Raveley, Great - Rawtenstall

Raveley, Great

RAVELEY, GREAT, a parish, in the hundred of Hurstingstone, union and county of Huntingdon, 3¾ miles (S. W.) from Ramsey; containing 312 inhabitants. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to that of Upwood: the church is demolished. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Raveley, Little (St. James)

RAVELEY, LITTLE (St. James), a parish, in the hundred of Hurstingstone, union and county of Huntingdon, 5 miles (S. W. by S.) from Ramsey; containing 55 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated in the eastern part of the county, comprises by computation between 800 and 900 acres. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £42; patron and impropriator, the Earl of Sandwich. The church, erected about 1350, was formerly a chapel of ease to Bury. Within the last few years several skeletons have been dug up in a gravel-pit, also a Roman urn of blue earth.

Ravendale, East (St. Martin)

RAVENDALE, EAST (St. Martin), a parish, in the union of Caistor, wapentake of Bradley-Haverstoe, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 8 miles (S. S. W.) from Grimsby; containing, with the chapelry of West Ravendale, 112 inhabitants. The parish is intersected by the road from Grimsby, through the low country, to the Wolds, and also by the old post-road from Grimsby to Lincoln. It comprises by measurement, exclusively of highways, 791 acres, of which 641 are arable, and 150 pasture; the soil consists of chalk, clay, and sand, and the surface is slightly undulated. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £5; net income, £58; patrons and impropriators, the Master and Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge: there are 4 acres of glebe. In the chalk-pits are some fossil formations.

Ravendale, West

RAVENDALE, WEST, a chapelry, in the parish of East Ravendale, union of Caistor, wapentake of Bradley-Haverstoe, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 7½ miles (S. W. by S.) from Grimsby; containing 51 inhabitants. Here was an alien priory, said to have belonged to the Præmonstratensian abbey of Beaufort, in Brittany. With its materials a mansion was erected for the De Ravendales, several of whom represented the borough of Grimsby in parliament; but the family long since became extinct, and a few large stones only, serve to mark the spot where their residence stood. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Chapter of Southwell; income, £28.

Ravenfield (St. James)

RAVENFIELD (St. James), a parish, in the union of Rotherham, S. division of the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding of York, 4 miles (N. E. by E.) from Rotherham; containing 241 inhabitants. This place is supposed to have derived its name, anciently Yr-Avon-Field, signifying "the field of water," from its situation in the vale of the river Don. The parish comprises about 1200 acres of land, almost exclusively the property of Thomas B. Bosvile, Esq., lord of the manor; the surface is broken and uneven, and the higher grounds command extensive views. About 600 acres are arable, 100 woodland and plantations, and the remainder meadow and pasture; the soil is generally fertile, and there is a quarry of stone of good quality for Sheffield grindstones, but it is not much wrought. Ravenfield Park, the seat of Mr. Bosvile, formerly belonged to the Westby family, and was purchased in 1749 by Mrs. Elizabeth Parkin, a maiden lady, under whose will it passed to the Braithwell branch of the Bosviles, a very ancient family in the West riding, to whom she was related. The mansion has been greatly improved by the present proprietor, after a design by Mr. Carr, architect, of York; and is situated in a well-wooded deer-park abounding in beautiful scenery. The village is about a mile from the turnpike-road from Rotherham to Doncaster, and about two miles from the Midland railway. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150; patron, Mr. Bosvile. The present church, an elegant structure, was erected in 1756, by Mrs. Parkin.

