Ingrave - Ipswich

Ingrave (St. Nicholas)

INGRAVE (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union of Billericay, hundred of Barstable, S. division of Essex, 2 miles (E. S. E.) from Brentwood; containing 530 inhabitants. This parish, anciently called Ing Ralph, is supposed to have derived that name from the Saxon, signifying "the meadow of Ralph." The living is a rectory, united to that of West Horndon, and valued in the king's books at £7. 13. 4.: the tithes have been commuted for £290, and the glebe comprises 70 acres. The church is a plain edifice, erected by Lord Petre after the union of the two livings.

Ingthorp

INGTHORP, a hamlet, in the parish of Tinwell, union of Stamford, hundred of East, county of Rutland; containing 8 inhabitants. A school is partly supported by the Marquess of Exeter.

Ingworth (St. Lawrence)

INGWORTH (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union of Aylsham, hundred of South Erpingham, E. division of Norfolk, l½ mile (N.) from Aylsham; containing 152 inhabitants. It is bounded on the west by the river Bure, and comprises 505a. 1r. 25p., of which 433 acres are arable, 60 pasture and meadow, and 9 woodland: the road from Aylsham to Cromer passes through the village. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5, and in the gift of the family of Windham: the tithes have been commuted for £166, and the glebe comprises about 14 acres. The church, which is chiefly in the early and later English styles, had a circular tower, which fell in 1822.

Inhurst

INHURST, a tything, in the parish of Baughurst, union of Kingsclere, hundred of Evingar, Kingsclere and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 8¼ miles (N. W. by N.) from the town of Basingstoke; containing 117 inhabitants.

Inkberrow, or Inkborough (St. Peter)

INKBERROW, or Inkborough (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of Alcester, Middle division of the hundred of Oswaldslow, Droitwich and E. divisions of the county of Worcester, 5¼ miles (W.) from Alcester; containing 1809 inhabitants. This parish is intersected by the road between Droitwich and Alcester, and situated on the borders of Warwickshire, which bounds it on the east. It comprises by measurement 6868a. 3r. 2p., including part of the district of Shell; the soil is rather above the average in productiveness, is well watered, and partially wooded. There are several quarries, producing a white sandstone which hardens considerably by exposure, and is well adapted for building purposes. A few of the male population are employed in needle-making, and some females in the glovetrade. The living is a vicarage, endowed with a portion of the rectorial tithes, and valued in the king's books at £16. 2. 1.; patron, the Earl of Abergavenny. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £595, and the vicarial for £800; the glebe comprises 90 acres. The church is a large and handsome edifice, of various styles of architecture, and consisting of a nave, chancel, and north transept, with a tower at the west end; it is supposed to have been originally built about five centuries ago, and was repaired in 1841, when 160 additional sittings were obtained. There is a place of worship for Baptists. Under an inclosure act in 1818, a poor's estate, consisting of 52 acres, was allotted in exchange for lands given by several benefactors; it produces £50 per annum. At Cokehill, on a site now occupied by a farmhouse, was a nunnery, founded in 1260 by Isabella, Countess of Warwick, who assumed the veil here: at the Dissolution, the revenue was estimated at £34. 15. 11. The chapel which was attached to the nunnery is still in existence, and underwent a thorough repair about 80 years ago.

Inkpen (St. Michael)

INKPEN (St. Michael), a parish, in the union of Hungerford, hundred of Kintbury-Eagle, county of Berks, 4 miles (S. E. by S.) from Hungerford; containing 743 inhabitants, and consisting of 2759a. 3r. 2p. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £11. 14. 7., and in the gift of J. Butler, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £615, and the glebe comprises 12 acres. There is a place of worship for a congregation of Wesleyans.

