WESTPORT.
Westport was a separate settlement linked to
Malmesbury by a short stretch of road along a
narrow ridge and, as its name implies, it lay outside
the west gate of Malmesbury. (fn. 1) It had a church
in the late Saxon period, and later both Brokenborough and Charlton churches were dependent
on Westport church. (fn. 2) Nearly all the land around
the town of Malmesbury belonged to Malmesbury
abbey, possibly from soon after its foundation in
the 7th century, and, perhaps before the Conquest
when St. Paul's church in Malmesbury may have
been standing, (fn. 3) the abbey assigned some of the
land to Westport church as a parish. Apart from
Brokenborough and Charlton, the parish had an
irregular shape almost like a figure 8 with the
church and main settlement in the centre: it comprised land north, west, and south-west of the
town and included the hamlets or farmsteads called
Filands and Thornhill and possibly a hamlet called
Walcot. (fn. 4) As a suburb of Malmesbury, part of the
settlement called Westport was within the boundary of Malmesbury borough. The land owned by
the borough, in the early 17th century called
King's Heath, was added to Westport parish and
extended the parish south-westwards: most of
King's Heath, the south-west part, was later called
Malmesbury common. (fn. 5) In 1840 the parish was
2,036 a. (824 ha.). For reasons suggested elsewhere much of the parish boundary was irregular
and six small areas, mainly embraced by Malmesbury and Brokenborough parishes, were
detached. (fn. 6) The Westport parish boundary followed a tributary of the Sherston branch of the
Bristol Avon south of Malmesbury, both the Sherston Avon and the Tetbury branch of the Avon
west of Malmesbury, and short stretches of road
in several places. For a short distance the boundary
was the town wall of Malmesbury. For most of
its length, however, the parish boundary was not
marked by prominent features, and to the west
that with Brokenborough through Hyam park was
defined only in 1838. (fn. 7)
Parts of Malmesbury common, a total of 16 a.
belonging to the lord of Foxley manor and the
rector of Foxley, were claimed by both Westport
and Foxley c. 1840 (fn. 8) and were in Foxley in 1885.
Between 1840 and 1884 c. 13 a. in various fields
north and north-west of the town were transferred
from Westport to Brokenborough. Between 1882
and 1884 one of the detached areas of Westport
was transferred to Brokenborough and five were
transferred to Malmesbury, small exchanges were
made between Westport and Malmesbury, and a
detached part of Bremilham parish, 8 a. near the
town, was transferred to Westport. (fn. 9) Most of the
settlement was assigned to Malmesbury urban
sanitary district when it was created in 1872 and
was included in Malmesbury municipal borough
in 1886. (fn. 10) The remainder of the parish, 1,961 a.
(794 ha.), was added to St. Paul Malmesbury
Without parish in 1896. In 1894 the Westport part
of the municipal borough became the civil parish
of Westport St. Mary Within. It absorbed the civil
parish of Brokenborough Within in 1897 and
thereafter measured 91 a. (37 ha.). (fn. 11) In 1934 it
was merged with the other civil parishes of the
borough to form a new Malmesbury parish. Lands
west and north of the town and formerly in Westport parish were added to Malmesbury in 1984. (fn. 12)
Westport 1840
Kellaways Clay outcrops over most of the
former parish, especially in the south-west where
Malmesbury common is flat and mostly below 80
m. Higher land lies at 91 m. in the north-east,
where two areas of Oxford Clay outcrop, and in
the west. Much of those areas of the parish was
for long pasture. Both branches of the Avon and
the south-east boundary stream have exposed terraces of Cornbrash and strips of clay of the Forest
Marble: the Cornbrash favours tillage and limestone has been taken from quarries through the
clay. Sand and gravel have been deposited in a
small area near the northern boundary. The only
steep slope in the parish is in the centre where
the land rises from the rivers to the town wall.
In the west Hyam wood, east of which was a park,
was the only woodland. (fn. 13)
Two main roads from Malmesbury crossed
Westport parish, that north to Tetbury (Glos.)
and Gloucester and that west to Bristol via Sherston. Both were turnpiked in 1756. (fn. 14) Only a short
stretch of the Sherston road, in the suburb of Westport, lay within the parish; it ran along part of
the parish boundary further west, as did the
Malmesbury—Cirencester road north-east of the
town. The Tetbury road was disturnpiked in 1874,
the Sherston road in 1876. (fn. 15) From the Sherston
road a road ran north to Brokenborough, crossing
the Tetbury Avon by Back bridge, apparently so
called in 1478. (fn. 16) The settlements of Westport and
Brokenborough were linked by a road which
apparently forded the Tetbury Avon c. 500 m.
north-west of the west gate: (fn. 17) by 1820 a new stretch
of road had been made on the south bank and
joined the road over Back bridge. (fn. 18) A road through
Filands in use in 1773 carried much of the Chippenham-Tetbury traffic after an eastern bypass was
built around Malmesbury in 1973. (fn. 19)
Before the Sherston road was turnpiked the
main Malmesbury—Bristol road, part of an
Oxford-Bristol road in the later 17th century, led
through the south part of the parish towards Foxley: near Westport it crossed the Sherston Avon
by a bridge, known in the Middle Ages as Turketyl
and later as Westport bridge, and 400 m. south-west of the bridge a road diverged to Malmesbury
common and Corston. (fn. 20) Both roads were in use
in the late 20th century, when that to Corston was
called Common Road. Lanes between Common
Road and Burton Hill in Malmesbury, in use in
the late 18th century, were not public roads in
the late 20th. Others, across Malmesbury common, were replaced in 1832 by straight tracks, running north-east and south-west, (fn. 21) which were still
in use in 1989.
The suburb of Westport was the main settlement in the parish. Filands and Thornhill, hamlets
in the Middle Ages, had each dwindled to one
or two farmsteads by the late 18th century. (fn. 22) In
1801 the population of the parish was 702. It had
risen to 1,023 by 1821 and continued to rise, with
some fluctuations, until 1881, when it was 1,867.
