(359) Banks of Highmoor House

Banks of Highmoor

In 1800, the Banks family had been weavers at Keswick (Cumbld.) for several generations, but the sons of William Banks (1780-1860) branched out into other industries. The eldest son, Joseph Banks (1807-60) became a successful pencil manufacturer at Keswick, and the firm he founded survived until 1894, when it was taken over by Hogarth & Hayes, whose successors (after many subsequent takeovers) are still in business today at Workington (Cumbld.). Joseph's younger brother, William Banks (1811-78) was initially intended for the family weaving business, but at his own request was sent to London where he obtained a position with a retail draper. In 1835 he returned to Cumbria as manager for the cotton and linen manufacturing and exporting business run by Joseph Hodge (d. 1846) and his sister Jane (d. 1841). Neither of the principals had any children, and on the death of Joseph Hodge he inherited not only the business but also Hodge's villa near Wigton called High Moor (or Highmoor) House. Once in control of the business, William refocused it on the export of clothing to Australia, where the Gold Rush had caused a rapid increase in demand. He opened a warehouse in Melbourne in 1852, and recruited his younger brother, Thomas Donald Banks (1823-54), who went out to Australia as the local manager, although he died soon afterwards. The firm prospered, and William marked his success by the addition of a tall belvedere tower to Highmoor. When he died in 1878, William was a wealthy man (although later reports that he was a millionaire were greatly exaggerated). He had educated his two sons for the law, and both of them were called to the bar. The elder, Henry Pearson Banks (1844-91), maintained a set of chambers in the Temple where he seems to have spent most of his time, although if he had any legal practice it had ceased well before his death. He seems to have had no involvement with his father's business, but he did hold a number of public appointments in Cumberland, which argues that he must have spent some time there. His younger brother, Edwin Hodge Banks (1847-1917) did join the family firm, of which he became senior partner after his father's death and until he retired in 1888. He then devoted himself to public life, and to farming and horse-breeding, in which he achieved considerable success. Unfortunately he also made some unwise investments and became an underwriting member of Lloyds: by 1907 he had accumulated losses of nearly £100,000 from these two sources, and he was made bankrupt the following year. The Highmoor estate was sold, and he was obliged to terminate his public appointments and retire to the south coast, where he lived in very modest circumstances until his death in 1917. Highmoor was sold again soon after his death and was divided into flats in the 1930s.

Highmoor House, Wigton, Cumberland

Highmoor Mansion: the house of 1810 in the foreground, with the tower and extensions of the 1870s and 1880s behind.

The house began as a five bay two storey stuccoed villa with a pediment over the central three bays, built from 1817 onwards for John Hodge and completed by his son, Joseph. This building still forms the east end of the house, but has lost its glazing bars and any period interiors it once possessed and is now painted a distressing Germolene pink. It was enlarged to the west in about 1870 for William Banks, who added a tall Italianate belvedere tower in stone, and enclosed the park with two miles of iron fencing. In 1885-87, his sons made the tower into a folly, raising its height to an excessive 136 feet, and installing a great bell called Big Joe and a full Belgian carillon, housed in an elaborate and frankly rather vulgar superstructure of 'Mixed Renaissance' pedigree.

Highmoor Mansion: the tower favoured by dramatic
lighting. Image: P. Stephenson. Some rights reserved.

They also extended the house further, adding irregular two-storeyed stuccoed ranges that wrap around the base of the tower. The architect is unknown, but may have been Charles Ferguson (who designed the Skinburness Hotel for the family in 1878) or the estate builder, James Henderson, who built the hotel and to whom 'was entrusted the important work of beautifying Highmoor House by the erection of the fine and unique tower' as his obituary put it. He was also responsible for building the two lodges (known as 'Alpha' and 'Omega') on Lowmoor Road to the north, which have applied half-timbering, tile-hanging, rustic bamboo supports for the porches and dragon finials. In 1909 the estate was sold, and the mansion was converted into flats in 1934-35 (renovated in 1972). From the 1930s the grounds have been developed for housing, which now crowds uncomfortably close to the house.

Descent: sold by Mrs. Campbell in 1817 to John Hodge; to son, Joseph Hodge (d. 1846); to William Banks (1811-78); to widow, Sarah Barwise Banks (1813-1901); to son, Edwin Hodge Banks (1847-1917); sold 1909 to Elizabeth Bell, whose trustees leased it, apparently as several properties, and sold 1920 to J. Coulthard of Wigton...sold to Ernest Thompson, property developer, who divided the house into fourteen flats in 1934-35.

Banks family of Highmoor

Banks, William (1780-1860). Fourth and youngest son of Joseph Banks of Keswick (Cumbld.) and his wife Mary, daughter of Abel Grave, baptised at Crosthwaite, 9 June 1780. Woollen manufacturer at Keswick; described as a gentleman at the time of his death. He married, 13 April 1800 at Crosthwaite, Sarah (1783-1856), daughter of John Pearson of Greenside Hall (Cumbld.) and had issue:
(1) Elizabeth Banks (1801-23), born 10 June 1800 and baptised at Crosthwaite, 1 January 1801; died in London, 5 June 1823 and was buried at Islington, 9 June 1823;
(2) Mary Banks (1802-60), baptised at Crosthwaite, 23 May 1802; married, 6 April 1830 at Crosthwaite, Adam Bird (1800-64), and had issue three sons and four daughters; died at Embleton (Cumbld), 23 June 1860;
(3) Dinah Banks (1804-76), baptised at Crosthwaite, 4 November 1804; married, 12 April 1835 at St Leonard, Shoreditch (Middx), John Dunglinson (1791-1860) and has issue two sons and three daughters; died in London, 12 December 1876; will proved 2 January 1877 (effects under £450);
(4) Joseph Banks (1807-60), born 20 June 1807; trained as a weaver but became a pencil manufacturer (Banks, son & Co.) at Keswick from 1833; married 13 June 1829 at Crosthwaite, Ann Raven (1811-71), and had issue two sons and ten daughters; died 2 June 1860 and was buried at Crosthwaite; administration of goods granted to his widow, 6 September 1860 (effects under £3,000);
(5) John Banks (1809-10), baptised 22 September 1809; died in infancy and was buried at Keswick, 18 February 1810;
(6) William Banks (1811-78) (q.v.);
(7) Rebecca Banks (1813-76), born 2 December 1813 and baptised at Crosthwaite, 14 January 1814; married, 2 August 1837 at Crosthwaite, Thomas Pridmore (1806-79) and had issue five sons and two daughters; died 26 December and was buried at Crosthwaite, 29 December 1876;
(8) Ann Banks (1816-76), born 24 June 1816; died unmarried and was buried at Crosthwaite, 27 January 1876;
(9) John Banks (1819-47), baptised at Crosthwaite, 3 January 1819; married, 9 April 1846 at Crosthwaite, Isabella Henderson (1814-88) and had issue one daughter; died at Wigton, 3 December 1847;
(10) Sarah Banks (1821-25), baptised at Crosthwaite, 11 November 1821; died young, 4 February and was buried at Crosthwaite, 6 February 1825;
(11) Thomas Donald Banks (1823-54), baptised at Crosthwaite, 14 December 1823; partner with his elder brother William in Banks Bros, Bell & Co., for whom he acted as representative in Australia; died unmarried at St Kilda, Melbourne (Australia), 30 January 1854 and was buried in Melbourne General Cemetery, where he is commemorated by a tombstone;
(12) Pearson Banks (1827-33), baptised at Crosthwaite, 9 December 1827; died young, 2 November 1833.
He lived at Keswick.
He died at Greta Cottage, Keswick, 13 January 1860; his will was proved 26 May 1860 (effects under £1,500). His wife was buried at Crosthwaite, 26 April 1856.

Banks, William (1811-78). Second surviving son of William Banks (d. 1860) of Keswick, and his wife Sarah, daughter of John Pearson of Greenside Hall (Cumbld.), born at Keswick, 16 January and baptised at Crosthwaite, 25 November 1811. He began his career in business in the late 1820s with Messrs. Flint, Ray & Co., retail drapers in London, and then moved to Wigton in 1835 to join the linen and cotton goods manufacturing and export business of Joseph Hodge and his sister Jane. After the death of Joseph Hodge in 1846 he took over the firm, and in 1852 he opened a warehouse in Melbourne (Australia), with his brother T.D. Banks as local representative. The firm became Banks Bros, Bell & Co., and became perhaps the largest business exporting clothing and later other goods to Australia. He was a JP and DL for Cumberland; High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1871; Chairman of the Wigton Water Works Company, the Wigton Local Board of Health, and the Wigton Highway Board. He was a Conservative in politics, stood unsuccessfully for parliament in Carlisle in 1873, and at the time of his death was the prospective parliamentary candidate for Berwick-on-Tweed. In his later years he spent the winters in Italy for his health, where ironically he contracted his fatal illness. He married, 16 November 1843, Sarah Barwise (1813-1901), daughter of William Dand of Monkhill (Cumbld.), and had issue:
(1) Henry Pearson Banks (1844-91), born at Monkhill (Cumbld), 5 March 1844; educated at Jesus College, Cambridge (matriculated 1864; BA 1871; MA 1874) and Inner Temple (admitted 1871; called to bar, 1874); barrister-at-law but did not practice; JP (from 1871) and DL for Cumberland; High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1886; a Conservative in politics, and with his younger brother jointly funded the building of Wigton Conservative Club; a freemason from 1884; died unmarried at Hastings (Sussex), 19 January 1891; administration of his goods was granted to his brother, 7 March 1891 (effects £17,463).
(2) Edwin Hodge Banks (1847-1917) (q.v.).
He inherited Highmoor in 1846 under the will of his friend and business associate, Joseph Hodge. He apparently bequeathed it to his widow for life.
He died of malaria in London, 1 May 1878; his will was proved at Carlisle, 21 May 1878 (effects in England under £140,000) and administration of his goods in Australia was granted 27 May 1880 at Melbourne (estate £33,025). His widow died 6 September 1901.

