Darlaston (St. Lawrence)

DARLASTON (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union of Walsall, S. division of the hundred of Offlow and of the county of Stafford, 1 mile (N. W. by W.) from Wednesbury; containing 8244 inhabitants. This place is situated in the heart of a mining and manufacturing district, and comprises 901a. 32p. of arable and meadow land, of level surface, with a calcareous soil; the ground under tillage producing good crops of grain, particularly wheat. From the extensive mining operations carried on, the scenery presents few pleasing features. The mines include several strata of coal: the Ten-yard or Thick coal is found on the south-west side, and gradually crops out at the top as it approaches about the centre of the parish; all the different measures lying below, are found and worked throughout the remaining part. There are also the whole of the measures of ironstone known as the New Mines; the Balls and Blue Flatts are particularly fine, and on this account the iron made in the district is of a remarkably strong body. Under about a third of the parish, on the north side, is an excellent bed of freestone, of 25 yards' thickness, now wrought, but not so extensively as formerly, and suitable for the inside work of houses; and on the south-west, at Moxley, is a vein of red sand and loam, from 20 to 30 yards thick, used for building and other purposes, and at the various iron-works throughout the district for making the bottoms of heating-furnaces.

The manufactures are numerous, comprising a great variety of hardware goods, principally gun-locks, screws of every description, latches, bolts, coach-springs, and saddlery articles, all of the most superior quality, and made largely for the London trade. The iron and steel works of Messrs. Bills and Mills are celebrated for the production, besides other wares, of rolled iron, in an immense variety of shapes to suit the various purposes of manufacturers, and also for the production of the beautifully scrolled or figured iron from which gentlemen's sporting guns are made; their own smelting-works prepare the pig-iron. The iron-works and foundry of Messrs. Addenbrooke and Company are very considerable; and Messrs. Richardson and Company have a large establishment, called the Soho works, for the manufacture of gas-tubes, on a new principle, which is secured by a patent. The Birmingham canal passes on the north side of the parish to Walsall, &c.; and the Liverpool and Birmingham railway also runs through it at the east end. The town is lighted with gas from the extensive works at West Bromwich, about four miles distant. It is chiefly inhabited by persons engaged in the mines and other works carried on in the immediate neighbourhood; the artisans are distinguished for their cleverness, and iron appears to be as ductile in their hands as clay is in the potter's.

The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £3. 11. 5½., and in the gift of the Trustees of the Rev. C. Simeon. The tithes have been commuted for £250; there is a rectory-house, with 18 acres of glebe. The church is a plain brick building, erected in 1806, upon the site of a very ancient stone edifice; the tower of the old church still remains, surmounted by a tall and graceful spire. The ecclesiastical district of St. George, which comprises more than one-third of the whole parish, was constituted in October, 1844, under the act of 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37; the benefice is in the patronage of the Crown and the Bishop of Lichfield, alternately. In 1845 another district, named Moxley, was formed out of Darlaston, Bilston, and Wednesbury, and the living of this is in the same patronage. There are four places of worship for Wesleyans, of which three were built by subscription, and one by Mr. John Wilkes, a native and resident; and the Independents, Primitive Methodists, and Ranters, have places of worship also. A national school, a British and foreign school, and a parochial school, have been established; and in connexion with the church and the various meeting-houses are Sunday schools, containing 1700 children.

The pit banks are in numerous places strewn with pieces of pine and fern, from six inches to three and four feet long, petrified, and flattened by pressure, but with the indentations of the branches and stems well preserved. In a freestone-quarry was discovered in November, 1843, a fossil-tree imbedded in the solid rock, 50 feet below the surface, and lying horizontally, with ten yards of rock beneath it; the trunk was as thick as the body of a man, and from it sprang three arms or branches. This rare and interesting petrifaction drew vast numbers of visiters to the spot, for whose accommodation convenient stairs were made for descent to the quarry. At Radley Gutter is a mineral spring. Darlaston was one of the earliest places in which Mr. Wesley propounded the religious principles of his sect; and on one occasion, when he was hunted from Walsall, an inhabitant of the town preserved his life by a stratagem from the violence of the mob.

Darlaston

DARLASTON, a township, in the parish and union of Stone, S. division of the hundred of Pirehill, N. division of the county of Stafford, 2 miles (N. W.) from Stone, on the road to Newcastle; containing 222 inhabitants. This place is of great antiquity, and according to tradition was the seat of Wulphere, King of Mercia, who put his two sons to death for embracing Christianity: on the summit of a hill at Berrybank were formerly the ruins of a large castle, fortified with a double vallum and intrenchments (still remaining) about 250 yards in diameter, said to have been his residence; and in the vicinity is a barrow, in which he is supposed to have been interred. The village of Darlaston is in Beech quarter of the parish, and is seated on the west bank of the river Trent. The common land of the township was inclosed under an act passed in 1828, with the exception of a portion of the Heath, which still forms a rugged waste.

Darleston

DARLESTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Prees, Whitchurch division of the hundred of North Bradford, N. division of Salop, 6 miles (S. S. E.) from Whitchurch; containing 278 inhabitants.

