A Topographical Dictionary of England. Originally published by S Lewis, London, 1848.
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CHISWORTH, a township, in the parish and union of Glossop, hundred of High Peak, N. division of the county of Derby, 9 miles (N. N. W.) from Chapel-en-leFrith; containing 532 inhabitants. It comprises 844 acres, and has an old romantic village, seated about four miles south-west of Glossop. There are a colliery, a cotton-spinning factory, and an establishment for candlewicks. A Methodist place of worship was built in 1831. The ruins of an old chapel and monastery still exist at this place.
CHITHURST, a parish, in the union of Midhurst, hundred of Dumpford, rape of Chichester, W. division of Sussex, 3¾ miles (W. N. W.) from Midhurst; containing 232 inhabitants. It is intersected by the river Rother, and comprises 1047 acres, of which 275 are common or waste. The living is a rectory, annexed to that of Iping: the church is in the early English style of architecture.
Chittern (All Saints)
CHITTERN (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Warminster, hundred of Heytesbury, Warminster and S. divisions of Wilts, 4 miles (E. N. E.) from Heytesbury; containing 403 inhabitants. It is situated on the road from Amesbury to Bristol, and comprises by measurement 4288 acres; the lands are watered by several springs, which, during part of the year, rise in the parish and neighbourhood, and, uniting, form a considerable stream. The living is a discharged vicarage, with the vicarage of Chittern St. Mary, and is valued in the king's books at £7. 0. 10.; net income, £319; patrons, alternately, the Bishop and the Dean and Chapter of Salisbury; impropriators of All Saints', the family of Serle. The tithes of both parishes were commuted for land and corn-rents, in 1815, and the great tithes of All Saints' have been, under the recent act, commuted for £113. The church is an ancient structure. Westward from the place is a small Roman camp, named Knooke Castle, and near it an irregular ditch running in various directions, as if intended to form some ancient boundary line; there are also some remains of a convent in the parish. Commodore Michel, who circumnavigated the globe with Captain Cook, was born and buried here.
Chittern (St. Mary)
CHITTERN (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Warminster, hundred of Heytesbury, Warminster and S. divisions of Wilts, 3¾ miles (E. by N.) from Heytesbury; containing 180 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1075 acres, and is in every respect similar to the parish of Chittern All Saints; they both form one village of a single street, each side of which is respectively in its own parish. The living is a discharged vicarage, united to that of All Saints, and valued in the king's books at £6: the appropriate tithes, belonging to the Dean and Chapter of Sarum, have been commuted for £125; the vicarial glebe consists of 164 acres. There is a place of worship for dissenters.
Chittlehampton (St. Urith)
CHITTLEHAMPTON (St. Urith), a parish, in the union and hundred of South Molton, South Molton and N. divisions of Devon, 5¼ miles (W.) from South Molton; containing 1893 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated on the river Taw, and intersected by the new Exeter road, comprises 8673 acres, of which 150 are common or waste. It is enlivened with some beautiful scenery on the banks of the river, especially at Head Wood; and the grounds of Hudscott, one of the seats of the Rolle family, add materially to the interest of the view. Culm is obtained within its limits, and limestone is found, imbedded in thick slate or flagstone. A fair is held on the third Thursday in March. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £34. 18. 11½.; net income, £413; patrons and impropriators, the family of Rolle. The church is in the later English style, and has a handsome embattled tower: the pulpit is richly ornamented with figures of saints and with foliage finely carved, and the window above the altar is embellished with painted glass; there are some beautiful monuments to the Giffards and the Rolle family. A chapel, dedicated to St. John, was built in 1838, by subscription, aided by a grant of £200 from the Incorporated Society, and was endowed by Lord Rolle, who also built a residence for the minister. At Brightley are to be seen some remains of an ancient mansion and a chapel.
CHITTOE, a tything, in the parish of Bishop'sCannings, union of Devizes, hundred of Potterne and Cannings, Devizes and N. divisions of Wilts, 5 miles (N. W.) from Devizes; containing 207 inhabitants. Here is a church, dedicated to St. Mary, and having a consolidated chapelry attached; it is built on a site given by Mrs. Starkie, is in the old English style, was consecrated in October, 1845, and contains 170 sittings. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Bishop of Salisbury.
