BMSGH HomeDROITWICH
Descriptive Notes:Directories:
DROITWICH, a borough and market town, having exclusive
jurisdiction, though locally in the upper division of the hundred of
Halfshire,
county of WORCESTER, 6¾ miles (N. E. by N.) from Worcester,
and 118 (N.W.) from
London, and containing 2176 inhabitants. This place was anciently
denominated Wich,
or Wiche, from the wiches, or salt
springs, with which the
neighbourhood abounds; and the prefix Droit,
right or legal, is
supposed to refer to some exclusive privilege for the manufacture of
salt,
obtained by the inhabitants. Droitwich appears to have been a town of
the
ancient Britons, called by Richard of Cirencester Salinae, from
its
saline springs; having been situated on a British road, called the
Saltway.
There is no evidence of its having ever been occupied by the Romans;
but under
the Saxon government it rose to importance, and seems to have given
name to
their province of Wiccia, of which Worcestershire
constituted the
principal part. During the war between Charles I and the parliament,
the
inhabitants adhered steadily to the royal cause, and subsequently
received a
letter from that unfortunate monarch, acknowledging a due sense of
their
loyalty. The town is situated on the river Salwarp, upon which there
are
several corn-mills. The manufacture of salt is probably coeval with the
town
itself; but it was not until the year 1725, that the strong brine, for
which it
is now famous, was discovered. Its purity is considered superior to
that of any
salt obtained elsewhere; and the quantity produced amounts to about
seven
hundred thousand bushels a year. Various acts of parliament have passed
for the
better regulation of this branch of manufacture. By charter of James I
the
exclusive privilege of sinking brine pits within the borough was given
to the
corporation, who granted licenses to others; but this was overthrown
about
1690, by a legal decision in favour of an enterprising individual, who,
by a
breach of this supposed right, successfully encountered the opposition
of the
party claiming it. Pits then became numerous, and the trade was thrown
open to
competition, to the great advantage of the community. At the distance
of from
thirty to forty feet from the surface of the ground is a hard bed of
talc, or
gypsum, generally about one hundred and fifty feet thick. A small hole
is bored
through this to the river of brine, which is in depth about twenty-two
inches,
and beneath which is a hard rock of salt. The water, which rises
rapidly
through this aperture, is pumped into a capacious reservoir, whence it
is
conveyed into iron boilers and heated. This produces evaporation, and
the salt,
which sinks to the bottom, is collected, dried, and made ready for the
market.
Previously to 1610, wood alone was used in boiling it; but owing to a
scarcity
in this article of fuel, coal was then adopted, and has since, been
continued.
Of the brine obtained, one-fourth part is salt, whilst in that of
Northwich, in
Cheshire, the proportion of salt is only one sixth. The want of
conveyance by
water for a long time operated as an impediment to the extension of the
trade,
but in 1655 a project was formed for making the Salwarp navigable,
though not
then under taken. However, soon after the Restoration, the design was
renewed,
and operations commenced: but, when five out of the six locks which
were
considered necessary for the purpose were completed, the attempt was
abandoned,
from a conviction of its inefficacy. An act of parliament was then
obtained, in
1767 for cutting a canal from this town to the Severn : it was
consequently
begun in 1768, and completed in 1771, under the direction of Brindley,
the
celebrated engineer, at an expense of £25,000. The canal is
navigable for
vessels of sixty tons burden, and the junction takes place at Hawford.
A
building, called the Exchequer-house, where the payments from the
persons who
held licenses to make salt, and the other profits derived by the
corporation
from the brine pits, were made weekly, was erected about the year 1581,
but it
was taken down about the year 1826, and new court-rooms have been built
near
the spot on which it stood. At the same time an old market house was
taken
down, and a new one formed under the court-rooms; also two good
prisons. The
malting trade is carried on to a limited extent. The market is on
Friday; and
fairs are held on the Thursday before the 20th of June, and the
Wednesday
before St. Thomas' day; during which a court of pie-powder is held. The
town
was originally incorporated by a charter from John, conferring on the
inhabitants various privileges, which have been confirmed and increased
by
succeeding monarchs. By the charter of the 22nd of James I, which
refers to
prior charters, the body corporate consists of two bailiffs, a
recorder, two
justices, a town clerk, burgesses, &c. The bailiffs, the
recorder, and the
bailiffs for the preceding year, are justices of the peace: the
bailiffs are
also clerks of the market, and coroners for the borough. A court of
record is
held every Thursday before the bailiffs and town-clerk, for the
recovery of
debts under £10. A court of session is held quarterly by the
bailiffs,
recorder, &c.; and a court leet twice a year before the town
clerk. The
bailiffs and burgesses have the power of enacting byelaws, and in all
cases exercise
exclusive jurisdiction. The borough returned two burgesses to the
parliaments
of Edward I, and to those held in the 2nd and 4th of Edward II, from
which
period the privilege ceased until its renewal in 1554. The right of
election,
according to a decision of the house of commons in 1690, is vested in
the
burgesses of the corporation of the salt-springs: the number of voters
is about
forty, and the bailiffs are the returning officers. The heir apparent,
or the
adopted heir to a deceased burgess, is entitled to the freedom of the
borough;
and an heiress communicates the same privilege to her husband; but if a
burgess
die, leaving daughters, without having adopted either of them as the
successor
to his burgage tenure, his burgess-ship becomes extinct. The freedom
may also
be obtained by gift of the corporation at large. Each person made free
must
possess, at least, a quarter of a plat of inheritance. The
parliamentary
influence is possessed by Lord Foley, who nominates both members. The
borough
comprises the greater part of the united parishes of St. Andrew and St.
