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BEDFORDSHIRE. 



BEDFORDSHIRE. 



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shire from Buckinghamshire, but is to be considered as properly 

 belonging to the latter county. 



The navigation of the Ouse commences at Bedford, and that of the 

 Ivel at Shefford : by means of these rivers the county communicates 

 with Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire, and Norfolk ; and more 

 remotely with other counties. There are no canals in Bedfordshire, 

 but the Grand Junction Canal approaches close to its western border 

 at Leighton Buzzard. The great road to Manchester, Leeds, Carlisle, 

 and Glasgow passes through it on the south-west side, and the high 

 north road through York to Edinburgh on the eastern side. The 

 North- Western railway passes to the west of the county, but there 

 are branches from it to Luton and to Bedford. The Great Northern 

 railway passes through the eastern side of Bedfordshire. 



Geological Character. The range of the Chiltern Hills, which con- 

 sists of chalk, occupies the south-eastern part of the county, and 

 skirted along its north-west boundary by a belt of indurated chalk- 

 marl, much covered by the debris of the chalk hills. This chalk-marl 

 is known in the county by the name of chinch, and is extensively 

 quarried at Totternhoe, near Dunstable. It affords, by burning, a 

 good lim- 1 . The chalk-marl is blended with a blue marl, which may 

 perhaps i -. identical with the weald-clay of Kent, Surrey, and Sussex, 

 or with what has been denominated the Folkstone clay. Iron-sand, 

 the lowest of the formations which intervene between the chalk and 

 the oolites, stretches across the county in the same direction as the 

 other formations, ramely, from south-west to north-east. Beds of 

 fullers' earth which occur in it have been extensively worked ; in 

 Fuller's time this mineral was commonly called Woburne earth. 

 ('Worthies,' Bedfordshire.) The same formation contains also a 

 considerable quantity of fossil wood. This iron-sand rises into a 

 well-defined range of hills. 



To the iron-sand succeeds a tenacious adhesive clay of a dark-blue 

 colour, becoming brown on exposure, and known by the name of 

 Oxford clay. This stratum forms the vale of Bedford, and affords a 

 strong clay soil, occupied chiefly in pasturage. It supplies several 

 brick-kilns in the immediate vicinity of Bedford. Many vertebrae of 

 fossil Sauri have been found at Newenhani Mill, near Goldington ; 

 and an entire Plesiosaurus of large dimensions was discovered in 

 1833 hi a brick field about two miles north-west of Bedford near the 

 Ouse. The appearance of coal gave rise to some attempts to find 

 that mineral at Elstow, near Bedford, which ended in disappointment. 

 In the north-west part of the county the Cornbrash limestone appears, 

 and is quarried in several places. The Oxford clay and the Cornbrash 

 limestone are parts of the oolitic series. (Conybeare and Phillips's 

 ' Outlines of the Geology of England and Wales ; ' Smith's ' Map and 

 Delineation of tho Strata of England and Wales ; ' ' Geological Map 

 of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge.') 



Climate, Soil, <t-c. The climate of this county, assimilating to that 

 of the interior of England, is not so wet as the western coast, nor so 

 much exposed to cold winds as the eastern maritime counties. The 

 air in general is mild and healthy, somewhat keen on the chalk hills, 

 and moister on the cold wet clays. The surface of the county is 

 much varied ; but none of the hills rise high or abruptly, with the 

 exception of the chalk ridge, which is a continuation of the Chiltern 

 Hill*, and which appears high only by comparison with more gentle 

 undulations. Many of the slopes of the hills are skirted with woods 

 and coppice. The soil varies greatly. On the southern side of the 

 county the soil is composed of chalk, covered with a very thin layer 

 of earth, which is consequently nearly in a state of nature, and only 

 fit for sheep-walks. On descending the hills there occurs a mixture^ 

 of chalk and clay, known by the name of ' white land,' which is stiff,' 

 but tolerably fertile. Various kinds of loam, chiefly clay, succeed, 

 after which occurs a sandy belt, which stretches obliquely across the 

 county from Leighton Buzzard to Biggleswade and Potton on the 

 borders of Cambridgeshire. Along this belt runs the river Ivel, 

 which falls into the Ouse at Tempsford. Between the course of the 

 Ivel and the valley of the Ouse near Bedford lies a tract of stiff soil 

 of various texture and quality, but quite different from the light 

 soils found in the belt. Along the course of the Ouse, especially near 

 Bedford, a gravelly soil prevails, covered in some places with a layer 

 of rich brown earth, well adapted for every kind of agricultural pro- 

 duce. North of Bedford the soil is generally stiff, wet, and poor. In 

 the valley of the Ouse, near Bedford, and in the sandy belt mentioned 

 above, the soils, composed of rich loam and of great depth, are admi- 

 rably adapted for market-gardens, for which the county has long 

 been noted. There are elsewhere however in the county lands which 



Mvimm*, Towm, etc. Bedfordshire is divided into nine hundreds : 

 namely, Stodden, Willey, and Barford in the north ; Biggleswade 

 and Clifton in the east ; Wixamtree m the centre ; Redbornestoke in 

 the west ; and Manshead and Flitt in the south. The names of all 

 these appear in the Domesday Survey, together with the following 

 three half hundreds : Stanburge, Weneslai, and Buchelai, which are 

 now incorporated with the hundreds. The town of Bedford also 

 formed a half hundred by itself. The number of parishes is given in 

 Camden's 'Britannia' as 116; but by the population returns they 

 r to amount to 124, besides one district (Chicksands) which is 

 OEOO. mv. von. I. 



extra-parochial. Of these 124 parishes one extends into Huntingdon- 

 shire, one into Hertfordshire, and one into Northamptonshire. 