Chivelstone (St. Sylvester)
CHIVELSTONE (St. Sylvester), a parish, in the union of Kingsbridge, hundred of Coleridge, Stanborough and Coleridge, and S. divisions of Devon, 6 miles (S. E. by S.) from Kingsbridge; containing 591 inhabitants. It comprises 2547 acres, of which 555 are common or waste. The living is annexed to the vicarage of Stokenham. At Ford is a meetinghouse for dissenters.
Chivesfield, Hertford.—See Graveley.
CHIVINGTON, EAST, a township, in the parish of Warkworth, union of Morpeth, E. division of Morpeth ward, N. division of Northumberland, 10½ miles (N. N. E.) from Morpeth; containing 289 inhabitants. This place is situated on the eastern coast, and, with West Chivington, is the property of Earl Grey. Part of the land, adjoining Druridge bay, was formerly overflowed by the tide, owing to its lying low, and from that circumstance is called the Salt meadow. As a commutation for the tithes, £344 are payable to the Bishop of Carlisle, and £57. 15. to the vicar of Warkworth.
CHIVINGTON, WEST, a township, in the parish of Warkworth, union of Morpeth, E. division of Morpeth ward, N. division of Northumberland, 8 miles (N. by E.) from Morpeth; containing 67 inhabitants. It was formerly, like East Chivington, of more importance than it is at present, as appears from the foundations of houses still to be seen. The township comprises 1816 acres, of a stiff soil, mostly arable; 150 acres are meadow, and 500 wood: the surface is generally level, the air salubrious, and there are fine sea views. The tithes have been commuted for £150. 7. payable to the Bishop of Carlisle, and £16. 2. to the vicar of the parish. There was formerly a chapel, which has long been in ruins: the burial-ground still remains.
Chobham (St. Lawrence)
CHOBHAM (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union of Chertsey, First division of the hundred of Godley, W. division of Surrey, 4½ miles (E. S. E.) from Bagshot; containing 1989 inhabitants. The parish comprises about 13,000 acres, of which 4500 are arable, pasture, and meadow, 40 wood and plantation, and the rest waste and common forming part of Bagshot Heath; the surface is hilly, and the soil generally sand, incumbent on beds of gravel. The village, which is situated in a valley, is a polling-place for the western division of the county: many of the houses are of red brick and well built, and the shops are of respectable appearance. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 2. 1.; net income, £148; patron, John Thornton, Esq.; impropriators, Sir W. Abdy, Bart., and others. The glebe contains about 70 acres. The church is in the early style of English architecture, with modern windows, and contains several neat monuments. A small chapel of ease dedicated to the Trinity has been erected at West-End, in the parish; and there is a place of worship for Baptists. A school is supported, to which Thomas Bainbridge, Esq., bequeathed, in 1834, £360 in the three per cent. consols.: there are a benevolent society and a lying-in fund; and the parish derives from £40 to £50 per annum from Henry Smith's charity. At Chobham Park are the remains of a large mansion, in which Archbishop Heath died, in 1579. Near Westby Green is a chalybeate spring.
Cholderton, West (St. Nicholas)
CHOLDERTON, WEST (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union and hundred of Amesbury, Salisbury and Amesbury, and S. divisions of Wilts, 5 miles (E. by N.) from Amesbury; containing 170 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1662 acres, of which 1410 are arable, 147 meadow and pasture, and 35 woodland: the new road from Salisbury to Marlborough passes through the village. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £11. 0. 7½., and in the patronage of Oriel College, Oxford: the tithes have been commuted for £267, and the glebe contains 9 acres, with a glebe-house lately built. A new church has been erected near the site of the old one. Anthony Cratcherode, Esq., in 1753, bequeathed £12 per annum for charitable purposes.
