Bury.

Report of 1828.

Edenfield

Sunday School.

Cowpe Lench, New

Hall Hay, and Hall Carr.

Guest's

Charity.

III. General Digest, 1865-8.

EDENFIELD SUNDAY SCHOOL (see p. 29).

About 12 or 15 years ago a faculty was granted for erecting a gallery in Edenfield Chapel, on an understanding that the pews should be let, and the rents applied in the first instance to pay off the cost of the building, and that they should afterwards be applied for the support of a Sunday-school, to be kept in the school-house adjoining the chapel; and the gallery is vested in eight trustees for that purpose.

The debt incurred by the building is nearly paid off, there being only between 20l. and 30l. now owing.

The Rev. William Holt, of Holcombe, has now the faculty, having obtained it from the assignees of Edmund Sager and Sons, who originally advanced the money for building the gallery.

TOWNSHIP OF COWPE LENCH, NEW HALL HAY, AND HALL CARR.
GUEST'S CHARITY (see p. 32).

We have already stated the particulars of the foundation of this charity amongst those for the parish of Bury.

In an old overseer's book for this township, under the date of May 3, 1749, there is an entry stating that Benjamin Heap then renewed his note to the township of Cowpe Lench, &c., for the sum of 37. 138. 4d., for which he was to pay interest at 44 per cent, which said interest was to be distributed amongst such of the poor inhabitants belonging to the aforesaid township as had not any of the poor sess; and the entry adds " this sum of money was the part of a legacy left by one Mr. John Guest to the township of Tottington."

By other entries in the same page it appears that this money was placed from time to time in the hands of different persons, and on Jnne 12th, 1802, the sum of 37. 138. 6d. is stated to be in the hands of Richard Hoyle, and it is now in the hands of Henry Hoyle, his executor.

The overseer of this township occasionally gives a ticket to poor persons not receiving relief, for which on application to Mr. Hoyle he gives them 3s. or 4s. in money; there is no regularity in the distribution, but it is not doubted but that Mr. Hoyle gives away in this manner more than the interest would amount to.

III. The following is the description of the Charities of this Parish contained in the General Digest, 1865-8:

Bury.
IV.

IV. There are references to this parish in the Charity Commissioners' Register of Register of Unreported Charities, the substance of which is embodied in the following Report.

Unreported

Charities.

V.

lation of Parish.

V. The ancient parish of Bury, according to Gastrell's "Notitia Cestriensis" (1722), Constutition consisted then of two townships, namely, Bury and Tottington, Bury containing the four and Popu- hamlets of Bury, Heap, Walmersley, and Elton; and Tottington being divided into Upper End and Lower End, the former containing Edenfield, Musbury, and Cowpecum-Lenche. This division is supported by the description of Guest's Charity and Waring's Charity, given above in the Report of 1828. No question, however, arises now as to the interpretation in regard to any other charity of the term "township of Bury," which for more than a century has been identical with the hamlet of Bury above-mentioned. The townships now constituting the parish (excluding the county borough), according to the Poor Law Returns of 1862, are as follows, the population, according to the Census Returns of 1891 of the portions outside the county borough being appended :

--

Included in the above is a part of the municipal borough of Heywood, which contains part of the ancient township of Heap, the remainder being in the ancient parishes of Rochdale and Middleton. The modern "town" and urban district of Ramsbottom includes portions of the townships of Elton, Tottington Higher End, Tottington Lower End, and Walmersley-cum-Shuttleworth. Haslingden municipal borough includes the whole of Musbury and portions of Tottington Higher End and Tottington Lower End. Rawtenstall municipal borough comprises the whole of Cowpe Lenche with Newhallhey and Hall Carr, and portions of Tottington Higher End. Other important districts mentioned in the Report below which were never townships are Edenfield, in the township of Tottington Higher End; Summerseat, which is partly in the township of Tottington Lower End and partly in the township of Tottington Higher End; Holcombe, an ancient chapelry, formerly co-extensive with the township of Tottington Lower End, but now excluding the village and urban district of Tottington; and Walshaw, which comprises portions of the townships of Tottington Lower End and Elton.