The number of market-towns is ten : BEDFORD the county town, 

 AMTTHILL, BIGGLESWADE, DUNSTABLE, HAEROLD, LEIGHTON BUZZARD, 

 LUTON, POTION, SHEFFORD, and WOBURN ; which places will be found 

 described under their respective heads. 



Bedfordshire is divided by the Poor-Law Commissioners into six 

 Unions : Ampthill, Bedford, Biggleswade, Leighton Buzzard, Luton, 

 and Woburn : these Unions include 135 parishes and townships, with 

 an area of 303,217 acres and a population in 1851 of 129,805 ; but 

 the boundaries of the Unions are not strictly conterminous with 

 those of the county. 



Although the market-towns in Bedfordshire are not numerous, it has 

 several considerable villages. Of these we may enumerate some of 

 the more noteworthy : Barton-le-Clay, or Barton-in-the-Clay, as it is 

 commonly called, 13 miles S. from Bedford : the population of the 

 parish in 1851 was 915. The church is of early English and decorated 

 styles ; it was recently repaired and partly restored at the cost of the 

 rector. In it are some interesting monuments one to the wife of the 

 rector is by Chantrey. There are meeting-houses for Wesleyau Metho- 

 dists and Baptists ; there is also an endowed Free school. Near the 

 village are the Barton Hills, celebrated for the views obtained from 

 their summits, which are the finest in the county, Cardinyton, 2 

 miles S. E. from Bedford, population of the parish 1455 in 1851. 

 The church, which is of various styles from early English to perpen- 

 dicular, basin it two altar tombs with brasses, a monument to Samuel 

 Whitbread, Esq., by Bacon, and a mural tablet to John Howard, who 

 was for a time a resident in the village. There are a Wesley an Metho- 

 dist and two Independent chapels. A British school was established 

 here by Whitbread and Howard, and there are several charities. 

 Eaton Bray, 34 miles W. from Dunstable, population of the parish 

 1455 in 1851. The church is of different dates, but to the architectural 

 student it is an interesting building. Several of the windows and 

 many of the details are very fine. There are Wesleyan Methodist and 

 Baptist chapels, also a National school. Many of the inhabitants are 

 employed in plaiting straw. On Friday there is a weekly market for 

 the sale of straw-plait. Eaton-Socon, an extensive parish on the 

 borders of the county, 11 miles N.E. from Bedford, has a population 

 of 2802. The church is a large one of the perpendicular style. In it 

 is some ancient stained glass. There is a National school. The Union 

 workhouse of St. Neots (Huntingdonshire) is in this parish. Here once 

 stood the priory of Bismede, or Bushmead, founded in the reign of 

 Henry II. by Oliver Beauchamp for Austin canons. The only re- 

 maining portion is the refectory, now used as a stable. Elstow, 1 i mile 

 S. from Bedford, population 581, has a very interesting church, of 

 mixed styles from Norman to perpendicular. The tower is detached. 

 Adjoining are some remains of a nunnery which formerly stood here. 

 The remains of Elstow Place, an Elizabethan mansion, occupy part of 

 the site of the abbey. There is an Independent chapel at Elstow. A 

 piece of land, called the ' poors' land,' is let for about 44Z. ,1 year, 

 which sum is distributed among the poor. There are fairs for cattlo 

 in May and November. Elstow derives its chief celebrity from having 

 been the birthplace of John Bunyan. Ilawnes, 6 miles S. from Bed 

 ford, population 937. The church is a small edifice of the early 

 English and decorated styles. There are chapels belonging to the 

 Wesleyan Methodists and Baptists, and two National schools. Hawues 

 Park, the seat of Lord Carteret, is a handsome modern mansion, 

 seated in an extensive park, which affords many rich prospects. 

 Jlocktiffe, 13 miles S.W. from Bedford, population 439. The church 

 is plain ; there are Wesleyan and Independent meeting-houses, also a 

 National school. The village consists of one long street. In the 

 parish are several good seats. Jfougltton Rcyis, 18 miles S. by E. from 

 Bedford, population 2213, has a rather handsome church, with a lofty 

 tower. There are chapels belonging to the Wesleyan Methodists, 

 Independents, and Baptists, and a National school. The inhabitants 

 are largely employed in making straw-plait. Kemptton, 2 miles S.W. 

 from Bedford, population 1962. The church is chiefly of the early 

 English and decorated styles. There are places of worship belonging 

 to the Wesleyan Methodists and Baptists, and a National school 

 for 200 children. In this parish is the Springfield Lunatic Asylum. 

 The female part of the population is much engaged in the making 

 of lace. In the parish are several good seats and mansions. Marston 

 Moretaine, 7 miles S.W. from Bedford, population 1183. The church 

 is a spacious and handsome structure of the perpendicular style. The 

 tower stands apart and at some distance from the church. There is 

 a Wesleyan chapel." The National school accommodates 160 children, 

 and there are several parochial charities. Milllrook, 7 miles S. by W. 

 from Bedford, population 500. The church stands in a picturesque 

 situation. In the chancel are interred the late Lord and Lady Holland, 

 and also John Allen, the Master of Dulwich College, but better known 

 as a distinguished historical antiquary, and the friend of Lord Holland. 

 Rudy, 10 miles N. from Bedford, population 949. The church is of 

 early English date, with later additions and insertions. There are 

 places of worship belonging to the Wesleyans, Independents, and 

 Baptists. There is a National school. The inhabitants are chiefly 

 employed in agriculture. Sandy, 8J miles E. from Bedford, popula- 

 tion 1946, is a large village and parish. The church is cruciform, with 

 a tower at the west end, and is chiefly of the perpendicular style. 



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