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Johanna, uxor Georgii Kaye, of Nether Thong, sepult. 2 Dec. 1558. Elizabeth Kaye, of Wolfestones, buried 25 April, 1595.

William, son of William Kaye, of Thong, buried 10 Jan. 1619-20. Mary, wife of John Kaye, of Nether Thong, buried 9 Nov. 1623. Helena, wife of William Kaye, of Nether Thong, buried 17 Nov. 1637.

William, son of William Kaye, of Nether Thong, buried 19 May, 1648.

William Kaye, of Nether House, juxta Thongsbridge, sepult. 17 May, 1649.

Maria, filia Johannis Kaye, Curat. de Meltham, sepult. 26 May, 1717. Johannes Kaye, Curat. de Meltham, sepult. 26 Dec. 1723.

Of John Kaye (baptised 1 Aug. 1679) it is stated in the Register that he afterwards became Incumbent (curate) of Meltham. He, however, seems to have resided on his paternal estate at Nether Thong during his tenure of this office, which he entered upon in 1710. A flat stone in the churchyard at Almondbury bears the following inscription :

"Here lyeth the body of the Reverend Mr. John Kaye
late Curate of Meltham, who died Dec. 24th, in the
45th year of his age. Año Dпi. 1723."

BERRY OF NETHER THONG AND DEANHOUSE.

The name of Berry is of some antiquity in the district. We find a family of this name residing at Hagg, in the township of Honley, immediately adjoining to Nether Thong, in the reign of Elizabeth. Leonard Burrye in the 12 Eliz. (1569) purchased his farm of his landlord, Sir Robert Stapleton of Wighill, near York. The date of the deed is Oct. 20, 1569, and it is worthy of a brief notice from the rights and reservations contained in it.

Sir Robert Stapleton, Lord of the Manor of Honley and Netherton, grants for the sum of £20 5s. Od. to Leonard Burrye, his heirs, &c., one messuage and tenement with ten closes of land at Hagg, with the barn and outbuildings, &c., together with free common for all manner of Beasts and Cattle through the Waste Moores and Commons of Honley and Netherton: also with Housebote, Heynebote (? Hedgebote), Plowebote, Cartbote and fyerbote, to be taken and had upon such woods, places and grounds, and in such sorts. and order as herein specified: also the right of Turbary over the said Waste lands. It is stipulated that if there

shall be sufficient timber growing upon the lands here granted, for necessary buildings and repairs, it shall be lawful for the said Leonard Berrye, &c., to cut it down for housebote, &c., and in default of such timber, he is to have full power and authority from time to time to take sufficient great timber upon the Moors and Wastes of Honley and Netherton. The said Sir Robert Stapleton having his officer resident in the Manor, to whom notice having been given, if after the space of one month he does not appoint the same, it is then lawful for the said Leonard Barrye to take the same at his pleasure. The said officer to deliver the said Housebote or Timber-wood as often as shall be required, also Hedgebote, Plowebote, Cartbote and Fyerbote, as often as required, "making no waste or spoyle."

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Power is granted to "digge and get wall stone and slayte for building on the premises," "Leonard Barrye to pay annually to Sir Robert Stapleton the sum of seven shillings and four pence at Christmas and Midsummer in equal payments." When Sir Robert Stapleton shall lawfully be charged in his proper person to serve the Queen, or her successors of the Realm, in any wars within the Realm or without, the said Leonard Burye to bear his proportion according as the other Inhabitants of Honley and Netherton, equally assessed according to the township of Meltham." "If the said Sir Robert Stapleton be not obliged to go to the war, in his proper person, the said Leonard Burye, not receiving a written discharge from Sir Robert Stapleton, yet if the township of Meltham be not charged with any assessment or Services towards the war, this present covenant shall be void." The said Leonard Burye and his heirs, &c., are bound to make suyte to the Corne Milne of the said Sir Robert Stapleton, within the lordship of Honley, with all manner of Corne and graine grown and used upon the said premises now granted, the same being well ground and for reasonable Moulter and in due season from time to time. The said Leonard maintaining, repairing, and upholding his part and proportion of the said Corne Milne Dame, at his and their proper cost, when they shall be reasonably required, and shall also suffer the water to have free course to the Fulling Milnes of the said Sir Robert Stapleton, as heretofore."

Leonard Berry and Elizabeth Greene mar. at Kirkburton 5 June, 1569.

Leonard Berry was succeeded by his son "Thomas Berry, of Hagg," who died in 1614, and his wife Alice in 1617. A Richard Berry of the same place was buried at Almondbury, Nov. 18, 1626, and we find also mention in 1610 of Andrew Berry of Hagg, who probably was a brother of the

above.

At Deanhouse-a short distance from the Hagg, and like it situated on the Deanbrook-there was also a Thomas Berrye, who was buried at Almondbury, Feb. 2, 1623, where his wife Elizabeth was interred Jan. 5, 1624. He was succeeded by Leonard, his son, (bap. at Almondbury, June 24, 1594,) who had issue and who was living in 1630.

There was a Godfrey Berrye of Deanhouse in 1658. Another branch of the family settled at Thongsbridge, viz. Edward Berrye, who in 39 Elizabeth held lands and tenements in the township of Wooldale near Thongsbridge, which had been devised to him by his father, William Berrye, deceased. He also held a close of land in the same township, which had been previously granted to him by Sir Cotton Gargrave, knight, deceased, to the use and behoof of Elizabeth Berrye, one of the daughters of the said Edward Berrye, and James Haigh (the son of James Haigh de la Hurste) on their marriage, &c. These lands seem to have lain contiguous to the Berry-Banks Road, which acquired its name from this family.

