Cold-Ashby - Coley

A Topographical Dictionary of England. Originally published by S Lewis, London, 1848.

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'Cold-Ashby - Coley', in A Topographical Dictionary of England, (London, 1848) pp. 659-663. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp659-663 [accessed 17 March 2024]

In this section

Cold-Ashby, county of Northampton.—See Ashby, Cold.

COLD-ASHBY, county of Northampton.—See Ashby, Cold.—And other places having a similar distinguishing prefix will be found under the proper name.

Coldcoats

COLDCOATS, a township, in the parish of Ponteland, union and W. division of Castle ward, S. division of Northumberland, 9¼ miles (N. W.) from Newcastle; containing 36 inhabitants. It is situated on the road from Newcastle to Rothbury, and consists of East, West, South, and Middle Coldcoats, comprising together about 1020 acres of farm land. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £138. 9. 8., payable to Merton College, Oxford, and the vicarial for £24. 3.

Coldcotes

COLDCOTES, a hamlet, in the township of Seacroft, parish and borough of Leeds, Lower division of the wapentake of Skyrack, W. riding of York; containing 16 inhabitants. A tithe rent-charge of £27 is paid to the Dean and Chapter of Oxford.

Cold-Dunghills

COLD-DUNGHILLS, an extra-parochial district, adjoining the parish of St. Clement, in the borough and union of Ipswich, E. division of Suffolk; containing 66 inhabitants.

Coldhurst

COLDHURST, an ecclesiastical parish or district, in the parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham, union of Oldham, hundred of Salford, S. division of the county of Lancaster, 7 miles (N. E. by N.) from Manchester. It is nearly three miles in circumference, and is principally pasture and meadow land, of hilly surface. The turnpike-road from Oldham to Rochdale passes through it. Coal-mines are wrought, and cotton and hat manufactories carried on. An old Hall here, belonging to Abram Crompton, Esq., is now converted into cottages. The district was constituted in October, 1844, under the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37, and the erection of a church was commenced in the summer of 1847; it is in the early English style, and built on a site presented by Mr. Crompton. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patrons, the Crown and the Bishop of Chester, alternately. Within the district are some fine springs. Coldhurst is said to have been the scene of an action in the rebellion, in which the parliamentarians were defeated.

Cold-Martin

COLD-MARTIN, a township, in the parish of Chatton, union of Glendale, E. division of Glendale ward, N. division of Northumberland, 1 mile (E. by S.) from Wooler. The vicarial tithes have been commuted for £16. 12. 7.

Coldmeece

COLDMEECE, a township, in the parish of Eccleshall, union of Stone, N. division of the hundred of Pirehill and of the county of Stafford, 3 miles (N. N. E.) from Eccleshall; containing 56 inhabitants. This place, with Millmeece, lies in the Cotes quarter of the parish, and on the east side of the river Sow. Millmeece is three miles north from Eccleshall, and on the road from that town to Swinnerton.

Coldred (St. Pancras)

COLDRED (St. Pancras), a parish, in the union of Dovor, hundred of Bewsborough, lathe of St. Augustine, E. division of Kent, 5 miles (N. W. by N.) from Dovor; containing 157 inhabitants. It comprises 1532 acres, of which 60 are in wood. The living is a vicarage, annexed to that of Sibbertswold, and valued in the king's books at £6. 2. 6. The church is surrounded by a trench, inclosing about two acres, with an artificial mount on the northern side, which tradition ascribes to Ceoldred, King of Mercia, from whom the parish is named, and who fought a battle near this spot, in 694, with Ina, King of the West Saxons: it is, however, probably of Roman origin, various relics of that people having been discovered on the site.

Coldrey

COLDREY, an extra-parochial liberty, attached to the parish of Froyle, in the union and hundred of Alton, Alton and N. divisions of the county of Southampton; containing 18 inhabitants, and comprising 194 acres of land.

Coldwell

COLDWELL, a township, in the parish of KirkWhelpington, union of Bellingham, N. E. division of Tindale ward, S. division of Northumberland, 14 miles (W.) from Morpeth; containing 8 inhabitants. It comprises 355 acres, the property of the Duke of Northumberland. Mention occurs of this place in 1304, when Thomas de Harle is recorded to have given all his lands in "Caddewell" to Walter de Shaftow, for his life, at 20s. a year: in the 18th of Edward II. it was holden of the crown by a tenth part of a knight's fee. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £1. 9., and the vicarial for £3. 7. 6. A little to the west is the pediment of a cross, on the line of the old road from Elsdon to Newcastle.