Darley (St. Helen)

DARLEY (St. Helen), a parish, in the union of Bakewell, partly in the hundred of Wirksworth, but chiefly in that of High Peak, N. division of the county of Derby, 3 miles (N. W.) from Matlock; containing, with the township of Wensley with Snitterton, 1929 inhabitants, of whom 1325 are in the hamlet of Darley-Dale. The parish comprises a considerable tract of moorland and pasture. Fairs for cattle and sheep are held on the moors on May 13th and October 27th. The living is a rectory, comprising the mediety of North Darley, valued in the king's books at £9. 13. 1½., and the discharged mediety of South Darley, valued at £9. 13. 0½., which were united in 1774; net income, £434; patron, the Bishop of Lichfield. The tithes of Darley with Little Rowsley have been commuted for £253, and the glebe consists of 126 acres. The church is partly of Norman architecture. At Cross-Green is a church dedicated to St. Mary, to which is attached a chapelry district called South Darley, and comprising the township of Wensley and Snitterton: the living is in the Rector's gift. There is a school with a small endowment; at Darley-Dale is a national school, with an endowment of £16. 15. per annum.

Darley, with Menwith.—See Menwith.

DARLEY, with Menwith.—See Menwith.

Darley-Abbey

DARLEY-ABBEY, a chapelry, in the parish of St. Alkmund, Derby, hundred of Morleston and Litchurch, union of Shardlow, S. division of the county of Derby, 1¼ mile (N.) from Derby; containing 1059 inhabitants. This place takes the affix to its name from an abbey for friars of the order of St. Augustine, founded here in the reign of Henry I., and endowed with many privileges, and of which, at the Dissolution, the revenue was estimated at £285. 9. 6½. It is pleasantly situated on the banks of the river Derwent, and on the road from Derby to Manchester; and comprises 537 acres, chiefly pasture, with garden-land, and some wood: on the eastern side the soil is a strong marl, but it is lighter on the western. A large cotton-mill here, the property of Messrs. William and Samuel Evans, employs nearly 500 hands; and their paper-mill full 60 hands more. The village, sometimes called Little Derby, is a considerable and improving place. The Derby canal and Midland railway pass in its vicinity. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Messrs. Evans; net income, nearly £150. The impropriation belongs to the vicar of St. Alkmund's, by purchase from the corporation of Derby. The chapel, or church, was built in 1818, at the sole expense of the late Walter Evans, Esq., father of the patrons, by whom it was also endowed, with liberal aid from Queen Anne's Bounty: the amount for the church and Mr. Evans' part of the endowment was £10,000, of which about £7000 were for the edifice, a handsome structure, in which is a beautiful marble monument to the founder and his lady, and another to their son Arthur. Mr. Evans also left stock, now producing £210 per annum, to his sons and their two sisters, for the support of certain dame schools at Darley-Abbey, and in such other parts of Alkmund parish as they may think fit. Two infant and three day schools are supported by the endowment; and there is a handsome brick school-house, built by the late Mr. Evans at a cost of about £3000. Some remains of the abbey are made into cottages.

Darlingscott

DARLINGSCOTT, a hamlet, in the parish of Tredington, union of Shipston-on-Stour, Upper division of the hundred of Oswaldslow, E. division of the county of Worcester, 2¼ miles (N. W. by W.) from Shipston; containing 176 inhabitants, and comprising, with Longdon, 1177a. 3r. 6p. The village lies about a mile and a quarter south-west of the village of Tredington, and near the road from Shipston to Moreton-in-the-Marsh.

Darlington (St. Cuthbert)

DARLINGTON (St. Cuthbert), a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, in the S. E. division of Darlington ward, S. division of the county of Durham, 18½ miles (S.) from Durham, and 236½ (N. N. W.) from London; comprising the townships of Archdeacon-Newton, Blackwell, Cockerton, and Darlington; and containing 11,877 inhabitants, of whom 11,033 are in the township of Darlington. This place, the name of which is of Saxon derivation, is of considerable antiquity, and towards the close of the tenth century was, with its dependencies, granted by Seir, son of Ulphus, in the presence of King Ethelred and Archbishop Wulston, to St. Cuthbert, patron of the see of Durham, of which Aldune was then bishop. On the removal of the see to Durham, this town became the asylum of the secular clergy, who were removed from the cathedral of that place by Bishop Carileph; and in 1164, Hugh de Pudsey, Bishop of Durham, erected a palace here, which was the residence of several of his successors. Edward I., in 1291, issued from Darlington an order to his chief military tenants in the northern counties to attend him in the war with the Scots. In the reign of Edward III., a sharp skirmish took place here between the troops under Archibald Douglas and a band of English forces, which proved fatal to many of the latter. In 1504, the Princess Margaret, who had been betrothed to James, King of Scotland, slept at the episcopal palace, on her route to that country. In 1640, the army of Charles I., in their retreat after the battle of Stellahaugh, in which they had been defeated by the Scottish Covenanters, rested at Darlington, where they were supplied with provisions under the direction of the Earl of Strafford.

