TARN HOUSE RAVENSTONEDALE
THE FOTHERGILL FAMILIES OF RAVENSTONEDALE
Most of the information for the following account has been taken from "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale Their lives and their letters" transcribed by Catherine Thornton and Frances Mc Laughlin, published in 1905 by William Heinemann. Copies are in the possession of my cousins Michael Metcalfe Gibson of Ravenstonedale and Sandra Allen of Lytham St. Annes. Two booklets published by The Book House, Ravenstonedale "The Gilbertines and Ravenstonedale," and "A Guide to St Oswald's Church," have also provided information. The Rev. W. Nicholl's "History and Traditions of Ravenstonedale" in my own possession, has also proved to be invaluable. A modern edition of the latter is avaulable from The Book House, Ravenstonedale, Kirby Stephen, Cumbria, CA17 4NQ. A second edition of Richard Fothergills research concerning the Fothergills should have been published. I have not seen it, the first edition cost over £20 and is available from The Book Shop.
There is an oral tradition within the Fothergill family which relates that they are descended from Sir George Fothergill, a Norman Lord who followed William the Conqueror, helped him by trickery to take York and was rewarded with the whole of the valley of Ravenstonedale. He himself is said to have settled at Tarn House. Tarn House farm is still there and so is the tarn that gave it its name. It was quite recently farmed by a descendent of the Brownber Fothergills. Our 4 x great grandfather Anthony Metcalfe married Mary Fothergill. Tarn House has a crest above the front door, which is older than the inscription beneath, which reads GF IF 1664, this is also written over the door of the barn opposite. GF stands for George Fothergill so presumably the house was rebuilt or remodelled in 1664.
The first Sir George was made land - sergeant , he also acquired, through his wife Isabel who was the daughter and heiress of William de Lucy of Folton, the manors of Granton, Hovingham, Pickering and others. The source of this information is believed to have come from the records of the Tower of London. An account is also to be found in Eastmead's "History of Kirkby Moorside" said to be taken from a paper, then (1824) in the possession of Thomas Bointon, solicitor, of Pickering. Oral tradition also tells that Sir George's descendents included a Lord Treasurer, Chancellor, Master of the Horse and Warden of the Marches. One, William de Fothergill, was a cardinal in the reign of King John who was sent by the Pope to witness the whipping of the King in Canterbury. Another was killed at the Battle of Bosworth, yet another took prisoner the King of Scotland and eight noblemen at Flodden Field, another, Sir William Fothergill, was standard bearer to Sir Thomas Wharton at the battle of Solway Moss. His arms were - Vert, a stag's head couped within a bordure inverted, (Source Nicholson and Burn's History of Westmorland.)
In the reign of Henry VII William Fothergill was Lord of Bowes Castle. Henry VIII conveyed the whole valley of Ravenstonedale, first to the Archbishop of Canterbury and then to Sir Thomas, Lord Wharton. The conveyance contained a list of all the landholders, and the number of acres they possessed in 1541, there are fifteen separate references to Futhergills. This list is printed in an appendix to Revd. Nicholls' "History and Traditions of Ravenstonedale," as is a later list of landholders taken from the "Parish Book" dated 1734, where there are fewer names but at least eleven Fothergills, (it is possible that there may have been more than one with the same christian name, or the same one had holdings in different parts of the parish.) The landholders of the late 19th Century are also listed, there are even fewer names but they include R. Fothergill of Wath, Thomas Fothergill of Bents, Richard Fothergill of Greenside, T. Fothergill Newbegin and John Fothergill of Brownber, (once Brownbar, so named because it was an outpost for defence against the Scots.) Fothergills also seem to have been well represented on The Grand Jury, John Fothergill in 1581, George, Anthony, Richard and William in 1667, whilst in 1736 there were two Thomases, two Anthonys, a Robert and a Richard.
The family tradition seems to be based on a book in manuscript called "The History of Ravenstonedale" which had been seen and read until about the middle of the eighteenth Century but is now lost. Information concerning the book comes from a letter written in 1776 by Alexander Fothergill of Carr End Wensleydale. He relates how the last of the elder branch (The Tarn House Fothergills) gave the manor to the Gilbertines of Yorkshire. However in a recent booklet entitled "The Gilbertines of Ravenstonedale," by Christopher and Mary Irwin they say that "Torphin, son of Robert, son of Copsus, granted the Manor of Ravenstonedale with advowson appendent to the Priory of Watton." This information is also given in Nicholls "History and Traditions of Ravenstonedale." The actual charter was lost during the Civil War but when the Rev. Thomas Machel wrote about the church in 1681 the then curate (Anthony Procter) and Mr George Fothergill of Tarn House were able to give him an account of the charter. The manor had reverted to the crown at the dissolution of the monasteries but was later given as a reward to the Wharton family.The George Fothergill who helped the Rev. Machell was the same one who rebuilt Tarn House. There is a memorial to him in Ravenstonedale church. "Here lyeth the Body of George Fothergill of Tarn House Esqr the Queen Majesty's Receiver for Westmerland, Lancashire and Cumberland who departed this life April 26 1681" A second stone showed that his wife Julian, daughter of Richard Skelton of Armelthwaite Castle died in November of the same year.They had 3 sons and ......daughters. The Queen concerned was Queen Caroline, widow of Charles II. Alexander Fothergill in his letter wrote " George Fothergill's son and heir reduced the estate and died without issue, and the then remains of the Tarn House estate was sold unto another line or branch of the Fothergills, in which it now remains. The present owner being a low covetous creature, ignorant of everything but saving, and getting money, and even neglects keeping the houses and buildings in repair." Also in his letter Alexander Fothergill describes the stone above the door at Tarn House in some detail and mentions a pedigree found there which was virtually the same as one in his own posession, the last Fothergill shown being Sir William Fothergill. Also found at Tarn House were fragments of an old deed or charter which freed the Fothergills from payment of Horngelt, Danes Gelt and many other tolls and payments. Alexander Fothergill was unlucky in his search, he was unable to see the parish registers or the manorial rolls. He enlisted the help of Thomas Fothergill of Brownber and Richard Fothergill of Lockholme whom he described as "one of the most considered men in Ravenstonedale, whose brother Thomas Fothergill is a person of considerable eminence in one of the universities of Oxford or Cambridge" (Oxford, he was Provost of Queen's College Oxford.) In a letter written by Richard's brother The Rev. Henry Fothergill, dated Bath November 20th 1744 He wrote "Since I writ last, one Mr. Fothergill, a person of very considerable fortune, has been at this place from London..This gentleman has been at some pains to inquire into the history of the family, and he has shown me some writings which I have copied over, which plainly show that the family of the Fothergills of Ravenstonedale, in the County of Westmorland, were a very considerable family from the time of William the Conqueror, till the latter end of Henry VIII when the writings end..." Was this the same Mr Fothergill who wrote the letter in 1776 and said of Thomas and Richard that although they were of good rank and estate and believed that their respective families derived from the Tarn House branch neither could go beyond their great grandfather?
