In the latter annals of Sutton's history, the name of Michael Hughes appears regularly as the three Michaels dominated life in Sutton for one hundred and fifty years. The original copper industrialist and his son and grandson were land owners, employers, benefactors and patrons and the family provided a livelihood for numerous tenants. Sherdley Park will always be associated with the Hughes name, although their antecedents in the Sherdleys, Byroms and Roughleys arguably have a greater claim.

Michael Hughes III {1861-1938} with Sutton Road Prize Band pictured at Sherdley Hall c.1902
(Restored image from a microfilm print of a 1966 edition of the St.Helens Reporter courtesy St.Helens Local History & Archives Library)

The eponymous Sherdley family were first recorded in 1303 as freeholders of a considerable acreage of land in Sutton. In 1543 the Sherdleys sold their estates to Lord of the Manor Richard Bolde and his descendants passed it onto the Byrom family. Later Sir Henry Byrom sold it to Richard Roughley and Michael Hughes (I) purchased the estates in 1798.

Twenty-eight year-old Michael Hughes (1752-1825) had arrived in St.Helens during September of 1779 as controller of the new smelting division of the Parys Mine Company. His brother Rev. Edward Hughes (x-1815) was a partner in the Parys firm, which probably smoothed his appointment.

Industrialist John Mackay (c.17xx-1783), who is credited as the founder of the St.Helens furnace industries, leased the company some of his land close to the newly constructed Sankey Canal at Ravenhead, so that the flats (or barges) that carried copper ore from Amlech in North Wales could arrive at their smelting works via Liverpool Bay and the Mersey. It is estimated that 10,000 tons of copper ore was brought in each year via this route, yielding over 1,300 tons of copper.

Some of Hughes' first investments were in purchasing flats, which were given single-word names such as 'Happy', 'Betty' and 'Mersey'. The barges were typically of around sixty feet in length and measuring sixteen feet high. Hughes lived at 'The Tickles' on the Burtonhead estate, which had been named after a previous resident, and he chose to re-title it 'Sutton Lodge'. On November 20th 1788, the Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette reported that Michael Hughes of Ravenhead had married a Miss Johnson from Prescot, although she died ten years later.

Hughes prospered and from about 1795 began to acquire land. In 1797 he purchased Whitlow off John Drinkwater and in the following year he acquired the aforementioned large Sherdley Hall estate for £3,150 and then Leach Hall in 1800.

In 1803 Hughes paid William Greenup £2,555 for the brick-fronted 'Old End' of the Costeth House estate (21¾ local acres) which was located near Sherdley Hall and he then negotiated to buy the stone-fronted 'New End'. The Roughley family had purchased Costeth House in 1607 and in 1732 after the death of Thomas Roughley (d.1729), it was partitioned into two estates which were inhabited separately by Thomas's daughter Mary and his grand-daughter Esther. In 1820 Hughes formally exchanged an estate in Eccleston for the 'New End'. Although he lost £2000 on the deal, it didn't matter to Hughes as he was determined to possess all of the property within and around Sherdley Park. Michael Hughes had already built a new Sherdley Hall (or 'House') between 1805-6 (demolished in 1949) for which some furnishings were imported from London to Liverpool by canal. He elected to demolish Costeth House, although he decided to spare the old Sherdley Hall. Hughes also bought Henry Ellam's estates in 1797 and became Sutton township's major landholder.

He became a magistrate in October 1799 and was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant for Lancashire in 1806. Hughes soon gained a reputation for his sympathetic handling of difficult cases and he often assisted the underprivileged from his own pocket. He donated £100 to the Liverpool Infirmary and during the grain shortage of 1800, Hughes gave contributions from himself and on behalf of the Parys Company for the relief of the Sutton poor. Michael Hughes's first wife died in 1798 and in 1807 he married Ellen Pemberton {x-1860}, the daughter of a neighbouring Sutton landowner. The couple had six children, including son and heir Michael Hughes (II) {1810-1886}. Hughes Jnr. was only fifteen years old when his father died on May 9th 1825 on a visit to London and so his mother Ellen initially managed the family estates.

