I Was Buying About 60 Pages of Settle Court Rolls Every Month Or So. I Sent Them to Brooke

Hi Mike,

I was buying about 60 pages of Settle court rolls every month or so. I sent them to Brooke Westcott () who now has a website (Google “Brooke Westcott”).He retired a couple of years ago and gave up transcriptions in favour of family history, that being completed he has re-started and wants work. Brooke is by far the best, quickest, most economic, friendliest and most able of all the transcribers I have worked with. I was not concerned with lists of names just land deals and so forth but the lists are easily read from the Latin.

Brooke returned all the copies a couple of years ago and I gave them to Phil & Rita who said they would photocopy them and return a copy so I could work on the lists etc. They haven’t. I gave all the transcriptions to them years ago. Somehow the photocopied originals need to be returned to someone who can fill in the gaps.

That said, there are many more at Chatsworth. I have forgotten the name of the archivist I visited and subsequently liaised with; he, in turn, forgot where we were with copying. So a bit of a mess! All I can suggest is that someone gets hold of the copies, drives to Chatsworth and sits down with the archivist to work out where we are. The rolls are not in order but the people there are very helpful and friendly. There is a charge for everything of course, it’s a business. I think, based on the original estimate, we were about 2/3rds of the way through but that estimate stopped at 1640.

I have no idea what it all has cost, I have spent thousands so be careful. I was given a grant of £1200 that went in no time but includes the legal cases and so forth that Brooke transcribed plus a computer and EndNote programme. I think you have the Middleton tithe case and the Catterall case.If not I can pull them out. What is harder for people to discover will be the associated information I found, for example Catterall was executed following the attempt on the King at Wakefield, his lands were confiscated but restored by Henry VII. He bought (or re-bought) Rathmell from a married female (nee Flemming) as shown in the published feet of fines (without the Flemming). There is a lot on the family on the disk and a search will bring them out. Also I found that Thomas Cromwell, “anticipating” the dissolution proposed to buy Giggleswick Rectory (it is in Letters and Papers copies of which are on the disk). Most of the Somerscales transcriptions (wills and Inquisitions Post Mortem) are located somewhere on the “somerscales.org” site. I have paper copies of the originals at home, they are not on the disk. They can come to you eventually.

I have a collection of all the Craven parish registers available on disk (YPRS and WFHS). These might be useful to people who visit you and if you want them I can box them up and drop them off when I can drive safely again.

If you have anything on dissenters (1585 ish to 1675 ish) especially the Watsons of Langcliffe (imprisoned for it) I would appreciate a nod, especially if it involves Roger Brierley (Brearly) or his family, Aglen, the Tennant family or “Grindletonians”. Brooke is transcribing a small book of Brierley’s (previously not done, although there are extracts) and I plan on publishing it. If I don’t have time, do you know anyone who shares an interest in dissent and/or the growth of the Quakers in our area who would like my books and papers?

I also have paper copies of the sermons preached by Chris Shute, any good?