five miles N.N.E. from the former town and five miles S.E. from the
latter. At the census in 1801 there were 409 inhabitants; 1831, 459;
1841, 422, and in 1851 88 houses and 479 inhabitants, of whom 237 were
males and 242 females. The parish embraces the hamlets of Apley,
Higford, Norton, and part of Cheswardine-lane, and contains 3,162A. 0R.
21P. of land, of which 1,065A. 1R. 37P. are in Apley; the park and
pleasure grounds contain 484 acres, and there are 79A. 3R. 19P. in the
red deer park. Rateable value, £4,262. 17s. The soil is various, in
some parts a light loam upon a red sand prevails, in other parts the soil
is strong, and in some places there is a mixture of gravel. The strong
soil yields fine crops of barley and wheat, the meadow lands on the banks
of the Severn produce a fine herbage, and is highly fertile.
Considerable flocks of sheep are kept in this parish. Thomas Charlton
Whitmore, Esq., M.P., is lord of the manor, and owner of the whole
parish. The vicinity of Stockton is pleasingly diversified with hill and
dale, and beautified with romantic scenery; the high grounds command some
fine views of the distant country, and the woody scenery in the immediate
neighbourhood. Within the last few years several handsome residences
have been erected, and some of the older houses have been modernized and
beautified. The farms in this parish are of considerable extent, and by
a judicious outlay of capital and superior management have been brought
to a state of high productiveness. A court leet and court baron is held
every five years at the Hundred House Inn, Norton.
THE CHURCH, dedicated to St. Chad, is a venerable structure of free
stone, (some portions of which have been rough cast,) consisting of nave
and chancel, with a square tower, in which are five bells and a clock;
the ceiling is of panelled oak, with projecting rests, on which are
carved figures of the twelve apostles; the ceiling of the chancel is also
of beautiful dark oak, and the pulpit and reading desk are elaborately
carved. The living is a rectory, with the curacy of Boningale annexed,
valued in the king’s book at £13. 11s. 3d., in the patronage of Thomas
Charlton Whitmore, Esq., and incumbency of the Rev. Charles Blaney
Cavendish Whitmore, M.A.; the Rev. Stutville Isaacson, M.A., is the
officiating minister. The tithes are commuted for £635. 15s., and there
are 184A. 2R. 26P. of glebe land. The rectory is a commodious brick
structure pleasantly situated a short distance from the church. There is
a commodious school and residence for the teachers at Norton, which is
supported by the munificence of T. C. Whitmore, Esq. At the present time
there are about one hundred children instructed in this school.
APLEY PARK is the magnificent seat of Thomas Charlton Whitmore, Esq.,
M.P. for the borough of Bridgnorth. The mansion is an elegant structure
of the Grinshill free stone, in the castellated style of architecture,
with polygonal turrets at the angles, and a porch of three arches at the
entrance of the eastern front. A lofty square tower ornaments the centre
of the southern front, and on the north is a domestic chapel. It stands
on a gentle eminence, and exhibits a noble specimen of architectural
skill and superb workmanship, and may justly be considered one of the
most costly and splendid mansions in the county of Shropshire. The
terrace is one of the most extensive and delightful in the kingdom, and
commands fine views over a park richly adorned with sylvan beauty and
stocked with red deer; the windings of the Severn, whose silvery waters
are seen through the rich foliage, forming an interesting object in the
views. The gardens, pleasure grounds, greenhouses, and vineries are
extensive, and stocked with a profusion of the choicest flowers and rare
plants, which exhibit a luxuriance and beauty that show them to be under
the management of a skilled gardener. This manor before the reign of
Henry III. belonged to the family of Huggeford, from whom it passed in
marriage to Sir Thomas Lucy. Its proprietor, Sir Thomas Lucy, disposed
of the manors of Stockton, Apley, and Huggeford, and the estates within
the parish, with the advowson of the church of Stockton, in 1551, to
William Whitmore, Esq., of Oxton, near London,—a gentleman whose
ancestors had long been resident at Whitmore, in the parish of Claverley.
