Doverdale (St. Mary)

DOVERDALE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Droitwich, Upper division of the hundred of Halfshire, Droitwich and E. divisions of the county of Worcester, 3¼ miles (N. W. by W.) from Droitwich; containing 54 inhabitants. This place is supposed to have derived its name from the British words Dur, water, and Dal, a valley, which are faithfully descriptive of its situation in a well-watered vale. The parish comprises by measurement 739 acres; the soil is chiefly a stiff clay, with some beds of marl at a small depth below the surface. The substratum is mostly red sandstone, of which a quarry is wrought for building purposes. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 3. 6½., and in the patronage of Mr. and Mrs. Curtler: the tithes have been commuted for £200, and the glebe comprises 39 acres, with a glebehouse. The church is a small ancient edifice without tower or spire, pleasantly situated in a plain, among orchards; it was repaired, and a gallery erected, in 1832, at the expense of the rector, patron, and chief landowners.