Chapter VI: Part 6

THE COUNTY HALL, situated in the Market-square, is a handsome and commodious building, completed in 1837, at the cost of about £13,000. It is built from a design of Sir Robert Smirke, of beautiful white free stone, the principal front measuring 112 feet in length, and exhibits the Italian style of architecture. In the interior of the structure the different apartments are convenient, lofty, and well adapted to the various purposes for which they are intended. On the ground floor is a commodious vestibule, which communicates with rooms on each side, for the mayor, and counsel at assizes and witnesses. Opposite the entrance door is a noble staircase; on the first landing, the centre one leading to the judge’s room, and those on each side to the respective courts, which are of equal dimensions, forty-two feet by thirty-six feet. The bench is elevated three feet above the floor, on each side is accommodation for the magistrates; immediately before the judge is a large table, with seats provided for the councillors. In each court is a gallery for the public, and the ceiling is panelled and ornamented. From this division the staircase leads to another large room, adapted for a third court, or other public purpose; above it are offices for the clerk of the peace, and for the town clerk.

The ancient Guild or Shire Hall was a low timbered fabric, with a high clock turret, erected in the reign of Henry VIII., and stood across the market square. The lower part was appropriated to retail shops, and the upper story contained the rooms in which the business of the town was transacted, and the assizes held. The municipal records were preserved in a strong square tower near the south east side, erected in 1490. At the summer assizes, in 1783, in consequence of the pressing remonstrance of the judge, enforced by the threat of a fine upon the county, an act of parliament was obtained the following year for this purpose. To render the new building more handsome and commodious, and to remove the inconvenience occasioned by the old one standing across the street of the greatest resort, several houses, together with the ancient tower of the Exchequer, were taken down, and various other improvements made, in the adjacent parts. The new hall was completed in 1785, at an expense of £11,000, raised by a county rate. In consequence of sinkings having in 1832 been observed in different parts of the structure, the building was surveyed by different architects and pronounced unsafe and dangerous. The proper authorities immediately determined to take down the whole edifice, and erect a more commodious one on its site. For this purpose some adjoining premises were purchased, and the present substantial structure, admirably adapted for the purposes intended, was completed, as already noticed, by Messrs. Birch, builders, in 1837.

THE TOWN AND COUNTY GAOL stands on a salubrious cliff of gravel, a short distance from the castle, and contiguous to the railway station. The building was erected in 1793, on the principles of the benevolent Howard, at an expense of £30,000. The front of the prison displays a bold and massive appearance, having two rusticated stone lodges and a gateway in the centre, over which is a fine bust of Howard, by Bacon. The building is of brick, and is spacious, airy, and well supplied with water, by means of a pump worked by the prisoners. Immediately in front of the gateway is the governor’s house, which, with certain offices, forms the southern front of the building. The chapel is an octagonal structure in the centre of the prison, and is contrived so as to separate every class of prisoners, yet, so that the minister may be seen by all the congregation. The remainder of the structure is divided into four principal courts, with several smaller ones, around which are cloisters, with sleeping rooms above for the prisoners, and cells for the refractory. A regard to the gradation of vice is strictly observed in the classification of the prisoners, many of whom are employed in some useful trade, such as shoemakers, tailors, blacksmiths, &c., others are employed in picking oakum and wool. The galling and disgraceful restraints of irons are altogether dispensed with, except in cases of capital and very refractory offenders. Great attention is paid to the moral culture of the inmates by the assiduous chaplain, in order to reclaim the wanderer. Divine service is performed twice every day, except Saturday; and the prisoners are all separately catechised several times during the week. The water to supply the gaol is pumped from the Severn into a large reservoir, which will hold 2,000 gallons. The gaol is calculated to accommodate 300 prisoners, and there are 135 separate cells. During the year ending September, 1849, there was a total of 1,291 prisoners; greatest number of prisoners at any one time in the year, 203; daily average of criminals, 147; daily average of debtors, 9. Gross expenditure for the same period, £3,337. 17s. 8d. Mr. John Shepherd is the governor; and the Rev. David Winstone, chaplain. The corporate magistrates are entitled, under the act for erecting this gaol, to send to it prisoners, both criminal and civil, for whose maintenance, of course, the borough pays.

THE MARKET HOUSE, situated in the Market Square, an antique and interesting fabric, is one of the handsomest structures of its kind in the kingdom. In Dr. Taylor’s MSS. is the following account of the first Market House in this town of which any record remains:—“This yere, 1567, Maister John Dawes, of Shrosbery, an alderman of the sayde towne, began and buylded two fayre houses in the Corne Market there, for the saffe placinge of corne from wether, so that the owners thereof may stand saffe and drye, the which buildings was at his own coste and charge, which place servyth for the inhabitantes as also strangers to walke in, and the loft above for soondry profitable purposes.” To these timber buildings others were added in 1571, for the like purpose. In 1595 the whole was removed, and the present structure built on the site. The principal front is towards the west, and has in the centre a spacious portal, over which are sculptured the arms of Elizabeth. On each side of the portal is an open arcade of three round arches, supported by massive pillars, over which a range of square mullioned windows lights the upper story. Large open arches occupy the north and south ends, which are terminated with pointed gables. Above the northern arch is a tabernacled niche, containing a statue of Richard, Duke of York, in complete armour, with his armorial bearings, removed from the tower of the old Welsh Bridge, on its demolition in 1791. At the south end is the figure of an angel, in a canopied niche, bearing a shield of the arms of France and England. This fragment of antiquity formerly stood in the southern tower of the Castle, or North Gate, and was removed here in 1825, when that building was taken down to widen the street. The basement of the Market House is 105 feet long, and 24 feet wide. The upper story is devoted to the purposes of a Mechanics’ Institution. The market is held on Saturday, is numerously attended by farmers from the surrounding district, and considerable quantities of corn are sold, chiefly by sample.

