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PARO C H IAL H ISTO RY
AC KWO RT H,
YORKS,
WITH ARCH IEOLOG ICAL,ANTI Q UARIAN, AND BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES RECORDS
,
BY T HE
REV . J L. SAYWHHJ H
FELLOW OF THE RO YAL H ISTORICAL SOCIETY,AN D AUTHOR OF THE
“ HISTORY AND ANNALS OF TTORTHALLERTON
, &O .
,
W ITH A}?
INTRODUCTION
BY THE
REV. R . V . TAYLOR,B.A. ,
AUTHOR OF“YORKSH IRE ANECDOTES
,
” WORTH IES AND CHURCHES OFLEEDS
,
”&c .
Rem omnem a p rinci'pio audies'
Ter.
ROS fortasse v‘
érae,certe graves .
— Cic.
PO N T EFR A C TATKINSON SON , PRINTERS PUBLISHERS
,5 , MARKET PLACE .
L O N D O NSIMPKIN , MARSHALL , HAM ILTON , KENT CO PATERNOSTER ROW .
R OW L A N D,B A R O N ST. O S WA L D ,
N O ST EL PR I O R Y ,
WITH WHOSE HISTORY OF
ACKWORTH IS INTERWOVEN,
AND TO THE
L O R D S O F T H E M A N O R O F A C KW O R T H,
VOLUME IS,BY K IND PERMISSION,
D E D I C A T E D
AUTHOR ’S PREFACE.
EVERY parish in England ought to have upon the shelves of
i ts village l ibrary an attractive,rel iable
,and inexpensive
volume of i ts own h istory. Until now Ackworth has not ;
but here i t is . Let those who like i t , read it , and those wh o
don’ t , produce a better . I t is not by any means complete,
but it, will form a good foundation upon which someone else
can , if they think fi t,rear an ornate supe rstructu re . What
has been built,however , cannot be pu lled down . J . L . S .
I N T R O D U C T I O N .
HAVING been requested by my friend ,th e Rev . J . L . Sayw e l l ,
to write an introduction to his “ Parochial History of
Ackworth,
” I do so with pecul iar pleasure , because i t will
afford me an opportunity of saying a few words on ParochialHistories in general , and on the “ History of Ackworth ” in
particular. It is pleasing to Observe that much greater atten
tion is now paid to Parochial Histories and subjects of research
than formerly. Parochial Histories seem to be very much
wanted at th e presen t time,as there is a growing demand for
them ; seve ral having been recently published including thoseof Askrigg ,
Hemingboro’
,Northall e rton
,Ingleton
,Morley
,
Pudsey,etc . I t is not an easy thing to w r i te th e history of a
parish,from the earl iest times to th e p resen t , wi th th e Roman
remains , Saxon earthworks,Dani sh an tiqu ities
,Norman
arch itectu re , Domesday extracts,ancient w ills and fines
,or
transfers of land ,e tc . In order to make a Paroch i al History
as complete as possible,i t i s very desira ble that i t should be
well indexed ,not only as regards persons and places
,bu t also
the principal subjects . I t should also contain as many
engravings as possible of th e principal persons,places , and
subjects , with ped igrees of the most impor tant families .I t is also desirable that biographical sketches of the p rincipalpeople in each parish should be included . The cle rgy
,as a
rule,from the ir posi tion and education ,
are best qualified for
prep aring these Parochial Histories , as each one ought to be
as familiar as possible with his own parish,having th e registers ,
with lists of clergy and patrons, e tc .,in his own possession
,
with a certain amount of the requ isite le i sure . It is almos t
the work of a l ifetime to become fully conversant even with
th e principal events in our Parochial Histories,and then one
ought to have a general knowledge of those in the immediate
l
VI. INTRODUCTION.
neighbourhood Many clergymen are now issu ing ParishMagazines
,with a page or two of local history each month
,
but,unfortunately
,there are comparatively few people in our
country parishes who care sufficiently abou t th e ancient his
tory of the ir native places even to spend a penny in purchasing a parish magazine
,much less subscribe or 5/ for a
history of their par ish . Very often the outsiders, and those
who have gone away, care more for i t than those l iving in th e
place. These local histories seem to be much more apprecia
ted in America than they are in this country. Even a small ,or poor history is be tte r than none at all ; being not so difficultto compile , less expensive , and much easier to enlarge. Now
that th e Bishop of Carlisle has followed th e example of th e
A rchbishop of Canterbury ,and the late Bishop of Durham
,in
recommending th e clergy to write the history Of their parishes ,i t i s most desirable that the Archbishop of York and the
Bishop of Ripon shou l d d o th e same with respect to th e
numerou s parishes in Yorkshire,and then a complete and
comprehensive “ History of Yorkshire would be speedily
accomplished, an undertaking which would be of great service
to th e Church gene rally and especially agreeable to the princi
pal people in each of th e respective parishes. Many of the
cle rgy have already published a considerable amount of local
history in the ir parish magazines, which might be utilised,and
reference might also be made to th e various D irectories,
D iocesan Calendars , Lawton’s “ Ecclesiastical Collections,
”
to
the different histories already published , to Bawdwen’
s Domes
d ay NBook
,
”
to K irkby’s “ Inquest, the Nonce Roll-s,
”
the
Liber Regis ,”
the Surtees Society’s Publications, Langdale’s
Topographical D ictionary, the Yorkshire Archaeological
Journals,and th e Record Series ; Allen
’s,Bai~nes
’
s, Bigl and’
s,
Black ’s and Murray’s “Yorkshire,and also to Torre ’s and
Archbishop Sharp ’s MSS . at York,and th e D iocesan Registers
,
etc. In order to prove that Parochial Histories are very much
wanted , I might quote the following extracts from a letter by the
INTRODUCTION .
Rev . Charles A . Well s,Organising Secretary of the Chu rch
Defence Insti tution . At th e recent Church Congress at'
Wakefield ,th e ques t ion of th e best means of instructing the
classes,as well as th e masses, in th e o rigin
,histo ry
,revenues
,
and work O f th e Church was proposed , bu t does not seem to
have rece ived any very definite reply . You w ill perhaps,
therefore ,allow me to make one or two p ractical suggestions
,
as to th e best way of attaining th e Objec t in hand : 1 . A his
tory of th e Parish Church,i ts architecture
,registers
,and en
dowments , written by one of the cle rgy,or some other well
qualified person ; should be’
circu lated in pamphlet formthroughout every parish . This is th e first step towards arousinginterest in Chu rch histo ry and Chu rch work . 2 . A list of
rectors or Vicars,from the foundation of th e Chu rch and
formation of the parish ,should be placed within or without
every Church ; and,where possible , th e names of patrons
,
curates,and churchwardens should be added . If the parochial
chest will not furn ish requis ite information ,a Visit to th e
diocesan registry generally will. 3 . Local biographies are also
most interest ing,of which each pa rish might easily furnish one
or more . 4. Interest should also be secured in th e local press,
mis- statements shou ld be at once corrected ,and sound info rma
tion given ; short ar ticles and note s on Church questions , withlocal ske tches , should be offered to th e different edito rs . 5 .
Historical and instructive leaflets should be widely circulated ,
and lectures on Church history,illustrated by th e magic
lantern,should be arranged for in every par ish du ring th e
winter months . Both illustrated lec tures and leaflets can be
obtained on appl ication to th e offices of the Church DefenceInstitution .
’ It i s, therefore ,most desirable that th e cle rgy
should be encouraged to do what they can towards wri ting a
history of the ir own parishes . The Rev . J . L . Saywe l l , who
has wri tten th e “ History of Northallerton,and who was
formerly curate of Ackworth ,i s well qualified to write the
“Paroch ial History Of Ackworth,
” and it is hoped that th e
INTRODUCTION .
book will have an extensive sal e,
'
so as not only to pay th e expen
ses of th e press,bu t also to leave th e compiler a margin of p rofi t .
for his t rouble othe rwise there is no encouragement‘for
"
othersto copy h is example ,
In wri ting and publishing the histories ofthei r parishes
,etc . Ackworth is a p l ace well known for its
Foundling Hospital,and Quake rs ’ School ; the benevolent
John Fothergill,M .D .
,and John Gully
,th e sporting
MP,etc . M r. Saywe l l h as se t a p raiseworthy example to h is
brother clergymen ,who
,h aving exceptional
'
Opportunit ie s for
becoming acquainted with th e history,past and p resen t
,and
th e local traditions and customs of th e par ishes under the i rcharge
,can render immense se rvice to antiquaries
,arch aeol o
gists , and county historian s , by p reserving ,for the information
of fu ture gene rations,matte r of much general in terest , which
would o therwise l ie hidden,or be forgotten .
R .
‘
V. TAYLOR ,RA.
M el becks Vica rage,
Nr . R ichmond,Yorlcs .
I N D E X.
W Persona l names a re necessa ri l y omitted .
A.
Ackworth , Found ling Hosp ital , viii . , 8 , 32 .
Quakers ’
Sch ool , vi i i .Ch urch Tower , 1 .
High , 2 .
Low , 2 .
Midd le , 2 .
Pari sh of, 2 .
d erivation of, 3 .
W illiam , 4 .
Ch urch , 8—18 , 252 .
M anor of, 1 7 , 44 , 139—1 44 .
Ch arities , 1 6 , 1 7 , 108 , 163 -203 .
Reversion of , 44 .
battle a t, 47 .
R ev . George , 52 .
mortgaged , 54 .
mi litary rendezvous , 57.
Park , 77 , 87 , 88 , 144.
Gazette , 84 .
R ev iew , 89 .
T e l egrap h , 91 .
Spa , 89 .
Feast, 89 .
mora lity of, 99 .
Rai lway Station , 1 12 .
College , 1 45 - 147 .
Accidents , 89 , 94 , 104 .
Acworth e , John d e , 46 .
Ak eworth , Henry d e , 43 .
Alban , St . , 29 .
Al fred , King, sonnet by , 1 7 .
Ann e , Queen , 54 .
Arson and Sacril ege , 1 07 .
Aug ustine , St . , 28 , 29 , 30 , 52 .
B .
Bad sworth , 1 , 41 .
Bad sworth Hunt , Past Masters of, 246 .
Bann s , forb idd en , 68 , 72 , 73 , 74 .
B argain , a curious , 68 .
Bath , O l d Ch alybea te , 1 62 .
Bed stead , antique , 61 .
Be lfry rul es , 1 1 , 1 2 .
Bell s , Church , 10 , 1 1 , 1 2 , 1 19 .
Benefactions to Poor , 16 , 1 7 .
Birth , a quadruple , 72 .
Boisil, Monk of Me lrose , 29 .
Boot and Sh oe , Hostelry , 2 , 61 .
orough bridge , Battle Of, 44 .
oundary bridge , 69 .
rackenh il l , 2 , 59 .
Brad ley ’
s Al fn shouses , 203 .
Brigh t , John , 91 .
Briti sh Sch ool , 94 .
Buria l ground , Friends ’
, 63 .
CCalcutta , Bish op of, 92.Ca lf, a wond erful , 89 .
Ca l verl ey’
s Dole , 1 87 .
Carr Bridge , 4 .
Castle Syke , 1 , 1 55 .
Cawood ’
s O l d Ch apel , 57 .
Celebritie s , 203 - 239 .
Centenary ce lebrations , 1 14 -1 19 .
Ch arities , 1 6 , 1 7 , 108 , 1 63 -203.
Ch arter , free warren 43 .
Ch ole’
ra, 96 .
Church Porch , 1 2 .
Plate , 1 8, 1 9, 20.
confiscated , 18.
Church Sch ools, 1 51 .
Ch urch rates, 96 .
Ch urchyard , new , 1 13 .
Civi l Wars , 56 .
Clergy , loya l , 56 .
Clock , Ch urch , 1 1 9 .
Coincidence , s ingular, 60 .
Conscription , 79 .
Constitution Hill, 3 .
Corona tion Festivities , 91 .
Court Leet , 81 .
Cowpasture , 1 28- 132 .
Cromw ell , 60 .
Cross , V i llage , 1 58 .
Curious Nomenclature , 37 .
Cuth bert , St .,1 2
, 28 .
D.
Dame’
s Sch ool 87 .
Dani sh An tiqu i tie s , v .
X .INDEX .
Dearth , 76 .
Derby , th e , 90 , 94 97 .
Destitution , Sp iritual , 82 .
D ictionary , Topograph ica l , Langd ale ’
s ,
D iocesan Ca lend ars , vi .D iocesan Registers , vi .Document , curious , 62 .
Domesday Book , Rawden ’s , V i .
Domesday Book , 3 , 41 .
Domesday Extracts , v .
Don , River, 4 .
E .
Ebb a , St 29 .
E cclesiastica l Col lection , Law ton ’
s , v i .
E cc lesia stica l D iscipline , 35 , 66 , 67 .
E dmund , St . , 28 .
Ednl ph , 8 .
Elm ,Vi llage , 98 , 1 20 , 156 .
Encroachments , 1 01 .
Enth usiast , a rel igious , 90 .
Ep itaph s , 75 , 92 , 250 .
th el frid , King, 29Eulogium H istorrarum ,
” 1 .
E xecution , 77 .
Explosion ,Colliery , 97 .
F .
Farmer , a model , 109 .
Feath erstone , 53 .
Ferrar, Rob ert , Prior of Nostel , 49 , 5 1 .
Fires , 59 , 1 07 .
Fines , Yorksh ire , 44 , 48 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 .
Flood , a great , 1 05 .
Folk - lore , 1 20 .
Font , 14 .
Formulas, Latin , 68 .
Fossils , 7 , 123 .
Found ling Hosp ita l , 69 , 72 , 73 .
Founta in ,village , 1 08 .
Friends ’ Burial Ground , 63 .
Friend s ’ Sch ool , 73 , 1 1 3 , 1 47- 151 , 245 .
Funera l, a unique , 70 , 71 .
G.
G as , introduction of, 92 .
G a s meeting, 1 22 .
Geologica l Ch aracteristics, 5 , 6 , 7 .
Gift , d eed of, 47 .
Gloucester, Duke of, 26 .
Gold sm ith ’s Hall , 20 .
Grace , Pilgrimage Of, 48 .
Grammar Sch ool , Abp . Hol gate’
s , 49 .
Grange , th e , 2 .
Great Rebellion . 8 .
G rotto , th e , 1 59 .
Gully , Robert, sh ipwrecked and murdered ,23 .
Gweth in street , 2 .
Ikene l d street , '
1 .
Inquest ,” Kirkby ’
s , vi.
Interments , in Friend s ’ Buria l Ground ,64-66 .
In terments in Low Ackworth BurialGround , 94- 95 .
Irvingism , 91 .
H .
Ha ilstone storm , 97 .
Ha l l, th e ol d , 1 59 .
Hardwick , East , 1 , 54 , 57 , 59 , 108 , 109.
Hardwick , West , 2 .
Harriers , Dr . Lee ’
s , 70 .
Hars ley E as t , Ch urch ,1 8 .
Hearse , Parish , 79 .
Hessle , 38 , 47 , 55 , 239 , 240 .
Hem sworth , 1 .
Herbert’ s Church Porch ,
”13 , 1 4.
Hilda , St. , 29 .
Hook ’
s , Dean , memorab le sermon ,102 .
Hopton Monumenta l Slab , 22 .
Horticu ltura l Show , 93 .
Hosp ital , Watkinson’
s , 73 , 199 .
House , o l d , 61 .
Howard , Luke , works O f, 247 , 248 .
Hund fridus , 42 .
H undh il l , 2 , 85 .
J .
Jub ilee Celebrations , 1 24- 126 .
K .
Kil lingbeck , pa intings by , 39
LLacy , fami ly of, 38 , 43 , 44.
Lacy , I lb ert de , 1 -42
Lady -we l l , 1 56 .
Lambe’s Ch arity ,Lectern , 1 5 .
Leger, St , th e , 90 .
L el ine ,” i
Leprosy , 75Liber Regi s ,” vi.
Lind say ’
s Legacy , 1 97 .
Link , a missing, 66.
Literature , 1 12 .
Livingstone ’s , Dr. , visit , 102 .
Local Meteorology , 7 .
Longevity , interesting record of, 70-71 .
Long Lane , 6 .
Lowth er ’ s Ch arity , 1 98 .
Low th er’s Hosp ita l , 17 .
Loy a lty , 1 02 .
Lych -
gate , 9 .
M .
Manifesto , a Rector’s , 1 10Manor, Lords of, 38 , 41 , 42 , 83 ,Marriage festivi ties , 102 , 103 .
Marriage , frustrated , 72 .
Marriages before Justices , 33 .
Mech an ic ’s Library , 9 1 .
Me lton ’s Register, 45
Meth od ists . Prim itive , 155 .
Mid land Ra ilway , 3 .
Military rendezvous , 57 .
Military service , 54 .
Mi l itia ,Loca l , 79 .
Monumenta l In scriptions , 20 -8 .
Moor T op , 2 .
Monica , St .
, 30
Murders , 73 , 77 .
Nevison , th e h ighwaym an , 1 60
Nomenclature , curious , 37Nonoe Ro lls , ” vi .
Norman , Arch itecture , v .
Norman Ch apel , 8 .
North a llerton . History of. Vii
North E astern Ra ilway , 3 .
Noste l , 38 , 59 , 67 .
Priory , 39 , 49 , 67 .
Arms , 40 .
Noste l pool , 4 , 67 .
O .
O belisks , 1 62 .
O rgan , Ch urch , 109 , 1 10 .
O sa l f , 8 , 43 .
O sgo l dcross , Wapentake of, 1 , 3 .
O swald ’
s Cross , 1 ,O swald , St . , 28 , 29 .
P.
Palsy , 75 .
Parl iament , Rump , 57 .
Paroch ia l Histories , v.Parish Magazines , vi .Parish Register , 31 -37 .
Paulinus , St . , 28 , 30 .
Plague stone , 57 , 1 61 .
Plymouth Brethren , 94 .
INDEX.
241 , 2 42 .
Poll , a parish , 106 .
Poll-tax , returns , 45 .
Pontefract , 41 .
Ponte fract , Booth royd ’
s History O f, 1 .
Pontefract , Castle , 1 , 43 .
Pontefract , Deanery of, 2 .
Fox ’
s His to ry of,2 .
Pontefract , St . Clement’
s Ch apel , 42 .
Poor ’s E sta te , Ackworth , 1 68 .
Popula tion , 84 , 94 .
Prints and engravings . loca l , 249 .
Pub lications , Surtees Society ’
s , vi .Pudd ing Bush , 1 7 .
Puritan into lerance , 57 .
Purston ,1 .
R .
Rectors and Curates , List of,Rec tory , th e , 38 , 39 .
Reform B i ll , th e , 88 .
“ Regina v . Joh n son ,
”10 1 .
Regis ter , Ske l ton ’
s , 45 .
Res tora tion Services , 97 .
Re turns , Poll -tax , 45
Richmond . Yorks ,VIII .
R ikenel d stree t, 1l ish worth
’
s Ch arIty , 192 .
Roman Road , 1 , 67 .
Roya l visit, 85 .
Sacri lege , 93 .
Savi le Arms , 20 .
Saxon Earthworks , V .
Sch ool , M rs . Howard ’
s , 152 .
Seaton ’
s B equest , 197 .
Sh arlston Car, 4 .
Skelton Ca stle , 1 6.Sla very Emanc ipa tion commemoration ,91Sport ing Cura te . a , 84 .
Stage Coach es , 83 .
Sta ined Glass , 28 31 .Stamford Bridge , 1 , 41 .
Stand ing Flat Bridge , 1 .
Statistics , interesting, 81 .
Stead Lane , 1 7 .
Stocks , th e Village , 1 04.
Stone , Sty le Acre , 38 .
Storm , great. 1 2 1 .
Streethouse Bar, 4 .
Sufiocation . 76 .
Survey , th e great , 42 .
Sykeh ouse , 4 .
Sykes , th e family of, 76 .
T.
Taxes , curious , 25 1 .
Tempest fam ily , 2 , 48.
xfi. INDEX .
Terriers , E cclesia stica l , 1 33 - 139 .
Th oma s , a found ling, 32 .
Tongues in trees . 98 .
T oph am’s Grant , 197 .
T orres’ vi .
T ownsman , a worth y , 1 23 .
T ownsl ey’s E state . t h e , 197 .
T rees , commemoration,103 .
V.Veron ica , St 30 .
“ Vessels of pewter, ” 18Vestments , 53 . Yorksh ire ,Vestry screen ,
15 .
VV.
Wa lks about Yorksh ire ,” Banks ’ , 2 , 4 .
W and , th e offic ia l , 95 .
Warren ,free , 44 .
Watchmen , last of, 1 21 .
5 .
W eath er , ph enomenal , 89 .
Went , river, 3 .
\Ventbridge , 1 .
Wesleyan Ch ape l , 100 , 153 .
VVes l ey’
s Visits , 73 , 74 .
West Rid ing, garden of,1 .
Wh itby Abb ey , 29 .
W indfa ll , a , 80 .
W indmill , 1 6 .
Workh ouse , th e O l d , 1 1 1 .
Worma l d ’s Ch arity , 163 .
Arch aeologica lAllen ’
s , v i .
Ba ines .
’ vi .Bigl and
’s vi .
Black ’s , v i .
History of, vi .Murray ’
s , vi .
record s , 48 ,Record , series , vi .fines , 44 , 48 , 5 1 , 52 ,
A C K W O R T H,
YORKSHIRE :
IT S H IST O R Y A N D A N N A L S .
Sweet Auburn " love liest vi l lage of th e pla in .
”
LEASANT for situation, th e ancient Tand charm ing village
of Ackworth,which has somet imes been called th e
garden of th e West Riding,
” is not seen by th e trave lleruntil almost within a stone ’s - throw of th e Church tower, which
is th e first object to attract notice on reaching the summit of
Castle Syke Hill,from th e north . I t is bounded on th e north
by Pontefract,of historic renown
,Standing Flat Bridge
,the
scene of th e battle of Stamford Bridge, be ing th e boundary
mark between th e parishes of Ackwo rth,Badsworth ,
and
Pontefract, 1
'
on th e sou th by Hemsworth,on th e east by
East Hardwick and Wentbridge , and on th e west by Purston
and VVragby . I ts present position is in th e upper divi sion of
th e hundred (h a nd recl am cen ta ria ) or wapentake (w eep on ta c) §of Osgol d cross (Oswald
’s Cross) . The Roman road from Don
caster to Castleford call ed Ikenel d or Rikenel d street,which
th e author of th e “Eulogium Historiarum” styles the “ Lel ine
,
Seen from a d istance , as from th e top Of “Rob inson C lose , ’ Ackworth isa lways a. p ic ture , espec ial ly toward s sunset on a summ er’s even ing.
1 In 1080 , Ilbert de Lacy built Pontefract Castle . At th at time Ackworthh ad only j ust pa ssed out of Saxon proprietorship .
1 Vide “ Boo th royd’
s Hist . Pont.” Th e statement , h owever, th at Stand ingFla t Bridge is th e scene of th e Batt le of Stamford Bridge is sufiicientl y h ypoth etica l and unauth en ticated to be untrustworth y . J . L . S.
Wreport , arms ; and ( ac , take or touch .
ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
c rossed th e Gweth in (Watling) stree t at Pontefract near th e
park,and thence through Ackworth on th e ridge called Castle
Syke to Hemsworth and Worceste r .
"6 Ackworth is a largevillage
,and one of th e best in th e distr ict . 1
‘ It was or iginallya Saxon hamlet, which is p roved by th e derivation of its name
,
and by the names of its first p roprietors . As to ecclesiastical
ju r isdiction ,Ackworth is situated in th e Deanery of Pontefract
and Archdeaconry O f th e West Riding and D iocese of York .
Th e parish consists of three parts,High; Low ,
and M iddle
Ackworth,with the newly sprung up and increasing settlemen t
of Moor Top ,and th e li ttle hamlet of Brack enh il l . B racken
hill is almost en ti rely inhabited by stoneworke rs . Less than a
cen tu ry ago i t was a sweetly pretty de ll, the abode of a repu ted
witch,Whose tenemen t is still pointed out . Moor Top consists
of several good houses , th e rest are th e cottages of mine rs and
quarrywork ers . Its most interesting feature is unquestionablyth e O l d “ Root and Shoe hostelry, where th e last of t h e o l d
coaches of th e distric t stopped to convey passengers th e fi rststages of the ir journey home . Middle Ackworth is chiefly inhabited by members of th e Society of Friends
,wh o possess a
large school and college in th e vicinity . Hund il l,or Hundhil l
,
which gives i ts name to a mansion and a few se rvants ’ cottagesaround it
,formed a part of th e par ish O f Ackworth prio r to
1876 , as also did th e Grange , the seat of th e Tempest family,
bu t both hamlets are now in th e parish of East Hardwick . §Th e Tempests are an o l d Roman Cathol ic family of County
standing,and maintain a domestic chaplain ,
chapel and school
for th e use of th e household and retainers . Th e school is
unde r‘
gove rnmen t inspection ,and invariably secures an ex cel
lent report . Th e par ish Of Ackworth is within th e magisterialdivision of Pontefract , th e Poor Law Union of Hemsworth , and
Vide “ Fox ’s Hist . p . 83 .
1 Banks ’ “ Wa lks abou t Yorksh ire , p . 287 .
I SO ca lled because it stands upon a h igh er level .I t is more th an probab le th at both E ast and West Hardwick were at one
time incorporated w ith Pontefract.
4 ACKWORTH , YORKS. ,
O .E.,an estate or manor
,) a close or farm,u sually one well
watered . It denotes a place ward ed or protected,and is
derived from th e ol d English word w a r ia n,to ward or defend .
"6
Brack enh il l takes its name from th e large quanti ty of bracken
or eagle fern (enp teris a qu i l in a ) which flou rishes on th e ad
join ing common . Th e prefix Hnnd in Hundil l comes fromH a nd , O H ,
a hound,hence Hound-hill orHundh il l , Ackworth
like many other ancien t places , gave its name to families
res ident the re in . Th e Rector of'
Plumstead in 1 853 was a
William Ackworth,whose ancestors
,there can be no doubt
,
sprung from Ackworth,and bore th e then common appe l lation
of d e Ackw or th . Families of this name are still numerous ,bu t i ts e tymology is variou s . Ackworth is th e only place -name
in England,although the re are three others with th e p refix
A ck, and several which enj oy th e uncorrupted prefix Ac.
Wa ters .
The r iver l Vent flows through Ackwor th,indeed th e Village
may b e said to stand upon it . Camden gives th e Noste l pool
as the source of th e r iver ; but th e ordnance survey appropriates the nameWen t beck to th e stream which rises on SharlstonCar
,near Streeth ouse Bar
,flows ac ross Went lane, parallel to
Ackworth,and thence under Ackworth Car Br idge -
f Thereare other smaller streams, by which th e lands are well i rrigated ,and rendered wood productive . The p re tty little hamlet ofWentbridge takes its name from the riverWent
,and th e bridge
which the re crosses i t. From this poin t th e Went deepens and
widensi
,until it empties i tself into th e river Don ,
abou t threemiles below Sykehouse
,and six or seven below Goole.
Th e quality of the Spring wate r at Ackworth is uniformlyexcellent , that of th e lower springs being a little softe r thanthat of th e upper. The following is an analysis of spring
Vid e O l d Yorksh ire , vol . 1 , p . 1 70 .
f Banks ’ Wa l ks about Yorksh ire , p . 273 .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
wate r,taken at a depth of 100 feet , by Joseph Spence , of York .
50 grains of solid matter to th e gallon,44 of which could be
dissolved in d istilled water, th e remainder being clay, with a
trace of o rgani c matter. Of th e 44 grains nearly 1 0 werecommon salt
,and 34 carbonate of soda
,with a little sulphate
and oxide of iron. Th e water proved perfectly sweet at everystage of the proce ss of evaporat ion . I t is obviously su itable
for domestic use,and particularly so for w ashing. On account
of th e absence O f the su lphate of i ron,lead would be acted
upon by it,and therefore pipes and c isterns of that metal
shou ld be avoided .
”
Th e above analysis will be found a
generally accu rate desc ription of Ackwo rth water, bu t the
following analysis,taken at a depth of 1 40 feet , is , perhaps ,
nearer th e mark .
“5 1 g rains of solid matter to th e gallon ,
viz carbonate of soda, 47 ; potash ,t races ; l ime
,magnesia ,
02 ; iron ,t races ; common salt
,2 ; silica , alumina, and i ron
(clay) , Slight traces of nitrates appeared ,but no iodides
or bromides .
” I t wi l l b e seen,therefore
,that Ackworth water
is of very uncommon occurrence,since carbonate of soda is
very rarely found in well water, and ,in th e few case s known , in
much small er quan ti ties .
” Such, too,
is th e opinion of RichardReynolds
,F of Leeds .
Geol ogica l Chama cteristics .
The soil of Ackworth may be described as a rich~
clay.
Refe rence to a geological map of th e district will shew that
the re is a substratum of stone underlying nearly th e whole
area of th e parish,but
,unfortunately
,not thi ck enough for
quarrying , except towards th e sou th and sou th -west,where
ex tensive quarrying Operations are ca rried on . In many
places i t r uns very near th e surface . Th e Ackworth stone ,as
a ru le,is good
,but in places it is exceptionally soft
,and unfi t
for build ing purposes, which accounts for so many “ fau lt s .
Vide Hist . Ackworth Sch oo l ,” pp . 258-9 .
6 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
Coal abounds in the vicin i ty , and, it is thought, might be foundat greater depths with in the boundaries of th e parish . An
experimental bore of 1 53 feet was made in a field in Long lane ,in 1860 , bu t coal was not reached, although there were indications of its existence at a still lower level. Rich ve ins of i ronore are known to exist at ce rtain points
, especially in Low
Ackworth,inasmuch as many of th e natu ral water springs are
strongly oxidised . It will therefore be seen that there is mu ch
hidden wealth lying beneath Ackworth , and it i s not a too
great stretch of imagination to predict that in fifty years ’ time,
or even less, th e picturesque village of Ackworth will have be
come one of th e busiest mining centres of th e West Ridingof Yorkshire . Some account of th e upper strata will beinteresting to th e reader. A bor ing made in 1 851 revealed th efollowing layers
ClaySandstoneShaleSandstoneClaySandstoneClaySandstoneShaleSandstone
Sandstone
Total depth, 136 feet . In
some distance from th e first,
C l a and SandstoneLig t ShaleSandstoneBlack bossPottery ClayIronstoneLight ShaleSandstoneLight ShaleSandstone
1861 another bore was made
with th e fol lowing result
1 4 ft . 0 in .
1 ft. 4 i1 4 ft . 8 in .
9 ft. 0 in .
1 8 ft. 0 in .
8 ft. 0 in0 ft. 6 in.
9 ft. 0 in9 ft. 6 in32 ft. 0 in
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 7
Total depth , 1 1 6 feet . Coal probably, indeed doubtless, l iesstill Fossils of different pe riods and Species have been
found in th e strata of th e stone beds,th e most common being
that of th e Equ iseta ,or gigantic horsetail of th e secondary
period , scaled like th e cones of th e fir.
Loca l M eteorol ogg.
Th e climate and temperatu re of Ackworth are such as to
make the Vil lage and i ts neighbou rhood a most desirable placeof residence , and accordingly we find a goodly number of
country houses and neat villas adorning th e landscape in al l
directions . In 1 842,Luke Howard, Esq ,
F published a
brochure,entitled
,
“ A cycle of e ighteen years in th e seasonsof G reat ” Bri tain ; deduced from meteorological Observations
made at Ackworth,in th e West Riding of Yorkshire
,from 1 824
to 1 84 1 compared with othe rs before made for a like period
(ending with 1 823) in th e vicinity of London .
”
Th e work is embel l ish ed w i th five d iagram ic plates , togethe r w ith elaborate andexhau stive tables
,shewing the mean heights of th e barometer,
yearly mean temperatures,cycle of rain
,total d epths of rain
for each month of th e year, supplemented by many u sefu l
notes on th e seasons . The book is dedicated to th e Right Hon .
th e Earl Fitzwill iam,and published in London . From it th e
following facts are deduced . Both th e climate and tempe ratu reof Ackworth are singularly even ,
both in cold and warm
periods if,however
,an exceedingly dry season should inter
vene (which i s of rare occurrence ), i t i s qu ickly compensated
for by an exceedingly wet one ; and an exceedingly col d winter
by an exceedingly h ot summer. At Ackworth,Mr. Howard
h as observed,that upon the whole October is th e we ttest month
in th e year , th e rain ,however, falling mostly by night
,ve rifying
a remark which has nearly become p roverbial , that the re are
always twenty fine da ys in October.
” As a rule,April i s (un
Th e stone strata at Ackworth is undoubted ly a large th row extend ingea st and west , th e Hemsworth coa l seam d ipping a t Ackworth , and appearingagain at Pontefract. J . L . S,
ACKWORTH,YORKS.
fortunately for the farmers) a comparitiv el y dry month,but
,as
Mr . Howard Obse rves, “ it is the arrangement of th e All-W ise
Creator,and ordered
,no doubt
,for the best on the great scale
of things.” In other respects i t is shewn that th e climate of
Ackworth i s especially suitable for inval ids,a fact no doubt
discovered by the p romoters of th e Foundling Hospita l , a l ittle
too relaxing,bu t
,on the whole , helpfu l to weak constitu tions
,
and Mr. Howard advises his readers to make a tr ial of i t,before
resorting to other skies more favoured by natural position .
Agricultu r ists may also der ive considerable comfort and use
fu l information from Mr. Howard ’s l ittle book . Th e death- rateat Ackworth i s very l ow
,th e mean average for the last twenty
years being 207 .
i
The per centage for 1884- 5 was 1 1,with a
population of nearly
The Chu rch .
The original Church of Ackworth,l ike the village itse l f, was
undoubtedly Saxon,founded, probably, e ither by th e first Saxon
proprietors of the parish— Edu l ph and O sa l f— or thei r imme
diate predecessors .
"e This is conclusively proved by th e words
I ba Eccl es'ia et Presbyter in th e Domesday Survey ; and th e
Church itself wou ld of course Share the fortunes and expe riencethe same vicissitudes as th e village . Of these demol itions
,re
bu ildings,additions
,and alterations
,there i s
,unfortunately
,no
record , but an impression generally prevails that th e nave of
th e Church was desecrated during th e Great Rebellion (bel l um
fana ticornm) , by being transformed into a vast stable and
mil itary inn,at which time th e edifice su stained very severe
damage,both internally and externally
,notably th e font, which
was pulled down and buried in th e churchyard . When th e
Church was completely renovated and restored by public
subscription,in the year 1 852
,the remains of an ancient
Norman Chapel, occupying th e site of th e present nave , were
distinctly traceable , especially on th e south Side , where one of
Vide Hist. Pont. , pp . 58- 104 . Th e l iving h as rema ined in th e patronageof th e Crown , as Dukes of Lancaster, from th e time of th e Lacys .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
the arches was nearly entire , bu t whatever rel ics O f the past
remained,or were brought to ligh t during th e Operat ions
,we re
e i ther destroyed by th e workmen,or confiscated to th e private
use of the contractor,or oth e r persons of a scient ific tu rn of
mind wh o happened to visit the scene . It is said that bar rowloads of O l d carving
,both in stone and wood ,
were removed
whol esale by p r ivate persons,wherewith to ornament the ir
gardens and to give the rooms of the ir hou ses an antiqueappearance ' And this was done without one word of expostu
lation from th e archi tect,contractor
,or bu ilding committee
The Society for the Preservation of Ancien t Bu ildings and
Monuments was,unfortunate l v, no t in ex istence at that time
,
but it is marvellous how persons with any idea o f prop rietycould tolerate such vandalism and Spoliation . Be that as i t
may,there i s abundance of evidence to confirm th e statement
,
for wherever th e eye i s turned , ecclesiast ical rel ics abound , and
that not on sacred ground .
In teresting Fea tu res .
Situated near the centre Of th e village,th e Church and
Rectory,although standing back from th e road in rural soolu
sion,occupy a somewhat e levated position . T he fi rst object
,on
approaching th e Church,to attract the visitor’s notice is th e
Lgch-
ga te,
which presents a rustic and p retty appearance . I t is bu il t of
Norwegian Oak,and is now nearly black , although qu ite
modern . It bears th e following inscript ion ,engraved upon a
brass plate .
C his it’
grlg- (féatc
Qirrrtrb 1 8 7 8 .
Passing through th e lych -
gate,
In Memory of
Th e Rev . Joseph Kenworthy.
H e w a s 31 yea rs Rector of th is
Pa rish , a nd ca rried out the
R estora t ion of th is C hurch .
DIED A.D . 1 875 .
the tower and south porch of
1 0 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
th e Church are th e principal external features which strike
th e eye . Th e
Tower
is th e oldest part of th e Church ,indeed , it is th e only portion
of it which remain s in its enti rety after th e restoration of
1 852 . It is solid and well bu il t,and dates from about th e
fourteenth century. It contains a peal of six bells,each
bear ing a legend or inscription . Height : 68 fee t , 9 inches .
The Bel l s.
An au thori ty on Campanology says : “the bells at Ackworth
appear to b e of th ree date s, two of pre
- reformation times,one
of th e seventeenth cen tury,and one of th e eighteenth cen
tu ry,with a l l th e self-gl orifica tion and self- assertion thereto
belonging. 1'
No . 1 is in th e key of C sharp,and bears the following
inscription
TIMOTHY LEE D .D . RECTOR 1 760 .
No . 2 . Th e note of this bell is B,and th e inscript ion
W WAGNER I GARLICK CHURCHWARDENS 1 760 .
No. 3 . Key of A. This bell bears th e common legend of
IESVS BE OVR SPEED A .S . WC . FECIT .
1 662.
Where th e asterisks are placed there is a coat of arms, repeated
e ight times, very difficu lt to decipher,except this much
p a r ty p er p a l e, 1 , a chevron betw een three bel l s, tw o and one
2,three bongets, a l so two and one.
1 Th is enumeration is incorrect ; th ere are th ree eigh teenth century bells ;the two oldest are not dated ,
1 2 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
(3) Tha t one of th eir numb er be appointed Leader , wh o w il l be t e
spons ible for good order in th e Be lfry ; wh o w il l give d irections to th e
Ringers and keep a Belfry book . Th a t th e Leader be appointed by th eRector annua lly .
(4) Th a t no one , except th e R ingers and th ose of th e Parish wh o are
learn ing to ring, sh al l be 1 11 th e Belfry at ringing or practising time . T he
inti oduction o f a Friend to th e Belfry at a practice , by any R inge1 , neednot be regarded a s a breach of th i s rule .
(5) Th at no drinking or smoking be a llowed in th e Belfry at any time
th at i f any Ringer break th is rule or be quarrelsome or u se bad language ,th e Lead er sh a ll at once stop th e ringing for th at occasion and sh all reportth e sam e to th e Rector .
(6) Th a t th e d uty of th e R ingers be to ring on Sunday s for both
Service s : a lso on Christmas D ay ,New Year ’s Day , and on th e Queen ’s Birth
d ay : also on any oth er o cca s ion , w ith th e d istinc t consent of th e Rectorand one of th e Ch urchwardens , b u t not w i th out it .
(7) Th at the R ingers a ssemb le for regu lar practice on one even ing, atleast , in th e w eek . a s may be arra nged ; or more frequentl y , if. th ey d e sireit : th a t th e ringing on such occas ions sh all cease , at th e late st , at 9 o
’
c lockp .m . Any Ringer ab sent from th e Be lfry for four weeks in succe ssion ,
w ith out giving d ue notice to th e Leader. and sati sfactory rea sons for h isab sence , sh a ll be con s idered to h ave resigned and h is name sh all be at onceremoved from th e List of R ingers .
(8) Th at , in case of ringing th e Bel ls by request , and w ith th e Rector ’sexpres s perm ission . on th e occasion of w edd ings or any oth er joyousoccasion , m oney only sh a ll be taken a s payment , wh ich sh a ll be d ivided at
once amongst th e Ringers , in equa l portions by th e Leader.
(9) Th at any sub ject of d ispute or m isunderstand ing arising amongst
th e R ingers sh a ll be immed iate ly referred to th e Rector and Ch urchwardens ,and th e ir d ec ision sh all be cons idered fina l .
(10) Th at no one be appointed R inger w ithout consenting first to th eserules , and signing th em and a l l Ringers are to und erstand th at th ese ru lesare only intended for th e com fort and good ordering of a l l concerned and
it is h oped th at th ey w il l a l l cord ia l ly assist in observing and ma inta iningth em .
Let a l l th ings be done decently and in order.W . M . FALLOON , Rs c
'ron .
JOSEPH NELSTROP, y on R H 1J. HEATON CADMAN ,
U C W RDENS
In a niche over th e outside of th e
Porch
i s an effigy of St. Cuthbert, the pat ron saint . holding . in his
dex ter hand a crozier. Inside th e perch on both sides of th e
wall are inscribed appropriate stanzas , selected from Herbert ’s
Chu rch Porch , as fol lows
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
On th e right hand side above th e foramen is th e first verseof th e “Sup er l im in a re,
” thusThou , wh om th e former precepts haveSprinkled , and taugh t h ow to beh aveTh yse lf in Ch urch approach , and taste
Th e Church ’
s my stica l repa st .”
On th e right beneath are two verses from th e Peri rha n
ter iwm
Sum up , at n igh t , wh at th ou h ast done by d ay ;And , in th e morn ing, what th ou h a st to d o .
Dress and undress thy sou l , m ark th e decayAnd grow th of it . I f, w ith thy w atch , tha t too
B e down , th en w ind up both . Since w e sh a l l beMost surely j udged , make th y accounts agree .
In brief, acqu it th ee bravely : p lay th e man .
Look not on pleasures a s th ey come ,b ut go .
Defer not th e least virtue . L i fe ’
s poor spanMak e no t an e l l , by trifl ing in th y woe .
If th ou do il l , th e joy fade s . not th e pa insIf well , th e pa in doth fade , th e joy remains .
On th e leftJudge not th e preach er ; for h e is thy judge .
I f th ou m is like h im , th ou conceiv’st h im not .
God ca lleth preach ing. fol ly . D o not grudgeT o pick out treasures from an earth en pot .
Th e worst speak someth ing good . If a l l want sense ,G od takes a text , and preach eth patience .
He th at gets patience , and th e b le ss ing whichPreach ers conc lud e w ith , h a th not lost h is pa ins .
He th at by be ing a t Church , e scapes th e d itchWh ich h e migh t fa l l in by compan ions , ga ins .
H e th a t loves God ’
s ab ode , and to comb ineW ith saints on earth , shall one d ay w i th th em sh ine .
Above the foramen on th e left hand side is th e remaining
verse of th e Sup er l im'ina re.
Avoid profanene ss come not near.Nothing but h oly , pure , and c lear ,O r th a t wh ich groaneth to be so ,
M ay , at h is peril , furth er go .
”
On th e left below,a continuation of th e Perirha n ter l um .
Sund ay s ob serve . Th ink , wh en th e be l ls do ch ime ,"l
‘
is ange ls ’
mus ic ; th ere fore come not late .
God th en d ea ls b lessings if a king d id so ,
Wh o w oul d not h aste . nay , gi ve , to see th e sh ow
Resort to sermons , but to pray ers most
Praying's th e end of preach ing.
Wh en once th y foot enters th e ch urch , be bare .
God is more th ere th an th ou for th ou art th ereOnly by H is perm ission . Th en bew are ;And m ake thy self a l l reverence and fear.
Knee l ing ne ’
er spoil ’d s ilk stoc k ing. Qu it thy sta te .
Al l equal are w ith in th e church ’
s gate .
”
14 ACKWORTH,YoRKs.
,
And on th e rightIn time oi service sea l up both th ine ey es ,And send th em to thy h eart tha t , spy ing sin ,
Th ey may w eep out the sta ins by th em d id rise .
Th ose doors be ing sh ut , a l l by th e ear comes in .
Wh o marks in ch urch - time o th ers ’
symme try ,Makes a l l th e ir beauty h is d eform ity .
Le t va in or busy th ough ts h ave th ere no part ,Bring not thy p lough , thy p lots , thy p leasures th ither.Christ purged H is Tem ple ; so must th ou , thy h eart.All world ly th ough ts are but th ieves met togeth er
T o cozen th ee . Look to thy ac tion s well ;For ch urch es e ith er are our h eaven , or h ell .
Over th e inne r door upon a sc roll are th e Latin words
"genius 5gti
330ml C a l if“
Unfo rtunately , th e restoration was carried out almost entirely
with Ackwo rth stone,which is
,as a rule , of a soft and perishable
natu re,consequently portions of th e exter ior of the church are
mu ch weather-worn and decayed,although not forty years
o l d .
Th e next obj ect of interest is theFont,
which is w ell worth th e notice of th e A rchaeologist and Anti
quarian . It is octagonal in shape , and runn ing around it isth e fol l owmg 1nscr1pt ion : Tho ma s Bra d l ey , D .D . , Rectore,
H .A . ,T O. Ga rd ia n is , B ap t
'ister iam B el l o Phana tieoram
D irntam D euno Erectum ,That is : “ Thomas Bradley
,
Doctor in D ivin ity ,be ing Rector
,H A. and T C ,
Churchwardens.This font thrown down in th e war of th e Fanatics, was set upagain in th e year 1 663. I t is probab l e that Ackworth Churchsuffered greatly during th e civi l wars , not only from i ts prox imity to Pontefract, b ut also from th e c ircumstance of one of
th e K ing’s chaplains be ing its rector. We know for certain
that th e ancient fon t was broken down . Th e first baptism,in
the font newly set up, was 24th November, 1 663 . When the
Church was restored in 1 852, the basin of an ancient Norman
font was discovered unde r one of th e north aisle pillars,of
which,indeed
,i t formed th e foundation . Th e erection of this
Th e House of God , th e gate of Heaven .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 5
aisle having been subsequent to th e civil wars,it is exceedingly
probable that this was the bowl of the ancient chu rch fon t,
which had been placed there , on th e erection of th e aisle in
question , to prevent its be ing desecrated . During th e progressof th e works, and whilst th e Rector was absen t from home
,i t
disappeared ,and was supposed by th e workmen to have been
broken up, and used in th e build ing of th e new ch ancel wall .
In the cou rse of a year or two,however, this ancient rel ic re
appeared as a flower-vase in a garden ,which was then the
property of one of the sub - contractors . Unfortunately,by the
builder ’s contract , i t was provided that a l l refuse materials
which could not be used in th e re - erection of the chu rch we reto be th e property of the contractor. But
,surely
,th e removal
of so sacred an obj ect as th e bowl of th e ancien t chu rch fontwas never contemplated by that clause, and its presen t sacrilegi
ous exhibition in th e centre of the village can be regarded by
no right-minded person in any other light than as an offence
against public decorum . Dr. Bradley (durin g whose incumbencythe present font was set up) had been Chaplain to Charles I.
,
and Prebendary of York, and h ad married Lady Frances
,
daughter of John Baron Saville ,* o f Pontefract , and h e seemsto have been proud of his relationship and antecedents . His
grand- child,Charles
,son of Mr. Danyell Godfrey ,
was th e firs tto be baptized in th e new font . This is recorded at full length
in th e parish register, as having occu rred 24th November , 1 663 .
Th e B ra ss Leete-rn is a handsome one,and was presen ted to
th e Church by J . Heaton Cadman, Esq , Reco rder of Pontefract.Th e Vestry Screen ,
consist ing of two parts , and enclosing
the north- east corner of the Church , is a fine spec imen of carved
oak , th e work of A . Hayball , Sheffield, Se , and bears th efollowing inscript ion .
“These tw o screens a re the gift of Josephand Ca rol ine Nel strop ,
of A ckworth Lodge. Erected A .D .
Th e organ case is intended to be en su ite, and th e inscription
upon it is as follows “Organ Ca se. Donor C . M . K enworthy ,
Vide Monumental Ep itaph s , and B iography of Dr. Brad ley .
1 6 ACKWORTH,YORK S
,
Ackw orth Rectory ,A .D. The choir stall fin ials are also
worthy of not ice .
* On th e west wall of th e north aisle ispainted th e following :
B enefa ctions to the Poor of the Pa r ish of A ckworth .
1 692 . Elizabeth,rel ict of Sir John Lowther
£20 0 O
1 71 7. Robert Lowther , of Ackworth,Esq . 50 0 0
17 1 8. Margaret,wife of Wi lliam Norton
,of Saw
l ey ,Esq .
1 722 . Ral ph Lowther,of Ackworth Park
,Esq.
1724 . Ann,daughter of Ralph Lowther, Esq .
1724 . Elizabeth ,d aughter of Lawson Trotter
, of
Skelton Castle,Esq .
1 729 . John Lowthe r,of Ackworth Park
,Esq .
1739. Thomas Bright,of Badsworth
,Esq.
1744 . The Rev . W illiam Key
1703 . Robert Mason,Gent.
Ann,Rel ic t of the Rev . J . Bolton
By Cash from a Stock of Cows
A . n. P. N .B .— T he above Benefactions are
4 laid ou t in Hou se and Land uponSee the Lease to Anthony Surtees
,Esq ,
for
award. £ 1 2 Os . 0d . per year , which Leaseexpires in th e year of our Lord
Yea r l y Pa ym en ts .
170 1 . Ann,Rel ict of Robert Calverley
Matthew Lambe , YeomanFor th e Land on which th e W indmill is
e rected 0 5 O
Je rvas Seaton ,of East Hardwick, for one
acre in Thorpl eys
John Wormald, to th e poor
And for pu tting out poor children
Th ese stal ls were inserted in 1852 .
i Ackworth House wa s sub sequently sold to J . M . Hepworth , Esq . , for
wh ich sum is now invested in th e 3 per cent . Annu ities .
1 Th is is an error on the board . Th e payment is on ly ten sh i llings a year.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Stephen Cawood, to th e poor
And for repairing hou se,Stead lane
John Rushfo rth,to th e poor
John Topham, for one acre of land on the
Common 0 4 8
1 803. Sarah and Francis Townsley,died intestate
,
and in possession of a house,malt
kiln, etc .
,and 7 acres of land adjoining
the Rectory on the East,and 4 acres
of land called Pudding Bush,which
Estate for want of he irs went to the
Trustees of th e Manor of Ackworth,
for th e benefi t of th e Freeholders .
1 810 . Henry M itten,o f Ackworth ,
left £20 (Dutydeducted) , th e interest to be paid to
20 poor w idows, yea rly, on New -Year’sDay
,by the Chu rchwardens and Over
seers .
1 873 . David Lindsay,
aleof Leeds
,invested for
inmates of Lowther’s Hospital -r 1 50 0 0
Inside th e Church ,near th e South door
,on th e right-hand
side going in ,painted on a sheet of zinc may be seen th e
sublime prayer of K ing Alfred ,as follows
Forgive now , ever Good " and give to us
Th at in o ur m ind s w e soar up to Th ee ,Maker of a l l th ings " Th rough th ese troublous way s ;And from amongs t th ese busy things of l ife ,0 tender Fa th er " w ielder of th e world "Come unto Th ee , and th rough Thy good speedW ith th e mind ’
s eyes we ll Opened w e ma y see
Th e w e ll ing spring of Good . th at Good Thy se lf,O Lord , the King of Glory Th en make wh oleT h e ey es of our und ers tand ings , so th at weFath er of ange ls , fasten them on Th ee "Drive away th is th ick m ist . wh ich long wh ile now
Hath h ung before our m ind 's eyes h eavy and darkEnl igh ten now th e mind
’
s ey es w i th T hy ligh t .Master of Life for Th ou , O tender Fa th er,Art very brigh tness of th e True Ligh t Thyself
Buried at th e east side of the Ch urch . Died Oct. 7 , 1874 , aged 77.f
B
ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
Thy self Alm igh ty Fath er " th e sure restO f a l l Thy fa st and true ones w inninglyTh ou orderest it , th a t we m ay see ThyselfTh ou art of a l l th ings origin and end ,
0 Lord of a l l m en " Fath er of angels " Th ouE asily bearest a l l th ings w ithout toi lTh ou art Th y se lf th e way and leader tooO f everyone th at l ives , and th e pure placeTh a t th e way lead s to a l l men from th is soi lThrough out th e bread th of b e ing, yearn to Th ee .
