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the county of Durham, England, is pleafantly litualed in 

 the vale of the Wear, on a point of land formed by the con- 

 fluence of that river and the Wefcrow. The church is 

 (ituated at the north fide of the town on rifing ground, 

 but poflefles nothing worthy of remark. Near it are fome 

 remains of a conliderable building, inclofed with a deep 

 moat, fuppofed by fome writers to have been part of a 

 monaftery, which was founded by Henry de Pudfey ; but 

 Hutchinfon, in his Hiftory of Durham, refers them to the 

 ancient manor-houfe of the bifhop's, which is mentioned in 

 Hatfield's Survey. The inhabitants of this parifli, according 

 to the returns of i8i I, are 1983, the lioufes 399. The views 

 down the Wear from the hill above Wolfingham include a very 

 extenfive and beautifully diverfified country. Between this 

 town and Stanhope, the commencement of the lead diftrift is 

 every where intimated by large parcels of lead lying near the 

 fides of the road, and from the blue unwholefome vapours 

 arifing from the fmelting mills in Bollihope. On BoUihope 

 common, in 1749, was found a Roman altar with an infcrip- 

 tion. This town is 6 miles S.E. by S. from Stanhope, and 

 259 N.N.W. from London. Here is a market held on 

 Tuefday, and a fair on the i8th of May. The petty fef- 

 fions are holden here. The parilh, which is large, confifts 

 of Bradley, Hilton-park, Thornley, Wolfingham town 

 quarter, Eaft fide quarter. Park quarter, and South fide 

 quarter. — Beauties of England, Durham, vol. iv. ; by 

 .1. Britton and E. W. Brayley. 



WOLTA, a town of Bohemia, in the circle of Konigin- 

 gratz ; 2 miles N. of Trautenau. 



WOLTERN, a town of Germany, in the county of 

 Verden ; 30 miles E. of Rotenburg. 



WOLTERSDORF, a town of Saxony ; 2 miles S.W. 

 of Zahna. 



WOLTIN, a town of Hinder Pomerania ; 12 miles 

 S.W. of Stargard. 



WOLTZTORFF, a town of Auftria ; 2 miles N.N.W. 

 of Weikerftorf. 



WOLVERENE. See Glutton. 



WOLVERHAMPTON,formerlyHA.\iPTON,inG^o^ra- 

 phy, an important market-town in the hundred of N. Seifdon, 

 and county of Stafford, England, is particularly noted for its 

 extenfive manufaftures of locks, keys, and other articles of 

 ironmongery. It is fituated on a rifing ground 16 miles S. 

 from Stafford, 14 S.W. from Lichfield, 13 N.W. from 

 Birmingham, and 130 in the fame diredlion from London. 

 Wolverhampton is of ancient date, for as early as 996 a 

 monaftery was founded there by Wulfruna, from whom the 

 town received the firft member of its name. The inftitution, 

 confifting of a dean and fecular canons, was about the year 

 1200 transferred by the dean, Peterof Blois,tothearchbilhop 

 of Canterbury, to convert it into an abbey for Ciftcrcian 

 monks ; but this defign feems not to have been executed, 

 for the feculars appear to have been not long after in pof- 

 feffion of the eftabhfhment. The church, which was con- 

 Cdered as one of the king's free chapels, was by Ed- 

 ward IV. annexed to the deanery of Windfor ; but in the 

 feventh year of Edward VI. a grant of the college of 

 Wolverhampton and feven prebends was made to John, duke 

 of Northumberland. Coming again to the crown by his at- 

 tainder, queen Mary reinftated the dean and prebendaries, 

 and endowed tliem with all the lands, &c. which formerly 

 belonged to the inftitution, then valued at the yearly rent of 

 113/. 1 3/. On a queftion arifug concerning thofe poffef- 

 fions, the grants of Mary were confirmed by James I., who 

 appointed the celebrated Marc-Antonio de Dominis, who 

 had been archbilhop of Spalatro in Dalmatia, to be dean of 

 Windfor, and dean and firft prebendary of Wolverhampton : 



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thofe deaneries continue to be united, but the coUegeg are 

 feparate. 