THE MUSIC HALL AND PUBLIC ROOMS occupy the southern side of the Market Square, and form a handsome pile of building, erected in 1840 from a design by Mr. Haycock. On the ground floor is the Post Office; and immediately above, the Public News Room, which is supported by annual subscription. The Music Hall, a noble apartment, occupies the remaining portion of the second floor. It measures 90 feet in length, 42 feet wide, and 38 feet high. The orchestra, which is situated at the south end, contains a fine-toned and powerful organ, the munificent gift of the late Rev. Richard Scott, B.D., to the Choral Society of the town. On the third story are Billiard Rooms, &c.

THE THEATRE, situated in the Shoplatch, has a lofty stuccoed front, with three niches, containing statues of the immortal Shakspere, and of the comic and tragic muses, which give it a bold and imposing effect. The lower part consists of a rusticated base, one hundred feet in length, comprising a range of good shops, and a dwelling for the manager. The interior is conveniently arranged, and handsomely decorated with appropriate devices. It will accommodate a numerous audience; and was opened September 8th, 1834. It stands on the site of a former Theatre, which, if we may credit the affirmation of Phillips, was part of the ancient palace of the Princes of Powisland, who, in their frequent transactions with the sovereigns of England, often resided in Shrewsbury. The ancient boundary wall of this mansion inclosed all the space contained between Cross Hill, St. John’s Hill, Murivance, Swan Hill, and Shoplatch. It is probable that the old edifice was part of the great chamber, appropriated, according to the usage of the times, for receiving company, and occasionally for exhibiting shows and dramatic interludes.

THE SHROPSHIRE AND NORTH WALES NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY was established on the 26th of June, 1835. The Museum, situated in Dogpole, is principally designed to illustrate the natural history of the district in its various branches of geology, mineralogy, zoology, and botany, by the gradual formation of complete and systematic arrangements of its productions in each of these departments. It is also open to other objects of scientific interest, and in particular is a suitable repository for such remains of antiquity as are found within the district, or illustrate its general history. The library contains many valuable books, illustrative of natural history and antiquities. It is deeply to be regretted, that hitherto the council have been able to do little more than maintain the museum in existence. Had they been entrusted with a larger amount of funds, they might have very considerably enlarged its collection, and extended its interests. Many donations are still in store for exhibition, whenever a more commodious building can be procured. It is, therefore, hoped that a district of so much scientific and antiquarian resource may, before long, be furnished with a building, in which specimens of its own productions may be placed for inspection, and which may also be a repository for objects of general interest and national importance. _President_: The Right Hon. the Earl of Powis.—_Treasurer_: Thomas Eyton, Esq.—_Honorary Secretary_: Henry Johnson, M.D.

THE MECHANICS’ INSTITUTION was originally established in 1825, and in the year 1833 a building was erected for their meetings, in Howard Street. The committee of management subsequently took the Corn Market chambers, which are found admirably adapted for the objects of the institution, which affords to mechanics, artisans, and others, opportunities of acquiring, at their leisure hours, the principles of science and the arts; and for the cultivation of literature. The library comprises upwards of 2,000 volumes, and the reading-room is supplied with the leading London and provincial newspapers and magazines. There are classes for the English and French languages, arithmetic, mathematics, writing, drawing, music, and modelling. The present number of members is two hundred. The income for the year ending September, 1849, was £110. 15s. 10d. _President_: Mr. Edward Elsmere.—_Honorary Secretaries_: Mr. W. P. Scoltock and Mr. Robert France, jun.

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTION was established in 1850, under the patronage of the Lord Bishop of Lichfield. Its general object is to afford the young men of the town of Shrewsbury the means of spending their leisure hours in a rational and profitable manner, and of acquiring useful knowledge on literary and scientific subjects, in subservience to the doctrines and precepts of revealed religion. A library and reading room have been established, and competent persons employed to deliver lectures on various interesting and scientific subjects. All persons subscribing twelve shillings and sixpence annually, or five guineas in one donation, to the funds of the institution, are members; and all persons elected by the committee, on the payment of six shillings per annum, have the advantages of the institution. _Treasurer_, W. B. Lloyd, Esq. _Honorary Secretary_, Mr. Henry Newham.

THE SUBSCRIPTION LIBRARY, on St. John’s hill, contains a valuable collection of books in the various department of literature and science, numbering upwards of nine thousand volumes. It was established in 1785. Proprietary members pay one guinea admission, and an annual subscription of a guinea and a half. Elinor Urwick is the librarian.

