Elberton (St. Mary)
ELBERTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Thornbury, Lower division of the hundred of Berkeley, W. division of the county of Gloucester, 9 miles
(N.) from Bristol; containing 190 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1523 acres, of which 416 are
arable, 995 pasture, and 112 woodland: the surface is
in some parts flat, in others hilly; the soil is partly
sandy, and partly a deep rich loam. The Thames and
Severn canal passes through the parish. The living is a
discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£6. 12. 6.; patron and appropriator, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The bishop's tithes have been commuted for £79. 10., the impropriate for £8, and the
vicarial for £202; there are 40 acres of glebe. The
church has a central tower with a spire, and was probably erected in the thirteenth century. East of the
village are some remains of a Roman intrenched camp,
supposed to have been constructed for the protection
of the trajectus, or ferry, at Aust; it was a regular
parallelogram, inclosing two acres.
Elcombe
ELCOMBE, a tything, in the parish of Wroughton, union of Highworth and Swindon, hundred of
Elstub and Everley, Swindon and N. divisions of
the county of Wilts; containing 348 inhabitants.
Elcot
ELCOT, a tything, in the parish of Preshute,
union of Marlborough, hundred of Selkley, Marlborough and Ramsbury, and N. divisions of the county
of Wilts; containing 96 inhabitants.
Elden
ELDEN, an extra-parochial place, in the hundred
of King's-Sombourn, N. division of the county of
Southampton, 4½ miles (S. E.) from Stockbridge;
containing 19 inhabitants. The living is a rectory,
valued in the king's books at £2; patron, John Hussey,
Esq. The church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, is
dilapidated and unfit for service.
Elden county of Suffolk.—See Elvedon.
ELDEN, county of Suffolk.—See Elvedon.
Eldersfield (St. John the Baptist)
ELDERSFIELD (St. John the Baptist), a parish,
in the union of Upton-on-Severn, Lower division of
the hundred of Pershore, Upton and W. divisions
of the county of Worcester, 7 miles (W. by S.) from
Tewkesbury; containing 837 inhabitants. The parish
is situated at the southern extremity of the county, and
bounded partly on the north, and wholly on the south,
by the county of Gloucester. It is nearly circumscribed
by the roads from Upton to Gloucester, from Gloucester
to Ledbury, and from Ledbury to Tewkesbury; and
comprises 3310 acres, of which 17½ are woodland,
262 road and waste, and the remainder nearly equally
divided between arable and pasture: the soil is a
red marl. Stone of inferior quality for building is
quarried. A few hands are employed in making gloves
for the Worcester houses. The living is a discharged
vicarage, valued in the king's books at £8. 16. 8., and
in the gift of Sir Anthony Lechmere, Bart.: the impropriate tithes, belonging to the Rev. Charles Martin,
have been commuted for £630, and the vicarial for
£290; and the glebe contains 2 acres, with a house in
a dilapidated state. The church is a handsome structure, chiefly in the early English style, with an embattled
tower surmounted by a spire. There is a place of
worship for Wesleyans; and a school, in which 10 boys
and 10 girls are instructed, is supported by the interest
of £500 in the four per cents., left by Mrs. Pollock.
William Underhill, in 1646, bequeathed land now let for
£20 per annum, to be distributed among the poor. On
Gadbury Hill, an eminence 60 feet in height, are some
vestiges of a camp, supposed to be Roman.
Eldon
ELDON, a township, in the parish of St. Andrew
Auckland, union of Auckland, S. E. division of
Darlington ward, S. division of the county of Durham, 3½ miles (S. E. by E.) from Bishop-Auckland;
containing 186 inhabitants. The township is comprised
in the district of Shildon. John Scott, Earl of Eldon,
and lord high chancellor of England, was elevated to the
peerage by the title of Baron Eldon, on the 18th of July,
1799, and raised to the dignities of Viscount Encombe
and Earl of Eldon, July 7th, 1821. A great part of the
township belongs to his successor.