Young Michael Hughes (II) was educated at Eton and Corpus Christi College, Oxford and then joined the army. He was promoted to Captain in February 1843 and served in the 3rd Royal Lancashire Militia. Hughes was a lover of sport and in a letter written to his mother in June 1854, declared his annoyance at the prospect of his regiment being posted to Ireland at the height of the grouse season: On December 20th 1859, Michael Hughes (II) married Ellinor Mary Campbell (1830-1895) at the Kensington Parish Church who was nineteen years younger than her husband. Ellinor was the daughter of Vice-Admiral Colin Campbell and had been born in Glasgow. The couple did not appear to spend much of their time at Sherdley Hall, choosing instead to live mainly in London. In the 1861 census they are described as "lodgers" at an address in Mayfair. Also listed in the census is Hughes' four-months-old heir, Michael James Hughes (III) (1861-1938) who'd been born on March 18th.

The family were also listed as resident in London in the 1871 and 1881 censuses but now living in Belgravia. In the latter census they were domiciled at 99 Eaton Place with seventy-years-old Hughes described as a magistrate and landowner with eight domestic servants including butler Edward Clack. The fictional upper-class Bellamy family and their servant household in television's 'Upstairs Downstairs' supposedly lived at 165 Eaton Place. American philanthropist George Peabody had resided at 99 Eaton Place during the 18th century and this address is where Polish composer, Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849) gave concerts during his stay in London during 1848 when he was taking refuge from uprisings in much of Europe.

In 1873 Michael Hughes (II) - now a county magistrate - was recorded as owning 1,207 acres of land in Sutton but spent little time in St.Helens. In his later years, Hughes mainly resided in London or at Huntly Lodge in Aberdeenshire. The Elgin Courier had reported on July 19th 1867 that the "gentleman of landed property in Lancashire" was the new "lessee of the Huntly Lodge shootings". On August 22nd 1874, the Morning Post singled out Hughes in their report on the Aberdeenshire shooting season, writing that he'd been averaging an impressive 21 brace a shoot on the Gartly and Balloch Hills. On Hughes's death on April 24th 1886, the servants of the Scottish stately house sent a floral tribute to his funeral.

The will of the late Michael Hughes (II) was read in July and his personal estate came to £82,000. Hughes's widow Ellinor was left his estates and their only child, Michael James, was left his plate. The young man would inherit the Sherdley estates upon his mother's death. By now the family had developed a military as opposed to an industrial tradition and Captain Michael Hughes (III) after being educated at Eton and Oriel College in Oxford spent 14 years service in the 2nd Life Guards. In 1893 Captain Hughes commanded a squadron in front of Queen Victoria for the trooping of the colour ceremony at Horse Guards Parade.

On August 18th 1896 at the British Embassy in Paris, Michael Hughes married Edith Mary Brewster-Macpherson, the youngest daughter of the late Captain David Macpherson. The couple settled at Sherdley Hall (painting left c.1850) and devoted themselves to their tenantry and improving the Sherdley estate. So a hundred acres was added to Sherdley Park and almost 10,000 trees were planted and the lake enlarged.

The Captain's retirement from the army didn't last long as he served in the Boer War from February to November 1900. He commanded various detachments, including a squadron of cavalry under General French in the advance from Pretoria to Komatipoort. Hughes received a hero's welcome when he arrived back at St.Helens Junction and a large crowd processed with him to Sherdley Hall. Sutton's streets, including Robins Lane and Marshalls Cross Road, were festooned with decorations.

In 1903 the Hughes's began leasing Thornham Hall at Eye in Suffolk, where they spent much of their time. It was convenient for trips to London and for embarking to Cannes, Monte Carlo or Switzerland where their winters were spent. Consequently the couple's stays at Sherdley were of limited duration. When on the Riviera they mixed with dignitaries, such as Grand Duke Michael of Russia and Prince Albert Duke of Schleswig-Holstein. The latter was Queen Victoria's grandson and a guest at Thornham on several occasions.

