CRICH is a town, township and extensive parish, 4¾ miles west-by-south from Alfreton, 5 north from Belper, one north-east from Whatstandwell station on the Manchester main line of the Midland railway and 144 from London, in the Mid division of the county, hundred of Morleston and Litchurch, Belper union and petty sessional division, Alfreton county court district and rural deanery, archdeaconry of Derby and diocese of Southwell. The railway and the Cromford canal pass along the south-western border of the parish, and the line from Ambergate to the north also bounds the parish on the south-east. The church of St. Mary, situated on a commanding height, is a building of stone, in mixed styles, partly Norman, and consists of chancel, clerestoried nave of three bays, aisles, and a western tower with spire, containing a clock and 5 bells, dating from 1620 : the monuments include several to the Dixie family, and others to the Poles of Wakebridge, lords of the manor of that name, one of whom was falconer to Henry VII. ; there is also a memorial with a most curious epitaph to a member of the Clay family, and an inscribed stone slab to Anthony Babington esq. of Dethick, who with 13 others, engaged in a conspiracy to assassinate Queen Elizabeth, and raise the country, in favour of Mary Queen of Scots, then imprisoned in Wingfield Manor ; but the plot being discovered, the conspirators were arrested and executed at Tyburn, 20 and 21 Sept. 1586: there are three memorial stained windows : the church plate is dated 1712 : the church affords about 500 sittings. The registers date from the year 1604. The living is a vicarage, gross yearly value £244, with residence, in the gift of five trustees, and held since 1875 by the Rev, William Acraman, of St. Aidans, who is patron of the Iivings of the adjoining parishes of Tansley and Wessington. The mission church at Fritchley, one mile south-east, built in 1870, is also used as a day school; it was enlarged in 1874, and affords about 150 sittings, The Baptist Chapel, a building of stone, with a clock, was erected in 1877, and has sittings for 300 persons. The Free Methodist chapel was built in 1864. and there are also chapels belonging to this sect at Crich Carr and Wheatcroft, and Primitive Methodist chapels at Crich, erected in 1853, Crich Carr, Fritchley, erected in 1852, and at Morewood Moor. There is a small Wesleyan chapel and a Congregational chapel at Fritchley, erected in 1841. In the village is an ancient stone market cross ; (restored in 1871) : the upper part of which includes a group figure of St. Michael overcoming the Dragon. The market has been revived, and is held weekly on Friday. Fairs for sheep and cattle are held on the 6th of April and 11th of October. Emma Hurt's charity amounts to £47 yearly. the odd £7 goes to Wessington ; Cornthwaite's Charity, left in 1838, amounts to £6 7s. yearly for clothing ; Cooper's, of £6 5s. 10d. left in 1853, is distributed in money ; Wright's Charity , amounts to £17 14s. 6d. yearly, and is given to regular attendants at church. The charities for the township of Wessington amount to £10 yearly. The yearly sum of £7 5s. from the Rev, Francis Gisborne's Charity, received by the vicar and churchwardens and laid out in the purchase of flannel for the poor. In 1562 John Kirkland left £2 yearly to the poor of this parish for ever, which is distributed on St, Thomas' day. Sim's Charity, a benefaction of recent date, amounts to about £50, and is distributed so as to promote religious education. The inhabitants are principally employed in the adjacent quarries which produce Iimestone and gritstone of a superior quality, a large quantity being sent to London and other parts. Lea mills and other industrial centres in the neighbourhood also give employment to many, and the manufacture of hosiery by hand is carried on to a very considerable extent. There is a lead mine in operation at Wakebridge ; the Butterley Company have extensive quarries and lime kilns at Bull Bridge; at Ambergate are the limeworks of the Clay Cross Company, and at Whatstandwell are the gritstone quarries, the property of Duke of Devonshire K.G. At Crich is a reading room, a stone building, erected in 1887, at a cost of £300. Chase Cliffe, erected in 1859, is a handsome mansion of stone, pleasantly situate in grounds tastefully laid out, and is the property and residence of Miss Hurt. On Crich Stand, which has an elevation of upwards of 950 feet above the level of the sea, is a circular tower, 50 feet in height, erected in 1851, on the site of a former tower by the late Francis Hurt esq. of Alderwasley. On July 6th, 1882, a considerable landslip occurred which reached nearly to the base of the tower and demolished four houses. The principal landowners are Lieut.-CoI. Albert Frederick Hurt D.L., J.P. of Alderwasley, and W. Shore-SmIth esq. of Embley Park, Romsey, and there are several smaller freeholders. The Duke of Devonshire K.G. is also a landowner. The soil is loamy; subsoil, gritstone. The land is chiefly in pasturage. The acreage of the township is 3,750; rateable value, £13,102; the population in 1881 was 2,984.
