Thakeham (St. Mary)
THAKEHAM (St. Mary), a parish, and the head of
a union, in the hundred of East Easwrith, rape of
Bramber, W. division of Sussex, 3 miles (N. N. E.)
from Storrington; containing 620 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 2800 acres, chiefly arable land.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£14. 9. 9½., and in the gift of the Duke of Norfolk: the
tithes have been commuted for £700, and there are 27
acres of glebe. The church, which is partly in the early
and partly in the later English style, is a cruciform
structure, with a square embattled tower at the west
end, and contains some interesting monuments to the
Apsley and other families. The poor-law union comprises fourteen parishes or places, and contains a population of 7578.
Thame (St. Mary)
THAME (St. Mary), a market-town and parish, and
the head of a union, in the hundred of Thame, county
of Oxford, 13 miles (E.) from Oxford, and 44½ (N. W.
by W.) from London; containing, with the hamlets of
Priestend, North Weston, and Moreton, 3060 inhabitants, of whom 1177 are in New Thame township, 1134
in Old Thame, and 51 in the hamlet of Thame-Park.
This town, which is evidently of Roman origin, is mentioned as a place of some importance at the commencement of the 10th century, when Wulfhere, King of
Mercia, granted a charter dated "in the vill called
Thames." In the year 970, Osketyl, Archbishop of York,
died at Thame. It suffered much from the Danish
invasions, particularly in 1010, and a fortification was
erected here. At the Conquest it belonged to the
Bishop of Lincoln, and till the reign of Edward VI.
formed part of the extensive possessions of succeeding
prelates, who conferred many benefits on the town,
among which was the diverting through it the road that
previously passed on its side. In 1138, a monastery
for Cistercian monks was established at Thame-Park in
honour of the Virgin Mary, the revenue of which, at the
Dissolution, was valued at £256. 13. 7.; the site is occupied by the mansion of Lady Wenman. About the
time of Edward IV., an hospital for destitute persons
was endowed with lands by Richard Quatremain, a
member of a family of high repute. In the civil war of
the 17th century, Thame was a centre of military operations, and experienced much consequent distress; during
the late war with France it became one of the depôts
for prisoners.
The town derives its name from its situation on a
gentle declivity on the bank of the river Thame, which
here separates the counties of Oxford and Bucks, and
across which is a bridge of considerable length. It
consists principally of one long and spacious street, with
a convenient market-place in the centre, over which is the
town-hall, a handsome and commodious building. The
manufacture of lace is carried on, but the inhabitants
are chiefly employed in husbandry. The market, which
is of great antiquity, is on Tuesday, and is well supplied
with corn and cattle; fairs are held on Easter-Tuesday,
the Tuesday before Whit-Sunday, the first Tuesday in
August, and a statute-fair on October 11th. The powers
of the county debt-court of Thame, established in 1847,
extend over the registration-district of Thame, and the
parish of Illmire. The Living was anciently a prebend
in the Cathedral of Lincoln, valued in the king's books
at £82. 12. 3½., but impropriated and dissolved in 1547:
it is now a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £18; net income, £170. The patronage belongs to the Slater family, and the impropriation to
Lady Wenman: the tithes were commuted for land and
a money payment in 1823. The church, built in 1138,
is a large and handsome cruciform structure in the decorated English style, with an embattled tower rising
from the intersection, supported on four massive pillars,
and surmounted by an octagonal turret of nearly equal
height. The interior, which in 1839 was thoroughly restored at an expense of £500, is entered by a stone porch
with an elegant canopied niche, in which was formerly a
statue of the tutelar saint. In the chancel is a tomb of
white marble, to the memory of Lord Williams, with the
recumbent effigies of himself and his lady in the costume
of the time of Elizabeth; and against the south wall
is a curious brass with a kneeling effigy of Sir John
Clerke, of Weston, who, according to the legend, took
prisoner Louis of Orleans, Duke of Longueville, in the
reign of Henry VIII. The north transept is the burying place of the Dormer family, and the south transept
the sepulchral chapel of the Quatremains; both contain handsome monuments.