Edwin Hodge Banks (1847-1917)

Banks, Edwin Hodge (1847-1917). Younger son of William Banks (1811-78) of Highmoor and his wife Sarah Barwise Dand, born 7 April and baptised at Wigton, 28 July 1847. Educated at Jesus College, Cambridge (matriculated 1866; BA 1870; MA 1874) and Inner Temple (admitted 1868; called to bar, 1873). Barrister-at-law, but he did not practice law and instead joined the family firm (Banks Bros, Ball & Co.), from which he retired in 1888; he was thereafter an underwriter with Lloyds. His obituarist called him 'a man of few words but many deeds' and he led a full public life until his bankruptcy in 1908, when he had sustained debts of nearly £100,000 through losses at Lloyds and on other investments. He served as an officer in Westmorland & Cumberland Yeomanry Cavalry (Capt.) and Wigton Volunteer Corps (Ensign) and was JP and DL for Cumberland and High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1889. He was a Conservative in politics, and served as such as County Councillor for Wigton, 1889-1908; Chairman of Wigton Local Board, 1878-88 and Urban District Council, 1888-1908. He was a director of the Wigton Gas Company and Wigton Market House Company, a trustee of the Hodge Charity, a Governor of the Nelson School and Thomlinson School, and a manager of four local schools. He was a freemason from 1869 and was noted for his philanthropy in the Wigton area, including building and equipping the public baths, and refitting the interior of Wigton church. In private life, he had a particular interest in breeding thoroughbred horses for racing, and had some success in this area as 'Old Joe', which he had bred but sold, won the Grand National in 1886. He was unmarried and had no issue.
He inherited Highmoor on the death of his mother in 1901, but it was sold following his bankruptcy in 1908.
He died in Brighton, 20 August 1917 and was cremated at Norwood before his ashes were interred in the family mausoleum at Wigton; his will was proved 12 November 1917 (estate £396).

Sources

Burke's Landed Gentry, 1924, p. 74; M. Hyde & Sir N. Pevsner, The buildings of England: Cumbria, 2010, pp. 686-87.

Location of archives

No significant accumulation is known to survive.

Coat of arms

Sable, a cross engrailed or, between, in the 1st and 4th quarters, a bear rampant or, muzzled gules, and in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, a fleur-de-lis or.

Notes about missing information and help wanted with this entry

• I would be most grateful if anyone can provide photographs or portraits of people whose names appear in bold above. 
• As always, any additions or corrections to the account given above will be gratefully received and incorporated.

Revision and acknowledgements

This post was first published 14 January 2019.

(64) Ainsworth of Backbarrow, The Flosh and Ardanaiseig, baronets

Ainsworth baronets

Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1785) from Blackburn (Lancs) established a cotton mill at Backbarrow in Haverthwaite (Lancs, now Cumbria) and lived latterly in the mill house there.  The property passed to his youngest son, Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1853), who rebuilt the mill in 1823 and Backbarrow House at much the same time.  In the next generation the business passed to two elder sons, Thomas Ainsworth (c.1807-75) and William Ainsworth (c.1808-62), who worked in partnership until 1852, when the partnership was dissolved, Thomas taking the Backbarrow property and continuing to trade as T. & W. Ainsworth, and William taking a cotton mill at Preston which the family also owned.  Thomas got into financial difficulties and the house and mills at Backbarrow were sold in 1871, but Thomas was still bankrupted in 1874 and died the following year.  It is possible that Backbarrow House was bought in 1871 by Thomas' youngest brother, Lt-Col. David Ainsworth (1823-1907), although he seems never to have lived there, renting Broughton Hall near Grange-over-Sands instead.

The second son of the first Thomas Ainsworth, David Ainsworth (d. 1819) moved to Preston, and his son, Thomas Ainsworth (1804-81), bought the Cleator Linen Mills in Cumberland and the nearby house called The Flosh from Henry Birley in about 1837.  Thomas at once remodelled the house and in 1866 further extended it by the addition of a new neo-Elizabethan wing with rich interiors.  The linen mills seem to have been successful and Thomas also developed iron ore deposits on his land, became an ironmaster and acquired shipping interests, so that at his death he left a substantial estate of £55,862.  

Advertising image for Cleator Flax Mills c.1900

The Flosh passed to his eldest son, David Ainsworth (1842-1906), who became MP for West Cumberland, 1880-85 and Egremont 1892-95.  However in 1898 David purchased Wray Castle, Hawkshead (Lancs) and this became his main seat for the last decade of his life.  He had no children and Wray Castle seems to have been sold after his death, while The Flosh passed to his younger brother, John Stirling Ainsworth (1844-1923), who was trained as a lawyer.  He used his share of his father’s estate to buy and substantially rebuild Harecroft Hall at Gosforth (Cumberland) and to purchase and update Ardanaiseig in Argyllshire.  Harecroft was near to his family’s business interests in Cumberland and may at first have been his main home, as he was High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1891 and Lt-Col. of the 3rd volunteer battalion of the Border Regiment in 1898-1902.  Later his interests may have shifted more to Scotland, where he became Liberal MP for Argyllshire in 1903-18; following his retirement was created a baronet.

Sir John’s son, Sir Thomas Ainsworth, 2nd bt. (1886-1971) seems to have been a dedicated foxhunting man.  In the 1920s and 1930s he lived in Ireland and served as MFH of a number of hunts in Meath, Galway, Kildare and Tipperary.  He settled eventually at Ballinakill, Kilfinny, Limerick, but it is not clear at what point he sold Harecroft, which became a prep school, or Ardanaiseig, which was converted into an hotel in 1979-80. 

In 1925 Sir Thomas had an affair with a married woman, Mrs Hope-Johnstone, which resulted in both of them being divorced by their spouses and marrying shortly afterwards.  He had sons by both of his two marriages.  The elder, Sir John Francis Ainsworth, 3rd bt. (1912-81), became an archivist and historian at the National Library of Ireland and lived at Carraphuca, Shankill (Dublin).  Like his father his interests were mostly in Ireland, although he was Chairman of the British Record Society 1937-40, and he sold The Flosh, which had come to him on his grandfather’s death, to Ennerdale RDC, which turned it into offices; it is now an hotel.  He died without issue and the baronetcy passed to his half-brother, Sir (Thomas) David Ainsworth, 4th bt. (1926-99), a merchant banker.  The present holder of the title is his son, Sir Anthony Thomas Hugh Ainsworth, 5th bt. (b. 1962), who lives in Bangkok (Thailand).

Backbarrow House, Upper Holker, Lancashire (now Cumbria)

A large early 19th century Tudor house of white limestone with gables, mullioned windows and conspicuous chimneys, built probably to the designs of George Webster of Kendal for the Ainsworth family, close to their cotton mill at Backbarrow.  The house was depicted in a lost painting of 1848 by James Foley, and described as a gentleman’s residence when it was sold in 1871.  It was demolished in the 1930s and only the entrance gates remain; no photograph of it has been found.  The adjacent Backbarrow Mills were noted in the 19th century for their picturesque setting, but their proximity to the house may have militated against its survival after they passed into separate ownership in the 1870s.

Engraving of Backbarrow Mills published in 1860.  Image: Old Cumbria Gazetteer

The Flosh, Cleator Moor, Cumberland

The Flosh from an old postcard of c.1905.

An earlier house was enlarged in 1837  when Thomas Ainsworth purchased it and again in 1866, when the neo-Elizabethan gabled south wing was added.  The buildings of different dates are now united by a cream roughcast with red sandstone dressings.  The disused porch is castellated, with gargoyles and much fussy carving, and in the cross-hall is a hugely over-designed Gothic fireplace, dated 1866.  The east rooms, overlooking the garden, with their elaborately moulded and gilded ceilings, can all be thrown together by removing sliding partitions.  The house was used as offices by Ennerdale Rural District Council and its successors in the second half of the 20th century but is now Ennerdale Country House hotel.

The Flosh: dining room in the 1866 wing.

Descent: Henry Birley (fl. early 19th cent.) sold c.1837 to Thomas Ainsworth (1804-81); to son, David Ainsworth MP (1842-1906); to brother, Sir John Stirling Ainsworth, 1st bt. (1844-1933); to son, Sir Thomas Ainsworth, 2nd bt. (1886-1971), who sold c.1938 to Ennerdale RDC; transferred 1974 to Copeland DC; who sold for conversion to hotel.

Wray Castle, Hawskhead, Lancashire (now Cumbria)

Wray Castle.  Image James@hopgrove.  Licenced under a Creative Commons 3.0 licence.

