Horwich
HORWICH, a chapelry, in the parish of Deane,
union of Bolton, hundred of Salford, S. division of
the county of Lancaster, 4 miles (W. N. W.) from
Bolton, on the road to Chorley and Preston; containing
3773 inhabitants. The ancient forest of Horwich, sloping
down the sides of Rivington Pike, long since disappeared. It was sixteen miles in circumference; and
from its capacious dimensions, and its abundant supply
of timber for buildings and for fuel, it became a manufacturing station at a very early period: as remote as
the reign of Henry VIII. we read of yarn spun in
Horwich. The chapelry is situated for the most part
in a luxuriant valley, gradually rising through the village
towards Bolton, and is separated from Anderton by the
river Douglas; it comprises 3230 acres. The population is chiefly engaged in extensive bleaching-works and
cotton-mills. The bleach-works of Messrs. Joseph Ridgway and Company were commenced about 1781; and
the print-works of Messrs. Chippendale and Company,
employing 500 persons, about the same time. Of three
cotton-mills, the two largest belong to Messrs. W. and
W. Bennett, and Peter Gaskell, Esq. A good stonequarry is wrought. Here is a station of the Bolton and
Preston railway. The living is a perpetual curacy, with
a net income of £240; patron, the Vicar of Deane.
The present chapel, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was
erected by the Church Commissioners in 1831, at an
expense of £5848, in lieu of the old chapel; it is in the
early English style, with a square tower, and contains a
monument by Westmacott, which cost £1500, to the
late Joseph Ridgway, Esq., who was a large proprietor
of land here. There are three places of worship for dissenters. Attached to the chapel are, an infants', a Sunday, and a national school. Two heaps of stones on
Wildersmoore Hill are intended, it is said, to record the
death of two boys in the snow, on going to the grammar
school at Rivington.
Horwood (St. Michael)
HORWOOD (St. Michael), a parish, in the union
of Barnstaple, hundred of Fremington, Braunton
and N. divisions of Devon, 5½ miles (S. W.) from
Barnstaple; containing 118 inhabitants. It comprises
about 830 acres, which are chiefly arable and pasture
land. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the
king's books at £7. 8. 4.; net income, £157; patron
and incumbent, the Rev. J. Dene. On the ledge of one
of the windows of the church is a recumbent effigy of a
female, beautifully executed in alabaster.
Horwood, Great (St. James)
HORWOOD, GREAT (St. James), a parish, in the
union of Winslow, hundred of Cottesloe, county of
Buckingham, 2¼ miles (N.) from Winslow; containing,
with the hamlet of Singleborough, 712 inhabitants. The
parish comprises 3194a. 38p., of which 805a. 3r. 12p.
are in Singleborough; about 1300 acres are arable,
upwards of 1584 pasture and meadow, and 308 wood.
An inclosure act was passed in 1841. The living is a
rectory, valued in the king's books at £14. 4. 2.; net
income, £302; patrons, the Warden and Fellows of
New College, Oxford. The church has been enlarged.
There is a place of worship for Independents.
Horwood, Little (St. Nicholas)
HORWOOD, LITTLE (St. Nicholas), a parish, in
the union of Winslow, hundred of Cottesloe, county
of Buckingham, 2 miles (N. E. by N.) from Winslow;
containing 392 inhabitants. It comprises 2746a. 17p.;
about 1190 acres are pasture, 112 meadow, 443 arable,
and 1000 uninclosed land in Whaddon chase, to a great
extent wooded. The living is a discharged vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £5. 6. 8.; net income,
£111; patron and impropriator, the Rev. J. Bartlett.
The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in the year 1766. The church has been somewhat
enlarged of late years.
Hose (St. Michael)
HOSE (St. Michael), a parish, in the union of
Melton-Mowbray, hundred of Framland, N. division
of the county of Leicester, 7 miles (N. by W.) from
Melton-Mowbray; containing 417 inhabitants. It contains 2292a. 2r. 39p., of which 760 acres are arable, and
the rest pasture; the surface is generally level, and the
soil clayey. The Grantham canal passes through the
parish. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in
the king's books at £7. 2. 6.; net income, £105; patron
and impropriator, the Duke of Rutland. The tithes were
commuted for land and a money payment in 1791; the
glebe contains 47 acres. There is a place of worship
for Baptists.
Hospital
HOSPITAL, a tything, in the parish, union, and
hundred of Farringdon, county of Berks; comprising
434a. 3r., and containing 113 inhabitants. It includes
the hamlet of Thrupp, and part of that of Littleworth.
