Selattyn

is a parish on the N.W. verge of the county, bordering on Shropshire, comprising the townships of Upper and Lower Porkington, and containing 5,437 acres of land. In 1801 the parish embraced a population of 701 souls; in 1831, 1,143; and in 1841 there were 241 houses and 1,128 inhabitants, of whom 556 were males, and 572 females. The village of Selattyn lies on an acclivity, three miles N.N.W. from Oswestry, and consists of a few detached houses near to the church. The rest of the population reside in dwellings which are scattered throughout the parish. To the north and west of the village, a bleak and mountainous district stretches to the extremity of the county. The principal landowners are William Ormsby Gore, Esq., M.P.; Thos. George Warrington Carew, Esq.; John Wynn Eyton, Esq.; John Povey, Esq.; Richard Henry Kinchant, Esq.; Mrs. Lloyd; Richard Lewis, Esq.; Thos. Jones, Esq.; Thomas Lovett, Esq.; Mr. John Williams; Mr. John Edwards; Mr. Richard Jones; Messrs. Gilpin and Owen; and the trustees of Shrewsbury Grammar School; besides whom are several other proprietors.

The Church is a plain cruciform structure, with a square tower, and is dedicated to St. Mary. A small organ was added in 1847, at a cost of £70. The Rev. Thomas Edwards, who died in the year 1800, is remembered on a neat tablet. The living is a rectory, valued in the king’s book at £12. 9s. 7d., in the patronage of Mrs. Lloyd, and enjoyed by the Rev. Albany Rosendale Lloyd, M.A. The tithes were commuted in 1840 for £813. James Wildig, one of the assembly of divines, and the Rev. Henry Sacheverall, D.D., remarkable for their different principles, were rectors of Selattyn. A Chapel of Ease, dedicated to St. Barnabas, was opened for divine service on June 11th, 1850, at Hengoed. It is a small edifice, in the early English style, with nave and chancel, and has a chaste and neat appearance. The cost of the structure was about £500, which was raised by subscription, to which the rector was a liberal contributor. The Rev. Thomas Lewis Lewis is the officiating minister. Previous to the erection of this chapel there was a small place of worship here, which has since been converted into a school, where about fifty children are educated. The Free or Parochial School is situated a short distance from the parish church, where about 100 boys are educated. There is also a girls’ school, where 40 children are instructed. Mr. William Cullis, the teacher, is writing master to the juvenile branches of the royal family, and has published a small school book, which has had a large circulation. (For the endowment, see “Charities.”) The village is supplied with an abundance of excellent water, by means of a Water Ram Fountain, which was placed on the road side, at the sole expense of the rector, in the year 1847. The water is brought from a distance of about 1,000 feet, and rises 100 feet in perpendicular height. There are lime works on the western verge of the parish. About half a mile W. by N. from the church is a tower, upon the lofty summit of a hill, which is a conspicuous object for many miles. It was built by the Rev. Gerald Carew, and has the following inscription:—

GORSEDD ORWYNION.
It is recorded in the poems of the aged Prince and Bard, Llywarch-hen,
that in the 7th century, from
this spot he saw his son Gwen slain in a battle
between the Britons and Saxons, on the brook Morlas below.
Oedd gwr-vy-mâb oedd ddysgywen hawl
Ar ryd Vorlâs-y-llass Gwen.

A sepulchral urn, containing bones, was found underneath this tower, A.D. 1847.

From the tower a most beautiful panoramic view of the fertile plains of Shropshire is seen towards the south-east, and in the opposite direction the bold and picturesque scenery of the counties of Denbigh and Montgomery open to view. Porkington, the seat of William Ormsby Gore, Esq., M.P., lies about a mile N.W. from Oswestry. This plane takes its name from Brogyntyn, an old castle of the Welsh princes, which stood in the neighbouring grounds, and was surrounded by a deep fosse, which may still be traced. Porkington is a Grecian edifice, with an elegant portico. The park is extensive, and has a fine undulating surface, richly adorned with timber, and the prospects are extensive, varied, and beautiful. Pentre-pant Hall is a handsome residence, in a sequestered situation about two miles south from Selattyn; the hall is elegantly furnished, and the grounds beautifully wooded. It is the property of Thomas George Warrington Carew, Esq., and residence of the Rev. Gerald Carew. The Derwen is a neat house, S.E. from Selattyn, the residence and property of John Povey, Esq. The Rectory is a pleasantly situated house, a little south from the church.

Charities.—John Hanmer, D.D., bishop of St. Asaph, by will, 1628, gave the inheritance and fee-simple of his tenement in Selattyn to the use of the poor of the parish.