A castellated mansion, built in 1840-47 for Dr. James Dawson, a Liverpool surgeon, of sawn slate with hammered grey limestone dressings.  It was designed by J.J. Lightfoot, a close friend of Thomas Rickman, who is said to have drunk himself to death before the house was finished.  Wordsworth thought the house “added a dignified feature to the interesting scenery in the midst of which it stands”.  It has a vast turreted porte-cochere and a tall central lantern tower which dominate a generally asymmetrical and top-heavy building.  The battlements are robustly machicolated and punctuated by high-level turrets, daringly corbelled out from the wall, and the windows are inauthentically splayed on the outside.  The interior wastes a great deal of space: the broad central axis is articulated into three parts by triple Gothic colonnades without capitals.  Each section looks up through a hole into the upper landing, the central section right up into the lantern with its tall windows and niches and its turrets corbelled in at the corners (which do not appear outside!).  

Wray Castle: looking up into the central lantern tower from the inner hall

The upper landing offers not just the reciprocal views to the floor below and the lantern above but also an extended vista into the billiard room over the porte-cochere.  The principal rooms are themed Gothic, though they have lost much of their richness.  Mouldings and doors are on a gigantic scale, but the window traceries with their armorial glass are rather fiddly.  Were the main lights always fitted with plate glass?  The Music Room on the west side, reached awkwardly across a service corridor, has a Jacobean theme including a ceiling bedecked with threatening pendants.  The Morning Room in the SE corner, incorporating a turret, has a bastard classical ceiling, linenfold panelling and a curious alternation of windows and niches.  The back stair is the most dramatic space of all, climbing up in vertiginous stages to the lantern tower.  In the grounds, the fernery is a castellated glasshouse with a pyramid roof, ingeniously framed with chunks of limestone pavement.  There are also a gardener’s houe and boathouse in the same style.  The lodge is a little later than the house (perhaps 1856) and lacks some of its characteristic detail, but is still castellated and asymmetrical.  In 1991 the house was let and not in particularly good condition; it is now open to be public but largely unfurnished.

Descent: Dr. James Dawson (d. 1875); to nephew, Edward Preston Rawnsley; who rented by 1883 and sold 1898 to David Ainsworth (1842-1906); to widow, Margaret Ainsworth (d. 1920); sold after her death to Sir Noton Barclay, who gave 1929 to National Trust, which let it until c.2010 when it was opened to the public.

Ardanaiseig, Kilchrenan, Argyllshire

Ardanaiseig House: entrance front

Ardanaiseig House: the garden front

A two-storey mansion of granite with sandstone dressings, built by William Burn for James Archibald Campbell in 1833-34 and known first as New Inverawe.  It is an asymmetrical crowstepped Jacobean house which sprawls north to a stable court.  The east (garden) front, though architecturally dull, enjoys a splendidly contained prospect of Loch Awe across terraced lawns.  The house was modernised after 1880 for Sir John Ainsworth and was converted into an hotel in 1979-80.  The combination of muscular Gothic details from the 1880s and modern decorator's colours and fabrics has considerable charm but led one journalist to describe it as a combination of Edgar Allen Poe and Laurence Llewellyn Bowen!

Ardanaiseig House: drawing room

Descent: James Archibald Campbell (1807-79); sold c.1880 to Sir John Stirling Ainsworth, 1st bt. (1844-1923); to son, Sir Thomas Ainsworth, 2nd bt. (1886-1971), who sold after 1937.

Harecroft Hall, Gosforth, Cumberland

Harecroft Hall.  Image: Grisdale's Estate Agents, Cockermouth

A rather low early 19th century house enlarged in 1881 with gables, slate hanging, timber framing and diamond shaped chimneys for Sir John Stirling Ainsworth (1844-1933).  It was used as a prep school in the late 20th and early 21st century but was for sale in 2012.

Descent: ...sold by 1877 to Sir John Stirling Ainsworth, 1st bt. (1844-1923); to son, Sir Thomas Ainsworth, 2nd bt. (1886-1971) who sold in or soon after 1924 for use as a school.

The Ainsworths of Backbarrow, The Flosh, Ardanaiseig and Harecroft Hall

Ainsworth, Thomas (d. 1785), of Backbarrow.  Cotton manufacturer at Backbarrow (Lancs).  He married 1769, Sarah (d. 1796), daughter of David Barton and had issue:

(1) Joseph Ainsworth;
(2) David Ainsworth (d. 1819) (q.v.);
(3) Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1853) (q.v.).
He lived at Blackburn (Lancs) and later at Backbarrow (Lancs).
He died in 1785.

Ainsworth, Thomas (c.1777-1853), of Preston and Backbarrow.  Youngest son of Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1785) and his wife Sarah, daughter of David Barton.  Cotton manufacturer at Backbarrow (Lancs); in partnership with William Ainsworth of Preston to 1852.  He married Lydia Wells, daughter of Rev. William McQuhae of St. Quivox, Moderator of the Church of Scotland, and had issue including:
(1) Thomas Ainsworth (c.1807-75) (q.v.); 
(2) William Ainsworth (c.1808-62) of Preston, cotton spinner and manufacturer; JP; in partnership with his elder brother until 1852; died unmarried, 22 March 1862; will proved 4 June 1862 (estate under £16,000);
(3) Elizabeth Ainsworth (b. c.1811); died unmarried;
(2) Lt-Col. David Ainsworth (1823-1907) (q.v.)
He inherited the house and mill at Backbarrow from his father and rebuilt the mill in 1823.
He died in 1853.

Ainsworth, Thomas (c.1807-75), of Backbarrow.  Elder son of Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1853) and his wife Sarah, daughter of David Barton; born about 1807.  Cotton manufacturer at Backbarrow; bankrupt 1874.  He married, 21 July 1851, Mary McDowal of Maybole (Ayrshire) and had issue: 
(1) Mary Bonella Ainsworth (1854-1946), m. 3 May 1876, Francis Janvrin (1851-91), son of Thomas Ashton Hodgson Dickson of Abbots Reading, Haverthwaite (Lancs) and had issue one son and one daughter; died 3 July 1946; will proved 4 September 1946 (estate £3,662);
(2) Lydia Anne Ainsworth (b. c.1856); unmarried and working as a secretary in London, 1891; 
(3) Florence Elizabeth Ainsworth (c.1857-1934); died unmarried, 6 April 1934; will proved 12 June 1934 (estate £2871).
He inherited the house and mill at Backbarrow from his father in 1853, but in 1871 sold the house and mills; in 1874 the firm of T. & W. Ainsworth was liquidated for the benefit of the creditors.  
He died at Torquay, 25 April 1875, aged 68; will proved 27 May 1876 (estate under £100).

Ainsworth, Lt-Col. David (1823-1907), of Backbarrow.  Third son of Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1853), born 21 August 1823.  Educated at Rugby, Trinity College, Cambridge (matriculated 1842; Civil Law Tripos, 1st Class, 1847; LL.B. 1864); and the Inner Temple (admitted 1843; called to the bar, 1849); special pleader; an income tax commissioner; JP and DL for Lancashire; Major in 4th battn, Lancashire militia 1874-81; Lt-Col. commanding 1st volunteer battn. King's Own (Royal Lancaster) regiment.  He married, 28 June 1860, Mary Jane Leigh, second daughter of William Clare, late of Hindley House (Lancs) but was without issue.
In 1880-91 he rented Broughton Hall, Grange in Cartmel.  He may have bought Backbarrow House when it was auctioned in 1871, but if so he seems never to have occupied it.
He died 7 April 1907 at Boscombe (Hants) and his will was proved 28 May 1907 (estate £10,571).

Ainsworth, David (c.1773-1819), of Preston.  Second son of Thomas Ainsworth (d. 1785) and his wife Sarah, daughter of David Barton.  Capt-Lieutenant in the Loyal Preston Volunteers, 1801.  Cotton spinner and machinery manufacturer; bankrupted in 1807-08 by the failure of both businesses (Watson Ainsworth & Co. and Watson, Kay, Catterall & Ainsworth), but discharged later the same year; later a partner in Ainsworth, Catterall & Co of Backbarrow and Church Street Mill, Preston, which in 1816 became the second factory in Preston to be lit by gas.  He married, 11 February 1801, Alice (1788-1827), daughter of Richard Hatton of Park Lane (Lancs) and had issue:
(1) Thomas Ainsworth (1804-81) (q.v.);
(2) Anne Barton Ainsworth (b. 1806) of Leamington Spa; died unmarried, 10 October 1865; will proved 9 July 1866 (estate under £10,000);
(3) Sarah Ainsworth (b. 1808) of Leamington Spa; died unmarried, 12 June 1875; will proved 17 July 1875 (estate under £18,000);
(4) A daughter, died young.
He died 13 May 1819.  His will was proved in the Deanery Court of Amounderness, 17 January 1820.

