Welcome to the website of Rosemary Brown!

I must admit that my main purpose in looking at this film was the usual one of scrolling through looking for any mention of the family name. I then realised that out of context it did not really make much sense and I decided to reproduce one of the Overseers Leys. I chose one that seemed interesting and easy to read.  I tried to reproduce it as it was written, including the original spelling and punctuation. There are the occasional words that I cannot read or cannot understand, I have marked these – (?.)  I did not bother to check the figures as I was fairly certain that these shrewd men would not make any mistake in their calculations.       

THE FIRST POOR LEY FOR 1718

These following are the accounts of Theophilus Ogden of Oldham Overseer of the poor within Oldham Aforesaid ffor the land near Oldham Belonging to Jno Greaves of Manchester Esq for the year of Our Lord God 1718  

Recd in two Assessments the sum of                                              £60 15s   1d ¼

Recd from the old overseers of the poor                                         £01 12s  7d

Recd from the officers of Prestwich about Jno Dunckerley     £01  00  06

Recd in cash from Mr Buckley my ffellow overseer                      £19  10  08 ¼

Recd from Ashton officers abt his bastard by Mary Street         £00  10  00

                                                            Recd in all                                £83   8s  4d

 

to old Samll Wylde near Hollinwood

 pushes (?) monthly pay                            13s  4d

to old Esther Midgeley  near Priesthill  widow                              £1     7s  9d

to Widow Andrew near tythbarn  in pay physick

 and Apparel                                       £2  19s   6d

to old Christian Chaderton  near Priesthill                                    £3    6s   5d

Old Mary Knott near Magott Lane- now deceased                      £3  16s   6d

to Ralph Jackson  near Tythbarn                                                    £4    2s  11d

to Richard Whitehead  near Maggott Lane                                    £2    1s    1d ¾

to Mary Clough  daughter of Jno Clough Carpenter                             17s   10d

to old Jno Lees  Tinkler  deceased                                                 £3    0s     6d ¾

Samll Hardy weekly Allowance and Clothing                               £2  15s     9d

To James Stotts widow  near Tythbarn                                        £3  14s     5d

Old Thomas Stott near Tyth Barn – now deceased                            14s   11d

Old Jno Jackson of Leonards  near Tyth Barn                              £1  16s   11d

Old Widow Stringer   Ashton                                                           £2    6s   11d

to Mary Sandyfold near Hollinwood  Blinde                                  £3    0s   8d

to Widow Wylde  near Shaile Moor                                                £3    5s

Old James Whittaker   in ffogg Lane                                              £2    0s   11d ]

Mrs Elnor Cudworth  in Manchester                                             £2  12s

to widow Kenworthy  in ffailsworth                                               £1   12s    6d

to Catherine Jackson  until December the tenth day                  £3     4s

 

to old Abell Crompton ffulerton  weekly 30s 5d

 Apparell 12s 8d                    £2    3s    1d

To Titus Bardsley  near Towne end                                  £2    9s        ¾

To Martha Williamson in Ashton  widow                                14s    7d

Old Peter Cowper late of Tinkerlane in pay

                                      Bedding and Apparrel             £1   15s    3d

To Jno Ogdens wife  now deceased                                £1     6s    3d

To Jno Barnes  in his childrens sickness                              12s    9d

To Richard Jackson  in his and childrens sickness       £1     8s    9d

Ffor a pay Book and an Order to Remove

                                      Geo Platt daughter                            3s   10d

To Jno ffitton  two Blankets and a white Rugg                       9s

To Joseph Needhams daughter  and twds Repair

                                      Of Mattloys Cottage                            3s    6d

To Rich Smethurst  a cooper 8 pence at two also ssints (?)

                             & receiving old accounts                                      3s  10d

to Jno Haughton wife  and Mary Andrew a poor childe           7s    1d

to widow Jackson   2s 1d   and Tho Hibbert   3s 6d                5s    7d

to Isaac Bardsley for Jno Jackson  =  old Gilliott                     3s    2d

to Joseph Needham by James Bardsley  an order                            3s    7d

to Mary Schofield  alias Knowles – A poor childe                     7s   11d

ffor a warrant for Isaac Hall  and for a letter

                                      from Maidstone in Kent                    2s     7d

ffor a pair of Brushes for old Jno Jackson  Gilliott                          10d

Clothing for Ja Dalton Wife and Children                      £1     1s    11d

To Ja Andrew wife and Benj Whittaker widow

                                      And viewing the poor                        3s

Clothing for Thomas Needhams Children                               13s      - 

to Mr Ainscough ffor Mary Street Absolution                           5s    10d

to old Hen Lees of Hollinwood

                             And Samll Greaves of Northmoor  6d                      4s      6d

to

Mary Street

towds a Bed and marridge                                2s      8d

ffor carrying Charles Radclyffe and his family to Middleton      2s      8d

to Isaac Schofield near Hollinwood  in time of sickness            2s      4d

ffor two days attendance at January Quarter Sessions             2s

to Elizabeth Beswick  at several times                                       5s     5d

spent at badgeing the poor

and a pair of cards for Ja Dalton wife           2s      1d

towds Buriall of Samll Sandiford  and to his widow since         9s      8d

to old Bradley of Hollins  and Elizabeth Lees alias Hopkin       3s      6d

 

 

ffor removing Rich ffletcher and Jno Brierley families

                                                          to ffailsworth                    1s     6d

[6]Lent to Tho Hibbert by Capt Greggs order                               3s

To Rich Needham’s wife towds her lieing in                              4s     3d

