Menwith, with Darley
MENWITH, with Darley, a township, in the parish
of Hampsthwaite, union of Pateley-Bridge, Lower
division of the wapentake of Claro, W. riding of York,
11½ miles (W. by N.) from Knaresborough; containing
725 inhabitants. It comprises about 2730 acres, forming a district of scattered houses southward of the river
Nidd. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and
the Society of Friends. In 1748, William Day gave
land for education, now producing £36 per annum.
Meole, Brace, Salop.—See Brace-Meole.
MEOLE, BRACE, Salop.—See Brace-Meole.
Meols, North (St. Cuthbert)
MEOLS, NORTH (St. Cuthbert), a parish, in the
union of Ormskirk, hundred of West Derby, S. division of Lancashire, 9½ miles (N. N. W.) from Ormskirk; containing, with the township of Birkdale, 8348
inhabitants, of whom 7791 are in North Meols township. At the time of the Domesday survey, three thanes
held this place in three manors. The district now
called North Meols afterwards fell to the barons of
Penwortham; and in the reign of Richard I., Hugh
Bussell assigned to Richard Fitz-Hutred the whole of
"Normoles" with its appurtenances, which grant was
confirmed by John, Earl of Morton, afterwards king, in
whose reign the place gave name to the proprietor,
Robert de Meolis. The ancient Feodary of the duchy of
Lancaster states, that Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, held
the manor of "Northmeales" in right of Alicia his
wife: the Aghtons, Bolds, Heskeths, and Hoghtons became subsequently proprietors here. The parish lies at
the mouth of the Ribble, and is bounded on the north
and west by that river and the Irish Sea. It comprises
10,797 acres, of which about 2376 are sandhills or
waste; the remainder of the land varies much in quality, consisting of reclaimed peat-moss, light sand, and
good loam or strong soil, chiefly arable, the potato being
much cultivated: the surface is level. The workingclasses are mainly employed in agriculture, in fishing,
and in hand-loom weaving. A court baron is held
twice a year; a court leet appertains to Birkdale, and a
fair is held in the parish on the Monday and Tuesday
nearest the 20th of August, for cattle, pigs, &c. The
township of North Meols contains the modern and
rising bathing-place of Southport, and the villages or
hamlets of Churchtown, Marshside, Crossens, Banks,
and others. Meols Hall, now a farmhouse, the property of the Rev. Charles Hesketh, was the ancient seat
of the Heskeths, afterwards of Rossall; and Bold House,
several centuries ago, was the occasional seat of the
family whose name it bears: both these mansions display marks of their former consequence.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£8. 3. 4.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. Charles
Hesketh: the tithes of North Meols township have been
commuted for £800, and the tithes of Birkdale for
£87. 10.; the glebe comprises 16 acres, with a good
rectory-house. The church, which stands in Churchtown, is a small edifice consisting of a body, chancel,
north transept, and tower; the interior is plain, and is
lighted by five windows, of which three are on the south,
and the others, of semicircular shape, in the chancel.
There are three additional churches within the parish;
two at Southport, and one at Crossens. The Independents, Wesleyans, and Primitive Methodists have places
of worship at Churchtown. An ancient grammar school,
endowed with £370, is now consolidated with a national
school, erected in 1827.—See Birkdale, Crossens,
and Southport.
Meolse, Great
MEOLSE, GREAT, a township, in the parish of
West Kirby, union, and Lower division of the hundred,
of Wirrall, S. division of the county of Chester;
containing 172 inhabitants. This place was granted to
Robert de Rodelent, and was held by him at the Domesday survey. A family which settled here at a subsequent period assumed the local name, and continued
to hold the manor as capital lords until nearly the close
of the 17th century: it then passed by the bequest of
Anne, their last heiress, to Charles Hough, a minor; and
afterwards, through his issue, to Mr. John Ramsbottom,
of Liverpool. The Stanleys of Alderley, and the Stanleys of Hooton, are now sole owners of the township.
It comprises 750 acres. A part of it, which fronts the
Irish Sea for upwards of two miles, consists of a narrow
slip of sandhills, protected in some instances by embankments from the inundations of the sea: as it approaches Hoose, the slip widens, and becomes connected
with that township.—See Hoose.
Meolse, Little
MEOLSE, LITTLE, a township, in the parish of
West Kirby, union, and Lower division of the hundred,
of Wirrall, S. division of the county of Chester, 9
miles (W.) from Birkenhead; containing 134 inhabitants.