KING ALFRED THE GREAT AND Goon .
Th e seats in th e Church are partly free,and partly appro
priated . In 1852 , th e Incorporated Society for th e bu ilding of
Churches,granted £ 120 towards th e re- building of Ackworth
Church,upon condition that 173 seats* numbered 1 to 34 be
reserved the re in for th e use of the poorer inhabitants of th e
parish. This fact is recorded upon a small board hung up in
th e vestry. Accommodation is provided for five hundred and
six people,which
,compared wi th th e population, is certainly
insuffic ient .
Th e nave i s three bays in length,th e arches of which rest
upon piers of three - quarter cylindrical shafts,with circular
moulded capitals . The corbel s are all carved with symbol icalfigures . Th e tower and chancel arches are lofty and elegant
,
with lightly fol iaged capitals,the whole effect of which wou ld
undoubtedly be improved by th e additional height and ligh t
imparted by a c l erestorie . Th e entire length of the Church is
70 feet, and th e entire width 50 feet.
CHURCH PLATE .
There can be no doubt that th e original Church plate of
Ackworth was confiscated by th e Duke of Northumberland , in
commonwithnearly all th e plate of th e Yorkshire Churches,to th e personal use of th e “ Royal Harry,
” in May, 1 553 . How
long th e Holy Communion was consecrated and administered
at Ackworth in vessels of pewter ”
we do not know, but the
oldest silver chalice i s dated 1 631 , and bears th e following
A clerica l error . Th e word seats ough t to be sittings .
f Th ere is a silver paten a t East Harlsey Ch urch , near North allerton , wh ichbears date 1571 .
20 ACKWORTH, roaxs,
is also very plain, th e hall marks, which are nearly obliterated ,being th e only marks to attract attention . The first mark is
th e nex t is unintel l igib l e , th en comes a lion passant guardant ,and
the letter I}. T he pedestal,which is probably older than th e
paten,looks as if it had been fixed on at a comparatively recent
period . The smaller paten is much more ancient,the chasing
b eing
'
nearl y invisible , and the coat of arms much defaced.
Th e field of th e shield is unce rtain, but it is emblazoned with
two bars fesse , and chief indented . Th e supporters are feathers,
bu t that i s all that can be made out. The hall marks are H,
with a star bel ow, a lion’s head ensigned with an imperial
crown,a lion passant guardant
,and th e letter (75. Th e above
description ,although c rude and imperfect
,w ill nevertheless be
interesting to archaeologists,antiquarians
,and students of
heraldry. It i s,howeve r , qu ite certain that the Ackworth
Church plate was not manu factu red in London, nor assayed atGoldsmiths ’ Hall , bu t that i t i s of provincial manu facture , and
assayed at one of th e provincial assay offices .
M ONUM ENTAL INSCRIPTIONS.
Th e monuments in Ackworth Church are few ,and of simple
.
construction ,but in one or two instances th e inscriptions
thereon are extremely in teresting . In th e vestry,against th e
east wall , the re are two stone slabs,one broader than th e other.
The left-hand slab bears th e following inscription z
A ch erub partia lly veiled , h old ing a wreath of immortel les,inside wh ich is
an h era ld ic -sh ield . Arins—Per pa le argent and gules—B ra d l ey . Gules , a fessor, ch arged w ith th ree b uckles or, and a crescent for d ifference . Sa vil e.
—Argenton a bent sab le th ree ow ls of th e field .
FRANCIS THE DAUGHTER OF THE RIGHT HONBLE. JOHNSAV ILE BARON OF PONTEFRACT AND WIFE TO THOMASBRADLEY DO CTOR IN DIVINITY PRE BEND OF YORKERECTOR OF THIS CHURCH AND CHAPLAYNE TO HIS
ITS . HISTORY AND ANNALS.
or JANUARY 1 663 FELL ASLEEPE EXPECTING THE
RES(S)URREGT ION
SHE WAS NOBLY BORNESHE WAS VERTVOVSLY BRED
SHE LIVED PIOVSLY
SHE DIED PEACEABLYSHE CARRIED A GOOD CONSCIENCE WITHAND HATH LEFT A GOOD NAME BEHIND
SIC SIC IVVAT IRE SVB VM BRAS
FOR PITY AND FOR PIETYFOR CHAST ITIE AND FOR CHARITIE
FOR PATIENCE AND HU MILITIE
SHE WAS RARELIE EXEMPLARY
HIC TENDIM US OMNES
On th e narrow right hand slab adjoining, the inscription is
Arms—Same , w ithout ch erub and wreath .
VXOREM SEQ V ITVR
THOMAS BRADLzEVS
ANIM AS C INERES
svos .
KINGS 1 9 4
I ALI NO BETTER
OBIT
22 ACKWORTH ,YORKS.,
The floor of the vestry,nave
,and aisles of th e Church are
covered with memorial slabs bearing inscriptions for th e mostpart nearly obliterated
,or un lmportant , except perhaps as name
indicators. I have noted the following names and dates
Burford ,1781 . Daniel Hepworth (no date). Austwick
,
1 778 . Howitt , 1755 . Parker,1 769 . Ann Ramsden ,
(aged Ann Sly (aged Samue l
Anthron ,1789 . W i se Rish forth
,1 732 . Baynes
, etc .
There are others, bu t they are cove red by th e organ and other
fittings .
Sir Roger Hopton’
s tombstone,which was disc ove red under
th e seats now allotted to th e occupiers of Ackworth Park , when
th e Church was restored in 1 852,i s in excellen t preservation ,
is by far the most interesting and important rel ic of its kind in
Ackworth Chu rch,and may now be seen in the south aisle.
In th e centre is a large fioriated cross,flanked
’
by th e arms of
Hopton and Savile, the whole surrounded by th e following
inscription Orate pro animabus,Rogeri Hoptonis m il itis,
et Annoe uxoris snoe,qui obiérunt
,Anno Domini 1 506. It is
,
therefore , th e oldest tombstone in Ackworth Church . A sketch
is here inserted . Coa t of Arm s . Hopton— two bars, each
charged with three mu llets , in dexter chief a mulle t for differ
ence. Savile— on a bend three owls,Th e name Roger is
common in th e Hopton family. This Roger was probably thesame wh o, in 1 492 , was nominated by William Scargill astrustee of a char ity founded by the latter at Rothwell , and w hoin 3 Henry VII . was gentleman usher of th e K ing’s
ch ambei'.
In th e vestry, there is another slab , th e inscription upon
which,so far as it is legible
,is interest ing
Hoc sub marmore ReponunturMortales Rel iquoe,
M atronoe Nobil is Lectissimoe
DM E. ELIZAB , LowTHER ,
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Quos Filice quondam Joh Hare
de Stow Bardolph in Comitat.
Norfol eioe Equit Aurati
Primum Woolley Leigh Armig Nupta
Demum Honorabil i V iro .
DNO . JOH LOWTHER d e Lowther in
Agro Westmort Baronetto
Multum Natal ib plus v irtu l ib inc l aruit
Honorifieas Nuptias ,
h inc una nide sena sobole beav it
tribu s nempe Filus totidenq/
Fil iabus
Famil ioe LOWTHERINGSAdditis
Venul tum speciem mente plane divina
Deeoravit
d eniq Facu l ates Effusissima
—assitate , ch aritate , munificentia,
— um impendit magis h onorifice
an audauxit.
ih ter Reatam vitam utpote .
Th e remainder is hidden beneath th e masonry which encloses
th e vestry. The fol lowing names also appear on th e vestry
Jonathan Seaton,1762, Mary Lowther,
1753, and M argt. Baynes.
Th e mural monuments are few and unimportant. In th e
south aisle,upon a fine slab of white marble
Arms of Gu l l y .
M otto Vix ea nostra voco.
Sacred
to th e memory of ROBERT GULLY,son of John Gully, Esq ,
of Ackworth Park ,wh o
,after suffe r ing th e horrors
and privations of shipwreck on th e i sland
of Formosa , in th e Brig,Ann ,
”
on th e
night of th e l 0 th of March ,1 842
,
24 ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
in which vessel h e was a passenger,
was,together with th e rest of th e crew , taken
prisoner by the Chinese , and su ffered th e greatest
privations and hardships,which he bore
with the most exemplary forti tude ,manly and cheerful resignationto about th e 1 5th Augu st ,
when h e , together with abou t 300 British subj ects, was
most ba rbarously mu rdered in coldblood by the Chinese authorities in the
town of Ty-wan - foo. He was endeared to a
large circle of friends for his manly
virtues and kindness of heart.This tablet is erected by a bereaved and afflicted father.
Know th ou , O stranger, to th e fame
O f th is much loved , much h onoured name ,
For none th at knew h im need be toldA warm er h eart dea th ne
’
er made cold .
Under th e tower, on white marble and grey granite
Robert Heptinstall,
D ied June l st,1726. Aged 43 years .
Upon a white marble s l ab,
flanked with columns with
floriated capitals,supported by flying cherubim
,and surmount
ed with th e Lowther coat of arms
RALPH AND ROBERT LOWTHER,of Ackworth Park,
Esqrs .
,
Sons of Sir John Lowther,of Lowther
,in
VVestmorl and . Bart ,by El izh . daughter
of Sir Ralph Hare , Bart. Issue of RalphLowther
,by Mary h is wife ,
daughter of Godfrey
Lawson, of Leeds, Esq ,one son and e ight daughters .
D ied 1724 . Aged 69 .
ROBERT LOWTHER,died without issue
,1 720 . Aged 57.
John,only son of Ralph
,D ied without issue
1729, 45 . Dorothy Norton,Grand-daughter
26 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
Underneath on th e same stone
-Also of Robert Lowther, Esq ,youngest
Son of th e Honb l e . St. John Lowther,of Lowther
,Bart.
Who departed this Life th e 24th day of
August, 1720 , in the 56 year of
his age .
Th e following inscriptions appear in th e Churchyard
Henry Mitton,died Nov . 20 , 1 79 1 , 81 years .
Elizabeth,wife of above
,died March 22
,1 802 ,
76 years .John Beaumont
,died June 1 9 , 1798, aged 76 .
Mary,wife of Joseph White , died Feb . 5th ,
1 776 ,aged 65 .
Mary,wife of John Burford, died Feb . 2 , 1795 ,
William,son of John and Mar Burford, died April
30,1 781 , age 20 .
Catherine,w ife of Wm . Sikes, died 4th August
,
1742 , aged 48 .
Robert S ikes,son of above, died 4th January,1746, aged 2 years .
Will iam Sikes,husband of Catherine, died
June 25th ,1764, aged 55 .
Major John Goldsworthy,
-
l of Hon . East India
Co.
’
s Madras Army. D ied June 1 , 1 884, aged 80.
Samuel , son of Mr. Samuel Turner, A.M late Vicarof Blyth
,by Frances
,his wife , daughter of
Mr. Hacksup, of Finnil ey , afterwards
Facts .only are h ere given , such as names, dates , and ages .
1 Ma jor Gold sworthy was a very pronounced Conservati ve , and declined theuse of h is pew to th e Duke of Gloucester, wh en tha t nob leman attended Ack
worth Church , because h e was a Liberal .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
wife to Robert M a son, of Ackworth ,
Gent. died 26th December,aged 1 8.
John,son of Wm. Heptinstall , died 4th Sept . 1726,
aged 21 .
W ill iam,second son of above William
,died
27th Feb ,1735 - 6 , aged 29 .
‘And as an .early token of his piou s incl inations and th e truehonour he bore to God ’s house
,did (with th e consent of his
dear mother) give ten pounds towards th e bu il ding of a vestry
to this Church .
Rev . Thos . Bell , late of .East Hardwick,
D ied Nov . 1 8 aged 77 years -rOn th e west side of th e Churchyard
,near th e Church
Wi lliam Robert Hay, M .A. ,
Rector of thi s Parish
D iedl 0 th December, 1 839 , aged
78.
other side of th e tomb
Mary Hay,
Wife of the Rectorof this Parish
,
D ied1 8th Feb ,
1832,
aged 71 .
Further north
Here l ies the Body of Ann,Rel ict
of’
th e Rev . Kingsman Baskett,
She died 26 March ,1 826 , aged
81 Years .Vide sub datum , Ann : 1712 . T h e young man
’s wish was probably
28 ACKWORTH , YORKS. ,
On the north -east side , separated by a high wall from th e
Churchyard,there is th e mausoleum of th e Gully family
,
formerly of Ackworth Park . It stands in its“
own grounds,
which are kept in beautiful order.
John Gully,* D ied at Durham,March 9th , 1 863,
79 years .
There are a lso two daughters of Mr. Gully buried here,both of whom died in infancy.
East end
Captain R. S . Adams (14th Foot) , Died August 5 ,1837, aged 47 .
Wm. Clark,Surgeon,
D ied July 22,1 86 1
,
55 years.
North sideAnn Cl areborough ,
D ied April 1 9, 1 832 ,60 years.
John Petty,Esq ,
of Ackworth Park,D ied Oct .
1 826 , 68 years .
East end
Lucy,wife of Wm . Peel, of Ackworth Park,
D ied April 1 4 , 1 869.
STAINED GLASS.
Ackworth Church is rich in memorial windows,all of them
,
except two, being filled with stained glass of elegant tints and
appropriate designs . The east .window is a fine specimen of
decorative art . Five figures are depicted therein, three are
designed to represent ecclesiastical saints, and two regal ;emblematical of th e union and co -operation which should
exist between the Church and the Throne. SS . Cuthbert,
Augustine of Canterbu ry, and Paulinu s , were Bishops, and SS .
Edmund and Oswald,were K ings . The ancient prediction of
A memoir of John Gully w i ll be found herein, under the h ead of B iographical Sketch es.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Isaiah :“ and K ings shall be thy nursing fathers , and their
Queens thy nursing mothers ,” i s no contradiction of th e more
recent saying of our D ivine Head,My K ingdom is not of this
world.
” St . Edmund is represented in th e first light as holding
in his hand the instrument of his martyrdom . The second
light contains a figure of St . Augustine of Canterbury,vested
in episcopal habits,and holding in his left hand a banner, upon
which is inscribed an emblem, or picture, of th e Crucifixion of
our Lord . Th e centre figu re is a representation of St . Cuthbert
(to whom th e Parish Church of Ackworth is dedicated), with
th e head of St. Oswald in his hand . Above is St . Cuthbert’s
cross . In the cinque - fo il on th e north side is depicted th e in
e ident of th e young Cuthbert keeping watch over his fl ock by
th e river Leder. ‘ On th e o ther side is portrayed St. Cuthbert
administering th e Holy Communion to th e dying Boisil , monk
of Melrose . In th e next l ight is the figure of St . Paulinus,
attired in archiepiscopal vestments,and th e figure in the fifth
light represents St . Oswald , K ing and Martyr, crowned , and
holding in one hand a sceptre , and in th e other a cross . Along
th e bottom of the window appears th e following insc riptionIn memory of Elizabe th Harriet (Kenworthy), th e w ife of the
Rector of this parish ,wh o departed this l ife March 2nd , 1 853,
aged 32 years .
There are
.
four other windows in the Chance l , a l l filled with
stained glass . The first on the south sid e i s a two- l ight , con
taining full length figures of SS . Hilda and Ebba ; and the
other is a single l ight representation of S . Alban . The fi rstof these saints was th e virgin founder of Whitby Abbey ; the
second was th e daughter of Eth el frid , K ing of Northumberland,sister of S . Oswald, and abbess of Coldingham in Scotland ;and th e third is known as th e proto -martyr of B ri tain , all three ,however, were martyrs. On the north sid e of th e Chan cel ,
wh ich at Ackworth is a continuation of the north aisle , the
windows are both two - light memorial ones . In the first
window are representations of Christ bearing His Cross, and
30 ACKWORTH,YORKS ,
th e legendary incident in th e l ife of St . Veronica below is th e
following inscription In memory of Clara , th e beloved wife
of John Hardy Thursby. Born 24 M arch ,1 839 , D ied 21
March,1 867. ZEtat 27. The other window depicts Monica’s
visit to S . Augustine , and S . Paul inus baptizing in th e Swale .
I t was inserted to th e memory of “Henry Cockerill Leatham ,
Deceased 6 Aug. 1 852 aged 75 years,” and Lucy Leatham ,
his wife,Deceased 1 8 Feb . 1 866, aged 78 years .
Ea st end of Sou th Ais l e.
Three - l ight window representing th e Crucifixion ,Resurrec
tion, and Ascension of Christ,and underneath the following
inscription —“ In memory of John Pearson,who deceased May
9th,1 843 , aged 63 years also of Emma his wife
,who departed
this life May 1 1 th ,1 842
,aged 54 . They rest on th e east side
of th i s window .
Sou th Ais l e.
TWO double- light windows . Th e former contain s a representation of Chri st in Gethsemane , and on th e road to Calvary.
The inscriptions below are as follows In memory of William
Grubb,who departed this l ife Apri l 2md
,1 854, aged 79 years.
”
“ In memory of Hannah Grubb,wh o departed this life 3rd Augt.
1876 , in h er 92 year.
”
Th e latter depicts Chr ist being crownedwith thorns
,and scou rged . This window was put in to the
“ memory of Mary Pl owes, of thi s parish ,wh o departed this
life on the 1 4th day of December,1 857, aged 84.
West end of Sou th Ais l e.
‘
Two - light window,rep resenting Christ be ing baptized
,and
blessing little children . Inscr iption —>I4 Basil Anthony Kenworthy >I< Born F : of the Epiph any >E Deceased Eve of All
Saints,1854 K4 Aged 9 months . >1<
“ The Lord gave and theLord hath taken away blessed be th e name of th e Lord .
”>I<
The upper or tracery portion of the large west window only
is stained, th e rest is tinted.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
West end of N0 7t h Ais l e.
Two- light window,corresponding with west end of south
aisle,one light depicting th e annunciation to th e Shepherds,
and th e other the Presentation of Christ in th e Temple . In
scription In memory of Jane Yates W ilson , who deceased
1 3th December , 1 842, aged 28 also Anna Maria W ilson,who
departed this life May 25th ,1 846 , aged 24 .
North Aisl e .
Three double - light windows . (1 ) Mercy and Chari ty.
Inscription Mary M unkh ouse Barnett,Deceased 2nd May
,
1 864, aged 78 years . (2) Manife station to th e Shepherds and
Magi. Inscription Francis Augusta Bland,Deceased Dec.
26 , 1 855 , aged 75 years. (3) Th e fl ight into Egypt and theHerodian massacre . Inscription “ Judith Selina Bland
,
Departed this life July 1 6 ,1 847, aged 66 years.
Th e window at th e east end of th e north aisle is like th e
west window in th e nave , stained in th e upper portion and
t in ted in th e lower.
I t will easily be imagined that so much stained glass creates
a dim religious light,” which in itself is both dep ressing and
undesirable , making th e use of artificial light frequentlynecessary in th e winter months, during th e greater part of th e
day. In this instance conven ience must give way to art,for
i t would be difficult to obtain a facu l ty for the ir removal,and
the only way to obtain more light ” wou ld be e i ther to restore
the cl erestorie , or insert Dormer windows in the roof.
THE PARISH REGISTERS.
These valuable records , which begin 1 0 th February, 1 558 ,
are in a good sta te of preservation from th e fir st, with the
exception of a few places in the earliest book , where the entries
have almost disappeared ; but this defect is remedied to a great
32 AOKWORTH,roasts ,
extent by a page for page paper copy on interleaves bound with
th e original parchment. Du ring th e rectorate of Dr. Timothy
Lee (1744 more than ordinary care was shewn in keeping
th e books . It was th e Doctor who caused th e copy to be madeof the first book ; and in his time th e numbers of births and
death s, ages at death and causes of death ,are tabulated yearly,
males be ing distingui shed from females,and the entr ies be ing
signed by him and th e Churchwardens periodically. The
death tables are interesting as shewing th e disorders most
prevalent in th e village. Consumption appears to have been
peculiarly fatal . In one year,out of twelve burials of child ren
from th e Foundling Hospital, eleven are stated to have died
from this cause ; In th e second volume,which extends from
August,1 687, to March, 1 732 , entries are made of th e fact of
pregnancy of women at th e time of marriage , be ing with
child.
” Somet imes,when a birth occurred too soon after
marriage, the words“ begotten in forn ication a re added to
the entry of i ts baptism . We also perce ive evidence of th e
existence of th e Found l ing Hospital* in th e following entry :“ June
,1 705 , Thomas , a child brought to the parish in th e
night, (was) baptised .
”The prevalence of th e plague is shewn
in this register, as well as at Wakefield and others,thus
“R ichard Pickeringe and Frances Ledsome , married June 25th ,
1 645 , in which year there dyed of the plague in Ackworth 1 53
persons Richard Pickeringe be ing then Constable.
”
Th e
following surnames, which still exist here , or in th e neighbour
hood, or have , in a few instances , lately disappeared ,are found
in th e,registers from 1 558 to 1 7 17. The earliest are Pearson
,
Austwicke , Heptonstall , Simson , Wormald,Becket
,Roberts ,
Newell, Broad l aye , Huntingden,Briggs
, Scol aye (now Scholey) ,Roades , Hepworth, Horncastle , Grenfie l d 1 579 , Heaton ,
Shill ito,
Fernl aye , Brears,Tompson ,Th ack er
,Warde ,R ishworth,Newsam ,
Jackson,’Ligh tfoote , Howitt 16 18
,Turner , Beamond
,Col le tt
,
Patrick 1 641 , Ryder after 1 652, Warde , Say l l , Battye , Crossley
Probably a small building in connection with London .
3 4 ACKWORTH , YORKS. ,
which year there dyed of th e Plague in Ackworth,1 53 persons
R ichard Pick eringe being then Constable .
”
Baptismes
Charles th e Sonne of Mr. Danyell Godfrey,By Barberry
the Daughter of Dr. Thomas Bradley, Rector of Ackworth ,
Ch apl ayne to His Majesty K ing Charles th e Fi rst , and Prebendary of Yorke, and th e Lady Ffrances his wife , daughter to
th e Right Honourable John Lord Saville , Baron of Pon tefract,
&c. ,was baptized th e 24th of November
,Anno 1 663 being
th e first that was baptized in th e ffont newly sett up after th e
antient ffont was destroyed and broken downe in th e late Civ il l
Wat rs. On Candlemas Day imediatl y fol l owinge , was TheHonourable th e Lady Ffrances above -mentioned here, honour
ably inter’
d,who died th e Saturday before , be ing th e 3oth Day
of January,th e day where in his late Maj esty
,of blessed memory,
was pu t to death ,and th e ve ry same hour (as neere as may be
conj ectu red) where in His Majesty suffe red, did sh e breath herlast
,and returnd h er Spiri t unto God that gave i t .”
VOL . I I.
Is a folio parchment Book,bound in calf
,with brass clasps.
Here also two volumes appear to have beenbound up into one .
The first part is from 28th Augu st,1 687 to 1732 .
The second 25th March,1732 to 1754 .
In th e first part th e fi rst Baptism is 28th August,1 687 .
Burial 28th May, 1 688 .
Marriage l 6th Nov . 1 687.
the last Baptism 9 th March ,1732 .
In th e fi rst part Burial 22nd Feb 1732 .
Marr iage 2oth Dec . ,173 1 .
In th e secondpart th e first Baptism 24th May,
1732 .
Burial 2 l st Ap ril,
1732 .
Marriage l oth April,
1732 .
the last Baptism 1 3th Feb ,1754 .
Burial 9th March,1754 .
M arria cre 1 2th Feb .,
1754 .
o n
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 35
In the beginning of this volume,i t i s worthy of note
,that
in marriages,where th e woman is in th e family way
,th e fact
is recorded both in th e entry of marriage and also in that of
th e baptism — Thu s,in 1 695 , W i l l iam Simpson and Grace
Howitt were M arrycd Nov . 21 , being w i th chi l d .
” Abraham
Walker and Mary Usher were marryed Feb . th e 25th,being
w i th chil d .
”
In 1 696, we find this entry -“Wm . ye Son ofWm . Simpson
and Grace his wife,begotten in fornicacion
,born March ye 20 ,
baptized eodem Die .
We do not remember ever to have met with ,or heard of
,an
instance of similar discipline .
VOL . 111 .
Is a bound parchment fol io . I t contains th e entries to th eend of 1788. Into th is Dr. Lee (wh o was induc te d 4th Dec .
1 744) seems to have brought forward th e entries from th e time
of his induction .
From June,1754 ,
th e publication of banns is entered . From24 Nov . 1 754 to 6th Feb . 1 759 , (both inclusive,) th e entr ies of
th e marriages are m ade in th e form presc ribed by 26th GeorgeII . From thence to the end of 1788 , th e mar riages are enter
ed agreeably to th e substance of i t,bu t not in th e exact form .
On th e 18th March,1 753 , Births as well as Bap tism s begin to
be registered .
VOL . IV.
A parchment fol io . Bound in Calf.
Bir ths , Ba tisms,Deaths
,Burials are ente red to th e
pub ication of Banns end of 18 1 2 .
The marriages are ente red’
to th e end of 1 802 .
VOL . V .
Is a paper Book,bound in Calf. It contains th e entries of
Marriages from 1 802 to the end of 1 8 1 2 .
VOL . V I .
Is a parchment volume ,bound in calf, w i th clasps . I t con
tains th e entries of Bapt isms from 1 81 2 to Dec . 2 1 st,1834 . All
36 AAcKWORTH ,
th e e ntries from 1 812 are made in accordance with the :Act
52nd George I II, cap . 146.
VOL . VII .
Is also a parchment fol io,bound in calf
,with clasps . I t
contains th e entries of Baptisms from 2 1st Dec ,1834
,to th e
present time.
VOL. VII I.Is a parchment folio, bound in calf, with clasps . It ~
contains
th e entries of Burials from 1 81 2 to 27th May,185 1 .
VOL. IX.
Is a paper book , ruled agreeably to th e directions of th e
Marriage Act of 52 George cap . 1 46 . It con tains th e
entries of Marriages from 181 2 to June,1 837.
VOL. X .
Is also a paper book ,bound in boards
,and ruled in accordance
with th e Act 6th and 7th Guel elmi IV. , cap . 86 . It contains
th e entries of Marriages from June , 1 837, to p resent time .
VOL . XI .
Duplicate of above .
VOL. XII.Contains th e Burials at Ackworth from June
,1 85 1
, to Novr. ,
1 882 . Parchment leaves. Bound in leather,with brass clasps .
It records 778 Burials, but contains no t itle- page .
VOL . XIII.
Register of Baptisms, from June,1868, to March
,1 885 .
Paper leaves, bound in leather. It records 800 Baptisms,and
from th e year 1 875 the date of birth i s also generally recorded .
The words, “ By whom th e ceremony was performed,
” in th e
last column,are altered into “ By whom th e Sacrament was
adm inistered.
”
VOL . XIV.
Register of Burials from Jan. 1 883 . Paper leaves,bound
in leather. Th e word “ ceremony in the last column is altered
to service .
ITS HISTORY" AND ANNALS.
Register of Baptisms from March,1 885 . Paper leaves
,
bound in ve llum . Date of birth recorded,and words in last
column altered as in VO ] . XIII . Th e last four volumes areneatly and carefully kept.
Th e name “Austw iclce,Spel t differently
,occurs one hun
dred times in e ighty- three years and “How ett,”
e ighty - seven
times in a hundred years . After these, Worma l d and
Schol ey appear more frequently than any other name . Some
very curious Chr istian names also occur,instance th e following :
“Beersheba Burton,
”
baptized in 1 794 and “Sindon ia Belcher,”
mother of Mary,baptized in 1 796 . Th e former was meant by
th e parents to have been christened Ba thsheba . Hep hzibah
Heptinsta ll , baptized in 1 751 only survived h er baptism
two months “Sep tima Asquith ,baptized in 1 752 ;
“Gama l ie l
Patrick,
”
in 1 762 “H ezekia h Parsons, a foundl ing, buried in
1 762 ;“Cassa nd ra Waller,
” buried in 1763“M agd a l en
Found l ing,
” buried from th e Foundl ing Hospital in 1 764 . Sh e
is described as an “orphan
,
” and h er surname was evidently
given to indicate h er or iginal condition The son of W illiam
and Eliz abeth Freeman , (th e father be ing described as a
was actual ly baptized in 1 765 by the name of
Doctor Wi l l ia Shall we say as a compl iment to th e medi
cal man who assisted to bring him into th e world ? “D ebora
Blackbeard,Lu cretia Drake , Ame r Baker, a a Crew ,
Camil l a
Grove,Samu el l a Sykes
,Si l vester Harrison
,B enedict Hall,
”
a l l
foundl ings,were buried in Ackworth Churchyard between th e
years 1 765 and 1772 . Ep ap hrod i tus Hattersley,” yeoman ,
was buried in th e latter year. Th e Regis ters are well worth
perusal .
*
T h e earlier portion (1558-1648) is reproduced verbatim in Yorkshire Notesand Q ueries ,
” Parts IIz-X.
38 ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
The Chantry .
There was in th e Chapel of St . Mary, in Ackworth Church ,
before the Reformation, a Chan try of our Lady,founded by
Isabel de Castl eforth ,value at th e dissolu tion, £4 l 6s. 4d . per
annum .
Mr. Torre gives th e following catalogue of the Chantry
Priests
Temp . Inst. Capel lan . Patrons . Vacat .
Wil lm . E lth am1407. 18 Aug. Robertus Briggs , Phr. Tho . De Whiston ,
Rector Eccles .
Act .
1420 . 19 July . Th o . Handry s , Phr. Th o . Balne , Rector d e Ackworth1433 . 28 Aug. Th o . Hod erode , Phr. Prior and Convt .of Monk Bretton
Th o . Pond , a lias Jonet Dea th .
1 480 . 26 M ay . Th o . Reynold s , Ch apl in John Winter ,Rector ofAckworth Death .
152 1 . 2 Oct. Jno . Th omp son , Pbr . Assignee of Rector of Ackworth
This account of th e Chantry will remind th e reader of thefield and croft adjoining, on th e north ,
a portion of glebe called
th e Stone Style Acre , traversed by the footpath from Ackworthto Hessle . This piece of ground was
,and is still
,called th e
“ Chantry Close,
” and there can be no doubt that it formed
part of the endowment of th e Chantry above -named . Indeed,
this is almost certain ,from the fact that about one hundred
and forty years ago this field was th e property of Sir RowlandW inn
,of Nostel , in whom seems to have centered all th e
estates of which th e Church in this neighbourhood was robbed
at the D issolution.
Th e'
Church , having had th e good fortune to escape being
appropriated, remains a Rectory, heretofore appendant to themanor
,and in th e patronage of th e several Lords thereof— th e
Laceys , and Dukes of Lancaster— but not passing in the grantto th e City of London , is now become an advowson in gross
Extracted from Mr. Torre ’
s Books in th e Library of th e Dean and Ch apterof York .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
remaining to th e Duchy of Lancaster,th e several Chancell ors
,
for th e time being, being patrons . In Henry VIII . a paymentwas made in ex change with th e Archbishop of York for other
lands, but for all that th e King presented to th e liv ing, and notth e Archbishop .
ale
Value and taxation of Ackworth Rectory in th e King ’sBook 8 . d.
First Fruits 22 1 85TenthsProcurat ions 0 7 6
SubsidiesSynodol s
The present value of th e living, according to Crockford ,is
Glebe 1 52 acres,l et for £258 ; T. R . C. £1 50 ; Consols from
Glebe , £19 Gross Income, £447 and house .
Soon after the foundation of Nostel Priory, th e brethren of
that monastery acquired th e advowson of various l ivmgs In th ene ighbourhood
,including Ackworth
,which
,at the dissolut ion
,
revolved to th e Crown . Many of th e early Rectors of Ack
worth were bre thren of Nostel rl'
Th e present Rectory was bu il t upon th e site of an older
edifice,in 1 842 . I t wou ld seem from the relics whi ch stil l
remain ,and which were u sed in th e construction of the modern
building,that th e fittings of th e ol d Rectory were of an elabo
rate and durable charac ter, notably th e carved oak mantlepiece in th e din ing room ,
and th e en su ite mou ldings which
surround th e doors and windows . There are also two interest
ing bust portraits in oil of two former Rectors—th e Rev . Dr.Bradley
,and th e Rev . Dr. Timothy Lee . They are in good con
di tion,th e latter is painted by K i l l ingbeck, but by whom th e
former is not known .
Vide Torre’s M SS. York .
f Vide Boothroyd ’
s Hist. Pont. , p . 82 .
42 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
from th e main body Of th e army , w e d o not know,bu t i t is said
that,having gained the br idge , h e tu rned like a stag at bay,
and,after a fierce encounter
,succeeded , like th e hero ic Horatius ,
Wh o kep t th e bridge in th e brave days of ol d ,in Slaying his an tagon ist , but only to be himself overcome and
Slain, after a most desperate strugg l e , by a body of Normans insearch of fugitives . From this incu l ent th e bridge is said to
have derived its name ; bu t Boothroyd, one of th e historians
of Pontefract,has taken upon himself th e responsibility of
giving th e tradition a semblance of truth,by saying that
Standing Flat Bridge actual l y was th e scene of th e battle of
Stamford Br idge (Pons bel l i) . But , of course , h e has no ground
whatever for th e statement, except th e tradition above alluded
to.
We learn from Domesday that in Saxon times there were
two Manors in Ackworth,now perhaps represented by High
Ackworth and Low Ackworth ,but these had been united be
fore th e Conqu est , when ,out of acres
,th e taxable area
was Six carucates,capable of employing five ploughs. At th e
time of th e G rea t Sur vey , th e Manor was in th e hands of
Ilbert de Lacy,whose tenant was one Hunfrid or Humphrey
,
He held 1 4 carucates, that is, a quarter of th e whole Manor , inhis own hands , as demesne , employing 1 4 villains in its culti
vation,while th e rest of th e Manor was apportioned between
two borde rers , or farmers,as his under- tenan ts
,wh o employed
six ploughs . There was a mill paying xv iijd , bu t th e town
ship was so purely arable , that there was ne ither taxablemeadow nor taxable woodfi"
lH -undfridu s (a name more familiar in th e form of Hum
ph rey)was a vassal of Ilbert d e Laci , holding manors and lands inSnidal ,Newton ,
and two in Ackworth . As “Umfredus deVil l eio,”
we find him not long afte rwards before 1 1 00) giving two
garbs (from th e harvest yearly) at the fi rst two places , towardsth e endowment of th e Chapel of St. Clement, in Pontefract
Vide Arch . and Top . Journal , Part XXXVIII . , p . 256 .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Castle ,ale founded by Ilbert d e Lacy. He must have come from A-B . 1 1 00
one of th e places called V illy,in th e department of Calvados
,
in which Lassy also is Situated -
f
Osu lf (a contemporary of Hundfridus) , who held a manor O su l f.
in (High) Hoyland, and now holds i t of Ilbert de Laci,was
perhaps, th e same O sul f, whose manors in Methley and Ack
worth , Ilbert also had , bu t retained in his own hands . To Rogerde Busl i were given th e lands of O sul (f) , in Barnborough ,
Bolton -upon-Dearne , and other places near Doneaster;r
Ea; Rotu l o p l i ta r in d orso ter Pa schal , 1 1 . John Rol l 7 .
EE. 20 . Be tween Roger Constable,of Chester, plf.
"VOL Gu ilbert d e Aqu ila Isabe ll his wife,of one Kts.
fee in th e wood of Roinh ay (Roundhay) . Isabell a
d isponsata fu i t in Hoil and in alio Com . Rob to. d e Lasey fi l io
Henrico de Lasey quem p . fu i t dos hu ins Isabel l oe h ot in dotem
in Warmefie l d , Croston (Crofton) in Akew orth in Roind hay
quo Robtus habuit .§
About th is time a Charter was granted to Margaret, Countessof Lincoln , free warren in th e d emsne lands of VVrangl e , Riby ,
Searth ro ,l Vayth ,
in Lincolnshire ; B radenham ,in Norfolk
Halton,Thoresby
,Sedgeb rook ,
in Lincoln ; Kneesall , in Notts . ;
Beaghall,Ackw orth ,
Cr idling Stubbs,and Warmfiel d
,in
Yorkshire .
Henry de Akeworth ,clerk ,
who had a pension of xls . (in
the name of th e parson) from th e Ch . of Akeworth,be ing dead
,
at the presentation of th e K ing , as guardian of the land and
Vide O l d M on . , Vol . I . , p . 160 .
1 For Yorksh ire Tenants named in Domesday Book , see E llis ’s B iograph i
ca l Notes .
”
I Vide Ellis ’s “ B iograph ical Notes .
Th is is , ” say s Mr . Holme s , an exceed ingly important deed . Th e ch ildless w idow oi Robert de Lacy , by h er marriage w i th Gil bert d e Aqu ila , became
th e m oth er o f a d aughter, Alice , wh o ultimately b ecame the first w ife of Joh nth e Constab le , son of th e present p laintiff .
”Vide Arch cf” Top . Journa l . Pa rt
XXXVI II , p age 256 , foot-note .
A.D . 1226.
1 321 .
1323 .
44 ACKWORTH,YORKS
heir of th e late Earl of Lincoln, we institute Th . de Noketon,
clerk, to i t.“
Pl’
ita d e quo w a rran to, A°
22 E. 1,ter Pascha .
D D . 50 . For free warren in Rockesden (als Rid l esden)
"VOL Keswicke , Ackw orth Hagenworth , comonl -y:
Haworth , in th e County of Yorkrl‘
Ou t of the R egister of Thos Corbrigg, Archbp . of Y
B "Vo l 28] 37. Henry de Lasey ,E . of Lincol ne
, p’
sents to th e
29 . E . 1 . Church of Ackworthi
Fourth,Edward II .
,Henry de Lacy
,Baron of Pontefract
,
Earl of Lincoln, etc ,died seized of this manor
,with th e ad
vowson of th e Chu rch there .§ Upon the death of Henry de.
Lacy,Ackworth
,as part of th e Barony of Pontefract , passed ,
with other great estates and honours, by th e marr iage of Alice ,his only daughter and he iress
,to Thomas (son of Edmund
Crouchback ,brother of Edward Earl of Lancaste r.
Thomas,Earl of Lancaster
,was returned as Lord of th e
Manor of Ackworth, in the n inth year of Edward II .
Twelfth,Edward I I. There was a fine levied to th e manor
of Monk Bretton of a mess ; and sixty acres of land at
Ackworth .
In 1 321 , Thomas, Earl of Lancaster , took up arms againsthis cou sin
,Edward II .
,and was defeated at Boroughbridge
,in
th e fifteenth year of Edward th e Second, brought back to his
Castle of Pontefract,tried
,condemned, and beheaded there
,
and his estate (including the Manor of Ackworth) se ized into
th e K ing’
S hands as forfe i ted .
Sixteenth Edward II . Joan,widow of Henry d e Lacy
,
released to th e King h er rights in this manor (of Ackworth)and th e park there .
Vide Abp . Gray ’
s Register, 1 215 -55 , and Surtees Soc,1470 , col . 56.
f Vide Dod sworth ’
s M SS.
I Vide Dod sworth ’
s M SS. , and Earl M S , 800 .
Vide Inquis. post mortem .
45
At th e Revolu tion , Henry (brother of Thomas) , Duke of M 3 , 1 327 ,
Lancas ter, recovered all his estates . These passed again,by
th e marriage of Maud,he iress general of th e first family of
Lancaste rs, to John of Gaunt,third son of Edward III .
,and
founder of th e second family of Lancasters , and created by hisfather Duke of Lancaster.
Ou t of Ill el ton’
s R egister , fo.1333
B "Vol . 28] 95 . Phillippa th e Queen p’
sentes to th e Church of
7 . E . 3 . Ackw orth .
Poll Tax,2 Ric . I I . At this date there was a taxable pcpu
lation in Ackworth of 83,of whom 77 paid fou rpence , and 6
paid Sixpence . These last were 3 ta il ours, 2 wrights , and 1
smith. Th e remainder were vi l l a in s (labourers) and bord erers
(.farmerSM‘
Wapp en tagium d e Osgod crosse. Vil l a te de Acheu 'orth.
Richard B rande and Matilda his wife,Tay l our
Johanna his daughter
Robert del Hill and Isabell a his wife,Smyth
John Hom er and Johanna his wife ,Tay l our
IVm . Carter and Magota his w ife,Wrigh t
Edmund Amyas and Isabe l la h is wife,Tay l ou
R ich . de Th ornehil l and Johanna his wife , l Vrigh t
John Nu rre and AgnesRobt . d el More and Cecil ia
John Pa il eben and Agnes
Johanna his daughte rJohn de Wol l ay
Robert CookeJohn Faythe and Alicia
John his son
Thos . M aundre l l and Elenor
Vide Dod sworth ’s Yorkshire Notes , and Earl M S.
1 Vid e Poll T ax .Returns .
A.D . 1379 .
1 399 .
46 ACKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
John Bakester and Johanna
Adam Raynald and MagotaJohn Ry l l e and Avicia
John Johnson and Agnes
John Couper and Elenor
Pete r Gange and AviciaRobe rt atte Hole and Alicia
Wm . Raynald and JohannaMatilda their servantAdam Darkyn and Alicia
John Waleys and Johanna
Thos . Harman and Agnes
Thos . Sheph ird and Johanna
Hen ry Crofton and MagaretWm . Tayl our and Matilda
Robt . Sh eph ird and KatherineJohn Marre and ConstanceJohn Sh eph ird and Alicia
Thos . Carter and Magota
Wm . Waleys and Alicia
Robt . Smyth and JohannaJohn d e Wodhous and Alicia
John Smyth and Johanna
Adam Why teh ead and ClaraHugo de Feth erstan and Emma
John Long and Johanna
Rich . de Fenton and Emma
JohnlVVrygh t and Alicia
John de Acworth e , mc
e rcer,and Idon ia hi s wife paid th e tax of
vj .d . , in th e ville ofWakefield and Wapentake of Agbrigg.
Henry, th e son of John of Gaunt,com ing to th e Crown ,
on
th e deposition of Richard IL,brought Ackworth in the honou r
of Pon tefract, and other great estates into i t, as parcel of the
See Yorksh ire Arch aeol og. Journal . Part XXI , p. 36,
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 47
Duchy of Lancaster, in which it continued until th e time of
James I .
Henry Forrester had th e manor of “Hesil l,near Ackworth
and Pontefract , to him and th e h e irs male of his body,th e re
maind er belonging to th e K ing, which manor first came to th e
hands of th e K ing after the death of Edmond de Fl ock ton.
ale
Twenty- fourth Henry V I . John Swill ington ,of Swillington
,
Esqr. ,devised land s at Ackworth ( inter alia) to t rustees, to th e
use of Jenne t,his wife
,for life
,with a remainder in fee to
Margery, his sister, wife of Henry Hunt,of Carlton
,near
Rothwell .
Wap enta lce of Agbrigg. In the wr iting of R ichard Beaumont
,of Whitley
,Kut . and Bart ,
20 Aug. 1 629. John Hopton,
of Armley,Esq ,
gave to Wm . Scargill, of Thorp ; RogerHopton ,
~
l~
of Ackworth ; John Scargill,of Roche
,Esq ; and
Will iam Talbot,hi s chaplain his messuage of Gawkethorp in
Sefton,in th e parish of He ton,
with Stages and Arkil croft, to
gether with 2s . rent going ou t of one messuage cal l ed N ickhouse,
in M irefiel de , e tc. W itness,Sir John Savile
,Kn t .
, etc . Datedat Armley
,nr. Leeds 27th May, 1 6 th Edw . IV.
,
Fourth Henry VII . In this year there was a great insurrec
tion in this County ,occasioned by a large subsidy then granted
by Parl iamen t for carrying on th e wa r with France . This tax
th e people said they nei ther could nor wou ld pay. Th e Earl
of Northumberland ,then Lord Lieu tenant , enforcing th e pay
ment of i t in a harsh manne r,they attacked him in his house
at Cockl ege near Thirsk ,and killed h im . Upon this
,
Thomas Howard,Earl of Surrey
,was sent down with forces to
subdue them ,which he did
,and caused Jon . a Chambre
,and
others,to be hanged. But i t seems that this did not wholly
end the disturbance,for
, th e next year, th e insurgents gathe red
Vide Dod sworth ’
s Yorksh ire M SS. , in th e Duchy O ffice 4th Henry IV .
f Buried in Ackworth Ch urch . Vide p . 22 .
1 Vide Dod sworth ’
s Yorksh ire M SS.
AD . 1 399 .
A.D . 1488 .
1510 .
1 532 .
AOKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
together again in th e western parts of th e County. The Earl
of Su rrey marched against them a second time,fought
,and
subdued them at Ackworth,took and hanged the i r l eaders,
obtain ing the K ing’s mercy for th e rest , which greatly endearedhim to them .
Second Henry VIII . RogerWard died,seized ( inter al ia) of
a messuage and e ight oxgangs of land at Ackworth,held of
the K ing as of his Castle of Pontefract, and Roger Ward, hisson
, he ir.
Fines were very gene rally used in former days as a meansof transferring p roperty
,and from th e many details wh ich th ey
give , both of genealogy and topography,and from th e long
pe r iod which they cove r,they may be well said to be among
th e most valuable of all th e public records . The plaintiff was
th e new possessor, and th e deforcian t th e o l d one .
Twenty- fourth Hen ry VI II . Easter Te rm . John Rawson,
Plaintiff,John Segu tpol e and Ann his wife
,deforciants
,for
land in Ackworth,called Burnell Houses .*
It is generally supposed that th e rebel forces, headed byRobert Aske
,styling themselves “ Th e Pilgr image of Grace,
passed through Ackworth on the ir way to Pontefract , th eCastle of which they afterwards captu red . Several inhabitants
of the village we re compelled to j oin th e expedition,
“ as they
would answer for i t at the day of judgment . The insurgentswe re subsequently defeated
,and th e instigators execu ted,
notably,Nicholas Tempest , of Ackworthrl
'
1 545,Easter Term . 37 Henry VIII . The K ing
,plaintiff ;
and Robert,Archbishop of York
,deforciant
,for th e Church of
Ack rth,in Ackworthe , etc i
Vide Yorksh ire Record s , Vol . II . , p . 241 .
f Vide Cassel l ’s Hist . Eng , pp . 236 -7
1; Vide Yorksh ire Records, Vol . II ,
50 ACKWORTH , YORKS
themselves by th e space of one fortnigh te in a quarter of ayear w thou t l ysence of th e Scolmr’ or be a comon drunkard
,or
a comon player at unl awful l games, or do use or exerciseanye notable offences or crimes.
In 1 861 , a new scheme was made by order of th e Court of
Chancery. Th e Trustees of Archbishop Holgate’
s Hospital in
Hemsworth were constituted Trustees of th e Grammar School.
A grant of £300 a year was made to the School from the
Hospital,for a period of 36 years
,from 1 857 i f
,at th e end of
that period th e school was not, in th e opin ion of th e Trustees ,in an efficient state , they m ight apply to
"
the Court of Chancery
for leave to discontinue the grant . The School was to be divi
d ed into an Upper and Lower School . New bu ildings were
erected for both , and the Lower School,or Parish School
,is
now a Boys ’ Public Elementary School under GovernmentInspection .
In January,1 868 , the New Grammar School was occupied
by th e Head-master (Rev . C . Andrew) , and his boarders.
Accommodation was provided for 20 boarders and 20 day
scholars . Th e highest number of boys in that year was 36 .
Mr. Andrew died in the following year, and th e Revd. S . W
Earnshaw was appointed master. In 1 875 , th e numbers werefound to have fallen Off considerably, and in 1877 the re were1 0 boys in th e School, including th e free - scholars. During thenegotiations for the appointmen t of a new Head-master (Rev .
C . S . Butler), th e Char ity Commissione rs became aware of this
state of affairs, and announced the ir inten tion to make a new
scheme . In July,1 878, an Assistant Commissioner met th e
Trustees , and made enqu iries . In March,1 879 , th e Commis
sioners suggested to th e Tru stees that the School should b eremoved, but they did not fall in with th e suggestion. Eventu
ally,in 1 881 , they being under th e impression that the
Commissioners had absolute power to remove th e School,gave
a qualified assent to its be ing removed to Pontefract,under
certain conditions. These conditions Pontefract failed to com
ply with,but Barnsley was successful in raising th e required
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
sum of money. In 1 883,th e Commissioners published a A-D . 1546
scheme for removing th e School to Barnsley : th e Trusteeshaving taken legal Opinion as to the powers of th e Commissioners
,and having regard to th e improved state of th e School
,
and th e rapid inc rease of population in th e neighbourhood,
resolved to Oppose th e scheme for removal.
In 1 885 , there were 36 boys in th e School . In 1 886 , th e
Tr ustees appealed to Her Maj esty on certain legal points,bu t
th e decision of th e Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
given in March, 1 887, was unfavourable to th e appeal . Th e
scheme was,on Ma rch 1 8th (according to th e provisions of th e
Endowed School s Acts), placed upon the table in th e House of
Lords and th e House of Commons . Unless within two months
of that date an address to Her Majesty is carried in e i ther
House , praying h er to withhold h er consent from this scheme,
th e scheme will rece ive Her Majesty’s assent in due course,
and th e School will be removed to Barnsley as soon as
practicabl e .
alE
1 550 . Mich . Term,4 Edw. VI . Thos . Reynol de , Esq ,
plaintiff ; Wm . Hal yday ,gent ,
Al ice his wife , deforciants
for lands in Pontefract Ackworth exf'
Thomas Hartyndon , Rector, Presented to thi s Living by 1554 ,
Queen Mary,Apr. , 1 55433:
1 554 . Mich . Term ,1 2 Phil ip Mary. James Crofte
,
plaintiff,John Brayton Agnes his wife
,with Rich d . Roger
Brayton ,deforciants ; for messuage with lands in Hessy l e ,
Wragbye , 8: Ack eworth e .§Robert Ferrar
,D .D . ,
Bishop of St. David ’s,was born at
'
Ewood ,near M idgel ey , In 1 505 . He was th e last Prior of
Nostel,and th e first Engl ish monk wh o became tain ted with
Lutheran opinions . He was arrested on the most frivolou s
I am indebted to th e Rev . C . S Butler for th e above part icul ars . Th esch eme of removal h a s now been carri ed out.1 Vide Yorksh ire Record s , Vol . II .1 Vide Parish Registe r, Vol . I .Vide Yorksh ire Record s . Vol . II .
A.D . 1555.
52 AOKWORTH,YORKS.
,
charges, fifty - six in number,
aleand condemned by Gardiner
,
Bishop of Wincheste r, and Morgan ,of St . David ’s
, to be burn t
alive on March 30,1 555 . On th e day appointed
,th e Satu rday
before Passion Week ,h e was brought out of prison to the
market place , near Carmarthen Castle , and there, on th e southside of the market cross, h e was bound to a stake
,and
heroically endured th e martyrdom of fire .
'
1 M onuments areerected to his memory in Carmarthen and Halifax Parish
Churches,and also at St . Florence ’s Church
,near Tenby.
Th e Rev . George Ackworth ,D .D . , Public Orator to th e Uni
versi ty of Cambridge in 1 559, was most probably a native of
Ackworth,near Pontefract. He was incorporated at
Oxford, in 1 568 ; became Rector of Ellington and Prebendary
of Sou thwell ; and was author of th e Life of St . Augustine,
th e first Archbishop of Canterbury,the MS . of which is in
the possession of Mr. Wharton, by whom it was prepared for
the press ;r
1 560 . Mich . Term,2 3 El izth . Margaret W ilcock
,plain
tiff George Wil cocke , gent . and El izth . h is wife, deforciants ;for land in Ackworth e .
