Hulton family of Hulton

The first family members to live in Lancashire were Iorwerth and Madoc the sons of Bleiddyn who left North Wales in about 1167 after Owain Gwynedd expelled Norman and English settlers.

In 1521, Henry VIII arbitrated a dispute that arose between the two branches of the family, ruling that lands in Westhoughton, Harpurhey, Denton, Openshaw and Gorton should be assigned to Adam and Alice's male heirs.

He represented Clitheroe in the Convention Parliament of 1660 that invited Charles II to return to the throne, and was the only family member to sit in the House of Commons.

After a cotton mill in Westhoughton was torched by Luddites in 1812, Hulton ordered the execution of four of the suspects, one of them reported to be twelve years old.

Hulton, chairman of the Lancashire and Cheshire magistrates, a body set up to deal with the growing problem of civil unrest was in Manchester to ensure order was maintained.

Observing from a nearby house, Hulton issued an arrest warrant for Hunt and his associates, but was advised that military assistance was required.

[13] Home Secretary Lord Sidmouth conveyed King George III's 'great satisfaction' at Hulton's 'prompt, decisive and efficient measures',[14] but among the working classes he was known as 'old Peterloo', his reputation was forever sullied.

[14] In 1820 he turned down a Tory seat in Parliament,[15] while in 1841 Hulton and his family were attacked in Bolton during an election campaign[16] demonstrating how the massacre had influenced public opinion.

[22] By 1947, the Hulton coal empire could claim to be the largest in Lancashire, but it gradually diminished in the second half of the 20th century due to a nationwide fall in demand.

The fourth and last baronet, Sir Geoffrey Alan Hulton served as an officer in the Royal Navy Marines on board HMS Repulse during the Second World War.

Fergus Hulton, serving the Royal New Zealand Air Force, died in a mid-air collision over the town of Wooler.

Thomas Henry Hulton's grave can be found in an above ground tomb outside St Faith's Church near Te Papaiouru Marae in Rotorua, New Zealand.