Lent to old Abel Heape  to be paid when

                             He receives from his daughter                      8s

Going to a private Sessions at Rochdale                                    6s

At two tryalls about Rich ffletcher and Jno Brierley       £3     15s     6d    

to Mr Whitehead  Jno Wyldes rent                                          12s

to Mr Lyon for Rich Whiteheads rent                                       £1

to Jno Worrall for James Daltons rent                                       9s

to Joseph Clegg for Samll Hardys rent at Priours                    £1      10s

to Jno Greaves Esq for Houghtons Wives Rent               £1

to Ja Chadderton  Widow Stotts Rent                                       15s

to Robert Kaye  Widow Andrewes Rent                                     18s    6d

to Isaac Ogden  Widow Chethams Rent                                     12s

to Ja Chetham  towds Tom Needhams rent                                         15s

to Mr Stevenson towds Samll Wyldes Rent                     £2

to Jno Walwork for Geo Jackson Loomes

and Cieled (?) Chaires                         19s    6d

ffor coffins for the poor

                             as Appears by a note of particulars    £1        3s   10d

ffor two precepts two orders

signing for ffletcher and Brierley                   5s

Abated at Standering Meadow Laye  1s 6d ¾

                             And at Dr Halle  2s                                       3s     6d ¾

    Ffor Loom Hire ffor Jno Jackson  Old Gilliott                         2s     6d

Spent at making these Accounts

                   And entering 8 certificates my dowry book             2s     4d

The dowry Laye Books and collecting books

                             For the whole year                                         2s

                            

                             This page is                                       £21    13s    6d ¼

Recd in the whole                             £83      8s    4d

Paide in the whole                                      £83    14s    7d

Out of purse                                      £00     06s   3d

 

Theophilus Ogden the above sd wanting sume of £00 06s 3d

 

July 31^st Mr Buckley pd to Theophilus Ogden the above wanting sume of £00 06s 3d.

 

July 21 1719 these accounts were seen and allowed by us   Viz

          Edmund Whitehead

John Lyon

John Kershaw

James Buckley

John Lees   Clarksfield

J           Thomas

Tom  Bardsley

John Wolfenden 

Most of the references within this Poor Ley are what one might expect. About 70 poor people are listed, 12 of these are widows and 14 are described as old, only 2 poor children are specifically mentioned. There are 10 payments of rent, but sickness in the year 1718 does not seem to be as much of a problem as one might suppose. There is a reference to 1 blind woman, 2 sick families, a lieing in, the provision of some physick to Widow Andrew and a payment of 2s to Dr. Hall. There were few references to occupations; namely a carpenter, a cooper and a tinkler. There were, however, several references to the provision of tools. A loom was hired for Jno Jackson, and he received a pair of brushes. Ja Dalton’s wife was given a pair of cards. I puzzled over this and wondered if they might be for carding wool. I simply could not think why Jno Fitton needed a white rug. (Ref. 2.)

It was part of the overseer’s task to organise the removal of any unwanted person from the parish, or a family who could not prove their right of settlement, (Geo Platt’s daughter and Charles Radclyffe and his family who had to be removed to Middleton.)  They also had to escort prisoners for trial. See refs.7, 8 regarding ffletcher and Brierley, it would be interesting to know what crimes they had committed.

There are references to Mrs Elenor Cudworth in Manchester over several years. (ref.1) she was the only woman I have found who was given the title of Mrs and she seemed an unlikely candidate to be receiving poor relief. In 1723 the Overseer, Samuel Scholes, paid Mrs Cudworth in Manchester £3 18s 1d, and paid her washer woman 1s! In 1724 Jonathan Buckley of Sholver, who did overseer duty for Mr Lyon of Lees Hall, paid himself 1s “for going 2 days to Manchester on Mrs Cudworths account.”

Another item that interested me concerned Mr Buckley’s bastard Mary Street, (Refs. 3, 4.) for whom he paid 10s. There are no other references to illegitimate children but I suspect that this was above the going rate. 5s 10d seems expensive to secure her absolution, particularly as it needed only 2s 8d to provide her with a bed and marriage. In 1720 the Overseer, Thomas Marshall, received a further 10s towards “Matt Street Bastard maintenance.” Did the poor lad carry that description around with him all his life I wonder? Mr Buckley seems to have been a generous man, however, he made good Theophilus Ogden’s shortfall in the Overseers accounts.

Reference 6 refers to Captain Greggs order to the Overseer that he should lend Thos Hibbert 3s. This was surprising as I should have thought that the Overseer was only answerable to his Vestry, and could not be ordered to do anything by a military man.

These early Poor Leys are probably some of the few records where women are sometimes mentioned by name, not just ‘wife of …’ or ‘daughter of…’ It is a pity that widows are rarely named, they seem to lose all their identity in that description -‘Widow …’

The Poor Leys are not just boring lists, they often produce humour, or sympathy. or insight into character; sometimes it is just a nickname.

James Schofield was called ‘Bandy leggs.’  Thomas Winterbottom was described as ‘Mad Tom,’ by James Buckley in 1720. In 1715 he was described as ‘a lame and ffoolish boy.’ (Tho Bardsley)  Abraham Hilton was more sympathetic in 1716 and described him as ‘a poor simple boy.’  In 1706 when Edwd Smyth was buried he was described as, ‘alias My Lord oth gutter!’

Unfortunately there is no equivalent record in this film for those householders who paid the poor rate for Oldham in 1718, these start in 1741. I have chosen the assessment for 1745 for no better reason than because it was clear and easy to read. I have not checked these early Leys extensively but I am fairly certain that the order of names is the same each time and the amounts of money paid are usually similar for each person.

I have only once found a note concerning the rateable value and that was undated. I will reproduce it here as a rough guide.  