Nicholas Levett , gent ,plaintiff
,George Richd . Ta l insal l ,
gents ,deforciants, for two messuages with lands in Hutton
,
M orehouse , Ackworth and Auston .§
In th e first volume of th e Ackworth Parish Registers, th efollowing entry appears under th e head of marriages celebrated
at th e Parish Church , in
Edwarde Rustbie and Grace AllineJulie 5 .
This refers without doubt to th e marriage of Edward Rus'
by ,
who was Mayor of Pontefract in It is most likely that
Vide Harleian M SS. Brit . M us . t For full account of h im , see Biograph i
cal Sketch by J . W . Conway Hugh es , 1 884 .
1 Vide Tanner’s Bib liography ,
”
p . 3 and Wilson ’
s Historical M S.
Vide Yorksh ire Record s , Vol . II .Vide Yorksh ire Parish Registers , in Yorksh ire Arch aeologica l Journal ,
Part VI . , p . 109 .
‘l l Vide C ivic Rol l .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
h e was , both before and after his marriage, an influential resi
dent of Ackworth . He certainly resided at Hundhil l in 1 570 .
In the Subsidy Roll for Pontefract,in 1 543 , his name occurs
as “Edwa rd us R u sbye,”
and two years later (1545) as“Edw a rdus
Rusby in terr. xxij s ijd .
” Later on w e find him be ing dis
possessed of land . Fine . Hilary, 6 Eliz Jonathan
Grant Guest , Edward Rustbie Grace uxor deforct. of 4
acres of land in Balne,” and in 1 570 we find him acquiring land
by Royal Patent. “1 3 El iz . ( 1 570) one acre in Hunda l l in the
parish of Ackworth in tenure of Edwd . Busby.
” Thus we
have a short,but very interest ing family history, capable of
considerable expansion by those wh o are fond of genealogical
research . There can be no doub t that Edward Rustbie was a
man whom th e people of Pontefract del ighted to honou r,and
of whom th e people of Ackworth ought to be j ustly proud .
1 562. Mich . Term,4 5 El izth . John Kaye de Okenshawe ,
gent , plaintiff, Robert Bradford, deforciant,for Manor of
Preston Jaclyn,
five messuages and four cottages with lands
in th e same,
in Ayeton ,Fetherstone , Ackworth e , W
'
armfie l d ,
B eathe,and Kyrkethorpe .
*
1 563 . Easter Term,5 El izth . R ichard Thorpe , plaintiff,
Wm . Wentworth,Edwd . Cl y th erawe , gent , Th os. Wentworth ,
Esq ,deforciants
,for land in Burnel hou ses Akeworth . Wm.
B roke,plaintiff ; Robert Walke r
,defo rciant
,for messuage
and three cottages with lands in Pon tfrett,Preston Jacklyn
,
Derryngton ,Feyth erstone , Ackeworth ,
Carleton,Hardwyke ,
Hund e l lfi'E
1 564 . Hilary Term, 6 El izth . Thos . Smythe , plaintiff,
Henry Wyathboth ame , Johanna his wife,deforciants
,for a
messuage with land s in W ragby Ackwo rth .
*
Ralph Snaith , by his w i ll dated six th Elizabeth,leaves to
th e Ch urch of Ackworth a vestment that wants an a l b,and
vjs . v iijd . to buy an alb wi th-
f0
f V ide Test Ebor III . 45 .
A.D . 1 561 .
1 564 .
1594 .
ACKWORTH, YORKS ,
1 566 . Easter Term ,8 El izth . Edwd . Wright
,plaintiff
,and
Henry Halley, gent , deforciant , for a messuage with lands inBaddysworth ,
Ackworth .
“
1 568. Easter Term , 1 0 El izth . Edwd . Wright,plain tiff
,
Chas . Jackson , gent , Dorothy his wife,deforciants for two
messuages a cottage with lands in East Hardwyck e , Pontefrett , Tanshe l ff,Carleton ,
Hunde l l,Acworth efi"
Barnab . Shepheard , Rector ; presented to this Living byAbp . York
,Jany . 1 578 . 1
‘
Simon Buck , Rector ; Abp . York,Patron
,January 1 585 . 1
‘
Thirty—first, Elizabeth. Thomas Wen tworth,Esq ,
was foundto hold dive rs lands and tenements here
,Of th e Queen ,
as ofh er honour of Pontefract
,for m ilitary service . James Wil cocks
was found to hold three pasture closes here,called Burnell
Houses,of the Queen ,
for service unknown .
Wi ll : Lamb , Rectr : presented to this Living by Queen
Eliz. in January 1 594 . 1
Henry Huntingdon and Ann Smithson ,both of Ackworth
,
were married in th e Parish Church of Ackworth i
Roger, son of Richard Pickering,of Ackworth ,
was married
to Grace Midgley, of Addle, at th e Parish Church of Addle .
Also,Richard Ransl ey , of Wakefield, to Mary Parkhu rst
,of
Ackworth,in th e Parish Church of Ackworth ]:
About this time,Ackworth , together with th e greater part
of the lHonour of Pontefract,was mortgaged to th e City of
London .
This bu ilding was renovated.
in 1 846, at which time th e
original stone lintel over th e front entrance , hearing date 1 61 1 ,was removed . Th e hou se is now used as a ladies ’ school .
Vide Yorksh ire Records , Vo l . II .1 Vide Parish Register, Vol . I .I Vide Paver’s Marriage Licenses .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Aggbrigg VVapentake , 1 7th James . Out of Queen Anne ’s
joynture, th e K ing granted all our
Manor of Pontefract,in the County of Yorke
,and other
Counties wheresoever that Honor extendeth,and all th e
demesnes, castles, manors , &c . ,be ing part of the said Honor of
Pontefract,or to th e said Honor of Pontefract any way belong
ing,with th e appu rtenances in th e said County of Yorke
,viz .
,
all those our towns of Pontefract,and all those our manors
of Tansh e l fe , Carleton ,Aichw orth
,Allerton
,Altofts
,Kipax,
Warnefie l d,Barwicke
,Scoles
,Roundhay , Elmersh a l l
,Camsa l l
Ouston,Knottingley
,Cred l ing,
Begh a‘
l l,Rothwell
,Leedes
,
M arshden,and Almonbury ,
&c . Dated at Westminster,1 1 th
Oct .,1 7th Jamesfif
On June 1 4th in this year, Ackworth was granted outr ightto D itch fiel d ,
High l ord ,and others , the i r trustees or committees ,
under th e rese rvat ion of an annual fee farm rent of £39 2s . 2d .
On February 24th,1 628, D itchfiel d , and other original
grantees,assigned th e Manor of Ackworth
,in th e honour of
Pontefract , to Mark Pickering ,of York
,Robert C l aph amson
,of
York,and John Redman ,
of Water Fulford .
“ Dan : Fawkner, M .A .,presented by K . Charles ye first ye
1 4 April l 1 634 and ye 25th of September following h e was
succeeded by Samuel Carter, M .A . ,being p resented there to by
K . Charles ye l st .
”-
l'
Hessle i s a hamle t of a dozen houses , lying at th e extreme
north of the parish of \Vragby , and within its ecclesiastical
boundary. I t is evident that this northe rn boundary betweenth e parishes of W ragby and Ackwo rth is th e ancient one de
fined by th e Domesday Survey,and confi rmed in later years by
th e Ecclesiastical Commissione rs , on th e recommendation of
H . M . O rdnance Su rveyors in 1 859 . A delimitation is,however
,
necessary,whe reby th e haml e t of Hessle wou ld come within
Vide Dodsworth ’
s Yorksh ire M S. , and Yorksh ire Arch . Journa l , Part XXIII ,p . 426 .
1 V ide Pari sh Register , Vol . I .
A.D . 1619:
1 627 .
1 628 .
A.D . 1641 .
56 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
th e boundaries of th e parish of Ackworth ,and th e village of
Brackenh il l within th e parish of W ragby. In th e 1 7th cen
tury,Hessle would probably be a village of some forty or fifty
houses , boasting of its squ ire ’s residence in the midst. This
edifice still exists, and is undoubtedly th e only remnant of th e
17th century village . It is in th e Elizabethan style of arch itecture
,and is still known as “H ess l e Ha l l .
” Over the fron tentrance may be seen the figures and letters , 1 641 , SP. The
house was e ither built,or passed very soon after it s e rection ,
into th e hands of th e Winns,of Noste l
,in whose possession i t
has since remained. Th e ol d Hall at Ackworth was most
probably built about th e same t ime .
When Charles I . was deserted by nearly all th e kingdom ,
the castle of Pontefract remained fai thful , and was gar risonedby th e nobil ity and gentry of th e town and adjoin ing villages ,amongst which Ackworth i s conspicuous . Their names are
handed down to us in a MS . of th e Rev . Dr. Samuel Drake ,at that t ime Rector of Hemsworth and V icar of Pontefract .These gentlemen volunteers were enlisted into four divisions,commanded by (1 ) Col . Grey, (2) Sir Richard Hu tton
, (3) Sir
John Ramsden, (4) Sir G . Wentworth ; the whole be ing
manoeuvred by Colonel Lowther. Among the volunteers in
S ir John Ramsden’s division we find Mr . Pickering , th e parsonof Ackworth
,and father of Mr. Alderman Picker ing ,
of Leeds ,acting probably as one of th e chaplains of th e division ; and
in Sir G. Wentworth’
s division w e find the Rev . Thos. Bradley,D .D . , parson of Ackworth and Castleford
,wh o warmly
espoused l
th e cause of royalty. He l ived a long time after th e
restorat ion .
“
Thos . Bradley ,Rector. His Patron K. Charles 1 st . He
died was buried at Ackw . Deer. 17th ,
In or about this year, there was a severe Skirmish between
Fox’s Hist. Pont . , p . 1 73 .
f Vide Pari sh Register , Vol . I .
A .D . 1 653 .
ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
that on February 1 9th ,1 653 - 4
, Stephen Cawood,of East
Hardw icke , within this parish ,yeoman
,departed this life
,and
his corps was inter red in his owne ground in East Hardwicke,
aforesaid , the twentieth day of th e same moneth .
” This
Stephen Cawood had in th e p revious month executed a deed
of gift,vesting his p roperty
,after his decease , in trustees, for
th e e rection and endowmen t of a Chapel and Free School in
East Hardwick,a dole to th e poor there, and a con tribution of
an equal amount towards th e repair of a road in Ackworth .
Th e l atte r place as well as East Hardwick is benefitted by thisCharity
,and by th e Foundation Deed th e Free School i s open
alike to children of the two townsh ips . From th e fact that
Stephen Cawood is said to have been bu ried “ in his owne
ground ”
it is evident that the Chapel was not then built, bu ti t is probable that i ts e rection took place as soon as th e
necessary arrangements could be made , for th e bu ilding bears
eviden t signs of th e C romwellian decade . Thirteen years afterM r. Cawood ’s death th e bu ilding certainly ex isted, for in 1 667,th e Pontefract Chu rch Books contain anothe r entry, recordingthat on
“ Oct . 26th ,Mr. Lawrence Addam was buried in ye
Church of East Hardwick .
” There is unfortunately no recordof i ts Consecration or Dedication
,but from th e fact that at the
t ime of Stephen Cawood ’s death th e See of York had beenvacant nearly fou r years , and that th e vacancy was not filled
up until 1 660 , i t i s probable that th e Chapel e rected in theinte rval was never consecrated at all . About th e year 1 845 ,efforts were made to ob tain Consec ration for th e bu ilding
,but
Archbishop Musgrave saw some impassable barrier to it,and
no furthe r attempts were afterward s made . A description of
the bu ilding will be found in a pamphlet published in 1 871 ,
from which the above particu lars have been obtained .
According to an entry in th e Parish Registe rs,marriages in
in 1 654 (only) took place before“ Jo. Warde and John
Ramsden,
”
wh o would p robably be Royal Commissionersappointed for th e purpose , or Justices of th e Peace.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 59
This large house known as East Hardwicke Hall was bu il tabou t th e middle of th e 1 7th century . l ts style and th e
banker-marks on th e surface of th e ashlar both inside and
outside of th e bu ilding are sufficient evidence of i ts antiqu ity .
It was formerly th e seat of l V. Lambe , Esq .,whose monumen t
may be seen inside Pontefract Parish Chu rch . In h is time fou rpowde red servants were kept , and i t is said that one of them
,
a footman,was acciden tal ly killed by falling down stairs .
On Brack enh il l common there stands a small house which
was formerly a lodge at th e sou thern end of Noste l Pa rk. I t
is an interesting st ructu re,and dates probably from th e 17th
century. Its exter ior walls are about two fee t thick, th e small
lancet - shaped windows being deeply pierced . Access to th e
upper story was originally obtained by means of a trap door andladder. Th e rafters are of ol d oak
,and th e gene ral a r range
ment of th e interior indicates an ancient origin . At the sou th
end of th e house,is an ol d pear tree
,which has long since
ceased to hear. Th e ol d coach road from Doncaster to Wakefield may still be traced
,and altoge ther th e site i s one which
,
as an ancient land -mark is worth observation .
Barnsley,xvi . January , Anno xiiii. Carol i Regis . P resent
Sir F rancis l Vortl ey ,Knt . 8: Bart
,Sir Geo. Wentworth ,
Kn t .,
W illiam West,Robt. Rockley,
and Thos . Jobson,Esqu ires .
On ce rtificate that Thomas C l iffe , of Ackw orth , be ing a man
of honest life and conversat ion ,and painful in his vocation and
call ing,by
,
a sudden,vehemen t
,and fearful fire , happen ing in
one Anthony Birl ison his neighbour’s house , adjo in ing upon
th e said Thomas C l itfe his dwelling - house , upon Wednesday,
th e nine teenth day of December last past , about n ine o’clock
in th e forenoon of th e said day, th e said house was suddenly
bu rnt,three kyne of good value , corn threshed and un threshed ,
and all other his household goods to the value of three scorepounds and upwards ; and th e said Anthony Birl ison ,
and likewise all his goods and household stuff burned. The Court
AD . 1662 .
1665 .
60 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
desires ministers and curates in th e Wapentake of Osgol dcross
to read,order
,and make a collection towards rel ief. Mary
B l agburne ,widow
,owner of the houses, to have some allow
ance out of the moneys collected , as Si r Thos . Wentworth and
Sir Edw . Rodes,or e ither of them ,
shall think fitting , towards
th e re -building of th e said hou ses?“
Charles, th e sonne of Mr. Danyel l Godfrey, By Barberry
th e d aughter of Doctor Thomas B radley (Rector of Ackworth ,
Ch apl ayne to his Maty. K ing Charles th e first,and p rebendary
of Yorke) and th e Lady Ffrances his wife,daughter to the
right Honb l e . John Lord Savile,Bar of Pon tefract
,&c .
,was
baptized the 24th November,Anno : 1 663 : be inge the fi rst
that was baptized in th e ffont newly sett up after the antient
ffont was destroyed, and broken downe in th e late c iv il l warrs ;
On Candlemas day imed iatl y fol l ow inge was the Honb l e. th e
Lady Ffrancis afou r mentioned here Honourably inter’
d,wh o
dyed th e Satturd ay before be inge th e 3oth day of January,th e
day where in his late Maty. of blessed memory was put to death e
and th e very same hou re (as meere as may be conjectured)where in his Maty. su ffered , did she breathe h er last , and
retu rned h er Spirit unto God that gave i t. 1‘
This Doctor Bradley be ing institu ted and inducted intothis Ackworth ,
Anno 1 643, was driven hence by th e trouble
some tymes caused by th e Civ il l Warrs 1 664 (margin— supposethis 1664 shou ld be 1 644) and so remayned t ill this yeare , and
at th e K ings returne h e returned to his l iveinge agayne , beinge
one of the Chapl aynes to th e Kings
An appeal was made on behalf of the sufferers to th e
clemency of Cromwell , wh o was then firmly established in th e
Protectorsh ip ,and had just issued his famou s bu t most inhuman
Declaration ,depr iving them of all possible means of obtaining
a livelihood. This appeal stated that “ above half of th e
Vide West Rid ing Session Rolls .
f Vide Parish Register , Vol . I .
Minis ters and Scholars of England and Wales had been , upon
one account or other, sequeste red from thei r l ivings, besides
fellowships and free schools and that many others also had
been wholly deprived of their prebendaries, deaneries , bishoprics
,and highest dignities in th e Church ; in all amounting to
at least six or seven thou sand persons . Truly it was a fearful
Spoliation . A more grinding,
and intole rable tyranny than
that of th e Puritans was never set up . They stifled freedom
of thought, waged war upon opinion,persecuted conscience ,
confiscated p r ivate property,and rigorou sly abol ished all
amusements .
30 May : 1 673 . Jeremiah Bolton,M .A .
,was presented by
K . Char : 2d .
*
In th e house occupied by James Findlay,Esq.
,of High
Ackworth,there is a very handsomely carved oaken bedstead
,
very massive and evidently very antique . Th e oak is nearlyblack
,and th e date on th e footboard is 1 674 . Th e canopy,
which is elegantly carved ,is attached to four disconnected
massive posts,on th e foot of which is carved th e coat of arms
of the Butler family. Th e whole piece i s wel l worth th e
inspection of the antiquarian . It belongs to th e family of the
The most ancient existing house in Ackworth next to th e
Old Hall (c irca is th e bu ilding now known as th e“ Mason ’s Arms Inn . The following inscription may still beseen upon the lin tel of th e front door :
I . A .
1 682 .
Th e letters I . A. are supposed to stand for John Askew, who
it is said,opened out the fi rst stone - quarry in the parish of
Ackworth . Th e Boot and Shoe Inn and post ing house is
Vide Parish Register, Vol . I .
A.D . 1665 .
1 673 .
A.D . 1694 .
1 695 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
In 1 694, Jordan Tancred was presented to ye Living by
ye Duke Of Leeds,Chance l l r, Of ye Duchy of
In 1 695 , Benj . Rentm ore , M .A .
,was presented by D . of
Lancaster.“Wm . Simson Grace Howitt marryed Nov . 21 , beinge
with child .
Abraham Walker Mary Usher marryed feb . ye 25th ,
being with
Elizabeth th e Daughter of Benjamin Wrentmore ,D .D .
,
Rector of Ackworth,and Elizabeth his wife borne March th e
fi rst on a monday morning abou t ten of th e c l ock e and baptized
March th e 1 4th ,
-
l'
Aprill ye l oth ,1 698. Whereas Thomas Howitt
,late of
Ackworth,deced . did (upon leave given him by William Lambe,
Esq.
,late owne r of th e Mannour House and demeasnes of
Ackworth aforesaid) e rect and bu ild one seat or pew in ye north
qu ire in Ackworth Chu rch, ye said qu ire belonging then to ye
said William Lambe,and since then sold with ye aforesaid
Manner house and demesnes to Robert Lowther of Ackworthaforesaid, Esq .
,which said seat or pew is yet standing, and con
tinned in ye said qu ire . And whereas Robe rt Mason of Ack
worth aforesaid , having bought an estate in Ackworth aforesaid
and living in ye said parish is desirou s to have loan of ye said
Mr. Robert Lowther for himse lf and family to sitt in ye said
seat or pew soe bu il t in ye north qu ire of ye . said Church on
Sundays and other dayes of divine service . Ys is thereforeente red in ys booke as a memorandum betwixt ye said RobertLowther and Robert Mason that ye said Robert Lowther dothgive ye said Robert Mason and his family leave to Sitt in yesaid pew or seat aforesaid during ye pleasure of him ye said
Robert Lowther, and ye said Robert Mason doth he reby
Vide Parish Register, Vo l . II .1 Vide Register of Baptisms , Vol . II .
ITS HISTORY AND AN NALS. 63
acknowledge that h e hath not or claims to have any rightin ye said seat or pew but only to sitt the re by ye leave of ye
said Robert Lowther and not othe rwise . In witness whereof
ye said Robert Lowther Robert Mason have sett the i r handsto ys memorand . and agreement in ye p resence of ye witnesses
following.
Witnesses .
B. Wrentmore,Rector. Robert Lowther.
Edm : Abbott. Robert Mason .
*
In 1700 Ph . Holl ings,M .A .
,was presented by Ld . Growe r ,“
Epaphroditus, ye sonn of John Hattersa l l Prudence hiswife was baptiz
’
d Novr.
In June , 1 705 ,“ Thomas, a child brought to th e parish
in th e night, baptized .
”
i
There i s in Low Ackworth,at th e bottom of Lea Lanc
,a
square enclosure su rrounded by a high wa l l,w h ich h as been
used for nearly two hundred years by th e Society of F r iends asthe ir place of interment. Inside
,the smooth ly cu t sward
, the
parallel rows of smal l un iform slabs,and th e neatly t r immed
Shrubs and beds , impress th e vis i tor with a transien t desire toselect i t as his last resting place . On th e north Side of the
entrance gate inside is th e fo l lowing insc ription“ Philip Austwick gave for a Buria l l place to th e People
called Quakers in 1 707 , 1 2 yards square of this ground.
And on th e sou th“228 square yards of this ground was purchased of John
Barfiin,1780 .
The tomb of th e original donor has been ca refu lly p reserved.
Vide Parish Regi ster, Vol . I I .1 Vide Register of Baptisms , Vo l . II . Anoth er son ,
“ Paul , " w as baptizedon Septem ber 26th ,
1 705 , and Amram , th e ir sonn e , ” Jul y 6 , 1 707 .
I Probab ly a found ling. Th e Hospita l was not th en erected , butcottages existed .
1 700 .
1 705 .
1 707 .
ACKWORTH , YORKS
It is situated near the centre of th e ground , and is in shape a
large “ table tomb,th e inscr iption thereon being quite legible :
“ He re l yeth th e body of Philip AVSTWICK,wh o died Ap ri l 2 1
,
A considerable per iod elapses between this and th e next
earl iest slab,which in common with all th e rest is a small square
Slab laid down in a slightly incl ined posi tion .
Th e following is an excerpt from th e Register of interments . James Harrison 1 828
,Jane Peacock 1 843
,Mary Rous
1 843 , John Pi lmor 1 845,MaryPilmor 1 852
,W ill iam Sykes 1857,
Mary Sykes 1 863,Elizabeth Sykes 1839 , Rachel Sykes 1 834,
Richard Sykes 1 825,M ary Sykes 1 866 , Mark Blake (a scholar)”6
1 841,Jane Simpson (a scholar) 18 37, Mary Dumbleton 1 828 ,
Mary Heptinstall 1 845, Elizabeth Armstrong 1 837 , RachelPumphrey -
f 1 842 , Thomas Pumphrey 1 862 , Leonard Thistle
thwaite 1 837, Benj amin Donbavand 1 833,Caroline Smith (a
schol ar) 1 854, Bernard Knowles 1835 , Hannah Knowles 1 841 ,Anne Cooper 1 826 , Joseph Donb av and 183 1 , Sarah Reid 1824,Joseph Donbavand Junior 1 825 , John Donbavand 1 824, Sarah
Donbav and 1 824,Elizabeth Donbavand 1 825 , Robe rt Donbav and
1 858,Isaac Levitt 1 862 , Mary Levitt 1 875 ,
Robert Wh itaker j:1 848
,James Morley 1 848, Henry Beaumon t Fryer 1 875 , Will iam
Wi lson 1 875, James Fishe r 1 87 1 , Jane Fisher 1 881 , HannahTh orehil l 1 847 , Henry B r’ady 1 828, Ann Linney 1 862 , Hannah
Linney 1 872 , Esther Linney ( infant) 1 854 , Elizabeth Linney
1 882,George Linney 1 867, Elizabeth Linney 1 834 , Mary Linney
1 875 , Leonard West 1 830, Joseph Cowell 1 843,George Hask
hurst 1835 Joseph Johnson 1 830 , Jane Oakes 1 824, MaryTh istl ethwa ite 1 833, Samuel Th istl ethwaite ( infant) 1 839, Agnes
Th istl ethwaite 1 857 , Thomas Robinson § 1 878 , Thomas Atkins1 847, Lydia Donbavand 1 82 1
, Will iam Donbavand 1 821 , Ann
From th e Friend s ’Sch ool . No ages are inscribed upon th e slabs .
1 W ife of Th oma s Pumphrey , th e th en Superintendent .i Superintendent .
-An ol d tomb dated 1 844 was removed to make roomfor this interment ,vide p lan .
66 ACKWORTH,rosxs
Ann West Brown (a scholar) 1 877, John Newby 1 877, Maria
Newby 1 869 , Elizabeth Benn ington 1 857, Elizabeth Yeardley1 854
,Robert Graham 1 857, Mary Graham 1 864, Ann J. Kaye
1 875, John Walker 1 877, Alfred J. Greenwood 1 880 , FrederickW ill iam K i tchen 1873 , Harold K i tchen 1 878 , Martha Thornhill1 856 ,Joseph Wright 1858,Martha Hodgson 1859,Lydia Spar
‘ker
1 860 , Henry Wright 1 861,Henry R. Ncave 1 864, A rthur L.
Le icester 1 871 , Herbert J . Evans 1 877,Will iam Cammage 1 878 ,
Will iam Douthwaite 1 867, Ellen Pollard 1 858 , Sarah Pearson1 853 , Joseph Storrs 1 850 , Isaac Briggs (an infant ) 1 853 , Sarah
Pilmor 1864,MichaelPilmor 1 863,Guil c lma Mason
,Lucy Mason
,
Eliza Mason 1 864 , Harriet Smith 1 875 , Elizabe th Forth 1 876 ,S . Radford (no date ), John N . Airey 1 872, Leonard A . Airey1872, SarahWood 1870 , JamcsWood 1 861 , E lmi ra Wood 1 863,Jane C l cmcs 1 850 , Betsy Wil l is 1865, Susan Glomes 1 850
,Mary
Hoskin (an infant) 1861 . There are spaces for fifty more graves,
in which a hundred and fifty persons could be inte rred . The
ground was last enlarged in 1 848 ,by th e purchase from John
Barff or Barffin of 270 square yards. T he total contents of the
ground is 642 square yards .
Over th e door of the ol d vestry before th e restoration of
the Parish Chu rch , a small stone slab was inserted bearing th e
following inscription
Samuel Turner
with the consen t of his mother F. M .
erected this Vestry, Anno. Dni.
1 71 2 .
Th e above slab was removed from th e ground by Mr. J. Hepworth
of Ackworth House, where i t may still be seen "
Anne ye Daughter of W illiam Addy lahr, Ju ly ye 9th ,
begotton in fi'
ornicacion.
”
Ralph Lowther,Esq. (of Ackworth Park ) buried. August
l 5th .
”
1‘
Vide Register of Baptisms , Vol . II . Th is crime was punish able by excommunication . V ide Canons Hom ily XI . , and Article XXXIII .f Vide Register of Burials . Vol . I I ,
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 67
Illegi timacy of birth ,when not expressly stated in th e “ 4727 ,
register of baptisms in use at this time,is frequently indicated
by an index finger, and occasionally by both ,thu s
W Prudence th e Ba sta rd child of Mary Nel strOpe ,was baptiz
’
d May ye
Margarett th e wife O f Phil : Hollins,C ler : Rector O f this
Parish was Buried March th e
Defoe , writing in 1 727, in his account of the Roman Roadsof Yorksh ire , says : “ I must go back to Pontefract, to takenotice that here again the great Roman highway , which I men
tioned at Doncaster, and which is visible from thence in seve ralplaces on th e way to Pontefract , though not in th e Open road ,
is apparent again ; and from Castleford B ridge i t goes on to
Abcrforth ,a smal l market town famou s for pin-making , and so
to Tadcaster and York .
”
This Roman road cu ts across th e
north - easte rn corner of the parish of Ackworth , near RiggFarm
,so called from r idge
—: raised
,th e Roman roads always
being raised above : th e level of th e surrounding country .
“ In 1728 , \Vill . Key ,M .A .
,was p resented to this Living by 1 728 .
ye D of Rutl and .
”
iJohn Lowther
,Esqr. (of Ackworth Park) bu ried July ye
Th e Revd. Mr. Fl eeming, V icar d e Th ornor,and Mrs .
Martha Barman,married (at Ackworth Church) with license
granted by Mr. Drake , Vicar ofNew mansion built at Noste l , by Sir Rowland W inn ,
and a
new bridge over the lake erected . Th e Architec t was James
Paine .
“ Ju ly 26 , Doctor Winteringham ,York . widower, and Mrs .
Catherine Bright , Badsworth ,spinster
Tim : Lee,Rector. Instituted Deer. 8 th , 1 744 . Presented 1 744 .
to this Living by Ld. Edgcumbfl t
Vide Register of Baptisms , Vol . II .1 Vide Register of Buria ls , Vol . II .
I Vide Parish Register , Vol . II .
Vide Regi ster o f Marriages , Vo l . II,
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
By Indenture dated July 6th ,1 749 (23 Geo. between
Ann Beaumont,ale of Brackenh il l Quarry, in th e par ish of Ack
worth,and Abstrupus Danby , of K ingston -upon -Hull , merchant,
it was agreed that in consideration of th e sum of fiv e shill ings,
th e said Ann Beaumond wou ld sell to th e said Ab strupus
Danby,a cottage at Brackenh il l Quarry for th e te rm of one
year, and th e said Abstrupus Danby agreed to yield and pay toth e said Ann Beaumond therefor th e “ rent of one Red Rosein the t ime of Roses ( if the same were lawful ly demanded) etc .
”
The witnesses to th e signing and seal ing of th e above
document were Thomas Slater and Wm . K i rkby ,and the deed
was duly registered at Wakefield , on July l oth ,1 749 , by J . B.
Leng , Deputy Registrar.
Upon the front cover inside th e Register of Banns for th e
years 1 754-84 , are two quaint Latin formulas,both of them
be ing certificates of publication of Banns . Th e phraseologyemployed is an O fficial Latin which is gene rally used in all earlylegal documents, and so easy to d isciph er, that the re is no
necessity to append a translation.
M em . Banna matrimonia l ia ter pub l icata fuere in Ecclesianostra paroch ia l i de Ackworth inter Clement Cryer d e Ackworth et Annam Oldfield d e Feath erston et nihil Objicitur quo
minus sancto matrimonij vinculo conjungantur. Ita Testor.
T. Lee, July 3 ,
Scias per certo (Vir Reverende) Banna matrimonia l ia interGul ielmum Wager e t Mariam Crawshaw de Pontefract terpronunciata fu isse secundum Leges eccl esiasticas in Ecclesia
Paroch ial i d e Ackworth,nimine contradicente , in cujus hic
testimonium sub scribitur nomen . T . Lee . Ex ma soso nostro,
1 0 mo. Die Novembris,
The Banns of marriage were published between “ John
Longstaff,of Ackworth
,and Elizabeth Littlewood
,O f Snaith
,
Daugh ter of Th omas Beamond , of Ackworth , yeoman , and grand -daugh terof Thomas B eamond , of Ackworth , labourer.—Vide Indenture.
on ye 1 1 th of June,bu t d iscontinued because sh e was h l SWife's w , 1758 ,
sister’s Daughter. T. Lee.
”
Th e Boundary Bridge which marks th e place where th eparishes of Hemsworth and Ackworth mee t on th e Hemsworth
Road , bears an inscription which informs th e travell er that th ebridge was erected in 1759 and enl arged in 1770 .
This hospital (now th e National School of th e Society of
Friends) was built in 1757- 59 , at a cost of partlyby voluntary subscriptions
,and partly by Parliamentary
Grant,as an appendage to th e Central Insti tu tion
,which had
a few years previously risen in London,a third house being
opened in Shropshire , and both th e secondary establishments
being supplied with children from London . The register,cash
,
and other books, relating to this hospital,are
' still kept at
Ackworth School , as also are several interesting documents Ofan earl ier date concerning foundl ings sent into th e country
several years before the house was built. Captain Coram
started his benevolent schemes about 1 739 -
l‘ and there i s a
book headed “Accounts with th e Foundl ing Hospital, begun
Mar. 3oth ,1741 , containing particulars of rece ipts and pay
ments in respect of children , six in number at first,shewing
that a return was made to th e London institution once a
quarter. At this time infants were lodged in the village s ofAckworth
,K ippax
,Empsal , Hemsworth ,
Hoyland,Midgley
,and
C rigglestone . I t seems , too,that originally nurses
and infants were sent down by stage waggon ; but after that a“ hospital caravan
” was p rovided,a minute be ing made that no
more were to be sent by waggon . All this was prior to th e
erection of a hospital . On th e hospital books is a stamp bear
ing th e representation of th e finding of Moses ; and on a circle
th e words,
“Hospitium Infantum Expositorum . Th e full s tyle
of th e Corporation was, “ The Governors and Guardians of th e
Hospital for th e main tenance and education of exposed and
Vide Register of Banns , Vo l . II I .
1 T he Royal Ch arter is dated 1 7th O ctober , 1 739 .
A.D . 1 759 .
70 ACKWORTH, YORKS
deserted young children. The hospital at Ackworth was Open
for Sixteen years, namely, from l 9 th August, 1757 , to 25 th Ju ly,
1773, and in that time children were received in to i t ;and of these 1 69 , or 63, per cent died there . Th e causes of
death are summarised at th e end of the hospital register, and
their burials recorded in th e parish registers of Ackworth
Church . The first master of th e hospital appears to have been
Richard Hargreaves,and th e first money h e rece ived was from
Dr. Timothy Lee , th e Rector of Ackworth,amounting to £49
1 43 . 45d . The obstacle s , however, to the hospital’s success we re
so great as to cause Parliament to inte rfere .
* Reference ismade elsewhere to th e mortality of th e Institution.
By an Inden ture of purchase dated 176 1 , certain lands at
Flempton ,in Suffolk ,
were sold by Dr. Timothy Lee , Rector ofAckworth ,
in th e County Of York , and oth ers,
i
to Sir William
Gage , of Bury St. Edmunds, in th e County of Suffolk,Bart.
Indenture of lease and release be tween the Rev . Timothy
Lee , D .D . ,
-
l‘
on th e one part, and William Sykes , Gentleman ,on
th e other, made th e 28th and 29th May,1765 . Extract from
schedule referring to th e Ackworth Park Estate.
Th e fol lowing is an ex tract from Dr . Lee ’s papers
ANN APPEw,
Daughter of Zachariah . Baptized at Ackworth ,22md May
,
1 683 , and ,be ing a spinster, was buried at Ackworth ,
28th
December, 1776 .
There were at th e Funeral the following persons , all atAekWorph .
Mary Burgess aged 89 . Mary Ath eronMrs . Minton 82 . Fanny Cryer
Susn . Smith 8 1 . Nanny Slack
Mary W ilson 78 . Molly Beetham
Banks’
s Walks about Yorksh ire , pp . 294 -8 .
t It is sa id th at Dr. Lee kept a pack of h ound s (probab ly b arriers) for th eamusement of h is parish ioners .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Jane Moor
Fanny Wager
Ma ryJane Standish
Widow Heptinstall
Th e Rector was at th e Funeral , and , considering th e great
ages of th e Parishioners , on th e 1 l th of Janua ry, 1767, h e inv ited th e above 1 8 to D inner, and ,
i t being th e great snow,only
13 were p resent, whose ages equal l’
d 958 , 5 absent , Total , 1 3 13 .
Richard Woodhead , aged 88.
Wm . Heptinstall 79 .
Wm . Nelstrup 79 .
Jon . Thompson 75 .
Richard B riggs 75 .
Wm . Wager 71 .
R ichard Nelstrup . 71 .
Rev . M . Pearse 7 1 .
Mr. Benj . 7 1 .
John Wainwright 71 .
John Beetham 68.
Ages of 21
On th e 8 th of February ,1767 , the Rector invited th e above
21 men to dine with him , and there were present 1 9, whoseages 1 328
,and 2 absent 1 43 . Total , 1 471 . The ages of
the 32 who dined,
The ages of the 39 invited
And all th e above are now alive at Ackworth , this 1 2 th Sep ,
1767. Besides th e above , there were at this time l iving atAckworth ,
but not thought of for the funeral , Dr. Watkinson ,
aged 74 , and Mrs. Watkinson ,aged 68 .
Dr. Lee says that“th e corpse was carried to the Church by
e ight young women,wh o were all clothed in white , and two of
them carried a garland in th e ol d style .
”
1766 .
Robert HeptinstallFrancis Howitt
Thos . Lockwood
Benjn . Clark
Mr. Swan
Mr. Furniss
Thomas Slater
Richard Hepworth
\Vm . Scratcher
Wm . Wood
ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
N.B . Thos . Burton Margaret Backhouse,both of Ack
worth , pub d . 1 0 1 7 May, but M argt. was transported for
Felony before Mar : T .
Th e Banns of Marriage we re published between James Hey ,
of Ackworth,and Mary Lightowler, Of Pontefract , on ye 9 th ,
but stopt by M . Lightowler in Person , ye 1 5th July, 1 769 .
T . Lee , Rector . Mary Lightowler was evidently a very prudent young woman .
This Institu tion was closed by order of Parliament, after acomparatively u seless ex istence of 1 2 years . It is said that a
majority of th e children admitted tO th e house at Ackworth,
died before they were at an age to be put ou t as app rentices,
which was u sually at about e ight years of age . This mortality,
th e difficu lty of Obtain ing p roper nurses,and of providing
humane maste rs , with the frequent contests from th e Opposi tion
of parishes, and th e cruelty of masters where they were appren
ticed ,proved such insurmountable Obstacles to th e well -con
ducting of th e Char ity,that th e hou se at Ackworth was finally
abandoned as aFoundling Hospital, and remained unoccupied
and on sale for eight years -
l: An excerpt from the Parish
Registers will throw some light upon the internal managementof the Hospital
1765 , Buried . Inha bi tan ts , Males 8 , Females, 8 . Found
l 'ings , Males 27 , Females 25 . The disp roportion is seen at once .
An a l y s is of ca u se of d ea th . Inhabitants : Dysentery,1 ;
Small Pox ,3 ; Feve r, 2 ; Consumption , 3 ; other causes
, 7.
Foundlings : Dysen tery, 23 ° Small Pox,1 8 ; Fever, 4 ; Con
sumption, 2 ;other causes, 5 .
Th e year 1 771 will ever be a remarkable one in th e annals
of Ackworth ,on account of a quadruple birth which occurred
there. A poor woman , whose name cannot be ascertained, wassafely delivered of four children :
Vid e Register of Banns , Vol . III . f Vide Ba ines ’ Hist . York . p . 441
1 Vide Ross ’ Topograph ica l Index of th e “ Annua l Register.” Th ere IS nomention of th e inc ident in th e Ackworth Parish Registers .
A.D . 1778 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS ,
M D ,of Ackworth .
"e The Rector of Ackworth for the time
be ing is one of the Trustees of the Hospital .
Th e following extracts from M rs. N
esting“ January 28th ,
1779. Went to Badsworth tod ay to my
brothers , they had com pany, all carnal people , I found an awful
sense of th e Lord and fear of offending him . Before I came
away I thought if I did not take up my cross, and go to prayer
with them ,I should go home in distress . I asked for the hymn
book,and as soon as I began to give ou t th e hymn I found th e
Lord was with us, and for ever blessed be His Holy Name,He
enabled me to go to prayer, and it was a blessing to my soul ,and may th e Lord grant it may be a blessing to all the souls
that were present, and glory shal l be given to Him .
April 28th . Much afraid of Sinning to - day,and much
drawn out in prayer, heard Mr. Wesley preach at Wakefiel d -
l:
th e word was a feast to my soul , may I never more grieve His
Spirit.”
’
S diary are inter
Between “ Joseph Bayldon,Ackworth , and Hannah Field ,
Womersley, on th e 23rd , 30 th January,1 780, but forbid by
Joseph Bayldon and John Bayldon .
” This looks as if the gir l
or her friends, had pu t up th e banns, which were forbidden byth e young man and h is brother, or perhaps his father.
Between “ George Hattersley and Mary Wood,both of Ack
worth, ou th e 2nd , 9th ,and l 6th of September
,1 784, but forbid
in th e Church ,on ye l 6th ,
by Thos . Wood,
” probably the girl ’s
Between John Hargrave , Leeds, and Mary Issott, Ackworth ,
on the 1 5th ,22nd of June
,and were forbid on the 29th of th e
same month,by Mary Hargrave
,who says she is th e wife of the
above John Hargrave , 1778, by P. Heaton ,Curate .
”
i
For Dr . Watk inson’s W i ll in extenso , see Fox ’
s Hist. Pont. , p . 344 .
f Mr. Wesley never seems to h ave h onoured Ackworth w ith a visit .1 Vide Register of Banns , Vol . III .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 75
Two persons, both males , aged respectively 81 and 48, died
of this disease , at Ackworth ,in 1790, and a woman, aged 49, in
1793. It is probable , however, that this“ Palsy ” was what is
now known as paralysis .
A very bad case of Leprosy’
occurred at Ackworth School
in this year,a disease which se ldom appears in this country.
AS soon as i ts real character was known , th e boy was removed
into th e village , until h e could be suitably sent home.
e|e Lep
rosy was very common in England in th e l 6 th centu ry, importedprincipally no doubt by i tinerant Jews ; and for th e Special
treatment of such cases,Lazar Hospitals were erected in several
of the large towns. The frequency of leprous and other loath
some diseases,is referred to by Spenser
,
“ Th e Sunrise ofEnglish
poetry,
” in hi s Faery Queen , (Book I , Canto IV.
“ Like
loathsome lazars,by th e hedges
Th e following entry appears in th e Parish Register of Baptisms Mary
,daughter of Joshua Bryer, Soldier, born at sea ,
Oct. 2oth ,baptised Nov . 24th .
”
1‘
A characteristic epitaph of the O l d t ime may be read upon
a slab on th e north side of th e Parish Church . It would seem
as though the glorious doctrine of th e Resurrection had
entirely been lost sight of, SO dolorous is th e tone of th e epitaph.
“Hark from th e Tombs a doleful sound ,M y friend s , attend th e Cry
Ye Living men , come view th e GroundWh ere you must sh ortly Lye .
thi s clay must be your BedT he Sp ire of a l l your Tow ’ra
Must fa ll : th e W ise th e Rev ’rend h ead
Must l ye as Low as ours.
Th e inscription above , informs us that William Bu rford ’s re
mains are deposi ted beneath the stone s’
; He was born June
25,1760, and died April 30, 1781 . Mary, his wife , died Feb .
2nd,1795 .
Vide Hist : Ackworth School , ” p . 75 .
f Vol . IV .
I Some of th e grave-stones were brough t out of th e ch urch -
yard into th eCh urch ,
wh en it was restored , for th e purpose of pavement .
ACKWORTH,YoRxs. ,
This was a year of dear bread , and we find it raising the
wages of th e chief Shoemake r at Ackworth School , (Samuel
Whalley) to e ighteen shillings a week,in consequence of th e
high price of th e necessar ies of life .
” Wheat sold from 96/to 1 1 2/ per quarter, and Henry Hipsley records in his journal ,that i t was “ doubtful whether corn would be found in the
country at any p rice , and that when he went to Pontefract tobuy corn ,
h e had to place his hand in th e farmer ’s sack,in
order to secu re th e wheat , th e moment th e bell rang for the
market to begin .
*
Charles Butter, Curate of Ackworth,died Jan . 5th
,1798,
aged 74 , and was buried at Ackworth . He was succeded by
George Hendwick .
Indentu re made the 10 th Augu st,1 803
,between Francis
Sykes,as Sir Francis Sykes
,Bart
,and Dame Elizabeth
,h is
wife on th e one part,and Thomas Taylor
,Gentleman
,on th e
other part. Francis Sykes,Esq .
,of Ackworth Park
,was b orn
in 1 732, and amassed a considerable fortune in India, whilst
Governor of Cossumbazar, in T’engal . He was created a
Barone t on th e 24th March ,1 781 , and married first
,Feb . 7th ,
1 766 , Catherine , daughter of John R idley, Esq .,and had issue ,
two sons,1,Francis Will iam
,who succeeded
,and 2
,John
,R.N . ,
who died on board th e Gramp a s . Sir Francis married secondly,
Sep . 2nd , 1 774 , Henr ietta Elizabeth Monckton, eldest daughter
of Wi ll iam , second V iscoun t Galway.
Under date May 7th , th e Gentleman ’s Magazine for 1 803,
records th e following -“At Ackworth , near Pontefract, Mrs
Townley and h er son ,wh o I esided at that place, had removed
to a new hou se,1 and ,
In order to dry their bedrooms,which
had been newly plastered,they burnt in them during th e night
,
a chafing dish w i th charcoal . In th e morning they were - both
found dead . Both were illegitimate , and both died intestate , in
Vide Hist : Ackworth Sch ool , ” p p . 86 , 96 .
1 Th e h ouse formerly o ccupied by th e late Mr. John Haigh .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 77
consequence of which a house,ma l tk il n. and seven acres of A, D , 1803 ,
land,lately pu rchased by one or both Of them , near th e Rec
tory,resolved tO th e K ing as Duke of Lancaster, and from him
to th e Trustees of the Manor of Ackworth,to whom th e manor
and its privileges had been granted in th e reign of Charles I .
Martha Chapel,Of Ackworth
,aged 1 9 ,
says th e “ Annual
Register,was execu ted at Yo rk in this year , for th e murder of
h er i llegitimate child .
*
ACKWORTH PARK .
TO BE
SOLD BY AUCTIONTOGETHER , OR IN THE FOLLOWING LO TS,
AT THE HOUSE OF
M n. ROBERTS, THE ELEPHANT AND CASTLE , IN PONTEFRACT ,
ON THE ELEVENTH DAY OF APRIL NEXT ,Between th e Hours O f Two and Six in th e Afternoon ,
Unless previously d isposed of by private Contract , of wh ich due notice w i ll begiven
Subj ect to such cond itions a s wi l l be then a nd there produced .
LOT I .
Cons isting of Two Closes , Tith e-free , in Ackworth , conta in ing E igh t Acres , OneRood , Six Perch es , and now in th e O ccupation of James Waite .
LOT I I .
A Good Hou se , Dove -Cot , Barn s , Stab les , Coach -House , & c . , togeth er w ithFive Pieces or Parcels O f Land ad join ing th ereto , ca l led th e Hemp Yard , th eHa l l Close and Garden , th e Larger Hemp Yard , th e Plantation ,
and th e New
Close , conta ining togeth er Fifteen Acres , Th ree Perch es , and now in th e ocen
pation O f Joh n Gill .LOT I I I .
Five Closes , Pieces , or Parcels of Land , in Ackworth aforesaid , called th e NewClose , th e Plan tation , th e Ea st End of Sm i thy Butts , conta in ing togeth er FiveAcres , Two Rood s , Six Perch e s th e Near Lodge Hill , and th e Lodge Hill ,con ta ining togeth er Twenty Acres . Two Rood s , and now in th e Possess ion of
th e sa id James Wa ite and John G l l l .
LOT rv.Th ree Closes , Pieces , or Parce ls of Land , in Ackworth aforesa id , cal led th e
Farr Lodge Hill , the Fourteen Acres , and Two Acres at th e West End of Smith yButts , containing togeth er Twenty -five Acres . One Rood , Nineteen Perch es , andnow in th e Possession of th e sa id James Wa i te and John Gill .
LOT V .
Three oth er Closes of Land , in Ackworth and Purston , called th e LowerWood Slack , th e Broom Close . and th e Upper Wood Slack , conta in ing togeth erTwenty Acres , Th ree Rood s . Fourteen Perch es , and now in th e Possession of
th e sa id James Wa ite and John Gill .
Vide Ross ’ Topograph ical Index . There is no record of this at Ackworth .
1803 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
LOT VI .
Th e Coal Hil l Close , Tith e-free , containing Forty Acres , Th irty Perch es , inAckworth aforesa id , and now in th e Possession of th e said Joh n Gill .
LOT VII .
Th e Park Close , contain ing Eleven Acres, T en Perch es , in Ackworth aforesaid ,and now in th e possession O f Mich ae l Cuttle .
LOT VI II .
A Good House , Barns , Stab les , and Outbu ild ings ; togeth er w ith Nine Closes ,Pieces , or Parce ls of Land ad join ing th ereto , cal led th e Twelve Acres , th e Sixteen Acres , w ith Plan tation , th e Far Four Acres , th e Six Acre s , th e Under Close ,the Two Castle Syke Closes , th e Jackson Close , and th e Near Four Acres , inAckworth aforesa id , conta in ing togeth er Seventy -th ree Acres , Two Rood s , TwoPerch es , and now in th e O ccupation of th e sa id Mich ael Cuttle .
LOT : IX.
T wo Closes of Land , in Ackworth aforesaid , called th e Castle Syke and th eJeffry Close , conta in ing togeth er Fourteen Acres , Three Rood s , Six Perch es ,also in th e Possession of th e sa id Mich ae l Cuttle .
LOT X.
Two oth er Closes of Land , in Ackworth aforesa id , ca lled th e Th ree Acres andth e Near Close , contain ing togeth er Twe lve Acres , Twe lve Perch es , and a lso inth e Possesssion of th e sa id Mich ae l C attl e .
LOT XI .
Th e Mansion -House , Good Gard ens , wel l stocked w ith Fruit Trees ; Barns ,Stab les , with Fifteen Stand s for Horses ; Coach -Houses , Dove -Cot , and oth erconven ient O utbu i ld ings , a l l in Good Repa ir ; w ith T hree Pews in the C hurch ,and about One Hundred Acres of Land , ly ing in a Ring Fence ad joining to th esa id Man s ion -House , and now in th e occupation of Lady Dowager M exbro
’
,
Mich ael Cuttle , Joh n Gill , and John Thomp son .
T he Wh ole of th e E state is supposed to be full of Coal .—Ackworth Park iss ituated in th e most d esirab le Part O f th e West Rid ing of th e County of York .
Th e Mansion is mod ern -bu ilt , in good Repair, and fit for th e Reception of a
large Fam i ly . It is w ith in Two Miles of Pontefract , Four from Ferrybridge ,Seven from Wakefield , and Fourteen from Doncaster.
Mr. Mich ae l Cuttle of Ackworth w il l sh ew th e Premises , and furth erParticulars may be h ad of Mr. Rich ard Mitton , Pontefract ; or of Messrs . Sykesand Knowles , Solicitors , Boswell-Court, London .
1
Th e E state in Ackworth is subj ect to a Fee Farm Rent of 1 11. 33 . 5d . Is
exonerated from th e Land Tax and such Part thereof as is not Tith e - free , issub ject on ly to 25 . per Annum , in Lieu th ereof ; but th e Land s in Purston are
sub ject to Tith e in Kind —Th ere is some fine th riving Wood on th e E state ,wh ich must be taken by th e Purch aser or Purch asers at a fair Valuation .
Pontefract Printed by John Fox , Market-Place .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 79
This O l d Sale bill is preserved in th e Main-Guard Historical A,D , 1805 ,
Museum,Pontefract . gill?
sa leSALE
OF VALUABLE FURNITURE ,
BY AUCTION ,
AT ACKWORTH GROVE ,
T he Res idence of JAMES BUCK , on THURSDAY, th e 2 l st O f FEBRUARY,
1805 , and th e follow ing days till a l l be sold , th e Sa le to commence (each day )at 10 o
’
c lock in th e forenoon .
Consisting of a great variety of elegant Mah ogany Sideboard , Dining and
Card Tables , Ch airs , Ch e sts O f Drawers , Wardrobe , Feather Bed s of th e best
Quali ty , Mah ogany and oth er B ed stea l l s and Bedd ing, Pier and Sw ing Glasses ,Floor and oth er Carpets , Kitch en , Brew ing, and Da iry Uten sils , a Cap ita lMangle , Me lon Cucumber Frames , Hand Glasses , & c .
Horses , Cows , Haystack , a neat T ax’d Cart and Harness , a Curious Ameri
can Sledge , Carts , Plow -rollers , Harrows , a great variety of Farming Utens ilsand Husbandry gear, also a stout mod ern bu ilt Wh iskey Vat on curricle spind lesand patent axletree .
N .B .—Th e li ve Stock and Husbandry gear to be sold th e first day .
Feb . 1 2th , 1 805 .
Pontefrac t Printed by J . Fox , Market Place .
