Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for CHISWICK

CHISWICK, a village, a parish, and a sub-district in Brentford district, Middlesex. The village stands on Stane-street, and on the river Thames, adjacent to the loop-line of the London and Reading railway, 7½ miles WSW of St. Paul's, London; and has a station on the railway, and a post office under Turnham-Green, London, W. It is a pleasant picturesque place, amid charming environs, with many elegant mansions. Measures were adopted in 1858 for effecting sewerage, acquiring and managing gas-works, and making and maintaining a wharf. The church has a fine old tower; and it and the churchyard contain the ashes of Sir Thomas Chaloner the courtier of Elizabeth's times, Holland the actor, Hogarth the painter, Rose the translator of Sallust, Loutherburg the painter, Kent the landscape-gardener, Ralph the Dunciad hero, Griffiths the first editor of the Mouthly Review, Foscolo the engraver, Dr. Morell, Earl Macartney, Mary the third daughter of Cromwell, the stern Duchess of Cleveland, and some other celebrities. An old-fashioned red brick house, in a lane not far from the church, belonged to Hogarth's father-in-law, Sir James Thornhill; was, for many years, Hogarth's summer residence; and was inhabited from 1814 till 1826, by Cary, the translator of Dante. -The parish includes also the village of Turnham-Green, and the hamlets of Stamford-Brook, Strand-on-the-Green, and Little-Sutton. Acres, 1, 311. Real property, £26, 159. Pop., 6, 505. Houses, 1, 223. The property is not much divided. The manor belongs to the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's; and part of it is leased by the Duke of Devonshire. Chiswick House, on the Duke's part of the manor, occupies the site of a previous mansion, the seat of Carr, the favourite of James; was built by the architectural Earl Burlington, in imitation of one by Palladio near Vicenza; is adorned with a portico rising from two flights of steps, and crowned by an eight-sided dome; has wings, which were added by Wyatt; contains a rich collection of pictures; and was the death-place of Fox and Canning. The grounds connected with it are extensive; were laid out by Kent, in the most ornate Italian style, contain many architectural and sculptural ornaments; and are thrown open to the public, on occasion of the Horticultural Society's feats. The gardens of that Society are adjacent; possess great wealth of both indigens and exotics; and have contributed greatly to the advancement of horticulture. The third daughter of Cromwell, Lady Falkonberg, lived at Sutton Court, the mansion of the parochial manor; Earl Macartney died at Coruey House, a seat of the Russells, now demolished; Zoffany the painter, and Joseph Miller, the true "Joe" of facetious memory, lived at Strand-on-the-Green; and Sir John Chardin, the oriental traveller, and Lord Heathfield, the defender of Gibraltar, lived at Turnham-Green. A Roman urn, containing sliver coins, was dug up, on the line of stane-street, in 1731. The living is a vicarage, with St. Mary Magdalene chapelry, in the diocese of London. Value, £601. Patrons, the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's. The vicarage of Turnham-Green is a separate benefice. There are an Independent chapel and national schools. The sub-district is co-terminate with the parish.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a village, a parish, and a sub-district"   (ADL Feature Type: "populated places")
Administrative units: Chiswick St Nicholas CP/AP       Chiswick SubD       Brentford RegD/PLU       Middlesex AncC
Place: Chiswick

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