Upon a new survey land of 20 shillings yearly value to be charged at 6d at a four score lay and the housing at 2 pence

THE FFOLLOWING IS AN ASSESSMENT WITHIN THE TOWNSHIP

AND COUNTY OF LANCASTER FOR RELIEF OF THEIR POOR

WITHIN THE SAID TOWNSHIP ASSESSED THE 18TH DAY

OF SEPTEMBER 1745 

 

Benj Lawson

James Wild

John Wolfenden

James Walker

Thomas Houpe

Thomas Whittaker

Jno Mayall

Christopher Taylor

James Ogden 

                                     

BELOW TOWN                                                         £        s        d     ¼

The Rev Rich Goodwin DD Rector                           5        8        4        -

Thomas Lister Esq   for the whole                            6        -       11       -

Edwd Gregge Esq   Chamber Hall                            4        9        -        -

The Rev Saml Sidebottom

                             for part of Chamber & Kenety      1       -          8        -

Nicho John Lyon Esq   Lees Hall                              2       -        11       -

Thos Percival Esq   for one third of Lees Hall            1       -         5       

Robert Radclyffe Esq   for Horsedge                         2      13      10       -

Edwd Greaves Esq   Oldham Land                           1       17      11       -

Thos Lister Esq   Coldhurst                                      1       18       9       

Mr James Hopwood   Estate at Bent Brow              -         18       -        -

                                                                                   

The Rev Saml Sidebottom   for Bent Hall                   1     1        -        -

                   And for Whitworths Land                     -         7       11      

Mark Neild                                                              -        2        -        -

Cleggs   Priers Land                                                -     18       -        -

Mr Sidebottom   Jackson Pitt                                  -        1        6        -

Joseph Jones   at Pitts                                            -     18       -        -

Joseph Jones the elder    for his hous                    -        1        6        -    

Thos Ogden   ffogg Lane                                          -      4        9        -

Johno Tetlow   Do                                                   -        1        7        -

Mr Edmund Radclyffe   Do                                      -       14       2       

Jos Schofield   for Poor ffield                                   -        1        6                

                                                                              32       -       10       -

 

Page 2

Old Rebs Tenement                                                 -        2        6        -

Edwd Gregge Esq    for Ashtons Tenement              -       16       6        -

Mr Geo Hall   Broadway Lane

                                  -       12       -        -

Widow Goddard   Do                                                -        1        -        -

Mr Starkey   for John Coopers                                          -       16       6        -

John Brierley   Do                                                            -          3        2       

James Cooper   Do                                                  -        2        9       

John Hopkin   Sharps                                             -         10       2       

James Walker                                                          1         -       3        -

Peter Cooper                                                           -        9        9        -

Poor ffield in

Broadway Lane

                                   -        4        4       

Mr Starkey   Cross                                                  -       10       2       

                     And for Powletts                                -        10       2       

                     And for ffeacher Thorps                      -       13       6        -

The Rev Saml Sidebottom   Hatter Shaw                 -       16       6        -

Mr John Bent   Copster Hill                                    -         19       6        -

Mr Edwd Gregge   Do                                              -        1        -        -

Gervase Lowton   And for Stringer Crofts                -       10      10       -

Mr Gregge   Bradleys                                              -         9        7       

Scholes Tenement I’ th’ Hollins                               -          9        7       

John Hollingworth   House Do                                         -                        

Mr Gregge   for Matthew Andrews                          -          1        -        -

Browns Tenement                                                             -         1       -

                                                                               10       3        3       

 

 

Page 3                                                                     £        s        d      ¼

Wolfindens   at Mill                                                 -          4        9        -

Mr Robert Whitehead   Land                                    2        4       10      

                             And for Whittakers                     -          6        -        -

Mr Harrop   Land                                                    -          11       3        -

                                                                               

John Buckley   Lyme Yate                                      -          10      11       -

Hydes Land                                                             -          4        -        -

Mr Dawson   Part                                                     -         2        -       -

Mr Dawson    for Wilde Lande                                 -          8        3        -

Joseph Lees   for Lyme Land                                  -          5        8        --

Geo Worthington  Land                                           -       10       2        -

Abrah Wilde   Lande                                                -        6        9        -

Woodhead Chapel Land                                          1        -        -        -

Mr Starkey   Hedge                                                 -        1        6        -

Mr Buckley   Cloughs                                              -       12       -        -

Mr Berron   Land                                                    -        4        9        -

Mr Haighs   Land                                                    -        3        9        -

Mr Hiltons                                                               -        3        9        -

Geo Hall                                                                  -        -        3       

Edmund Schofield   for Hartleys                             -         2        -        -

                             And for his new houses              -        2        7        -

Widow Newtons   was                                              -       1        4        -

Scholes Tenement                                                    -       4         9        -

Mr Dawson   Wyldes                                                -        2        9        -

Geo Hardman                                                         -          3       11           

                                                                                8       18       2       -

 

Page 4

Edwd Gregg Esq   for Wildes                                    -       10       6        -

Thos Whittaker   Little Town                                   -           3        2        -

Mr Gee   Block Lane                                                -       10       6        -

Andrew Fitton                                                         -         10       6        -

John Whitehead   Lane

End                                    1         -        4        -

Jonathan Gartside   Land                                       -          2        4       

James Newton   Lathoms                                        -         1        1       

Saml Taylor   North Moor                                        -        10       6        -

Mr Starkey   Hiltons                                                -          8        2       

John Scholes   for Greaves Tenement                     -        3        -        -

Mr Starkey   Tetlow ffold                                                   -       17    2       

Geo Wolstencroft                                                     -        2        7       

Robt Radclyffe Esq   Spring                                     -         2        3        -

Mr Dawson Hargreaves                                            -        5        -        -

John Wallwork   Maygate Lane

                               -          4        6        -

Humphrey Marlors   was                                         -          1        6        -

James Newton   Buggard Hole                                -        -        -        -

Chadwick   Cockhous                                              -         6        9        -

Mr Hall   Prist Hill                                                               1         6        -

John Wallwork   Do                                                 -         2        -        -

William Hall   Carpenter                                                   - 1         6        -

 

 Widow Wolfonden                                                    -        2        -        -

James Knott   New Hous                                         -        -           9      -

John Jackson   Inn Keeper                                     -           1        6       

                                                                              6         2        4        -

 

Page 5

Mr Dawson   Hous in Water Street                          -        1        3        -

John Mellor                                                                      -          2        3        -

Saml Knott                                                              -          1        -        -

Danl Knott                                                              -        -          9        -

John Wallwork   Platting                                         -          1        1       

Mr Geo Hall                                                                        -        3        -        -

John Wallwork   Harry ffold                                      -        3        6        -

Thomas Whittaker                                                   -        2        1       

John Whitehead                                                      -        4        3        -

Edmd Wolstonhulme                                                -        1        6        -

Edmd Wolstoncroft                                                  -        1        6        -

John Whittaker Hous                                                -     1    (?)              