Inskip, with Sowerby

INSKIP, with Sowerby, a township, in the parish of St. Michael, upon Wyre, union of Garstang, hundred of Amounderness, N. division of the county of Lancaster, 4¾ miles (N. N. E.) from Kirkham; containing 735 inhabitants. In the Domesday book this place is written Inscip. It appears to have early belonged to the Carletons and the Butlers. In the reign of Henry VIII., the manor was held by the Cliftons; and subsequently, in the same reign, conjointly with them, by Sir Henry Kyghley. In the 2nd of Edward VI., Sir William Molyneux, who had married the heiress of Cuthbert de Clifton, was lord of the manor, which was afterwards transferred to the noble family of Cavendish by marriage with an heiress of the Kyghleys. The fishery of Sowerby mere, in Henry VIII.'s reign, belonged to the Hoghtons; and Thomas Rigmayden, and Thomas, Earl of Derby, were possessed of lands in this part of the township about that period. The manor of Sowerby has long been considered as belonging to the Stanleys, by whom a court baron is held on the first Friday after Trinity Sunday. A court baron is also held for Inskip. The township comprises 2888 acres, of which 62 are common or waste. The foundation stone of a church dedicated to St. Peter, was laid 10th June, 1847, by the Rev. William Hornby, vicar of St. Michael's, on an elevated site given by the Earl of Derby, who also contributed £500 towards the erection: Mr. Hornby presented £1000, and has endowed the living from the tithes of bis vicarage. The edifice is in the early English style, with a tower at the west end, and contains 300 sittings. The impropriate tithes of the township have been commuted for £63, and the vicarial for £129. There is a place of worship for Baptists; also a school.

Instow (St. John the Baptist)

INSTOW (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the union of Barnstaple, hundred of Fremington, Brauntou and N. divisions of Devon, 3 miles (N. N. E.) from Bideford; containing 557 inhabitants. It is bounded on the north by the navigable river Taw, and on the west by the Torridge; and comprises by measurement 1605 acres. The village is pleasantly situated at the confluence of the rivers, and on the new road from Barnstaple to Bideford, which affords some picturesque views of the bay, with Lundy Island and the lighthouses. There are some quarries of freestone. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £12. 17. 3½.; net income, £292; patron, A. S. Willett, Esq.: the glebe comprises 30 acres. The church is an ancient structure. The Wesleyans have a place of worship. Here are several springs of chalybeate water.

Intwood (All Saints)

INTWOOD (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Henstead, hundred of Humbleyard, E. division of Norfolk, 3½ miles (S. W.) from Norwich; containing 49 inhabitants. This place was the property and residence of Sir Thomas Gresham, who was lord of the manor, and erected the spacious mansion of Intwood Hall, in which he had the honour to entertain Queen Elizabeth for some days, and also the Earl of Warwick, when on his march against the rebel Ket, in 1549. The manor is now the property of John Salisbury Muskett, Esq., who has nearly rebuilt the old Hall in a handsome modern style, and greatly improved the demesne. The living is a rectory, with that of Keswick united, valued in the king's books at £5, and in the gift of Mr. Muskett: the tithes of Intwood have been commuted for £143, and the glebe comprises 16 acres. The church, originally Norman, has been rebuilt in the later English style, with the exception of the tower, which is circular, and surmounted by a spire.

Inwardleigh

INWARDLEIGH, a parish, in the union of Oakhampton, hundred of Black Torrington, Black Torrington and Shebbear, and N. divisions of Devon, 3½ miles (N. W. by N.) from Oakhampton; containing 715 inhabitants. This parish is situated near the rivers Okement and Torridge, on the road from Oakhampton to Exeter, and on that through Hatherleigh to the north. It comprises according to computation 7120 acres, principally arable land; 1300 are common or waste. Stone of good quality for building is quarried, and also stone for mending the roads. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £16. 11. 3.; net income, £277; patron, the Rev. R. Holland: the glebe comprises 200 acres of arable and pasture land, and 33 of coppice. The church is an ancient structure, with a square tower. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Inworth (All Saints)

INWORTH (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Witham, Witham division of the hundred of Lexden, N. division of Essex, 1½ mile (S. E.) from Kelvedon; containing 591 inhabitants. This place, which is variously written in records Ineworth, Innesworth, and Inford, has two manors, or reputed manors, Inworth and Chedingswell. Inworth, which has a mansion-house about a quarter of a mile from the church, formed part of the endowment of the nunnery of Helenstow, in Bedfordshire, founded by Judith, niece of William the Conqueror; and that establishment retained the property till the Dissolution. The manor of Chedingswell, the house of which is about a mile from the church, was formerly styled Cuddingswell, and Chiswell, and belonged to Coggeshall Abbey; different families have since owned it. The parish is pleasantly situated near the London road, and comprises by measurement 1554 acres, of which 1322 are arable, 83 pasture, about 60 wood, and 89 common or waste; the lands are elevated, and the soil generally a strong rich loam, producing abundant crops. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £10, and in the gift of T. Poynder, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £361, and the glebe comprises 50 acres. The church is remarkable for a small porch on the south side, of Roman bricks and flints mixed; near the altar is a piscina, and there are some remains of a tessellated pavement.

