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Our surname of PEDLEY can be traced back to the 1550’s when various Pedleys were listed as Jurors on the Manor of Manchester Court Leet.
Between 1552 and 1586 about four different Pedleys are recorded as being appointed to various positions in the Court Leet
Radii Pedley as Mize Layer and Radus and John, Scrivingers, the latter for Mylnegate (Long Millgate)
Pedley Place (after about 1540 became Hulme Hall) this was an old timber framed building which stood near the junction of Oldham Road and Hulme Hall Lane, Newton Heath, Manchester. A description of the building is included in the Owen M.S’s. and was still standing in 1864.
Another reference to Pedley Place indicates that it may have been owned by the Wardens and Fellows of the Collegiate Church (later Manchester Cathedral). In 1552 Ralph Pedley was mentioned as one of the Manchester Churchwardens.
Quoting from Manchester Literary Club Papers 1877 “In 1483 George Manchester by will gave to his son “Janny’s House of Bradforth” and Geferous of Pedley”.
There are references to an Edwardus Manchester who was a Cistercian monk at Whalley Abbey.
After the reformation and dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII in 1537 - Edward became
the first Protestant incumbent at Whalley Parish Church - reverting to
his family name of Edward Pedley. The list of ministers in that church indicates
Edward Manchester BD “Alias Pedley” 1537 to 1559.
The above three photos relate to three periods of Pedley history in Middleton.
The Thatched Cottage was one of two cottages situated on Long Street, Middleton and known as Idlers Corner. The cottage depicted was occupied by Francis & Mary Pedley until about 1914 when Mary died there.
Arthur Pedley worked at Earnshaw’s Corn Mill as a miller until he started his own business in Spring Gardens in 1905 - Arthur, at about the age of 18, is standing on the left at the upper door.
The third view is of 25, Higher Cross Street, the residence of Harold & Minnie Pedley from 1950 to the mid 1960’s until the whole area was demolished and redeveloped.
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At the moment the earliest direct Pedley link we have is with Francis Pedley (born circa 1756) and his wife Mary who lived in Denton, Lancashire. John (1793) their son and his son Robert (1818) (below) were all Felt-makers or Hatters, living in the Denton and Hyde areas until the mid 1850’s when Robert, Sarah and their young family settled in Newton Heath, Manchester. Sarah’s maiden name was Hall - she originated from Birch, Middleton.
Francis Pedley was the third child of nine children and the second son of Robert Pedley and Sarah Hall (born Birch, Middleton). Although all Robert and Sarah’s children were born in either Denton, Hyde or Manchester - Newton Heath where the family eventually settled - Francis was born in Belfast.
After their marriage in 1869 Francis and his wife Mary Jane (Thorp) moved into 16, Hankinson Street, Pendleton, Salford where he ran a Grocers shop - some time later including a second shop at 89, Broad Street. Pendleton.
By 1881 Francis and Mary and their young family had moved to the Higher Broughton area of Salford at
166, Bury New Road again with a second shop at 1, Tully Street nearby.
The family arrived in Middleton in about 1886 when Francis Pedley took the license of the
Royal Oak Public House at 18/20 Bowlee Road, Bowlee, Middleton. After moving to Bowlee and the Royal Oak Francis became licensee for a short time of the Jolly Butcher further along Heywood Old Road in Bowlee.
By 1896 Francis had moved into the town of Middleton established the “Middleton Cycle Depot.” on the corner of Wood Street and Higher Cross Street where he with two of his sons made “Campania” safety cycles in the cellar of the shop.
In the Middleton Trade Directory of 1903, F. Pedley & Sons was at 14, Manchester New Road
and in 1908 their address was 15, Market Place, where they remained until Francis retired and one of his William (Bill) took over the address which became a Hardware shop about 1914. The other son Thomas (Tom) continuing with the company of
F. Pedley and Sons as Tin Plate workers at Hilton Street, Spring Vale until his premature death when his wife’s family (probably due to the fact that Tom’s son Fred was still serving his apprenticeship) took over the running of the business.
The company of F. Pedley & Sons continued in business in Chadderton, under different management, the company was in business for a total of over 100 years eventually being dissolved in October 1996. However, Tom’s son Fred developed his own business which is still operating with the third generation as M.S.M. - Middleton Sheet Metal.
Francis had seven sons and one daughter most of his sons in one form or another had their own businesses:
John Robert emigrated to New South Wales with his wife Ellen (Ogden) and son Albert, each had farms in the original settlement of Bagtown which became Griffith, N.S.W. and established a Vine Yard and Winery which Albert developed and later sold, going into business in Canberra with a mineral water company - he and his second wife had no family to continue after him. There is still a Pedley Road near Griffiths on which the two farms were located.
Arthur, after working as a corn miller at Earnshaw’s, which was originally in Mill Street, Middleton, established his own business at the Corn Mill
at the corner of Spring Gardens and King Street in 1905, supplying local farms and other users.
Arthur Pedley
Corn, Provender, Hay & Straw
Dealer
Has started his own business for himself in
Spring Gardens Middleton.
He thanks you for past support and
Soliicits your favour for the future.
this business continued until Arthur’s retirement about 1937 when the business was sold and became part of Manchester and District Farmers which is a company owned by the Co-operative Wholesale Society.
In the early 1930’s - approaching retirement - Arthur and Minnie built a bungalow out of two old railway carriages with a Brick bedroom extension on one end, this was in a field outside the village of Girton in Nottinghamshire on the main road between Gainsborough and Newark
Maternal surnames include Wild, Southern, Jebb, Thorp, Hall, Higginbotham
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