Whitacre, Nether (St. Giles)

WHITACRE, NETHER (St. Giles), a parish, in the union of Meriden, Coleshill division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 3¼ miles (N. E.) from Coleshill; containing 498 inhabitants. It comprises by measurement 1926 acres. The surface is generally flat: the soil varies from a stiff clay to a light sand and gravel; grain of every kind is grown, and the meadows and pastures are rich. The river Tame bounds the parish on the west side; the road from Coventry to Tamworth passes through, and the Birmingham and Hampton-in-Arden branches of the Derby railway meet and have a station here. The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with the rectorial tithes; patron, Earl Howe: the tithes were commuted for land and corn-rents in 1825; the glebe comprises about 80 acres. The church is ancient, has a square tower, and contains a monument to Charles Jennins, Esq., who in 1775 bequeathed one-third of the interest of £1000 in support of a school. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.