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764 



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Chelmsford a bridge, originally built by Maurice, bishop of Lon- 

 II don, but rebuilt in 1787. The town consists of four 

 Chelten- pr ; uc {p a i str eets, and possesses several elegant public 

 buildings. The shire hall is a handsome edifice, and 

 contains apartments for the courts of assize and ses- 

 sion, and also the corn exchange, and the assembly 

 rooms. Its front, which is built with white stone, has 

 a basement of rustic work, and a pediment sustained 

 by four three quarter Ionic columns. The church, 

 dedicated to St Mary, is a large and elegant build- 

 ing. The body of the church was erected in 1803, 

 in place of the more ancient part, which fell down in 

 1800. It has a square flint tower at its west end. 

 On the Moulsham side -of the Chelmer stands the 

 county gaol, which was begunjn 1773, and contains 

 all those accommodations which are now almost every 

 where extended to persons in confinement. Two ex- 

 tensive barracks have been recently built here, one at 

 the west end of the town, and the other on the south 

 side, both of which can accommodate 4000 troops. 

 At a short distance from the last of these barracks 

 commences the line of embankment, with the batte- 

 ries and parapets which were erected for the defence 

 of the metropolis. The other public buildings in 

 Chelmsford, are the free grammar school, endowed 

 by Edward VI. in 1552; a charity school for 50 

 boys, founded in 1713 ; a charity school for 20 girls, 

 founded in 1714- ; and a neatly sculptured conduit, 

 (with the figure of a naiad at the top, and several ap- 

 propriate inscriptions, ) to which the water is convey- 

 ed from a spring at the distance of a quarter of a mile. 

 At Galley wood Common near Chelmsford, there is a 

 race course, on which three plates are run for annu- 

 ally, and one of them of the value of 100 guineas is 

 given by the queen. Number of houses 822. Popu- 

 lation in 1811, 4649; males 2046, females 2603; 

 females employed in trade 533. See Cough's Addi- 

 tions to Comdex's Britannia, vol. ii. p. 55 ; and Bray- 

 ley and Britten's Peat/lies of England and Wales, 

 vol. v. p. 256. (j) 



CHELONE, a genus of plants of the class Didy- 

 namia, and order Angiospermia. See BOTANY, page 

 254. 



CHELTENHAM, a town of England in GIo- 

 cestershire, celebrated principally as a watering place, 

 is situated near the river Chilt, or Chelt, which runs 



into the Severn at Wainlode. The town is pleasant- 

 ly situated, and is sheltered on the north-east by the 

 Cotswold Hills, which terminate about two miles to 

 the north-east of Cheltenham. The town consists 

 only of one street, which is about a mile in length, 

 and during the last 20 years the buildings have been 

 progressively improving. The hotel, and the lodging 

 houses, are commodiously and elegantly fitted up ; 

 the assembly rooms are large and handsome ; and the 

 theatre has been lately completed on an enlarged 

 plan. The church, dedicated to St Mary, stands to 

 the south of the centre of the town, and is a large 

 building, consisting of a nave, chancel, side aisles, and 

 transept, with a square tower rising from the intersec- 

 tion, and terminating in a lofty octagonal spire, which 

 deviates considerably from a vertical direction. There 

 is in the north transept a beautiful circular window 

 15 feet in diameter, divided into 33 compartments. 

 There is an ancient stone cross near the church, con- 

 sisting of a single shaft rising from the centre of a 

 flight of steps. The walks in the church-yard are 

 shaded with double rows of lime trees. The other 

 public institutions are an hospital for six poor 

 men and women ; a free school founded in 1574 ; and 

 the Cheltenham repository established in 1800. 



The numerous invalids who resort to Cheltenham, 

 principally between the months of May and Novem- 

 ber, are supplied from three springs which were dis- 

 covered at different periods. The medicinal quali- 

 ties of the Spa were first discovered in 1716. This 

 spring rises about six feet below the surface of a mea- 

 dow, about half a mile south of the town, and is an 

 excellent purgative chalybeate. It was enclosed by a 

 rail in 1718, and in 1738 a brick pavilion on five arches 

 was built over the well, a convenient room was fitted up 

 for the reception of the company, several walks were 

 formed, and a long avenue of lime trees was planted. 

 Another spring was discovered in 1788 at the depth 

 of 50 feet, more copious than the former, and pos- 

 sessing all its medical virtues. A third spring was 

 discovered by Dr Thomas Jamieson in 1803, which 

 contains a greater proportion of sulphureous gas than 

 any of the rest. Population of the town and parish 

 in 1811,8325. See Brayley and Britton's Beauties 

 of England and Wales, vol. v. p. 675 ; and Tour m 

 Wales, in Philip's Coll. of Voy. vol. iv. p. 17. () 



Chelten- 

 ham. 