The above William Whitmore was a merchant who had acquired an immense
fortune by trading with Spain in fine cloth, being a freeman of the
Haberdashers’ Company, London. The abundant wealth of this great
merchant laid the foundation of the future prospects of this respectable
family, who soon after increased their possessions around their ancient
patrimony, as well as in many other counties in the kingdom. Sir George
Whitmore, Knight, the second son of the above William, was Lord Mayor of
London in 1632. Sir William Whitmore, Knight, of Apley, was sheriff in
this county in 1620, in which year he was elected member of parliament
for Bridgnorth, of which borough his successors, the Whitmores, of Apley,
have almost uniformly been representatives. The Whitmores were
distinguished for their loyalty and sufferings in the troublous times of
the great rebellion; and among the gentlemen of this county who
compounded for the estates during the commonwealth, we find Sir Thomas
Apley, of Whitmore, paid £5,000. Apley House was besieged by the
parliamentary forces under Sir John Price, when Sir W. Whitmore and his
son, Sir Francis Oateley, Mr. Owen, Mr. Fowler, Mr. Griffiths, and about
sixty soldiers were taken prisoners.
THE SOUTH LODGE at Norton is the residence of William H. Austin, Esq., a
neat and pleasantly situated mansion, beautified with tasteful pleasure
grounds.
CHARITIES.—_Mr. Thomas Talbot_, in 1678, bequeathed £34 for the use of
the poor of the parish of Stockton, the interest to be expended in bread.
_John Gough_ gave £30, and directed the yearly produce to be expended in
bread, and given among six poor people. This legacy, as well as Talbots,
was placed on private security in the hands of Mr. Thomason, who gave his
note of hand for the same. _Mrs. Eleanor Church_, in 1798, gave to the
churchwardens of Stockton £20, the interest to be given to the poor of
the parish in bread on the first Sunday after the 26th of May. This
money was also lent to Mr. Thomason. The interest of these three
legacies now forms one fund for the distribution of bread, amounting to
£4. 4s. a year. The annual cost of the loaves distributed when the
charity commissioners published their report was £3. 9s. 4d. It did not
appear why the whole of the interest had not been yearly expended, but
the party holding the money agreed to pay up the principal, which it was
intended to deposit in the Bridgnorth Savings’ Bank.
An omnibus leaves the Hundred House Inn twice a day, for the conveyance
of passengers to and from the station at Shiffnal, and to Bridgnorth.
POST OFFICE.—Receiving house at _Mrs. Margaret Summer’s_.
Whitmore Thomas Charlton, Esq., M.P., Apley Park
Whitmore Rev. Charles Blaney Cavendish, M.A., The Rectory
Arkinstall Abraham, blacksmith
Austin Wm. Hazledine, Esq., South Lodge
Bate John William, Asthall Farm
Branson Thomas, Esq., land & estate agent, Echoeshill
Brewster Henry, Higford Corn Mills
Bridgeman Mrs., Higford House
Bridgeman Orlando Jack, Esq., Cotsbrook House
Cherrington William, farmer
Darby Richard Sorton, Esq., Crowgreaves
Edgerley Thomas, carpenter and joiner
Edgerley John, butcher
Ferguson Alexander, farmer, Higford
Fletcher Mary, school teacher
Isaacson Rev. Stuteville, M.A., curate
Lee George, tailor
Lee John, tailor
Medcalf Charles, schoolmaster and organist
Nock Mrs. Mary Ann, farmer, Greaves
Nock Thomas, farmer, Leavenhall
Payne James, butler & farm bailiff, Rectory
Pearman Richard, farmer
Robinson Walter, shopkeeper
Rushton Edward, farmer
Summers Margaret, grocer, farmer, & vict., The Hundred House Inn
Yates Bartholomew, farmer, Old Park
SUTTON MADDOCK
parish is situated in the Shiffnal division of the Brimstree hundred, and
comprises 3,240 acres of land, the rateable value of which is £4,042.
