Louis and I were surveying a pipeline across the flat Lincolnshire farmlands, staying at a bed and
breakfast place in Great Barford, close to Bedford, when the news arrived. After that we worked
just about non-stop through occasionally atrocious weather to finish the job then get back to
Billinge for the funeral. In doing so we just about killed our Colombian workmate and passed through
the best English countryside that I can remember seeing. We worked straight across farmland, following
the pipeline, which is not something that anyone can do with immunity, passing through or close by many tiny
villages and isolated farm buildings. Often a farmhouse dwelling pre dates the villages, which were often
built to house workers after the tenant farms were established. In the course of walking from Market Rasen
to Bedford, by a more or less direct route, we passed through much that is more or less unique to England.
In the interim before the service we tracked down my father's long-lost cousin, Sally Margaret Hargreaves,
formally Sally Morley, in that typical Lancashire mill-town of Nelson, snuggled against the outposts of
moorlands, stretching eastward into Yorkshire. She told us the stories that her mother, Eleanor, had passed
on to her and they dovetailed into those my grandfather had told to me, making the hazy mosaic of our
mutual history more complete and tangible. She solved the mystery of one of the unidentified photographs
in my grandmother's album. It turned out that the sepia toned image, printed on cardboard, was my great
grandmother, Sara Taylor. That critical scrap of information alone would have made the trip worthwhile but
being with Sally was a pleasure in itself. We learned that she has a son living in Brazil and that Leo
Taylor's widow, Eira, lives in the tiny village of Beddgelert, in central Wales. Next day we went there.
There was snow on the Welsh Mountains, making them stand out vividly against a clear blue sky. All in all
the scenery was breathtaking. Beddgelert sits at the foot of Mount Snowdon, at the juction of two mountain
streams, where Prince Llewelyn so tragically killed his faithful wolfhound in the thirteenth century. The
dog's grave is a matter of legend made tangible. There's an old church there with parts dating back to Celtic
Christianity. Leo, my father's cousin, died last year, before I discovered the whereabouts of this family
branch. His widow is a native of Beddgelert. I was to discover from her that Leo had been a mountaineer, a
mountain guide, a ski instructor and an authority on Snowdon's flora. He had even climbed the Matterhorn.
His ashes were scattered in the Gwynedd Valley, at the spot where tourists stop to take a photograph when
they visit the National Park in which Snowdon stands. We walked around the village with his twenty-one year
old son, a quiet boy with sandy hair and faraway eyes. It was peaceful and very moving. The service was
held at Saint James', where great aunt Cecily's brother-in-law, Cannon Baybutt, had been parish priest
for twenty-six years. From there the proceedings moved to St. Luke's, where his body was buried. It turned
out to be a bitterly cold day, confirming, once again, that whatever family and friends survive me will not
be subjected to same ordeal: the sight of my poor old aunt, hobbling the hundred yards or so from the church
to the grave, to listen to more mumbo jumbo in the rain, then toss a pinch of sand in the general direction of
the coffin, saddened me far more than the passing of a man who lived for close on a century. Those undertakers
surely are on a winner - if I can arrange it so, they will gain nothing from my passing. Three days after the
funeral, on the twentieth of April 2000, Louis flew back to New Zealand. With my father and son both out of
the picture there did not seem to be any great urgency in pursuing local history. Events, however, took on their
own impetus in the form of a photograph that Keith Roby's wife Jean had discovered. It depicted a Methodist
walking day procession, coming up Longshaw Old Road. The triangle of land behind the Hare & Hounds
was vacant in this photograph but obviously the stone wall on the right, looking down towards Park Road, had
been recently constructed. My thoughts were that if I could discover the construction date of that wall I would
be able to make an educated guess as to which of our Roby ancestors might be among the spectators watching the
procession. That land had belonged to the Mather family. Ten minutes after climbing off his tractor, in the yard
at Wiswall Farm, Charles Mather handed me a printed document that his brother Hugh had compiled in 1993.
That document is reproduced below, with apologies to Hugh for the editing out obvious typographic mistakes
and making slight adjustment.
