Burghill, Herefordshire - Kelly's Directory, 1929

Extract from Kelly's Directory of Herefordshire, 1929

BURGHILL.

BURGHILL is a parish on the Hereford and Weobley High Road, 1¾ miles west from Moreton Station on the Shrewsbury and Hereford section of the Great Western Railway, 4 miles north-by-north-west from Hereford, 10 south from Leominster and 148 from London, in the Leominster division of the county, Grimsworth Hundred, Hereford Union, county court district and petty Sessional division, rural deanery of Weston, and archdeaconry and diocese of Hereford. The church of St. Mary the Virgin is an ancient building of stone in the Early English style, consisting of chancel, nave of 5 bays, aisles, south porch, and an embattled tower, with pinnacles, containing a clock, placed in 1897, and 8 bells, three of which were added in 1894, when also two of the old ones were recast and three (dated 1704) were quarter turned; the lead font, said to date from 1190, is placed on a stone base carved with figures of Our Lord and the Twelve Apostles, and there is a very richly carved oak screen, restored in 1897: In the chancel is an alter tomb of marble to Sir John Milbourne kt. Formerly at Tillington Court, in this parish, ob. 7 Sept. 1435 and Elizabeth (Devereaux) his wife, ob. 147, with their twelve children; brasses to Robert Masters esq. who was lord of the manor, and died in 1619, John Awbrey esq. master of requests to Queen Elizabeth, ob. 1616, and Rachel (Danvers) his wife: the stained east window was erected in 1895: the church was restored in 1824 at a cost of about £2,000, and further repaired in 1854 and 1862, and again in 1880 at a cost of £2,000, and in 1893 at a cost of £850, when the church was refloored with wooden blocks and reseated; in 1894 the tower was repaired, and during the period 1894-1909 more than £2,00 was spent on furniture and ornaments: a new organ was presented in 1905 by Albert Simpson, esq. J.P.: in 1908 a carved oak reredos was erected: in 1913 a stained glass window was placed in the south transept to the memory of John and Caroline Badham by their two sons: over the south side of the chancel screen there remains a piscine: there are 350 sittings: a beautiful avenue of yew trees, locally styled the "Twelve Apostles", leads to the south entrance. Tradition says that under the shade of another ancient yew, which stands in the churchyard, Coleridge Wordsworth and Southey composed some of their poems; this tree, at four feet from the ground, is 25 feet in circumference. There is a list of incumbents since 1295. The churchyard cross was restored in 1898. The registers are complete, and date from the year 1653. The living is Vicarage, net yearly value £326, with residence, in the gift of Col. Harald G. C. Swayne C. M.G., and held since 1910 by the Rev. Thomas Oliver Charteris, of St. Adrian's. The rectorial tithes are commuted at £481 12s 11d. and are the property of Messers F. and H. Corbett, of Worcester. There are charities of £8 yearly value, for bread only. The Trustees are the incumbent of Burghill ex-officio, and four others, appointed by the Parish Council. John Smyth's charity, of £1 17s. yearly, for apprenticing a poor boy, is administered by the Parish Council. A building containing reading room, recreation and billiards rooms, with a caretaker's house attached, was presented in 1909 by A. Simpson esq. J.P., who also endowed it with a sum of £12 yearly. Burghill Court is the seat of Col. Harald G. C. Swayne C.M.G. The Hermitage, 2 miles north from the church, is occupied by W. Brocklehurst esq. There are various landowners. The soil is clayey loam and gravel; subsoil gravel. The chief crops are fruit, wheat, beans, oats and peas. The area of the parish is 3,760 acres of land and 5 of water; the population in 1921 was 1,517.

   Parish Clerk.- Thomas Lloyd.

   TILLINGTON is a hamlet, 1½ miles north-west from the church. At Tillington Common is a chapel for Primitive Methodists, erected in 1857.

   HUNTINGTON hamlet, 1 mile and a half south-east-by-south, is partly in this parish, and partly in that of Holmer.

   PORTWAY is three quarters of a mile east; here is mission hall.

   ELTON'S MARSH, 1½ miles north-east.