Ravenglass

RAVENGLASS, a sea-port and market-town, in the parish of Muncaster, union of Bootle, Allerdale ward above Derwent, W. division of Cumberland, 54 miles (S. S. W.) from Carlisle, and 282 (N. W. by N.) from London; containing 337 inhabitants. The town is pleasantly situated on the sea-shore, near the confluence of the rivers Eske, Mite, and Irt, which form a safe harbour for shipping, even in tempestuous weather. It consists of a long irregular range of well-built houses, and is sheltered by the mountains of Black Combe, between which and the town are some fine meadow lands; the Eske has its source near the foot of a rugged eminence called Hard Knot. The trade is inconsiderable, chiefly consisting in bringing coal from Whitehaven for the limekilns, and in carrying back the oysters taken here, which are thought to be the finest found upon this part of the coast; a little corn and timber is exported, and some small vessels are built. An act was passed in 1845 for a railway from Whitehaven, by Ravenglass, to Furness. The market is on Wednesday; a fair for cattle takes place on the 6th of May, and others, of ancient date, for horses and cattle, on June 8th and August 5th. Near the ruins of Walls Castle, about a mile distant, where is now the mansionhouse of Lord Muncaster (a lineal descendant of the Penningtons, who have held the manor since the Conquest), many relics of antiquity, consisting of battleaxes made of flint, heads of arrows, and Roman and Saxon coins, have been discovered. About a mile and a half eastward from Muncaster House, on the opposite side of the Eske, may be traced the ruins of a place called "the city of Barnscar," the origin of which is traditionally ascribed to the Danes. The site is an oblong, about 300 yards in length from east to west and 100 from north to south, and it was intersected by one long street, and several transverse ones; the city was defended by a wall, except at the east end, and, with its suburbs, was nearly three miles in circumference. An ancient road led through it from Ulpha to Ravenglass. On Hard Knot are the ruins of a church and castle; and the remains of a round tower are to be seen on one of the adjacent mounts.

Raveningham (St. Andrew)

RAVENINGHAM (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Loddon and Clavering, hundred of Clavering, E. division of Norfolk, 4 miles (N. N. W.) from Beccles; containing 281 inhabitants. A college of eight secular priests was founded here in 1343, by Sir John de Norwich, and afterwards removed to Norton-Subcourse, and, in 1395, to Castle-Mettingham, in Suffolk. The parish is on the road from Norwich to Beccles and Yarmouth, and comprises about 2000 acres. Raveningham Hall is the seat of Sir Edmund Bacon, premier baronet of England, whose ancestors were Friar Roger Bacon, and Sir Nicholas Bacon, lord keeper of the great seal to Queen Elizabeth. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £57; patron and impropriator, Sir E. Bacon, whose tithes have been commuted for £518. 8.: there is a glebe of about 7 acres. The church, which is picturesquely situated in the grounds of the Hall, is chiefly in the later English style, with a tower the lower part of which is circular and the upper part octagonal; the chancel is exceedingly rich in monuments to members of the Bacon family.

Ravenscroft

RAVENSCROFT, a township, in the parish of Middlewich, union and hundred of Northwich, S. division of the county of Chester, 1¼ mile (N. by W.) from Middlewich; containing 23 inhabitants. It comprises 120 acres, the prevailing soil of which is clay.

Ravensdale-Park

RAVENSDALE-PARK, a hamlet, in the parish of Muggington, poor-law union of Belper, hundred of Appletree, S. division of the county of Derby; containing 62 inhabitants.

Ravensden (All Saints)

RAVENSDEN (All Saints), a parish, in the hundred of Barford, union and county of Bedford, 4 miles (N. N. E.) from Bedford; containing 327 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 2155 acres; the soil is clay, and the surface rather hilly. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £7; net income, £81; patron, the Duke of Bedford; impropriator, Sir W. Long. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1809.

Ravensthorpe (St. Denis)

RAVENSTHORPE (St. Denis), a parish, in the union of Brixworth, partly in the hundred of Guilsborough, but chiefly in that of Newbottle-Grove, S. division of the county of Northampton, 10 miles (N. W.) from Northampton; containing, with the hamlets of Coaton and Teeton, 712 inhabitants, of whom 489 are in Ravensthorpe township. This parish is situated about two miles from the road between Northampton and Dunchurch, and comprises by measurement 2807 acres, of which 1435 are in the township; the lands are nearly equally divided between arable and pasture, and the surface is undulated and pleasing. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £11. 13. 4.; net income, £243; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Christ-Church, Oxford. The tithes of Teeton have been commuted for £80, and there are 96 acres of glebe, with a house. The church is in the early English style, with a tower. Here is a place of worship for Baptists; also a national school, supported by subscription.

