The Commons of Cuddington (Cheshire)

(R.M.Bevan, September 2008)

Introduction:
The Cuddington Enclosure Act, 1767, of Bryn Common, Cuddington, divided 435 acres between the
freeholders of Cuddington. A further 25 acres, i.e. 6 public allotments, was set aside for the benefit
of the inhabitants of the township.
These public allotments were as follows:

1 Higher Gorsty’s Lot (In the grounds of modern Delamere Manor)
2 Town Moss (Opposite to the Water Tower, Cuddington Lane)
3 Cartledge Moss/Cranberry Moss (Moss Lane, Cuddington)
4 Fleamoss Pit (Rear of Cuddington Station, Mayfield Drive)
5 Cuddington Waste (Alongside Delamere Manor)
6 Ravensclough Waste (End of Waste Lane, Cuddington)

Under the terms of the Enclosure Act, each of these allotments commenced with precisely the same status.
They were Manorial lands owned by the Lord of the Manor and over which the inhabitants held rights,
principally for the getting of sand, gravel and marl to maintain the public highways.

Manorial Lands:
At the time of the 1767 Enclosure Act, the Lord of the Manor of Weaverham, including Cuddington, was Richard Smith Barry (Marbury Hall) and, thereafter, his descendants.
The Smith Barry line dissipated through various marriages and the title and manorial rights are now defunct.

The Lord of the Manor was the freehold owner of the 6 allotments set aside for the benefit of the inhabitants of Cuddington and, as the freeholder, he was at liberty to sell, or to lease these allotments.

The Land Registry (Practice Guide 22, March 2003) states of “Manorial land”: “… because a manor was a defined area it included the physical land within that area. Such land could either be freehold or leasehold.”
In cases generally where the Lord of Manor agreed to sell an allotment,
the purchaser became the freeholder in his own right.

However, the early custom (and there are many instances nationally) often saw the Lord of the Manor charge the new allotment freeholder a leasehold rent, or “chief rent”, as it was previously known. The common rights specified for the inhabitants were materially unchanged.

With the passage of time, the collecting of the “chief rent”, normally a token few shillings a year, became an uneconomical exercise to the Lord of the Manor. Consequently, and certainly by the second half of the 19th century,
the allotment freeholder was often able to purchase, through a small lump sum, the “chief rent”.
This, effectively, brought to an end the Lord of the Manor’s jurisdiction over the allotment.

Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council:
Cuddington Parish Council was formed in 1894 and the Council’s Minute Books reveal that members have frequently considered ownership issues concerning Ravensclough Waste and Fleamoss Pit,
two of the six allotments under the 1767 Enclosure Act.

As to the other four areas allotted in the Enclosure Act (Higher Gorsty’s Lot, Town Moss, Cartledge Moss and Cuddington Waste), the “ownership” question, nor the rights of inhabitants, was ever addressed prior to 1968.

By the time of the formation of Cuddington Parish Council, Higher Gorsty’s Lot, Town Moss and Cuddington Waste were integrated into the Wilbrahams’ Delamere House Estate and the Parish Council did not question the ownership of these allotments, nor the loss of inhabitants’ Manorial rights upon them.

Major Hugh Wilbraham, the head of the Wilbraham family, was Chairman of Cuddington Parish Council 1896-1928
and his son, George Wilbraham was Chairman 1931-1948 (latterly as Chairman of Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council following amalgamation).

Higher Gorsty’s Lot and Town Moss were already fenced off and inaccessible.
A public footpath did, however, run through Cuddington Waste, i.e. until closure, circa 1938, by George Wilbraham when he built Delamere Manor, alongside Cuddington Waste.

1965 Commons Registration Act:
On April 4, 1968, Robert Parker, a Cuddington & Sandiway parish councillor, wrote to the Cheshire County Archivist, B.C.Redwood, to enquire if there were any sites in the parish of Cuddington & Sandiway suitable for registration
under the 1965 Commons Registration Act. Parker listed the six sites contained in the 1767 Enclosure Act.
Redwood was tasked with the responsibility of compiling and advising on potential Cheshire registrations.
Parker concluded his letter by stating that though he was a parish councillor,
he was making the enquiry as a private citizen.

