Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/35

Rh ACRE, SOUTH. 25 ACTON. i Hereford to Ross, and possesses scenery of romantic description, which is blended with woodland. In the reign of King John, Margery, wife of Walter de Lacy, founded hero a nunnery of the Augustine order, to the honour of the Holy Cross. Its revenue at the Dissolution was .75. There are some stone coffins still preserved, but the remains of the building have been converted into a farm-house. On Aconbury Hill, from which there is an extensive view, are traces of a large Roman encamp- ment, with the eastern rampart clearly distinguishable. The living is a rect. in the dioc. of Hereford, val. 258, in the patron, of the governors of Guy's Hospital, to whom the manor belongs, with Aconbury wood. ACRE, SOUTH, a par. in the hund. of South Greehoe, union of Swaffhain, in the co. of Norfolk, 1 mile from ( 'astle Acre, and 3 miles N. of Swaffhain station, on the Eastern Counties railway. The living is a rect. in the archdeac. of Norfolk, and dioc. of Norwich, val. 572, in the patron, of Andrew Fountain, Esq., who is lord of the manor. The church is dedicated to St. George, and is situated in a pleasant valley watered by the river Nar. It is an ancient structure, with nave, chancel, aisles, and a tower containing three bells. There are several monu- ments and a brass. ACRE, WEST, a par. in the hund. and union of Fivi'bridgo, Lynn, in the co. of Norfolk, 5 miles N.W. of Swaffham, and 2 miles N.E. of Narborough station, on the Eastern Counties railway. The living is a dona- tivr in the archdeac. of Norfolk and dioc. of Norwich, val. 31, in the patron, of Anthony Hamond, Esq., who is lord of the manor. Near the church, which is dedicated to All Saints, are the ruins of an old priory. The village lies in a deep valley on the north side of the river Nar, and the soil is sandy and clay. ACRES, a small place near the vil. of Kilburne, in the par. of Horsloy, in the co. of Derby, 3 miles N.E. of Duffield. ACRISE, a par. in the hunds. of Loningborough and Folkestone, in the lathe of Shepway, in the co. of Kent, .i miles N.E. of Hythe, and 10 from Dover, being about 4i N. of Folkstono railway station. It is mentioned in Domesday Survey as Acres, and is situated in a wild, dreary country. There is no village, the houses being scattered ; but an annual fair is held on the first Tuesday after the 10th October. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of Canterbury, val. 171, in the patron, of the lord chancellor. Acrise Place is the residence of T. Papillon, Esq, who is lord of the manor. This par. is a meet for the East Kent hounds. ACTON, a vil. in the bar. of Lower Orior, in the co. of Armagh, prov. of Ulster, Ireland. It was founded by Sir Toby Poyntz, of Iron Acton, in Gloucestershire, who, for military services, received a grant of 500 acres of land, part of the forfeited estates of the O'Hanlons. He erected a large barn, a house for himself, and twenty- four cottages for English settlers, and named the place after his native village. It now consists of one prin- cipal street, and contains about fifty houses. The parish is intersected by the Newry canal. The inha- bitants are engaged in the weaving of linen cloth, diapers, checks, and calicoes. The living is a perpet. cur., val. 98, in the dioc. of Armagh and Clogher. It is in the patron, of the incumbent of Ballymore. The church is situated at Poyntz Pass, and was erected in 1789. It is in the early English style. There are some remains of the old church built by Sir Toby Poyntz in the midst of a wood, and a tablet to his memory is still preserved. He was interred beneath the chancel. Acton Lodge is the seat of P. Quinn, Esq., who is a descendant of the founder of the village. Fairs are held on the 4th May and 1 1th December. ACTON, a par. in the hund. of Nantwich, in the eo. palatine of Chester, 1 mile N.W. of Nantwich. It is situated on the Grand Junction and Ellesmere canals, and contains the tnshps. of Acton, Aston-juxta-Mon- drum, Austerson, Baddington, Brindley, Burland, Chol- mondstone, Cool-Pilate, Eddlestono, Faddiloy, Honhull, Hurleston, Newhall, Poole, Stoke, and