Widow Chadwick                                                     -       11       1        -

Widow Pawletts                                                       -        3        9        -

Widow Ward                                                            -        4        6        -

Mr Benj Dawson                                                      -         3        4      

Mr Hibbert   Estate                                                   -       12       -        -

William Taylor                                                          -         3        4       

James Scholes   was                                                -        3        4       

Chadwick  Hous                                                        -        3        -        -

Mr James Hopwood  Hous                                        -        6        9        -

Mr Greaves   Blew Bell                                            -        4        6        -

Edward Barlow   for Pawletts                                   -        4        6        -

Mr Dearden   Hous                                                  -        3        -        -

                                                                             4          6        5       

 

Page 6

Saml Scholes   Sails                                                -       12       4        -

                        And for the new Hous                     -        -        -        -

James Haywood   was                                              -        6        -        -

Robt Radclyffe Esq   for Shut/Shutl(?)                    -           4        6        -

Widow Briarley                                                        -          4        6       -

Nathan Lomax                                                         -        -          9        -

Robert Newtons   was                                              -        -         9        -

Thomas Lister Esq   Maygate Lane                          -         3       -        -

                                                                                1       11      10      

          Totall below Town is       £63       10      0.             

 

ABOVE TOWN & GLODWICK                              £         s        d

Robert Radclyffe Esq   Dollstyle                           1           7        -        -

                                And for Rhodes Tenement    -          14      10      

John Lees   Bridge                                               -          14      10      

Joshua Winterbottom                                           -          14      10       [9]

Theo Ogden   LaneEnd                                     -           1        7        -

Widow Wilde   at Bottom of Moor                          -           2        3        -

John Scholes   ffowleach                                      -          14      10      

Thos Ogden    Do                                                  -          14      10      

James Winterbottom                                              -           -         9        -

James Gartside   Hopkins                                       -           2        5       

                             And for Brooks                            -           -        9       

                             And for Boothered Style              -           -        9       

Edmund Widdall                                                       -           8        7       

John Brierley   Crabtree                                           -           1        -       

Danl Clegg   Bargapp                                                -           8        7       

Richd Milne                                                               -          11       1      

John Mellor   High Moor ffold                                     -          2    10        -

                      And for part of Kershawa                  -           3        3     -  

Joseph Mellor                                                         -           2       10       -

James Winterbottom                                               -           5        7       

Ralph Potter                                                            -           6        4       

Widow Mellor   Lower Moor                                    -_          3        -                                                                                 8         1            

 

Page 2

Joseph Clough   Lower Moor                                -           2        3        -

Mr Rowbottoms part of Jacobs                             -           8       11      

Richard Milne   Stampstone                                  -           9        -        -

Joseph Milne   Lower House                                -           2        4       

Joseph Bury   Hopkin ffold                                    -           3        7        -

                      And for Taylors                               -           6        -        -

                      And for Kershaws and Hopkins      -          16       3        -

Robert Lees   Pittbank                                          -           9        -        -

[10]Mr Buckley   Do                                               -           9        -        -

Mr Buckley   Dirtker                                            1          11       9        -

James Lees   for Baggily & Taylors                       -           6         2       -

Tom Lees   Acre                                                    -           1        6        -

Isaac Buckley                                                       -            1       6        -

Mr James Kershaw                                               -          15       -        -

 

 

 

                                                                             £           s        d       ¼

                             And for White Crofts                -           2        4       

Mr Ralph Kershaw                                               2           4       10      

Mr Edmund Radclyffe   Broadbent                       -          16       9        -

Geo Crompton   Do                                              -           8        4        -

Mr George Hall   Land  Do                                   -           4       10      

Benj Byrom                                                          -          12       -        -

Nearer Barrowshaw                                             1           7        -        -

Further Barrowshaw                                            2           -        6        -

John Wolfindon    Hodgeclough                           1           4        6        -

                             And for Sholver Hey                -           6        -        -

                                                                           15          9        6        -

Page 3

The Rev Mr Robinson   Heys                                -          17       4        -

Mr Pickford   Heys                                                -           5        9       -

James Buckley   in Sholver                                  1           -       10             

Mr John Kershaw   Do                                         1          14      10      

John Mellor   Do                                                  1           5        1        -

John Kershaw Jun   Do                                       -           3        1       

Widow Dronsfield                                                 -          11       9        -

Joss Bardsley   for Old Bank                                -          11       9        -

Mr Kershaw   for Top of ffold                                -          12       8       

                      And for Paris High fields                 -           2        4       

Turner Meadows                                                   -           2        6        -

John Buckley   Turners                                         -           6        4        -

Dan Lees at Hey                                                   -          12       9        -

ffor Andrew Stones and Red Meadow                            -   2        -

[11]Dunkerley   Cleggs                                          1           -        6       -

Isaac Platt   Land                                                  -           7        6        -

Little End   Land                                                    -           9        -        -

John Sevill   Twedalls                                           -          10       1        -

                    And for Part of Cowpers                             -          10      

Joseph Clegg                                                        -          10       8       

John Cowper   Counthill                                         -           7       7        -

Haven House & Land                                           -           7        6        -

                                                                           13          2        6        -

 

Page 4

The Rev Mr Scholes   Land                                   -           5        3        -

The Rev Mr Burgess   Cottages on Count Hill        -           1        1       

Jonathan Taylor   Cottage  Do                              -           -        4       

Lyda Denton   Cottage  Do                                   -           -        9        -

          And for her cottages on Greenacres Moor  -           2        3        -

John Shaw   Land                                                          -  1       10      

                                                                             £           s        d       ¼

The Rev Saml Sidebottom   Paulden                    1           1          4        

                             And for Holts  was                    1         1           4       

Richd Waring                                                       -           2        3        -

James Buckley                                                     -           1        6        -

Amos Ogden   Land                                              -           3       10       -

The Rev Mr Rothwell   Greenacres                       -          19       5       

John Ogden   for the whole                                  1           5        4       -

Mr Townly   Estate                                                -           4        2       

