Hadstock (St. Botolph)

HADSTOCK (St. Botolph), a parish, in the union of Linton, hundred of Freshwell, N. division of Essex, 1½ mile (S.) from Linton; containing 490 inhabitants. The parish is situated at the northern extremity of the county, and stretches into the county of Cambridge; it comprises about 1800 acres. The surface is undulated, and the soil strong, and well adapted for wheat, with some land of lighter quality; the pastures are rich, and the meadows on the banks of the Granta afford rich crops of hay. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £19; net income, £267; patron, the Bishop of Ely. The tithes were commuted for land in 1801; the glebe altogether comprises 304½ acres. The church is a very ancient cruciform structure of stone, with a square tower: the choir was originally separated from the nave by an old screen, now placed at the west end; the north porch has a Norman doorway, slightly moulded. Near the church is a well, dedicated to St. Botolph, from which a constant stream, passing under the wall of the churchyard, supplies the village with water.