might be deemed a reproach were we silently to pass by the customs that
once prevailed in the district. Many of those ancient customs were
innocent and harmless in their character, whilst others were connected
with superstition which kept the people in mental darkness, and impeded
the free course of education and knowledge. Our notice of these customs
will be brief, for they are no longer observed in the town, and but
slightly so, if at all, in the neighbourhood. The printing-press has
exploded such folly, and most of the ancient customs will very soon,
throughout our land, be referred to only as evidences of the ignorance of
our forefathers, and their disregard of the educational improvement of
their fellow-creatures.
SHROVE TUESDAY and its observances were vestiges of a Roman Carnival,
when, as Aubanus tells us, “men eat and drank and abandoned themselves to
all kinds of foolery, as if resolved to have their fill of pleasure
before they were to die.” “Pancake Bell” is now unheard, because no
sexton or bell-ringer can be found to pull the rope. Men and women do
eat pancakes which, when well made, even Soyer would not object to; and
such gastronomy is, we believe, the sum-total of Shrove-tide observances
in the present enlightened day. Cock-fighting, bull-baiting, and other
brutal amusements, formerly practised on this day, are abandoned, we
trust, for ever.
GOOD FRIDAY is still observed so far, in reference to mundane things,
that fathers and mothers indulge their children with a plentiful supply
of Hot Cross Buns. This observance is harmless enough. The day being
the anniversary of our Saviour’s Crucifixion, it is now marked by the
entire Christian community as one of solemn worship; and as time rolls
on, and religious education prevails, we may reasonably expect that a
still more devotional regard will be paid to this day.
EASTER-DAY is no longer observed by people walking into the fields early
in the morning to see the “sun come dancing from the east.” The
_Heaving_ or _Lifting_ system, formerly much practised on Easter Monday
and Tuesday, is now rapidly on the wane. By men and women not remarkable
for their love of decency or modesty, it is still partially observed in
Oswestry. The custom would, however, be “more honoured in the breach
than the observance.”
ALL FOOLS’ DAY (April 1) is, we believe, acknowledged by many of that
class who are fond of a joke. The wit formerly displayed on this day
consisted in sending persons on what are called sleeveless errands, for
the history of Eve’s mother, for pigeon’s milk, and in quest of other
absurdities. In the present day rude tricks are tried even upon
philosophers, and with much gusto when they succeed. The “Verdant
Greens,” at this season of the year, are especially full-blown.
MAY-DAY formerly brought with it flowery decorations in front of our
house-doors; but this pretty custom has long since faded away.
WALKING THE BOUNDARIES.—A general custom formerly, but observed now in
very few places. The Mayor, Churchwardens, Overseers, &c., of Oswestry
walked the boundaries in 1813, and that was the last occasion of this
ancient observance.
PALM SUNDAY, MAUNDY THURSDAY, ROYAL OAK DAY, CORPUS CHRISTI DAY, OSWESTRY
WAKE, ALL SAINTS’ EVE, ST. SWITHIN’S DAY, &c., have become, so far as
rude observances are concerned, mere relics of past days. Our ancestors
marked all these days with scrupulous attention; but few if any men of
the present time have boldness enough to set them apart for rejoicing and
merriment—for feast and carnival—as in days of yore. GUNPOWDER PLOT
(Nov. 5) is occasionally noticed by boys, discharging pop-guns, and
alarming the lieges with bonfires, effigies, squibs and crackers; but
that absurd and bigoted observance is in its downward course, no one
being interested in its continuance at present but the pyrotechnists, who
tempt boys to spend their money in rockets, blue-lights, and other
combustibles.
CHRISTMAS.—Some twenty years ago Christmas morn was ushered in with the
singing of carols by “wakeful Waits,” thus joyfully celebrating the
opening of this truly-festive anniversary, and this custom is still
partially observed. The singers of the Parish Church also greeted the
inhabitants at their several dwellings with sounds of grateful melody.
No longer is this latter custom maintained, but CHRISTMAS DAY is marked
as a sacred and solemn festival; “the rich and the poor meet together;”
on that day the conventionalities of rank and dignity are thrown aside;
hospitality prevails in every house in the land, from the palace to the
cottage; families are collected together to partake of that day’s joyful
festivity; and the nation at large presents the delightful picture of one
happy family. The rich administer kindly to the poor, and all hearts are
touched with benevolence or gratitude. Long may our merry
Christmas-tides thus be observed; for such customs are based on true
religion, which teaches men “to love one another.”