Cole

COLE, a hamlet, in the parish of Pitcomb, union of Wincanton, hundred of Bruton, E. division of Somerset, 2 miles (S. W.) from Bruton; with 39 inhabitants.

Cole

COLE, with West Park, a tything, in the parish, union, and hundred of Malmesbury, Malmesbury and Kingswood, and N. divisions of Wilts, 1¾ mile (S. S. E.) from Malmesbury; containing 40 inhabitants.

Colebroke (St. Mary)

COLEBROKE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and hundred of Crediton, Crediton and N. divisions of Devon, 4½ miles (W.) from Crediton, on the road to Oakhampton; containing 878 inhabitants. The weaving of serges is carried on by hand-looms in many of the cottages. The hamlet of Coplestone, in the parish, formerly had a chapel, and, according to some, a mint and prison; there are still the remains of an ancient cross. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £20; net income, £200; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Exeter. The church is an ancient structure, with a very handsome tower. In the north-east angle is a screen of carved oak, separating a sepulchral chapel, which formerly belonged to the Coplestone family; and projecting from the centre of the south aisle is another chapel, attached to the Horwell estate: many of the ancient seats of richly-carved oak are remaining, but much mutilated. Near Wolmstone is a well, dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Colebrook-Dale, county of Salop.—See articles on Madeley-Market and Shropshire.

COLEBROOK-DALE, county of Salop.—See articles on Madeley-Market and Shropshire.

Colebury

COLEBURY, a tything, in the parish of Eling, union of New Forest, hundred of Redbridge, Romsey and S. divisions of the county of Southampton; containing 341 inhabitants.

Coleby (All Saints)

COLEBY (All Saints), a parish, in the Higher division of the wapentake of Boothby-Graffo, parts of Kesteven, union and county of Lincoln, 6 miles (S.) from Lincoln; containing 427 inhabitants. The village is situated on the brow of an oolite escarpment, on the road from Lincoln to Grantham, and commands an extensive prospect. Coleby Hall is an interesting edifice in the Elizabethan style. The limestone, which throughout the parish lies very near the surface, forms an excellent material for building. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 12. 1.; net income, £126; patrons, the Provost and Fellows of Oriel College, Oxford: the tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1759. The church was originally in the Norman style, now intermixed with the early and later English: the tower, of which the lower part is Norman, is surmounted by an elegant spire of early English character; the south entrance has a Norman arch of great beauty, and the font is in the same style. Many Roman coins, and great quantities of coarse pottery, including fragments of sepulchral urns, have been dug up in various parts of the parish, which is intersected by the Roman Ermin-street.

Coleby

COLEBY, a hamlet, partly in the parish of Burtonupon-Stather, and partly in that of West Halton, union of Glandford-Brigg, N. division of the wapentake of Manley, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln; containing 68 inhabitants.

Coledale

COLEDALE, with Portingscale, a township, in the parish of Crosthwaite, union of Cockermouth, Allerdale ward above Derwent, W. division of Cumberland, 3 miles (W.) from Keswick; containing 262 inhabitants.

Coleford

COLEFORD, a market-town and chapelry, in the parish of Newland, union of Monmouth, hundred of St. Briavell's, W. division of the county of Gloucester, 20 miles (W. S. W.) from Gloucester, and 124 (W. by N.) from London; containing 2208 inhabitants. This place, which is pleasantly situated on the verge of the county, next Monmouthshire, and bounded on the north and east by the Forest of Dean, obtained the grant of a market from James I. During the parliamentary war, a skirmish took place previously to the siege of Gloucester, between a party of royalists, commanded by Lord Herbert, and the parliamentary forces under Col. Barrow, when the market-house was destroyed, and Sir Richard Lawdy, major-general of South Wales, and several officers, were killed: at a subsequent period, during the same war, the ancient chapel was demolished. The town is situated on the old turnpike-road between Gloucester and Monmouth, and consists principally of one spacious street, in which is the market-place; the houses are in general neat and well built. The environs are pleasant, in some points beautifully picturesque; and in the vicinity are several elegant mansions. Many of the labouring class are employed in extensive iron-works in the neighbourhood. Here is a pottery for the manufacture of various articles of common ware; and sandstone is quarried to a considerable extent, the best of which is used for troughs, millstones, &c., and that of inferior quality for drains and walls. There is a tramroad to Monmouth, above five miles distant, for the conveyance of coal and lime: Coleford lies on the edge of the Forest of Dean coal-basin, and some pits have been sunk within its boundary. The market is on Friday; and fairs are held on June 20th for wool, and Dec. 5th for cattle and pedlery; the market-house was rebuilt in 1679, Charles II. contributing £50 towards defraying the expense. The county magistrates hold a petty-session here for a portion of the Forest division. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patron, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. The chapel, a very plain structure, built in the reign of Queen Anne, who contributed £300 towards its erection, and rebuilt of stone in 1821 at a cost of £3000, is dedicated to All Saints; it has accommodation for about 1000 persons: a new organ was lately erected. There are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and Wesleyans; and a national school, built in 1837, is supported by subscription. A sum of £200 was bequeathed by Colonel Ollney, the interest to be distributed among the poor at Christmas, in coal and blankets. Vestiges of Offa's Dyke may be distinctly traced in some parts of the town.