This township, like the preceding, was held by Robert
de Rodelent; and after him, the Grosvenors and the
Meolses became the capital lords of the soil. The mesne
manor was held by the Lancelyns, of Poulton, and
passed with their other manors and estates to Randal
Greene in right of his wife Elizabeth, sole heiress of the
Lancelyns. Little Meolse was afterwards sold to the
Stanleys of Weaver; and is now, like Great Meolse, the
property of the Stanleys of Alderley, and the Stanleys of
Hooton. The township comprises 550 acres. The
greater part was a waste, until Lord Stanley of Alderley
granted a building-lease for a term of eighty years,
which has led to the erection of several pleasing villas.
These, for summer residences and the convenience of
excellent sea-bathing, notwithstanding the apparent
want of attraction from their being seated amid sandhills on the desolate extremity of a mere promontory,
are in great request, and a considerable increase may be
anticipated in their number. In this township and
Hoose is Hoylake, where his lordship's father erected,
on the margin of the sea, one of the most spacious
hotels in the county, now much frequented during the
bathing season. A little to the north is a smaller hotel.
A commodious church, also, has been erected by the
lady of Mr. Swainson, which affords great accommodation to the inhabitants and the numerous visiters attracted hither, who before had no place of worship
nearer than the parish church; it is dedicated to the
Holy Trinity, and is a neat edifice in the Norman style,
from designs by Mr. Picton, of Liverpool. The living
is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Bishop of Chester,
with an income of £100. In 1690, the Duke of Schomberg encamped with his army near Hoylake, previously
to his embarkation for Ireland.
Meon, East (All Saints)
MEON, EAST (All Saints), a parish, in the union
of Petersfield, partly in the hundred of Meon-Stoke,
but chiefly in that of East Meon, Petersfield and N.
divisions of the county of Southampton, 4½ miles
(W. by S.) from Petersfield; containing, with the
tythings of Bordean, Coombe, Langrish, Oxenbourne,
Peak, Ramsdean, Riplington, and Westbury, 1499 inhabitants, of whom 651 are in East Meon tything. The
parish comprises 10,825a. 3r. 11p., of which 7306 acres
are arable, 676 meadow and pasture, 1350 woodland,
1277 down, and the remainder common and waste: the
scenery is beautifully diversified. An act for inclosing
certain lands was passed in 1839. A pleasure-fair is
held on the 19th of September. The living is a vicarage, endowed with a portion of the rectorial tithes,
with the livings of Froxfield and Steep annexed, in the
patronage of the Bishop of Winchester (the appropriator
of the remainder of the rectorial tithes), and valued in
the king's books at £35. 1. 8.; net income, £903. The
church is a handsome cruciform structure, with a Norman tower surmounted by a spire, and a highly-enriched
western doorway; and contains a very ancient font,
similar to that in Winchester cathedral, sculptured with
symbolical figures representing the Expulsion of Adam
and Eve from Paradise, and their subsequent instruction
in the arts of husbandry and spinning. There is a
school with a small endowment.
Meon-Stoke (St. Mary)
MEON-STOKE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union
of Droxford, hundred of Meon-Stoke, Droxford and
N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 4 miles
(N. E. by E.) from Bishop's Waltham; containing 459
inhabitants. This place is supposed by Camden to
derive its name from the ancient district of Meanwari,
which, together with the Isle of Wight, was given to
Ethelwald, King of the West Saxons, at his baptism, by
Wulphere, King of the Mercians, who was his godfather.
The parish comprises by measurement 2256 acres;
1329 are inclosed and cultivated, and the remainder open
downs. The village, of which a considerable portion was
destroyed by fire about the year 1740, is neatly built.
The living is a rectory, with that of Soberton annexed,
valued in the king's books at £46. 2. 11., and in the
gift of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes of the
parish have been commuted for £280; there is a glebehouse, and the glebe comprises 28 acres. The church
is in the decorated English style, and contains many
interesting details; the east window is enriched with
delicate tracery, in which is the rose of William of
Wykeham, by whom this part of the building is said to
have been erected. On the north-eastern boundary of
the parish is a Roman camp called Old Winchester,
within which a beautiful Roman lamp was discovered
in 1834; and at the western entrance of the fortification are several barrows, which have been opened and
found to contain calcined bones, fragments of Roman
pottery, and other relics.
