Wood Farm (shown on the OS map as The Wood) is the most westerly farm in the parish and is situated very near to Ings Beck. It is a late 18th century buildinga and is listed. In the past it has been known by another name. It is currently (February 2021) occupied by John Lund and his family. John was a world class stock car driver and he won eight World Championships - which is a record.
What is the Matter with Mutta?
There are numerous lost names in Rimington. Mutta or Muttow is one of them. However there is proof of where this place was. What is more of a mystery is why a family who lived and farmed there for more than eighty years called it Mutta, when the place name of the relevant entries in the Gisburn church registers were entered 'de Wood' (Wood Farm). No Mutta nor any other spelling variations were ever entered in the registers.
The earliest reference I have found of the name is the will of Hugh Brierley of Muttow, in the county of yorke, husbandman. It was dated 2nd of October 1609. He was buried at Gisburn twenty-four days later. His abode was not entered in the register.
An enquiry to the English Place Name Society produced the following response:
Muttow – meaning uncertain. However, the second element could be the same as in Waddow, i.e. Old English hoh 'a hill, a spur of a hill' or perhaps less likely Scandinavian haugr 'a hill or mound.' The name might then mean 'a hill where meetings take place', the first element being Old English (ge) mot a meeting, I.e.the origin of modern moot.
Hugh had three surviving sons Richard, William and James. William farmed at Wood Farm. He was buried Willmus Brearley de woode vndecimo die May 1642. He had at least one son, Hugh who survived him by only two years, being buried 10th May 1644, of Rimington.
Hugh had a son and a daughter, William and Agnes. Agnes died young. William married twice. First to Sarah Shyers at Mitton in 1640 and later Mary ? sometime in the second half of the 1650s. He and Sarah had a daughter, Ellen, and two sons, Hugh and Ralph. Later he and Mary had two daughters, Agnes and Ellen.
The first Ellen's baptism entry reads Ellena filia Willmi Brearely de Wood xv die Nouembris 1641. This is the very first entry in the Gisburn register specifically identifying 'Wood'.
The Downham Court Roll 20th Oct 1647 records the jurors found that Hugh Brerley surviving Feoffee of Christopher Tattersall died siezed of parcels of land in the East Field of Downham and that William Brearley was his son and heir and of full age.
William may have outlived both of his sons. Hugo de Wood was buried 22nd Oct 1676. Ralph isn't named in his father's will of 1693 but was a witness of the inventory of his late 2nd cousin James Brearley of Rimigton 17th April 1690.
William was buried 9th April 1693 de Wood in the register. He had made his will just five days before on “this ffourth day of Apprll 1693 I William Brearley of Mutta in ye Lordship of Rimington in ye pish of Gisborne... Yeoman being Aged and sick in body...”
There are no indications as to whom took on working the farm after William's death. (His inventory is listed below.) His wife may have carried it on with servants and seasonal help. However by 1713 it was being farmed by his grandson John Dean. He was 'de Rimington' at the baptisms of his first three children, 'de Wood' at the next three, and, maybe with a nod to his Brearley connections (there was another) 'de Brearley Wood' at the seventh!
Incidently, there was also a homestead at Twisles, not far from Wood Farm, at this time. The name lives on today in Twizles Bridge. William Oddie of Twizles, parish of Gisburn made a will in 1720. In it he named his wife Dorothy, and three daughters Mary Tomlinson, Alice Allcock and Jane Oddie. He was buried at Gisburn April 1720. Dorothy was buried there too November 1722. Both were described as in the register 'de Downham becks'.
Brian Stott March 2023 Version 2
Richard Brearley 1568 to 1636
This is the story of Richard Brearley who grew up at Mutta (Wood Farm) and became vicar of Colne Parish Church at the turn of the 17th century. It has been compiled for the Rimington website archive by Revd. Enid Briggs, herself a C of E minister - in Burnley, and a keen genealogist. Click here Richard Brearley of Mutta (Wood farm)
An Inventory of all the Goods Cattells and Chattells Belonging To William Brearley of Mutta in the pish. of Gisborne In the County of Yorke yeoman Lait deceased
Aprised the Eleventh day of April 1693 by us whose names are hereunto subscribed
£ s d
Imprims his purss and apell 10 10 00
It his maire and A sadll 4 00 00
nine Cowes 26 00 00
two Oxen 10 00 00
Sixe Steares 20 00 00
Eight Twinters 18 0 0
Eight Calves 10 0 0
One Bull 2 0 0
Two maires 2 0 0
One gelding 3 0 0
Twinter Coults 4 0 0
Two ffoals 2 0 0
Thirteene Sheep 3 0 0
In Hay and Straw 1 0 0
A pair of Shod wheells and a Cart 1 0 0
A pair of Clog wheell and a Coup 0 8 0
yoaks Teams Harrows plowes and
other Husbandry geare 1 5 0
One Arke in the Barn 1 0 0
Two Arkes in ye stable 0 10 0
In the house
One Table one Longsetll and a form 0 10 0
four Chaires six stoolls Sixe Cushons 0 5 4
One fire iron one bay Stone Tongs Brandereth
driping pan 2 Spitts a paire of rackes 0 16 0
Brass and pedwer 3 0 0
In ye parlor
One paire of Bedstocks
and furnitur belonging to them 2 10 0
One Cobert one Table and forms 2 10 0
A fire Iron and tongs 0 2 0
In the Chamber four paire of Bed Stocks
and Beding belonging to them 3 0 0
three Arkes 1 10 0
nine Secks 0 10 0
Wood vesell 1 10 0
for meale 4 0 0
for malt 1 0 0
for Barley 0 10 0
for Beefe and Backon 1 10 0
for Hustlement 0 10 0
The sum is 143 3 0[sic]
(142 16 4)
James Starkey John Oddie James Varley Henry Ffearnside
Debts Oweing by ye Testater £ s d
Imprimis to James Starkey 10 12 0
To Anne Brearley 35 17 6
To John Payge 10 12 0
To George Wilkinson 5 6 0
To Thomas Chatweeke 5 6 0
To Thomas Sagar 5 6 0
To Ellen Dewhurst 4 4 8
To Margaret Hargreaves 10 10 0
To Anne Brearley 7 9 0
To Agnes Medcalfe 2 0 0
To Thomas Ellis 8 8 0
pd funerall Expences 12 15 0
£ s d
The sum is 118 6 2
(In 1690 £2 would have the purchasing power of almost £240 in 2017. The above inventory would be worth £17,114, and the debt £14,177, in 2017. The figures are from the National Archives money converter.)