Hotham (St. Oswald)
HOTHAM (St. Oswald), a parish, in the union of
Howden, Hunsley-Beacon division of the wapentake of
Harthill, E. riding of York, 1½ mile (N. N. E.) from
North Cave; containing 286 inhabitants. This parish,
which is situated between the Wolds and the great
plains of Howden and York, comprises 2673 acres,
chiefly arable. Its surface is undulated, and the scenery
is of cheerful aspect; the soil is principally a light and
sandy loam. The manor was for many generations the
property of the Hotham family. The village is on an
acclivity, and contains several neat and well-built
houses: it is not more than four miles distant from a
station of the Hull and Selby railway; and the MarketWeighton canal, which passes near the confines of the
parish, affords facility of conveyance for coal, lime, and
grain. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's
books at £10. 0. 7½., and in the patronage of the Crown:
the tithes have been commuted for £44, and the glebe
comprises about 400 acres. The church is a neat modern
structure, with an ancient Norman tower, and other
interesting details of that style of architecture, among
which are the remains of a fine Norman arch. Near
the village are vestiges of a Roman road leading towards
North and South Newbald.
Hothersall
HOTHERSALL, a township, in the parish of Ribchester, union of Preston, hundred of Amounderness, N. division of the county of Lancaster, 7 miles
(N. E. by E.) from Preston; containing 169 inhabitants.
The Hothersalls were for a long period the lords of this
place; their successors were the Lettenbys, who were
succeeded by the family of Martin. The township lies
on the north side of the river Ribble, and west of Ribchester; and comprises 1035a. 9p. The Hall, the seat
of the Hothersalls, was in existence in 1618; the present manor-house is more modern. The tithes have
been commuted for £70 payable to the Bishop of
Chester, and £11 to the vicar of the parish. In the
garden wall of the White Lion inn at this place, is a plain
stone cross about three feet high.
Hothfield (St. Mary)
HOTHFIELD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
West Ashford, hundred of Chart and Longbridge,
lathe of Shepway, E. division of Kent, 16 miles (E. S.
E.) from Maidstone; containing 408 inhabitants. It
comprises by admeasurement 1777 acres, of which 420
are arable, 129 woodland, and the rest pasture; the
surface is in general level, and the country open, and in
addition to the ordinary kinds of agricultural produce, a
few hops are grown. The South-Eastern railway runs
through the parish. The living is a rectory, valued in
the king's books at £17. 5.; net income, £243; patron,
the Earl of Thanet: the glebe contains 27 acres. The
church is an ancient edifice, containing some old and
costly monuments to the Tufton family. In the parish
is "Jack Cade's field," said to have been the hidingplace of that rebel in the reign of Henry VI., whence he
was dragged to execution by Alexander Iden, sheriff of
Kent.
Hothorpe
HOTHORPE, a hamlet, in the parish of Theddingworth, union of Market-Harborough, hundred of
Rothwell, N. division of the county of Northampton,
4½ miles (W. S. W.) from the town of Market-Harborough; containing 16 inhabitants, and comprising 928a.
1r. 8p. It lies on the borders of Leicestershire.
Hoton
HOTON, a chapelry, in the parish of Prestwold,
union of Loughborough, hundred of East Goscote,
N. division of the county of Leicester, 3 miles (N. E.
by E.) from the town of Loughborough; containing 460
inhabitants. The tithes were commuted for land and a
money payment in 1759. There is a place of worship
for Wesleyans.
Hough
HOUGH, a township, in the parish of Wybunbury,
union and hundred of Nantwich, S. division of the
county of Chester, 4 miles (E. by S.) from Nantwich;
containing 275 inhabitants. It comprises 954a. 2r.
27p., of a clayey soil. The tithes have been commuted
for £19 payable to the vicar, and £114 to the Bishop of
Lichfield.
Hough-on-the-Hill (All Saints)
HOUGH-on-the-Hill (All Saints), a parish, in
the union of Grantham, wapentake of Loveden, parts
of Kesteven, county of Lincoln, 7 miles (N.) from
Grantham; containing, with the hamlets of Brandon
and Gelston, 582 inhabitants. The living is a vicarage,
with the chapel of Brandon, valued in the king's books
at £15. 6. 8., and in the patronage of the Crown; net
income, £99; impropriator, Earl Brownlow. £20,
from various bequests, are annually distributed among
the poor. Here was an alien priory of Augustine canons,
a cell to the abbey of St. Mary de Voto, at Cherbourg;
the revenue was valued at £20, and was granted by
Richard II. to the Carthusians at Coventry.
Hougham (St. Lawrence)
HOUGHAM (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union
of Dovor, partly in the hundred of Bewsborough,
lathe of St. Augustine, and partly within the jurisdiction of the cinque-port liberty of Dovor, E. division
of Kent; comprising a small part of the town of Dovor,
and containing 1311 inhabitants. The parish is bounded
on the east by high chalk cliffs, which command a fine
view of the hills of Boulogne, across the Channel. It
comprises 2939 acres, whereof 280 are waste or common, and 94 in wood; the soil is clay, resting upon
chalk. A branch of the river Stour, and the South-Eastern railway, pass through. The living is a vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £6. 13. 4.; patron and
appropriator, the Archbishop of Canterbury: the vicarial
tithes have been commuted for £175. 6., and the glebe
contains 7½ acres; the appropriate have been commuted
for £532, and the glebe contains 98 acres. The church
is principally in the early English style. In the Dovor
part of the parish is a church dedicated to Christ, the
living of which is in the gift of Trustees. There is a
place of worship for Wesleyans. Many persons who
died of the plague, in 1665, were buried here, at a place
called the Graves.