Chadwick    Land  Do                                           -          14       3        -

Widow Boothes   Do                                             -          14       3        -

Danl Whitehead  Do                                             -           3       10      

Mr Pickford   Estate                                              -           7        1       

                     And for Rough Heys                        -           7        1       

Mr Edmund Radclyffe   Estate                              -           7        1       

John Mayall                                                         -          11       7        -

Buckley   Brookfields                                           -           3       10      

James Taylor   Banktop                                        -           7        1       

                                                                             9           7        3       

 

Page 5

Joshua Andrew                                                  -           4        1 0       -

Hopkin   Marl’d Earths                                        -           6          1        -

John Lees of Clarksfield                                                1           5        4        -

Mr James Wilde   Newearth                              1           3           9        -

Mr Whitehead  Do                                                          1           3        9        -

Esq: Lister Kaverlow                                             -           3        -        -

Isaac Taylor   Lowside                                           -           8        8        -

Widow Anndrew  Do                                             1          11       4       

                             And for part of Isaacs               -           1        8       

Shaw Chappell Land                                              -          17       8       

Adam Ogden                                                        1             5       4        -

Mr Dawson   Glodwick                                          1          15       6        -

James Brierley  Do                                               -          11       7        -

Saml Scholes  Do                                                 1           4        7        -

George Clough                                                     1           1        -        -

                             And for his houses                  -            1        6        -

Robert Geaves                                                      -           1        6        -

Mr Dawson for Saml Heaps                                  -            7        9        -

Robert Whitehead                                                          -            6        -        -

Thos Heap   Glodwick                                           -           6       10      

Mr Dawson   Kenyons                                          -           6        4        -

Joseph Oldham   Part of Kenyons                        -           3        9        -

Saml Scholes   part                                              -           2        7        -

                                                                          15           -        6        -

 

                                                                             £           s        d       ¼

Page 6

Joseph Heap                                                        -            9        9        -

Widow Marshall                                                    1           1        -        -

James Newton                                                      -           2        3        -

Geo Chadderton                                                   -           2        3        -

James Lees   Quaker                                            -          2        3        -

Ralph Mellor                                                        -            2        3        -

Christopher Taylor                                               -           2        9        -

Jacob Ogden the older                                         -         11      10      

                                                                             2        14       4       

 

 

Below Town         £63     10      0                           Assessed by us

Above Town         £63     17      4                 Ralph Kershaw  Overseers

          Total       £127      7s      4d               Richd Milne

 

1745

Sept 19 Allowed by us two of his Majestys Justices of Peace  

Thos Percival

Will Horton  

 

It is difficult to be absolutely precise concerning the actual number of ratepayers. Some ratepayers obviously owned properties that were scattered about all over the town, and they were thus mentioned several times. Some properties were probably occupied by family groups like the Dunkerleys of Cleggs, some were owned by the church. A few names and properties had the word ‘was’ added on, perhaps this meant that the ratepayer had died or had recently sold or let the property. Oldham was traditionally divided between ‘Below Town’ and ‘Above Town.’ At a rough count there were 89 rate payers Below Town and 86 ratepayers Above Town, 175 altogether. I have very little local knowledge of the area but I have the impression that Below Town was more like a traditional town or village with the dwellings clustered together, whereas Above Town the habitations were more widespread. I suspect that a person with good local knowledge might be able to ‘follow’ the overseer, as one might ‘follow’ the progress of an enumerator in a 19th century census.

 

It seems clear that the overseer gave precedence in his list to the ‘Great and the Good’ of the community. The lists are invariably headed by the Rector who paid one of the highest rates. There were five other reverend gentlemen living in the parish. The Rev. Mr Rothwell was the Vicar of Dean. The Rev Saml Sidebottom, who was the Rector of Middleton, actually overtook the Rector of Oldham as a ratepayer, he had four properties and paid £5 8s 10 . [12]Edwin Butterworth explained in his History of Oldham that the Rev. Sidebottom received some of his Oldham property from the Radclyffes of Fox – Denton through his marriage to the daughter of Alexander Radclyffe Esq. (Page 32.)

 

There were six men listed who had Esq written after their names. [13]David Hey defines an Esquire as “a man with a coat of arms who was a superior gentleman.” Thomas Lister Esq paid the most rates of anyone in Oldham, his rates for this period totalled £8 2s 8 . Edwin Butterworth gives the pedigrees of most of these gentlemen in an early chapter of his book, together with details of their residences. He tells us that Thomas Lister was the grandfather of the Thomas Lister who became Lord Ribblesdale who sold the estate at Werneth, in 1792, for £25,500. That must have been a massive amount in those days, though it was sold on, three years later to John Lees of Oldham for £30,000!

 

‘Mr’ appears to have been a lesser title, 27 men had ‘Mr’ written in front of their names; it might be significant to note that 20 of these lived Below Town and only 7 Above Town. David Hey defines a Mr in those times as “someone of at least minor gentry status, though many did not possess a coat of arms.” Several of these gentlemen are also described by Butterworth.

 

Given the number of widows listed in the Poor Ley for 1718 it is probably not surprising that only 13 widows appear, most paying a modest amount. Widow Anndew with 2 properties paid the most, her rates totalled £1 13s 1d. The only spinster female listed was Lyda Denton, she paid 9d for her cottage at Count Hill and a further 2s 3d for her cottages on Greenacres Moor. The smallest amount paid was 3 d; this was paid by Geo Hall. Abodes were often given and that is extremely helpful to the family historian, occupations were very rarely shown, the exceptions were John Jackson, Innkeeper who paid 1s 6d, as did William Hall, Carpenter. Right at the end of all the overseers lists for this period invariably came James Lees - Quaker, paying just 2s 3d. Was he the only Quaker in the parish?

 

References

 

The Oxford Companion to Local and Family History by David Hey.

 

Historical Sketches of Oldham by Edwin Butterworth.

 

Some Records from Oldham Parish Chest  was originally published in  Volume 44, Nos 2 & 4 of The Manchester Genealogist which is the quarterly journal of The Manchester & Lancs Family History Society.