The town is situated on the eastern declivity of an eminence rising gradually from the river Skerne, over which is a bridge of three arches, and consists of several good streets; the houses are mostly modern and well built, and several improvements and additions have been made under the provisions of an act obtained in 1823, agreeably with which the town was lighted with gas in November 1830. A public library is well supported; and a mechanics' institute and library have been established since 1825. A joint-stock banking company has been formed, with a capital of £400,000; and there is a savings' bank, opened in 1817. From the favourable nature of the surrounding country for the pasturage of sheep, considerable numbers were formerly bred here: the woollen manufacture flourished, and tammies, camlets, moreens, harrateens, and other fabrics were made in great quantities; but this trade was almost superseded by the manufacture of linen, which, in its turn, has declined materially. There are several mills for spinning wool and flax; a mill for spinning worsted-yarn, which is used for Brussels and other carpets, and for the finer shawls, in imitation of those of India, which are manufactured here; likewise mills for grinding and polishing optical glasses; and some ironfoundries, affording employment to a considerable number of persons. A railway, called the Stockton and Darlington, from Witton-Park colliery to Stockton, a distance of twenty-four miles, passes within half a mile of the town; it was opened in 1825, at an expense of £125,000, and was the first railway in England upon which locomotive steam-engines were used. A principal station, and a depôt for the coal brought hither, are situated here. The branch of this railway, from Darlington to Croft, has been purchased by the York and Newcastle Railway Company, and now forms part of their line; the company have an extensive establishment for the repair of engines and carriages at Darlington. The market is on Monday, and there is a large market for sheep and cattle every alternate Monday: a commodious market-house was erected at the expense of Mrs. Brown. The fairs are on the first Monday in March, Easter-Monday, Whit-Monday, and the Monday fortnight following, for cattle and merchandise; Nov. 9th for horses, and the following day for horned-cattle and sheep; and Nov. 13th for hogs, on the 23rd for hiring servants, and on the second Monday after the 23rd for cattle, horses, and sheep.

This place was a borough by prescription, and enjoyed some privileges under the bishops of Durham, to whom it belonged: the government is vested in a bailiff, appointed by the bishop, but without any magisterial authority, as the town is within the jurisdiction of the county justices, who hold a petty-session in the townhall every alternate Monday. The town is divided into four constableries, called respectively the Borough, Bondgate, Prebend Row, and Oxenhall, or Oxon-le-field: constables for the borough are chosen by "House Row," at the May-day court. The powers of the county debtcourt of Darlington, established in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Darlington. The town-hall was built in 1808, by the lessees of the tolls, which are held for three lives under the Bishop of Durham; it is a commodious structure, with which are connected the house of correction, or Old Tolbooth (rebuilt in 1807), the newsroom, and the dispensary. The town is the place of election for the division of the county.

The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £274; patron and impropriator, the Duke of Cleveland. The church, which was rebuilt by Bishop Pudsey in 1160, was formerly collegiate for a dean, who held a prebend, and four other prebendaries, and had four chantries, exclusively of the free chapel of Badelfielde, or Battlefield, near Baydale beck: the establishment was dissolved in 1550, and the property became vested in the crown, under which a part is held by the Duke of Cleveland, and the remainder by other individuals. This ancient church is a spacious and elegant cruciform structure, in the early English style, with a square embattled tower rising from the centre, and surmounted by a spire, the upper part of which, having sustained damage from lightning, was rebuilt in 1750; some of the details are in so early a period of the style, as to be scarcely distinguished from the Norman. The nave is separated from the aisles by lofty columns, of dissimilar design, supporting finely pointed arches; and between it and the chancel are four lofty clustered columns, which support the tower: in the chancel are three stone stalls of an earlier date than the rest of the building; and the western extremity of the nave, and the ends of the transepts, are fine specimens in the early English style. A district church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was erected in 1838, on a site given by the Duke of Cleveland, at an expense of £3700, of which £600 were granted by the Incorporated Society, and the remainder raised by subscription; it is a handsome structure of stone, in the early English style, with a tower, and contains 1110 sittings. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Archdeacon of Durham; net income, £150. A church district named St. John's was endowed in 1845 by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners: the living is in the gift of the Crown and the Bishop, alternately. There are places of worship for Particular Baptists; the Society of Friends; Independents; Primitive, Association, and Wesleyan Methodists; and Roman Catholics.