Lord Williams, in 1558, bequeathed estates for the
foundation of a free grammar school, which was built
by his executors in 1574, near the church; and for the
maintenance of a master and usher. Hampden, the
patriot; Dr. Fell; Justice Sir George Croke; Pocock,
the learned orientalist; King, Bishop of Chichester;
Anthony a Wood, the antiquary; and the notorious
John Wilkes, were educated in the establishment. A
free school was instituted by bequests from the second
Earl of Abingdon and others; the income is £26. Several small annuities have been left for apprenticing boys;
and other benefactions, amounting to £150 per annum,
for the poor. The union of Thame comprises thirtyfive parishes or places, containing a population of 15,413.
A little north of the church are the remains of the
prebendal house originally attached to the monastery at
Thame-Park, and which, till 1837, consisted of nearly
three sides of a quadrangle; in that year, Mr. Charles
Stone converted the remains into a mansion-house,
retaining the character of the ancient edifice, and in
1840 restored the chapel, at the east end of which is a
triple lancet window circumscribed by a circular arch.
George Hetheridge, an eminent Hebraist and Grecian in
the reign of Elizabeth, and regius professor of Greek at
Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and Lord Chief Justice
Holt, were natives of the town.
Thames-Ditton.—See Ditton, Thames.
THAMES-DITTON.—See Ditton, Thames.
Thanington (St. Nicholas)
THANINGTON (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the
union of Bridge, partly within the boundary of the city
of Canterbury, but chiefly in the hundred of Westgate, lathe of St. Augustine, E. division of Kent;
containing 379 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1212
acres, of which 30 are in wood. The ancient road called
Stane-street passes through. In Wincheap-street, a
suburb of Canterbury extending into Thanington, was
the hospital of St. James, founded in the reign of John,
by Archbishop Walter, for female lepers, and of which
the revenue at the Dissolution was £46. 6. 3. Some
small remains of the hospital still exist. The living is
a perpetual curacy; net income, £98; patron, the
Archbishop; impropriators, G. Gipps, Esq., whose tithes
have been commuted for £610, and whose glebe comprises 3 acres.
Tharston (St. Mary)
THARSTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and
hundred of Depwade, E. division of Norfolk, 1½ mile
(N. W.) from Long Stratton; containing 388 inhabitants. It comprises 1571a. 3r. 36p., of which 1234 acres
are arable, 318 meadow and pasture, and 18 woodland.
the living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £5. 1. 8., and in the patronage of the Bishop
of Ely, the appropriator: the great tithes have been
commuted for £420, and the vicarial for £120; the
glebe comprises 5½ acres. The church is an ancient
structure in the early and later English styles.
Thatcham (St. Luke)
THATCHAM (St. Luke), a parish, in the union of
Newbury, partly in the hundred of Faircross, but
chiefly in that of Reading, county of Berks, 3 miles
(E.) from Newbury; containing, with the chapelries of
Greenham and Midgham, 4250 inhabitants, of whom
2677 are in Thatcham township. This place appears,
from the Norman survey, to have been a town of some
importance; and tradition has assigned to it the rank
of a borough, but there is no proof that it ever sent
representatives to parliament. A market on Sunday
was confirmed by charter of Henry II., to the monks of
Reading, then possessors of Thatcham, and was changed
to Thursday in 1218, by Henry III.; but it has long
been discontinued: the remains of the butter-cross
still exist. The parish comprises 10,925a. 1r. 32p.:
the town is pleasantly situated on the Bath road, near
the navigable river Kennet, and the inhabitants are
well supplied with water. The Kennet and Avon canal
passes a little to the south. A paper-mill at Colthrop
affords employment to 80 persons. A statute-fair is
held on the first Tuesday after October 12th. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £20;
patron, J. Hanbury, Esq.; impropriators, various proprietors of land: the vicarial tithes have been commuted for £735, and the impropriate for £806. 1. 7.
