Ogbourn - Oldham

Ogbourn (St. Andrew)

OGBOURN (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Marlborough, hundred of Selkley, Marlborough and Ramsbury, and N. divisions of Wilts, 2 miles (N.) from Marlborough; containing 511 inhabitants. It is situated on the road from Marlborough to Swindon and Cirencester, and comprises about 5000 acres of land, divided between arable and pasture, the soil of which is chiefly gravel and chalk. The tract called Marlborough Downs, forms a considerable part of the parish. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £15. 2. 11.; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor: the great tithes have been commuted for £830, and the vicarial for £180. At Rockley, the knights of St. John of Jerusalem had a commandery; and there was likewise a chapel of ease, dedicated to St. Leonard. The remains of Barberry Castle, a large British encampment, may still be traced, partly in this parish, but chiefly in that of Wroughton. In the neighbourhood are several mineral springs.

Ogbourn (St. George)

OGBOURN (St. George), a parish, in the union of Marlborough, hundred of Selkley, Marlborough and Ramsbury, and N. divisions of Wilts, 4 miles (N.) from Marlborough; containing 522 inhabitants. In 556, a sanguinary battle was fought here between the Britons and the West Saxons, which lasted the whole day, and ended in the total rout of the Britons, and the capture of their neighbouring fortress, Barberry Castle, in the vicinity of which numerous barrows are still visible. A priory of Benedictine monks, subordinate to the abbey of Bec-Herlowyn, in Normandy, was founded here about 1149; it became the richest and principal cell to that house in England. The parish is situated on the road from Marlborough to Swindon, and comprises by admeasurement 3500 acres. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £14. 5. 10.; net income, £244; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor. The church is a Norman edifice.

Ogdens

OGDENS, an extra-parochial liberty with Holyhatch, in the union and hundred of Fordingbridge, Ringwood and S. divisions of the county of Southampton; containing 30 inhabitants, and principally situated within the limits of the New Forest.

Ogle

OGLE, a township, in the parish of Whalton, union, and W. division, of Castle ward, S. division of Northumberland, 7¾ miles (S. W.) from Morpeth; containing 121 inhabitants. This manor formed part of the possessions, and was the residence, of the Ogle family, who were seated here before the Conquest, and with whom it continued till the time of Elizabeth. It then passed by the marriage of an heiress to the family of Cavendish, and subsequently by another heiress to the family of Hollis, both dukes of Newcastle. The heiress of Hollis married Harley, Earl of Oxford, whose only daughter, the Duchess of Portland, conveyed the estates and the representation of the Ogle family to her descendant the Duke of Portland; and that nobleman, in 1809, sold the manor to Thomas Browne, Esq., who in 1830 disposed of it to the Rev. John Savile Ogle, of Kirkley, the present owner. The township comprises 2082a. 3r. 9p. Of the once strong fortress of Ogle Castle, which was built in the reign of Edward III., when Sir Robert Ogle had a licence to fortify his manorhouse here, and in which David, King of Scotland, was confined after the battle of Neville's Cross, scarce a vestige remained in 1827, part of the moat only being visible. There was anciently a chapel.

Ogley-Hay

OGLEY-HAY, an extra-parochial district, in the S. division of the hundred of Offlow and of the county of Stafford; containing 500 inhabitants. This place, which was previously only a rural hamlet, was in 1836 purchased by C. F. Cotterill, Esq., and has since that period become a place of some trade. The grounds have been inclosed, and are now well cultivated. They comprise about 1000 acres, nearly all belonging to Mr. Cotterill, who has let the lands on long leases; a village has been commenced, and some streets laid out, upon an eminence commanding an extensive prospect. From its vicinity to beds of coal, and having abundance of excellent clay for making bricks, the place is likely soon to become of considerable size. An engineering establishment is carried on, employing a great number of hands; and there are also a corn-mill, &c. The district is intersected by the Wyrley and Essington canal: it is bounded on the north by the Watling-street; the Lichfield and Walsall road runs through it, and the old Chester road on the south side.

