An Illustrated History of Old Sutton in St.Helens

Part 3 (of 41) - Sutton's Lords & Masters #2  Michael Hughes

Researched & Written by S.R. Wainwright ©MMX     Contact Me      Research Sources Lords & Masters Photo Album     Sherdley Estate     Heritage Home    Bookmark and Share 

Header image: A seated Michael Hughes in Paris in 1907 watching Sutton Harriers
In the latter annals of Sutton's history, the name of Michael Hughes regularly appears as the three Michaels dominated life in Sutton for one hundred and fifty years as land owners, employers, benefactors and patrons. The family provided a livelihood for hundreds of tenants and 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 and the Sutton Prize Band in front of Sherdley Hall, Sutton, St Helens
Michael Hughes III {1861-1938} with Sutton Road Prize Band pictured at Sherdley Hall c.1902


The eponymous Sherdley family were first recorded there in 1303 as freeholders of a considerable acreage of land in Sutton. In 1543 the Sherdleys sold their estates to Richard Bolde, the then Lord of the Manor and his descendants sold it onto the Byrom family. Later Sir Henry Byrom sold it to Richard Roughley and Michael Hughes (I) bought 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 of Parys, which probably smoothed his appointment.

Industrialist John Mackay {c.17xx-1783}, who's 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's estimated that 10,000 tons of copper ore was brought in each year via this route, yielding over 1,300 tons of copper.

michael hughes of sherdley hall, sutton, st.helens
Some of Hughes' first investments were in purchasing some of the flats, which were given single-word names such as 'Happy', 'Betty' and 'Mersey'. The barges were typically of around sixty feet in length, measuring sixteen feet high. Michael Hughes lived at 'The Tickles' on the Burtonhead estate, which had been named after a previous resident and Hughes decided to re-title it 'Sutton Lodge'.

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 he paid William Greenup £2,555 for the brick-fronted 'Old End' of the Costeth House estate (21¾ local acres) located close to Sherdley Hall and then negotiated to buy the stone-fronted 'New End'. The Roughley family had purchased Costeth House in 1607 and in August 1732 after the death of Thomas Roughley (d.1729), it was partitioned into two estates 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 the district of Sherdley Park.

Sherdley Old Hall in Sherdley Park, Sutton, St Helens
Sherdley Old Hall in Sherdley Park built about 1671 and photographed by R.G. Brook c.1890


michael hughes coat of arms, sutton, sthelens
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.

Hughes had become a J.P. in 1800 and a Deputy Lieutenant for Lancashire in 1806 and soon gained a reputation for his sympathetic handling of difficult cases. He often assisted the underpriviledged from his own pocket and during the 1800 grain shortage donated contributions for the relief of the Sutton poor. Michael Hughes's first wife died in 1798 and he married Ellen Pemberton in 1807, the daughter of a neighbouring Sutton landowner with whom he had six children, including his son and heir Michael Hughes (II) {1810-1886}. Fourteen years after Hughes' death in 1825, a hurricane struck Sutton township and much of Lancashire, badly damaging Sutton Lodge (on January 6/7th 1839).

Young Michael Hughes (II) went to Eton and then joined the army. He was quite 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:
Pasted Graphic 1  I hope to return to Sherdley on the 28th, after which I expect to proceed to Ireland. I have received the fatal rumours to go out with my regiment which will greatly interfere with grouse shooting. I had hoped of better things from our Colonel as he is a sportsman himself.   Pasted Graphic 3
99 eaton place, london sw1
On December 20th, 1859 Michael Hughes (II) married Ellinor Mary Campbell {1830-1895} who was 19 years younger than him and born in Glasgow, the daughter of Admiral Colin Campbell. The couple spent a considerable amount of time in London and in the 1861 census they are described as "lodgers" at a Mayfair address. Also on the census is Hughes' four-month-old heir, Michael James Hughes (III) {1861-1938}.

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, SW1 with 70-year-old Hughes described as magistrate and land owner with eight servants, including butler Edward Clack.

michael hughes of sherdley hall, sutton, sthelens funeral report 1886
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) was recorded as owning 1,207 acres of land in Sutton township but spent little time in the newly created borough of St.Helens. In his later years, Hughes mainly resided at Huntly Lodge in Aberdeenshire. On his death in 1886 the servants of the Scottish stately house sent a floral tribute.

