John A. Ley & Sons were Corn Millers of Walton le Dale. In June 1999 the mill at Walton-le-Dale was acquired by Massey Feeds, from Dalgety, who had previously purchased it from the family owned business John A Ley.
Brief Life History of John Aquila
When John Aquila Ley was born on 24th October 1842, in Thurlby, Lincolnshire. His father, Watson Ley, was 35 and his mother, Mary Aquila Peasgood, was 36. He married Alicia Ellen Elizabeth Little on 24th October 1866, in Louth, Lincolnshire. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 2 daughters. He lived in Walton-le-Dale for at least 30 years. He died on 30th April 1933, in Ashton on Ribble, Preston, at the age of 90, and was buried in Walton-le-Dale.
Whilst John Aquila Ley was born in Thurlby, it appears that he came to Walton le Dale with his parents, and it also seems likely that they took over the corn mill in Walton le Dale. Mary Aquila Ley née Peasgood was buried in Walton le Dale, so must have been living in the village after coming here from Lincolnshire. There is strong evidence of milling in the location of the Leys mill before they arrived.
Burial: 3 Jan 1876 St Leonard, Walton le Dale, Lancashire
Mary Aquila Ley – wife of Watson Ley
Age: 70 years
Abode: Corn Mill Cottage Walton le Dale
Buried By: J. C. Kershaw
Notes: [Deceased’s second Christian name originally entered as Augusta then deleted and
replaced with Aquila]
Register: Burials 1861 – 1880, Page 156, Entry 1247
Source: LDS Film 1526061
It is apparent that Watson Ley was already a miller by occupation before moving to Walton le Dale. A death is registered in the Grantham Journal on Saturday, 17th December, 1864.
At Baston, on the 8th inst., Joseph Peasgood youngest son of Mr. Watson Ley, miller, aged 16.
inst. this is an abbreviation for “instant” (from the Latin instante mense), meaning the current or present month.
It is strange that Joseph is named Peasgood, after his mother.
Gale Primary Sources, British Library Newspapers:
https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/JA3228220148/BNCN?u=lancs&sid=bookmark-BNCN&pg=2&xid=f3e707da
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At first glance, it seemed like Watson Ley the miller had relocated to Walton le Dale to take over one of the existing corn mills in Walton le Dale. However, the family still appeared to be in Lincolnshire during the 1860s. They were recorded there in 1864 at the time of Joseph Peasgood’s (Ley’s) death and when John married Alicia in 1866. If they came to Walton le Dale in that year, Watson Ley and his wife Mary were already in their early sixties. They may still have been working, but it seems more likely that the move centred around John relocating and setting up business in Lancashire.
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In Frank Coupe’s book “A History of the Village”, published by Guardian Press in 1954, he writes:
The mill race leaves the Darwen immediately below Holland Wood, flowing due west to the corn mill of John A. Ley and Sons. Until recent times the motive power, in common with other ancient mills, was derived from the water wheel, now superseded by water turbines.
There is no information about the mill or the family in the book.
Ordnance Survey (OS) 25 inch to 1 mile Map. Lancashire LXI.15
Revised: 1909, Published: 1911
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John A. Ley & Sons, Corn Millers, Preston. The company’s Lancashire Steam Motor lorry is seen here taking water outside the Rose Bud Public House circa 1910. It is photographed at the junction of New Hall Lane and Stanley Street. London Road is behind the photographer.
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Poultry Fountain supplied by John A. Ley & Sons, Corn Millers, Walton-le-Dale.
Ceramic iodized poultry fountain manufactured by Bramfield.
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This is an advertising card for John A. Ley & Sons, Corn Millers, Walton le Dale. The site is at the beginning of Chorley Road and presently trading as Massey Feeds. The card shows the main Walton Le Dale mill, as well as the company depots at Lancaster Road, Tithbarn Street, Fylde Road, Church Street (all in Preston), Broughton, and Leyland. It seems that the white rectangle was originally used for a calendar.
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THE LONDON GAZETTE, 7TH JULY 1980
JOHN A. LEY & SONS LIMITED are included a the list of companies that are being wound up voluntarily.
JOHN A. LEY & SONS LIMITED
At Extraordinary General Meetings of the above-named Companies, duly convened, and held at 56-60 St. Mary Axe, London EC3A 8BJ on 27th June 1980, the subjoined Special Resolution was duly passed: “That the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Russell Gerald Hawkes of St. Mary Axe House, 56-60 St. Mary Axe, London EC3A 8BJ be and he is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up.”
(135)
B. Gandy, Chairman
The London Gazette
Publication date: 7th July 1980
Issue: 48244 – Page: 9669
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/48244/page/9669
One of John A. Ley’s sons, Ernest Ley (pictured above), was the Mayor of Preston in 1935-36.
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LEY, John Aquila, J.P
The following is from an entry in a directory from 1917. More specifically, the book is a ‘Roll of Honour’ and details Lancastrians that have been involved in the First World War.
Lancashire: Biographies, Rolls of Honour (London, R. J. James, 1917) is a First World War–era county compendium combining civic appointments, biographical sketches, and institutionally compiled Rolls of Honour from Lancashire-linked universities and schools. While the Rolls of Honour were drawn from formal registers and official notices using standardised status and honours codes, the biographical entries reflect a mix of self-submitted and locally gathered information. The volume is therefore best used as a contemporary snapshot of service, affiliation, and social standing rather than as a complete or definitive record.
