Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for LEIGH

LEIGH, a parish and a sub-district in Martley district, Worcestershire. The parish lies on the river Teme and the Worcester and Malvern railway, 4½ miles WSW of Worcester; contains the hamlets of Leigh Sinton, Link-End, Sandlin, Sherridge, Brockhampton, Lower Howsell, Upper Howsell, and Cow-Leigh, the chapelry of Bransford, and most of the locality of Malvern-Link, adjoining Great Malvern; has postal accommodation partly through Worcester, partly through Great Malvern; and lies around the r. stations of Bransford-Road and Malvern-Link. Acres, 6,129. Real property, £17,498. Pop. in 1851,2,342; in 1861,3,330. Houses, 641. The increase of pop. was chiefly in the Malvern-Link locality, and arose from proximity to Great Malvern. The property is much subdivided. The manor belongs to Earl Somers. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Worcester. Value, £312. Patron, Earl Somers. The church is of varions dates, but chiefly of the 12th century; comprises nave, and chancel, with W tower; has, over the N door, a remarkable ancient sculpture in a recess supported by Norman pillars; and contains a curiously carved ancient screen, a Norman font, a fine monument of Sir Walter Devereux, and a number of ancient monnments and relics. A chapel of ease is at Bransford; a church was recently built at Cow-Leigh; and a schoolchapel is at Leigh-Sinton. A chapelry, called St. Matthias, is in the-Malvern-Link section; was constituted in 1846; had a pop. in 1861, of 1,670; and is a p. curacy, of the value of £100,* in the patronage of the Bishop of Worcester. There are a Wesleyan chapel, two chapels of Lady Huntingdon's Connexion, another dissenting chapel, two endowed schools, and some charities. -The sub-district contains also three other parishes. Acres, 13,087. Pop., 4,981. Houses, 1,005.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a parish and a sub-district"   (ADL Feature Type: "countries, 4th order divisions")
Administrative units: Leigh CP/AP       Leigh SubD       Martley RegD/PLU       Worcestershire AncC
Place: Leigh

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