INTRODUCTION.
These notes on the history of the family are a compilation of facts and stories obtained from various
people, of whom the most important have been Mrs Frances Hunt (from notes recorded around 1969), Miss Betty
Wright and my mother, Mrs Edith Mather. I am particularly indebted to Mrs Margaret Whittle and Rev
Tom Steel for information about the Mather family in the 18th Century and before. It is intended to
enlarge it further, as more details become available. I have extended it forwards to include people who
have died fairly recently, but have included few details of people who are still alive - that is a task
for future generations. My purpose is to set down a permanent record of the family history, up to around
1950, for the interest both of our successors and ourselves. (Hugh Mather 30/3/1993)
PART ONE - PRIOR TO 1850.
Rev Tom Steel, Vicar of Prescot, has undertaken a comprehensive survey of the Mather family in the
17th-18th Centuries and virtually all my information is gained directly from his research. The first
reference is in 1604, when Margaret Mather is mentioned as an 'old recusant' and in 1607, when Richard
Mather is given a lease of land from the Gerard estate. It is not clear whether they are direct ancestors,
but it seems likely from the references both to recusancy, the leasing of land from the Gerard Estate and
indeed their Christian names (see below).
RICHARD (16??-1672) AND MARGARET MATHER.
A Richard Mather is the earliest family member who can be traced with reasonable certainty. His date of
birth is unknown. In 1654 he obtained a lease of 'the Long Croft' in Billinge from the Gerard Estate. He
paid £160 to James Anderton of Birchley for various properties, including the 'Longe Hayes, the Oxcroft,
the two Clay Crofts, the Makeins Hey, the Makeins Lane and the Oven House Hey'. Richard was elected
constable of Billinge and Winstanley in 1659. In 1661/2 he is described as yeoman and credited with
giving one shilling as a 'free and voluntary present' to Charles II. He is recorded as occupying 18 acres
in Billinge. The family links with recusancy are shown by a deed from 1665 relating Billinge Chapel,
which names one Peter Mather (possibly Richard's son) 'if he be and continues a member of the C of E'.
Richard was buried at Wigan on 13/3/1672 and his widow, Margaret, was buried on 5/4/1680. He had
at least three children, namely Peter and Richard, born in or before 1651, and Francis, born by 1660/1.
Our line of the family comes through his second son, Richard.
RICHARD (c1651-1733) AND ELIZABETH.
Richard Mather was born around 1651. He married his wife, Elizabeth, before 1682 and had four children,
namely Margaret, baptised in Wigan in 1682, Thomas, born c1686, John, and Anne, born c1688. He took a
new lease of 'The Long Croft' from the Gerard Estate and this lease was renewed in 1715. The 'Return of
Papists' of 1705 details him as being a Roman Catholic. In Estcourt and Payne's English Catholic
Non-jurors, he is referred to as Richard Mather of Billinge, yeoman. He had a £5 annuity 'out of a
house tenanted by their Protestant son Thomas'. In 1717 he is recorded as holding 19 acres in Billinge,
leased from the Gerard's. He made his will in 1717, in which his property includes the 'Miln House',
'Chaddocks Ground' and 'the little house called Jennetts'. Richard died in 1733 and was buried at
Wigan in June. His inventory survives. Elizabeth, his widow, died in 1745 and was buried at Wigan on
4/11/1745.
THOMAS (c1686-1745) AND HANNAH.
Thomas was the second child of Richard and Elizabeth, born c1686. Both his parents were Roman Catholic
but he had become a Protestant by 1715. Thomas was a court attorney and bailiff. On 4/6/1709 Wigan
Court heard the petition of 'Mr Thomas Mather of Wigan to elect him attorney and choose him burgess'.