Coleford

COLEFORD, a hamlet, in the parish and hundred of Kilmersdon, E. division of Somerset, 6¼ miles (W. by N.) from Frome; containing 825 inhabitants. A market was anciently held here, which has been long discontinued, and the fair of Coleford, which was much frequented, is now almost entirely disused. A coal-mine near the church, the most southern in the coal-basin of the district, yields chiefly small coal. This place, with the neighbouring hamlets of Lypeat and Kilmersdon, was constituted a chapelry in 1831, when a chapel was erected: the living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar of Kilmersdon; net income, £120. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Independents; and a school in connexion with the National Society, erected by subscription in 1835. Some remains exist of an ancient church, consisting of the chancel and part of the nave, near the present chapel; and in the village are the ruins of a turret with a stone staircase, and piscina.

Colemore

COLEMORE, a parish, in the union of Petersfield, hundred of Barton-Stacey, Andover and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 5¾ miles (S. by W.) from Alton; containing 144 inhabitants. This parish, noticed in the Domesday survey and other records under the name of Colmere, is supposed to have derived that appellation from the situation of the greater portion of it, formerly, near the western mere or boundary of the ancient forest of Wolmer, where great quantities of charcoal were made. It comprises about 1400 acres, of which the soil is fertile, the surface is elevated, and the scenery abounds in sylvan beauty. The living is a rectory, with the living of Prior's-Dean united, valued in the king's books at £22. 9. 4½.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. John Bury Bourne. The tithes have been commuted for £500, and the glebe consists of about 30 acres, with an excellent glebe-house. The church, a plain edifice, was completely restored in 1845. The living was held from 1608 for many years, by the Rev. John Greaves, the astronomer and mathematician, who was a native of the parish; and subsequently it was held by Dr. Richard Pococke, the celebrated eastern traveller, fellow of New College, Oxford.

Cole-Orton (St. Mary)

COLE-ORTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, hundred of West Goscote, N. division of the county of Leicester, 2 miles (E.) from Ashby; containing 601 inhabitants. This parish is beautifully situated on the Ashby and Loughborough road, between the romantic scenery of Charnwood Forest, on one side, and the less diversified country beyond Ashby, towards Staffordshire, on the other. It comprises by measurement 2600 acres, of which the surface is undulated. The village is at the extremity of the forest, and, with the church, and the handsome mansion of the Beaumont family, forms an interesting and prominent feature in the landscape. In the park grounds is an epitaph by Wordsworth to Francis Beaumont, the poet, who was born in an extra-parochial district adjoining: the neighbourhood was one of Wordsworth's favourite places of resort, and much of it has been the subject of his muse. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £10. 6. 0½.; net income, £267; patron, Sir G. H. W. Beaumont, Bart.: the glebe contains about 7 acres, with a glebe-house. The church is a compact structure in the later English style, with a square embattled tower, surmounted by a handsome spire, and was thoroughly repaired in 1812: the altar-piece is embellished with a fine painting of the Angel delivering St. Peter from Prison, presented by the late Sir George Beaumont, who also ornamented the south-east window with rich stained glass, brought from Rouen. In an aisle railed off from the rest of the church is an elegant monument of alabaster, with two reclining figures, to the memory of Sir Henry and Lady Elizabeth Beaumont, the former of whom died in 1607, and the latter in 1608: there is also a tablet, by Chantrey, to Sir G. Beaumont and his lady. Thomas, Viscount Beaumont, in 1702 founded a school for children, and an hospital for six widows, which he endowed with the great tithes of Swannington, valued now at about £193 per annum: the school is in connexion with the National Society.