Although land and houses in Bremilham were
added to Westport in the 1880s others were lost
to Brokenborough, and by 1891, the last date for
which a figure for the whole parish is available,
the population had dropped to 1,669. (fn. 23)
Settlement had presumably extended from
Malmesbury into the suburb of Westport by the
late Saxon period. (fn. 24) Westport, so called in 1135, (fn. 25)
is at the town's north-western corner and linked
to it along the ridge by Abbey Row. Buildings
on the west side of the town along lanes called
Burnivale and King's Wall, between the town
walls and the Sherston Avon, were also in Westport parish. In the 19th century the suburb comprised approximately a third of the borough's total
area. (fn. 26) A guildhall stood in Westport c. 1200 (fn. 27) and
from the later 13th century until the 16th the parts
of the borough in the two parishes were distinguished as Westport and Bynport. (fn. 28)
Most buildings of Westport were in King's Wall
and Burnivale, in Abbey Row, in the Sherston
and Tetbury roads leading respectively west and
north from Abbey Row, and in the angle between
the roads. In the late Saxon period the church
was north of the Sherston road near what was until
the 19th century the western edge of the settlement. (fn. 29) By the later 12th century the parish church
had been built west of the Tetbury road, there
later called Gloucester Road. (fn. 30) An open space
south of the church, known from the 19th century
as the Triangle, and another north-west of the
church, called Horsefair from the 17th century,
were presumably market places. A market for
Malmesbury to be held in Westport was granted
in 1252 and later markets and fairs were apparently
held there. (fn. 31) From Horsefair a lane, called Milk
Street in the late 18th century (fn. 32) and later West
Street, ran south to the Sherston road, there called
Bristol Street. Another, called St. Mary's Street,
linked Horsefair to the Triangle. West Street and
the Triangle were linked by Katifer Lane. In the
late 17th century the buildings of Westport were
probably clustered around those streets. (fn. 33) Early
building in Burnivale and King's Wall included
a chapel (fn. 34) and Postern Mill. (fn. 35)
Probably in 1643, when there were both royalist
and parliamentary attacks on Malmesbury, Westport suffered considerable damage, including the
destruction of the parish church. Later 17th century buildings to survive include the Three
Cups in the Triangle and several cottages in Horsefair and Gloucester Road. In King's Wall a large
house was built c. 1700, (fn. 36) and no. 22 Horsefair
bears the date 1703. In the late 18th century lanes,
later called Foundry Road and Harper's Lane, led
respectively north from Horsefair to Gloucester
Road and south-west from Bristol Street towards
Westport bridge. By then settlement had spread
north in Gloucester Road to Staines bridge and
west in Bristol Street to the fork of the Foxley
and Sherston roads. (fn. 37) In the late 18th century and
the early 19th much of Westport was rebuilt. (fn. 38) A
nonconformist chapel was built in Horsefair in
1788 (fn. 39) and a double-fronted house of three storeys
north of Abbey Row bears the date 1798, but most
new building was of terraces of two-storeyed cottages with fronts of stone rubble. (fn. 40) A medieval
range of building west of the church in St. Mary's
Street, standing in 1809, (fn. 41) was apparently replaced
soon afterwards. The increase in the population
of Westport parish in the early 19th century (fn. 42) presumably resulted from new building in the suburb.
There were c. 300 houses there in 1831; (fn. 43) most
were apparently small, and in the 1840s it was
reported that only one was occupied by a member
of the professional classes. (fn. 44)
Another increase in population in the 1860s was
ascribed to the sale of land and the building of
new houses. (fn. 45) Some may have been built in Gastons Road, leading north from Bristol Street,
where there were already a few houses in 1845, (fn. 46)
and some in Burnham Road, which linked Gastons
Road and Horsefair. Commercial and institutional
building also took place in the later 19th century.
A chapel was built in Bristol Street in 1856, a
foundry was opened in Foundry Road c. 1870,
and warehouses at the northern end of Gloucester
Road and a hotel near Staines bridge may have
been built in the 1870s. (fn. 47) Two large houses,
Stainesbridge House and Verona House, were
built near the bridge in 1871 and 1883 respectively, (fn. 48) and Euclid Villas, a pair of very tall Gothic
houses south of Abbey Row, are of similar date.
Cottages were replaced by new terraces in Bristol
Street, where Avon Terrace bears the date 1888,
and St. Mary's Street, where Mansfield Terrace
bears the date 1899. In 1881 the population of
the part of Westport which lay within Malmesbury
urban sanitary district was 1,711; only 156 people
lived elsewhere in the parish. (fn. 49)
In the mid 20th century most new building on
the west side of Malmesbury was local authority
housing in what had been Brokenborough parish.
Within the former Westport parish a scattering of
residential and industrial buildings grew up beside
the Tetbury road, north of Staines bridge where
it was called Tetbury Hill, and on the north side
of Park Road west of Staines bridge. Two large
estates of private houses were built, White Lion
Park south-west of Park Road in the 1960s and
Reed's Farm east of Tetbury Hill in the 1980s.
A garage and light industrial and commercial
buildings replaced earlier buildings north of
Staines bridge in the 1970s and 1980s.
In 1620 four alehousekeepers were recorded in
Westport. (fn. 50) One may have kept the Weaver's
Arms, mentioned in 1666. (fn. 51) The Three Cups and
the Castle, both in the Triangle, were open in
1822; (fn. 52) the Castle was closed after 1956, (fn. 53) the
Three Cups was open in 1989. The Suffolk Arms,
east of Tetbury Hill, was open in 1875 and 1989.
The Bath Arms in Horsefair, the Railway hotel
near Staines bridge, and the Plough beside the
Sherston road, were opened between 1875 and
1885. (fn. 54) The Bath Arms was closed after 1956. (fn. 55)
The Railway hotel, renamed the Flying Monk, was
closed in the 1960s (fn. 56) and demolished c. 1980. (fn. 57)
The Plough was closed in 1970. (fn. 58)
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679), the philosopher,
was born in a house near Westport church and
received his schooling in Westport and Malmesbury. His father Thomas served Brokenborough
church as curate in the early 17th century but lived
at Westport: John Aubrey called him 'an ignorant
Sir John' and wrongly described him as vicar of
Westport. (fn. 59)
Filands was probably a hamlet in the late 13th
century. (fn. 60) It had 17 poll-tax payers in 1377. (fn. 61)
Orchard Farm, north of the road through the hamlet, is of 17th-century origin, and in 1773 the hamlet consisted of that and another farmstead east
of it. (fn. 62) Filands Farm was built west of Orchard
Farm in Malmesbury parish in the early 19th century, and between 1840 and 1885 a brickworks
was built further west. (fn. 63) Two houses were built
near the Cirencester road in the early 20th century,
in the 1930s four pairs of houses were built
between Filands Farm and the brickworks, and
in the later 20th century the brickworks was replaced by a new farmstead called White Lodge
Farm. In 1964 a school was built south-west of
White Lodge Farm. (fn. 64)
Thornhill, also apparently a hamlet in the 13th
century, (fn. 65) had 12 poll-tax payers in 1377, (fn. 66) and
in the Middle Ages Malmesbury abbey had a
grange called Thornhill. (fn. 67) The farmstead called
Archars Farm in 1773 (fn. 68) may mark the site of
Thornhill. It was rebuilt c. 1800 and renamed
Thornhill Farm. By 1820 a new Arches Farm had
been built east of it, (fn. 69) and cottages were built
south-west of it beside Common Road in the late
19th century and the early 20th. Halcombe House,
a substantial later 19th-century house, was built
before 1885 north-east of Thornhill Farm near the
junction of the Foxley road and Common Road, (fn. 70)
and in the later 20th century houses and bungalows
were built near the junction and along the north
side of the Foxley road.
