Shropshire Routes to Roots

Trade directories: History and Description of Oswestry (Kelly's Directory, 1895)

History and description of Oswestry, 1895 [Shropshire Archive reference: Kelly's Directory, 1895]

OSWESTRY

OSWESTRY is an ancient borough, corporate, and market town, with a terminal station (rebuilt in 1885) on a branch of the Great Western railway (at Gobowen) from Shrewsbury to Chester, and a station on the Cambrian line from Whitchurch and Ellesmere to Newtown (Montgomeryshire) and Aberystwyth, and a new railway from Wrexham to Ellesmere in connection with the Welsh Railway Union is now in course of construction and will probably be opened for traffic about the middle of the year 1895:

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Oswestry has been much improved since the year 1810, when an Act of Parliament was obtained for widening, paving and lighting the streets, which are now in general wide, many of the footpaths being flagged, or laid with blue Staffordshire pavement, and there are a good many houses and shops; but half-timbered buildings and houses with projecting gables are still to be seen in several parts of the town. The gas works, the property of a company, in the Salop road, are extensive, and the supply is funished at a cheap rate. There are also water works belonging to the corporation, in Mount road; and a new reservoir situated at Pen-y-gwely, about 7 miles distant, was constructed by the corporation and was opened by Alfred Wynne Corrie esq. J.P. in 1893.

In the parish of Oswestry are three filter beds and a reservoir belonging to the Liverpool corporation on their line of aqueduct from Lake Vyrnwy in North Wales.

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The chapel of St Anne, erected in 1883, and fitted at a cost of £2000 by Mrs. Alfred Wynne Corrie, at Park Hall, is in the township of Weston, and intended principally for the inmates of Oswestry workhouse there: it was consecrated Oct. 26, 1883, and is an edifice of brick with dressings of Shelvoke stone erected from designs by Mr. S. Poutney Smith, of Shrewsbury, architect, consisting of apsidal chancel, nave, transepts and western Galilee porch, but has neither turret nor bell, and has seats for 250 persons: the Rev. John Evans Jones M.A. chaplain.

A mission room in connection with St. Oswald's church was erected in 1884, in Castle street, and will seat about 150 persons.

Holy Trinity Mission Room, situated in Beatrice street, was built in 1888, by Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Corrie, of Park Hall, Oswestry, and will seat about 200 persons.

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The old Town Hall, near the site of the Castle, was pulled down in 1891.

New Municipal buildings, from designs by Mr. H. A. Cheers, architect, of Twickenham, were erected under the superintendence of Messrs. Lockwood and Sons, of Chester, on the site of the old Town Hall, at a cost, including site, of £12,000, and opened in November, 1893: they comprise, on the ground floor, offices for the borough surveyor, public and private offices with plan room, accountant and town clerk's offices with strong rooms, council chamber, county court offices and police station with cells. On the first floor are the public courts with magistrates' and clerks' retiring room, witnesses' waiting rooms, solicitors' robbing room and grand jury room, and a large reference library. On the top floor is the public library and a large reading room, top lighted, with librarian's room, and a science and art school.

The Oswestry Public Hall, in Oswald road, erected in 1863, is a structure of brick, with stone facings, from designs by Mr. William Henry Spaull F.R.I.B.A. architect, of Oswestry, and has a square tower on the south-west: it contains an assembly room holding 750 persons. The lower portion is now occupied by the Liberal club.

The Victoria Rooms, in Victoria road, belonging to the Victoria Rooms Co. Limited, were erected in 1864, and comprise an upper assembly room, about 70 feet long, 40 feet wide and 24 feet high, and a smaller room on the ground floor; the St. Oswald Club occupy a billiard room and reading room in the same building.

The Corn Exchange and Wholesale Cheese and Butter Market, called the "Powis Market", which forms one side of the area known as "Bailey Head" is a spacious edifice of stone, partly covered with glass, and having a high clock-turret, re-built in 1869. Cheese and butter fairs are held on the first Wednesday of every month, which are well attended, there being railway communication by the Cambrian railway to Welshpool and Newtown and other parts of Wales, through a fertile and important Welsh agricultural district, and also to Ellesmere, Whitchurch and other rich agricultural districts of Shropshire. The Cross Market, enlarged in 1883 is conveniently arranged, and covered in; the building has two main entrances, over one of which is a clock with an illuminated dial; at the markets held on Wednesday a good amount of business is done in corn, butter, eggs, cheese and poultry; there is also a market on Saturday.

The cattle fairs are held in Smithfield, a piece of ground covering 2 1/2 acres, which is appropriated for the purpose; the fairs are held weekly, on Wednesdays, dating from September 8th, 1869.

The Oswestry District Horticultural Society holds an annual flower, fruit and bird show the first week in September. The Oswestry District Agricultural Society, founded in 1862, and now having about 320 members, holds annual shows for live stock, cheese, butter and agricultural products.

The Oswestry District Conservative Club, which has good premises in Willow street, consisting of assembly rooms, reading and card rooms, two billiard rooms, bar and rooms for caretaker, with lawn at back, has about 350 members.

The chief industries are malting, tanning, currying, fellmongery and woodstapling; there are also iron and brass foundries, agricultural implement and machine works and steam saw mills. The Cambrian Railway Company have their engine and carriage works here, and employ some 300 men. There are three Banks and several hotels and good inns. There is one newspaper published here. In the vicinity mines of coal are being worked: there are also brick works; and an almost inexhaustible supply of limestone. Copper and other minerals are found in the neighbourhood.

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The Free Public Library and Reading Rooms are at the Municipal Buildings and the Library was formally opened on Jan. 18th, 1895, by the Bishop of Wakefield. The lending library contains about 9,000 volumes and the Reference library, which is not yet open to the public, about 500 volumes.

The charities amount to about £300 yearly. An almshouse consisting of 12 rooms, for 6 men and 6 women, was erected by Dame Ellen, widow of Sir Francis Eure; in 1732 Mrs. Jane Owen bequeathed 18s. a year to each inmate, and in 1805 Mrs. M. Ormsby directed that this sum should be increased to £3 yearly; the inmates are appointed and the houses kept in repair by Lord Harlech, of Brogyntyn.

Oswestry Provident Dispensary, in Victoria road, was established in 1828, is under the management of a committee, and has baths attached; these are partly self-supporting, and are otherwise supported by subscription; the average number of patients is now (1895) about 1,320.

The Oswestry and Ellesmere Cottage Hospital, Welsh walls, was established in 1866, and contains 16 beds; 128 in and 190 out-patients were treated here in 1894 and 96 out-patients attended at their homes by the district nurse connected with the institution; an isolation hospital is now (1895) being erected; the hospital is managed by a committee.

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The population of the town in 1882 was 7,847 and in 1891, 8,496, which includes 10 officers and 180 inmates in the workhouse, which is in Weston township. The population of St. Oswalds ecclesiastical parish in 1891 was 6,110 and of Holy Trinity, 4,299. The area of the parish is 16,149 acres of land and 85 of water; rateable value, town £33,956; parish, £25,703.