He was duly elected burgess, was bailiff of court in 1709 and attorney from 1716-9. He married Hannah
Rawlinson on 22/8/1726 by licence at Farnworth. At that time he is described as a 'gentleman, 35, of
Billinge'- this would make his birthdate to be c1689. Hannah was the younger daughter of Peter
Rawlinson, a yeoman of Farnworth and Newton and his wife Hannah (nee Dennis). In 1726 he is detailed
as holding one acre of the Gerard's estate in Newton. He also seems to have acquired property in
Newton through his marriage, notably those named 'Pepper Alley' and 'Crow Lane'. He is described as
a 'gentleman' in 1727-1736 and as a 'yeoman' in 1743. He attended every Annual Vestry Meeting at
Billinge except two, from 1718-1744. He died in 1745, five months before his mother, and was
buried at Wigan on 28/5/1745, when he is described as 'Mr Thomas Mather of Billinge, Attorney'.
Hannah, his wife, lived on until at least 1769. In 1760 she is recorded as paying rents for the
Newton properties, left to her by her father, Peter Rawlinson (who died in 1749 and was buried at
Winwick on 5/7/1749). Hannah died between 1769 and 1781 and was probably buried in Wigan. Thomas
and Hannah had seven children, all baptised at Billinge. Elizabeth, the eldest, was baptised on
17/8/1727. Subsequent children were Alice (1729), John and Margaret (1731), James (1733),
Thomas (1736) and Richard (1743). Our line of the Mather family comes through James, their
fourth child. That of Rev Tom Steel passes through Elizabeth, who married John Hodgkinson, a
weaver, in Wigan in 1748.
JAMES (1733-1802) AND ANN.
James was born in 1733 and probably married Ann Berrington of Rainford at Wigan in 1765. As
yet, little is known of him. He is described as a Billinge yeoman and died in 1802. James and Ann
had several children, namely Thomas (1767), Ann (1768), Joshua (1769), James (1771), John (1772),
Tabitha (1774), William (1776), Peter (1778) and Sarah (1781). Our line of family passes through
Joshua. Of the other children, James is described in the 1841 census as a cotton weaver at Birchley
Gate and Peter is listed as an 'independent' at School Brow.
JOSHUA (1769-c1850) AND 'PEGGY' (MARGARET).
Joshua, the third child of James and Ann Mather, was born in 1769. His first child, Richard,
was illegitimate, born circa 1801 to Peggy Mather, who subsequently married Joshua on 23/08/1805.
Little is known of the ancestry of Peggy, whose maiden name was also Mather. They then had 9 more
children. In 1841 he is recorded in the Census as living at Fir Tree House, as a farmer and
shopkeeper. He was alive in 1852, when he helped to administer the Estate of William Ainsworth.
The latter, a grandson of Peter Rawlinson, had become a wealthy Liverpool merchant. On his death in
1807 his Estate was left to trustees to benefit his mentally handicapped brother, Thomas. When
Thomas Ainsworth died in 1848, Joshua, his second cousin and next-of-kin, administered the Estate.
It was divided into 10 parts and many of the extended Mather family benefited from it. The ten
children of Joshua and Margaret Mather were: Richard (1801), Betty (1806), Ann (1808), James (1811),
Sarah(1813), Margaret(1815), Mary(1817), Ellen(1819), Joshua(1821), Peter(1831) and William (date of
birth unknown). Our line of the family passes through the first born, Richard. The sixth child,
Margaret, married Francis Crank in Wigan in 1866 and the Crank family, including Margaret Crank,
now Whittle, who assisted with this research, is thus related to the Mathers.
RICHARD (1802-1874) AND ELLEN.
Richard Mather was born in 1802, the first and illegitimate son of Joshua and Margaret ('Peggy')
Mather. He was baptised at Billinge in 1802 as the illegitimate son of Peggy Mather. His exact
parentage is thus slightly obscure, but in Joshua's will he is referred to as 'my illegitimate son'.