As a result of this enquiry, Redwood examined the six allotments in the Cuddington Enclosure Act and concluded that where the exercise of common rights had lapsed, and the land had been appropriated to other uses, and was in fact treated as private property over a long period, it would be best to accept the situation and not try to register. Conversely, Redwood then went on to give his view that consideration should be given to registering all six allotments in Cuddington.
On 28 April, 1969, and having personally conducted a search of the available parish council and public records, including the 1839 Tithe Map for Cuddington, Parker referred the matter to the Parish Council. His views on each of the allotments were presented, as follows:

Higher Gorsty Lot: “Believed to be in the grounds of Delamere Manor; registered in the Tithe records as owned by Mr Wilbraham. Suggest do not register.”

Cuddington Waste: “Tithe records show ‘Waste’, so could be registered, but are the rights realistic these days?”
Ravensclough Waste: “Council regarded as owner and receiving rents, area about 4.46 acres.”
Town Moss: “Should not register because land is “used up” for original purpose and in any case is owned by Mr Wilbraham according to tithe records.”

Cartledge Moss: (A suggestion had been forwarded from a local resident that the Moss had been sold by the parish to Northwich Rural Council). Parker commented: “I never remember the Parish Council selling it or ever being aware that it was the Council’s to sell, but Northwich RDC should be asked to clarify. In any case the common rights of getting peat, turf etc is all that can be claimed, and is this realistic today?”

Fleamoss Pit: “This area has been cut in half by the railway constructed in 1869. It used to extend to the hollow by the Scout Hall on the Playing Field. Present area 0.345 acres owned without dispute by the Parish Council.”

On November 6th, 1969, and having consulted the Area Planning Officer, Redwood wrote to the Parish Council to recommend two of the six allotments for registration under the 1965 Act: Cuddington Waste “as a common allotment in a waste state”. Cartledge Moss, “as a common allotment in a waste state”.

Redwood added: “I shall be glad to know if the Parish Council proposes to apply for registration.”
As it turned out, Cartledge Moss was, indeed, owned by Northwich Rural Council, as confirmed in a letter (15 June, 1970) to Redwood from W.Crawford, Clerk to Northwich RDC. “My council purchased the above land with an absolute title under the Land Registration Acts 1925, 1936 and 1962”.

Meanwhile, the Parish Council went ahead with formal notice (19 November 1969) to the Clerk of Cheshire County Council seeking registration, under the 1965 Commons Registration Act, of Cuddington Waste. On April 18, 1974, the County Archivist informed the Parish Council that Cuddington Waste had been duly registered (Unit No: CL 95) as “common”.

This registration was dated August 1, 1972. The question of ownership of Cuddington Waste was in abeyance, awaiting a judgement by a Commons Commissioner. Redwood added: “If no further evidence is put forward,
the Commissioner will vest it (ownership) in the parish council.”


The Allotments:
(1) Higher Gorsty’s Lot (10 acres within the ground of Delamere Manor) –, vanished into the Delamere House Estate
owned by the Wilbrahams. Parker states that Higher Gorsty’s was already recorded in the Tithe Map of 1839
as being in Wilbrahams’ ownership. How that came to be is unknown, as records have not been
found to show the Wilbrahams having purchased the freehold from the Lord of the Manor.

(2) Town Moss (1 acre, opposite to the Water Tower, Cuddington Lane) – this allotment can still be clearly defined.
However, it too came to be annexed into the Wilbrahams’ Delamere House Estate. This was perfectly legitimate. The Cuddington Enclosure Act makes special provisions in respect of “Town Moss”, declaring that it was to be used by the inhabitants of the township for one year only. Thereafter, it was to be allotted and assigned to
William Wright, “his heirs and assigns for ever”. Presumably, at a later date, the Wilbrahams purchased Wright’s title.

(3) Cartledge Moss/Cranberry Moss (2 acres, Moss Lane, Cuddington) – this allotment was purchased by Northwich Rural Council. How this came about is unknown. The Northwich RDC Clerk’s letter of 15 June, 1970 outlines certain incidental covenants concerning the vendor’s amenities, the vendor being a “company of developers”.