Coleridge (St. Mary)

COLERIDGE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Crediton, hundred of North Tawton, South Molton and N. divisions of Devon, 10 miles (W. N. W.) from Crediton; containing 677 inhabitants. The parish is situated on the river Taw, abounding with excellent trout, and comprises 3181 acres, of which 604 are common or waste. About forty persons are employed in the weaving of serge by hand-loom. Facility of communication is afforded by a road through the centre of the parish, connecting Bideford with Exeter. A fair is held on the first Monday after the 19th of September, when a few cattle and sheep are exposed for sale. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £7. 8. 9.; net income, £142; patron, the Bishop of Exeter; impropriator, the Hon. N. Fellowes: the rectorial tithes have been commuted for £200; the glebe comprises 16 acres. The church is a handsome early English structure, with the exception of the chancel and the east end of the north aisle, which are of the later English style, and were erected by John Evans, supposed to have been lord of the manor, and whose monument, with a recumbent figure, is placed in the latter; the east window is embellished with stained glass, in which is a full-length portrait of Edward VI., with the sceptre and a Bible. There is a place of worship for Baptists. On Trinity Green was an ancient chapel, now converted into a dwelling-house; and there are some remains of a Roman encampment, near the Taw.

Colerne (St. John the Baptist)

COLERNE (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the union and hundred of Chippenham, Chippenham and Calne, and N. divisions of Wilts, 7 miles (W. by S.) from Chippenham; containing 1209 inhabitants. This place, formerly called Coldhorn, derives its name from its bleak situation upon the summit of one of the highest hills in the vicinity of Bath. The neighbourhood was the scene of many sanguinary conflicts between the Saxons and the Danes. About eighty years ago the village was destroyed by fire, and rebuilt of stone, without much regard to uniformity. The parish comprises by computation 3652 acres: stone of good quality for ordinary purposes is abundant, but is not quarried. A small fair for sheep and pigs is held annually. The Great Western railway passes about a mile and a half to the south of the church. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £9. 16.; net income, £92; patron, the Warden of New College, Oxford. There is also a sinecure rectory, valued at £16. 11. 10½., and annexed to the wardenship. The church is a handsome structure in the later English style, with a stately tower. Here is a place of worship for Independents; and a school is supported by subscription. The late Hon. Mrs. Forrester bequeathed property, which was expended in the purchase of thirty acres of land, for the poor. The ancient Wansdyke touches the parish in two places, constituting the boundary of the county: on Colerne Down is a double intrenchment, called Northwood Camp; and in the park is another fortification. Within the last few years a very beautiful Roman tessellated pavement, apparently forming the floors of several rooms, has been partly discovered in an arable field. There is a spring holding a quantity of lime in solution, the water of which incrusts, and gives the appearance of petrifaction to any thing upon which it falls.

Colesborne (St. James)

COLESBORNE (St. James), a parish, in the union of Cirencester, hundred of Rapsgate, E. division of the county of Gloucester, 7 miles (S. by E.) from Cheltenham; containing 256 inhabitants. The parish comprises by measurement 2200 acres, and is situated on a river that has, by recent observation, been ascertained to be the Thames, whose source is within four miles. There are some hills in the parish, of which that called Pen Hill, supposed to be the highest in the county, commands an extensive prospect; and on the summit of another, of inferior elevation, are the remains of a Norman camp. The plain between these hills was the scene of a sanguinary battle, in an early period of English history. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 16. 10½.; patron, and impropriator of two-thirds of the tithes, Henry Elwes, Esq. The great tithes have been commuted for £242. 14., and the incumbent's for £122. 10.; the glebe contains 31 acres, with a glebe-house. Rapsgate, a hamlet in the parish, gives name to the hundred.

Coleshill

COLESHILL, a hamlet, in the parish and union of Amersham, hundred of Burnham, county of Buckingham, 1¾ mile (S. by W.) from Amersham; containing 547 inhabitants. This place is situated on elevated ground, and is celebrated for the extent and variety of the prospects on every side; commanding a view over six counties, adorned with lofty woods and finely diversified by hill and dale. The manor-house occupies the site of an ancient and splendid seat, called "Ould Stock," or Stock Place, which originally belonged to the family of Bohun, Earl of Hereford, Essex, and Northampton, and high constable of England, who resided here about the year 1360. The manor was afterwards the inheritance of the Wallers, of whom Edmund, the lyric poet, was born here, and represented the borough of Amersham in three parliaments: near the manorhouse is Waller's oak, said to have been planted by the poet, but evidently of much greater antiquity. The hamlet comprises 1800 acres, of which one-fourth is woodland; clay and chalk are found in great abundance, the former of excellent quality for the manufacture of common earthenware, and the latter a suitable manure for the soil. According to tradition, an ancient chapel once existed, and the truth of the opinion has derived confirmation from the discovery of the foundations of an old building of that kind, on the estate called Churchfield.