Richard was a carter. He married Ellen Stephenson (born circa 1811) in 1833. She was a seamstress
who came from Dittons Prior, Farnworth, near Widnes. Richard is said to have met her while carting
stone to Widnes. It is reported that Richard saw her sewing in a window when collecting water for his
horse and threw the water away to have another look. The table at which she was sitting is now the
possession of Betty Wright. When they married, they 'made their mark' in the parish register,
evidently being illiterate. In the Baptism register, their residence is given as Billinge until 1837,
but after that they are said to live in Winstanley. In the 1841 Census, they are recorded as living
at Flint Cottages, Winstanley. Richard and Ellen had several children, namely Joshua born 1834 and
Margaret born 1837 (named after their paternal grandparents), James born 1842 (died in childhood),
Hugh born 28/01/1844, Richard born 1845, and William, who was born around 1852. In the 1851 Census,
the family is recorded as living at Chapel Brow, Billinge. Richard is described as a stone delf
labourer and he is said to have worked for James Melling at some stage. In addition to their four
children living at that time, they had four lodgers, three of whom were colliery labourers. By the
1861 Census, Richard is described as a shopkeeper, again on Chapel Brow. Whether this is the same
shop run later by Hugh and Elizabeth is unclear. By 1871, Richard and Ellen are living with one
lodger on Chapel Brow. Richard is described as an agricultural labourer. Richard (the father) died
on 23/12/1874, aged 73, and Ellen (his wife) died on 24/06/1874 aged 64. The three youngest children
of Richard and Ellen (Hugh, Richard and William) survived to adult life, as did Joshua, the oldest
child. The latter was living at 28 Holy Fold in the 1871 Census, with his wife Mary. Later, he
lived at the Pingot and was remembered by Auntie Nelly as 'Uncle Joshua'. Hugh married Elizabeth
Peet and they and their offspring are the main theme of this leaflet. Richard (his brother) was an
engine driver. He was killed in a colliery accident when aged about twenty-seven. William went to
live in Walton, to work as an engine driver and raised a large family based in Crosby.
PART TWO. HUGH MATHER (1844-1912) AND ELIZABETH PEET ONWARDS.
The modern history of the extended Mather family begins with this couple. They are the common
ancestors of the Mather, Wright, Laithwaite and Hunt families and are the first ancestors of whom
photographs survive. Hugh was born on 26/01/1844. He married Elizabeth Peet on 29/10/1866, when both
were aged twenty-two. His occupation in the 1861 Census, when he was aged seventeen, was given as
blacksmith. On his marriage certificate he is stated as being an engine driver. He worked at Sammy
Stocks' pit at Blackleyhurst. He is said to have liked music and met Elizabeth when playing in a band
at a school treat in Rainford. Elizabeth Peet was born in 1845 at Atherton House Farm, Winstanley Road.
She was the illegitimate daughter of Sally Peet, aged 21, a maid at Winstanley Hall, and James Nicholson.
The latter came from Scotland. He was one of several Nicholson brothers who managed Bankes Estate.
They seem to have been notably prolific. In the 1841 Census, William and Ann Nicholson are recorded as
living at Atherton House Farm. Their children (and ages in 1841) are recorded as William (25), Phoebe
(25), Mary (20), John (20) and Robert (27?). No son named James is recorded, making the identity of
Elizabeth's father slightly unclear. James and Alice Peet are recorded as farmers in Winstanley in 1841.
They may be forbears of Sally Peet. Elizabeth Peet was brought up at Crank by 'Yorkshire Charlie', whose
real name was Charles Howarth. They lived in a cottage, since demolished, which was opposite the Pendlebury
Chapel in Crank. He is said to have worked in the quarries in Crank Caverns and helped to construct the
UpHolland railway tunnel. He married the aunt of Elizabeth, had no children of his own, but brought up his
illegitimate niece. She claimed to have had only sixpence in her pocket at the time of her wedding. After
their marriage in 1866, Hugh and Elizabeth initially lived at 6 Beacon Road, in a cottage since demolished.
