Chirbury

is an extensive parish and considerable village in the upper division of the hundred of Chirbury, comprising the several townships of Chirbury, Dudston, Hockleton, Marrington, Marton, Middleton, Priestweston, Rorrington, Stockton, Tunberth, Walcot, Wilmington, Winsbury, and Wotherton, which together embrace an area of 11,041a. 1r. 27p. of land. Gross estimated rental, £12,648. 15s. 5d. Rateable value, £11,442. 12s. 6d. Population in 1801, 1,391; 1831, 1,576; 1841, 1,593; 1851, 1,533; at the latter period there were 303 houses. The most considerable landowners are the Earl of Powis; Sir Offley Pembury Wakeman, Bart; George Pritchard, Esq.; Rev. R. H. M. Price; Edward Humphries, Esq.; William Rubbathan, Esq.; and John Davies, Esq. The former owns the whole township of Chirbury, which contains 1,125a. 1r. 16p. of land, the rateable value of which is £1,606. 10s. At the census of 1841 there were 56 houses and 278 inhabitants. The village of Chirbury is pleasantly situated in a fertile valley on the confines of Montgomeryshire, eighteen miles and a half south-west from Shrewsbury, and two miles and a half east from Montgomery. Petty Sessions are held here the first Wednesday in each month. The inhabitants are chiefly engaged in agricultural pursuits. Some few, however, are employed in the lead mines and stone quarries in the immediate vicinity. The village is watered by the Camlad stream, which is noted for the excellency of its trout. It is presumed that the place was at one time of more consequence than it is at present, as it gives name to the hundred in which it is situated, and had a castle, erected in the tenth century by Ethelfleda, Queen of the Mercians, with a view to repel the incursions of the Welsh. It is said to have been a strong and stately structure, but no vestiges of it now remain. Chirbury is celebrated as having given the title of Baron to Edward, Lord Herbert. He was made Knight of the Bath at the coronation of James I., and subsequently appointed ambassador to Louis XIII., King of France, to mediate for the Protestants. On his return he was made Lord Herbert, of Castle Island, in Ireland, where he had a large estate. He greatly assisted his majesty in council and arms, and on that account was created a baron of England by the title of Baron Herbert, of Chirbury. He was author of several publications, among which is a life of Henry VIII. Chirbury Priory was of the order of St. Bennett, and founded in the time of King John. In the 9th of Edward I. the prior and convent removed to Snede, the place of their first institution and abode; for Chirbury it seems was represented as a situation not so convenient for celebrating divine mysteries: the religious were to continue the same good offices to the parishioners, and the right of burials and christenings was reserved to the church at Chirbury. This monastery had a grant of the tithes of Montgomery Wood, and of the mill there. At a subsequent period the chapel of Hyssington was given to the prior of Chirbury. On the dissolution of religious houses, King Henry VIII. granted the house, and lands on which it stood, to Edward Hopton and his heirs forever. In the 13th of Elizabeth, the rectory and parsonage of Chirbury, belonging to the late priory, was given to augment the income of the grammar school of Shrewsbury, where it remains at present.

The Church, dedicated to St. Michael, consists of nave, chancel and side aisles, and was formerly a portion of the conventual church of Chirbury priory. It is a commodious structure, having on each side of the nave six pointed arches rising from circular pillars. There is a fine tower at the west end, surmounted by an open-worked battlement, and eight pinnacles. It contains six musical bells, set up in 1808, and partly re-cast from the fine deep-toned priory bell which was formerly used for ringing the curfew. The living is a vicarage, rated in the king’s book at £9. 6s. 8d., now returned at £180.; in the patronage of the corporation of Shrewsbury: incumbent, Rev. James Wilding, M.A. The tithes have been commuted, and £1000 apportioned to the Free School of Shrewsbury.

Charities.—The Free School was founded and endowed by the Rev. Edward Lewis in 1765. The trust property consists of a farm at Hem, in the county of Montgomery, comprising 38 acres of land, and producing a yearly rental of £65. A farm at Meadow Town, in the parish of Worthen, consisting of 41a. 3r. 23p., with suitable premises, let for £35 a year. The school premises consist of a school and residence for the teacher, with a small garden attached, and the master has a salary of £20 per annum. After paying for repairs and other contingencies, the residue of the rent is distributed among ten poor widows, as directed by the donor.

Thomas Edwards, of Rorrington, gave by will 20s. yearly, to be given in bread on St. Thomas’s-day. There are two other bequests recorded on the table of benefactions, one a sum of £10, and the other a rent charge of 20s. per annum, which have long been lost to the poor.

Dudston, a township and small village, is situated about a mile and a half west from Chirbury, and at the census of 1851 had twelve houses and 96 inhabitants. There are 679a. 3r. 12p. of land, the rateable value of which is £786. The Earl of Powis is owner of the land in this township. Rent charge, £93. 11s. 2d.

