Curiosities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol.1-11 Historical, Entertaining & Commercial; Alphabetically Arranged. 11 Volume set.

Part 3

Chapter 32,935 wordsPublic domain

Map| Names of Places. | County | Number of Miles From | +--+-----------------------+----------+--------------+-----------------+ 37|Abinger pa|Surrey |Dorking 4|Guildford 10| 15|Abinghall pa|Gloucester|Newnham 6|Mitchel Dean 1| 28|Abington pa|Northam |Northam 2|Wellingboro 9| 6|Abington, Gt.& Lit. pa|Cambridge |Linton 3|Cambridge 9| 6|Abington in the Clay pa|Cambridge |Royston 5|Potton 7| 23|Ab Kettleby pa|Leicester |Melton Mow 3|Leicester 16| 15|Ablington ti|Gloucester|Fairford 5|Cirencester 7| 10|Abney ham|Derby |Tideswell 5|Sheffield 14| 49|Above Sawdde ham|Caermar |Llangadock 1|Llandovery 7| 22|Above Town div|Lancashire|Garstang 11|Burton 11| 22|Abram to|Lancashire|Wigan 4|Bolton 9| 15|Abson with Wick chap|Gloucester|Bristol 8|Sodbury 5| 21|Abthorp chap|Northam |Towcester 3|Brackley 9| 54|Aburthin pa|Glamorg |Llantrissant 8|Bridgend 7| 24|Aby pa|Lincoln |Alford 2|Louth 9| 46|Acaster Malbis pa|W.R. York |York 4|Selby 8| 46|Acaster Selby to|W.R. York | ... 5| ... 7| 22|Accrington, New to|Lancaster |Blackburn 4|Haslingden 5| 22|Accrington, Old chap|Lancaster | ... 6| ... 4| 30|Achurch pa|Northam |Thrapston 4|Oundle 4| 43|Acklam pa|N.R. York |New Malton 6|Gt. Driffield 15| 44|Acklam chap|N.R. York |Yarm 5|Stockton 3| 28|Acklington to|Northum |Alnwick 8|Morpeth 13| 45|Ackton to|W.R. York |Pontefract 3|Wakefield 5| 45|Ackworth[A] pa|W.R. York | ... 3| ... 7| +--+-----------------------+----------+--------------+-----------------+ |Dist.| Map| Names of Places. | number of Miles From |Lond.|Population. +--+-----------------------+-------------------------+-----+-----------+ 37|Abinger pa|Ockley 5| 2| 767| 15|Abinghall pa|Monmouth 12| 118| 235| 28|Abington pa|Moulton 3| 67| 155| 6|Abington, Gt. & Lit. pa|Newmarket 12| 50| 594| 6|Abington in the Clay pa|Cambridge 15| 42| 259| 23|Ab Kettleby pa|Loughboro 13| 108| 331| 15|Ablington ti|Northleach 7| 85| 103| 10|Abney ham|Chapel-Frith 8| 164| 112| 49|Above Sawdde ham|Llandilo Var 8| 195| 803| 22|Above Town div|KirkbyLons 15| 240| 591| 22|Abram to|Chorley 11| 197| 511| 15|Abson with Wick chap|Marshfield 4| 107| 824| 21|Abthorp chap|Banbury 15| 63| 477| 54|Aburthin pa|Cowbridge 1| 173| ...| 24|Aby pa|Horncastle 12| 142| 204| 46|Acaster Malbis pa|Tadcaster 8| 190| 707| 46|Acaster Selby to| ... 8| 190| 201| 22|Accrington, New to|Burnley 8| 208| 4960| 22|Accrington, Old chap| ... 6| 208| 1323| 30|Achurch pa|Kettering 12| 73| 239| 43|Acklam pa|York 14| 210| 827| 44|Acklam chap|Guisboro 9| 244| 371| 28|Acklington to|Rothbury 13| 300| 285| 45|Ackton to|Leeds 9| 174| 51| 45|Ackworth[A] pa| ... 11| 174| 1660| +--+-----------------------+-------------------------+-----+-----------+

[A] ACKWORTH is a parish and township, in the upper division of Osgold Cross Wapentake, nominally divided into higher and lower Ackworth. It is celebrated for its Quakers' School, which was purchased in 1777, with eighty-five acres of land, from the trustees of the Foundling Hospital, and rendered a seminary for the children of the more humble class of Friends. The number of pupils, is one hundred and eighty boys, and one hundred and twenty girls.

[Sidenote: Quakers' school.]