By 1538 a lodge had been built for the keeper
of Hyam wood: (fn. 71) it was probably on the site of
Hyam Park near the boundary between Westport
and Brokenborough. Elsewhere in the parish,
Bremilham Mill and a farmhouse called Back
Bridge were standing in 1773 (fn. 72) and survived in
1989. Between 1820 and 1840 a new Backbridge
Farm was built north-east of, and cottages were
built south of, Back bridge. (fn. 73) A 'smallpox house'
stood west of Thornhill Farm apparently in Westport parish in 1773, (fn. 74) a fever (isolation) hospital
near Back bridge was in use from the 1890s to
1933, and a cemetery for Westport and Malmesbury parishes was opened west of Tetbury Hill
in 1884. (fn. 75)
Manors and other Estates.
The lands
which became Westport parish, like those which
became Malmesbury parish, are likely to have been
held by Malmesbury abbey from or soon after its
foundation in the 7th century. (fn. 76) They belonged
to the abbey in the early Middle Ages, when they
were recorded as part of a large estate called
Brokenborough, (fn. 77) and the abbey kept them until
the Dissolution. (fn. 78)
In 1547 the Crown granted lands south-west of
Malmesbury as THORNHILL manor to Sir
William Herbert (fn. 79) (cr. earl of Pembroke 1551). (fn. 80)
By 1551 the estate had passed, presumably by sale,
to William Stumpe (d. 1552), who settled it on
his wife Catherine for life. Catherine later married
William Basely and died in 1556. Thornhill
passed to her son William Stumpe, (fn. 81) who sold it
in 1576 to William Grymer. (fn. 82) In 1582 Grymer sold
it to John Snell (d. 1587) and Snell's son
Thomas, (fn. 83) who was later knighted. Sir Thomas
(d. 1612) was succeeded by his son Sir Charles,
who, probably c. 1617 and according to John
Aubrey to raise money to provide a ship for Sir
Walter Raleigh's last expedition, sold Thornhill
to John Langton. In 1625 Langton settled the
manor on his son John. By will dated 1660 the
younger John's son John may have devised it with
Easton Piercy manor in Kington St. Michael to
his wife Elizabeth and sister Joan Lewis for 80
years. Either by inheritance or, with Easton
Piercy, by release from Elizabeth and Joan,
Thornhill passed to John's brother Sir Thomas
Langton (d. c. 1672), who was succeeded in turn
by his sons Thomas (d. c. 1696) and Robert. (fn. 84)
In 1704 Robert sold the manor to Thomas Howard, earl of Berkshire (d. 1706). (fn. 85) It was conveyed
by Joan Billers to William Robins and his wife
Anne in 1758, (fn. 86) and by George Spackman to John
Smith and his wife Elizabeth in 1767. (fn. 87) In 1788
the Smiths conveyed it to John Neate. (fn. 88) In 1827
it was apparently sold by Stephen Neate, and in
1839 Richard Blackford and Mary Garlick held
Thornhill farm, 185 a. The farm was sold in 1869, (fn. 89)
probably to C. W. Miles (d. 1892). It presumably
passed with Miles's Burton Hill House estate in
Malmesbury to C. N. Miles and A. C. Miles and
was sold in 1919 by T. A. G. Miles. In 1921 Jesse
Wootton sold the farm, 173 a. (fn. 90) R. S. Smith owned
it in 1927 and 1931. (fn. 91) G. W. Sisum, the owner
in 1939, sold the farm c. 1945. As a farm of 100
a. it was bought in 1962 by J. Neate and in 1969
by Mr. D.J. Grange, the owner in 1989. (fn. 92)
In the later 18th century there was a farm south-west of Malmesbury called ARCHARS. (fn. 93) At the
Dissolution it is likely to have been granted by
the Crown with Burton Hill manor in Malmesbury, which in 1577 was broken up by Adam
Archard and Thomas Hall. (fn. 94) About 1800, when
the farmstead was rebuilt and renamed Thornhill
Farm, (fn. 95) it apparently belonged to the owner of
Thornhill manor. In 1839 Arches farm, 100 a.,
belonged to Josiah Hanks. (fn. 96) With Thornhill farm
it belonged to C. N. Miles in 1910, when it measured c. 150 a., (fn. 97) and it was presumably sold like
Thornhill farm in 1919. In 1927 Arches farm
belonged to H. L. Storey (fn. 98) (d. 1933). Like Burton
Hill House it was bought by the Shaftesbury
Society, which sold it in 1948 to Percy Webb (d.
1985). Webb's sons Mr. Allen Webb and Mr. Roy
Webb owned the farm, 180 a., in 1989. (fn. 99)
After the Dissolution Malmesbury abbey's land
called HYAM, later Hyam park and Hyam farm,
was part of Brokenborough manor. The manor
was granted in 1552 to John Dudley, duke of
Northumberland, who sold it in 1553 to Sir James
Stumpe. It passed to Sir Henry Knyvett and in
the Howard family with the earldoms of Suffolk
and Berkshire. (fn. 100) In 1839 Hyam farm included c.
240 a. in Westport parish. (fn. 101) It was sold by an earl
of Suffolk after 1912, (fn. 102) and was bought in 1927
by T. L. Horn, who sold it in 1939 to his sister-in-law Ursula and her husband G. G. Cox Cox. In
1988 Mrs. Cox Cox owned Hyam farm which then
included c. 150 a. of the former parish of Westport. (fn. 103) Hyam Park was built in the 17th century
as a long north—south range with a main east front.