THE NEWS ROOM.—The public News Room in the Corn-market, immediately above the Post Office, is supported by annual subscriptions; the members have the advantage of perusing the principal London and provincial newspapers, magazines, and journals, &c. The walls are adorned with some fine pictures, presented at various periods to the corporation of the town, among which are Charles I., Charles II., William III., George I., George II., George III., Admiral Benbow, Lord Hill, and others.

THE CIRCUS, a spacious building situated near the Welsh bridge, was formerly used for equestrian performances. It is now used as a depot for the immense quantities of butter and cheese which are brought to the town for sale at the monthly fairs; considerable quantities of these commodities are brought from Wales.

THE BUTTER AND POULTRY MARKET, situated at the top of Pride-hill, was erected in 1819 by voluntary contributions amounting to £2000. It is not at all commensurate with the wants of the town, and of the ample produce brought to its weekly markets large quantities are exposed for sale in the streets.

THE NEW BUTTER AND CHEESE MARKET, situated in Howard-street, is a spacious building containing an area of 5400 feet. The exterior consists of a centre and two wings, and has a handsome appearance; the roof is supported by four rows of cast iron pillars—and there is ample room to dispose of the large quantities of butter and cheese which are brought for sale on the Wednesdays following the first fair in each month.

THE HOUSE OF INDUSTRY was originally built as an asylum for the reception of orphans from the Foundling Hospital in London. This spacious structure is situated at Kingsland, and crowns the steep eminence above the river, whence a most delightful and picturesque view of the town and country is obtained. The governor of the Foundling Hospital began the building in 1760, and finished it in five years, at an expense of £12,000. Children were sent down from London in great numbers, and put out to nurse with the neighbouring cottagers, under the inspection of the gentlemen in the vicinity. At a proper age they were taken into the house, where they were employed in the manufacture of wool, and afterwards placed out as apprentices. At one time there were more than four hundred orphans in the hospital; but the funds of the institution not proving adequate to the plan of sending children to provincial hospitals, it was discontinued in 1774. After being shut up several years, it was converted into a place of confinement for the Dutch prisoners taken in the American war. It was afterwards used as an infirmary, whilst the present noble structure was building. The rapid increase of the parochial rates, of Shrewsbury, induced the inhabitants to petition parliament for an act to incorporate the five parishes of the Town and Meole Brace, so far as concerned the poor, and to establish a general House of Industry. In 1784, they purchased the orphan hospital from the governors of the foundling charity, for the admission of the poor, who, in their declining years, here find an appropriate shelter, and are supplied with decent and comfortable necessaries of life. The situation is highly salubrious, and the terrace in front of the house commands a fine view of the quarry, the town, its suburbs, and the whole range of mountains in Salop, Montgomery, and Denbigh. The internal arrangements have a clean and orderly appearance, and the kind attention of the governor and guardians to the wants of the inmates, who are chiefly the aged, infirm, and helpless poor children, is highly creditable. [When we visited the house there were six old women of the age of 75 and upwards, one had reached the age of 95 years.] There is accommodation for 350 inmates, exclusive of that portion of the building which has been let off as a private asylum; the inmates are now 75. The infirmary and vagrant ward are in the rear, as are the schools, which are held in a building formerly used for hand-loom weaving; adjoining which are four acres of land, cultivated by the scholars; it is chiefly used in raising green crops, and is highly productive. The union embraces the parishes of St. Chad, St. Mary, St. Alkmund, St. Julian, Holy Cross, and Meole Brace, for which ten guardians are appointed. _Chairman_, Mr. Charles Lloyd. _Surgeon_, Henry Keate. _Chaplain_, Rev. W. J. James. _Governor_, Mr. William N. Kindellon.

THE SAVINGS’ BANK, situated on College-hill, was erected in 1838, at a cost of £2000, which includes a sum of £600 given for the site. The capital stock of the bank, on November 20th, 1849, amounted to £179,990. 6s., at which time 4461 depositors, 56 Charitable societies, and 42 Friendly societies had accounts with the bank. Of the depositors there were 2329 whose respective balances did not exceed £20; 1138 were above £20 and not exceeding £50; 587 were above £50 and not exceeding £100; 253, not exceeding £150; 134 not exceeding £200; and 20 exceeding the latter amount. The bank is open on Monday and Saturday, from 11.30, a.m. to 1.30, p.m. Mr. Charles Blount, _Actuary_. The gross amount of the capital invested by the Charitable Societies, amounts to £307. 14s. 5d.; and of the Friendly Societies, to £18,362. 5s. 4d.

THE ROYAL BATHS, situated at Benbow-place, were established in 1831, by Mr. William Onions. The front of the building exhibits a chaste design, being ornamented by a portico, supported by two Ionic pillars, and two pilasters. The conveniences, are varied and ample, and such as are only to be met with in the first rate establishments in the kingdom. The moderate charges and strict attention to cleanliness and comfort will, no doubt, insure to them an extensive patronage. The swimming bath is of sufficient dimensions to enable persons to learn or practice the art of swimming; there are also hot, air, vapour, shower, warm, medicated, salt, and fresh water baths in constant readiness. A charge of 21s. per annum is made for the use of the swimming bath, and sixpence for a single bath.