Eldon
ELDON, an extra-parochial district, in the hundred
of King's-Sombourn, Romsey and S. divisions of the
county of Southampton; containing 19 inhabitants. It
comprises 276 acres of land.
Eldroth
ELDROTH, a hamlet, in the township of Lawkland,
parish of Clapham, union of Settle, W. division of
the wapentake of Staincliffe and Ewcross, W.
riding of York, 4¼ miles (W. by N.) from Settle; containing 36 inhabitants. An ancient chapel of ease has
been converted into a school, which is endowed with
certain bequests.
Eleigh, Monks.—See Monks-Eleigh.
ELEIGH, MONKS.—See Monks-Eleigh.
Elford
ELFORD, a township, in the parish of Bambrough,
union of Belford, N. division of Bambrough ward and
of Northumberland, 7 miles (E. S. E.) from Belford;
containing 112 inhabitants. It comprises 646 acres of
excellent arable land, the property of Henry Dinning,
Esq., of Newlands. Good coal and limestone are obtained. The village, which is small, is situated about one
mile west from Sunderland, which is on the sea-coast.
The road from Belford to Alnwick runs at some distance
on the west of the place. A stone coffin containing a
skeleton, was dug up in 1838.
Elford (St. Peter)
ELFORD (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of
Lichfield, S. division of the hundred of Offlow and
of the county of Stafford, 5 miles (E. by N.) from
Lichfield; containing 434 inhabitants. It is said to
have derived its name from the great number of eels with
which the river here formerly abounded. Before the
Conquest the manor belonged to Earl Algar, and in the
reign of Henry III. was held by William de Alderne,
whose descendants continued to enjoy it until the marriage of the heiress of Sir John Alderney with the Stanleys, when the property passed to that family. It afterwards came by a succession of female heirs to the
Stantons, Smiths, Huddlestons, and Bowes family, with
which last it remained for several generations, and from
which it devolved, also by marriage, to the Howards.
The parish is bounded on the south-west by the river
Tame, and comprises about 1800 acres of highly cultivated land, most of which was open common until 1766;
the surface is gently undulated, and the soil a rich loam,
mostly arable. Elford Hall is a handsome mansion,
erected about 1758. The living is a rectory, valued in
the king's books at £13. 6. 8., and in the patronage of
the family of Howard; income, arising from 240 acres
of glebe, £405. The church is a fine old edifice, and has
an ancient stained-glass window, brought from the continent in 1828, representing Christ turning the Water
into Wine. A school, now conducted on the national
plan, was founded in the reign of James I. by the Rev.
John Hill. Two lowes here, evidently sepulchral, were
probably the burial-places of the slain in some battle
fought during the Saxon heptarchy.
Elham (St. Mary)
ELHAM (St. Mary), a parish, and the head of a
union, in the hundred of Loningborough, lathe of
Shepway, E. division of Kent, 11 miles (S.) from
Canterbury; containing 1291 inhabitants. This place,
which was anciently of greater importance, was, at the
time of the Conquest, in the possession of the Norman
earl Ewe, a near relation of the Conqueror's, who obtained for it many valuable privileges: in the reign of
Henry III. it belonged to Prince Edward, who procured
the grant of a weekly market, which has not been held
for many years. The parish comprises by admeasurement
6580 acres; 3330 are arable, 2330 pasture, 800 woodland, and the remainder roads and common: the surface
is boldly undulated, and the surrounding scenery
pleasing. The village is situated on the small river Stour,
and contains many houses neatly built of brick. Elham
Park, of which notice occurs in the time of Henry III.,
is now overgrown with wood. Fairs are held on PalmMonday, Easter-Monday, Whit-Monday, and October
20th, for horses, cattle, and pedlery. The county magistrates hold a petty-session for the division monthly;
and manorial courts are held on the Thursday in Easterweek, and the Thursday after the 20th of October. The
living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £20;
net income, £390; patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury, on the nomination of Merton College, Oxford, the
impropriators. The church is a spacious structure in
the early English style, with a massive embattled tower;
over the west door is a fine window of three lights, in
the decorated style. There are places of worship for
Wesleyans and Bryanites; and a school, founded in
1725 by Sir John Williams, Knt., is endowed with a
house and land producing £18 per annum. The poor
law union of Elham consists of 20 parishes or places, and
contains a population of 14,662: the workhouse is in the
parish of Lyminge.
