Otterbourne - Ouneley

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

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'Otterbourne - Ouneley', in A Topographical Dictionary of England, (London, 1848) pp. 491-495. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp491-495 [accessed 24 March 2024]

In this section

Otterbourne (St. Matthew)

OTTERBOURNE (St. Matthew), a parish, in the union of Hursley, hundred of Buddlesgate, Winchester and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 4¼ miles (S. S. W.) from Winchester; containing, with the tything of Boyatt, 621 inhabitants. The parish comprises about 1200 acres, and is situated on the road from Winchester to Southampton: the Itchen navigation and the South-Western railway also pass through it. The living is annexed to the vicarage of Hursley: the tithes have been commuted for £310, and there are nearly 9 acres of glebe. A new church was consecrated on July 30th, 1839, a beautiful structure in the later English style, erected at a cost of £4000, and containing 420 sittings, of which 300 are free.

Otterburn

OTTERBURN, a township, in the parish of Kirkbyin-Malham-Dale, union of Settle, W. division of the wapentake of Staincliffe and Ewcross, W. riding of York, 7 miles (S. E.) from Settle; containing 48 inhabitants. The township comprises about 950 acres, the soil is fertile, and the substratum chiefly limestone. The village is situated on the river Aire.

Otterburn-Ward

OTTERBURN-WARD, a township, in the parish of Elsdon, union of Bellingham, S. division of Coquetdale ward, N. division of Northumberland, 11 miles (N. E. by N.) from Bellingham; containing 412 inhabitants. Here was fought, in 1388, the famous battle between the English under Percy, surnamed Hotspur, and the Scots commanded by Earl Douglas, in which the latter nobleman fell by the sword of the former, who, with many of his knights, was afterwards taken prisoner. The popular ballad of "Chevy Chase," in which, however, there are material deviations from historical facts, was founded upon this sanguinary contest. On the ground where the battle was fought are several tumuli, and the remains of intrenchments; and a cross, erroneously called "Percy's Cross," has been erected on the spot where Douglas is supposed to have fallen. Otterburn Tower was a strong fortress, well adapted for sustaining the frequent attacks of the Scottish borderers; the present castle is a modern edifice, in which some parts of the ancient building may be traced. The township comprises about 8517 acres, of which 464 are arable, 180 woodland, and the remainder pasture. The village is neat and well built, and pleasantly situated: trees of every ordinary variety thrive well about it. The burn Otter, rising in the moors to the north, and coming through the lands of Davyshiel, has its steep sides covered with wood as it approaches the village, and after passing it, and turning the wheel of an ancient fullingmill, winds through rich haughs, and soon joins the Rede. Near the village is a small manufactory for woollen-cloth, including carding, &c. There is a place of worship for Seceders from the Church of Scotland.

Otterden (St. Lawrence)

OTTERDEN (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union of Hollingbourn, partly in the hundred of Faversham, Upper division of the lathe of Scray, but chiefly in the hundred of Eyhorne, lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 3½ miles (N.) from Charing; containing 205 inhabitants. It comprises 1434 acres, of which 390 are in wood. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £6. 14. 2., and in the gift of W. G. Paxton, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £207. 10., and there is an excellent rectory-house, with 225 acres of land. The church was erected in 1753, near the ruins of the former edifice: on the east side are some fine monuments to the family of Curteis, and opposite, on the west side, one to the memory of Alderman Bunce.

Otterford (St. Leonard)

OTTERFORD (St. Leonard), a parish, in the union of Taunton, hundred of Taunton and Taunton-Dean, W. division of Somerset, 7 miles (S.) from Taunton; containing 491 inhabitants. It comprises about 2000 acres, of which 750 are common or waste. The living is a perpetual curacy; income, £72; patrons, the Beadon family; impropriators, various landowners.

Otterham (St. Denis)

OTTERHAM (St. Denis), a parish, in the union of Camelford, hundred of Lesnewth, E. division of Cornwall, 6 miles (N. E. by N.) from Camelford; containing 234 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1114 acres, of which 680 are common or waste. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £6. 14. 2.; income, £161; patron, Admiral Carthew. There is a barrow near the road to Stratton.

Otterhampton

OTTERHAMPTON, a parish, in the union of Bridgwater, hundred of Cannington, W. division of Somerset, 5¾ miles (N. W.) from Bridgwater; containing 222 inhabitants. It is situated on the western bank of the navigable river Parret, and comprises 1000a. 3r. 1p. A few hands are employed in quarrying stone for lime, and for building purposes. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £13. 6., and in the gift of J. Evered, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £220, and the glebe comprises nearly 18 acres, with an excellent glebe-house built by the Rev. Dr. Jeffery. The church is an ancient plain edifice, in the later English style, with a very neat interior, and a handsome chancel erected by the present incumbent.