THE SHREWSBURY WATERWORKS were established, by a company of shareholders, under an act of parliament, obtained in 1830, for the purpose of affording the inhabitants a constant supply of water from the Severn. The works are situated in Chester-street, and the water is raised by means of a steam engine, capable of throwing up 20,000 gallons per hour, into a large reservoir near the top of Pride-hill, and thence distributed in pipes to all parts of the town. The town is also gratuitously supplied with excellent water from a fine spring called Broadwell, near Crow Meole, distant about two miles, being conducted thence to conduits placed in different parts of the town for the convenience of the inhabitants. Few towns have such an excellent and abundant supply of this fine beverage of nature.

THE GAS WORKS are situated in the Castle Foregate, near the goods depôt of the Shrewsbury and Ellesmere canal. They were established in 1820 by a company of shareholders with a capital stock of £10,000 raised in £10 shares. The luminous vapour is supplied from three gasometers which will hold together 80,000 cubic feet of gas.

THE RAILWAY STATION.—The united station of the Shrewsbury and Chester, the Shrewsbury and Birmingham, and the Shrewsbury and Stafford branch of the Shropshire Union Railway, is a magnificent structure in the perpendicular style of architecture, situated near the Castle-gates. It exhibits a frontage of 150 feet in length, and two stories in height, with a square tower in the centre, ornamented with a richly carved battlement, with octagonal turrets of considerable elevation, at the corners. On each side of the tower extends a large wing, divided into four equal spaces by projecting turrets. The ridge of the roof is finished with an ornamental cast iron crest, and the windows are divided by stone transoms and mullions. The total cost of the station-house, offices, and engineering works, was £51,000; the goods, engine-station, and other necessary works £20,000. The gross cost of the above works, including the viaduct of the Severn, contiguous to the station, and the bridge over Castle Foregate, exceeded £100,000.

The ground floor is appropriated to booking offices, waiting rooms, and a large refreshment room; above are the offices for the clerks, and other offices. The platforms respectively measure 600 feet, and 450 in length, and 16 feet wide. A wrought iron roof, beautifully designed, of 70 feet span, covers the platforms and lines of rails for a space of 450 feet. The goods and coal depots are situated between the station and Coton-hill, with convenient access from Castle Foregate-street: here an abundance of coal, lime, and slates is always on hand. Near the station is the _Viaduct_ over the Severn, consisting of seven elliptical arches, 45 feet span. The rails are 36 feet above the ordinary level of the river. A cast iron bridge of sixty-four feet span, from the Brymbo iron works, carries the Shrewsbury and Chester railway over the Castle Foregate. The whole of the works were executed by Mr. Brassey, the contractor, under the direction of Mr. James Baylis, the resident engineer, at the joint expense of the several companies whose lines unite in Shrewsbury.

LORD HILL’S COLUMN, erected to commemorate the brilliant victories and achievements of that distinguished warrior, stands on rising ground near the entrance of Abbey Foregate, from the London road, and forms a conspicuous and interesting object to the surrounding country. This fine Doric pillar, considered to be the largest in the world, was completed on the 18th of June, 1816, at a cost of £5,973. 13s. 2d. The pedestal, which is square, has a buttress at each angle, on which is a lion couchant, worked out of Grinshill free stone, of which material is the column. The chastely fluted shaft is surmounted by a cylindrical pedestal, supporting a statue of his lordship, of colossal proportions, executed in artificial stone, by Messrs. Coade and Sealey, London. The statue is 17 feet high, and the height of the pillar 116 feet, making a total height of 133 feet from the ground to the top of the statue. A beautiful spiral staircase, the munificent donation of the builder, Mr. Straphen, winds round the interior of the shaft, and opens on the summit, at the base of the pedestal of the statue, whence the visitor will enjoy a beautiful panoramic view of Shrewsbury and the fertile plains of Shropshire, unrivalled in extent and splendour. On the sides of the pedestal are inscriptions, recording the victories of the gallant general, to whose honour this voluntary tribute of Salopian esteem was erected.

THE ARMOURY, situated near to St. Giles’ church, is a spacious brick edifice, built by government in 1806, at an expense of £10,000, and intended as a depôt for containing the arms of the volunteer corps of this and the adjoining counties. The principal building is 135 feet long by 39 feet wide, divided into an upper and lower story, capable of containing 25,000 stand of arms; at each angle is a small residence, and within the enclosure are two magazines for ammunition. The arms having been removed to Chester, the premises have remained unoccupied ever since. The structure now presents a dilapidated appearance; it has become by purchase the property of Lord Berwick.

