Davies Thomas, wheelwright
Ellerton Richard, Esq., Erway
Evans Richard, victualler, Griffin Inn
Evans Joshua, wheelwright
Furmston Mrs. Emma, Criftins
Handley William, brick, tile, earthenware manufacturer, and victualler,
The Grapes, Criftins
Humphreys Thomas, blacksmith
Jones John, Esq., Shelbrook
Jones John, shoemaker, Criftins
Jones Walter, shoemaker, Gravel Holes
Johnson Captain Robert, Kilhendre
Kilvert Joseph, shopkeeper and victualler, Fox Inn, Criftins
Morrall Edward, Esq., Plas-warren
Morrall Robert, Esq., solicitor, Plas-yollen
Newnes William, shoemaker
Owen Richard, farmer and victualler, Three Pigeons Inn
Phillips Robert, blacksmith
Preston Samuel, shoemaker, Gravel Holes
Spencer Thomas, brick, tile, flower pot, and black earthenware
manufacturer
Winter Rev. John Bowyer, curate
FARMERS.
Belmont Charles, The Pant, Pentrecoed
Boote Joseph (executors of), Gadless
Corns Richard, Criftins
Darlington Thomas, Plas-Thomas, Coadyrallt
Davies John, Dudliston Hall
Dickin William, Pentrecoed
Edwards Richard, Rock House, Coadyrallt
Foulkes John, The Vron, Coadyrallt
Garner Benjamin, Coadyrallt
Gough Edward, Pentre-Morgan
Hampson Daniel, Coadyrallt
Hampson Jane, The Castle
Hampson John, Chapel
Hughes Arthur, Pentrecoed
Hughes James, and corn miller, Pant Mill
Hughes Thomas, and butcher, Chapel
Humphreys John, Chapel
Jones Elizabeth, New Hall, Chapel
Jones John, Shelbrook, Coadyrallt
Jones Roger, Cross lanes, Pentrecoed
Jones Richard, Dudleston Grove
Lee Richard, Cross lanes, Coadyrallt
Manford John, Coadyrallt
Manford Martha, Pit House
Murslow James, Chapel
Owen Charles Brown, Dee Field
Owen Thomas, Pentrecoed
Parry John, Sodylt Lodge
Pay Margaret, Chapel
Roberts Robert, Pentrecoed
Rogers Henry, Chapel
Rutter Ann, Pentrecoed
Shone Thomas, Coadyrallt
Steen John, Criftins
Strange David, Pentre-madoc
Teggin John, Coadyrallt
Thomas Joseph, Plas-warren
EASTWICK,
a small township, two miles and a half N.W. from Ellesmere, contains
503A. 2R. 33P. of land, and in 1841 had 18 houses and 87 inhabitants.
The principal landowners in this township are the trustees of the late
Earl of Bridgewater, Samuel Y. Kenyon, Esq., Mrs. Elizabeth Jones, Miss
Kynaston, and Mrs. Broom. The chief residents in Eastwick are Edward
Broughall, farmer, Gadless; Josiah Hughes, tailor; Mrs. Elizabeth Jones,
farmer and tanner, Gadless; Joseph Strange, blacksmith; Francis Thomas,
farmer; and Mrs. Mary Wall, farmer, Pleasant Grove.
ELSON AND GREENHILL,
a township, a mile and a half N.W. from Ellesmere, contains 547A. 0R.
18P. of land; the most considerable owner of which is Charles Kynaston
Mainwaring, Esq. The other owners are Miss Kynaston, Mr. Joshua Lewis
Menlove, Mr. John Furmston, and Mrs. Broom. This township has a
scattered population; in 1841 there were 11 houses and 65 inhabitants.
DIRECTORY.—Daniel Boote, farmer, Elson; John Boote, farmer, Greenhill;
John Lea, maltster, Elson Cottage; Joshua Lewis Menlove, farmer, land
agent, and brick and tile maker, Elson; Thomas Williams, farmer,
Greenhill, and Mrs. Ann Williams, Elson.