Railway Communication.
We need not enter into detail, now-a-days, to show how railway
communication was rendered necessary a quarter of a century ago by the
great increase of travelling throughout the land, and the insufficiency
as well as inefficiency of stagecoach conveyance to satisfy the public
wants. When railway travelling was first suggested stage-coaches had
been “whipped-up” by “coming events” into improvement; the people were no
longer compelled to “drag their slow length along,” for full five
wearisome days, from Chester to London. The “Gee-hos,” and “Highflyers,”
at four miles an hour; “The Birmingham and Shrewsbury Long Coach, with
six able horses, in four days;” even the “Flying Machine,” from
Shrewsbury to London in two days, had all passed the _stage_ of their
creeping existence; and the liege subjects of the realm were now
beginning to be whirled along, at ten and twelve miles an hour, in
“Quicksilvers,” “Tantivys,” “Erin-go-braghs,” “Tallyhos,” “Wonders,” and
other well-horsed and well-appointed vehicles bearing equally excitable
names. The Coach called “The Wonder” made the journey from Shrewsbury to
London in a day. An intelligent contributor writes,—“The late old
Justice Smith, in a conversation I had with him some 25 years ago, said,
‘I remember going to London 70 years ago by a coach called The Fly; we
were 7 nights and 8 days on the road, and now they go in a day—what a man
lives to see!’” But even this increased “pace” did not meet the
requirements of the community. James Watts’ steam-engine had begun to
revolutionize all classes and occupations. In manufactures, hand-looms,
spinning-jennies, shuttles, treddles, and the rest of early inventions
were superseded by steam-power, moving machinery for spinning and
weaving; in packet and marine conveyance generally Watts’ steam-power
wrought as great a change; and in the manufacture of metal and porcelain
goods, the sawing of timber and stone, and even the making of pins and
needles, steam was the great giant power. With this national revolution
in trade, manufactures, and commerce, came a more active and enterprising
spirit among the people; soft and hard goods, as the manufactures of the
north and midland counties are technically called, were multiplied until
supply exceeded demand; the locomotive wants and desires of the public
increased; and all eyes and heads were turned towards Watts’ steam-engine
as the only mighty agent of accelerated travelling. The history of the
country has supplied the results of this great experiment. The
ever-honoured George Stephenson succeeded in carrying heavily-laden
trains, of passengers and goods, on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway,
at the rate of thirty miles an hour; and in the present day such is the
appetite for rapid railway locomotion, that express trains, as they are
called, flying over the earth at a more than race-horse speed of forty
miles an hour, will scarcely satisfy the urgent requirements of
manufactures and commerce.
Railway projects arose in various parts of the kingdom, and the first
step taken towards what has since proved a direct communication with this
borough and the metropolis was the incorporation of the _Great Western
Railway Company_, by an Act passed in 5 and 6 of William IV. Some years
elapsed before any measures were adopted to establish railway
communication in this district. At length, in 1845, when railway
“bubbles and squeaks” “affrighted the isle from its propriety,” a direct
line was projected from Chester, through Whitchurch and Wem, to
Shrewsbury. The scheme was promoted by the Chester and Holyhead Railway
Company, the London and Birmingham, and other important interests. Mr.
Robert Stephenson was appointed engineer, and Mr. Mallaby, of Liverpool,
solicitor. A Company, called the “North Wales Mineral Railway Company,”
had previously obtained an Act for making a line of Railway, from Chester
to Rhuabon, and on the scheme for the line from the former place, _via_
Whitchurch and Wem, being announced, a Company, in friendly connection
with the North Wales Mineral Railway Company, and called the Shrewsbury,
Oswestry, and Chester Junction Railway Company, was formed for the
purpose of extending the Railway from Rhuabon to Shrewsbury, in
opposition to the other scheme mentioned above. The late Mr. Henry
Kelsall, of Chester, was appointed solicitor, and Mr. Robertson engineer.