The free grammar school was established by Queen Elizabeth, in the 5th of her reign, and endowed with the revenues of the dissolved chantry founded in the collegiate church by Robert Marshall, now producing £245 per annum: the buildings have lately been much enlarged and improved, the Duke of Cleveland contributing liberally to the expense. The Blue-coat charity school, founded by a bequest of £1000 by Dame Mary Calverly, of Eryholme, in 1715, with some subsequent bequests, possesses an income of £41. 15., and is further supported by subscription. James Bellasses, of Owton, in 1636 bequeathed £20 in money, a piece of ground at Blackwell-gate, materials for the erection of buildings, and a copyhold farm, called Poor Howdens, in the borough, for the establishment of a linen and woollen manufactory, under the superintendence of the head men and burgesses: the rents, now £30 per annum, with a capital of £300, which has accumulated, are vested in a committee, who apply them in loans, in sums of not less than £50 nor more than £200, to industrious persons carrying on the business of a linen or woollen manufacturer. William Middleton, in 1659, bequeathed lands called the Poor Moors, containing above twelve acres, producing a rental of £33, for binding children apprentices. The ancient palace, which had for many years ceased to be the residence of the bishops, was purchased some time since, and appropriated as the parish workhouse. The union of Darlington comprises forty-one parishes or places, of which twentyeight are in the county of Durham, and thirteen in the North riding of York; and contains a population of 21,488. At Oxenhall are four circular pools, called Hell Kettles: the diameter of the three larger is about 38 yards, and their depth respectively 19½, 17, and 14 feet; the diameter of the smallest is 28 feet, and its depth 5½. With the exception of the smallest, which is now nearly dry, they are always full, and though on a level with the river Tees, are unaffected by it; the water, which is very cold, is said to be impregnated with sulphur, and will not mix with milk, or unite with soap. They were probably originally marl-pits, though many fanciful conjectures have been made regarding their origin. Mr. John Kindrew, the inventor and patentee of machinery for spinning flax and hemp, and for grinding and polishing optical glasses, formerly resided here. Darlington gives the title of Earl to the Duke of Cleveland.

Darlton

DARLTON, a chapelry, in the parish of Dunham, union of East Retford, South-Clay division of the wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county of Nottingham, 3¼ miles (N. E. by E.) from Tuxford; containing 203 inhabitants, and comprising 1364 acres. The chapel is dedicated to St. Giles.

Darnall

DARNALL, a hamlet, in the parish and union of Sheffield, S. division of the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding of York, 3 miles (S. E.) from Sheffield, on the road to Worksop. This place contains about 1200 inhabitants, engaged in the collieries, in agricultural labour, and the manufacture of cutlery. The Hall, built by the Staniforths, was the residence of that family for several generations, and afterwards a seat of the late Duke of Norfolk's. A church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was erected in 1841, at the cost of nearly £2700, raised by subscription; the living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Trustees, with a net income of £150.

Darnhall

DARNHALL, a township, in the parish of Whitegate, or New Church, union of Northwich, First division of the hundred of Eddisbury, S. division of the county of Chester, 6 miles (W. S. W.) from Middlewich; containing 197 inhabitants. It comprises 1536 acres, whereof the soil is clay.

Darras-Hall

DARRAS-HALL, a township, in the parish of Ponteland, union and W. division of Castle ward, S. division of Northumberland, 7 miles (N. W.) from Newcastle; containing 15 inhabitants. The place is to the south of the river Pont: the building from which it derives its name has long been in ruins. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £62. 6., payable to Merton College, Oxford, and the vicarial for £4. 10.

Darrington (St. Luke and All Saints)

DARRINGTON (St. Luke And All Saints), a parish, in the union of Preston (under Gilbert's act), Upper division of the wapentake of Osgoldcross, W. riding of York, 3 miles (S. E. by E.) from Pontefract; containing, with the township of Stapleton, 668 inhabitants, of whom 530 are in the township of Darrington. The parish comprises by measurement 4804 acres, of which 3039 are in Darrington township, and are all arable, with the exception of 300 acres of pasture, and 68 of woodland: the village is situated in a pleasant vale, on the road between Doncaster and Ferry-Bridge. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £16. 11. 3., and in the patronage of the Archbishop of York, with a net income of £475: the tithes for the township of Darrington were commuted for land, under an inclosure act, in 1812; and those for Stapleton and the out-lands have been commuted for a rent-charge under the recent act. The church, a handsome edifice in the early English style, was thoroughly repaired in 1840, at a cost exceeding £700, and an excellent parsonage-house has been built. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Darsham (All Saints)

DARSHAM (All Saints), a parish, in the union and hundred of Blything, E. division of Suffolk, 2 miles (N. E.) from Yoxford; containing 528 inhabitants. It comprises 1493 acres. The soil is partly clay, partly a rich loam, and in some places sandy; the surface is generally flat, with some hills in the southern portion, and the low grounds are watered by a small rivulet on the south boundary of the parish. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £4. 10. 10., and in the patronage of the Earl of Stradbroke (the impropriator): the great tithes have been commuted for £86, and the small for £85; the vicar has also 5 acres of glebe.

