MANOR OF REAGILL.

The first notice recorded of Reagill is that Maude, the sister of Hugh de Morville and wife of William de Veteripont, gave a ploughland of her demesne of Renegill in frank marriage with her daughter Christian to Robert son of Derman; which land was called Hynthornbank. There is no land at the present day bearing such a name; but it may have been the lands now known as Thornbank, a number of fields lying near Hard Bank. She afterwards gave the whole vill of Renegill to her son Robert, he rendering to her for all service one hawk; which he was to hold for Ivo his brother. Ivo confirmed the same to Robert and his heirs in 1208. This Robert, in 1212, granted it with the appurtenances to the Abbey of Shap.

The next account met with is concerning the chapel of Reagill. The Abbot and convent of Whitby despatched a messenger to Rome to complain to the Pope that the Abbot and the Convent of Heppe over-exacted their tithes of Renegill Chapel in the parish of Crosby Ravensworth. His Holiness appointed certain persons to examine into these grievances, and wrote in 1224 settling the matter thus; that the Abbot and Convent of Hepp were to pay to the Church at Crosseby in the name of tithes 6 skepfuls (skeppas) of merchantable oatmeal for the tithes of their land at Renegill (a skepful is a quarter), from land which is cultivated at their own expense, and by their own hands, at that time; but new land hence broken up, by whomsoever, not to pay. It was to be paid, 3 skepfuls at Martinmas and 3 at Easter; but if they let these lands out after improving, they had to pay to the full. Also it is lawful for the Convent of Hepp to celebrate divine service in the Chapel of Renegill, saving harmless the mother church of Crosseby Ravensworth, with regard to oblations, obventions, confessions, communions and burials. This is drawn up and settled at Gisburn on the 20^th Kalends of May, in the year of Incarnation 1225.

There is nothing more respecting Reagill until after the dissolution of the monasteries, when the revenues of the Abbey of Shap were granted in 1545 to Thomas, Lord Wharton, who had been advanced to the dignity of Baron by Henry VIII., for the signal defeat which he gave the Scots at Sollom Moss in 1542. To him was granted the monasteries of Shap, Gisburn and rival (Rievaulx) in Yorkshire, to hold of the King by the service of one 20^th part of one knight’s fee, and paying for the whole £41 11s yearly, with the reversion and remainder thereof in the Crown. In 1612, King James, for the faithful services of Sir George Wharton and other considerations, granted also the remainder and reversion to Philip, Lord Wharton. The particulars of the former grant of Renegill were divers rents and services issuing out of divers lands and tenements, and all messuages, mills, tofts, cottages, lands, tenements, meadows, pastures and other hereditaments in the tenure and occupation of the tenants, amongst whose names are Winter, Blamire, Furness, Hugil, Addison, etc., to the number of 22. The descendants of some of these have lived in Reagill for several generations afterwards. The Abbey, after the Dissolution, was valued at £154. 7s.7½d. a year; and in the computation made by Henry VIII. is the following return of property in Reagill:-