Land Registry files show that the vendors were George Wimpey Company Ltd and Cartledge Moss was simply swallowed up into the Wimpey estate development of the late 1950s. How the freehold devolved from the Lord of the Manor and the 1767 Enclosure Act is unknown.

Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council did not challenge the original conveyancing to George Wimpey Co Ltd,
nor later to Northwich RDC, and nor did it attempt to assert those manorial rights, albeit archaic in the 20th century,
that had existed since 1767. Certainly, the Parish Council did not, at any time, claim ownership to Cartledge Moss.
In fact, according to Parker, the Parish Council knew nothing about the sale to Northwich RDC.

(4) Fleamoss Pit (3 acres, off Warrington Road) – the on-going controversy over this allotment continues
into the 21st century and little remains of the original allotment.
As Parker stated, much of Fleamoss Pit was taken for the railway and, later, for the Playing Field development.
The area remaining is not owned by Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council. Records do not exist,
either in the public domain or within the Parish Council minutes, to show any third party acquiring the freehold
from the Lord of the Manor. Only the 1767 Enclosure Act rights exist, allowing the inhabitants
(in the case of Fleamoss Pit) to collect water.

(5) Cuddington Waste (4 acres) – this allotment was registered by the Parish Council as “common” land,
but perhaps quite inappropriately and the repercussions continue. In 1885, shortly before his death, George Fortescue Wilbraham purchased Ravenhead Farm (now called Manor Farm) from the Lord of the Manor, Smith Barry,
and this became part of the Delamere House Estate. Wilbraham paid £2,600 for the farm and a note on one of the deed documents states that the £2,600 included payment by Wilbraham, to Smith Barry,
for the “Chief Rent”, 5/- a year on Cuddington Waste.

This reaffirmed the Wilbrahams as the freehold owners of Cuddington Waste and in 1938,
George Wilbraham (George Fortescue Wilbraham’s great nephew) commissioned Delamere Manor to be built,
alongside Cuddington Waste. In the early 1950s, George Wilbraham sold Delamere Manor to Major Graham-Wood. Included within the conveyance of the overall estate was Cuddington Waste.
Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council did not challenge this conveyancing, nor did it attempt to assert
those manorial rights that had existed on the land since 1767.
Certainly, at this time, Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council did not claim ownership to Cuddington Waste.

By a conveyance, dated October 2, 1967, the Delamere Manor Estate, including Cuddington Waste,
was purchased by Mr Peter Summers. In June 1974, following the formal registration of Cuddington Waste
as common land, Mr Summers’ solicitors (Slater, Heelis & Co, Manchester) wrote to the Commons Commissioners
to protest at the registration and to complain that Mr Summers had not been given prior notice of the application.
Much correspondence continued and Mr Redwood, on behalf of Cheshire County Council, stated, in effect, that the registration could not be rescinded. However, there was still the question of ownership of Cuddington Waste to resolve.

Consequently, on July 24, 1979, a Commons Commissioner sat at Chester to consider the ownership
question. Both Mr & Mrs Peter Summers and Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council claimed ownership. In his decision report (August 22, 1979), the Commissioner stated: “… a claim to ownership was not maintained by the Parish Council”,
i.e. the Parish Council withdrew and Mr & Mrs Summers were officially confirmed as the owners of the registered
common land, Cuddington Waste”. This was clearly the correct decision as the Summers’ predecessor in title,
the Wilbrahams, had been recognised as the freeholders of Cuddington Waste from as far back as the “chief rent”
mentioned in the 1885 purchase of Ravenhead Farm from the Lord of the Manor.

Since 1967 until 2008 there have been three conveyances appertaining to the Delamere Manor Estate.
The Land Registry (June 13, 2008) states that Cuddington Waste is part of the freehold of the Delamere Manor Estate and there are no cautions in existence against first registration. Furthermore, the Land Registry verbally confirms
it does not have any knowledge of Cuddington Waste being registered as “common” land.