THE COUNTY COURT OFFICES for the recovery of debts not exceeding £20 are situate in Wyle Cop. The court contains within its jurisdiction the following parishes and places, viz.:—Acton Burnell, Alberbury, Albrighton, Astley, Atcham, Baschurch, Battlefield, Berrington, Cardington, Cardiston, Church Preen, Church Pulverbatch, Church Stretton, Condover, Cound, Cressage, Easthope, Eaton-under-Haywood, Eaton Constantine, Fitz, Ford, Frodesley, Great Harwood, Great Ness, Habberley, Hadnal, Harley, Haughmond Demesne, Hope Bowdler, Hughley, Kenley, Leebotwood, Leighton, Little Ness, Longnor, Melverley, Meole Brace, Middle, Minsterley, Montford, Petton, Pitchford, Pontesbury, Preston Gubballs, Ruckley and Langley, Rushbury, Shineton, Shipton, Shrawardine, Shrewsbury—viz.: St. Chad, St. Julian, St. Mary except Clive, and Holy Cross and St. Giles, and Smethcott, Stapleton, Sutton, Uffington, Uppington, Upton Magna, Westbury, Withington, Wolstaston, Wollaston and Wroxeter.—_Judge_: Uvedale Corbett, Esq., Aston Hall.—_Clerk_: Joshua John Peele, Esq., Murivance.—_High Bailiff_: Mr. Henry Bloxham, St. Mary’s square.—_Bailiffs_: Edward Bury and Richard Prinn.

THE CATTLE MARKET or NEW SMITHFIELD, situated near the banks of the Severn, on a plot of land called Raven Meadow, is approached from the lower part of Mardol, and the Castle gates nearly opposite the railway station. This market covers four acres of land, and is not surpassed by any provincial market in England for the conveniences it affords, and its adaptation to the purposes intended. It was opened on November 19th, 1850. The total cost has been £15,000, of which £2500 was expended in raising the ground. A lofty brick wall surrounds the market, which is capable of affording accommodation for 700 horses, 1400 cattle, 5000 sheep, and 1000 pigs, with suitable trial ground for the horses, appropriate pens for the sheep and pigs, and a long range of sheds under the north wall for the cattle. If the tolls are not sufficient to pay the interest of the money borrowed for the formation of the market, the act of parliament authorizes a rate upon the town to meet the deficiency. The market or fair is held every alternate Tuesday, when stock of all kinds is brought in very considerable quantities for sale.

FAIRS for cattle, horses, sheep, pigs, and fat stock are held every alternate Tuesday. The following will be the dates for the year 1851, viz.:—January 14, 28; February 11, 25; March 11, 25; April 8, 22; May 6, 20; June 3, 17; July 1, 15, 29; August 12, 26; September 9, 23; October 7, 21; November 4, 18; December 2, 16, 30.

BUTTER AND CHEESE FAIR is held on the Wednesday following the first fair in each month.

THE WOOL FAIR takes place on July 1 and August 26.

THE ENGLISH BRIDGE is a substantial and elegant structure, 400 feet in length, and composed of seven arches, crowned by a bold balustrade. It was erected in 1774, at an expense of £15,710, of which £11,494 was raised by voluntary subscriptions. The central arch is sixty feet in width, and forty in height, which is double the height of the end arches, and consequently disagreeably steep; the breadth of the thoroughfare is also inconveniently narrow (only twenty-five feet) for the innumerable carriages and passengers which are continually passing over it. The object in its construction was to contrive as much space as possible for the water during floods. With the exception of this defect, its architectural beauty is surpassed by few bridges in the kingdom; it is highly ornamental to the town, and an equally noble monument of the public spirit of the gentry of the county. The keystone of the central arch is adorned with a fine head of Sabrina, “goddess of the river,” and that on the opposite side with a head of Neptune, the “father of fountains.” The keystones of the other arches are worked into a shell; on the central piers of the arches are finely carved dolphins.

The old English bridge, built probably by the abbots and burgesses conjointly, was taken down on the completion of the present structure. It was constructed on seventeen arches, and extended over the main stream, also an arm of the river now filled up which flowed into the Meole Brook; its length was 864 feet, and the breadth only 12 feet, being greatly encumbered with houses. Near the eastern extremity was a gate and a strong embattled tower, with chamber and portcullis, and beyond a draw-bridge.

THE WELSH BRIDGE, so called on account of the road from Shrewsbury to a considerable part of North Wales lying over it, is situated at the foot of Mardol, and crosses the river into the populous suburb of Frankwell. It is a bold and substantial structure, consisting of five arches, the length being 266 feet and the breadth 30 feet, completed in 1795, at an expense of £8000, raised by subscriptions. The old Welsh bridge taken down on the erection of the above structure, was situated a few yards higher up the stream than the present fabric. It was a most interesting monument of antiquity, and consisted of seven arches, with massive gate towers at each extremity, in the finest style of castellated building. Leland, who visited Shrewsbury in 1539, in describing this bridge says:—“It is the greatest, faynest, and highest upon the stream, having six great arches of stone; it standeth on the west syde of the towne, and hath at the one end of it a great gate to enter by into the towne; and at the other end towardes Wales a mighty stronge towre to prohibit enemies to enter on the bridge.” Above one of the gates stood an armed statue of a knight, which was removed in 1791, and placed in a niche in front of the Market-house. This effigy was an important object of attraction to the Welshmen, from a tradition, that it represented Llewelyn, Prince of Wales. Antiquaries, from its attendant embellishments, state it represented Richard Duke of York. The tolls arising from marketable goods over this bridge were abolished by the payment of £6000 to the corporation, which sum was raised by public subscriptions.