Wolverhampton is well built, and confidered as falubn- 

 ous, notwithftanding it is in the vicinity of many coal-mines'. 

 The parifti is of great extent, being nearly 30 miles in cir- 

 cuit, and comprehends, befides the town, fevcntren confider- 

 able townfhips, or villages, among which arc. Billion, Fea- 

 therftone, Hatherton, Hilton, and Kinvafton. According 

 to the returns to parliament in 181 1, the houfes in the 

 whole parilh were 2936, and the inhabitants 14,836. A 

 market is held on Wednefday, and a fair on the loth of 

 July. The lldll and ingenuity of the lock-fmiths of the 

 town and the environs, (for many of the farmers themfelves 

 are concerned in the bufinefs, ) and the trade carried on in 

 thefe and fimilar articles of iron manufafture, are un- 

 paralleled in England : the trade is particularly promoted 

 by the Staffordfhire and Worcellerlhire grand trunk, and 

 the Birmingham canals, which unite about a mile to the N. 

 of the town. The town is governed by two conftables, and 

 in it are held the petty feffions for the N. and S. divifions of 

 Seifdon hundred. 



The collegiate church of St. Peter ftands on an elevatioa 

 on the E. fide of the town, and confifts of a lofty nave, 

 with fide-aifles and a chancel. From the centre of the 

 building, which is of ftone, rifes a tower. The nave is 

 feparated from the aides by five pointed arches, fupported 

 by oftagonal pillars. Againft one of the S. pillars is 

 erefted a very curious ftone pulpit. The font, which is 

 odtdgonal, and covered with fculptured figures, &c. appears 

 to be very ancient. In the great chancel is a full-length 

 ftatue, in brafs, of the celebrated admiral fir Richard 

 Levefon, who had a command againft the Spanifti armada, 

 under fir Francis Drake. In the church-yard ftands a 

 round column twenty feet high, profufely but rudely carved 

 in divifions, and the whole furmounted by a plain capital. It 

 is evidently ancient, and may have fupported a crofs, or the 

 figure of the patron-faint. The fituation of Wulfruna'a 

 monaftery is imknown ; but in the S.W. corner of the 

 burylng-ground is a large room fupported by groins, the 

 walls of which are three yards in thicknefs. Befides 

 St. Peter's, Wolverhampton poffelfes another church, dedi- 

 cated to St. John, which was eredled by fubfcription, and 

 confecrated in 1761. Diffenters of various denominations 

 abound in the parilh of Wolverhampton, and comprehend 

 more than one half of the inhabitants : chapels for their ac- 

 commodation are confequently numerous. A free-fchool 

 was founded here by fir Stephen Jennings of Wolverhamp- 

 ton, who was lord-mayor of London in 1668 ; befides 

 which, charity-fchools are maintained for children of both 

 fexes. Bilfton, a large and populous village two miles S.E. 

 fromthe town, is within the parifh of Wolverhampton ; but 

 as to all parochial concerns it is a feparate townftiip. In 

 181 1 Bilfton contained 1862 houfes, and the inhabitants 

 amounted to 9646. Here is a parochial chapel, which is a 

 neat modern ftrufture : the living is a perpetual curacy 

 within the exempt jurifdiftion of the dean of WoUerhamp- 

 ton ; but the nomination and prefentation of the incumbent 

 are vefted in the inhabitants at large. Bilfton contains like- 

 wife two diffenting meetings, and an excellent charity-fchool. 

 The bufinefs of Bilfton confifts chiefly of japanned and 

 enamelled goods. The vicinity abounds in coal, iron-ftone, 

 with numerous fmelting-furnaces and forges, &c. in which 

 the operations are performed by ftcam-engines. Bilfton 

 furnilhes alfo a pecuhar kind of fand of great ufe in cafting 

 metals. At Bradley, near Bilfton, the fubterraneous coal 

 has been burning for feveral years paft, and every attempt 

 to extinguifti it has hitherto proved fruitlels, by which feve- 

 ral 