SAINT MARY'S OLDHAM POOR LEY RECORDS FROM 1741

 This information has been taken from FHL British film 1484968  provided by The Mormon Society of Salt Lake City and accessible from the library section of their website  www.familysearch.org.

 

POOR RATES 1741 – 1817 with many years missing or undated. OVERSEERS ACCOUNTS 1690 – 1725, 1693, 1694 and 1700 missing. 

 

It seems possible that the last Poor Rate filmed, which is undated, could be earlier than 1741. It is also possible that, with comparison with other records, its date could be approximated. For this reason I am recording it first. 

 

Oldham Poor Ley –undated.

The record is in book – form, relatively short and beautifully written. The introduction shows, what I presume to be the rateable value. Some names which might help to date the document are as follows:-

Abraham Clegg, Rev. Mr Hopwood, Rich’d Milne Innkeeper. Only 3 Dunkerley names are recorded. 

 

John Dunkerley   Houses in Sholver.                               71s 2d 

Mr James Kershaw Houses                                                 1s od

(Underneath in small letters are the tenants, and what I think is the rateable value of the houses.)

Thos Heap 35s, Mathew Dunkerley 25s, Amos Bradley 25s, James Jackson* 35s. 

John Heap Houses                                                              0s 11d

James Dunkerley 33s, Samuel Broadbent 40s, Joshua Mayall 40s. 

 

[John Dunkerley may have been the son of Dan Dunkerley, born 1679/80 who married Anne Buckley Feb 1703/4. ( Will 1750)

OR John Dunkerley the presumed elder brother of Mathew and James who married Anne Taylor of Newearth in 1711.

*James Jackson may have been connected to Martha Jackson the wife of James Dunkerley. Married 1712.

The reason that I think that this could have been a very early Poor Ley is because after 1723 both James and Mathew Dunkerley are firmly based at Cleggs. Before that, according to the baptismal records, James was at Counthill, 1718/19, Mathew at Barrowshaw, 1720. Abodes are not usually given before then.] 

 

Oldham Poor Ley 1741 

 

I have shown some of the amounts given by other ratepayers, both Below Town and Above Town to provide a comparison with the Dunkerleys. 

 

Below Town                                                                            £     s     d 

 

Robert Radclyffe Esq.              Horsedge                                 1   15    11

John Greaves Esq                                                                    1.    5.     3

Widow Clegg                            Pryors                                            12    0

Mr. Sidebottom Jackson                   Pittz                                         1     0

John Wallwork                        Maygate Lane                                   3     0

 

John Jackson                          Innkeeper                                          1     0

Mr. Greaves                             Bluebell                                             9     0

Danl Heywood                                                                                   4     0 

 

Above Town 

 

Edward Widdall                                                                                  5     8

Danl Clegge                                                                                        5     8

Mr. James Kershaw                                                                          10     0

                  And for White Crofts                                                          1     7

Mr Ralph Kershaw                                                                        1     9   11

Mr Radclyffe                            Broadbent                                            11   2

John Wolfenden                                                                                   16   3

                   And for Sholver Hey                                                            4   0

Mr. John Kershaw                                                                           1     3   4

John Buckley                                                                                        12  11

Mr John Kershaw Jnr.                                                                            2    1

Dunkerly                                  Cleggs                                                  13   8

Joseph Clegg        (5 down from Cleggs)                                              7   1

Robert Greaves                                                                                      1   0

James Lees    Quaker                                                                            1   0 

 

The Poor  Ley for the two following years 1742 and 1743 remained the same for the Dunkerleys of Cleggs and for many years previous to 1740. (See LDS Film 1484969.) It is a substantial amount, exceeded by few other ratepayers. It is always recorded in the same way –        ie.’ Dunkerly Cleggs. ‘Sometimes the spelling is different. No Christian names are given, as is the case with most others, nor any title. In the parish registers these Dunkerleys are almost invariably described as weavers, so although there may have been some land, it would probably just have provided them with their own needs. Several Dunkerley families lived at Cleggs, so I assume that there was more than one dwelling, which may account for the high rate. There are no other Dunkerleys listed for these years which is strange, for the will of John Dunkerley of Sholver  who died in 1750, mentions “messuages and leasehold lands and tenement situate in Shoulver…” 

 

The Poor Ley for 1744 only records the ratepayers, including Dunkerleys, paying half the yearly rate, but that probably means that the other half is simply missing. The Poor Ley of 1745 shows - Dunkerleys Cleggs paying £1 0s 6d, which is one of the largest amounts. 

 

After this there are a number of Poor Leys that are very faint, although readable, but they give no date. I have reproduced one of these which relate to the Dunkerleys. 

 

The best clue regarding the date may be the mention of Isaac Dunkerley, the eldest and only likely one of that name, which is rare for Dunkerleys. He lived between 1748 and 1821.

 

James Dunkerley of Cop Road was a grocer. He was born in 1758, the son of Richard and Mary Dunkerley of Hollinwood. 

 

Enoch Dunkerley was born in 1840, his father was the wealthy Joseph Dunkerley of Mumps. He married his cousin Jane Dunkerley and died in 1816. 

 

Enoch Dunkerley (son) was the son of Enoch Dunkerley, He was born at Broadbent in 1765 and died in 1835. In his long and complicated will he described himself as a shopkeeper, but he owned property and stocks and shares and died a rich man. 

 

John Dunkerley of Northyate. There were two John Dunkerleys living at Northyate, all related to one another and to the family at Cleggs. John and Anne Dunkerley arrived some time after 1760, they had five children there but at some point they must have moved to Maygate Lane where ‘old John’ died in 1802. The other John Dunkerley, who had married his cousin Betty, arrived at Northyate in about 1777. Eventually this family moved to Francises, where John Dunkerley died in 1818, his will showed that he had become quite prosperous. The baptismal registers of  Greenacres Independent Chapel show that yet another John Dunkerley and his wife Nanny were living at Northyate at the beginning of the 19^th Century but I have not established to whom they were related.  The rates for Northyate were relatively low compared with some of the other properties.