Dartford (Holy Trinity)

DARTFORD (Holy Trinity), a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, in the hundred of Axton, Dartford, and Wilmington, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 15 miles (S. E.) from London, and 22 (N. W.) from Maidstone, on the great road from London to Canterbury and Dovor; containing 5619 inhabitants. The name is a contraction of Darentford, or the ford on the Darent, on the banks of which river the town is situated. Dartford is mentioned in history as the place where Isabella, sister of Henry III., was married by proxy, in 1235, to the German emperor, Frederick II. Edward III. held a tournament here, on his return from France, in 1331; and in 1355 he founded, and afterwards richly endowed, a monastery at Dartford, for nuns of the order of St. Augustine, the revenue of which at the Dissolution was £408. At this town commenced the insurrection under Wat Tyler, in the fifth of Richard II.; and on the neighbouring heath, called Dartford-Brent, the army of Richard, Duke of York, encamped in 1451, while he waited to obtain a conference with Henry VI., who then lay with his army at Blackheath. Dartford-Brent was also the rendezvous of the parliamentary forces under General Fairfax, in 1648. Prior to the erection of barracks, the army frequently encamped on Dartford Heath, where the remains are visible.

The Town is pleasantly situated in a narrow valley between two hills; the principal street forms the line of the London road, and three smaller streets branch off from it at right angles. There is a bridge over the Darent, built since the commencement of the reign of Edward III., and repaired and improved at the expense of the county about 70 years ago, at which time a new market-house was erected, and the streets were repaved. The river is navigable up to the town for boats; and in 1840, an act of parliament was passed for improving the creek, and also that of Crayford, and for other works connected with that object. The numerous mills on the river contribute greatly to the trading prosperity of Dartford. An extensive gunpowder manufactory is carried on, which occupies the site of the first paper-mill erected in this country, by Sir John Spillman, a German, who died in 1607: in the gardens Sir John planted the two first lime-trees known in England. At a short distance is a zinc-mill, where formerly stood a mill for rolling and splitting iron, the first of the kind in England, constructed by Godfrey Box, of Liege, in 1590. There are also mills for grinding corn, and for extracting oil from seeds, and manufacturing mustard, on the north side of the town, called the Phœnix mills; besides a very large establishment for the construction of steam-engines, and machinery of all kinds, to which is attached a foundry, on a scale of considerable magnitude, where 200 workmen are constantly employed. The market is held on Saturday, when a great quantity of corn is sold; and a fair on Aug. 2nd and 3rd. The petty-sessions for the upper division of the lathe of Sutton-at-Hone are held here: the powers of the county debt-court of Dartford, established in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Dartford. In the latter part of Elizabeth's reign, the county assizes are said to have been frequently holden here; and a spot at the entrance to Dartford-Brent from the town was the place of execution for malefactors.

The parish comprises 4074a. 2r. 32p., of which 1914 acres are arable, 1126 marsh, meadow, and pasture, 444 woodland, 422 common, waste, and roads, and 164 acres market-gardens and orchards. The Living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £18. 11. 3.; patron and appropriator, the Bishop of Rochester. The great tithes have been commuted for £806. 4. 9., and the vicarial for £560; the glebe contains 2½ acres, with a glebe-house. The church is a spacious structure, consisting of a nave, aisles, and two chancels, with an embattled tower at the north-west side; it contains many ancient monuments and beautiful brasses, among which is a monument to the above-mentioned Sir John Spillman. On a high hill, above the tower of the church, on the east side of the town, is a churchyard, which was much enlarged in 1817: on its site stood a chapel, dedicated in the reign of Edward III. to St. Edmund the Martyr, and the foundations of which remained until the end of the last century. There are places of worship for various denominations of dissenters. A free grammar school was established in 1576, and endowed with property producing £48. 15. per annum. Two schools on the national system are supported partly by the income arising from various benefactions; and in Lowfield-street are four almshouses, founded in 1572, in pursuance of a bequest by John Byer, who founded and endowed nine others in Spital-street, for widows, which were rebuilt and enlarged by John Twiselton, Esq., in 1704. The poor law union of Dartford comprises 21 parishes or places, and contains a population of 25,361. Traces of the Roman Watling-street appear on the south side of the high road, on Dartford-Brent. The Augustine nunnery, after the Dissolution, was made a royal residence by Henry VIII. and Elizabeth; and its remains, consisting of an embattled gateway and some other buildings of brick, have been converted into a farmhouse. An hospital, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was founded in the reign of Henry VI.; and an hospital for lepers existed here in the fourteenth century.

Dartington (St. Mary)

DARTINGTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Totnes, hundred of Stanborough, Stanborough and Coleridge, and S. divisions of Devon, 2 miles (N. by W.) from Totnes; containing 603 inhabitants. The baronial mansion of this place is very ancient, and, from the walls and foundations still remaining, appears to have consisted of a double quadrangle, divided by a spacious hall, which, with the state apartments in the western quadrangle, is supposed to have been built by Holland, Duke of Exeter. The parish is situated on the road from Totnes, by Ivy-bridge, to Plymouth, and on that from Totnes to Ashburton; and comprises 3248a. 3r., of which 70 acres are common or waste: limestone is quarried for building and agricultural purposes, and there are two good slate-quarries. The hill called Yarnes Beacon, like several other eminences in the parish, is composed of porphyry and green-stone, and is thought to be of volcanic origin. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £36. 4. 4½., and in the patronage of Henry Champernowne, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £700, and there is a glebe of 108 acres. The church is in the later English style, with a chancel and tower of more ancient date: the pulpit is richly carved, and in the chancel are monuments of one of the Champernownes, whose mother was preceptress to Queen Elizabeth; of Dr. John Prideaux, Bishop of Worcester; and one of the family of Williams, speaker of the house of commons in the reign of Elizabeth. William Hart, who, during the usurpation of Cromwell, suffered severely for his loyalty to the fallen monarch, was rector of the parish, and rebuilt the parsonage-house.