Meon, West (St. John the Evangelist)
MEON, WEST (St. John the Evangelist), a parish, in the union of Droxford, hundred of Fawley,
Droxford and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 7½ miles (N. E.) from Bishop's-Waltham; containing, with the hamlet of Woodlands, 814 inhabitants.
The living is a rectory, with that of Privett annexed,
valued in the king's books at £30. 17. 11., and in the
gift of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes have been
commuted for £729, and the glebe comprises 36 acres.
The present church, consecrated in May, 1846, stands
on an eminence at the entrance to the village; it was
built chiefly at the cost of the late Archdeacon Bayley,
and is in the style of the latter part of the 13th century.
There is a place of worship for Independents.
Meopham (St. John the Baptist)
MEOPHAM (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in
the union of North Aylesford, hundred of ToltingTrough, lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 5½
miles (S.) from the town of Gravesend; containing 937
inhabitants. It comprises 4694a. 2r. 22p., of which
3026 acres are arable, 508 meadow and pasture, 877
woodland, and 147 hop plantations. The living is a
vicarage, in the patronage of the Archbishop of Canterbury, valued in the king's books at £16. 3. 4.; net income, £435; appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of
Canterbury. The church, in the decorated English style,
was built in 1396 by Archbishop Courtenay, who founded
four almshouses near it.
Mepal (St. Mary)
MEPAL (St. Mary), a parish, in the hundred of
South Witchford, union and Isle of Ely, county of
Cambridge, 4 miles (S. E.) from Chatteris; containing
539 inhabitants. The parish comprises by admeasurement 1524 acres, principally in pasture; about 263
acres are common or waste land. The living is a
rectory, with the vicarage of Sutton united, valued in
the king's books at £3. 6. 8., and in the gift of the
Dean and Chapter of Ely, the appropriators of Sutton:
the tithes of Mepal have been commuted for £270, and
the glebe comprises 42 acres.
Meppershall (St. Mary)
MEPPERSHALL (St. Mary), a parish, in the union
of Biggleswade, hundred of Clifton, county of Bedford, 6 miles (S. W. by S.) from Biggleswade; containing 487 inhabitants. It comprises by computation 1900
acres. The platting of straw is carried on to some extent. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books
at £22; net income, £500; patrons, the Master and
Fellows of St. John's College, Cambridge: the glebe
comprises 90 acres, with a house. The church, a neat
structure in the early English style, has some Norman
details, of which the north entrance is a handsome
specimen. A school is endowed with £15 per annum.
Attached to the principal farm, and now used as a
barn, are the remains of an ancient chapel with an enriched Norman doorway, and some good windows of
later date.
Mercaston
MERCASTON, a township, in the parish of Mugginton, hundred of Appletree, S. division of the
county of Derby, 7½ miles (N. W.) from Derby; containing 138 inhabitants. The manor of "Merchenestune"
was for many generations the property and seat of a
younger branch of the Knivetons, of Bradley, who were
seated here as early as the reign of Edward III. William Kniveton was one of the baronets created by
James I. on the institution of the order in 1611. Sir
Andrew, the third baronet, was a zealous royalist, and
governor of Tutbury Castle for the king; he suffered
much in his property, and was obliged to sell most of his
estates. This manor was purchased by an ancestor of
E. S. C. Pole, Esq. The township comprises 1100 acres
of fertile land, whereof about one-third is arable. There
are several good farmhouses, of which the ancient Hall,
the seat of the Knivetons, is now one. At the Norman
survey here was a church, but no remains of it exist.
The poor are entitled to one-sixth part of German Pole's
charity.
Mere
MERE, a township, in the parish of Rosthern,
union of Altrincham, hundred of Bucklow, N. division of the county of Chester, 2½ miles (N. W. by N.)
from Knutsford; containing 552 inhabitants. It comprises 1890 acres, of which the soil is half clay, half
sand; the cultivation is with a view to dairy-farming:
upwards of 100 acres are wood. T. L. Brooke, Esq., is
owner of the township, and has his seat here. A school
is supported by this gentleman.