In the 18th century a short west wing was added
at the south end to make a new symmetrical south
front, in 1922 a west wing was added at the north
end, and in 1927 the south wing and south front
were extended and other alterations were made
to the house. Also in the 1920s a large cattle yard
west of the house, bounded on the west by a stone
barn probably of the 18th century, was made into
gardens. Extensive 20th-century farm buildings
are further west.
An estate called FILANDS was held in 1183–4
and in 1195 by Walter Mautravers (d. before
1201), presumably by knight service of Malmesbury abbey; it passed to his brother John (d.
1220), (fn. 104) and by 1248 may have reverted to the
abbey. (fn. 105) In 1535 the abbey held lands in Westport
formerly Mautravers's, (fn. 106) but after the Dissolution
no separate estate was called Filands.
The land of Filands is likely to have been
granted after the Dissolution as part of Whitchurch
and Milbourne manor in Malmesbury, which
included land in the north-east part of Westport
parish. In 1782 William and Thomas Robins conveyed 42 a., formerly part of that manor, to John
Jefferies, who devised them to Jane Coles. In 1820
she sold the land to Thomas Howard, Viscount
Andover, later earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire, (fn. 107)
and it was reunited with Whitchurch and Milbourne manor. Much of that manor descended
with the Suffolk title and in 1989 belonged to
Michael Howard, earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire, (fn. 108) but it is not clear whether the 42 a. were
part of it. Another part of Whitchurch and Milbourne manor apparently passed with Whitchurch
farm to Richard Kinneir, who in 1839 held 116
a. in Westport. That land passed with the farm
to members of the Elwell family (fn. 109) who held 76
a. in Westport in 1927, (fn. 110) and to Mr. Edward
Weaver, owner of Whychurch farm in 1989. (fn. 111)
In the Middle Ages the Crown held Malmesbury
borough, including the part in Westport parish,
and from 1215 to the Dissolution Malmesbury
abbey held it in fee farm. The Westport part of
the borough and the land adjoining it was from
1628 part of Malmesbury manor, sometimes called
Malmesbury and Westport manor. (fn. 112) In 1839 the
manor, then held by the Revd. George RushoutBowles, included c. 35 a. in Westport. (fn. 113) The lands
passed to Elizabeth, Baroness Northwick (d.
1912), who in 1896 sold the reversion in lots. (fn. 114)
Malmesbury borough, which enjoyed certain
privileges in or before the 11th century, may also
have held lands; more land may have been granted
by Malmesbury abbey after it became fee farmer
of the borough in 1215, (fn. 115) and in the mid 13th century the guild merchant of Malmesbury received
heath land south-west of the town from the abbey
in an exchange. (fn. 116) The borough charter of 1381
ascribed a grant of 5 hides of heath near Norton,
south-west of the town, to King Athelstan: (fn. 117) the
charter clearly indicates that in 1381 the borough
owned KING'S HEATH, but the claim that it had
been given by Athelstan is implausible. In 1839
Malmesbury corporation owned Malmesbury
common, 522 a., and c. 200 a. east and north-east
of it. (fn. 118) In 1989 the burgesses and freemen of
Malmesbury held a total of 718 a., of which c.
670 a. had been in Westport parish. (fn. 119)
In the 13th century Robert of Lea held 1 hide,
apparently what later became BACKBRIDGE farm
but then said to be in Thornhill. (fn. 120) The land probably passed with Lea manor in Lea and Cleverton
parish until the later 16th century and with Boakley farm in Brokenborough until the early 19th. (fn. 121)
In 1340 Sir John Mauduit and his wife Agnes conveyed 88 a. in Thornhill with Lea manor to their
son-in-law John Moleyns. (fn. 122) The estate passed to
Moleyns's son Sir William (d. 1381), who held
it in 1370, (fn. 123) and probably thereafter in the Moleyns
and Hungerford families and to members of the
Hastings family, earls of Huntingdon. An earl of
Huntingdon held an estate in Westport in the mid
16th century, part of which was sold in 1571 with
Boakley farm by Henry Hastings, earl of Huntingdon, to Anthony Webb and in 1593 by Webb
to William Bailey. (fn. 124) At his death in 1621 William
held lands in Westport, (fn. 125) presumably the c. 130
a. held by his great-grandson Anthony Bailey (fl.
1655). As at Boakley farm, later owners were Giles
Bailey, Daniel Bennett, Daniel's son Giles, and
Giles Bailey Bennett. In 1822 Daniel's grandson
Daniel Bennett sold Backbridge farm to Thomas
Howard, earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire. (fn. 126) It
passed with the earldoms to Henry, earl of Suffolk
and of Berkshire, who owned the farm, 106 a.,
in 1912. (fn. 127) By 1927 it had been sold, (fn. 128) and it later
had several different owners.
A small estate including Bremilham Mill passed
with lands in Foxley from Thomas Bremilham to
his son John, to John's son Richard (d. c. 1557),
and to Richard's grandnephew Thomas Nicholas
and great-grandnephew Robert Shipton. Thereafter it apparently passed with Player's farm in
Foxley to Henry Vassall, Baron Holland, (fn. 129) who
in 1839 held c. 70 a. and the mill in Westport
parish. (fn. 130) The estate passed with Foxley manor to
Maj. A. R. Turnor whose son Mr. R. W. C.
Turnor owned the mill and 54 a. in 1989. (fn. 131)
Humphrey Bridges (d. 1598) and his son
Humphrey held jointly an estate in Westport and
adjacent parishes. (fn. 132) At the younger Humphrey's
death in 1609 it comprised c. 100 a. and rights
of common pasture. He was succeeded by his
brother Anthony (fn. 133) (d. 1617), whose heirs were his
sisters Elizabeth, wife of Robert Bridges,
Margaret, wife of John Breath, and Jane, wife of
Richard Stevens, and his nephew Anthony
Bridges. (fn. 134) The later history of the estate has not
been traced.
The endowment of a chantry, founded in Westport church by 1478, (fn. 135) included c. 70 a. in Westport. (fn. 136) In 1564 the lands were conveyed by Henry
Knyvett and his wife Elizabeth to Matthew King. (fn. 137)
In 1569 they were successfully claimed by Thomas
Estcourt, (fn. 138) who in 1571 sold them to John
Stumpe (fn. 139) (d. 1600). Stumpe was succeeded by his
son James, who at his death in 1602 held c. 140
a. in Westport and other parishes and was succeeded by his son William. (fn. 140) No later record of
the Westport part of that estate has been found.