Dartmoor-Forest

DARTMOOR-FOREST, a township or quarter, in the parish of Lydford, union of Tavistock, hundred of Lifton, Tavistock and S. divisions of Devon, 7 miles (N. E.) from Tavistock; containing 933 inhabitants.— See Lydford.

Dartmouth

DARTMOUTH, otherwise Clifton-Dartmouth-Hardness, a borough, seaport, and market-town, having separate jurisdiction, in the union of Totnes, locally in the hundred of Coleridge, Stanborough and Coleridge, and S. divisions of Devon, 30¾ miles (S. by W.) from Exeter, and 204 (W. S. W.) from London; containing 4417 inhabitants. This place, which derives its name from being situated at the mouth of the river Dart, appears to have been distinguished at a very early period for the convenience of its harbour, which, in 1190, was the rendezvous of the fleet destined for the Holy Land. In the reign of Richard I. the French effected a landing on the coast, and, after setting fire to the town, retreated with inconsiderable loss. It is stated by Leland to have received a charter of incorporation from King John, but no authentic document exists of a date prior to Edward III.: whether incorporated or not, it enjoyed many privileges, and in 1226, the inhabitants obtained the grant of a weekly market and an annual fair. In the reign of Edward I. the town sent members to a parliament held at York, and had become a considerable staple for wool, wine, and iron; and in that of Edward III., the port contributed thirty-one ships, and nearly 800 men, to the naval armament for the invasion of France: in this reign the town, together with the adjacent village of South-town, which is that part of the town called also Clifton, was exempted from tolls. By act of parliament in the time of Richard II., the exportation of tin was exclusively restricted to the port of Dartmouth, but the restriction was soon after abolished. In 1404, the French pirates, having burnt Plymouth, sailed to this town, but were gallantly repulsed by the male and female inhabitants; De Chastell their commander, and several of his men, were killed, and 20 of the crew taken prisoners. The castle is supposed to have been erected in the reign of Henry VII. During the parliamentary war, Dartmouth was regarded as a very important post: it was taken, after a siege of four weeks, by Prince Maurice in 1643, and remained in the possession of the king's forces until 1646, when it was retaken by General Fairfax.

Seal of the Old Corporation, now disused.

The town is beautifully situated on the western shore of the bay formed by the river Dart, near its influx into the sea. The houses are built on the acclivity of an eminence sloping gently to the margin of the water, and are ranged in streets rising above each other at different elevations; they are in general ancient, and some of them are ornamented with grotesque carvings. That which was formerly the governor's house (the office having been abolished), occupies a higher site, and is a modern adaptation of the ancient style of building that prevails in the town; it forms the front to a naval museum, and is now a private dwelling-house. The streets are inconveniently narrow, but are partially paved, and lighted with gas, and the inhabitants are supplied with water brought by pipes from springs in the neighbourhood, at the expense of the corporation, who lease it to the owners of houses. A subscription reading-room and library have been established, and a regatta takes place generally in July. The surrounding scenery is strikingly beautiful: the prospect of the town from the bay is truly picturesque; and the rocks, which are of a purple-coloured slate, are finely contrasted with the verdant foliage of the trees in which the houses are embosomed, extending for nearly a mile along the coast, and interspersed with a rich variety of plants and shrubs. The bay, in several points of view from which the town and the sea are excluded by projecting points of land, has the appearance of an inland lake, of romantic beauty. Immediately opposite to the town is the village of Kingsweare, celebrated for the salubrity of its air and the longevity of its inhabitants.

