Putford, East
PUTFORD, EAST, a parish, in the union of Bideford, hundred of Shebbear, Great Torrington and N.
divisions of Devon, 8½ miles (W. by S.) from Great
Torrington; containing 197 inhabitants. It comprises
1597 acres, of which 708 are common or waste. The
living is annexed to the vicarage of Buckland-Brewer.
Putford, West
PUTFORD, WEST, a parish, in the union of Bideford, hundred of Black Torrington, Holsworthy and
N. divisions of Devon, 9 miles (W. S. W.) from the town
of Great Torrington; containing 490 inhabitants. The
parish comprises 2370 acres, of which 1120 are common
or waste land. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £9. 11. 0½., and in the gift of W. May,
Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £195, and the
glebe comprises 70 acres.
Putley
PUTLEY, a parish, in the union of Ledbury, hundred of Greytree, county of Hereford, 5 miles (W.)
from Ledbury; containing 158 inhabitants. The parish
is situated to the south of the road from Ledbury to
Hereford; and comprises by measurement 589 acres, of
which 224 are arable, 300 pasture, 13 wood, 24 glebe,
10 waste, and 18 road. The soil is clay, the surface undulated, and a hard clay-stone is quarried for the repair
of roads. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in
the king's books at £3. 18. 4., and in the gift of the Dean
and Chapter of Hereford: the tithes have been commuted for £110, and there are 20 acres of glebe. The
church is a small ancient edifice.
Putley
PUTLEY, a township, in the parish of Woolhope,
union of Ledbury, hundred of Greytree, county of
Hereford; containing 108 inhabitants.
Putney (St. Mary)
PUTNEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Wandsworth and Clapham, W. division of the hundred of Brixton, E. division of Surrey, 4 miles (S. W.)
from London; containing, with the hamlet of Roehampton, 4684 inhabitants. In Domesday book this place is
styled Putelei, and it was subsequently called Puttenheath, or Pottenheath, since contracted into its present
name. The village is situated on the southern bank of
the Thames, opposite to Fulham, with which it is connected by a wooden bridge; it is lighted with gas, partly
paved, and well supplied with water. Queen Elizabeth
was a frequent visiter here at the house of a Mr. Lacy,
who also had the honour to entertain James I. a short
time before his coronation. During the civil war in the
reign of Charles I., a bridge of boats was constructed
across the Thames, and forts were erected on each side
of the river, by order of the Earl of Essex, on the retreat of the royalists to Kingston, after the battle of
Brentford; and in 1647, the head-quarters of the army
under Cromwell were fixed at Putney, while the king
was a prisoner at Hampton Court. An ancient ferry
over the Thames at this place is mentioned in Domesday
book, as yielding to the lord of the manor of Wimbledon
a toll of twenty shillings per annum: in 1729, the bridge
was erected, in pursuance of an act of parliament, at an
expense of £16,000, subscribed by 30 shareholders, who
purchased the ferry for £8000. The Richmond railway
has a station here. On Putney Heath, to the south of
the village, is an obelisk erected by the corporation of
London, with an inscription commemorating the experiments made in 1776, by David Hartley, to prove the
efficacy of a method of building houses fire-proof, for
the trial of which he had in 1774 obtained a grant from
parliament of £2500. The College of Civil-Engineers at
Putney was founded in 1840, for the purpose of affording sound instruction in the theory and practice of civilengineering and architecture, and in all those branches
of science and learning which are adapted to the present
advanced state of society, and constitute an education
that fits the student for any pursuit or profession.
The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £362;
patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of
Worcester. The church, founded as a chapel of ease to
Wimbledon, was rebuilt about the reign of Henry VII.,
and in 1836 was again rebuilt, and the old tower restored,
at an expense of £7000, defrayed by subscription, a rate,
and a grant of £400 from the Incorporated Society. It
is in the later English style, with the small chantry
chapel (originally erected by Nicholas West, Bishop of
Ely) removed from the east end of the south aisle, and
rebuilt at the east end of the north side, the old style
being preserved. At Roehampton is a separate incumbency. There is a place of worship for Independents.
In 1684, Thomas Martyn bequeathed lands for the
foundation and support of a charity school for twenty
boys, sons of watermen; and by a decree of the court
of chancery in 1715, the property was vested in trustees:
the income is about £270. An almshouse for twelve men
and women, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was erected
by Sir Abraham Dawes, who by will in 1639 endowed it
with a rent-charge of £40, which subsequent benefactions have increased to £127 per annum. The proprietors of the bridge distribute £31 per annum to watermen,
and watermen's widows and children; and the parish
receives benefit from Henry Smith's and other charities.
Putney was the birthplace of Bishop West, already
mentioned; of Thomas Cromwell, made Earl of Essex
by Henry VIII.; and of Edward Gibbon, the celebrated
author of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, who
was born in 1737. John Toland, a noted free-thinking
writer, died at Putney, in 1722, and was interred in the
churchyard; and Robert Wood, under secretary of state,
who published The Ruins of Palmyra, and other curious
archæological works, was interred in the new burialground, in 1771. William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, died
at a house on Putney Heath.