Map| Names of Places. | County | Number of Miles From +--+------------------------+----------+-------------+---------------+ 27|Acle[A] m. t. & pa|Norfolk |Norwich 11|Yarmouth 9| 45|Acomb pa|W.R. York |York 2|Wetherby 10| 29|Acomb East to|Northumb |Corbridge 15|Aldston Moor 9| 29|Acomb West to|Northumb | ... 5| 18| 17|Aconbury[B] chap|Hereford |Hereford 4|Ross 9| 21|Acrise pa|Kent |Folkstone 4|Dover 8| 7 |Acton to & pa|Chester |Nantwich 2|Tarporley 9| 7 |Acton to|Chester |Northwich 4|Frodsham 7| 52|Acton to|Denbigh |Wrexham 1|Holt 5| 25|Acton pa|Middlesex |Harrow 8|Brentford 3| 29|Acton to|Northumb |Alnwick 8|Rothbury 8| 36|Acton pa|Suffolk |Lavenham 3|Sudbury 3| 42|Acton Beauchamp pa|Worcester |Bromyard 4|Worcester 11| 33|Acton Burnell[C] to & pa|Salop |Wenlock 7|Shrewsbury 7| +--+------------------------+----------+-------------+---------------+ |Dist. | Map| Names of Places. | Number of Miles From |Lond. |Population +--+------------------------+------------------------+------+------+ 27|Acle[A] m. t. & pa|Loddon 8| 121| 820| 45|Acomb pa|New Malton 20| 201| 882| 29|Acomb East to|Hexham 11| 275| 36| 29|Acomb West to| ... 3| 275| 523| 17|Aconbury[B] chap|Ledbury 14| 130| 163| 21|Acrise pa|Canterbury 11| 67| 194| 7 |Acton to & pa|Middlewich 11| 166| 3928| 7 |Acton to|Chester 15| 177| 309| 52|Acton to| ... 9| 190| 215| 25|Acton pa|Uxbridge 10| 5| 2453| 29|Acton to|Morpeth 10| 300| 91| 36|Acton pa|Bildeston 8| 57| 565| 42|Acton Beauchamp pa|Ledbury 10| 122| 239| 33|ACTON Burnell[C] to & pa|Ch. Stretton 7| 155| 381| +--+------------------------+------------------------+------+------+

[A] ACLE. _Market_, Thursday.--_Fair_, Wednesday before Michaelmas day.

[B] ACONBURY. At this place a nunnery of the order of St. Augustine was founded by Margery, wife of Walter de Lacey, in the reign of King John. The Cliffords were large benefactors to this house, which, at the dissolution, possessed _£75. 7s. 6d._ per annum. There are some remains yet standing, occupied as a farm house. On the summit of Aconbury Hill, a bold and extensive eminence, well wooded, and commanding a charming view over the adjacent county, are traces of a large encampment.

[Sidenote: Nunnery.]

[C] ACTON BURNELL is celebrated for the remains of an ancient castle, founded by Robert Burnell, bishop of Bath and Wells, a man of eminent abilities, first treasurer, and afterwards chancellor of England, who was much employed by King Edward I. in Welsh affairs. He died at Berwick, in 1292, and was buried in the cathedral at Wells. The castle is a quadrangular building, with a square tower at each corner. The hall in which King Edward I. held his parliament, in 1283, was 183 feet long, by 41 broad, but the gable ends only remain. The Statutum de Mercatoribus enacted here, is from that circumstance better known as the Statute of Acton Burnell. The successor of the bishop, at the castle, was Sir Edward Burnell, son of Philip Burnell and Maud, daughter of Richard Arundel. He served in many actions in Scotland, under Edward I., and always appeared in great splendour, attended by a chariot decked with banners of his arms. He was summoned to parliament from the fifth to the eighth year of Edward the second's reign, and died in 1315. In 1346, the castle came into the possession of Nicholas Lord Burnell, who died in 1382, and is buried in the church under an altar tomb, inlaid with his effigy in brass. In the reign of Henry VI. the Lovell family were in possession of this estate, which was forfeited by Lord Lovell, in consequence of his adherence to King Richard III. Henry VII. being seated on the throne, granted Acton Burnell, together with other estates in this county, to Jasper Tudor, Earl of Bedford; after whose death it reverted to the crown, and Henry VIII. granted it to Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey, distinguished for his valour at the battle of Flodden. Sir Humphrey Lee, of Langley, in this parish, was created a baronet, May 3, 1620. Acton Burnell Park is now the residence of Sir Edward Joseph Smythe, Bart. whose family have been seated here from the time of Charles II., when Sir Edward Smythe, of Esh, in Durham, created a baronet, Feb. 23, 1660, married the daughter and heiress of Sir Richard Lee, Bart. of Langley. The mansion, on a verdant lawn, bordered by a shrubbery, presents a handsome elevation of fine white stone, having a noble Ionic portico, under which is the carriage entrance. Behind the house is the deer park, on a finely wooded eminence, affording one of the most beautiful prospects in the county. The chapelry of Ruckley and Langley is in this parish.

