Bosbury in
Kelly’s Directory of Herefordshire 1900

[Preamble] [Private Residents] [Commercial Residents]
BOSBURY is a village and parish on the river Leadon, 3½ miles north from Ledbury railway station, on the Hereford and Worcester section of the Great Western railway and 14 east from Hereford, in the Southern division of the county, Radlow hundred, Ledbury union, county court district and petty sessional division, rural deanery of Ledbury and archdeaconry and diocese of Hereford. The church of the Holy Trinity is an ancient building of stone in the Transition Norman style, consisting of chancel, nave of six bays, with clerestory, aisles, south porch of open timberwork, and a massive detached embattled tower of the 13th century, situated about 60 feet south of the church, and containing 6 bells: a clock was presented by the Rev. John Edmund Cheese, late vicar, in 1878: the chancel is separated from the nave by a fine oak screen; the restoration of the chancel and repewing of the nave was completed in 1871, at a cost of £3,000, under the superintendence of Mr. Ewan Christian, architect, of London: at the east end of the south aisle is the chantry chapel of Sir Rowland Morton, a beautiful specimen of Late Pointed architecture: there are monuments with recumbent figures on each side of the chancel to John Harford, ob. 1573, and to his son, Richard Harford, and his wife, dated 1578: the stained east window is a joint memorial to Lieut. Arthur Clinton Baskerville Mynors, who died at Natal in 1879, and Charles Baskerville Mynors, d. 1863, and there are other stained windows: the font is a work of the 12th century, and there is a still older one, probably of Saxon origin, of which now only the bowl remains: the pulpit is of finely carved oak: a handsome brass eagle lectern was presented to the church in 1894: in the porch are the remains of a holy-water stoup: there are sittings for 450 persons: the churchyard contains a well-preserved village cross. The register dates from the year 1558.

The living is a vicarage, net yearly value £282, including 6 acres of glebe, with residence, in the gift of the Bishop of Hereford, and held since 1897 by the Rev. Robert Burges Bayly of St. John’s College, Cambridge. There is a Wesleyan chapel at Stanley Hill, erected in 1863, and a Primitive Methodist chapel at Swinmore, also a meeting house for Plymouth Brethren.  Bosbury House, the seat of Willoughby Baskerville Mynors esq. D.L., J.P. is a structure of red brick and stone in the Italian style, with balustrades and a portico; it contains a fine collection of curiosities, ancient and modern. Old Court, now a farm, was formerly a palace of the bishops of Hereford; the refectory is used as a cider cellar, and the doorway and wicket are still perfect. In the Crown Inn, formerly the mansion of the Harford family, there is an ancient panelled room, with the date 1571: over the fireplace are four shields with the arms of John Skipp, bishop of Hereford 1539-53; of William Paulet, first Marquess of Winchester K.G. who died 1572, with the garter and coronet; Wrottesley, of Wrottesley; Scrope, of Castle Combe, Wilts; and Fox of Bromfield; the room is now used as the lodge room of the Bishop Swinfield Lodge of Oddfellows (M.U.). Temple Court, the residence of John Pitt Harford esq. was formerly occupied by the Knights Templars. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners are lords of the manor of the whole parish.  Willoughby B. Mynors esq., Mr. John Henry Davies, William B. Wood-Roe esq. and Charles Henry Crane esq. of Tettenhall, Wolverhampton are the principal landowners. The soil is heavy; subsoil, clay. This is a cider and hop district. The chief crops are wheat, beans, hops and barley. The area is 4,816 acres of land and 9 of water; rateable value, £6,325 the population in 1891 was 916.
Catley, half a mile north-west and Upleadon, 1 mile west-by-south are places in the parish.
 
Parish Clerk, Charles Bettington.
 
Post, M. O. & T. & O., T. M. O., Express Delivery, Parcel Post, S.B. & Annuity & Insurance Office.– Mrs Sarah Kendrick, sub-postmistress. Letters are received through Ledbury at 7.20 a.m.; dispatched thereto at 5.30 p.m.
Wall Letter Boxes, Stanley Hill, cleared at 5 p.m. daily (except sunday); & Broad Oaks Cross roads at 4.10 p.m. week days only

Police Station, William W. Jones, officer in charge

Schools.

