High Ley

"HIGH LEY, a parish in the Chelmarsh division of the hundred of Stottesdon, county Salop, 7 miles S.E. of Bridgnorth, its post town, 8 N.W. of Burdley, and 11 N.W. of Kidderminster. The village, which is small, is situated on rising ground on the western bank of the river Severn, and is a station on the Severn Valley railway. Malting is carried on, and stone of excellent quality is quarried to a considerable extent. There are also coal mines, worked in 1825, but at present abandoned. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £109 11s., and the vicarial for £115 10s. The living is a vicarage* in the diocese of Hereford, value £300. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is a freestone structure with a square tower containing four bells. The parochial charities produce about £10 per annum, which goes towards bread, divided among the poor every Sunday. There is a place of worship for the Wesleyan Methodists. William Jordan, Esq., is lord of the manor."[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868 by Colin Hinson ©2015]