Amusingly enough a certain James Hoyle (1726 - 1810) and his wife Isobel Hoyle lived at the Stirk House when it was then their private house and just so happens to be my Great,Great,Great,Great,Great Grand parents.
Their son Giles Hoyle (1768 - 1835) legacy even lives on in the family to this day.He married Martha Driver (1771 - 1837).He had a portrait of her commissioned and is still in the family to this day and is the painting above.I would of thought that Giles Hoyle would of had a portrait commissioned as well.But nothing is known of it.The couple lived at Horrocksford Hall and owned alot of the land around that part of Clitheroe.They also owned alot of property in Waddington.
What little I do know about them is they owned the land of the present day cement works.He built the houses at the top of Pimlico including the 'Black Horse'.In the centre arch way of the houses is the initials G.H. and the date 1816 when the houses were finished.It is presumed they were built for his quarrymen and families who worked on the lime stone quarry there.
He also built the bridge over the Ribble Ribble and maintained it.Though not the present bridge.The old one came into disrepair in 1878/9 after a hard winter and the present one built.
Unfortunately the reason why Giles Hoyle is still remembered to this day is because he liked the odd drink or two and the odd little wager.In fact he was a drunk and an habitual gambler.It would seem he inherited a fortune from his parents.But he 'Drunk his way through another row of houses in Waddington'.He slowly but surely lost his wealth to drink and gambling.In the end he had to sell the land at Horrocksford to what became the cement works along with the houses e.t.c.He was also a misogynist to his poor wife Martha.
After the heights of Stirk House and Horrocksford Hall I found his daughter Sarah Hoyle living at a more humble abode for the time at 11 Pendle Road.
After all this excess drinking and rock 'n' rolling his immediate family were staunch Methodists and never touched a drop.A legacy that carried on for the best part of a 100 years.
