Will of Richard Barnes of Oswaldtwistle 1738

In March 2016 we visited the Lancashire Archive for the first time. I checked out a will for Richard Barnes, miller, of Oswaldtwistle dated 1738. A check of parish records showed that he married Ann Dilworth of Church at Church Kirk (St James) on 4 June 1712 but I was unable to find other parish records. The will made her his executor and provided for his family even though he was of modest means. He also willed his soul to God trusting in the merits of Jesus Christ.

Unfortunately, the will did not say where his mill was. I have read that there was a medieval mill at Foxhill Bank (originally Fox Hole Bank). If there was, it was obliterated by the print works later that century. This is the only place you would place a mill. Understand that NE Lancashire is very hilly. This place is at the Northern, lower end of town. The town's main water course, Tinker Brook, passes it. It is a modest stream, but has a big catchment area on the moors and the flow is reliable. Over the centuries weirs have been built to pond water. I used to play between them as a boy.

It took a day or two to dawn on me that if Richard had a mill, he had something to mill in it. This might seem obvious, but if you visit now, you won't see any arable land or cereal crops. It is all pasture for sheep and cattle. So, what cereal crops were farmers growing, and where? The yield and quality must have been poor. Oswaldtwistle was enclosed in 1774. I checked out the Enclosure maps. Perhaps they stopped growing cereals then.

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