FRANKTON, OR ENGLISH FRANKTON,
is so called to distinguish it from Frankton, in Whittington parish,
which is sometimes called Welsh Frankton. The village is pleasantly
situated on high ground, four miles and a half south from Ellesmere, and
in 1841 contained 41 houses and 199 inhabitants. The houses are in
general straggling, and there are a considerable number of small
cottages. The township contains 956A. 0R. 34P. of land; the principal
owners of which are John Povey, Esq., Mrs. Jane Griffiths, Nicholson
Robinson, Esq., and Mr. William Downes.
The principal residents are Mr. John Borne Oekley; William Downes,
farmer, Frankton Grove; William Downes, jun., farmer; William Foulkes,
farmer; Elias Puleston, farmer; Thomas Stanyer, farmer; Thomas Smith,
blacksmith; and John Williams, wheelwright.
HAMPTON WOOD
is a small township, with 703A. 0R. 18P. of land, situated three miles
from Ellesmere, and in 1841 had 37 houses and 175 inhabitants. The
principal landowners are the trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater,
Lord Kenyon, C. K. Mainwaring, Esq., and Joshua Lewis Menlove, Esq. The
resident farmers are William Boughey; Mary Boyling; Robert Jacks; James
Price, and corn miller; Thomas Reeves; John Rodenhurst; and John Smith.
HARDWICK
is a township, containing 449A. 3R. 17P. of land, and in 1841 had 27
houses and 441 inhabitants. The whole township is the property of Sir
John Roger Kynaston, Bart., who resides at HARDWICK HALL, an elegant
mansion, delightfully situated in a park, with a fine undulating surface,
richly wooded with noble timber. The south front of the hall opens upon
a terrace, ornamented with flowers, vases, and an open balustrade, which
leads into the park. On the west side of the hall are the pleasure
grounds and shrubberies, which contain some rare shrubs of remarkably
fine growth; the arra-caxia imbricata is upwards of sixteen feet high,
and one of the finest specimens in the country. The cedar deodora is
also a beautiful specimen. There are upwards of thirty varieties of the
pinus tribe planted in different parts of the grounds. Adjoining the
west side of the hall, a new conservatory has just been completed, which
is chiefly used as an orangery. The vineries adjoin the kitchen gardens,
which cover about an acre and a half of land. About two hundred yards
from the south front of the hall is a magnificent specimen of the cedar
of Lebanon, which measures fourteen feet and a half in circumference. A
portion of the top was broken off about three years ago with the weight
of snow that fell upon it. PERTHY BANK, or THE BROW, consists of a
public house and a few cottages, partly in this township and partly in
Tetchill, situated on the brow of a hill, on the turnpike road leading
from Ellesmere to Oswestry. HARDWICK COTTAGE is a neat residence,
pleasantly situated near the turnpike road, occupied by Lovett Ferrall,
Esq.
DIRECTORY.—Sir John Roger Kynaston, Bart., Hardwick; Lovett Ferrall,
Esq., Hardwick Cottage; John Cureton, farmer; Samuel Carsley, blacksmith;
Edward Heyes, victualler, Green Man Inn, The Brow; Samuel Stockton,
gamekeeper; Mrs. Martha Thomas; Richard Woolf, farmer, Old Hardwick.
KENWICK STOCKETT AND WHATTALL,
a township three miles south from Ellesmere, contains 874A. 3R. 29P. of
land; the owners of which are the trustees of the late Earl of
Bridgewater, Thomas Buckley Buckley Owen, Esq., and the Rev. William
Thomas. In 1841 the township had nine houses and a population of 55
souls. The principal residents are Samuel Burrows, farmer; Richard
Gough, farmer, Whattall; Thomas Furmston, farmer, Lower Kenwick; John
Stoakes, farmer, Higher Kenwick; and Joseph Stoakes, farmer, The Springs.
KENWICKS PARK
is a small village and township, three miles and a quarter south from
Ellesmere, having 1,054A. 3R. 26P. of land, which is the property of the
trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater. At the census in 1841 there
were 22 houses and 120 inhabitants. The resident _Farmers_ are Edward
Colemere; William Gough, The Lodge; Thomas Hamson, Kenwick Park; Ann
Harrison, Top House; Jane Harrison, Old Cast; Lazarus Harrison, Lower
House; John Hassall; Thomas Jacks; John Reynolds; and James Williams.