Eling (St. Mary)
ELING (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of NewForest, hundred of Redbridge, Romsey and S. divisions of the county of Southampton, 5 miles (W. by
N.) from Southampton; containing, with the tythings
of Bartley-Regis, Bauldoxfee, Bistern with Bartley,
Colebury, Durley, Langley, Lopperwood, Marchwood,
Rumbridge, Tatchbury, Testwood, Wade with Over, and
Wigley, 5410 inhabitants, of whom 1052 are in North,
and 343 in South, Eling. This place, which is noticed in
the Norman survey as having a church, two mills, a
fishery, and a saltern, comprises the manor of Bury
Farm, held of the crown by the tenure of presenting to
the king a brace of white greyhounds in silver couples,
whenever His Majesty may visit the New Forest; which
presentation was last made in 1789, to George III., immediately on stepping out of his carriage at Lyndhurst,
by the Rev. Sir Charles Mill, Bart. The village stands
at the upper end of the Southampton Water, and has a
good trade in corn, timber, and coal; spacious granaries
and warehouses have been erected on the quay, which is
accessible to vessels of 200 tons' burthen, and provided
with every facility for loading and discharging cargoes.
Its proximity to the New Forest, which affords a plentiful supply of timber at a moderate expense, is favourable
for ship-building, which has been carried on to a considerable extent; several West Indiamen have been
launched within the last few years, and numerous vessels
repaired. The establishment has, however, been removed
to the opposite side of the water, at Redbridge. A fair
for cattle is held on July 5th. The living is a vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £11. 18. 1½.; net income,
£904; patron, the Rev. W. I. G. Phillips; impropriators, several proprietors of land. The church is an
ancient edifice, enlarged at different periods, and exhibiting various styles. A chapel has been erected near
Cadnam, containing 535 sittings, 418 of which are free;
and at Marchwood is a district church. At Totton,
separated from Redbridge by the river, is a place of
worship for Independents. In this parish is the union
workhouse; the union comprises 9 parishes, 8 in the
county of Southampton, and one in Wilts, the population
of the whole amounting to 13,224.
Elkington
ELKINGTON, a parish, in the union of Rugby,
hundred of Guilsborough, S. division of the county
of Northampton, 3 miles (S. S. W.) from Welford;
containing 46 inhabitants. This parish, through which
passes the Grand Union canal, comprises 1868 acres of
a moderately productive soil, the property of the Earl
Spencer and the Langham family. The church, which
belonged to the monastery of Daventry, and subsequently
to that of Pipewell, is supposed to have been destroyed
in the civil wars.
Elkington, North (St. Helen)
ELKINGTON, NORTH (St. Helen), a parish, in
the union of Louth, Wold division of the hundred of
Louth-Eske, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln,
4¼ miles (N. W.) from Louth; containing 91 inhabitants. It comprises 991a. 2r. 25p.; the soil is chalk, of
which there are some pits for dressing the land. The
living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books
at £4. 19. 4½.; patron and impropriator, the Rev. William Smyth: the great tithes have been commuted for
£159. 9., and the vicarial for £99. 17.; the glebe comprises nearly 6½ acres. The church is very small.