Mere (St. Michael)
MERE (St. Michael), a market-town and parish,
and the head of a union, in the hundred of Mere, Hindon and S. divisions of Wilts; containing, with the
tythings of Chaddenwick, Woodlands, and Zeals, 3139
inhabitants, of whom 1719 are in the town of Mere, 21½
miles (W. by N.) from Salisbury, and 102 (W. S. W.)
from London. The name of this place is derived from
the Saxon word Mæra, signifying bounds or limits, and
indicates its situation on the borders of the counties of
Wilts, Somerset, and Dorset. In 1253, permission was
given by Henry III. to Richard, Earl of Cornwall, to
build and fortify a castle on his manor of Mere, and the
manor has ever since been attached to the duchy of
Cornwall. In the 9th of Henry IV., a grant was made
to Henry, Prince of Wales, as Duke of Cornwall, of a
market and two annual fairs. The town, which is on
the road from Salisbury to Wincanton, is small, and the
buildings are irregular; the inhabitants are well supplied
with water. The principal branch of manufacture is
that of English dowlas and bed-ticking; and there is a
silk-throwing mill. The market is on Tuesday; and
fairs are held for corn and cattle on May 17th and
October 10th. The town anciently sent two members
to parliament, but was disfranchised on the plea of poverty. Courts leet and baron are held in October, for
the duchy of Cornwall, and constables and tythingmen
are annually chosen for the town and hundred.
The parish is situated at the south-west extremity of
the Downs, and comprises by computation 8000 acres;
the soil is chalk, alternated with clay. The living is a
vicarage, in the patronage of the Bishop of Salisbury,
valued in the king's books at £28. 4. 2.; net income,
£200. The church is a spacious and handsome structure, partly Norman, and partly in the early English
style, with an embattled tower crowned by lofty pinnacles; on each side of the chancel is a sepulchral chapel,
and in the belfry is a beautifully carved oak ceiling. At
Zeals is a separate incumbency. There is a place of
worship for Independents; also a Roman Catholic chapel
at Bonham House. A school is partly supported by a
bequest of £10 per annum. The union of Mere comprises 12 parishes or places, of which 7 are in Wilts,
3 in Somerset, and 2 in Dorset, with a population altogether of 8498. To the north-west of the town are
vestiges of a Danish encampment, called "White-street
camp," from the hill on which it is situated. Francis,
Lord Cottington, a celebrated statesman in the reign
of Charles I.; and the Rev. Francis Potter, an ingenious mechanist, born about 1594; were natives of the
place.
Merevale (St. Mary)
MEREVALE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Atherstone, partly in the hundred of Sparkenhoe,
S. division of the county of Leicester, and partly in
the Atherstone division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 1½ mile
(W. by S.) from Atherstone; containing 314 inhabitants, of whom 106 are in the Leicester portion. The
river Anker bounds that part of the parish which is
situated in Leicestershire; the part in the county of
Warwick comprises about 870 acres. The surface is
hilly, the soil a strong clay, and the scenery richly
diversified: coal is obtained, and one mine is now in
operation. The Roman Watling-street passes by the
parish; and the Coventry canal runs in a north-eastern
direction. The village, which is in Warwickshire, is
small and scattered. The living is a peculiar with exempt jurisdiction, in the patronage of W. S. Dugdale,
Esq. The church is partly in the decorated, and partly
in the later English style. An abbey for Cistercian
monks was founded by Robert, Earl of Ferrers and
Nottingham, about 1148, and dedicated to the Virgin
Mary; the remains consist of what is supposed to have
been the refectory, and of part of the foundations of the
buildings.
Mereworth (St. Lawrence)
MEREWORTH (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the
union of Malling, hundred of Littlefield, lathe of
Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 7 miles (W. S. W.)
from Maidstone; containing 862 inhabitants. This
parish is bounded on the north by the Hurst woods,
and comprises 2374 acres, of which 905 are in wood.
The soil is generally a light hazel-coloured mould,
resting on Kentish ragstone; the surface is boldly undulated, and there are some fine tracts of grazing-land.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£14. 2. 6., and in the patronage of the Baroness Le
Despencer: the tithes have been commuted for £822. 10.,
and the glebe comprises 33 acres. The church, rebuilt
by John, Earl of Westmorland, in 1744, is a very handsome edifice constructed of stone, with a fine Corinthian
portico, and a lofty spire.