HENWICKS WOOD
is a township, situated four miles south from Ellesmere, embracing 865A.
3R. 16P. of land; an undulating district, the high ground of which
commands a most beautiful view of the fertile plains of Shropshire and of
the mountainous district of Wales. In 1841 there were 23 houses and 137
inhabitants. The principal landowners are William Sparling, Esq.; Sir
John Roger Kynaston, Bart.; Thomas Buckley Buckley Owen, Esq.; Mrs.
Sutton; and Mr. Joseph Hignett.
The following are the chief resident _Farmers_, viz.:—Stephen Burrows,
Edward Hayward, Sarah Nickson, John Shingler, and Edward Stoakes.
LEE
is a pleasant little village and township, a mile and a half south from
Ellesmere, which contains 815A. 1R. 30P. of land, the whole of which is
the property of Thomas Buckley Buckley Owen, Esq. This is a fine
agricultural district; the land produces good crops of all kinds of
grain, and many of the farms are of considerable extent THE OLD HALL, the
residence of Mr. Thomas Lewis, is an antique structure of timber and
plaster, with projecting gables, and has the date of 1594 on the front.
One of the rooms is wainscotted with oak, and has the date of 1657 over
the fire place. A fine old yew tree stands in front of the house.
The resident _Farmers_ in Lee are Thomas Burrows; Thomas Gough; Thomas
Hollis; Joseph Jones, John Lewis, John Price, and Richard Williams; Mr.
John Lewis, Old Hall. John Morgan, blacksmith.
LINEAL
is a village and township, three miles S.E. from Ellesmere, which
contains 1,897A. 3R. 3P. of land, of which 1,620 acres are vested in the
trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater. The township is intersected by
the Shropshire Union Canal and the turnpike road from Ellesmere to Wem.
There are lime works here which were formerly carried on to a very
considerable extent, the canal affording facilities for sending that
commodity to distant parts of the country. At the census of 1841 there
were 44 houses in the township and 247 inhabitants.
DIRECTORY.—Andrew Bickley, farmer; Samuel Hignett Bickley, farmer; Isaac
Birch, boot and shoemaker; Richard Bright, farmer; William Clay,
engineer, blacksmith, and ironfounder; Mary Darlington, farmer; Francis
Dickin, farmer; John Medeley, farmer; Hannah Mercer, victualler, New Inn,
Hampton Bank; Robert Parry, farmer; Mary Peak, farmer and shopkeeper,
Hampton Bank; William Rogers, farmer; John Wilkinson, victualler, Blue
Dog; William Youd, farmer.
NEW MARTON,
a small village pleasantly situated four miles W. by S. from Ellesmere,
is returned as having 21 houses and 106 inhabitants at the census of
1841; the landowners are the trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater;
the township contains 587A. 0R. 14P. of land, mostly an undulating
surface, having a fertile soil, which produces good crops of grain. Dr.
Thomas Bray, an eminent, learned, and pious divine of the seventeenth
century, was born at Marton, in Shropshire, in 1656. He was educated at
Oswestry Grammar School, and was the principal promoter of the Missionary
Society denominated _The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in
Foreign Parts_. Dr. Bray was instrumental in raising lending libraries
in many parts of England and Wales, in connection with episcopal places
of worship, out of which the neighbouring clergy might borrow the books
they had occasion for, and where they might consult upon matters relating
to their function and learning; similar libraries were also established
in the American colonies for the use of the missionaries, which were
subsequently secured to posterity by an act of parliament passed for that
purpose in 1708. In the year 1712 the Dr. printed his “Martyrology, or
Papal Usurpation,” in folio. This work consists of some choice and
learned treatises of celebrated authors, which were grown very scarce,
ranged and digested into a regular history. He proposed to compile a
second volume, and had, at no small expense and pains, furnished himself
with materials for it, but he was afterwards obliged to lay the
prosecution of his design aside, and bequeathed by will his valuable
collection of martyrological memoirs, both printed and manuscript, to
Zion College. In the year 1726 he was employed in composing and printing
his Directorium Missionarium, and his Primordia Bibliothecaria. About
this time he also wrote a short account of Mr. Rawlet, the author of the
Christian Monitor, and reprinted the life of Mr. Gilpin. Some of these
were calculated for the use of missionaries, and in one of these he has
endeavoured to show that civilizing the Indians must be the first step in
any successful attempt for their conversion. As the furnishing the
parochial clergy with the means of instruction would be an effectual
method to promote Christian knowledge, so another expedient manifestly
subservient to the same end would be, he thought, to imprint on the minds
of those who are designed for the ministry, previously to their
admission, a just sense of its various duties, and their great
importance. With a view to this he reprinted the Ecclesiastes of
Erasmus, a name of great authority in the republic of letters, and to
whom the re-establishment of polite literature was principally owing.