Another Fothergill was prominent during the 17th Century, Thomas the son of Robert Fothergill of Brownber was born in 1594. He became Master of Saint John's College Cambridge and founded and endowed the Free Grammar School Ravenstonedale in 1668. He is commemorated in one of the alter windows, the text of which reads "Suffer little children to come unto me." The school had an excellent reputation, particularly during the period of John Robinson, who came first as master, then as perpetual curate from 1813 - 1833. During his time the school became a kind of minor college and at least 20 of his pupils became clergymen.
The other alter window is dedicated to Elizabeth Gaunt, daughter of Thomas' brother Anthony and his wife Ann Dentt. Her story is given in detail in Macauley's History of England, Vol 1 Chapter 5. It is also told in the Victoria County History. Briefly Elizabeth was a nonconformist, probably a quaker, who lived in the reign of James II. She sheltered a man called James Burton who was involved in the Rye House plot. He escaped but later returned to England and realised that he could obtain his own pardon by denouncing his protectress. Elizabeth was tried by Judge Jeffries and sentenced to be burnt at the stake. Despite public support the sentence was carried out, Elizabeth meeting her horrible death with calm and dignity, on October 4th 1685, aged 54. She was the last woman to be burnt at the stake at Tyburn. The inscription on her window reads:-
Enter thou into the joy of the Lord
Well done good and faithful servant.
Elizabeth's brother, John Fothergill, who was baptised in 1633, died for his Quaker faith in June 1665 in prison in Southwark. The source for this is Besse Book of Sufferings.
An eighteenth century member of the Brownber Fothergills, Mary Metcalfe has her memorial with a taut and cryptic inscription on the side of the South Porch.
Here lies a wife, Mary Metcalfe.
Where I was born, or when, it matters not,
to whom related, or by whom begot.
The story goes that it was put up by her husband Anthony Metcalfe because her family disowned her for marrying a man of whom they disapproved. She is in fact the link between the Fothergills and the Metcalfes, she is my 4 x great grandmother and also 4 or 5 x great grandmother to many of the Metcalfe Gibsons and Metcalfes who still live in Ravenstonedale. Until recently mystery surrounded Anthony, at one time he was thought to be one of the Nappa Hall Metcalfes, but that has been disproved. It is now known, through the records of Westmorland Quarter Sessions, kept at Kendal Record office, that he was the illegitimate son of Agnes Meckow or Metcalfe, and Anthony Robinson, the blacksmith at Brownber in Ravenstonedale. He was baptised at Saint Oswald's Church Ravenstonedale in 1733. Who his mother's parents were is not known yet, although it is likely that Agnes came from Yorkshire. At any rate Anthony had the last laugh. Within a hundred years his family had become one of the wealthiest and most important in the area.
ANTHONY FOTHERGILL OF BROWNBER
From an oil painting in the possession of John W. Fothergill, late of Brownber, Ravenstonedale
A brass tablet on one of the pews is the memorial to Anthony Fothergill, Mary's father. He was a poet and author. One of his books was called "Wicked Christians Practical Atheists" There is a photograph of a portrait of him in "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale," This portrait was, at the beginning of this century, in the possession of John W. Fothergill Esq.of Brownber. The inscription reads;- "To the memory of Anthony Fothergill late of Brownber. Whose natural talents and acquir'd knowledge render'd his character truly respectable tho plac'd in a private station he distinguished himself by a firm adherence to the cause of Truth, Liberty and rational Religion. His integrity of heart, social disposition and uncommon abilities gained him general esteem. He departed this (his chequer'd life) June 15th 1761 aged 75."
Two windows that were erected by John Fothergill, were to his relative Richard Gibson who died on August 7th 1880 aged 88, and his father William Fothergill of Brownber who died January 20th 1850 aged 72 years.
According to "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale" the Brownber Fothergills and the Lockholme Fothergills were sons of James Fothergill, the brother of Sir William Fothergill who was standard bearer to Henry VIII. George the younger was the first owner of Brownber, which is situated towards the North of the valley, his line continued there until the 20th Century, though Brownber is now a nursing home.
In about 1555 George's elder brother Henry settled at Lockholme, which is midway between Brownber and Tarnhouse, originally he may have been a tenant, as there is an old deed which states that Simon Alderson, ancestor of Baron Alderson was the owner. He gave it to his daughter Margaret who married Henry Fothergill's second son George, they had two daughters and a son, Henry, but George died in 1674 when young Henry was only three or four. I think a generation or two has been missed out here if the original Henry settled at Lockholme in about 1555, the registers may help. There is, or was, a datestone over the front door of Lockholme which bears the initials H.F. and 1667 or 1697. (Both dates are quoted.) In about 1905 the hall was in a fairly dilapidated state but it is still shown on the modern Ordinance Survey Pathfinder map 607).
From then on the Lockholme families are well documented. Henry, who was born in October 1670, married Elizabeth Fawcett, born 1681, the daughter of Richard Fawcett of Rottonmoor Westmorland. They had nine children, the two eldest, Margaret and Elizabeth died young in 1713. Their eldest son George, born 1705 became Principal of Saint Edmund's Hall Oxford. Richard, born 1708, followed in his father's footsteps and became a farmer. Henry, born 1710, also went to Oxford and became a clergyman in Devon. William, born in 1713 became a farmer. Thomas, born 1715 became Provost of Queen's College Oxford. James, born in 1719, was a promising student but died at the age of nineteen. Joseph born in 1723, became a merchant. The children's grandmother Margaret lived with them until she died at a great age in 1731.
Henry Fothergill was a "statesman", or estatesman, a yeoman who owned and farmed his own land in a period of prosperity for farmers in the northern dales. There is no inventory to his will, but it is likely that his revenue came from sheep and cattle. He was pious and well educated, his reading matter being mainly of a spiritual nature judging from the books sent to him by his son George. He encouraged scholarship in any of his sons who showed promise. The whole family must have made sacrifices to send cash to their sons at Oxford, particularly George, who went to Oxford at sixteen and relied on his parents for money and clothing for at least six years.
Unfortunately it appears that none of the letters sent by Henry to his sons have survived, they would have been a rich source of information about life in the dale.
The five surviving sons clubbed together to provide a memorial to their parents that is to be found inside Saint Oswald's Church. It was probably made in Oxford because in one of his letters Thomas debates whether to send it by land or sea.
"Near this place, on the outside, lie
The remains of those two excellent persons Henry and Elizabeth
Fothergill, of Lockholme, in this parish.
The former of whom departed this life, April 25th,1753,aged 82
The latter, March 5th, 1766, aged 85.
After having lived most happily together in the holy state of
matrimony, near fifty three years
Also the remains of their two eldest children, and only
daughters, Margaret, who died, Dec 10th, aged 11, and
Eliza, Nov 10th, aged 9, -both in the year 1713.
Also the remains of their sixth son
James,a youth of great hopes, who died Aug. 25th, 1739,aged 19
And of their daughter -in-law Alice,wife of William Fothergill
who died in childbed, Nov 11th, 1745, aged 23.
Sacred also
to the memory of their eldest son George Fothergill.