Ipersbridge

IPERSBRIDGE, an extra-parochial place, in the liberty of Dibden, poor-law union of New-Forest, Southampton and S. divisions of the county of Southampton; containing 23 inhabitants.

Iping

IPING, a parish, in the union of Midhurst, hundred of Easebourne, rape of Chichester, W. division of Sussex, 3 miles (N. W. by W.) from Midhurst; containing 409 inhabitants. It is situated on the Rother, and comprises 1926a. 1r. 30p., of which 675 acres are arable, 326 meadow and pasture, 357 in woods and roads, 197 common, and 336 waste; the soil is a stiffish kind of clay mixed with sand. Near the church is a bridge of five arches over the Rother, on the bank of which river is a paper-mill, affording employment to fifty persons. The road from Midhurst to Petersfield passes through the parish. The living is a rectory, with the living of Chithurst annexed, valued in the king's books at £7, and in the patronage of Colonel Wyndham, with a net income of £314: the tithes of Iping have been commuted for £265. 10., and there are 15 acres of glebe. The church, rebuilt by subscription, and consecrated in October 1840, is in the later English style.

Ipplepen (St. John the Baptist)

IPPLEPEN (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the union of Newton-Abbott, hundred of Haytor, Teignbridge and S. divisions of Devon, 3¾ miles (S. S. W.) from Newton-Abbott; containing, with the chapelry of Woodland, 1172 inhabitants. It comprises 2726 acres, of which 180 are common or waste. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £26. 2. 3½.; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor. The great tithes have been commuted for £480; the vicar's glebe comprises 80 acres. The church has a handsome screen, and enriched pulpit; it belonged, with some adjoining lands, to the priory of St. Peter de Fulgeriis in Brittany, and attached to it was a cell to that establishment. After the suppression of alien priories, the church was in the crown, till 1438, when it was appropriated to the college of St. Mary Ottery, on the dissolution of which it was given to the dean and canons of Windsor. At Woodland is a separate incumbency. The Wesleyans have a place of worship.

Ippolitts (St. Hippolytus)

IPPOLITTS (St. Hippolytus), a parish, in the union of Hitchin, hundred of Hitchin and Pirton, county of Hertford, l½ mile (S. E. by S.) from Hitchin; containing 919 inhabitants. The living is a vicarage, united to that of Great Wymondley in 1685, and valued in the king's books at £11: the tithes were commuted for land and corn-rents in 1811. The church has a square embattled tower, surmounted by a short spire. Adjoining the churchyard are two endowed almshouses.

Ipsden

IPSDEN, a chapelry, in the parish of North Stoke, union of Henley, hundred of Langtree, county of Oxford, 3½ miles (S. E. by E.) from Wallingford; containing, with the liberty of Stokerow, 610 inhabitants. The chapel, dedicated to St. Mary, is a small edifice in the Norman style, with later insertions.

Ipsley (St. Peter)

IPSLEY (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of Alcester, Alcester division of the hundred of Barlichway, S. division of the county of Warwick 2½ miles (E. S. E.) from Redditch; containing 1029 inhabitants. The parish is situated in the western part of the county, nearly surrounded by that of Worcester; and consists of 2514 acres, of which 1087 are arable, 1136 pasture, and 210 woodland: it is intersected by the river Arrow, and the road from Birmingham to Alcester. The surface is undulated, the soil a strong clay, good for wheat and beans, and the scenery picturesque and well-wooded. Walter Savage Landor, the celebrated author, is lord of the manor, and owner of about 800 acres. The river propels a needle-mill and corn-mill. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £11. 10. 7½.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. Charles Dolben, M.A.: the tithes have been commuted for £685, and the glebe comprises 45 acres, with a glebe-house. At Headless-Cross is a chapel of ease; and attached to the church is a Sunday school.