Ravenstone (All Saints)

RAVENSTONE (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Newport-Pagnell, hundred of Newport, county of Buckingham, 2½ miles (W. by S.) from Olney; containing 415 inhabitants. A small monastery of Black canons, in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was founded here by Henry III., about the 39th year of his reign; in the 16th of Henry VIII. it was valued at £66. 13. 4., and given to Cardinal Wolsey towards the endowment of his intended colleges. The parish comprises by computation 2000 acres, of which about 1000 are arable, 800 pasture and meadow, and 200 woodland. The surface in the northern portion is somewhat undulated, but towards the Ouse on the south is generally flat; the soil is in some parts clay, in others stone and gravel, and limestone for building and for the repair of roads is found in abundance. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 13. 4.; net income, £88, arising from certain fee-farm rents in the north of England, and a rent-charge in lieu of tithe from the Ravenstone estate; patron and impropriator, G. Finch, Esq.: the glebe-house has been rebuilt by the present vicar. The church is an ancient edifice, neatly fitted up, and contains a splendid monument to the memory of Heneage Finch, Earl of Nottingham, and lord high chancellor of England, who died in 1682. A charity school, founded by the Rev. Mr. Chapman, a former vicar, is now conducted on the national system. There are 12 almshouses, founded and endowed by Lord Chancellor Nottingham, for six men and six women, who have each 4s. 6d. weekly, a cloak at Christmas, and wood for fuel. The Rev. Thomas Seaton, founder of the Seatonian prize poem at Cambridge, and the Rev. Thomas Scott, author of the Commentary on the Bible, were respectively vicar and curate here.

Ravenstone (St. Michael)

RAVENSTONE (St. Michael), a parish, in the union of Ashby, partly in the hundred of Repton and Gresley, S. division of the county of Derby, but chiefly in the hundred of West Goscote, county of Leicester, 3½ miles (S. E. by E.) from Ashby; containing 394 inhabitants. The parish comprises by measurement 1084 acres: the soil is chiefly a sandy loam, very rich, and the surface undulated; there is coal under most of the land, but not at present worked. The railway from Swannington to Leicester runs about one mile distant from the village, and the parish is intersected by the Leicester and Ashby road. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 1. 0½., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £300. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1770; the glebe altogether consists of 165 acres. The church is a very ancient structure, with a spire. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. An hospital was founded under the will of Rebecca Wilkins, in 1712, and the funds were considerably augmented by a bequest of her husband, in 1725, for the maintenance of 30 females above the age of 50, belonging to Ravenstone, Cole-Orton, and Stannington parishes; the endowment consists of about 800 acres of land, producing an income of £930.

Ravenstonedale (St. Oswald)

RAVENSTONEDALE (St. Oswald), a parish, in East ward and union, county of Westmorland, 4¾ miles (S. W.) from Kirkby-Stephen; containing 973 inhabitants. The manor belonged to the priory of Watton, Yorkshire, and, in common with the other possessions of that monastery, afforded the privilege of sanctuary. The steward and jury of the manor anciently held their court for the trial of felons and other offenders, in the church, near which was an arched vault for the confinement of malefactors; and Gallow Hill, a short distance hence, appears to have been the spot where capital punishment was inflicted. The parish is composed of numerous valleys and fells, among which rise several streams, forming the source of the river Lune; the substratum contains a peculiar kind of red-sandstone, which becomes very hard on exposure to the air. A small market is held on Thursday. A fair takes place on the second Thursday after Whit-Sunday; and there are fairs for horned-cattle and sheep, lately established, on the Wednesdays before the second Thursdays in March and April, on the 29th of August, and the 26th of October. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Earl of Lonsdale, as lord of the manor; net income, £110; impropriators, the inhabitants. The church was rebuilt in 1744. There is a place of worship for Independents. The free grammar school was founded about 1688, by Thomas Fothergill, B.D., master of St. John's College, Cambridge, aided by members of his family, natives of the parish; a good school-house was built by contributions in 1758, and the endowment now amounts to £39 per annum. At a place called Rasate are two tumuli, in which, on being opened, human bones were found; and near Rother bridge is a circle of stones, supposed to have been connected with Druidical worship. The family of Fothergill has produced several distinguished men, among whom have been George, principal of St. Edmund Hall, and Thomas, provost of Queen's College, Oxford.