D.D. and Principal of St. Edmund's Hall, in Oxford,
where he lies interred, who departed this life, Oct 5th 1760
aged 54. He was a person of great parts, and learning, and of
most exemplary piety, and virtue, which
made his death greatly lamented.
By his side is buried the body of Henry, son of
William and Alice Fothergill, taberdar of Queen's College, Oxford
who deceased June 27th, 1767, born Nov. 1745, aged 21.
He was a very deserving young man, and learned, and knowing
above his years."
Although The Letters form the main part of "The Fothergill's of Ravenstonedale" there is no preface to explain why and how the letters were transcribed, the writers assume that Thomas destroyed any of his own letters found at Lockholme. and explain that those which survived, together with the leather bag which carried books and correspondence between Oxford and Ravenstonedale, have come down through Richard,s second daughter, Agnes or Nancy, who married John Hastewell of Moor End and Wharton Dyke Westmorland, and who died in 1804. Agnes's descendents also possessed two volumes of George Fothergill's sermons and a silver christening cup, dated 1750 and a coral and bells, and whistle marked John Hastewell. The authors do not explain the basis of their selection, their own qualifications and interests, even whether they themselves were related to the Fothergills. It would be interesting to know if there are any other published materials, we know that some of George's sermons were printed, Both George and Thomas were, after all, leading scholars of their time.
Because the letters are primary sources they give an extremely interesting insight into contemporary life in the mid 18th Century, particularly the lives of academics and clergymen. The letters show the love and respect that all the brothers had for their parents and for one another. They also give some idea of the character and personality of the writers, which is a rarity in the quest for family history and one greatly to be welcomed. It is almost as if one of the brothers imagined me sitting here at my computer more than two centuries later and decided to write me a letter describing his family. The letter is unsigned and undated, although the authors of "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale" believed that it was Thomas writing to Richard because, being younger than George who left home when he was sixteen, he would know the younger ones better. It was written in about 1751 after James death and before George became Principal of Saint Edmund's Hall. It is a wonderfully imaginative flight of fancy and well worth reproducing in its entirety.
"Dear Brother
I cannot tell what sort of an entertainment I shall furnish out for you by this carrier; but I intend we shall make a visit to people not yet raised into being. The novelty of the subject must make amends for the poverty of the performance. I remember, Richy, we have often pleased ourselves with inquieries after our forefathers, and have been mightily entertained with but very imperfect accounts of what such men they were, and what characters they bore, in the time they lived. Some of our posterity may, perhaps, be as inquisitive as we have been, and think it (a hundred years hence) no unpleasing employment, to guess at the tempers and characters of us, who have the present period of time allotted to act in.
I sometimes, consider myself as bearing a part in the conversation of this future assembly, and shall therefore send you what guesses we may suppose can be made, what traces will remain of our family at that distant period of time.
About that time, perhaps, it will be said, lived Henry Fothergill. He was accounted a very pious, honest man, one that did not much concern himself with parish affairs, though he did not wholly withdraw himself from them; for we find, he had been several times of the grand jury, (for further information about this see Nicholl's" History and Traditions of Ravenstonedale."), and they say 'tis he that's mentioned in the copy of the brief for rebuilding the church - and, indeed I am apt to believe it, for the church and steeple were certainly both rebuilt in the latter part of his time, and there was no other Harry Fothergill remarkable in the parish at this time besides.
His wife (we are not assured where she came from), (this was probably a tease) but she was an exceedingly wise and discreet woman, of an uncommon tenderness towards her children, and universally esteemed for her prudence and care in the management of her family. These two lived a long time very happily together, and were man and wife between forty and fifty years.
Reach hither that old "Nelson's Fasts and Festivals, (some kind of calendar?) and you'll see that they had nine children. Here, you see, two died very young, and so we have not heard much of them. George was the eldest son, a man of great abilities, and uncommon prudence and discernment in his actions. Something of a cautious, reserved, serious disposition, though very cheerful and entertaining betimes, especially with two or three cordial friends by whom he knew himself to be much esteemed.
He was perceived, almost in his childhood, to have so strong a bent for learning, that his father was persuaded (though, indeed, he always had a mind to breed up some of his sons scholars) to send him to Oxford.
It was said he made much progress in learning, and was highly esteemed by the most distinguished men there, which is not at all unlikely. For here are still some of his sermons remaining, which seem to be wrote with great strength of reason, and good sense, and were, I'll warrant you, accounted fine sermons in those times. In short, he passed through the world with a great character for learning and piety, and died possessed of good preferments in the Church.
Their second son, Richard, was of quite a different turn. He was of a cheerful, lively disposition, and loved mirth and good humour. He was very affable and human, loved to see all around him happy, much given to reading, which brought him in such stores of good sense, and so much assisted his natural elocution, that he had soon the advantage over those of his own rank, and was admitted into the conversation of men far his superior in age and fortune. He was very happy in a cheerful, good - natured wife, who loved him most tenderly, and no couple ever enjoyed more domestic comfort than they.
He had a strange art of pleasing people, especially those below him, nor, indeed, did he ever fail in winning the esteem and favour of any he regarded. But, then, he was not always so careful in keeping alive the good opinion of others as he was in gaining it. For the first and common restraints of a new friendship being over, a certain vivacity and openness of temper would betray him into some levities, which, however diverting and innocent, are not the greatest recommendations to a lasting esteem. He had a very generous and noble turn of mind, was greatly beloved in his lifetime, and much lamented and talked of at his death, and was said never to have lost a sensible friend.
Henry, the next son, was a very ingenious man, and educated at Oxford. He was of a timid and tender disposition, though not without some mixture of peevishness in it. He lived rather in good understanding with all, than intimacy with any. He was accounted by all a man of good breeding and much politeness, and was seldom, if ever, known to give offence. He passed very peaceably through the world, and left a fair character behind him.
Willy was the fourth son, a man who was endowed with a generous and good temper, to a very high degree. He had no very entertaining or witty turn in conversation, yet the known goodness of his heart made him acceptable everywhere. And sure, never man was possessed of a greater share of general goodwill than he, and perhaps few ever deserved it better, for he was the truest friend, with the least show imaginable; nor was it possible for any man to be oppressed if his endeavours could be of service, for he was always most ready and willing to do a kindness, out of the pure goodness of his heart, without any design or expectation of a return.
He was a great support to his father, and much beloved by him. He's spoke of, to this day, as a very honest man and all the old people bless his descendents.
Tom was a man of a very different character to all intents and purposes, for he did not care how great a name and sway he had, and how little real service he did to deserve them. He had little to commend him but a volatile tongue, some humour, and a good share of resolution; and yet, I dont know how it was, he was generally of more consideration than his elder brother. He was a strange mixture of jollity and gravity. We have heard some old people say, that, in conversation, he was apt to give too great a liberty both to his tongue and fancy; others that he was too reserved. But, I fancy, this might be owing to his being among strangers, or among his intimate acquaintances, by whom he knew himself to be pretty well esteemed. Though he was very ambitious, we never hear that he made much out. They say he died in some part of the south country, and left a great family behind him.(These comments about himself are mostly tongue in cheek, to amuse his brother, though I think there are one or two revealing comments particularly concerning his manner with friends or strangers.)