Ainsworth, Thomas (1804-81), of The Flosh.  Only son of David Ainsworth (d. 1819) of Preston and his wife Alice, daughter of Richard Hatton of Park Lane (Lancs), born 21 March 1804.  Linen manufacturer and iron master; in partnership with Alfred Holt from 1852 as part-owners of the Blue Funnel shipping line.  High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1861; Income Tax Commissioner and member of Whitehaven Board of Guardians; a Liberal in politics.  President of Manchester New College, 1860-63. He married, 24 May 1836, Mary Laurie (1808-67), daughter of Rev. John Stirling DD of Craigie (Ayrshire) and had issue:
(1) David Ainsworth (1842-1906) of Wray Castle (q.v.); 
(2) Sir John Stirling Ainsworth (1844-1923), 1st bt. (q.v.); 
(3) Thomas Hamilton Ainsworth (1845-47); died in infancy;
(4) Rev. William Macquhae Ainsworth (1848-91); born 20 December 1848; educated at University of London and Lincoln's Inn; Unitarian minister at Lancaster, 1877-83 and Brixton, 1884-91; disappeared and supposed to have accidentally drowned near Constantinople, 27 May 1891, during a visit to the Middle East; a memorial collection of his sermons, prayers and travel letters was published in 1891;
(5) Mary Alice Ainsworth (1850-96), m. 1877, Dr. Thomas Sutton Townsend MD (c.1847-1918) and had issue; died 19 April 1896; will proved in London, 8 June 1896 (estate £1951).
He purchased The Flosh and the Cleator Linen Mills in Cumberland in 1837.  The Flosh was remodelled c.1840 and extended in 1866.
He died 28 June 1881 and his will was proved 12 November 1881 (estate £55,862).  An obituary was published in the Whitehaven News.  His wife died 1 February 1867.

Ainsworth, David (1842-1906), of Wray Castle  Eldest son of Thomas Ainsworth (1804-81) and his wife Mary Laurie, daughter of Rev. Dr. John Stirling of Craigie (Ayrshire), born 2 March 1842.  Flax manufacturer and ironmaster; director of local railway companies in Cumberland.  Educated at University College London and Manchester New College (matriculated 1861), and Lincoln's Inn (called to the bar, 1870, but did not practice); Liberal MP for West Cumberland 1880-85, Egremont 1892-95.  He was an active Unitarian and with his brother William visited American Unitarian congregations in 1872; President of the British & Foreign Unitarian Association, 1881-83; Treasurer 1874-91 and President 1896-1900 of Manchester New College.  He married, Apr-June (or according to one source, 16 September) 1874, Margaret (1838-1920), daughter of Henry McConnel, cotton spinner, of Cressford (Derbys) but had no issue.
He inherited The Flosh from his father in 1881, and purchased Wray Castle (Lancs) in 1898, but the latter was sold after his widow's death.  He also maintained a London household in Pont Street, Chelsea.
He died 21 February 1906 and his will was proved 23 May 1906 (estate £155,118); he left £20,000 to his 'devoted friend', Miss Maud Smith.  His widow died 25 April 1920 and her will was proved 13 July 1920 (estate £20,909).

Ainsworth, Sir John Stirling (1844-1923) of Ardanaiseig, 1st bt.  Second son of Thomas Ainsworth (1804-81) and his wife Mary Laurie, daughter of Rev. Dr. John Stirling of Craigie (Ayrshire), born 30 January 1844.  Educated at University College School and UCL (BA 1864, LLB 1866, MA 1868); High Sheriff of Cumberland 1891; Lt-Col. of 3rd vol. bttn. Border Regiment 1898-1902; MP for Argyllshire 1903-18; JP for Cumberland and Argyllshire.  He married, 4 November 1879, Margaret Catherine (c.1855-1918), daughter of Robert Reid Macreadie of New South Wales and had issue: 
(1) Janet Mary Ainsworth (b. & d. 1880); died in infancy;
(2) Jean Barbara Ainsworth (1883-1937), born 3 December 1883; m. 16 February 1905, Algernon William John Clotworthy Skeffington (1873-1956), 12th Viscount Massareene & Ferrard of Antrim Castle (Antrim) (who m.2, 1940, Mrs Florence Clementina Vere Vere-Laurie), and had issue one son and one daughter; 
(3) Sir Thomas Ainsworth (1886-1971), 2nd bt. (q.v.); 
(4) Margaret Louise Ainsworth (1887-1946), born 18 June 1887; m.1, 5 November 1912 Arthur George Murray Smith (1886-1914, died of wounds received in action), son of George Murray Smith of Gumley Hall (Leics) and had issue one son, and m.2, 26 November 1924, John Pollock (d. 1966) of Mountainstown, Navan, Meath and had further issue; she died 5 July 1946, aged 59; her will was proved 13 September 1947 (estate £14,280 in England)
(5) John Stirling Ainsworth (1889-1914); born Oct-Dec 1889; killed in action, 13 October 1914.
He purchased Harecroft Hall, Gosforth (Cumbld) and Ardanaiseig (Argylls) c. 1881.  He rebuild the former and altered the latter.  He inherited The Flosh (Cumbld) from his elder brother in 1906.  
He died 24 May 1923 at Harecroft Hall and his will was proved 18 December 1923 (estate £105,134).  His wife died 8 October 1918.

Ainsworth, Sir Thomas (1886-1971), 2nd bt.  Elder and only surviving son of Sir John Stirling Ainsworth (1844-1923), 1st bt. and his wife Margaret Catherine, daughter of Robert Reid Macreadie of New South Wales, born 8 February 1886.  Educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge (BA); served as Lt., 11th Hussars, Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry; Steward of INHS Ctee, Jt-MFH and Huntsman Meath 1922–25, MFH and Huntsman Co Galway 1925–26, Kildare 1926–27 and Tipperary 1928–32; JP for Cumberland and Argyllshire.  He married 1st, 9 February 1911 (divorce 1925), Lady Edina Dorothy Hope (1888-1964), daughter of Henry Francis Conyngham, 4th Marquess Conyngham (who m.2, 27 October 1925, Hans Wellesley Hamilton (1886-1942), 2nd Baron Holm Patrick), and married 2nd, 10 September 1925, Marie Eleanor (May) (1898-1969), daughter of Compton Charles Domvile and formerly wife of Evelyn Wentworth Hope-Johnstone, and had issue: 
(1.1) Sir John Francis Ainsworth (1912-81), 3rd bt. (q.v.); 
(1.2) Iris Helen Hersey Ainsworth (b. 1916), m. 22 April 1939, Nicholas St. Vigor Fox of Lough Park House, Castlepollard (Westmeath) and had issue two sons and one daughter; 
(2.1) Sir (Thomas) David Ainsworth (1926-99), 4th bt. (q.v.).
He inherited The Flosh, Harecroft Hall and Ardanaiseig from his father but sold them all in the late 1930s and rented seats in hunting country including Braunston Manor (Leics), Ballinakill, Kilfinny (Limerick) and Ballyneale House (Limerick).
He died 1 March 1971.

Ainsworth, Sir John Francis (1912-81), 3rd bt.  Only son of Sir Thomas Ainsworth (1886-1971), 2nd bt., and his first wife, Lady Edine Dorothy Hope-Conyngham, daughter of 4th Marquess Conyngham, born 4 January 1912.  Educated Eton and Trinity College Cambridge (BA 1933, MA 1937); FRHistS; General Editor, British Record Society, 1937-40; Inspector of Manuscripts, Irish Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1943-50; on the staff of the National Library of Ireland 1950-c.1975; External Lecturer in Palaeography and Medieval History, University College, Cork 1966–81; District Commissioner, Kildare Branch of the Irish Pony Club 1959-62, Chairman of Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 1965-66 (V-Chm 1963-65 and 1966-67), Jt Huntsman Curragh Beagles 1964–81.  He married 1st, 26 August 1938 (div. 1946), Josephine, daughter of Cdr. Walter Randolph Bernard RN and 2nd, 19 February 1946, Anita Margaret Ann, daughter of Harold Arthur Lett of Kilgibbon and Ballynadara, Enniscorthy (Wexford) but had no issue.
He lived at Carraphuca, Shankill, Dublin in 1972.
He died 30 April 1981.

Ainsworth, Sir (Thomas) David (1926-99), 4th bt.  Only son of Sir Thomas Ainsworth (1886-1971), 2nd bt., and his second wife, Marie Eleanor (May), daughter of Compton Charles Domvile, born 22 August 1926.  Educated Eton; served as Lieutenant, 11th Hussars; merchant banker.  He married, 6 May 1957, Sarah Mary (fl. 2003), daughter of Lt-Col. Hugh Carr Walford and had issue: 
(1) Serena Mary Ainsworth (b. 1958), born 13 March 1958; m. 1987 Stelios Peratinos of Corfu and had issue two sons; 
(2) Tessa Jane Ainsworth (b. 1959), born 6 August 1959; m. 1986 Nicholas Cecil John Fortescue (b. 1953) and had issue twin daughters; 
(3) Sir Anthony Thomas Hugh Ainsworth (b. 1962), 5th bt.; born 30 March 1962; educated at Harrow; Lt. in Royal Hussars, 1982-85; director of Richard Glynn Consultants since 2000; m. 2003 Anong Pradith and has issue a daughter; lives in Bangkok (Thailand);
(4) Charles David Ainsworth (b. 1966); born 24 August 1966; educated at Harrow; company director.
He died 24 November 1999.

Sources

Burke's Landed Gentry and Peerage and Baronetage, successive editions; J.M. Robinson, A guide to the country houses of the North-West, 1991, pp. 108, 111, 255; A. Taylor, The Websters of Kendal, 2004, p. 133; Sir H.M. Colvin, A biographical dictionary of British architects 1600-1840, 4th edn, 2008, p. 191; M. Hyde & Sir N. Pevsner, The buildings of England: Cumbria, 2010, pp. 279, 703; http://www.cleatormoorblog.co.uk/2011/09/thomas-ainsworth.html;  http://www.unitarianhistory.org.uk/Unitarian%20Members%20of%20Parliament%20in%20the%20Nineteenth%20Century.pdf.