John Donbavand ,one of th e masters of th e Friends ’ School ,
when in his twenty-first year,suffered a month’s Impri sonment
in th e Wakefield House of Correction,for refusing to serve
,
after having been “ drawn on the local Militia Four years
later h e was drawn a second time,and
,with two others, was
imprisoned at Wakefield for twenty- four d ays .
* This must
have been an unmitigated hardship to one whose principles
were essentially those of peace,the very idea of war being
odious to the Quaker mind . Members of th e Society of Friends
were , however, not legally exempt from military service,so that
Donbavand’
s conduct was,in real ity, contumaciou s, and h e was
pimish ed accordingly.
Henry Mitton, of Ackworth, yeoman , by his Will , dated
l oth October , 1809, and proved at York ,1 6th February
,1 810
,
ordered and directed his Executors to lay out £20 in bu ilding
a Hearse for the conveyance of corpses from the confines of
th e Parish to inter at Ackworth Church . The Hearse was
afterwards to be placed under th e management and direction
Vide Hi st. Ackworth School , p . 129 .
A.D . 1810 .
80 ACKWORTH,YORKS
of th e Churchwardens. A Hearse was accordingly built,and
th e present Hearse- hou se,at th e corner of th e Pinfold
,e rected
to keep it in . For many years this Hearse was very u sef ul ,and served the ends intended by the Testator. In 1 872 , h owever
,it was worn out , and could no longer be used . Subscrip
tions were therefore raised, amounting to over £40 , to procure
th e Hearse at present in use , which is l et out by th e Church
wardens for the interment of any bonA-fide par ishioner,whether
bu r ied at Ackworth or any other Church .
In th e month of March in this year, a young man came to
th e “ Brown Cow Inn,at Ackworth , then kept by a Mrs.
Howitt,and took up his abode there . He declined to give any
accoun t of himself,except that his name was W. Wilson .
Whilst staying at the Brown Cow,
”
h e died, and property was
found upon him amounting to nearly £100, which ,after th e
payment of funeral and other expenses , was reduced to £85
1 4s . 9d . Subsequent enqu iries elicited th e information that
h e was a felon, wh o had escaped from Lincoln Castle in th e
month ofDecember preceding, whilst lying under condemnationfor bu rglary
,and that his name was Robert Warff. According
to custom,the money was appropriated by the Lords of th e
Manor of Ackworth,for the benefit of the freeholders
,to be
invested where and h ow the said Lords for th e time be ing shouldthink fi t.* Every effort
,however
,was made by th e Rector (Mr.
Hay) and th e Churchwardens to discover th e friends of th e
young man,as th e following entries testify
-
1:
1 872 , Oct . l st . By th e Rev M r. Hay, p . Acct. for
advsrtizg. for Warff’
s Friends, etc .
By a letter
By George Fairburn ,two journeys to Wakefield to
speak to Mr. Carr about Warff s property, asMr. Hodgson claimed it
By a letter to Mr. Hay from ol d Warff
Vide Manor Minute Book , p . 4 .
1 Vide Manor Accounts.
ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
A-D-1813o occasion required,generally by a public notice given out by the
parish clerk in th e Church .
* The last Court was held in 1 862.
From a small faded memorandum book which h as comeinto th e compiler’s possession, some idea may be formed of th e
spiri tual condition of Ackworth in th e year 1 81 3. Th e contents
of th e book purport to be the result of a house to house can
vass of two members of the Ackworth Branch of th e British
and Foreign Bible Society. The record is a most interesting
one. Out of 1 1 2 poor famil ies visi ted in th e parish, 65 were
destitute of Bibles, and 75 of New Testaments . Out of an
aggregate of 430 individuals, 200 were reported as unable to
read. Some of th e entries are worth re -producing. One
family possessed a piece of a Bible, and another a piece of the
New Testament. One Bible was in parts , seven of which,how
ever,were wanting ; another was dest itute of beginning and
end ; and th e inhabitants of one cottage stated that when they
wanted a Bible, which was not very often,they borrowed one "
A sixth family produced “a small tattered piece of a Bible ; and
two doors further on i t was said that there was a small piece of
a Testament in th e house , which they were unable to find. A
lady wh o h as resided for many years at Ackworth says Sh e has
a distinct recollection of h er father saying that when h e,in
company with the Rev . Geo. Maddison, made a canvass on
behalf of the Bible Society in the hamlet of Brackenh il l , they
found the inhabitants in a very uncivil ized state,and that th e
canvassers were really alarmed when they were met at th e door
of a cottage by a woman holding a carving knife menacingly
in h er hand.
Octl. 27. B E. Patrick, for giving notice in th e Church for6 years Court ay , 35 .
On Sunday, M ay 9th ,1 81 9
,th e following notice was publicly
given out in th e Parish Church : This is to give notice. Th e
Trustees of th e Manor desire the attendance of th e Freeholders
in the Vestry immediately after D ivine Service.
”
The Free
Vide sub datum, 1817.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 83
holders accordingly attended (how many is not known) and it
was agreed that the business which had called them together
so extraordinarily should be left to the Overseers of Highways.Th e business
,i t appears
,was this. Th e Lords of th e Manor by
their Clerk had,in th e first instance, considered it their duty
to serve th e following notice upon Miss Hannah Mary Horton :“We the unders igned be ing Trustees for th e Manor of Ack
worth do hereby discharge (sic) you from d iging up or leading
away the earth or soil,from th e waste land upon th e said
Manor, otherwise an Action at Law will be immediately com
menced against you . This notice was readby th e Clerk,
and a subsequent meeting was held in th e vestry
on th e following Thursday at 1 1 o’clock in th e forenoon
, to
take into consideration the most effectual means to put a stop
to Miss Horton ’s proceedings upon th e waste land in Houndhil l
Lane. There i s no record as to what course th e Lords adopted ;probably Miss Horton had wisely obeyed the inj unction
,or th e
Lords u ltimately decided that th e matter was of too trivial
a nature to be further prosecuted. Th e unbiassed reader will ,however, at once perce ive in what a “ cart-before- the-horse
fashion th e bu siness of the Trust in this instance was transacted.
Stage coaches ran daily from Ackworth to Scarborough at
at nine o’clock in th e morning ; to Sheffield at five in the
evening ; to Lincol n on Monday, Wednesday and Friday,at ten
in th e morning ; and to Wakefield every Tuesday,Thursday,
and Saturday at three in th e afternoonsl Children,as a ru le
,
were not favouri te “ fares with th e drivers and guards of th e
ol d stage - coach. They were not a u fa it in “ tips,
”
or clever
in providing th e l ittle warming treats which were so highly
e steemed . It is related that on one occasion . three children
were be ing escorted from Ackworth to Wentbridge , by a
wide- awake matronly Friend ,wh o overheard th e coachman
describing the young trave llers to a companion on the box ,as
nothing better than tag- rag and bobtail .” On appearing atVide List of Lords , in Append ix.
1 Vide Baine’
s Hist ; York p. 442.
1819 .
“ U L-L V U L U L “, J. V L UM .’
the door of th e coach on its arrival at Wentbridge, to solicit
his dou ceur , th e humorous lady presented him with three
small coins,which sh e described as be ing one from “ Tag
,
”
another from Rag,and th e third from “Bobtail .”ale
J H Curate of Ackworth,is said to have been
passionately fond of fox -hunting,which in those days was
considered in society an essential accomplishment for a clergy
man . Th e pastime , however, was eyed askance by Hodge,
”
because of the rough- shod manner in which th e huntsmenrode across country, taking not only hedges and ditches, bu tcrops and gardens in the ir mad career. To the ru stic daysman
it is wel l known that in Yorkshire th e hunting parson is an
odious and despicable personage. One Sunday morning th e
Curate in question was accosted du ring an impressive pause inhis sermon
,by one T— W— d loudly vociferating Thou ’s
preach in’ ta day
,an be fox -hunting to-morrow 1” Th e truth of
this statement did not prevent th e man from being summoned
for brawling, and fined 1 0/ and costs-
f
The population of Ackworth this year according to a recent
census, was (including Low Ackworth,) 1 575 . Th e chief resi
dents were—Ackworth Park,John Petyt , Esq ; Ackworth
House,John Gol dsworthy,Esq. ; Ackworth Vil l a (now th e Court),
Thomas St. Qu intin , Esq ; Ackworth Lodge, The Rev . George
Maddison ; Ackworth Moor-Top, Thomas Gee, Esq ; Ackworth
Grange,R ichard Wilson, Esq ; and at Ackworth
,D
’
Oy l ey
Saunders , Esq.
M r. ;Thomas Wil kinson, of Ackworth, was at this t ime
Chief Constable and Subdivision Clerk for th e Osgol dcross
D ivision of th e West R iding of Yorkshire }:
A little newspaper promoted and circulated by th e Society
of Friends in Ackworth . The first number appeared on th e
9 th September, 1 823.
“ It was,says Thompson
,
“a current
Vide Hist : Ackworth Sch ool ,” p . 34 . t Communicated by G S
1 Vide Langdale ’
s Top. Diet. 1822 , p. 465.
ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
A.n. 1823 . Th e Rector’s‘ seat , as h is most meet ,Rece ives h im with a tra in of friends ,
Th e bells h ave rung, th e h ymn is sung,Th e congregation , mute , attend s .
God save th e King,” f or some such thingIs sung w ith ready glee and art
Th en out th ey pour forth from th e doorAnd for th e Quaker’s sch ool depart :
Al l in amaze w ith steady gaze ,Th e assemb led crowd astonish ed stare
Take a last look at Gloucester’s Duke ,Th en to the ir severa l h omes repa ir.
Th e school is seen , so neat and clean ,
Th e boys and girls prepare to eat ,Th e d inner brough t , th e grace is though t,Wh o would not relish such a treat ?
Th e meal is done , th e c lock strikes one ,
Th e nob le party onward passed’Twas p leasure a l l at R oundh il l Hal lTh at even ,
‘ll but it was th e last .Th e nob le guest awakes from rest ,And takes h is leave wi th grief so true ;
Th e coach and four are at th e door,Adieu, Ad ieu, Ad ieu , Ad ieu 1”
Although several b iati are apparent, the rhyme i s a tolerably
good specimen of th e Yorkshire Ba l l ad .
“E
Th e Rev . W R . Hay , M .A . Tradition says th at a very eccentric memberof th e congregation , into wh ose pew th e Duke was first sh ewn ,
refused h isGrace adm ittance , not know ing wh o th e i llustrious stranger was.
1 Th e Nationa l Anth em , says an ol d inh ab itant, wa s sung on th e occasion .
1 Th ere is an error in Chronology h ere . Th e visit to Ackworth Sch ool , tookp lace on Monday morn ing. Vide Ackworth Gazette ,” December, 1823 .
After th e manner of th e Quakers .
On th e 3oth November, 1823 , at h a lf past twelve o'clock at noon , th e
Duke of Gloucester and h is su ite , arrived in two carriages at th e entrance of th eFriend s’ Sch ool . H is Grace was conducted th rough th e various bu ild ings , andsh ewn every th ing ca lcu la ted to interest h im . Th en , h aving seen as much of
th e estab lishment as time and weath er woul d perm it , th e d ay be ing very wet ,th e Duke a t h a lf-past one o
’
c lock returned to h is carriage , expressing him selfh igh ly gratified w ith h is visit , and h op ing th at th e Institution would long con
tinue to prove a b lessing to th e Society .
" Vide Ackworth Gazette ,” December,1823 .
"I Monday evening. A bal l was h eld in honour of th e Duke , with oth erfestivities .
Vide “Yorksh ire Notes and Queries ,” Jan . 1886 . I am indebted for theMS. of th e above lines to Miss M . Wh ittaker, of Ackworth . J. L . S.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
The following extract is taken from a publ ished le tter of
th e late R H to a friend at T Our
attention has been very much occupied with the subj ect
of Dame Schools, and th e means of improving them .
Th e Moor-TOPSchool i s my favourite object of attention. Th e
Mistress I found in great repute , surrounded by nearly forty
chi ldren : and see ing that sh e had some talent, I thought it
best to direct my views to that school,on account of th e
number. When I first looked in upon them ,last year
,i t was
quite a problem to me to discover how they l ea rn t anything
scarcely any books to be seen , except a few spelling books,which had lost their first pages— some loose leaves of what
seemed to have been a Geography, and some Children’s Tales
but I afterwards found that th e Tracts from th e "Lending]Library were in great request . St ill , I p itied th e Mistress
,
condemned to sit for three hours incessantly engaged in hear
ing lessons,and obliged , at th e same time, to attend to sewing,
mark ing,and writing : i t was almost enough to distract h er.
And then the poor children are obliged to s it still most of th e
day,doing nothing ; unless they invent some amusement, by
pulling the ir clothes to pieces, or tying and twisting a few
coloured threads : and so packed that they could hardly sit
down altogether—in fact, learning to be dunces Well,I
immediately thought, what an advantage th e Lancasterian
system would be here " Th e Mistress fell in with th e proposal.”
Th e system was ultimately in troduced , and th e school carried
on formany years , until superseded by a school more in accord
ance with th e requirements of the times.
John Petyt (formerly John Petty) , Esq. , of Brunswick
Square , in the County of Middlesex , and Ackworth Park, died
4th October , 1 826. His w il l bears date 7th Augus t, 1 826. The
Petyt family have a vaul t in Ackworth Churchyard.
To some, the following ol d Sale Bill , copied from the
Doncaster , Nottingham, and Lincoln Gazette,”of Friday,
ACKWORTH,
’
YORKS
March 24, 1 828, will doubtless be interesting.
ACKWORTH PARK.
Sh ortly Wi ll be exposed for SALE by PUBLIC AUCTION , unless previously disposedof by PRIVATE CONTRACT ,
ALL th at cap ital MANSION HOUSE and ESTATE called ACKWORTH PARK , situatein th e Parish of Ackworth , in th e West R id ing of Yorksh ire , comprising an
excel lent Dwe l l ingh ouse , w ith a l l requ isite conveniences , for th e resid ence O f a
Nob leman or Gentleman , and 355 acres of LAND or th ereabouts , w ith suitab leFarm Houses , a l l ly ing in a ring fence .
Th e above E state is freeh old and tith e-free , (be ing sub j ect as to part , h owever,to a perpetua l annual payment of 28 . an acre , in lieu of tith es , settled by Actof Parliament ,) and th e land -tax is redeemed . Ackworth Park is di stant twom i les from Pontefract , eigh t from Wakefield , and is
deligh tfully s ituated in a remarkab ly fine part O f th e country , and in th e centreof
‘
th e Bad sworth Hunt . Th e Gla sgow ma i l coach passes w ith in a m i le of it .
For furth er part iculars , and for tickets to view th e p lace , (w ithout wh ich itw i ll not be sh ewn ,) apply if by letter, post paid , to Messrs . Sm ith son and
Ramskill , Sol ic itors , Pontefract.Pontefract , March 1 7 , 1828.
Th e price Of th e “Donca ster , Nottingham , and Lincol n
Gazette, was 7d .
At th e time of th e disturbances in London respecting th e
Reform Bill, th e late E H of Ackworth, whose
correspondence was published after her death ,in a letter dated
Nov . 4th ,1 830 , wr i tes as follows J. was to have come home
at half-past four,and it is now nearly six , and I am still alone ;
and I feel that, if I stitch , stitch , all th e evening, I shall be
very nervous before h e comes, for really I do not l ike mobs and
tricol oa recl flags .
"e You will hear as much from th e papers,and more
,probably, of what is going on
, than we cou ld tell you.
’
T is strange work ,and were I to waste all th e evening abou t it,
I could neither tell you what th e mob wants, nor what those
above them are afraid of. One cannot but look with some
eagerness to see th e end Of i t,though very probably it may,
after all , end in nothing.
”
On th e 3rd of October, 1 830, a cow belonging to Mr. Sud
bury,of Pontefract, brought forth a full grown calf with two
heads, two breasts, two necks , four fore- legs, two hearts, two
Pontefract has al way s b een th e arena of pol itica l an imus—and very Often
tumu lt and strife . Th e Reform Bill a lth ough passed in 1831 , d id not operate ,
"until 1832 .
A.D . 1832 .
90 ACKWORTH,YORKS
against i t We have set our faces against th e children ’s having“ hol idays at th e Schools
,and seeing all these things ; for
which, I expect,we Shall get plenty O f ill-will ; but I am
convinced that it i s qu ite right so to do. I wish we had carried
opposition a little further. I do want a good tract against
Feasts for circu l ation .
”alé
Both these famous races were both won this year by a horse,th e joint property of Mr. Gully, Of Ackworth Park
,and a Mr.
Ridsda l erl'
In a publ ished letter to h er sister, d ated June 1 5th , 1 834 ,
Mrs . R H writes— “ I had an entertainment "this
evening at Low Ackworth] which I did not expect—a sermon
on th e Millenium " It was from a middle aged man,with a
seriou s countenance and a long beard,who had taken his station
on th e top of a wa l l opposite Farmer Lee’s ; from whose garden
I heard great part Of i t. People call him a Joannaite,and set
him down for a deceiver. I ne ither saw nor heard anything
deceptive , but , on the contrary, much evidence of sincerity.
He appeared to be sound in th e faith , and to have a remark
ably compeh ensive knowledge of Holy Scripture,especially on
th e subject of Redemption . His allusions to th e Atonement
were particularly satisfactory ; his declarations of the Scripturedoctrine Of th e resurrection of th e body remarkably clear ; and
his anticipations of the Redemption completed,by th e
glor ification of th e Saints at th e Last Day , to me, qu ite anima
ting. But when h e proceeded to proclaim th e near approach
of that day, and told us we were no longer to p repare for death,but for l l ife e ternal
,I felt as if I could not go along with him .
His facility in quoting Scripture by memory (chapter
and verse) , and th e seriou sness yet friendliness of his manner,impressed me very agreeably , though h e spoke too rapidl y for
"th e comprehension] of the ignorant. From the theological
Memoranda of Rach e l Howard .
” Part III . p . 274.
f Vide M emoir of John Gul ly , in Appendix.
ITS IIIS‘
TORY AND ANNALS. 91
terms he used, h e must b e a well read man. My father con
jectures h im to be a}Seventh-day Baptist.*
This historical event was commemorated at Ackworth by
a display of hunting, and th e ringing of th e Church bells . At
Ackworth School, th e 1 8th of August was O bserved as a gala-day
,
and the children were stimulated to write verses appropriate to
th e occasion,for th e best of which prizes were Offered. A large
mee ting of all th e chil dren,and numerous visitors was held in
th e“Meet ing Hou se in the evening, presided over by Luke
Howard,F .R .S . Variou s congratul atory resolutions were passed,
one of which , proposed by Wi lliam Fisher Sim,and seconded
by John Bright,1 was That this mee ting unites in th e feel ing
of humble gratitude to th e Author of a l l Good,wh o has
condescended so to bless th e efforts of all Christ ians of every
denomination in this Country, that the curse of slavery through
out th e British Empire is this day ended,and that all th e
slaves are free .
”
The “ Tel egrap h succeeded th e defunct Ackworth
Review ,but
,l ike i ts predecessor, had but a short existence .
I t died in
Ackworth Mechanics ’ Library established Nov . 1 5th,1836.
In addition to th e fest ivi ties at the Friends ’ School, a
sumptuous dinner was p rovided for the work in g poor Of
Ackworth,by Mr. Gul ly Of Ackworth Park,
and other gentlemen .
It was laid ou t in a large tent in a field at th e rear Of the Post
Office Buildings , and was followed in th e evening by an equally
substantial tea . Merry peals were rung all day, and the r ingersl iberally supplied with refreshments from th e ne ighbouring
public house .
More probab ly an itinerant separatist from Irvingism , who , in common
w ith many oth ers , h ad adopted th e more advanced view s of Joanna South cote ,
respec ting th e Millenium and second Com ing of Ch rist , a fterward s promulga tedby Dr. Cumming.
1 John Brigh t, Esq . , M .P. , wa s ed uca ted a t Ackworth Sch ool .3Vide Hist . Ackworth School , p . 214.
A.D . 1 834 .
Ep itaph .
ACKWORTH,YORKS
Th e Committee Of Ackworth School were th e first to substitute for the dismal oil - lamp and th e glimmering dip
, th e
then suspic ious illumination of gas ; and it was not for several
years afterwards that gas was introduced into th en houses by
a few Of th e more ventu resome inhabitants of the vil lage . Even
now th e primitive obscu r ity of the dark ages lingers tenaciouslyin the lanes Of th e vi l lage
,and strange to say th e people love
to have i t so.
Hannah Campl in must have been .a most estimable young
person , if th e following epitaph upon h er gravestone in Ack
worth Churchyard accurately describes her qualities
Her manners m ild , h er temper such ,
Her language good , and not too much .
Sh e died August 1 8th ,1 837
,aged 27. Sh e was evidently too
good for this world ; had sh e l ived, th e manners , temper and
language of Ackworth ians might have been leavened into some
thing very differently ; but“ Those whom th e Gods love , die
young.
”
D ied at Ackworth ,Elizabeth , relict of th e Right Rev . T .
Middleton,first Bishop Of Calcutta
,aged Mrs. Middleton
(née Miss Maddison) was buried at Wragby,and formerly
resided at Ackworth, in what was once the residence Of th e
Pl owes family, addi tions to which were made for Miss M addison’
s
reception in 1 827.
Mrs. Middleton was th e sister of the Rev . Geo. Maddison,
wh o l resid ed at Ackworth Lodge,and came to Ackworth
because th e district in which his Lincolnshire l iving was
situated did not su it his health. Mr. Maddison occasionally
did duty for Mr. Hay , th e Rector ; and Miss Maddison beforeh er marriage with Dr . Middleton,
was deservedly beloved by
th e people of Ackworth.
Vide ROSS’ Topograph ical Index of the “Annual Register.”
ACKWORTII , YORKS. ,
The population of Ackworth according to the census of1 841
,was
July 30 . The body of a newly born male child,name
unknown,bu ried by order Of
The school in th e O l d Wesleyan Chapel ceased to exist,
when th e latter was taken down to make room for the newChapel which stands on the Site of th e ol d one . Th e insufficientaccomodation thu s produced was met by th e establ ishment
in 1 844 of a B ri tish School on the Lancasterian system,for
boys, in a room below th e Public Assembly Room,which was
e rected in the same year. The school i s supported by voluntary
contr ibutions,and accommodates about 70 boys.
Magnificent oak felled in Bell Close,and sold for £22 1 2/- 1
A most melancholy accident occurred this year at Ackworth
School. One of th e girls , i t is supposed , was playing with the
fire in a room by herself, when h er dress caught fire . She
immediately r ushed out into th e passage, enveloped in flames,
which were extinguished by counterpanes, but not before sh e
was so fearfully scorched that Sh e died within eight hou rs.”This year a horse named Pyrrhu s th e First,
”
th e property
of Mr. Gu lly,of Ackworth Bark
,won for his owner this
celebrated race. Sam Day was th e rider, and th e race was wonin two minutes and fifty five seconds § Another horse Of Mr.
Gu lly ’s won the Oaks race shortly afterwards.
About forty year’s ago the Plymou th brethren*sectwas some
what numerou s in Ackworth . At the rear of M rs. Howard ’sSchool in Low Ackworth
,there is a small burial ground
,within
iron railings , provided by Miss Howard’s brother,Mr. Luke
Howa’rd,for poor persons Of the above sect to which Mr. Howard
,
originally a Friend , belonged in th e latter part Of his life . Th e
f Vide Register Of Burials . Vol . VI II .1 Vide Hist . Ackworth Sch ool . p . 350 .
HVide Hist . Ackworth Sch ool , p . 248.
Vid e Memoir of John Gul ly , in Append ix .
I am informed on good auth ority th at on account of th e d im inution of
Plymouth Breth ren at Ackworth , aged and deserving poor people of oth erpersuasions were allowed to be interred in th is ground with their own rites , J.L ,S.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 95
register of burials in th e ground is unfortunately missing, but
i t appears from the fourteen monumental slabs now standing,
that at leas t a score Of persons were interred within this l ittleburial ground during a period Of nearly th irty years . Of coursethere were other burials which are only indicated by raised
mounds, but it is hoped that th e names of those who l ie beneath ,
are al l written in th e Book of Life. The following names,ages,
and dates , found recorded upon th e tomb - stones,may b e inter
esting and useful to th e curiou s in years to come . In 1 848 ,Elizabeth Barker, 70 ,
Martha Jackson,55 1850
,Martha Mason
,
72 1 85 1,Sarah Bowling
, 39 , Hannah Briggs, 74 , Will iam
Briggs,51 ; 1 852, Mary Booth,
56 ; 1 854 ,Maria Fletcher, 50 ,
Ann Norton,87 1855 , Jane Middle ton ,
50,Isabella Donbavand ,
42 1 856, Ann Levitt, 90 1 861 , Allan Mason ,84 1 865 , Albert
Simpson ,3 ; 1 867 , Ellen Al l ott, 37 ; 1 869 , Thomas Al l ott , 41
1 870, Ann Haggas , 71 1 877, Simeon Haggas, 79 1 879 , Sarah
Grice, 81 .
In Cathedrals and Collegiate Churches th e verger’s wand
is a very imposing one of ebony and silver. In some churches
i t used to be carried,not only before th e Bishop when h e
visited th e church , but also before th e Rector or Vicar,in his
passage from th e vestry to th e reading desk,Communion table,
or pu lpi t. Where this custom prevails , as at the Parish Church
Of Stockton -on -Tees, th e duty falls to one of th e vergers . But
with th e introduction of surpliced cho irs, and th e disappearance
Of three deckers,”
th e verger’s wand also disappeared , and are
now looked upon as relics of antiqu ity. There can be no doubt
that the long “ tip - staff ”
O f th e gaily caparisoned beadle , was
th e earliest form of these wands , and where , as at Ackworth ,
this important functionary’s dignity was at one t ime further
enhanced by th e combin ed offices of vil lage constable , and
night watch-man, the tip - staff was supplemented or super
seded by the short , but more widely mace - like wand, which
served the double pu rpose of truncheon and wand. The ancient
wand,a short staff painted green and white , still exists at
1848 .
96 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
Ackworth , but it is not used. In 1 849 i t was superseded by a
Cholera .
longer one, pain ted black ,
with a gilt knob bel ow which isinsc ribed in gil t letters , the following words V .R. l st (timeused), 1 849 , (c rown), J . JONES
, W . BEECROFT,CHURCH
WARDENS.
” Although erected in th e Churchwardens’ pew,
i t is never used, two plain white wands be ing carried on specialoccasions
,by the Churchwardens. Sometimes these wands are
respectively su rmounted by a crown and mitre,symbolising
State and Church, as at Thornaby Church, Yorks .
Th e following is a copy Of a notice posted upon the Church
door at Ackworth in 1 849 — “A Rate or Assessment Of two
Pence in the Pound upon all Occupiers of land and Tenements,
within th e Par ish of Ackworth,in the Coun ty of York
,for th e
repairs and other expenses of th e Parish Church of Ackworth
aforesaid for th e Present year,maid (s ic) this 8th day of
November,
JAS . JONES,WM . BEECROFT.
Churchwardens .
Th e village did not qu ite escape th e cholera scourge which
visi ted many Of our large towns in th e summer Of 1 849 . The
disease was brought into Ackworth in September,by a plas
terer from Leeds, wh o was seized with the malady soon afterhis arrival
,and whilst engaged at his work in a new house in
Pu rston Lane. He was qu ickly conveyed to his lodgings,but
died at four O’clock the next morning, notwithstanding th e
immediate application of h ot baths,and blankets
,mustard
pou ltices and rum,and was bu ried at 9 O
’clock. After thi s
th ereIwere many cases , both mild and violent as many as five
deaths occurred in.One week
,the corpses being qu ickly bu ried
'
whilst yet warm ,with a very short service . I t is said that in
one case a coffin was ordered for a child supposed to be dead,but which ultimately recoveredf ‘E
Th e above particulars were related to th e compiler by a survivor.
A.D . 1857 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
sons of th e two former,of Brackenhil l , were all killed. It is
said that Charles , on th e evening p revious to his death,had a
melancholy foreboding of something of an awfu l nature about
to occur. Joseph was very fond Of animals , and th e night beforehis death
,fed his favou rite cat
,which after his death went to
th e door mat,where sh e moaned piteously , refu sing all food
until hunger terminated h er existence . Th e Kellett family
were all steady and moral people , and much respected . Richardand Thomas both left widows
,but Char l es and Joseph were
Single,aged respectively 29 and 30 .
The Gove rnment Inspector ’s Report of th e work done in th eAckworth Church Schools during 1 858 -9
,and of the examina
tion results,i s as follows
“ Th e present master" came in Novemb er, 1858 . He has made agood beginning. Th e read ing of th e low er cl asses is ind istinct . The
w riting d eserves commendation . Th e composition exe rcise of the
First C l ass w as intelligently done .
The M istress teaches gently and sensib l y . A Form and Colourbox is w anted .
Thomas Sharp ,an apprenticed Pupil Teach er in th ese schools
,
passed so good an examination , that the Lord President of th e Counci lh as given h im one year of his apprenticesh ip .
”
The following lament appeared in th e weekly issue Of a
local paper
Sir,—You r columns are
,I dare say , open to th e compl aint of a
d istressed tree , as wel l as to the grie vances of your own countrymen .
We l l , Sir, I must tell you that for many scores of years past I havelooked upon the inhab itants of A ckw orth
,and have been l ooked at
and admired by th e fath ers , and grandfath ers , and great fgrandfath ersof th e present people of Ackworth . I h ard l y know how O l d I am
,
but I th ink I may safe l y say that I w as h ere when Anne becameQ uee
'
n,M arch 8th ,
1 702 . Not that I care so very much for thosewho have not seen me , it is sol el y on account of' th e good peop l e of
Ackworth ,that I am now in d istress . Sir
,I must tell you that I
had hoped to have grown O l d,and d ied in peace , of natu ral decay
in fact,to wh ich trees are subject , no l ess than men . But I am
,I
fear,doomed to d isappointment . The parish surveyors of th e h igh
way s h ave been and cu t off some of my principle roots , and I comsider
mysel f much damaged by th is cruel treatment . I certainl y shoul d
Mr. E , Spencer.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 99
have liked to have flourish ed as long as possible ; I moan for myself ; A.D . IB5S.
but ch iefly am I stri cken w ith sadness at th e though t that with theloss of so much of the princ iple of l ife
,I cannot expect to grow and
look smilingly upon my' A ckw orth friends so l ong as I oth erw ise
migh t have done . I have one conso l ation,howeve r . I h ear the
sigh s of those w ho come b eneath my Sh ad e,and I thank th em for
their sympathy w ith me in the l oss of my roots . N0 good can arisefrom th is cruel treatment of me . Where th ere is misch ief in theh eart, and a knife in the hand , ancient v il l age trees , l ike my self, maysing out
,
“ Woodman , spare that tree ; bu t to li ttl e use if our
friend s among mankind w on’t come and protect us .
I am,Sir
,w ith great respect and sadness at h eart
,
Your humble servant,
THE TREE ON ACKW ORTH GREEN .
Th e following interesting statement is extracted from th e
Ackworth Parish Magazine ”
“ In th e ten years , end ing 25th M arch ,175 9
,five bastard ch ildren
w ere baptized , that is, one in twenty- eigh t .
In th e ten y ears , end ing 25th M arch,1859
,th irty -two bastard
ch ildren w ere baptized , or one in
In a recently publish ed h istory O f th e Q uaker’s School , it is sneeringl y remarked that Catech isms of rel igious faith are not much in
vogue at Ack worth .
A comparision of the morality Of th e rel igi ous practice of th e period sunder rev iew
,w il l tend , perhaps to make one w ish that th ey w ere
at any rate for a return to th e good ol d cu stom O f ou r forefath ers ,w hen the h ead of e ve ry househol d employed a portion of the e veningof e very Lord
’s d ay , at th e l east , in teaching h is children and servants
the Chu rch Catech ism .
We question very much w h eth er that plan w ould not be moreeffectual toward s th e keeping of the Se venth Commandment, than thesystem wh ich h as been subsitu ted for it, e vening meetings for rel igious(so cal l ed ) preach ings and scientific lectures.
Such meetings , w e be l ie ve,are not unfrequently e ith er pl aces of
assignation for young men and w omen,or they serve a s pretexts fo r
young peopl e getting out at nigh t, free from parental contro l .Al l expe rience proves that , w hat are call ed re l igious re v iva l s and
p ractical moral evil s , not unfrequent l y go hand in hand .
”
From January 1 865 , to January 1 875,the numbe r o f
ill egitimate children baptized in Ackworth Church , was seven .
or one in forty- Six ; and from January 1875 , to January 1 88 5 .
twenty, being one in It will therefore be seen that
A.D . 1859 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
immorality in Ackworth is decidedly on th e wane,especially
when we remember that th e popu lation of th e village h as morethan doubled itself since 1 875 .
Th e following letter, which appeared in th e Ackworth
Parish Magazine,is worthy of re -production as a parochial
record.
Sir,—Ou the 7th of April l ast, th ree Of th e T rustees of the M anor
,
M essrs . Fairbarn,W . Nel strop , and R . Ne l strop , if I understood them
correctly , gave a large number of th e Freehol ders and Ratepayers ,th en assembled in Public M eeting, to understand that th e Accountsand present state of th eir T rust shoul d shortl y be submitted to th e
Public .
Finding that promise no nearer real ization,I venture to ask you
to print a Resol ution on th e subject , wh ich w as passed at a VestryM eeting on the 3rd M ay , 18 18 That th e Accounts of the Lord sof th e M anor b e in futu re Aud ited in Vestry every year on the Sundaynext after Saint M ark ’
s day .
”
If th e Lord s of th e M anor w ere not as ignorant of the na lwre of
their T rust as th ey , confessed ly , are of its duties, this very reasonabledirection w ould not have been allow ed to become obsolete .
A perusal of th e Vestry M eetings , h eld on th e subject Of'
the
M anor T rust from M ay 1 8 13,to M ay 18 18 , wil l probab ly l ead the
reader to the conclusion that th ere ex isted at that time pecul iarreasons for th e Lords of th e M anor not being anxious to courtpubl icity .
I do not charge th e present Lords with similar conduct,but their
evident reluctance to give an account Of th eir steward sh ip ,” migh tcause a less charitab le judge to infer that there is something beh indthe scenes wh ich th ey are ashamed of.
I am,Sir
,with grateful respect,
A ckworth , You r obedi ent Servant,
M ay 14th , 1859 . A FREEHOLDRR or ACKW ORTH .
On Sunday,th e 8th of Augu st, 1 859 , sermons were preached
in tlie new Wesleyan Chapel, by th e Rev . S . D . Waddy, Of
Sheffi eld, when th e collections amounted to £75. On the
following Tuesday, th e Rev . Dr. Gu thrie preached,— afternoon
and even ing— the evening sermon on Rev . xiv. 1 3. The
following extract from Dr. Guthrie’s autobiography,bearing
upon his visit to Ackworth, has special interest Th e Chape l
in whose Opening services I was called to take a part,is a
A .D . 1 859 .
DeanHook
Loyalty .
L U “ A V A U L U L -L L,
L V L UL L U Q ,
l essen ing of th e traffic along the road made no d ifference . When itw as once a road , it w as al ways a road , excepting it ceased to be so
by act of l aw .
”
Th is w ould seem to sett l e , not only th e Q uakers’ , but th e questionof encroachments in general .
On th e second Sunday morning in November of this year,
th e pulpit of Ackworth Chu rch,was occupied by th e popular
Vicar of Leeds , Dr . Hook , wh o had been asked by th e Rectorof Ackworth (Rev . J . Kenworthy
,) to p reach on behalf of a
fund to complete th e debt upon the chu rch; consequent on i tsrestoration . Dr. Hook’s visit was a memorable one for two
reasons He pointed out with considerable warmth, th e
absence of much that was needed to make D ivine worship whatit ought to be
,viz : reve rent and decent ; and (2) his sermon
,
which dealt with almsgiving as an act of worship,was
considered by those compe tent to judge of such matters, a
masterpiece of oratory and rhetoric .
This eminent medical missionary and explorer paid a visit
to Ackworth during his last furlough to England in the summerof 1 859 . The Dr. lectured at th e Friends ’ School on his travelsin Africa ,
and was much appreciated . Soon afterwards hereturned to th e scene of his labours
,where h e died .
Jan . 28 . Miss Neilson , of Hundh il l was this day married atAckworth Church to Arthu r Pemberton Lonsdale , Esq. ,
of
London . Th e Right Revd . Dr. Lonsdale , Bishop of Lichfiel d ,
Uncle of th e br idegroom ,officiated
,and signed the marriage
register with his episcopal signature “ G. Lichfie l d .
There are none more loyal than th e people of Ackworth .
On th e occasion of th e marriage of th e Prince of Wales, th e
l oth of March ,1 863, was observed in Ackworth as a general
holiday. Banners were displayed ; merry peals rung on the
Church bells ; and commemoration trees planted at Ackworth
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
School . Th e following formula was pronounced on the A-D ~ 1863
occasion
M ay th e earth nourish th e ir roots ;M ay th e d ew s ch erish th e ir branch es ;And may th e sun ripen th eir fru its .
M ay th e un ion th is d ay commemorated ,be blessed w i th th e fatness of th e earth ,
th e dew of h eaven , and th e refresh ingbeams of th e Sun of Righ teousness .
“
March 1 0 . Hol iday. Marriage of Prince ofWales . Children
assembled in the afternoon for buns , oranges , and medals .
March 1 1 . Tea and cake in th e afternoon .
March 27. Th e attendance this week has been unusa l l y thin
in consequence of more than half th e children having th e
measles .
March 30 . The visit of a Government Vaccination Officer
to Ackworth ,wh o examined each child ’s arm in the schools,
caused quite a scare in th e v il l age i
In common with th e rest of th e nation, Ackworth was enfete on th e occasion of th e marriage of H . R. H . Albert Edward
,
Prince of Wale s , and he ir apparent to th e English Throne , toth e Princess Alexandra C. M . C . L . Julia , eldest daughter of th e
King of Denmark , March 10 , 1 863 . Mrs . W i ll iam Hepworth
of th e Lodge gave a dinner to a l l'
the aged people of th e parish,
from seventy years ol d and upwards, and th e Church cho ir .
A meat tea was enjoyed under canvas in Hague’s Croft by th e
inhabitants of High Ackworth , and there were dinners at the“ Boot and Shoe ” and “ Angel ” Inns for th e people of Moor
Top ; whilst the villagers of Low Ackworth were regaled with
a meat tea in th e Public Rooms . Th e cost of th e fest ival was
ra i sed by subscription .
Th ese word s were origina lly compo sed to be sa id at th e p lanting of two
trees , to commemorate th e marriage of Robert and Hannah Wh itaker, in 1812 .
t V ide Log Book , Nationa l School .
ACK'
WOR'
TH, YORKS.,
Th e primitive method of punishment by exposure in th e
stocks,ceased at Ackworth in or about the year quoted in th e
margin . They were placed originally near the pinfold which
is itself in good condition but never used . They were subse
quently removed to th e vacant corner near th e Church gates ,and there stood until they were taken up and burn t. The last
man confined there in was E d T 111 who was in
th e habit of imbibing a li ttle too freely , and having allowed his
whilom enemy to steal away his senses, h e was consigned to
durance vile ”
to await their return . It is said that the
sympathizing inhabi tants of V inegar H ill supplied him with
an umbrella to shield him from th e even ing dew ,and brought
him beer and tobacco, wherewith to beguile his weary hours .
But another instance is still remembered, and much oftener
commented upon, viz . ,that of W m P r who i t was
said had three children christened,and was himself married
and put into th e stocks all in one day " It appears that the
Rector had promised that if h e would come to Church ,have
his three natural children baptised,and marry the woman with
whom h e had been living,no fee wou ld be charged, and that a
j oint of beef from th e Rectory would grace the marriage
festivities. The neighbours unwisely but good-humoured l y
backed up this generous offer with a barrel of beer, which“W ill
cau sed to be tapped before starting to Church . The consequence
was that his courage was not .Only screwed up to sticking point,
but his l imbs were rendered very limp . The service concluded,Wi ll
,in stooping to pick up his hat, stumbled, and was qu ickly
placed in th e stocks by th e Churchwardens, aided by the vil lageconstable. There h e remained whilst th e wedding party issued
from th e Chu rch ,and un til his fond spouse retu rned with a
substantial repast. Al l this occurred in M arch, 1 849.
Henry Reynolds Neave,a pupil at Ackworth School
,fatally
injured by the breakage of a leaping pole , whilst vault ing over
the horizontal bar. He lived twenty- eight hours after the
106 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
A~D -1867 £ 4100 ,ale to which th e estate was subj ect, and they are now paid
partly to the Surveyors of the highways and partly to th e
Overseers of th e Poor .
Th e Manor appears to have been purchased for the use of
the parishioners,and the rents and profits have accordingly
been a l w a y s applied for th e public occasions of th e parish,in
th e manner above -mentioned,and not as a char ity for indi
vidua l s of a particular class or descript ion.
M arch 26th ,1 868 . At a public meeting of th e inhabitants
of Ackworth ,rated and contr ibu ting to the Highway Rates
thereof, in vestry assembled and convened by notice ; i t was
moved by Mr. Brown , and seconded by M r. Wade , that ape rson of skill and expe rience be appointed as paid Su rveyor.
at a salary of Twen ty pounds per annum . Mr . Barratt proposedan amendment
,which was seconded by Mr. Mason
,that Mr.
Brown ’s motion be negatived . The amendment , on be ing put ,was carried by a considerable majori ty. Mr. Brown then
demanded a poll , which was granted by th e Chairman (Rev . J .
Kenworthy) , and fixed for th e fol lowing Monday and Tuesday ,
March 3oth and 3 1 st,in Mr. Lowthe r ’s School Room , from 10
o’clock to 1 2 , in th e mo rning , and from 7 to 9 in th e evening
of each day. The following is an analysis of th e result of poll .For Mr. Barratt . For Mr. Brown .
On Monday morning. 2 76
On Monday evening. 50 26
On Tuesday morning. 45 44
On Tuesday even ing. 58 39
Total number of votes 1 1 4
Th e poll was declared on Tuesday evening , at 9 o’clock . Majori
ty for Mr. B rown , 7 1 . Th e Rev . J . Kenworthy acted asReturning Ofli cer, and Messrs . Atha and Spencer as Scrutators .
At a subsequent meeting of ratepayers held on th e 2nd of
April,
“ in order to settle all disputes and produce peace in the
Vide List of Charities .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 107
parish,th e following compromise was made That Mr.
Fearnley be appointed Surveyor of th e parish for th e ensu ing
year at a salary of £20 , which amount is guaranteed by Messrs .
Brown,J . Nel strop, R. Ne l strop ,
Waide,Simpson ,
Tempest and
Satterthwaite,and th e Rector.*
Th e Church was in danger of dest ruction by fire on 2nd
May, 1 868, wilfully caused by a malicious, if not insane , man ,
who in a short time in the afte rnoon ,ran from stack to out
bu ildings,and Church
,and set all on fire to revenge some
fancied slight about a gravestone . Th e pulpit. and some stalls
were fi rst heaped together, th e former filled with music books
and other combusti ble materials , and ignited . Marks of the
fire may still be seen inside th e pu lpit . Fortunately the fire
was discovered before much damage was done . The offender
was found in th e Church and secu red , and ,at th e ensuing
assize at Leeds,was sentenced to twe lve months ’ imprisonment .
Th e foll owing is another account
The Parish Church at Ackworth,near Pontefract
,which
was restored a few years ago at great expense , was se t on fire
May l st,1868 ,
by a man named “7m . Chas . W ilson . He had
removed into th e pu lpi t various articles of an inflammablecharacter, and had then deliberately ign ited them . Fortuna tel y th e flames were observed by Mr. J . Fearnley and Mr. R .
Ne l strop,who resided near, and who had been aroused by a
stack-fire in th e neighbourhood, also bel ieved to have been
caused by W ilson ,who conducted himself ve ry violently
,kick
ing and striking th e gentlemen named on the ir interfering with
him . He was afterwards ex amined before th e magistrates, and
a,
medical certificate was produced showing that th e prisoner
had previously been in an asylum . He was committed to th e
West Riding As sizes for trial -yIn th e fol low ing year Mr. Fearn ley w a s elec ted w ith out oppos i tion , but in
1 873 an a ttempt was made to ej ect him , in favour of Mr . Roberts . T h e re sultof th e po l l wa s for Mr . Fearn ley . 208 ; for Mr. Roberts , 76 . Anoth er at temptwas made in 1874 , w ith th e fo ll ow ing resul t : Mr . Fearnl ey , 156 Mr . Ha igh .
137 . In 1875 Fearnl ey , 208 ; Ha igh , 1 54 .
f Annals of Yorksh ire,” Vol . III .
A.D . 1868 .
ACKWORTH,voaxs,
By an order from th e Charity Commissioners dated July 6th ,
1 869 , the following gentlemen were appointed th e legal trustees
and administrators of the Cawood Charity °
Rev . J . Kenworthy,Rector of Ackworth,
E . e . Waide,Thos. Pearson
,
Of ACkWO l ’ th
Peter Watson,Jervis Winn ,
of East Hardwick.
Robert Bailey,John Hope Barton
,of Stapleton Park , Pontefract.
Joseph Ne l strop,of th e Lodge , Ackworth.
Edmund Ernest Leatham . of Hemsworth Hall , and
Thomas W illi am Tew ,of Carleton.
One of th e felt wants of Ackworth is good water. Th e lateHenry Hill , Esq .
,ou t of th e munificence of his kindly heart,
caused a high leve l boring to be made upon his estate,and
piped water from thence to th e entrance of the village .
Th e parish was then asked to do i ts part,and the resul t was
that subscriptions were quickly raised to purchase the appl i
auces wherewith to br ing th e water into th e centre of th e
village . The work was completed ,and a handsome fountain
erected at a cost of £90 , but a very short time sufli ced to proveth e futility of th e scheme . Th e water, which was littlebetter than tincture of iron , quickly ox idised the filter
,pipe ,
and nozzle of th e fountain ,and the fountain itself soon became
what it has since continued to be,a u seless ornament . Soon
afterwards, Mr. Hill being convinced that th e water of Ack
worth con tained chemical properties of considerable value,decided to pipe another stream from a field in Low Ackworth ,
known as Assax ,
” into th e Tan Hou se Lane, for th e use of the
Low Ackworth people. This fountain has since been known
as th e “Spa.
”
Th e foundation stone of this Church,dedicated to Saint
Stephen, was laid by th e Marquis of Ripon,October 23 , 1 872 .
The site selected whereon to erect th e new building was only
Ack wonrn,vonxs
organ was sold for £10 . Th e new instrument cost £322 , and
was inaugu rated in 1 874, by Mr. Rogers , th e O rgan ist of Don
caster Par ish Chu rch . Th e new instrument,although small
,
contains some remarkably sweet pipes,and several steps, con
fained only in con tinental organs, th e tones of which M r.
Rogers exhibited with considerable skill and taste .
After the death of th e Rev . J . Kenworthy,th e Rectory of
Ackworth did not long remain vacant , for, in October, i t wasoffered to
,and accepted by
,th e Rev . W . M . Fa l l oon
,M .A. ,
Vicarof St . B r ide ’s
,Liverpool , and Hon . Canon of Chester. Before
coming in to residence , the new Rector put forth th e foll owing
manifesto
To THE PARI SHIONERS or Acxwonrn .
M y dear Parish ioners,In God ’
s good Prov idence,I have been appointed
Rector of y ou r Parish th e offer of it came to me from th e Chancellorof th e Duchy of Lancaster , unsough t , and , by me
,entirel y unexpected :
I am,th erefore , comforted in the acceptance of it
, by regarding itas a D iv ine ordering, for me and for you , and
,in no respect, an
accident for eith er of u s .
It is my earnest desire and Prayer to God , that I may come untoyou in th e fulness of th e b lessing of th e Gospel of Christ : that , ifspared , I may work amongst y ou ,
u seful l y ; dw el l in your midstlov ingl y ; and , as far as lieth in me , live peaceably w ith al l . I do
not appear amongst you , al together , a s a young man ,but as one w ho
h as h ad many y ears of opportunity , for learning someth ing of the
reveal ed w il l and Word of God ; and for doing someth ing in the w orkof God ; on th ese grounds , therefore , I may fairl y cl aim you r confi
d ence and forb earance ; and I respectful l y ask for th ese,at your
hearts and hands .
Bel ie ving th e Chu rch of Engl and to be Cathol ic as regards truth ;Evangelical as regard s doctrine ; Apostolic as regard s order ; andProtestant as regard s error ; it. h as ever b een ,
and w il l continue to be ,my effort , by God ’s assistance , to ministe r in accordance w ith such
principl es ; and to serve,w ith fidel ity and cord ial obed ience , in the
safe and sure ol d path s , marked out by our h onored Reformers.
I inv ite your kind cc -operation as Parishioners in al l that mayreal ly concern th e interests of our Church and Parish and trust , thatw h i l st thus duly mindful of our own th ings w e may not sel fish l y
forget th e interests of oth ers : “ None of us l iveth to h imse l f, andno man d ieth to h imself.
” Let regu l ar attendance at th e House of
God , and reverent worsh ip th ere , each and al l taking their part
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 11
th erein ,accord ing to th e intention and instruction of th e Church of
England ,furnish one of th e best e v idences of th e real ity of our
conv ictions and of th e sincerity of our d e votions .
I have l earnt l ong since,that
,w ith out th e bl essing of God , noth ing
is hol y , I th erefore earne stly and affectionately ask y our pray ers ,your sympathy and y our support : a l l these you can giv ze of th ese ,p ray er is the best , so , I ask it fir st ; and , if you are l ed , by God ’
s
grace , to pray for h im w h o is appointed to watch for you r sou l s,I
can have no doubt,that th e oth er tw o w ill speed il y foll ow .
I h ope soon to b e resident amongst you , and to do w hat I can to
serve you ,in ministering to y ou th e gloriou s Gospel O f th e Blessed
God ; in l ifting up Ch rist as th e sinne i’s on l y refuge ; tru sting al to
gether to the present pow er of th e Holy Sp
irit to appl y th e messagesav ingl y to your sou l s and , in caring for th e sick and th e afflicted ,accord ing to th e ab il ity w h ich God may give me ; and th is , w ith outany preference or partial ity a s regard s rich or poor, th ere be ing no
respect of persons w ith God . M eanwh il e,al low me to sub scribe
my self, w ith all good w il l ,Yours very faithfully ,
W . M . FALLOON , M .A. ,
O ctober, 1 875 . RECTOR (ELECT) OF ACKW ORTH .
This small , but at one time very important building,new
converted into cottages,known as th e “ High Terrace
,
” stands
on a somewhat e levated posit ion on th e Ackworth Moor Top ,
at th e right hand side of th e road leading to Hemsworth. When
first e rected it stood some distance ou t of th e village,but now
i t i s almost surrounded by houses. After th e passing Of th e
Poor Law Amendment Act" in 1 847, the O l d workhou se remaineduntenanted. At length it was bought by Mr. Jno. S impson , of
Ackworth,who soon afterwards sold it to Mr. Graham , formerly
of Ackworth,by whom it was converted into fou r cottages
,and
mortgaged by him to Joseph Allbright , of Lancaster, in 1 884.
On Sunday morning,December 5 th , th e Rev .W .M .Fa l l oon
,
M .A. ,Hono rary Canon of Chester
,the newly- appointed Rector
of Ackworth ,admitted himself to th e benefice , accord ing to
th e usage, by reading th e 39 articles of th e Church of England,
instead Of preaching a sermon . In th e even ing Canon Falloon
preached his in augural sermon, to a crowded congregation ,
from
10 1 1 Vict. , c . 109 .
A.D . 1875 .
1 12 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
AoD - 1875 Hebrews xiii,8 :
“ Je su s Chr ist,th e same , yesterday , to -day
,and
for ever. Th e new Rector came to Ackworth from his latesphere at St . Bride ’s , Liverpool , well reported of
,both for
eloquence and good works.