Hockleton township comprises 487a. 2r. 9p. of land, and is situated about a mile N.E. of Chirbury. The rateable value is £422. 15s. At the last census there were seven houses and a population of 38 souls. The Earl of Powis is owner of the land. The small stream of the Camlad intersects the township. The tithes have been commuted for £49. 10s. 8d.

Marrington, a small rural village a mile and a half south from Chirbury, is situated in a picturesque glen, watered by a small stream. The hills on each side rise to a considerable altitude, and being richly covered with foliage, it forms one of the most romantic dingles in the county of Shropshire, and is the admiration of every visitor. The township contains 1,002a. 3r. 37p. of land, and at the census of 1851 had 15 houses and 77 inhabitants. Rateable value, £801. The Earl of Powis and John Davies, Esq., are the landowners. Rent charge, £65. 14s. 11d. Merrington Hall is an antique structure composed of timber, the property of John Davies, Esq., and residence of Mrs. Helena Forbes.

Marton is a township and pleasant village situate on the Shrewsbury and Montgomery turnpike road, three miles N.E. from Chirbury. The township contains 1,318a. 2r. of land, the rateable value of which is £1,419. The village contains several good residences, and at the census of 1841 there were 64 houses and 273 inhabitants. Rent charge, £133. 11s. 7d. Marton Pool covers 40a. 2r. 37p., of which 27a. 2r. 35p. are in this township, and the rest in that of Wilmington. It is well stocked with various kinds of fish, and is the frequent resort of wild fowl. John Hamer, Esq., is the principal landowner in this township. A neat Independent Chapel was built some years ago by William Nevitt, Esq., of Marton Villa.

Middleton is a village, township, and chapelry, three miles S.E. from Chirbury, comprising 1,247a. 3r. 33p. of land, and at the last census had 31 houses and 156 inhabitants. Rent charge, £55. 14s. 7d. The Church is a neat structure, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, consisting of nave, chancel, and transepts, and has 280 sittings, of which 262 are free and unappropriated. The living is a perpetual curacy in the patronage of the vicar of Chirbury; incumbent, Rev. Robert Edward Warren, M.A. On Middleton hill are some druidical remains, which no doubt originally consisted of twelve upright stones; vestiges of eleven are still to be seen, in an upright position, and about six feet above the surface of the ground. The diameter of the circle is about ninety feet. The National School was built in 1843, and enlarged in 1848. The average attendance of children is about fifty. The principal landowners in Middleton are George Pritchard, Esq., and Mrs. Stokes.

Priestweston is a township in the parish of Chirbury, comprising 1,107a. 2r. 26p. of land, the rateable value of which is £847. 12s. 1d. The village of Priestweston, pleasantly situated three miles S.E. from Chirbury, contains fifty houses and a population of 222 souls. The principal landowners are the Earl of Powis, Sir Offley P. Wakeman, Bart., George Pritchard, Esq., David Lloyd, Esq., John Beeman, Esq., and Edward Smith, Esq. Rent charge, £82. 17s. 2d. The Calvinistic Methodists have a small chapel, built in the year 1845.

Rorrington, a small village and township in the parish of Chirbury, four and a half miles east from the church, contains 969a. 0r. 9p. of land, and at the census of 1851 had 23 houses and 111 persons. Rateable value, £532. 12s. 6d. Sir Offley P. Wakeman, Bart., is the sole landowner in this township.

Stockton township is situated two and a half miles N.E. from Chirbury, and has 404a. 3r. 14p. of land, the rateable value of which is £547. 15s. It contains eleven houses and 53 inhabitants. Rent charge, £35. 2s. 9d. The Rev. H. Mostyn Pryse and Edward Humphries, Esq., are the landowners.

Timberth township has 257a. 1r. 27p. of land, seven houses and 31 inhabitants, and lies about a mile and a half S.W. from Chirbury. Rateable value, £258. 5s. 6d. Rent charge, £24. 11s. 8d. The land is the property of Earl Powis.

Wilmington is a township with a few scattered houses, pleasantly situated four miles N.E. from Chirbury, and has 693a. 1r. 16p. of land, the rateable value of which is £777. 10s. At the census of 1851 there were nine houses and 37 inhabitants. Rent charge, £85. 13s. 10d. A fine sheet of water called Marton Pool covers upwards of forty acres, of which 13a. 0r. 2p. are in this township. The landowners are J. Medlicott, Esq., and Mr. William Rubbathan.

Walcot, a township situated on the Shrewsbury and Montgomery turnpike road, and about half a mile N.E. from Chirbury, contains 345a. 2r. 1p. of land, and has three houses and a population of 18 souls. Rateable value, £459. Rent charge, £56. 7s. 1d. Edward Humphries, Esq., is the landowner.

