Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 3.djvu/372

ROWLSTON 360 ROXBURGH. arc also carried on. The original village is situated near the old church, hut there are numerous hamlets and detached clusters of houses scattered over the parish. A large portion of the inhabitants are employed in the collieries and iron-works. The surface, which is uneven, is traversed by a range of hills, called the Rowley hills, which extend in a northerly direction across the parish, and attain an elevation of near 900 feet above the level of the sea. Numerous streams take their rise in these hills, and flow in opposite directions towards the Trent and Severn ; and in the sides of hills are numerous quar- ries, which supplied materials for paving the streets of Birmingham and other towns in the vicinity. The stratum of coal lies at a depth of from 80 to 200 yards below the surface, varying from 10 to 13 in thickness; and there are numerous collieries in operation. At the Cradley works, which are now chiefly employed for con- verting pig-iron into bars and rods, the experiment was first tried of manufacturing iron with pit coal instead of charcoal, which had been ureviously used for that pur- pose ; and in the 19th of James I., Mr. Dudley, at that time proprietor, obtained a patent for that mode of ope- ration. The Birmingham canal enters the parish at the Brades, and passes through Tividale for about a mile, and the Dudley canal at Gosty Hill, through which it is conveyed by a tunnel nearly 1,500 feet in length. The glebe comprises about 61 acres, of which 9 ire old enclosure, and the remainder was, by Act of Parliament, in 1799, for enclosing waste lands, allotted in lieu of the vicarial tithes. By the same Act the proprietors of the land were obliged to purchase the rectorial tithes at the valuation of the commissioners, or to give land from their old enclosures in lieu of them. The living formerly belonged to the Abbey of Halesowen, having been annexed to the vicarage of Clent by Robert de Somery. The church, dedicated to St. Giles, has a square tower containing six bells. The tower was rebuilt in 1858. There is also a district church at Reddall Hill, the living of which is a perpet. cur., val. 300. The parochial charities produce about 101 per annum, of which 73 goes to Lady Honnin's and Macmillan's schools. There are National schools for both sexes. The Wesleyans, Baptists, Primitive Methodists, and New Connexion, have each a place of worship. Sir Stephen Littleton, of Holbech House, in the parish of King's-Swinford, and one of the conspirators in the gunpowder plot, was for some time concealed in the old residence of the Whites. ROWLSTON, a hmlt. in the par. of Mappleton, partly in the lib. of St. Peter's, and partly in the N. div. of Holderness wap., East Riding co. York, 1 mile S.E. of Hornsey, and 14 miles N.E. of Beverley. It is joined with Mappleton to form a township, and is situated near the coast. ROWLSTONE, a par. in the hund. of Ewyas-Lacy, co. Hereford, 13 miles S.W. of Hereford, its post town, and 1J mile W. of the Pontrilas railway station. The village, which is small, is situated near the Abergavenny railway and the river Munnow, and is wholly agricul- tural. The soil is of a strong nature, upon a subsoil of red sandstone. Limestone is also obtained in the neigh- bourhood. The living is a perpet. cur. with the perpet. cur. of Llancillo annexed, in the dioc. of Hereford, val. 200. The church, dedicated to St. Peter, is an ancient stone structure, with a tower containing three bells. The parochial charities produce about 2 per anuum. Colonel Scudamore is lord of the manor. There is a National school for both sexes in Wormbridge. ROWNALL, a tnshp. in the par. of Cheddleton, N. div. of Totmonslow hund., co. Stafford, 3 miles S.E. of Cheddleton, and 6 N.W. of Cheadle. It contains the hmlt. of Cellar Head. KOWNER, a par. in the hund. of Titchfield, co. Hants, 2J miles S.E. of Fareham, its nearest railway station and post town, and 3 N.W. of Gosport. The village, which is small, is situated near Portsmouth harbour, and is chiefly agricultural. The greater part of the land is arable, with a considerable extent of woodland and com- mon. The Gosport branch of the South- Western rail- way pas3es through the parish. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of 400, and the glebe prises 7 acres. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. Winchester, val. 399. The church is an ancient edifice, with a small tower. Near the church are remains of an old priory, at which place there is a mineral spring. ROWNHAM, a hmlt. in the par. of Long Ashton, Somerset, 2 miles W. of Bristol. ROWSHAM, a hmlt. in the hund. of Cottesloe, co. Bucks, 3 miles N.E. of Aylesbury, in conjunction wi " Wingrave. The Rothschild hounds meet in this neig' bourhood. There was formerly a chapel, dedicated St. Lawrence. ROWSLEY-MAGNA, a tnshp. in the par. of Bal well, hund. of High Peak, co. Derby, 3 miles S.E. Bakewell, its post town, and 5J from Matlock. It ' station on the Ambergate and Buxton branch of Midland railway. The village, which is of small exti is situated near the confluence of the Wye with the ri Derwent, and the inhabitants are wholly agricultui The Derwent is here crossed by an ancient bridge, and the river Wye is also crossed by a stone bridge of modern construction. The par. includes the hmlt. of Allport, and is a resort for anglers. The living is a perpet. cur.* in the dioc. of Lichfield, val. 50. Divine service is performed in the schoolhouse, licensed for that purpose by the bishop. It was erected in 1841 at the expense of the Duke of Rutland, who is lord of the manor. ROWSTON. See ROULSTON, co. Lincoln. ROWTHORNE, a hmlt. in the par. of Ault-Hucknall, co. Derby, 7 miles N.E. of Alfreton. ROWTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Christleton, lower div. of Broxton hund. co. Chester, 3 miles S.E. of Ches- ter, and 1 mile S. of the church. The village, which is small, is situated near the Crew railway, and the Nant- wich and Chester canal. It is wholly agricultural. On Rowton Heath, in 1645, Poyntz defeated the forces of Charles I., who witnessed the battle from the Phoeniz tower, on Chester walls ; and in 1659 the Cheshire gentry assembled here, and declared for a free parliament, oa the attempt of Sir George Booth to restore Charles II. Rowton Hall is the principal residence. ROWTON, a tnshp. in the pars, of Clungerford, Hopesay, and Stokesay, co. Salop, 7 miles N.W. of Ludlow. It is in conjunction with Broom. ROWTON, a tnshp. and chplry. in the par. of Alber- bury, hund. of Ford, co. Salop, 7 miles W. of Shrews- bury. It includes Rowton Castle. Richard Baxter, the eminent divine, was born here in 1615. ROWTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Ercall Magna, co. Salop, 7 miles N.E. of Shrewsbury. The living is a perpet cur., val. 100. ROWTON, a hmlt. in the par. of Swine, N. div. of Holderness wap., East Riding co. York, 8 miles N, Beverley. It is in conjunction with North Skirlaugh, to form a tnshp. ROXBOROUGH, several small places of this name in Ireland : one the seat of the Earl of Charlemont, near Moy, co. Tyrone; another near Middleton, CO. Cork; and a third near Loughrea, co. Galway. ROXBURGH, a par. in the Kelso district, co. Rox- burgh, Scotland. It is situated in the lower part of Teviotdale, where the Teviot joins the Tweed, and near the line of the ancient road Watling Street. It is bounded by the pars, of Ancrum, Crailing, Eckford, Kelso, Makerston, and Maxton, the river Tweed forming a large part of its northern boundary. Its length from N.E. to S.W. is about 8 miles, and its breadtli varies from 1| mile to 5 miles. The par. contains, besides the site of Old Roxburgh, now extinct, the modern vi of Roxburgh, the post-office vil. of Heightoun, and the hmlt. of Newton. The town of Old Roxburgh, or Rokee burgh, as it ia written by ancient historians, was once the fourth town in Scotland, both in populousness and in general importance. It is a market town, royal burgh, mint town, and strongly fortified post at the embou- chure of the Teviot. Its famous border castle, which stood opposite to Kelso, is said to have been originally built by the Saxon kings of Northumbria, which king- dom included this part of Scotland, and having been