Description:James Leveson’s son Sir Richard Leveson and his wife Mary inherited Trentham when James died in 1545. Mary outlived her husband by over thirty years and had a long association with the first Trentham Hall. Mary’s will made in 1591 provides a great deal of detail about Trentham Hall during this period.
Mary’s will refers to the gallery at Trentham Hall, and also ‘the buttery, kytchin’ and ‘Brewhouse’. Other domestic offices are mentioned, including the ‘Milkhowse’ and ‘Bakehowse’, as well as a number of chambers. As Richard Wisker suggests, Trentham Hall was already ‘a substantial house’ during this period.
Mary’s will refers to ‘ymplements utensells and furnyture of howsholde and howseholde stuff’ in Trentham Hall, including carpets of needlework, bed linen, furniture, pewter and silver. Glass was extremely valuable at this time, and Mary’s will indicates that Trentham Hall featured many glazed windows. She left ‘all glasse in glasse wyndowes throwgowte the whole howse’ to her son Sir Walter Leveson (1550-1602).
Contextual Information from: Richard Wisker ‘The First Trentham Hall’, Staffordshire History, Volume 24, pp. 6-14 (Autumn 1996)