Location of archives

Ainsworth family of Cleator and Gosforth, baronets: family papers, 1819-1940 (Cumbria Archive Service, Whitehaven, YAIN)
Ainsworth, Sir John Stirling (1844-1923), 1st bt.: grant of baronetcy, 1917 (Lancashire Record Office, DDX 1039)
Ainsworth, Sir Thomas (1886-1971), 2nd bt.: hunting diaries, 1906-12 (National Library of Ireland, MSS. 23567-23569)

Coat of arms

Gules, three battleaxes, two and one, and as many buckle's tongues to the dexter, one and two, argent.

(55) Aglionby of Nunnery and Drawdykes Castle

Aglionby of Nunnery

This ancient Cumberland family traces its origins to the 12th century, and were leading citizens of Carlisle and landed gentry from the early 16th century.  John Aglionby (1642-1717), recorder of Carlisle, remodelled Drawdykes Castle, Houghton (a 14th century pele tower on the site of a Hadrians Wall milecastle) in 1676 to designs of William Thackeray of Torpenhow.  He also bought Drumburgh Castle, which he exchanged with Sir John Lowther for the Nunnery estate at Armathwaite and Kirkoswald.  Nunnery became the principal family seat after it was rebuilt as a nine-bay house by Henry Aglionby MP (1684-1759) in the 1720s.  Henry’s grandson, Christopher Aglionby, laid out picturesque walks along the R. Eden on the estate, but died unmarried in 1785.  His estates were divided among his four sisters.  In due course Nunnery itself passed to his nephew Francis Yates (later Aglionby) (1777-1840), who was chairman of Quarter Sessions, 1818-40.  He in turn left only daughters, and the house passed first to his cousin, Henry Aglionby Bateman (later Aglionby) (1790-1854) and then to his nephew, Charles Yates (later Aglionby) (1807-91).  His son, Rev. Francis Keyes Aglionby (1848-1937), was rector of Christ Church, Westminster, and sold Nunnery in 1892 to his cousin Capt. Arthur Charles Aglionby (1872-1938), who retained it until 1919 when he sold it to the Denmans of Staffield Hall.  Capt. Aglionby was Governor of Winchester and Exeter Prisons and lived later at Belfield House, Poltimore (Devon), which he built in 1925.

Drawdykes Castle, Houghton, Cumberland

A 14th century tower house , built on the site of milecastle 64 of Hadrian’s Wall, which was refronted by the prominent local mason William Thackeray for John Aglionby, Recorder of Carlisle, in 1676 as a three bay, three storey house.  It now has a farmhouse of c.1764 attached to its short side.  The main block has alternating pediments over the windows of the ground and first floors, with Thackeray’s signature flat bit at the ends.  The windows are sashed now but probably had his characteristic flush cross-mullions originally.  On the parapet is a comical bust after the antique; two more are now mounted in the yard.  Roof flashing visible in the side wall indicates that the original hall range was taller than the present farmhouse.

Descent: Edward Aglionby (d. 1553); to son, John Aglionby (d. 1584); to son, Edward Aglionby (d. 1599); to son, Edward Aglionby (c.1586/7-1648); to son, John Aglionby (c.1610-65); to son, John Aglionby (d. 1718); to grandson, Henry Aglionby (1684-1759); to son, Henry Aglionby (c.1715-70); to son, Christopher Aglionby (c.1754-85); to sister, Mary (c.1750-1816), wife of John Orfeur Yates (d. 1818); to son, Francis Aglionby (née Yates) (1777-1840); to widow, Mary Aglionby (née Matthews); to daughter, Jane, wife of Charles Featherstonhaugh; to grandson, Arthur Clarke Aglionby (1872-1938) who sold 1919...

Drumburgh Castle, Bowness-on-Solway, Cumberland

Drumburgh Castle.  Image Rose & Trev Clough.  Licensed under a Creative Commons licence.

The original building was perhaps 13th century (Richard le Brun was granted licence to crenellate in 1307).  It is tall, perfectly rectangular, built of Roman stones of even size, and had services on the west, a solar on the east, and a broad round-arched door on the ground floor.  In 1518 Thomas, 2nd Lord Dacre, remodelled it into what is now called a Solway bastle: a house where the living accommodation is on the upper floors, entered by an external stair to a first-floor entrance placed immediately west of the earlier doorway.  Over the upper doorway is a damaged panel with the Dacre arms.  The tower appears to have had four floors, the middle two lit by narrow windows, and a watch turret on the western gable.  Its purpose was to protect the inhabitants and their goods if the Scots invaded ‘as when the sea ebbeth they may easily do’.  It was described in 1580 as ‘neyther castle nor tower, but a house of convenyent strength and defence’, though it seems to have been more of a barracks than a house.  

In 1680-81 Sir John Lowther remodelled the house again in a more domestic form, although interestingly defence was still not forgotten as all the windows were originally barred.  Sir John created two taller storeys in place of the earlier three upper floors and inserted large cross-mullioned windows, now sashes.  The ground floor remains low and dark, but was given fireplaces.  A narrow internal stair to the first floor was inserted crudely, as can be seen from the fact that it cuts through a joist.  The first floor is much taller and well lit, and a big room at the east end retains small-scale panelling with a reeded top section.  There is a good stair with fat bottle balusters up to the second floor, which again has generous headroom.  A proper stair up to the watch turret was lost when that end was rebuilt in 1977.  The roof trusses are kingposts, with raking queenposts.

Nunnery, Ainstable, Cumberland

There was a small Benedictine convent here in medieval times, dissolved in 1537.  The buildings were granted to William Grayme in 1552 and passed to the Aglionbys in 1694.  The rear of the house preserves work representative of all these periods: the walls are partly 13th century (large blocks of sandstone rubble) and partly 16th century (smaller sandstone rubble).  A datestone of 1694 which has now been moved to the stable block may have recorded alterations of which no trace is now discernible except perhaps for three cross-windows on the ground floor, but is perhaps more likely to have commemorated the date the estate was acquired by John Aglionby.

The present east front was built about 1727 by Henry Aglionby (the traditional date of 1715 seems too early for the design, and in 1727 he was behind in paying an allowance to his father partly because of the cost of building an expensive new house), and consists of a nine bay, two storey block, with the middle three bays set just a little forward; it is very like a rather grander version of Hutton Hall, Penrith.  

Nunnery, from an old postcard.

The house is built of deep red sandstone, and has windows with flat raised frames, a coved cornice and a balustrade.  The doorcase has Doric pilasters, a metope frieze, and a segmental pediment.  The plan of the building is a double pile, but this arises from the addition of the 18th century block to the existing house.  The interiors, badly cut about for hotel use, are mostly of the early 18th century.  The broad stair has three balusters per step and modestly carved tread ends.  

The Nunnery Walks, from an old postcard of 1916.

The ‘Nunnery Walks’, laid out by Christopher Aglionby (d. 1785), are a landscaped promenade a little way from the house which takes full advantage of the narrow valley of the River Croglin.  There are dramatically engineered paths, vertiginous steps and viewing platforms overlooking the river which forms a series of waterfalls and pools as it attempts to break through a band of harder rock before joining the broad and beautiful River Eden.  There are no embellishments or artificial aids to contemplation, except a small summerhouse.  The walks were described in 1794 as "wild and picturesque - romantic and unrivalled beauties attract the attention of all strangers, and the admiration of everyone who has taste to admire nature in those forms, where the grand, the sublime, the romantic and the beautiful are all united..."

Previous owners: Crown granted 1552 to William Grayme alias Graham; to son, Fergus Graham; to son, William Graham; to son, George Graham; to grandson, Richard Graham; to son, George Graham sold 1685/90 to Sir John Lowther; who exchanged 1694/96 with John Aglionby (1642-1718); given to grandson, Henry Aglionby (1684-1759); to son, Henry Aglionby (c.1715-70); to son, Christopher Aglionby (d. 1785); to sister, Elizabeth (d. 1822), wife of Richard Bamber (d. 1806); to nephew, Francis Yates (later Aglionby) (1777-1840); to cousin, Henry Aglionby Bateman (later Aglionby) (1790-1854); to cousin, Charles Yates (later Aglionby) (1807-91); to son, Rev. Francis Keyes Aglionby (1848-1937), who sold 1892 to cousin, Capt. Arthur Charles Aglionby (1872-1938), who sold 1919 to Denman family of Staffield Hall.

Skirwith Abbey, Cumberland

Aerial view of Skirwith Abbey

A classical house of seven by three bays and two storeys above a full basement, built by Thomas Addison, mason, in 1768-74 for John Orfeur Yates, who had made a fortune as a merchant in India, 1759-67.  The house has full-height canted bows to the side elevations.  A pair of lower wings are detached at a respectful distance on either side of the lawn.  The house has an interesting plan with eight rooms forming a circuit on the piano nobile, including a pair of octagonal rooms fitting the canted bays at the sides.  To either side of the hall and saloon are a pair of broad spiral cantilever staircases, set in octagonal top-lit wells.

Descent: John Orfeur Yates (d. 1818) who let the house from 1800-17; to son Francis Yates (later Aglionby) (1777-1840); who sold 1822 to William Parker (d. 1856); to kinsman Rev. Christopher Parker (1817-65); to son, Edward Wilson Parker (1853-c.1925); to son, Frederick Cyril Francis Parker (1888-1970); sold 1960s to Johnston family.