A sharp struggle between the rival Companies ensued, but at length the
line from Chester to Shrewsbury, _via_ Whitchurch and Wem, was abandoned;
by the prudent interposition of Mr. Edward Williams, solicitor, of
Oswestry, (of the firm of “Longueville and Williams,”) the dissentient
landowners were appeased; and the “Shrewsbury, Oswestry, and Chester
Junction Railway Company” obtained their Act, which passed through
parliament as an unopposed Bill, the royal assent being given to it the
30th of June, 1845. W. Ormsby Gore, Esq., as Chairman of the successful
line, rendered powerful assistance to its claims, having clearly seen the
advantages which it must render to the important interests of North
Shropshire. The next step was to unite the two lines between Chester and
Shrewsbury, viz., the North Wales Mineral Railway, and the Shrewsbury,
Oswestry, and Chester Junction, and an arrangement was accordingly
entered into by the two Companies, by which, in 1846, they were united
into one, under the title of “The Shrewsbury and Chester Railway
Company.” The subsequent history of this line is patent to the public;
the battles of the Great Western Railway interest, with those of the
North Western, each Company seeking to possess the line, almost rivalling
in intensity the fierce struggles of the ancient Roses—York and
Lancaster. In the Parliamentary Session of 1854 a Bill was brought into
the House of Commons by Viscount Barrington, Lord Norreys, and Sir
Phillip Egerton, to authorize the consolidation, into one Company, of the
Great Western, the Shrewsbury and Birmingham, and the Shrewsbury and
Chester Railways. The Bill was sanctioned by Parliament, and the Act is
now cited for all purposes under the title of “The Great Western,
Birmingham, and Chester Railway Section.” By this consolidation of these
several Companies a direct communication with London, under one system of
Railway management, has been secured to the town of Oswestry; the journey
by the _Express Trains_ occupying no more than about five and a half
hours. The country through which the _Great Western_ line runs is
remarkable for its beauty and interest. Windsor Castle, Oxford,
Blenheim, Leamington, Warwick, and other attractive places, are in close
proximity; and to add to these advantages, the care, attention, and able
management of the entire line, are further agreeable features in the
route, which all travellers on the railway gratefully acknowledge.
To the inhabitants of Oswestry and its vicinity it is unnecessary to say
anything in praise of the attractive scenery that gives such lively
interest to the railway between Shrewsbury and Chester. To the stranger,
however, and the summer tourist in search of the sublime and picturesque,
we may remark, that few lines in the kingdom present so many charms to
the admiring gaze as this most delightful railway. Llangollen Vale has a
world-wide celebrity; whilst the Chirk Viaduct, spanning the Ceiriog
Vale; the pretty village of Chirk; Lord Dungannon’s pleasant seat at
Brynkinalt; “Chirk Castle walls;” Wynnstay Park; the fine tower of
Wrexham Church; Gresford Vale, with its luxuriant and refreshing scenery;
and the graceful approach to Chester, across “Sweet Deva’s wizard
stream,” and in sight of the animating race-course (the Roodeye), the
fine old Roman walls of the city, the ancient Castle, a work of Roman
art, the Armoury, county Gaol, St. Werburgh’s Cathedral, the venerable
Church and Priory of St. John the Baptist,—these, with many other relics
of days now
“Numbered with those beyond the flood,”
must give an intense interest to those who value objects stamped with
natural beauty and hoary antiquity.
All hostility between the Great Western and North Western Railway
Companies having, at least for the present, ceased, both of these
gigantic undertakings can, without ungenerous feelings one against the
other, devote their energies and capital to the improvement of all
departments of their respective undertakings, rendering to the public the
attention, comfort, and assurance of safety in travelling which railway
management ought to secure.
EXTENSION LINE FROM OSWESTRY TO WELSHPOOL AND NEWTOWN.
Whilst this volume was passing through the press a successful effort was
made in carrying through Parliament a Bill for extending a line of
railway through part of Montgomeryshire, commencing by a junction with
the Shrewsbury and Chester Section of the Great Western Railway. The
Bill was introduced into the House of Commons in the early part of the
present Session of Parliament (1855), and passed through the various
stages of that branch of the Legislature without opposition. In the
House of Lords a slight but unsuccessful opposition was raised, and the
Bill received the Royal assent on the 25th of June. Thus has been
secured to the county of Montgomery, which is rapidly growing in
population and importance, the advantage of railway communication direct
from the metropolis, and from the busy seats of manufacturing industry in
the north. The manufacturing and agricultural wealth and enterprise of
Montgomeryshire, its rich mineral resources, and the benefits which will
accrue to it by throwing open to its use the affluent coal-fields of
Shropshire and Denbighshire, were strong claims entitling Montgomeryshire
to the boon she sought. The further objects contemplated by the
promoters of this line, in connecting it, at no far distant period, with
the magnificent national harbour at Milford Haven, and thus opening a
grand route from that capacious landing-place from the north of Ireland
to Manchester, Yorkshire, and the Midland Counties, were doubtless among
the considerations of Parliament in granting their sanction to this
railway. The line will commence by a junction with the Shrewsbury and
Chester section of the Great Western Railway, at its Oswestry terminus,
and then proceed by Llanymynech, Llandrinio, Llandisilio, and Buttington,
to Welshpool; thence, crossing the river Severn, near Miltrewydd, will
pass between Montgomery and Berriew, and on to Newtown, on the south side
of the river, where it will unite with the Newtown and Llanidloes line.
