15.—THE  VICARAGE.

Interior of parish church.

Interior of parish church.

From the foundation of the church until the final suppression of religious houses, and the consequent confiscation of their possessions, this benefice remained in the hands of the monks and Prior of Lenton, but upon the dissolution of the monastery the advowson was seized by the crown. In 1534, in the Ecclesiastical Survey made upon the dissolution of religious houses, in pursuance of an Act of Parliament, Richard Mathew, then Vicar of Lenton, is recorded to have had a house with one acre of glebe land, and was entitled to the tithes of lambs and fleeces, pigs, fowls and eggs, flax and hemp, and certain other things, including daily meals in the kitchen of the Priory, and fodder for one horse, provided by the Prior, which, together with oblations and all other ecclesiastical dues, amounted in all to £10 11s. 1d., per annum. Out of this the Vicar had to pay an annual pension of £1 8s. 8d. to the Prior of Lenton, so that his clear yearly stipend at that period was £9 2s. 5d.

In the vicariate of Robert Ollerenshaw the vicarage was only worth seven pounds per annum. Ollerenshaw was declared to be "a preaching minister," but a "drunkard and of ill conversation." It is more than probable that he earned the bad character given him by the Parliamentary Commissioners on account of his Royalist sympathies. It is by no means unlikely that his "ill conversation" was directed against the Roundheads then in power.

In 1676, from a Return made by John Francis, then curate of Lenton, of the number of persons residing within the parish of an age to communicate, together with the number of Papists and other nonconformists, it appears that there were then 160 communicants and not a single papist or nonconformist in the parish.

The emoluments of the benefice have been derived from glebe land, and other kinds of property, including tithes of wool, lambs, eggs, geese, ducks, chickens, pigeons, pigs, gardens, orchards, turnips, potatoes, Easter offerings, surplice fees, mortuaries, cow-gates, sheep-gates, three half-pence for every new milched cow, and a penny for every stropper. These items appear in a Terrier taken for the then Diocesan in 1739, His Grace the Archbishop of York.

In 1886 the living was worth £380 per annum, inclusive of a good vicarage house built in 1842. There are 18 acres of land at Belchford, near Horncastle, in Lincolnshire, purchased by the governors of Queen Anne's Bounty. There is also some glebe land in Trent Lane. There used to be an annual pension from the Crown to the Vicars of Lenton of £5 11s. 11d.

The present gross income, apart from fees, pew-rents, Easter-offering, and vicarage house, is as follows:—

Ecclesiastical Commissioners

£213

10

10

Glebe: Belchford near Horncastle

£20

0

0

Trent Lane

£31

5

10

Augmentation (Private)

£60

0

0

Wayleaves

£15

0

0

 

£339

16

8

The advowson is now in the keeping of the Church Pastoral-Aid Society.

16.—THE VICARS AND CURATES OF LENTON.

The Vicars.

Robert Anger, presbyter : Patron, Prior of Birdstall ? Instituted 8 November, 1274.
John de Berde, presbyter: Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 2 Aug., 1300.
Adam de Granby, cap.: Patron, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 4 Feb., 1331.
Robert de Radford, cap.: Patron, King Edward III. Instituted 6 Sept., 1349.
John Blakeman, resigned for Rectory of Bulwell.
Michael de Lyndeby, presbyter: Patron, King Edward III. Instituted 19 Oct., 1358.
Robert de Thornton, resigned for Rectory of Cortlingstock. He was probably buried at Lenton.
Henry Broksop, presbyter : Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 24 Oct., 1410.
William Clyfton, presbyter : Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 30 July, 1425. Resigned following year for living of Wilford.
John Peeke, presbyter: Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 10 Oct., 1426. Buried at Lenton. Left 3/4d. to the church.
William Fyndern, B.D.: Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 6 Oct., 1442.
William Odo, presbyter, resigned.
John Mayewe, presbyter: Patrons, Priory and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 16 Oct., 1449.
John Milnes, presbyter: Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 14 Oct., 1496. Buried at Lenton.
Sir Robert Burton, presbyter : Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 3 June, 1515. Buried on south side of High Altar of Parish Church, i.e., Conventual church, or pre-reformation church.
Alexander Penhill, presbyter: Patrons, Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 25 March, 1517. Resigned 1527.
Robert Mathew, diac: Patrons: Prior and Convent of Lenton. Instituted 26 Feb., 1527.  Resigned  1543.
Robert Mayburn (Gaybone): Patron, King Henry VIII. Instituted 5 March, 1543. Resigned.
Thomas West, clericus : Patrons, King Philip and Queen Mary. Instituted 18 Jan., 1556. Resigned.
Thomas Askewe, clericus: Patron: Queen Elizabeth. Instituted 26 Oct., 1571.
John Fisher, clericus: Patron: Queen Elizabeth.   Instituted July 13, 1572. Probably buried at Lenton.
John Wood, clericus: Patron, Queen Elizabeth. Instituted 12 July, 1592. Buried at Lenton.
Robert Ollerenshaw, M.A., Patron: King James I. Instituted 21 Sept., 1623. "A preaching minister and a drunkard of an ill conversation." A Royalist. Probably ejected.
John Webster, "Minister," in 1659. A Puritan Divine, put in after Cromwell's usurpation probably.
William Parker, Vicar in 1660. A Puritan. Ordained May 4th by Presbyterians in S. Mary's Church, Nottingham. "Mr. William Parker, preacher of the word at Lenton." Later episcopally ordained. Held Radford in plurality, after passing of Act of Uniformity. Held Lenton in plurality, also Curacy of Sneinton, William Rudsby, Vicar in 1693 of Radford. Held Radford in plurality. Buried at Radford.
John Swaile, Vicar of Radford. Instituted 6 Aug., 1731. where he was buried. Headmaster of Nottingham Free School.
George Wayte, M.A., of Repton, Derbyshire. 1754, Vicar of Radford. Held Lenton in plurality. Buried at Radford.
William Pickering, B.D., 1782. Vicar of Radford. Held Lenton in plurality.
Edward Cresswell, M.A.: Patron, King George III. Instituted to Lenton and Radford, 3 May, 1803. First Vicar of Lenton for 100 years. Buried at Radford.
1838-1839. No Vicar or Curate. Parish work carried on by Priests named Bolton, Armstrong, and others.
George Browne, M.A., 1840-1866: Patron, Queen Victoria, Instituted July, 1840, when Curate-in-Charge of Lenton. Brother of the Marquis of Sligo, and son of the Rt. Hon. Denis Browne, M.P. First Vicar of the new parish church.
Percy Edward Smith, M.A., 1886-1893. Assistant Curate, 1881-1886. Wrote Pastoral Letter immediately after Induction, in which he refers to the completed restoration of the old parish church (the Priory Church).
Allan Hunter Watts, 1893-1917.
Felix Asher, B.D., 1917-1922. Died at Lenton, Sept., 1922. Buried at Lenton by the Bishop of Derby.
W. Aden Wright, 1922-1928.
Rainald J. R. Skipper, C.F. (formerly Architect), 1929.