The church has portions in the early, and some in the
later, English style; at the south entrance is a fine
Norman arch: in the interior are an altar-tomb to
William Danvers, chief justice of the court of common
pleas, and a mural monument to Nicholas Fuller, Esq.,
barrister of Gray's Inn. At Greenham and Midgham
are chapels of ease; and at Crookham, or Crokeham,
was formerly another, of which there are no remains.
The Independents have a place of worship. A free
school was founded in 1707, by Lady Frances Winchcomb, who gave a rent-charge of £53 for its support;
it was opened about 1713, but continued only for a few
years, in consequence of the attainder of Lord Bolingbroke, owner of the estate charged. In 1741, however,
arrears were recovered; since which period the funds
have continued to increase, the amount of stock being
now upwards of £5000, exclusively of the rent-charge,
which is regularly received. The school was re-opened
in 1794, and is now united with a national school.
Thaxted (St. Mary)
THAXTED (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and
hundred of Dunmow, N. division of Essex, 19 miles
(N. N. W.) from Chelmsford; containing 2527 inhabitants. This parish, which is of considerable extent, lies
on the river Chelmer, near its source, and on the road
from Chelmsford to Cambridge. The village is pleasantly situated on the banks of the river, and contains
several well-built houses. It was formerly a town of
importance, and received a charter from Philip and
Mary, vesting the government in a mayor, recorder, two
bailiffs, and a council of 20 principal burgesses; but on
a writ of quo warranto issued by James II., the corporation resigned their functions, and the market, which was
on Thursday, was discontinued. The market was subsequently revived, but it never recovered its early celebrity: fairs are held on the 27th of May and 10th of
August, the latter for cattle. The living is a vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £24; net income, £450;
patron and impropriator, Viscount Maynard, whose ancestor gave £2000 in augmentation of the vicarage. The
church is a spacious embattled structure, strengthened
by buttresses with canopied niches, and having a tower
and crocketed spire 183 feet high, the exact length of
the church; the south porch is much enriched. There
are places of worship for Baptists, the Society of Friends,
and Independents. A free grammar school, founded
by Thomas Yardley, is now merged into a national
school; and near the church are almshouses for 16
persons, partly supported by sums from various charity
funds. A number of Roman coins, and a beautiful
amphora, were discovered some years since.
Theakstone
THEAKSTONE, a township, in the parish of Burneston, union of Bedale, wapentake of Hallikeld,
N. riding of York, 3¼ miles (S. E. by E.) from Bedale;
containing 78 inhabitants. The township comprises
935a. 1r. 31p. The Hall is a handsome mansion, near
which are several thriving plantations; and the Duke
of Cleveland has property here called the Grange. The
village is pleasantly situated near a small rivulet. The
vicarial tithes have been commuted for £63. 14. 6., and
the impropriate for £46. 12.
Thealby
THEALBY, a hamlet, in the parish of Burtonupon-Stather, union of Glandford-Brigg, N. division of the wapentake of Manley, parts of Lindsey,
county of Lincoln; containing 207 inhabitants.
Theale
THEALE, a parish, in the union of Bradfield,
hundred of Reading, county of Berks, 4¼ miles (W.
by S.) from Reading. This place was formerly in the
parish of Tilehurst, but has been separated from it by
act of parliament, and made distinct. An elegant church
in the later English style was erected in 1830, at the
expense of Mrs. Sophia Sheppard; and under the provisions of the act, the living of Tilehurst will be divided,
and a portion appropriated to this church, to be attached
to the headship of Magdalen College, Oxford. The
Rev. Thomas Sheppard, D.D., bequeathed £20 per
annum for the establishment of a school.