Ipstone (St. Nicholas)

IPSTONE (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union of Wycombe, partly in the hundred of Pirton, county of Oxford, but chiefly in that of Desbohough, county of Buckingham, 7 miles (N. W. by W.) from Marlow; containing 347 inhabitants, of whom 177 are in the Bucks portion. It comprises 1011 acres, of which 54 are common or waste. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £9. 9. 4½., and in the gift of Merton College, Oxford: the tithes have been commuted for £170, and the glebe comprises 22 acres. The church stands in Oxfordshire. The boundary line of the two counties passes through a room in the manorhouse.

Ipstones (St. Leonard)

IPSTONES (St. Leonard), a parish, in the union of Cheadle, N. division of the hundred of Totmonslow and of the county of Stafford, 5 miles (S. S. E.) from Leek; containing, with the township of Morridge and part of Foxt, 1370 inhabitants. In the year 1450, it appears that this parish, together with the parishes of Cheddleton and Horton, were included in the parish of Leek, the tithes of which belonged to the abbey of Dieulacres until the dissolution of monasteries. The parish occupies a very elevated situation, and comprises 5642 acres of land, chiefly pasture; it abounds, in several places, with rugged rocks, some of which greatly overhang their bases, and at Sharp Cliff this appearance is particularly striking. The soil, generally, is not very fertile, but the face of the country has of late years been much improved by extensive plantations and lime culture, effected by the late John Sneyd, Esq. Coal, of moderate quality, is wrought to a limited extent; and the quarries of gritstone at Black-bank furnish immense quantities of excellent grindstones, which are sent to various parts of the kingdom. The river Churnet, and the Uttoxeter branch of the Trent and Mersey canal, run parallel with each other through the parish; and the Churnet-Valley branch of the North-Staffordshire railway will also pass through. Fairs for cattle, sheep, &c., are held on March 24th and November 6th. In the parish are two fine old mansions, now converted into farmhouses, called Sharpcliff and White Hough; as also the more modern and romantic residence of Belrnont, the seat of the late John Sneyd, Esq. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £160; patrons and impropriators, the Freeholders. The church is a handsome structure with a tower, erected in 1790. There are places of worship for Primitive Methodists and Wesleyans. A free school, anciently endowed with land producing £20 per annum, was further endowed in 1844, by Edward Corden, Esq., of Ashbourn, with £500, which have been laid out in the purchase of a farm. Fossils of plants, apparently of oriental growth, are found near the church.

Ipswich

IPSWICH, a borough, port, and market-town, and the head of a union, in the liberty of Ipswich, E. division of Suffolk, 25 miles (S. E. by E.) from Bury St. Edmund's, and 69 (N. E.) from London; containing 25,384 inhabitants. This place had a mint in the early period of the heptarchy, and was fortified with walls, and surrounded by a moat: of the walls there are still some remains in a garden near the church of St. Nicholas, and of the moat a memorial is preserved in the name of the northern suburb, called the Ditches. Though of considerable antiquity, it is not distinguished by any event of historical importance prior to the Conquest: in Domesday book it is named Gypiswic, and Gyppeswic, from the river Gyppen or Gypping, which falls into the Orwell, near the town. The walls, which were greatly damaged in 991 and 1000, when the town was plundered by the Danes, were repaired in the reign of John, and had four gates. Soon after the Conquest a castle was erected here, which Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, defended against Stephen, to whom he at length surrendered it, and which was afterwards demolished by Henry II. Isabel, queen of Edward II., who had made a visit to France, landed here on her return, with a force of nearly 3000 men, and, being joined by the discontented barons, laid siege to Bristol, where she put the elder Spencer to death, and compelled the king to take refuge in Wales. In the 26th of Henry VIII., Ipswich was made the seat of a suffragan bishop, who was consecrated by Archbishop Cranmer, and had a mansion in the parish of St. Peter, the remains of which are now used as a malthouse. During the reign of Mary, several individuals suffered martyrdom in the town. Queen Elizabeth, in her progress through Norfolk and Suffolk, remained at the place for four days, and sailed down the Orwell in great pomp, attended by the corporation. Among other sovereigns who have visited Ipswich may be noticed George II., when on his way from Lowestoft, upon which occasion a congratulatory address was presented to him by the corporation; and George IV., when Regent.