Mr. Fearnley resigned his position as Parish Surveyor,after
e ight years faithful discharge of duty,du ring which time h e
had encoun te red much Opposition and unkind treatment from
village agitators . Messrs. Cuttle,Child
,Roberts
,and Haigh
were put forward as men of skill and experience to succeed
him . Th e voting was as follows z— Cuttle, 0 Roberts
, 7 Child,
8 ; Haigh ,10 . In th e second show of hands th e numbers were
Child,8 ; Haigh ,
13 . Mr. Haigh was therefore du ly elected
Surveyor for th e ensuing year.
A new l ine of railway from Swinton to York was formallyopened for general traffic on Ju ly l st
,1879,— although the
Company ran trains from York and Sheffield to th e new stationat Ackworth four days earlier
,for th e convenience Of those who
wished to attend th e Centenary Celebration at Ackworth School.These were th e first passenge r t rains which had ever reached
th e village . Th e first sod of this railway was cut on O ctr. 1 2th,1 875 .
Literature Towards th e close Of this year, th e following works all con
nected with the Centenary Celebrations at th e Friends School ,’
Ackworth, were published
1 . List of Boys and Girls admitted into Ackworth School
during th e 100 years, 1 779— 1 879 . Published by the Centenary
Committee , Ackworth School, 1879, pp . xxxix .,2 1 1,8vo. There
are nearly names, or surnames an invaluable
record for Quaker genealogy, with an amusing ‘Nominal ’
History by Thomas Pumphrey, — a play on th e surnames.
Printed at Gloucester.
W ith th e Friends, th e first or baptismal name is really th e sur or a d d ed
name , be ing added to the patronymic when the child is registered accord ing tol aw . J , L. S.
AOKWORTH,YORKS,
A-D 1879 with Mr.Henry Hill , th e owner of th e land adjoining th e Chu rch,asking him to be good enough to arrange for th e allocation of
a certain portion of th e field at th e north side of th e Chu rch ,
for th e purpose of adding to th e p resent graveyard . Mr. Hill
at once acknowledged the need there was for en largement saidh e had foreseen it for some t ime
,and consented to take th e
matter into his immediate consideration . Accordingly,having
fixed th e day and hour, h e met th e Rector and Wardens on theground proposed , a plan of which had previously been forwa rded
to him ; th e extent of land asked for i s half an acre, along with
about 200 yards of the Rectory garden ,which th e Rector is
prepared to give to th e Parish ,in order to make th e addition
square . After consultation together, Mr. Hill declared himself
prepared to sell the land required ,for th e sum Of £200 , and he
undertakes to build a substantial wall around th e New Grave
Ground,to serve as a suitable fence to the same .
” Mr. Hill ’s
offer was accepted and subscriptions quickly raised towards th e
amount requ ired as purchase money,and on the 1 4th of March ,
1 879 , th e ground , levelled and walled round, was consecrated
by th e Right Rev . Rowley Hill, Bishop of Soder and Man ,acting
for His Grace th e Archbishop of York .
Th e Centenary of an Institu tion is in itself at once a guar
antee of its util ity and vitality , and of th e public estimation in
which it is held . When a person or institu tion attains the
hundredth year of its ex istence , it i s 1mmed iatel y crowned with
an halo Of awfu l veneration which has been chastely described
as the “ Majesty of t ime . Unlike th e person however, we look
upon the Institu tion as having arrived at the meridian of i ts
greatness, and are apt to accord to i t D ivine honours, exultingly
exclaimingQuod semper movetur oeternum est I
The Centenary ofAckworth School therefore was an event which
all Ackworth j oined to celebrate, consequently to use the
language of the historian of the Centenary Celebration “the
26th and 27th of Sixth month,1879 , were joyful and memorable
ITS HISTORr AND ANNALS.
days in th e Annals of Ackworth School 1
Wi th M r. Barber ’s kind permission I propose to abstractfrom his comp rehensive work a concise narrative O f th e
proceedings,for th e benefit of those who are not fortunate
enough’
to possess th e book itself. “Ackworth ,
”
says Mr. Barber ,had collected around h er h er sons and daughters from far and
near to keep hol iday,and commemorate h er hundredth Ann i
versary . And truly they were of almost every age ,
from the venerable O l d man in his n inth decade,to th e young
scholar not yet emerged from th e first . Joyous youth,active
manh‘
ood, womanhood, and grey - headed age were there a l l
claiming th e kindred tie Of Ackworth scholarship .
”
In the afternoon O f th e 2ath th e General Mee ting was held,
which,
“ despite i ts formal examinations , is at all times a l ively
anniversary. This year it was large r than usual ,”
and “ there
was a Centenary atmosphere around it manifest from th e first .Th e proceedings included an afternoon meeting of th e D irecto rsof the Friends ’ Provident Institution ,
a somewhat e lderly
staid looking set of men,evidently full of facts .” Th e capital
of th e Assurance Insti tution in 1 879 , according to th e report,was with policies amount ing to
and a yearly income of In the evening,whilst th e
younger Friends mingle with the boys and girls in the i r sports,the older ones , once scholars wander to every familiar nook
and recall their youthful days , moral ising perhaps
On th e decayOf Ackworth boys in mod e rn day ;
and then turn in for th e night. ” Thus ended the doings of
Third - day.
The morning of Fourth ~ day (25th) Opened brightly and th e
proceedings of th e General Meeting p roper began at 10 a m ,
with th e meeting for'
worship ; it was large, and an impress iveand interest ing occasion
,partak ing Very much of a national
character, be ing attended by ministers from variou s parts of the
k ingdom ,- and one from th e United States of America
,
A.D . 1879.
1 16 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
th e presence of th e large number of children in a sol id phalanx
in th e midst of th e congregation,fitly symbol izing th e care of
th e Chu rch extended towards and around them. T he General
Report was then read,followed by a spirited discussion thereon ,
and then th e Report of th e Centenary Committee was read .
The Meeting then adjou rned until 2 - 30 p m . th e nex t day. Th e
afternoon Of th e 25th and morning of th e 26th was occupied
with th e Annual Examination . At 5 p .m .
,a meeting of a ve ry
enjoyable kind to th e ch il dren,was held to hear th e report of th e
Friends’Publ ic Schools ’ Industrial Association
,and to award th e
prizes to the successfu l exhibitors,and th e day ’s p roceedings
were brought to a close by the Annual Meeting of th e First
day School Association .
Th e morning of Fifth - day was inaugurated by a meeting
of an interesting characte r,for communion and un i ted prayer
at 6 a m . There was something in th e hour,th e freshness of
th e morning,and in the feeling that those wh o h ad thus ea rly
assembled had come with an earnest desire after good, whichcontribu ted to th e life of th e meet ing. Th e special subj ect for
prayer was the work of th e First- day Schools . Th e fi rstmeeting ,
however, in celebration of th e Centenary was held at
6 - 30 pm ,at wh ich
,probably more than pe rsons were
present . Th e meeting was presided over by Thomas Harvey,
of Leeds,wh o Opened th e p roceedings by slowly reading a few
appropriate verses from th e Psalms,followed by a short devo
tiona l pause. Letters of apology were then read,including one
from th e Right Honourable John Bright, wh o was educated at
Ackworth ,fol lowed by an address by th e Chairman
,after which
Jamps Hack Tuke
,of Hitchin
,read a paper which h e had
prepared at th e request of the Cen tenary Committee , be ing asketch of the life of Dr. Foth ergil l , th e originator
,and at least
th e most active and liberal founder of Ackworth School
Before th e lecturer wasplaced , in view of th e whole meeting,
th e beautifu l Wedgwood bust Of Dr . Fothergil l , execu ted from
Vide Biograph ical sketch of Dr. Foth ergill , in Append ix .
ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
company then rose to the ir feet and remained standing whilstthe scholars sang th e hymn
“ Abide with me,fast falls th e eventide .
Th e next speaker was WILLIAM CO OR PARKER,O f Dar l ington ,
one of th e Secretaries to th e Centenary Committee , after whicha number Of o l d Ackworth scholars gave Speeches of ten minu tes ’
duration , th e Chairman unflinchingl y touching the bell at th e
expi rat ion of nine minutes,so that th e speaker might have one
minute ’s warn ing in which to wind up his remarks . The namesof th e speakers were Henry Thompson
,of Kendal Hen ry
Asworth,of Bolton ; Thomas Pupl ett , of Ackworth ; Robe rt
Hen ry Marsh,of London ; George Frederick Linney ,
of Croydon ;J . S . Hodgson
,O f Mancheste r ; J . F. Bottomley Firth William
Taylor, of Middlesborough Geo rge Satterthwaite , for eleven
years Super intendent Of th e School Will iam Jones,of Middles
borough ; and l astly,by Frederick Andrews, the Superin ten
d ent , Or “ The Young Captain ,
” as h e was styled in a quotation
by a p revious speake r . Edward Gripper,Of
'
Nottingham , pro
posed a vote Of thanks to th e Cen tenary Committee and it s twoSecretaries
,which was seconded by George Wi lliam Binns
,of
Croydon . Th e mot ion was car ried , w i th three cheers . William
Coor Parker returned th anks,and the meeting was b rough t to
a close.
Afte r dinner,there was an in teresting ce remony, viz. : th e
planting O f two pu rple beech trees at th e bottom of the Green ,
in commemorat ion of th e Centenary,the one by th e younge st
child in th e school . the infan t daughter Of th e Superintendent,th e othe r by one of th e youngest boys in the school , He rbe rtClark
,of Mancheste r . The l ittle girl ’s hand was guided by h er
mo the r, and a Silver trowel p rovided for th e purpose by JosephSimpson of Ashbou rne
,an ol d scholar
,was p resented to th e
l ittle planter,and a commemorative inscription has Since been
engraved upon it . Both trees we re presented by Rober t E.
Giles,of Derby
,anothe r o l d scholar . Commemorative medals
were then presented to each boy and girl , th e gift of Smith
1 883 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
A ve ry beautiful custom,distinctly Norwegian in i ts origini
‘t
been Observed for many years at Ackwo rth at Christmas .
Th e following lines by “ J .W .
” chastely descr ibe i t .At Ackworth Ch urch , 0 11 Ch ristmas Eve ,O utside th e porch is h ung
A sh eaf of corn , to feast th e b ird sTh at a l l th e summer sung
Around th e Church th e ir Maker ’ s pra iseIn many a j oyous stave ,
And make th em on Christ ’s b irth day mornAs b l ith esom e and a s brave .
And is’
t not meet th at w e sh ould keepO ur Saviour ’s na ta l d ay
In peace w ith a l l—man,beast and b ird
Th at come across our w ay ?Not m aking glad ourse lve s aloneBene ath our sprigs o f h olly ,
But striv ing h ard to make a l l elseAround u s
, j ust a s jolly .
J.VV.— \Vritten in 1880 .
The custom,however, has long been obse rved both at
Christmastide and harvest
The New Burials Act came into operation in 1 880,bu t i t
was not until March,1 882
,that its p r ivileges we re taken
advantage o f in Ackworth , and even then,th e friend s of th e
pe rson interred were no t,strictly speaking
,D issente rs , but
Roman Catholics . Th e bu rial was carr ied out in accordancewith th e p rovisions of th e Act , that is to say,
no bell was rung,
th e Chu rch door was closed ,and th e name and add ress of th e
person ce rtifying or having charge of the funeral,en tered in
the Par ish Register of Burials . Since then ,th ree burials have
taken place und er th e provisions of th e Act,viz : two Roman
Cathol ics and a Wesleyan,and in each instance
, th e requ i remen ts of th e Act" have been carefully compl ied wi th .
At a public meeting Of th e Freeholders of Ackwor th,held
on thel3rd of Apr il
,it was resolved that the Lords of the Mano r
b e requ ested to take steps for 'the planting of a tree somewhereon th e V illage G reen ,
to succeed in due time the G rand OldTree and to be duly fenced for p rotection .
Vide Antiquarian Goss ip O f th e Month s” in Le isure Hour ”of 1 879 .
J; I am in formed th a t th e c ustom wa s introd uced into Ackworth by th e Rev.
Mr. Kenworthy , th e late Rector.
ITS
'
H ISTORY AND ANNALS.
In Decembe r of this year , a most unwelcome hu rricaneGrea t
caused ex tensrve dam age In and around Ackwo rth . Th e Church Storm .
suffe red most severely . Th e pinnacles we re blown down ,one
of them in its fall b reaking through th e roof in two places , andthe battlements of th e tower were shattered and displaced so
seriou sly, that on two s ides they requ ired almost entire renewal ,and general repair all round . A pecul iar feature O f this stormwas that it brought w i th it a sleety brine from th e north east ,which left a sedimen t upon the windows resembling hear- frost
and which was d ist inc tly sal ine to th e taste .
1885 .
Dea th of
favou rite with th e market peop l e wh o resorted eve ry Satu rday iidifmanto th e town of Pontefract , whe re h e died in October of this
year,aged 7 1 . Notwithstanding the hu rry and bu stle of modern
l ife , with its scientific progress , business acti v i ty, and pol iti cal
Paul Lindley was a familiar figu re at Ackworth, and a great
zeal,i t is su rprising how near we are st ill to a past in which
existence was th e reverse of fe ve rish . For 22 years Lindleywas honourably connected with th e Borough pol ice fo rce inPontefract
,and for e leven years befo re h e donned th e
constable’
s un ifo rm he acted as n ight watchman and went .
about no doubt many - caped,and with his lantern
,shouting
the hou r, “Two O
’clock,
— we t morn,
”
unless fastened in his
watch - box by th e young dandies of th e t ime . He was for26 years Superintendent O f th e Fi re Brigade
,and at two
fi res at Fryston Hal l rende red se rvices su ch as to rece ive th ethanks of th e la te Lo rd Houghton . On
'
the occasion of the
fi rst fire at F ryston,th e deceased recommended th e l ate Lord
Houghton to construct a receptacle for water supply in case o f
fire near th e Hall . Bu t th e suggest ion ,unfor‘ tunately
,was not
car ried out, and th e mansion afterwards fel l a prey to ano ther
fire . T he deceased ,wh o was an expert
.
officer,was obliged
th rough ind isposi tion to resign his post about five years ago ,and
th e Co rporation granted him a pension of £ 1 1 s . per week for
l ife . Whateve r his adventures,h e did his du ty faithfully , and
died much respec tedf
Loca l Papers .
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
On th e evening of Friday, October 1 st, a meeting of th e
ratepayers of th e parish of Ackworth was held in th e PublicRooms
,
“to take into consideration th e desirability of lighting
th e village w i th gas .” Th e Rev . Canon Fa l l oon took the chair,
on th e motion of Mr. F. Andrews , B .A.,seconded by Mr. W . F
Tempest,J.P.
The Chairman read th e notice conven ing the meet ing, afterwhich h e said that the meeting had not been called in a formal
and legal manner, bu t simply to ascertain the Opinion of th e
people on this important quest ion . He had in this matter no
private or individual interest to serve, and he was willing and
anxiou s to carry ou t the wishes of th e inhabitants whateverthey might be . However, i t was for th e meeting to discuss th e
matter,and i t was now Open for any gentleman to state his
opinions with regard to the question of l ighting the village
th gas .
Mr Andrews said that th e meeting had been called by no .
ring or clique,and h e was there as th e representative of no
,one but himself. He thought that in order to throw the
question formally before the meeting h e would move the
following resolution That this meeting of th e ratepayers ofth e parish of Ackworth approves of the adoption of the
provisions of th e Lighting Act for th e said parish ,and appoints
the following gentlemen as a Committee to take th e necessarysteps for carrying this resolution into effect. M r. Jonah Barratt
seconded th e motion .
Mr. Tempest then p roposed th e following amendment
That this meeting of the ratepayers and inhabitants of Ack
worth ; fails to see th e necessity or expediency of l ighting the
village with gas,and thus adding to th e bu rden of the ex ist ing
rates .” On being put to th e meeting th e amendment was
carried by an overwhelming major i ty, the people of Ackworth
thus deciding to remain in darkness.
ACKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
was born at Yo rk in July, 1 830 ,educated at York Grammar
School and at St . Cuthbert ’s College , Durham . He was
ordained in 1856 , and was consec rated by Bishop B riggs to th ep r iesthood at Doncaster. He next went to Ackworth G rangeas Chaplain to M r. Roger Tempest . In 1 862 h e took charge ,by th e appo intment of Bishop Cornthwaite ,
of St . Patrick ’s,at Bradfo rd
,and his devotion and energy since that time have
been conspicuous .
"f
Q U E E N ’S J U B I L E E
1 8 8 7 1 8 8 7
A brief account of th e rejo icings at Ackwo rth in commem
oration of Her Majesty’s Jubilee,will form a fitting conclusion
to this section of the work . The initiatory steps we re takenby th e Rector
,w ho called a rep resentative meeting to devise
th e best means of celebrating th e event,and it was
'
decided
that all denominations should j oin hands in doing honour to th e
Queen,on th e comple tion of fifty years of h er most illustr ious
re ign . Canon Fa l l oon was appointed Chairman of Committees ;th e Rev . J . L . Saywel l , and M r . Joseph Ne l strop,
Secretaries
and M r . Lean ,T reasurer. A sum of over £60 was soon collected
in the village , and before the auspic iou s day ar r ived , all was inreadiness for th e occasion . Th e money had been well and
judiciously expended,as will b e
’
seen from th e following account
of th e proceedings . Th e 20 th and 2 1 st of June we re brilliantdays of ver itable “ Queen ’s weathe r
,and th e inh abitants did
the i r duty right loyally and well ; indeed all we re joined in handand heart to do honour to h er to whom honour i s due . Scarcelya house failed to hang out i ts symbol of affection for the Queen .
Flags}
,banners
,festoons
,arches
,and all kinds of decorations
were visible in eve ry direction,those of th e cottages being
swee tly touching t ribu tes of loving loyalty. Early on Monday,
the 20 th,th e be l l s of the Par ish Chu rch (from th e towe r of
which floated a handsome Royal Ensign, ) rang out a merry
Yorksh ire Post , September 14th , 1887 .
iTs HISTORY AND ANNALS. 125
peal of gladness,which was continued at intervals throughou t
th e day . In th e even ing a hund red O l d people sat down
together in the Public Rooms , Low Ackwor th,to supper, and
happiness re igned supreme . Their united ages amounted to
years,being an average Of 65 years each . Th e O ldest
lady p resent was attired in Quaker costume, and gave her age
as 92 . She said sh e remembered th e declaration Of peace w i th
France,and very much enjoyed herself at th e rej oicings on th e
occasion Of George III.
’
s Jubilee . Th e O ldest gen tlem an was
81 . After the tables had been cleared ,a number of loy al and
facet ious speeches were del ivered, inte rspersed with appropriateglees and recitations . The chee r ing and singing of th e O l d
people,though feeble
,was hearty
,and a most enjoyable even
ing was b rought to a close with a resolution O f congratulationto Her Maj esty
,proposed by M r. Cadman
,and seconded by M r .
Lean, th e terms Of which were telegraph ed to th e Queen as
follows The aged people Of Ackworth respectfully tendertheir s incere congratulations to Her G rac ious Maj esty on th e
au spic iou s comple tion O f th e 50 th year O f h er glo r iou s re ign .
Shortly afterwards th e fol l ow l ng reply was rece ived by th e
Chairman (Canon Fa l l oon) Th e Queen thanks th e sendersOf your telegram for thei r good wishe s .
- PONSONBY. Tuesday ,
th e 2 l st, was Observed as a gene ral holiday. At eleven o’clock
,
a special thanksgiving se rvice was held in the Pa r ish Church,
and it was a goodly sight to see Chr istian b re thren Of diffe ren tdenominations worshipping toge ther in unity. Th e p rayerswere read by the Rev . J . L . Saywe l l , Curate , and th e sermon
was preached by th e Rev . Canon Falloon,Rector
,from the
words “God save th e K ing 'l e t us rejo ice and give thanks .
”
At one O’clock th e children muste red at the ir respect ive schools
,
where Jubilee medals were distribu ted,after which they proces
sioned th e village,headed by the W ragby Brass Band ,
gaily
decorated waggons,containing th e infants
,heading the ir
respective schools . Prizes we re given for th e bes t tu r n ou t Of
waggons and horses,and we re awarded as fo llows : ( 1 ) Br i ti sh
School ; (2) Church School ; (3) Howard ’s School . After a.
1 26 AOK’
WORTH, YORKS ,
substantial tea had been enjoyed by the youngsters, a field
kindly lent for the occasion by M r. Easton,was thrown Open to
th e public,and a scene of hearty me rriment ensued. Dancing,
grotesque sports,and other amusements were kept up until
dusk,by which time th e field had been p rettily illuminated.
The bursting forth of th e lu rid flames O f Upton Beacon was
th e signal for a grand display Of fireworks,which lasted nearly
two hours, th e finale piece be ing a magnificent portrait Of
Majesty.
LONG M AY SHE REIGN
A PPEND IX .
ACKWORTH COWPASTURE.
Th e following document is both interesting and worthy of
preservation
Q uod cungue facitis in nomine Jesu Christi facite .
Be i t known un to a l l Christian people now p resen t and for
to come,to whom this p resen t indented composi tion Of confirm
ation sha l l be read, heard ,or understood
,that in th e t ime of
K ing Henry th e 8th ,the re was a stock O f cows raised within
th e parish O f Ackworth by the donation O f dive rs and sund rypersons
,some of them now being d eparted
,some are yet l iving ,
and par t O f the names,b 0 th Of them that be departed and that
be l iving,are as follow
,that is to say
,Thomas Hartyndon ,
priestand parson of Ackworth John Thompson
,p r iest the re
,John
Hamble ton th e elde r,Thomas Raynold
,Lionel Pearcy
,Isabel
h is wife,and Isabel his daughte r, Jane M onitha Rawcl iff
,John
Huntingdon th e elder , John Brook ,Richard Harr ison
,Richard
Picke ring th e elder,Robert Padget
,Roger Jackson
,John
Austw ick e , George Austwick e , John Horn'
e r,John Wormald
,
John Hill, Thomas B rook ,W il liam Bradley
,Robert Bell
,John
Ranol d,George Wormald
,John Whitely
,Hen ry Holder
,Wm .
Ell is,Jarnes Huntingdon ,
Edmond Thom as Campanet,
George , Hewitt , R ichard C l iff, Hen ry C l iff, John Jenkinson ,alias
Green ,Thomas Smith
,Lionel Smith aliter Robinson
,Pe rcival
Reynolds,Thomas Greenfield
,Rober t Milne r aliter Biggl eskirk ,
Wi lliam Anthony,w ith many others all too long here to be
rehearsed and written ,whose names God grant may be written
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 29
in th e Book of Life. These, with others , the donors of the
said stock ,with th e consent Of th e whole inhabitants Of the
parish of Ackworth , did make one composition where in were
expressed certain ordinances, to be continually Observed and
kept without alteration in manner and form following ; that is
to say,first it was ordained by th e wills Of th e donors and by
th e consent Of th e whole body of th e parish of Ackworth,that
there should be four honest men chosen every year new by th e
consent Of th e parson or curate there for th e time being, and
th e whole body of th e said parish which four men should
govern th e stock and have authority to l et and set th e cows to
th e use and performance Of these present ordinances,a nd to
rece ive the rent for them , and to make th e ir accompts to th e
said parson or curate,and to th e whole body Of th e said parish
yearly at their year’s end ; and this ordinance to be kept con
tinua l l y ,and Observed without alteration . Also i t was ordained
by th e wil ls of th e donors, and consent Of th e said parish, that
these cows,nor any one Of them ,
nor any part of th e said stock,
should never at any time hereafter be l et to or for any time
of usury, that is to say, that none that took any Of them should
be bound to uphold th e stock, nor any money that should be
taken for th e rent, revenues, or profits of them should be l et
to usury ,that is to say, that no money should be given for the
lending th e same money, or any part thereof ; nevertheless i t
may be lawfu l for th e Governors of th e said stock,to take good
assurance for th e well meating and using Of the cows'
comm itted
to their charge ,and for th e yearly rent due to be paid for th e
same cows ; and this ordinance likewise to be Observed and kept
withou t alteration. And it was ordained by the wills of th e
donors, and consent Of the said parish , that th e cows Of th e
sa id stock,nor any one Of them , should be l et for any more
yearly rent than two shill ings and eightpence and tha t those
honest poor men that dwel led in th e said parish , should have
the cows in farm before any other dwell ing without the saidparish
,making good assurance to th e Governors Of th e said
stock,for th e yearly rent paying, and for the well using and
1 30 ACKWORTH , YORKS.,
meating Of the said cows. And this ordinance l ikewise to be
continually Observed and kept without alteration . Also it was
ordained by th e wills Of the donors , and consent Of the said
parish,that there should no penny be taken Of th e yearly rent
and profit Of th e said stock unto th e yearly profit thereof,and
amount to the value Of three pounds d e cl am over and above
all charges and reprises, and when it came to this clear value ,then twenty shill ings to be taken ou t O f the said p rofit and tobe paid yearly to the Clark towards his wages, and the rest to
go forward to the maintenance upholding and increasing of the
said stock ; and when th e profit Of th e said stock amounted to
th e yearly value of four pounds d e c l am ,then forty shillings
to be taken yearly O f that sum,and to be paid towards the
Clark ’s wages ; and when th e yearly profit Of th e said stock
shall amount to th e yearly value Of e ight pounds d c cl a ro,then
three pounds thereof to be paid towards th e Clark ’s wages ; and
when th e yearly rent and profit of th e said stock shall amount
to the yearly value Of ten pounds d c cl a ro, then fou r pounds
thereof to be paid for the Clark ’s wages yearly,and there to
stay,and th e rest Of th e yearly profits over and above th e four
pounds aforesaid, to go forward to th e maintenance upholding
and increasing Of th e said stock. And this ordinance l ikewise
to be Observed and kept without alteration. And it was
ordained by the wills of th e donors , and consent Of the said
parish,that if i t fortune th e said stock Of cows should be dimin
ish ed by the death Of th e said cows,so that the yearly value
Of th e said cows shall not amount to the yearly val ue Of threepounds d e cl am over and above all charges and reprises
,then
the money which was due to th e Clark,and eve ry part and
parcel thereof to stay, and not to be paid until th e said stock
shall increase,so that th e yearly profits of th e said stock do
amount to th e yearly value of three pounds d c cl am over and
above all charge s and rep ri ses, and when it doth amount to th e
yearly value Of three pounds aforesaid,then th e said twenty
shillings to be paid again towards th e Clark’s wages,and the
said Clark’s wages to increase and diminish as the yearly profits
ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
-1568. th e Purification of th e blessed Mary, Christ’s blessed mother ,
and in the year Of our Lord one thousand five hundred and
sixty eight .
There is also a Memorandum accompanying th e above which
directs that one part Of th e above compos ition shou ld remain
in th e possession Of the parson Of Ackworth,and the other
part with th e Governors Of the Stock, the latter to be kept
under lock in the Parish Church Of Ackworth,with th e Inven
tory Of Cows, and other papers . The Clerk is also directed to
read th e composition , or cause i t to be read audibly twice a
year,at th e account meeting , and th e meeting for th e appoint
ment Of Governors .
Under th e head Of “ Advice of th e Writer, th e following
curious entry appears Stand constantly,
firmly,and
perseverantl y to this your foundation without alteration ,least
coveteousness with and dissimilation do b ring your stock to
destruction.
”
Then follow three “Articles for th e better preservation of
th e Stock Of K ine, drawn up and confirmed by th e inhabitantsOf Ackworth on May 5th
,be ing Ascension Day.
” All
payments are due to the parson and cowmaster on or before th e
feast Of John th e Baptist , and in defau lt , to be proceeded
against by law ; and a footnote says that all documents and
papers relative to the above belongeth to th e keeping Of th e
parson or curate Of Ackworth ,as hath been th e custom withou t
(sic) the memory Of man .
”
In case Of an outbreak Of “ contagious distemper, anothermemorandum directs certain ru les and regulations to be
Observed, and then follow the signatures Of nineteen persons
wh o assembled at a parish meeting held on th e 18 th April, 1 749 .
to confirm the foregoing Articles Of Agreement.
Th e whole concludes with an extenso l ist O f the “ ProprietorsOf Beast Gates. in Ackworth Pasture in ye year Propri
etors Of Cow Gates and to whom l et if any in'
1749, when ye
D istemper was raging,” and Proprietors Of Ackworth Cowgat
—es
in 1769
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
ACKWORTH TERRIERS .
A particular account Of all th e lands belonging to th e
Rectory Of Ackworth .
"s
Acrs . Rds .Imprimis . In a field called Parkinl eyes two roods
lying between th e lands Of Philip Au stwick eas t and
west,oth er two roods lying between th e lands Of Leonard
Pinder west,and Ri chard Twigg’s close
,east 1 0
In B oustead field two acres lying between th e lands
O f Mr. George Abbott north, and Mr. Will iam Shil l itoe
south ; three roods Mr . John Lambe close , lying north ,
.and the lands Of John Ellis south 2 3
InBuria l fiel d-l two acres lying be tween th e field called
Bennitings, north ,and Sandygate Quarry sou th other
two acres lying between the lands Of John Ash east,and Mr. John Lambe west ; one acre lying be tween th e
lands of Mr. Robert Hewitt north ,and John Ellis south
two roods lying between the lands of Matthew Pearson
east, and Mr. Lambe west. One acre between the lands
Of Philip Austwicke north,and Mr. Hewitt south ;
one acre Burial Gate , lying on th e south side , and th e
lands Of Phil ip Austwicke north 7 2
In Little Castle Syke, two roods between JohnHuntingdon
’
s close east, and th e lands Of Mr.W illiam
Sh il l itoe west O 2
In Great Castle Syke, two roods be tween th e lands
Of .Thomas Pickering east,and Mr. Robert Hewitt west
one acre between th e lands Of Phi lip Austwicke and
Mr. Robert Hewitt east ; two roods between the laneeast, and Thomas Pickering west 2 O
In the Middle F ield,one acre between the Stony
Pits north, Mr. George Abbot’s land south ; one acre
and two roods lying between Mr. Pickering north and
There is no date to th is document , but by th e signatures at the foot, th eapproximate date would be 1 680 .
1 The scene of the Skirmish referred to on pp . 56-7 .
1 34 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
south ; one acre between th e lands of Henry Cawood
west,and John Huntington east ; two roods between
Arthur Chambers south,and Mr. Pickering north
In O l d Taile Field, two roods lying between th e
lands of Robert Cawood north,and Anthony Crowhey
south ; other two roods lying between th e lands of
Matt . Pearson south, and Robert Hewitt northIn Lambcroft, one rood lying between th e lands Of
Samuel Lambe to th e north and south
In Colehill Field, fou r ac res between th e lands Of
Ralph Lowther, Esq.
,on th e north ,
and Mr. Hewitt
south ; two roods Mr. Hewitt south,and
'
Thomas Hewitt
north ; one acre Mr. Lowther north ,and Mrs. Austwick e
south ; two roods Mr. Lambe Lawning north ; one acreMr. Bradley north and Philip Austwicke south ; one
acre Mr. Lambe’s close called Wentl ands west, and the
land Of Mr. Pickering east ; one rood and a half be
tween th e lands Of Matt . Pearson north,and John
Huntingdon south
One other mod and a half more in Burial , one acre
in close called Holl in Know],now in th e Park field
,one
rood more in Hundh il l Syke, three roods Of meadows
In enclosure, one close called Stanbecks close, four
acres; one close called M eardyke close, containing four
acres ; one close called Barley close , containing five acres ;one close called Church croft containing two acres ; one
close called Kirkecr’
oft,containing two and a half acres ;
one close called Stone Steel acre ; one close called Ten
tering , containing one acre ; one close called Pond Garth
with th e orchard and garden,one
Belonging in all to the Rectory Of Ackworth , fiftyacres and one rood, with one dwel l ingh ouse , two barnes,one stable, and another outhouse . And as for all th e
Tyth’
s Of corn ,hay
,and other privy Ty th
’
s,we suppose
them to be worth two hundred pounds per annum .
Q
JOHN ASH,
ROBERT CAWOOD.
ACKWORTH,YORKS
One close called Kirkcroft,containing
One close called Stonesty l e, containing
One close called Tente-
r Ing,containing
One close called Potwel l s, contain ingOne close called Hollin Knowl
,
One close called Pond Garth,contain ing with
th e Foul dste'
ad and backside 3 roods .Total Inclosures , 21 acres 1 rood.
TYTHE OF CORN .
Tythe Corn in this parish is paid in kind by th e owner of
th e corn ; th e manner of tything is after th e owner has
proportioned it into equal parts, and upon sufficient warning to
th e minister or his servant appointed for that business,is to
take th e tenth stack, kiver or sheaf, and if there remain any
odd shares,and th e owner has more Of th e same grain in
another place, then to count to that other til l the whole be
tythed. There is one part of our parish called Rydd ings, now
in th e tenure Of Sir Rowland W inn, Bart ,that pays only Six
shill ings per year for all ty th s Of corn ,hay
,and pasture
,but if
pastured with sheep or other goods,and those sheep
,etc. ,
are
turned to th e common , then they pay half tythe, or proportion
ally for th e t ime they have SO been pastured. If th eh ouses beinhabited, th e inhabitants pay Easter dues* as th e other part
Of the parish do, and at the same time. John Symmons,Of
th e Lodge, (Parol de Himsworth ) pays for another part Of the
B iddings now in his tenure , and only for th e hay and herbagethereof, one shilling and eight pence per year. Another part
of th e Ryddings, now in th e tenure of Joseph Walk er,tenant
to John Bright, Of Badsworth, Esq. , pays five shillings for th e
hay and herbage Of th e same. One other part of the Rydd ings
now in the tenure and occupation Of Christopher Heptinstall,
Commonly known by th e‘
name Of Berry’s Land,pays for the
hay and herbage thereof, eight pence per annum . One Moiety
TheseEaster dues arenow eith er extinct, or absorbed into the Rectorial tithes.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 137
of th e Walton Royds,now in th e tenure Of Michael Mitton ,
tenant to Frances Mason ,widow
,for th e hay and herbage pays
one shilling yearly. Another moiety Of th e saidWalton Royds ,belonging to Henry Cawood, O f Lanes, (Parol de Him sworth )pays also for the hay and herbage thereof one shill ing yearly.
A little piece Of ground called Warren ,belonging to Sir Rowd
W inn,Bart ., pays yearly for th e hay and herbage thereof, 6d ;
being this year (171 6) in th e tenure Of Henry Taylor, (Parolde Wragby) . Sir John Wentworth , Of Elmeshal l
,in th e parish
Of South K irkby, Bart. , or his tenants, for Burling Houses hay
and herbage,pays yearly th e sum of one pound seventeen
shill ings for th e hay and herbage Of th e said Burling Houses .
Note that th e above mentioned cu stom ground (excepting Sir
Rowland Winn ’s moiety Of th e Rydd ings, "and Quere if thatought not]) pays tythe Of corn as th e other parts of th e parishdo and the usual custom for th e hay and herbage thereof, and
Of all and every part and parcel O f th e above - named custom
ground is usually paid and discharged upon or before the 29thday Of September yearly, and altho
’ i t be corn . And f urther
note that if any part or parcel Of custom ground be sown with
hemp, flax,rape
,or turnips
,i t shall pay as th e law directs for
the two first , and for the third according to th e use of th e
County,if not th e tenth part, and for the last, four Shill ings
per acre, according to th e O l d cu stom establ ished in this parish .
The Rydd ings and Walton Royds are f ull south from the
Church,Burling Houses east, and the Warren west. There are
several crofts or garths pay custom for hay and herbage , some
more and some less , in considerable sums for th e most part,an
account Of which is hereunto annexed .
TYTHE HAY.
Hay pays ten pence per acre th ro’
out this whole parish,
excepting Where there is a modu s or prescription to the contrary,
and excepting in a field or meadow called Hundel l Syke , in
which field or meadow every acre Of hay pays two shil lings
per acre but those acres are what they call computation acres ,which generally are two good acres .
or more each’
.
ACKWORTH,YORKS,
EASTER DUES .
Every person above th e age Of sixteen years,being inhabit
ant Of this par ish,pays two pence Obtacon; and every master
or mistress Of a family pays one penny halfpenny for his or h er
house,five pence for his or her hen (I) whether any or none
,
one penny for his or h er plough ,one penny halfpenny for every
cow and calf, one penny for every stript milk cow , one penny
for every foal , and one penny for every swarm Of bees . Note
that th e custom for th e Garths is usually paid at Easter.
WOOL AND LAMB.
These are ty th ab l e in kind, th e owner to choose two,and
then th e tyth er a thi rd at ten i f they fall short at ten ,then
th e number to b e considered , and if there are but five , then
the one Of th e parties is to take or give one penny hal fpenny
except it be a fat one, then more according to discretion . If
under five,then the owner is to pay the min ister for every one
,
a penny, if above five th e minister pays two pence a piece to
ten ,and takes the lamb .
Wool (as was said before ,) is paid in kind, upon th e sheet
or clipping day by th e tenth fleece , or by weight , as both parties
concerned shall agree . Th e custom ground afore men tioned
pays neither wool nor lamb,withou t th e sheep have been
summered or wintered upon th e common,or at least have
pastured there some time , and then bu t half tythe Of e ither
k ind . Lamb is usually paid at Lammas, when it may be
supposed to live as well without the dam as with h er.
An Account Of th e Custom Garths with their respectivesums, varying from 3d . to 2/2d . ,
are next given ,amounting in
all to}
9/6d . ,which it is stated “
are, or should be paid at Easter,when th e inhabitants pay the ir other Easter dues .
AUGMENTATIONS, ETC.
We have no augmentations, pensions, salaries, or stipendiary
payments, belonging to this Rectory.
140 ACKWORTH, YORKS,
dus de Il berto . Ipse ibi et Car : et d imid : et x iiii. villanos eti i. Bordarios cum vi . Car : Ibi Ecclesia et Presbyter
, 2 Molen
dina xvi . Denar : T. R. E. Va l ebat ii i i . libras modo i i i . libras .
D . B . 107. Terra Il berti de Lacy - i.e . One Manor in
Ackworth,Erdul f and O su l f, had six Carucates of land to be
taxed,where there might be five ploughs . Humphrey now
holds i t Of Ilbert . (Humphrey) himself (has) there one ploughand a half
,and fourteen villains (i.e . persons Of servile
condition) , and tw o boors persons who were allowed a
cottage and a small piece O f land, on condition that they Shou ld
supply th e lord with poultry and eggs for his board or table) .There is a Church there
,and a priest, one mill of Sixteen
pence, value in K ing Edward’s time , four pounds, now three
pounds . Domesday Book ,1 07 . The land of Ilbert de
After this, th e Manor Of Ackworth is not mentioned in any
public record until th e fourth year of Edward II . in
which year i t reve rted from th e Lacys to th e House Of Lan
caster, and SO remained until the execution Of Thomas,Earl of
Lancaster,when it was forfe ited to th e Crown . On the accession
of Edward III .,i t went back to th e House Of Lancaster. In
the early part O f this reign,th e K ing’s Park. is mentioned in a
l ist of th e Honour Of Pontefract in th e Duchy Office , and is
said to embrace a circu it Of two miles , with a keeper for the
K ing and a lodge. In the extent per contra, taken in th e
fifteen th year Of Edward III ., th e Manor House is called a
Vide sub datum, 1310.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 141
capital Messuage,with a garden adj acent, and one hundred and
four acres Of land. By an original Extent,remaining in th e
Duchy Office,the park is said to be two leagues in circum
ference,with a keeper, on wages . Afterwards
,when Henry
(brother O f Thomas , who was beheaded ) , Duke O f Lancaste r,
became Henry IV. i t passed again to th e Crown . I t
continued in th e ownership Of th e Crown until in 1 603 ,when
th e Lordship Of Ackworth ,as parcel Of th e Honour O f Ponte
fract,was granted by James I . to his Queen
,with power to
grant Leases for twenty one years,reserving th e O l d rents
,e tc .
Th e Queen died in 1 6 19 . In 1 628 Charles I . sold th e Lordship
of Ackworth to Commissioners for th e City of London,by
whom th e Park was sold to Mark Picker ing , and th e Manor
and Manor House to T. Harl ak en and others Th e latter
afterwards came by purchase or marriage into th e possession O f
Lambe,from whom it was purchased in 1 690 , by Robert
Lowther. From this t ime th e Manor and Park became historically separate
,and the subsequent fortunes O f the Manor alone
will now be traced . When M r. Robert Lowther made thispurchase
,he took th e conveyance from Lambe as he ir of
th e survivor Of th e four o riginal grantees O f th e City O f London .
It was sold abou t 1 673 by the heirs O f Mr. Robert Low ther, toDr
.Edward Watkinson . By a Deed Of 1770 , it appears that
th e ancient gateway of the Manor House was then stand ing.
After th e decease O f Dr. Watk inson , i t became the property of
Mr.Joseph Sykes, by whom it was pulled down and th e
mater ial s converted into cottages . In th e cou rse Of demol i tion,
Benj amin Sykes, son of th e said Joseph ,wh o was employed as
mason to do th e work ,i s said to have found under an ancient
brick oven a considerable treasure in Silver coins, though,from
his conceal ment Of th e matter, ne ither the ir date nor value were
ever correctly ascertained. From Sykes,th e site O f the Manor
House passed to Mr. Turton ,wh o pu lled down the cottages
above named , and built upon it th e house , now,or lately in th e
occupation of Mr. Richard Lee. The house was subsequently
1 42 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
purchased by Henry Hill,Esq .
,and thus it will be Seen by th e
continued history of th e Park which follows, th e Manor House
and th e Park Hall,after a period Of some two hundred and thirty
years, become united for th e second time under one p roprietor.Th e interests O f the Manor i tself
,which consist chiefly O f th e
village Of Ackworth,are now watched by four gentlemen
, wh o
constitu te and call themselves Lords of the Manor. Whether
they perform their arduou s with complete satisfaction
to themselves and th e people O f Ackworth,is another matter
,
and a question which perhaps had better be left Open.
It would seem from one Of th e Par ish books, that the LordsO f th e Manor
,assembled in Court Leet and Baron
,formerly
possessed considerable powe rs in th e infl ict ion of fines and
penalties . On th e 2 l st October 1 686 , fines Of var ious amountswere enacted and levied upon certain person s for neglecting toerect gates and fences round their fields ; for lodging or
harbouring wander ing people withou t consent Of th e constable ;for neglecting to ring the i r swine ; upon th e O l d constable
,for
not making up his accounts before Midsummer day ; for not
setting up stiles for neglecting to serve on Juries when
summoned ; for encroachments on common or waste grounds ;for leaving hedges unswitched for removing stones from th e
highway ; on the constable for failing to e rect a pinfold -
l for
not repairing bridges,banks
,and dykes ; for not cleaning
sewers, and roads , etc.
At a Court Leet and Baron held on the 26th October, 1726,no less than thirty persons were presented and fined in sums
varying from fou rpence to ten shillings,for “ Encroachments
uponith e waste .
” Among those presented, we find th e namesOf Turnil l , Pindar, Heptinstall, Crosland ,
Baumbrough , Cattey ,
Oates,Mangle
,Sh il l itoe, Lamb , Stanfield . Earnshaw , Wood,
Winn,Sharp
,Booth ,
Seaton,Nel strap,
Walker, Harrison ,
Scatchard,Balgie
,Addy
,and Burgess . The names O f those
Ackworth abound s in stiles .
f Th is still exists in good cond ition , and adjoins th e parish h earse house.
144 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
ACKWORTH PARK .
Up to 1 628, when th e Park was sold by th e City Commissioners of London to Mark Picker ing
,Ackworth Manor and
Park continued in th e possession Of th e same p ropr ietors after
which the Park was again sold by M ichael Pickering , th e son
Of th e above Mark ,to the Trustees of William Rokeby. In
this Deed “ Th e Hall ” i s so called , as lately rebu ilt from “ Th e
Lodg.
” About 1 650 this portion Of the estate was purchased by
Elizabeth ,widow of Wooley Le igh
,Esq.
,Of Ad lington
,in the
County Of Chester. Sh e was the daughter Of Sir John Hare,
Of Norfolk ,Baronet. In 1 650 sh e marr ied Sir John Lowther
,
Of Lowther Hall , Westmorel and , by whom sh e had Ralph andRobert Lowther , both of whom resided at Ackworth Park .
She died in 1 699 , and was bu r ied in Ackworth Churchfi'E
William Rokeby, Esq .
,resided at Ackworth Park in 1 671 , but
this could only have been as tenant. About th e period Of their
mother’s death, th e Hall became the residence Of Ralph and
Robert Lowther. Robert died unmarr ied in 1720 ; and on th e
death Of Ralph in 1 724, i t became the inhe ri tance O f his son
John (M P. for Pontefract in who died in 1729 withou t
issue,leaving th e whole estate to his sister
,Mary Lowther, who
inhabited the house till her death in 1 753 . This Mary Lowther
endowed th e School and Hospital at Ackworth . Th e estatewas now inher ited by Margaret, the daughter Of William Norton ,Of Sawley
,Esq . This William Norton had married Margaret
,
the sister Of th e above - named John and Mary Lowther. Their
mother was Mary, the daughter O f Godfrey Lawson,Of Leeds
,
Esq . Margare t Norton married ,1 st , JOhn B right, of Badsworth ,
Esq.,and 2nd l y , Sir John Ramsden ,
Of Byram,Bart .
,by whom
in 1763 ,th e estate was sold to Francis Sykes, Esq. In 1803
,
Mr. Sykes or his representatives disposed Of the Hall,and part
O f th e Estate , to Grosvenor Perfect, Of Pontefract,Esq . In
1 804 , i t was purchased by Frances, widow O f Solly, Esq .,Of
London. Mrs . Solly afterwards married J. H . Jessop, Esq.,and
Vide Monumenta l Epitaph s.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 45
in 1 8 10 th e estate was sold to John Pety t , Esq . ,O f London. In
183 1,i t was purchased by M r . Gu l ly ,
wh o was said to have given
for i t,ex clusive O f th e land in Purston . About twenty
years later, th e Park became th e property of Hen ry Hill
,Esq . ,
whose family are th e p resent prop r ietors .
astitutimts.
I.
—ACKWORTH COLLEGE .
This large and handsome building , commonly known as th e
Flounders ’ Insti tu te , was establ ished by th e late Benj amin
Flounde rs , Esq .
,J .P.
,O f Yarm . with an endowment O f
for train ing young men to b e teachers in th e Society O f Fr iends.
Th e bu ilding was Opened for students in th e summer Of 1848 .
Th e instruction ,according to th e tru st deed, includes ancient.
and mode rn languages , mathematics , and philosophy in all i tsparts ; to which have been added other subj ects to mee t recen t
requ iremen ts of education ,or having more immediate reference
to th e Socie ty. The Institut ion is in tended to accommodate
twelve pupils .
ale
I am indebted to W illiam S . Lean,Esq .
,M .A .
,for th e
following additional info rmation
It appears that Mr . Flounders was very much influenced
in his decision to place Three per cent . Consols , in th e
hands of Trustee s , for certa in educational pu rposes in th e
Society Of Friends , by the known wishes O f his uncle,Gideon
l ick erdyke ,Esq . ,
from whom h e had inhe r ited a cons ide rablepo rtion Of his p rope rty,
including a landed estate at Culmington ,
near Ludlow,in Shropshi re . This estate was sold during
Benj amin Flounders ’ l ifetime ,and th e deed of trust directing
th e mode in which th e above mentioned was to be
applied , was signed by himse lf on November 25 th ,1 845 . Mr.
Bank ’
s Walks about Yorksh ire , pp . 299 -300 .
1 46 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
Flounders died April 4th,1 846 , and th e Institute was Opened
with nine students August 28th ,1 848 . Mr. Bickerdyk e
’
s views,expressed to his nephew in a letter dated as far back as 1 807,but particularly stated to be in no way binding upon M r .Flounders
,appear to have included th e founding Of a larger
establishment than th e present, to include boys as well as young
men,and also a larger staff Of instructors . Ackworth is
specially named in th e same letter as a su i table locality for the
new institution . NO doubt th e fact O f th e then comparat ively
recent establishment (th e Friends’ Publ ic School
,) influenced
Mr. Flounders , as well as his uncle, in concluding that studentsunder training for teaching would be likely to profit by living
in its ne ighbourhood,even if they should not find Opportunities
for pursuing thei r studies within its walls. ”
The Deed of Trust leaves i t to th e discretion of th e
Trustees (generally from e ight to ten in number,) to determine
on th e number Of students to be admitted to the Institute ;also to provide , e ither wholly or partially
, th e expense Of the ir
education,board
,books
,etc . Th e appointment Of th e Pr incipal
and his assistants i s in their hands,and th e de termination Of
th e course Of study to be pursued, also rests ultimately withthem .
”
From th e opening Of th e Institute in August, 1 848 , to th e
p resent time , 21 6 students have passed through it.
Five acres of land on which ‘th e College ’ stands were
purchased by two or three gentlemen from th e Ackworth
School Estate,
’ and p resented to th e Trustees, about two yearsbefore th e date Of opening. Most Of th e stone used in the
building was quarried from this land .
”
Th e name Of the first Pr incipal,Mr. Isaac B rown
,will
always be assoc iated with th e work O f l aying ou t th e planta
tions,etc ,
on th e recreation grounds , and with th e zeal which
he Shewed in encouraging the first students,
1 48 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
prefix , “ Right Honourable . Generations of Howitts, too,have
gone to Ackworth ,from th e O l d home at Heanor
,in Derbyshire .
A description Of th e building ,inside and ou t , will here be both
interesting and useful . Enter ing th e gates from th e road ,th e
School i tself is in front,on th e right is the Meeting- house
,and
on th e left,Offices for th e shoemaker
,tailor
,carpente r
,and
others . A colonnade of severely plain pillars forms th e facade ,
and from this th e entrance hall leads into the “ Great Passage .
From this,right and left
,are dining rooms
,library
,lecture - room
,
store - rooms,kitchens
,hou sekeeper’s rooms, etc . At each end
of th e passage , stairs of stone lead to th e bed - rooms above,
and to bath- rooms, etc . The class rooms
,in common with all
th e rooms , are lofty ,well ventilated and warmed
,scrupulou sly
clean and plain,and are fitted up with abundance of maps
,
diagrams,designs
,aquaria
,cabinets O f shells
,ores , clocks ,
galvanic - batter ies and other apparatus. Play has its sheds,
courts,and cricket-fie l d
,with all the necessary appliances .
Each scholar h as a little plot Of ground,for th e practical study
Of botany and horticu ltu re . For th e sick the re are nurse ries,
and for th e convalescent,reading rooms . A house not
far distant is u tilised and fitted up as a Sanator ium . There
are spacious swimming baths,gas -works
,steam - laundries
,and
other appliances ; th e whole being su rrounded by vast gard ens ,far m yard
,and macadamised play ground .
* The School pos
sesse s its own Temperance Hotel . Th e discipline is fi rm,bu t
k ind . The re is no corporal punishment . The management of
the School is vested in a Committee appointed at th e Gene ralAnnual Meeting in June , at which time , Fr iends from all partsof the country visit th e dear O l d spot
,to renew th e associations ,
and revive th e recollections Of the ir happy school - days .
Period ical examinations are made by th e Committee,and by
examiners from th e Universities. By gift and subsc ription ,
th e School has accumulated in land,bu i ldings
,etc
,a surplus
T h e “ flags is a footpath d ivid ing th e boys ’from th e girls ’ p layground .
Here broth ers and s isters , and cousin s of both sexes , are privileged to meet ,
and converse , h aving of course first Ob tained permission.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 149
capital of nearly which enables i t to give to th e li ttleFriend s a good
,and comparatively cheap
, education . Th e
payments made for each child vary according to th e position
and means of th e parents or guardian,bu t th e balance may be
considered as th e Society ’s contribution to the education Of the
poo rer O f i ts members ’ children .