Meriden, or Mereden (St. Lawrence)
MERIDEN, or Mereden (St. Lawrence), a parish, and the head of a union, in the Solihull division of
the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of Warwick,
5½ miles (W. N. W.) from Coventry; containing 1071
inhabitants. This place, anciently Alspath, formed part
of the possessions of the Countess Godiva in 1043, and
in the 12th of Edward II. was the property of John de
Segrave, who obtained for the inhabitants the grant of
a weekly market and an annual fair. The parish comprises about 2782 acres, of which three-fourths are arable,
377 acres woodland, and the remainder meadow and
pasture; the surface is pleasingly diversified with rising
grounds, and hills of various elevation, commanding extensive and richly-varied prospects. The view from the
churchyard, and from two houses to the north of it
(both the property of James Kittermaster, Esq., M.D.,
and of which one is called Ryleye House), embraces an
amphitheatre eight miles in circuit, sloping gradually
towards the village, embellished with plantations interspersed with stately oaks and lofty elms, beech, pine,
and poplar of luxuriant growth, and gradually expanding
from the south-east to the north-west into a circuit of
nearly 30 miles. In the middle distance are seen more
than twenty towers and spires of churches, beyond
which appear, in bold relief, Bromsgrove Lickey, Birmingham, Bar Beacon, and other objects; and in the
extreme distance, the hills of Worcestershire, Staffordshire, and Shropshire. The soil of the lands is various,
in some parts a rich deep sandy loam, in some a sandy
gravel, and in others marl, clay, and gravel. On Meriden Hill is an extensive quarry of red sandstone, and
near the village was once a quarry of fine hard white
freestone, which is now filled up, though a large bed extending eastward is still unwrought.
Meriden Hall, the seat of Charles Digby, Esq., is a
handsome mansion, built of white freestone, and beautifully situated in a richly-planted demesne, embellished
with a fine sheet of water. The ancient hall of the
Walshes, who were lords of the manor in 1400, and
Alspath Hall, north-east of the church, are now occupied
by farmers; and an ancient moated mansion, once a
seat of the earls of Derby, is also a farmhouse. The
village is situated on the road from Birmingham to
Coventry, and contains several well-built houses, one of
which, formerly the Bull's-head inn, a celebrated posting-house and hotel, is a spacious building of ancient
date, originally the seat of Sir Clement Fisher, of Packington, and now the private residence of its proprietor,
Charles Blakesley, Esq. On the green, at the western
extremity of the village, is an old cross of red sandstone,
the shaft of which and the steps forming the ascent to
it, are in good preservation; and near it is the Swan
inn, an ancient house built in 1506, which is now the
principal inn.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the
king's books at £5. 12.; net income, £268; patron and
impropriator, the Earl of Aylesford. The tithes were
commuted for corn-rents in 1785. The Hon. and Rev.
Charles Finch, rector of Great and Little Packington,
is vicar of Meriden, and the duties of the benefice are
performed by a curate, who resides in the vicaragehouse, beautifully situated to the south of the church,
and to which are attached 42 acres of glebe. The church,
seated on an eminence south-east of the village, is an
ancient structure, in the early and later English styles,
with some Norman details, and an elegant embattled
tower. The outer walls were taken down and rebuilt,
and two galleries erected, in 1827, at an expense of
£1898, of which £242 were raised by a rate, £150 were
a grant from the Church Building Society, and the
remainder was subscribed; the burial-ground, also, was
enlarged. In the aisles are two ancient monuments,
one of alabaster, and the other of red sandstone; the
one to John Wyard, who founded a chantry in the
church, in the reign of Henry IV., and the other supposed by Dugdale to be erected to the memory of the
Walshes. A national school for boys, and another for
girls, with a residence for the master and mistress in
the centre, connecting them, was built at a cost of £522,
raised by subscription, on a site given by the Earl of
Aylesford, in 1843; they are supported by an endowment arising from canal shares bequeathed by the Digby
family, and the interest of £500 by Henry Barnett,
Esq., of Hollybury End. The poor-law union comprises 18 parishes or places, containing a population of
11,602. In the clay lands to the east of the church,
specimens of fossil wood are met with; and in the
gravel-pits at Hollybury End; are found bivalved shells,
corallines, and enchrinites. On Meriden common are
traces of an encampment formed during the Scottish
rebellion, in 1745.
Mering
MERING, an extra-parochial liberty, in the union
of Newark, N. division of the wapentake of Thurgarton, S. division of the county of Nottingham, 8 miles
(N. by E.) from Newark; containing 5 inhabitants.
It comprises 700 acres of low marshy grazing land,
near the river Trent, and is situated between the parishes
of Girton and Sutton: the occupier now contributes to
the repairs of Sutton church.