The Aglionbys of Nunnery

Aglionby, Edward (d. 1553), of Carlisle and Drawdykes Castle.  Son of Thomas Aglionby (d. c.1503) and his wife (fl. 1527); born about 1490.  A prominent citizen of Carlisle; appointed by King Henry VIII as a Captain on the Scottish borders, 1524, and he remained militarily active under successive Wardens of the Western March until 1543; he also saw service in Ireland in 1530 and 1534-35, and as a minor courtier accompanied the king on an embassy to France, 1532, and was appointed gentleman usher of the chamber by 1534. He served as MP for Carlisle, 1529, 1547; Escheator for Cumberland and Westmorland, 1531; Mayor of Carlisle, 1533, 1537, 1544; Constable of Penrith Castle, 1534; collector of customs at Newcastle, 1538; JP for Cumberland from 1538; High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1544.  He married Anne ?Middleton and had issue, with three other daughters whose names are not recorded:
(1) Thomas Aglionby (d. by 1536); may have died on military service in Ireland;
(2) John Aglionby (d. 1584) (q.v.);
(3) Edward Aglionby (c.1520-90/91) of Temple Balsall (Warks); educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge (MA 1544); in 1550 he published A notable and marvailous epistle...concerning the terrible judgement of god, upon hym that for feare of men, denyeth Christ and the knowen veritie, a translation of an account of the tragic death of Francesco Spiera, which came to be used as an object-lesson to evangelicals who felt inclined to conceal their conversion or recant it; MP for Carlisle, 1547, 1552, 1553 and perhaps 1559 and for Warwick, 1571; recorder of Warwick, 1572-87 and also of Stratford-on-Avon, c.1576-86 and Coventry, 1580-88; JP for Warwickshire; married 1st, by 1553, Katherine, daughter of Sir William Wigston of Temple Balsall, and 2nd, Mary Fielding (d. 1621), but died without issue; will proved 14 October 1591; 
(4) Richard Aglionby, married and had issue;
(5) Barnard Aglionby (d. 1579), a notary in Carlisle; m. Anne Hilton and had issue two sons as well as an illegitimate daughter; died 15 May 1579
(6) Leonard Aglionby (d. 1592/3), m. and had issue;
(7) Jane Aglionby;
(8) Eleanor Aglionby.
He lived in Carlisle and at Drawdykes Castle.
He died between March and July 1553 and was buried in St. Cuthbert, Carlisle.

Aglionby, John (d. 1584), of Carlisle.  Second but eldest surviving son of Edward Aglionby (d. 1553) and his wife Anne ?Middleton, born about 1518.  Participated in a raid into Scotland under the Warden of the Western March, 1544.  MP for Carlisle, 1553, 1559; Mayor of Carlisle, 1557/8, 1581 and Coroner for the City of Carlisle, JP for Cumberland by 1555 and until 1569.  He married c.1539/40 Katherine, daughter of Thomas Salkeld and had issue:
(1) Thomas Aglionby (d. 1584);
(2) Edward Aglionby (d. 1599) (q.v.);
(3) George Aglionby;
(4) William Aglionby;
(5) Mabel Aglionby;
(6) Alice Aglionby.
He lived in Carlisle and at Drawdykes Castle.
He died after January 1584.

Aglionby, Edward (d. 1599) of Carlisle.  Second but eldest surviving son of John Aglionby (d. 1584) and his wife Katherine, daughter of Thomas Salkeld, born about 1555. Educated at Trinity College, Cambridge (matriculated 1576) and embarked on a career in trade in London (including a visit to Naples in 1581) before unexpectedly inheriting his father's property.  MP for Carlisle, 1584, 1593 and Mayor of Carlisle, 1593.  In the 1590s he was embroiled in a number of legal disputes with other leading citizens of Carlisle and made a lot of enemies.  He married c.1585 Elizabeth, daughter of Cuthbert Musgrave of Crookdike and had issue:
(1) Edward Aglionby (d. 1648) (q.v.).
He lived in Carlisle and at Drawdykes Castle, but owned the manors of Aglionby and Tarraby and other lands in Warwick, Cumwhinton, Cotehill in Hayton, High Crindledyke, Kingmoor, Milnhouse, Raughton, Bousted in Burgh-by-Sands and Bankend, as well as burgages in Carlisle and houses in the suburbs of the city.
He was attacked while riding from Corby to Carlisle one evening in December, 1599 and died from his injuries on 25 December 1599.  His widow married 2ndly, c.1602 George Hudson.

Aglionby, Edward (c.1586/7-1648) of Carlisle.  Only son of Edward Aglionby (d. 1599) and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Cuthbert Musgrave, born about 1586/7.  Mayor of Carlisle in 1610, 1612, 1613, 1625, 1630 and 1644-47 (when he seems to have been a figurehead acceptable to both royalists and parliamentarians), and MP for Carlisle, 1625; elected one of the first aldermen under a new city charter in 1638.  He was a minor when this father died and his wardship was granted in 1605 to Henry Brougham (d. 1622) of Blackhall near Carlisle, whose daughter, Jane, he married in c.1608.  They had issue:
(1) John Aglionby (c.1610-65);
(2) Edward Aglionby (b. c.1613); educated at Queen's College, Oxford (matriculated, 1631; BA 1635; MA 1639; Fellow 1639-43)
(3) George Aglionby; soldier who served in garrison at Carlisle in 1640s;
(4) Thomas Aglionby; probably died young;
(5) Mary Aglionby; m. c.1622 John Sandford of Askham
(6) Dorothy Aglionby; m. Alan Blennerhasset of Carlisle.
He lived in Carlisle and at Drawdykes Castle, but became financially embarrassed through unsuccessful business ventures and was supported by his son.
He died in 1648, aged 61.

Aglionby, John (c.1610-65), of Drawdykes Castle.  Eldest son of Edward Aglionby (c.1586/7-1648) and his wife Jane, daughter of Henry Brougham of Blackhall, born about 1610.  Mayor of Carlisle, 1639, 1663-64.  Active in the Royalist cause; his lands were sequestered and his house at Drawdykes was commandeered by two Scottish generals during the Civil War siege of Carlisle; in 1652 he claimed to have been left destitute by the siege.  Compounded for his estates in 1648 for a fine of £153.  He married c.1641 Margery, daughter of Christopher Richmond of Highhead and had issue:
(1) John Aglionby (d. 1718) (q.v.);
(2) Rev. Henry Aglionby (d. 1697); educated at St John's College, Cambridge (matriculated 1667/8; BA 1670/1; MA 1684); vicar of Addingham (Cumbld), 1674-91; rector of Bowness, 1691-97;
(3) Christopher Aglionby; supervisor of excise for Cumberland, to 1705 and Westmorland, from 1705;
(4) Richard Aglionby (d. 1729), registrar of the diocese of Carlisle; m. Mary (d. 1727), daughter of Richard Patrickson of Ennerdale and had issue a daughter;
(5) George Aglionby;
(6) Jane Aglionby;
(7) Isabel Aglionby; m. 1677/8 William Nicholson of Carlisle, merchant and had issue three daughters;
(8) Mary Aglionby.
He lived at Drawdykes Castle and in the 1660s in Carlisle.
He died in 1665.

Aglionby, John (d. 1718), of Nunnery.  Eldest son of John Aglionby (c.1610-65) and his wife Margery, daughter of Christopher Richmond of Highhead, born about 1642.  Educated at Grays Inn (admitted 1656, called to the bar, 1668; KC 1690) and became steward of the Howard barony of Burgh-by-Sands before 1675.  Involved in a dispute between the Howards and the Musgraves which resulted in his being brought before the Privy Council in 1668, ordered to make a public apology and losing his position as a magistrate for seven years. Mayor of Carlisle, 1669; JP from 1675; Recorder of Carlisle 1679-1718.  A high Tory in politics, he was not ejected from the magistracy under King James II, but succeeded in retaining his offices under King William III.  He was an enthusiastic antiquarian, who decorated his houses at Drawdykes and Drumburgh with Roman antiquities found in the Carlisle area.  He married, 1660, Barbara (d. 1709), daughter of John Patrickson of Calder Abbey, and had issue:
(1) John Aglionby (1663-1729) (q.v.);
(2) Edward Aglionby (d. 1702/3); possibly a naval officer; died unmarried;
(3) Bridget Aglionby (c.1679-1715); m. George Watson of Goswich Castle (Co. Durham) and had issue five sons
(4) Barbara Aglionby (1683-1719); born 10 March 1683; m. 1718, William Nugent (who m.2, Ursula Aglionby, a cousin of his first wife);
(5) Mary Aglionby, m. Adam Craik of Arbigland (Dumfries) and had issue nine children.
He lived at Drawdykes Castle, which he employed William Thackeray of Torpenhow to remodel in 1676, and sold the family house in Botchergate, Carlisle.  He purchased Drumburgh Castle in 1678 but exchanged it with Sir John Lowther in 1694 for the Nunnery estate at Ainstable, which he put into repair and made his main seat by 1698.  Having disinherited his son, he made a settlement in 1712 on his grandson of Nunnery and much other property, and probably retired to Carlisle.
He died in March 1718, aged about 76, and was buried in the family vault in St. Cuthbert's church, Carlisle.

