In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Newtown like this:
NEWTOWN, a decayed town and a chapelry in Calbourne parish, Isle of Wight. The town stands on acreek of its own name, 1 mile S by W of the Solent, and 4¼ E of Yarmouth: was originally called Francheville; belonged anciently to the Bishops of Winchester; received from Aymer, half-brother of Henry III., a charter which was confirmed by several kings; passed to the Crown in the time of Edward I.; was destroyed by the Danes in 1001, and by the French in 1377; was rebuilt, after the latter date, under the name of Newtown; never re-acquired its previous importance, in consequence ofits trade having been attracted mainly to Newport; retained sufficient importance in 1585 to be then invested with the privilege of sending two members to parliament; continued to send them till the passing of the reform actin 1832, when it was disfranchised; fell gradually and continuously, not withstanding its borough character, into a state of decadence; is now so reduced as to comprise only a way-side inn, a small church, a town hall of 1699, a farm-house, and about a score of cottages; and presents memorials of its former greatness in the names of houseless lanes at and near it, as High-street, Gold-street, Kay-street, Drapers-alley. ...
The church was rebuilt in 1837; incorporates a fragment of a previous old church; and is a high-shouldered building, in the early English style. Several large salterns are on the shores of the creek, below the church. A good harbour is in the creek's mouth, and admits vessels of 500 tons. Pop. of the town in 1861, 99. Houses, 22. The chapelry has no defined limits; and is annexed to therectory of Calbourne, in the diocese of Winchester.
Newtown through time
Newtown is now part of the Isle of Wight district. Click here for graphs and data of how the Isle of Wight has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Newtown itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Newtown, in The the Isle of Wight and Hampshire | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/20388
Date accessed: 27th April 2024
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