Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 3.djvu/689

This page needs to be proofread.
677

TOltPENHOW. 677 TORE. stone, and a coarse kind of limestone. The village, which is about 15 miles N.W. of Oban, is situated on Mull Sound and Loch Linnie, and has communication by a road along the . and S. coasts, and by another traversing the interior. At Achnacraig is a ferry of 8 miles to Kirrera Island, and near the same spot are the ruins of Duart Castle. The par. is in the presb. of Mull and synod of Argyle. The stipend of the min- ister is about 172. The par. church was erected in 1783, and was restored in 1832. At Kinloch-Spelvio, and at Salen, are government churches, with the status of quoad sacra parish churches. At Torosa and Salen are Free church preaching stations. There are four parochial schools, besides other schools. The principal seats are Achnacroish House and Lochbury House. Three fairs are held on the farm of Fishenish in May, August, and October. TOUPENHOW, a par. in the hund. of Allerdale- below-Derwent, co. Cumberland, 7 miles S. of Wigton, its post town, 2J N.W. of Ireby, and 3J from the Leigate station on the Maryport and Carlisle line of railway. It is situated near the river Ellen, and about a mile to the E. of the Carlisle and Cockermouth turn- pike road. The parish is divided into the four townships oi Bewaldeth and Snittlegarth, Blennerhasset and Kirk- land, Bothel and Threapland, and Torpenbow and Whitrigg. The soil is various, with a subsoil of lime- stone and gravel, and traces of coal. The living is a vie.* in the dioc. of Carlisle, val. 305, in the patron, of the bishop. The church, dedicated to St. Michael, has a curiously carved oak roof. The interior con- tains several old monuments. The parochial charities produce about 65, of which sum 50 go to the free school situated at Bothel. W. J. Charlton, Esq., is lord of the manor. TORPHICHEN, a par. in the co. of Linlithgow, Scotland. It comprises a vil. of its own name, and that of Blackridge. It extends in length about 10 miles from N.E. to S.W., with an extreme breadth of '1 miles ; and is bounded by the pars, of Linlith- gow and Bathgatc. The surface rises at Cairn Naple 1,498 foet above sea-level. There are whinstone, limestone, and sandstone quarries ; and iron, stone, and coal have been partially worked. Silver-ore has been found in the limestone, but not in sufficient quantities to be profitably worked. There are a paper-mill, two meal- mills, and a woollen-mill. The parish is traversed by the central road from Edinburgh to Glasgow, and by the road from Bathgate to Falkirk. The village is about 2J miles N.W. of Bathgate, and 4J S.W. of Lin- lithgow, both of which are railway stations. It is situ- ated on the river Avon, and on the road from Bathgate to Falkirk. It is of irregular form and of great antiquity. In its vicinity are a lake covering 22 acres, and the ruins of a preceptory of the Knights of St. John, founded by David I., which had the privilege of sanc- tuary, and was granted, with the title of baron, to Sandilands, the last preceptor. There is a round camp on Boudano Hill, and there are Druid stones in the neighbourhood. This par. is in the presb. of Lin- lithgow and synod of Lothian and Tweeddale. The stipend of the minister is about 163. The parish church was erected in 1756. There ore also a Free church, two parochial libraries, and a parochial school ; and at Blackridge, in this parish, a Free church preach- ing station, and a parochial school. The principal seats are Wallhonse and Lochcote. TOEPOINT, a chplry. in the par. of St. Anthony, S. div. of East bund., co. Cornwall, 3 miles W. of Devon- port. The village occupies a peninsula, formed by the Tamar, the Lynher, and St. John's Lake, abounding in fish. In the vicinity are many seats, of which Trema- ton Castle is the principal. The living is a perpet. cur. in the dioc. of Exeter, val. 130. There are chapels for Independents and Wesleyans. Sir C. Carew founded a free grammar-school here, and there is also a National school. TORQUAY, a fcishp., chplry., seaport, market-town, and watering-place in the par. of Tor Moham, hund. of Haytor, co. Devon, 6j miles S.E. of Newton-Bushell, and 12 N.E. of Dartmouth, of which it is a subport. It is a station on the Torquay branch of the South Devon railway, and has regular communication by steam- packet with Plymouth, Portsmouth, and Southampton. Torquay is of recent growth, having consisted at the end of the last century of only a few fishermen's huts. It is now a thriving watering-place, and is well-built, owing to the abundance of a sort of transition limestone or marble, which is easily quarried, and is susceptible of as fine a polish as the best Italian marble. This spot first attracted notice during the French war, when the officers and invalids belonging to the Channel Fleet were landed hero to recruit their health, whilst the fleet anchored in Torbay. The town lies in a sheltered cove at the north-eastern extremity of Torbay, being built along the strand and up the acclivities of the hills which, on every side except the S., encircle it, giving to it an almost Italian climate, so that myrtles, fuchsias, aloes, citrons, &c., flourish in the open air. The lower part of the town, occupied chiefly by shops and business premises, is built round three sides of the small tidal harbour, which is about 500 feet long by 30 feet wide, and contains an area of about 8 acres. It has a quay and a pier, which is used also as a promenade. In this part of the town most of the streets are narrow and irregular ; but on the slopes of the hills above are numerous terraces or tiers of marine villas, approached at either end by a winding road, and in other places by flights of steps, which also ascend to the uppei tiers and the detached hills on either side. These latter are studded with houses surrounded by gardens, and often hidden in the luxuriant foliage of trees. Here are all the requi- sites for a watering-place, including a club, with billiard and reading-rooms attached, assembly-rooms, bank, several hotels, a literary and scientific institution, sub- scription and circulating libraries, a museum of geology and natural history, and public and private baths of all kinds. The principal public buildings are the Town- hall, in Lower Union-street, the Union-hall, also in Union-street, appropriated for public meetings, theatrical exhibitions, and popular lectures ; the Torbay dispen- sary and infirmary, erected in 1850, and the now market-house, erected under an Act of Parliament obtained in 1849. The town is lighted with gas, and paved, and is now well supplied with water brought in iron pipes from springs in the neighbourhood. The sanitary regulations are under a local board of health, elected by the ratepayers. Petty sessions are held at the town-hall every Monday. Four guardians attend the Poor-law Board of Newton Abbott weekly. A little to the E. of the town on the Torwood road are the public gardens, comprising about 4 acres. Two weekly publications, called the Torquay Directory and South Devon Journal, and the Torquay Chronicle, are published in the town. The parish church of Tor llohani is situated about one mile W. of the town; and on the road between Tor and Torquay is the district parish church of Upton, erected in 1849. There are besides, in the town, two chapels of the Establishment St. John's, at Montpelier- place, and Trinity Chapel, at Park-hill ; a Free Epis- copal church, recently opened, and chapels belonging to the Independents, Baptists, Wesleyans, and Unitarians. The Roman Catholics attend the chapel at Tor Abbey, the seat of E. S. S. Caroy, Esq., situated in the south- western part of the parish. There are several dispen- saries and charitable institutions, and National and other schools. In the limestone and marble quarries numerous fossil shells and madrepores, with remains of the extinct elephant and rhinoceros, are found, and on the beach a great variety of pebbles. Near the town is a curious cavern, called Kent's Hole. A regatta takes place annually in July or August. Market-days ara Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. A fair is held on Easter Monday. TORK, a hmlt. in the par. of Nettlecombe, co. Somerset, 3 miles S.W. of Watchet. TORR, or BIGHOUSE, a hmlt. near Port Skerry, co. Sutherland, Scotland.