One other, or part of a tenement in possession of Bannerhurst, or Bannicreste and Coldthy, and other appurtenances near Myerscough Parke, and part of Stanes Acre Divers lands and tenements in Badgerburgh, on the east side thereof Near the Park of Myerscough. 1 13 4 Overwood, Neitherwood, and Cawsghey, in the outwood of 311 8 The other part of Stanes Acre, and tenement, and pasture near the park All the houses, meadows, buildings, and pastures, called Mighalgh, lying on the south side of Myerscough, and of the greens 1 15 O 3 6 8 In Myerscough. Lands of Robert Garstang, 6s. 1 messuage, and 6 closes, 24s. Ten Acres, Richard Leighton, Christopher Hudson, and a vast One cottage within the park Ditto and meadow, ditto 1 10 0 0 10 0 0 3 4 All which premises in Bleasdale and Myerscough do lie within the forest of Amounderness, in the County of Lancaster, and are part of the duchy. In Leicestershire and Honour of Lancaster, thirty-seven acres of land in pasture on the heath, in the bailiwick of Shulton, in the county of Leicester, in the occupation of Robert Chapman, or Champigne." Also 397 acres of waste land in possession of John Hyde, and Annual Rent. 1 15 7 The following rights and privileges were also granted. All and singular advowsons, donations, and free dispositions, and rights of patronage, in all churches, vicarages, chapels, prebends, and other benefices whatsoever, to the premises before granted, or to any part or parcel thereof, in any way belonging, appertaining, incident, appendant, or incumbent, all mills, houses, stables, dovehouses, wastes, &c., tythes of sheaves of corn, grain, and hay, wool, flax, hemp, and lambs, and all other great and small tythes, also all oblations, obventions, fruits and profits, fishery, fishings, suits, fines, warren, mineral, rents, revenues, services of free and customary tenants, rents, seck works of tenants, fee farms, knights' fees, marriages, wards, escheates, reliefs, heriots, fines, amercements, free warren, courts, views of frank pledge of courts and leets, perquisites and profits of all that to court leet and frank pledge doth belong, chattels, waifs, estrays, natives and villains with their followers, estovers and commons of estovers, fairs, markets, tolls, customs, rights, jurisdictions, franchises, liberties, and privileges, profits, commodities, advantages and hereditaments of us the king, &c. &c. &c. In 1811, the fee farm rents of many of those estates in the forest of Bowland were sold, they had been conveyed to the Duke of St. Alban's by Charles II., who also granted other parts of Bowland forest to General Monk, afterwards Duke of Albermarle; he died 1669, leaving one son; he married Lady Elizabeth Cavendish. She afterwards married Ralph Montague, created, in 1705, Duke of Montague. He died 1709, and she without issue, 1734, when the estates of Earl of Albermarle, in Bowland, passed to the successors of this Ralph Duke of Montagu, now the Duke of Buccleaugh. In the same way did Charles I., in the fourth year of his reign, 1629, sell the manor of West Derby Everton, and various other places. Everton was part of the duchy lands. Account of the Public Records of the Duchy of Lancaster, &c. Extract from the return from the deputy clerk of the council and keeper of the records, Robert John Harper, Esq. to several questions contained in an order of the select committee on the public records of this kingdom. Such only are considered as public, and open for public inspection, as any wise relate to or concern judicial proceedings, the remainder being collected for the purpose of better managing and improving the inheritance of his Majesty's possessions, in right of his Duchy of Lancaster; and the officers of the duchy think themselves at liberty to withhold them from public inspection, except for the purposes before mentioned, or by command of his Majesty, as Duke of Lancaster, signified by his chancellor of the duchy. The answer to the first question is contained in the following list of records in the office of the Duchy of Lancaster. Account of the purchase money arising from the sale of rents under the several acts of parliament, 20 George III., 1780, to the present time. Awards for inclosures in which the duchy property has been concerned, 27 Geo. II., 1754, to present time. Bills and answers, and depositions in the duchy court of Lancaster, and of such as have been transmitted from the county palatine to be heard in the duchy court, 1 Hen. VII., 1485. Charters and grants of various kings under the great seal, as well as of private persons (remaining in boxes) to the king's sons, and to ecclesiastical persons, of lands within the surveys of the duchy, 1 King Stephen, 1135, to 10 Queen Elizabeth, 1568. Charters and grants in fee farm, some of which are inrolled in the office, and others remain on parchment, with the royal sign manual. The original charters of the duchy and county palatine to the king's son, and grants of lands to individuals of the