Otterington, North (St. Michael)

OTTERINGTON, NORTH (St. Michael), a parish, in the unions of Northallerton and Thirsk, partly in the wapentake of Allertonshire, and partly in that of Birdforth, N. riding of York, 3½ miles (S.) from Northallerton; containing, with the townships of Thornton-le-Beans and Thornton-le-Moor, 688 inhabitants, of whom 79 are in the township of North Otterington. This parish lies in the well-cultivated vale of the river Wiske, and comprises about 3550 acres, of which 900 are in the township of North Otterington. Of the latter area, about 90 acres are woodland and plantations, and the remainder arable, meadow, and pasture; the soil is various. The village is situated on the east side of the vale, near the river, which is here little more than a brook, and on the road from Northallerton to Boroughbridge: a few persons are employed in hand-loom weaving at Thornton-le-Moor. The York and Newcastle railway passes through the parish. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £4; net income, £130; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Christ-Church, Oxford. The church is ancient. There is a chapel of ease at Thornton-le-Moor.

Otterington, South (St. Andrew)

OTTERINGTON, SOUTH (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Thirsk, wapentake of Birdforth, N. riding of York, 5 miles (S. by E.) from Northallerton; containing 326 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the west by the river Wiske, which separates the diocese of York from that of Ripon. It comprises by computation 1500 acres, whereof 700 are arable, and the remainder meadow and pasture; the soil is generally fertile. The village is pleasantly situated on the east bank of the river; the road from Northallerton to Boroughbridge intersects the parish from north to south, and near the western boundary is a station on the York and Newcastle railway. The living is a discharged rectory, in medieties called respectively Gamwell House and Weatherel House, each valued in the king's books at £7. 14. 4½.; whole net income, £290; patron, T. Darnbrough, Esq. A new parish church was completed in 1846, a stone edifice in the Norman style; the chancel windows are of stained glass.

Ottersay-Stocklinch, in the county of Somerset.—See Stocklinch, Ottersay.

OTTERSAY-STOCKLINCH, in the county of Somerset.—See Stocklinch, Ottersay.

Otterton (St. Michael)

OTTERTON (St. Michael), a parish, in the union of St. Thomas, hundred of East Budleigh, Woodbury and S. divisions of Devon, 4 miles (S. W. by W.) from Sidmouth; containing 1245 inhabitants. Here was an alien priory of Black monks, founded in the reign of the Conqueror, and subordinate to the abbey of St. Michael in Periculo Maris, in Normandy; at the suppression, in the 1st of Edward IV., its revenue was estimated at £87. 10. 4., and its possessions were given to the monastery of Sion. The parish is situated on the eastern bank of the river Otter, the estuary of which at a short distance communicates with the English Channel; it is bounded by Sidmouth on the east, and on the west by East Budleigh, and comprises about 4353 acres. Redsandstone is taken from the cliffs, for building purposes. Pillow-lace is made by the females. Small fairs are held on April 18th and October 17th. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £22; net income, £312; patrons, the family of Rolle. The vicar has all the tithes, except the sheaf-tithe, which belongs to the Rolle family, who possess nearly the whole of the parish; there is a glebe-house, with about 24 acres of land. The church is ancient, and remarkable for the situation of the tower at the east end. At Hederland was formerly a chapel.

Ottery St. Mary

OTTERY ST. MARY, a market-town and parish, constituting the hundred of Ottery St. Mary, in the union of Honiton, Woodbury and S. divisions of Devon, 11 miles (E. by N.) from Exeter, and 161 (W. S. W.) from London; containing 4194 inhabitants. This place derives its name from its situation on the river Otter, and from the dedication of its church to the Blessed Virgin. At the time of the Conquest, the manor and church of Otrei belonged to the chapter of St. Mary's church, at Rouen, in Normandy, to whom they had been given by Edward the Confessor. At what time a church was first founded here is not known; but in 1260 a church was consecrated by Bronescombe, Bishop of Exeter, which in 1337 was made collegiate for a warden, minister, precentor, sacristan, and brethren, in all forty in number, by Bishop Grandison, who, at his own charge, purchased from the chapter of Rouen the church and manor of Ottery, as an endowment for his recently established college. He also built the choir and Lady chapel, with a magnificent altar-screen which was mutilated in the reign of Elizabeth, plastered over in 1603, and in 1688 covered by wooden frame-work; upon removing which, in 1829, the original was discovered: this screen has been restored in Beer stone, after a splendid design by Edward Blore, Esq. In 1451, Henry VI., in his progress through the kingdom, visited Ottery, where he was received with every demonstration of respect, and remained for two days, taking up his lodging in the college. During the civil war of the seventeenth century, it was alternately occupied by both parties; in 1645 Sir Thomas Fairfax fixed his headquarters here for several weeks, during which time he lost many of his men by disease, and several of his officers, among whom was Colonel Pickering.