Charles Morris, in 1721, bequeathed £500 in trust, and directed the amount to be laid out in the purchase of lands, and out of the yearly proceeds thereof 20s. to be paid yearly for a sermon on Candlemas-day, and the residue to be employed for the maintenance of the poor charity children and other poor persons of this parish. The legacy was laid out in the purchase of land soon after the death of the testator, but there are no title deeds now to be found in the parish relating thereto, and that it is so intermixed with the property devised by Bishop Hanmer that it would now be difficult to distinguish them. The whole estate consists of 53a. 3r., including 18 acres of allotment, and about one rood of ground, obtained by exchange with Mr. John Edwards. The estate produces £60. 5s. per annum, to which is added 4s. yearly, the moiety of rent due to this parish from certain land left by J. R. Powell. There is a school and school-house on the premises, devised by Bishop Hanmer, the former of which was built in 1812. The Rev. G. N. K. Lloyd, the rector, contributed £100 towards this building, on condition that he, and the successors to his property in this parish, should have the privilege of sending to the school six poor children resident in, though not belonging to, the parish, to be taught free. The school at Hengoed was built upon land given by G. H. Carew, Esq., principally at the expense of the rector, who gave £200, expressly upon the condition that the children of all poor residents in the parish should be admitted to both the schools.

Colonel Owen charged certain lands, which now form part of the Porkington estate, with the payment of £6 yearly to the poor of this parish. A yearly sum of £10 is now paid by Mrs. Gore to the rector, who distributes the amount in sums varying from 5s. to 10s.

Mrs. Margaret Ormsby, by her will, dated 25th February, 1805, requested those who should succeed her in the Porkington estate, to distribute £20 annually among poor persons in the neighbourhood. In compliance with this request, the daughter of the testatrix gives £20 yearly among the most deserving poor.

Carew Rev. Gerald, Pentre-pant Hall

Cullis William, schoolmaster

Drury Richard, farmer, Mardon

Edwards Mr. John, Tower hill

Edwards John, farmer, Fron

Edwards Richard, farmer, Pentre

David Edwards Richard, farmer, Underhill

Edwards Richard, corn miller, Oak Mill

Evans John, farmer, Paradwys

Evans John, farmer, Ty-cock

Fenna Richard, farmer, Gyrn

Gore William Ormsby, Esq., M.P., Porkington Hall

Hales Sarah, farmer, Cerny-bwch

Harding Mr. Frederick, Fron Lodge

Holland James, carpenter, builder & farmer, Peny-bont

Hughes Edward, farmer, Park Farm

Jackson George, farmer and butcher, Pentre-clawdd

Jones Isaac, blacksmith, Pant-glass

Jones John, farmer, Birch House

Jones John, farmer, Forrest

Jones John, farmer, Five Cross Lanes

Jones John, blacksmith, Pentrewerne

Jones John, wheelwright

Jones Thomas, farmer, White House

Kenrick Elizabeth, vict., Hart and Trumpet

Lewis Mrs. Letitia

Lewis Margaret, shopkeeper

Lewis Richard, farmer, Pentrewerne Cottage

Lewis Rev. Thomas Lewis, curate, Hengoed

Lloyd Mrs. Ann, Nant Issa

Lloyd Rev. Albany Rosendale, M.A., Rectory

M’Kie W. H., agent to W. O. Gore, Esq., Scybar Issa

Meredith Humphrey, farmer, Pentre David

Morgan George, farmer, Springs

Morgan Joseph, farmer, Tyng-drain

Newstead Mary, school teacher, Hengoed

Nicholas Thomas, parish clerk, assistant overseer, and collector of assessed taxes

Peate Robert, farmer, Pentre clawdd

Povey John, Esq., The Derwen

Roberts Edward, farmer

Roberts John, maltster & vict., Cross Keys

Roberts Robert, shopkeeper

Sands Hugh, farmer, Cross lanes

Sands Thomas, farmer, Craignant

Thomas David, farmer, Llawry-pant, Ucha

Thomas John, corn miller

Thomas John, farmer, Penrhos

Thompson Thomas, farmer, Crown house

Vaughan Edward, farmer, Nantucha

Williams David, farmer, Pentrewerne

Williams Edmund & Thos., corn millers

Williams Richard, farmer, New Barn

Williams Samuel, farmer, Fron

Williams George, farmer, Grouse Lodge

Williams Peter, farmer, Selattyn Lodge

Williams Richard, blacksmith & beerhouse

Whitehurst John, Esq., Marddu

Wynn William Williams Edward, Esq., Sion House