James was next, a youth of rare endowments for virtue and goodness. He was indefatigable on the improvement of his mind, by reading the best authors, which, well digested, gave him such a noble and generous way of thinking as raised him far above the common rank. Yet, far from being anyways proud or assuming, he was always full of condescension and humanity, and was such an inimitable sweetness, fancy, and delight in conversation as mightily endeared him to all his acquaintance. His wit was very bright and sparkling, but then, so happily tempered by innocence and good nature, that no one had ever cause to wish it less. He was a great lover of open, innocent, and improving conversation, and was in such high delight upon these occasions that his whole heart, sentiments and soul were his friends. He had a great abhorrence of vice and meanness, even so far as not to be able to disguise his sentiments before the persons despised. These were virtues which gave his friends mighty hopes of his, one day or other, making a great name.
But Heaven saw fit to dispose of him otherwise. He was cut off in the pride and flower of his youth, just before he had finished his twentieth year. His death caused a universal sorrow, and was a very sore affliction to his aged parents, and brought inexpressible grief into the whole family, which was always remarkable for their tender affection for one another.(This heartfelt tribute must have brought a lump to his brother's throat even though James had been dead for more than ten years.)
Joseph was the youngest child. He was of a very cautious, but, withal, soft and tender disposition, which unfitted him very much for bearing hard usage. His notions were not so elevated as most of his brothers' were, for he could be content to place his highest ambition in getting money, though he was not covetous.
He served his time to a trade in Kendal, and at last died possessed of a very competent fortune, which was acquired rather by constant attendance upon business, than by any bold or uncommon adventures in it."
GEORGE FOTHERGILL 1705-1760
George was the chief letter - writer, he was the pioneer for his brothers. Thomas has described him well, he was clearly genuinely devout, modest, conventional, a worrier, somewhat gloomy and pessimistic, his letters are peppered with such phrases as "If I live till Easter..." He was keenly aware of his obligation to his parents and hated to ask for money, but money, or the lack of it, was a constant preoccupation, he spent his first six years at Oxford in debt. He seemed to have no taste for genteel society, happiness was reading good books with friends on winter evenings, Women are never mentioned in his letters, though curiously in one letter home he does suggest that they should send "any of his brothers which you intend should ever stir away from home, to a dancing school. I daily find the want of it. These may seem little things, but they may be of some consequence in life. Breeding is both an engaging, and a decent, I will add, a necessary qualification." He was also conscious of his appearance, he relied upon his parents for such clothes as stockings, shirts and shoes, but was mortified to find himself the only one wearing yarn stockings when he first went up to Oxford. Although, as a dutiful son he asked, and took, his parents advice, he did politely defy them when he finally had his hair cut when he was about 25 years old. They considered this "turning away from God", but he wished to be the same as others "of his standing" and believed that it might help his weak eyesight, which was another of his worries. He received his nickname of "Snod, or Old Snod" when he cut his hair but I dont understand the allusion. Later in life, as his circumstances became more comfortable, he was able to enjoy the respect in which he was undoubtedly held. Richard wrote of him, after he had paid his last visit to Lockholme towards the end of his life. "The Dr. seemed pretty much surprised with the alterations at Lockholme. He said they greatly exceeded any idea he had of them. I fancy too, if he would have spoken out, it would have been that I had carried the matter too far, made more to do, all things considered, than there was any occasion for. This he was far, very far from saying. He sits down amongst us, always serene, sometimes cheerful and familiar, mostly in good humour, and, I dare say, thinks himself nowhere so happy in Westmoreland as at Lockholme.
George's letters home are very formal, unrelieved by humour or gossip, although he mentions a number of people at Oxford, whom he obviously thinks his father will know, and asks after people living in Ravenstonedale whom he himself knows. Some of the Oxford people mentioned are:-
Mr. Steadman, his esteemed tutor.
Rev. Mr. Elliotson and his nephew Jos.
Rev. Mr. Barrett
Henry Hall tailor
James Ward, mentioned several times who later took a curacy in Somerset.
Mr. Nelson
Mr. Cook a schoolfellow from Kendal who died.
Mr Dalton an ex rector.
Rev. Walter Thornton, fellow.
In 1732 he mentions a pupil,- Holme.
Ravenstonedale people are:-
Mr Fawcett his old schoolmaster
George Perkins next door neighbour
Christopher Taylor cousin
Richard Postlethwaite
Mr. Monkhouse
Mr. Toulmin, unpopular vicar of Ravenstonedale because of his bibulous habits. George respected him however as a good parish priest and picked up the cudgels in his defense.
Mr Holmes
Mary Clemison cousin.
William Clemison cousin
William Howgill jnr. cousin.
Ralph Milner, who could have been a relative of the next vicar Robert Milner.
Mr. Birkbeck and his brother, in connection with a debt, perhaps owing to Mr Steadman's estate.
Mr. Barnett a friend and neighbour
Mr Hastewell whose son married Richard's daughter
Mr Hartley, pupil's father
Mr William Fawcett George's grandfather, who built the bridge over the river at Coldbeck.
James Richardson neighbour.
Mr Wilson
Mr Watson
Mr. Rycroft vicar of Kirby Stephen.
Anthony Fothergill who requested a copy of one of his sermons.
Michael Knewstubb and Harry Knewstubb
George Murthwaite, George's pupil, became a Fellow and then Rector of Charlton on Ootmoor in Oxfordshire.
His cousins in
Low Lane. Mr. Barber
William Robinson and his son Richard
Mr. John Fawcett.
George Harrison.
John Giles.
Robert, Thomas and Samuel Toulmin.
There is also a scandalised reference to "one of our relatives at the other end of the parish" who had been attending the Meeting House, dissenters seem to have been treated like lepers in certain areas, although today the Ravenstonedale churchyard is open to non conformists as well as Church of England. The dissenter in question was probably my ancestor Anthony Fothergill of Brownber, who had all his children baptised at the Independent Chapel in Ravenstonedale.
George's first journey to Oxford at the age of sixteen was made with the carrier, it was four years before he was able to make his first visit home again. The journey from Ravenstonedale to Oxford took six days and cost 25 shillings. The carrier whom George regularly used was called Joseph Ritson. He made three trips a year at Candlemas, Midsummer and Michaelmas, he must have been an important and responsible person, he was entrusted with letters, money and packages. George sent his parents books by carrier and they sent him clothes and bedding. Letters by carrier or post could take two or three weeks and it was not unusual for them to be lost altogether. After his first visit home George returned with the carrier riding a horse which he delivered to a customer, the money which he received being used to pay some of his college fees.