Rents from Westport were given to Bradenstoke
priory by Henry le Bret in 1232 and by Andrew
son of John of Malmesbury in the later 13th century, and in the mid 13th century the priory held
other land there. (fn. 141) In 1535 the priory received
rents totalling 13s. 4d. from Westport. (fn. 142)
Malmesbury abbey was licensed to appropriate
Westport church between 1159 and 1181; the
licence was apparently confirmed in 1191. (fn. 143) Thereafter the abbey owned the RECTORY estate until
the Dissolution, (fn. 144) and afterwards most rectorial
tithes probably passed with the estates from which
they were derived. In the later 16th century rectorial tithes from Thornhill were apparently leased
by the Crown with those from Corston. (fn. 145) The
lessees claimed payment of tithes from the owners
of Thornhill manor, apparently unsuccessfully. (fn. 146)
Some tithes from Thornhill did, however, pass
with those from Corston to R. H. Gaby. (fn. 147) In 1839
Gaby owned great tithes from 143 a. in Westport,
the earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire those from
89 a., the vicar of Malmesbury those from 68 a.,
and the rector of Bremilham those from 10 a.:
the tithes were all commuted in 1840. King's
Heath was tithe free, and tithes from most other
lands in the parish were merged. (fn. 148)
Economic History.
Apart from King's
Heath, which is treated separately below, nearly
all the agricultural land of the parish was worked
by Malmesbury abbey and its tenants in the
Middle Ages. North of the town inhabitants of
Filands may have shared lands with those of Whitchurch, as south of it those of Thornhill may have
done with those of Burton Hill. To the west the
abbey had woods and possibly parkland called
Hyam in demesne.
In the late 13th century the abbey had 14 tenants
at Filands and c. 12 at Thornhill; all were presumably customary tenants. Of those at Thornhill,
one held 60 a., probably arable in open fields, four
others had similar or greater holdings, (fn. 149) and all
presumably had rights to common pasture. In the
late 15th century the abbey had a grange at Thornhill and held demesne land there, apparently in
hand. The land may have been mainly pasture
on which the abbey kept sheep and cattle to supply
its own larder. (fn. 150) In the 1530s the demesne, including arable in the open fields and c. 50 a. of several
pasture and meadow, was leased, perhaps as a
single holding. (fn. 151) In 1539–40 seven tenants shared
18 yardlands; another held 30 a. of arable and the
grange. Works of cutting and gathering hay in
meadows in Westport and Malmesbury parishes
had been commuted, (fn. 152) probably much earlier.
Woodland and a warren at Hyam were leased
separately in 1538. (fn. 153) In 1340 Sir John Mauduit's
88 a. were shared by 5 tenants; the largest holding
was of 60 a. of arable and 3 a. of meadow. (fn. 154) Of
Westport chantry's c. 70 a., a single tenant held
63 a. in the open fields in 1548. (fn. 155)
In the mid 16th century c. 40 a. of Westport
parish north of Malmesbury were part of Whitchurch marsh, a common pasture presumably used
mainly by the men of Whitchurch. South of
Malmesbury, Kemboro field, partly in Malmesbury parish, was worked by tenants of both Burton
Hill and Thornhill manors. Thornhill manor also
included Quarry field, south of the Sherston
branch of the Avon, and Brokenborough field, perhaps north of the river. Its common pasture, part
of Awls or Alice heath, was probably to the south
beside the parish boundary. Between the mid 16th
century and the 19th both arable and pasture were
inclosed, apparently piecemeal, and the number
of farms was reduced. The Thornhill part of Alice
heath had been inclosed by the mid 16th century (fn. 156)
and the latest reference to open-field cultivation
in Westport dates from 1628. (fn. 157) Except for part
of King's Heath, lands in the north half of the
parish may have been the last to be inclosed. The
Westport part of Whitchurch marsh was not mentioned when the Malmesbury part was inclosed
in 1792 under an Act of 1790 and had almost certainly been inclosed earlier. (fn. 158) Common pasture or
open field between the suburb of Westport and
Brokenborough village is likely to have been
inclosed long before 1822 when lands of Backbridge farm were called new inclosures. (fn. 159) The land
of Hyam, which may have been a park in the
Middle Ages, is known to have been one in the
16th century, (fn. 160) and in 1649 comprised 201 a. in
Westport and Brokenborough parishes. (fn. 161) The park
had been extended to c. 400 a., half in each parish,
by c. 1785. (fn. 162)
In the early 19th century most of the parish
was worked in small farms with a high proportion
of pasture. In 1839 c. 750 a. were in farms of
c. 70 a. or more. Hyam farm, 441 a. including
201 a. in Westport, was worked from the farmstead
on the boundary of Brokenborough and Westport,
and 116 a. in the north of the parish were worked
from Whitchurch Farm in Malmesbury with lands
in that parish. Thornhill farm was 160 a., Arches
and Backbridge farms were each c. 100 a., and
the farm attached to Bremilham Mill was 69 a.
Of the remaining lands, c. 700 a. were in farms
of 20–50 a. each and some were in smaller farms.
Most of the farms of less than 50 a. had land near
Malmesbury and were presumably worked as
smallholdings from within the town or the suburb
of Westport. Hyam wood was then 40 a. (fn. 163)
The pattern of farming in the parish had
apparently changed little by the early 20th century.
A market garden on 6 a. beside Tetbury Hill in
1910 (fn. 164) had expanded to occupy 11 a. by 1927. (fn. 165)
In the 1930s most of the agricultural land of the
former parish was still pasture although some
south of the town was arable. (fn. 166) In the 1980s sheep
and beef cattle were reared on Hyam farm, Arches
was an intensive dairy farm, and the lands of
Thornhill farm were permanent pasture; (fn. 167) factories were built on part of Backbridge farm.