The capital authorized to be raised by the “Oswestry and Newtown Railway
Company” is £250,000. Mr. Benjamin Piercy is appointed resident engineer
of the line; and Mr. Peter Barlow consulting engineer. The contractors
for the making of the entire line are Messrs. M’Cormick and Thornton,
whose previous railway contracts give the best assurance that the present
line will be constructed in an efficient manner.
* * * * *
The first general meeting of the shareholders was held at the Town Hall,
Welshpool, on Saturday, July 21st; WILLIAM ORMSBY GORE, Esq., Chairman of
the Board of Provisional Directors, in the chair. The attendance was
very numerous. The report stated that it was the intention of the
Directors to proceed with the construction of the railway with as little
delay as possible, that the certificates of the proprietorship of the
shares in the capital of the Company, under the seal of the Company,
could be forthwith issued to the Shareholders; that the Directors
congratulated the Shareholders and the district upon the unanimity which
had prevailed in the establishment and progress of the Company, and
expressed their hope that this would lead to the speedy completion of the
undertaking, and the further developement of the resources of the
country. The speakers on this occasion were the Chairman, Sir W. W.
Wynn, Bart. M.P., the Rev. C. T. C. Luxmoore, the Ven. Archdeacon Clive,
G. H. Whalley, Esq., the Rev. Maurice Lloyd, Richard Humphreys, Esq.,
George Brace, Esq., and other gentlemen. The Directors named in the Act
were, William Ormsby Gore, Esq., M.P., Sir Watkin Williams Wynn, Bart.
M.P., D. Pugh, Esq. M.P., John Naylor, Esq., John Carnac Morris, Esq.,
Richard Herbert Mytton, Esq., John Davies Corrie, Esq., Rowland Jones
Venables, Esq., Arthur James Johnes, Esq., Col. Herbert Watkin Williams
Wynn, M.P., J. Powell Wilding, Esq., and Wm. Lloyd, Esq., and they were
re-elected unanimously. An important resolution was also passed, “That
it is the opinion of this meeting, that it is of the utmost importance to
the interest of the Company that a communication by railway should be
effected between Newtown and Milford Haven; and the Directors are hereby
requested to afford such co-operation and assistance to any Companies now
existing, or which may be projected, as would best tend to accomplish
that object.” The entire proceedings were marked by harmony and good
spirit, and all present appeared suitably impressed with the importance
and value of railway communication through Montgomeryshire, and with the
benefits, in connection with the great national harbour at Milford Haven,
which would ultimately accrue to the “Oswestry and Newtown Railway
Company.” Few, if any, railway enterprizes were ever started under a
more able and upright management, and perhaps equally few lines, of so
short a distance, had at their outset such encouraging prospects before
them. With these signal advantages no doubt can be entertained that the
undertaking will be crowned with abundant success.
Statistics.
The BOROUGH of OSWESTRY is situated on the north-west border of
Shropshire, in the Diocese of St. Asaph, and Deanery of Marchia, and in
the Hundred to which it gives name. In 1535, by a statute of Henry
VIII., Oswestry, with Whittington, Maesbrook, Knockin, Ellesmere, Down,
and Chirbury, was, by Act of Parliament, severed from Wales, and annexed
to the County of Salop. The HUNDRED of OSWESTRY is bounded on the west
by Montgomeryshire and Denbighshire; on the north by the rivers Ceiriog
and Dee, and the stream of Shelbrook, which separates it from
Denbighshire and Flintshire; on the east by the Hundred of Pimhill; and
on the south by the rivers Vyrnwy and Severn, which divide it from
Montgomeryshire, and from the Hundred of Ford.
