HISTORY OF STAFFORDSHIRE. 255 



the liberty of Somerford, in 1811, was 578 persons, of whom 283 

 were males, and 295 females. 



The parish contains other villages and hamlets, particularly 

 Kiddimore Green, a township situated to the west of Breewood ; 

 the villages of Broomhall and Horsebrook, near the Watling 

 Street; the hamlets of Crateford and Standeford ; Aspley Farm, 

 and the Laches, hamlets on the eastern side of the parish ; and 

 the small village or hamlet called Paradise. 



PENKRIDGE. 



This is another large parish, containing nine townships, and be- 

 tween 12 and 13,000 acres of land. 



Penkridge is an ancient market-town, situated on the banks of 

 the river Penk. Camden, our greatest antiquarian, asserts that 

 this town is built on the site of the Roman Pennocrucium. " The 

 military way continues from Wall, very fair and plain, almost 

 without any breach, till it is crossed and interrupted by the river 

 Penk, and hath a stone bridge built over it at Pennocrucium, so 

 called from the river, and standing at the same distance which 

 Antoninus has fixed ; which town has not quite lost the name at 

 this day, being for Pennocrucium called Penkridge. At present 

 Penkridge is only a small village, famous for a horse-fair, which 

 Hugh Blount or Flavus, the lord of it, obtained of King Edward 

 the Second."* 



This town stands six miles south of Stafford, and ten miles 

 north of Wolverhampton ; the turnpike-road to those towns runs 

 through it, and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal passes 

 close to it on the east side, thus affording a ready communication 

 with distant places. In 1811, Penkridge contained 196 houses, 

 and 204 families, consisting of 438 males, 485 females : total 923 

 persons. 



Penkridge Church was made collegiate by a charter of King 

 John, who settled the advowson of it upon the Archbishop of 

 Dublin. 



The following particulars respecting Penkridge, are extracted 

 from the manuscripts of the late Sir Edward Littleton, Bart, and 

 communicated by the Rev. Richard Slaney, vicar of the church ; 



Camden'g Britannia, Vol. I. p. 466, 