In the south-west part of the parish the names
of Cooks heath, Portmans heath, Alice heath, and
Great heath suggest that most of the land was pasture, but in the mid 13th century Cooks heath
and other lands were cultivated. Except for part
of Alice heath, which was used by the men of
Thornhill, from the mid 13th century nearly all
that land belonged to the borough of Malmesbury: (fn. 168) it was later called King's Heath, and from
the 18th century the low lying and badly drained
south-west part of it was called Malmesbury common. (fn. 169) There is no evidence that either pasture
or arable was inclosed in the Middle Ages. In the
late 14th century rights to feed animals on and
to cultivate the land apparently belonged to members of the guild merchant of Malmesbury and
to members of other privileged groups in the
borough, but the details of how they used the land
are obscure. (fn. 170) By c. 1570 lands near the town had
been inclosed and allotted, c. 1570 Cooks heath
was similarly dealt with, (fn. 171) and in 1607 there were
c. 100 a. in closes. (fn. 172) By 1610 more closes had been
allotted (fn. 173) but most of the land was still subject
to common grazing rights. In the early 19th century c. 210 a. were several and holdings varied
from 1 a. to 15 a. (fn. 174) Closes were frequently broken
in the late 16th century and the early 17th: (fn. 175) it
is not clear how far the objection was to inclosure
and how far the result of disputes about how the
borough should be governed. (fn. 176)
Use of King's Heath was regulated by the
borough court. Orders were made in 1620 for stinting on Hundred hill, and in the 1650s forbidding
commoners to feed cattle not their own on the
common pasture. In 1686 regulations for marking
beasts and cutting gorse were issued and in 1691
it was agreed that winter grazing on the common
pasture should be leased to the highest bidder.
In 1669 a fine imposed on a capital burgess for
ploughing his close was remitted because the
change of use was to the general good. Under the
terms of the borough charter of 1685 the alderman
and 12 capital burgesses granted their closes on
21-year leases. The lessees improved the land by
burnbaking and presumably brought them into
cultivation and, when the leases were revoked
under a charter restored in 1690, claimed compensation for the sums spent on improvement. In 1714
the borough court ruled that it was lawful for any
close to be ploughed and sown providing it had
been burned; there was to be a rotation of three
crops, with clover sown in the fourth year. (fn. 177)
In 1760 and presumably earlier inhabitants of
Foxley parish had the right to feed cattle on a small
area of Malmesbury common near Foxley village. (fn. 178)
In the early 19th century the common, described
as a deplorable scene of waste and desolation, was
overgrown with furze and gorse and so badly
drained that it was impassable in bad weather. (fn. 179)
Under an Act of 1821 c. 500 a. were inclosed and
drained in 1832. All but 20 a. were allotted either
to Malmesbury corporation, presumably to be
added to the holdings of those who already had
some inclosed land, or to the trustees of King's
Heath, who were drawn from the corporation and
regulated the commoners' lands. The allotments
to the corporation and trustees were divided into
280 holdings of between 1 a. and 3 a. each. The
remainder was allotted to neighbouring landowners who had grazing rights on the common,
including 15 a. to Henry Vassall, Baron Holland,
lord of Foxley manor. (fn. 180) Thereafter part of what
was still known as Malmesbury common was cultivated. In 1886 only 30 a. were pasture; the main
crops were wheat, grown on 82 a., and potatoes,
grown on 126 a. Stubble was still grazed in common, and 150–200 pigs were usually kept on the
allotments between 1886 and 1906. By 1930, however, much of the land had passed out of use. Few
commoners took up their rights to cultivate land
themselves and much of the common was managed
by the trustees, who let part of it to neighbouring
farmers. During the Second World War the common was again drained and part was again
ploughed. (fn. 181) In 1989 both Malmesbury common
and the older inclosures, c. 700 a. in all, were let
to neighbouring farmers. (fn. 182)
Mills.
In the 13th century Robert of Lea held
a mill in Westport. (fn. 183) Postern Mill on the river
below King's Wall was on a site used for a mill
from the 12th century or the 13th. (fn. 184)
Bremilham Mill was probably standing in the
1550s and may have been on the site of a much
earlier mill. (fn. 185) In the later 19th century it was apparently the site of a considerable business, but milling ceased there between 1885 and 1899. In 1925
the wheel raised water for domestic use. (fn. 186) The mill
and its outbuildings were demolished after 1945. (fn. 187)
The mill house, a 17th-century stone building of
one storey with attics, was standing in 1989, and
the mill wheel was in situ. Another mill in the
parish may have stood near Back bridge. (fn. 188)
Trade and industry.
Stone quarrying and
iron working may have taken place on the site of
Postern Mill in the late Saxon period and there
may have been a tannery near the mill in the later
Middle Ages. (fn. 189) A tanner lived in Westport in 1729 (fn. 190)
and others are recorded there later in the 18th century. (fn. 191) A tanyard near Back bridge in 1798 (fn. 192) was
probably that between Park Road and the Sherston
road in use in 1823 and 1839. (fn. 193) From 1865 the
yard was held by members of the Thompson
family who until the 1880s had another at the
Light, the detached part of Bremilham parish
south of the Sherston road. Tanning ceased in
Westport between 1895 and 1899. (fn. 194)
In the mid 18th century shafts were sunk on
Malmesbury common in the hope of finding coal.
Only lignite was found (fn. 195) but mining rights on the
common were still leased in 1812. (fn. 196) In 1885 and
1912 there was a brickworks west of Filands; it
had closed by 1919. On the western edge of the
suburb several quarries were opened after 1885
but were mostly disused in 1924. (fn. 197) What was said
to be a quarry on Malmesbury common in the
1920s (fn. 198) was perhaps a clay pit.
Some businesses associated with the town of
Malmesbury were carried on from premises in
Westport, and new factories west of Tetbury Mill
and small industrial units in Park Road were built
in the 1980s. (fn. 199)
Local Government.
The part of Westport
in Malmesbury borough was subject to the
borough courts, which also regulated King's
Heath. Courts held for Malmesbury manor also
had jurisdiction in the parish, chiefly over the suburb of Westport. In the earlier 18th century two
constables for Westport were appointed at the borough sessions, and in the later 18th century two
constables and two sidesmen were appointed at
the manor court. (fn. 200)
Malmesbury abbey apparently held separate
courts for Thornhill in the earlier 16th century. (fn. 201)
No record of courts for Thornhill manor has been
found.
In 1636 Malmesbury and Westport parishes disputed responsibility for relief of the poor living
within the precinct of Malmesbury abbey. Westport was found to be responsible for those living
in seven houses, (fn. 202) and a small part of the suburb
was in Abbey parish which relieved its own poor
in the later 18th century and the earlier 19th. (fn. 203)
In 1648 Westport petitioned to set its own rates
as other parishes did, giving as a reason the damage
which had been suffered by the parish in military
action and from the billeting of soldiers there. The
petition may have been prompted by some alteration in the method of assessment following the
garrisoning of Malmesbury in 1644; apparently
before 1648 and certainly afterwards the parish
set its own rates. (fn. 204)
In 1775–6 poor relief in Westport cost £125.
