. C 8, 13 (Chet. Lib.), 1183. From a pleading of 1597 it appears that this was part of the Kirkby if Rawcliffe estate; Ducatus Lanc. (Rec. Com.), iii, 351, 369. Robert Wilcock held similarly in Ivah (Ivahoe) in 1633, leaving a son and heir Thomas, one year old; C 8, 13, p. 1292.
  • 42. In 1235 Walter de Tatham and the Abbot of Croxton agreed as to disputed land at Whitray in Tatham, the abbot allowing Walter a third part adjoining his land between Middlegill and Bolton Beck at 1d. rent. The Earl of Kent put in his claim to chase and to the hawks which anyone should take; Final Conc. i, 67.
  • 43. William de Tatham gave land and confirmed various gifts made by Bernard son of Acke, who according to the survey of 1212 held an oxgang of land; Cockersand Chartul. (Chet. Soc), iii, 930–40. Among the place-names are Borhan, Gale, Haverberg, Hengeland, Levenoth's ridding, Priestwath, Stanheir and Wirpleslid. One of the deeds (no. 6), attested by the Dean and the whole chapter of Lancaster, related to 4½ acres between the Strindes of the Wenning over against the church of Tatham, &c.
  • 44. Index of Royalists, 41.
  • 45. Estcourt and Payne, Engl. Cath. Nonjurors, 144.
  • 46. The inscription reads: 'This steeple built in a.d. 1722. Leo. Jackson, Rector de Tatham, Tho. Dowbiggin, Oliver Beckett, Churchwardens.'
  • 47. Whitaker (Richmondshire, ii, 263), writing about 1822, says that the church then retained 'two features of one more ancient fabric if not of two; the first is a rich and handsome Norman doorway, the other a very plain and massy arch ot narrow dimensions between the nave and tower of which I should be more inclined to pronounce it really Saxon than any remnant of architecture within the compass of the present work.' Both of these features have now disappeared, the bases of the shafts of the Norman doorway being alone in position.
  • 48. They are a copy 'extracted and taken out from an old parchment book by the Rev. John Sharpe, Curate, and John Walker, Clerk of the Parish Church of Tatham,' in 1718.
  • 49. Farrer, Lancs. Pipe R. 338; Final Conc. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 38 (1202); Cockersand Chartul. (Chet. Soc), iii, 934.
  • 50. Assize R. 404, m. 24.
  • 51. Pope Nich. Tax. (Rec. Com.), 307.
  • 52. Ibid.
  • 53. Inq. Nonarum (Rec. Com.), 35.
  • 54. Duchy of Lanc. Rentals and Surv. bdle. 5, no. 15.
  • 55. Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), v, 259; the house and glebe land were worth 13s. 4d., tithes of corn £6, other tithes £2 1s., Easter roll £3 13s. 4d. The outgoings were synodals 1s. and procurations 1s. 8d.
  • 56. Commonw. Ch. Surv. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), 120. The rector had a house and 16 acres of glebe, with corn tithes in Tatham town only; wool, lamb, and calf tithes all over the parish, and certain composition rents (about £2) in Tatham Fell. The additional allowance (called £40) was made in 1647; Plund. Mins. Accts. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 60.
  • 57. Gastrell, Notitia Cestr. (Chet. Soc.), ii, 487. The Easter dues and surplice fees came to £1 only. There were two churchwardens.
  • 58. Manch. Dioc. Dir.
  • 59. Land in Claughton near Garstang was about 1228 acquired by Walter son of Richard the rector of Tatham; Dods. MSS. cxlix, fol. 70.
  • 60. a Cal. Pat. 1232–47, p. 476; Assize R. 404, m. 24. The king presented because the heir of Walter de Tatham was in ward to him.
  • 61. Dep. Keeper's Rep. xlvi, App. 299. In 1179 there was an agreement between the rector and Sir John de Tatham by which the former renounced all claim to the manor and 20 acres called Holdeber, Itaynher, Forstotes and Herkeflat; also to common of pasture in the lord's meadow, and to tithes of hay in scalings then constructed, including Little Lowgill under Gargate; while Sir John in return gave 6 acres and 20 falls of land by the church, undertook to secure ingress and egress to the common pasture for the rector's beasts, and gave a scaling called Berletham with 16 acres of meadow adjoining, &c.; Lansdowne MS. 559, fol. 56. A suit concerning the matter had been instituted; De Banco R. 28, m. 25 d.
