THE INSKIP FAMILY OF BOLTON BY BOWLAND, FORMERLY
YORKSHIRE, NOW LANCASHIRE, ENGLAND

Lancashire RoseYorkshire Rose 

Emigration to the United States of Jane (Inskip) Harrison
and seven of her children in 1827.

Stars & Stripes

This line has been researched in England from the early 1800s.  Some of the information on earlier generations comes from the Slaidburn Court Rolls, held at the Lancashire County Record Office in Preston.  These show how the tenancy of property in an area known as Smalden passed from father to son.  This happened on the death of the father, provided that the son was already of age, or when the son reached the age of 21.  I am grateful to Reg Postlethwaite for information on the earlier part of the tree and for bringing to my attention the three earliest wills mentioned.

Richard Inskip in generation 4 is known to have been a trustee of the Independent Chapel at Holden near Bolton by Bowland, then in Yorkshire.   Three of his daughters were baptised by a travelling Nonconformist minister, Peter Walkden whose diary and registers, edited by Tony Foster, have been published by Lancashire Family History and Heraldry Society.

I am grateful to Bob Wheatall of Butler, Pennsylvania for the information on the family of  Jane* Inskip who married Benjamin Harrison, including details of Benjamin Harrison's baptism, marriage and burial.  Jane emigrated to America with seven of her nine children.  Bob Wheatall has much more information on later generations of this family and provided me with an extensive data file for Family Tree Maker. This information is not included here as it forms a different but very interesting story of settlers in the New World.

This page has led to contacts with other descendants of Benjamin Harrison and Jane Inskip now living in the United States.  I have some information from Virginia Bates on Jane Harrison and Elizabeth Harrison, two of the daughters of Benjamin Harrison and Jane Inskip.  David B Jenks in California has sent me information that Benjamin Harrison the son of Benjamin Harrison and Jane Inskip was his great great grandfather.  Joseph Loehr McGerity of California has contacted me with the information that he is the grandson of Minnie Harrison and I am grateful to Joseph for details of the descendants of Benjamin Harrison 2nd (1797-1875).  Kathy Stoke Fiely in Pennsylvania, a descendant of Richard Morris, has informed me that the Harrison Cemetery is now called the English Settlement Cemetery.  Debbie Orris in Chicago is also descended from Richard Morris and Jane Harrison.  Marjorie A. Morris Halsey is descended from Inskip and Mary Ellen Morris; her grandfather was William E. Morris. Sally Gatesman is the great great grandaughter of Inskip Morris through his daughter Lucy who became Lucy Stoke. Lois Winkelbauer is descended from William Morris

Abbreviations

+          married
bapt.    baptised
MI       Monumental  inscription
SCR    Slaidburn Court Roll
 

 

In addition I have the following notes from Reg Postlethwaite which outline possible earlier generations. The earliest families recorded at Bolton by Bowland are of Richard and John Inskip

Richard Inskip had children Alice, 1603; John, 1604; Joan, 1697, Thomas, 1609 and Agnes, 1615, all baptised at Bolton by Bowland.
John Inskip had children Robert, 1600; Jennet, 1602; Elizabeth, 1607; Henry, 1612; and Richard, 1614 all baptised at Bolton by Bowland.

In 1662 there is a Henry Inskip, described as a bachelor of Baygate, brother of Thomas Inskip. Henry left a will mentioning nephews and nieces. The two families shown above do not have brothers Thomas and Henry. However, a birth around 1609 would be plausible for the Thomas who starts my chart in generation 1.

Note 1    The Will of Richard Inskip of Baygate, made 14 November 1712

The will mentions his daughter Margaret Slaytor, son Henry, daughter Agnes Inskip who at the time was under 26, and Elling (Ellen) his wife, who was appointed executor. One of the witnesses was Thomas Scott, who could be a kinsman of his wife who is named as Ellen in the probate documents.

Note 2.  The Will of Henry Inskip of Baygate, made 19 October 1731

The main genealogical information in the will is that Henry had the following two children: Richard, who would inherit all the freehold  and copy hold lands at Baygate and Champion when he reached the age of 21; daughter Ann was to receive £100 on reaching the age of 21.  Henry's wife was named as Jane, then said to be with child.

