Duckworth Genealogy (Appendix A-3)
Union County, Georgia
Duckworth Family Section
My Family
written
and compiled by John Francis Duckworth
contributed by John Francis Duckworth and Jerrell Duckworth
Updated August 12, 2012
Appendix A
The Ancient History of the Distinguished Surname DUCKWORTH
page 3
Duckworth Hall
Duckworth Hall, one of the most historic of Oswaldtwistle's homesteads,
with recorded evidence of about 800 years, carries us back to the
Norman Lords of Oswaldtwistle. It has an added glamour of romance by
reason of its association with one of the most noble orders of
chivalry, which played a prominent part in the great crusades: the
Knights Hospitallers.
Who, today, dream of association Duckworth Hall with romance of bygone
ages? The buildings seem so utterly uninteresting and common-place,
without special feature to mark its past greatness or ancient history.
So long as the adjoining hostelry bears its designation of "Duckworth
Hall Inn" there is no danger of this famous historical site becoming
lost to the people of Oswaldtwistle. We do miss a great deal of the
pleasures of life by failing to read the lesson to be learnt from old
places, the crumbling ruins, and even public house signs, familiar to
our ken. It is only when these things are pointed out to us that
familiar and commonplace scenes have surrendered some point of
interest. So it is with Duckworth Hall, which carries us back, in
imagination, to centuries long gone by.
Duckworth was once considered a separate vill, and its name denotes
Saxon origin. It emerges from the mist of antiquity in the days of the
Normans, when we find that Robert, son of Adam de Chedle, released to
Richard de Radcliffe all his right in an oxgang of land in the vill of
Duckworth. The Duckworth lands were in part the property of the Knights
Hospitallers, and as we have just seen, in part, the property of the
Lords of Oswaldtwistle, as the Radcliffes were.
The estate of Duckworth is named in the lot of the Hospitallers' lands
as early as 1292. From that date to the sixteenth century, the
Hospitallers' share of the land is often referred to. As to how they
became possessed of Duckworth, we have to surmise. Perhaps some devout
owner, filled with enthusiasm for the Crusades made a gift to this
noble order, which combined religious fervor with benevolent work of
relieving the sick and wounded. They were of the Order of St. John of
Jerusalem and devoted to the aid of the sick, but added to this they
became military monks. Throughout the Crusades they were very
prominent, and played a part in all the hazardous enterprises of these
adventures known in history as the Great Crusades. After the Crusades,
the Order remained in existence until the sixteenth century when they
had the Island of Malta given to them and continued there, until
Napoleon in 1798. It is pleasing to know that the Order was revived in
recent times on a firmer basis, and the modern institution in England
of Knights of St. John....... (Copied from a paper furnished by
Margaret Duckworth Sewell.)
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This page was last updated on September 2, 2012
Copyright © 2012 John Francis
Duckworth
Format Copyright © 2012 Tim Seawolf-Self /
Barbara Ann
Peck. All Rights Reserved