Chollerton (St. Giles)
CHOLLERTON (St. Giles), a parish, in the union of Hexham, N. E. division of Tindale ward, S. division of Northumberland; containing, with the chapelry of Birtley, and the townships of Barrasford, Colwell with Swinburn, and Gunnerton with Chipchase, 1129 inhabitants, of whom 155 are in the township of Chollerton, 6 miles (N.) from Hexham. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 14. 4½.; net income, £361; patron and incumbent, the Rev. C. Bird; impropriators, the Mercers' Company and others. The great tithes of the township of Chollerton have been commuted for £233, and the small for £76; the vicar has a glebe of 7 acres. The church contains an east window of stained glass. At Birtley is a separate incumbency. About a mile from the village of Chollerton was the line of the walls and fosse erected by the Romans and South Britons, at various times, to protect themselves from the incursions of the Picts.
CHOLMONDELEY, a township, in the parish of Malpas, union of Nantwich, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton, S. division of the county of Chester, 7½ miles (W.) from Nantwich; containing 260 inhabitants. Cholmondeley House was garrisoned in 1643, by 400 royalists, who, in the month of April, were attacked and defeated by the parliamentary troops from Nantwich, losing 50 men and 600 horses; it was afterwards recaptured by the royalists, who were driven from it again on the 30th of June, 1644. The present splendid seat of the Marquess of Cholmondeley, about half a mile from the former house, was begun in 1801, and completed in 1804; a chapel, to which the tenants may resort, is attached to it. The township comprises 1691 acres; the soil is clay, with a little sand. The tithes of the township, with those of Bickley, Bulkeley, and Larkton, have been commuted for £342 payable to the impropriators, and £32. 8. to the rector of Malpas.
CHOLMONDSTONE, a township, in the parish of Acton, union and hundred of Nantwich, S. division of the county of Chester, 4½ miles (N. by W.) from Nantwich; containing 206 inhabitants. It comprises 1740 acres, of which the soil is clay.
Cholsey (St. Mary)
CHOLSEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and parliamentary borough of Wallingford, hundred of Reading, though locally in the hundred of Moreton, county of Berks, 3 miles (S. W.) from Wallingford; containing 1191 inhabitants. This place was distinguished for its monastery, founded in 986, by Ethelred, as an atonement for the murder of his brother, Edward the Martyr, and which, together with the village, was destroyed by the Danes in 1006. The manor belonged to the abbots of Reading, who had a splendid seat here, which was granted in 1555 to Sir Francis Englefield, and afterwards conveyed by the crown to William Knollys, Viscount Wallingford, subsequently created Earl of Banbury: the great barn, which measured 301 feet in length, 54 feet in breadth, and 51 in height, was taken down some years since, and four smaller ones were erected in its place. The parish comprises 4118a. 3r. 8p., of which 2971 acres are arable, 533 meadow, 340 common, 130 down, and 143 wood; it is intersected by the Great Western railway. The living is a vicarage, with that of Moulsford united, valued in the king's books at £18. 9. 9½., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £375; impropriators, the family of Minshull. The church contains some portions of Norman architecture.
CHOPPINGTON, a township, in the parish and division of Bedlington, union of Morpeth, county of Northumberland, 4 miles (E. by S.) from Morpeth; containing 167 inhabitants. The township consists of East and West Choppington, both situated on the way side between Morpeth and the Stakeford, and of part of the hamlet of Sheepwash, where is a bridge of four arches over the Wansbeck, from which the prospect is very beautiful. The whole estate comprises about 625 acres, tithe-free.
CHOPWELL, a township, in the parish of Ryton, union of Gateshead, W. division of Chester ward, N. division of the county of Durham, 11½ miles (W. S. W.) from Gateshead; containing 320 inhabitants. It was given by Bishop Hugh to the abbey of Newminster, and at the Dissolution was held under that establishment by the Swinburns, who are supposed to have received from the crown a grant of the fee simple; it afterwards belonged to the families of Constable, Clavering, and Cowper, and now is the property of various owners. The township contains some coal; and at Black-hall, on the river Derwent, is a manufactory for German steel, which is stated to have been first carried on by some emigrants from Germany.