"é The ful l number which may
be accomoda ted is 290 . Since th e establishment of this Schoo l,
eleven othe rs in d ifferent parts of th e kingdom have been
opened , th e first in 1785 , and th e last in Th e following
additional information has been extracted from M r . W illiamSmith ’s “ Old Yorkshire
,
’
3: and Mr. Thompson ’s “ History of
Ackworth School ”
II Th e whole property covers an area of
270 acres , and originally cost abou t In th e Reportfor 1 884
,i t is estimated to be worth In July
, 1773 ,
the Institution was closed , and remained empty for some years,part Of the estate was sold
,and th e turre t clock and bells
disposed Of to th e Marquis of Rockingham . Tradition says
that th e grounds were allowed to become a wilderness , the foxes
roaming freely through th e deserted halls . Amongst those
wh o took a great interest in the Foundling Hospital were Dni
Lee,Rector Of Ackworth ,
who planned the central bu i lding,
Sir Rowland Winn ,Of Noste l l Priory , and Sir Charles Whit
worth ,of London . The following is a desc ription of the dress
O f the chi ldren in 1 781 , two years after th e School was Opened‘ In th e early days of th e School , i ts juvenile groups might
have reminded us of th e pictures of O lden time , when the cocked
hat,th e long- tailed coat , th e leather breeches , and th e buckled
shoes , were th e dress even of boys . Th e girls figured in whitecaps
, th e hair turned back over them ,or combed straight down
on the forehead ,checked aprons with bibs , and white neck
handkerchiefs folded neatly over their stuff gowns in front.
Vide Quiver , March 1885 . Much , however of th e foregoing informationh a s been Obta ined by th e comp iler after a persona l inspection .
1 Bank ’
s Walks abou t Yorksh ire , p . 300 .
1 Vide Yorksh ire Educational E stablishments , pp . 164-73 .
Pub l ish ed in 1879 .
1 50 ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
The ir walk ing costume was a kind of hat,th e pattern Of which
we are unable to indicate, and a long cloth coat , with coloured
mits reaching to the In 1 81 6 , th e visit Of Joseph
John Gurney gave such an impetu s to Bibl ical study at Ack
worth School,that they took their Bibles to bed with them ,
read them . by th e early morning light , pored over them at
leisure hours during th e day,and especially on First D ay ,
’
so
that twelve months afterwards the whole aspect of affairs waschanged.
’ A tabulated list Of Masters will be found at th e end
Of this volume . Th e following men and women of renown
were educated at Ackworth School —Th e Right Hon. John
Bright,M .P.
° The Right Hon . James W ilson ,M .P. , of th e
“Economist ; Henry Ashworth ; J. F . B . Firth ,M .P William
Allen Miller,author Of th e “El ementS O f Chemistry,
formerlyProfessor Of Chemistry in University College
,London ; Dr.
George S . Brady,F Sunderland ; Henry Bowman Brady,
Newcastle ; John Gilbert Baker, Of Kew ,
an eminent botanist ; Sarah Ellis,
fn e'
e Stickney,au thoress Of
\Vomen of England, etc . ; Jeremiah H . Wiffen,
poet and translator ; Benj . B . IViffen ; William Howitt,author
Of Homes and Haunts Of British Poets,
”
e tcs Henry Thompson
,author Of History of Ackworth School . The following
additional particulars have been extracted from A sketch of
th e History O f Ackworth School,
” by John S . Rowntree,
published in th e “ Proceedings Of th e Centenary Celebration ”
in 1 879.
“ The earliest notices Of the School are very favou rable.
'
Sir Rowland Winn,Of Noste l l P riory, is said to have
been affected to tears when h e saw th e healthy happy faces,and recurred to the unhappy experience Of th e foundlings
who before occupied th e building.
” Offenders, i t appears, werepunished at meal times, by being placed at a table which was
called “the table Of disgrace
,and which was distinguished
from th e rest,by having no cloth upon i t. It is said that Robert
Whitaker once entered the dining room,and finding two
Vide Pumph rey ’
s D iary , written at Ackworth School .
1 52 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
they have been considerably en l arged'
and imp roved , in accordance with the requirements Of th e Education Department .The Trustees are th e Rectors Of Ackworth and Badsworth
,and
th e Vicar Of Featherstone , fer th e time be ing ; th e sole
management Of th e - school being reserved to th e Rectori
e f
Ackworth . It is a mixed school. Th e Title -Deed is in possession Of th e Rector of Ackworth fer th e time be ing .
MRS. HOWARD’S SCHOOL .
This Schoo l i s situate at Low Ackworth, and consists of two
rooms,the one for girls , and th e other for infants ; and a
mistress ’s house ,neatly bu ilt
,bearing th e follow ing inscription :
“ Rachael Howard bough t this ground,and built thereon a
school - room and tenement for a mistress,1 833 . She died in
the Lord , 24th Sept ,1837
,aged 33 .
— Rev v ii,1 3 , 1 7 xiv.
,
Th e following extracts from'
the published correspondence O f
the late Mrs . Howard,respecting th e building Of the school
,are
historically valuable . Writing tO a friend on January 25th ,
1 833,sh e says
,The estimate for T . Rickman ’s plan for a
cotta ge school - room,amounted to very nearly £500 ; much O f
which,h e assurred me ,
was bestowed in mere ornament and
finish . The se two considerations have brought me to th e
conclusion,tO build a smaller and plainer school - room ,
and I
have given directions to th e Wakefield bu ilder acco rdingly ;bu t h e is ne t to have anything to do with th e contract . I
expect th e reduced plans and Specifications home in a few days .
On th e 8th of April following, sh e w ri tes, This has been a
very busy day with me ,and as I have now made all needfu l
arrangements w ith B.,I transmit th e particulars. ” "Here follow
th e amounts Of h er several contracts withmason,s l a ter
, plasterer,joiner, plumber, and painter ; th e total be ing £362 6s. 3d . ]When I tell thee that the rej ected estimates taken togethe r ,
wou ld have amounted to th e sum Of £456 1os . 6d . , I think
thou wilt agree with me , that th e diffe rence is‘
sufficient to repaya good deal of trouble . On th e 5 th December, sh e writes to
h er Sister-ih - l aw R . R. H ,saying, “What to call my school I
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 53
really cannot tell . I t is not,ce rtainly
,a Lancaste rian or British
School for we exhibit pictures,and teach natural history
,and
a little geography and singing. Nor can i t be called an Infants ’
School ; for in th e gallery a strange r might happen to see a toprow of girls almost as tall as women . Some of th em are new
scholars,and contrast rathe r awkwardly in th e classes with the
l ittle ones who scarce ly reach the ir Shoulde rs . Poo r things " Ireally feel an affection for them ,
they Show so much zeal,coming
from West-Hardwick and Purs ton,in a l ittle troop
,for the sake
of th e supe rior instru ction they , or thei r parents expect at thenew school . ’ Abou t twenty scholars , out of th e fifty who are
on th e l ist, are from the adjacent villages .
—Ackworth does not
yet shew its sense of the advantage O ffered . Miss Sarah Gricewas th e first mistress , and
‘
was succeeded,at h er res ignation ,
by Miss M.Oore .
* The School has recently been trans ferred toa Chu rch of England Board o f Managemen t and control , subject
to certain conditions , and i s new unde r Government. Inspection .
For particulars respecting th e little Burial G round adjo in ingth e School , see under date 1 848 .
THE WESLEYAN CHAPEL .
Th e r ise of Me thod ism in Ackworth is somewhat obscu re .
O riginally this vil lage fo rmed part of th e Wakefield Circu i t ,and became par t of th e Pontefract Circu it , when th e division
took place in 1 796 . The fi rst Chapel was built in 179 1 , and
opened by Jehn Nelson ; it had at fi rst a fron t gallery, which
was subsequently extended along th e s ides of th e chapel , and
conta ined 90 sittings in the gallery ,fou r pews in th e body,
and
about 100 free seats . In 179 1 , Mr. Robert Ranson ,of Ackworth ,
conveyed a plo t of ground containing 433 square ya rds w ith
th e Methodist Chape l the reon for the amount of £22 , to the
fo l l owing trustees —Messrs. Ne l strop ,and P. Thwaites
,
Miss Moore wa s succeed ed by Miss Mose ley . wh o resigned in 1 866 . MissMose ley wa s succeeded b y Miss Spink , wh o res igned in 1 869 . Miss Sp ink w a s
succeed ed by Miss Murray ,of Archingoul e , near Huntley , in Aberdeensh ire ,
who
the pos ition ever s ince . Mis s M uIr ay h as invariab ly succeeded in
ob ta ining th e excellent meri t grant .—J. L . S.
1 54 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
of Ackworth ; John Elwell . Joseph Holdsworth,and John
Newhouse, ofWakefield ; John Ranson ,of Warmfie l d ; Thomas
Bamford ,of Cudworth ; William Nicholson
,of Carleton ; and
Wi lliam Scott, of \Vakefie l d . In 1 821 th e chapel was re - con
veyed to th e following —Messrs . James Ranson,Thomas Legg
,
Richard Smith , and Joseph Wil son,of Ackworth ; and Messrs .
Wm . M oxen,James Robinson
,Joseph Watson ,W illiam Dawson
,
and John Brice , of Pontefract. Over th e door of the Chapel,
a stone,two feet by one and a half, was placed by Mrs. Ne l strop ,
which bore th e following words
Sinners obey th e Gospe l word ,
Haste to th e Supper of my LordB e w ise to know your grac ious day ,
All th ings are ready , come away .
’
1 790 .
Upon th e building of the new chapel,this stone was placed in
th e back wall of the vestry where i t may still be seen .
The foundation stone of th e p resent beautifu l Chapel was laidon Good Friday
,Apr il 2nd
,by William Peel
,Esq .
,of
Ackworth Park . There was a large company present on th e
occasion . Th e Architect was Mr. W ilson, of Bath and
the bu ilders were Messrs . Simpson and Wilson,of Ackworth .
Th e Chapel with th e schools attached ,cost about Mr.
Peel headed the subscr iption list with £300 , and presented th eOrgan. Th e following insc ription was placed in a bottleunder th e s tone Th e foundation stone of this Wesleyan
Methodist Chapel was laid by W. Peel , Esq ., of Ackworth Park ,
on Good Friday, Apri l 2md ,1 858. The scroll also bore
th e names of the P resident of th e Wesleyan Conference (Rev .
F . A. West) , th e Secretary of th e Confe rence (Dr. Hannah), four
ministers of th e Pontefract Circuit, th e Circuit Stewards , andth e Trustees of th e Chapel. “ Th e Chapel was Opened in the
following year, when eminent ministers conducted the services .”
Notices of these will be found under th e head of “ Annals .
The Chapel has been recently renovated at a cost of ever a
hundred pounds .*
Vide Wesleyan Method ist C ircuit Record ,” August, 1882 .
156 ACKWORTH ; YORKS ,
favour th e supposition. Th e farm itself stands high,th e ground
undulating towards the west , and culm inating in what h as
evidently been a dyke or meat of considerable dimensions.
This dyke is now a lane , and might probably be worth
excavating. Th e name and meat howeve r , are all th at remainof byegone times . Th e Castle would most likely be th e residenceof th e fi rst Saxon lords o f Ackworth , as indicated by the Saxon
word Sglee or fountain ; and i t is not at all imp robable that thebuilding was leve lled to th e ground when William
,th e Norman
Conqueror, laid waste these parts of Yorkshire .
I I .
— LADY-WELL .
This very ancient well is one of the several pub l ic we l ls,
which has in recent years somehow become enclosed . F romwhat it derived i ts name is not known
,bu t from the fact of i ts
be ing the oldest, i t is not unlikely that i t was o riginally set
apart by some religious service,and dedicated to
“ O ur Lady ”
for th e use of the inhabitants of th e village . In pro- reforma
tion times this custom was common,some wells having
miracu lous powe rs asc ribed to the ir waters by th e supe rstitious,
l ike the well of St . Keyne ,and in mode rn times , th e “ Holy
We lls in I reland ; bu t nothing of the sort attaches to th e
we ll of “ O ur Lady ” at Ackworth . As th e population inc reasedit was found necessary to sink other we l ls. O ne in th e cen tre
of th e village ,near the “ B rown Cow Inn
,
” was constructed in179 1 , bu t th e approach to it was so dangerous , that , after a
child had been drowned in i t,i t was altered into a pump .
There is an ol d well at Brackenh il l .
III— THE VILLAGE ELM .
Of th e great tree on th e village green we have no certainparticulars . We may , howeve r , easily draw for ou rselves thepicture of its be ing planted and nu rtured from gene ration to
generation ,until it became th e pride, not only of Ackworth
,
but of th e su rrounding ne ighbourhood " Bu t th e ravages of
time,fire
,wind, tempest,
hand barbarous usage , h ave ruthl essly
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 57
deprived the ol d trunk of many of i ts largest branches , andnow i t stands in mournful majesty l ike a dethroned monarch
weeping over th e past. I t is desc ribed by Thompson* as a
grand ol d giant eh n,w ith i ts i ron - bound cavernous trunk
,i ts
great naked arms tell ing of generations of seasons and storms,
yet inte rspe rsed with luxu r iant foliage ,testifying to th e yet
unquenchable vigour of it s constitution .
’ Mrs. Ha r riet BeecherStowe ’s word picture of an aged e lm is so fine
,that its inse rtion
here will be at once appropriate,and desc riptive of th e e lm at
Ackworth . It is “ a great rugged e lm,with all its lacings and
archings of boughs and tw igs,which has stood cold and frozen
against the metallic blue of winte r sky ,forge tful of leav es , and
patient in its bareness,calmly content in i ts naked strength
,
and crystalline definiteness of outl ine . Bu t in “Ap ril,the re i s
a rising and st i rring within the grand o l d monster,
—a
whispe ring of knotted buds , a mounting of sap,coursing eth ere
ally from bough to bough with a warm and gentle life ; and
though th e o l d e lm knows i t no t,a new c reation is at handful
It is said that,within th e recollection of some st ill living, a pair
of vene rable owls took up the ir abode in one of the greathollow fissu res of th e t ree
,but the ir appearance was greeted
with so many supe rstitious head - shakings,that they we re soon
dislodged from thei r retreat by the pungent fumes of bu rningcotton and cayenne peppe r
,a p roceeding ,
however,which might
have proved disast rous to the tree i tself. The elm has
frequently been struck by lightning ,as its many zinc patches
testify . There i t h as stood and stil l stands like a mighty
sentinel d rawing down,as it were , by its faithful stabili ty ,
th e
indignation of th e elements upon its devo ted head . Under its
b ranches many a village may- queen has beenenth roned many
an open -mou thed rustic begu iled by the village pol itician ;village ti ttle - tattle re tailed ; vi l lage synods , for th e discussion
of great national events,convened and held ; and village scenes
of all shades and descriptions,both sombre and gay
, enacted ;
Vide History o f Ackworth School . ”
1 Vide Literature of al l Countries ,” Vo l . xvn . , p. 53 .
1 58 ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
in short , if th e venerable ol d monarch could only have been
endowed with the faculty of speech for a single day, what an
incalculable service i t might have rendered to th e compiler ofth e “ Parochial History of Ackworth
IV .—THE VILLAGE CROSS .
Tradition says that this cross was erected to commemoratea plague which carried off great numbers of th e inhabitants.*
The date of th is sickness has not been preserved, but that it
occurred before th e Reformation is certain from th e cause of it,
which has also been handed down by the same channel .Previous to th e Reformation ,
there was in th e Chapel of St.
Mary,in the Church of Ackworth , a Chantry , of our Lady
,
founded by Isabel de Castleford . There is no reason to supposethat this Chantry was suppl ied from th e Priory of Ne stel
,as
some have thought, but we may naturally conclude that the
ex istence of the Chantry wou ld cause frequent communication
between th e two places ; nor is i t unlikely that some of th e
Brethren of Nostel might occasionally minister at Ackworth,
during th e absence of th e Chantry Priest. Assuming this tohave been so
,the tradition as to th e origin of th e plague in
question is much strengthened . It i s said that a Monk of
Ne stel , who,probably from th e cause ju st suggested
,was held
in affectionate remembrance by th e people of Ackworth,dying
abroad,his body was brought back to be interred at Nostel .
As it passed through Ackworth , th e people wished th e preces
s ion to halt, and th e corpse to be uncovered. This being done,
th e infectious complaint which was the cause of death,a kind
of putrid fever, was communicated to th e bystanders . Th e
Cross is said to have been erected on the exact spot where th e
body rested, to commemorate at once that event,and also the
dire consequences which were permitted by God to flow from
it . Th e date of its mutilation, th e removal of the Cross,and
th e substitution of a ball, (the emblem of th e world,) is
generally ascribed to th e t ime of th e Great Rebellion .
Thompson says three or four hundred .
”
1 60 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
ment selected by John W illiam Nevison,the great robber and
highwayman of Yo rkshi re,better known in history as th e
confederate of the celeb rated “ D ick Tu rpin .
”
Th e story runsthus —Towards the close of th e year 1 683 , a gang of maskedruffians commenced a se ries of ( l epreda tions in th e ne ighbour
hood of Ackworth and Pontefract,and for some time remained
unmolested and unrecogn ized . Suspicion,however
,fell upon
Nevison,a native of Pontefract
,wh o
,it was known
,had taken
to th e road as a p rofession ,and who
,i t was supposed
,was
leader of th e band . Abou t Christmastide in th e year 1 684 ,
the ir nocturnal visits became so frequent and dar ing ,th at th e
distr ict was alarmed , and a numbe r of parish constables,
watchmen,and beadles were induced to pursue
,and if possible
,
capture th e robbers . For a long time th e misc reants eludedthe ir pu rsue rs
,Nevison actually hiding himself in a smal l
compartment over th e front door of Ackworth Hall in Pu rstonLane
,access into which h e gained by a secret trap door
,and
th e re he remained undiscove red , whils t the officers wh o hadseen him enter th e hou se , we re busily engaged in searchingeve ry corner of th e bu ilding . The trap doo r and compartment
which i s now known as “Nevison’
s room,
”
are st ill shewn to
th e visitor . In th e following year Nevison gave his persecu torsa chance
,and a h ot pursu i t resu lted in his captu re by Captain
Hard cast lef‘é in a pub l ic house called th e
“ Magpie,
” at Sandal ,and one of th e then three Inns known as Magna Sandal
Three Houses,
” between Pontefract and Fe rrybridge . A steep
decl ivity near Sandal is po inted out and known as Nev ison’
s
leap . He was subsequently tried, and execu ted on th e Tyburn
gallows,outside M ickl egate Bar
,at York , May 4th
,1 685 .
Nevison was born at Pontefract in 1 639 ,and educated the re -
l“ Di ck Turpin
’
s r ide from London to Yo rk in 1 6 h ou rs,is
ascribed by Lord Maculay to Nev ison i“ T he Old Hall has
In reality , a va liant ta ilor wh o wen t by th e sobriquet of Cap ta in Hardcastle .
Jr Vide Johnson ’
s Life of Nevison .
Mr. Harrison Ainsworth ’
s graph ic d escription of Turpin’
s ride is th ereforefabulous .
11‘
s H ISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 61
says Thompson,th e historian of Ackworth School , “ long been
haunted , but I have not been able to trace the existence of
this superstition in th e village ; p robably th e ex tensive improvements which have recently been .made in and around th e
bu ilding , ha ve banished ,for a time
,all ghostly spectres
,both
from th e scene , and memory of the villagers. In 1 879 , “ this
once handsome Tudor dwelling,w i th its lines of mull ioned
windows , and i ts e legant gables , some of the latter toppling tothe ir fall
,i ts roof in holes
,and i ts accessory bu ildings a heap
of ru ins, had j ust reached that hoary quality and suggestive
wierdness , which wou ld have rejoiced th e au thor of th e ‘Castle
of Otranto .
’
In i ts o l d c rumbling walls, th e white and th e
brown ow l reared the ir bre ed s, and fu rni shed appropr iate musicin th e gle aming .
” ale But thanks to th e care of Lord St . Oswald,
this monument of antiqu i ty has been substantially and
j udic iously restored ,and is now in a condition to weather th e
storms of at least another centu ry.
K VIII— THE PLAGUE STONE.
Thompson,in his “ History of Ackworth School
,
’ make s
this inte resting relic contemporary with the Village Cross,but
i t is more probable that i t dates from a second and more recentepidemic of th e Plague which occu rred in 1 645 . He is correct
,
howeve r,in saying that i t was for many mon ths th e only point
of contact between th e people of Ackworth and th e ou ter
world ,”
and that upon i t “the Ackwo rth pu rchaser dropped
his money in to a vesse l of wa terj' for which
,a few hou rs after
,
A careful observer willstill pe rce i v e a trough - l ike constru ction upon th e inside of th e
stone . I t is most desirable that th e stone , or what l ittle remains
of i t,shoul d be removed to a place of security ere i t entirely
disappears,for i t is certainly worthy of preservation as a rel ic
of antiquity .
h e found his re tu rn in merchandise .
’
V ide History of Ackworth School , ” p . 304 .
f A very wise precaution under th e c ircumstances .
1 62 ACKWORTH ,Yonxs.
,
OLD CHALYBEATE BATH .
The site of this o l d bath is still pointed out at AckworthMoor-Top, about a quarter of a mile nor th of Ackworth School ,th e pupils of which ,
before the‘
new swimming baths were
constr ucted,made a practice of bathing at six o
’clock in th e
morning,and often when th e ground was covered with hoar
frost " The water of this bath was a strong Chalybeate , and
ex cessively cold. In 1 86 1 , th e ol d bath -hou se was changed
into a dwelling. An engraving of the bath ,as it th en appeared ,
is given in Thompson ’s “History of Ackworth Schoo l ,”
pub l ish ed
in 1879 . K
OBELISKS .
There are two fine obelisks in the village , both of them
large,but comparatively modern . To
’
a stranger,they possess
a commemorative or memo rial appearance,bu t in reality
,they
were e rected by th e Lords of th e Manor,as combination gu ide
and distance stones . 1 .
—At th e junction of th e Ackworth and
Pontefract roads . Erected in 1 827. Hexagonal shaft,triangu
lar cap,su rmounted by a gl obe . He ight abou t ten feet. From
this point,East Hardwick is distant 2 7} miles , Dar rington 3 ,
Pontefract 2 137 , York 27 , Sheffield 1 3,and Barnsley 10 .
Opposi te th e Fr iend ’s School . Erected in 1 805 . Its heigh t
and descr iption are th e same as th e foregoing , which was
eviden tly copied from this one . Pontefract is distant from it
3 miles , Hemswo rth 3,Snai th 1 5 , Wentbridge 3, and Doncaster
13 . A lamp surmounts the globe .
Gi lgaritirs.
Scarcely any parish in England is endowed w ith so many
Charities as Ackworth,indeed it i s p a /
ztp erised by them . The
original deeds are quoted where available.
1 64 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
lands of Thomas Huntington,north
,and Matthew Lambe
,
south,with all ways
,easements, p rofits
,commons
,commodities
,
advantages,and appu rtenances, whatsoeve r, to the same belong
ing, or in anywise appertaining. Al l which said land s are lying
and be ing within th e precinct,l iberties , and te rri tories of
Ackworth aforesaid,in th e said County of York
,and are now
in the tenure and occupation of th e said William Child,his
assignee ,or assignees
,to have and to hold th e said live acres
and a half of arable land and a l l other th e before grantedpremises with all and of them
,by these presents , that h e the
said Thomas Hewitt,his he irs , and assigns , and eve ry of them
,
shall and may by force and vi rtue of these p resents,from time
to time ,and at all times hereafter for eve r
,lawfully
,peaceably
,
and qu ietly ,have
,h e l d
,use
,and occupy
,possess, and enjoy the
said five acre s and a half of arable land and a l l and singularth e befo re granted p remises, with the ir and e very of the ir r ights ,m embe rs, and appurtenances , and have ,
rece ive,and take , th e
rent s,issu es and profits thereof to h is and the ir own prope r use
and behoof for ever, withou t any lawfu l l et, su it , trouble , den ial ,interruption
,molestation
,or disturbance of them
,the sa id
Will iam Child and Do rothy,his wife
,the ir he irs
,or assigns
,or
any of them ,or ofNathan iel Baine
,his execu to rs
,adm in istrators
,
or assigns , or any of them,or of any othe r pe rson or pe rsons
whatsoeve r,lawfully claim ing the same by
,from
,or under them ,
or any of them . And that free and clear,and freely and clearly
acqu itted ,exone rated
,and discharged
,or othe rwise from time
to time and at all times hereafte r well and sufficiently saved
and kept harmless and indemn ified by the said W illiam Child
and Dorothy,his wife , the ir he i rs , executors , adm in istrators ,
or some of them of and from all and all manner of former andoth er l bargains , sales , gifts, grants, leases, mortgages
,j o intu res
,
dowe rs,ti tles of dower
,statu tes, merchan t
,and of th e staple
recognizances , ex tents,judgments
, executions,uses
,entails
,
rents, arrearages of rents, forfe i tu res , fines,issues and amercia
ments, and of and from all and sing ular othe r t i tles,troubles
,
charges,and incumbrances whatsoeve r, had, made, committed,
ITS H ISTORY AND ANNALS. 1 65
suffered ,omitted
,or done by th e saidW i l liam Child and Dorothy
,
h is wife,or e ither of them ,
the i r he irs,or assigns
,or George
Child,father of the said l Vil l iam Child
,h is heirs
, or assigns, orthe said Nathan iel Baine
,his executors
,administrators
,or
assigns,or by any other person or persons whatsoever lawfull y
claiming the same from or under them ,or by from or unde r
their or any of thei r means,ac ts
, ,
tit l e , consent , interest, p r ivity ,
or procurement (the said yearly rent of two shill ings and ninepence and one rent charge of tw en ty
- eight shi l l ings of lawful
money of England due and payable to John Worma l l,his hei rs
a nd a ssign s a nd the M inister a nd Ch urchw a rd ens of the
Pa r ish of Ackworth aforesa id for the u se of the sa id p a rish
on l y emcep tecl a nd forep ii zeol .
And furthe r,th e said William Child and Dorothy
,his wife .
d o,for
” themselves , the ir he irs , execu to rs , and administrators,
and eve ry of them ,covenan t , promise , and grant to and with th e
said Thomas Hew i tt , his he irs and assigns , and to and w i th all
and every of them singu lar the i r and every of the ir appurte
nances,and every part and parce l thereof, unto th e said Thomas
Hewitt , h is heirs and assignees for eve r . To be holden of our
Sove re ign Lord th e K ing,his he irs and successors , in fee favour
as of His Highness Mano r of Enfiel d ,in the County of
Middlesex , in fee and common socage and not in capite nor by
knight se rvice,yie lding and paying yearly to th e hands of th e
rece iver or rece ive rs of th e Fe e Farm Rent thereof for th e time
be ing,the yearly ren t of two shillings and n inepence of lawf ul
money of England, at such days and times as the same i s
appo inted and accustomedly paid . And th e saidW illiam Child
and Dorothy Child ,h is wife ,
for th emsel ves ,th eir he irs
,executo rs
,
and admin i strato rs , and eve ry of them,d o covenant
,p rom ise
,
and gran t to and with th e said Thomas Hew i tt,his he irs and
assigns,and to and with all and every by these p resen ts , tha t
they,th e said Wi lliam Child and Dorothy , his wife ,
the i r h e irs ,and assigns , and a l l and every other person or persons
,and
the i r he irs , lawfully having or claiming ,or rightfully p re tending
1 66 ACKWORTH ,vos xs
,
to have or claim any estate , right , title ,interes t
,or demand
,in
to or ou t of th e said p remises or any part or parcel of them ,
shall and will,from time to time , and at all times hereafter
upon th e reasonable request and at th e costs and charges in th elaw of th e said Thomas Hewitt his he irs or assigns make
,d o
,
perform ,acknowledge
,levy ,
execute and suffer or cause to be
made,done, performed, acknowledged ,
levied,executed ,
and
suffered all and every such furthe r lawful and reasonable act,thing and things devise or devises in th e law assurance and
conveyances wh atsover for th e further, better , and more peacefu land perfect assur ing and conveying of all and singular thebefore hereby granted p remises , with the ir and every of the ir
rights,members
,appu rtenances
,unto the said Thomas Hewitt,
his heirs , and assigns, for e ver. Be i t by fine or fines,feoffment
or feoffments, deed or deeds,enrolled or not enrolled
,th e
enrolment of these presents , recove ry or recover ies , w ith th e
single or double voucher or vou che rs,release or confirmation
,
or by all and every or any th e ways and means aforesaid,or by
any other ways or lawfu l means whatsoever as by th e said
Thomas Hewitt,his heirs, or assigns, or his or the ir Counsel ,
learned in th e laws of this nation,shall be reasonably devised ,
advised,or requ ired
,so as th e said W ill iam Child
,and Dorothy,
his wife, the ir heirs, and assigns , or such other person or personswh o shall be requ ired to make such further assu rance be no t
compelled to trava il e forth of the County of York ,nor farther
than th e City of York,for the doing and execu ting thereof.
And further i t is covenanted,concluded
,condescended unto
and fu lly agreed upon by and between th e said parties to thesepresents
,that all fines
,feoffments
,recove ries , and assurances
in the l aw whatsoever so had made,acknowledged
,levied ,
suffere'd, or done by or between th e said part ies or any of themafter touching or concerning th e said land ,
and all and singularth e before he reby granted p remises
,with the ir and every of
their rights, members and appurtenances, and eve ry and any
part thereof shal l be and inu re,and shall be construed, esteemed,
adjudged, and taken to be and inure to th e only purpose and
1 68 ACKWORTH , YORKS.,
THE POOR ’S ESTATE,ACKWORTH .
This estate,originally called th e Paddock
,and containing
five acres and six teen pe rches , was pu rchased in 1763 , for the
poor of Ackworth. I t was th e p rope rty of M r . Barwell,
Gentleman,and was conveyed
,in trust for the benefit of .th e
poor of Ackworth , to Sir Rowland Winn ,of Noste l
,Bart . , th e
Rev . Timothy Lee , Rector of Ackworth ,and Doctor in D ivinity
,
and Francis Sykes , of Ackworth Park ,Esq. ,
in whose represen
tatives th e legal estate is , of cou rse, still vested . T he t itle deeds
of th e estate are in the par ish ches t,in th e custody of th e
Rector. The price was £400 . Of this sum £300 was de r i vedfrom th e following benefactions
s . d .
1 692 — Elizabeth, Relic t of Sir John Lowther ,Barone t 20
1 703 .
— Robert Mason ,Gen tleman 1 0
Ann,Relict of th e Rev . J . Bolton 10
Cash from a Stock of Cows 20
1 717 .
— Robert Lowther,of Ackworth
,50
17 1 8.
— Margare t, wife of William Norton,of
Sawley,Esq . , 20
1 722 .
—Ralph Lowth er, ofAckworth Park ,Esq . 20
1 724.
—Ann,daughter of Ralph Lowther , Esq. 50
”24 .
— Elizabeth ,daughter O fLawson Trotter
,
of Ske lton Castle , Esq .
1729 .
— John Lowth er, ~ot Ackwo rth Park , Esq .
1 739 .
— Thomas B right , O f Badswor th ,20
1764 .—The Rev . Wm . Key 20
£300
To this sumof £300 , £40 was added ,e ither by accumulation
of interest , or from some donations , the particulars of which
are not now known . The amount , therefore , avai l able for th epu rchase was £340 . Th e remain ing £60 had to be borrowed .
Some difficu lty occurring as to th e secu rity of this latter sum,
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Dr . Lee got over i t by advancing to th e parish th e amount
requ i red,in consideration of a lease of th e estate be ing granted
to h im for 99 years , at a reserved annual rent of £ 12 . To th e
o riginal quantity of land,viz. ,
5a . l 6p.
, th e Enclo su re Comm iss ioners
,in 17 74 ,
allotted 2a . 2r. 28p .,making th e whole estate
7a . Sr. 4p. Dr. Lee ’s lease expi red in Febr uary ,1 863 . Th e
rent of £ 1 2 per annum,is regularly paid to th e Recto r ,
Chu rchwardens,and Ove rseers of th e Poo r , and i s distribu ted
by them on St. Thomas’s Day.
Th e follow ing is a Copy of th e conveyance from Sir JohnRamsden ,
Bart .,and his Lady ,
to Sir Row land Winn ,Bart :
THIS INDENTURE,made th e 20th day of October
,in the
year o f our Lord one thousand se ven hundred and sixty- three ,
between Sir John Ramsden ,of Byram
,in the County of York
,
Barone t,and Dame Margaret his wife ,
one of th e nieces of
Mary Lowthe r,late of Ackworth Pa rk , in th e said county ,
Spinste r, deceased ,th e devisee of all h er real estate no t
spec ifically devised by h er last Wi ll and Testament,on th e one
part,and Sir Rowland W inn ,
O f Noste l l , in th e said county,
Barone t , the Reverend Timothy Lee , Rector of Ackworth,in
th e said county ,and Doctor in D ivini ty ,
and Franc is Sykes,of
Ackworth Park aforesaid,Esqu i re
,on the other pa rt .
Whe reas,Robert Lowthe r , late of Pon tefract , in the said
c ounty,d eceased ,
by his last Wi ll and Testament in w riting,
bearing date on or abou t th e l oth day of August,which w a s
in th e year of our Lord 17 17,did
,amongst other things there in
contained,give to th e Poor of Ackworth Fifty Pounds , to be
laid ou t in th e purchase of land,and th e rents thereof to be
distr ibuted yearly by th e Minister and Oversee rs Of th e Poo rof Ackworth for th e time be ing .
And whereas,Ralph Lowther, late of Ackworth Park , afo re
said,Esqu ire
,by his last Will in writing
,hearing date on or
abou t th e 1 1 th day of June,in th e year of our Lord 1722, did ,
amongst many other things there in contained , give to th e Poor
1 70 ACKWORTH,YORKS
,
Of th e Pa rish of Ackwor th Twenty Pounds,to be laid ou t in
lands , and the p roduce thereof to b e distribu ted yearly by th eMin isters and Chu rchwardens of the said Parish .
And whereas,John Lowthe r
,late of Ackworth Park afore
said,Esqu i re
,did
,by his last Will and Testament, bearing date
on or about th e 3rd day of February,in th e year of our Lord
1728 ,amongst other things therein specified
,give to the Poor
of th e said Parish of Ackworth,th e sum of Fifty Pounds
,and
did direct that th e same should be l aid out in th e purchase of
lands,and that th e rents the reof should be annually distributed
by the Min iste r and Chu rchwardens of th e said Parish to suchPoo r within thei r said Parish as they
,in the i r discretion
,shou ld
think p roper Obj ects of th e said charity,as in and by th e said
recited W ills , reference be ing thereto had , may mo re fullyappear. And whe reas
,the said Sir John Ramsden and Dame
Margaret his wife,as th e legal rep resentatives of th e said Robert
Lowthe r,and John Lowther, have in the ir hands th e said two
several legacies of Fifty Pounds each and Twenty Pounds,
making toge ther th e said sum of One Hund red and TwentyPounds , and have duly paid the interest thereof to th e Ministerand Chu rchwardens of the said Parish for the time be ing
,at
Chr istmas yearly. And whereas , dive rs other persons "seePa rochia l M agazine, M a rch , have at many different
times left divers legacies and sums of money to th e Poor of
the said Parish,the whole of which amounts to Two Hundred
and Twenty Pounds,and which said Two Hundred and Twenty
Pounds is now in th e hands of the said Timothy Lee,as Rector
of th e said Par ish,and for which he hath du ly paid th e interest
,
and the same has been distribu ted yearly , at Christmas, amongst
the Poor of th e said Parish ,by th e Minister and Churchwardens
there .
And whereas, th e said Sir John Ramsden,and Dame
Margaret,his wife
,are now se ized in fee simple of th e Messuage
,
Closes,and Hereditaments he re inafter mentioned to be hereby
granted,which are of th e full value of Four Hundred Pounds
,
172 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
and in satisfaction and discharge of th e same , and to th e intent
that th e said O ne Hund red and Twen ty Pounds may be vestedin land for the u se of th e said Poo r of Ackworth for ever,according to the intentions of th e said three seve ral Donors
,
and that th e rents and p rofits of th e said lauds may b e d istribu ted
,yearly
,for ever
,by the Ministe r
,Chu rchwardens
,and
,
Oversee rs of the Poor o f the said parish,to and amongst such
of the said Poor,and in such manner as they
,in their discretion
,
shall th ink fit and p roper . Also,in conside ration .Of th e said
sum of T wo Hundred and Twenty Pounds in th e hand s of th esaid Timothy Lee
,belonging to th e Poor of th e said Parish
,
and by him paid to the said Sir John Ramsden,at or before
the executing hereof. And also in consideration of th e said
sum O f Sixty Pounds by th e said Sir Rowland W inn ,Timothy
Lee,and Francis Sykes
,now advanced and lent
,and by them
paid to the said Sir John Ramsden,at or before th e execu ting
he reof,the rece ipt of which said seve ral sums of Two Hundred
and Twenty Pounds and Sixty Pounds,making together th e
said T wo Hundred and Eighty Pounds,th e said Sir John
Ramsden doth hereby acknowledge ,and thereof, and of every
part thereof,doth he reby acqu it and discharge th e said Si r
Rowland Winn,Timothy Lee , and Francis Sykes, seve rally and
respectively , the ir several He irs,Executors
,and Administrators
and which said sums of One Hundred and Twenty Pounds ,Two Hund red and Twenty Pounds
,and Sixty Pounds
,make
toge the r th e said sum of Four Hund red Pound s, th e pu rchase
money agreed to be paid and allowed for the said He reditamentsand Premises.
They, the said Sir John Ramsden and Dame Margare t hiswife
,have bargained
,sol d
,rel eased
,and confirmed
,and by these
presents do grant,bargain
,release, and confi rm
,unto th e said
Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes (in their actual possessionnow being by v irtue of a bargain and sale to them the reof madeby th e said S ir John Ram sden and Dame Margare t, his wife ,for one whole year by Indenture
,bearing date the day next
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
before th e day of th e date he reof,and by force O f th e Statu te
made for t ransferring of uses into possession) and to th e He i rsand Assign s of th e said Sir Rowland W inn and Francis Sykesfor eve r
,all that Messuage or Tenement
,situate and be ing in
Ackworth aforesaid,where in Nathaniel Barwell
,Gen tleman
,
now deceased ,fo rmerly dwelt
,and all th e Barns
,Stables
,and
o ther Outbu ildings , Court yards , Fol d s tead s, Gardens , O rchards ,Hereditaments
,and Appu rtenances the reto be longing. And
also all those three Closes of Meadow and Pastu re Groundthereto adjoining and belonging ,
commonly called or known by
th e names Of th e Lowe r C roft, th e Upper Croft, and Barn C roft ,or by what other name or names soever the same are now
called or known ; and also two Cow Gates,or Pasture for two
Beasts in Ackworth Common Pastu re,and which said Messuage
,
Closes,and Premises were l ate th e Estate of the said Mary
Lowther, and are now in th e tenures or occupations of John
Ane l ey and Jonathan Thompson ,and are all situate and be ing
in Ackworth aforesaid,together w ith all Ways , Wate rs , Water
courses,P r ivileges
,Advantages
,Commons
,Common of Pastu re ,
Hereditaments,and Appu rtenances
,whatsoeve r to th e said
Messuage,C loses , and Premises belonging
,or in any wise
appe rtain ing, excep t thePew in Ackwo rth Chu rch ,
late ly enjoyed
by Mrs . Barwell d eceased,and th e reversion and reversions ,
remainder and remainde rs , rents , issues , and p rofi ts of th e saidM essuage
,Hereditaments , and Prem ises and eve ry of them .
And al so all the Estate,right . title ,
and Interest of them the
said Sir John Ramsden and Dame Margaret,his wife, and Of
e ither of them,into and ou t of th e said Messuage ,
He redi taments,
and Premises,and eve ry part the reof, togethe r with all deeds,
writ ings,and evidences whatsoeve r , touching or conce rning th e
said hereditaments and p remise s , or any of them,and now in
the cu stody or powe r of the said Sir John Ram sden ,and which
h e can . come at wi thou t su i t at law or in equ ity .
To ha ve aw l to hol d th e said Me ssuage,Closes
,Heredita
ments, and Premises above mentioned, to be hereby granted
174 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
and released , with the ir Appurtenanc es,unto th e said Sir
Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes , and the ir He irs, to th e onlyuse and behoof of them and the ir He irs for ever. In Tr ust,
nevertheless , for the Poor of the Parish of Ackworth aforesaid,
for th e time being for ever,and to th e intent that th e rents
,
issues , and profits of th e said Messuage,Closes
,and Premises
may at all times hereafter be had ,received
,and taken by the
Min iste r , Churchwardens , and Overseers of th e Poor of th e saidPar ish of Ackworth,
for th e time be ing,or may be pa id ove r
into the ir hands or d istributed by them at Christmas and
Whitsuntide y early for ever , to and amongst th e said Poor,in
such manner as th e said Minister,Chu rchwardens , and Ove rseers
of the Poor for th e time being shall,in the ir discretion
,think
fit and proper, and to no othe r use,and upon no other Trust
whatsoever, bu t subj ect , nevertheless, to th e proviso here inafte rmentioned .
And th e said Sir John Ramsden hereby fer himsel f,his
Hei rs , Execu tors, and Am inis trators covenant and agree withthe said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes
,their He irs and
Assigns,that h e
, th e said Sir John Ramsden ,and th e said Dame
Margaret his wife,and the ir respective He irs , shall, and will at
any t ime hereafter,upon th e request and at th e cost and charge
of th e said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes , the ir He irsor Assigns, acknowledge and levy in his Maj esty’s Court of
Common Pleas,at Westminster
,in due form of l aw
,unto th e
said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes , and to th e He irs O fone of them ,
one fine su r conuzance de dro i t come coe,
with proclamations to be thereupon had , according to th e form
of th e Statute in that case made and provided ,of the said
Messuage, Closes , and Premises above-men tioned
,to be hereby
gran ted and released , with the i r appu rtenances, by such names
and descr iptions as shall be thought requ isite to describe andasc e rtain th e same
,which said fine so or in any other manner
to be levied ; and all and every o ther fine and fines heretoforeor hereafter to be levied ,
of th e said He reditaments and Premises
1 76 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
Sir John Ramsden and Dame Margaret his wife and th i rrespective He irs
,and all persons whatsoever
,having
,or lawfully
claim ing any Estate , right , t itle , or interest into or ou t of th e
said Messuage , Hereditaments,and Premises above -mentioned
,
or any of them,by
,from
,or und e r the said Sir John Ramsden
and Dame Margare t h is wife,or e ither of them or by
,from
,or
under th e said Mary Lowthe r,shall
,and will from time to time
,
and at a l l times hereafter,within the space of ten yea rs no w
nex t ensu ing, upon th e request and at th e cost and ch arge of
the said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes,the ir He irs or
Assigns well and truly make , do,and e xecu te any fu rthe r or
othe r lawfu l and reasonable act,deed
,conveyance , and assurance
in th e law whatsoeve r , fo r th e be tter and more perfect con veying and assu ring of the said Messuage
, C loses, and P remises , orany of them
,unto th e said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis
Sykes,the ir He irs and Assigns for ever. SO as such fu rthe r o r
othe r assurance contain or imply no furthe r or other war ran tyor covenants than against th e respective acts of th e party or
parties wh o shall make the same ; and so as su ch party o r
parties b e not compellable to go from his , h er, or their respec
tive abode for or abou t th e doing and execu ting th e same .
Provided always, nevertheless , and i t is he reby agreed and d e
c l ared that it shall and may be lawful for th e said Sir RowlandWinn and Francis Sykes
,the i r He i rs and Assigns
,at any time
hereafter to levy or raise by mortgage of a competen t part ofth e said Premises th e said sum of Six ty Pounds so advanced
and lent by them,th e said Sir Rowland W inn ,
Timoth v Lee,
and Francis Sykes , as aforesaid, and in th e meantime to deduct
and retain out of th e ren ts or p rofits of th e said Hereditaments
and Premises inte rest for th e said Six ty Pounds at th e rate of
Four1
Pounds per cen tum per annum . And also that in case
th e said Sir Rowland W inn and Francis Sykes , the ir He irs or
Assigns , shall think fit and proper at any time hereafter toraise the said Six ty Pounds so lent by them ,
and th e said
Timothy Lee as aforesaid,by taking any fine or foregift for th e
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 177
making of any lease or demise of th e said Hereditaments and
Premises above -mentioned,for any term ofyears as is h ere inafter
mentioned,that then it shall and may be lawfu l to and for
them th e said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes,the ir
He irs or Assigns,to demise th e said Messuage , Closes , and
Premises , to any person or persons whatsoever for any te rm or
number of years not exceeding ninety- n ine years,and to take
any fine or foregift for th e making of any such demise or lease,
so as su ch fine or foregift be not less than th e said sum of
Six ty Pounds , and so as th e rent to be thereby reserved be
made payable at Whitsuntide and Chr istmas yearly,and be no t
less than th e annu al sum or rent of Twelve Pounds Over and
above all taxes , charges , assessments,and other ou t -paymen ts
whatsoeve r affecting the said Messuage,Closes
,and Premises
,
during th e said term . To th e intent that the income and
produce toar ise from th e seve ral chari ties and donations abovementioned may not be lessened, and may be certain and
pe rmanent so far as th e natu re of such things will admit of,
and according to th e tru e intent and meaning of the parties to
these p resents . In witness whereof th e partie s to the se presen tsinterchangeably have set thei r hands and seals the day and
year fi rst above written .
JOHN (Sea l ) RAMSDEN . MARGARET (Sea l ) RAMSDEN .
Sealed and del ivered in the presence of us,th e several
e rasure s be ing first made . and th e said Timothy being fi rstinterlined .
THOS . RAMSDEN . R. WILK INSON (Swo rn ) .
Rece ived th e day and year fi rst wi thin wr i tten,o f the said
Timothy Lee,the sum of Twe Hundred and Twen ty Pounds
in ful l discharge of th e conside ration money within mentioned,
to b e paid by him to me . I say,rece ived th e same by me
,
JOHN RAMSDEN .
W i tnesses : THOS . RAMSDEN . RICHD . WILKINSON . £220 .
ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
A similar rece ipt to Dr. Lee and Francis Sykes for Sixty
Pounds,witnessed by th e same .
A memorial of th e within -written Deed was registered atIVakefie l d
,th e Tenth d ay Of December
,Seventeen hundred and
sixty- three,at eleven in th e forenoon
,in Book A Y
,page 725 ,
and number 896 .
JONATH . WARD,Depy . Regr .
Coun terp a rt of Lea se from Sir Row l a nd Winn ,an cl M r . Sykes
to Dr . Lee, of the Esta te bel ongin g to the Poor of A ckworth .
This Indenture,made th e twenty- fou rth day of November
,
in th e year of O ur Lord one thou sand seven hund red and
six ty - th ree, between Sir Rowland W inn ,of Ne stel , in the
County of York ,Baronet , and Francis Sykes of Ackworth Park,
in th e Parish of Ackworth ,in th e said Coun ty
,Esqu ire , on th e
one part,and th e Rev . Timothy Lee , Rector of Ackworth
,
aforesaid,and Doctor in D ivin i ty,
on th e other part.
Wherea s by Indentu re of lease and releas e bearing date
respectively th e n ineteenth and twentieth days of October last,
th e lease made between Sir John Ramsden ,of Byram
,in th e
said County,Baronet
,and Dame Margaret
,his wife
,with such
addition and desc ription as is therein mentioned on the one
part,and th e said Sir Rowland Winn ,
and Francis Sykes on th eother part . And th e release made between th e said Sir JohnRamsden and Dame Margaret
,his wife
,on th e one part
,
and th e said S ir Rowland W inn,Timothy Lee , and Francis
Sykes on th e other part,afte r divers recitals the re in contained ,
and for th e conside rations the re in mentioned,th e said Sir John
Ramsden and Dame Ma rgare t,his wife
,did grant
,re l ease
,and
convey unto th e said Si r Rowland Winn ,and Francis Sykes ,
and their heirs,all that Messuage or Tenemen t
,s ituate and
be ing in Ackworth aforesaid,where in Nathan iel Barwell
,gentle
man,deceased
,formerly dwelt
,and a l l th e barns
,stables
,and
other ou t -bu ildings,courtyards
,fou l stead s
,gardens
, orchards ,hereditaments and appurtenances thereunto belp nging. And
,
180 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
retain out of th e rents and p rofits of th e said hereditament
p remises interest for th e said Six ty pounds, at the rate of four
pounds per centum per annum .
Anel , a l so,that in case th e said Sir Rowland Winn and
Francis Sykes, the ir he irs and assigns,Shou ld think fi t and
proper, at any time,to raise th e said sixty pounds so lent by
them and th e said Timothy Lee afo resaid,by taking any fine
or foregift for ' the making of any lease or demise of the said
hereditaments and p remises for any term of years,as is the re in
afte r mentioned ,that then it shou ld and might b e l awfu l to
and for them,th e said Sir Rowland W inn and Francis Sykes
,
the ir he irs or assigns,to d emise the said m essuages
,closes
,and
p remises to any person or persons whatsoever for any term or
number of years not exceeding ninety-nine years,and to take
any fine or foregift for th e making of any such demise or leaseso as su ch fine or foregift be not less than th e said sixty pounds
,
and so as th e rent the reby to be reserved be made payable atWhitsun tide and Chr istmas yearly, and b e not less than th e
annual sum or rent of twelve pounds over and above all taxes ,charges
,assessments
,and other ou t - payments whatsoever
,
affecting th e said messuage ,closes
,and p remises dur ing th e
said term,as in and by the said in part . recited Indentures ,
refe rence be ing there to had ,may more ful ly appear .
Anol Wherea s th e said Si r RowlandW inn and Francis Sykesthink it will not be for th e benefit and advantage of th e said
poor to raise th e said sum of s ixty pounds by mortgage of any
part of th e said premises , but that i t w il l be th e best for themfor th e said Six ty pounds to be raised by making a lease of the
said p remises and taking a fine or fo regift of sixty pounds forth emaking thereof, according to th e power given to them ,
the
said Sir Rowland Winn ,and Francis Sykes
,in and by th e said
Indentu re of Release . And , therefore, they have agreed to
take th e said foregift of sixty pounds of th e said Timothy Lee ,
and to demise to him the said hereditaments and p remises insuch manner as is hereinafter mentioned. Now this I ncl en ta re
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Witnesseth that in consideration of the said sum Of sixty
pounds of lawful money of G reat Britian by the said TimothyLee to th e said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes
,in hand
,
paid at or before the executing he reof,as a fine or foregift for
th e making of this p resent demise,and which said six ty pounds
they,th e said S ir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes , have
thought fi t and proper to raise in full payment and satisfaction,
and discharge of th e said six ty pounds so advanced and lent
by them and th e said Timothy Lee,towards purchasing of th e
said p remises as aforesaid, the rece ipt of which said sixty
pound s they do hereby acknowledge a nd, a l so,
in consideration
of the yearly rent of th e covenants and ag reemen ts , here inaftermentioned , to b e paid and pe rformed by th e said T imothy Lee ,
h is execu tors, admin istrato rs , and assigns , they, the said Si rRowland Winn and Franc is Sykes
,have demised
,leased
,and
to farm,l e t unto th e said Timothy Lee
,his executors
,adminis
trator, and assigns , a l l th e said messuages,closes
,hereditaments
,
and p remises above mentioned and recited,to have been
granted and conv eyed to th e said Sir Rowland Winn and FrancisSykes , and the ir he irs as
'
aforesaid . To ha ve and to hol d the
same unto th e said Timo thy Lee, h is execu tors , administrators ,and assigns
,from th e thirteenth day of February next
,for
,
during,and until the f ull end and term of 99 years from thence
nex t ensuing , and fu lly to be complete and ended . Y ieldingand paying
,therefo re
,yearly and every year du r ing the said
term,unto th e said Si r Row land W inn and Francis Sykes
,the ir
he i rs or assigns,the sum of twe lve pounds of lawfu l money of
G reat Britain,at th e feasts of Whitsuntide and Chr istmas in
every year during th e said te rm by even and equal portions,
over and above all taxes,charges
,assessments , and other out
payments whatsoeve r, affecting th e said premises du ring th e
said term ,and withou t any deduction whatsoever . In trust
for th e said poor of th e said Parish of Ackworth,and according
to th e true intent and meaning of th e said recited Indentures.