George's stay at Oxford was always precarious. For the first year or so it was costing his father £30 or more a year, amounts which were sent in instalments, sometimes £10, sometimes much smaller amounts, as and when his father could afford. At first they were sent directly to his tutor, who disbursed the money on his behalf. At first he does not seem to have had any furniture or bedding and his father had to send money for these. For all his worries however George had plenty of determination, he knew that once he had taken his degree the easier option was to become ordained and take a living somewhere, and this was a probability. In one of his letters he writes "My father despaired of furnishing me through the foundation." But he persevered. After the first year he became a Servitor which was worth about £8, this is how he describes it. "I cannot tell well how to give you a notion of what we servitors do. We are seven of us, and we wait upon the Batchelors, Gent and Commoners at meals. We carry in their Commons out of the kitchen into the Hall, and their bread and beer out of the buttery. I call up (wake up) one Gent. Commoner, which is ten shillings a quarter when he's in town, and three commoners, which are five shillings each, on the same conditions." A year later he had obtained "A poor Child's Place" with about the same income as a servitor. By then he was also receiving an exhibition from Kendal School which was worth £4 7s 0d a year. In 1727 he gained his degree (which cost £3 14s 4d) and was elected a Taberdar which was worth 16 guineas a year, he also began to take pupils, for which he obtained 4 guineas a term. By now he had full charge of his own finances, he was still constantly in debt, but with the full encouragement of his tutor he carried on towards his eventual fellowship. He took his M.A. in 1730 and was immediately ordained and took a chaplaincy. He had now been joined in Oxford by his brother Harry, and in 1734 by his younger brother Thomas. George was elected Fellow of his college, Queen's, on 11 October 1734, as Thomas writes, "He is now out of all danger," though he would not receive any payment for another two years. George now had 12 pupils paying between £4 and £8 a year, but he was still in debt.
However by 1737 he sent his mother a damask nightgown, which was a nice frivolous touch. By 1740 he was affluent enough to send his parents £40, £15.00 of which was a gift, the rest was part of a loan totalling £100.00 which he expected to have repaid. Considering how much his parents spent upon his education this may seem ungenerous, but perhaps we do not know the full circumstances. He was certainly generous to his native village, he gave the new church a silver chalice and cover, and a silver decanter all to the value of £20. He also "bought" a pew in the new church for the use of the poor and the lame. In 1749 he took his D.D. degree.
One of the most difficult tasks which George had to fulfil was as the executor of his old tutor Mr Steadman's will, the final part of which reads thus._”Lastly I give and bequeath to George Fothergill, Batchelor of Arts of Queen's College, Oxon, twenty pounds. I constitute and appoint the said George Fothergill Executor in Trust of this my last Will and Testament, willing and requesting that after the punctual payment of all my just debts, my funeral expenses, and the legacies above written, he will divide the remainder of my estate (if any remainder there be) among my near relations in the North, in such parts and portions as (after inquiry had) shall to him seem best suited to their several wants and necessities, of which I constitute him sole judge. This must have put George in a most unenviable position. Collecting in the debts to the estate took a great deal of time and then he had to aportion the remainder of the money, he realised that he was not going to be a popular man.
In 1739 George was preparing to receive yet another brother at Oxford. He was already virtually keeping his brother Thomas and had been unsure if he could take on the additional responsibility of James. However James showed great promise and he was financing him at Kendal School. James died in August but George did not hear the news until October when he wrote a very beautiful and comforting letter to his parents.
In 1751 George Fothergill became Principal of St. Edmund's Hall, which is one of the oldest colleges at Oxford. In 1756 he applied to be Provost of Queen's, his own college, but was narrowly beaten. He was only 55 when he died in 1760. He is buried in the chapel of St. Edmund's Hall.
HENRY FOTHERGILL.1710-1792
Henry was the fifth child and third son. Being academically promising he was sent to Appleby School to study under Mr. Yates and received one of its scholarships. Whilst he was at Appleby he lodged with a Mrs Noble, his address being;-
Mr. Henry Fothergill
At Mrs. Noble's
Near the Free School,
in Appleby Westmorland.
He followed closely in George's footsteps and entered Queen's College Oxford in June 1730, when he was 20 years old. His path was smoothed by his elder brother's help and experience. He appears to have been conscientious and hardworking, though not ambitious, and with a preference for an easier life than his brother George. As soon as he had taken his degree he was ordained to a curacy with Archdeacon Huddleston at Kelston about three miles from Bath, where he lived in the house of the Archdeacon's brother - in - law Henry Harrington, the Lord of the Manor, and tutored his sons. In 1737 he took his Master's degree and in 1742 he left the family at Kelston ("where he, poor man, has been very uneasy for some time" - George Fothergill) and became chaplain to Bishop Lavington in Bath. Five years later in 1747 the Bishop presented him to the living of Cheriton Bishop in Devon. One gains the impression that Henry had a sunnier disposition than George, likeable and easy going, people seemed to enjoy giving him a helping hand and things came easily to him. The first of his letters to his brother Richard was from Cheriton Bishop and dated Nov 9th 1747. It is an interesting and revealing letter which goes into some detail of his courtship of the heiress Elizabeth Sheyler, who was the only surviving daughter of Thomas Sheyler, formerly of Shockerwick near Bath. I will therefore transcribe it in full.
Dear Brother,
I have lately received a kind letter from my brother Thomas, wherein he informs me, to my great satisfaction, that you are all well, both at Lockholme and Wharton Hall; and wherein he has also been so kind as to transcribe a good part of your letter to him, that part of it, I mean, which gives a lively and ingenious description of the scene between you, N. Holmes, and J. Rich, Sen. I can see and hear the whole conversation, as I have had several oportunities of being well acquainted with Trophemus. And I do think that you have uncommon talent in describing the humours of mankind.
I set out from Bath on Thursday after Michaelmas Day, where I had lived between five and six years. I had the satisfaction of thinking that I was pretty well liked, and that I left a fair character behind me. The morning before I left Bath, in going to the chapel, I met the person whom you made some enquiry about in your last letter.
She looked heavy, said she was much out of order, inquired if I went away tomorrow, and a great many trifling questions about Cheriton; said she had some friends in that country; asked me if I should not want company, as I had been used to live in Bath so long &c &c, and in conclusion, desired me to come to her house before I went away. I promised her I would, and in the evening I drank tea with her and her two aunts. All the conversation turned upon the place I was going to, what a dismal time I should have in living by myself, &c. We parted good friends, the aunt telling me, "You must go and get your house in order, and then we shall see you again."
The Saturday after this, I paid my duty to my Lord Bishop of Exeter, who received and entertained me at his palace with great benevolence.
I am since got into the Parsonage House, which is a good, convenient, comfortable habitation, about as far from church as the middle of Kilm Green is from Rossendale church. I am now, God be praised, entirely independent, and have, what I have often wished for, time to study.
We have not got a gentleman in the parish, which makes the rector a man of much more consequence than he otherwise would be. The parish is of great extent, but there is no town or village belonging to it, unless seven or eight houses which are near the church may be called so.
All the rest of the parish are single houses, situated upon the estates that belong to them, as the house at Crossbank is, or our house at Lockholme. The parish is five miles long, and a considerable breadth. As far as I can judge, 'tis longer than Rossendale parish - I mean that part of Rossendale that is cultivated.
The church is a beautiful, good building, well seated, and without any doors to the seats, which was done by direction of Mr Calumy,(a previous Rector) who was a worthy man, and son of Mr. Calumy the eminent Presbyterian.