Ogwell, East (St. Bartholomew)

OGWELL, EAST (St. Bartholomew), a parish, in the union of Newton-Abbott, forming, with West Ogwell, a distinct portion of the hundred of Wonford, Teignbridge and S. divisions of Devon, 1½ mile (W. S. W.) from Newton-Abbott; containing 356 inhabitants. It comprises 1365 acres. There are several quarries of limestone, which is chiefly used for agricultural purposes; very fine marble is obtained for ornamental uses, and an iron-mine has been opened. In May, 1595, the village was nearly burnt down. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £19. 3. 9., and in the gift of T. W. Taylor, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £245, and the glebe contains 2 acres.

Ogwell, West

OGWELL, WEST, a parish, in the union of Newton-Abbott, hundred of Wonford, Teignbridge and S. divisions of Devon, 2¼ miles (W. S. W.) from NewtonAbbott; containing 51 inhabitants. The parish comprises 669a. 2p., of which 29 acres are common or waste. The substratum abounds with excellent limestone, which is quarried for building, and for burning into lime. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £7. 2. 11., and in the gift of T. W. Taylor, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £105, and the glebe comprises 22 acres. The church contains three ancient stone stalls.

Okeford, Child (St. Nicholas)

OKEFORD, CHILD (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union of Sturminster, hundred of Redlane, Sturminster division of Dorset, 6 miles (N. W. by N.) from Blandford; containing 648 inhabitants. The parish is skirted on the south-west by the river Stour and the road from Blandford to Sturminster, and comprises by admeasurement 1752 acres, about one-third of which is arable, and the rest pasture, with the exception of a few acres of wood. The surface is diversified with hills and vales, with a pleasing intermixture of foliage; the soil in the hilly parts is chalk, and in the lower grounds clay and gravel. The living consists of two rectories, Superior and Inferior, the former valued in the king's books at £6. 13. 4., and the latter at £7; patron and incumbent, the Rev. C. E. North. The tithes have been commuted for £250, and there is a glebe-house, with 71 acres of land. The church contains portions of different styles; the chancel was rebuilt about the year 1815, and at the enlargement of the building in 1835 a north aisle was added. On Hambledon Hill are traces of an intrenchment, in which Roman coins have been found.

Okeford-Fitzpaine (St. Andrew)

OKEFORD-FITZPAINE (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Sturminster, hundred of Sturminster-Newton-Castle, Sturminster division of Dorset, 7½ miles (N. W. by W.) from Blandford; containing 675 inhabitants. This place was anciently possessed by the family of Nichole, one of whom obtained the privilege of a market to be held here, and from whom the estate came to the Fitz-Paynes. The parish comprises 2569 acres, of which 289 are common or waste land. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £21. 12. 8½., and in the gift of Lord Rivers: the tithes have been commuted for £490; the glebe comprises 74 acres. Several British silver coins were found in 1753; and in the neighbourhood is Banbury Hill, a circular camp with a single trench.

Okeney (St. Martin).—See Emberton

OKENEY (St. Martin).—See Emberton.

Okeover (All Saints)

OKEOVER (All Saints), a parish, in the N. division of the hundred of Totmonslow and of the county of Stafford, 2½ miles (N. W. by W.) from Ashbourn; containing 67 inhabitants. It is situated on the west bank of the river Dove, and comprises about 650 acres of land, all the property of H. C. Okeover, Esq., whose family is connected, collaterally, with the Earl of Shrewsbury and Lord Bagot, and to whom the manor has belonged ever since the period of the Conquest. The Hall, the seat of Mr. Okeover, was rebuilt in the last century: it is a beautiful structure, chiefly of brick, with an Ionic portico in the centre; and its situation is highly picturesque, having a fine lawn, with many wooded eminences in the vicinity, and a prospect of the vale of the Dove. The living is a donative; income, £20; patron, Mr. Okeover. The church is a small ancient structure, near the Hall, and completely overgrown with ivy, eglantine, and roses: it contains many monuments to the Okeover family. In 1727, Rowland Okeover bequeathed out of his estates at Mappleton and Atlow, on the Derbyshire side of the Dove, a rent-charge of £60, for the maintenance of an organist, and 12 boys and girls as choristers, in the church here: the choristers have never been appointed, but 12 children are clothed and apprenticed from the charity, two of them of this parish, four of the hamlet of Swinscoe, in the parish of Blore, and six from Atlow and Mappleton parishes. Okeover is remarkable for the ancient barrows of Hallsteds and Arbour Close, two square intrenchments of stone, supposed to have been formed by the Romans.