Provid ed always nevertheless that if th e said yearly rent or
1 82 ACKWORTH , YORKS.
,
sum of twelve pounds or any part thereof shall be behind and
unpaid by th e Space of twenty days nex t afte r th e same or any
part the reof shall become due as aforesaid , that then i t shall
and may be lawf ul to and for th e said Si r Rowland Winn and
Francis Sykes , the ir hei rs or assigns , into th e said demised
p remises,or any part the reof in the name of th e whole
,to re
enter and th e same to have again ,re -possess , and enj oy as in
the i r or any of thei r forme r estate , anything he rein containedto th e contrary notwithstanding. And th e said Timothy Lee
doth hereby,for himself, his executors , and administrators ,
covenant and agree with the said Sir Rowland Winn and FrancisSykes
,the ir he irs and assigns , in manner following ( that is to
say) , that h e, th e said Timothy Lee , his executors and administra tors
,shall and w il l well and truly pay unto th e said Sir
Rowland W inn and Francis Sykes,the ir he irs or assigns , th e
said yearly ren t or sum of twelve pounds,at th e days and
times,and in th e manne r above mentioned for paymen t the reof
,
ove r and above a l l taxes,cha rges , assessments , and other ou t
paymen ts whatsoeve r, affecting th e said p remises du ring th e
said te rm ,and withou t any deduc tion whatsoever. An zl , also ,
Shall and will , from time to t ime,and at all times he reafte r
,
dur ing th e said te rm,pay and discharge all lays
,taxes , and
assessments whatsoever,which are
,shall
,or may be laid
,taxed
,
or assessed upon,or for
,or in respect of the said demised
p rem ises , or any pa rt the reof. An al,also
,shall and w ill
,from
time to time,during the said te rm
,when and so O ften as need
shal l requ ire ,well and sufficiently amend
,repair
,and keep th e
said me ssuage,and bu ildings with all needful and p rope r
reparations and amendments whatsoever. An al, a l so, well and
suffi Ven tl y amend,repair, scour , and cleanse the hedges , fences ,
ditches , gates , styles , and wate rcou rses belonging th e said
premises , and shall and will , at th e expiration of the said term,
leave and yield up to th e s aid .Sir Rowland IVinn and FrancisSykes
,the ir he irs or assigns
,th e said messuage and buildings
,
and,also
,all th e gates , styles , hedges, ditches, and fences
,
184 ACKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
There is,also
,a Lease for a year from Sir John and Lady
Ramsden to Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes , dated l 9 thOctober 1763 . It is registe red at Wakefield , in Book A Y
,
page 72a ,and number 896 .
There is,also
,a coun te rpart of a Mortgage upon Mr . Bar
well ’s Estate,dated 3oth April , 1 681 .
EXTRACT FROM THE AWARD,1774 .
No . V. of the Stin ted Pa stu re , a l l otted to D r . Lee for the
term of his l ea se, which exp ires in Febru a ry ,on e thousa nd
eight hu nd red an d sixty- three, and then to the p oor .
T h e , Lessee of And we do also assign,set out
,allot
,and
th e Trustees forPoo r A ll otment inth e Stinted Pasture .
adVa l’d UD IO the said Timothy Lee , to be h O l d ID.
No . V .
1
;several ty by him
,his he irs
,and assigns
,du r ing
th e continuance of his lease ,and from immedi
ately after th e determination thereof, to be held in severalty
by th e said Sir Rowland Winn and Francis Sykes,and the ir
successors , Tru stees for th e time be ing of the Poor of Ackworthafore said
,one parcel of land
,being part of th e said Stinted
Pasture , within th e Parish of Ackworth aforesaid,marked in
th e sa id map he reunto annexed with th e No . V containing twoacres
, two reeds,and twenty - e ight perches
,statute measu re .
An allotment , No . iv.,here in made to Ann Hattersley
,be ing on
the east,th e Rector ’s allotment, No . vi .
,on the west
,a private
road and the Rectors ’ allotment, NO . xxvii i . , in Parkin Leys
Field on the north ,and the River we nt on the south
,and do
order and award that th e owner and p rop r ietor of th e said lastmentioned allo tment , No. v for the time be ing Shall make and
for ever maintain a good and suffi cient fence and ditch on the
west Side or boundary thereof.
At th e expiration of Colonel Anthony Surtee ’s lease in 1 863 ,th e house and land were sold to the late J . M . Hepworth
,Esq. ,
for £231 6 , which was subsequen tly invested in the 3 per cent .
Consols . the interest of which, amounting to £ 1 2, is given away
in theShape of casual rel ief and dole .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
LAMBE ’S CHARITY.
This small char ity i s secured by deed dated 1 8 th August,
1 4th Charles I. ,by which thirty square yard s of land was
granted to \Vil l iam Lambe,for e recting a windmil l upon Ack
worth Moor, at th e rent of five shillings yearly, payable to the
Lords of th e Manor for th e use o f th e poor of Ackworth ,and
upon th e feast days of th e Annunciation of th e Blessed Marythe V irgin ,
and St . Michae l th e Archangel , by even and equal
portions for eve r . A copy of th e original deed is in possession
of th e Rector. In 1859 , Mr. Rishworth was the owner of th e
land charged by th e above deed . The original deed is supposed
to be lost , but perhaps it is in th e hands of the Lords of th e
Manor,who
,in number
,remind one of th e seven wise men of
Greece ; bu t who , in the ir management of th e parish prope rty,
act more l ike the wise men of Gotham,who went to sea in a
bowl , and of whom th e ol d rhyme says
If the bowl had been stronger,
My story had been longer.
”
Cop y of the D eed by wh ich thirty ya rd s squa re of l and is
gran ted to Wi l l iam Lambe for erecting a Windmi l l up on
Ackw orth M oor , a t the ren t of Five Sh i l l ings yea r l y ,p a ya bl e
for the u se of the Poor of Ackw orth . Da ted 1 l th Cha r l es I
This Indenture made th e Eighteenth daie of August
in th e year of th e ra igne of our Sovera igne Lord Charles by
th e Grace of God of England,Scotland
,France and Ireland
K ing Defender of the Faith,&e . , th e fourteenth
Be tween Samuel Carter of Ackworth Rober Abbottof Ackworth Hen ry Bann ister of Ackworthaforesaid gent John Huntington of Ackworth
R ichard Adams of East Ardwicke in th e County of
W itnesseth that th e said Samuel CarterRobertAb bott Hen ryHuntington for and in consideration of five
shill ings granted bargained sou l d released and con
186 f ACKWORTH,YORKS
,
firmed and by these p’
Sents doe grant bargain sell release and
confi rm unto th e said William his hei rs assigns for eve r allth e estate r ight title in te rest p roperty claim and demand what
soeve r of the said Samuel Carte r Robe rt Abbott Hen ry Huntington Adams Thomas Horncastle John GoodyeareHenry Wilkinson and John Wright the i r he irs and assigns ofand in all that p iece of grounde one
W indmill of th e Manner of Ackworth aforesaid
To have and to hold th e said piece or square Ground contain ingthirtie yard s with th e appurtenances to th e said William Lambehis he irs and assigns for ever to th e sole and proper use and
beh oofe of the said William Lambe his heirs and assigns forever Y ielding and Paying therefor yearly and every year forever unto th e said Samuel C arte r RobertAbbott HenryBannisterJohn Huntington Edward (or Richarde) Adam s Thomas Horn
castle John Goodyeare Wi lliam Wilkinson John‘
Wr ight andthe ir Hei rs and successors Lords of th e said Manne r ofAckworththe sum of fiv e Shill ings of lawful money of England for the
use and bereft of th e Poor of th e Par ish of Ackworth and upon
the Feast Days of the Annuncicon of th e Blessed Mary th e
V i rgin and St . Michael th e Archangel by even and equal pereons
for ever .
In Witness whereof th e parties first above -named to this
p’
sent Indenture interchangeably have put their hands andseals .
Signed and Del ivered in th e presence of us
HASTINGS RASBYJOHN KILLINGBECKE.
‘A true Copy O f th e O riginal .
Th e or iginal Mill was e rected Of wood , and being burntdown
,th e land was not built on for a considerable time . It
eventually came into th e possession of‘ Sir John Ramsden ,
of
Byram,Bart . , through his marriage with Margaret; th e widow
1 88 ACKWORTH,Yonns ,
As for that worldly estate Almighty God hath endowed
me w ith,my will is to dispose of i t in manner and form
following ,that is to say — I give unto John Petty one pound ;
I give unto William Pe tty one pound ; I give unto Elizabeth
Abbott one pound ; and as for wearing clothes, I give unto my
sisters Ann Pe tty and Elizabeth Abbott .
I give unto th e poor of Ackworth ten shill ing every year
for eve r , to be paid upon Good Fr iday. And as for security
thereof, I appoint one acre of land which l yeth in Colehill , in
two places , which is th ree roods and one rood ; that if anydefau lt be in payment hereof, according to th e day abov enamed
,
then to enter to th e three m ods and one rood above men tioned .
I give un to th e poor twenty shillings to be disposed of at my
burial . I make my beloved son, Thomas Calve rley,
sole
execu tor of this my last will and testament . Wi tness my hand
and seal th e 29th day of September,Anno Domin i 1 699 .
ANNE CALVERLEY,
Signed and sealed in th e p resence of us h er+mark .
Jane B radley ,
Savile B radley ,
F ra . Bradley .
”
DEED BY WHICH SECURITY WAS TRANSFERREDTO OTHER LANDS .
M r . John Thistl ew ood to the Rev. D r. Lee. This Indentu re ,made the fourth day of August
,in th e tenth year of th e reign
of our Sovere ign Lord George the Third, by th e G race of God,
of Great“
Br itain,France
,and Ireland , K ing ,
Defender of th eFaith
,and so forth and in th e year of our Lord one thousand
seven hundred and seven ty , between John Th istl ewood , of
Tuph olm ,in th e County of Lincoln
,grazier, on th e one part
,
and Timothy Lee , of Ackworth,in th e County of York
,Doctor
in D ivin i ty ,Rector of Ackworth ,
on the other part . Whereas
Anne C alverley ,fo rme rly of Ackworth aforesaid , widow,
did,in
and by her last wi l l and testament, in writing, bearing date th e
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
29th day of September, in th e year of our Lord one thousand
six hundred and n inety-n ine,give unto th e poor of Ackworth ,
ten sh illings eve ry year for ever,to be paid upon every Good
Friday,and for secu ri ty the reof, th e said testatr ix appointed
one acre of land,which lieth in Colehill , in two places , which
is three roods and one rood that,i f any default be in payment
thereof, according to the day above - named,then to ente r to
th e three roods and one rood above -mentioned ,as in and by
th e said Will , reference being thereto h ad ,w ill more fully
appea r. And whereas th e said John Th ist l ewood i s now
become entitled to th e said lands and premises, ou t of which
the said sum of ten shillings,above mentioned
,i s secu red to
be paid,and hath lately con tracted and agreed to sell and convey
the same,together w i th other lands and he reditamen ts freed
and discharged of and from th e said yearly payment,the said
John Th istl ewood did thereupon consent and agree to chargeth e tenements and hereditamen ts , here inafter mentioned
,for
ever he reafter with th e d ue payment the reof. Now,this Inden
ture witnesseth that the said John Th istl ewood ,in consideration
of th e p remises and to th e intent that th e said yearly sum of
ten shillings may be continued to be paid to th e poor of
Ackworth aforesaid,in pu rsuance of th e said
,in part recited
,
W ill,doth he reby for h imself and his he irs , covenant and agree ,
to and with th e said Timo thy Lee and his successors,as Rectors
'
of Ackworth for th e t ime be ing ,that all that messuage or
tenemen t, situate ,s tanding
,and be ing in Ackwor th afo resaid ,
late in th e possession of M r. Joseph Haddon,with the malt
kiln,m al t-house ,
barns,stables , fol d s tead , and garden the reto
belonging,and also all that close of meadow or pasture ground
adjoin ing,onth e back side of th e said messuage , called by th e
name of th e Home Close,containing by e stimation th ree acres
,
mo re or less,now belonging to him
,th e said John Th istl ewood
,
with their appurtenances , shall from time to t ime for ever hereafter be subj ect to and chargeable w i th th e due paymen t of the
said Sam of ten shillings yearly, to the poor of Ackworth
1 90 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
aforesaid ,on Good Friday, according to th e purport , true intent ,
and mean ing of the said reci ted will . And also that h e, the
said John Th istl ewood,his he irs
,executors
,and administrators
shall and will,for eve r hereafte r
,save harmless and indemnify
the pu rchase r of th e said lands and p remises so charged by th esaid Anne Calverley with th e payment of th e said annual sumof ten shillings , and also th e said lands and premises of and
from th e payment of th e same and every part thereof,and also
of and from all costs,charges
,and expenses which shall or may
be had or occasioned by non - paymen t thereof. In witness th e
part ies to these presents interchangeably have set the ir handsand seals th e day and year fi rst above wr itten .
“ JOHN TH ISTLEWOOD .
Sealed and delivered in th e presence of us
R . W ilkinson ,
Wm . Sugden ,
A memorial of the within -w ritten deed was registered atWakefield
,th e seventh day of August seventeen hundred and
seventy ,near eleven in th e forenoon
,in Book B . L . page 556 ,
and number 799 .
Sworn .
T IM TOPHAM,Dep. Regr .
A compar ison of th e above Deeds with th e Tabl e of Bene
factions,set up in th e Church ,
will lead us to th e conclusion
that th e Table is not to be depended on . It is there stated
that Ann Ca l verl ey’
s gift to th e poor is ten pound s, and thiserror alone fully ju stifies the remark of th e late W. R . Hay
,
that “the Table was painted and put up in th e Church ve ry
unadvisedly,and i t is in many respects inaccurate .
”
Ca l verl ey’
s Dole is regularly paid by Hen ry Hill , Esq .
, th e
p resen t owne r of th e estate charged by the Deed of 1 777 , and
is distr ibu ted to th e poor on St . Thomas’s Day. It may also he
remarked that th e l ands originally charged ,as well as those to
which the charge was t ransferred by th e Deed of 1777 , are
again,as in Thist l ewood ’
s time ,united unde r one p ropr ietor.
Th e originals,both of Anne Ca l verl ey
’
s W ill,and th e Deed
of 1 777 , are in th e parish chest and in excellent preservation .
1 92 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
lay out £20 in th e construction of a Hearse,for th e conveyance
of corpses from th e outside of th e Parish to inter at AckworthChu rch ; to be under th e management and direction of th e
Churchwardens of Ackworth aforesaid.
RISHWORTH ’
S CHARITY.
The Board of benefactions says
John R ishworth to th e poor, £ 1 .
I t shou ld have been £ 1 per annum . This sum was given by
John Rishworth , by will dated 22nd October,1 660 . The
or iginal is preserved in th e parish chest . I t is scarcely legiblein th e inside , bu t i s endorsed : “ Deed by which a piece or
parcel of ground,called th e Ou tgangs ,
’ i s granted for paymentof 20s . yearly to th e poor of Ackworth for ever, payable 5th
December yearly, and to be d istribu ted by the Rector, Churchwardens
,and O ve rseers of the Poor on St . Thomas ’s Day
,in
the sight and a t th e discretion of the inhabiters of th e Park
Hall,George Abbott ’s House , at Hundh il l
,and T. Ca l verl ey
’
s
House,in Ackworth. The following is a copy of th e original
DeedTo all good people to whom this present wri ting shall
come to,be read ,
seen,or heard
,John Rishworth
,of V is it
,in
th e Parish of Hemsworth and County of York,Yeoman
,send
eth greeting in our Lord God Everlasting.
Know ye, that the said John Rishworth , for th e continuing
and pe rpetuating of the Yearly Rent hereafter expressed dueand issu ing ou t of th e lands and p remises hereafter
ment ioned un to th e Poor in the Parish of Ackworth in th e said
County of Yo rk ,that the same may he reafter be du ly paid and
distributed amongst th e most needfu l Poor of the said Parish
of Ackworth as is he reafter mentioned, and for divers other
cau ses and valuable considerations,him
,th e said John Rish
worth ,hereunto especially moving
,hath given , granted, and
confirmed,and by these p resents doth fully and absolutely give ,
grant,and confirm unto Thomas Birkbecke, Cle rk, th e present
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Rector of th e Rectory of Ackworth aforesaid ,ThomasW ilkinson
and Robert Lamb, th e present Chu rchwardens
,and Robe rt
Hewitt and Leonard Pinder,th e present O verseers of the Poor
of the said Parish of Ackworth,and th e successive Min ister
,
Churchwardens , and Overseers of th e said Parish of Ackworthfor th e t ime be ing for eve r
,one annu ity or Yearly Rent Charge
o f Twenty Shillings of lawful money of England yearly to behad
,taken
,p rovided
,and rece ived to be issu ing and go ing out
and in a l l that parce l of ground or waste commonly called th e
Ou tgang,containing by est imation fifteen Ac res mo re or less
lying and be ing within th e M anor of Ackworth aforesaid,to be
paid to th e Minister, Churchwardens , and Overseers , and the irsu ccessors for ever at or upon every fifth day of Decemberyearly. To have and to hol d ,
receive,prese rve , and enjoy th e
Annui ty or Yearly Rent Charge of Twenty Shillings aforesaid
unto the Said Thomas Birkbecke and th e said Chu rchwardensand Overseers of th e Poor of th e said Parish of Ackworth and
their successors, M iniste r , Chu rchwardens , and Ove rseers of thePoor of th e Parish of Ackworth
,for th e t ime being and for
e ve r in manner and form before declared . To th e end that the
said Twenty Shillings may yearly and every year upon St .Thomas ’s Day next following after th e receipt thereof at the
sight,judgment
,and disc retion of th e seve ral Inhabitants
,
Possessors , and Occupie rs of th e several Mansions and now
Dwe l l inghouse of W ill iam Rok el ey ,Esq .
,of Ackworth Park,
Geo rge Abbott , of Hunde l l,in th e par ish o f Ackworth
,afo re
said,gentlemen
,Richard Picke r ing, of Ackworth
,aforesa id
,
yeoman ,and Thomas Calve rley
,of Ackwo rth , to be disbursed ,
distributed ,and disposed of to th e most needful Poor and
im potent people of th e said Parish of Ackworth . And i f it
happen th e said Annu ity or yearly Rent Charge of Twenty
Shillings be behind or
of six d ays after th e time of payment the reof a foresaid , in
which it is by those presents appointed to be paid ,that then
So faded as not to be legib le .
1 94 ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
and so often as any such defaul t shall be made at any time or
times hereafter, i t shal l and may b e lawful to and for th e said
Thomas Birkbecke,and th e Churchwardens
,and Ove rseers of
th e Poor of th e said Parish of Ackworth ,or any of them and
the ir successors,Min isters
,Churchwardens
,and Ove rsee rs of
th e Poor of the said Par ish for th e time be ing,or any of them
at his or the ir pleasu re to enter into and upon th e said parcelof
,Ground or Waste , called th e Outgang, or into such part or
parce l the reof as they shall think meet and the re to distrainfor all th e Arrearages of th e said Annu i ty or Yearly Rent of
twenty shill ings then behind and unpaid , and the distress o r
distresses there so had and taken lawfully,to bear
,lead
,d rive ,
carry away,impound
,and re tain , and keep W ithou t restraint or
replevin for th e space of four days,and if th e said Ar rearages
of th e said Annu ity shall not within the space o f fou r days hepaid to th e said Minister , Churchwardens , and Ove rseers of th esaid Parish of Ackworth for the t ime be ing
,or unto some of
them according to th e intent of these p resents then at his or
the ir pleasu re , to bargain or sell th e corn,goods
,and chattels
so taken by way of d istress at such p rice or p rices as they or
any of them may or can get , and with th e money coming of
th e sale thereof, to satisfy,pay and allow themselves not only
all Arrearages of th e said Annu i ty or Yearly Rent be ing behindand unpaid
,bu t also his and their reasonable costs, cha rges ,
an d disbursements sustained in that behalf. And th e resid ueof the same (if any b e) to render and pay un to th e said John
Rishworth,his He irs
,and Assigns , and that from time to time
as often as any su ch distress or dist resses shall be so h ad o r
taken . But if no suffi cient distress can be found in and upon
the said parcel of ground called th e Outgang whe reupon to
distrain,that then i t shall and may be lawful to and for th e
said Thomas Birkbeck e , and th e said Churchwardens,and
Ove rseers of th e Poor of th e Parish of Ackworth and the irsuccessors for th e t ime be ing, or any of them into th e said
parce l of Ground or Waste,called the Outgang with the
1 96 ACKWORTH , YORKS.,
a Chapel and Free School in East Hardwick. Th e Ministe r
was to have £20 per annum in respect of his preaching th eWord of God on every Lord ’s Day
,and keeping a Free School
there for all such children whomsoever as shall desire to betaught there . The sum of 2os . per annum was to be paid to
th e poor of Ackwor th,l os . per annum to th e poor o f East
Hardwick,and 10s . per annum to th e repair ofHousestead Lane .
This estate has been ,from time to time
,l et at an inc reased rent,
th e annual payments to th e seve ral charities be ing preportionately increased . Th e charity is managed by six feoffees
,three
of whom are chosen from Ackworth,and three froin East
Hardwick . Th e tru stees of this charity are th e patrons of th eV icarage of East Hardwick . In 1 871 , when th e chapel ryconstituted a separate benefice , the offices of Min ister and
Schoolmaster -f were divided , th e sum of £40 a year be ing
allotted to th e former,and £50 to th e latter ; the advowson to
be sold , and th e p rofi ts invested in augmentation of the school
endowment i The sum now annually paid by the Trustees of
this Char ity is to the Incumbent , £70 (which has since beenincreased by th e interest of invested subscriptions
,and grant
from th e Ecclesiastical Commissione rs , to to the Poor
of Ackworth, £4: 1 0s . ; to th e Poor of East Hardwick , £2 5s ;
and towards th e repair of Housestead Lane, £2 5s. Scholars
are sent from Ackworth to the Free School at East Hardwick,
which,however
,is not now free, th e uniform charge per head
for all children be ing two pence .
of th e same moneth . I t w i ll be seen th at Cawood d ied only a l ittle more than
a month a fter h e h ad exe cuted h is d eed of gi ft . T h e w ord s in his own. ground ,
"
are supposed to mean h is own private buria l ground , (probab ly a fam ily mausoleumin h is own ground s , ) and it is a lso very l ike ly from th e entry , th a t the Ch ape lprovided for in th e d eed w a s not bu i lt a t th e time of Mr. Cawood ’
s d eath , but
soon afterward s , O c tober 26th , 1 667 , Mr. Lawrence Ad dam wa s buried in yeChurch’ of E ast Hardwicke . Th e bu ilding w as never con secra ted , at leas t , thereis no record of it .
f O f th e order of “ Preach ing Sch oolmasters .
” T h e Rev . Anth ony Sigi smundTentsch el , Ph .D . , wa s th e last of th ese , and th e first Incumbent of E a stHardw ick .
1 Vide Pontefra ct T e l egrap h , June l oth , 1871 . For furth er particularsconcerning th e Ch urch and Pari sh , see brochure publish ed by Ho lmes , Ponte frac t,1 871 .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
SEATON ’S BEQUEST.
Jervas Seaton ,of East Hardwick
,left
,for th e use of th e
poor of Ackworth, 6s. 8d . per annum , for ever
,charged on an
ac re of land in Thorpl eys . I t is received by th e Oversee rs ofthe Poor, but there are no documents to show whence the
payment arises .
THE TOWNSLEY ESTATE .
In 1803, Sarah and Francis Townsley died intestate, and inpo ssession of a house ,
ma l tki ln,and seven acres of land adjoin
ing th e Recto ry ,on th e east
,and four acres of land
,called
Pudding Bush.
” This estate , for want o f he irs,went to th e
T rustees of the Manor of Ackworth ( to,
whom,in the reign of
Charles I , th e Duchy of Lancaster had granted away th e Manorof Ackworth wi th all i ts privileges) , for th e benefit of th e freeholde rs. The rents and profits of this estate , which now rents
for £40 ,are paid to th e Trustees of the Manor.
LINDSAY ’S LEGACY.
In 1873 ,David Lindsay
,an Ackworth man
,wh o had amassed
considerable wealth in commercial transactions , died at Leeds ,and left by his will , £ 1 50 to be invested for th e benefi t of th eLowther’s Hospital
,at Ackworth . Th e benefact ion is duly
recorded upon the Charity board in th e Parish Chu rch,and th e
interest of th e money,which is invested in th e 3 per cent .
Consols, is regularly distributed by th e Churchwardens for thet ime be ing.
GRANT TO JOHN TOPHAM .
John Topham , for one acre of land on th e Common ,l s . 8d .
There can be no doubt that this was a grant from the Parish o f
a portion of th e Common,or Ackworth Moor, at thi s reserved
rent . Th e acre of land in question is se t ou t in the map
attached to the award of 1 774, and is th e eastern port ion of
th e field which forms one of th e angles where th e Barnsley
Road and th e Turnpike Road cross each other at th e Moor-Top.
1 98 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
It measures l a . Or. 4p . In 1 859 , th e payment had been with
held for many years , and I am informed that i t is lapsed,and
cannot now be recove red by law?“
LOWTHER ’S CHARITY .
In 1741 , Mrs . Mary Lowther endowed an Hospital for six
poor women of Par ishes of Ackworth , Badsworth ,and Feathe r
stone ; and a school for twenty child ren of th e parish of
Ackworth . The income of this char i ty,which is variable in
1 885 , was £81 1 l s . 5d .,ar ising from money invested in th e
Funds,in th e names of th e Char ity Comm issioners , and from
£700 invested on mortgage of th e Tolls of th e Doncaste r and
Tadcaster Tu rnpike Road . Th e master rece ives from th e Tru st
£ 16 per annum ,and each of th e poor women abou t £7 1 5s .
Th e funds of Mrs . Lowther’s Char ity have twice sustainedpecun iary loss to th e ex tent of £700 ,
once , by th e failure of its
banke rs in 1 809 , and again ,in 1 8 41 3 , to the amount of £50
,
through th e mismanagemen t o f i ts accountant . Th e fo llow ing
inscription appears above th e doorway of th e Lowther School
1741 .
MARY LOWTHERERECTED AND ENDOWED TH IS HOSPITAL FOR A SCHOOLM Ae R
AND SIX POOR WOMEN .
The Gover nors of th e Hospital are th e Rec tors o f Ackworth,
Badsworth,and th e V icar of Feath erstone for the t ime b e ing .
T he Maste r rece ives his £ 1 6 per year , on the understanding
that twenty poor children are taught by him free of expense ;but for some cause or othe r
,although the money is still rece ived
,
th e children are not now t aught in accord ance with th e
condition s of th e Trust . Th e same remark applies to East
Hardwick School, the master of which,for th e t ime being
,
rece ives a specified sum , according to the terms of the tru st deedfor th e free education of ten boys of th e par ish of Ackworth .
Th e ten boys, howeve r , are ne ither rece ived nor’
educat ed .
Th e tota l annua l income from five of th e principa l ch arities at Ackworth ,
in 1885 , was £83 78 . l od .
200 ACKWORTH ,storms ,
placed from having any benefit under th e will. And he directed
that th e Tru stees or th e major part of them might from time
to time displace any of th e persons for immorali ty or bad
behaviour according to th e disc retion and j udgment of th e
Trustees or th e majo r part of them . And that whenever there
should be any vacancy of any of the e ight persons by death or
removal, th e Trustees or the major part of them shou ld choose
in th e Moot Hall other poor persons, so as always to make up
two poor men and two poor women,belonging to Ackworth
,
and two poor men and two poor women,belonging to Pontefract ;
and that when th e maid servant should d ie or be displaced,
another p roper person liv ing in Ackworth or Pon tefract,shou ld
be nominated by th e T ru stees,or th e major par t of them
,in h er
place . And h e directed that a book shou ld be kept for making
ent ries touching th e trust esta te'
and the income and application
thereof,and all elections and o rders relative to the trust and
the execution the reof,and that th e Trustees might appoint a
p roper person to be the ir Clerk for making a l l entries andorders
,and keeping all accounts relating to th e t rust, and allow
him yearly a sum of money not exceeding £5 for his trouble .
”
Like Dr. Foth ergil l ,”e Dr. Watkinson reserved a life
in terest for his wife in th e p roperty h e was about to give inchari ty. His will
,which be ing in full in Fox ’s History
,rende rs
i t unnecessary that it shou ld be here reproduced,is dated 17th
April , 1 765 , but d id not become operative till after th e death
of his wife in 1778 .
On 9th Feb 1 778, th e Trustees , th e Rectors of Ackworth
and Hemsworth ,the Vicar of Pontefract , th e two sen ior Alder
men ,and Ald . Samuel Saltonstall , Dr. W
'
atkinson’
s executor,held the ir first meeting under th e presidency of Mr. Lawrence
Fox,Mayor
,and the week fol lowing pu rchased a plot in
Northgate for their building. The Mayor died during his year
of office,and Mr. Saltonstall succeeding for th e remainder of
Vide Pontefract Ch arities , p . 132 .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
his year, had the gratification of see ing th e buildings progress.It was , however, not t ill 25 th October
,1 779 , that th e first
appointments were made .
The residue of the testator ’s estate applicable to th e
purposes of th e Charity amounted to £ 1803 l 6s . 8d and by
an order of th e Trustees , made in 1778 , i t was ordered thatsuch sum of money should be laid out in th e pu rchase of landsfor th e benefi t of the Trust, and that the sum of £200
,be ing
th e amount of savings which had accumu lated from th e yearlyincome of th e testator’s estate , shou ld be applied for or towardsth e expense of bu i lding an Hospi tal.
By a further order of th e Trustees in October,1779, i t was
ordered that th e sum of £80 should be retained by Samuel
Saltonstall , th e execu tor, as the pu rchase money of land in
No rthgate ,upon part of which the hospital was then bu il t
,and
that such land should be conveyed to th e Trustees for th e termof 999 years , at the yearly rent of which was done accord
ingly by indenture of demise , d ated 31 st October, 1 779 .
“ Th e clear residue of th e testator’s estate after payment ofall expenses relating to th e bu ilding of th e Hospital
,e tc . ,
rece ived previous to 1778 , be ing was laid ou t in the
purchase of South Sea Annu it ies , and in 1 783 a furthe rsum of £ 205 being rece ived as the purchase money aris ing fromthe sale of a house , which had belonged to th e testator, th e sum
of £ 1 80 , part thereof, was laid out in th e pu rchase o f the
further sum of £274 South Sea Annu ities, the residue be ing
carried to th e General Account of th e Char ity. And the
property held in tru st for the support of th e Hospital consists
of O l d Sou th Sea Annu i ties , be ing th e amount of
the Stock purchased as aforesaid , p roducing an annual dividendof £87 14s . 6d .
Th e Hospital contains apartments for e ight poor personsand th e servant , and there is a small garden and forecour t usedby th e poor persons . The Almspeopl e are chosen according to
202 ACKWORTH , YORKS.,
th e directions of th e will from th e parishes of Ackworth and
Pontefract , and they and th e maid se rvant rece ive each of
them a monthly stipend , which var ies accord ing to th e state of
th e income remain ing after th e payment of th e expenses of th e
repairs of th e hospital , and amounts in general to abou t 1 58 . a
piece .
Th e othe r expenses of th e trust , besides that of repairs ,consist of th e salary of th e C le rk , £5 per annum ,
and th e postage
and charges attending th e rece ipt of th e dividends , amounting
in general to 15s. or thereabou ts .
Th e accounts are kept by th e Clerk and Treasu rer andmade up yearly. In 1 8 1 9 the re was a balance of £51 43 . 8d .
in th e hands of th e late Treasu rer , and ,to enforce payment
thereof,an action was brought by the Tru stees in 1 823, but th e
defendant in the action having gone to pri son and taken the
benefit of th e Insolvent Act , th e money was lost .
Th e mode of investment was changed about twenty—five
years ago, and th e property of th e Char i ty now consists of
1 05 .
lid . in Consols,p roducing £9 1 1 28 . 8d .
,which
allows of an income of 1 5s . each per month to th e n ine inmates
th e salary of th e Cle rk be ing . £5 as befo re .
It will be seen that th e Commissioners of 1 826 made no
complain t as to th e accounts of th e Char ity ,bu t in 1 8541 th e
th e Corpo ration Committee alleged that they cou ld get no
accounts except for the p reviou s twelve years.
In 1 865 , a subscription was raised in th e town to give a
slight,
en tertainment ‘
to th e inmates , under th e impression,
nu rtured by a tablet on the face of th e bu ilding,that the
Hospital was establ ished in 1765 bu t as shown above , the realcentenary was on 25 th Octobe r , 1 879 , th e fi rst inmates beingelected on 25th Octobe r , 1779 . Th e year 1 865 was only the
year in which the will had been signed .
204 ACKWORTH,YORKS.,
For three or four centuries,says Mr. Tuke , “ families of
this name (Fothergill) have resided in th e wild and secludedvalleys of Ravenstonedale and Mallerstang
,in Westmoreland
,
which adjoin upon ‘Sedber and Wensleydale .
’
Sufiicient for
us,
i s th e fact,that a John Fothergill migrated thence to
Counterset , in Wensleydale,and afterwards to Carr End
,soon
after the year 1 600 . On the banks of the small
and qu iet lake of ‘Semer Water,
’ there dwelt Alexander andAnn Fothergill , wh o we re p robably convinced by George Fox
(about th e year as ‘h e passed up the Dales, warn ingpeople to fear God , and preaching the eve rlasting Gospel to
Here, in 1 676 , John Foth ergil l th e elder was born,
and,after th e death of his father in 1 695 , h e inhe r ited th e
l i ttle estate at Carr End . A year after his father ’s death,when
about twenty-five years of age , h e began his ministerial work ,
and gave up housekeeping , the house at Carr End, and ,soon
afterwards , even th e land, in order to be more ‘ completely at
l iberty ’
for his jou rneys in th e ministry. When
about thirty - four,h e married Margare t Hough , of Sutton ,
in
Cheshire , a woman likeminded with himself, and settled down
for some years in the o l d family house at Carr End . Hereseven children were born to him
,b rought up with a ‘zealous
concern that they might have an inward experience of a holy
l iving principle ope rating in thei r hearts ’
in order to ‘ lead
them from e rror and unr ighteousness into all truth and the
practice of every Chr istian virtue.
’
Two of these children
th e second son,John Fothergill
, th e future doctor, who was
born on th e 8th of March , 171 2 ,
-
l and Samuel Fothergill, the
sixth son , th e most distinguished Quaker preacher of th e
middle of th e last century,—were striking instances of th e
value of this teaching. After leaving the elementary day
Vide George Fox ’s Journa l , fol io , p . 72 .
f A sm al l pocket Bib le b e longing to Dr. Fo th ergi ll , w as exh ib ited at Ackworthd uring th e Centenary . I t belonged to h is mo th er before h er marriage . On th e
last fl y - leaf is th e follow ing inscription Margaret Hough , H er Book , and sh e
w a s born ye 3oth d ay of ye 3rd Month . 1 679 . O n th e first page of th e New
Te stament —“ Joh n Foth ergi ll wa s born th e 8 th of l st mo . 1712 . JosephFoth ergil l was born 1 6th of 12 th mo . , 1 71 2 -13 .
rrs HISTORY AND ANNALS. 205
school at Frod sh am,in Cheshire , h e was sent (at twelve) to
the ol d - establ ished Grammar School at Sedbergh ,whe re h e
remained for four years, leaving in 1 728 , to be apprenticed for
seven years to Benj amin Bartle tt an eminent apothecary at
B radford,and a Minister in th e Society of Fr iends known to
young Fothergill ’s father, with whom he travell ed extensively.
*
I t was probably as some recogn i tion of th e fidel ity of
these services that h e was libe rated before th e expi ration of his
term of app renticeship, to pursue his medical studies in Edin
bu rgh. In 1 736, young Fothergill wrote his Latin Thesis ;took his degree of M .D.
,and left. Edinburgh
,proceeding to
London,where h e entered himsel f as a pupil in St . Thomas ’s
Hospital . Fou r years later h e took a house in White HartCourt , Gracechu rch Street
,and fai rly established himself in
practice . Here h e laboured unremittingly for forty years,
attain ing to th e highest rank in his p rofession,and numbering
among his patients some of th e most worthy and distinguished
characters of th e century. In 1754 ,Dr. Fothergil l
was elected a Fe llow of the Coll ege of Physic ians of Edinburgh,
and during this time John Wesle y was one of his patients, but ,ill as h e was , his earnest spiri t d id not allow him to carry ou t
th e Doctor’s advice to rest and repair to the Hot Wells at
Bristol for change. Probably, like his comrade Whitfield ,h e
thought that p erpetu al p rea ching was a be tter remedy than
a perpe tual blister. ’
In 1760 , the year in which George II I. came to th e throne ,Dr. Fothergill wrote the address of congratul ation sent by th e
Society of F riends to th e K ing on h is accession to th e Crown,
and shortly afterwards presented a repor t of a Committee of
the Friends ’ Meet ing for Suffe rings, to th e Yearly Meeting on
Education .
His le isure moments were occupied in th e study of chemistry,
conchology, entomology
,coral lines
,and especial ly bo tany ; and
‘. Vide “ Memo irs of th e Life and a view of th e Ch aracter of th e late Dr.
John Foth ergill ,” by Gilbert Th ompsOn , M .D . , 1 782 .
206 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
in 1762 he pu rchased th e gardens at Upton ,so well known in
after days as th e hospital residence and grounds of th e lateSamuel Gurney. He re h e employed no less than fifteen
gardeners and so well known we re his grounds,that fore igners
of all ranks came to visit it . Several plants perpetuate hismemory. Th e F rench botan ist
,Aub l et named a genus
“ Fo the rgilla,
” after h im,now called M iconw Fothergi l l c
’
,and
th e younger Linaeus,an Ameri can shrub . Three other plants
a re named after him ,viz Foth ergil l
’
s Lily Ner in eFother
gi l l i) ; th e Ca l ceol a ria Fothergi l lfi and th e Pe l a rgon ium
Fothergi l l i . Th e Doctor also took a great interest in th e
artistic working of North Amer ican and Corn ish clays,and
often co rresponded with Josiah Wedgewood . Th e black bust
(an engraving of which is here given) , from a mode l taken by
Flaxman,afte r th e death of Dr . Fo th ergil l , i s of Wedgewood
ware . The munificent assistance which h e rendered to AnthonyPurver
,in th e translation and publication of his version of the
Old and New Testaments must not be ove rlooked . Not only
did he give the translator pecun iary assistance to th e extent of
two thou sand pounds, but . i t is said, revised th e whole of the
sheets as they passed through the p ress .
Bu t th e most eventful year in th e Doctor ’s life,so far as
Ackworth is concerned ,is th e year 1777 , in which year Ackworth
School was established, and which Luke Howard styled “ The
Era of a Reformation in our Religious A full
accoun t of th e prel iminary proceedings , and final transactionsconnected with th e pu rchase of Ackworth School , will b e foundin the “ Centenary Proceedings of 1 879 .
Dr. Fothergill paid three visits to Ackworth ,and died on
th e 26th of December, 1780 , at the age of sixty e ight . Thus
ended th e even tful career of “ Ackworth ’s Benefactor,
”
and
t ruly it was a magn ificent sunset. His remains were interredin th e burial ground of Winchmore Hill
,abou t seven m iles
Vide Th e Yorksh ireman ,
”by Luke Howard .
208 ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
1746.
—D e Diaph ragmate sisse et mu tatis quorundum
visce rum sed ibus , in Cadavere Puel l a decem
mensium ob serva tus, Epistola xliv, 1 1 K
II .~ —SIR ROGER HOPTON .
Sir Roger Hopton,of Armley ,
near Leeds,had a lease of
the manor and demesnes of Ackworth,and probably resided
there . He had served in th e wars in F rance,where h e was
kn ighted . He married Annie, daughter of Savile,by whom
h e had two daughters ; one , marr ied to Kidda l,and the
othe r to Usl eet . He died in 1 506 (2 l st Henry and,
with his wife,was bu r ied in th e south aisle of Ackworth
Churchrl‘
III— REV. THOMAS BRADLEY,D .D .
Dr. Bradley was p resented to th e l ivings of Castleford andAckworth
,5 th March
,1 83 1 , and was at that t ime also Prebend
ary of North Newbal df in York Minster. He was driven
thence by th e troubles of th e Civil Wars,and so remained
until 1 660 ,when
,with th e retu rn of th e K ing (Charles IL) ,
whose Chaplain he subsequen tly became,h e returned to th e
l iving again. From Walker ’s “ Suffe rings of th e C lergy, we
gather the following particulars concerning Dr. Bradley
He was fi rst Chapla in to the ol d Duke of Buckingham,
and went with him to the Isle of Rhea,and th e siege of
Roche lle . After his return h e was made Chaplain to K ingCharles I .
,and had the l ivmgs of Castleford and Ackworth
given him (both in th e K ing’s gift), and was made Prebendary
of York . On the 5th March , 1 631 , h e married Frances , th eyoungest daughter of th e Right Hon . John Lord Savi le ,
Baron
of P‘
ontefract, by whom h e had several children . In th e year
1 642 , h e writes himself Sa cres Theol ogice Professor et
serenissimo Regi Ca rol e a Sa cris .
’
He was a person of most
O l d Yorksh ire ,” Vol . I . . p . 47 .
f Vide Monumental Inscriptions .
rrs HISTORY AND ANNALS. 209
incomparable parts and learning,an excellent p reacher
,a ready
and acu te wit, and of a generous and genteel temper. He was
sequestered of his living of Ackworth,and th rust ou t by one
M r. Bu rbeck , a stifi‘l rumped Presby terian . He was sequestered
of C astleford also,which living was u surped by Mr. H . Moor
house,an army chaplain . Dr. Bradley was a very great sufferer.
Tw ice sequestered,and plundered of all that he had
,his lady
and all h is children tu rned out of doors , to seek the ir b read indesolate places and that which most of all h e complained of
,
was the perfid iousness of one John Lake ,of Castleford
,with
whom he trusted his library ,who be trayed it into the hand s
o f his enemies. I heard a gentleman say ,h e once went to see
Dr . Bradley, and that h e was so poor that h e was forced to eat
puddings made of boar ’s blood , and h e found him with this
It is gene rally supposed that Dr. Bradley attended CharlesI . to the scaffold -
l In one of the Parish Registers the
Doctor records that on th e following Candlemas Day,Lady
Frances,his wife
,who had died 3oth January
,at the “ very
same hour (as meere as may be conjectured) where in his "late]Maj esty suffered
,
” was “honourably inter’
d . In all probabili ty,
therefore,the Dr. wou ld not accompany Charles Stuart on th e
scaffold,but
,as is more natural to suppose, was at his proper
place by th e deathbed of h is wife . He remained faithful to th e
house of Stuart until his dea th jz and was a man of mark in his
time .
“ He published ,
” says Walker,
“ some sermons , in th e
ded ication of which,as I am informed
,is to be found more of
his sufferings ; but I have not yet seen it. An oil portrait of
Dr. Bradley ,in good condition ,
is preserved at AckworthRectory.
QC IV .
—WILLIAM BUCHAN ,MD .
In the west cloister of Westminster Abbey l ie the remains
of one wh o was considered a man of mark in his day. He
Vide Wal ker’s Sufierings of th e Clergy ,
” II . , p . 85 .
1 On ly a tradi tion .
2 10 ACKWORTH,YORKS.,
was born at Ancrum,near Jedburgh ,
in Scotland. in 1 729 . Dr .Buchan was educated at Edinburgh
,and first began to practise
his profession as Physician to th e Found l ing Hospital at
Ackworth. Afte rwards h e practised at Sheffield, but , even tually,re turned to Edinbu rgh ,
became a Fe llow of the Royal College
of Physicians , and remained there for some years , havingmarried a lady named Miss Peter. Ultimately , h e removed to
London,Where h e enjoyed a lucrative practice . He died
,
according to the j ournals of th e day,at his son ’s house in Pe rcy
Street , Rathbone Place , Feb . 25th , 1805 , aged 76. His will,
dated 30th January ,1 805 , was not proved until 7th August ,
1 806. To his son ,Dr. Alexander Peter Buchan ,
h e bequeathed
all his literary p roperty and MS S.
,and th e residue of his estate
equally to him and his sister,Helen Buchan
,spinster
,both of
whom proved th e will. Dr . Buchan is best known as the
author of “ Domestic Medicine,or, The Family Physician ,
which was first published in F rom Bel l ch am ber’
s
Biographical D ictionary,”
we get some additional information ,
as follows This popu lar medical wr iter was born in 1729 , atAncrum
,in Roxbu rghsh ire . Be ing destined by his friends for
the Church ,h e repaired to Edinbu rgh to study divinity. At the
Universi ty h e spent nine years , studying anything rather thantheology . At this period of his l ife
,mathematics and botany
were among his favou rite pu rsuits . Finally,h e devoted himself
wholly to medicine . He enjoyed, at this time,th e friendship
of th e il lustrious Gregory, whose liberal maxims are believed tohave had a great influence over his fu ture life . Before takinghis degree
,h e was induced by th e invitation of a fellow student,
to Settle in practice for some time in Yorkshire. While estab
l ish ed in that distr ict,h e became physic ian to th e Ackworth
Fcund l ing Hospital, in which Situation h e laid the foundation
of that knowledge of the diseases of children,which afterwards
appeared so conspicious in his writings . He subsequently
Vide “ O l d Yorksh ire , vol . i i i . , p . 88 ; Ch ester’s “ Westminster AbbeyRegisters ; and Dean Stan ley ’
s M emoria ls of Westminster Abbey .
”
21 2 ACKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
wh o aided him materially in carrying out h is plans and efforts,
especially those of a benevolent character. The education of
th e poor was to Mrs . Howard and her two d aughters,a deeply
interesting obj ect. In 1823 ,M r . Howard purchased th e estate
of Ackworth Villa,which
,from that time
,became th e family
home for the greater part of th e year. Finding there the needof education ,
th e two Miss Howard s commenced a schoo l for
th e farmers ’ daughters in the ne ighbourhood,this be ing held
in a room on th e p remises,and taught by th e lad ies themselves
on three mornings in th e week . Th e Boys ’ Bri tish Schoo l in
th e village was also set on foot by Mr. and Mrs . Howard . T he
school was a great bless ing ,but soon became too large for th e
ar rangement ; and th e younge r siste r planned and bu ilt th e
neat school- room and mistress ’s house,Opposite th e V illa gates .
Her name,Rachel Howard
,is engraved over the front entrance .
Her father partially endowed the school , which is still carriedon with much satisfaction.
For many years Luke Howard successfully carried on th e
business of a manufactu ring chemist at Stratford , in Essex .
In this h e was su cceeded by his two sons , Robert and JohnEliot, and the firm still continues under th e name of Howardand Sons.
The latter years of his life were very much spent at
Tottenham ,where, unde r th e roof of his eldest son,
h e enjoyed
a l l the care and comfort that could be bestowed on an honoured
ol d age . He died in 1 864 , at th e advanced age of. ninety- two ,
in th e true faith and trust of the Saviour whom h e had loved
and served . Since his death, the family have not resided at
Ackworth , though the estate remains in the ir possession . It is
now th e residence of Captain Armytage, known as“ The Cou rt .”
In 1 823, h e invited a number of them to drink tea with him ,at
th e V illa,
”
and in 1 829 , h e most “ kindly rendered assistancein the ‘Apothecary’s shop ’ in dispensing medicine
,during a
visitation of fever, acqu iring thereby, from one of the nurses,th e designation of ‘
the ol d Potecary. The following anecdote
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
is told of h im —“ I recol l ect says Thomas Hunton,
“on one
occasion,Luke Howard
,with his characte rist ic disregard of
conventionalities, breaking up the week-day meeting after
about half- an-hou r, remarking , much in unision with our
feelings , that, under the present circumstances , h e thought
th e child ren ought to have shorter meet ings and a moregenerous die t. He was an au thor of some repute , and was
deeply read in the science of meteorology .
VI .—REV. TIMOTHY LEE
,D .D .
This worthy divine was the reve red Rector of Ackworthfrom 1744 to 1 777 . A faithful biographer wou ld not shrink
from recording th e vices as well as th e virtues of his subject,
bu t in this instance ,nothing but good is left upon record . Dr,
Lee was a model pastor from whichever direction h e is viewed,one over which even Herbert himself wou ld have waxed warm
with enthusiasm . That h e was a charitable man may be
gathered from his will . In one of th e parish books Dr. Lee is
called Rector and benefactor of Ackworth . In Mr. Th ompson ’s Centenary Histo ry of Ackworth School, i t is said that
the Architect was a Mr. Watson , though Dr. Timothy Lee,
the Vicar (sic) of Ackworth , planned th e centre .
” St. Cuthbert ’s
Cottage,near th e Church ,
was bu ilt by Dr. Lee for th e use of
h is wife in case sh e survived him ; but the Rector survived,
Mrs . Lee dying before th e bu ilding was fin ished,and which
was afte rwards occupied by two maiden ladies named Walker ,sisters of George Clark Walker, Esq .
,of Doncaster
,who was
three times Mayor of that town .
Cop y of Cl a use in the Wel l of the Rev. Timothy Lee, D .D .,
Rector of A ckw orth , da ted 30th M a rch ,1 777.
I give and devise unto Anthony Surtees , of Ackworth ,
Esqu ire ,and his he irs
,all that smal l parcel of land as it is now
fenced off from the Hempyards, in Ackworth aforesaid , wherein
th e grotto stands not now belonging to th e Rectory ; but Irequest that th e said Anthony Surtee s and his he irs will for
2 14 ACKWORTH , YORKS.,
e ver hereafter permit th e Rector of Ackworth for the time
be ing to enjoy and occupy th e said parcel of ground ,withou t
paying anything for th e same . And I also request that th e
said Anthony Surtees, or his heirs, will do any lawful act for
conveying and assuring th e same parcel of ground to my
successors, Rectors of Ackworth ,aforesaid, for ever.
”
Excep tion of the p iece of l a nd in the H emp ya rd s, a bove
referred to, ou t of the conveyance from D r . Lee to the
Tru stees of M r . Fra ncis Sykes .
“ By Indenture hearing date th e 29th day of May,1765 ,
made between the Rev . Timothy Lee , Doctor in D ivinity,of
th e one part , and W i lliam Sykes and Willi am Willock ,in trust
for Francis Sykes, Esq. , of the o the r part, for th e considerationsthere in mentioned
, th e said Timothy Lee hath conveyed , from
and after his decease,unto th e said Will iam Sykes and W illiam
Willock,amongst other lands and tenements
,all t hat parcel of
land called th e Hempyard ,in Ackworth
,ex cept one part of th e
said Hempyard ,about th e middle of th e west side thereof,
then and for a long time used and occupied with the plantation,
or Brick-kiln Croft,belonging to th e Rectory of Ackworth
,
upon par t of which is bu i l t a grotto and th e rest is a plantation,
and is now separated from th e said Hempyard by a stone wall ;and which piece O f ground is 23 yards, or thereabou ts, from
east to west,and 35 yard s, or upwards, from north to south .
”
There is an oil portrait of Dr. Lee at th e Rectory,which is
well worth th e inspection of connoiseurs . On the back of th e
picture is fastened a faded sheet of paper bearing th e followinginscription
TIMOTHY LEE,
IWAS PRESENTED TO THE RECTORY OF ACKWORTH
,
DECR,1 744.