Theale
THEALE, a chapelry, in the parish of Wedmore,
union of Axbridge, hundred of Bempstone, E. division of Somerset, 7 miles (S. S. E.) from Axbridge.
The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £100;
patron, the Vicar of Wedmore.
Thearne
THEARNE, a township, in the parish of St. John,
union, and liberties of the borough, of Beverley, E.
riding of York, 3½ miles (S. E. by E.) from Beverley;
containing 88 inhabitants. It is situated on the road
from Beverley to Hull, and comprises 805 acres, of
which two-thirds are arable, and one-third meadow
and pasture; the surface is low and level, the soil a
strong clay, and partly moorland. The river Hull
passes on the east, and at Wawn ferry is a landing-place
for coal, lime, and gravel. A chantry chapel at Thearne,
dedicated to the Virgin Mary, was dissolved pursuant
to the statute of Edward VI. for the dissolution of colleges and chantries.
Theberton (St. Peter)
THEBERTON (St. Peter), a parish, in the union
and hundred of Blything, E. division of Suffolk,
4 miles (N. E. by E.) from Saxmundham; containing
580 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1945
acres, chiefly of a light and mixed soil, but in some
parts wet and heavy; the surface is generally flat. The
living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books
at £26. 13. 4., and in the patronage of the Crown: the
tithes have been commuted for £427, and there are 13½
acres of glebe. The church has a round tower and
other ancient details of Norman character; a gallery
was erected in 1840.
Theddingworth (All Saints)
THEDDINGWORTH (All Saints), a parish, in the
union of Market-Harborough, partly in the hundred
of Rothwell, N. division of the county of Northampton, but chiefly in the hundred of Gartree, S. division
of the county of Leicester, 4½ miles (W. by S.) from
Harborough; containing, with the hamlet, of Hothorpe,
270 inhabitants, of whom 254 are in Theddingworth
township. The parish is situated on the road from
Harborough to Lutterworth, and the Grand Union canal
passes through it; the scenery is in many places remarkably pleasing. The living is a discharged vicarage,
valued in the king's books at £8. 15. 7.; net income,
£137; patron, J. Cook, Esq.; impropriator, the Earl
Spencer. The church, which is generally in bad repair,
has a very handsome spire, and contains some monuments to members of the Bathurst family. There is a
place of worship for Independents. An allotment of 25
acres of land, made under an inclosure act in 1715, is
partly let out to cottagers, and partly given for pasturing
cattle; the proceeds of the first portion, and a sum of
£12. 12. per annum arising from several bequests, are
distributed among the poor.
Theddlethorpe (All Saints)
THEDDLETHORPE (All Saints), a parish, in the
union of Louth, Marsh division of the hundred of
Calceworth, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln,
10½ miles (N. N. E.) from Alford; containing 326 inhabitants. It is situated on the sea-coast, and comprises
1684a. 3p. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £7. 5. 2½.; net income, £98; patron and impropriator, J. Alcock, Esq., whose tithes have been commuted for £400. The parish participates in the benefit
of the school in the adjoining parish of Theddlethorpe
St. Helen; and a few sums of small amount are distributed among the poor.
Theddlethorpe (St. Helen)
THEDDLETHORPE (St. Helen), a parish, in the
union of Louth, Marsh division of the hundred of
Calceworth, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln,
9¾ miles (N. by E.) from Alford; containing 347 inhabitants, and comprising 1758a. 2r. 32p. The living is
a rectory, with that of Mablethorpe St. Peter united in
1745, valued in the king's books at £18. 10. 2½.; patron,
Lord Willoughby de Eresby. The whole of the tithes
have been commuted for £517, and there are 36 acres
of glebe, with a house. The Wesleyans have a place of
worship. A school-house was erected in 1810; and
some small rent-charges are distributed to the poor of
the parish.