possessions of the duchy, 51 Edward III., 1377, to 1 Queen Anne, 1702. Court rolls of such manors as formerly belonged to the duchy, and have since been granted away, and of such as are at present demised by leases under the duchy seal, 1283, to the present time. Decrees of the duchy court inrolled in books, and some of the drafts with the attorney general's signature, 1 Henry VII., 1485, to the present time. Grants of rents under the several acts to enable the chancellor and council to dispose of the fee farm and other rents, and to enfranchise copyhold estates, 20 Geo. III., 1780, to the present time. Inquisitions, post Mortem, consisting of 2400 of various lands and tenements within all the counties in England, 1 Hen. V., 1413, to 18 Cha, I., 1642. Leases, drafts, and inrolments of such as have passed the duchy seal of lands and tenements, parcel of the possessions of the duchy, 1 Hen. VIII., 1510, to the present time. Ministers and receiver's accounts of the rents and revenues of the duchy, 1135, to the present time. Patents of offices granted under the duchy seal, 1 Hen. VIII., 1510, to the present time. Rentals and particulars of land belonging to the duchy collected together in bags and presses, and consisting of various other documents of such descriptions that they cannot be comprized under one head, registered into counties, and in the catalogue are the names of places alphabetically arranged, 51 Edward III., 1377, to the present time. Registers of leases, warrants, grants, and other doucuments under royal signs manual, inrolled in books of John Duke of Lancaster, in the time of Edward the Third, and of various kings, relating to the possessions of the duchy, 51 Edward III, 1377, to 8 Henry VI. 1430. Revenue proceedings of the duchy court, inrolled in books, 6 Charles I., 1630, to the present time. Special commissions of sewers, and to survey estates belonging to the duchy, 23 Elizabeth, to the present time. Privy seals and bills, being the particulars prepared previous to the granting any leases or offices under the duchy seal, 1 James I. to the present time. As the records yearly increase, more room will be wanted at some future period for the accommodation of them. The office was appropriated to the use of the Duchy of Lancaster, under the act for erecting the buildings at Somerset House, and is therefore public property. But this office was given to the duchy in consideration of accommodations and concessions made by his majesty in right of his duchy, from such parts of the manor of the Savoy as belonged to the duchy. I am employed in the arrangement of the records myself, and a clerk assists me in placing and replacing them, for which no salary or allowance whatsoever is paid, but a fee of 6s. 8d. is charged for the production of each record, which is the sole allowance, as well for the trouble and producing them, as for arranging them and keeping them in proper preservation, and for making the indexes, repertories, and calendars; and the further sum of 1s. is charged per folio per copies, or 16d. if there is any considerable difficulty arising from the antiquity or language of the record. Attendance with the records themselves is so seldom demanded that no fee has been regularly settled for that purpose, but if in London, a charge is made of one guiuea besides the coach-hire, and if in the country two guineas a day with the travelling charges, and all other expences would be expected. No account has been kept of the profits derived by searches for public records, independent of those where fees have been received for other searches, from whence any average can be taken. There are several inquisitions, post mortem traverses, and other inquisitions of divers kinds remaining in this office under my care, commencing in the beginning of the reign of Henry V., and finishing 18 Charles I., amounting to nearly 2400 in number, some of which consist of many large skins of parchment put on files, in several bundles, secured from future injuries by strong covers, and to which there is a regular alphabetical index and calendar in one volume, divided into the several reigns of the kings before mentioned, and containing the names of persons, and all places mentioned in each inquisition, omitting none that are legible. The first directing immediately to the several lands each person died possessed of; the other referring to each inquisition in which any particular lands are to be found. I know of no objection to publishing the above index if it should be thought conducive to the public benefit, and understand it will fill about 90 pages when printed *. If these inquisitions, like those from folio 67 to 121, were printed, as well as the collection in the Bodleian Library, from Henry V. to Charles I., an invaluable register of property for the County Palatine and Duchy of Lancaster would be found, and which we hope to see printed at the expence of the county or the public, as the other records are. |