 

Daniel had a daughter called Ann, born at Whetstonehill in 1790. Previous and subsequent children were born elsewhere so this may be the most precise clue. Daniel was a son of John and Betty Dunkerley of Northyate. He married Martha Buckley in 1786 and probably died in Sholver in 1846.

 

Name	Area	2nd Rate	3rd Rate	4th Rate
	Barrowshaw
Enoch Dunkerley Son		4s 4d	6s 1d	2s 7d
James Dunkerley	Knuckett	7s 8d	£1 18s 8d	16s 7d
James Dunkerley	Barrowshaw	£1 9s ?d	£2 0s 7d	17s 5d
Daniel Dunkerley	Whetstonehill	£1 12s 6d	£2 5s 6d	19s 6d
	and a cottage	1s 8d	2s 4d	1s 0d
Joseph Dunkerley	Broadbent	£1 1s 3d	£1 9s 9d	12s 9d
	And for Carrs
	Fullwood
James Dunkerley	Cop Road	13s 3d	18s 6d	8s 0d
	Sholver
Daniel Dunkerley		12s 5d	17s 5d
	Sholvermoor
Isaac Dunkerley		£1 5s 10d	£1 16s 2d	15s 6d
James Dunkerley		1s 7d	1s 6d	0s 8d
John Dunkerley	Northyate	7s 4d	10s 3d	4s 5d
Wm Cowper	Crossed out
John Cowper
John Dunkerley	The Whole	£1 4s 9d	£3 9s 3d	£1 9s 8d

 

THE DUNKERLEY FAMILY OF OLDHAM

 

My interest is in the Dunkerley Family of Oldham from whom I am descended. The first record of any Dunkerley in St Mary’s parish registers is of the baptism of John Donkerley on the 9th November 1565. Unfortunately there are gaps in the registers, even though they are augmented by Bishop’s Transcripts from 1604, so it is impossible to produce a clear line of descent. As far as I can tell the Dunkerleys at this time were neither numerous nor rich. They almost invariably called their eldest son John, which leads to all kinds of confusion. My reason for assuming that the Dunkerleys were poor is that none of them appeared as householders until 1723, but there was a sprinkling of pauper Dunkerleys from the very first Overseers’ accounts shown on a film for 1690. Moses Dunkerley was the best documented Dunkerley of the period; he was born in 1605, the son of James. He may well have married three times, but only one of his marriages was recorded; in 1638 he married Anne Greaves at Manchester Cathedral. This is old for a first marriage so it is possible that he was married before. An entry in the baptismal register for Moses’ son Marke Dunkerley in 1653 gave the mother’s name as Mary, although no marriage entry has been found 

 

A CHART SHOWING THE FAMILY OF MOSES DUNKERLEY 1605-1679 

 

Moses

M, 1.Anne Greaves 1638

      2. Mary

                                                  |

Martha                 James bap.              Marke                     Luke

1639-1679           bap 1649                 1653-1655                bap. 1655-

|                                                                                        m. Hanna Hardy

Daniel 1655                                                                             1679

m. Martha Turner                                                              

1672                                                                                   

                                                                                          

 |John 1681-1750

 m.Anne Buckley

 1704 

 

It is possible that Daniel Dunkerley and Mathew Dunkerley were also sons of Moses by a previous unknown marriage.They were probably born in the early 1630s. Both married and had children, their families regularly qualified for poor relief. Daniel and Luke’s families both lived at Horsedge, which is an indication that they were related, Dunkerleys tended to stick together.

 

 There were two Widd Dunkerleys, one living at Bagguleys, receiving £1 17s 4d, the other at Bardsleys, receiving £2 8s 6d. Widd Dunkerley of Sholver died in 1692 and was buried at a cost of 9s 4d. She could have been the widow of my ancestor Daniel, who probably died in 1680. The other Widd Dunkerley was later named as Mary Dunkerley, so she was likely to have been Moses’ widow. In 1692 Ann Dunkerley, the wife of Matthew, was given 3s 0d towards her rent, thereafter she was referred to as Matt Dunkerley’s widow, until her burial on July 8th 1698, when she was once again described as his wife. Matthew was definitely a mystery man, he never appeared in any of the Parish Registers. In 1699 Luke Dunkerley of Horsedge  (bap.1655) died and his widow joined the sad little band who were forced to wear the distinctive badge of P for Pauper.

 

At the beginning of the 18th Century Ja Dunkerley and John Dunkerley of Broadbent occasionally received small amounts. They were almost certainly the grandsons of my ancestor Daniel, who were living at or near Broadbent at this time. The entries for Dunkerleys began to dwindle after 1710, with only a Mary Dunkerley receiving occasional amounts until 1724 when old Daniel Dunkerley reappeared. He was probably the bastard son of Moses’ daughter Martha Dunkerley,  by John Asshton,  who was born on the 9th May 1655. 

 

From 1723 onwards the Dunkerleys appeared to have had a dramatic rise in their fortunes. From being in the position of receiving small amounts of poor relief, they became principal ratepayers at a place called Cleggs. This was situated in Sholver although it no longer exists by this name today. With the help of Michael Smith, a knowledgeable local historian who lives in the area, my fellow researcher Philip Dunkerley and I discovered, from a 1737 Enclosure Map, that Cleggs would have been very close to Mr Smith’s present house which is just off the Ripponden Road in Moorside. It doubtless belonged originally to the Clegg family who owned considerable property in Sholver as well as Oldham. 

 

 It has been a time consuming and frustrating task to try and link the earliest Dunkerleys together and presently I must admit defeat. The first fully documented member of my Dunkerley line was John Dunkerley, the son of Daniel Dunkerley. who was baptised on the 20^th November 1653. John married Susan Thorpe at Manchester Cathedral on April 21 1669. They lived at Horsedge and had at least five children although there were gaps in the parish registers, including nearly nine years between 1672 and 1681, when there were no Bishops Transcripts. That means that Sara, the first of their children to be shown in the baptismal register, did not appear until 1681. It is extremely likely that John and Susan had other children who were born before this date.There were three John Dunkerleys  who were producing families in the early part of the 18^th Century, I believe (but I cannot prove) that one of those was the eldest son of John and Susan Dunkerley who moved to Broadbent and lived there with his wife Elizabeth until 1710. 