Ravensworth

RAVENSWORTH, a township, in the chapelry of Lamesley, parish and union of Chester-le-Street, Middle division of Chester ward, N. division of the county of Durham, 4¼ miles (S. S. W.) from Gateshead; containing 151 inhabitants, who are chiefly employed in the adjacent coal-mines. Ravensworth Castle, the magnificent seat of Lord Ravensworth, has belonged to the family of the present noble owner since the reign of James I.; it is surrounded by pleasure-grounds, and well sheltered on the north and west. The rebuilding of this princely edifice, which incorporates two of the old towers, was commenced in 1808, after a design by Nash; it is in the ancient baronial style, and constructed of excellent white freestone raised near the spot. At the distance of half a mile westward, the grounds swell into a mountainous ridge clothed with large forest-trees; and surmounted by lofty pines which skirt the horizon; the southern front overlooks the vale of Lamesley. In the avenue within the park, and close to the castle, are the remains of a cross, to which, during the prevalence of the plague at Newcastle in the year 1645, the country people brought their market goods for sale. Ravensworth gives the title of Baron to the family of Liddell.

Ravensworth

RAVENSWORTH, a township, in the parish of Kirkby-Ravensworth, union of Richmond, wapentake of Gilling-West, N. riding of York, 4¾ miles (N. N. W.) from Richmond; containing 332 inhabitants. A castle here belonged to the barons Fitzhugh, who were descended from the Saxon lords of the place before the Conquest, and who flourished till the reign of Henry VII. In the succeeding reign the property belonged to Lord Parre, and subsequently to the crown, until 1629; it afterwards passed successively to the families of Ditchfield, Wharton, Byerley, and Fletcher. The township comprises an area of about 2175 acres, of which the soil is generally fertile, but a portion is high moorland: the village is pleasantly situated on an eminence, a short distance south of the road from Middleton-Tyas to Greta-Bridge, and has several well-built houses round a large green. A place of worship in connexion with the Established Church has been opened by permission of the bishop of the diocese, in which service is performed every Thursday evening. The Wesleyans have a meeting-house; and in 1841, a school was built at a cost of about £170, the master of which has a salary of £24, paid by the wardens of Kirkby-Ravensworth Hospital, for the instruction of 24 children.

Ravensworth, Kirkby, North riding of the county of York.—See Kirkby-Ravensworth.

RAVENSWORTH, KIRKBY, North riding of the county of York.—See Kirkby-Ravensworth.

Raw

RAW, a township, in the parish and union of Rothbury, W. division of Coquetdale ward, N. division of Northumberland, 2½ miles (S. E. by E.) from the town of Rothbury; containing 38 inhabitants. It is the property of the Duke of Northumberland. The river Coquet passes on the north-east.

Rawcliffe

RAWCLIFFE, a chapelry, in the parish of Snaith, union of Goole, Lower division of the wapentake of Osgoldcross, W. riding of York, 11 miles (S. E. by S.) from Selby; containing 1506 inhabitants. The chapelry comprises by estimation 4258 acres, of which the far greater part is arable, about 40 acres woodland, and the remainder pasture. A considerable tract of low marshy ground has been brought into profitable cultivation by means of warping, a process begun on a small scale about 1760, and much improved upon by the late Ralph Creyke, Esq. The Aire, the Dutch-river, and the Aire and Calder canal, intersect the district. Rawcliffe Hall, a handsome mansion, pleasantly situated in fine grounds verging on the Aire, is the seat of Ralph Creyke, Esq., who is lord of the manor, and proprietor of a great portion of the soil. The village is large, and neatly built round a spacious green; the inhabitants are partly employed in the manufacture of sacking. About 1¾ mile from the village, on the Dutch-river, is the hamlet of Rawcliffe-Bridge. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £106; patron, N. E. Yarburgh, Esq., who is impropriator of the small tithes; impropriator of the great tithes, Randal Gossip, Esq. The church, rebuilt in 1842, at an expense of £1850, raised by subscription, is dedicated to St. James, and is a handsome structure in the early English style. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists. A free school, founded in 1697 by Francis Boynton, who endowed it with lands and tenements now producing £42 per annum, is further supported by subscription.

Rawcliffe

RAWCLIFFE, a township, in the union of York, partly in the parish of St. Michael-le-Belfrey, city of York, and partly in that of St. Olave, Mary-Gate, wapentake of Bulmer, N. riding of York, 2½ miles (N. W. by N.) from York; containing 76 inhabitants. The land is arable, and meadow and pasture, in about equal portions. On the navigable river Ouse, which flows on the south, is a convenient wharf called Rawcliffe Ings, where coal, lime, wheat, and other produce, are sent away. The township contains some very superior beds of clay for the manufacture of bricks, tiles, and draining-flues.