   Post, T. & T.E.D. Office, Burghill, Letters from Hereford. The nearest money order office is Wellington

   Post Office, Tillington. Letters from Hereford. The nearest M.O. office is at Wellington & T. office at Burghill

   The Hereford County and City Mental Hospital in this parish and about 3 miles from Hereford: was erected in 1871 at a cost of £67,000 and is a structure of brick from designs by Mr. Griffiths, architect, of Stafford, covering about 3½ acres of land: there is also a farm & garden of 100 acres: The buildings were enlarged in 1900 & subsequently, at cost of £40,000, under the direction of Messrs. Giles, Gough & Trollope, architects, & will now hold 237 male & 313 female inmates. The house committee meet the second Tuesday in every month, & the general committee of visitors quarterly. John Grimmond Smith, M.D. medical superintendent; Donald Maxwell Cox M.R.S.C., L.R.C.P. & John C. S. Edwards M.B., Ch.B. Edin., assistant medical officers; Rev. T. O. Chateris, chaplain; F.S. Goldingay, clerk & steward.

BURGHILL
PRIVATE RESIDENTS
(For T.N.'s see general list of Private Residents at end of book)
Best Gerald Douglas, Burghill Lodge, (postal address, Canon Pyon, Herefordshire)	Parry Gilbert John Henry, Highfield
Boddington Frank, Manor House	Simpson Mrs., Burghill Garage
Brocklehurst W., The Hermitage, (postal address, Canon Pyon)	Smith John Grimmond M.D., County & City Mental Hospital
Charteris Rev. Thomas Oliver (vicar & Chaplain to Burghill Mental Hospital), Vicarage	Swayne Col. Harald G.C., C.M.G., Burghill Court
Cox Donald Maxwell, County & City Mental Hospital	Thorne James, The Quarry
COMMERCIAL
Applebee Samuel, carpenter	Morgan Thomas, farmer, Badnage
Badham Harry Wainwright, farmer, Little Burlton	Morris Alfred E. farmer, The Parks
Ballinger Edward, farm bailiff to the County & City Mental Hospital	Morris John, wheelwright
Boddington Frank, fruit grower, Manor House, T.N. 7	Newman Charles, farm bailiff to G. D. Best esq., (postal address, Canon Pyon)
Bourne Jn. (Mrs.), farmer, Home Farm	Patrick Fredk, farmer
Burghill Reading & Recreation Rooms (Chas. Parsons, sec)	Powell Charles Frederick, farmer, Grange farm
Davie Geo. Shopkeeper	Preece Charles William, joiner
Davies Rd. jobbing gardener	Pritchard Geo. Farmer, Lower Burlton
Hancorn Chas. A., farmer, Burlton Court	Probert & Sons, farmers
Hereford County & City Mental Hospital T.N. 4	Riley Leonard E., Carpenter
Jones Wm. Jn., farmer, Church house	Watkins Eliz. (Mrs.), cottage farmer
Lloyd Thomas, farrier, parish clerk & post office

PORTWAY
Goodwin Walt. P., farmer, brick Farm	Tuck Jn., beer retailer
Holder Hy., cottage farmer	Wall geo. C., farmer, The Grove Farm
Lane Hy. Wm., farmer	Williams Jane (Mrs.), farmer
Morris Edwin, wheelwright

TILLINGTON
PRIVATE RESIDENTS
(T.N.'s see general list of Private Residents at and of book)
Swayne Lt.-Col., Oswald Rocke. Tillington Court	Swayne Misses, Penyplock
COMMERCIAL
Bayley Gordon, butcher	Matthews Geo., Bell Inn
Bishop Arthur Wm., farmer, Lower House	Matthews Geo., Bell Inn
Davies George, farmer, Haven	Morgan Thos. Farmer, Woodfield
Day Wltr., farmer, The Field	Newman Wm. A., farmer, Tillington Court
Deakin Geo. Smallholder, Woodbine Cottage	Pewtress H. J., fruit grower. T.N. 3
Goodwin Jn. Hy., farmer, Upper House Farm	Preece Chas., farmer, Broomhill Farm
Helme Joseph, horse breeder	Price Jas. Farmer, Stone House
Knight Jas. Hy., shopkeeper	Pugh P., farmer, Rogers Cross
Langford Leonard, farmer	Watkins Penry, small holder
Mappin William Herbert, market gardener. T.N. 11	Watkins Thomas, farmer, The Hill

[Transcribed by Richard Lane in January 2003
from a copy of Kelly's Directory of Herefordshire, 1929 in Hereford Central Library]