Aglionby, John (1663-1729) of Nunnery.  Elder son of John Aglionby (d. 1718) and his wife Barbara, daughter of John Patrickson of Calder Abbey, born 1663.  JP for Cumberland by 1688.    He was dedicated to hunting and racing and by 1696 was notorious for loose living, and in due course he was disinherited by his father in favour of his eldest son.  He then moved to the Isle of Man, where he became a merchant, at times in partnership with Edward Nash of Douglas; despite being involved in substantial transactions he remained permanently hard up and was supported partly by an allowance from his father, continued after 1718 by his son.  He married c.1683 Dinah (d. 1718), daughter and co-heir of John Stoddart of Little Braithwaite in Crosthwaite, and had issue:
(1) Henry Aglionby (1684-1759) (q.v.);
(2) John Aglionby (1685), baptised 28 September 1685 but died young.
He lived on the Isle of Man.
He died 4 December 1729 and was buried beside his wife in Kirk Braddan churchyard.

Aglionby, Henry (1684-1759) of Nunnery.  Elder and only surviving son of John Aglionby (1663-1729) and his wife Dinah, daughter of John Stoddart of Little Braithwaite. MP for Carlisle, 1721, 1722; High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1732-33; Mayor of Carlisle 1738-39. He married1712 Elizabeth Lawson (d. 1757), granddaughter of Sir William Lawson of Brayton, and had issue:
(1) Henry Aglionby (d. 1770) (q.v.);
(2) Sarah Grace Aglionby (d. 1713), died young;
(3) John Aglionby (d. 1717), died young;
(4) Elizabeth Aglionby (1721-38); born 16 May 1721; died unmarried in December 1738, aged 17;
(5) John Aglionby (1722-42); educated at Queen's College, Oxford (matriculated 1738; BA 1742); died at Oxford, probably of scarlet fever;
(6) Sarah Aglionby (d. 1798), m. Richard Lowthian (d. 1784).
He acquired the Nunnery estate and other property in Cumberland from his grandfather under his marriage settlement of 1712 and at his grandfather's death in 1718 and partially rebuilt the house in the 1720s.  In the late 1740s he moved out to a secondary house at Crossfield.
He died in late July 1759 and was buried 10 August in Ainstable church alongside his wife, who was buried there, 30 December 1757.

Aglionby, Henry (c.1715-70) of Nunnery.  Eldest and only surviving son of Henry Aglionby (1684-1759) and his wife Elizabeth, granddaughter of Sir William Lawson of Brayton, born c.1715.  Mayor of Carlisle, 1741-45, although the duties were carried out by a deputy mayor, Thomas Pattinson, who failed to prevent the city falling into the hands of the Jacobite rebels.  High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1764.  He married in 1742, Anne (d. 1780), daughter of Sir Christopher Musgrave of Edenhall and had issue:
(1) Henry Aglionby (d. 1766); educated at Carlisle Grammar School and Oriel College, Oxford (matriculated 1762); died unmarried and was buried 10 October 1766;
(2) John Aglionby (d. 1763); established as a India merchant from 1759, but drowned at sea between India and China, 9 September 1763; died unmarried;
(3) Christopher Aglionby (d. 1785) (q.v.);
(4) Elizabeth Aglionby (d. 1822), m. Richard (d. 1806), son of Richard Brown Bamber (d. 1808) of Belmont (Down); died 5 January 1822;
(5) Anne Aglionby (d. 1830), m. Rev. Samuel Bateman (1751-1827), a hunting parson later of Newbiggin Hall (Cumberland) who died on the hunting field, and had issue a son, Henry Bateman (later Aglionby) (q.v.);
(6) Julia Aglionby (d. 1798) of Crossfield; will proved 30 August 1799 in PCC;
(7) Mary Aglionby (c.1750-1816) (q.v.).
He acquired the Nunnery estate and other property in Cumberland from his father under his marriage settlement in 1742 and his father's will.  In 1764 he added the farmhouse to the side of Drawdykes Castle.
He died at Nunnery, 15 December 1770 aged 55.  His widow died of smallpox in 1780.

Aglionby, Christopher (c.1754-85) of Nunnery.  Youngest but only surviving son of Henry Aglionby (c.1715-70) of Nunnery and his wife Anne, daughter of Sir Christopher Musgrave of Edenhall, born c.1754.   Probably originally intended for a career as a merchant and admitted as a burgess at Dumfries, 1769; after succeeding to the estates he attended Oriel College, Oxford (matriculated 1771).  High Sheriff of Cumberland, 1780-81.
He inherited the Nunnery estate from his father in 1770 and laid out the Nunnery Walks as a picturesque landscape c.1780.  Following his death, his property was divided by an order in Chancery among his sisters, Elizabeth receiving Nunnery; Mary, Drawdykes; Anne, Cumwhinton and Coathill, and Julia, Aglionby and the house at Crossfield.
He died unmarried and without issue, 6 October 1785 after a 'violent but short' illness, and was buried in Ainstable church.

Yates (née Aglionby), Mary (c.1750-1816), of Skirwith Abbey and Hutton Hall, Penrith.  Youngest daughter of Henry Aglionby (c.1715-70) of Nunnery and his wife Anne, daughter of Sir Christopher Musgrave of Edenhall, born c.1750.  She married 1768 John Orfeur Yates (d. 1818), who made a fortune as a merchant in India, 1759-67 and returned to England to marry and build Skirwith Abbey (Cumberland), living on the income from capital which remained invested in India.  Their marriage was increasingly unhappy and Yates could not bear to tell his family that his capital had been lost through a series of bankruptcies and frauds in India; he borrowed from his brother Charles and mortgaged Skirwith to him to cover his expenditure, until forced by his brother to reveal the truth in 1800, when his income was only £464 a year.  Mary responded by taking control of the family finances, leasing Skirwith - which she detested anyway - and moving to the more modest Hutton Hall in Penrith.  By instituting great domestic economies and applying her own small income she was eventually able to clear John Yates' debts; Charles Yates also generously remitted 60% of the mortgage on Skirwith when he died in 1809.  John and Mary Yates had issue:
(1) Mary Yates (1772-1843) of Hutton Hall; moved to Bath in 1835; died unmarried;
(2) Anne Yates (d. 1802); died 12 February 1802, perhaps from consumption;
(3) Francis Yates (later Aglionby) (1777-1840) (q.v.);
(4) John Yates (1779-1851), emigrated to America in 1792 (aged 13) to join his uncle, Charles Yates in Fredericksburg (Virginia); educated at Nassau Hall, Princeton (New Jersey) (admitted 1796) and William & Mary College, Williamsburg (admitted 1799), and m. 7 April 1803, Julia (d. 1866), daughter of William Lovell of Fox Neck, and had issue; inherited the Walnut Grove estate in the Shenandoah valley from his uncle in 1809; returned to England on a visit in 1851 and died at Nunnery, 6 July 1851; buried at Ainstable;
(5) Henry Yates (1784-1801); died of consumption, 18 May 1801.
She inherited the Drawdykes estate from her brother in 1785.
She died 8 September 1816 and was buried in Carlisle Cathedral. Her husband died in 1818; his will was proved 15 January 1819.

Aglionby (né Yates), Francis (1777-1840) of Skirwith Abbey and later Nunnery.  Eldest son of John Orfeur Yates (d. 1818) and his wife Mary, daughter of Henry Aglionby; born 1777.  Originally educated for a career at the bar but was unable to continue his studies after 1800 because of the family financial situation, and joined the Cumberland Militia (Captain, 1803; Major, 1805).  He was a tall man, and widely liked and respected; in 1829 the Carlisle Citizen paid tribute to his 'noble figure and countenance, and unassuming mien', describing him as 'that pattern of what a country gentleman ought to be'.  JP for Cumberland and Chairman of Quarter Sessions, 1818-40.  In 1822 he changed his name to Aglionby on inheriting the Nunnery estate.  A Whig in politics, he stood unsuccessfully for the West Cumberland parliamentary seat in 1833 and 1835 and was elected MP for East Cumberland in 1837.  He married c.1813 his cousin, Mary (d. 1855?), daughter of John Matthews of Wigton Hall by his wife Jane Yates, and had issue:
(1) Henry Aglionby (d. 1834); probably died of consumption;
(2) Mary Aglionby (b. c.1816), m. 1845, Rev. Beilby Porteus (c.1808-96), vicar of Edenhall (Cumberland) and had issue four daughters;
(3) Jane Aglionby (c.1820-74), m. 1847 Charles Featherstonhaugh (d. 1885) and had issue a daughter (Elizabeth Aglionby Fetherstonhaugh, whose son purchased the Nunnery estate in 1892); she died 21 May 1874; will proved at Carlisle, 17 March 1876.
He inherited Drawdykes Castle from his mother in 1816 and Skirwith Abbey from his father in 1818, having moved back into it the previous year, but in 1822 he inherited the property of his aunt, Elizabeth Bamber, comprising Nunnery, Aglionby and Crossfield, subject to his changing his name to Aglionby and living at Nunnery.  He sold Skirwith later the same year, improved the house at Nunnery, and later added to the estate by buying Staffield Hall nearby and the advowson of Ainstable.  At his death, the entailed Nunnery estate passed to his cousin, Henry Bateman (later Aglionby), but Staffield Hall and other unentailed property was left to his widow, Mary, who continued to live with her daughters at Nunnery as Henry's guests. Staffield was eventually given to Mary's daughter Jane Featherstonhaugh as a wedding gift, and rebuilt.
He died of a cerebral haemorrhage in Carlisle, 1 July 1840 and was buried in Ainstable church.  His widow died in ?1855.

