Aspeden (St. Mary)
ASPEDEN (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Buntingford, hundred of Edwinstree, county of Hertford, ¾ of a mile (S.) from Buntingford; containing 529 inhabitants. It comprises about 1340 acres of land, the soil of which is clayey; the rivulet Rib runs through the district, and falls into the Lea near Hertford. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £15. 5. 2½.; patron, Lady Mexborough. The tithes have been commuted for £400, and the glebe consists of nearly 23 acres. W. and R. Freeman in 1668, and Mrs. Cater in 1704, gave land for the education of children, now producing £17. 5. per annum; and R. Freeman assigned an additional plot for clothing them. In 1684, Dr. Seth Ward, Bishop of Sarum, founded an almshouse for two men and two women, and endowed it with £41. 12. a year.
Transcribed from A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858.