THE RAILWAY VIADUCT over the Severn, situated a little east from the station, consists of seven elliptical arches, forty-five span, and thirty-six feet above the ordinary level of the river. The whole has a bold, massive, and elegant appearance.—A BRIDGE of cast iron of sixty-four feet span, crosses the Castle Foregate, and carries the four lines of rails of the Chester and Shrewsbury railway.—A WOODEN BRIDGE, consisting of two timber arches, eighty-five feet span each, on the bow and spring principle, leads from the public walk called the Dana, over the railway station, to the front of the county gaol.

TRADE AND MANUFACTURES.—The trade of this town was once esteemed of great importance to the kingdom, and though its consequence has been eclipsed by the subsequent increase of other places, yet it has never been destitute of a considerable share of internal commerce. In early times it was distinguished for its glove cloth, and shoe manufactories, but its ancient traffic in Welsh woollens was in a great measure the cause of the former opulence of Shrewsbury. Camden, in his account of the town in 1586, observes:—“It is a fine city, and of good commerce; and by the industry of the citizens and their cloth manufacture, and their trade with the Welsh, is very rich, for hither the Welsh commodities are brought as to the common mart.” Pennant, who wrote more than half a century ago, says:—“From very early days this place possessed almost exclusively the trade with Wales, in a coarse kind of woollen cloth called Welsh webs, which were brought from Merinoth and Montgomeryshire to a market held here weekly on Thursday. They were afterwards dressed, that is, the wool raised on one side, by a set of people called shearmen. At the time of Queen Elizabeth the trade was so great, that not fewer than 600 persons maintained themselves by this occupation. The cloth was sent chiefly to America to clothe the negroes, or to Flanders, where it is used by the peasants. At present the greatest part of this traffic is diverted into other channels, and not more than four or five hundred thousand yards are brought to the ancient mart.” The stout Welshmen were accustomed to come to the market, with troops of hardy ponies, each with a halter of twisted straw, and laden with bales of cloth.

It was a practice of the drapers and shearmen to assemble at the Market-house at two o’clock, and according to ancient usage proceed up stairs in seniority. The traffic was a ready money business, and as the Welshmen left much of their cash behind them, in exchange for groceries, malt, and other commodities, the loss of such a trade may easily be conceived, when it is said that more than six hundred pieces of web have been sold in one day. The Welsh flannels were formerly made by the rural population, and the small farmers employed their female domestics at leisure hours in this business. These seldom made more than four or five pieces during the year, and those from the wool of their own flocks. The principal manufacturers were farmers, who maintained servants solely for that purpose, and hired weavers by the year. They produced forty or fifty pieces annually at market, each measuring from 100 to 150 yards; and, as it was a ready money trade, many of them made considerable sums. At present, chiefly from the introduction of spinning mills and the power loom, this ancient domestic manufacture is almost swept away. The market, formerly held here every Thursday, is now removed to Welshpool, Newton, and Llanidloes, which has nearly caused the total extinction of this branch of local commerce. There are now only two flannel merchants in the town, and they visit the different localities in which the flannels are manufactured to purchase their goods.

The general trade and prosperity of Shrewsbury are said to have been very much injured by the exactions of its guilds or incorporated companies, the most considerable of which are the drapers and the mercers. The former were incorporated by Edward IV., and united with an ancient guild or fraternity of the Holy Trinity, founded in the church of St. Mary. Their company is recognised by several subsequent acts of parliament. They have now a considerable estate, originally purchased by the voluntary contributions of the members, which is expended in the support of the inmates of St. Mary’s almshouses, in liberal subscriptions to the charitable institutions of the town, and in relief to widows and families of deceased members. On the south-west side of St. Mary’s church is the Drapers’ Hall, a curious half-timbered building, erected, probably, about the time of Elizabeth. The large room, finely wainscotted with old oak, contains two massive oak tables, and a fine old chest, with richly carved ornaments. Portraits of the royal founder of the company, and of Degory Watur and his spouse, decorate the wainscot. Among the records of the Drapers’ Company are the following:—“25 Elizabeth, 1583, ordered that no draper set out for Oswestry on Monday before six o’clock, on forfeiture of 6s. 8d., and that they should wear their weapons all the way, and go in company. Not to go over the Welsh Bridge before the bell tolls six.”—“27 of Elizabeth, 1585, a market was held at Knocking, and a halfpenny paid by the drapers for every piece of cloth bought.”—“1621, agreed to buy no more cloth in Oswestry.”

