Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 3.djvu/17

NANTFRAYER. NANTWICH. NANTFRAYER, a tnshp. in the par. of Llandderfel, co. Merioneth, 3 miles E. of Bala. NANTFYLLON, a tnshp. in the par. of Lianrhaiadr- yn-Mochnant, co. Montgomery, 3 miles N. of Llan- fyllyn. NANTGARW, a hmlt. in the hund. of Kibbor, co. Glamorgan, 5 miles from Cardiif. It is situated in the Taff valley. NANTGLYN, a par. in the hund. of Isaled, co. Den- bigh, 4 miles from Denbigh, its post town, and 8 N.W. of Ruthin. The village, which is of small extent, is situated on a branch of the river Clwyd. The par., which is 7 miles by 4 in extent, includes the hmlts. of Blaunan, Gwllwm, Hendre, and Plas. The land is hilly, and is chiefly in pasture. The living is a vie. in the 'dioc. of St. Asaph, val. 222, in the patron, of the bishop. The church is dedicated to St. James. The churchyard contains some fine yew-trees. The parochial charities produce about 15 per annum. The Calvinistic Methodists have a place of worship. Fairs are held on the 6th May and 27th October for cattle. NANT-G WYNANT, or NANTHNYNANT, a hmlt. in the par. of Beddgelert, co. Carnarvon, 5 miles N.E. of Beddgelert. It is situated in a valley under Snowdon, watered by the river Avon Glas, and is said to have been the retreat of Vortigern and the magician Merlin. NANT-G WKTHEYRN, a dell under Yr Eifl Moun- tain, in co. Carnarvon, 3 miles N.E. of Nevern, sup- posed to be the burial-place of the British chieftain Yortigern, who died here of his wounds in 465. NANTHALAN, a tnshp. in the par. of Llanfyllin, co. Montgomery, near Llanfyllin. NANT-HANLOG, a tnshp. in the par. of Llangwm, co. Denbigh, 13 miles S.W. of Ruthin. NANTLLE, a small lake in co. Carnarvon, 6 miles S. of Carnarvon. It is situated under Mynydd Mawr, and forms the source of the river Llyfni. NANTLLEIDIOG. a tnshp. in the par. of Llanfawr, CO. Merioneth, near Bala. NANTMEL, a par. in the hund. of Rhayader, co. Radnor, 4 miles S.E. of Rhayader, its post town, and 11 from Builth. It is situated on the river Dulas, and is 8 miles by o in extent, comprising the tnshps. of Coed- glasson, Gwaestedin-fawr, Maesgwin, and Vainor, also Llyn Gwin and two camps. The living is a vie. in the dioc. of St. David's, val. 400, in the patron, of the bishop. The church is dedicated to St. Cynllo. The parochial charities produce about 8 per annum. There is a chapel for the Independents. NANTMOR, a hmlt. in the par. of Beddgelert, co. Merioneth, 5 miles N.E. of Tremadoe. NANTPERIS, a pass near Llanberris, co. Carmar- then. It lies between Snowdon and Glider Fawr. NANTWICH, a hund. in the co.of Chester. It contains tho pars, of Acton, Audlem, Baddiley, Coppenhall, Mar- bury, Church-Minshnll, Nantwich, Wistaston, Wren- bury, Wybunbury, and parts of Barthomley, Sandbach, and Whitchurch, comprising an area of 87,640 acres. .NANTWICH, or NAMPTWICH, a par. and market town in the hund. of its own name, co. Chester, 20J S.E. of Chester, 161 N.W. of London. It is a railway station on the Crewe and Shrewsbury line. It is situated on a level plain on the old road leading from London to Chester, and principally on the right bank of the river Weaver, which is hero crossed by a substantial stone bridge of one arch. At the lower end of the town is an aqueduct for tho Grand Junction canal, which passes over the road by an iron bridge, and unites in the neighbourhood with the Chester, tho Ellesmere, tho Liverpool and Birmingham Junction canals, and the Middlewich branch canal. The par. is of large extent, comprising, besides the town of Nantwich, the chplries. of Alvaston and Leighton, and tho hmlts. of Willaston and Woolstanwood. The land is chiefly rich pasture, appropriated for dairy farming, and the cheese made is highly esteemed. The town of Nantwich is mentioned in the Domesday Survey by tho simple designation Wick, witch in Saxon signi- fying salt-works, for which the town was anciently famous, and subsequently took the prefix nant from its situation in the rich valley of the Weaver, It was at one time called Wich-Malbane, from William de Malbane, to whom it was granted by Hugh Lupus, Earl of