Also mentioned are Henry's sister, Agnes Ainsworth, and her son Matthew Ainsworth and daughter Ellen Ainsworth.  In addition there is Henry's sister, Margaret Gill, and a Richard Sclaytor, who is not given a relationship.  Richard Sclaytor may be a nephew and the son of Margaret by her first husband as she is mentioned as Margaret Slaytor in 1712.

Note 3    The Will of Jane Inskip of Baygate, made 1 November 1770

Jane was the wife of Henry mentioned in Note 2.  She left money to her son Richard and her daughter Ann, now the wife of Thomas Clough.  Like her husband, she left money to Richard Slaiter of Holden.  In addition she mentions Ann the daughter of her brother, James Bleazard of Slaidburn and John Greenwood her son-in-law.  The remainder of the estate went to her daughter Margaret the wife of John Greenwood.  From this we infer that Margaret was the child she was expecting when her husband's will was drawn up, just before his death in 1731.

Note 4.  The Identity of Mary Inskip

From the wills of Joseph Jackson and Matthew Ainsworth, described below, we know that the wife of William Thornber was Mary, the granddaughter of Joseph Jackson.  So Mary's mother must have been a Jackson.  We also learn that the children of William Thornber and Mary Inskip are the grandchildren of Richard Inskip.  So we must conclude that Mary Inskip was the daughter of Richard Inskip and Mary Jackson, whom we know married in January 1747/8, i.e. the year on the Julian Calendar was 1747 and the new year of 1748 began on 25 March.

The descent of Mary Jackson is outlined briefly below from a family tree kindly provided to me by Reg Postlethwaite.

1.   John Jackson of Blackeley, Manchester.

2.    Joseph Jackson, bapt. 11 Oct 1618, Middleton parish church near Manchester, yeoman of Far Harrop, Harrop Fold, married Ann (Bailey?). He died in 1690 and his will of 6 Aug 1690 shows four sons and two daughters of which we follow only John and Mary. Mary was born abt. 1664 and married Thomas Wilson, Yeoman of Meresike, Wigglesworth. They had two sons and two daughters, one of whom, Elizabeth Wilson, married her cousin, Joseph Jackson.

3.   John Jackson, c. 1660-1725, yeoman of Stephen Moor and Stoney Bank, married Jennat (Chapman?) then Agnes (Dickinson?) who was buried 8 Nov 1710 at Slaidburn. He had two sons and two daughters of which we follow only Joseph.

4.    Joseph Jackson, bapt. 18 April 1701, Slaidburn. He died 1781, yeoman of Lane Ends, left a will. He married his cousin Elizabeth Wilson on 4 May 1725 at Slaidburn and had two sons and two daughters of which we follow only Mary Jackson.

5.   Mary Jackson, bapt. 17 April 1726 at Slaidburn, married Richard Inskip on 14 Jan 1747/8, at Waddington and appears to have died in childbirth, nine months after her marriage, being buried at Bolton by Bowland 20 October 1748.

6.   Mary Inskip, born about October 1748 and married William Thornber of Bay Gate..   

The Will of Joseph Jackson of Lane Ends, dated 26 May 1781.

Lane Ends is a hamlet lying between Bolton by Bowland and Slaidburn.  The key part of the will in relation to this article is:

"...my granddaughter Mary, the wife of William Thornber of Bay Gate."

The will mentions copyhold messuages, other buildings, closes and enclosure, pieces and parcel of arable, meadow and pasture land and common pastures and turbary (right to cut turf or peat) at Lane Ends held under the manor of Slaidburn for a yearly rent of £1 15 shillings and two pence.Named fields are Horner Meadow, Horner Meadow Top and Altham Field situated near Lane Ends on the north east side of the highway leading from the township of Slaidburn to Bolton nigh Bowland. His main beneficiaries are his sons, John and Thomas Jackson and his grandson, Thomas the son of Thomas Jackson with complex terms and conditions for any younger children of Thomas. His granddaughter Charlotte Jackson was to have £15 when she reached 21 but if she died before that time, the sum was to be split among his son Thomas's other children when each reached the age of 21. He gave to his granddaughter, Mary the wife of William Thornber, of Bay Gate, the sum of £40, but if she had died, the legacy was to be split between her surviving children as each reached the age of 21. There is also his daughter, Hannah, wife of John Clark of Chatburn, who get 20 shillings. All the remainder is divided equally between his sons John and Thomas who were executors. The witnesses were Ellin King, Giles Thornber and William King and Joseph Jackson signed.