Free Grammar, built & endowed by Sir Rowland Morton in 1540 with lands now yielding yearly a rental of £116, for 60 boys; average attendance, 58; John Knight Job, master
National (girls & infants), built in 1848 & enlarged in 1883, & again in 1894, for 120 girls; average attendance, 82; Miss Mary Ann Arrowsmith, mistress

Carriers to :–

Ledbury – James Pullen, Charles Bettington, Charles Hickox, George Nutt, John Jones & Sarah Cartwright, tues
Hereford – Thomas Payne, wed. & sat
Malvern – Sarah Cartwright, mon. & fri
Returning same days

PRIVATE RESIDENTS.
Barrett James, Staplow house
Bayly Rev. Robt. Burges (vicar) Vicarage
Davies John Henry, Temple court
Deedes Mrs. White house
Manning James Parker, Stanley house
Mynors Willoughby Baskerville D.L J.P. Bosbury house
Pritchard Mrs. Swinmore
Willcox Samuel, The Grange
Wood-Roe William Brookes, The Slatch
 
COMMERCIAL.
Barrett James, farmer & landowner, Staplow house
Bettington Caroline (Mrs.), farmer, The Brook
Bettington Charles, carrier
Bosley Charles, farmer, Catley court
Bosley Thomas Edwin, farmer, hop grower & landowner, Bentleys
Box W. farmr. & hop growr. Woodlow
Buck (Mrs.), convalescent home for nurses, Holly mount
Bufton John, wheelwright
Bunn Geo. farmer & hop grwr. Swinmore
Caldwell Wm. frmr. Low. Cold green
Cale John, carpenter, Old country
Collett Jane (Mrs.), grocer & prov. dlr.
Cotton Allan, wheelwright & smith
Cotton Elizabeth (Mrs.) farmer & hop grower, The Hill
Davies Edwin, blacksmith, Stanley hill
Davies John Henry, landowner, cider & perry merchant, farmer & hop grwr. Temple court; & Easton farm, Middleton-on-the-Hill
Davies Mary (Mrs.) farmr. Sugarcroft
Davis James, butcher
Edwards Joseph, farmer & landowner, Broadcroft, Fox hill
Edwards William, farmer & landowner, Woodlow
Foxwell Francis, farmer & hop grower & landowner, Catley Cross
Gardiner Thomas, farmer & hop grower, Townend
Gardiner Ann (Mrs.), farmr. Northbridge
Gibbs Edwin, farmer, Stanley hill
Green William, farmer & hop grower, Lower House
Hall Alfred, farmer, Long acre
Harford Richard, farmer, Swinmore
Harris William, farmer & hop grower, Upleadon court
Hawkins John, farmer, Holly mount
Hawkins Thomas, farmer, The Verne, Swinmore
Hickox Charles, blacksmith & carrier, Pow Green
Hoar William, farmer, Little Noverings
Homes William, farmer & hop grower, Gold Hill
Hunt William Hale, Crown inn
Jackson Joseph, farmer & hop grower, Orchards & Noverings
Job John Knight, schoolmaster, organist & assistant overseer, Nash end
Jones John, carrier
Jones Wm. Edwd. beer ret. Staplow
Lane Edward Thomas, farmer & hop grower, Old Court
Lane William Sivell, farmer & hop & cider grower, The Farm
Lawrence Robert & Thomas, millers (water), Lower mill
Lewis John, Bell inn
Malins Thomas, baker & shopkeeper
Mutlow Richard, farmer, Shiloe
Nutt George, carrier
Oram Frederick, farm bailiff to Mrs. Rt. B. Mynors, & hop grow. Ailscroft
Orgee Alfred, farmer & hop grower, The Green farm
Palmer James, farmer & miller (water) Upper mill
Palmer Mary Ann (Mrs), frmr. Dog farm
Parsons James, sawyer
Parsons William, farmer & beer retailer, Old country
Payne Thomas, carrier, Merrings farm
Pember William, farmer & hop grower, North farm & Hill house
Philpotts Henry, shopkeeper
Powell William, farmer & hop grower, Little Catley
Preece Richard, farmer, Pow Green
Pudge Henry James, farmer & hop grower, Note house
Pugh James, beer retailer, The Brook
Pullen Jas. shpkpr. & carrier, Stanley h(il)l
Shew Edmund Geo. frmr. Cold green
Spencer Edward, farmer, Woodlow
Townsend James, blacksmith
Turner John, farmer & boot maker, Briercroft
Vine Walter, beer retailer
Vobe Elizabeth (Mrs.), frmr. Hill p[ar]k

Source: Kelly: Directory of Herefordshire, 1900.