The Mercers were incorporated by Edward IV., on condition that they should maintain a priest to sing at the altar of St. Michael in the collegiate church of St. Chad; that they should give a penny a week to thirteen poor men, to pray for the good estate of the king, his family, and themselves; and also find a wax taper to be carried before the holy sacrament on the procession of Corpus Christi, on the celebration of which day it was customary for all the companies to unite as their grand anniversary, and preceded by their masters and wardens, ornamented with colours and curious devices they attended the bailiffs and members of the corporation, who, with the friars of the convents and the parochial clergy, followed the holy sacrament, which was borne by priests under a rich canopy of velvet, to a stone cross without the town (probably that now called the Weeping Cross). Here all joined in bewailing their sins, and in chanting forth petitions for a plentiful harvest; they then returned in the same order to the church of St. Chad, when a grand mass was celebrated. Three days of unbounded jollity and recreation followed this magnificent festival. These were held on a piece of ground called “KINGSLAND,” where each company had its “arbour,” and the several incorporated communities, accompanied by bands of music, flags, and devices emblematical of their craft, preceded by a “King” or some other principal personage, assembled at their respective arbours and spent the time with much festivity. After the reformation the religions ceremony was abolished, but one day of entertainment is still observed under the denomination of the SHREWSBURY SHOW, now held on the second Monday after Trinity Sunday. Each company has still its arbour or pavilion, adorned with the arms of the company, in which refreshments are provided. These are visited by the mayor and corporation, who used formerly to wear their robes of office upon this occasion. The following is an entry from the books kept by the bailiffs, dated 1521:—“Wine to the Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield, president of our lord the king’s council in the marches of Wales at the general procession of Corpus Christi, 3s. 8d.” The show was revived and kept up with much pageantry in 1850. The ancient _Tailors’ Hall_ formerly stood on College Hill; the _Weavers’ Hall_ on Wyle Cop; the _Cloth Workers’ Hall_ in High-street, and the _Mercers’ Hall_ in the King’s Head Shutt. The chief manufactories at the present time in Shrewsbury are the extensive establishment of Messrs. Marshall and Co., for flax spinning and the manufacture of linen thread, where upwards of 800 operatives are employed. The factory is a spacious and lofty building, situated in St. Michael-street; the aggregate amount of steam power employed is equal to 116 horses. Linen was formerly extensively manufactured here; a linen and flax mill was taken down about fifteen years ago; there are now only about half a dozen hands employed in weaving linen. The cotton manufacture was introduced into Shrewsbury in 1790, when several factories were built at Coleham, and the trade was carried on in a spirited manner. In 1817 the proprietor, in consequence of a great depression in trade, declined business, since which the mills have been closed, and some portion of them converted into cottage tenements. _Malting_ is very extensively carried on, as will be seen in reference to the trades’ list, which will show thirty different firms. _Glass Staining_ has been brought to the highest state of perfection by Mr. David Evans, whose ingenious talents and consummate skill have raised the art to a degree of perfection unequalled in modern times. The beautiful specimens visible in the restorations of Winchester and Lichfield cathedrals, in most of the churches of Shrewsbury, and in churches almost in all parts of the kingdom, will compare with some of the finest works of the ancient masters, and speak his merits more forcibly to the refined taste than whole volumes of feeble encomiums. There are several _Iron-founderies_, and the manufacture of _Agricultural Implements_ is carried onto a considerable extent, with _Tanning_ and other branches of trade as will be seen on reference to the trades’ directory. Among the delicacies for which the town is noted is the _Shrewsbury Cake_, a delicious sweet cake, which the poet Shenstone speaks of as “Rend’ring through Britain’s isle Salopian’s praises known.” The _Simnel Cake_ is also much admired, and great quantities are made about the season of Christmas. It consists of an exterior crust or shell deeply tinged with saffron, enclosing a compound of rich fruit. _The Shrewsbury Brawn_ is highly celebrated among the connoisseurs of this ancient Christmas dish.

THE QUARRY.—This fine public promenade occupies a rich sloping meadow of about twenty acres, on the west side of the town, and derives its name from a disused stone quarry nearly in the centre, which supplied a considerable part of the red sand stone visible in the older portions of the walls and churches of Shrewsbury. An avenue of lofty lime trees, more than five hundred yards in length, follows the windings of the Severn; to the middle and at each end of which, three other shaded walks lead from various parts of the town. “The still retirement and pleasing gloom of this delightful grove, from which the noise of the busy town, and even a prospect of its buildings, are almost entirely excluded—the refreshing coolness of its shade—the rich verdure which ever clothes its meadow—the fine sweep of its umbrageous arch—and the majestic flow of the river, which here combine to render it the favourite and constant resort of the inhabitants, and a principal attraction to the stranger.” The opposite bank of the Severn rises abruptly, and is crowned with the House of Industry, an extensive and handsome building, and some modern plantations, contribute greatly to embellish the scene, and render it one of the finest public walks in the kingdom. The ground was planted and laid out during the mayoralty of Henry Jenks, Esq., in the year, 1719, previous to which it was a waste plot of land, where the inhabitants were used to indulge in feats of wrestling, tilting and other sports. In a place called the Dingle, planted with a clump of magnificent trees, are the remains of a rude amphitheatre, with ascending seats cut in the bank, where the friars of the adjacent convent entertained the Salopians with those ancient, sacred dramas, called mysteries or Whitsun plays, so famous in the days of our ancestors. Here, also, during the reign of Elizabeth, many plays were exhibited, in which the scholars of the free school sustained the principal characters; among which, in 1565, was a play called Julian the Apostate, and two years afterwards was exhibited the passion of Christ. It is said that the Queen herself intended to have honoured the last with her presence, and had even arrived as far as Coventry on her way, but hearing that it was over she returned to London. The corporation in the year 1569 leased the quarry to three persons for ten years, for the consideration of a red rose yearly, on condition that they should bring the water from Broadwell, near Crow Meole, in leaden pipes as high as it would run into the town of Shrewsbury. By this means the water was first brought into the town; the work was completed in the year 1574, and then the conduits were first opened.