Rawcliffe, Out

RAWCLIFFE, OUT, a township, in the parish of St. Michael, union of Garstang, hundred of Amounderness, N. division of Lancashire, 4½ miles (N. E. by E.) from Poulton; containing 728 inhabitants. The manor was vested in the family of Butler, from a very early period, until the rebellion of 1715, in which the Butlers were engaged: the estate, then forfeited, was purchased by Edward Roe, Esq., whose heiress married into the France family; and from the latter it passed to the Wilsons, who assumed the name of France. The township is situated on the north side of the river Wyre, and includes Out-Rawcliffe Moss. A court baron is occasionally held for the manor. Out-Rawcliffe Hall was erected in the 17th century, but has been greatly modernised, and now possesses few remains of its former splendour, except in its old, massive, and heavy timbers, and a deep wood to the east, which has been enlivened by extensive gardens and surrounding copses. A church, St. John's, was built in 1838: the living is in the Vicar's gift; net income, £75.

Rawcliffe, Upper, with Tarnicar

RAWCLIFFE, UPPER, with Tarnicar, a township, in the parish of St. Michael, union of Garstang, hundred of Amounderness, N. division of Lancashire, 6 miles (S. W. by W.) from Garstang; containing 671 inhabitants. This was early a possession of the Walters. Theobald de Botiler or Butler appears to have held the manor in the reign of Henry III.: the Southworths, also, were anciently lords, and the family of Kirkby were almost sole owners of the township in 1631, when the Westbys became owners here. Tarnicar was among the places claimed by the abbot of Cockersand in the 20th of Edward I., when it was named "Tranikar;" and like Upper Rawcliffe, it was formerly subject to the feudal regulations of the constablewick of Garstang. The township comprises 2744 acres of land; and within its limits are the parish church and village of St. Michael's, situated on the Wyre, to both sides of which river it extends. The village is formed by a short street of very low dwellings, and the Wyre is crossed by a substantial bridge of stone: the church, the vicarage, and village school are the only striking edifices in the place. White Hall, erected towards the commencement of the 17th century, is now in a state of decay; it contains a secret apartment, which was used as a chapel by Roman Catholics, and as a place of concealment for the priests in dangerous times. A spacious, gloomy farmhouse, called St. Michael's Hall, has lately been rebuilt in an antique style, on a site which is said to have been occupied by the nominal lords of the place from the reign of Edward III. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £152. 1. 9., and the vicarial for £109; there are 25 acres of vicarial glebe, with premises attached.

Rawdon

RAWDON, a chapelry, in the parish of Guiseley, Upper division of the wapentake of Skyrack, W. riding of York, 6½ miles (N. W.) from Leeds; containing 2531 inhabitants. The chapelry is bounded on the south by the river Aire, and comprises 1535a. 3r. 30p., of which 1248 acres are pasture and meadow, 177 arable, 82 woodland, and 20 common or waste. The substratum contains coal of inferior quality, which is wrought to a moderate extent; and there are some quarries of excellent building-stone, from which the materials for the construction of the St. Katherine's Docks, in London, were partly supplied. The scenery is pleasingly diversified, and enlivened with various gentlemen's seats. Layton Hall, for centuries the seat of the Layton family, is now converted into cottages; and Rawdon Hall, which belongs to the family of Rawdon, is in a dilapidated state. The village is situated on the north side of the road from Leeds to Guiseley, and on the brow of a lofty eminence in the valley of Airedale, commanding extensive views. The chapel, with a parsonage, was built in 1651, chiefly at the expense of Francis Layton, Esq., whose son Thomas, the inheritor of his estates, in the year 1652 endowed it with £20 per annum for the minister, and £2 for the clerk, at the same time assigning funds for other purposes. It was thoroughly repaired in 1825. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Mrs. Emmott, lady of the manor, and has a net income of £115: there is a glebe of 36 acres. The tithes have been commuted for £88. 12. There are places of worship for Baptists, Friends, Primitive Methodists, and Wesleyans; and a school at Woodhouse Grove, founded in 1812, for the education of the sons of Wesleyan ministers. The bequest of Mr. Layton in 1652, of which the proceeds amount to £40 per annum, is appropriated, after the payments to the chapel previously noticed, to the apprenticing of children and the relief of the poor. Rawdon gives the title of Baron to the Marquess of Hastings.