We have not a Dissenter in the parish, and the people seem to come well to church. But notwithstanding this, I fear they think more of this world than the next.
By this time, I daresay, you are heartily tired of reading, but I'll fill up my page. The country all about is hilly, and, as far as I can see not fertile by nature; but it produces good crops of corn of all kinds, which seem to be a good deal owing to the labour of the husbandmen, who, indeed, work much harder than they do about Rossendale.
The Glebe land is a pretty estate, consisting of eight and forty acres lying commodiously about the Parsonage house, well hedged in, so as to make eleven or twelve enclosures, or closes, besides two orchards, gardens, &c. &c.
This morning, as I was writing what goes before, I received a long letter from the person I named to you. 'Tis a friendly, sensible, religious, well - wishing letter, but she thinks herself (or pretends to think herself) unable to manage a family, is as happy as she can be on this side heaven; says she has always thought of a single life, and yet her determination is at present unalterable, and a great deal more in this strain, that I do not know how I am to understand. But, after all, as some of her relations from self - interest must dissuade her from the match, I am apt to think she will not have an objection to marry. And therefore I desire that you will not tell anything of this affair to anybody. I desire my hearty love and affection to all my dear relations, and am extremely glad to hear that my father is so well recovered. I hope that we shall live to see one another again...
The second of Henry's letters to Richard throws more light on the courtship and is really very funny. It is dated March 1st 1749.
Dear Brother
I thank you for your excellent letter. Nothing could make it more excellent but the omission of some apologies while I am reading it. I cannot help thinking that you have borrowed some of that modishness and diffidence, which you approve so much in our good brother George. For 'tis hard to approve anything of another person, and not imitate it. But notwithstanding your opinion of our brother, that he seems to resign his own judgement to the judgement of anybody he happens to meet with, Tommy always says," George will have his own way, do what one can." And notwithstanding Richy seems very diffident of the goodness of his letters, Harry is of opinion that, at the bottom, he must be conscious of their excellence.
But although I allow your letters to be excellent, yet I cannot think that either Sarah, or you, know anything at all of the art of courting. You write well I confess, but you neither of you know anything of love. About two years ago I happened to be at the Tavern with an old dancing - master, -an eminent man in his way. A man who, in his time, has had twenty times more experience in love affairs than twenty such folks as Sarah, and you, and I all put together. This aged, experienced gentleman, hearing one of the company talking to me of Miss S., addressed himself to me in words to this purpose: "Hark you! Mr. F., if you can get Miss S. it will do very well for you. She was my scholar five or six years; she is a very good-natured, good girl, and there's a good fortune. But, let me give you one piece of advice (I have had more experience, and know more of love affairs than you), whatever you do, do not be too forward. I say, do not be too forward. For, to my knowledge, more women are lost by the man's being too forward, than any other thing under the sun. A woman will contrive a thousand ways to get a man of her own choosing. But you may depend upon it, she'll always despise a man when she sees she can have him without any difficulty. Let me, then, give you this piece of advice- Whatever you do, dont be too forward.
Let her alone till she's in the cue,
And if you dont ask her she'll ask you.
I saw the old gentleman was in earnest, and followed his advice a long time with great exactness. At last, when I thought it was become necessary for me to say something, I talked some ramble - scramble stuff of love and marriage, and I know not what. She, as you will imagine, was strangely surprised, wondered how I could think that ever she would entertain a thought of altering her condition. "You see I have everything I could wish for in this world, - I am perfectly happy as I am ... I wonder how you could think I could be so happy in any other state as you see I am at present." To which I made this gallant, amorous reply: "God forbid, madam, I should be the cause of your unhappiness. If you sincerely think you are happier as you are, than you could be with me, I have nothing more to say." A long silence ensued. All your fine, set, studied speeches knocked on the head, and I have heard very little since of the happiness of her present state.
I have given you this long account, partly with a view to entertain my sister Sarah, who I know, will be pleased to her heart to hear how briskly I have courted, and partly with a view to instruct my brother Joseph how he must proceed. "Be not too forward."
Since I wrote last, I have spent a fortnight at Bath, where I was entertained among my friends in as kind and friendly a manner almost as I used to be at Lockholme and Wharton Hall. We have agreed upon everything that I know of, but the time of marriage, which, I suppose, may perhaps be sometime between Easter and Whitsuntide. But, if she chooses to stay longer, till Midsummer or Lammastide, why certainly the woman, before marriage at least, ought to have her own mind. It would be rude in me to force a woman to marry sooner than she has an inclination. But I dare say you are tired with reading all this nonsense. I am sure I am with writing it.
Pray do not say anything of this foolish letter to anybody but Sarah, Willy and Joseph, for fear of any miscarriage by my own forwardness. At present I am very busy in getting my house fitted up for a larger family than has been in it of late. Pray write as soon as you have time. If I had received your letter before I went to Bath, I believe I should have fixed the wedding day, but I trust everything will be well. I am promised it shall be between Easter and Whitsuntide. I hope you will excuse my writing so much about myself, because, here, I have nothing else that I can write about. If it be God's good will and pleasure I heartily wish you a son.
Henry seems to have been considerably more worldly than any of his brothers.It is a Jane Austin situation, told from a masculine point of view. I think Henry was rather a tease, and probably enjoyed the thought of winding up his sister in law with his male chauvinist attitude. She does not appear to have taken him too seriously for in one of Richard's letters he writes,"Sarah gives her kind love and service to her dear sister, and tells me she must be a lady of excellent judgement, having, she is persuaded, made choice of the best man in the world for a husband, always excepting his brother ..."
Henry and Elizabeth were duly married that year and seem to have lived happily ever afterwards. He wrote that she was "as good natured a woman as I ever knew, and her fortune, I believe, was the best this city has produced for many years." Lucky Henry! They divided their time between Cheriton and Elizabeth's house in the Square, Bath. In one of his letters of 1753 he describes a particularly dangerous journey they made from Cheriton to Bath, which took three days. They also made several journeys back to Ravenstonedale, on one occasion they were eleven days on the road with their young son, in a hired coach. I dont think Henry's pastoral duties weighed too heavily upon him. They only had one son, Thomas, born after they had been married for about ten years, by which time Henry would have been forty seven. He died, aged eighty two, in 1792, so he may well have met Jane Austin in Bath. His wife outlived him, she died in January 1795 and is buried, with her son, in Bath Abbey. Their son Thomas followed in his father's footsteps. He became a Doctor of Divinity and was variously described in "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale" as being vicar of Tweeton or Tiverton, near Bath. I wonder if it could have been Twerton where my husband's parents lived after the war. Thomas married in 1800 and died in 1821 leaving a son and a daughter. A granddaughter of his was living in Exeter in 1900.