When the Great War broke out in 1914, the now Colonel Hughes served with the 7th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment with 2500 men under his command. Too old to be involved in active combat, he was sent to Ireland in August 1915 to recruit fighting men. Hughes succeeded in raising the 7th Battalion of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, training mainly raw recruits at Tipperary. His wife Edith went to Ireland with him, residing at Aherlow Castle in Bansha. Back home, Sherdley Park was used during the war by the St.Helens 'Pals' 11th Battalion of the South Lancashire Regiment for drill and exercises.

Michael Hughes believed strongly in punctuality and always arrived at engagements at precisely the appointed time, refusing to see visitors who were late for an appointment with him. In a letter to his Sherdley estate manager in 1911 he wrote: He was very Victorian in his ideas and detested modernity with aversions to electricity, the telephone and motor cars. In the St.Helens Reporter's obituary of Hughes (pub. 26/8/1938), the newspaper said that he would not visit a cinema or use a wireless set. Sherdley Hall was lit by oil lamp and candle and heated by log fire. The Reporter declared him to be a "perfect example of the old Victorian country squire".

In his younger days, he mixed intimately with royalty and was an outrider at the funeral of Edward VII in 1910. For some thirty years Hughes wintered in southern France and consequently became fluent in French. In fact he claimed he was more comfortable in using the French language than English. When Sutton Harriers won the Vie au Grande Air Cup in Paris in January 1907, Hughes gave a long speech in fluent French to a large crowd. The Lancashire lads were reported to be dumbfounded by their club president's language dexterity in contrast to their own. When one of the athletes had wanted to order some milk in a Parisian café, he had to resort to imitating a cow to make himself known!

Michael Hughes (III) at St.Cloud, Paris in January 1907 seated and watching Sutton Harriers

As well as supporting athletics, Michael Hughes was a major owner and breeder of racehorses and they would often be seen in Sherdley Park in the close season. A six furlong gallup was especially created to train them. This website has identified 81 different horses listed on race cards under the ownership of Michael Hughes between 1892 and 1936. Only one horse, Rainhill (ran 1909-10), had a name with a local connection. Many horses were given French names, although he also had a liking for English names with a comic undertone, such as Mother-In-Law, Gals’ Gossip, Ugly Tights, Dik Dik and Orange Marmalade. Hughes's horse Aesop was probably his most successful, coming second in the 1893 Grand National and winner of the Grand Military Gold Cup in 1894.

However Colonel Hughes got himself into some bother just after the end of the Great War by naming one of his horses William Hohenzollern. This was after 'Kaiser Bill' or Wilhelm II, the defeated German emperor. It was as a result of a bet, Hughes told The Times in their report of October 4th, 1920. However, many felt that the moniker was in bad taste so soon after the end of the conflict that had cost so many lives. An embarrassed Michael Hughes sensibly elected to rename his horse.

Owning racehorses was an expensive hobby. In one letter in 1914, Hughes revealed that he lost £1300 a year on his Sherdley horses. He regularly made £10 each way bets on his horses and often paid large sums to acquire them. The Duke of Bewick cost him 620 guineas to buy in 1892 and in 1894 he paid 510 gns. for The Alsatian. On one day in December 1903, Hughes bought Wise Rosie for 780 gns. and a colt foal for 310 gns.

Monument to Edith Hughes, wife of Michael Hughes (III) in the graveyard at St.Nicholas Church

Michael Hughes's wife Edith was a keen social worker and extremely popular with Sutton folk. She was instrumental in forming a St.Helens branch of the British Red Cross and during WWI created the St. Helens Red Cross Fund. This despatched pipes and tobacco to soldiers on the front line under the 'Smokes For Tommy' campaign banner. Motor ambulances under Edith's Citizens Ambulance Fund were also sent to help serving British soldiers at the front.