Olave, St., Mary-Gate

OLAVE, ST., MARY-GATE, a parish, partly in the wapentake of Bulmer, N. riding of York; containing, with part of the townships of Clifton and Rawcliffe, 1580 inhabitants, of whom 661 are in the township of St. Olave, within the limits of the union of York. The parish forms part of the suburbs of York, and comprises by computation 2120 acres of land. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £138; patron, Earl De Grey. The church is within the walls of the city.

Old, or Wold (St. Andrew)

OLD, or Wold (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Brixworth, hundred of Orlingbury, N. division of the county of Northampton, 10 miles (N. by E.) from Northampton; containing 497 inhabitants. The road from Northampton to Kettering, and that from Northampton to Harborough, run, the former about two miles on the east, and the latter two miles to the west, of the parish. It comprises 1975a. 3r. 35p.: the surface is undulated; the soil is capable of producing most kinds of grain of good quality, and there is a considerable portion of pasture land. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £18. 12. 8½.; net income, £355; patrons, the Principal and Fellows of Brasenose College, Oxford. The tithes were commuted for 343 acres of land in 1767. The church is a spacious and handsome structure in the later English style. Here is a place of worship for Independents; also a free school with an income from two bequests and an allotment of land at the inclosure. There is likewise a fund of about £50 per annum for the relief of the poor, proceeding from a grant of land made by the Rev. John Townson, in the year 1668.

Old Alresford.—See Alresford, Old.

OLD ALRESFORD.—See Alresford, Old.—And other places having a similar distinguishing prefix will be found under the proper name.

Oldberrow (St. Mary)

OLDBERROW (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Alcester, and forming a detached portion of the Lower division of the hundred of Blackenhurst, Northfield and E. divisions of the county of Worcester, 2¼ miles (W.) from Henley-in-Arden; containing 63 inhabitants. It is bordered by the county of Warwick on all sides except the north-west, and consists of 1183a. 3r. 2p. of fertile land. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £4; patron and incumbent, the Rev. S. Peshall. The tithes have been commuted for £206, and the glebe comprises 12 acres. The church, a small ancient edifice, is in the southern part of the parish.

Oldbury (St. Nicholas)

OLDBURY (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union of Bridgnorth, hundred of Stottesden, S. division of Salop, 1 mile (S. by W.) from Bridgnorth; containing 142 inhabitants. The river Severn forms the eastern boundary of the parish, and the road from Bridgnorth to Cleobury-Mortimer runs through it on the west; it comprises by admeasurement 808 acres. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5, and in the patronage of the Crown: the tithes have been commuted for £210, and the glebe comprises 19 acres. The encampment from which the parliamentary army bombarded the castle of Bridgnorth, is situated in the parish.

Oldbury

OLDBURY, a hamlet, in the parish of Mancetter, union of Atherstone, Atherstone division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 4¼ miles (N. W. by W.) from Nuneaton; containing 46 inhabitants. It comprises 587 acres. Here was a small nunnery of the Dominican order, dedicated to St. Lawrence, and subordinate to Polesworth; it is said to have been founded by Walter de Hastings and Athawis his wife, and at the Dissolution possessed a revenue of £6. 0. 10.