Dr. Bray was a frequent visitor of the prisons, the inmates of which
always excited the highest degree of compassion in his breast, and to the
temporal benefits which he munificently bestowed, he always subjoined
spiritual comforts. He died on the 15th February, 1730, in the 73rd year
of his age.
DIRECTORY.—John Bate, farmer and maltster; John Cooke, farmer; John
Gabriel, wheelwright; Edward Lewis, maltster and shopkeeper; John Lewis,
farmer; John Powell, blacksmith; William Williams, boot and shoemaker.
NEWNES
is a very small township on the turnpike road from Ellesmere to Oswestry,
about a mile S.S. by W. from the former town. It contains 333A. 2R. 36P.
of land, of which 310 acres are now vested in the trustees of the late
Earl of Bridgewater. In 1841 there were six houses and 46 inhabitants.
The resident farmers are Henry Pearce and James Thomas; Edward Lloyd,
nurseryman. There is an erroneous tradition that the celebrated
Whittington, Lord Mayor of London, was born at Newnes.
NORTHWOOD,
a village and township on the verge of the county, two and a half miles
N. from Ellesmere, is separated from the county of Flint by a small
stream, on the banks of which is a corn mill. The township is well
wooded, has an undulating surface, and contains 1,321A. 3R. 5P. of land,
the principal owners of which are the trustees of the late Earl of
Bridgewater. Mr. Richard Evans and Mrs. Sarah Lindop are also
proprietors. In 1841 there were 29 houses and 150 inhabitants. The
resident farmers are John Cooke, Richard Evans, Mary Hassall, Sarah
Lindop, Thomas Madeley, and Andrew Wycherley; Charles Reeves, corn
miller. When our agent visited Northwood there were two farms
unoccupied.
OTELEY, NEWTON, AND SPOONHILL,
a township with a scattered population, extending from half a mile to a
mile and a half E. from Ellesmere, contains, 1,221A. 1R. 24P. of land,
the whole of which is the property of Charles Kynaston Mainwaring, Esq.,
who resides at OTELEY PARK, an elegant mansion built of the Cafn free
stone in 1827, and exhibiting a fine specimen of the florid English style
of architecture, which prevailed during the reign of Henry VII. The
mansion is most delightfully situated upon an elevated plot of ground,
overlooking a magnificent sheet of water covering a surface of one
hundred and sixty acres. In the front of the hall is one of the finest
terraces in the country, it is surrounded with ornamental vases, filled
with scarlet geraniums, which have a most beautiful appearance during the
summer months, and give an additional charm to the fairy scene. The
interior of the mansion is most superbly furnished, and contains an
extensive and costly collection of antique, china, and curious ornaments
of the most elaborate workmanship. There is a fine collection of family
portraits, executed by the most celebrated Italian, Dutch, Flemish, and
English masters. The library contains a fine collection of books, and is
richly ornamented with carved oak. The entrance to the corridor is of
stained glass, tracing the royal tribes of Wales, and the window of the
hall traces the pedigree of the family: these are beautifully executed by
Evans, of Shrewsbury. A little north from the hall is the billiard room,
the interior of which is ornamented with Flemish tapestry. The
shrubberies and pleasure grounds, which cover upwards of eighteen acres,
are kept in the most admirable order, and beautified with rockeries,
rustic bridges, and a very tastefully designed Swiss cottage. The
grounds contain some fine shrubs, and the cyprus and the arbavitus, which
are very numerous, exhibit the greatest luxuriance of growth. The park
has a fine undulating surface, and is stocked with deer. This township
at the census of 1841 contained 14 houses and 87 inhabitants.