CHORLEY, a township, in the parish of Wilmslow, union and hundred of Macclesfield, N. division of the county of Chester, 5¾ miles (N. W. by W.) from Macclesfield; containing 561 inhabitants. This was a seat of the Davenports from about the year 1400 until 1612, when it was purchased by the Downes family; and in 1640 it came, also by purchase, to the Stanleys of Alderley. The Hall was an ancient timber mansion, within a moated site, but latterly became a farmhouse. The township comprises 1242 acres, whereof 194 are common land or waste; the soil is clay. The tithes have been commuted for £169. 10.
CHORLEY, a township, in the parish of Wrenbury, union and hundred of Nantwich, S. division of the county of Chester, 5¼ miles (W. by S.) from Nantwich; containing 183 inhabitants. The manor was possessed by the Harcourt family in the reign of Edward II., when the two coheiresses of Robert Harcourt married into the Cholmondeley family. Isabel brought a moiety to Hugh Cholmondeley, whose daughter and heiress married Roger Bromley, of Basford; after continuing in the Bromley family for several descents, it was purchased, in 1561, by the Cholmondeleys of Cholmondeley, ancestors of the present Marquess of Cholmondeley. The other moiety passed with Maud to the ancestor of the Cholmondeleys of Chorley, and came to the marquess's family by purchase, in the reign of Henry VI. The township comprises 1288 acres, of which the soil is clayey. The Primitive Methodists have a place of worship, and a Sunday school. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £81, and the vicarial for £28. 17. 11., payable to the incumbent of Acton.
Chorley (St. Lawrence)
CHORLEY (St. Lawrence), a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, in the hundred of Leyland, N. division of the county of Lancaster, 32 miles (S. by E.) from Lancaster, and 208 (N. W. by N.) from London; containing 13,139 inhabitants. The name of this place is derived from its situation on the river Chor, about a mile from its confluence with the Yarrow, and from the Saxon word Ley, a field; or from the family of Chorley, who were its ancient proprietors. The chief lordships of Chorley were subsequently held by the noble families of Ferrers and Lacy. A moiety of the manor was at a still later period possessed by the Sherburnes, and the other half by the Stanleys: the Sherburne portion afterwards passed to the Welds of Lulworth, who sold it about 1806 to Thomas Gillibrand, Esq. of Chorley Hall, whose ancestor, in the 17th century, had married into the Chorley family. On his death in 1829, the manor came in moieties to his widow and son. In 1644 Prince Rupert passed through the town at the head of a large army, on his march to York; and in 1648 Cromwell, after the battle of Ribblesdale, slept at Astley Hall, in the parish: by this route, also, General Carpenter, in 1715, advanced to Preston, nine miles distant, to meet the Scottish rebels, whom he defeated at that place.
The town is pleasantly situated on the summit of a hill, on the road from Bolton to Preston; and though in Leland's time it is described as having "a wonderful poore, or rather no market," it is now a large and thriving place, being indebted to the excellent coal-mines and stone-quarries in the neighbourhood, and more recently to its extended cotton manufacture, and the enterprising spirit of its inhabitants, for a rapid rise into importance. It was at first lighted with gas by Mr. Timothy Lightoller, from his private works, but is now lighted by a public company; and is amply supplied with water, for which purpose works were erected in 1823, and a new company was incorporated in 1846, having a capital of £15,000. The appearance of the town has of late been very much improved; among other recent changes, the unsightly thatched buildings which stood in the most central part of one of the main thoroughfares, have been taken down, and are succeeded by handsome and commodious shops. The environs abound with diversified scenery, and the views, which are extensive, embrace Rivington Pike, &c. The principal branch of manufacture is that of cotton, of which the chief articles made are muslins and calicoes. There are at present eight mills, whereof two, belonging to Messrs. James Wallwork and Company, and one, the property of John Wilkinson, Esq., employ 800 persons; two, the property of Messrs. Richard Smethurst and Company, employ 560; two, belonging to Messrs. Lightoller, 480; and one, belonging to Richard Anyon, Esq., 150. There are also several printing and bleaching works, a logwood-mill, a cornmill, and four iron-foundries; together with four collieries in operation. The Lancaster and the Leeds and Liverpool canals unite to the south-west of Whittle-leWoods, and pass within a mile of the town; and there is a station on the North-Union railway, which was opened in June, 1843. A grant of a market and fairs was obtained in the reign of Edward IV.: the market is on Tuesday; and fairs are held on March 26th, May 5th, and August 20th, principally for cattle; and on Sept. 4th, 5th, and 6th, for woollen-cloth, hardware, and pedlery. The county magistrates hold a petty-session every Tuesday; and the lord of the manor a court leet once a year: the powers of the county debt-court of Chorley, established in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Chorley. The town-hall, a stone building, under which the butter-market is held, was erected in 1802, at the expense of the late John Hollinshead, Esq.; and adjoining it is a small prison for the confinement of offenders prior to their committal to the county gaol.
