Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for CRICKLADE

CRICKLADE, a town, two parishes, a sub-district, and a district in Wilts. The town stands on Ermine-street and the river Isis, adjacent to the North Wilts canal, near its junction with the Thames and Severn canal, about a mile from the boundary with Gloucester, 3½ miles N by E of Purton r. station, and 7¼ NNW of Swindon. It dates from very early times; was known to the Saxons as Crocgelad; and was plundered in 905 by Ethelwald, and in 1016 by Canute. It had a preceptory of the Knights Templars, a small ancient hospital, and a ten-pillared town hall of 1569; and it has now a head post office, ‡ two chief inns, two churches, two dissenting chapels, and charities £289. St. Sampson's church is a cruciform structure, with a pinnacled tower; was built by the Earls of Warwick; and has an aisle belonging to the Radnors, armorial shields, and a curious clock. St. Mary's church is partly Norman; consists of nave, north and south aisles, and chancel, with low ivy-clad tower: and has a sculptured cross in the churchyard. Markets are held on Saturdays; and fairs on 21 March, the second Thursday of April, 15 Aug., 21 Sept., 11 Oct., and 8 Dec. The town is a borough by prescription; and has sent two members to parliament since the time of Henry VI. Its borough limits were so vastly extended in 1782, for punishment and prevention of bribery, as to make it practically but the centre of a representative district, with Swindon and Brinkworth for other polling-places: and they were not altered by the Reform bill. They include all the parishes of Cricklade district; the parishes of Inglesham, Highworth, Castle-Eaton, Hannington, Stanton-Fitzwarren, Blunsdon-St. Andrew, Rodborne-Cheney, Stratton-St. Margaret, Wanborough, Liddington, Chisledon, Draycot-Foliatt, Swindon, and part of Wroughton, in Highworth district; the parishes of Oaksey, Crudwell, Hankerton, Brinkworth, Dauntsey, Norton-Coleparle, and part of Minety and Hullavington, in Malmsbury district; the parishes of Stanton-St. Quintin, Draycot-Cerne, Sutton-Benger, Seagry, and part of Kington-St. Michael in Chippenham district; the parishes of Kemble, Poole-Keynes, Somerford-Keynes, Shorncote, Poulton, and Marston-Maisey, in Cirencester district; the parishes of Long Newton and Ashby in Tetbury district; part of Hillmarton in Calne district; part of Broad-Hinton in Marlborough district; and part of Coleshill in Faringdon district. Direct taxes in 1857, £26, 857. Electors in 1868, 2, 094. Pop. of the p. borough, 36, 893. Houses, 7, 676.

The two parishes are C.-St. Sampson and C.-St. Mary; and the former includes the tythings of Whidhill and Chelworth. Acres of C.-St. S. 5, 998; of C-St. M., 121. Real property of both, £13, 775. Pop., 1, 453 and 367. Houses, 326 and 91. The property is much subdivided. C-St. S. is a vicarage, and C-St. M., a rectory, in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol. Value of the former, £365;* of the latter, £83.* Patrons of the former, the Dean and Chapter of Salisbury; of the latter, the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. -The sub-district contains also the parishes of Purton, Eisey, Latton, and Ashton-Keynes. Acres, 21, 337. Pop., 5, 795. Houses, 1, 287.—The district comprehends also the sub-district of Wootton-Bassett, containing the parishes of Wootton-Bassett, Cliffe-Pypard, Lyneham, Tockenham, Liddiard-Tregooze, and Liddiard-Millicent. Acres, 41, 566. Poor-rates, in 1862, £6, 892. Pop. in 1841, 13, 195; in 1861, 11, 470. Houses, 2, 501. Marriages in 1860, 75; births, 385, -of which 40 were illegitimate; deaths, 207, -of which 67 were at ages under 5 years, and 7 at ages above 85. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60, 796; births, 3, 713; deaths, 2, 294. The places of worship in 1851 were 13 of the Church of England, with 4, 322 sittings; 4 of Independents, with 674 s.; 2 of Baptists, with 224 s.; 8 of Primitive Methodists, with 875 s.; and 1 of Wesleyan Methodists, with 47 attendants. The schools were 15 public day schools, with 1, 148 scholars; 15 private day schools, with 217 s.; 20 Sunday schools, with 1, 445 s.: and 1 evening school for adults, with 12 s. The work-house is in Purton.


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

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a town, two parishes, a sub-district, and a district"   (ADL Feature Type: "cities")
Administrative units: Cricklade CP       Cricklade SubD       Cricklade and Wootton Bassett RegD/PLU       Wiltshire AncC
Place names: CRICKLADE     |     CROCGELAD
Place: Cricklade

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