Oldbury

OLDBURY, a township, in the parish of HalesOwen, union of West Bromwich, Upper division of the hundred of Halfshire, Hales-Owen and E. divisions of Worcestershire, 4 miles (N. N. E.) from Hales-Owen; containing 7301 inhabitants. This place is situated in the heart of a district abounding with ironstone and coal, which are raised for the supply of the neighbourhood. The iron-trade is carried on to a very considerable extent, and there are some steel-works and alkali-works. The Birmingham canal, which nearly surrounds the town or village, affords a facility of conveyance to the principal towns in the vicinity. The old part of the town is irregular, but the more modern streets are spacious, and contain some highly respectable shops and houses; the whole is lighted with gas from the works at West Bromwich, and the inhabitants are supplied with fine spring water from the Fountain Well, an inclosed reservoir on the north side of the town. Courts leet and baron are held annually; and there is a prison for the confinement of debtors: the powers of the county debt-court of Oldbury, established in 1847, extend over part of the registration-districts of West Bromwich and King's Norton. Here is a church, erected by grant from the Parliamentary Commissioners, and by voluntary contributions; it was opened in 1841, and is in the later English style, with a tower, and capable of accommodating upwards of 1500 persons. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £156; patron, the Vicar of Hales-Owen; impropriator, Lord Lyttleton. The great tithes, including those of Langley, have been commuted for £123. 5., and the vicarial for £158. 19. There are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, Wesleyans, and others. Edmund Darby, in the year 1659, bequeathed lands for various charitable uses, among which were the erection and endowment of a school.

Oldbury-on-the-Hill (St. Arioa)

OLDBURY-on-the-Hill (St. Arioa), a parish, in the union of Tetbury, Upper division of the hundred of Grumbald's-Ash, W. division of the county of Gloucester, 5¼ miles (S. W. by W.) from Tetbury; containing 483 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, with that of Didmarton united, valued in the king's books at £16, and in the gift of the Duke of Beaufort: the tithes of Oldbury have been commuted for a yearly rent-charge of £245.

Oldbury-upon-Severn

OLDBURY-upon-Severn, a chapelry, in the parish, union, and Lower division of the hundred, of Thornbury, W. division of the county of Gloucester, 2¾ miles (N. W. by W.) from Thornbury; containing 745 inhabitants. The river Severn passes in the vicinity.

Oldcastle

OLDCASTLE, a township, in the parish of Malpas, union of Wrexham, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton, S. division of the county of Chester, 1½ mile (S. W.) from Malpas; containing 95 inhabitants. It took its name from an ancient castle, which was destroyed before 1585. A battle was fought here in 1644, between the parliamentarian forces from Nantwich and some of the king's cavalry, in which the latter were defeated, and Colonels Vane and Conyers killed. The township comprises 620 acres; the prevailing soil is clay. The tithes have been commuted for £86.

Oldcastle (St. John the Baptist)

OLDCASTLE (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the union, division, and hundred of Abergavenny, county of Monmouth, 7 miles (N. by E.) from Abergavenny; containing 58 inhabitants. This parish is situated at the northern extremity of the county, and to the west of the road from Abergavenny to Hereford; it comprises 922 acres, of which 163 are common or waste. Within its limits the rivers Honddu and Monnow unite their waters, the latter forming the boundary line here between the counties of Hereford and Monmouth. It also embraces a portion of the Black mountains, which combine with the rivers to render the scenery extremely interesting in several places. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £73; patron, Edmund Higginson, Esq.; impropriator, Theophilus Morgan, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £48. 4. 6., and the glebe consists of about 123 acres. The church is old and dilapidated. The parish is celebrated as the place of concealment of Sir John Oldcastle, Baron Cobham, when he escaped from the Tower in the reign of Henry V.; and a portrait of him is still preserved in a farmhouse near the church. Some Roman antiquities have been discovered.