Associated with the will is an administration document in which John Jackson of Grindleton in the Parish of Mitton and County of York, farmer, Thomas Jackson of Howden in the Parish of Bolton, farmer, and Richard Shiers of Skipton, husbandman are beholden in the sum of £300 to administer the will of Joseph Jackson. It is dated 23 Feb 1782. An attached sheet indicates that John and Thomas, the joint executors had their actions approved on 6 March 1782 and the estate was valued at £155.

Note that Mary (neé Inskip) the wife of William Thornber was the daughter of Joseph Jackson's daughter Mary, who married Richard Inskip and died very young with only one child, Mary, surviving her.

Will of Matthew Ainsworth, dated on 4 August 1806.

The key genealogical features in relation to this article are as follows.

"...the four daughters of Richard Inskip of Bay Gate, Ann the wife of Thomas Alston, Jane the wife of Benjamin Harrison, Ellen now the wife of Richard Marsden, and Elizabeth the wife of Edward Roberts."

"And I do hereby give and bequeath unto the six children of William Thornber and Mary his wife deceased, the grandchildren of Richard Inskip, to wit Betty the wife of Robert Seed, John Thornber, Mary the wife of Richard Chippendale, Catherine Thornber, Jane Thornber and Ellen Thornber the sum of one hundred and sixty pounds equally to be divided among them, share and share alike."

After a long list of legacies, half the remaining estate went to Henry, the son of Richard Inskip.

Will of Richard Inskip, dated 2 April 1807.

The key genealogical features in relation to this article are:

"I give and bequeath to my four daughters, Ann the wife of Thomas Alston, Jane the wife of Benjamin Harrison, Ellen the wife of Richard Marsden, and Elizabeth, otherwise Betty, the wife of Edmund Roberts, the sum of £100 apiece."

"I give unto my six grandchildren John Thornber, Betty Thornber, Mary Thornber, Katherine Thornber, Jane Thornber, and Ellen Thornber the sum of £100 to be equally divided amongst them, share and share alike."

Henry Inskip, son of Richard was appointed executor and received the residue of the estate after the various bequests.

Note 5.    A Mysterious Burial Entry

Both the Bolton by Bowland register and the bishop's transcripts show that there was a burial of Mary, daughter of Richard Inskip on 5 October 1763.  This is a mystery, as it is clear from the wills already mentioned that Mary Inskip, the daughter of Richard Inskip married William Thornber, for which we have a parish register record in Waddington in March 1772.  However, we know that Richard Inskip's daughter Margaret did not survive long enough to be mentioned in her father's will of 1807.  Could it be that this record is an error and it was Margaret who died.  There is no evidence for another Mary Inskip daughter of Richard or for a second Richard Inskip with a daughter called Mary.

Note 6.  The Will of Henry Inskip of Baygate, made 20 November 1830

The genealogical information in the will is sparse but suggests that he had few surviving children or grandchildren.  The sole beneficiary was his granddaughter Betty Riley and she was the executrix.  By the time the will was proved she was Betty Lancaster, the wife of John Lancaster.

Henry was baptised in 1753.  He  may have married more than once as there are references to children of Henry or Harry baptised prior to the marriage with Ellen Frankland on 24 Jun 1798.  His father, Richard Inskip was one of the founders of the Independent Chapel at Holden and there are a number of Inskip entries in the registers.  I have transcribed and published the registers of this chapel, but it is not indexed on the IGI.  Unfortunately the standard of record keeping at Holden is very variable and details are often lacking of relationships. There was also a second Henry Inskip, the illegitimate son of Ellen, who was baptised at Holden in 1791 as described in Note 7.

There was a baptism of Mary the daughter of Harrey Inskip on 7 March 1784 and a baptism of a Pegge Inskip with no father named in 1773.

There are several burial records at Holden Chapel but no ages are given and it is not clear if the deceased were adults or children.  Among the burials are Peggy Inskip in 1815, Henry Inskip of Bay Gate and Wilm Inskip of Bay Gate both in 1817, Ellin Inskip in 1823, Sarah and Thomas Inskip in 1827, Ellin Inskip in 1829,  Betty Inskip in 1830 and Henry in 1832 with a date corresponding to the date of death given in his will mentioned above.   The two Ellins could be Henry's wife and sister, some of the other entries may relate to his children or the children of the Henry who married in 1814 but there are no corresponding baptism records for them at Holden.