The town is pleasantly situated on an acclivity, bordered on the west and south by the river Orwell, over which is a handsome iron bridge, and another bridge at the entrance into Ipswich from the London road; the streets are irregularly formed, and were once inconveniently narrow. Under an act passed in 1816, the town was paved, and is lighted with gas; a fund, also, has been raised for its general improvement. The houses, many of which are ancient and ornamented with carved work, are for the most part well built; and the erection of several good ranges of building, and the construction of some handsome streets, have added much to the appearance of the town. The inhabitants are supplied with water from the river and from springs. The air is salubrious, and the temperature mild, the place being sheltered from the colder winds by hills on the north and north-east. The environs are pleasant; and the higher grounds command a fine view of the town, the river, and the adjacent country, which abounds with pleasingly diversified scenery, including Christchurch Park, in which are some of the finest Spanish chesnut and beech trees in the kingdom, and which, from its extent and the beauty and variety of its scenery, forms a delightful promenade. The cavalry barracks, a neat building at the entrance from the London road, contain accommodation for six troops, but three only are usually stationed there. A philosophical society was established in 1818. There is a library for the use of the free burgesses, founded by Mr. W. Smart in 1612, and originally attached to the free grammar school, but now removed to the Literary Institution, at the town-hall; and a public subscription library is supported, together with three subscription newsrooms, a mechanics' institute established in 1824, and a horticultural society. A museum is in course of erection, which will contain a library, apartments for specimens now being collected, and various other rooms, with a spacious lobby: the building was commenced in 1847. The theatre is opened twice in the year, for a few weeks, by the Norwich company of comedians; Garrick made his first appearance on the stage here, in 1741. There are some subscription assembly-rooms, elegantly fitted up; and races take place in the first week in July. On the quay are commodious baths.

The borough has a jurisdiction extending for a considerable distance on both sides of the Suffolk coast, and beyond Harwich on the coast of Essex. A very good foreign and coasting trade is carried on at the port, which is rising in importance; the number of vessels of above 50 tons' burthen registered here being 119, and their aggregate tonnage 12,339. The coasting-trade consists chiefly in corn and malt, and in timber for shipbuilding, with which Ipswich supplies the dockyards. Very extensive improvements have been lately effected, which greatly facilitate commercial enterprise. The river, which was only about 14 feet deep up to the town at spring tides, has been deepened to 17 feet; and the mercantile premises in the town being mostly situated on the eastern side of the river, where it turns at nearly a right angle from its previous course, a space of 33 acres at this point has been inclosed as a wet-dock, which forms one of the most spacious and advantageously situated docks in the kingdom. The rivers Orwell and Gipping, which were thus arrested in their progress, were again connected with the river by a new cut that may be termed the chord of which the old channel formed the bow, so that the river proceeds in a rather more direct course than before. The Stow-Market canal, constructed in 1793, at an expense of £26,380, affords great facility for inland navigation; it is formed in the channel of the river Gipping, from Stow-Market to Ipswich. The line of railway from Ipswich to Colchester was opened in June 1846, and that from Ipswich to Bury, in December: the terminus here stands in a beautiful spot, close to the town, surrounded by rural scenery, and commanding a view of the Orwell and the adjacent country. Boats sail with every tide to Harwich, affording an aquatic excursion of twelve miles, which derives much interest from the beauty and variety of the scenery on the banks of the river. The principal articles of manufacture are snuff and tobacco, paper, patent ploughs, and ploughshares. The town was formerly celebrated for the manufacture of broad-cloth and Ipswich doubles, and the best canvass for sailcloth; branches now transferred to the West of England. Shipbuilding is carried on to a considerable extent, and several of Morton's patent-slips are in use. There are ropewalks for the supply of the shipping, a manufactory for stays, affording employment to upwards of 700 women and girls, an extensive pottery, a manufactory for Roman cement, and several ale and porter breweries: a great quantity of grain and malt is sent to the London market; and there are extensive chalk-pits in the neighbourhood. The market-days are Tuesday and Saturday, the former for corn: the fairs are on May 4th, called St. George's fair, for toys and lean cattle; August 26th for lambs; and Sept. 25th, for butter and cheese, which last has almost fallen into disuse. The corn-market is held in the corn-exchange, a large building erected at the expense of £3300, on the site of the old shambles, said to have been built by Cardinal Wolsey. The market-place, constructed in 1811, at an expense of £10,000, comprises two spacious quadrangular ranges of building supported on columns of stone, adjoining which is an inclosed cattle-market. A building for a custom-house and excise office, called the Hall of Commerce, was completed in July 1845; it is 125 feet by 44, the principal front, having a bold Tuscan portico, facing the quay.