 

Mathew and James were John and Susan Dunkerley’s two youngest sons. Matthew was baptised on the 2nd July 1693, and James on 10th February 1695/6. Their father John died on the 10th February 1700/1. The two boys would still have been very young and I think that it would have been natural for them to have joined their elder brother (John) at Broadbent. This is guesswork but it is born out by their marriages; James married Martha Jackson in 1712 ‘near Broadbent.’ Matthew married Hanna Heywood, ‘near Broadbent.’ in 1714. 

 

John Dunkerley’s wife Elizabeth died in 1710 and he married Anne Taylor of New Earth in 1711.Their eldest son Joseph was baptised at New Earth on 5th December 1712. They then moved to Hopkin ffould which is quite close to Horsedge and finally ended up at Pittbank. Edwin Butterworth wrote that by 1757 Joseph Dunkerley had become one of the principal ratepayers in Oldham. He died at Mumps in 1788. Butterworth also remarked that Joseph Dunkerley of Mumps was related to Joseph Dunkerley of Rhodes House, who was the grandson of James and Martha Dunkerley of Cleggs. It seems therefore that in the 19th Century the relationship was known and recognised.  

 

James was joined as the ratepayer for Cleggs by his elder brother Matthew in 1724, although according to St Mary’s baptismal register both continued to live at Counthill. I have no idea how this rise in their fortunes was achieved. I can only suppose that either one of their wives, Martha Jackson or Hanna Heywood brought them wealth, or that they were simply enterprising and ambitious young men who were prepared to take a chance. I do not see how they could have owned Cleggs, at least initially; it is more probable that they became tenants. It is even possible that they were joined by another distant relation, John Dunkerley of Sholver who married Ann Buckley in 1703/4. (See the chart for Moses Dunkerley.) I have no evidence for this, except that this John made a will[14] prior to his death in 1750, mentioning “all my messuages and lease=hold lands and tenement situate in Shoulver…”  This seems to indicate that he was a man of substance and yet he does not appear in the list of ratepayers in 1745, or in any of the lists that I have seen. In the Overseers Accounts just the surname Dunkerley  is given, followed by the place name – Cleggs. This is unusual and suggests to me that there were several Dunkerley families living there. Judging by the amount of the rates, (£1 0s 6d in 1745) Cleggs must have had some land attached to it, and dwellings, for the Dunkerleys had large families. Weaving was their principal occupation however. One statement made by Edwin Butterworth puzzles me, (page 58.) He wrote that “a Matthew Dunkerley possessed Clegg’s tenement in Sholver, in 1747.” He did not mention James, yet James was alive until 1762. 

 

At all events this family prospered. James and Martha had eight children, four boys and four girls. The eldest son, unusually called James, (1715 – 1794) married Elizabeth (Betty) Taylor and lived his whole life at Cleggs. He is my ancestor. The next son, John (1718 -1796) married Mary Crossley, he became a yeoman and died at Rhodes House. He was the father of Joseph Dunkerley who married Sarah Lees of Barrowshaw; the Lees family were yeoman farmers and well connected. Joseph was described in the baptismal register successively as a twister, a chapman and a throwster. At his death in 1798 he was Mr Joseph Dunkerley of Rhodes House. His son, also named John Dunkerley, reached even greater heights; he inherited much of the wealth of the Lees family through his mother.[15] Like his father Joseph, he was a cotton manufacturer who erected Pit Bank Hall, however he finally became bankrupt. .

 

James and Martha’s youngest son, Joseph, was the only child to be born at Cleggs, (1731/2 – 1801) He married Hannah Gartside. He too prospered and became a clothier; he died at Broadbent where his father had been a pauper all those years ago. Joseph’s son John also lived at Broadbent, describing himself in his will as a yeoman. 

 

Matthew and Hanna also had six children, four boys and two girls. Two of the boys, John and Daniel died in 1754, when there was much sickness in Oldham. James Dunkerley was the third son, he married Hanna/Anna Winterbottom and they had a large family. No fewer than three of his children married their cousins, the children of James and Elizabeth Taylor.

       Mary, (bap. 1746) married James, (bap. 1742.)

                   John (bap. 1748) married Betty, (bap. 1740.)

                   Betty (bap. 1750) married Isaac, (bap. 1748.)

 

As well as being directly descended from James and Martha I am also descended from John and Betty; this means that both brothers, James and Matthew, are my ancestors. 

 

SOURCES

For my research into the earliest of St Mary’s registers I used film No 09624020 Item 1 and Film No 1545705 Item 4 – 6 from LDS filming. These records were confirmed when I acquired The Lancashire Parish Register Society’s Transcript of The Registers of Oldham 1558 – 1682. For baptisms between 1682 and 1750 I used Parish Register Printouts and I am beginning to wonder if I should not go back to primary sources for those. 

 

If you would like to know more about the Dunkerley family in the latter part of the 18th century try and find Volume 3 of the Manchester Genealogist for 1999. There is an excellent article by Dr Peter Rathbone on page 195. He and I share the same ancestral line.

 

---

[1] Reference to Mrs Elenor Cudworth

[2] Reference to Jno ffitton

[3] Reference to Mary Street

[4] Reference to Mary Street

[5] Reference concerning Rich Fletcher and Jno Brierley

[6] Reference to Thomas Hibbert and Capt Greggs

[7] Reference concerning Rich Fletcher and Jno Brierley

[8] Reference concerning Rich Fletcher and Jno Brierley

[9] Probably the Theophilus Ogden who was Overseer in 1718.

[10] The natural father of Matt Street? See 1718 Overseers Poor Ley.

[11] My family

[12] Edwin Butterworth Historical Sketches of Oldham

[13] David Hey  The Oxford Companion to Local and Family History

[14] Lancashire Record Office. WOW John Dunkerley 1750

[15] Edwin Butterworth. Historical Sketches of Oldham.