The harbour is sufficiently capacious for the reception of 500 sail of vessels, and is remarkable for its security, and for the depth and tranquillity of the water, the surface of which is undisturbed, while the sea, at the distance only of a quarter of a mile, may be in a state of strong agitation. The entrance is on the south-southeast, between the ruins of Kingsweare Castle and the fort and church of St. Petrox, where a battery has been erected for its defence, and where, through the liberality of the late Sir John Henry Seale, Bart., a light was erected for the protection of vessels wishing to make the harbour in the night. The harbour is capable of receiving the largest ships in the British navy, and it has excited much surprise that it has not been made a naval depôt, as its position, depth of water, safety, and general accommodation for shipping, render it equal for commercial purposes to any in the kingdom. Outside the harbour is the roadstead called the Range, affording safe anchorage to vessels of any tonnage. The trade consists principally in the exportation of leather, tin-ware, wearing-apparel, and cordage, to Newfoundland, and sheep and lime to Jersey and Guernsey, and in the importation of wine from Portugal, and timber from the north of Europe and British America; a considerable coasting-trade is also carried on, and great quantities of corn, malt, potatoes, and cider are shipped at the port. A quay has been constructed, projecting into the harbour; and there is a custom-house, with requisite offices for the despatch of business. A moveable bridge, secured with chains to the shores, and capable of transporting four carriages, without divesting the horses of their harness, is propelled across the harbour by horse power: it was constructed in 1832, at an expense, including the approaches, of £6000, raised by a joint subscription under an act of parliament; it crosses in about eight minutes, and forms a continuation of the coast road from Exeter to Plymouth, which is one of the finest drives in the kingdom. The river Dart is navigable to Totnes, ten miles distant; and the passage is highly interesting, from the beautiful scenery with which its banks abound throughout. There is a steam-boat kept for the purpose of towing vessels in and out, and also plying daily during summer, and twice a week in winter, to and from Totnes; likewise a steam-vessel weekly to London, touching at Torquay, Teignmouth, the Isle of Wight, and Portsmouth. Much is done in the way of ship-building; there are commodious yards, in which about twenty vessels are built annually, and also a very large dry-dock. But the inhabitants are chiefly engaged in the Newfoundland and other fisheries. The market is on Friday; a cattle-market is held every month, and there is a daily fish-market well supplied.

The government, by charter of Edward III., confirmed by succeeding monarchs, and extended by Elizabeth and James I., was vested in a mayor and twelve masters and councillors, forming the common-council, assisted by a recorder, townclerk, and other officers. By the act of the 5th and 6th of William IV., cap. 76, the corporation now consists of a mayor, four aldermen, and twelve councillors; the municipal and parliamentary boundaries are co-extensive; the mayor and late mayor are justices of the peace, and the total number of magistrates is ten. The borough continued to return two members to parliament from the period of its incorporation, in the 24th of Edward III., till the 2nd of William IV., when it was deprived of one by the Reform act. The right of election was formerly vested in the corporation, and in the freemen made by them, the inhabitants of the borough (which comprised 81 acres) not being entitled to their freedom in right either of birth, servitude, or residence: by the act above-named the non-resident electors, except within seven miles, were disfranchised, and the privilege was extended to the £10 householders of an enlarged district, containing 1981 acres. The mayor is returning officer. A court of quarter-sessions is held, at which the recorder presides; and the borough has a court of record, under a charter of Edward III., for the recovery of debts to any amount, appointed to be held on Monday. The prison is a small building, with only two wards.

New Corporation Seal.

Dartmouth comprises the parishes of St. Petrox, St. Saviour, Townstall (St. Clement), and part of Stoke-Fleming; the first containing 929, the second 2345, and the third 1143 inhabitants. St. Petrox' is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Rector of Stoke-Fleming, with a net income of £120. The old church is beautifully situated near the entrance to the harbour. A church was built in 1732, as a chapel of ease, which the Bishop of Exeter has made the parochial church, and to which a gallery has been added; and in 1832 a chapel was built in the later English style, partly by subscription, and partly by aid of a grant of £1000 from the Incorporated Society. The living of St. Saviour's is annexed to the vicarage of Townstall. The church, commonly called the Mayor's chapel, is a spacious cruciform structure, possessing little external, but considerable internal, beauty, and is principally in the decorated English style. The pulpit is of stone, richly sculptured and gilt; the wooden screen is an elaborate and highly enriched specimen of carving; the stalls of the corporation are of good modern workmanship: the original ceiling of oak is still preserved. The living of the parish of Townstall is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £12. 15. 4½., and in the patronage of Sir H. P. Seale, with a net income of £135. There are places of worship for Particular Baptists, Independents, and Wesleyans. Newcomen, the inventor of the steamengine, was a native of the town. Dartmouth gives the title of Earl to the family of Legge.

Darton (All Saints)

DARTON (All Saints), a parish, in the wapentake of Staincross, W. riding of York, 3¼ miles (N. W.) from Barnsley; comprising the townships of Barugh, Darton, and Kexborough; and containing 3583 inhabitants, of whom 1692 are in the township of Darton. This parish, which is situated on the Barnsley and Huddersfield road, is principally the property of T. Wentworth Beaumont, Esq., and comprises 4478a. 2r. 22p., whereof about 2599 acres are arable, 1600 pasture, and 279 wood: the township of Darton comprises, of the above number, 1440 acres, of which about 831 are arable, 580 pasture, and 29 woodland. The soil is generally fertile and well cultivated: three productive coalmines are in operation, and there are several quarries of gritstone. In the village of Mapplewell the inhabitants are chiefly employed in weaving and in the manufacture of nails. There are likewise vitriol-works. The village of Staincross, which gives name to the wapentake, is also within the parish, and consists of several good houses, irregularly built on the acclivities of a lofty eminence. The village of Darton is pleasantly situated in a valley near the confluence of two branches of the river Dearne, which flows through the parish. At Red-brook and at Swithin are extensive bleaching-works, the latter, which are said to be superior to any in this part of the kingdom, employing 70 men. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £12. 10., and in the patronage of Mr. Beaumont (the impropriator), with a net income of £150. The church is a spacious and handsome structure in the later English style, with a lofty embattled tower crowned with pinnacles, and contains monuments to the families of Silvester and Beaumont. There is a meeting-house for Wesleyans at Blacker, and at Mapplewell are places of worship for those of the New Connexion and for Nonconformists. George Beaumont, of Oakes, in 1668 bequeathed £500 to be invested in land for the support of a free school, and £500 to the poor; which benefactions were applied to the purchase of an estate, now yielding about £203 per annum. Thomas Beaumont, Esq., in 1728 bequeathed £112 to the poor of Darton, and £150 to the poor of Crigglestone.