The town is pleasantly situated on the east bank of the river Otter, and within a mile of the great road from London to Exeter. It is irregularly built on very uneven ground, and, with the exception of a few respectable houses in the higher parts of it, consists chiefly of cottages: the inhabitants are amply supplied with water flowing freely through the streets. The surrounding country is fertile, and diversified with pleasing scenery. The manufacture of serge, which was formerly carried on, has been superseded by the establishment of extensive silk-works, whose machinery is impelled by a water-wheel of very large dimensions; in this concern between 300 and 400 persons are employed, principally in manufacturing handkerchiefs and ribbons. Some lace is also made in the town. The market is on Thursday; and fairs, chiefly for cattle, are held on the Tuesday before Palm-Sunday, on Whit-Tuesday, and August 15th, at the last of which great quantities of cheese are sold: a great market, likewise, takes place on the Thursday before the second Friday in every month. Courts leet and baron occur annually for the manor, at which two constables for the town and two for the parish are appointed; there is also a constable for the hundred, whose office is permanent.

The parish comprises 8500 acres, of which 447 are common or waste. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £20, and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £150. After the dissolution of the college founded by Bishop Grandison, the revenue of which was estimated at £338. 2. 9., the site was granted to Edward, Earl of Hertford, in the 37th of Henry VIII.; and in the same year the king gave the church and cemetery, with the vicarage and collegiate buildings, in trust to four inhabitants of the town, whom he incorporated as "The Four Governors of the hereditaments and goods of the Church of St. Mary, Ottery." Under this charter the governors make certain annual payments to the vicar, chaplain-priest, and schoolmaster. The great tithes of the parish belong to the Dean and Canons of Windsor, and the small tithes to the governors. The church is a noble structure in the early English style, with some portions of more recent date, and has two towers, which form the transepts, a nave and choir, both with aisles, and a Lady chapel. The groined roof was added by Bishop Grandison; the north aisle of the nave is in the later English style, with a very beautiful ceiling of fan tracery and pendants: at the east end of the Lady chapel, and also at the west end of the church, are some richly-canopied niches. At Tipton is a district church, dedicated to St. John, the cost of which was defrayed chiefly by voluntary contributions, largely promoted by Sir John Kennaway and the family of Mr. Justice Coleridge; it was consecrated May 6th, 1840, and the living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Vicar, with a net income of £80. At West Hill, two miles south of the town, on the Exmouth road, is a church consecrated in September 1846, and dedicated to St. Michael and All Angels; it is in the early English style, and cost £2000. A district is attached to it, comprising above 2000 acres, formerly a wild heath, but rapidly improving; the living is in the patronage of the Vicar. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans.

The King's Grammar School was founded in 1546, by Henry VIII., who endowed it with £10 per annum from the funds of the church corporation, to which benefactions were subsequently added; among these was a donation of land, in the year 1666, by Edward Salter. In this school were educated, among other eminent characters, Sir Francis Buller, Bart., successively judge of the courts of common pleas and king's bench; Dr. Luxmoore, late Bishop of St. Asaph; Dr. Coleridge, late Bishop of Barbadoes and the Leeward Islands; and Sir J. T. Coleridge, Knt., one of the present judges of the court of queen's bench. The late Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the profound philosopher and gifted poet, was born in the school-house, in 1772, his father being master. Some almshouses were founded by Robert Hone, a maternal ancestor of Sir Thomas Bodley's; and there are numerous bequests for distribution among the poor. The water of a spring near the town, called "Hawkins' well," is said to be efficacious in diseases of the eye; and persons afflicted with the stone have received great relief from the water of a spring in Yonder-street, which acts powerfully as a solvent. Among the natives of the parish may be named Sir Isaac Heard, garter king at arms. The notorious Joanna Southcott was born here in 1750.