The arable lands are highly fertile, and the grazing lands produce a fine
herbage. The village is pleasantly situated on the Bridgnorth and
Shiffnal turnpike road, six miles north from the former, and five miles
south-west from the latter. At the census in 1801 there were 400
inhabitants; 1831, 384; and in 1841, 79 houses and a population of 352
souls. The principal landowners are Richard Phillips, Esq., Brockton
Hall; T. C. Whitmore, Esq.; Richard Phillips, gentleman; Mr. William
Wilkinson; Mr. William Braidley; and the Rev. John Brooke; there are also
several other smaller proprietors. THE CHURCH is a freestone structure,
dedicated to St. Mary, and consists of nave and chancel, with a tower, in
which are five bells. The tower appears much older than the body of the
church, which has in all probability been re-built, but of which we find
no historical record. There is a small organ placed upon the gallery. A
neat memorial remembers Elizabeth Farmer, of this place, who died on the
16th December, 1827, aged thirty years; there is also a neat tablet in
memory of William Jones, late of Harrington, in this parish, who died in
1823, and various others. This church was given to the priory of
Wombridge by King Henry II. The living is a discharged vicarage, annexed
to the rectory of Kemberton. The Rev. George Whitmore, M.A., is the
incumbent. In the 15th of Henry III., Madoc, the son of Griffin, held
Sutton by knights’ service. From this person it acquired the name of
Sutton Madoc, now corrupted to Sutton Maddock. BROCKTON is a hamlet in
this parish, pleasantly situated on the turnpike road from Shiffnal to
Bridgnorth, about a mile north from the parish church. It contains
several good family mansions. The noble family of Sutton de Dudley are
said to be descended from the Suttons of Sutton Maddock.
DIRECTORY.—William Braidley, gentleman; John Broughall, farmer, Sutton
Hall; Mrs. Mary Broughall, the Villa, Brockton; William H. Davies,
farmer, Harrington; William Jones, Esq., Brockton; Thomas Nock, farmer,
Sutton farm; Richard Phillips, Esq., Brockton hall; Richard Phillips,
Esq., the Grange, Brockton; Francis Ray, parish clerk; Mr. George Roden;
William Rose, Esq., porcelain manufacturer, Rock house; Henry Smith,
farmer, New house; John C. Titterton, blacksmith; Rev. George Whitmore,
M.A., vicar, residence Kemberton; William Wilkinson, maltster and farmer.
TONG, OR TONGE,
is a parish in the Shiffnal division of the Brimstree hundred, comprising
3,464A. 3R. 37P. of land, mostly a strong loamy soil. The woodlands
cover one hundred and twenty acres. At the census in 1801 there were 404
inhabitants; 1831, 510; and in 1841, 115 houses and a population of 566
souls. Rateable value of the parish, £4,505. 1s. The village of Tong is
of considerable antiquity, and is delightfully situated in a fertile
district richly beautified with picturesque scenery, three and a half
miles east by south from Shiffnal, and ten miles south-east from
Wolverhampton, George Charles Selwyn Durant, Esq., is the principal
landowner and lord of the manor. The Earl of Bradford, Mrs. Celeste
Durant, and Mr. Jones, are also proprietors. TONG CASTLE is stated to
have been in ancient times the seat of Hengist the Saxon, whom Vortigern
the British king called in to his assistance; and having been successful
in his warlike engagements, he afterwards begged of Vortigern as much
land as an ox-hide would inclose. On his request being granted, he cut
the ox-hide into small thongs, and had as much land as it encompassed,
whereon he built a castle. The present castle is a magnificent
structure, erected in the last century by George Durant, Esq., on the
site of the old castle, which he purchased in 1764, and demolished. The
architecture is a fantastic mixture of Gothic and Moorish, and though bad
in detail, the effect produced is strikingly grand, arising from the
numerous turrets and pinnacles, the rich colour of the stone, the wide
extent, and stately crown given to the whole by two lofty and magnificent
Turkish domes. It is beautifully situated in a fine champaign country,
watered by a serpentine river which flows through the grounds, and passes
close to the castle. The park comprises 319A. 3R. 19P. of land, and is
finely wooded with venerable timber. The castle is now occupied by two
female servants, the owner, G. C. S. Durant, Esq., being abroad.