Worleston, and a part of Sound. It was the scat of the Saxon Earl Morcar, and has descended to the Earl of Dysart through the families of the Levels, Ardens, and Wilbrahams. Here are two almshouses, endowed by Sir R. Wilbraham, and charities producing about 80 per annum, 40 of which is devoted to the maintenance of four poor widows, and apprenticing poor girls. There is a free school. The living is a vie. in the dioc. of Chester, val. 627, in the patron, of J. Tollemache Esq., M.P., of Tilstone. The church is dedicated to St. Mary, and has some curiously ornamented windows. It is partly in the early English style, and contains the tombs of the Mainwarings, &c. This church and Dorfold Hall, the seat of the Tom- linsons, were occupied by the royalists in October, 1643, and on their retreat were garrisoned by the parliament. They were taken again by Lord Byron, but the garrisons surrendered to Fairfax after the raising of the siege of Nantwich. In addition to the parish church, there is a district church at Burley Dam,which is now a perpet. cur., val. 100, in the patron, of Viscount Combermere. ACTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Wrexham, hund. of Bromfield, in the co. of Denbigh, North Wales, 1 mile N.E. of Wrexham. ACTON, a hinlt. in the par. of Langton Matravers, in the Isle of Purbeck, hund. of Rowbarrow, in the co. of Dorset, 3 miles to the S.E. of Corfe Castle, and 2 W. of Swanage, near the seacoast. ACTON, a par. in the Kensington div. of the hnnd. of Ossulstone, in the co. of Middlesex, 2 miles N.E. of Brentford, and 5* W. of London, on the Oxford road. It is a station on tho Hampstead Junction railway. The name, which is composed of the Saxon an, "oak," and tun, " town," indicates that tho neighbourhood formerly abounded in oak timber. There is a tract in tho parish from time immemorial called Old Oak Common. In 1642, the Earls of Essex and War- wick had their head-quarters here ; and it was at this place, in 1651, that the Lord President, the Council of State, the members of the House of Commons, and the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and citizens of London met Cromwell, to offer him congratulations on the great victory at Worcester. It formerly belonged to Bartho- lomew Priory. The village consists chiefly of one long street. Tho houses are mostly of great antiquity, but the place is cleanly and healthy. It is near the Great Western railway, and the Paddington canal passes through the parish. There is a mineral spring on Old Oak Common, but it has lost the repute it once en- joyed. The living is a rect.* in the dioc. of London, val. 903, in the patron, of the bishop, who is also lord of the manor. The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is partly in tho early English and partly in the perpendicular style, and has lately undergone great altera- tions at a cost of 3,000. It contains two brasses, and the tombs of Ladies Conway and Southwell. The Inde- pendent chapel was erected in 1815. Some private buildings are used as a chapel by the Roman Catholics. At East Acton are some almshouses, founded and en- dowed by the Goldsmiths' Company, for twelve men and twelve women. There is a Lancastrian school. Baxter, Sir Matthew Hale, Bishop Lloyd, one of the seven bishops imprisoned by James II., and Thicknesse, the traveller, have been residents at this place. The village stands on rising ground, and contains many gentlemen's seats, the most picturesque of which is Berrymead Priory, the former seat of the Savilles and Evelyns. A fair is held on the 2 ith August. ACTON, a tnshp., joined with Old Felton, in tho par. of Felton, ward of Coynetdalo, in the co. of Northumberland, 7 miles to the S. of Alnwick. It is near the river Coquet. Acton House is the principal residence. ACTON, a tnshp. in the par. of North Lydbury, hund. of Purslow, in Shropshire, 3 miles from the parish church, and 4. E. of Bishop's Castle. ACTON, a tnshp. in the par. of Swinnerton, hund. of Pirehill, in tho co. of Stafford, 3 miles to the S.W. of Newcastle-under-Lyme. ACTON, a par. in the hund. of Babergh, in the co. of Suffolk, 3 miles N.E. of Sudbury station, 71 from