Elkington, South (All Saints)
ELKINGTON, SOUTH (All Saints), a parish, in
the union of Louth, Wold division of the hundred of
Louth-Eske, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln,
2¼ miles (W. N. W.) from Louth; containing 273 inhabitants. It is situated on the road to Market-Rasen,
and comprises 3008a. 2r. 23p.; the soil is generally
light, resting on chalk, which is obtained for agricultural uses. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued
in the king's books at £5. 7. 6.; patron and impropriator, the Rev. William Smyth: the great tithes have
been commuted for £494. 17., and the vicarial for land
and a rent-charge, together £301; the glebe comprises
10 acres. The church is an ancient structure, in the
later English style, with a handsome embattled tower.
There are several tumuli on a farm called Boswell, or
Burgh's Hill, in the western extremity of the parish;
and on the eastern side are traces of the Barton-street.
Archdeacon Echard, the learned historian, was incumbent of the parish.
Elksley (St. Giles)
ELKSLEY (St. Giles), a parish, in the union of
East Retford, Hatfield division of the wapentake of
Bassetlaw, N. division of the county of Nottingham,
5 miles (S. by W.) from East Retford; containing 414
inhabitants. The parish comprises by computation 2016
acres; the surface is undulated, and the scenery pleasing. The river Poulter flows by the village, and joins
the Idle at the distance of a quarter of a mile from it.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £3. 16. 0½.; patron and impropriator, the Duke
of Newcastle. The tithes have been commuted for £80,
and the glebe comprises 22½ acres. The church is an
ancient structure, with a tower.
Elkstone (St. John the Evangelist)
ELKSTONE (St. John the Evengelist), a parish,
in the union of Cirencester, hundred of Rapsgate,
E. division of the county of Gloucester, 7½ miles (N.
N. W.) from Cirencester; containing 335 inhabitants.
This parish, which is situated on the old Roman road to
Cirencester, comprises by measurement 2034 acres. A
part of the population is employed in a manufactory for
bone manure; and stone is quarried for building purposes, which is easily cut when first taken from the
quarry, but acquires a great degree of hardness by exposure to the air. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £12. 9. 2., and in the gift of the Hon.
Keppel Craven: the tithes have been commuted for
£340, and the glebe comprises 78 acres. The church is
a small edifice, affording good specimens of Norman
architecture in the ornamented south porch, the east
window, and the interior of the chancel; it has a square
embattled tower in the later English style, erected in
the reign of Richard II. The remains of a Roman tessellated pavement have been discovered at Cornbend, a
hamlet in the parish.
Elkstone, Lower and Upper
ELKSTONE, LOWER and UPPER, a chapelry, in
the parish of Alstonfield, union of Leek, N. division
of the hundred of Totmonslow and of the county of
Stafford, 5½ miles (E. N. E.) from Leek; containing
253 inhabitants. These are two townships, forming the
chapelry, and divided by a small brook: the houses are
mostly on the eastern side of Mixon Hill, a lofty ridge,
in which copper, lead, and rottenstone have been obtained. A court leet and baron is held for the manor of
Upper Elkstone. The living is a perpetual curacy; net
income, £74; patron, the Vicar of Alstonfield; impropriator, Sir John Crewe, Bart. The chapel is dedicated
to St. John the Baptist, and is a small edifice with a
wooden belfry. A school is supported by endowment.
