Bicknor, English (St. Mary)

BICKNOR, ENGLISH (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Monmouth, hundred of St. Briavells, W. division of the county of Gloucester, 3 miles (N.) from Coleford; containing 576 inhabitants. It comprises 2411a. 1r. 4p., and lies within the Forest of Dean, on the eastern bank of the Wye, opposite to Welsh-Bicknor. The manor exceeds the parish in extent by 728 acres. There are mines of coal and iron, the former of which are worked; and stone is quarried for building and road-making. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £13. 6. 8., and in the gift of Queen's College, Oxford: the tithes have been commuted for £390, and the glebe comprises 9 acres, with a house. The church has some portions in the Norman style, and stands within the area of an ancient fortification, the fosse belonging to which may still be traced.