The UPPER DIVISION of the Hundred contains the parishes of
ST. MARTIN,
WHITTINGTON,
SELATTYN (part of),
OSWESTRY (part of),
LLANYMYNECH (part of),
LLANSILIN (part of),
WEST FELTON (part of),
ELLESMERE (part of),
LLANYBLODWEL,
and the extra-parochial places of Halston and Heath Farm.
_The parish of St. Martin_ contains the townships of Ifton Rhyn (upper),
Ifton Rhyn (lower), Weston Rhyn (upper), Weston Rhyn (lower), and
Bronygarth (east and west).
_The parish of Whittington_ contains the townships of Whittington, Welsh
Frankton, Old Marton (part of), Berghill, Daywell, Fernhill, Hindford,
Henlle, and Ebnall.
_The parish of Selattyn_ contains the townships of Porkington (upper),
and Porkington (lower).
_The parish of Oswestry_ contains the townships of Oswestry, Middleton,
Aston, Hisland, Wooton, Sweeney, Weston Cotton, Maesbury, Llanvorda,
Pentregaer, Cynynion, Coed-tan y gaer, Treferclawdd, Treflach, Trefonen,
and Crickheath. The parish of Oswestry contains also the township and
chapelry of Morton, which are in the Lower Division of the Hundred.
_The parish of Llanyblodwel_ contains the townships of Llanyblodwel,
Abertanat, Blodwel, Bryn, and Llynclis, or Llunck-Llys.
The _parish of Llanymynech_ contains the townships of Carreghofa,
Llanymynech and Llwyntidman. The parish of Llanymynech contains also the
township of Treprenal, which is in the Lower Division. The rest of the
parish is in Denbighshire, and, for election and other purposes, is
annexed to Montgomeryshire.
The _parish of Ellesmere_, in the Upper Division of the Hundred of
Oswestry, contains the townships of Dudleston (upper), and Dudleston
(lower). The other townships in the parish are in the Ellesmere Division
of the Hundred of Pimhill.
The _parish of West Felton_ contains the townships of Woolston (part of),
Sandford, and Twyford. The other townships in this parish, namely, West
Felton, Sutton, Rednal, Haughton, and Tedsmere, are in the Lower
Division.
The _parish of Llansilin_ has only one township in Shropshire (Sychtyn).
The rest of the parish is in Denbighshire.
The LOWER DIVISION of the Hundred contains the parishes
WEST FELTON (part of), MELVERLEY (part of),
KNOCKIN, OSWESTRY (part of),
RUYTON, LLANYMYNECH (part of),
KINNERLEY.
The _parish of West Felton_ contains the townships of West Felton,
Rednal, Sutton, Haughton, and Tedsmere, or Tedsmore. The other townships
in the parish, namely, Woolston, Sandford, and Twyford, are, as already
stated, in the UPPER DIVISION.
The _parish of Knockin_ contains only the township of Knockin.
The _parish of Ruyton_ (_of the Eleven Towns_) contains the townships of
Ruyton, Cotton, Shotatton, Shelvocke, Eardiston, and Wikey.
The _parish of Kinnerley_ contains the townships of Kinnerley and Argoed,
Dovaston, Kynaston, or Kinaston, Maesbrook-issa, Maesbrook-ucha,
Edgerley, Tir-y-Coed, and Osbaston.
The _parish of Melverley_ contains the townships of Melverley (upper),
and Melverley (lower).
The _parish of Oswestry_, in the Lower Division of the Hundred, contains
only the township of Morton.
The _parish of Llanymynech_, in the Lower Division of the Hundred,
contains the townships of Carreghofa and Treprenal.
The MANORS in Oswestry Parish are Aston, Duparts, and Middleton. _Aston_
includes the townships of Aston, Hisland, and Wooton, and also Twyford,
in West Felton parish. _Duparts_ includes the township of Crickheath,
Cynynion, Llanvorda, Maesbury, Morton, Pentre-gaer, Sweeney, with Weston
Cotton, and the township of Sychtyn, in Llansilin parish. _Middleton_
includes the township of Middleton, and _Oswestry_ the town and liberties
of Oswestry. Lady of the Manor for _Aston_, Mrs. Lloyd; and Lord of the
Manor of _Oswestry_ and _Duparts_, the Earl of Powis.
POPULATION.