It was one of three built at right angles to the road, as the road dips, on the left hand side going towards
Billinge Hill. They were still living there in 1871. They subsequently moved to 52 Main Street, close to the
'Old House at Home', where Elizabeth ran a shop to supplement Hugh's earnings. She was extremely
hard-working, thrifty and ambitious. The shop sold provisions (bread, cakes etc.) for miners. She is
said to have risen at five a.m. to obtain water from the pump, situated in what is now Bankes Park, to start
baking scones. She walked to St Helens to obtain supplies for her shop. They are said to have run the first
post office in Billinge. Hugh subsequently became a contractor and employed Irish workers, to whom he sold
provisions from the shop run by his wife, Elizabeth. They had a family of six children, namely Charles, born
1868, Richard, Sarah Ellen (Nellie), Mary ('Polly), Elizabeth (Bessie), and Charlotte ('Lottie'). Their eldest
son, Charles, married Mary Ann Simm from 52 Main St in 1888. In the 1891 Census, the children living there
were Richard (19), medical student, Sarah Ellen (17) dressmaker, Mary (13) and Charlotte (11). At some
time afterwards, Hugh and Elizabeth moved across the road, to run the Stork Inn and the farm attached,
which they rented from the Bankes Estate. It is probable that money from the Simm family, after Charles'
marriage to Mary Ann, played an important part in this venture. The Stork was very prosperous.
Large parties were held there for travelling merchants. It was a resting venue between Liverpool and
Manchester. One early visitor was Lord Leverhulme. Elaborate meals were served and the small farm,
attached to the Stork, was used to provide food. The four daughters helped to run the Inn, working as
barmaids. The venture must have been very successful because they had saved enough capital to build
the 'Red Knob Row' of houses in Newton Road (number 2 onwards), in 1903. Elizabeth was always the dominant
partner, being remarkably industrious and ambitious. Her husband, Hugh, was a kindly man and a good father
but was much more passive and easy-going than his wife. He had a sandy beard, much in evidence in old
photographs. He was a member of Billinge Council for many years, a Government Official, having been the
assessor of taxes for over 30 years and the land valuation officer. He was a sidesman at Billinge Church for
many years. He died on 13/07/12, aged sixty-eight, from pneumonia after working in the hay on the farm at
the Stork. Hs obituary in the Wigan Observer states that 'he was a man who was very well known not only in
Billinge, where he had had many interests for more than a generation, but also throughout the Wigan
district. He was greatly respected and his funeral proceedings were most impressive'. Elizabeth lived her
final years at Longshaw House. She moved there with her daughter 'Auntie Nelly' and the Wright family
(William and Polly, with their three young sons), presumably soon after the death of her husband in 1912.
By the time Betty Wright was born, in 1914, the extended family was living at Longshaw House. Elizabeth
initially rented Longshaw House from the Bankes, and the family subsequently bought it. In addition to the
Wright family, Elizabeth and her daughter Nellie, Miss Emma Cadman also lived there. She was the illegitimate
daughter of a man named Cadman who owned a local quarry. She also had Nicholson blood, was a cousin of
Elizabeth and regarded as part of the family. She was presumably a descendent of Canon Cadman, who was born
at Longshaw House on 13/5/1815. He became a Canon of Canterbury Cathedral, Chaplain to the Archbishop of
Canterbury, Vicar of St Marylebone and died on 12/5/1891. Miss Cadman had been well educated at a private
school, was rather genteel and taught the piano. Elizabeth was a forceful, determined and extremely ambitious
lady and was very much the head of the 'extended' Mather family. Her grandchildren were rather frightened
of her. Perhaps her drive dated back to her childhood, as an illegitimate girl and virtual orphan, in
Mid-Victorian England. Perhaps her Scottish blood, from her father James Nicholson, also played an important
part. She frequently claimed to be writing her life story, in her old age, but this never materialized. She
was clearly a very remarkable lady, who founded an equally remarkable extended family, and rose to a position
of wealth and influence within the local community, from entirely humble origins. She died at Longshaw House
on 6/6/1933, aged eighty-eight. Her obituary in the Wigan Observer describes her as 'one of the best known
and most beloved residents of Billinge'. It refers to her work on behalf of Billinge Parish Church and
states that her gracious manner endeared her to all who knew her. At her request, her eight grandsons carried
her coffin from Longshaw House to Billinge Church. These were Hugh, David, James and Richard Mather; James,
Hugh and Charles Wright; and Tom Laithwaite. Elizabeth had a full sister, Mary Peet, who was brought up in
Orrell, married a man named Nixon and through whom the family is distantly related to several local
families, including the Rylance, Gaskell, Anderton, Barton and Nixon families. She also may have had
another sister named Betsy. Their mother, Sarah ('Sally') Peet then married a man named John Topping, who
came from a Catholic family and made gravestones. John Topping died on 25/1/1890, aged seventy. They had a
son, Tommy Topping, who was the father of the family of window cleaners and who died on 4/10/32 aged
seventy-seven. Sally died aged ninety-one at the Grapes Inn, Orrell on 3/2/1915, being thus born around
1824. She is buried at St James Catholic Church, Orrell, with her husband and her son. Mary Nixon's daughter,
Alice, married a man named Winnard, and they ran the Grapes Inn at Orrell. They had a famous parrot in the
bar, which attracted much custom by calling 'Drink up, time gentleman please!' All three Peet sisters lived
well into their eighties.
