Worthing, Sussex

Historical Description

Worthing, a municipal borough, with five ecclesiastical parishes, in Sussex. The borough stands on the coast, with two stations on the L.B. & S.C.R., 60 miles from London, and 11 W by S of Brighton. Under the Local Government Act of 1894, Worthing became a distinct civil parish, but for ecclesiastical purposes it is still in the parish of Broadwater. It was only a small fishing village till about the end of the 18th century, came into notice as a watering-place through visits to it of the Princess Amelia in 1798 and the Princess Charlotte in 1807, grew steadily in public favour from the excellence of its climate and from its bathing facilities, was visited in 1849 by the Dowager Queen Adelaide, and is now a fashionable watering-place and a seat of petty sessions. It occupies flat ground, sheltered by an amphitheatre of chalk downs; comprises spacious, well-built, clean streets; and includes an open space of 3 acres called the Steyne, and a shore-esplanade 2 miles long. The chief industry is the growing of grapes, tomatoes, and vegetables for the London and other markets. It carries on a fishery of herrings and mackerel, chiefly for the London market, and has a head post office, two banks, several first-class hotels, numerous lodging and boarding houses, good bathing appliances, good sanitary arrangements and an ample water supply, baths and assembly-rooms, a town-hall, a com-exchange, a coastguard station, a pier erected in 1862 and considerably enlarged in 1889, a literary institution with library and reading-room, four public schools, a school-college, two suites of almshouses, and a weekly corn market on Saturday. The Worthing Infirmary and Dispensary was erected in 1881. The Thomas Banting Memorial Convalescent Home for Gentlewomen was founded in 1874 under the will of Mr Thomas Banting, and is intended for ladies of good social position, but of reduced means, recovering from recent illness. St Mary's Convalescent Home was opened in 1882. In 1890 the towns of Worthing and West Worthing were incorporated as a municipal borough and are governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen, and 18 councillors. Area of the municipal borough, 1425 acres; population, 16,606; of the ecclesiastical parish of Christ Church, 3857; Holy Trinity, 3586; St Andrew, 1229; and St George, 3667. St Paul's (formerly the chapel of ease to Broadwater) was erected in 1812, and restored in 1894. It is a rectangular building of stone. The living is a vicarage. Patron, the Rector of Broadwater. Christ Church was erected in 1843, is an edifice of flint and stone in the Gothic style, and has been restored. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Chichester; gross value, £310 with residence. Patron, the Rector of Broadwater. St George's Church is an edifice of stone, erected in 1868, and enlarged in 1875. The living is a vicarage; gross value, £480. Holy Trinity Church is a structure of brick, and was erected in 1882-83; a tower and spire were added in 1888. The living is a vicarage. St Andrew's is a building of stone in the Early English style, and was erected in 1886. The living is a vicarage; net value, £180 with residence. Patron, Keble College, Oxford. There are Congregational, Wesleyan, and Primitive Methodist chapels, and a handsome Roman Catholic church, erected in 1864.

Administration

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

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

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Worthing from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Worthing)

Maps

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

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Sussex newspapers online:

• Mid Sussex Times
• Chichester Express and West Sussex Journal
• Sussex Agricultural Express
• Hastings and St Leonards Observer
• Sussex Advertiser
• Brighton Gazette
• Bexhill-on-Sea Observer