Ella, Kirk (St. Andrew)
ELLA, KIRK (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union
of Sculcoates, and county of the town of Hull, locally
in the E. riding of York; containing, with the whole of
the township of Anlaby, which is partly in the parish of
Hessle, and the whole of the township of Willerby, which
is partly in the parish of Cottingham, 1061 inhabitants,
of whom 291 are in the township of Kirk-Ella, 5 miles
(W. by N.) from Hull, and 133 in the township of West
Ella. This place derives its name from its ancient proprietor, the Saxon King of Deira, of whose demesne it
formed a part. The parish comprises by computation
2974a. 26p.; the soil is a strong clayey marl, well
adapted for wheat, of which fine crops are produced, and
the surface, though generally flat, is well drained. The
village is situated on elevated ground, commanding views
of the river Humber, and consists of well-built houses
and pleasing villas, inhabited by opulent merchants of
Hull, and other respectable families. The surrounding
country is richly diversified; and the beauty of the scenery, and the salubrity of the air, render Ella desirable
as a place of residence. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 2. 8½.; net
income, £235; patron and impropriator, R. Sykes, Esq.:
the tithes were commuted for land and a money payment
in 1796. The church, seated on an eminence, is a spacious structure in the later English style, with a lofty
embattled tower, and contains several monuments, of
which one to Joseph Sykes, who died in 1805, is very
beautiful.
Elland-Cum-Greetland
ELLAND-CUM-GREETLAND, a township and chapelry, in the parish and union of Halifax, wapentake
of Morley, W. riding of York, 3¼ miles (S. S. E.) from
Halifax; the township containing 6479 inhabitants.
Elland was anciently of considerable importance, and in
the reign of Edward II. had a grant of a weekly market
and two annual fairs: it was for many years the only
chartered market-town in an extensive district, had a
cloth-hall of its own, and for a long period was superior
to Halifax for the extent of its various manufactures;
but at present it has no market. The township comprises by computation 3388 acres. The population is
chiefly employed in the spinning of worsted, and the
manufacture of coarse woollen-cloths: several collieries
are in operation; stone of good quality for building is
quarried, and large quantities of bricks and black earthenware are made, for which clay is obtained in abundance; there are also some copperas-works. The village
is situated on the south side of the vale of Calder, over
which river is a handsome stone bridge; it is spacious
and well built, and, together with the hamlet of Greetland, is lighted with gas from works erected in 1836 at
an expense of £6000, by a proprietary of £10 shareholders. On the north side of the river is the Calder
and Hebble navigation; and the Manchester and Leeds
railway passes to the north of the village, near which it
is carried through a tunnel 410 yards in length. A fair
is held on the first Monday after the 12th of August.
The chapel is an ancient structure with a tower, and
consists of a nave, one aisle, and a chancel; in the east
window are the armorial bearings of John of Gaunt.
The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150,
with a house; patron, the Vicar of Halifax. The tithes
of the township were commuted for land in 1803. There
are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans.
A school was founded in 1734, by Mrs. Grace Ramsden,
who endowed it with an estate now producing a rent of
£63. 10. Near the village is the "Spa Well," the water
of which holds in solution sulphuretted hydrogen and
a free alkali; and at Greetland is a similar spring, called
Upper Elliston's Farm Well.
Ellastone (St. Peter)
ELLASTONE (St. Peter), a parish, in the union
of Ashbourn, S. division of the hundred of Totmonslow, N. division of the county of Stafford, 5 mile
(W. S. W.) from Ashbourn; containing, with the townships of Calwick, Prestwood, Ramshorn, Stanton, and
Wootton, 1308 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated in a fertile district abounding with romantic scenery, is bounded by the Dove, a stream affording fine
trout, and is also skirted by the river Churnet. It comprises about 8000 acres, whereof the greater part is pasture or meadow, a small portion arable, 410 acres woodland, and nearly 500 sheep-walk or common, with much
gorse, heather, and stone ground, some of which is every
year brought into cultivation. The surface is varied,
rising from the vale of the Dove to Weaver Hill, and
commanding extensive and richly diversified prospects,
embracing, in clear weather, the Malvern, Wrekin, and
Welsh hills. There are some lead mines near Stanton,
but not in operation: facility of conveyance is afforded
by the Uttoxeter canal, which passes through the parish.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £4. 9. 2.; net income, £154; patron and impropriator, D. Davenport, Esq., who is proprietor of a
great part of the village. The church is a neat structure, situated on an eminence; the body was rebuilt in
1838, partly by subscription and partly by a rate, the
stone being given by Mr. Davenport and the Rev. Geo.