  • 62. Martin rector of Tatham was imprisoned at Arundel in 1279, the king ordering his release; Cal. Pat. 1272–81, p. 339.
  • 63. De Banco R. 246, m. 120 d.; he again occurs as defendant 1328–32; ibid. 275, m. 486., 69; 290, m. 332. Again in 1337; ibid. 310, m. 12 d.; Kuerden MSS. iv, K 3. He had a grant of Lowgill from Robert de Tatham in 1343; Dods. MSS. cxlix, fol. 92.
  • 64. a He was a trustee for Thomas son of Thomas Travers of Heysham; Duchy of Lanc. Anct. D. (P.R.O.), L 366.
  • 65. Brockholes of Claughton D. He is also named in pleadings of 1367 and 1376; De Banco R. 426, m. 221; 464, m. 500. He occurs again in 1381 (Towneley MS. DD, no. 380) and 1383 (De Banco R. 491, m. 574), and is described as 'lately rector' in 1401; Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. I, m. 3 d. See also Final Conc, ii, 180; iii, 12.
  • 66. The institutions of Tindore, Banastre, Littester and Couper are from Torre's lists (p. 1755). See also Raines MSS. (Chet. Lib.), xxii, 397, 407, 409. Tindore was rector in 1400; Lancs. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 117.
  • 67. He resigned for Harthill; Torre.
  • 68. Joan widow of Robert Pearson of Ulverston was administratrix in 1443; Pal. of Lanc. Plea R. 5, m. 9b.
  • 69. He was plaintiff in 1444; ibid. 6, m. 8b.
  • 70. Raines, Chant. (Chet. Soc), 233 n.
  • 71. He is named as rector in 1517 in a Hornby Chapel D. concerning Burton in Kendal Church. In 1527 he was said to have held Tatham for ten years or more by Lord Mounteagle's nomination; Duchy of Lanc. Rentals and Surv. bdle. 5, no. 15. He was still rector in 1535; Valor Eccl. v, 259. He may be the James Gorton, clerk, who was witness in 1531; Duchy Plead. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 97. One of the name was rector of a mediety of Sedgebrook near Grantham in 1535; Valor Eccl. iv, 115.
  • 72. Named in the visitation lists of 1554 and 1562 (sick). His will, made in 1569, was proved at York in 1573. The inventory attached, which was made 15 Jan. 1572–3, shows furniture, cattle, &c., valued at £47 10s. 8d. He made his nephew John son of John Clifton his heir.
  • 73. Church Papers at Chester Dioc. Reg. The presentation was made in virtue of a grant by Thomas Lord Mounteagle in 1539 to John Clifton of Salwick and others.
  • 74. He was 'a preacher'; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 7. Edmund More was then farmer of the rectory.
  • 75. The next presentation had been granted by William (Stanley) Lord Mounteagle to Edmund More, whose assignee, Richard More, transferred to Henry Parker of Hornby Castle. Richard Newton was on the same vacancy (by the death of Richard Dewhurst) presented by Henry Lord Mounteagle, but not admitted; Church Papers. The name is also given as Nelsham; Lancs. and Ches. Rec. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), ii, 412. The entries in the Institution Books P.R.O. begin with him. Nelson as a Royalist was ousted by the Parliament, and in 1646 an allowance of a fifth part of the income was given to his wife Alice to maintain her family; Plund. Mins. Accts. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 36, 57. He died before the Restoration.
  • 76. He was in charge in 1646, being a member of the Presbyterian Classis. Being 'a godly and orthodox divine' the possession of the church during sequestration was confirmed to him in 1647; Plund. Mins. Accts. i, 52. He signed the 'Harmonious Consent' of 1648 as 'pastor of Tatham,' but in 1650 was described as minister 'for the time being'; Commonw. Ch. Surv. 120. He retained the charge till the Restoration, when, having no legal title, he had to give way. Nothing further seems to be known of him. A Nicholas Smith was curate at Halton Gill in Arndiffe in 1631; Whitaker, Craven (ed. Morant), 585.
  • 77. He was 'conformable' in 1689; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 230.
  • 78. The patrons were Lady Mounteagle and Sir Ed. Turner. Leonard Jackson, a son of Richard Jackson, rector of Whittington, was educated at Christ's Coll., Camb.; M.A. 1677. He was a benefactor. In 1722 the churchwardens reported to the Bishop of Chester that the rector was in constant residence and held no other benefice; he was diligent in his duties and administered the Lord's Supper three times a year—at Easter, Michaelmas and the New Year. There was a duly licensed curate.