Thelbridge (St. David)
THELBRIDGE (St. David), a parish, in the union
of Crediton, hundred of Witheridge, South Molton
and N. divisions of Devon, 2 miles (S. W. by W.) from
Witheridge; containing 267 inhabitants. It is intersected by the road from Crediton to South Molton and
Barnstaple. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's
books at £10. 6. 5½.; net income, £198; patron, G.
Tanner, Esq.: the glebe consists of about 130 acres,
with a small house. The church is a very old edifice.
Thelnetham (St. Nicholas)
THELNETHAM (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the
union of Thetford, hundred of Blackbourn, W. division of Suffolk, 6 miles (S. S. E.) from East Harling;
containing 561 inhabitants. It is bounded on the north
by the Lesser Ouse, which separates the counties of
Norfolk and Suffolk. The living is a discharged rectory,
valued in the king's books at £16. 18. 4.; net income,
£508; patron, the Rev. E. H. Sawbridge. There is a
glebe of about 22 acres, with a commodious house
erected in 1840 by the patron. The church is in the
decorated style, and has an embattled tower; in the
south aisle is a handsome marble monument to the
memory of Henry Bokenham, Esq., and his lady. An
allotment of 28 acres of land, now let for £32. 12. per
annum, was appropriated to parochial purposes under
an inclosure act in 1821, together with another of about
40 acres for cutting turf.
Thelveton (St. Andrew)
THELVETON (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union
of Depwade, hundred of Diss, E. division of Norfolk,
3 miles (E. by N.) from Diss; containing 169 inhabitants. It is intersected by the road from London to
Norwich, by way of Scole; and comprises 1200 acres, of
which about one-third is pasture. The Hall is an ancient mansion, in the Elizabethan style. The living is a
discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £9,
and in the patronage of the Crown: the tithes have been
commuted for £290, and there are 8½ acres of glebe.
The church is in the decorated style, and is situated in
the grounds belonging to the Hall, attached to which is
a neat Roman Catholic chapel.
Thelwall
THELWALL, a township, in the parochial chapelry
of Daresbury, parish of Runcorn, union of Warrington, E. division of the hundred of Bucklow, N. division of the county of Chester, 3 miles (E. S. E.) from
Warrington; containing 334 inhabitants. This is a
place of great antiquity: a garrisoned town was founded
here by King Edward the Elder in 923, which is mentioned in the Saxon Chronicle. The name is derived
from two Saxon words; Thel, which signifies the trunks
or bodies of trees, and wall, as now used, meaning a
fence; the fortifications surrounding the ancient town
being composed of these materials. The earliest lords
were the Lacys, barons of Halton, who possessed the
manor by grant from Hugh Lupus, Earl of Chester,
nephew of William the Conqueror; and hence it is still
described as of the fee of Halton. From them it passed
to the Duttons, of Dutton; and subsequently, by successive sales, through the Claytons (the last of whom
was Sir Randal Clayton, Knt., of Thelwall, living in the
early part of the 17th century), the Brookes of Norton,
the Mores of Kirtlington, in the county of Nottingham
(of whom was Sir Edward More, Bart.), and the Pickerings. These last were possessed of the manor from
about the middle of the 17th century until the year
1837, when it was devised by the last representative of
that family to William Nicholson, Esq., the present
proprietor, who resides at Thelwall Hall.
The Duke of Bridgewater's canal, and the turnpike
road from Chester to Manchester, pass through the
township; and the road from Warrington to Knutsford
immediately adjoins it. The Mersey forms its boundary
on the north side, with the exception of a small portion
of it which lies across the river, owing to the channel
having at some remote period altered its course. The
manufacture of gunpowder has been carried on for many
years; the works, situated on the banks of the Mersey,
are the property of James Stanton, Esq., of Greenfield.