THE CHURCH, dedicated to St. Bartholomew, stands within the fine demesne
of Tong Castle, and is a spacious and beautiful structure in the pointed
style of the fourteenth century, consisting of nave, side aisles, choir,
chancel, and side chapel. From the centre rises a handsome but singular
tower. Immediately above the roof it is square; on it rests an octagonal
bell-story, which is lengthened in a chastely-executed and lofty spire,
about half-way up adorned with pinnacles, springing as it were out of the
shaft. The nave is divided from the side aisles by three handsome
pointed arches, with clustered pillars on each side. The tower contains
a peal of eight musical bells, besides the great bell of Tong, and is
ornamented with a clock and sun-dial. It is supported by four lofty
pointed arches, rising from clustered pillars enriched with Gothic
tracery. The ceiling is of dark oak, and the pews and reading desk are
of the same material, the latter exhibiting some fine carving. The rood
loft or screen is nearly perfect, and embellished with much carving; the
choir is small, and contains eight stalls on each side, of beautiful
workmanship. The east window is beautifully foliated, and a portion of
it ornamented with stained glass, and underneath is the communion table,
which is of alabaster; a remarkable old font exhibits some fine
chiselling. Adjoining the south aisle is a beautiful chantry chapel,
erected by Sir Henry Vernon, in 1515; the roof is of groined freestone,
having a profusion of delicate ribs and centre pendants. The windows are
richly adorned with stained glass. The tomb of Sir Henry Vernon, Knight,
is in the wall which separates the chapel from the church. It has the
figure of a knight and his lady in a recumbent posture. Over this is a
fine open screen, rising about ten feet; on the divisions are four rich
tabernacles, with the original painting and gilding, but bereaved of
their statues. Within the area of the tower are four superb monuments,
with recumbent figures on altar tombs, all of alabaster, highly adorned
with elaborate workmanship, in memory of the Pembruges and Vernons. It
appears the former family possessed the castle and estates of Tong as
early as the year 1280. In the south aisle is a magnificent tomb, with
the full length figure of a knight and his lady, in memory of the Hon.
Thomas Stanley, second son of the Earl of Derby, and Margaret his wife,
dated 1576, and has the following inscription:—
“Ask who lies here, but do not weep;
Hee is not dead, he do but sleep,
This stonie register is for his bones,
His fame is more perpetual than these stones;
And his own goodness with himself being gone,
Shall live when earthlie monument is none.
Not monumental stone preserves our fame,
Nor skie-aspiring pyramids our name;
The memory of him for whom this stands,
Shall outlive marble and defacer’s hands.
When all to time’s consumption shall be given,
Stanley, for whom this stands, shall stand in heaven.”
In a canopied niche is a carved figure, beautifully executed in
basso-relievo, in memory of Mrs. Wylde, one of the co-heiresses of Sir
Thomas Harris, Bart., the owner of Tong Castle and domain, which he
purchased from the Stanley family about the year 1610. Near to the
pulpit is an alabaster tomb, of superb workmanship, with two figures
representing a knight and his lady with hands joined in the attitude of
prayer, remembering Richard Yernon, of Nether Haddon, and his wife
Margaret. The former died in 1557, and the latter in the year 1500. On
the opposite side is a large monumental tomb of grey marble, the top of
which is inlaid with brass figures, and dated 1460. This also remembers
a branch of the Vernon family. A neat tablet of white marble has been
erected over the vestry door to the memory of Elizabeth Pierpoint, only
daughter of Gervaise Pierpoint, Esq., the grandson of Robert Pierpoint,
Earl of Kingston, a gallant soldier who fell a victim to loyalty in
defending his prince, King Charles I. He was descended from Robert de
Pierpoint, a companion-in-arms of William the Conqueror, whose family is
still extant in Normandy. On the north side of the altar is a sumptuous
pyramidal monument of white marble on a black ground, in memory of George
Durant, Esq., and several other members of that family. A splendid
marble monument also remembers George Durant, Esq., who died November
29th, 1844, aged 69 years. On the left of the altar is a grey marble
monument to the memory of William Skeffington, Esq., of the White Ladies,
who died in 1550. From the crest and armorial bearings, he would appear
to have descended from the ancient family of Massarene. Gervaise Lord
Pierpoint is interred in a family vault under the communion table. He
died May 22nd, 1715, aged 66 years. Thomas Stanley, Esq., and his wife
lie in the same vault. There are many other interesting tablets and
memorials, which our limits will not allow us to notice. The great bell
in this church was given by Sir Henry Vernon, Knt., in 1518. It was
broken by the Parliamentary forces in the troublesome times of King
Charles I., and recast at the expense of the parish in 1720. The bell
remained entire till the first Wednesday in Lent, 1849, when it cracked
while tolling for divine service. It is stated that nine persons may
comfortably stand under this bell at the same time.