DIRECTORY.—Charles Kynaston Mainwaring, Esq., Oteley Park; Robert Butter,
farmer and maltster and vict., Dog Inn, Ellesmere; Edward Edwards,
farmer, Crimps; George Foulkes, farmer and carpenter; Edward Groom,
gardener to C. K. Mainwaring, Esq.; Elizabeth Price, farmer; Mary
Whitfield, farmer; Thomas Whitfield, farmer, Spoonhill.
RIDGE HIGHER AND LOWER,
a township and village situated S.W. from Ellesmere, contains 1,625A. 2R.
13P. of land, the principal owners of which are the trustees of the late
Earl of Bridgewater; Mr. Menlove and Mrs. Jones are also owners. At the
census of 1841 there were 31 houses and 157 inhabitants. Higher Ridge is
situated about three miles from Ellesmere, on elevated ground, which
commands a most extensive and delightful view of the country. Lower
Ridge, about a mile further from Ellesmere, consists of two good farms.
The principal residents are Thomas Brayne, farmer, Higher Ridge; Edward
Jones, farmer, Lower Ridge; John Matthews, farmer, Lower Ridge; Edward
Price, farmer, Higher Ridge, and John Urion, farmer, Ridge.
STOCKS AND COPTIVINEY,
a small township two miles N.E. from Ellesmere, comprising 455A. 2R. 7P.
of land, in 1841 is returned as having five houses and 48 inhabitants.
The whole of the land is the property of Charles Kynaston Mainwaring,
Esq. The principal residents are Ambrose Nixon, farmer, Stocks; George
Rodenhurst, farmer, Stocks, and Thomas Whitfield, farmer, Coptiveney.
TETCHILL
is a township and village situated three miles S. from Ellesmere, which
contains 1,735A. 0R. 20P. of land, the whole of which is the property of
the trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater, except one farm, the
property of Sir John Roger Kynaston, Bart. In 1841 there were 63 houses
and 333 inhabitants—the houses are for the most part scattered. George
Salter, Esq., resides at a neat residence called Prynallt, near the
western verge of the township; the house stands on high ground, and
commands a fine view of the country. “This village is celebrated as the
birth place of William Fromston, the Shropshire giant; he died at
Tetchill, in 1795, aged 77 years; he is said to have been remarkably
active for his age and surprising height; his coffin measured eight feet
two inches inside.” The principal residents are Ann Boodle, farmer,
Winstone; Edward Boylin, farmer; William Carsley, blacksmith; William
Cooke, farmer, Tetchill Moor; William Cox, shoemaker; Elizabeth Davies,
farmer; John Davies, maltster and tailor; Thomas Davies, maltster; Thomas
Foulkes, farmer, Tetchill Moor; Thomas Harrison, wheelwright and
shopkeeper; Samuel Higginson, tailor; Joseph Jones, farmer; Thomas Jones,
tailor; Richard Lee, farmer, Onston; Henry Legh, farmer, The Buildings;
Elizabeth Mathers, farmer, Tetchill Moor; William Morgan, shopkeeper and
boot and shoe maker; William Price, farmer, The Wood; George Salter,
Esq., solicitor, Prynallt; Wm. Sheraton, farmer, Broom Farm; Henry
Townsend, farmer, Tetchill Moor.
TRENCH,
a township on the northern verge of the county, situated about two miles
N.N. by W. from Ellesmere, contains 854A. 0R. 6P. of land, the principal
owners of which are the trustees of the late Earl of Bridgewater; Charles
Kynaston Mainwaring, Esq.; and Rev. John Phillips, are also proprietors.
