Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/329

Rh BOSTON. 319 BOSTON. imilnant place." The fervour of its zeal for the liberal c.- us was also testified by its vicar, John Cotton, who, .. the Laudian persecution, fled to America with niarfof his congregation, and founded Boston in New Eugnd. As a mark of gratitude and respect, from the n >w own to the old, tho vestry room in St. Botolph's chirp was, in 1857, rebuilt by subscription of American ci tii ol 1 11 n is, and is called tho Cotton Chapel, in memory 3 banished vicar. Tho town is built on both of the Witham, the course of which is here from to south. On the east bank are the long street ci Uc Bargate, a spacious market-place, and several si la.streets ; on the west bank, the long street, nearly partjel with the river, called High-street. The two piirttof tho river are connected by a very elegant iron bridt. built in 1807, under the direction of Ronnie, and ccniing of a single arch, with a span of 86 feet. The roiuay is nearly level. The work was done at the ex- pi nf|of tho corporation, and cost 22,000. Tho streets ai elved and lighted with gas. Formerly the inhabi- tant suffered from a defective and irregular supply of w:iti and various attempts were made from time to turn t great expense to remedy the evil, but without BUCC 3. In 1847, however, an Act of Parliament was pa ss ., under which effectual measures have been adopted, ari d good supply of water secured. The town contains am;et-house, with assembly-rooms, a custom-house, a new ourt-house erected about 1843, a guildhall, corn v, and county prison, and the union poorhouse.
 * Idhall is old, and contains a portrait of Sir Joseph

who once held the office of recorder of Boston. u was made a free borough by a charter granted nry VIII. ; and at the dissolution of monasteries, lli'- .es and possessions of the various religious houses iii.d ailds existing there were given to the corporation. Its efto wments were increased by a grant from Philip and i] a Queen Elizabeth confirmed the charter of incor-
 * i, and added to it a charter of admiralty. Under

11 1 icipal Reform Act the borough is divided into two cirs, with the style of the "mayor, aldermen, Besses of the borough of Boston." The elective <> was first conferred by Edward VI., and the i has fincc returned two members to parliament, unds of the parliamentary borough were ex- i aider the Reform Act, and include, besides the ivliich comprises an area of 5,220 acres, Skirbeck, Sk ir ick Quarter, and the Fen Allotment to Boston. The m; y: is the returning officer, and also admiral of the The revenue of the borough is about 5,400, and a of the parliamentary borough, which is more ive than the municipal, is 7,800 acres, comprising nhabited houses, with a population of 1 7 ,885 ; while '. unicipal borough contains only 3,267 inhabited hou.--, with a population of 13,995, having declined from
 * <ud is governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen, and 18
 * 1 1 85 1, while the parliamentary has increased 367

in (1 same period. The business of tho town is de- it chiefly on the port and shipping. The harbour Cached by a channel along the west side of the Wat called Boston Deeps, between the great sandy A liich cover a great part of that inlet. A cor- respiding channel on the east side is named Lynn Doe] and forms the approach to Lynn harbour. The intei ming shoals are called the Long Sand, Dog's Hea Roger Knock, and Lynn Knock. In the middle of Is century the river and harbour had from various cans' become choked up with accumulations of silt, and in;v.'i isible except to small vessels. The drainage works in t fens, and the diversion of the waters from the Witlm, is said to have been one cause of Uiis. By grca .nd persevering efforts the state of the river was impi ed, and vessels of 300 tons burthen can now reach the ' wn. The trade of. the port has again become cons srable, partly in consequence of the reclamation of i rge tract of fen land in the neighbourhood of the tOTMl Large quantities of com, especially oats, and gre xi lumbers of cattle and sheep, pastured on the nevl mclosed lands, are here shipped for various places. Th' : imber of vessels belonging to the port are about 710, mostly of small tonnage. They are principally employed in the coasting trade. The exports are grain, wool, wood, &c. The imports are oilcake, hemp,' timber, coal, tar, ice. Most of the foreign trade is with the Baltic. Subordinate to Boston are the ports of Salt- fleet, Spalding, and Wainfleet. Many boats are em- ployed in the fishery. Shipbuilding is carried on in three yards, aud there are various manufactures con- nected with the shipping trade, as those of sail- cloth, sacking, canvas, ropes, &c. There aro three iron-foundries and several breweries and malthouses. Many of the inhabitants are occupied as graziers ; and there arc at Wide Bargate and other parts of the town suitable spaces, with pens, &c., for the cattle and sheep, which are sold in large numbers here. Boston is the head of a Poor-law Union and also of a County Comt district. It is also a polling place for the south divi- sion of the county. Quarter and petty sessions are held in the town. The living is a vie. * in the dice, of Lincoln, of the val. of 360, in the patron, of the trustees of H. Ingram, Esq. The church is dedicated to St. Botolph. It is the most noteworthy object and the chief ornament of tho town. In size it is not equalled by any church without transepts in England, and its tower is one of the loftiest in the kingdom. Its foundation is assigned to the year 1309, and its style of architecture is the decorated English. It consists of a nave, two side aisles, and a chancel. The nave is separated from each aisle by seven arches, above each of which are two clerestory windows. Tho south porch is the principal entrance. The tower, which is said to have been modelled after that of the great church at Antwerp, is in three storeys, and is crowned with an octagonal lantern of exquisite de- sign and workmanship. The height of this magnificent tower is about 270 feet. It is an important sea mark, being visible to a distance of 40 miles, and a conspicuous object over alarge extent of the surrounding flat country. It can be seen in clear weather across tho Wash from the Norfolk coast. The foundations of this fine struc- ture are known to extend beneath the river, and its masonry is perfect. The dimensions of the church are length, 245 feet ; breadth, 98 ; height of the nave, 60 feet. The ceiling is of oak, and in the chancel are stalls curiously carved. There are an ancient font, four monumental brasses (one of which is canopied and bears the date of 1398), and some monuments of the Tylneys, by one of whom the first stone of the building was laid. A white marble statue of the late Mr. Herbert Ingram, a native of Boston, and one of its representatives in Parliament, designed and executed by Munro, was erected in the churchyard in October, 1862, in mournful commemoration of his public charac- ter, his local munificence, and his disastrous death. In a room over tho south porch is the parish library, founded by Anthony Tuckney, and containing some scarce theological works. The church has not long ago been thoroughly repaired. A more ancient church, of which no traces are left except the graveyard attached to it, formerly existed here. It was built before the close of the 1 Hh century, and was dedicated to St. John. A chapel of ease was erected in 1822. The living is a perpot. cur., val. 100, in the patron, of the trustees of the Rev. P. Alpc. The Roman Catholics, Baptists, Independents,Unitarians, and Wcsleyan and Primitive Methodists have chapels in the town. The charitable endowments of the parish aro numerous and valuable, producing altogether about 2,500 per annum. The free grammar school, founded in 1554, after temporary decline is now, under a new scheme, flourishing again. Tho school-house stands in the old mart-yard. There is a boy's free school founded in 1707, and endowed by Mr. Laughton and others, which has a revenue of 130 per annum. A blue-coat school for boys and girls (33 of each) was established in 1713, and has an income from endowment of 65 a year. There are also large National, British, infant, and other schools ; a dispensary, and various other charitable in- stitutions. The town contains a working men's college, two libraries, and a savings-bank. In the vicinity are some remains of its ancient monasteries, colleges, and