The urban district of Tottington (Lower End) includes part of Elton. The remainder of the parish consists of the rural parish of Walmersley-cum-Shuttleworth, which has a population of 878. The following table shows the changes which have been effected under the Local Government Act, 1894:

The borough council of Heywood and the urban district council of Ramsbottom have acquired the powers of a parish council as regards charities under section 14 of the Local Government Act, 1894, by Orders of the Local Government Board dated respectively 14th August 1897, and 26th October 1896.

Bury.

Assistant

VI. The Inquiry was held on the 24th October in the Council Chamber at the VI. Municipal Offices in Bury, in the presence of the Rev. Canon F. G. Blackburne, rector Report of of Bury, the Rev. J. Howard, vicar of Walshaw, Messrs. Samuel Walker, of Prestwich; ComraisC. Dennis and J. L. Merchant, of Bury; William Healey, councillor and late mayor, sioner. J. H. Baldwick, town clerk, and E. Milnes, assistant overseer, all of Heywood.

The Inquiry was resumed on the following day at the Technical School, Stubbins Lane, Ramsbottom, in the presence of the Rev. J. D. Evans, vicar of Walmersley; the Rev. H. Dowsett, rector of Holcombe; the Rev. J. J. Lewis, vicar of St. Paul's, Ramsbottom; the Rev. H. W. Jones, vicar of St. Andrew's, Ramsbottom; the Rev. J. H. Oldroyd, vicar of Helmshore; Messrs. James Holt and Thomas Moore, Shuttleworth ; J. Ashworth, Henry Heys, and George Whittaker, members, and J. W. Barlow, solicitor, clerk of the district council of Ramsbottom; James Nuttall, assistant overseer, and R. Kay, Ramsbottom, J. H. Stennitt, master of the Summerseat Wesleyan School; R. K. Roberts, Frederick Hopkinson, representing Mr. Kenyon, M.P., James Rothwell, Almond Holding, collector, and T. Poole, assistant overseer, of Tottington Lower End; Richard Walton, churchwarden, G. H. Townsend, and J. Halliwell, of Edenfield.

Guest's Charity (see page 1).

Rothwell's Charity (see page 2).

The sum of 301. mentioned in the Report of 1828 as belonging to Guest's Charity, Guest's and the sum of 57. mentioned in the same Report as belonging to Rothwell's Charity, Charity, together with accumulations of income, making a total sum of 607., were paid under an Rothwell's Charity Order of the Charity Commissioners dated 18th November 1862, by the Rev. Edward J. G. Hornby, rector of Bury, to the Official Trustees of Charitable Funds, in whose name they were invested in 647. 8s. 7d. Conscls, which now produce 17. 15s. 4d. yearly.

By an Order of the Charity Commissioners dated 6th November 1863, the rector and Scheme of churchwardens of the parish of Bury and their successors in office were appointed trustees 1863. of Guest's and Rothwell's Charities, and it was directed by way of Scheme that the dividends should be applied in providing coats, blankets and clothing, and other necessaries, to be sold at reduced prices or distributed gratuitously amongst deserving poor persons residing in the parish of Bury.

At that date it was customary for the rector to purchase cloth, and to divide it among the different districts in the parish as follows: two-sevenths was given to Bury Parish Church district, one-seventh each to Bury St. John's, Elton, Walmersley, Heywood (in Heap), and one-fourteenth each to Holcombe and Edenfield. Thus all parts of the ancient parish, except the township of Cowpe Lench, New Hall Hey and Hall Carr, which was otherwise provided for (see page 10), and the township of Musbury, received a share of the Charity. The present rector, however, states that when he came to the parish in 1894 he found no instructions for distribution other than the Order of 1863 above-mentioned, and he has, therefore, confined the benefit of the Charity to the present "parish of Bury," that is, the ecclesiastical district of St. Mary, and distributed the income by means of the district visitors attached to the parish church, in clothing amongst poor persons belonging to that district.

The amount of the income is small for an elaborate scheme of distribution, but the rector stated that in future he would pay regard to the claims of other parts of the ancient parish, and had indeed already allocated a portion to the parish of St. Mark's, Bury.

Banks's Charity (see page 2).

The Commissioners of 1828 afterwards discovered a copy of this testator's will, an Banks's abstract of which they printed in their Report on the parish of Wigan (vol. 21, p. 318). Charity. For convenience it is reproduced here.