[Sidenote: Edward I. held his parliament here in 1283.]

[Sidenote: Lord Burnell's effigy in brass on the altar tomb.]

[Sidenote: The seat of Sir E.J. Smythe.]

Map| Names of Places. | County | Number of Miles From | +--+-----------------------+----------+--------------+---------------+ 7|Acton Grange to|Chester |Warrington 4|Northwich 10| 15|Acton Iron pa|Gloucester|Chip. Sodbu 2|Thornbury 7| 33|Acton Pigott chap|Salop |Much Wenlo 6|Shrewsbury 8| 33|Acton Reynold to|Salop |Shrewsbury 8|Wem 6| 33|Acton Round chap|Salop |Wenlock 3|Bridgenorth 6| 33|Acton Scott pa|Salop |Ch. Stretton 4|Bish. Castle 10| 35|Acton Trussell to & pa|Stafford |Penkridge 3|Stafford 4| 15|Acton Turville chap|Gloucester|Tetbury 11|Chippenham 12| 35|Adbaston pa|Stafford |Eccleshall 14|Newport 5| 31|Adderbury East to & pa|Oxford |Banbury 3|Deddington 3| 33|Adderley pa|Salop |Drayton 4|Whitchurch 8| 29|Adderston to|Northumb |Beiford 3|Alnwick 12| 17|Adforton to|Hereford |Ludlow 8|Presteign 8| 9|Addingham pa|Cumberland|Kirk Oswald 2|Penrith 8| 45|Addingham pa|W.R. York |Skipton 5|Ottley 8| 37|Addington[A] pa|Surrey |Croydon 4|Westerham 10| 5|Addington pa|Bucks |Winslow 2|Buckingham 5| 21|Addington pa|Kent |Maidstone 7|Rochester 8| 28|Addington, Gt to & pa|Northamp |Thrapston 4|Kettering 7| 28|Addington, Lit to & pa|Northamp | ... 5| ... 8| 21|Addisham pa|Kent |Wingham 3|Canterbury 6| 45|Addle[B] to & pa|W.R. York |Leeds 5|Ottley 6| 46|Addle-cum-Eccup to|W.R. York | 5| ... 6| 45|Addlingfleet[C] pa|W.R. York |Snaith 11|Burton 2| +--+-----------------------+----------+--------------+---------------+ |Dist. Map| Names of Places. |Number of Miles From |Lond.|Population +--+-----------------------+-------------------------+-----+---------+ 7|Acton Grange to|Runcorn 5| 183| 148| 15|Acton Iron pa|Bristol 9| 112| 1372| 33|Acton Pigott chap|Ch. Stretton 9| 154| ... | 33|Acton Reynold to|Drayton 12| 152| 173| 33|Acton Round chap|Ludlow 17| 145| 203| 33|Acton Scott pa|Ludlow 10| 155| 204| 35|Acton Trussell to & pa|Lichfield 15| 131| 551| 31|Acton Turville chap|Sodbury 5| 102| 236| 35|Adbaston pa|Hodnet 7| 152| 601| 31|Adderbury East to & pa|Aynhoe 4| 70| 2471| 33|Adderley pa|Wem 12| 157| 468| 29|Adderston to|Wooler 10| 319| 322| 17|Adforton to|Knighton 8| 150| 218| 9|Addingham pa|Aldstn Moor 12| 291| 719| 45|Addingham pa|Keighley 5| 213| 2251| 37|Addington[A] pa|Bromley 5| 12| 463| 5|Addington pa|Bicester 11| 50| 74| 21|Addington pa|Wrotham 3| 27| 206| 28|Addington, Gt to & pa|Higam Ferrers 5| 70| 282| 28|Addington, Lit to & pa| ... 5| 70| 264| 21|Addisham pa|Sandwich 6| 62| 390| 45|Addle[B] to & pa|Bradford 8| 205| 1063| 46|Addle-cum-Eccup to| ... 8| 291| 703| 45|Addlingfleet[C] pa||Howden 6| 170| 478| +--+-----------------------+-------------------------+-----+---------+

[A] ADDINGTON is on the borders of Kent. Addington Place, a seat erected by Alderman Trecothick, in 1772, was purchased in 1807, for the residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The manor of Addington is held by the feudal service of finding a man to make a mess, called Gerout, in the king's kitchen, at the coronation, and serving it up in his own person at Westminster Hall. In the reign of William the Conqueror, Addington appears to have been held by Tezelin, cook to the king, which accounts for the origin of the required culinary service. The Archbishop of Canterbury is now the claimant of the service alluded to. Near the village is a curious cluster of tumuli, or mounds of earth raised over the bodies of the slain, about twenty-five in number, of inconsiderable height. One of them is nearly forty feet in diameter, two are about half that size, and the rest very small.