FRITCHLEY is a village 1 mile south-east, with a mission church; CODDINGTON, half a mile west ; BULL BRIDGE, 1½ miles south; PLAISTOW GREEN, 1 mile north; and WHEATCROFT 2½ miles north, are hamlets. Crich Carr and Whatstandwell are also places here. Crich Carr is that portion of the parish near Whatstandwell railway station and is increasing in population.
Parish Clerk, John Wetton.
POST, M. O.& T. O., S. B. & Government Insurance & Annuity Office. -John Higton, postmaster. Letters arrive through Derby at 8.10 a.m. ; dispatched at 5.45 p.m
POST, M. o.. Insurance & Annuity Office, Whatstandwell.-Timothy Martin, postmaster. Letters arrive from Derby at 5.40 a.m. ; dispatched at 7 p, m. The nearest telegraph office is at Crich
POST OFFICE, Fritchley. -Thomas Davidson, receiver. Letters through Derby arrive at 7.30 a.m. ; dispatched at 6.10 p. m. The nearest money order & telegraph office is at Crich
WALL LETTER Box, at Crich, cleared at 5.30 p.m
WALL LETTER Box, at Fritchley, cleared at 6.10 p. m
SCHOOLS:- Parochial (mixed) (Crich), erected in 1848 for 330 children ; average attendance, 110 boys & girls & 40 infants ; Alfred Moody, master; Mrs. Alma Moody, infants mistress
National (Crich Carr), erected in 1884 for 80 children; average attendance, 75 ; Thomas L. Whitehouse master
National (Fritchley), erected in 1870 as a mission church & school & enlarged in 1874 by the addition of an infants' school room, it will hold 41 children: average attendance, 130 ; Thomas L. A. Cousens, master; Mrs. A. M. Cousens, mistress
British (Crich), erected in 1884-5; for 260 children; average attendance (mixed 175), infants, 52 ; Heyworth Dyson, master
Railway Station, Whatstandwell, Charles Whitmore, station master
PRIVATE RESIDENTS
Acraman Rev, William, Vicarage |
Jackson Thomas, Field House |
Boag Henry Basil, Bank House, Plaistow |
Lee John Isaac, Church View |
Connell Thos. South View, The Common |
Lee Mrs. Walker, The Bower |
Coupe George, Grove House |
McCheane WiIIiam C. The Mansion House |
Dawes Robert, Tor View |
Macdonald GeorgeGodfrey M.B |
Derbyshire James, The Common |
Paling Wllliam Thomas |
Drury Rev. George [curate], Dimple |
Saxton John, The Sycamores |
Dunn Christopher BIencowe Noble M.R.C.S. The Tors |
Saxton Mrs. The Hollies |
Hopkins Miss, Dimple House |
Smith Ferdinand, Church View |
Howett Joseph, Crich Common |
Storer John |
Hurt Miss, Chase Cliffe |
Young Mrs. Rose Cottage |
COMMERCIAL.
Bacon George, Wheatsheaf Inn |
Greenhough William, Jun., butcher |
Saxton John, insurance agt. The HoIlies |
Baker Sarah (Mrs.), saddler |
Hallam George, shopkeeper |
Shipley William, watch maker |
Baldwin Joseph, farmer, Pot Ho. Farm |
Hancock John, farmer |
Shipston Sarah (Mrs.), grocer |
Barratt Joseph, beer retailer |
Haslam Arthur, mason |
Smith Arthur, butcher & farmer |
Bingham Thomas, farmer, Edge Farm |
Hawkins John, farmer, Plaistow Green |
Smith George Ashbourne, wheelwright & farmer |
Boag Henry Basil, agent for the Clay Cross Co.'s Quarries, Cliff |
Haynes John, carpenter & cabinet maker |
Smith James, wheelwright |
Boag Robert, contractor |
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Southern Charles William, chemist |
Boden Thomas, boot maker |
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Spendlove Robert, farmer, Plaistow |
Bowmer Samuel, farmer & surveyor of highways, Sheldon House |
Holmes Samuel, shopkeeper |
Stocks John, baker & grocer |
Brocklehurst Henry, Greyhound P.H |
Holmes William, Jovial Dutchman P.H |
Stocks Samuel, Royal Oak P.H |
Brown George, boot maker |
Hopkinson John, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Stoppard (Aaron) & Walker (Charles), farmers, Hollins Farm |
Brumwell George Herbert, Black Swan P.H. good stabling accommodation |
Hopkinson Joseph, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Swindell Samuel, farmer, Cowpershane |
Burton Jeremiah, farmer, The Common |
Howitt Joseph, farmer, The Common |
Taylor John, farmer, Plaistow |
Burton Samuel, Bull's Head P.H |
Hunt James, saddler |
Taylor Thomas, blacksmith |
Cheetham Ann (Mrs.) butcher |
Kirk EIijah, tailor & woollen draper |
Taylor Vaughan, butcher & farmer, The Mount |
Clay Cross Company's Quarries (Henry Basil Boag, Agent) |
Knowles Samuel, boot repairer |
Thorpe Thomas, farmer |
