274 



BARKING BARNSTAPLE. 



ture. During that time he edited a new edition of 

 Stephens's Thesaurus, with notes, and published a 

 volume of Classical Recreation-, lie-ides several of 

 the orations of Cicero : he also contributed many 

 papers to the Classical Journal and the Museum 

 Criticum. For the last few years of his life, he 

 resided chiefly in London, employed in literary 

 avocations. Besides the above works, he published 

 an Inquiry into the Authorship of Junius's Letters, 

 an edition of Anthem's Lempriere's Classical Dic- 

 tionary, Noah Webster's English Dictionary, a 

 translation of Julius Silig's Dictionary of the 

 Artists of Antiquity, and two volumes of ' Par- 

 riana,' containing notices of Dr Parr and his con- 

 temporaries. His death took place in March, 1839. 

 His disposition was amiable, his manners simple, 

 and he enjoyed the friendship of many distinguished 

 scholars of the day. 



BARKING; the name of a parish and town in 

 the county of Essex, the latter situated on the 

 small river Roding, about two miles above its junc- 

 tion with the Thames, and seven miles E. N. E. 

 from London. The inhabitants of the town are 

 chiefly fishermen, or persons engaged in the convey- 

 ance of coal and timber from the Thames. They 

 send vessels to the coasts of Scotland and Holland, 

 and supply the London market. At Barking creek, 

 which is navigable to Ilford, there is a convenient 

 wharf which facilitates the operations of trade in 

 a great degree. The inhabitants of the parish are 

 chiefly employed in agriculture, and raise many ve- 

 getables, especially potatoes, for the London mar- 

 ket. Much of the fertility of the soil is due to 

 the large quantity of manure obtained from the 

 Thames and the Roding; but the air is deemed un- 

 healthy, and intermitting fevers are not unfrequent. 

 A market is held on Saturday, and fairs are held 

 on September 14th for toys, and October 22d for 

 horses. Population of both town and parish in 

 1831. 8036; in 1841,8718. 



BARNARD-CASTLE; a market-town and 

 chapelry in the county of Durham, 244 miles N. 

 N. W. from London, and 26 S. W. from Dur- 

 ham. It is situated on the southern acclivity 

 of an eminence, rising with a steep ascent from 

 the river Tees; and owes its origin to Bernard 

 Baliol, great-grandfather to John Baliol, king of 

 Scotland, who erected a formidable castle, on the 

 summit of a rock, on the west side of the town. 

 The ruins of this fortress, including a round tower 

 of great magnitude, are still to be seen ; the walls 

 enclose a very considerable area, of an irregular 

 figure, and are mantled with ivy. Richard, duke 

 of Gloucester, afterwards king of England, resided 

 here for some time, and is said to have added con- 

 siderably to its extent. In the reign of Elizabeth, 

 it belonged to the earl of Westmoreland ; and 

 during his rebellion, it was seized and garrisoned 

 for the queen by Sir George Bowes, Streatham. 

 It now came into the hands of the crown, and was 

 subsequently JWrchased, along with the houses, 

 parish-lands and privileges, by an ancestor of the 

 marquis of Cleveland, to whom they at present 

 belong. The remains are interesting, and cover 

 a space of more than seven acres of land. A 

 delightful view of the Tees, over which is a 

 bridge of two arches (erected in 1596), presents 

 itself from the castle. The principal street of the 

 town'is spacious, and nearly a mile in length; the 

 houses, mostly built of white stone, have a neat 

 appearance, and some of them are handsome. The 

 manufacture of carpets, which has progressively 



increased to a prosperous extent, JH the principal 

 one here ; but there are water mills upon the Tees 

 for the spinning of thread. The chapel, dedicated 

 to St Mary, is not remarkable for any thing but its 

 antiquity ; it is a spacious cruciform edifice, with a 

 square embattled tower rising from the centre : 

 the living, a perpetual curacy, is in the gift of the 

 vicar of Gainford. The other places of worship 

 are for Wesleyan and Primitive Methodists, and In- 

 dependents. A mechanics' institute (with library 

 attached), a savings' bank, and a book society, 

 flourish in this town. Raby Castle, and Rokeby 

 Hall are seats of distinction in this neighbourhood. 

 The market day is Wednesday. Population in 

 1841, 4452. . 



BARNSLEY OR BLACK BARNSLEY (sup- 

 posed a corruption of Bleak Barnsley) ; a market- 

 town and chapelry in the west riding of the county 

 of York, is situated on the side of a hill, distant 

 from York twenty-nine miles S. W., from London 

 171 N. N. W. The inhabitants were formerly 

 much employed in wire-drawing; and, though this 

 branch of trade has fallen into decay, they are still 

 considered to_supply the best wire for the manu- 

 facture of needles. There are two extensive iron- 

 founderies and a glass-work. The spinning of 

 yarn employs many people, as does also the weaving 

 of linen, which once employed several thousand 

 looms, but is now beginning to relax. Coal is 

 found in abundance in the neighbourhood, as also 

 freestone and grindstone. The trade of the place 

 has been greatly increased in consequence of the 

 extension of the canal navigation, which connects 

 the town with Wakefield. There is a large mar- 

 ket every Wednesday for cattle and corn. There 

 is a free grammar school here, founded and endowed 

 in 1665, by Mr Thomas Keresforth. There is also 

 a national school which is supported by subscription. 

 In 171 1, a parcel of land was bequeathed by George 

 Ellis, the produce of which is applied to the edu- 

 cation of twenty boys and girls, and to the ap- 

 prenticing of a few of them. Barnsley also pos- 

 sesses a subscription library established in 1808, 

 and a philosophical society established in 1828. At 

 the distance of about a mile from the town are the 

 remains of the Cluniac priory of Monk Bretton, 

 founded in the 3d of Henry II., by Adam Fitz- 

 Swain. Population in 1811, 5464: in 1821, 8284; 

 n 1831. 10.330; and in 1841. 12.310. 



BARNSTAPLE; a sea-port town in the county 

 of Devon, distant from London 192 miles W. by S. 

 It is situated on the eastern bank of the river Taw, 

 over which there is a fine stone bridge of sixteen 

 arches, in a broad and fertile valley bounded by a 

 semi-circular range of hills. The streets are well 

 paved and regular ; the houses are built for the 

 most part of stone, many of which are very hand- 

 some, and the supply of water is good. The river 

 here expands into a fine bay, along the margin of 

 which there is a delightful walk, at the end of 

 which stands a statue of Queen Anne. There are 

 here assembly and billiard rooms, and a theatre. 

 The import trade of the place consists chiefly of 

 wood from North America and the Baltic, lime from 

 Wales, and in the coasting traffic with the various 

 ports in the Bristol channel. The export trade 

 consists in corn, oak, timber, and bark. The quay, 

 near which stands the custom-house, is commodious 

 and extensive, but is not accessible to vessels of 

 more than 100 tons burden, from the accumulation 

 of sand in the river. Many inhabitants are em- 

 ployed in ship-building, and various branches con- 