THOMAS FOTHERGILL 1715-1796
Thomas was the third and last of Henry Fothergill's sons to go to Oxford. Ten years younger than his brother George, he would have been only six when George left home. He followed his two elder brothers first to Appleby School, then to Queen's College Oxford where he matriculated on July 13th 1734 when he was eighteen. He was elected Fellow in 1751, gained his D.D., and was unanimously elected Provost of Queen's in 1767. He served as Vice Chancellor from 1772-76. In 1775 he was presented to the fifth prebendal stall in Durham Cathedral. In "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale" Thomas is described as being of a jolly rubicund complexion, though a very bashful man. His conversation was pithless and insipid." As a shy man he may not have shown up to advantage at a first meeting, but his letters are certainly not insipid and it seems unlikely that he should attain such a high rank in the University, with no high connections or favours, if he was dull and colourless. His nickname was "Old Customary because he was wedded to habit and punctilious of etiquette." In a letter to Henry, dated November 30th 1750 Richard pays tribute to Thomas, who had just been for a visit. " We have all been extremely happy in the enjoyment of Brother Thomas's company. He showed himself, what I believe he really is, one of the most sensible, human, and generous of all men." He married at the age of fifty five, his wife was Mary Billingsley, a niece of Lord Chancellor Hardwicke. They were married on January 23rd 1769 and had two daughters and one son, Henry, who was to inherit, and sell, Lockholme. In 1778, when Thomas was still Provost there was a severe fire at the college which destroyed the Provost's lodgings, Thomas and his young family escaped but there are two interesting letters from undergraduates,(one written by George Marthwaite of Ravenstonedale) which described the furniture, library, pictures and tapestries etc which indicated a much grander, richer lifestyle than he had been brought up with. As Vice Chancellor it was he who presented Dr. Johnson with his degree. His portrait hangs in the common room gallery of Queen's College, (it is reproduced in "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale") and there was another one hanging at Lowther Castle.
There are only a few of Thomas's letters to his parents that survive, there are some which he wrote to Richard, though none remaining of later date than 1767. He died on August 30th 1796, aged eighty.
RICHARD FOTHERGILL 1713-1784
Richard was the second son of Henry and Elizabeth Fothergill. Although he was very well read, articulate, and an outstanding letter writer he chose to remain in the dale and follow in his father's footsteps as a farmer. He married Sarah when he was only 20, she, it was said was "a cheerful, good-natured wife who loved him most tenderly." First of all they lived at Crossbanks, a small farm near Lockholme which his father was supposed to have bought from Michael Knewstubb. They had four daughters and it was probably a source of sadness that they had no son to continue the family tradition. Richard was able to view his daughters fairly objectively and described them in a letter thus:-
Betsy,(Elizabeth) now in the twentieth year of her age is, one would think, of a fretful, timorous spirit, sparing of words, careful of business, capable of learning, but, withal, excessively fond of her own way. For, not withstanding her seeming fearfulness to offend, and her resignedness to other people's judgements, she rarely gives up anything, and when at any time she is obliged to do it, one may see it hurts her extremely. She's but a little slender body, affecting a neatness in dress. Her complexion fresh, and rather inclined to brown than fair, and though she at any time appears tolerably well, yet with much greater advantage by candlelight, than in the open sunshine.
Nancy (Agnes) now in the close of her seventeenth year, is of a disposition very different from that of her sister's, -frets at nothing, is afraid of nothing, very liberal of words, indifferent to business, gives up with ease all little disputes with her elder sister, - is a little taller than she, very blooming, more inclined to be fat than most of her age, cheerful, both in aspect and conversation, full of spirits; her face, if anything, too round, but always so much alive, as makes her pretty agreeable.
Peggy (Margaret) seems as if she would be taller than either of her two sisters. She is very slender, very fair, her visage rather longish, her capacity good, but her constitution, at present, a little of the weakest.
Sarah is a very pleasant little creature, but as to anything further, time must make the discovery. (Sadly Sarah died soon after.)
In about 1741 Richard and a partner, John Richardson, rented a much larger farm called Wharton Hall, cautious George certainly questioned the wisdom of this move and time was to prove him right.
Thomas's appraisal of Richard's character (see page 7) was perspicacious and shrewd. Through his letters he appears warm hearted, humorous, self confident, outspoken, perhaps impulsive and with a wonderful gift of description, not only of places, but also of people, and situations and encounters between them.
The first (incomplete) letter we have from him was dated June 17th 1745.It follows a query from George concerning a skirmish between The Pretender's retreating army and 500 of The Duke of Cumberland's dragoons at Clifton near Penrith. (for details there is an account by Lord George Murray.) His eyewitness description of the Highland prisoners is so vivid it is worth reproducing in full.
"There were, indeed, betwixt 70 and 80 prisoners gleaned up about Penrith, but I could not think their being taken was much owing to that little action at Clifton, but to the greatness of their fatigue, occasioned by the rapidity of their flight.
What made me give the more into this opinion was the sorriness of the prisoners. I saw the poor wretches brought into Appleby, little, ill-looking creatures, their heads and feet quite bare, and the most wretched rags on the rest of their bodies, far from sufficient to cover them; their arms were close to their sides, and they bound two and two together.
Pricked along by their drivers, scoffed and hooted at by the rabble which ran in multitudes about them, their feet all wreathed with clods of mire, mixed with blood; ready to faint with hunger, and the horror of their condition, and some of them, seemingly, much older than my father.
Notwithstanding the greatness of their crime, of which I have the greatest abhorrence, yet I could not help pitying the poor unhappy wretches. Never before did I see human nature move onwards under such a load of wretchedness....."
A letter to Henry dated August 15th 1749, congratulating him upon his marriage, shows his ability to recount a humorous situation without belittling the participants.
At Whitehaven (where he had gone to help his sick brother Joseph, and bring him home) I called upon your old friend and schoolfellow, Mr. Sewel He presented me to his wife with some caution, as a person he had been formerly acquainted with. She is a very genteel, majestic, elderly sort of a gentlewoman, has lived a good part of her time in London, where she was formerly married to a Doctor of Divinity, has read much, talks much, and, as Mat Prior says
"...can run you on
Quite down from Seneca to Bunyan"
However some scraps of Mr. Addison's criticism on Milton's "Paradise Lost", two or three lines out of Mr. Pope's "Essay on Man", and some observations on Dr. Young's short, crowded way of writing, enabled me for some time to go on pretty well. I found the last was her favourite author, and very luckily for me, his "Night Thoughts" were the last thing I had read. She seemed greatly surprised that a person brought up in so remote a part of the world, as she supposed I had been (for she supposed I had never been in London), should ever have heard the names of such great authors. The esteem or rather approbation I met with from Mrs Sewel, greatly endeared me to her husband. He now ventured to tell her I was one of his most intimate acquaintances, and from this time condescended to treat me almost on a level with himself. But not to dwell too much on the weak side of this really worthy couple, they are, I believe, in the highest reputation for piety and charity in their own parish. He is reckoned there one of the finest preachers of the age, and what they spare, after living very handsomely, tho' rather privately than otherwise, out of an income of £200 a year, is mostly applied to the relief of the poor, which in that neighbourhood are very numerous. "When Henry replied he complimented his brother on his ability to paint a picture with words and said he saw the whole scene, as indeed I can.
