2 1 "William the Son of Adam" first seems to occur in the deeds as witness in 1342, the attestation being as here given. In 1343 the name is varied to "William the son of Adam, the son of William"; and in 1345, 1349, and 1350 to "William the son of Adam the son of William de Liverpool." In April 1352 occurs the attestation by "William the son of Adam, Mayor of Liverpool." "4 In the little hamlet at this period there undoubtedly prevailed something of the "local patriotism" of which we hear so much at the present day; and among the burgesses were a few men who already dreamed of a "Greater Liverpool." Accordingly we find that its territories were extended across the pool at the foot of Dale Street to Eastham, and reached as far as the present Lime Street. The manorial markets and corn mills and ferry boats, instead of being leased out to private persons, were taken in hand and their possibilities exploited by the commonalty on behalf of the town. The popu lation was increasing, and a new chapel and burial ground were determined upon. And, further, aspirations for improved "local government" were so far enhanced that the town was held to be entitled to the dignity of possessing a mayor. At all events, this seems to have been the drift of affairs at the time; and we may more reasonably attribute such developments to the result of systematic definite effort on the part of the town, than to mere chance happenings. Foremost among the few "men of light and leading" who appear to have directed these developments was clearly William the son of Adam, one of the bailiffs; and him in due course (October 1351) they elected Mayor. The deed, dated 4th April 1352, attested by him in this capacity 1 Moore Deeds, 100a. Ibid., 20a, 141, 150. Ibid., 14a. * Add. MSS., 32105/gg/219. I have already shown to be the first yet discovered giving evidence of any Mayor of Liverpool; and the indications afforded by it leave little room for doubt that it really yields us the name and date of the first ever elected or appointed.1 Three years later, when William was again mayor, he received the royal writ of endowment for the new chapel of St. Nicholas'. Two years after, when mayor once more, he, with his confrères, Richard de Aynesargh, William de Grenolph, John del More, and William de Liverpool, clericus, took over the lease of the fee-farme of the town from Henry, Duke of Lancaster. Four years later still (1361) the new chapel was finished, and at the dedication William was again mayor. These facts are already made clear in my earlier paper on "St. Mary del Key," and need not be elaborated here. In the same year (1361), a few weeks after the dedication of St. Nicholas', Duke Henry was at Liverpool Castle, doubtless in connection with the development of his estate, and granted to William on the occasion an annual rental arising from certain Duchy property in the town: "The Duke to all, &c. Know that of our special grace, and for the good and gratuitous service which our beloved William de Liverpool hath performed, and shall perform to us in time to come, we have granted to him a certain annual rent of twenty shillings for the term of the life of the said William, to be received out of our manor of West Derby. Witness, the Duke. Given at our Castle of Liverpool, 20th April, the year the 9th (of our dukedom)." This grant may possibly have been the origin of William's possession of Eastham Mill in Liverpool in later years, a fact otherwise unaccountable, as 1 66 Early Mayors": Elton. Transactions. March, 1902. 2 Close Rolls, Duke Henry, 52. this mill and its special rights had been, and subsequently again became, part of the effects of the Duchy in the town. With the mill seems to have been included the manorial bakery in Castle Street, which also is found in the possession of William at about this time. He retained the mill and bakery till his death, and subsequently the former passed to his heirs.1 In October of the same year (1361) he was again elected mayor, and re-elected in the October following. In 1364 a change was made, and his friend and colleague, Richard de Aynesargh, was appointed to the civic chair. 2 Richard for some years previously had been prominently concerned with the town's affairs, and is certainly to be accounted one of that little group of burgesses who materially aided in the development of the place. As appears from deeds quoted later he was the son of Adam de Aynesargh; the family, therefore, presumably being only late settlers in Liverpool. It appears to be now impossible to identify the place, "Aynesargh"; and if it be not some small village the name of which has passed away, we may perhaps consider the name as a Latinised form of the well-known "Goosenargh" iu Lancashire. Scribes in those days converted many good Saxon words into motley Latin; and to change "Goose" into "Anser," and produce "Anseragh" or "Aynserargh," may have been one of their triumphs in this direction. Richard's name first seems to appear in the deeds in 1349, seven years after William fil. Adam occurs there; his designation being variously given as "Richard de Eynsargh" (1349), "Richard de Aynsargh" (1350), &c.' 1 "Hist. Corn Milling," iv. 138. Elton. ? Termed in one deed (1350)" Hugh."-Moore Deeds, 144. His mayoralty in 1364 is evidenced in a royal writ regarding prisage of wines at Liverpool : "The King to his well-beloved son, Edward Prince of Wales, greeting. Whereas on the 6th of May of the past year our said servant, William Streete, whom we appointed principal steward for the prisage of wines in all ports of our realm, on our account, has deputed under him Richard de Aynesargh, mayor of the town of Liverpool, in the county of Lancashire, to the same office in the port of the said town, &c. Given at Westminster, 20 June." 1 De Aynesargh having been mayor again in 1365, William fil. Adam was elected once more in 1367; in which year he appears to have appointed as his deputy "John the son of Almorice of Wigan," who, it may be said, died in 1369, and whose widow William was shortly to marry. William was mayor again in 1368, and Richard in 1371: for the two intervening years there are no returns. 2 During the whole of this time nothing occurs relative to William having been married. In 1376, however, we find a deed attested by "John the son of William the son of Adam de Liverpool"; and this fact is to be taken as evidence of William's first marriage. Nothing further is heard of this son John till 1412, when a deed is attested by "John de Liverpool, Senr."; the "John de Liverpool, Junr.," at this date being William's son by his second marriage. It was in 1374 that he married a second time; his wife being Katherine, the widow of John fil. Almorice, a lady who survived him many years. 1 Cum sexto die Maii an p'terito dictus s'viens nr Wills streete quem constituim capitalem pinc'nam ad omnes prisas in singulis portibz infra regnu nrm ad opus nrm capiend deputavit sub se Ricm de Aynesargh majorem ville de Lyv'pull in com Lanc ad easdm prisas nras in porte ejusdm ville ad opus nrm capiend . . . Apud Westr. 20 June. Close Rolls. 40 Edwd. III. m. 22. 2 Moore Deeds, 237. Almorice, père, was a fuller of Wigan mentioned in a deed of 1316;1 his son John seeming to have settled in Liverpool and acquired lands from William de Walton in 1362.2 A local deed of 1366 has reference to "John Almorison of Wigan and his wife Katherine, daughter of Adam the son of Matthew de Kenyon," and the same John attests another local deed in the same year. After being deputy mayor in 1367, he acquired in 1369, the year of his death, certain land in Liverpool. In the same year we find "Katherine late wife of John fil. Almorice" joining with her father in settling property upon her three sons, Richard, Nicholas, and Thurstan." 5 PEDIGREE OF THE KENYON AND ALMORICE FAMILIES. Matthew de Kenyon= Adam de Kenyon= Almorice fuller, of Wigan, 1316. William fil. Adam (2)= Katherine de Kenyon (1) John fil. Almorice. Died 1369. In 1374 were made the preliminaries to the wedding of Katherine and William, and a marriage settlement was executed." William formally settled his property upon two priests, Richard Munn and John Henthorn, and afterwards the clerics reconveyed the property to the said "William and Katherine his wife."8 What estate she had left to her at Wigan she appears to have disposed of 1 Crosse Deeds, 25. 3 Crosse Deeds, 56. 5 Ibid., 64. 2 Add. MSS., 32105/gg/2703. 4 Moore Deeds, 206. 6 Crosse Deeds, 66. 8 7 Moore Deeds, 235. Ibid., 450. |