The large Hughes estates including Sherdley Hall were inherited by Michael and Ellinor Hughes's only child, Michael James. By now the family had developed a military rather than industrial tradition and Captain Michael Hughes (III) after being educated at Eton and Oriel College, Oxford spent fourteen years service in the 2nd Life Guards. In 1893 he commanded a squadron in front of Queen Victoria for the trooping of the colour ceremony.

sherdley hall, sutton, st.helens
Three years later, Michael Hughes married Edith Mary Brewster-Macpherson, the youngest daughter of the late Captain David Brewster-Macpherson. The couple settled at Sherdley Hall (painting left c.1850) and devoted themselves to their tenantry and improving the Sherdley estate. So 100 acres was added to Sherdley Park and almost 10,000 trees were planted and the lake enlarged. The kindness and largesse of the Hughes’s became renowned and each Christmas time around 80 Sutton poor were entertained at Sherdley Hall. (see this blog post).

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

homecoming of michael hughes 1900
When the Great War broke out in 1914, the now Lieutenant-Colonel Hughes served with the 7th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment, as a Major. Too old to be involved in active combat, he was sent to Ireland to recruit fighting men and succeeded in raising the 7th Battalion of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, training mainly raw recruits at Tipperary. Back home during the 1st World War, Sherdley Park was used by the St.Helens 'Pals' 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. 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 president of Sutton Harriers athletics, sutton, st.helens
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 race horses 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 58 different horses listed on race cards under the ownership of Michael Hughes between 1894 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.

william hohenzollern colonel michael hughes colt
However, Colonel Hughes got himself into some bother just after the end of the Great War by naming one of his horses William Hohenzollern, after 'Kaiser Bill' or Wilhelm II, the defeated German emperor. It was as a result of a bet, The Times reported in October 1920 but many felt it was in bad taste so soon after the end of the conflict that had cost so many lives. An embarrassed Hughes sensibly elected to rename the horse.

Plaque to edith hughes, wife of michael hughes, in st.nicholas church graveyard, sutton, st.helens
Monument to Edith Hughes wife of Michael Hughes (III) in the graveyard at St.Nicholas Church


christmas at sherdley hall, sutton, st.helens 1899
His 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 involved herself with the Red Cross Tobacco Fund which despatched pipes and tobacco to soldiers on the front line under the 'Smokes for Tommy Campaign'. Motor ambulances under Edith Hughes's Citizens Ambulance Fund were also sent to help serving British soldiers.

Edith provided a nurse for the well-being of her estate's tenantry and was very generous with the Sherdley dole. Consequently upon her death a memorial to her was erected by the old people of Sutton in the graveyard of St.Nicholas Church in New Street. Hughes outlived his wife by 14 years, dying in Bury St. Edmunds at Stowlangtoft Hall in 1938. He kept this house in Suffolk for some thirty years and spent most of his final days there, spending little time at Sherdley Hall.

michael hughes of sherdley hall
Left: Lieut-Colonel Michael Hughes of 7th Battalion of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers,c.1915;
Top Right: Hughes's funeral procession in 1938, note corn sheafs in background;
Bottom Right: Telegram from Edith Hughes as reported in Liverpool Mercury October 14th, 1899


michael hughes of sherdley hall, sutton, sthelens funeral report 1938 times
Pipers from the 1st Battalion of the Black Watch played at a memorial service which was held at Stowlangtoft Church on August 24th, 1938 and then his body was transferred to St.Helens for burial at St. Nicholas 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:
The service was conducted by the Rev. J. G. Tiarks and those present included:-
Brigadier-General and Mrs Young,  Lady Hill,  Mrs Glencairn Campbell,  Lord Basing,  the Countess of Mar and Kellie, and Mr. D. R. A. Davidson, as well as representatives of local industries.
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.
newspaper report of michael hughes-young, lord sthelens
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, who dubbed him the new"Squire of Sutton", reported that he was “the main attraction” at a garden party held at Sherdley Hall on June 4th in aid of the Sutton Schools Restoration Fund. (click image right to view full article).

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.
michael hughes-young, Lord St.Helensmichael hughes-young, Lord St.Helens
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, he 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 the death of his father. Incidentally, Mt. St.Helens - the volcano in the state of Washington, USA - is named after his eighteenth century diplomat namesake, Lord St.Helens.

Michael Hughes family vault in St.Nicholas church, sutton, 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

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Stephen Wainwright (when I had hair!)
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