BEXINGTON. 259 BICESTER. I BEXINGTON, EAST and WEST, hmlts. in the par.
- Abbotsbury, hund. of Uggscoinbe, in the co. of
orset, near Abbotsbury. They are situated on the last of the Channel, and formerly constituted a distinct irish. The living was annexed in the loth, century to .e rect. of Puncknowle, and the ruins of the church still find on the shore. 1BEXLEY, a par. and vil., chiefly in the hund. of tixley, partly in that of Lessness, lathe of Sutton-at- ione, in the co. of Kent, 3 miles from Dartford, 8 from Focnwich, and 1 3 from London. It includes the hmlts. ! Bleudon, Bridgend, Halfway Street, and Upton. The Uage ia situated on the river Cray, which passes rough the centre of it. It is about 4 miles distant Dm Abbey Wood and Erith stations on the North ?nt line of railway. The manor was given by King mwulf, or Kenulf, to the see of Canterbury. In bmesday Book it is recorded as having a church and ifee mills. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Can- t-bury, of the val., with the chapel of ease of Bexley jath, which is attached to it, of 592, in the patron. '! Viscount Sidney. The church contains several ipnumcntal brasses, an ornamental confessional, and i-cral monuments. It is dedicated to St. Mary the Irgin. Camden Place was the residence of William <nnden the antiquary, who held the manor of Bexley. -D founded a professorship of history at Oxford, I endowed it with that manor. The charitable .dowments of the parish produce above 200 per mum; of which sum 100 is the revenue of Style- mi's almshouses for 12 persons. The National school i a commodious building, with residence for the Uchers, and has a small endowment of 8 per annum. >ere is also an infant school, and 12 almshouses, iinded in 1755, by J. Styleman, besides other charities r the benefit of the poor. Bexley gave the title of Iron to the Vanaittarts. Within the parish are some I'ious examples of shell formation. Danson Hill is a nil-ome residence, the grounds were laid out by liability Brown. A fair is held on the 13th and 14th ptember. BEXLEY HEATH, a chplry. in the par. of Bexley, hid. of Ruxley, and lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, in the of Kent, 2 miles from Buxley, and 12 S.E. from 1 ndon. It is a rapidly increasing village, pleasantly -uated on the London and Dover road, which oom-
- mds extensive views over a very picturesque country.
'iere is a market-house in the centre of the village, . 'entry erected, and a police station. The chapel of ' ;e is annexed to the vie. of Bexley, in the dioc. of 1 nterbury. The Baptists, Wesleyaus, and Indepen- its have chapels here. ' There are National schools
- boys, girls, and infants, the two last with residences
' teachers. The south side of Welling is in the par. ' Bexley ; and a mixed National school is maintained
- ie also. The market is held on Saturday.
BEXTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Knutsford, hund. l!ucklow,inthe co. palatine of Chester, near Knutsford. 11KXWELL, a par. in the hund. of Clackclose, in the of Norfolk, close to Dowuham Market, its post town. ' K- Eastern Counties railway passes near it. It was rmerly a market town, under a grant from Henry III. ie living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Norwich, of the val. < 375, in the patron, of the bishop. The church is (dicated to St. Mary. The parochial charities, con- fting of the produce of the poor's land, amount to 3 dreax. m-A'NHURST HUNDRED, one of the 20 sub- u-isions of Berkshire, situated in the eastern part oJ IB co., and bounded on the N. by the Thames and the . of Buckingham, on the E. by the hunds. of Bray
- 1 Ripplcsmere, and on the S. and W. by the hund. of
^argrave. It contains the pars, of Bisham, Hurley, 1 menhain, Shottesbrook, and White Waltham, and has t area of about 13,000 acres. BEYTON, or BEIGHTON, a par. in the hund. of '. edwestry, in the co. of Suffolk, 5 miles to the E. o ] ry St. Edmund's, its post town. The living is a rect. * i the dioc. of Ely, of the val. of 175, in the patron, o he lord chancellor. The church is dedicated to AH Saints. BEYWORTH, a hmlt. in. the par. of Petworth, and lund. of Rotherbridge, in the co. of Sussex, a short dis-
- ance from the market town of Petworth, of which it is
suburb. BIBRIDGE, a hmlt. in the par. of Kirkharle, Tin- dale ward, in the co. of Northumberland, 10 miles to ho E. of Bellingham. BIBURY, a par. partly in the hund. of Bradley, and >artly in that of Brightwell's Barrow, in the co. of jloucester, 5 miles to the S. of Northleach. Fairford is .ts post town. It is situated in a beautiful country, on he banks of the river Colne, and contains the chplry. of Winsou and the tythgs. of Ablington and Arlington. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Gloucester and Sristol, of the val. of 1,023, in the patron, of Lord iherborne. The church, which was founded by the abbots of Osney, has some Norman arches, and is dedi- cated to St. Mary. The chief residence is Bibury House, the property of Lord Sherborne, but occupied by lis son, the Hon. J. Dutton, who is lord of the manor. The mansion, which was built by the Sackvilles, is well situated, and commands a good prospect over the Colne. At Ablingdon there is a very ancient manor-house, built m 1590, belonging to the Coxwell family. Roman anti- quities have been found here. The village is a meet 'or the White Horse hounds. The races which took place annually in June are now discontinued. BICESTER, a par. and market town in the hund. of Ploughley, in the co. of Oxford, 13 miles to the N.E. of Oxford; and 54 miles to the N.W. of London by road, or 66 miles by railway. Bicester is a station on the Oxford and Winslow branch of the London and North- Western railway. The name of this place is contracted from the Saxon Surin-ceastre, or Bemaceaster, and was probably derived from Birinus, a prelate of the 7th century, who assisted in founding it. It is near the site of the ancient Roman Alchester, and is divided into the two districts of King's End and Market End. An Augustine priory was founded here in 1182, by Gilbert Bassett, which was dedicated to St. Eadburg, and had a revenue at the Dissolution of 167. The name of the saint of Aylosbury is still attached to a pleasant walk, and a well to which it leads. A skirmish occurred here between the royalist and parliamentary forces in the reign of Charles I., and the town was alter- nately in the possession of both parties. The town, which stands in a valley on a small stream, a branch of the Cherwell, is mostly well built, paved, and lighted with gas. It principally consists of one long street, on the high road to Banbury ; a market-place where the townhall and shambles formerly stood, before they were destroyed in the riots of 1 826 ; and two other streets, called Chapel-street and Crockwell. Great improve- ments have been recently made in the sanitary condition of the town, by covering the open drains, laying down a nagged foot pavement, and improving the supply of water. In 1832, during the time of the cholera, seventy persons were seked with that malady, and the small- pox hospital, which stood near the London-road, was appropriated for their reception. The hospital has since been removed to make way for the London and North- Western railway, which has a station here. Bicester is not the seat of any manufacture, except lace, which is made to a small extent, and the employments of tho workpeople are chiefly agricultural. It has some exten- sive breweries, the ale of which is celebrated. The general trade of the place, which depends upon its well- attended market and cattle fairs, is benefited by the Oxford canal, which passes near it. Bicester is the seat of a Poor-law Union, comprising 38 parishes, and a County Court district. Potty sessions for the district are held here. It is also the head of a deanery, in the archdeac. and dioc. of Oxford. The town contains a savings-bank and the Union poorhouse, a spacious edifice, erected in 1836, capable of accommodating 320 inmates. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Oxford, of the val. of 231, in the patron, of the trustees of tho