Ipswich was a borough at the time of the Norman survey, and obtained a grant of a free market from William the Conqueror. Its burgesses were first incorporated by King John, who bestowed upon them extensive privileges; and since that time the inhabitants have received seventeen charters, the most important being those of Edward IV. and Charles II., under which latter the government was vested in two bailiffs, twelve port-men, and twenty-four common-councilmen, with a high-steward, recorder, town-clerk, two coroners, a treasurer, two chamberlains, and inferior officers. The corporation, by act of the 5th and 6th of William IV., now consists of a mayor, ten aldermen, and thirty councillors; the borough is divided into five wards, and the number of magistrates is eighteen. The freedom is inherited by all the sons of a free burgess, born after the parent has taken up his freedom, and is acquired by servitude to a freeman. Among the privileges which it confers, is, exemption from all tolls and other customs, and, for the resident burgesses, from serving on juries at the assizes or sessions for the county. Heirs are here considered of age when fourteen years old. The borough obtained the elective franchise in the 23rd of Edward I., since which time it has continued to return two members to parliament: the right of election was formerly vested in the burgesses at large not receiving alms, in number about 1100, of whom not more than 400 were resident; but by the act of the 2nd and 3rd of William IV., cap. 45, the non-resident burgesses were disfranchised, and the privilege was extended to the £10 householders of the borough, containing 845 acres, the limits of which are unaltered: the mayor is returning officer. The corporation hold courts of session for the determination of all civil and criminal causes, except capital offences, twice in the year, prior to the assizes; and a court of record on alternate Mondays, for the recovery of debts to any amount. Petty-sessions are held weekly. The townhall was built on the site, and partly with the materials, of the ancient parochial church of St. Mildred, which was a building of extraordinary solidity. Courts of justice have been lately erected, the exterior of which is very elegant, light, and chastely ornamented; and a house for the accommodation of the judges has been built, the summer assizes being now held here, as are also the quarter-sessions for a portion of the county. The powers of the county debt-court of Ipswich, established in 1847, extend over the registration-districts of Ipswich, Sampford, and Bosmere and Claydon. The borough gaol comprises six divisions for the classification of prisoners, exclusively of two solitary cells; the house of correction for the borough contains two wards. The common gaol and house of correction for the county, in the parish of St. Helen, is a spacious building of brick, and one of the first erected on the plan of Mr. Howard. The treadmill, as an instrument of prison discipline, was invented by Mr. W. Cubitt, an inhabitant of the town.

