Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 3.djvu/201

PEXSFORD ST. THOMAS. 189 PENTLAND FRITH. but tolerably fertile. The soil is of a sandy and loamy nature, with a subsoil of sandstone. The living is a rect.* in the dioo. of Bath and Wells, val. 180. The church, dedicated to St. Michael, has a tower containing three bells. It was restored in 1849, and contains two stained-glass windows and several monuments. The register dates from 1721. There is a National school for both sexes, in which a Sunday-school is also held. The Primitive Methodists have a place of worship. The Earl of Ilchester and Sir H. A. lloare, Bart., are lords of the manor and principal owners of the soil. A feast is held on the first Sunday after the 5th August. PENSFORD ST. THOMAS, a par. in the hund. of Kcynsham, co. Somerset, 6 miles S. of Bristol. The parish, which is of small extent, is intersected by the river Chew. The village, which was formerly a market town, is situated partly in this and partly in the ad- joining parish of Publow. The woollen cloth manufac- ture was formerly carried on here ; but has long since declined. The inhabitants are now chiefly engaged in the adjacent collieries and copper mines. Several of the adherents of the unfortunate Duke of Monmouth were executed here by Jeffreys. The living is a cur. annexed to the vie. of Stanton-Drew, in the dioc. of Bath and Wells. The church, dedicated to St. Thomas-a-Becket, is a stone structure with a venerable tower. There are places of worship for the Independents and Wesleyans. 1'airs are held on the Gth May and 8th November. PENSHAM, a hmlt. in the par. of St. Andrew Per- shore, upper div. of the hund. of Pershore, co. Worcester, 1J mile S.W. of Pershore. It is situated on the river' Avon. PENSHER, a hmlt. in the par. of Washington, co. Durham, 6 miles S.E. of Gateshead. It is a station on the North-Eastern railway, where the Sunderland sec- tion branches off. PENSHURST, a par. in the hund. of Somerden, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, co. Kent, 6J miles W. of Tun- bridge Wells, its post town. It is a station on the South- Eastorn railway. The village is situated at the confluence of the rivers Medway and Eden. It is chiefly agricul- tural ; but a considerable number of the inhabitants are employed in the making of cricket bats and balls, and in the paper manufacture. The land, which is in a high state of '-ultivation, is partly in hop grounds. At a short distance from the village is Penshurst Place, an em- battled mansion, erected at various periods, the Hall being of the time of Edward III. ; but the greater por- tion of the structure was rebuilt in the reign of Elizabeth, in the florid Elizabethan style of architecture. It occupies the site of a much more ancient edifice, which belonged to the Penchester family at the time of the Norman Conquest. The present building is a quadrangle, sur- mounted by battlements, and is approached through an avenue. The king's tower was restored in 1862. The mansion contains the great hall, remarkable for its im- mense fireplace ; Queen Elizabeth's drawing-room, a spacious ball-room, a decorated chapel, and portrait gallery, containing paintings by Holbein, Vandyck, and others. In the park is Sidney's oak, 23 feet in girth, near Longcup well; Barbara Gamage's bower, and a heronry. The mansion, after having belonged to various illustrious personages, including the Lord Mayor Poultney, the good Duke Humphrey, the Earl of Stafford, and others, was given by Edward VI. to Sir William Sidney, whose descendants, Sir Henry Sidney, Lord Deputy of Ireland, Sir Philip Sidney, the patriotic Algernon Sidney, and the charming Dorothea, celebrated by Waller under the name of " Sacharissa," were all born here. The present proprietor is Lord de L'Isle and Dudley, a lineal descendant of the Sidneys. The other seats in the parish are South Park, of Viscount Hardinge, Red Leaf, and Ford Place. At White Port in this parish the line of the South-Eastern railway passes through a short tunnel of 25 feet in diameter. Pens- hurst gives the inferior title of baron to the family of Smythc, Viscounts Strangford. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of 1,020, and the glebe comprises 35 acres. The living is a rect. * with the cur. of St. Peter annexed, in the dioc. of Canterbury, val. 766. The church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, is a structure of the 13th century, with three chancels, and a pinnacled tower containing a clock and six bells. The interior of the church contains a private chupel, under which are the remains of Algernon Sidney, who was beheaded in 1683. There are several brasses and tombs to the same family, also effigies of a Penchester. The church has recently been restored at the expense of G. Gilbert, Esq., and several painted windows have been inserted at the expense of the Misses Sidney, to the late Lord de L'Isle ; also the E. end window to the late rector, by George Gilbert, Esq. The register dates from 1600. The parochial charities produce about 3 per annum, besides five almshouscs, erected by the late Sir Shelley Sidney. There is a National school for both sexes. The Baptists have a place of worship. In the neighbourhood are remains of a Roman fortification. PENSNET, a vil. in the hund. of Offlow, co. Stafford, 2 miles S.W. of Dudley, of which it is a suburb. The living is a perpet. cur.* in the dioc. of Lichfield, val. 250. The church is a modern structure. PENSTHORPE, or PENTESTHORPE, a par. in the hund of Gallow, co. Norfolk, 2 miles S.E. of Faken- ham, its post town. The parish, which is inconsiderable, is situated on the river Wensum. There is no village, only a few farmhouses. Three parts of the land is arable, the remainder pasture and meadow, with about 15 acres of woodland. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of 1"0. The living is a rect. in the dioc. of Norwich, val. 50. There is no church. In the gravel pits various Roman remains have been found. PENSTON, a vil. in the par. of Gladsmuir, co. Iladdington, Scotland, 5 miles S.W. of Haddington, and 3 E. of Tranent. It is situated on rising ground a short distance from the Edinburgh and Berwick roud, and in the centre of one of the largest coal districts in the country. The inhabitants are chiefly engaged in tho collieries. Pension belongs to Bailie, Esq., whose family have held the barony for 550 years. PENSTROWED, a par. in the hund. of Llanidloes, co. Montgomery, 2 miles W. of Newtown, its post town, and 9 from Llanidloes. The village, which is of small extent, is situated on tho western bank of the river Severn, and near the Caer-Sws Roman way. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Bangor, val. 110, in the patron, of tho bishop. The church is an ancient structure, dedicated to St. George. PENSYLVANIA, a hmlt. in the par. of Cold Ashton, co. Gloucester, 2 miles S.W. of Marshfield. PENTECOX, a vil. in the par. of Newton, co. Edin- burgh, Scotland, 4 miles S.E. of Edinburgh. PENTERRY, a par. in the upper div. of Caldicott hund., co. Monmouth, 3 miles N.W. of Chepstow, its post town, and 10 from Monmouth. The parish, which is of small extent, is situated near the river Wye. There is no village, only a few farmhouses. The living is a perpet. cur. in the dioc. of Llandaff, val. 65, in the patron, of the chapter. PENTEWAN, PORT, a creek to Fowey, co. Corn- wall, 3 miles S. of St. Austle. PENTHRYN, a tnshp. in tho par. of Berriew, co. Montgomery, 4 miles N.W. of Montgomery. PENTHRYN-FAWR and PENTHRYN-FECHAN, tnshps. in the par. of Llandriuio, hund. of Deythur, co. Montgomery, 6 miles N.E. of Welshpool, and 9 E. of LlanfUlyn. It is situated near the confluence of the Vyrnwy with the Severn. PENTIR, a hmlt. in the par. of Bangor, co. Carnar- von, 3 miles S.W. of Bangor. It once formed a separate parish. The living is a cur. united with Bungor. PENTIRE, a headland near Holywell Bay, co. Corn- wall, 7 miles W. of St. Colomb. PENTIRE POINT, a headland on the Bristol Channel, co. Cornwall, 3 miles N.E. of Padstow. In tho neigh- bourhood lead has been found. PENTLAND, an ancient par. now joined with that of Glencross, co. Edinburgh, Scotland. PENTLAND FIUTH, the strait which separates tho