Chester, who had built a castle here shortly after the Conquest. It was then enclosed by the river on one side, and on the other by a ditch. Its early history is closely con- nected with the border wars of the Welsh. In 1113 the town was laid in ruins by the Welsh ; but in 1146, having again devastated the surrounding country, they were met at Nantwich by the king's forces, and entirely routed. In 1282 Edward I. advanced to Nantwich against the Welsh, and granted the citizens certain privileges. In the reign of Henry III. the brine pits were filled up, in order to distress the Welsh, who carried on a consider- able traffic in salt ; but on the restoration of peace the wells were again sunk, and the manufacture of salt con- tinued to be the source of wealth and employment to the inhabitants for several centuries, there being no fewer than 300 salt-works in operation in Leland's time, some of which belonged to the crown and some to families of distinction. Shortly after this period the industry began to decline, and in the reign of Charles I. the pits scarcely averaged half the former number the decline being chiefly owing to the discovery of superior springs lower down the Weaver, where the advantage of water carriage was more readily accessible. Tho town was twice almost consumed by fire, in 1438 and 1583, and the pl&gue appeared in June, 1604, when nearly 500 persons were swept away in less than one year. During the period of the civil war of Charles I. it was taken in 1642 by the royalists, but soon after garrisoned for the parliament, and besieged in January, 1644, without success by Lord Byron, who was here routed by Sir T. Fairfax. The town at present consists of three principal streets, which unite near the church, and some other smaller streets connecting these. The streets are indifferently paved, and many of the houses, which are commonly built of timber and plaster, with large bay windows and projecting upper stories, are as old as the 16th century, and were probably built of tho timber from the" forest of Delamere, presented by Queen Elizabeth towards the more speedy completion of tho town after the great fire of 1583. The principal public buildings are the market-house, built in the last century on the site of the old market cross it is a small covered erection supported on pillars ; the police office, on Snow- hill, built in 1848, with a large room where petty sessions are held, and a residence for the superintendent attached ; the savings-bank, in Welsh-row, a brick edifice erected in 1846 at a cost of 1,000 ; the mechanics' institute, in High-street, established in 1846 ; the Manchester and Liverpool district bank, situated in Mill-street, and two other branch banks ; also the union poor-house, a spa- cious brick building situated on Beam Heath, about a mile from the town. The number of inhabited houses in 1851 was 1,120, with a population of 5,426, which had increased during the decennial period of 1861 to 1,310, with a population of 6,225. The government of the town is under the management of a local board of health, which has recently effected great improvement in the drainage and water supply. The chief manufactures are shoes and boots for houses in London and Manchester, leather, and gloves, also a cotton factory in Mill-street. There are some malting establishments, and cheese is extensively made in the neighbouring farmhouses. In the vicinity of the town are many residences surrounded by parks and gardens : amongst these are Cholmondeley Castle, a seat of the Cholmondeley family, who take the title of baron from this place ; Crewe Hall (burnt down 1866),of Lord Crewe ; Doddington Hall, DoddingtonPark, Peckforton Castle, Combermere Abbey, Dorfold Hall and Park, Shrewbridge Hall, and Nautwich Kookery. Tho living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Chester, val. 300. The church, dedicated to SS. Mary and Nicholas, is a cru- ciform structure with an octagonal tower 110 feet high, rising from the intersection of the nave and transepts, and containing a peal of six bells. Tho interior of the church has a groined roof, largo E. window, consisting