Ipswich comprises the parishes of St. Clement, containing 5945 inhabitants; St. Helen, 1352; St. Lawrence, 570; St. Margaret, 4539; St. Mary-at-Elms, 851; St. Mary-at-the-Quay, 988; St. Mary Stoke, 992; St. Mary-at-the-Tower, 967; St. Matthew, 3458; St. Nicholas, 1698; St. Peter, 2420; and St. Stephen, 503; and, within the limits of the borough, part of the parish of Whitton with Thurleston, 422; part of that of Westerfield, 324; part of Bramford, 881; and part of Rushmere, 564; likewise the extra-parochial places of Warren-House, Cold Dunghills, Globe-Lane, Shire Hall Yard, and Felaw's-Houses. The living of St. Clement's is a rectory not in charge, held with that of St. Helen's, valued in the king's books at £8. 13. 9., and in the gift of the Rev. J. T. Nottidge, who has lately erected an additional church at his own expense, dedicated to the Holy Trinity: the tithes of St. Clement's have been commuted for £280, and of St. Helen's for £58. The church of St. Clement is a neat edifice of freestone; that of St. Helen is an ancient structure. The living of St. Lawrence's is a perpetual curacy; net income, £175; patrons, the Parishioners. The church was erected in the early part of the 15th century, by John Bottold, and the chancel built by John Baldwyn: in 1808, Sir Robert Kerr Porter, in six days, executed a painting of Our Saviour disputing with the Doctors in the Temple, which he presented to the parish. St. Margaret's is a rectory; net income, £115; patrons, the Trustees of the Rev. Charles Simeon. The church, a handsome and spacious structure, was materially defaced and stripped of its decorations by the parliamentary visiters, who destroyed the paintings, and removed some statues of the Twelve Apostles: the edifice has been greatly improved of late, particularly in 1846. The living of the parish of St. Mary-at-Elms is a perpetual curacy; net income, £80; patrons, the Parishioners. The church is a small edifice of brick, erected on the spot where St. Saviour's church formerly stood. The living of the parish of St. Mary-at-the-Quay is also a perpetual curacy; net income, £103; patrons, the Parishioners. The church was rebuilt, soon after 1448, of stone given for that purpose by Richard Gowty, whose will is dated in that year. The living of the parish of St. Mary Stoke is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £12, and in the gift of the Dean and Chapter of Ely: the tithes have been commuted for £460, and the glebe comprises 49 acres. The church is an ancient edifice, on the south side of the Orwell. The living of the parish of St. Mary-at-the-Tower is a perpetual curacy; net income, £103; patrons, the Parishioners. There is also a lectureship, endowed by the corporation, who attend divine service here upon all public occasions. The church is spacious, and had formerly a lofty spire; a handsome marble tablet has been erected by subscription among the inhabitants of the town, to the memory of Mrs. Elizabeth Cobbold, a lady distinguished for her literary talents. St. Matthew's is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5, and in the patronage of the Crown. A gallery has been erected in the church, and 140 free sittings provided: it contains the tomb of John, Lord Chedworth, many years chairman of the quarter-sessions. The living of St. Nicholas' is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patrons, the Parishioners. The church, an ancient structure, sustained considerable injury from the parliamentarians, in 1648. The living of St. Peter's is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Simeon's Trustees; net income, £138. The church is an ancient edifice, and contains a large font of great antiquity and curious design; the Incorporated Society granted £50 towards repairing the church in 1841, when 252 sittings were added. The living of St. Stephens is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £4. 12. 8½.; net income, £82; patron, the Rev. Mr. Burgiss. Within the precincts of the borough are also the churches of Whitton and Westerfield, and the remains of the chapel of Thurleston, which last have been converted into a barn. There are places of worship for Particular Baptists, the Society of Friends, Independents, Wesleyans, Primitive and Association Methodists, and Unitarians; a Roman Catholic chapel; and a synagogue.