Cotton Robert., farmer, Plaistow |
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Turner George, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Cowlishaw Henry, shopkeeper |
Lynam William, farmer, Moorwood Moor |
Walker Ellen (Miss), King's Arms P.H |
Crich Reading Room (H. Dyson, sec) |
Macdonald George Godfrey M.B. surgeon |
Walker Frederick, draper |
Critchlow Sarah (Mrs.), farmer, Edgmoor |
Marshall William, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Wass & Son (trustees of) (A. McL. Alsop, agt.), Wakebridge Mine & Smelting Wks |
Crooks Samuel, farmer, Plaistow |
Martin William, hair dresser |
Whitaker Joseph, grocer & farmer |
Curzon Frederick, tailor |
Mather Henry, farmer |
White John, farmer |
Dawes John, stationer &c |
Mellors George, boot maker |
Wightman James, grocer |
Denny John, farmer |
Mowbray George, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Wildgoose John, Rising Sun P.H |
Derby & Derbyshire Banking Company Lim. (branch to Belper), open Tuesdays & Fridays 11am to 2.30pm ; draw on Williams, Deacon & Co. London E C |
Ottewell Isaac, farmer, Culland |
Wilton Thomas & Edward, farmers, Wakebridge Farm |
Dunn Christopher Blencowe Noble, surgeon, & medical officer & public vaccinator, Crich, Lea & Holloway District, Belper Union |
Perry Charles, shopkeeper |
Woodward James, farmer, Plaistow Hill |
England Hannah (Mrs.), shopkeeper |
Petts WiIliam, stone & monumental mason, Common |
Young William, farmer, Park Head |
Evans Elizabeth ( Mrs.), grocer |
Platts George, farmer |
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Gibbons Daniel, farmer, Wheatcroft |
Poyser Ann (Miss), farmer, Chase |
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Greaves Abraham, chemist |
Radford John, farmer |
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Greenhough Thomas, grocer & farmer |
Robinson Joseph, grocer & farmer |
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Marked thus * are Coddington.
Marked thus † are Crich Carr.
Without a mark are Whatstandwell.
Alsop James, Derwent House |
Caudwell William, farmer, Thurlow Booth |
Horton John |
Flint George, Wheatsheaf P.H |
Kirk William, Cliff Villa |
Hawkes Frances (Mrs.), private school, lrvine Villa |
Mason Charles, Jun. |
Lee George, shopkeeper |
Newton James |
Ling, Herbert Jones, Derwent Hotel |
Smith Ernest Le Blanc |
Martin Timothy, grocer, provision merchant, & Post Office |
† Ward Mrs. Leedway Bank Commercial |
Merchant Joseph, coal merchant |
† Allsop Rllbert, besom broom maker |
Merchant Joseph Jun. butcher |
*Broadhurst Daniel (Mrs.), farmer |
Shaw Matthew, brick & tile manufactr. WigwelI brick works & Carr Cottage |
Bryan Richard Peach, farmer, Bent Hill |
Sims Anthony, farmer & stone merchant |
Bunting Ann (Mrs), blacksmith |
Statham Arthur timber merchant saw & moulding mills & joinery works |
Whatstandwell Coffee Room (William Peacock, manager)
*Yates Walter, farmer Fritchley & Bull Bridge.
Alsop Mrs. The Beeches, Bull Bridge
Crozier Mrs.
Day John Henry, The Limes
Sargent Mrs
COMMERCIAL.
Ambergate, Crich, Bull Bridge & Fritchley Gas Co. (John Dawes, sec. ; John Bown, manager) Bull Bridge |
Knighton Joseph, shopkeeper |
Blackham Thomas, grocer |
Leafe Edwin, hand machine hosiery manfr |
Bowmer Thomas, farmer |
Poyser James, boot & shoe maker |
Butterley Company's Quarries & Lime Works (Jn. Hy. Day agent), Bull Bridge |
Radford Joseph, miller (water) & farmer, Fritchley & Bull Bridge Mill, Heage |
Chell George millwright |
Radford Samuel, farmer |
Curtis & Harvey's Gunpowder Magazine, (John Henry Day, agent), Bull Bridge |
Radford Thomas, shopkeeper |
Davidson Thomas, grocer, draper &c. & Post Office |
Redfern Job, Lord Nelson P.H. Bull Bridge |
Derbyshire Jesse, farmer, Barn Close Farm |
Rowe Tom Anthony beer retailer |
Else Charles Joseph, farmer & landowner, Bull Bridge |
Slack James, miller & farmer |
Fletcher Ann (Mrs.), shopkeeper |
Stevenson Jos. hand made hosiery manfr |
Fritchley William, farmer |
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Gaunt George, Red Lion P.H |
Watkins Edward, bobbin manufacturer, wood turner & timber merchant, Bull Bridge |
Gaunt Robert, rent dealer |
Wilkinson George, Canal Inn, Bull Bridge |
Kneebone Philip, farmer |
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