[Sidenote: Coronation custom.]

[Sidenote: Cluster of tumuli.]

[B] ADDLE. The church in this town is considered to be one of the most perfect specimens of Roman architecture remaining in England. In 1702, the traces of an ancient Roman town, with fragments of urns, and of an aqueduct of stone were found in the adjacent moor.

[Sidenote: Roman architecture.]

[C] ADDLINGFLEET. A parish and township in the lower division of Osgold Cross, including the townships of Fockerby, Haldenby, and Eastoft. The village is situated very near the junction of the Trent with the Humber, the latter river being one of the largest in the kingdom, formed by the united waters of the Trent, Ouse, Derwent, Aire, and other minor streams. At this part it is about a mile broad, it is the Abus of Ptolemy. It runs towards the east, washing the port of Hull, where it receives the river called by the same name; from thence, taking a south-easterly direction, it expands itself into an estuary nearly seven miles across, and mingles with the German ocean. This river, which, with very few exceptions, receives all the waters of Yorkshire from the Ouse, and the greater part of those from the midland counties from the Trent, commands the inland navigation of very extensive and commercial parts of England; namely, those of the Mersey, Dee, Ribble, Severn, Thames, and Avon; it also forms the boundary between Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

[Sidenote: Boundary between Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.]

[A] ADLINGTON. Through this township runs the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. It contains several coal mines. Adlington Hall, the seat of Sir Robert Clayton, Bart., was rebuilt about 1780; it stands in a low situation, on the borders of an extensive park, and contains some very good pictures, amongst which is a head of Charles I., taken after death. Ellerbeck Hall is the seat of John Hodson, Esq. In this neighbourhood is Park Hall, the seat of R.P. German, Esq. The inhabitants of Adlington are chiefly employed in the cotton manufactories of the vicinity.

[Sidenote: Seat of Sir. Robert Clayton, Bart.]

[B] ADWALTON formerly possessed a market which is now disused. On Adwalton Moor, a battle was fought, in 1642, between the Earl of Newcastle, commanding for the king, and the parliamentary general, Lord Fairfax, in which the latter was defeated.

_Fairs_, February 6, March 9, Easter Thursday, Thursday fortnight after Easter, Whit-Thursday; and every second Thursday thence to Michaelmas, for lean cattle; November 5, and December 23.

[Sidenote: Battle fought here in 1642.]

[C] St. AGNES is situated on the Bristol Channel. The town and parish, including a considerable mining district, is thickly strewed with the cottages of the miners. It is more frequently called Lighthouse Island, from a very high and strong light-house erected here, to warn the mariner from the rocks, which are more numerous about this than any other of the Scilly Islands. This building is upwards of sixty feet high, and stands on the most elevated ground. The light is produced by twenty-one parabolic reflectors of copper, plated with silver, and having each an argand lamp in its focus. The reflectors are disposed of in three clusters, of seven in each cluster, and the frame in which they are fixed stands perpendicularly to the horizon, on a shaft united to a machine below, which makes the whole revolve every two minutes. By this motion the light progressively sweeps the whole horizon; and by its gradual intermission and increase, it is readily distinguished from any other. Its brilliancy is also extraordinary; and by these combined efforts its benefits are greatly increased, as the seaman is at once rendered completely sensible of his situation. This light was designed by the ingenious Mr. Adam Walker, (lecturer on natural and experimental philosophy,) under whose inspection it was constructed. The light-house itself is of stone, and was erected, as appears from an inscription over the door, by Captain Hugh Till, and Captain Simon Bayley, in the year 1680. The charges attending the light are defrayed by the Trinity House. At St. Agnes is a pilchard fishery. St. Agnes' Beacon, six hundred and sixty-four feet above the level of the sea, is formed out of an ancient cairn, or tumulus of stones; near which, a summer-house has been built, from whence is a fine view of St. Ives, and an extensive sea prospect. Near the same spot is St. Agnes' Well, of which many miraculous stories are in circulation, from its presumed holy and sanative properties.