Darwen, Lower

DARWEN, LOWER, a township, in the parish and union of Blackburn, Lower division of the hundred of Blackburn, N. division of Lancashire, 2¼ miles (S. S. E.) from Blackburn; containing 3077 inhabitants. In the reign of Henry II. this place was granted to Robert Banastre, and passed by marriage with his heiress to John Langton, the first baron of Walton. The manor was held in Henry VIII.'s reign by William Bradshawe, and subsequently became a possession of Sir Thomas Walmesley, from whom it passed to the family of Lord Petre. The township is large and populous, and stretches along the east bank of the Darwen; the Blackburn, Darwen, and Bolton railway passes through the village. Coal-mines are wrought, and the population is also engaged in manufactures. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar of Blackburn, with a net income of £150. The chapel, now a district church, was commenced in 1827, and completed in 1829, and is a stone fabric with a hexagonal tower, dedicated to St. James; the expense of its erection, £5491, was defrayed partly by a grant from the Parliamentary Commissioners. The Wesleyan Methodists and Methodists of the New Connexion have places of worship here.

Darwen, Over

DARWEN, OVER, a chapelry, in the parish and union of Blackburn, Lower division of the hundred of Blackburn, N. division of Lancashire, 4¼ miles (S. by E.) from Blackburn; containing 9348 inhabitants. Henry de Lacy granted this place to Robert Banastre, in the reign of Henry II., and a moiety of the manor was afterwards held by the Molyneuxs, and the other moiety by the Osbaldeston family; the whole subsequently became the property of the Traffords, of whom it was purchased by Samuel Duckworth, Esq. The township is a considerable and populous tract comprised within the vale of the Darwen rivulet, and surrounded by lofty moorish heights; and is chiefly inhabited by hand-loom weavers and persons employed in the print and bleaching works which are extensively carried on. The village or town is lighted with gas under the provisions of an act passed in 1839, and in 1847 an act was passed for a better supply of water to the town and mills. Fairs are held on the first Thursday in October and the first Thursday in May, for cattle and horses; and a pleasure-fair on Holy-Thursday. A commodious market-house was opened in May, 1847. The Blackburn, Darwen, and Bolton railway runs by the town. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar of Blackburn, with a net income of £150. The chapel, dedicated to St. James, and now a district church, is a low stone building on a bleak eminence, erected prior to 1687. A second church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was erected in 1827-8; it is a large building, in the pointed style, and stands upon a hill overlooking a small wood: the living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patron, the Vicar. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and others; and about 2300 children are instructed in Sunday schools.

Dasset, Avon (St. Matthew)

DASSET, AVON (St. Matthew), a parish, in the union of Banbury, Burton-Dasset division of the hundred of Kington, S. division of the county of Warwick, 5 miles (E. by S.) from Kington; containing 287 inhabitants. This parish was granted by Edward VI. to Sir Ralph Sadler, master of his great wardrobe; it was subsequently purchased by the Woodwards, of Butler's-Marston, and passed from them to the family of Green, from whom, with the advowson, it came in 1814 to the Rev. Robert Green Jeston, nephew of Robert Green, Esq., and a descendant of the family of Jestyn, of Glamorganshire. The road from Warwick to Banbury runs through the parish, which comprises about 1600 acres; the Oxford canal passes within two miles. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £13. 18. 9.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. R. G. Jeston: the income is derived from a glebe of 280 acres, valued at about £460 per annum, and there is an ancient glebe-house, lately put into repair. The church is neatly pewed, and contains in the chancel a recumbent effigy, in memory, as is supposed, of Sir Ralph Sadler. There is a small endowed school. Near here are intrenchments which were thrown up at the time of the battle of Edge-Hill.

Datchet (St. Mary)

DATCHET (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Eton, hundred of Stoke, county of Buckingham, 2 miles (E. S. E.) from Eton; containing 922 inhabitants. The parish is separated from that of Windsor by the river Thames, over which is a handsome bridge, and comprises about 1100 acres; the soil is a loam of great fertility. The surface is generally flat, but the surrounding scenery is diversified, and abounds with features of interest; there are several elegant residences, and the village is pleasing. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £11; net income, £125; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor. There is a place of worship for Particular Baptists. Two charity schools are supported; and a fund of £39 per annum, the proceeds of bequests at different times, is distributed among the poor. Robert Barker, in 1644, left property called the Bridge Estate, now producing £95 per annum, for the erection and maintenance of a bridge across the Hollow-way.