Ottringham (St. Wilfrid)

OTTRINGHAM (St. Wilfrid), a parish, in the union of Patrington, S. division of the wapentake of Holderness, E. riding of York, 6¼ miles (S. E. by E.) from Hedon; containing 630 inhabitants. The parish comprises about 4320 acres, including some fertile and well-drained marshes, which extend southward to the Humber, where several drains discharge their waters at Stone creek: the lands are the property of various owners. The village, which is long, is situated on the road between Hedon and Patrington, about three miles north-eastward of the latter place. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £83; patron, Frank Watt, Esq. The church is principally in the decorated style, with a tower surmounted by a spire. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Oughterby

OUGHTERBY, a township, in the parish of KirkBampton, union of Wigton, ward and E. division of Cumberland, 7¼ miles (W.) from Carlisle; containing 131 inhabitants. It comprises 905 acres, of which 105 are common or waste land. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £9. 11.

Oughterside, with Allerby

OUGHTERSIDE, with Allerby, a township, in the parish of Aspatria, union of Cockermouth, Allerdale ward below Derwent, W. division of Cumberland, 6½ miles (N.) from Cockermouth; containing 555 inhabitants. Coal is obtained. The township is bounded on the south by the river Ellen.

Oughtibridge

OUGHTIBRIDGE, an ecclesiastical district, in the parish of Ecclesfield, union of Wortley, N. division of the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding of York, 5 miles (N. E.) from Sheffield; containing about 1000 inhabitants. This district, which is situated on the river Don, is in the northern portion of the parish of Ecclesfield, and abounds with beautiful scenery. The substratum contains stone of good quality for building and other purposes. Many of the inhabitants are employed in the manufacture of steel and the making of files. Here is a station of the Manchester and Sheffield railway. The church, erected in 1842, at an expense of £650, raised by subscription, is in the early Norman style, from the designs of Mr. Mitchell, and contains 400 sittings: the living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the perpetual curate of Wadsley, with a neat glebe-house. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans; and at Onesacre is a school endowed with £15 per annum.

Oulston

OULSTON, a township, in the parish of Coxwold, union of Easingwould, wapentake of Birdforth, N. riding of York, 4 miles (N. N. E.) from Easingwould; containing 200 inhabitants. It comprises 1502a. 3r. 17p., of which 300 acres are arable, 1093 pasture and meadow, and 108 wood and common. The tithes have been commuted for £231, payable to Trinity College, Cambridge. There is a Roman Catholic chapel.

Oulton

OULTON, a township, in the parish and union of Wigton, ward and E. division of the county of Cumberland, 2 miles (N. N. W.) from Wigton; containing 406 inhabitants. The great tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1823. There is a place of worship for Baptists.

Oulton (St. Peter and St. Paul)

OULTON (St. Peter and St. Paul), a parish, in the union of Aylsham, hundred of South Erpingham, E. division of Norfolk, 4 miles (W. N. W.) from Aylsham; containing 409 inhabitants. The parish is on the road from Aylsham to Holt, and comprises 1849a. 31p., of which 1553 acres are arable, 108 meadow and pasture, and 143 woodland and plantations. Oulton Hall is a handsome mansion, in a tastefully-embellished demesne commanding some fine views. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £8. 5.; patrons, the family of Cook. The impropriate tithes are in the hands of the landowners, with the exception of those of 74 acres belonging to Lady Suffield, which have been commuted for £20. 10.; the vicarial tithes produce £168, and the glebe consists of 13 acres. The church, situated on an eminence about a mile from the village, is in the decorated English style, with a tower. There is a place of worship for Independents.

Oulton

OULTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Norbury, poor-law union of Newport, W. division of the hundred of Cuttlestone, S. division of the county of Stafford, ½ a mile (S. S. W.) from the village of Norbury; containing 40 inhabitants.

Oulton (St. Michael)

OULTON (St. Michael), a parish, in the incorporation and hundred of Mutford and Lothingland, E. division of Suffolk, 3 miles (W.) from Lowestoft; containing 660 inhabitants. The parish comprises by admeasurement 1900 acres, and is bounded on the west by the river Waveney, which receives the surplus water of Lake Lothing, commonly called Oulton Broad, on the south. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £14. 13. 4., and in the gift of the Rev. Geo. Anguish: the tithes have been commuted for £450, and the glebe comprises 50 acres. The church originally seems to have been in the form of a Latin cross, but both transepts have been taken down; the steeple stands between the nave and chancel, and the whole building shows it to be of the Norman style: there are some curious ancient brasses in the chancel.