Expenditure was £452 in 1802 when 53 adults and
90 children received permanent and 25 people
occasional relief. The cost and numbers relieved
were then approximately half those of Malmesbury
parish. In 1813 permanent relief was given to 75
adults and occasional relief to 32; the total cost
was £782. Expenditure was lower in the 1820s, (fn. 205)
and between 1833 and 1835 the average annual
cost was £408. In 1835 Westport became part of
Malmesbury poor-law union. (fn. 206) In the late 18th
century a building in Burnivale, which may have
been St. Mary's chapel, was said to have long been
used as a poorhouse. (fn. 207)
Church.
The church at Westport before the
Conquest (fn. 208) may have been served by Malmesbury
abbey. A new church had been built by the later
12th century, and between 1159 and 1181 the
abbey was licensed to appropriate it. Until a
vicarage was ordained in or before 1286 the abbey
presumably served the cure. (fn. 209) From the later 13th
century or earlier Charlton church and from 1341
or earlier Brokenborough church were dependent
chapels of Westport. (fn. 210) A united benefice with
Malmesbury was formed between 1650 and 1658
but the two were separated after 1660. (fn. 211) In 1879
Brokenborough and Charlton were separated from
Westport, (fn. 212) in 1946 the vicarage was reunited with
that of Malmesbury and Westport church converted to a parish hall, and in 1984 Malmesbury
with Westport and Brokenborough benefice was
formed. (fn. 213)
Malmesbury abbey was patron of Westport
vicarage. In 1528 Sir Anthony Hungerford presented a vicar by a grant of a turn. From the Dissolution until the late 19th century the Crown usually
presented. (fn. 214) A presentation by the alderman and
burgesses of Malmesbury in 1586 or 1587 (fn. 215) was
probably made by a grant from the Crown, and
in 1670 the bishop of Salisbury may have collated
a vicar. (fn. 216) In 1882 the advowson was transferred
by exchange to Charlotte Kemble. (fn. 217) It passed with
that of Malmesbury vicarage to the Church Trust
Fund, patron of the united benefices formed in
1946 and 1984. (fn. 218)
Westport vicarage was valued in 1291 at
£4. 6s. 8d., well below the average for a living in
Malmesbury deanery, (fn. 219) and at £18 8s. 8d., over
twice the average, in 1535; (fn. 220) both valuations presumably included income from Brokenborough and
Charlton. The vicar's annual income from the
three parishes between 1829 and 1831 was c. £312,
a little below the average for a Wiltshire living. (fn. 221)
In 1535 a yearly pension of £1 was payable from
the vicarage to Malmesbury abbey; (fn. 222) the pension
apparently passed with the lordship of Malmesbury borough (fn. 223) and c. 1830 the vicar paid £2 yearly
to the lord of Malmesbury manor. (fn. 224) In the early
19th century John, earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire, informally augmented the vicarage. (fn. 225)
Although in 1341 Malmesbury abbey was said
to receive all tithes from Westport, (fn. 226) the vicar had
apparently been entitled to some in 1286 (fn. 227) and was
so in 1535. (fn. 228) He was entitled to small tithes from
Brokenborough, Charlton, and Westport, except
where the land was tithe free. In Westport, King's
Heath may have been tithe free early, and by the
early 19th century vicarial tithes from other lands
belonging to Malmesbury borough had been compounded. (fn. 229) In 1784–5 the vicar successfully disputed other compositions but accepted moduses
for what was thought to have been demesne land
of Malmesbury abbey including one of £4 for the
former Hyam park in Brokenborough and Westport. (fn. 230) In 1839 the vicar was entitled to small tithes
from c. 800 a. in Westport. His tithes from Brokenborough, Charlton, and Westport were valued at
£520 and commuted in 1840. (fn. 231)
The vicar had land and a house in Charlton,
46 a. in 1839, (fn. 232) but apparently neither in Westport
or Brokenborough. In 1881–2 a house beside the
Swindon road in Malmesbury parish was built for
the vicar of Westport, (fn. 233) who was then and thereafter also vicar of Malmesbury. That house was
sold in 1969. (fn. 234)
The small pre-Conquest church, of which the
nave survives, stood north of Bristol Street. It was
apparently known in the later Middle Ages as St.
Helen's, and was presumably converted for other
uses after the Dissolution. (fn. 235) A hermitage under
the wall of Malmesbury borough in which Christine of Somerford was enclosed in 1250 (fn. 236) may have
been St. Mary's chapel in Burnivale, recorded in
the later 13th century (fn. 237) and the 16th. (fn. 238) A building
in Burnivale, ecclesiastical in style and known as
the Hermitage, was demolished in the early 19th
century. (fn. 239) A chantry of St. Mary in Westport
church had been endowed by 1478, when it had
land in Brokenborough. (fn. 240) At its dissolution its total
income was £6 9s. 3d., of which £3 18s. was from
Westport and Malmesbury. Its priest, a former
monk, was described as honest, learned, and able
to serve a cure. (fn. 241)
In 1303 keeping of the vicarage was committed
to a chaplain because of the vicar's incapacity; (fn. 242)
probably in 1413, men were excommunicated for
wounding the vicar; (fn. 243) and in 1438 the vicar apparently lived at Charlton. (fn. 244) Presentments were made
in 1553 of parishioners who had not attended
church or paid their dues, in 1565 of a parishioner
who had not taken communion for five years, and
in 1585 of another for sorcery. (fn. 245) A woman of Westport was tried with others from Malmesbury for
sorcery in the 1640s. (fn. 246) John Pearte, curate of Westport in 1565, was said to be neither a preacher
nor a graduate. (fn. 247) John Aubrey reported that an
early 17th-century vicar, William Stumpe, destroyed many manuscripts of Malmesbury abbey's
library, using them to plug barrels. (fn. 248) Among
charges brought against Matthew Whitley, vicar
from 1650 or earlier until 1670, was his failure
in eight years to perform any clerical duty in Westport except two baptisms. Like most of his successors until the late 19th century Whitley lived
at Charlton. (fn. 249)
In 1783 morning service was held at Westport
on alternate Sundays. There was no weekday service and c. 12 people received communion when
it was celebrated at Easter, Whitsun, Michaelmas,
and Christmas. (fn. 250) Services were still held on alternate Sundays in the early 19th century, when
Westport was among six churches served by a
single curate. In the late 1840s morning and evening services were held each Sunday; the morning
congregation usually included fewer than 10
adults. (fn. 251) On Census Sunday in 1851, however, 100
people attended morning and 280 people evening
service in Westport. (fn. 252) G. H. H. Hutchinson, vicar
1837–76, was largely responsible for rebuilding the
church and founding a school at Westport. (fn. 253) His
work was interrupted in 1861 when he was licensed
to be absent because his wife had become a Roman
Catholic. (fn. 254) The vicarage was held in plurality with
that of Malmesbury from 1879 until the two were
united. (fn. 255)
The church of ST. MARY, standing and so
called in the later 12th century, (fn. 256) was described
by Aubrey as a pretty church with very good windows; it probably had a chancel, a nave with two
aisles, and a tower with a spire which may have
been higher than that of St. Paul's in Malmesbury.