The Rev. James Banks, of Bury, by his will, dated 17th July 1742, and proved at Chester 28th October 1743, bequeathed to the four hamlets of the parish of Bury 407. to be equally divided amongst them, viz., to the hamlet of Bury 107., to the hamlet of

Bury. Banks's Charitycontinued.

Bury

Grammar
School.

Kay's
Charities.

Townships of Bury, Heap, Elton,

and Walmersley.

Waring's
Charity.

Walmersley 107., to the hamlet of Heap 107., and to the hamlet of Elton 10l., which 407. he desired should be put out at interest by the heirs of the family of Winstanley, to remain as a stock for ever, and the yearly interest and increase thereof to be aunually laid out in linen cloth for shifts, to be disposed of to the poorest people in those hamlets by the rector of the said parish, and to such only as had no allowance from their respective hamlets. He also gave and bequeathed to that part of the parish of Bury called Tottington 201. to be put out at interest by the heirs of the family of Winstanley to remain as a stock for ever, and the yearly interest and increase thereof to be annually laid out in sineven cloth for shifts to be disposed of by the rector of the said parish to the poorest people there and inhabiting, and to such only as had no allowance from thence.

The sum of 31. is now paid by Mrs. Bankes, of Winstanley Hall, Wigan, and is reckoned as a rentcharge on the Winstanley estate.

There have been two distributions of the Charity in the time of the present rector, in January 1896, and at Christmas 1899, four years' income, or 127., being available on each occasion. In 1896, sums of 30s. were paid to the incumbents of Walmersley, Elton, and Tottington, and sums of 15s. to the incumbents of Bury Parish Church, Bury St. John's, Heywood St. Luke's, Heywood, St. James's, Holcombe and Edenfield, and 37. was reserved, and added to the 1899 distribution. In the latter year 21. was paid to Walmersley, 21. to Tottington, and 17. each to Bury Parish Church, Bury St. Mark's, Elton All Saints, Elton St. Stephen's, Heywood St. Luke's, Heywood St. James's, Holcombe and Edenfield.

The distribution is made by the incumbents of the different parishes, who give orders for flannel and other materials for clothing to poor persons in their districts. In the parish of St. Mary, Bury, the rector makes the distribution through the district visitors.

Bury Grammar School.

The right of the ancient parish to the benefit of this school has been preserved by the Scheme of the Charity Commissioners made under the Endowed School Acts, and approved by Her Majesty in Council on the 7th October 1899, of which the 60th clause gives a preference to children of residents in the town and parish of Bury, in case of there not being room for all applicants found fit for admission to the school, and the 73rd clause gives a preference to boys who are children of residents in the town and parish of Bury, in the award of the Kay Scholarships tenable in the school.

Kay's Charities.

A bequest of 1007., made by the will of James Clarkson Kay, dated 15th February 1870, and proved at Manchester, 25th October, 1886, in augmentation of the general funds of the Bury Circuit of the Wesleyan Methodist Connexion, is not here reported upon, as the Circuit is almost entirely comprised in the County Borough of Bury.

For the same reason bequests of 500l. and 250l. made by the same testator for the erection of Wesleyan Chapels at Elton and Pits o' the Moor are not here dealt with.

TOWNSHIPS OF BURY, HEAP, ELTON, AND WALMERSLEY.

Waring's Charity (see page 2).

The deed, bearing date 8th December 1827, mentioned in the Report of 1828, must have been a draft merely, or have been subsequently cancelled, as the deed under which the rentcharge is now paid is inconsistent in dates and terms with the former. It is dated 16th June 1828, and was enrolled in Chancery, 17th November 1828, and by it George Ormerod granted to Thomas Johnson Ormerod and others, an annuity or rentcharge of 41. 4s., charged upon a chief rent of 101. 78. 2d., reserved by a lease for 999 years dated 1st May 1787, and made between Elizabeth Ormerod and Thomas Sharpe.

The rentcharge of 47. 4s., is now paid by Messrs. Ormerod and Allen, of 5, Clarence Street, Manchester, as agents for the Rev. G. T. B. Ormerod, the owner of the premises subject to the lease of 1787, which consist of 2a. 12p. 32yds. of 7 yards to the perch, at Chesham, near Bury, now in the occupation of Mr. Thomas Roberts of Chesham House.