THE 'CLAREMONT' BRANCH OF THE MATHER FAMILY.
RICHARD OSWALD MATHER'R.O.', or 'Old Uncle Richard' the second child of Hugh and Elizabeth Mather,
was born around 1870. He was bright and benefited from his mother's determination to make him succeed.
He travelled daily to Wigan Grammar School, walking to Pemberton then catching a train. He subsequently
studied medicine at Newcastle and qualified from Durham, although he obtained an Edinburgh qualification
(LRCP, LRCS), in the early 1890's. His achievement in qualifying in medicine from a very humble
background is thought to have been due in no small measure to the drive of his mother. He wrote a MD thesis
on Psoriasis (or Acromegaly) and obtained the DPH diploma. He also had some postgraduate training in
ophthalmology. He worked in Billinge for the remainder of his life. He initially practised in the shop in
Main Street but subsequently moved the practice to Chapel House, Newton Road, and later to Claremont, which
previously had a small schoolroom which he bought from the Bankes family. He was Medical Officer of Health
to Billinge from March 1896 to 1932 when his nephew James took over the post. He was also Medical Officer
at Billinge Hospital for many years, assisted latterly by his two nephews, David and James. He married a
Catholic girl named Annie Alker, who hailed from a farm in Winstanley Road, at Brompton Oratory. This met
with opposition from his parents, in keeping with the bigotry of those times. His wife was a sophisticated
and proud lady but the marriage was not a total success. They had three children, Burgha, Richard and
Phyllis. Richard Oswald, a kind and cultured gentleman, was very highly regarded. He travelled around the
practice initially in a pony and trap. In later life he always had a chauffeur and wore a morning coat. He
was treated with considerable respect by the rest of the family, being referred to as 'Uncle Doctor'. He was
an intelligent man, with various intellectual pursuits, including languages. His wife died on 21/1/41 and
is buried at St Mary's, Birchley. After his retirement, 'Old RO' lived in a bungalow adjacent to Claremont,
where he was looked after by his daughter Burgha. He died on 11/2/61. Burgha was his eldest child. She was
brought up as a Catholic, married a man named Pennington, and lived for many years in a bungalow next to
Claremont. She looked after her father, 'RO', for the last decade of his life. She is still alive,
in the Sue Ryder home in Billinge. She had no children. Richard was brought up as Church of England
and educated at Brighton College. He studied medicine at Durham and latterly at Liverpool, having had
some problems in passing his finals. He married Betty, a dancer, who he had met whilst a student in
Newcastle. He lived at Claremont for many years and was in the family practice for several decades.
He was a kind man, who had more than his share of misfortune over the years. He lived to the age of
over 80 and towards the end of his life lived in Newton Road. Phyllis is the youngest child of 'RO'.
She married Frank Bateman, a student friend of Richard. He became a GP in Leeds but died suddenly,
when still relatively young. They had two children, Julia and Philip. She subsequently married her cousin
James Wright.