The township comprises about 1150 acres, of which
two-thirds belong to the lord of the manor, who has the
exclusive privilege of a ferry over the Mersey, for which
toll is payable. A court leet is held yearly on the eve
of Palm Sunday, at which a constable is sworn in. A
very ancient Manor-house here was taken down about
the middle of the last century, when the present Hall
was erected: the latter is an exceedingly neat and substantially built mansion of brick, consisting of three
stories, with a pediment in the centre, and a double
flight of steps leading to the principal entrance. The
living of Thelwall is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage
of Mr. Nicholson; net income, £100, with a commodious
parsonage-house, erected a few years since. The church,
dedicated to All Saints, was rebuilt in 1843, at a cost of
about £1400, and is a stone edifice lined with brick, in
the early English style, with lancet windows and a
campanile tower: the windows at the east end, and one
on the south side, are of stained glass. A school is
supported by subscription.
Themelthorpe (St. Andrew)
THEMELTHORPE (St. Andrew), a parish, in the
union of Aylsham, hundred of Eynsford, E. division
of Norfolk, 1¾ mile (E. by S.) from Foulsham; containing 94 inhabitants. It comprises 652a. 3r. 23p., of
which 386 acres are arable, 249 pasture and meadow,
2½ woodland, and 10 in gardens, &c. The living is a
discharged rectory, annexed to that of Bintree, and valued in the king's books at £4. 2. 8½.: the tithes have
been commuted for £131, and the glebe comprises 19
acres. The church is chiefly in the early English style
of architecture.
Thenford (St. Mary)
THENFORD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Brackley, hundred of King's-Sutton, S. division of
the county of Northampton, 4½ miles (E.) from Banbury 3 containing 155 inhabitants. The parish is situated near the road from Banbury to Brackley, and comprises 882a. 8p. Lace-making employs a few persons
here. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the
king's books at £10, and in the patronage of the Crown,
with a net income of £120: the tithes were commuted
for about 60 acres of land in 1776. The church is
small, and mostly of the 14th century, with some portions of earlier date and a tower of the 15th century:
there is some stained glass in the windows. A school is
supported by Mr. Severne; and the produce of about 11
acres of land, left by Mr. Tooley, is distributed among
the poor. Here is a mineral spring.
Theobald-Street
THEOBALD-STREET, a hamlet, in the parish of
Aldenham, poor-law union of Watford, hundred of
Cashio, or liberty of St. Alban's, county of Hertford; containing 62 inhabitants.
Therfield (St. Mary)
THERFIELD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Royston, hundred of Odsey, county of Hertford, 2½
miles (S. W. by S.) from Royston; containing 1224 inhabitants. It comprises 4761 acres, of which 456 are
common or waste. The living is a rectory, valued in
the king's books at £50, and in the gift of the Dean and
Chapter of St. Paul's, London: the tithes have been commuted for £1100, and there is a parsonage-house, with
a glebe of 91 acres.
Thetford
THETFORD, a chapelry, in the parish of Stretham,
hundred of South Witchford, union and Isle of Ely,
county of Cambridge, 2¼ miles (S. by W.) from Ely;
containing 250 inhabitants. It comprises 1042 acres,
of which 481 are common or waste land; and is situated
near the Cambridge and Ely road. The chapel is dedicated to St. George. A rent-charge of £124. 17. has
been awarded as a commutation for the tithes of the
chapelry.
Thetford
THETFORD, a borough
and market-town, having exclusive jurisdiction, and the
head of a union, locally in
the hundred of Shropham,
W. division, of Norfolk,
and the hundred of Lackford, W. division of Suffolk, 79 miles (N. N. E.)