Note 7.    Henry Inskip son of Ellen Inskip

I am grateful to Reg Postlethwaite for sending me a summary of a removal order under the old Poor Law, which he found at the Lancashire County Record Office, Ref. Bolton by Bowland, PR 3047, uncatalogued, which includes papers from the period 1762 to 1840 including Overseers of the Poor accounts, settlement papers, removal orders.
 

Examination of Henry Inskip of Grindleton, 19 December 1826 aged 35.

My mother was not married.  I lived with my mother and grandfather till the age of 14, then with my mother and father-in-law (step-father) for four years, then with an uncle in Bolton-by-Bowland, receiving money for clothes etc. out of the interest on £50, in my uncle's hands, left by my grandfather.  After four years I went to shear corn in Lancashire and Westmorland.

Endorsed: Removal of Henry Inskip, widower; Ellen Inskip, 14; Henry Inskip, 12; Mary Inskip, 10; Sarah Inskip, 7; and Richard Inskip, 5; from Grindleton to Bolton-by-Bowland who are ready to take back this pauper and his family.  9 January 1830.  William Lancaster, Overseer.


This account is consistent with this man being Henry son of Ellen Inskip and grandson of Richard Inskip mentioned above, who made the following provision in his will for two illegitimate grandsons.

"I also give and bequeath unto my grandson Richard Inskip, otherwise Harrison, the legacy or sum of fifty pounds; and unto my grandson Henry Inskip, otherwise Hartley, the sum of fifty pounds, to be paid and payable to them or their respective legal representative at the end of twelve calendar months next after my decease."

This is probably the Henry who married married Sarah Hardacre, both of this parish by Banns on 11 January 1814 at Bolton by Bowland,  by Richd Dawson, Rector, Witn: Chrisr Hardacre and ***Wilkinson.  As we know he was a widower by 1830, his wife was probably the Sarah Inskip, buried at Holden Chapel in 1827.

Ellin Inskip married Richard Marsden on 1 January 1795 at Waddington, four years after the baptism of her son Henry.  Her father, Richard Inskip, mentioned in his will, dated 2 April 1807, his daughter, Ellin, the wife of Richard Marsden but it appears from the will that the father of Henry was called Hartley.  Richard Inskip, otherwise Harrison, is presumably the eldest son of Jane Inskip and Benjamin Harrison; we know his baptism date but not his birth date.  However, Jane's sister Ann had an illegitimate son called Richard baptised in 1783 whose father's name is not yet known.  Margaret the daughter of Richard and Betty Inskip of Bolton by Bowland, was baptised at Bolton by Bowland on 15 July 1827. The only Richard I know who was alive in 1827 and old enough to be a father was the illegitimate son of Ann born in 1783, who would be aged 44.

Note 8.  Miscellaneous Inskip Records

An early Inksip record from Mitton that is not included in the tree is shown above:

George P’kinson of Sladbourne parish & Alise Inskipe of the parish of Mytton by virtue of a Lisence maried, 24 June 1633.


The recent publication of Clitheroe registers by the Lancashire Parish Register Society shows another very early record which was found only in the bishops' transcripts.


John Inskippe married Elizabethe Herde in February 1610.


A further record has turned up at Kirkby Malham in the Yorkshire Dales. The connection of this to the tree above is not known.


Elizabeth Ann Inskip, 27, spinster, dressmaker of Airton, daughter of Henry Inskip, coachman, married Edward Armstrong, aged 26, bachelor, farmer of Malham, son of Matthew Armstrong, a smith, on 13 April 1871, in the presence of David Denby and Mary Jane Roberts.

I am grateful to Reg Postlethwaite for the following information from a church census at Bolton-by-Bowland at Christmas 1829:

At Nook there were Richard and Betty Inskip, weaver with seven children, youngest aged 2.
At Baygate was Herny Inskip, with two in the family
At next property Nancy Inskip with one in the family
At Priestbiggins, Thomas and Nancy Inskip with two children, four in the family in total

 

Links

There is now an Inskip One Name Study Site.

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