Oulton, with Woodlesford

OULTON, with Woodlesford, a township, in the parish of Rothwell, Lower division of the wapentake of Agbrigg, W. riding of York, 5 miles (S. E. by E.) from Leeds; containing 1789 inhabitants. The township comprises by computation 1240 acres, chiefly the property of John Blayds, Esq., who is lord of the manor; the surface is varied, and the low grounds are watered by a stream that flows into the river Aire. There are several quarries of stone valuable for building purposes. The village, which lies on the road from Leeds to London, is pleasant and healthy. Oulton Hall, the seat of Mr. Blayds, is a handsome mansion, situated in a wellwooded demesne. The church, dedicated to St. John, was founded by the late Mr. Blayds, who in 1827 bequeathed ample funds for its erection, and £4000 three per cent. consols. for its endowment. It is a well-built structure in the early English style, with a square embattled tower crowned with pinnacles, and surmounted by a finely-proportioned spire; the chancel, which is hexagonal, is richly decorated, and the windows are embellished with stained glass. The church, with a house for the minister in a corresponding style, was completed in 1830, at a cost of £12,000; and the living is a donative, in the patronage of Mr. Blayds. There are places of worship for Methodists and Ranters. The vicarial tithes have been commuted for £140, and the impropriate for £51. 14. Dr. Richard Bentley was born here in 1661.

Oulton, Low

OULTON, LOW, a township, in the parish of Over, union of Northwich, First division of the hundred of Eddisbury, S. division of Cheshire, 3¾ miles (E. by N.) from Tarporley; containing 47 inhabitants. It comprises 905 acres, the soil of which is clay. A tithe rentcharge of £60 is paid to the Bishop of Chester.

Oundle (St. Peter)

OUNDLE (St. Peter), a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, in the hundred of Polebrooke, N. division of the county of Northampton, 30 miles (N. E.) from Northampton, and 77 (N. by W.) from London; containing, with the hamlet of Ashton, 3037 inhabitants, of whom 2404 are in the town. A monastery was established here before the year 711, when Wilfrid, Archbishop of York, died in it: by some it is thought to have been founded by that primate, while others consider it to have been a cell to the abbey of Peterborough, and part of its possessions. The parish contains 4976a. 2r. 33p., of which 3667a. 3r. 13p. are in the township. The town is situated on a gentle declivity on the northern bank of the Nene, by which river it is nearly surrounded, and over which are two bridges, leading respectively to the Thrapston and Peterborough roads: North bridge is remarkable for its length and the number of its arches, which support an elevated causeway. The streets are well paved and lighted, and under the provisions of a local act of parliament, the general appearance of the town has been modernised and improved: two or three houses yet remain, however, which were built with stone from Fotheringay Castle. Several of the inhabitants are employed in making bobbin-lace. Here is a station of the Northampton and Peterborough railway. The market is on Thursday; and fairs are held on February 25th, Whit-Monday, and August 21st, for horses, cattle, and sheep; and on October 12th, for cheese, cattle, &c.: a commodious market-house and shambles have been erected. Manorial courts leet and baron, and a court for the hundred, occur annually; a court takes place for the rectorial manor of Oundle once in two or three years, and the pettysessions for the division are held here once a fortnight. The powers of the county debt-court of Oundle, established in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Oundle.

The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 6. 8., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £376; impropriator, John Smith, Esq. The church is a spacious and very handsome cruciform structure, combining the different styles of English architecture, with a lofty tower terminated at the angles by octagonal turrets, and surmounted by an hexagonal crocketed spire: in the chancel are some rich stalls, good screen-work, and a portion of ancient stained glass. There are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and Wesleyans. The free grammar school was founded in 1556, by Sir William Laxton, a native of the town, and lord mayor of London in 1544; the amount of endowment is about £400 per annum: the present head master is the Rev. D. Pooley, M.A., of St. John's College, Cambridge. A school was endowed in 1620, by the Rev. Nicholas Latham, with £10 per annum; another is endowed with a like sum; and a national school is supported by subscription. An almshouse was also established and endowed by Sir William Laxton for seven men, and an hospital for sixteen women was founded by the Rev. N. Latham. The poor-law union of Oundle comprises 37 parishes or places, 32 of which are in the county of Northampton, and 5 in that of Huntingdon, altogether containing a population of 14,975. In the vicinity are some chalybeate springs.

Ouneley, or Onneley

OUNELEY, or Onneley, a township, in the parish of Madeley, union of Newcastle-under-Lyme, N. division of the hundred of Pirehill and of the county of Stafford, 7 miles (W. S. W.) from Newcastle; containing 192 inhabitants. This township is the property of the Earl of Wilton and others, and has a pleasant hamlet about a mile and a half south-west of the village of Great Madeley.