Oldcoates

OLDCOATES, a township, partly in the parish of Blyth, and partly in that of Harworth, Hatfield division of the wapentake of Bassetlaw, county of Nottingham, 4 miles (N.) from Tickhill; containing 356 inhabitants. It comprises 903a. 14p., of which 788 acres are arable, and 112 meadow and pasture; the surface is gently undulated, and the scenery is pleasing. The village is of considerable extent, and on the western verge of the county, bordering upon Yorkshire, an extensive brewery has been established. The vicar of Harworth, or his curate, performs divine service every Sunday in a schoolroom licensed by the Archbishop of York; and there is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Oldcott

OLDCOTT, a township, in the parish of Wolstanton, union of Wolstanton and Burslem, N. division of the hundred of Pirehill and of the county of Stafford, 2½ miles (N.) from Burslem, on the road to Sandbach; containing 1295 inhabitants. The township is in the ecclesiastical district of Tunstall, and contains 714 acres, abounding with mines of coal and ironstone, which are extensively wrought. The principal part of the population reside at a village called Golden Hill. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Oldfield, with Heswall.—See Heswall.

OLDFIELD, with Heswall.—See Heswall.

Oldham

OLDHAM, an enfranchised borough, a parochial chapelry, and the head of a union, in the parish of Prestwich, hundred of Salford, S. division of the county of Lancaster, 7 miles (N. E. by E.) from Manchester; containing 60,447 inhabitants, of whom 42,592 are in the township of Oldham. This place, the name of which appears to indicate some degree of antiquity, has within the last seventy years much increased in importance, from the rapid progress of its manufactures, for which it is indebted to its vicinity to Manchester, and to the mines of excellent coal in the neighbourhood. The town is situated on elevated ground, near the source of the river Irk, and is bounded on the east by a branch of the Medlock; the houses are irregularly built, but since the extension of its manufactures, the place has been very much enlarged, and has undergone considerable improvement. It was first lighted with gas in 1827, by a company who also supply the town with water, and whose capital, originally £48,000, was increased in 1838 to £72,000. The gasworks, at the bottom of Greaves-street, were built at a cost of £20,000, including the laying down of the mains; the water is supplied by iron pipes, from a reservoir covering about twelve acres of ground, in Strines-dale, about two miles and a half eastward, partly in Lancashire and partly in Yorkshire, the whole constructed at an expense of £28,000. The affairs of the town are regulated by commissioners appointed under a police act obtained in 1827, which also provided for the building of a town-hall and other offices. The buildings on the terrace, erected by private enterprise in 1836, contain a public room and a room intended for a market; and there are a subscription library, founded in 1807; a lyceum, in 1839; and a mechanics' institution.

Oldham was for a long period celebrated for the manufacture of hats, which was established so early as the fifteenth century, and is still carried on to a small extent. The principal manufactures now are, those of fustians, velveteens, cotton and woollen corduroys, and the spinning of cotton, the last being the most considerable. In 1785 the number of cotton-mills was six; in 1815 the number was 47; in 1839 it had increased to 94, and it is at present much greater: they are all worked by steam. A great quantity of the coal which is obtained in the neighbourhood is sent to Manchester, and the collieries, being exceedingly productive, afford occupation to a large part of the population. The number of steam-engines employed within the borough, in cotton spinning and weaving, machine-making, ironfounding, bleaching, and logwood-grinding, in the year 1846, was 179; in raising coal, 58; and in grinding corn, 1; making a total of 238 steam-engines, of 5695horse power. The trade at the western extremity of the town is much facilitated by the Oldham canal, constructed in pursuance of an act obtained in 1792; it commences at Hollinwood, and forms a direct communication with Manchester, Ashton-under-Lyne, and Stockport. The Rochdale canal passes through the township of Chadderton. There is a branch to the Manchester and Leeds railway, from Oldham; and in 1846 an act was passed for making a branch, 4¼ miles long, to the Manchester and Huddersfield railway: an extension of the former branch, from the west part of the town to Mumps, or Greenacres moor, on the east, was opened November 1, 1847. A market for provisions is held on Saturday; and fairs take place on the first Thursday after Old Candlemas-day, on May 2nd, July 8th, and the first Wednesday after October 12th, for horses, cattle, sheep, and pedlery. By the act 2nd William IV., cap. 45, Oldham was constituted a borough, with the privilege of returning two members to parliament. The right of voting is in the £10 householders of the townships of Oldham, Chadderton, Crompton, and Royton; the returning officer is appointed by the sheriff. William Cobbett, the celebrated political writer, was one of the members first returned for the borough. Petty-sessions are held every Monday and Thursday; and there is a county court for the recovery of debts, established in 1847, with jurisdiction over part of the parishes of Prestwich-cum-Oldham and Middleton.

