NEWPORT: Geographical and Historical information from the year 1824.

"NEWPORT, a parish and market town in the Newport division of the hundred of Bradford South. A curacy, in the diocese of Coventry and Lichfield, the deanery of Salop, and archdeaconry of Salop. 478 houses, 2,343 inhabitants. Market on Saturday. Fairs, the first Tuesday in February, Saturday before Palm Sunday, May 28th, July 27th, September 25th, and December 10th. 18 miles north-east of Shrewsbury, 139 north-west of London. LONG. 2. 28½ W. LAT. 52. 48 N.

It is on the borders of Staffordshire, near the Watling Street. It anciently belonged to the Audleys, and to a family of its own name, to whom it gave the title of baron. The parish church stands in the middle of the main street which forms the town. It is an ancient structure but the side-aisles have been rebuilt in a modern style with brick, while the other portions have all the venerable marks of age. Hence it exhibits a most incongruous and fantastick jumble of mouldering stone and gay red brick work,- gothick arches and battlements, and Grecian embellishments. Within is an ancient monument of a judge Salter. From some remaining specimens it appears that the original architecture of the interior (previously to its sad mutilation about a century ago) was beautiful, and of the fifteenth century. The abbot and convent of St. Peter and St. Paul at Shrewsbury were patrons of thc Church at Newport; from them it was purchased in the twentieth of Henry the sixth by Thomas Draper, citizen of London, who made it collegiate, placing in it a custos and four fellows. The custos was the parish priest. The college property was granted by Queen Elizabeth to Edmund Downing, and Peter Ashton.

The free-school was founded by W. Adams, Esq., a native of this town, and haberdasher and alderman of London. It is a stately brick building, and has a library for the use of the scholars, who are here qualified for the university. Its lands, which are in the parish of Knighton Grange, Staffordshire, were exempted from parliamentary, parochial or any other kind of taxes, by a grant from Oliver Cromwell. At a short distance are two alms-houses built and endowed by the munificent founder of the school, who gave £550 towards the building of a town house. Newport sustained great damage by a fire which broke out on the 16th of May, 1666; it consumed one hundred and sixty houses, the loss of which, with what they contained, was estimated at £30,000.

This town contends with Shiffnal for the honour of having given birth to that humorous but licentious poet, Tom Brown. From Newport school he entered at Christ Church, Oxford. It does not appear that he remained long there, for taking advantage of a remittance from an indulgent father, and trusting that his wit would help out his learning, he dashed off for the capital, and entered into all its gaieties. Having drained the cup of pleasure to the dregs, and dissipated the last carolus in his purse, he retired to Kingston upon Thames, and trusting to his proficiency in the ancient and modern languages, opened a school. The drudgery of the employment soon disgusted him: he returned to London and to his former way of life, drawing notes on Parnassus to discharge his tavern reckonings, and wasting his rich fund of wit and humour in low abuse and frivolous satire. Admired and shunned, laughed at and despised, he passed the latter part of his life in great indigence. It is said that Lord Dorset, pitying his misfortunes, invited him to a Christmas dinner, where Tom, to his grateful surprise, found a bank note of fifty pounds laid under his plate. He died in the year 1704, in extreme poverty, and was interred in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey, near the remains of Mrs. Behn, with whom he had in his life time been intimate. His whole works were printed in 1707, in four volumes, consisting of dialogues, essays, declamations, satires, letters from the dead to the living, translations, amusements, &c. These writings exhibit the character of the author's mind; they are replete with wit and humour, seasoned with learning, but degraded by indelicacy."

[Transcribed information from A Gazetteer of Shropshire - T Gregory - 1824](unless otherwise stated)

[Description(s) transcribed by Mel Lockie ©2015]