Aglionby (né Bateman), Henry Aglionby (1790-1854), of Newbiggin Hall and Nunnery.  Son of Rev. Samuel Bateman (1751-1827) of Newbiggin Hall and his wife Anne, daughter of Henry Aglionby (c.1715-70) (q.v.), born 28 December 1790.  Educated at Sedbergh, St. John's College, Cambridge (matriculated 1808; BA 1813; MA 1816) and Lincoln's Inn (admitted, 1812; called to the bar, 1816).  Practised as a barrister on the northern circuit.  He was a radical Whig in politics, and stood unsuccessfully for Parliament in Carlisle in 1829 before being elected for Cockermouth in 1832; he was MP for the town until his death in 1854.  In 1840 he changed his name to Aglionby on inheriting the Nunnery estate.  He was described in youth as 'of diminutive stature' and 'a plain-looking young man...very grave and steady in his manners', but he developed a spendthrift tendency to exceed his income and tried to regain solvency through wild schemes which often cost him money and were sometimes doubtfully legal. In the 1840s he became a director of the New Zealand Company, set up to promote colonization, and used his parliamentary position to promote the scheme, unsuccessfully.  He married, 3 March 1852, Mary Anne, widow of James Sadd (d. 1850/51) of Caterham (Surrey), but had no issue.
He inherited Newbiggin Hall from his father in 1827, and the Nunnery estate in 1840 after the death of Francis Aglionby (1777-1840), but lived mainly in London, where he had chambers in the Middle Temple.  On his marriage in 1852 he acquired Manor Cottage in Caterham, which became his main residence.  At his death he left his personal property to his widow, and his real estate to trustees for his widow and then for Mary Aglionby and her daughters, while the entailed estates passed to Charles Yates, son of John Yates (1779-1851) and grandson of Mary Yates (née Aglionby) (c.1750-1816).
He died on 31 July 1854.  His will was proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 22 September 1854.

Aglionby (né Yates), Charles (1807-91), of Mount Pleasant (Virginia).  Son of John Yates (1779-1851) and his wife, Julia Lovell (d. 1866), born in Jefferson County, Virginia, 1807.  Educated at Princeton (BA 1826).  He married, 1844, Judith Frances (known as Fanny) (1821-1902), daughter of Col. James W. Walker of Virginia (USA) and had issue, with five other children who died young:
(1) Rev. Francis Keyes Aglionby (1848-1937) (q.v.);
(2) John Aglionby;
(3) William Aglionby (1854-70), died unmarried;
(3) Jeanette Aglionby;
(3) Horace Waller Aglionby (1860-82), died unmarried.
He was established after his marriage on Mount Pleasant farm on his father's estate in Jefferson County.  He inherited the Nunnery estate from Henry Aglionby Aglionby (1790-1854) under the terms of the entail, and also Newbiggin Hall (which he sold in 1855) and other property in Cumberland and Dumfriesshire.  The Dumfriesshire property was sold in 1877.  He visited England in 1855 on inheriting the property but it was subsequently managed through Bleaymires of Penrith, solicitors.
He died 31 January 1891.  His widow died 29 September 1902.

Aglionby, Rev. Francis Keyes (known as Frank) (1848-1937) of Nunnery.  Elder son of Charles Aglionby (né Yates) (1807-91) of Mount Pleasant (Virginia) and his wife Fanny, daughter of Col. James W. Walker of Virginia (USA), born 1848.  Emigrated from America to England in 1867 and was educated at Queen's College, Oxford (BA 1871; BD 1873; MA 1875; DD); ordained deacon, 1873 and priest, 1874; curate of St Paul, Holloway, London, 1873-76 and Christ Church, Hampstead (Middx), 1876-78; vicar of Plungar (Notts), 1878-79, rector of Hampton Poyle (Oxon), 1879-82, vicar of Christ Church, Westminster, 1882-1917 and Newbold Pacey (Warks), 1917-27; honorary canon of Coventry Cathedral, 1921-27.  He married, 9 August 1876, Amy, daughter of Rt. Rev. Edward Henry Bickersteth, bishop of Exeter, and had issue:
(1) (Francis) Basil Aglionby (1878-1962); educated at Charterhouse and Corpus Christi College, Oxford (BA 1901; BCL 1902); served 1915-18 in WW1 in Royal Artillery (Major); , solicitor in private practice, 1918-57; married 30 September 1930 Marjorie (d. 1965), daughter of Rev. Alfred Russell, vicar of Chingford (Essex) and widow of Oliver Coales (d. 1926) and had issue a son (His Honour Judge Francis Aglionby (1932-2002)) and a daughter; died 4 January 1962; will proved 24 July 1962 (estate £38,462);
(2) Rose Frances Aglionby (1881-1961) MBE; honorary secretary of the Accra Diocesan Association, 1941-51; died unmarried, 4 June 1961;
(3) Commander Charles Edward Aglionby (1882-1966), served in Royal Navy, 1895-1919 and later as a fishery officer with the Ministry of Agriculture in north Wales; m. 1918 Christina Elizabeth Annabella, daughter of Alexander James Henry Campbell of Dunstaffnage, and had issue one son and two daughters; died 11 May 1966;
(4) Rt. Rev. John Orfeur Aglionby (1884-1963); educated at Westminster and Queen's College, Oxford (BA 1910; MA 1910); ordained deacon 1911 and priest 1912; curate of Holy Trinity, South Shields, 1911-15; served in WW1 in Royal Army Medical Corps and later as a chaplain to the forces; MC 1917; vicar of St Bede, Monkwearmouth, 1918-23; bishop of Accra (Ghana), 1923-51; died unmarried, 15 May 1963;
(5) Maj. Arthur Hugh Aglionby (1885-1918); educated at Westminster and Corpus Christi College, Oxford (BA 1908); schoolmaster, 1908-14; served in WW1 with Royal Artillery (Captain, 1917; Major, 1918; died of wounds, 7 November 1918; MC posthumously, 1919);
(6) Rev. Wilfrid Henry Aglionby (1890-1958), educated at Westminster and Corpus Christi College, Oxford (BA 1912); ordained deacon 1913 and priest 1914; curate of St Mary of Eton, Hackney Wick, 1914-16; chaplain to the forces, 1916-18 (MC 1918); curate of St Michael, Shoreditch, 1920-23; vicar of St Frideswide, Poplar, 1923-37 and St. Saviour (later St Saviour and Christ Church), Ealing, 1937-58; died unmarried, 29 July 1958;
(7) Alice Mary Aglionby (1892-1974), rather eccentric smallholder in Kent and Sussex who bred dogs, pigs, goats and peacocks; died unmarried, 17 June 1974;
(6) Alan Bernard Aglionby (1899-1901), died young.
He inherited the Nunnery estate from his father in 1891, but sold it the following year to his cousin, Arthur Charles Aglionby (q.v.).  On his retirement he bought Hilden Grange in Tonbridge (Kent), which his widow sold in the early 1940s.
He died 6 November 1937, aged 88; his will was proved in London, 20 December 1937 (estate £18,637).  His widow died 30 October 1943, aged 87.

Aglionby (né Cooper), Arthur Charles (1872-1938) of Nunnery.  Only son of Lt-Col. Arthur Sisson Cooper (later Aglionby) and his wife Elizabeth Aglionby (d. 1885), daughter of Charles Featherstonhaugh of Staffield Hall and his wife Jane (née Aglionby), born 15 July 1872. Educated at Harrow and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and later at the Inner Temple (called to the bar, 1905).  Served in the army in the 3rd bttn, Connaught Rangers, 1899-1901 (Captain), then in military intelligence in Persia, before becoming district superintendent of police in Nigeria, 1904-08; deputy governor of Manchester Prison, 1908 and later governor of Winchester Prison and Exeter Prison.  He married 8 July 1909 Joyce (1889-1960), daughter of Joseph Wynn Goodman of Park Hatch (Surrey) and had issue:
(1) Elizabeth Joyce Aglionby (b. 1911), born 15 February 1911; m. Charles Geoffrey Price;
(2) Barbara Aglionby (1915-79), born 18 July 1915; m. 1941, Richard P. Harding; died Jan-March 1979.
He inherited the Drawdykes estate from his grandmother and purchased the Nunnery estate from his cousin, Rev. Francis Keyes Aglionby (1848-1937) in 1892, but sold it again in 1919. He lived later at Gurney Court, West Harptree (Somerset) and Poltimore (Devon), where he built a new six-bedroomed house called Belfield House.
He died on 17 August 1938.

Sources

J.M. Robinson, A guide to the country houses of the North-West, 1991, pp. 104, 130; T. Longville, ‘Thrills and chills in the Cumbrian hills’, Country Life, 23 November 2000, pp. 60-63; H. Summerson, 'An ancient Squire's family': the history of the Aglionbys c.1130-2002, 2007; M. Hyde & Sir N. Pevsner, The buildings of England: Cumbria, 2010, pp. 115, 164-65, 413

Location of archives

Aglionby of Nunnery and Drawdykes Castle (Cumberland): deeds, manorial records and family papers, 12th-20th cents (Cumbria RO, Carlisle D/AY)

Revision and acknowledgements

This account was first published 14 July 2013 and was revised 21 July 2014, 22 February 2016, 10 December 2020, 12 July 2022 and 24 March 2026. I am grateful to Sarah Probert for additional information.