HE DIED THERE APRIL 1 9TH ,1777, AGED 63 YEARS.
UNIVERSALLY LAMENTED,
BEFORE HE HAD BEEN BELOVED AND HONOURED BY H IS
PARISHIONERS.
2 1 6 ACKWORTH,YORKS
,
of Captain Russell , of Newton House,i t appears that th e Earl
hunted th e most days in 1 8 1 1,having been out 1 92 days . In
1807, h e was ou t 106 days , and killed 1 03 foxes , beginning on
th e 3rd of October,and ending on th e l 6th of April. On Lord
Darlington,afterwards l st Duke of Cleveland , giving up th e
country,Mr. Mark Milbank
,of Thorpe Penow ,
near Bedale ,was requested to hunt th e Bedale country ,
which he unde rtookin 1 832 , originating
'
the Bedale Hunt,th e presen t Master of
which is Mr. Geo. Wm . Elliot , M .P. for th e Richmondsh ire
D ivis ion . William Hen ry , 3rd Earl of Darlington,K .G .
,who
was born in 1766 , was created Marquess of Cleveland in 1 827 ,and elevated to the Dukedom in January
,1 833 , and died on
January 29 th,1 842
,when the honours devolved on his e ldest
son,Henry
,th e 2nd Duke of Cleveland .
*
VI II. —M R GULLY,M .P.
John Gully,late of Ackworth Park , and M .P. for Pontefract,
and th e well-known sportsman,died at Du rham ,
on Monday,
March 9 th ,1 863 , in th e 80 th year of his age . In all the crowd
of “ characters that have eve r made up th e ring on a race - course,
there were few more famous,and no one whose career has been
so much of a romance , as that of John Gully . He was indeed
essentially one of the men of his time , and the tyro or strange rwould crave for a look at him long before his hero -worship
would centre on th e jockey- lord,e tc . And yet Mr. Gu lly was
by no means a remarkable man in his appearance , or, rather ,in no way noticeable for th e mere emphasis of his tone or the
quaint c ut of his coat. W ith a mien singularly quiet andalmost subdued, be associated the air and p resence of a gentleman , while his fine frame and commanding figure gave an
innate dign ity to his deportment that none wh o knew him
would care to question. In fact,as you r gaze rested on him it
was almost impossible to identify the man with th e earl ie rstages of his history
,— th e butcher’s boy , the prize-figh ter, th e
I am indeb ted to th e Rev . R . V . Tay lor, B .A. , "or th is and th e followingsketch—arms .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
publ ic -house landl o rd, or th e outside betting man . I t waseasier far to recognise him as a coun try squ ire of good estate
,
the owner of a long string of racehorses,or the honourable
member of a reformed Parliament . In a new country likeAmerica or Australia, we can readily imagine that th e fightingbutcher might in due t ime develop into th e state ly Senator ;but here
,in Old England
,M r. Gully ’s success was unparalleled .
And h e owed this,not merely to his great wealth
,but far more
to his keen judgment, his good sense , and a ce rtain straightforward respectability about everything h e did . The gentlemen
of the turf from the very first , took kin dly to Gully,for t hey fel t
they could do so wi thou t any of the danger or disgust but toooften resulting from th e society of a self—made man . Mr. Gully
was born at Bristol , some t ime in the year 1783 . He was brought
up to th e t rade of a butcher, bu t very soon evinced a handiness
in taking care of himself, in sundry fistic tou rneys with hiscomrades about home . On leaving th e ring
,Mr. Gu lly
,l ike
most successful pugilists, incl ined to th e pu blic life of a Boni
face,and was for many years landlord of “ Th e Plough
,
” in
Carey Stree t, Lincoln’s Inn Fields . But ano ther ring found
attractions for him ,and he very soon devo ted himsel f to th e
business of a be tting man . In 1 8 12 h e h ad horses of his own,
and in 1 827 he pu rchased th e winner of th e Derby ,Mameluke
,
from Lord Jcrsey ,for 4000 gu ineas . In 1 832 he
,along with a
partner,Mr . R idsdale, won both the Derby and th e Leger.
Shortly after this, h e assaulted M r . R idsdale in the hunt ing
fie l d ,and had £500 to pay as damages . He also fought a due l
with Mr. Osbalde ston , who sent a ball through his hat . As M r .
Gul ly examined th e course of th e ball , h e jokingly remarked ,
“ I t is be tter through my hat than through my head.
”
He
must h ave been very successful , for he pu rchased Upper Ha rePark
,near Newmarke t from Lord Rive rs , whe re he for some
time resided ; bu t h e sold this to Sir Mark Wood,and bought
in 1 83 1 , for Ackworth Park ,near Pontefract ; an
accession which somewhat unexpected l v l ed to his representing
2 18 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
that Borough in th e Radical interest for some sessions inParliament . He was twice retu rned
,and on th e fi rst occasion
withou t a contest . During his long sojourn there , he alsofigu red as a good man over a country, and as one of the chief
supporters of th e Badsworth Foxhounds. But th e turf, afterall
,was his ruling passion ; his horses won both th e Oaks and
th e De rby in 1 846,th e famou s Sam Day being his jockey.
Rarely has any man enjoyed more signal success in his favouri tepu rsui t ; bu t , as we have said before , Gu lly owed much of this
to'
his fine judgment,e specially in the way in which h e could
reckon up a race -horse , or pick ou t a young one . Latterly , what
with increasing years and failing strength,h e had gradually
declined,and having sold Ackworth to M r. Hill, had lived some
years at M arwel l Hall,near Winchester, though h e had still
property in the North,including
,we believe , some coal mines
and hence his death occurring at Du rham . He left a family
of five sons and five daugh te rs , and his funeral took place atAckwo rth Park
,being attended by th e Mayor and Corporation ,
e tc . His will was p roved unde r pe rsonal ity, the execu
tors being Mrs . Mary Gully,his re lict
,and M r . Thos . Belk ,
of
Hartlepool,his son - in - l aw
,etc . , th e dispositions being confined
to members of his family . Among th e specific bequests is oneof a piece of plate p resented to th e testator by th e burgesseso f th e borough of Pontefract , which h e bequeathed to his son
Richard, etc . Mr. Gully was also for some t ime a Unitarian
p reacher, and kept a Chapel somewhere (on his own estate, I
think), in which h e himself used to officia te .
James Smith,11] his “ Rejected Addresses
,gives the
following epigrammatic reason for th e election of John Gu lly ,
th e pugilist, for PontefractI You a sk me th e ca use th a t made Pon tefract sully ,
H er fame , by returning to Parliament Gully ?T h e e tymologica l cause , I suppo se , isH is brea k ing th e bridges of so many nose s .
The word Pontefract means broken br idge .
Mr . John Gully is said to have bought Ackworth Park ,
containing abou t 200 acres, with its large house and bu ildings ,
220 ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
examined and adopted as his own ,continuing to be warmly
attached to them to th e close of his long life. Whilst still a
young man ,h e took charge of a Boarding School at Ll anid l ass
,
in Montgomeryshire , established , in great measure,by th e well
known Quake r ph il anthroph ist , Richard Reynolds,for th e
edu cation of children of th e Soc iety of. Friends, res ident in
Wales . Here h e remained four years, during which h e became
much in terested in th e Welsh people , whose language h elearnt to speak and read with considerable facil ity, and ,
when
circumstances,not ent irely under h is own con trol
,induced him
to leave his Camb r ian home , h e did so with great regret. In
th e year 1 805 h e was appo inted to the superintendence of the
F riends ’ School,in Ackwor th, which proved to be a most
arduous unde rtaking,in consequence O f th e finances of the
Institution not then be ing,by any means
,adequate to its
requirements,so that for many years h e had a constant struggle
in o rder that expenses might be kept within the l imits of
income . To effect this most desirable O bject,h e cheerfu lly
made great personal sacrifice s . Robe rt Whitaker’s ex traordinaryintu itive perception of charac te r
,his strong sense of j ustice
,
and h is delicate tact, secured for him th e hearty co - operation
of those wh o labou red unde r him,and
,although h is nume rous
duties did not allow of his spending much time in th e schools ,th e Teachers well knew that he possessed a tole rably accurateacquaintance with what was passing in them
,whilst th e warm
interest h e took in the ir own private studies was an incenti veto diligence in this direc tion , which, in not a few instances , l ed
to very creditable resu lts. Of th e indiv idual charac ters of thepupils in the School , h e was able to fo rm a singularly correctestimate , and i t is scarcely too
‘much to add that h e possessed
th e l oi
ve and respect of a large number Of them ,both on th e
boys ’ and th e girls ’ sides of th e house. Th e charge of so largea numbe r of young people was felt by Robert Whitaker to
in volve great responsibility,and , as he was sensitively alive to
th e su fferings of his fellow creatures , i t was a great distress to
ITs HISTORY AND ANNALS. 221
him when illness prevailed in th e family. He studied th e
treatment of diseases incident to children , and was able to
presc ribe remedies and to devise plans which we re found to beof great use
,more especially so
,as th e Medical attend ants of
the Institu tion were then resident at a distance of three miles
from it .
Though a practical agriculturist was engaged to have charge
of th e Farm attached to the establishment,i ts financial conce rn s
were in th e hands Of Robe rt Whitake r,wh o also took great
interest in the general management of i t ; and as his sympathies
were by no means confined to his fellow creatures of the humanfamily
,but extended to all beings endowed with life and fee ling,
his concern was O ften manifested for th e animals on th e farm .
He studied the diseases of cattle to some extent,and th e w ri ter
of this ske tch has a l ively recollection of the sorrow depictedon his countenance as h e stood by an invalid cow
,whose
suffer ings h e was anxiou s to rel ieve .
Very keen was his appreciation of the beauties of nature,
both in its grander and softer aspects . Fine trees h e greatlyadmired
,and was very particular about th e timber on the
School estate,which could then boast of some splendid oaks
,
such indeed as are scarcely to be seen in th e district now. The
large garden also had a share of his attention,and with great
pains h e supplied i t with a capital stock of fruit trees,which
h e lived to see produce abundant crops . Of flowers h e
exceedingly fond,and would have taken great pleasure in th e
cu l ture O f them,cou ld h e have found le isure for it.
Whilst closely occupied by duties of a rather heterogeneous
nature,he fully maintained his position as the head of an
educational establishment,and he corresponded extensively
with persons in various parts of th e island wh o were interested
in th e subject of edu cation . Strangers who visi ted th e School
conversational powers ; and if h e had not leisure to mingle
222 ACKWORTH , YORKS. ,
extensively with his fellow- residents in Ackworth and its
vicini ty,i t was fully understood by them that th e high standard
of Chr istian character was a true guarantee that , under allci rcumstances, h e wou ld pu rsue an honourable cou rse wh erethei r interests were concerned, and in him th e poor felt they
had a true friend .
In th is feeling of general respect ,RobertWhitaker’
s excellent
wife,wh o was a true helpe r in his labou rs and cares , had a full
share . Sh e died ,after a short illness, when on a journey, in
th e year 1 833 , and i t was abundantly p roved that th e even t
which prostrated her hu sband ,was a sorrow in which Friends
and neighbours feelingly participated .
If Robert Whitaker was what may be termed a“ s trict
Fr iend, i t may truly be written of him ,that h e loved all, of
whatsoever denomination , wh o l oved th e Lord Jesus Christ in
sincer ity.
This sketch will scarcely be complete without alluding to
th e fact that Robert Whitake r took great interest in various
phil anth roph ic movemen ts of th e day ,amongst which th e
Br itish and Foreign Bible Society, and th e Anti - Slave ry Societymay be especially mentioned .
Th e following letter from John Hattersley, h ow was equa l ly
famous as a Lingu ist , as a Mathematician ,Is Inse rted on account
of the testimony it bears to th e soundness of the e lementary
instruction given at Ackworth School during his superintend
ence of i t
Dear and respected Friend ,I cannot but write to tel l th ee of th e favourab le completion of my
stud ies at Cambridge , on th e 22nd inst . I learnt my p lace in th e Math ematica lL ist ,— 8th Wrangler . Th is is a much better degree th an I h ad ventured to h opefor ; it iis , in a l l h uman probab ility , th e introduction to a course of occupation of
O f a ch aracter th e most con sonant to my ta stes and pursuits , th e teach ing of
young men of a h igh order of intel lect , —th e p icked men of England , I m igh tsay ,
—under c ircumstances the most favourab le for success . At Ackworth Sch ool ,and und er thy government , I began th at court s of study wh ich h as issued in th issuccess : to th e sound elementary instruction I rece ived th ere , I am quite sure , Ih ave been ind ebted for my be st h ab its , such as h ave done much to antagon ize th ea lmost inevitab le evils of an after course of se lf- instruction . As th e first Ackworth sch ol ar, I believe , wh ose name h as been pub l ish ed on th e door of our
224 ACKWORTH,YORKS.,
Sessions , th e duties of which h e had performed w ith great
ability for more than twenty years . On this occasion,h e was
presented with a splendid vase,as a token of his people ’s
affection . His character and talents we re greatly admired bya l l those who came w i thin th e sphe re of his acquaintance
,and
cause h im to b e remembered by his friends with affection , and
by his polit ical enemies (for personal enemies h e had none) witha feeling of deep respect. Early introduced into th e most
pol ished ci rcles,and th e best li terary socie ty of his own time ,
he constan tly b ore about him the marks of that refined spherein which h e had been nu rtu red
,and never fo rgot what was due
to himself or o thers in his intercou rse with men of every class
and station ; of a cast of mind and frame of body almost alikehercu lean
,h e cou ld grapple with the greatest legal difficulties ,
and undergo the most continued bodily exertion with a pe rseverance and e ase which it astonished his feebler associates to
contemplate . No threat of personal danger cou ld shake a
nerve of his frame ; no sudden mental difficul ty find his intellect
unprepared ; no rudeness of personal insult disturb th e
equanamity of h is temper. His conduct as a magistrate is
confessed ,even by those wh o feel no great affection for his
acknowledged Opin ions , to have been beyond al l praise . Fiveminu tes before th e Open ing of th e court
,always found him
seated in th e chair ; and while h e occupied it, the mingled
dignity and suavity O f his deport-ment,
. th e knowledge even of
th e nicest techn icalities , as well as of th e general p rin ciples oflaw which h e exhibited , the unbiassed impartiality with which
h e formed his decisions, and , th e concise, dignified , and perspicuous language with which those decisions were enunciated ,all tended to vindicate th e majesty of th e law
,and Secure
admiration and regard towards him who so admirably dispens ed
it.
It is painfu l to look back to th e melancholy scenes which
were enacted on the celebrated 1 6th of August,181 8 . But we
believe that all right- thinking men,and real patriots of what
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
ever shade of pol itical opinion,are now ready to confess that
Manchester owed“
then as much to th e firmness and admirablecoolness and decision of Mr. Hay, as Newport has more recently
done to th e patriot ic conduct of Sir Thomas Phillips. F romthe time he qu i tted th e chair of th e Quarter Sessions
,Mr. Hay
resigned,in a great measure , the duties of a magistrate
,and
devoted himsel f exclusively to those of his sacred profession .
In that profession ,h e maintained the same love of order and
adherence to principle , th e same contempt of mere popu larity
at th e expense of right,which distingu ished his legal career.
This rigid adherence to the l ine of stric t duty brought upon
him much public Obloquy and personal d isqu ie t, which a less
precise line of conduct would have escaped ; but h e grappled
with all th e diffi cu l ties of such a situation with th e intellect
of a giant, e ncountered his bitterest opponents with the unvary
ing manners of a gentleman , and submitted to evils which h e
cou ld not overcome, with th e philosophy and piety of a Christian .
In the intercourse of private life , th e playfu l br ill iance of his
imagination,as well as th e almost infantile simplicity of his
fancy,his well stored fund of historical and pol i tical knowledge
which from a long and accurate observation of m en and things
had brought,his pleasing reminiscences of great men and great
events in th e last generation, united with a perfect knowledge
of, and unfail ing interest in th e men and events of the present,
his kind consideration for th e wants and wishes of all around
him,from th e highest to the lowest, his unchanging good
humour, his faithful attachment , his sober and unaffected piety ,
will j ustify his personal friends in saying what has often beensaid before
,but never with more tru th :
“We ne ’
er shall look
upon his like again .
”
The remainder of his life at Ackworth was marked only by
a faithful and earnest discharge of his ministerial duties . There
are still living a few very ol d inhabitants of Ackworth who
remember him with affection ,and cherish his portrait with
pride, because i t was given to them by“Old Mr. Hay.
”
He died
226 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
on th e l oth December, 1 839 , aged 78 years, and was buriedNW . of the Churchyard ,
ale by th e side of his wife “ In myearly days ,
” says Miss Whittaker, an O l d resident of Ackworth,
th e society in the village was considered to be of a decidedly
superior order, th e Rector (th e Rev .W. R. Hay) be ing a relative
of th e Earl of Kinnard , and his marriage with the widow of a
wealthy gentleman of Duk infiel d,near Manchester, named
Astley,probably secured for him a good position in the district.
Miss Mary Hay,his only daughter
,was a lady of a peculiarly
kind and genial dispos ition,and
,like h er mother
,was greatly
beloved by th e villagers . Dr. Hay’s only son (The Rev . Edward
Hay) was born in 1 800.
fi XI.—ALEXANDER PETER BUCHAN, M D .
This “ physician of no mean repute was th e only son of
the celebrated Dr. William Buchan ,and was born at Ackworth
in 1763 . He died at Weston Street, Somers Town , December5th
,1 824, aged 61 , and was laid to rest among the illustrious
and the brave , by th e Side of his father In th e west cloister ofWestminster Abbey. His wil l
,dated 3rd June , 1 824, was
proved 28th January, 1 825 . He bequeathed £70 per annum
for th e maintenance and education of his only child,Helen
Anna Buchan , during h er minority, and th e residue of h is
estate to his wife and sister, except £1 00, which h e gave to his
cousin,Alexander Peter Buchan . In an affidavit
,h e was
described as late of Percy Street, St. Marylebone , Doctor of
M edicinerl‘
7K
XII.—WILLIAM HOWITT,
Better known as th e popular writer of “ Books for Boys,and
whose” name i s a “Household Word in every home, was
born at Heanor, on th e borders of the Peak of Derbyshire,
Deer. 18th ,1792 . and educated at Ackworth . He gives a
Vide Monuments .
f Vide ol d Yorksh ire ,” Vol . III . , p . 89 .
I Vide Boys’ Country Book ,” p . 2 .
228 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
wife,unto th e Rector of Ackworth , th e Rector of Hemsworth
,
and th e V icar of Pontefract , for th e time being,th e M ayor
,
Recorder,and two senior Aldermen of th e Borough of Ponte
fract for th e t ime being, upon trust that they and his friend
Mr. Alderman Samuel Saltonstall should put th e same out at
interest , and pay and apply th e produce thereof (after payment
of some annuities) for th e maintenance , support, and comfortablel iving and subsistence of nine poor unmarried persons of theProtestant religion , for ever ; to be nominated
,chosen
,and
elected as follows,viz. : the said trustees to nominate and choose
two poormen and two poor women wh o should live in Ackworth,
and two poor men and two poor women who should live in
Pontefract , and also one other woman who should live in e ither
of the said townships, to b e th e servant of th e said e ight poor
persons,and to wai t and attend upon them as such and which
said e ight poor persons and their servant should from time to
t ime have the said interest, produce , and d ividends paid equally
amongst them , share and share alike. And the said testator
wills and declares that no married person shall be capable of
being elected one of th e said nine persons,and that if any of
them do afterwards marry , that such person shal l cease to have
any share in the said produce and dividends, and be displaced
from having any benefits or advantage. And h e also gives th esaid trustees power to diSpl ace any of the said persons gu ilty
of any immorality,misconduct
,or bad behaviour. And also
to fi ll up vacancies,so as there shall always b e therein two poor
men and two poor women ,belonging to each of th e said town
ships of Ackworth and Pontefract, and a maid servant. Andh e gives th e said trustees a discretionary power as to the bestmethod of perpetuating and performing the trusts of his will,and all matters and things relating thereto.
On February 9th ,1778 , the trustees held their first meeting
to pu t the said will in execution, and soon afterwards purchaseda piece of ground in Northgate, and built a handsome house
thereon under the directions of the said Mr. Saltonstal l. On
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
October 25 th,1 779, th e said hospital being ready for th e
reception of i ts intended inhabitants , th e trustees'nominated
e ight poor persons and a servant to dwell therein according to
the said wi l l,and ordered them to be paid ten Shill ings each
every calendar month .
Th e vacancies arising by death or otherwise have been
regularly filled up from time to time , and th e trustees have
laid out the testator ’s estate in th e purchase of Sou th Sea
Annuities,th e dividends of which are paid monthly to th e
poor people of thi s hospital,now amounting to fifteen shill ings
each person and th e trustees take care to keep their respective
apartments clean and in good repa ir, rendering this place a
desirable and comfortable retreat to ol d age and infirmity.
XIV—DR. JOHN FOTHERGILL .
John Fothergill, M D and founder of Ackworth
School , was born at Carr End, Semerwater,between Askrigg
and Hawes,in Wensleydale , on th e 8th of March,
1 71 2 . He was
educated at Sedbergh School , and apprenticed to Benj amin
Bartle tt,an eminent apothecary at B radford, and afterwards
studied at Edinburgh and London . Here,during the succeeding
forty years (from h e laboured unremittingly,attaining to
the highest rank in his profession , and numbering among hi s
patients some of the most worthy and dis tinguished characters
of th e century. But in estimating his character,i t wou ld be a
great mistake to regard him simply as a great physician ; i t was
in its highest and widest meaning, as a fri end to man ,that h e
h as a claim upon our regard and admiration . There is scarcely
a po int which affects the physical , moral , and religious interest
of the race , which did not attrac t his attention,and rece ive
benefi t from his j udicious and untiring labours .
Notwithstanding th e intense pressure of his varied engage
ments,we find that h e was an Elder, and became a member of
the Yearly Mee ting’ s Committee,appo inted to visit th e Meetings
of Friends in the various counties of England . He was thus
230 ACKWORTH,YORKS. ,
engaged for many weeks, chiefly in Yorkshire , Lancashire ,and
Westmoreland,and it was whilst thus engaged that h e paid
his last visit to Carr End,in 1 777. It may have been that
these visits,and th e ignorance h e found in many quarters , gave
additional force to his long- cherished desire to see a sound and
Christian education more generally valued, and made accessible
to all classes in th e Society of Fr iends . Be this as it may ,i t
was in this year that h e succeeded in giving a practical shape
to his long—cher ished wish and we now come to that point in
our narrative which,extending over th e three remaining years
of Dr . Fothergill’s life, gives th e history of th e establishmen t
of .Ackworth School, which was, as Luke Howard justly called
it,
“th e Era of a Reformation in our Rel igious Society . Nor
does it render him less entitled to have his name handed down
to th e latest poste ri ty, as th e founder Of Ackworth School , thath e did not
,as has often been stated, purchase i t wholly,
and
present it to the Society. And jointly with his name,and
entitled to our gratitude and remembrance, we must not omit
to mention that of his warm and devoted friend, David Barclay,
of London and in Yorkshire , those of his friends , John Hustle ,of Bradford
,and Wm . Tuke
,of York .
In the summer of 1780 (the last of his life), Dr. Fothergill
paid his second,and subsequently a third, visit to Ackworth
School.
One of th e most important objects of Dr. Fothe rgill’s l ifewas now accomplished
,and we can only devote a few words to
th e account of its close . Before do ing so ,however
,th e following
graphic description of Dr. Foth ergil l , as h e appeared probablyat the time of his last visi t to York
,written by a great nephew,
cannot fail to be of interest :
Extract from Records of John Fothergill,of York (1743)
Dr. Fothergil l was pious, generous, and benevolent, rather
above the middle size ; very del icate and slender, of a sanguine
temperamen t ; his forehead finely proportioned ; his eyes lightcoloured
,b r illiant
,acute, and deeply penetrating ; his nose
232 ACKWORTH ,YORKS.
,
Ackworth (since called by his name) with for training
young men to be teachers in th e Society of Friends . Th e
building was opened for students in th e summer of 1 848. The
instruction,according to th e trust deed, includes ancient and
modern languag es, mathematics, and natural philosophy in all
its parts,to which have been added other subjects to mee t
recent requ irements of education,or having more immediate
reference to the Socie ty. T he Institution was intended to
accommodate twelve pupils (see also th e History of Ackworth
School,
” and Wh el l an ’
s“ North Riding
,
”
vol . i i. , p . 175 ,
He also bequeathed £500 to th e Grammer School at Yarm,
and £ 1000 , in th e Three Per Cents,to th e Yarm National
School,for which 50 children are taught free ; and £500 for
the founding and endowing of an Infant School there. This
munificent benefactor also left £20 a year to th e poor of that
parish . A scheme has just been passed for establishing, on a
large scale, a boarding school of th e second grade,for the
counties of Northumberland,Durham , and the North Riding
of Yorkshire ; and it affords an interesting example of the
combination of th e older endowed system,with the simple
country school. Th e foundation consists of about
th e property of an ol d foundation,St . John’s Hosp ital
at Barnard Castle , where th e School is to be situated ; of aboutbequeathed some thirty years ago by Benj . Flounde rs
,
of Yarm,in North Yorkshire
,for the promotion of education
of any class in any part of Her Majesty’s dominions ; and of
raised by voluntary subscriptions , for a build ing fund .
Th e North-Eastern County School is said in th e sch eme, to be
intended mainly for th e sons of farmers and tradesmen , of
eleven years ol d and upwards,whose education is supposed to
terminate at sixteen ; with accommodation for about 350
boarders , at £31 a year.
XVI—JOHN BRIGHT.
Reference has been made elsewhere to this illustrious name,
but the following additional information will no doubt be read
rrs HISTORY AND ANNALS. 233
with interest by those who delight to honour the memory of
our departed friend John Bright .
The “ Liverpool Cou r ier ”
of May 24th , 1 888 in one of i ts
leaders, contributes th e following testimony The B rightfamily, John Bright in particular, have always been regarded
as model Quakers. He i s related to families whose names areamongst th e most venerated in th e history of th e denomination .
He i s connected by marriage with the M’
Larens,a name
honoured in th e capital of Scotland his second wife was a
sister of that scholarly eloquent Quaker, th e Wakefield banker,Edward A. Leatham ,
and h e was related to such well-known
and respected Friends as Gurney,Lucas
,and others . Whether
i t is in th e secluded Quaker colony of agricu lturists of Ack
worth— a charming spot between Wakefield and Pontefractwhere Mr. Bright received his early education
,and where h e
was afterwards a frequent and welcome visitor to his brother
in -l aw at Hemsworth Hall, and at the village of Ackworth ; in
the great manufacturing towns of Lancashire,or in th e Friends ’
meet ing-house in this ci ty, where h e was sometimes to be seen
when h e came to Liverpool , Mr. Bright has always been honoured
for his high personal character, and is a model member of that
religious body with which h e and his family have so long been
prominently identifiet
From th e Rock of a more recent date , I cull th e following
extract
Th e Quakers’ “ Testimony to John Bright is now being
privately circulated . I t has the quaint o l d phraseology adopted
generations ago. I t is a testimony from the Lancashi reMonthly Meeting, which sends i t
“to th e power and goodness
of God asshown in th e l ife and services of John Bright , M P.
”
After stating in a sentence his birth and death ,i t says that
“D ivine grace enabled our friend John Bright to be a true
minister of Jesus Christ in the remarkable line of service to
which he was call ed.
” I t detail s his taste for study, his“ deep
sense of responsibil i ty in the sight of God , and his intense
234 ACKWORTH, YORKS. ,
human sympathy,his love and reverence for the Scriptures,
and his simple habits, diligent attendance of Quaker meetings,
and loyal ty to the Society of Friends. Without flattery of th e
dead statesman, i t testifies fully to his worth among his own
people .
Another phase in John Bright ’s life i s revealed by the
Liverpool Evening Echo , of December 1st,1889, as follows
By accidental conversation in a railway compartment
during a journey last June to Ackworth for th e Old Scholars’
Meeting, Mr. Hodgson (th e au thor of some remarks on John
Bright ’s schooldays, in“
th e Ackworth Old Scholars ’ Magazine)learned that Joshua Sutcliffe , of Todmorden,
was at Newton
School with Bright, his bedfe llow and close companion ; and
there was a damsel there, Alice Wilkinson,of Slaidburn
,who
attracted th e fancy of both boys . Bright’s love of arbitration
would almost appear to have shown incipient budding even
thus early,for we are told that, instead of becoming deadly
rivals as per th e fashion of fiction, so close was th e friendsh l pof th e two boys, that they entered into th e school-boy compact
that John was to marry Alice ; and Joshua, John’s sister.’ How
this l ittle romance worked itsel f out history sayeth not, but we
learn that when Joshua, in due time, went to Slaidburn to
propose to Alice , his bosom fr iend John accompanied him ,and
sh e was married to Joshua Sutcliffe in By all th e rules
of love- telling this should terminate th e tale But Joshua
Sutcliffe died in 1 873 , and Alice, his widow,during the present
year. Amongst h er most treasured possessions , after h er
decease, this letter was found
Rochdal e, January 17th, 1873.
My Dear Mrs. Sutcliffe ,— I will venture to address you ,
although it is so many years since we met. I was grieved and
shocked to hear of your great bereavement, and I wish, even
at th e risk of seeming intrusion at this sad time, to tell you
h ow deep is my sympathy for you . This event carries my
236 ACKWORTH ,YORKS. ,
there,and to some wh o were not there . If our people knew
more of what is good for them ,they might be much happier
than they are ; they would have more comfortable homes, and
they would be able to secure for themselves a better government ; w e should have less of war, and ignorance, and poverty,and crime. I have always wished for th i s
,and have spoken
earnestly for i t. When you grow up , and have more influencethan you have now ,
I hope i t will always be used in favour of
justice and mercy, and goodness ; and now , even among your
schoolfellows , you can do some good if you wish to do it, which
I do not for a moment doubt . ’
XVII .—JOHN GRAHAM .
Another name which deserves a place in the “Annals of
Ackworth,
” is that of John Graham . The “ Leeds Mercury,
”
of September 26th ,1 889 , in an obituary of him
,says
Yesterday th e remains of this,
gentleman were interred in
the Friends ’ Burial Ground , Low Ackworth . For many years
prior to 1878 , h e was proprietor of th e Temperance and School
Hotel and Posting House attached to th e famous Friends ’
School at Ackworth . He died a few days ago at th e age of 76
years. He was a member of th e Society of Friends,and in
connection with the large educational establishment and
Flounders’ College at Ackworth , was well -known throughout
England by members of th e Society of Friends . He had
res ided in Ireland for about eleven years past . A few months
ago h e had a desire to return to his native“ village of flowers ”
at Ackworth to end his days, and this was granted him,his
death occurring at his s ister’s residence—Mrs. Knight’s . A
number of th e inhabitants of Ackworth were present at th efuneral
,and at the grave , after a brief silence, Mr. G. Satter
thwaite offered up a prayer. There were present at th e graves ideMr. John G raham ,
Mr. Thomas Graham (sons), from Ireland
Mr. Al fred Graham and Mrs. Graham (Preston) ; Mr . and Mrs .
Wood (Holmfirth ) ; Mr. F. Andrews, B .A. (Ackworth School) ;
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS. 237
Mr. and Mrs. Taylor (Pontefract) ; Mr. G . Satterthwaite, Mr.
Jonah Barratt, Mr. Ransome, Mr. J . Simpson (Ackworth) and
many others. After the coffin had been lowered , th e sorrowingrelatives and friends adjourned to the Friends
’ Meeting-house ,where words of consolation were given by several present .
XVIII—WILLIAM MARCUS FALLOON,M .A.
Th e Rev . W. M . Fal l oon,M .A. ,
was born near Belfast,in th e
north of Ireland, and graduated at Trinity College, Dublin ,in
th e year 1 837. He took honors in Hebrew and in Classics,and
was a scholar Of his college. He was ordained in April,1838,
by th e then Bishop of Down and Connor,Dr. Mant ; and had
both Deacon ’s and Priest’s Orders within th e same year. His
fi rst Curacy was at Ballinderry, on th e borders of Lough Neah ,
—th e’
parish in which the distinguished Dr. Jeremy Tayloronce lived and ministered Th e ruins Of the Church in which
Dr. Taylor served may still be seen on the borders of th e lake.
The stumps of ol d pear trees,said to have been planted by th e
same Bishop, used also to be found in th e Parish,close to a
bowling greenfwhere th e saintly man was wont to play for
exercise and health. Mr. Fa l l oon remained there as Curate
only for one year, long enough for him to become greatly
attached to the Parish and people , and by them to be highly
esteemed . Being invited, by th e then well known Incumbent
of St. Jude ’s,Liverpool
,Dr. Hugh M c.Neil e
,afterwards Canon
of Chester, and , subsequently, Dean of R ipon,to become his
Curate,he left Ball inderry, and came to Liverpool in th e May
of 1 839. To be assoc iated so nearly with a man so distinguished ,was a serious trial to one so young, both in years , and in th e
minis try ; and , at first, Mr. Fa l l oon feared h e had made a mis
take in coming to a Church and Ministry, at that time attracting
SO very much attention and public interest. His early fears,
however, were soon dispersed by th e very affectionate treatment
and sympathy h e rece ived from th e Incumbent ; and by the
warmmOf th e welcome given to him and his young wife , on
238 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
the part of th e people. Mr. Falloon ever spoke of that time
as one Of th e brightest and happiest in his ministerial l ife . He
remained there , as Curate of St . Jude’s,till th e October of th e
year 1843,when
,be ing O ffered by Dr. M c.Neil e th e Incumbency
of St . John ’s,Liverpool, h e accepted it, and passed to a scene
Of earnest labour and singular success, and remained there till
th e Au tumn of 1851,when ,
through over-pressure, and th e
ever increasing urgency of th e work at St . John ’s, his health
began to give way, and h e was advised to seek a less laborious
Sphere . Th e Incumbency of St . Bride ’s,Liverpool
,becoming
vacant at th e time,he was pressed by many friends to remove
to it, on'
offering advantages of various sorts most likely to
contribu te to th e restoration of his health . Though " very
reluctant to part from a people SO loving and beloved as those
at “ dear St. John’s,
”
h e was finally persuaded to accept the
Incumbency of St . Bride’s . There h e remained and min istered
for twenty-Six years,carrying ou t a Ministry upon strict evan
gel ical l ines , and su rrounded by a very large and influential
congregation , wh o proved qu ite a power in th e great town, byreason of th e largeness of the ir l iberality, —contributing to
every good work ,at home and abroad ; by th e spirit of unity
and love existing amongst them ; as well as by the ir unvarying
loyalty to their Pastor and Friend . Many live, to whom St.
Bride ’s is a name most dear,and th e sweet memories of i ts
services,i ts communion
,its meetings for prayer, and i ts other
agencies, cannot be easily forgotten . When the great Lord and
Master writeth up His people,there w ill be this record
concerning St. Bride’s,this and that man was born there.
”
In1 871 , the late Bishop of Chester, Dr . Jacobson,appointed
Mr. Fal l oon an Honorary Canon of Chester Cathedral,as an
acknowl egment of th e services rendered by him to th e town
and D iocese ; and when h e left Liverpool in 1875 , amidst
universal expressions of regret, not Only did his brethren of
the clergy present him with an Address of affection, and a case
240 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
th e Anglo- Saxon ha sel = th e modern hazel,a word common to
all th e Aryan languages . It is generally supposed that a small
church existed he re,in connection with Nostel Priory
,but
there is no trace remaining. Tradition says there used to bein one of th e ol d houses an oblong stone trough
,in which
baptisms by immersion took place.
The hamlet was certainly at one time larger than it is now .
The leather,or fell-mongering trade was its chief industry
,but
in when the ol d coach - road from Wakefield to Doncaster,
through Noste l,was diverted , the leather trade was principally
carried on at the top of Constitution Hill . The water fortanning purposes was pumped by wind power from the valley
at Hessle . In later years, nearly every farm house in th e
h amle t had its malt-house and kiln for brewing purposes .
An ol d milestone stands near Nostel Avenue, bearing th e
date 1722 .
Th e ol d coach road appears to have entered th e Nostel
domain at Foulby,on thro’
the Park,north Of Nostel up th e
east avenue , crossing irackenh il l Common down to K insleyGreen , where th e
‘brook or watercourse was ford , ’ forward to
Moor Top on to th e main road. Although overgrown withgrass
,i t is easily traced. About a quarter of a mile north of th e
said ford is a county bridge, which is the boundary between
Ackworth and Wragby parishes.
In th is year th e bridge over Nostel lake was built.
242 ACKWORTH, YoRKs,
RECTOR .
Jeremiah Bolton, M .A .
Jordan TancredBenjamin Rentmore , M .A.
Ph i l Holl ings , M .A.
W il . Kay , M .A .
T im . Lee , D .D .
Ashburnh am Toll Newman , M .A . Peter Heaton .
Charles Butter.GeorgeH endrick .
W ill . Robt . Hay , M .A.
w . R . Hay , M .A.
Edmund G . Bay ley , M .A .
Jos . Kenworthy, M .A . Nil .
James Tay lor, B .D .
W . L . B . Cator.J . Magrath .
C . J . Perry -Keene .
Wm . H . Rob inson .
Wm . Marcus Fal l oon , M .A . .
H 0 . Harrison .
Henry Howlett , M .A .
E . D . Cree .
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
LIST OF THE LORDS OF THE MANOR OF
ACKWORTH .
NAMES. REMARKS.
John Lamb , Gent.Robert Hewitt, Gent. . Th ese , it appears from the Court papers ,
were th e anc ient Lords of th e Manor .
James Croft , Gent.
Samuel Cawood
There is no record until 1700 .
1700 Ralph Lowth er , Esq . .
No Court holden unti l 171 1 .
1 711 Ralph Lowther,Robert Lowther, Ge
’
nt.
Lamb
No Court holden unti l 1728 .
No record until 1819 .
No record unti l 1853.
1853 . John Gul l y , Esq . in
1 853 , and th e property of the Manor
244 ACKWORTH,
DATE. REM ARKS.
Robert Nel strop August , and l oth day of September ,George Fairbarn 1 853 . All the deed s , books and papersJohn Simpson were th en placed in th e h ands of Henry
J . Coleman, Solic itor, Pontefract. ‘Same as above .
Wi ll iam Nel strOpRobert Nel stropTh omas PearsonThomas TaitThomas Tait , Clerk Th e Re ctor of Ackworth for th e timeHenry Hill be ing is an ex -ofiicio Lord of the
Robert Nel strop Manor.1 . M . HepworthThomas PearsonJoseph Nel strop
Henry Beeth am , ClerkTh omas PearsonThoma s Ta itJoseph Nel stropRich ard LeeJ . H. Cadman , Esq .
George WaideEdward Micklethwaite
Vide Memorandum in Manor M inute Book .
These gentlemen were appointed by th eCh arity Commissioners in lieu of th e
Freeholders of Ackworth , alth ough th eappointment properly rests w ith th e
Freeh olders th emse lves , but th ey arenow sa tisfied w ith th e privilege of
recommendation . It is much to be
regretted that a comp lete record of th eTrustees h as not been kept.
246 ACKWORTH , YORKS ,
Date . Superintendents . A ssistant M asters .
1867 George and Rach elSatterthwa ite Albert Linney Rach el Stone
1 873 Josiah Mary HannahEvans
Benjamin Gooch , B A.
1877 Frederick Anna MariaAndrews , B .A.
Albert LinneyMaria King
PAST MASTERS OF THE BADSWORTH HUNT .
E stablish ed 1730 .
1730.—John Bright , of Badsworth .
Godfrey IVentworth ,of Wentworth .
1 780 .—W illiam Wrightson, of Cusworth .
Sir E . Smith .
Sir T . Pilkington, of Chevet.Sir Rowland Wynn ,
of Noste l .
1 805—Earl of Darlington .
1 81 1 .—Sir W. Gerrard . (Mr . Scarisbrick , Deputy
1 814 . Chaworth .
18 1 5 .— Sir B . Graham .
1 82 1 ,— Hon. E . Petre of Stapl eton .
Thomas B . Hodgson .
1 826 .
—Lord Hawke,Of Womersley.
1 868 .—7—J. Hope -Barton
,of Staple-ton .
1 876 .
— Charles B . E. Wright, of Bol ton .
1 892 .—Colonel W. J . F. Ramsden ,
of Rogerthorpe
Pontefract .
iTS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
gl ib cirba .
The following list of Luke Howard ’s works was recently
contributed by Fred Ross, of London ,to the No te s and Queries
column of th e “ Leeds Weekly Mercury.
Luke Howard,
of Ackworth originally of Plaistow,
in Essex ,and afterwards of Tottenham
,in Middlesex , was born
in 1722, th e son of Robert Howard , of London ,au thor of A
few word s on Corn and Quakers,4 th edition , wh o died
in 1 8 12 : and died at Bruce Grove ,Tottenh am , 800 years ago
th e residence Of Wa l th eof, th e great Earl of North umb ria,and
some hal f century ago the school house Of Rowland Hill, th e
Postal Reformer. He married M ariabel l a and had issue—Joseph ,
wh o died in 1833 , set. 22 ; Rachael , who died in 1 837 ,ze t. 34 ; and John Eliot . He was a member of th e Society of
Friends , from whom h e seceded in 1 837 ,when residen t at
Ackwo rth,and j oined a Baptis t Church ,
in consequence Of a
divergence of opin ion in reference to mee tings for silent worship .
He was a man of considerable sc ientific attainments , and a
Fellow of the Royal Society, directing his attention chiefly to
meteorology. When at Ackworth h e projected and edited‘Th e York shireman ; a Religious and Literary Jou rnal. By a
F r iend . Pontefract , 1 832 which was published fortnightlyuntil his secession from th e Soc iety
,and consists of 5 volumes .
Th e following is a l ist of his works‘On th e Mod ifica tion of Cloud s , and on th e Principle of th e ir Construc tion
,
Suspens ion , and De struction . London , 1804 Ed ited by W . D . and E .
Howard , 1 865 . Reproduced a lso in severa l Cy c lopaed ias .
A Few Notes on a Le tter to th e Arch b ish ops and B ish ops O f th e Ch urch ofEngland re lative to Jo seph Lanca ster's Plan for the ed uca tion of th eCommunity . By Ec l ectus . London , Th is work is attribute ] to h im on
t
I
h e authority of a M S. note on th e ti tle -
page of th e copy in th e Bri tish Museumibrary .
A Brief Apo logy for Quakerism . Inscribed to th e Ed inburgh Reviewers .
Anon . London ,
Memo ir of John Woo lman , etc .
’No . 1 5 . Trac ts of the Trac t Assoc ia tion,London , 18 1 5 .
Memoir of Th omas Ch alkley . No . 23 . Ib id . 1817.
248 ACKWORTH , YORKS. ,
‘Th e Cl imate of London ,
’ deduced from meteorologica l observations, &c . 2
vols . London , 1818 . Second and th ird ed itions , 1820 . Enlarged ed ition , Wi th
engravings , 1 833 .
An Address to Friends , on a proposa l made by a member of our society to
instruct some African negroes , w ith a View to th e future transla tion and d is
persion of th e Scriptures , or some portion of th em ,in th e languages of Africa .
’
Anon . London , 1820 . See a lso Th e Yorksh ireman ,
”vo l . I . p . 162 .
A Companion to th e Th ermometer for th e C limate of London .
’1 820 .
Confessions of a drunkard .
’ Anon . 1 82 1 .
Th oughts on Crue lty to Animals , & c.
’ Anon . 1821 .
On th e Proper Treatment of Animals , &c .
’ Anon . 1821 .
‘A Word to th e Sons of Africa .
’ Anon . 1822 . Trans lated into Arab ic ford istribution in Eastern Africa .
‘A Letter from Luke Howard , of Tottenh am , to a friend in America , containing Ob servations on a Treatise by Job Scott , entitled Sa lvation of Christ. ’ N . p .
ord .
‘M y Ledger ; or, a Comprom ise w ith Prudence , ’ written in 1808 . Printedfor private c irculation , 1856 .
Th e Average Barometer, sh ow ing by a scale th e dai ly means of h e igh ts, ca lcul ated upon 18 years , from 1813 to 1830 , in th e cl imate of London .
’
Th e Climate of London , &c .
’New and en larged edi tion , continued to 1830 ,
with engravings and addenda ; 3 v ols , 1830 .
A Proposa l for O pen Commun ion in th e Soc iety of Friends , rejected ~ by th e
Pontefract Month ly Meeting, Ackworth , 12th month , 1 1 th day , Pontefract ,1836. Reprinted in Th e Yorksh ireman ,
’vo l . v . , p . 287 .
‘Seven Lectures on Meteorology .
’ By Luke Howard , gent. Ded icated toJohn Dal ton , in token of forty years ’
friend sh ip . Pontefract , 1 837 .
An Appeal to th e Ch ristian Pub lic aga inst a sentence of Disownment passed
upon a member (L . H . ) by th e Society of Friend s , for Ab senting h imse lf fromth e ir Silent Meetings and Subm itting to th e Ord inances of Ch rist .
’1838 .
Second ed ition ,revised , th e same year .
A cycle of 1 8 years in th e seasons of Bri ta in , d educed from meteorologicalObservations made a t Ackworth , in th e West Rid ing of Yorksh ire , from 1824 to
1841 , compared w ith oth ers made for a l ike period , end ing w i th 1823 , in th e
vicinity of London .
A Barometograph ic : Twenty years ’ variation of th e barometer in th e climateof Britain , exh ib ited in autograph ic curves ; w ith th e a ttendant w ind s and
weath er.Papers on Meteorology , &c . 1854.
Translations . Liber Ecclesia sticus , ” &c ., from th e Latin vul gate . 1827 .
Liber Sap ientia ,” commonly ca l led Th e W isdom of Solomon ,
”from th e Latin
vulgate . 1 827 . T h e Book of Tob ia s ,” & c .,from th e Latin vulgate . 1 828 .
T h e Apocryph a of th e Book Of Danie l ,” &c . 1829 .
Ed ited —John Kendal l ’s (O f th e Society of Friend s) “ Gleaning, Moral andRel igious ,” & c . 1826 . Cowper’s Engl ish version of th e “ Odyssey of Homer ,”w ith a Commentary , &c . , 2 vols . , n .d .
“ Memoranda of th e last illness and
death of Joseph Howard (h is son) by th e broth er of J . H . 1836 .
M ERIiABELLE, h is w ife , was authoress of Hints on th e Improvement of DaySch ools ,” 1 827 - 2nd ed i tion 1 828 . Th e Young Servant’s Own Book ,” 4th
ed i tion 1850 . T h e Boy ’s own Book .
JOHN ELIOT HOWARD , h is son , was auth or of T h e Doctrine Of Inward Ligh tconsidered in relation to th e Written Word , 1836 .
“ Justification by fa ith .
"
An Address to th e Ch ristians of Tottenh am .
” 1839 .
RACHEL HOWARD , h is d augh ter, was auth oress of “ Lessons on ScriptureHistory , 1834 ; 6th ed ition 1851 . Memoranda of Rach el Howard ,” ed itedby Luke Howard , 1839 .
250 ACKWORTH, YORKS.,
ghhitiaaal @pitaplgaIa the North Ais l e
El ibh . , wife of Robert Hewitt. D ied August,1 671 .
The above Robert Hewitt,D ied 1 6th June, 1707,
In the 102nd year Of his age.
Uru l er the Pu lp it,
Thomas and John Harrison,Bros . Thos. died
Feb . l oth ,1 762 , aged 69. John died
Dec. 1 5 th,1 769, aged 65.
Whosoever sees these two brothers,Lying here by one another
Let them think that naught can save
his Friends from ye grave.
”
1‘
In the stoke-hol e, face downwards, there is a slab, the le tter
ing upon which is really splendid workmanship
Thomas Calverley, died Septr. 7,1 685 .
Ann,wife of th e above, died Decr. 28
,1701 .
Thos. , son of above , died Jan . 2 1 , 171 8, aged 48.
Susannah,wife of Thos . , Juur. ,
died May 1 1 , 1740 , aged 63 .
Ann Pearson ,daughter of Thos . Susannah Calverley,died Decr. 20 , 1 768, aged 66.
Ann Haddon,granddaughter of above , died
May 5 th,1770 , aged 48 .
Nicholas Calverley ,son of the above, died
April 3, 1 771 , aged 50 .
Th ere are th ree figures , but th e th ird figure is very indistinct.t A censor of ep itaph s was sad ly needed at th is time .
Remainder h idden beneath brick-work.
ITS HISTORY AND ANNALS.
Gl urirrus d ares.
I t is notorious that in th e 23rd George II I . an Act
was passed by which i t was enacted that from th e then ensuing
October, a, stamp cl uty of 3d . shou l d be p a id for every entry
of bur ia l , ma rriage, birth , or christening, und er a. p ena l ty of5L, and that within two years, (on petition of their own body)its Operation was extended to D issenting Chapels . This lawfu ltax to say th e least was inexp erl ien t for i t proved so unj ust
in its working, and so objectionable in its principle,that i s was
repealed ten years afterwards. Notwithstanding this iniquit
ous‘ Infant Duty Act
,
’
th e people of England,l ike th e perse
outed Hebrews in Egypt grew and multip l ied .
’
Th e pages of
th e parish register for baptisms and Burials at Ackworth from
1782 to 1795 are ruled with a spec ial column for Duty ”
( in
some parishes Tax from which we learn that upon 1 46infants born between the above date s, a tax of 3d . per head
was levied ,but in six instances th e parents, being paupers, were
exempted, th e words‘Paup er , excu sed ,
’ in each ins tance be ing
written after th e entry. During th e same period 71 corpses
were taxed with a similar sum ,so that i t will be seen that in
th e ‘good ol d days it was considered a privilege both to comeinto th e world, and to go out of i t. I t appears that th e Rectorpossessed th e power of remitting th e tax , and from th e register
we find him exercis ing his prerogative eleven times . I t is
somewhat strange that although the duty was imposed in 1783,no mention of i t is found in the registers unt il 1789 , and that
al though th e Act was repealed in 1793, the Rector should havecontinued to levy th e tax until 1795 . NO record of marriages
being taxed can be found
252 ACKWORTH,YORKS.
,
Th e following statement was printed and circulated by M r.Kenworthy th e then Vi ca r , and is worthy of p reservationas an interesting historical document .
PARISH OF ACKWORTH,YORKSHIRE
CHURCH OF ST. CUTHBERT .
Erected about A.D . 1 242 contains 438 Free and,of these
,173
are unappropriated Seats . N0 seats are held by Facul ty
NO seats are l et at an Annual Rental.
Sums of ANY AMOUNT Expended in Bu ilding,Enlarging
,
Restoring, or Improving this Church ,at various times
,since
January 1 st,1 841
, (excluding ordinary repairs .)
O f Tower restored , £1 1 6 , by private Subscriptions .North and South Aisles re-bu ilt
, £ 1 170 , by pri
vate Subscriptions and special Donations ; and £1 20 Grantfrom Church Building Society.
1 854- 5 . Chancel re-built,Chancel Aisle bu ilt
, £1343, by privateSubscriptions and Special Donations
,and £10 from York
shire Architectural Society.
1 856 W indows Organ enlarged, £90 , by special
Donation and private Subscriptions .
Window ,Heating Apparatus
, £133, by special
Donations and private Subscriptions .1 864 . .Stained Window , £1 5 , by Special Donation .
Windows £30 , by Special Donation .
1 870 - 2 . .Coronae, Door Hangings,&c .,£76 , private Subscrip tions .
1 872 Chamber bu i lt , £280 , by p r ivate Subscriptions .
1 874 New Organ,Carved Oak Screens £579 , by. private
Subscriptions for Organ, Special Donation for Screens .
The present state of the Building is good . To complete
th e work,- The outside of Tower requires Bells
re New Clock ,
“ and New Gates to the Churchyard.
“
All th ese h ave been completed since 1875 .