THE HORSE RACES are held annually in the second week in May, and continue for two days; they attract a considerable influx of visitors to the town, but are not so celebrated as they were in former times. The race course is situated a quarter of a mile N.N.E. from the Abbey Church, on the road leading to Monk Moor. It also bears the name of “the soldiers’ piece,” and is pointed out by tradition as the spot on which the unfortunate Charles I., when at Shrewsbury in 1642, drew up his army and addressed the assembled gentry of the county on the subject of his distresses.

THE ASSEMBLY ROOM was erected in 1777, at the back of the Lion Hotel; the room is commodious and suitably decorated, and the balls are usually attended by the rank and fashion of the county.

THE BILLIARD ROOMS are situated in the Market-square; the third story of the Music Hall has been divided into convenient apartments, which are now occupied as billiard rooms, of which Mr. Edward Vaughan is the proprietor.

AQUATIC EXCURSIONS.—Much pleasure and healthy exercise is afforded on the Severn during the summer months, and an emulation of skill is frequently excited among the rowers. Boats may be hired at a moderate charge, and pleasure parties frequently take an excursion up the river to the picturesque and shady banks of Berwick and the Isle, or to the rural village of Uffington. The Severn also affords much pleasure to the votaries of the “gentle craft,” the river being celebrated for the excellency of its salmon, besides which trout, pike, grayling, perch, and many other sorts of fish are caught.

KINGSLAND is a plot of ground covering twenty-seven acres on the south west side of the town, the common property of the burgesses, thirty of whom in rotation receive annually 4s. 6d. from its produce, in lieu for a “turn for their kine.” It is studded with small enclosures and “arbours,” to which the several incorporated trading companies of the town annually resort in procession on the Monday after Trinity Sunday, accompanied by bands of music and devices emblematical of their craft; a more particular account of which has been noticed with the various guilds.

MONASTIC FOUNDATIONS.—_The Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul_, which stood on the eastern banks of the Severn, in the suburb which still bears its name, owes its foundation to Roger de Montgomery, the first Norman Earl of Shrewsbury. In the time of the Saxons it is said a church stood on or near this spot, and a community of monks was in all probability united to it. The Danes, during their ravages in the ninth century, plundered and depopulated monastic institutions, and this it is conjectured fell with the rest. The kingdom becoming more settled under the reign of Edgar, many of the abbey churches which had till then laid desolate were taken possession of by secular priests, who, swerving from the strictness of monastic life, engaged in the active concerns of society. Such, apparently, was the state of the monastery of Shrewsbury at the time of the Norman invasion. The church, then a rude edifice of wood, was governed by Odelirius, a priest, who as archpresbyter, presided over a college of married secular clergy. Its district was called the parish of the city. From the fact that the portion of each prebend, at the death of the incumbent, should revert to the monks of a new abbey, there can be no doubt that at this period it was collegiate. This was the cause of much litigation, it being customary for ecclesiastical livings to descend as by inheritance to the next of blood. These claims were, however, abolished during the reign of Henry I. In the seminary belonging to this ancient church, a priest named Seward is mentioned as an eminent teacher, and to him the historian Ordericus Vitalis owed his education.

When Roger de Montgomery took possession of his territories in Shropshire, he determined to refound the monastery, and to introduce into it the monks of his favourite order, St. Benedict, whom he invited over from a religious house founded on the estates of Mabel, his first Countess, at Sees, in Normandy. He obtained the land on which the monastery of Shrewsbury stood from Siward, a Saxon nobleman, and in 1083 laid the foundation of a magnificent abbey, which, when finished, was re-dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul, the patrons of the ancient monastery. With the consent of his Countess, Adelaisa, he retired to the holy solitude of his monastery and received the tonsure and habit of a monk, on which occasion he presented the fraternity with the tunic of Hugh, the sainted abbot of Clugin, in Burgundy, which vestment he occasionally wore, doubtless in anxious hope of its communicating some portion of the sanctity of its former possessor. In the immediate prospect of his dissolution he invested himself with this precious relic, thus exemplifying the pitiable superstition of those who “put on the weeds of Dominic or Franciscan and think to pass disguised.” He was buried in the Lady Chapel, between the two altars.

His second son, Hugh, succeeded to the Earldom of Shrewsbury, soon after which he paid a solemn visit to the abbey, to do homage to the tomb of his father, on which occasion, though of a profligate and cruel character, he added greatly to the endowments of the institution; and, among other things, conferred on the monks the tithe of all the venison of his forests in Shropshire, that of Wenlock excepted. The barons who attended Earl Hugh, imitated his munificence and conferred large estates on the abbey. By these and other acquisitions the revenues of the house were greatly enriched, and the abbot obtained the honour of ranking among those spiritual barons who sat and voted in parliament, had the authority of bishops within their houses, wore the mitre, sandals, and gloves, carried silver crosiers in their hands, gave their episcopal benediction, conferred the lesser orders, and in some instances were exempt from all authority of the diocesan. It is uncertain when these high functions were first exercised, but the abbot of Shrewsbury is mentioned among the spiritual lords who voted in parliament in the 49th of Henry III.