  • 79. Robert Gibson was patron for the turn.
  • 80. The patrons were the Earl of Islay, Duncan Forbes and Andrew Fletcher. A James Moore graduated from Christ's Coll., Camb.; B.A. 1732.
  • 81. Educated at Christ Church, Oxf.; M.A. 1748; Foster, Alumni.
  • 82. He was schoolmaster of Wray and became curate of Tatham in 1777 at a salary of £25.
  • 83. He had been vicar of Melling 1750–94.
  • 84. Cousin of the patron and took the name of Marsden; also vicar of Gargrave 1806 to 1852. He was educated at Clare and Emmanuel Colleges, Camb.; M.A. 1803.
  • 85. Son of George Wright, steward of the Hornby estates and godson of the patron. He was educated at Brasenose Coll., Oxf.; M.A. 1823.
  • 86. Educated at Trinity Coll., Dublin; B.A. 1836. He was perpetual curate of Ingleton 1844 to 1874.
  • 87. Brother of the patron. He was educated at St. Alban Hall and Merton Coll., Oxf.; M.A. 1882.
  • 88. Educated at Oriel Coll., Oxf.; M.A. 1877, F.S.A. 1882. Rector of Bentham 1884–93, vicar of Andover 1901.
  • 89. Educated at St. John's Coll., Camb.; M.A. 1894.
  • 90. His name was Robert Fairbank. Rector Clifton in 1569 bequeathed 53s. 4d. to 'Sir Robert Fyrthbanke my servant.' The will of Robert Friebanke or Firthbancke senior, priest at Tatham, was proved in 1587 at Richmond.
  • 91. He is not named in the 1562 list.
  • 92. It is marked on Saxton's map of 1577.
  • 93. The chapel is not named in the list of 1610 (Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 7), nor in the visitation record of 1691. During the Commonwealth time it had a special curate, whose stipend was derived from 50s. 'paid yearly and anciently by the inhabitants,' and £40 from Royalist sequestrations; Commonw. Ch. Surv. 120. In 1646, however, when the £40 was allowed, the 'private maintenance' of the chapel was stated as £13 6s. 8d.; Plund. Mins. Accts. i, 20. The chapel was very inconveniently placed for the people. The minister in 1650 and 1654 was Thomas Drinkall, 'an honest man.'
  • 94. Gastrell, Notitia Cestr. ii, 488. The curate at that time read prayers and a homily on Sundays. Application was made to Queen Anne's Bounty for a grant. The registers begin in 1745.
  • 95. Manch. Dioc. Dir.
  • 96. From the Church Papers at Chester Dioc. Reg.
  • 97. Curate of Pilling 1758–67. He was the author of Holden's Tide Tables, still published at Liverpool. For an account of him see Fishwick, Garstang (Chet. Soc), 115–18.
  • 98. Ibid. 118–19. He was son of the preceding curate and held the mastership of Horton School (c. 1779) and the incumbency there (1798–1820), serving Tatham Fell by a curate. His son, the third George Holden, was incumbent of Maghull in Halsall 1811–65.
  • 99. Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. iv, 232.
  • 100. Ibid. 246.
  • 101. An account of the mission, with names of priests, &c., is given in Misc. (Cath. Rec. Soc), iv, 319–22. The registers 1757–1811 are printed ibid. 325–31. In 1727 the churchwardens of Tatham reported to the Bishop of Chester: 'We have a place in our parish, a house called Robert Hall, where the Papists resort to hear mass. . . . . The priest's name is Mr. Gandy.' The number of 'Papists' was returned as five in 1717 and fifteen (with William Pennington, priest) in 1767; Hist. Soc. Trans. (new ser.), xviii, 219.
  • 102. Visit. Ret.; Gastrell, Notitia Cestr. ii, 488; End. Char. Rep. for Tatham, 1899. The will of James Bouskill of Fethermire was proved at Richmond in 1705.
  • 103. The report includes a reprint of one issued in 1826, at which time only the school was included.
  • 104. A small piece of ground given by the Hon. Francis Charteris to the overseers in 1779 for the erection of houses for the poor. The land was on Tatham Moor, at Ashley Hill. No houses were built, and the land is now let for 30s. a year paid to the parish council.
  • 105. The fund was derived from gifts of £20 each by Henry Varley of Rantryfold and John Cort of Over-Craggs about 1725.