Winsbury, a small township a mile and a quarter west from Chirbury, intersected by the Shrewsbury and Montgomery turnpike road, contains 658a. 1r. 4p. of land, and at the census of 1851 had six houses and 41 inhabitants. Rateable value, £850. Rent charge, £96. 7s. 1d. The land in this township is the property of the Earl of Powis

Wotherton, a small village and township, at the census of 1841 had 18 houses and 95 inhabitants. Rateable value, £756. 13s. 4d.

Post Office.—At Mr. William Gough’s. Letters arrive at 9 A.M. and are despatched at 4 30 P.M.

Chirbury Directory.

Bower Edward, blacksmith

Bridgewaters Benjamin, registrar of births, deaths, and marriages

Bridgewaters Saml., blacksmith

Cotterell Richard, shoemakr

Davies Thomas, shoemaker

Evans Samuel, tailor

Fletcher Mr. Geo., assistant overseer

Gough William, shopkeeper and postmaster

Groves Samuel, farmer

Harris Ann, schoolmistress

Langford Jane, farmer, The Hall

Price John, farmer

Pugh Jno. Frederick, schoolmaster (endowed)

Sneade Mrs. Margaret, vict., The Cross

Watts Thomas, farmer

Whittingham Wm., shoemkr

Wilding Rev. James, M.A., vicar, The Vicarage

Williams Henry, shopkeeper, auctioneer, and butcher

Wood Edward, wheelwright

Dudston Directory.

Gardner Humphrey, farmer, Little Moat

Groves Robert, farmer

Harris John, farmer, Great Moat

Jones Matthew Edwd., farmr

Powell Jeremiah, farmer

Smith Philip, farmer

Hockleton Directory.

Hughes Richard, maltster and farmer

Robinson Joseph, farmer

Marrington Directory.

Bemand John, farmer

Benson Thomas, shoemaker

Farmer Thomas, farmer

Forbes Mrs. Helena, the Hall

Gittins Thomas, miller

Hurdley Francis, farmer

Makelin William, farmer

Pearce John, farmer, Kingswood

Reynolds William, farmer

Thomas John, farmer, The Bank

Marton Directory.

Bemand Richard, farmer

Edwards Matthew, wheelwrt.

Gardner John, blacksmith

Gough Joseph, shopkeeper

Griffiths John, maltster and beerhouse keeper

Griffiths John, farmer

James William, beerhouse and shopkeeper

Jones Rev. John Peter (Independent)

Lewis Richard, farmer

Meddings John, farmer

Morgan Richard, victualler, The Sun Inn

Oliver John, cooper, shopkeeper, and carrier

Phillips Richard, farmer

Preece Mary, farmer

Roberts Samuel, blacksmith

Wilcox Richard and Evan, shoemakers & shopkeepers

Middleton Directory.

Bromley William, farmer

Gittins John, farmer, Kinton

Mellings Jane & Sons, frmrs.

Preece Vincent, farmer

Price Charles, schoolmaster (national)

Rogers Richard, blacksmith

Warren Rev. Robert Edwd., M.A., incumbent

Priestweston Directory.

Davies Wm., farmer, Little Weston

Francis John, farmer, Rudge

Gough Thomas, blacksmith

Holloway John, victualler, Red Lion

Mountford John, farmer, Stapeley

Pearce Saml., farmer, Rudge

Poulton Thos., farmer, Over House

Powell Mary, farmer, Lower Aldrees

Prince Thos., farmer, Brook House

Richards Samuel, shopkpr.

Rolands John, farmer

Taylor George T. R., surgeon

Thomas John, farmer, Upper Aldrees

Thomas William, tailor

Ward John, farmer, Little Weston

Ward Thomas, farmer, New House

Williams Thomas, farmer, Hagley

Rorrington Directory.

Bowen William, shoemaker

Corfield John, miller

Gittins Edward, farmer

Parry William, farmer, Rorrington Hall

Powell John, farmer

Roberts Mary Ann, farmer

Stokes John, shoemaker

Whettall John, blacksmith

Whettall Martha, farmer

Stockton Directory.

Croft Richard, blacksmith

Jones William, farmer

M’Cape Rev. Alex., curate of Chirbury

Morris John, miller

Williams Thomas, farmer

Timberth Directory.

Davis Edward, farmer

Walcot Directory.

Humphries Edward, Esq.

Wilmington Directory.

Miller Samuel, farmer

Rubbathan William, farmer

Whettall Thomas, farmer

Winsbury Directory.

Farmer Thomas, farmer

Wotherton Directory.

Blockley Edwd., stone mason and quarry master

Chelmick Edward, farmer

Evans David, farmer

Titley William, farmer and gamekeeper

Whettall John, farmer