Cuerdale is a civil parish in the South Ribble district of Lancashire, next to Walton le Dale. It includes Cuerdale Hall and has no substantive settlements. It originated as a township in the parish of Blackburn, becoming a separate civil parish in 1866. From 1894, it formed part of the Preston Rural District, and under the Local Government Act 1972 became part of the South Ribble district in 1974.
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The Historical Township of Cuerdale
Cuerdale—recorded historically as Kiuerdale (12th–14th centuries), Keuerdale (14th–16th centuries), and Cuerdall (16th–18th centuries)—is a small township situated between the Rivers Ribble and Darwen, to the north of Walton-le-Dale. It occupies a slight ridge rising between 150 and 170 feet above sea level, sloping down towards both rivers.
A detached portion known as Cuerdale Hey lies to the south of Beasting Brook, between the townships of Samlesbury and Hoghton.
The underlying geology consists mainly of pebble beds from the Bunter series, with a small area of Permian rock in the south-east. Along the Ribble, much of the land is covered by alluvial deposits. The township covers 684 acres and, in 1901, had a population of just 51 people living in nine houses.
The land is largely made up of fertile meadows and pasture, with woodland along the steeper banks above the alluvial ground. The main road from Blackburn and Clitheroe to Walton-le-Dale runs through the township, with a lane branching off towards Higher Walton.
Cuerdale is best known for the discovery of the Cuerdale Hoard in 1840, when a large collection of silver coins was uncovered during repairs to the bank of the River Ribble near Cuerdale Hall. Evidence of early human activity has also been found in the area. Historically, the township formed part of the ancient chapelry of Low Church, Walton-le-Dale, and a wayside cross once stood near its centre.
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Early Taxation and Records
In 1662, the township’s puture rent amounted to 3 shillings and 4 pence, divided among a number of local tenants, with a portion paid by the constable.
Earlier records show that Cuerdale was assessed as one plough-land. It contributed 11 shillings and 10 pence to the subsidy of 1332, and later paid 11 shillings and 6 pence as its share of a “fifteenth” levied on the hundred.
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The Manor of Cuerdale
The earliest known lord of Cuerdale was Warine de Kiuerdale, active during the reigns of Henry II, Richard I, and King John. He had several children, and the estate appears to have been divided among them. His eldest son Gilbert held half the manor, while other portions were distributed to Gospatric, Peter, Richard, and Siegrith.
Gilbert’s son Alexander died before 1246, leaving another Gilbert, who served as a juror at a special county court held in Lancaster that year.
From 1246 to 1284, Alexander de Cuerdale (son of Gilbert) consolidated ownership by acquiring portions of the township from relatives. In 1285 he secured half the manor from Ellen, daughter of Adam, son of Gospatric. Around the same period, he obtained remission of an annual payment of 10 shillings, likely associated with fishing rights within the manor.
His son Alexander continued to hold the manor into the early 14th century, paying a rent of 10 shillings at St Giles to the Earl of Lincoln. He died before 1323, leaving sons Robert and Geoffrey. Robert briefly held the manor but died without issue. Geoffrey, who held lands elsewhere through his wife Alice, died earlier, before 1314. Alice later remarried and was still living in 1356.
Their son, John de Cuerdale, came of age around 1330. He later granted lands in Cuerdale and Walton to Whalley Abbey, and upon his death in 1345 was buried in its newly built church. Six months after his death, the manor house at Cuerdale was completely destroyed by fire.
John left two daughters:
- Alice, who married Edmund Lawrence of Ashton near Lancaster
- Joan, who married Thomas Molyneux
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The Molyneux Inheritance
Thomas Molyneux, son of Thomas of Sefton, became lord of Cuerdale through his marriage. A figure of some notoriety, he held estates in Sefton, Walton-on-the-Hill, and elsewhere. In 1356, he purchased the remaining life interests in the manor from his wife’s relatives.
He paid the poll tax in 1379 and, the following year, received a royal pardon—at the request of the Duke of Lancaster—for a felony. In 1386 he joined an expedition to Ireland, and in 1387 he was killed at the Battle of Radcot Bridge, where royal forces were defeated.
He died without children, and after his widow’s death the manor passed according to his will to his sister Katherine, who had married into the Osbaldeston family. From there, it descended to her grandson Thomas Osbaldeston around 1410.
At about this time, a mesne lordship was created in favour of the Langton family of Walton-le-Dale. From then on, the Osbaldestons held the manor from the Langtons by fealty and the symbolic rent of a red rose.
The manor remained with the Osbaldeston family and their successors for two centuries, until it was sold in 1614 by Edward Osbaldeston to Ralph Assheton of Lever and his son Radcliffe. Their descendant, Ralph Cockayne Assheton of Downham, was later recorded as lord of the manor and owner of part of the township.
A 1666 hearth tax return shows that Richard Assheton’s house had twelve hearths, while no other house had more than three. The total number of hearths in the township was twenty-five.
Cuerdale Hall
Cuerdale Hall stands on low ground near the south bank of the River Ribble, about a mile north-east of Walton-le-Dale, with its principal front facing the river.
The house, now divided into two, is of limited architectural interest due to extensive alterations over time. Originally a 17th-century structure of brick and stone, parts of the earlier building survive at the rear, where stone buttresses may mark the position of the original hall.
The north front likely once featured projecting gabled wings, following a typical plan of the period, but later additions—including a long wing at the south-east corner—have altered its form. Further changes, including a one-storey addition to the north front, have given the building a largely modern appearance.
The house is thought to have been partly rebuilt around 1700 by William Assheton. Interior features from this period may include an oak staircase with turned balusters in the east wing. A panelled room appears to be of slightly later date, and another staircase with pierced balusters survives in the west wing.
After it ceased to be a residence of the Assheton family, the hall fell into decline and is now partly used as a farmhouse. On the north side stand two stone gate piers with Corinthian pilasters and urn finials. The formal gardens have disappeared, though traces of a tree-lined avenue approaching from the south still remain.
Whilst this passage mentions that Cuerdale Hall is of ‘limited architectural interest’, this was based on writings of the early twentieth century. The Hall is now deemed to have local historical value and is a Listed Building that is listed on the National Heritage List for England. Two of the associated farm buildings are also listed.
Cuerdale Hall, Cuerdale Lane, as listed on the National Heritage List for England:
https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1073028
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Other Landholders
The Cliff family, possibly descended from a younger son of Warine de Cuerdale, held land in the township during the medieval period. A claim to these lands in 1354 was unsuccessful.
Other landholders included members of the Styholme and Langley families. William Langley, who died in 1592, held a messuage that later passed to his nephew Robert Woodroffe of Walton-le-Dale.
Christopher Smyth died in 1589 holding a small estate in Cuerdale, which passed to his son Edmund. By 1620, this estate was held under Radcliffe Assheton.
Subsidy records show that few individuals in the township were assessed for land, apart from the lord of the manor. In 1626, however, Robert Langton and William Cowpe were assessed on goods.
The above is based on ‘Townships: Cuerdale’, in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 6, ed. William Farrer, J Brownbill (London, 1911), British History Online
See: https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol6/pp300-303
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The Cuerdale Hoard
The Cuerdale Hoard was considered the greatest Viking silver treasure trove ever found, outside Russia, far exceeding in scale and range any hoard found in Scandinavia or the western areas of Viking settlement.
Please Sir, We Want Our Treasure Back – The Cuerdale Hoard:
https://www.mylancs.uk/2025/02/please-sir-we-want-our-treasure-back.html
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