The Curates.

There have probably been Assistant Curates of Lenton from the time that Radford and Lenton were held in plurality, i.e., from 1660. We know that John Francis was Assistant Curate in 1676, from a Return that he made of the parish. From 1693 to 1803 Lenton was held in plurality by the Vicars of Radford, and in 1660 William Parker held Radford in plurality.

In 1803, Edward Cresswell was instituted as Vicar of Lenton only, thus being the first Vicar of Lenton for more than 100 years.

It is not possible to compile a list of Curates previous to the year 1731, but from that time the following have served:—

George Wayte, M.A., 1731-1784.
William Gill, 1782-1805.
Joseph Halifax, pro tem, 1801.
B. F. Domford, 1805-1809.
George Browne, M.A., 1839-1840.
Beryn L. Hargrave, 1841-1842.
Benjamin L. Armitage, 1843-1844. These do not sign themselves " Curate."
Thomas Bell, 1844-1845.
Francis Redford, 1847-1848.
W. J. Peacock, 1850-1852.
Alexander L. Hall, 1852-1853.
George Despard, 1853-1855.
William (Thomas) R. Hopkins, 1856-1859.
R. Jones, 1858-1859.
Fred Corfield, 1859-1860, pro tem (Vicar away pro tem).
Alexander Twip, 1860-1861.
J. F. Blake, 1862-1864.
Thomas Mooney, 1864-1866.
Somerville H. Lamphier, 1867-1874.
Wm. R. Cripps, 1867-1874.
Francis Browne, 1872-1873 (son of Vicar).
H. Joy Browne, pro tem, 1873 (son of Vicar).
Francis H. Roughton, 1874-1875.
F. G. S. Read, 1876-1877.
H. A. Holmes, 1877-1878.
John Orr, M.A., 1878-1881.
Percy E. Smith, M.A., 1881-1886.
J. W. Knapton, 1882-1883 (does not sign himself "Curate").
Arthur E. Clarke, M.A., 1884-1885.
Henry M. Cross, M.A., 1886-1888.
Alfred Marshall, M.A, 1887-1893.
Herbert Hampson, M.A., 1889-1891.
Henry P. Gocher, M.A., 1889-1891.
E. Aden Beresford, B.A., LL.M., 1892-1894.
William Brailsford, B.A., 1894-1896.
J. Price Stephens, 1895-1896.
C. Doyne Powell, M.A., LL.D., 1896-1907.
Walter Clements, M.A., 1897-1904.
C. H. E. F. Cropper, 1904-1907.
Morris P. Tiarks, 1907-1909.
C. Westwell, M.A., 1907-1916.
C. A. Barnes, B.A., 1908-1910.
Francis J. Kahn, M.A., 1910-1915.
F. B. Merryweather, B.A., 1916-1921.
E. Flintoft Wood, L.R.A.M., 1918-1920.
Keith B. Frampton, L.Th., 1922-1927.
James E. Godsmark, B.A., 1924-1927.
Walter Greenwood, M.A., B.D., 1927-1929.
Walter W. Williams, L.Th., 1928-
Edwin D. Ginever, L.Th., 1929-
Thomas W. Bryan, 1929-