Edith provided a district nurse for the well-being of her estate's tenantry and staff, who in 1899 was Nurse Jones and in 1912 was Sarah Tither. Extracts from Sarah's notes have survived in which she lists patents, diseases, nourishments and stimulants given. The latter was mainly wine and the complaints that she was treating included catarrh, cancer, conjunctivitis, bronchitis and anaemia. Nurse Tither left in July 1918 to get married and doesn't appear to have been replaced. Every December Edith Hughes awarded the Sherdley 'dole' and large numbers of senior citizens had a more enjoyable Christmas through her largesse. (see this blog post). In December 1914 there were 103 recipients. Consequently upon Edith's death in 1924, a memorial to her was erected by the 'old folks' of Sutton in the graveyard of St.Nicholas Church.

Hughes outlived his wife by fourteen years, dying at Stowlangtoft Hall in Bury St. Edmunds in 1938. He'd moved to this house from Thornham Hall after the death of his wife. Pipers from the 1st Battalion of the Black Watch played at a memorial service held at Stowlangtoft Church on August 24th, 1938 Then the Colonel's body was transferred to St.Helens for burial at St. Nicholas Church on the following day. His coffin was taken to his final resting place on a flower-decked farm wagon watched by scores of Sutton residents. The Times reported on his funeral: Sutton Parish churchyard houses the Hughes family vault (pictured below), although Michael Hughes (I) is buried in Prescot, as he died prior to the building of St.Nicholas church.

A three day sale of the contents of Sherdley Hall began on March 1st, 1939 and was supervised by Lady Mar & Kelly, the late Michael Hughes' girlfriend and beneficiary of the auction’s proceeds. What remained of the Sherdley estates was inherited by Hughes's nephew Michael H. C. Young (1912 - 1980)  who in June 1939 returned to St.Helens. The St.Helens Newspaper dubbed him the new"Squire of Sutton" and reported he was “the main attraction” at a garden party held at Sherdley Hall on June 4th in aid of Sutton Schools Restoration Fund.

Later in 1939 Hughes-Young (as he became known) married Elizabeth Blakiston Houston {1912 - 1956}, of the Northern Ireland Houston banking family with her mother from the Scottish shipping family of Kidston. Her first cousin was ‘Bentley Boy’ Glen Kidston (1899 - 1931) who had an eventful, albeit short life. As well as being one of a band of wealthy British motorists who drove Bentley sports cars to victory during the 1920s and personally winning Le Mans, Kidston was twice sunk by torpedo during the first world war when only 15 years of age, raced a motor bike in the Isle of Man TT and was a renowned aviator. Glen Kidston died aged 31 after failing to survive his third air crash.

Michael Hughes-Young became another military member of the Hughes clan, rising to the rank of Lt. Colonel and during WWII was twice wounded and awarded the Military Cross. Sherdley played its part in the war effort with the cultivation of crops and the Air Ministry requisitioned Sherdley Hall for the duration. Stray bombs, which were thought to have been destined for the Liverpool docks, did some damage to the Sherdley estate, in particular Sherdley Home Farm, Micklehead Farm and Big Lea Farm.

On June 27th, 1949, Hughes-Young sold Sherdley Park to St.Helens Corporation for £18,700 before embarking on a political career. In the 1951 general election he became the Conservative parliamentary candidate for St.Helens but was predictably defeated, contesting a safe Labour seat. However, Hughes-Young took Wandsworth Central in 1955 and when elevated to the House of Lords in 1964, he chose to take the title of Lord St.Helens.

Tragedy struck the family in 1970 when his heir, Captain Patrick Michael Hughes-Young, died in a riding accident. Younger brother Richard (Rory) Hughes-Young succeeded to the title of Lord St.Helens in 1980 upon his father's death. Incidentally, Mt. St.Helens, the volcano in Washington state, USA, is named after his 18th century diplomat namesake, Lord St.Helens.

The Hughes family vault at Sutton Parish Churchyard in New Street, Sutton

Nb. Some of the research for this page has come from Margaret Chadwick's dissertation paper 'Sutton, Sherdley Hall & The Hughes Family' in St.Helens Local History & Archives Library

Also see Michael Hughes Newspaper Reports

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