(6) Ravensclough Waste (5 acres) – over the past thirty years there has been an on-going controversy over title to this land. The Parish Council currently has a caution with the Land Registry against anyone attempting to register title
to Ravensclough Waste. The Parish Council’s entire case, as lodged with the Land Registry, is based upon the 1767 Cuddington Enclosure Act. For many years the Parish Council has rented out small plots of
Ravensclough Waste in order for residents to erect private garages and, more recently, a large plot
has been rented, unlawfully, by the Parish Council as a garden extension to the house known as Woodlands.

In his letter of April 4, 1968, Robert Parker, when first raising with the County Archivist the question of common lands in Cuddington, noted of Ravensclough Waste: “The Parish Council assumes ownership of about 41/2 acres of this land and receives rental for wayleave from MANWEB for poles, and also garage areas here, and it is generally accepted by the neighbourhood that this ‘belongs’ to the Parish Council…”.

The County Archivist, Redwood, took up this theme in a letter to Parker, dated March 22, 1969:
“… land in Waste Lane, of which the Council has assumed ownership for many years.”

On May 23, 1972, E.W.C.Pascoe, the then Clerk to Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council, wrote to Redwood, stating:
“Since I took office three years ago I have been unable to trace records of such land known to be vested in the council for which we receive rents. Any information, together with copies of plans showing boundaries and areas,
you are able to let me have will be appreciated.”

Two days later, Redwood responded: “The only information I have on land owned by the council is in
Mr Parker’s letter of 4 April 1968, a copy of which I enclose.”

Pascoe, on July 4, 1972: “It is the area “C”, approximately 6.270 acres from which we obtain rents for
garage space etc, known as Ravensclough Waste, which is not clearly defined. If you could indicate this area
on the map and define the ownership, this would be appreciated.”

Redwood, July 6, 1972: “I enclose a plan of Ravensclough Waste as supplied to me by the Area Planning Department.
This was Area C shown on the Cuddington Enclosure Award 1767, allotted for the getting of marl, clay, sand,
stone and gravel for the public and private ways and roads in the township.
Such allotments have often been claimed by the highway authority, but in this case it seems that the
parish has asserted ownership, which I do not suppose would be disputed.”

Two years later, Pascoe again raised the question of ownership of Ravensclough Waste with Redwood and a letter from the County Archivist followed on April 18, 1974. This stated: “With regard to Ravensclough Waste,
I have nothing further to add to my letter of 6 July 1972. The parish seems to me to have exercised rights of
ownership over the Waste which are not disputed.”

Clearly, Parker and Redwood had been floundering over the ownership of Ravensclough Waste.
Without documentary evidence they could say only that the council “assumed” ownership and not even the County Archivist was able to shed further light on the matter. He was able only to refer to the
Cuddington Enclosure Award of 1767 and Parker’s letter of April 4, 1968. It is hardly surprising that Pascoe was concerned and that he continued to press Redwood for a definitive answer.

However, just as Redwood and Parker had not been aware of the private “chief rent” transaction of 1885,
between Wilbraham and the Lord of the Manor in respect of Cuddington Waste, they would not have
had knowledge of a similar “chief rent”, private transaction in respect of Ravensclough Waste.

This transaction, dated March 11, 1895, is between “Mr George Youd and Arthur Hugh Smith Barry, of Marbury Hall”.
It is a conveyance of a “Chief Rent of 5/- and the inheritance thereof in fee simple issuing out of Freehold
Property at Cuddington, in the county of Chester”, from Smith Barry, the Lord of the Manor, to Youd,
for the sum of “Two pounds”. The document is signed by both parties and witnessed by Smith Barry’s private secretary.

Earlier, George Youd, on June 13, 1879, had purchased the Waste Cottage and the Waste land from the freeholder,
George Stocks. Youd continued to pay the annual “chief rent” to the Lord of the Manor, i.e. until he
purchased this “chief rent” through the 1895 conveyance.

On June 6, 1919, Beatrice Louisa Youd conveyed the freehold of the Waste Cottage and land to
John Thomas Birtwistle for the sum of £100. This, when prime land was fetching no more than £20 an acre,
was a considerable amount of money (worth £14,530 based on the 2007 average earnings index) for rough,
unproductive land and an old wooden cottage. From the sum paid (£100), the total area of the land was the full five acres.
It should be noted that the Ravensclough Waste land, both south and north of the railway, totals just over five acres.
Some of this land has since been annexed into Watermill Farm.
John Thomas Birtwistle later settled the freehold of the cottage and the land (north and south of the railway) on his brother, Jesse, who, on October 24, 1972, conveyed the freehold to his niece and her two sons.