NEWTON OF MOOR GATE, IN NETHER THONG.

This family was a branch of the Newtons of Stackwood Hill in Fulstone. The following notices are extracted from the Registers of Almondbury and Kirkburton :—

Robert, son of William Newton, bapt. 17 Aug. 1633.

William, son of John Newton, of Stackwood Hill, bapt. 22 Jan. 1689.

William Newton, of Stackwood Hill, parish of Kirkburton, and Lydia Wordsworth, of Almondbury, mar. 23 June, 1717.

John Newton, of this parish (Almondbury), gentleman, and Hannah Woodhead, of the parish of Huddersfield, mar. by licence 2 June, 1748. Mr. John Newton, of Thongsbridge, widower, and Mary Walker, of Honley, spinster, mar. by licence 16 Dec. 1762.

John Newton, bur. (at Kirkburton) 14 Jan. 1637-8.

Robert, son of Samuel Newton, of Nether Thong, bur. (at Almondbury) 14 Jun. 1650,

William Newton, of Netherthong, bur. 8 Oct. 1661.
John Newton, of Stackwood Hill, bur. 15 Dec. 1736.
William Newton, of Stackwood Hill, bur. 27 Jan. 1758.
Joshua Newton, of Stackwood Hill, bur. 8 Feb. 1762.

We have already seen that in 17 James (1619), William Newton of Stackwood Hill, purchased land in Nether Thong from Godfrey Beaumont, and that further purchases were made from the Kaye family in 1649 and 1650.

In 1686 Jonas Newton, son of William Newton, alienated the estate. By indenture made between Jonas Newton of Nether Thong, yeoman, of the one part, and Henry Jackson of Totties, in Wooldale, and Elizabeth, his eldest daughter, on the other part, he conveyed to the said Henry Jackson and Elizabeth, his daughter, the messuage called Moorgate in Nether Thong, with barn, &c., gardens, &c., and certain closes of land called The Whinns or Whinny Close, The Over Oxclose, The Nether Oxclose, The Over Westfield, The Nether Westfield, The Over Brownhill, The Nether Brownhill, and the Whinney Reape,

"together with all parcells of land, heath, Waste or wasteground enclosed or unenclosed, Common of pasture, Turberie, Estovers, Mynes, Quarreys, Wayes, Water, Watercourses, &c., Woods, libertyes and Rentes, Chief rents, Services, Fines, Amersements, Royalties, Franchises, Jurisdictions, Court fees and perquisites of Court, waiver, estreats, Warrents, reliefs, Escheats, Fishings, profits, commodities, Emoluments and hereditaments whatsoever to the said Messuage belonging, in Nether Thong, or within the village of Meltham."

This reference to the village of Meltham (which is indicated also in the deed of 1649 above mentioned) probably arises from the fact that the lands of that township and of Nether Thong were not clearly defined at that particular place.

On the marriage of Elizabeth Jackson to Gervas Seaton of Blythe in the co. of Nottingham, she released to Henry Jackson (her father) for the sum of £600 all her right and title to the freehold lands in Nether Thong, &c., by deed dated 16 Oct., 1693. The estate passed by will to Abel Jackson, the third son of the above-named Henry; but by indenture dated 14 Feb., 1715, made between Abel Jackson of London, gentleman, and Elihu Jackson of Doncaster in the co. of York, gentleman, the former granted the estate with all its privileges to the said Elihu Jackson, his eldest brother.

VOL. XIII,

P

On the extreme western edge of the township we come to the Hamlet of Greave. This probably comprises about 250 acres of land; it is bounded by Upper Thong on the south, by Meltham on the west and south-west, and by Honley on the north. The hamlet is of ancient origin, and the estate vested for several generations in the family of Shaw, of Honley Wood-nook, from whom it was purchased by the late Joseph Hirst, Esq., of Wilshaw, whose ancestors had long held property at Lower Greave. His extensive alterations and improvements combine to impress the observer with the conviction that this is indeed a "model village."

We

We must however revert to its ancient condition. have already given a charter of 38 Ed. III. (1363) in which mention is made of "Thong-greve:" and we have seen that William and Thomas Gudman, whose names appear in the Poll-tax Rolls of 1379, were probably the owners of this estate. But from the reign of Rich. II. till the latter part of the reign of Elizabeth, we meet with no further allusion to the Greave or its owners. We get, however, an interesting glimpse of its surroundings from an ancient document, formerly in the possession of the late Joseph Green Armytage, Esq., of Thickhollins. We are informed by the Rev. J. Hughes (History of Meltham, p. 213) that this charter was a grant from Edw. III. to John de Thickhollyns, empowering him to cut wood in the Willow Shoe or Shaw. This (now known as the Wilshaw) was waste until the enclosure of the commons in 1817. It is in immediate proximity to Greave, and we may gather that in the 14th century it was well wooded and well watered.

In 1594, we find Robert Shaw, then of the Greave, where he remained till his death in 1626. His successor was Thomas Shaw, probably his son, who however died in the following year. Contemporary (or nearly so) with these was Henry Shaw of Honley Wood-nook, and in this family the property remained (as we have seen) till recent days. Extracts from Register:

Jana, filia Roberti Shaw, de Thong Greve, bapt. 1 Dec. 1594.
Sara, filia Henrici Shaw, de Greave, bapt. 3 Feb. 1638-9.

1649-50.

tta, uxor Henrici Shaw, de Thong Greave, sepult. 19 March,

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