Merkshall, or Mattishall-Heath (St. Edmund)
MERKSHALL, or Mattishall-Heath (St. Edmund), a parish, in the union of Henstead, hundred
of Humbleyard, E. division of Norfolk, 3½ miles (S.)
from Norwich; containing 24 inhabitants. It comprises
540 acres, of which 417 are arable, 87 meadow, and 12
woodland. The living is a sinecure rectory, united to
the rectory of Caistor St. Edmund's; the church is in
ruins. In opening a barrow, in 1821, opposite the site
of the Roman camp at Caistor, the remains of two
skeletons with the teeth perfect, and four Roman urns
containing calcined bones, were found.
Merridge
MERRIDGE, a hamlet, in the parish of Spaxton,
union of Bridgwater, hundred of Cannington, W.
division of Somerset; containing 102 inhabitants.
Merrington (St. John the Evangelist)
MERRINGTON (St. John the Evangelist), a parish, in the unions of Auckland, Durham, and Sedgefield, S. E. division of Darlington ward, S. division
of the county of Durham; containing, with the chapelry
of Ferry-Hill, and the townships of Chilton and Hett,
1704 inhabitants, of whom 431 are in the township of
Merrington, 3¾ miles (E. by N.) from Bishop-Auckland.
The soil is in general light and gravelly, resting upon
limestone, but in some parts clay on hard blue whinstone; the surface is hilly, and the scenery much diversified. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £14. 4. 9½., and in the gift of the Dean and
Chapter of Durham: the tithes of the vicar have been
commuted for £376. The church is principally in the
Norman style, and stands on elevated ground. There
is a district church at Ferry-Hill. On the usurpation
of the see of Durham by Comyn, about 1143, this place
was seized by his nephew, who partly encompassed the
church with a ditch and vallum, and occupied it with
armed men.
Merrington
MERRINGTON, a township, in the parish of Preston-Gubbals, liberties of Shrewsbury, union of Atcham, N. division of Salop, 5¾ miles (N. by W.) from
Shrewsbury; containing 188 inhabitants.
Merriott (All Saints)
MERRIOTT (All Saints), a parish, in the union of
Chard, hundred of Crewkerne, W. division of Somerset, 2 miles (N.) from Crewkerne; containing 1467
inhabitants. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued
in the king's books at £11. 11. 5½.; net income, £312;
patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of
Bristol. A gallery has been erected in the church.
Merrow (St. John the Evangelist)
MERROW (St. John the Evangelist), a parish,
in the union of Guildford, Second division of the hundred of Wokeing, W. division of Surrey, 2 miles
(E. N. E.) from Guildford; containing 252 inhabitants.
It is situated on the road from Leatherhead to Guildford,
and comprises 1608 acres, of which 783 are arable, 335
pasture, 92 woodland and plantations, and the remainder
common and waste. From many parts of the downs
here, the prospects are exceedingly beautiful, particularly from the well-known spot called Newlands Corner,
which commands a landscape of vast extent, richly cultivated, and adorned with mansions, parks, and villages.
The Guildford race-course is in the parish. The living
is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at
£9. 0. 2½., and in the gift of the Earl of Onslow: the
tithes have been commuted for £250. The church
exhibits strong characteristics of Norman architecture,
both in the northern entrance, and in the nave: having
been restored and enlarged, it was re-opened in April,
1843, and now presents a very neat appearance.
Merryn, St.
MERRYN, ST., a parish, in the union of St. Columb Major, hundred of Pyder, E. division of Cornwall, 2¼ miles (W. S. W.) from Padstow; containing
593 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the west
and north by the Bristol Channel, and comprises 3608
acres, of which 1159 are common or waste land; the
surface is strikingly varied, and the coast is lined with
cliffs of singularly wild and rugged aspect. A small
quay was constructed under the Catacleuse Cliff in
1794, by Henry Peter, Esq., for the accommodation of
coasting-vessels, and the seine boats belonging to the
pilchard-fishery. Lead-ore is found; there are also
some quarries of inferior slate, which is used for roofing
houses, and fine dark-coloured trap rock is obtained in
the cliff Catacleuse. A fair is held on the Monday
preceding the 22nd of June. The living is a vicarage,
endowed with a portion of the rectorial tithes, valued in
the king's books at £15. 6. 8., and in the gift of the
Bishop of Exeter: the impropriate tithes have been
commuted for £410, and the incumbent's for £250;
the glebe comprises 36 acres. The church is an ancient
structure, the pillars of which are of trapstone; the
font is curiously carved with figures of the Apostles,
and originally belonged to the ruined church of St.
Constantine, an ancient village of which some remains
still exist, near Harlyn. There are places of worship
for Wesleyan and Primitive Methodists.