It was destroyed during the Civil War, apparently
by troops stationed in Malmesbury because it
offered shelter to those attacking the town. A small
church, with an undivided chancel and nave, was
built after the war (fn. 257) and a north aisle was added
later. (fn. 258) After it was rebuilt c. 1840, (fn. 259) in Tudor
Gothic style of coursed rubble with ashlar dressings, it had an undivided chancel and nave with
a south aisle of five bays and a western bellcot.
A western gallery was later removed, and the
arcade was blocked when the church was converted
to a hall.
In 1553 plate weighing 9½ oz. was taken for the
king and a chalice of 5 oz. was left in the church.
A chalice of 1654 and mid 19th-century plate
including two chalices, a paten, two almsdishes,
and a flagon, all belonging to Westport church, (fn. 260)
were used in Malmesbury abbey church after
1946. (fn. 261)
In 1553 three bells and a sanctus bell hung in
the church. Five bells hanging there c. 1640 were
either sold or melted down during the Civil War.
A bell of 1739 hung in the church (fn. 262) until 1949,
when it was melted down and the metal used for
new bells for Malmesbury abbey church. (fn. 263)
Registers of baptisms and burials survive from
1678 and registers of marriages from 1685; those
for some later years are missing. (fn. 264)
Nonconformity.
In 1676 there were 18
protestant nonconformists in Westport parish, (fn. 265)
and until the late 18th century most nonconformists in Malmesbury apparently met in Westport.
Presbyterian and Independent ministers in the
town in the late 17th century probably preached
in both Malmesbury and Westport. (fn. 266) William Conway, a Presbyterian expelled from Oxford university, was licensed in 1672 to preach in a barn in
Westport and apparently continued to serve a congregation there until his death in 1694. (fn. 267) In 1689
two houses in Westport were certified for Presbyterian meetings, (fn. 268) and in 1715 the congregation
numbered 160. (fn. 269) Although in 1783 the vicar of
Westport reported that there was only one Presbyterian family in the parish, (fn. 270) a chapel was built
in Horsefair in 1788. J. M. Moffatt, author of a
History of Malmesbury, was minister from 1789
until 1804. (fn. 271) Probably from 1811 the church was
Congregational. From 1812 until 1841 it was
united with the Ebenezer chapel in Malmesbury. (fn. 272)
In 1851 morning, afternoon, and evening services
at the Westport chapel were attended by 178, 211,
and 170 people respectively; congregations were
usually larger, it was said. (fn. 273) A large new chapel,
of stone, in Gothic style, and with a schoolroom,
was built on a site adjoining that of the old chapel
in 1867; (fn. 274) it remained open in 1989. Birth and
baptism registers for the church survive from
1823. (fn. 275)
A house in Westport and another in Westport
or Malmesbury were licensed for Baptist meetings
in 1672. (fn. 276) By 1689 a pastor had been appointed, (fn. 277)
and by 1695 a meeting house had been built in
Abbey Row. It was a low stone building seating
60–70 and was replaced by a new Strict Baptist
chapel, also of stone, built in 1802 and enlarged
between 1814 and 1816. In the late 18th century
baptisms took place in the Tetbury Avon north
of the abbey church. (fn. 278) In 1851 services were
usually held in the morning, afternoon, and evening on Sundays; on Census Sunday 208 people
attended the morning service. (fn. 279) The chapel
remained open in 1989. Birth and baptism registers survive from 1794. (fn. 280)
Methodists met in a barn said to be in St. Mary's
Lane, possibly St. Mary's Street, in 1854. In 1856,
when the church had 50 members, a Primitive
Methodist chapel of red brick with stone dressings
was built in Bristol Street. (fn. 281) Another small chapel
was built of stone in a mixed Gothic style in the
Triangle in 1899 (fn. 282) and remained open in 1989.
Education.
In 1547 the priest serving the
chantry in Westport church kept a school. (fn. 283) In the
later 16th century Thomas Hobbes, the philosopher, was taught successively at a school in Westport church, by a clergyman of either Westport
or Malmesbury, and, with two or three other boys,
by Robert Latimer, then living in Westport and
later rector of Leigh Delamere. (fn. 284) J. M. Moffatt,
Presbyterian minister of Westport 1789–1804, also
kept a school. (fn. 285)
There was no day school in the parish in 1846–7. (fn. 286)
From 1851 the children of Westport have attended
the same schools as children from Malmesbury,
some of which were in Westport parish. (fn. 287)
Children were taught at a ragged school in
Burnivale on Sundays and in the evenings from
1866 or earlier. From 1870 it was a day school;
it had 53 pupils in that year and in 1873 a wooden
schoolroom was built. In 1881–2 average attendance was 115. The school was closed in 1884. (fn. 288)
There was a private school in Westport in 1842; (fn. 289)
another was attended by 57 boys and 49 girls in
1871. (fn. 290) In 1903 and 1927 Stainesbridge House was
a girls'school. (fn. 291)
Charities for the Poor.
Endowments,
each yielding £1 a year, were provided for the poor
of Westport by E. Waite (d. 1661) by will, and
by Anne Rowles by deed in 1774. In 1904 the
income from both was distributed to widows and
others in need, each of whom received 6d. Residents of Westport were beneficiaries with those
of parts of Malmesbury parish from Robert Cullerne's charity. (fn. 292)