Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for HIGHWORTH

HIGHWORTH, a small town, a tything, a parish, a sub-district, a district, and a hundred, in Wilts. The town stands on high ground, commanding an extensive view, 2 miles W of the river Cole and the boundary with Berks, 4¼ NW of Shrivenham r. station, and 6¼ NNE of Swindon; was known, at Domesday, as Wrde; had once the status of a borough, sending a member to parliament, but lost the franchise by disuse; and possessed considerable importance as a seat of provincial trade, but lost much of this in consequence of the formation of the Great Western railway. It consists chiefly of stonebuilt houses; is a seat of petty sessions; and has a postoffice‡ under Swindon, a banking office, two good inns, a church, three dissenting chapels, national and British schools, a scientific institute, a subscription library, and charities £277. The church was built in the time of Henry VI.; includes two chapels; was recently restored; has a square tower, with open parapet; and contains tombs of the Warnefords. A weekly market is held on Wednesday; a monthly cattle market is held on the last Wednesday of each month; and fairs are held on 13 Aug. and 11 Oct. The tything is chiefly identical with the town. Pop. in 1851, 698; in 1861, 631. Houses, 140. The parish contains also the tythings of Westrop, Eastrop, Fresdon, Sevenhampton, South Marston, and Broad Blunsdon. Acres, 10, 000. Real property, exclusive of South Marston and Broad Blunsdon, £10, 852. Pop. of the whole, 3, 629. Houses, 836. The property of Sevenh mpton is all in one estate; that of Broad Blunsdon is divided among a few; and that of other parts is much su divided. The manor belonged, at the Conquest, to the Crown; and passed to Edmund de Langley and the St. Johns. An ancient camp, supposed to have been Roman, was on Blunsdon castle hill; and a Roman road went past the W base of that hill. The living is a vicarage, united with the chapelry of Sevenhampton, in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol. Value, £555.* Patron, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. Sevenhampton has a chapel of ease. The rectory of Broad Blunsdon and the p. curacy of South Marston are separate benefices.—The sub-district contains also the parishes of Inglesham, Castle-Eaton, Hannington, Stanton-Fitzwarren, Blunsdon-St. Andrew, Rodborne-Chaney, and StrattonST. Margaret. Acres, 23, 456. Pop., 7, 013. Houses, 1, 516.—The district comprehends also the sub-district of Swindon, containing the parishes of Swindon, Bishopstone, Little Hinton, Wanborough, Liddington, Chisledon, Draycot-Foliatt, and Wronghton. Acres, 50, 064. Poor rates, in 1863, £8, 346. Pop. in 1851, 17, 620; in 1861, 19, 237. Houses, 3, 862. Marriages in 1862, 166; births, 761, -of which 50 were illegitimate; deaths, 363, -of which 146 were at ages under 5 years, and 16 at ages above 85. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60, 1, 316; births, 6, 802; deaths, 3, 844. The places of worship, in 1851, were 20 of the Church of England, with 4, 167 sittings; 3 of Independents, with 682 s.; 7 of Baptists, with 690 s.; 9 of Wesleyan Methodists, with 1, 303 s.; 10 of Primitive Methodists, with 1, 001 s.; and 1 undefined, with 20 attendants. The schools were 19 public day schools, with 1, 740 scholars; 22 private day schools, with 460 s.; and 31 Sunday schools, with 2, 418 s. The workhouse is in Stratton-St. Margaret.-The hundred bears the name of Highworth, Cricklade, and Staple; and contains eighteen parishes and parts of two others. Acres, 50, 515. Pop. in 1851, 14, 432; in 1861, 14, 027. Houses, 3, 064.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a small town, a tything, a parish, a sub-district, a district, and a hundred"   (ADL Feature Type: "cities")
Administrative units: Highworth AP/CP       Highworth SubD       Swindon and Highworth RegD/PLU       Wiltshire AncC
Place names: HIGHWORTH     |     WRDE
Place: Highworth

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