Mary de
Witton, those of St. Peter de Witton and St. Nicholas, and a small
portion of
that of St. Augustine de Wich, or Dodderhill; all in the archdeaconry
and
diocese of Worcester. The parishes of St. Andrew and St. Mary were
united by
letters patent of Edward VI, dated 4th of June, in the second year of
his
reign, which union was confirmed by an act obtained in the 13th of
Charles II.
The living is a discharged rectory, rated in the king's books at
£7. 12. 1, and
in the patronage of the Crown. The church, which was rebuilt after
having been
destroyed by a casual fire in 1293, has some fine portions in the early
English
style; with additions of later date : the southern entrance, which
still remains,
appears to be Saxon. The living of St. Peter's is a discharged
vicarage, rated
in the king's books at £6, and in the patronage of Earl
Somers. The church has
a tower in the later English style; some
fine decorated windows, and a small quantity of ancient
stained glass. A chapel of ease to this church formerly stood on the
bridge,
but it was taken down and a new one built in, 1763, on a different
site. The
living of St. Nicholas’ is a rectory, rated in the kings
books at £4. 9. 7.,
and in the patronage of the Crown. The church was greatly
injured during
the parliamentary war, and only about half of the tower remains. Here
are
places of worship for Independents and Wesleyan Methodists. The
hospital of St.
Mary, in the parish of St. Augustine, was founded for a master and
brethren, by
Walter de Dovere, in the reign of Edward I, under the patronage of the
prior
and convent at Worcester : part of the building still remains near
Chapel
bridge. The Coventry charity hospital, which is situated in St. Peter's
parish,
comprises nineteen tenements occupied by thirty-eight old men and women
above
sixty years of age: it was founded in consequence of a bequest from
Henry
Coventry, Esq., who, in 1686, left £1000, to erect a
workhouse, or hospital,
and £240 for its support. Here is a charity school for forty
boys and forty
girls, who are educated, clothed, and, on leaving school, apprenticed.
Richard
de Wich, Bishop of Chichester, was born here: he was a man of extensive
erudition for those times, and was canonized by Urban IV, in 1262, nine
years
after his death. The inhabitants of the borough held his fame in great
estimation, and were wont to celebrate an annual festival, with games,
&c.
in his honour thereof. Sergeant Wilde, an eminent republican lawyer,
who was
made Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, under the Protectorship of
Cromwell,
was also a native of Droitwich. [Topographical
Dictionary of England 1831 by Samuel Lewis]
Civil Parish & Ecclesiastical Parish [25]
The Civil Parish was created in 1920 by the union of Droitwich St Andrew Ancient Parish, Droitwich St Nicholas Ancient Parish, Droitwich St Peter Ancient Parish & Land common to Droitwich St Andrew & St Peter (The Wrangling Division).
The Ecclesiastical Parish created in 1972 by the union of Droitwich St Andrew with St Mary Witton Ecclesiastical Parish, Droitwich St Nicholas Ancient Parish & Droitwich St Peter Ancient Parish.[25]
Location:
O.S. Ref: SO899634
7 miles N.N.E. of Worcester along the A38
Marlborough, lately (1884) annexed to St. Nicholas under the Divided Parishes Act, was constituted a parish, under the Act 20 Vict. c.19, in the hundred of Upper Halfshire and Parliamentary borough of Droitwich, but not within the municipal borough: it consists of two small detached places, one of six houses, situated in the Hill End, and another, situated in the Vines, comprising a salt work and four cottages. [57]
Paper Mills, a detached part of the parish of Hampton Lovett, formerly extra-parochial , it was in 1884 annexed to Dodderhill Ancient Parish, under the Divided Parishes Act of 1876....consists of a water corn mill, previously a paper mill, and 13 acres of land...it formerly belonged to the nunnery of Westwood.[38]
Hundred:
A borough having exclusive jurisdiction, though locally in Upper Halfshire [25] [44]
Poor Law Union:
Droitwich (1920-30) [3] [25]
Census Records:
Access to all the censuses between 1841 and 1901 is now widely available on the library edition of Ancestry.co.uk at most record offices. You are strongly advised to book time on their computers before making a visit.
Many commercial organisations have issued CDs and DVDs covering all the censuses from 1841 to 1901.
Some repositories offer census details on microfiche as listed below:
1841-1901 at Worcestershire Library and History Centre [14]
1891 1901 Droitwich Workhouse Worcestershire Library and History Centre [14]
At Society of Genealogists [23]:
Worcestershire 1851 census index HO 107/2046 : Droitwich registration district [Microfiche] -Published , 1997 - Author: Friend, A F
Worcestershire 1851 census returns : Droitwich registration district HO 107/2046 [Microfilm] - Published London : Public Record Office 1996
Worcestershire 1861 census returns : Droitwich registration district RG/9 2108-2112 [Microfilm.] - Published London : Public Record Office 1996
Worcestershire 1891 census returns: Droitwich registration district RG 12/2341-2343 [Microfilm.] - Published London : Public Record Office 2003
Manorial Records:
Worcestershire Record Office [50]
Account roll Mich.[1425]-Mich.[1427]; Extent [c.1550]
Other Sources:
Droitwich : a pictorial history - Published Chichester : Phillimore & Co Ltd, 1994 - Authors: Field, Bob & Blewitt, Lyn Society of Genealogists
The story of Droitwich - Published , 1923 - Author Whitley, W T Society of Genealogists
© Arthur Lewis and contributors 2008
Comments, additions, corrections etc to Arthur Lewis
Last updated on 28th March 2008