Puttenham (St. Mary)
PUTTENHAM (St. Mary), a parish, in the union
of Berkhampstead, hundred of Dacorum, county of
Hertford, 3¾ miles (N. W.) from Tring; containing
136 inhabitants. This parish, which comprises 712
acres, is situated within a mile of the Aylesbury branch
of the London and Birmingham railway; and a branch
of the Grand Junction canal intersects the parish on
the south. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's
books at £10. 1. 0½.; net income, £166, derived from
150 acres of land assigned in lieu of tithes in 1814;
patron, the Bishop of Lincoln. The tower of the church
is built of flint and stone in square compartments; the
ceiling of the nave, which is of carved oak, is supported
by figures representing some of the Apostles, and on the
cross-beams are other figures habited as ecclesiastics.
Puttenham (St. John the Baptist)
PUTTENHAM (St. John the Baptist), a parish,
in the First division of the hundred of Godalming, W.
division of Surrey, 4½ miles (W. by S.) from Guildford;
containing 384 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1896
acres, of which 608 are uninclosed common, about 20
woodland, 25 pasture, and the remainder arable. The
Hog's Back, a high ridge embracing an extensive view
of the surrounding country, separates the parish from
Wanborough. On this ridge the soil is chiefly chalk;
in other parts it is sand, and a sandy loam. The living
is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £11. 17. 11.,
and in the patronage of the Crown: the tithes have been
commuted for £366. The church, which occupies a
picturesque situation close to the mansion of Puttenham
Priory, is in the later English style, and contains some
ancient brasses, and several neat monuments to the
Sumner and Cornish families, including one to Admiral
Cornish.
Putton, or Podington
PUTTON, or Podington, a tything, in the parish of
West Chickerell, union of Weymouth, hundred of
Culliford-Tree, Dorchester division of the county of
Dorset; containing 67 inhabitants.
Puxton (St. Saviour)
PUXTON (St. Saviour), a parish, in the union of
Axbridge, hundred of Winterstoke, E. division of
Somerset, 6 miles (N. by W.) from the town of Axbridge; containing 162 inhabitants. The living is a
perpetual curacy; net income, £60; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Bristol, whose tithes
have been commuted for £164. There are 23½ acres of
appropriate glebe.
Pycombe, county of Sussex.—See Piecombe.
PYCOMBE, county of Sussex.—See Piecombe.
Pylle (St. Thomas à Becket)
PYLLE (St. Thomas à Becket), a parish, in the
union of Shepton-Mallet, hundred of Whitestone,
E. division of Somerset, 3½ miles (S. by W.) from
Shepton-Mallet; containing 216 inhabitants. The Roman fosse-way passes through. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £8. 19. 9½.,
and in the gift of Lord Portman: the tithes have been
commuted for £174, and the glebe comprises 22 acres.
Pyon, King's, Hereford.—See Pion, King's.
PYON, KING'S, Hereford.—See Pion, King's.
Pyrford (St. Nicholas)
PYRFORD (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union
of Chertsey, First division of the hundred of Godley,
W. division of Surrey, 1¾ mile (N. N. W.) from Ripley;
containing 333 inhabitants. At the time of the Domesday survey the lands belonged to the abbey of Westminster, which held them till the Dissolution: in 1591
the place was given by Elizabeth to Sir John Wolley,
who was often visited here by the queen. The Wey
canal and the London and South-Western railroad pass
through the parish, which comprises by computation
between 1600 and 1700 acres. The living is a discharged
vicarage, annexed to the rectory of Wisley. The church
is a small edifice, standing on a commanding knoll, overlooking the ruins of Newark Abbey.
Pyworthy (St. Swithin)
PYWORTHY (St. Swithin), a parish, in the union
of Holsworthy, hundred of Black Torrington, Holsworthy and N. divisions of Devon, 2 miles (W. S. W.)
from Holsworthy; containing 758 inhabitants. It comprises about 5000 acres, of which 2060 are common or
waste. The northern branch of the Bude canal intersects the north part of the parish, and the west branch
passes near the west side; the road between Stratton
and Holsworthy also runs through the parish. The
quality of the land, which is rather hilly, varies, about
one-half being good arable and pasture, and the remainder moor or marsh: stone is found in various places
for making roads. A fair is held on the Monday after
St. Swithin's day. The living is a rectory, valued in the
king's books at £27. 8. 4., and in the gift of the Rev.
T. H. Kingdon: the tithes have been commuted for
£370, and the glebe comprises 135 acres. The church,
which is a plain building, contains an arch of great
antiquity. There are places of worship for Primitive
Methodists and Wesleyans. In 1820 some sepulchral
urns were found.