from London; containing
3934 inhabitants. This ancient place, called Theodford
by the Saxons, evidently derives its name from the river Thet, which here unites its
stream with the Lesser Ousc; the latter river then
passes through the town, separates the two counties,
and is navigable hence to Lynn. The majority of antiquaries consider Thetford to be the site of the celebrated
Sitomagus of the Romans, who possessed it in 435, and
it is known to have been the metropolis of East Anglia;
on which account, and from its proximity to the North
Sea, it was during the heptarchy frequently desolated by
the Danes, who, having retained possession of the town
for fifty years, totally destroyed it by fire in the ninth
century. In 1004, it sustained a similar calamity from
their king, Sweyn, who had invaded East Anglia; and
in 1010 it became, for the third time, the scene of plunder
and conflagration by these marauders, into whose hands
it again fell, after a signal victory which they had obtained over the Saxons. In the reign of Canute, Thetford began to recover from the effects of these repeated
calamities, and in that of Edward the Confessor had
nearly regained its former prosperity, containing not
less than 944 burgesses, who enjoyed various privileges.
In the time of the Conqueror (in 1070), the see of North
Elmham was transferred hither, but the episcopal chair
was removed to Norwich by Herbert de Lozinga, in the
year 1094: Henry VIII. made the town the seat of a
bishop suffragan to Norwich, which it continued during
his reign. From the time of Athelstan to that of King
John here was a mint, in which coins of Edmund and
Canute were struck; and the ancient extent and importance of the town may be gathered from the fact
that, in the reign of Edward III., it comprised twentyfour principal streets, five market-places, twenty churches,
six hospitals, eight monasteries, and other religious and
charitable foundations, of which there are but few remains. Thetford has been honoured with the presence
and temporary residence of several sovereigns, particularly Henry I. and II., and Elizabeth, the last of whom
rebuilt the ancient mansion of the earls of Warren, on
its lapse to the crown, and occasionally resided in it, as
did also James I. for the purpose of hunting: the house
is still called the King's House.
Arms.
The town has of late been much improved. It comprises five principal streets, partly paved; and the main
portion is conuected with the few remaining houses on
the Suffolk side by a handsome iron bridge over the
Ouse, erected in 1829: the modern buildings are plain
and neat, and the inhabitants are supplied with water
from wells and springs. At the east end of the town is
a chalybeate spring; the waters are similar to those at
Tonbridge-Wells. Races took place here at an early
period, but from the tumults they occasioned in the
former part of the 17th century, the sports were suppressed by order of the privy council; they were revived
a few years since, and held in June, upon the common,
on the Suffolk side of the borough, but have been again
discontinued. Assemblies occasionally take place, and
a subscription library is supported. In addition to a
very large paper-mill, there are an iron-foundry, two
agricultural-machine factories, some good breweries,
several malting establishments, a flour-mill, and a tanyard; and the navigation of the river, in its course to
Lynn, having been improved between this place and
Brandon, a brisk business is carried on in corn, wool,
coal, and other articles. The Norwich and Brandon
railway has a station here, 31 miles from the Norwich
station. The market is on Saturday; the market-house
has been taken down, and neat shambles erected, covered
with cast iron, with a portico, and palisades in front.
Fairs are held on May 14th and August 2nd and 16th,
for sheep, and on September 25th, for cattle; there is a
wool-fair in July.
A charter of incorporation, granted by Elizabeth
in 1573, was surrendered to
the crown in the 34th of
Charles II., and a very imperfect one obtained in its
stead, which in 1692 was
annulled,and the original restored, by a decree in chancery. The corporation now
consists of a mayor, four
aldermen, and twelve councillors, under the act 5th and
6th of William IV., cap. 76; the mayor, late mayor,
and recorder are justices of the peace, and the total
number of magistrates is nine. The borough sends two
members to parliament: the right of election was extended in 1832, to the £10 householders of a new district: the mayor is returning officer. There has been a
re-grant of the court of quarter-sessions for the borough,
and petty-sessions are held by the corporation every
Monday. The powers of the county debt-court of Thetford, established in 1847, extend over the registrationdistrict of Thetford. The county assizes, which had
been held here, in Lent, ever since 1176, were removed
a few years since. The guildhall is a fine building,
erected at the expense of Sir Joseph Williamson, Knt.,
secretary of state to Charles II.; the gaol is a plain
edifice of flint and white brick, commodiously arranged:
on these buildings many thousand pounds have been
expended by the inhabitants.