In 1841 the township contained 28 houses and a population of 65 souls.
The resident farmers are Thomas Cross, John Evans, John Groom, William
Higginson, William Nunnerley, William Paddock, and Thomas Pearce.
GREAT NESS
is a considerable parish and pleasantly situated village in the lower
division of the Pimhill hundred, four miles S.W. from Baschurch, ten S.E.
by S. from Oswestry, and seven and a half miles N.W. by N. from
Shrewsbury. The parish embraces the townships of Alderton, Felton
Butler, Great Ness, Hopton, Kinton, Nesscliffe, and Wilcott, which
together contain 3,865A. 3R. 30P. of land, and in 1801 had 732
inhabitants, 1831, 850, and in 1841, 143 houses and a population of 876
souls. Rateable value, £4,431. 5s. 4d. The village of Great Ness
contains several good houses, and is surrounded with an undulating
district, which commands some fine views of great diversity and
picturesque beauty. The township contains 856A. 3R. 37P. of land, and in
1841 there were 16 houses and 84 inhabitants. Rateable value, £1,198.
1s. 5½d. The principal landowners are the Earl of Bradford; George
Edwards, Esq.; Henry Calveley Cotton; and Thomas Justice Bather, Esq.
The former is lord of the manor. The soil is a mixture of sand and loam,
producing good wheat and barley. THE CHURCH, dedicated to St. Andrew, is
an ancient structure, consisting of nave, chancel, and side aisles, with
a square tower, in which are three bells. It contains several neat
tablets to the families of Perry, Prosser, Payne, and Gittins. The
living is a vicarage, valued in the King’s book at £9, now returned at
£345, in the patronage of the Lord Chancellor; incumbent, Rev. Henry
Calveley Cotton. The vicarage is a neat residence a little west from the
church. The vicarial tithes of Great Ness are commuted for £47. 10s.
THE HALL, the residence of George Edwards, Esq., is a handsome house of
brick, in the Tudor style of architecture, rendered conspicuous by a tier
of rooms with semi-octagonal projections. The grounds are tastefully
laid out, and the park, though not extensive, is densely wooded.
North-west from the hall are the lofty heights and plantations of
Nesscliffe hills. This township is intersected by the Holyhead turnpike
road.
CHARITIES.—By indenture, dated 8th September, 1753, _John Edwards_,
_Esq._ conveyed a plot of land called the Chapel Yard, at Nesscliffe, to
the Rev. William Parry, then vicar of Great Ness, for the erection of a
school and residence for the teacher. The following benefactions are
stated to have been given towards the support of the school, viz., _Sir
Orlando Bridgeman_, £20; _Sir John Langham_, £10; _Mrs. Pridie_, £20; the
_Rev. William Parry_, £25; and _Mrs. Parry_, £25. This sum, amounting to
£100, was in the hands of John Edwards, Esq., when the charity
commissioners published their report, and he paid interest for it at the
rate of five per cent. The master resides in a house built on the land,
containing about an acre in the whole, and in consideration of the above
emoluments is required to teach six poor children in reading, writing,
and accounts, without any charge.
_Samuel Shuker_, by will bearing date June 18th, 1821, devised two
leasehold estates, then let at a yearly rent of £148. 15s., to John
Edwards, Esq., upon trust to sell the same, and to invest the proceeds of
such sale in the public funds, and out of the first year’s dividends to
improve the present school house, and afterwards to pay the dividends
yearly, in promoting the views of the said school, by causing so many
poor children of indigent parents, not exceeding the age of twelve years,
nor under the age of six years, to be properly instructed in reading,
writing, and the four first rules of arithmetic, and finding them in
books, pens, ink, and paper; the proportions of such children to be
admitted into the said school being two boys and one girl. The property
above mentioned was sold by John Edwards, Esq., to whom the testator left
the residue of his personal estate, not otherwise disposed of, the
bequest to the charity being void under the statute of 9 George II., c.
36. The produce of the sale of the above estates was about £1,070. Mr.
Edwards proposed settling this property ultimately upon the school, but
retaining the disposal of the produce thereof for his life.