Coleshill (All Saints)

COLESHILL (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Farringdon, partly in the hundred of Highworth, Cricklade, and Staple, N. division of Wilts, but chiefly in the hundred of Shrivenham, county of Berks, 4 miles (W. S. W.) from Farringdon; containing 386 inhabitants. The parish derives its name from the elevated situation of the village above the river Cole; it comprises 1992a. 1r. 24p., chiefly pasture land. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £17. 11. 8.: patron and impropriator, the Earl of Radnor: the great tithes have been commuted for £400, and the vicarial for £350; the glebe contains 1a. 18p., with a glebe-house. The church has at the west end an embattled tower with pinnacles, and contains some handsome monuments; the window of the chancel exhibits some fine stained glass representing the Nativity, presented by the Earl of Radnor in 1787. Lord Simon Digby, in 1694, gave £500 for teaching children and other charitable purposes; in the same year, Offalia Rawlins made a donation of £100; and in 1705, the Rev. John Pinsent, vicar, gave an estate, now producing about £28 per annum, for apprenticing children. The funds having increased considerably by a benefaction of the Earl of Radnor's, the income now amounts to £73. Coleshill gives the title of Baron to the Earl of Radnor, who has a splendid mansion here, called Coleshill House.

Coleshill (St. Peter and St. Paul)

COLESHILL (St. Peter and St. Paul), a markettown and parish, in the union of Meriden, Coleshill division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 18 miles (N. by W.) from Warwick, and 103½ (N. W.) from London; containing 2172 inhabitants. This place derives its name from its situation on the acclivity and summit of an eminence, rising gradually from the south bank of the river Cole, over which is a neat brick bridge of six arches leading into the town: it consists principally of one long street, from the centre of which a shorter one, of considerable width, diverges towards the church, affording a convenient area for the market-place, in which is a portico of brick. The houses are in general well built, and several of them handsome and of modern date; the inhabitants are amply supplied with water from springs, and from the rivers Cole and Blyth, which run through the parish. The Midland railway has a station here. The market is on Wednesday; and there are fairs on the first Monday in January for cattle and sheep, on Shrove-Monday for horses, which is the principal fair, and on May 6th, the first Monday in July, and first Monday after Sept. 25th, all for cattle. Petty-sessions are held every alternate Wednesday; and two headboroughs, two clerks of the market, and two pinners, are chosen at the court of the lord of the manor, the Earl Digby, held in October. The bishop holds his triennial visitation in August; and a court of probate is held half-yearly in April and October. Part of the workhouse is appropriated to the confinement of malefactors previously to their committal. The town is the place of election for the northern division of the county.

The parish is intersected by the roads from Lichfield to Coventry, and from Birmingham to Atherstone and Nuneaton; and comprises 5272 acres, of which twothirds are arable land, and the remainder pasture: a portion is attached to Coleshill Park, about a quarter of a mile west of the town. The river Tame runs through, and forms a boundary on the north, separating the parish from the parish of Curdworth. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 18. 6½., and in the patronage of the Earl Digby (the impropriator), with a net income of £718: the tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1779. The church is a spacious structure, in the decorated English style, with a north-east chancel, and a lofty tower surmounted by an octagonal spire, crocketed at the angles, part of which was taken down and rebuilt in the same style in 1812; it contains an ancient Norman font, with an effigy of St. Peter, and a representation of the Crucifixion rudely sculptured on it. There are places of worship for Independents, Wesleyans, and Roman Catholics. The free grammar school was founded in the reign of James I., by Lord Digby, who, with some of the parishioners, endowed it with 70 acres of land and several houses; the management is vested in thirteen trustees, of whom the earl nominates three. A school was endowed in 1694, by Simon, Lord Digby, with £500, which have been vested in the purchase of land, for instructing girls, and apprenticing children; a new school-house has been erected, and under the same trust is an endowment for two almshouses, &c. A large building, the property of the earl, is appropriated as a boys' and an infants' school. Coleshill gives the title of Viscount to Earl Digby.

Coley

COLEY, a chapelry, in the township of Hipperholme, parish and union of Halifax, wapentake of Morley, W. riding of York, 3 miles (N. E. by E.) from Halifax. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patron, the Vicar of Halifax: there is a good glebe-house. The chapel, originally founded in 1529, was rebuilt in 1711, and again in 1816, in the later English style; it stands on an eminence, has a square tower ornamented with pinnacles, and accommodates 950 persons.