Corporation Seal.
Thetford comprises the parishes of St. Cuthbert, containing 1543; St. Peter, 1184; and St. Mary the Less,
1207 inhabitants; the livings of all which are in the
patronage of the Duke of Norfolk. St. Cuthbert's is a
discharged perpetual curacy, with the rectory of the
Holy Trinity united; net income, £50. The church
contains a nave, chancel, and south aisle, with an embattled tower. The living of St. Peter's is a discharged
rectory, with that of St. Nicholas' united, valued in the
king's books at £5. 1. 5½.; net income, £55. The
church, commonly called "the Black church," being
constructed chiefly of flint, comprises a nave, chancel,
and north aisle, with an embattled tower, which, with
part of the body of the edifice, was rebuilt in 1789.
The living of the parish of St. Mary the Less is a perpetual curacy, valued in the king's books at £1. 13. 6½.;
net income, £83; impropriators, the Duke of Norfolk
and others. The church, which stands in Suffolk, consists of a nave and chancel, with a square tower. There
are places of worship for the Society of Friends, Independents, Wesleyans, and Roman Catholics. A preachership in St. Mary's church, a grammar school, and an
hospital for two men and two women were founded and
endowed in 1610, under the will of Sir Richard Fulmerston, Knt., who died in 1566: the income now
amounts to £555 per annum. Some boys and girls are
apprenticed from a fund of £2000 vested in an estate
producing £290 per annum, left by Sir J. Williamson in
1701. In 1818, Mr. P. Sterne bequeathed £1000 for
the benefit of the poor; and about £70, derived from
the inclosure of the common, are yearly distributed with
several minor benefactions. The union of Thetford
comprises 34 parishes or places, of which 19 are in Norfolk, and 15 in Suffolk; and contains a population of
17,542.
The relics of antiquity consist chiefly of the fragments of a nunnery established in the reign of Canute,
by Urius, the first abbot of Bury St. Edmund's; some
of the walls, buttresses, and windows, with a fine arch
and cell, are still visible, the conventual church having
been converted into a barn, and a farmhouse built with
the other ruinous portions. Of a priory founded on the
brink of the river in 1104, by Roger Bigot, for Cluniac
monks, and which at the Dissolution was valued at
£418. 16. 3., the gateway, constructed with freestone
and black flint, and parts of the church, which was
cruciform, alone remain. Of the monastery of St. Sepulchre, instituted in 1109, by the Earl of Warren, and
further endowed by Henry II., the church has been converted into a barn. The site of St. Augustine's friary,
founded in 1387, by John of Gaunt, for mendicants of
that order, still bears the name of Friars' Close. At the
eastern extremity of the town are remains of a Danish
fortification, which consisted of a large keep and double
rampart, erected on an artificial mount called Castle
Hill, of which the height is 100 feet, the circumference
of the summit 81 feet, and of the base 984: the remains
of the ramparts are 20 feet high, and the surrounding
fosse 70 feet wide. It is somewhat singular that no
trace is visible of any steps, or path, by which military
stores could be conveyed up the very steep ascent to the
fortress. The mineral spring was discovered about 80
years since, by Matthew Manning, Esq., M.D., and at
that time was much resorted to; it was afterwards shut
up for many years, but in 1819 was re-opened, and the
waters having been analysed, were found to be very
effectual in strengthening the stomach. A handsome
pump-room was erected, to which hot and cold baths
were attached, situated near the river side, and approached by pleasant sheltered walks; but for want of
sufficient patronage the establishment has been closed.
Thomas Martin, F.A.S., and author of the History of
Thetford, was born here in 1696, and educated at the
free school, of which his father was master. The notorious Thomas Paine, author of the Rights of Man, was
also born here, and educated at the school.