Tong

"TONG, (or Tonge), a parish in the Shiffnall division of Brimstree hundred, county Salop, 3¼ miles S.E. of Shiffnall, its post town, and 2½ from Albrighton railway station. The village is situated near the river Werf, here formed by the union of two brooks, and on the road leading from Newport to Wolverhampton. The soil consists of strong loam upon a subsoil of white and red sandstone, which is quarried for building purposes. It is said that Charles II., before the Restoration, took refuge in a farm-house in this parish. The living is a perpetual curacy* in the diocese of Lichfield, value £83. The church, dedicated to St. Bartholomew, originally belonged to the Abbey of Shrewsbury, but was purchased in 1410, and almost rebuilt by Isabel, relict of Sir Fulk Pembridge, who made it collegiate. The edifice is old, with a tower and six bells, independent of the great bell of Tongs, which was destroyed during the civil wars, but was recast in 1720, and lasted till 1848, when it cracked while tolling for divine service. The church has a groined roof, 8 stalls, a carved screen, several stained windows, a chantry chapel, and tombs of the Vernons and Pembridges, among which is the brass of Sir William Vernon, bearing date 1467. The parochial charities produce about £174 per annum, of which £45 belong to Harris and Pierrepont school, £5 to Sunday-schools, and £24 to almshouses. The principal residence is Tonge Castle, erected on the site of the old castle by George Durant, Esq., in the last century, which contains many valuable pictures and cabinets. The mansion has been recently purchased, together with the estate of Captain Durant, by the Earl of Bradford, who is lord of the manor and chief landowner."[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868 by Colin Hinson ©2015]