The Parish Council minutes include many references relating to the ownership of Ravensclough Waste:
September 20, 1949 (PC Minute): “A letter be sent to Mr Gandy, Estate Agent, asking for his comments
with regard to the ownership of the land known as Ronslow (Ravensclough) Waste”.
Mr Gandy’s reply is not minuted.

January 24, 1949 (PC Minutes) a letter was sent to the Area Planning Officer stating that the Parish Council
minutes showed undisputed ownership of the land for over forty years and to the “best of their knowledge” the land
was considered “waste”. Also to the “best of their knowledge” the Parish Council was not aware it was infringing any common rights, because it had no knowledge of such rights

November 24, 1988, letter from Dixons Solicitors: “… the title to the land is based on the
Cuddington Enclosure Award of 1767.”

February 27, 1990, Parish Council solicitor claiming “Possessory Title” to the land.


Summary:
Two of the 1767 Enclosure allotments, Higher Gorsty’s Lot and Town Moss, lost their access and common
rights long before the formation of the Parish Council in 1894. They are in private ownership.
Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council has never claimed ownership of either Higher Gorsty’s Lot or Town Moss.

Cartledge Moss may, or may not, have been acquired by a third party from the Lord of the Manor
prior to it descending to George Wimpey & Co Ltd. It certainly then passed to the local authority,
Northwich Rural Council. Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council has never claimed ownership of this land.

Fleamoss Pit : Parish Council records are devoid of any reference to a “conveyance”, or “chief rent”,
purchased from the Lord of the Manor. There is a complete absence of documentation to support
the contention that, under the Cuddington Enclosure Act, the Parish Council owns Fleamoss Pit.
To the contrary, the evidence shows the Parish Council cannot possibly claim ownership of Fleamoss Pit.

Cuddington Waste: The freehold has descended to the present title holders of Delamere Manor.
The “common” land registration remains, though in 2008 the Land Registry stated it did not possess any
record of this. The Parish Council’s 1979 claim to the freehold title of Cuddington Waste was abruptly dismissed
by the Commons Commissioner. However, had Mr & Mrs Summers not been vigilant then the freehold title
would have passed to the Parish Council, by default. This land, though registered as “common”
under the Commons Registration Act 1965, is inaccessible to the general public.

Ravensclough Waste: As in the case of Cuddington Waste and the Wilbrahams, the Lord of the Manor,
in conveying a “chief rent”, recognised George Youd as the freeholder of Ravensclough Waste.
The Parish Council, as revealed in the “best of knowledge” letter, has been unable to show how this land devolved to the council from the Cuddington Enclosure Act. The evidence is overwhelmingly against this contention.

Two other crucial facts emerge from this research

(1) Throughout its 114 years history, Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council has failed to undertake a
thorough investigation in order to establish the true situation of the common allotments.
The council continues to rely upon hearsay, that which has been verbally handed down.
Only in 1968, through Robert Parker, has a single member of the council ever attempted to consider the status of the allotments. Parker’s research did not find anything to underpin the Parish Council’s “assumed”
ownership of Cuddington Waste, Fleamoss Pit or Ravensclough Waste.

Neither was the Parish Clerk, Pascoe, able to underpin the council’s ownership as he outlined
in his letter of May 23, 1972 to Redwood… “Since I took office three years ago I have been unable to trace
records of such land known to be vested in the council for which we receive rents.”

(2) Cuddington & Sandiway Parish Council continues to deal with the Ravensclough Waste and
Fleamoss Pit controversies as confidential items, under Section 2 of the Public Bodies Act.
Members of the public are, therefore, unaware of the full implications, i.e. considerable expenditure,
over many decades, of the council’s attempts to claim ownership of Ravensclough Waste and Fleamoss Pit.


Note: The information relating to “The Commons of Cuddington” is generally in the public domain.
Copies of all letters, deeds and documents, as well as other material referred to in this paper, are held by the writer.

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