King Henry IV., in 1411, in consideration of £40 granted to Isabel,
relict of Sir Fulke de Pembrugge, Knt., the liberty of purchasing of the
abbot and convent of Shrewsbury, the advowson and patronage of the church
of St. Bartholomew, at Tong, then holden of the king in capite, paying an
annual pension of 6s. 8d. to the monastery of Salop; and further, that
the said church should be erected into a college, consisting of five
chaplains, one whereof to be custos or warden of the college. The duty
of the warden and fellows was to pray for the souls of the king and of
his brother, Thomas de Beaufort, and for the soul of the said Isabel.
The endowments, besides the provision for the warden and fellows, were to
be applied for the maintenance and support of thirteen decrepid old men.
The priory of Lapley, anciently a cell of the convent of Rheimes, seized
by King Edward III. as an alien priory, was annexed to this foundation.
The statutes and ordinances of the college, confirmed by the Bishop of
Coventry, were to this effect:—That none of the fellows should be capable
of any other ecclesiastical preferment, except the master; that the
master was to have a man and a pair of horses kept at the expense of the
college, to travel about the business of the fraternity—but, if occasion
required it, he might keep more horses; that the warden was excusable
from constant residence, but with the restriction not to be absent more
than two months in the year, and if longer his salary was to be applied
to the use of the college; that whoever of the fellows were absent from
mass should forfeit one penny. Every Sunday the mass of the Holy Ghost
was to be celebrated for the founders and benefactors; on Mondays the
mass of the Holy Ghost; on Tuesdays, Salus Populi, or the mass for the
salvation of all men; on Wednesdays, the angels’ mass; on Thursdays, the
mass de Corpore Christi; on Fridays, the mass of the Holy Ghost; and on
Saturdays, the mass of rest. That whoever was guilty of adultery,
incest, perjury, sacrilege, robbery, after penance done for the first
offence, he was to take an oath not to commit the like crime again, and
if convicted the second time, to be expelled the house. The church
living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of G. C. S. Durant, Esq.;
incumbent, Rev. George Shipton Harding, M.A. The rectoral tithes have
been commuted, and £391. 1s. 10d. apportioned to the impropriators. The
incumbent receives £80 per annum, with parsonage, and 2A. 0R. 37P. of
glebe land.
CHARITIES.—_Gervaise Lord Pierpoint_, by indenture of the 23rd of
October, 1697, granted to trustees all the tithes (except the tithes of
corn and grain) yearly growing within the parish of Tong, and also six
several annuities or yearly rents of £30, £14, £6, £12, £12, and £10,
making together £84 per annum, to be issuing out of the manor of Tong, on
trust, as to the said tithes and the several annuities of £30, £14, and
£6, to permit the minister or curate to enjoy the same; one of the
annuities of £12 to be distributed among the six poor widows in the
almshouses; and the other £12 to be expended in purchasing Stafford
shalloon, and setting to work the poor people of Tong in manufacturing
the same into cloth, part thereof to be made into six gowns for the said
poor widows, and the remainder to be applied in clothing the necessitous
poor; the residue £10 to be disposed of in buying hemp and flax and
setting the poor at work in manufacturing it into cloth, and after
selling the same, to apply the proceeds in putting forth poor children
apprentices. Lord Pierpoint granted a further annuity of £30, to be also
issuing out of the manor of Tong, on trust, to permit the minister to
receive and enjoy the same from such time as he could not (without covin
or neglect on his part) have and enjoy the said tithes; but the minister
was not to enjoy the tithes and last mentioned annuity at the same time.
The minister had also the privilege of holding a certain chamber in the
castle of Tong, as the same was then furnished with books and presses,
together with the free use of the said books; and also stabling for one
horse, and the privilege of depasturing it for a certain time in Tong
Park. And for the better assuring the performances of the several
grants, Lord Pierpoint granted to the trustees three other annuities of
£5. 40s., and 40s. to be for ever issuing out of the manor, castle, and
premises, and to be respectively forfeited, and to continue payable so
long as the minister should not enjoy the said chamber, stabling, and
pasture, respectively.