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Saltash, Cornwall

Historical Description

Saltash, an ancient corporate town, a parish, and a municipal borough in Cornwall. The town stands on the estuary of the Tamar, at the W end of the Royal Albert Bridge, with a station on the G.W.R., 246 miles from London, and 3 NW by N of Plymouth and Devonport It was anciently a place of much importance, and owed part of its importance to its being one of the passes into Cornwall, was the seat of assizes for the county in the 14th century, and was occupied alternately by the Parliamentarians and Royalists in the Civil Wars of Charles I. It acquired a borough charter in the time of Henry III., sent two members to Parliament from the time of Edward VI. till 1832, when it was disfranchised, and is governed by a mayor, 4 aldermen, and 12 councillors, who form the urban district council. It underwent revival at the railway epoch in connection with the building and the opening of the Royal Albert Bridge, and has since that time undergone much improvement and extension. The sewerage of the town has within the last few years been greatly improved. Saltash consists partly of old streets, picturesquely grouped on the steep acclivities of a rocky eminence, partly of new terraces, on a new site, at Port View; carries on malting, fishing, and a coasting trade; and has a post, money order, and telegraph office. It contains a guildhall, reading-room, several hotels, and a picturesque hospital erected in 1887. A steam ferry supplies communication with the E bank of the Tamar. The ecclesiastical parish of St Nicholas and Faith was formed in 1881. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Truro; gross value, £300 with residence. Patron, the Bishop of Truro. The church, which is the property of the corporation, is an ancient building of stone, principally Norman, and consists of chancel, nave, N aisle, N chapel, N transept, and S porch; it was well restored in 1869. There are Baptist and Wesleyan chapels, the latter being a handsome edifice erected in 1892. The parish is co-extensive with the municipal borough. Acreage, 192; population, 2745.

Transcribed from The Comprehensive Gazetteer of England & Wales, 1894-5

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Ancient CountyCornwall 
HundredEast 
Poor Law unionSt. Germans 

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.


Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Saltash from the following:


Maps

Online maps of Saltash are available from a number of sites:


Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Cornwall papers online:


Visitations Heraldic

We have a copy of The Visitations of Cornwall, by Lieut.-Col. J.L. Vivian online.

CountyCornwall
RegionSouth West
CountryEngland
Postal districtPL12
Post TownSaltash

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