The parish comprises 3571 acres, of which the soil is, for the most part, a stiff loam. The surface rises into hills in the eastern part, where the land is sterile; but westward it is simply undulated, and productive: about one-fourth is arable, and the remainder pasture and wood. Among the seats is Gillibrand Hall, a fortresslike edifice, built in 1807 by Thomas Gillibrand, Esq., and the seat of his son, Henry Hawarden Fazakerley, Esq., now lord of the manor, who assumed the latter name some years since. Astley Hall, a venerable mansion built in 1600, is seated in a park on the north-west margin of the Chor. Baganley Hall is a fine old house, built in 1633; and Burgh Hall, a brick edifice, built in 1740, partaking much of the modern style of architecture, with pleasure-grounds and gardens attached. About a mile from the town, and pleasantly situated on the banks of the Yarrow, is Yarrow House, the seat of Richard and George H. Lightoller, Esqrs.: South Cottage is occupied by Alexander Bannerman, Esq.; Willow House, by Thomas Cameron, Esq.; and Park Place is the residence of Richard Smethurst, Esq.
Chorley was originally a chapelry in the parish of Croston, from which it was separated in 1793, when that extensive district was divided into three distinct parishes. The living is a rectory, not in charge, with a net income of £1022; patron, the Rev. Streynsham Master, A.M.: the tithes of the parish have been commuted for £264. The church is an ancient structure, retaining several features of Saxon character, of which the south entrance is a fine specimen; it is castellated, pinnacled at the east and west ends, and has a large tower supported by buttresses. The edifice formerly contained some relics, said to have been the bones of its tutelar saint, which were brought from Normandy by Sir Rowland Stanley, Knt., and presented to the parish by his brother. St. George's church, standing in an open area, on the east side of the town, was completed in October, 1825, at an expense of £13,707, defrayed by the Parliamentary Commissioners and by subscription; it is a handsome and spacious structure in the later English style, with a square embattled tower, and consists of a nave, with north and south aisles, and a choir: attached is a large burial-ground. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Rector. There are places of worship for Independents, Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists, Baptists, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics. The Roman Catholic chapel, dedicated to St. Gregory, was built in 1774, rebuilt in 1816, and aisles were added in 1831; it stands on an eminence called Weldbank, about a mile south-west of the town, and is in the Romanesque style of architecture: adjoining is a house, with 16 acres of ground, belonging to the priest, the Rev. Henry Greenhalgh.
The grammar school was originally established by the churchwardens, who, in 1634, built a school-house; it has an endowment of £11 per annum, arising from subsequent benefactions: a new school-house was built in 1824. A large national school, and a school for Roman Catholics, are supported by subscription; and there are also infants' and Sunday schools in connexion with the Established Church. An almshouse was built and endowed in 1682, by Hugh Cooper, for six aged persons: Henry Banister, of Hackney, Middlesex, left £600 in 1625, for charitable purposes; and there are several minor charities, and a dispensary instituted in 1828. The poor law union of Chorley comprises 26 parishes and townships, and contains a population of 38,836. At Yarrow Bridge is an alkaline spring, on the property of John Wilkinson, Esq.: its fame attracts numerous persons, and especially the poor, to drink the water, and many instances of the benefit derived from its use, have been authenticated; among others, a remarkable case of dropsy. The water has been recently analyzed by an eminent chemist in Leamington, who has confirmed a previous analysis of the medicinal virtues peculiar to it. Baths are open to the public at a moderate charge.