The Free grammar school is of uncertain foundation: it was endowed by Henry VIII. with £38. 13. 4. per annum from the fee-farm rent of the borough, which endowment was confirmed by a charter of Elizabeth in the eighth year of her reign, and subsequently augmented with legacies. There are two scholarships at Pembroke College, Cambridge, for boys educated in the school, with pensions of £3 per annum each, given by William Smart, in 1598; four scholarships with £5 per annum each, founded by Ralph Scrivener, in 1601; two scholarships in Jesus College, Oxford, founded by Thomas Redrick, in 1616; and two exhibitions to the University of Cambridge, one of £14 and the other of £6 per annum, founded in 1621, by Richard Martin, for boys educated in the school, who are also entitled to share with the school of Bury St. Edmund's in a scholarship founded at Trinity College, by Dr. Mopted, in the year 1558. The Blue-coat school was established in 1709; the income amounts to £500. The Red-sleeve school was established in 1752, and is supported by subscription. Henry Tooley, portman of Ipswich, bequeathed estates, in 1550, for the erection and endowment of almshouses for ten aged persons; the revenue is nearly £1000, and, in addition to those maintained in the almshouses, there are sixty out-pensioners. William Smart, in 1598, bequeathed lands now producing about £480 per annum, for the maintenance and education of children, for the employment of the poor, and other charitable purposes. Christ's hospital, for maintaining and educating children, founded by the corporation in 1569, has an endowment of about £400 per annum, arising from a portion of Mr. Felaw's gift, and from other benefactions; the building, which is near the site of a monastery of Black friars, is also appropriated as a bridewell or house of industry for the employment of the poor. Twelve almshouses were founded in the parish of St. Mary-at-Elms, for aged women, in pursuance of the will of Mrs. Ann Smyth, who, in 1729, bequeathed property now vested in old South Sea annuities, producing £132. 19. per annum. Fifteen almshouses were built in 1515, by Mr. Daundy, in the parish of St. Matthew, to which two were added in 1680, by Mr. Sheppard; and there are also five houses in the churchyard of St. Clement's. Mr. John Pemberton, in 1718, bequeathed estates to establish a fund for paying £25 per annum each to widows and orphans of clergymen of the Established Church; the income has been so far increased by donations and subscriptions, as to enable the trustees to distribute annually £1500, in sums of £30 each. A similar institution, called the Suffolk Benevolent Society, was formed in 1799, by the dissenters; the funds of which have accumulated to £4000. A loan fund has a capital of £3394, the consolidation of several benefactions, for the purpose of lending upon security, without interest, sums of £20 or £25, for ten years, to young persons entering into business. There is also an hospital called the "East Suffolk Hospital." The poor-law union of Ipswich comprises the 12 parishes of the borough, together with Whitton and Westerfield, and contains a population of 25,254.

Among the monastic establishments existing here were a priory of Black canons of the order of St. Augustine, originally founded in 1177, in Christ-Church, and which, being destroyed by fire, was refounded soon after, by John, Bishop of Norwich, for a prior and six canons, whose revenue at the Dissolution was £88. 6. 9.; and a priory of Black canons, founded in the reign of Henry II. by Thomas Lacey and Alice his wife, in honour of St. Peter and St. Paul. Cardinal Wolsey suppressed this latter, and erected on the site his college for a dean, twelve secular canons, eight clerks, and eight choristers, with a grammar school intended as a nursery for his college at Oxford; but upon that statesman's fall, the building was demolished, and only the gateway, an elegant edifice of brick, now remains. A monastery of Black friars, in the parish of St. Mary-at-the-Quay, was founded in the reign of Henry III., of which the existing portions present the most perfect relic of antiquity in the town; they are appropriated to the use of Christ's Hospital, and for the purpose of Tooley's endowment. An hospital for lepers was founded here in the reign of John, and dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene and St. James, There was a monastery of White friars in the centre of the town, of which no vestiges exist; also a house of Grey friars, founded in the reign of Edward I., by Sir Robert Tybetot, of which some portions of the walls are still remaining. In the neighbourhood are several mineral springs; and an ancient warm spring, called Ipswich Spa, was in great repute during the last century, though now not used.

Of distinguished natives of Ipswich, have been, Cardinal Wolsey, who was born in the parish of St. Nicholas, and received the rudiments of his education in the grammar school of the town; Dr. William Butler, physician to James I.; Dr. Laney, successively Bishop of Peterborough, Lincoln, and Ely; Ralph Brownrig, Bishop of Exeter, of which see he was deprived at the commencement of the parliamentary war; Clara Reeve, authoress of The Old English Baron and other works, whose father was for many years minister of St. Nicholas' parish; Mrs. Sarah Trimmer, the ingenious authoress of elementary works for young people; and Thomas Green, author of Extracts from the Diary of a Lover of Literature, and a liberal and enlightened critic. Among eminent persons who have resided here, may be named, Sir Anthony Wingfield, one of the executors to Henry VIII.; Sir Christopher Hatton, lord high chancellor; Sir Harbottle Grimstone, speaker of the house of commons during the Long Parliament; Nathaniel Bacon, grandson of the lord keeper Sir Nicholas Bacon, and author of the Annals of Ipswich, now in the possession of the corporation; Jeremy Collier, master of the free grammar school, and author of an Ecclesiastical History of Great Britain; and Capel Lofft, a learned civilian, elegant writer, and patron of literature. Ipswich gives the title of Viscount to the Duke of Grafton.