Now! Then! The itinerant Presbyterian, Oliver Heywood, is arrested for preaching in a private house at Little Woodhouse, Leeds

14 March 1670: The itinerant Presbyterian, Oliver Heywood, is arrested for preaching in a private house at Little Woodhouse, Leeds

Oliver Heywood. 1882. The Rev. Oliver Heywood, B.A., 1630-1702, Vol. 1/4. Ed. J. Horsfall Turner. Brighouse: A.B. Bayes. Get it:

Excerpt

I stayed at home a day, upon Saturday March 12 I went to Bramhope, preached there upon the Lord’s day, Monday night went to George Horsman’s house at Little Woodhouse, there preached, and before I had done was apprehended by constables, carried to the Mayor, who sent me to the common prison, called Cappon Hall, by the mediation of friends was released on Tuesday – this March 15 the same day 40 years after I was baptized – a fuller relation of this matter I design – I preached on Wednesday night at Joseph Wood’s near Bramley, came home on Thursday – blessed be God for this journey.

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Abbreviations

Comment

Where is Capon Hall/Capon Call/?? Godrey Lawson was mayor at the time.

On 13 July 1670 bailiffs acting under the new Conventicle Act apparently seized the contents of his house to the value of approx. £1550 (2021):

I stayed at home and preached 3 times last lords day – on Monday morning the church-warden and overseer came to this house, told Capt. Hodgson they had a warrant on Sabbath-day night from the justices Mr White and Mr Copley to make distress upon my goods for £10 and bec[?] of my poverty to lay it upon other two men rich: Kershaw and Will Pollard of Wyk – £5 a piece, and some 8 or 10 more their 5s a piece for being at that conventicle at Coley Chapel when I preached there these officers wanted Mr Hodgson’s assistance being an overseer, – on Tuesday morning they came and showed me the warrant, demanded £10 told me it was best to pay, since money cannot be undervalued, but goods may, upon my refusal, they came on wednesday morning i.e. James Mitchel of Crow-Nest constable, Thomas Hanson of Mitham church-warden, Samuel Wadington of Norwood-Green overseer, and brought three men with them, Will Liversidge a joiner and his men, to take down and help to hurry out my goods, they swept all away, three good chests, three tables, chairs, stools, my bed, bedding, curtains — all my goods except a cupboard, and few chairs are gone, – they caryed them to John Appleyards, at Shut, appointed R. Langley, Mic. Empsal – to prize them, they rated them togather with 10 books to ten pound and a noble – cheap penyworths — all this was on Wednesday July 13 1670: blessed be God.

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Original

I stayed at home a day, upon Saturday March 12 I went to Bramhup, preached there upon the Lord’s day, Monday night went to George Horsman’s house at Little Woodhouse, there preached and before I had done was apprehended by constables carried to the Mayor, who sent me to the common prison, called Cappon-Call, by the mediation of friends was released on Tuesday — this March 15 the same day 40 years after I was baptized — a fuller relation of this matter I design – I preached on Wednesday night at Joseph Wood’s near Bramley, came home on Thursday – blessed be God for this journey.

105 words.