The situation at Wharton Hall was giving Richard anxiety, severe winters meant concern that the hay would run out before the grass started growing again in the spring. In a letter to George dated February 25th 1747/8 he outlines the situation.
"Well then to begin - as most of us country folk begin - with the weather. This whole month has been one continued storm. By storm we mean here hard frosts, and do not, like you, hurl thunders and lightnings, and winds that would tear our chimney pots off, into our storms. Less here will content us for a storm, less than this, I am sure, has been the occasion of a vast consumption in our hay, and, if it continues much longer, will be attended with as direful consequences as one of yours.
We have a great number of sheep, fourteen fat cows, seven horses, and about twenty other black cattle, that are not fit for fatt, all to be supported by hay. Beef is but at three halfpence or seven farthings a pound, sell them quick (alive) I cannot, to kill them will not make anything out. Fother far spent, and the storm unbroke - these are the circumstances that look a man very greatly in the face. Well! I can see no better way than to wait with patience, husband the hay nicely that's left, watch all opportunities of selling out fatt, and trust the event entirely to Providence, who maketh the storm obey his word."
He goes on to say that many people of the weaker sort have died within a week of contracting a cold, but that their own relatives have remained well. He goes on to say "It is now six years since Sarah and I engaged in this great farm, and I suppose there have not been, by all accounts, six worse years since the creation."
Worse was to come, on February 7th 1749 he wrote to George.
Dear Brother,
Waving all apologies for my neglect in writing &c., I proceed to tell you that I had wrote long since, but for fear of being the messenger of ill news. An unlucky affair has very unexpectedly happened among us, which has given me more uneasiness, and vexation, and will, I fear, be attended with greater loss than anything that I have yet met with. My late partner, John Richardson, and I used mostly to pay our whole year's rent in (or two or three days before) Christmas. I had this year got mine made up about a fortnight before that time, and told John, who I knew might have the bulk of his when he pleased, of the persons who farmed under him, I would gladly have had us gone to Meaburn with the rent the week before Christmas. He said but little to me then, but, in three days after, told me he could not well pay his till the latter week in Christmas, but desired, when I went, to give his service to Mr. Walton, and tell him, he would not fail to pay him a visit at that time.
I went to Meaburn on the 21st December, and paid, and took a receipt for £130 which was every shilling of my share of the rent due on the 8th January. John Richardson left his house, and told his family and neighbours he intended to pay his brother a visit at Penrith, but would take Meaburn, in order to pay Mr Walton the rent, on his way thither, and would be at home again in a night or two at the longest. But, to the surprise of everyone, he is never yet returned, and, what is very afflicting to me, he never yet found the way to Meaburn, never yet paid Mr. Walton his rent, nor is he ever yet heard of.
I am very sorry for the loss of my friend and neighbour, but I must own it is greatly aggravated by my becoming liable to pay £130 for him, which I must pay, or so much at least in proportion as his creditors come short of paying his debts. His debts are computed to be about £1480, and his credits about £1460. You see the balance against him is but a trifle...."
It is interesting to know that the rent for a large farm was £260 a year in the mid 18th Century. Richard then wrote to Henry Blencow the agent for his new landlord, Mr Lowther, who had taken over the ownership of the dale from the Duke of Wharton. It now becomes apparent why George regarded the move to Wharton Hall as imprudent. It appears that Richard and his partner have been paying £20 a year more than their predecessor, who was ruined. Richard now argues that, although the Lowthers have agreed to reduce the rent by this amount, it should be more. He points out that he has brought £400 or £500 to stock the farm, he has had the advantage of a frugal industrious family , yet he has worked out that he is only £20 better off, over the full nine years. He concludes by saying,
"I have bid Mr. Watson (Walton?) £240 a year for it for nine or eleven years, and pay all taxes except the land tax, or £250, and you pay all taxes whatsoever, which I am still willing to give. But dare go no further, because in the best of times, I know it worth no more. The time is now advanced that some husbandry is become necessary, and if you cannot shortly determine to take this price, I shall think no more about it, but immediately dispose my affairs for the leaving it, though I must own it will be with some reluctance.
I am, sir, with gratitude and respect,
Your very humble servant,
Richard Fothergill
He received a very cold letter of refusal from Mr. Blencow in London, saying that Mrs Lowther had decided to take the farm back and let it out piecemeal.
However Richard remained at Wharton hall for two or three years longer, but moved back to Lockholme upon the death of his father in 1753. By the time his partner John Richardson's affairs were finally sorted out he had lost no more than £8 0s 9d. A letter dated 1751 contains this paragraph; "John Richardson's effects proved to answer all his debts that were taken by the commisers. of the bankruptcy. There were £3 11s 3d Land Tax, 14s 6d Poor Rate, 15s to make good some repairs of his part of the farm, £8 of rent I had to pay for him, all which they refused to take in. They have since paid me £5 of the above mentioned rent, so the loss on the whole amounts to no more than £8 0s 9d., a sum I might ill have spared, but, being once in danger of losing far more, made this go down with greater ease."
Richard died in 1785. He left Lockholme to his brother Thomas, who left it, in turn, to his son Henry, who sold it.
WILLIAM FOTHERGILL 1713-1784
William was the fourth son, he stayed in Ravenstonedale like his brother Richard. He was not a letter writer, but was mentioned with affection in his brother's letters. The only description of him is contained in Thomas's letter (page 7), he seems to have been quiet and good natured. His wife was called Alice, they married young, but sadly she died in childbirth, aged only 23. Harry, their son, was very promising academically, he went to Oxford and became a tabarder, under the care of his Uncle Thomas. But he became ill with consumption. He was sent to Bristol Hot-Wells in the hopes of obtaining a cure, but after writing a brave, grateful letter to his father, he died on June 27th 1769.
William may have taken over Crossbanks when Richard moved to Wharton Hall. He died at Lockholme in either 1782 or 1784.
JOSEPH FOTHERGILL 1723-1799
Joseph was the youngest of the Fothergills. It never seems to have been contemplated that he should go to Oxford, although he was at Kendal school with James. He was apprenticed to a trade in Kendal, though we are not told which one. He seems to have been taken ill on a couple of occasions, and once Richard and William went to Whitehaven to bring him home. He does not appear to have been a favourite of his brother Thomas who wrote of him disparagingly, but the only surviving letter written by old Henry Fothergill was to Joseph and he left him his large bible. Joseph married Jane Stonehouse of Sedberg and they had several children, two of whom were graduates of Queen's College and became clergymen. There is a story, related in "The Fothergills of Ravenstonedale" that in later life he came to visit some relatives at Sedgefield in a chaise and pair, accompanied by his wife and her maid. So perhaps he had the last laugh. He died at Lockholme in 1799 aged seventy six.
There is another claim to fame by a member of the Fothergill family, this time through the female line. This is the account given in The Complete Peerage &c for 1876 "Sir William Fothergill Cook, son of the late W. Cook Esq., by Elizabeth Ann, daughter of J. Fothergill Esq., Ravenstonedale, Westmorland. Knighted for great and special services in the introduction of the first practical electric telegraph."