THE "PERCY SURVEY" 1578
TENANTS AT WILL IN MITREDALE
 |
Most names of farms are omitted from the Survey, so they have been supplied where necessary by checking tenants' names against the "Eskdale 24 Book". All information not in quotation marks below is summarised.
Each entry lists the tenant's name, followed by details of:
Some other unusual terms: "moulture and walker" is the Lord of the Manor's monopoly right to payments for corn milling and cloth fulling [aka "walk milling"]; a "paroke" is a small field [the word is related to "paddock"]; a "moiety" is a half share.
Nicholas Stevenson (within age) [one of 3 tenants at Miterdale Head?]- tenement, barn & other buildings, 3 little parokes adj. + the Myre (little close) (1.5a), 1/3 share of the Younge Field (3a), 1/3 share of the Cragg Wood + Gill Wood Side (2 parcels of wood ground, 1.5a), with common: rent 6/-, also 1.3 share of improvement in the Brust (3r): 2d, Eme Garth: 2d. Total 6/4 yearly.
[N.B. Of the two Miterdale Head tenements marked on the map, the western one was known in later years as "Sword House". Local legend has it that there was also once a public house nearby for travellers over Burnmoor, called "Nannyhorns", but I have yet to find any evidence that the story is not simply 19th-century fiction]
Henry Nicholson [Bakerstead 1587]- tenement, little garth + orchard adj. (0.25r), the Myre (parcel of ground) + old call garth (2.5a), the Outrake (parcel of waste ground, 1r), Long Lea (parcel of ground, 1.5a), Overmost Field (close, 1.5a), wood ground (0.5a): rent 4/-, also New Close (old improvement, 2a): 4d, the Lend (new improvement, 1r): 2d, Eme Garth: 2d, moulture & walker: 3d. Total 4/11 yearly
John Nicholson [one of 3 tenants at Miterdale Head?]- tenement, barn & other buildings, nether part of the Paroke (0.5r), the Myre (meadow close, 0.5a), the Low Garth (close of coarse ground, 3r), Skale inge (close, 1r), 1/9 share of the Tongue Field (1a), Stokefold Garth (parcel of wood & pasture ground, 3.5a), 1/9 share of Crag Wood and Underside (wood ground): rent 6/2, Eme Garth 2.5d, 1/3 share of the Brust (improvement): 2d, "decayed rents of the corn Mill and walk Mill there (called moulture and walker)": 2d. Total 6/8.5 yearly
William Nicholson- Mitredale Head- tenement etc., 3 little closes adj. (1a), upper part of the Paroke (0.5r), New Close (1r), 2/9 share of the Tongue Field (2a), moiety of Brode Garth (parcel of ground, 2.5a), 2/9 share of Crag Wood and Underside (wood ground, 1a), with common: rent 6/8, also 1/3 share of an old improvement (3r): 2d, Eme Garth: 2.5d, moulture & walker: 2d. Total 7/2.5 yearly
Nicholas Nicholson [near Miterdale Head 1587- probably the farm later called Browyeat]- tenement, garth + Goose Myre + Dry Myre + Silk Myre (3 parcels of meadow) (1a 1r), New Garth (close, 1a 1r), moiety of Brode Garth (parcel of ground, 2.5a), 1/3 share of the Tong Field (3a), Underside (parcel of waste & wood ground, 1r), the Rake (1r), 1/3 share of Crag Wood and Gill Side (2 parcels of ground, 1.5a): rent 9/-, old improvement adj. New Garth (3r): 3d, another improvement (3d), Eme Garth: 3d, moulture & walker: 6d. Total 10/3
William Nicholson- Low Place- tenement, orchard + croft adj. (3.5a), "a little pighill" (0.5a), "in two closes called the How and Foxhole of meadow" (3a), Lyme Croft (meadow close, 3r), 2/3 share of Nether Field (parcel of wood ground, 4a), wood ground in the How and Foxholes (4a), with common: rent 8/8, also Pighill (1 improvement, 4 perches): 1d, moiety of Hole Gill common (not enclosed): 18d, Skale Garth: 6d, moulture & walker: 4d, also 1/3 share of Nether Field- from the surrender of Henry Nicholson (close of wood ground, 2a): 8d. Total 11/9 yearly.
George Porter gent. [presumably of Easthwaite in Wasdale, where later generations of the Porter family lived]- moiety of Hole Gill common (not enclosed) with William Nicholson as above: 18d yearly
Henry Porter [Low Holme?]- tenement, barn & other buildings, orchard + garth adj. (0.25r), the Low Field (close, 2a), 1 parock (0.5r), the Crook (close, 2.5a), Cow Butts + Rigg Garth + Rake Rigg (3 closes, 4a), Brod Inge (close, 2.5a), How (close, 3r), "divers parcels of wood ground" (3a), with "sufficient common of pasture": rent 7/-, also rents a parcel of the Bank Garth: 11d, moulture & walker: 5d. Total 8/4 yearly
Nicholas Hartley- Langrigg Green- tenement, barn & other buildings, orchard + garden + croft adj. (0.5a), the Holm + the Great Field + the Guddie Field (3 closes, c4a), 2 parocks (1a), Moor Inge (meadow close, c1a 1r), Crookt Acre (close, 1a), the How (close, 3r), the Green (meadow close, 1a 0.5r), Long Lee (parcel of ground, 3r), parcel of waste & wood ground 1a), with "sufficient common of pasture": rent 8/-, also 1 improvement in the Craggs (1a 1r): 4d, a parcel in the Bang Garth: 13d, moulture & walker: 7d "and for bromeale (5 for license of brewing)": 18d. Total 11/6 yearly
Door toule for Mitredale tenants: 2d yearly "for every tenement or household door" ... "in consideration whereof they are free of toule within all markets and fairs within Coupland within the seignory of Egremont"... Total from all tenants 16d yearly.
"The Frith or Fence called Lingmole and Ratragill is worth by estimation four pounds and is in circuit a mile or thereabouts"