The entry is as follows:
LEY, John Aquila, J.P., Guardian of the Poor.
Mill House, Walton-le-Dale, Preston ; and Walton Corn Mill. Telegrams : Ley, Walton-le-Dale. ‘Phones: 138 Preston, 62 Ashton, 61 Leyland. Born: Oct. 24th, 1842, at Thurlby, Lincolnshire ; son of Watson and Mary Aquila Ley. Married: October 24th, 1866, at Louth, Lines., to Alicia Elen Elizabeth, eldest daughter of William Germain and Elizabeth Ann Little, of Waltham, near Grimsby. Appointments : J. P. for Lanes., 1913 ; Member of Preston Board of Guardians ; on Recruiting Committee. Recreation : Bowls. Clubs : Preston Reform and Ashton Social,
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LORD CRANBORNE, M.P., ON THE DIRECT VETO.
In reply to a letter from Mr. John A. Ley, on behalf of the Walton-le-Dale Band of Hope Society, the following commanication bas been received from Lord Cranborne, M.P.:-” 9, Park-place, St. James’s, S.W. 19th February, 1892.-Dear, sir,-I beg to acknow-ledge dge the receipt of your letter of the 17th instant. Although I have not lately dealt with the temperance question upon the public platform in the division, it is, as you probably are aware, a matter on which I have spoken on several occasions since I have been connected with the constituency. I am, and always have been, opposed to total Sunday Closing and tho Direct Veto. With regard to the first, whatever may be the particular number of hours which it is proper that public-houses should remain open on Sundays, there appears to me to be a just claim on the part of the public to have an opportunity of getting what refreshment they require at some time or other during the day. The Direct Veto practically involves the principle that the majority have a right to infringe the legitimate freedom of others. To that I am altogether opposed. Deeply though I lament the pre-valence of drunkenness in our country and the manifold evils which result from it, and much as I hope that the strong feeling in favour of temperance, which has done so much to rescue some classes from that vice, may be equally successful in redeeming others of my countrymen; yet I am altogether averse to restraining the legitimate desire of the great mass of temperate people to quench their thirst and enjoy a legitimate luxury In order to avoid mis-construction, perhaps I might be allowed to add that, apart from the direct veto, a question no doubt arises as to whether, and how far, the decision of liquor questions ought to be entrusted to the representatives of the County Council (with or with-out restriction) rather than in Parliament, as is at present the case. Upon that, for the present, I should desire to remain unpledged.-Yours faithfully, CRANBORNE.-John A. Ley, Esq.”
Advertisements & Notices
Date: Saturday, Mar. 5, 1892
Publication: Preston Chronicle
Gale Primary Sources, British Library Newspapers:
https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/Y3207509480/BNCN?u=lancs&sid=bookmark-BNCN&pg=5&xid=646252fc
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IN
MEMORY OF
ESTHER HANNAH
LOVING WIFE OF ERNEST LEY
BORN AT WALTON-LE-DALE
AUGUST 21ST 1872,
DIED AT ASHΤΟΝ-ΟN-RIBBLE
JANUARY 28TH 1925.
AND OF HER HUSBAND
ERNEST LEY
MAYOR OF PRESTON 1935-6
BORN AT PRESTON
JUNE 20TH 1872,
DIED AT ASHTON-ON-RIBBLE
AUGUST 1ST 1938.
AND OF FRANK LEY BELOVED
HUSBAND OF FLORENCE LEY
BORN AT WALTON-LE-DALE
MARCH 18TH 1902,
DIED AT WALTON-LE-DALE
APRIL 15TH 1969.
ALSO HIS LOVING WIFE
FLORENCE MARY
BORN ASHION ON RIBBLE
JANUARY 5TH 1901
DIED FULWOOD
FEBRUARY…..
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John Aquila Ley (1842–1933) was one of the leading industrial and civic figures in Walton-le-Dale in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born at Thurlby, Lincolnshire, the son of miller Watson Ley and Mary Aquila (née Peasgood), he married Alicia Ellen Elizabeth Little at Louth in 1866. Shortly afterwards the family relocated to Lancashire, where the Leys established themselves at Walton Corn Mill. Under John’s direction, the business developed into a significant regional concern, serving Preston, Ashton and Leyland — reflected in its early adoption of multiple telephone exchanges and dedicated telegraphic address.
Beyond commerce, Ley became deeply involved in public life. He served as a Guardian of the Poor and was a member of the Preston Board of Guardians, later appointed a Justice of the Peace for Lancashire in 1913. Active on the local Recruiting Committee during the First World War, and a member of the Preston Reform and Ashton Social clubs, he represented the Victorian and Edwardian tradition of the industrialist-citizen: a businessman whose influence extended into civic responsibility and local governance.
The later absorption of John A. Ley & Sons into larger agribusiness interests marked not just a corporate change, but the passing of a long-established family enterprise that had been woven into the economic and social fabric of Walton-le-Dale for generations.
Last edited: 28/02/2026
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