Overbury (St. Faith)

OVERBURY (St. Faith), a parish, in the unions of Tewkesbury and Winchcomb, Middle division of the hundred of Oswaldslow, Pershore and E. divisions of the county of Worcester, 5½ miles (N. E.) from Tewkesbury; containing, with the chapelries of Alstone, Teddington, and Little Washbourne, and the hamlet of Conderton, 875 inhabitants. The parish is almost surrounded by the county of Gloucester, and contains 3767 acres, in equal portions of arable and pasture, with some wood: in the township of Overbury are 1217 acres. The surface is generally flat, but rises towards Bredon Hill; the soil is light and sandy, but fertile: here are finer elm and chesnut trees than in any other part of the county. Good stone is quarried for building. The village is beautifully situated, and of respectable appearance. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £9. 10.; net income, £540; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Worcester. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1811. The church, which stands in the centre of the village, is ancient, and has some Norman arches and a fine tower; the chancel possesses a groined roof, and the font is curiously carved with the figure of a bishop. There are chapels of ease at Alstone, Teddington, and Little Washbourne; and the Independents have a place of worship: a national school was built in 1845. Elizabeth Wood, in 1824, bequeathed £200, of which the interest is distributed to the poor. On the hill are remains of a Roman camp.