| Title | Draft lease by Thomas Godfrey of Chesterfield, cooper, to Giles Cowley, snr., of Hazlehurst, in Ashover, yeoman, and Giles Cowley, jnr., of Chesterfield, tallow chandler (his son) of messuage in Chesterfield, formerly occupied by James Massey, brazier, viz. the room called the house with the shop of Adjoining and two chambers and a garret, also other ground room with two chambers over a stable and a hayloft, and a small building called a smithy, for 7 years at £6 a year. |
| Description | The lease is undated. The approximate date derives from a suggestion by a researcher, who in 2014 informed the record office of the following biographical details:
Giles Cowley senior was baptised 6 May 1669 in Ashover and died in 1744, also in Ashover. His son, Giles Cowley junior, was baptised 31 Aug 1697 in Ashbourne. Apprenticeship records held at the National Archives indicate Giles Cowley junior was apprenticed to Francis Bagshawe, tallow chandler of Chesterfield in 1712. It is unlikely that Giles Cowley senior would have leased premises for his son before the completion of his apprenticeship, so the lease is likely to date from some years after 1712. |