Hake: it contains memorials of the Fleetwoods, the
ancient owners of a part of the parish. On the top
of Weaver Hill are several barrows from which have
been dug some ancient coins, and there are also vestiges
of a Roman encampment. Gilbert Sheldon, Archbishop of Canterbury, who died in 1677, was born in the
parish.
Ellel, North and South
ELLEL, NORTH and SOUTH, a chapelry, in the
parish of Cockerham, union of Lancaster, hundred
of Lonsdale south of the Sands, N. division of Lancashire, 4 miles (S. by E.) from Lancaster, on the road
to Garstang and Preston; containing 2223 inhabitants.
The manor of Ellel appears to have been a member of
that of Warton, after the Norman Conquest. William
Fitz-Gilbert, who first assumed the name of Lancaster,
gave to Grimbald de Ellale, with other lands, two carucates in Ellale, to be held by knight's service. A Jordan
de Ellal was forester of Wyresdale, and having married
Alice de Thweng, a descendant of the house of Lancaster,
left a daughter and heiress, who married Sir William de
Molyneux, of Sefton, before the reign of Edward III., in
which reign, Sir John de Coupeland appears as a proprietor. The Thwengs had possession long after this
period, and Sir James Lawrence subsequently; the estates are now chiefly freehold in various hands.
The chapelry comprises 5620a. 1r. 38p., whereof threefourths are meadow and pasture, and the remainder
arable. The surface is elevated and undulating, the soil
various and generally productive and the scenery very
fine; from the higher parts are extensive views of
Morecambe bay, the town of Fleetwood, the Lake mountains, and the rivers Wyre and Lune. The Conder and
Cocker rivers, the Lancaster and Preston canal, and
Lancaster and Preston railway, run through; the last
having two stations, and passing over two high viaducts.
Ellel Hall, built about 70 years ago, is, with 500 acres
of land, the property of Abraham Rawlinson Ford, Esq.
Foxholes, with 150 acres, is the seat of William Talbot
Rothwell, Esq. The latter house was nearly rebuilt in
1847, from the designs of Mr. Richard Lane, of Manchester, in the style of the domestic architecture of the
16th century; and the lights and shadows arising from
the irregularity of its plan, give to the edifice much of
the picturesque effect so characteristic of that period.
The principal front is about 100 feet in length, and is
ornamented with richly-carved barge-boards and pendent gables; the entrance consists of an arcade of three
Tudor arches, and opens into a large lofty hall with a
groined ceiling, having a noble gallery supported by
carved Gothic brackets. This hall is replete with articles
of vertu and marble statuary brought from abroad by
the proprietor: an oak screen separates the staircase,
which is also of oak; and the windows are of rich
painted glass. Hay Carr, with 200 acres, all planted
round, is the property of William Lamb, Esq.; the
house has been much enlarged. There are several
quarries of good stone. The living is a perpetual curacy;
net income, £140, with a house, built in 1840. The
chapel, a plain structure, is situated in the hamlet of
Galgate, which see. A school is endowed with £8 per
annum.
Ellenborough, with Ewanrigg
ELLENBOROUGH, with Ewanrigg, a township,
in the parish of Dearham, union of Cockermouth,
Allerdale ward below Derwent, W. division of Cumberland, 1 mile (E. S. E.) from Maryport; containing
766 inhabitants. This was an important Roman station,
which Camden and Baxter consider to have been Volantium, Horsley Virosidum, and others Olenacum. Camden
says that the first band of the Dalmatians was quartered
here. There is, perhaps, no station in Britain where a
greater number of altars and inscribed tablets have been
found. At Ewanrigg is an endowed school, founded in
1718 by Ewan Christian and others. Coal is obtained
near the village. Sir Edward Law, lord chief justice
of the court of king's bench, derived his title from
this place, being created Baron Ellenborough in 1802.