Rawleigh

RAWLEIGH, a tything, in the parish of Whimple, hundred of Cliston, union of St. Thomas, Woodbury and S. divisions of Devon; with 128 inhabitants.

Rawleigh, Colyton, in the county of Devon.—See Colyton-Rawleigh.

RAWLEIGH, COLYTON, in the county of Devon. —See Colyton-Rawleigh.

Rawmarsh (St. Mary)

RAWMARSH (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Rotherham, N. division of the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill, W. riding of York, 2½ miles (N. by E.) from Rotherham; containing 2068 inhabitants. This place, at the time of the Conquest, was granted to Walter D'Eincourt; and in the 12th century the manor was divided among the three daughters of his subinfeudatory Paganus, the supposed founder of the ancient church, thus forming the three manors of Rawmarsh, Whetecroft, and Kilnhurst. The parish is pleasantly situated on the river Don, and comprises 2449a. 29p., of which 1587 acres are arable, 20 woodland and plantations, and the remainder meadow and pasture; the surface is diversified with hill and dale, and the soil is generally fertile. The substratum abounds with coal; and clay of excellent quality for earthenware and pottery is found. The village stands on the ridge of a hill rising from the valley of the Don, and on the road to Pontefract; the inhabitants are employed in the neighbouring collieries, and in the manufacture of steel and iron, for which extensive works are carried on in the hamlets of Kilnhurst and Park-Gate. There are likewise some large works for the manufacture of white and coloured earthenware. The Midland railway passes through the parish. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £8. 7. 3½., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £402, with a good parsonage-house. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1774; the glebe altogether comprises 173 acres. The church, an ancient structure in the Norman style, was taken down and rebuilt, with the exception of the tower, in 1839, at a cost of £2200, raised by subscription, towards which Earl Fitzwilliam contributed £500, the Rev. John James, the then rector, £250, and the Church-Building Society an equal sum. It is a handsome structure in the early English style, and has an endowment in houses and land, producing £30 per annum, for keeping it in repair. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans. Thomas Wilson, in 1653, conveyed a house, with cottages and land now producing £50 per annum, for the purpose of education; and in 1743, Edward Goodwin bequeathed a farm now yielding a rent of £100, for the instruction of children, and the relief of the poor.

Rawreth (St. Nicholas)

RAWRETH (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union and hundred of Rochford, S. division of Essex, 3 miles (N. W.) from Rayleigh; containing 387 inhabitants. It is bounded on the north by the river Crouch, over which is a bridge; and comprises 2367a. 3r. 23p., whereof 1967 acres are arable, 329 pasture, 31 common, 28 roads, and 11 water. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £20. 13. 4., and in the gift of Pembroke College, Cambridge: the tithes have been commuted for £750, and the glebe comprises 45 acres. The church is a small ancient edifice, with a south aisle belonging to the lord of the manor of Beches.

Rawtenstall

RAWTENSTALL, an ecclesiastical district, partly in the parish of Bury, and partly in that of Whalley, union of Haslingden, Higher division of the hundred of Blackburn, N. division of Lancashire; containing about 5000 inhabitants. This district is formed of part of three townships, viz. Lower Booths, Newchurch, and Coupe and Lenches with Newhall-Hey and Hall-Carr. The scenery embraces a picturesque vale, in Rossendale, through which the river Irwell flows; and the population is employed in the extensive cotton and woollen mills in the vicinity. The thriving village of Rawtenstall is situated where the roads to Burnley and Bacup separate, eight miles north from Bury. A portion of the East Lancashire railway, extending from Clifton, near Manchester, to Rawtenstall, a distance of 14 miles, was opened in September, 1846; since which, a branch from Rawtenstall to Bacup, and one to Crawshaw-Booth, have been laid down. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Henry Hoyle, Esq.; net income, £100. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, was built in 1837, at a cost of £3000, raised entirely by subscription; and is in the early English style, with a square tower. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Unitarians; and near the church is a national school.