The chapelry is co-extensive with the borough, and comprises 11,138 acres, of which the arable land is scarcely a fifth of that in pasture. Among the mansions are, Werneth, Chadderton, Royton, and Foxdenton Halls. John Frederick Lees, and George Lees, Esqrs., are the lords of the manor. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the rector of Prestwich; net income, £234. The tithes of Oldham township have been commuted for £170. The ancient chapel, dedicated to St. Mary, and enlarged in 1476 by "Sir Ralph Langley, priest of Prestwich" and third warden of Manchester College, was taken down and rebuilt in 1833, at a cost of £22,000. The present chapel is an elegant structure in the early English style, with a square tower having twelve noble bells: the eastern window is richly stained, with figures representing the Four Evangelists and four minor Prophets; and the interior generally is particularly chaste. St. Peter's chapel was erected by subscription in 1765, and enlarged in 1804, and is now a district church: the living is a perpetual curacy, with a net income of £150, and in the patronage of the Rector. The district church dedicated to St. James was built in 1829, by the parliamentary commissioners, at an expense of £8905, and is a neat edifice in the later English style, with a tower and campanile turret: the living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; also in the gift of the Rector. In 1835, the three ecclesiastical districts of Hollinwood, Royton, and Shaw, were formed out of the chapelry; and at the close of 1844, seven other districts were formed, viz. Chadderton St. John, Chadderton St. Matthew, Coldhurst, East Crompton, Glodwick, Waterhead, and Werneth, under the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37. There are places of worship for Baptists, the Society of Friends, Independents, Kilhamites, Moravians, Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics.

The free grammar school was founded in 1611, by James Assheton, Esq., of Chadderton Hall, who endowed it with an acre of land in the town, which has been let for building, and produces about £50 per annum. In 1747, Samuel Scholes gave £16 per annum, for which children of the township of Oldham are instructed. Thomas Henshaw, Esq., a native of the town, by will dated the 14th November, 1807, bequeathed £20,000 for the endowment of a Blue-coat school at Oldham, and a like sum for an asylum for the blind at Manchester; and having subsequently added a codicil, by which he gave the further sum of £20,000 for the endowment of the school, with liberty to his trustees to establish it either at Oldham or Manchester, on condition that the inhabitants of the town chosen provided a site and suitable buildings for the institution, the trustees determined upon founding the school here. In consequence of delay, the three sums thus left accumulated to nearly £100,000. At length three acres of land being given for the purpose by R. Radcliffe, and Joseph Jones, Esqrs., the first stone of an edifice for the school was laid at Oldham-Edge, in April, 1829; and the school was opened on the 25th June, 1834, with 50 boys, which number was increased in 1846 to 130. The building is handsome, commodious, and substantial; is built of stone, in the early English style, with two wings; and cost £9000, which were raised by subscription in the township of Oldham. There are a head master and two ushers: the boys are admitted at nine years of age, and remain till they are fourteen, when they are apprenticed to trades. To all the churches in the chapelry are attached national schools; that in connexion with St. Mary's is a stone building, erected at a cost of £3000, in 1842. Three benevolent relieving societies are maintained; and a savings' bank has been established, the depositors in which, in 1845, amounted to 763, and the sum deposited to £17,374. The poor-law union of Oldham comprises eight townships in the parishes of Prestwich and Middleton, containing a population of 72,058. Hugh Oldham, Bishop of Exeter, was a native of the town.