Hougham (All Saints)
HOUGHAM (All Saints), a parish, in the union of
Newark, wapentake of Loveden, parts of Kesteven,
county of Lincoln, 6¼ miles (N. N. W.) from the town
of Grantham; containing 337 inhabitants. The living
is a rectory, with that of Marston united, valued in the
king's books at £33. 8. 6½.; net income, £559; patron,
Sir J. C. Thorold, Bart.
Houghton
HOUGHTON, a township, in the parish of Stanwix,
union of Carlisle, Eskdale ward, E. division of
Cumberland, 2 miles (N. by E.) from Carlisle; containing 372 inhabitants. The patronage of St. John's
new church, here, built and endowed by subscription,
and to which a district is assigned, has been vested in
trustees by Her Majesty's Commissioners.
Houghton (St. Mary)
HOUGHTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
St. Ives, hundred of Hurstingstone, county of Huntingdon, 2 miles (W. by N.) from the town of St. Ives;
containing 424 inhabitants. The living is a rectory,
with that of Witton annexed, valued in the king's books
at £34. 17. 8½., and in the patronage of Lady O. Sparrow; net income, £626.
Houghton, Lancashire.—See Haughton.
HOUGHTON, Lancshire.—See Haughton.
Houghton, with Middleton and Arbury
HOUGHTON, with Middleton and Arbury, a
township, in the parish of Winwick, union of Warrington, hundred of West Derby, S. division of
Lancashire, 3 miles (N. N. E.) from Warrington; containing 293 inhabitants. The three manors were granted
by the baron of Newton at an early period to the Southworths, at first of Southworth, but afterwards of Samlesbury. Sir John Southworth, said to have been a favourite of Queen Elizabeth's, is supposed to have sold
much of the family property in this quarter; which is
extremely probable, as in the 11th of Charles I., of all
the extensive possessions of the Southworths, the manor
of Samlesbury was alone remaining: this, also, was
sold in 1677. Among the more recent proprietors here,
have been Thomas Claughton, Esq., of Haydock Lodge,
and the Greenall family, of Warrington: John Greenall, Esq., is the present owner of most of the township.
It comprises 840 acres, of which 285 are arable, 495
meadow and pasture, 28 wood, and 32 acres roads and
waste; the surface is level, the soil loam and peat, and
the district purely agricultural. The road between
Warrington and Newton passes on the west. Middleton
House, an ancient mansion, is the seat of Mr. Greenall.
There is a very abundant spring, known as the Spa well,
and formerly in high repute; the supply of water is so
great that it has been in contemplation to convey it,
under an act of parliament, to Warrington, for the use
of the inhabitants. The tithes have been commuted for
a yearly rent-charge of £120.
Houghton, Lincoln.—See Spittlegate.
HOUGHTON, Lincoln.—See Spittlegate.
Houghton, with Closehouse
HOUGHTON, with Closehouse, a township, in
the parish of Heddon-on-the-Wall, union of Castle
ward, E. division of Tindale ward, S. division of
Northumberland, 7½ miles (W.) from Newcastleupon-Tyne; containing 127 inhabitants. This township, which includes the hamlet of Street-Houses, comprises 666 acres: the village is half a mile to the west
of Heddon-on-the-Wall. The mansion of Closehouse is
a handsome structure, delightfully situated on a fine
lawn.
Houghton
HOUGHTON, a parish, in the union of East-Retford, Hatfield division of the wapentake of Bassetlaw,
N. division of the county of Nottingham, 3¾ miles
(N. W. by W.) from Tuxford; containing 77 inhabitants.
This place, anciently Hoctone or Hoctune, was the fee of
Baldric the Saxon, before the Conquest, and afterwards
of Roger de Poictou, from whose family it passed to the
Earl of Lancaster, and next to Thomas de Longvillers,
in whose house it continued for some successions. It
subsequently passed to other families; and came to Sir
William Holles or Hollis, whose great-grandson, John
Holles, was in 1624 created Baron Houghton and Earl of
Clare, which titles are now merged in the dukedom of
Newcastle. The first duke of Newcastle had a splendid
mansion here, but scarcely a vestige of it is remaining. The parish comprises 994a. 1r. 15p.; the surface
is low, the soil of a sandy quality, and in some parts
poor, but advancing towards a higher state of cultivation.
The scenery is picturesque; a small stream, passing on
the north and west, runs into the river Idle. There
are still some ruins of the ancient church embosomed
in a plantation of firs, consisting of part of the nave,
with the northern portion of the cemetery, in which
are mutilated tombs with the armorial bearings of the
Stanhope and Holles families. The inhabitants attend
divine service in the neighbouring church of Walesby.
At Houghton Park is a national school, partly supported by an endowment of £25 per annum.