Books by A.t. Gaydon

This volume contains the histories of twenty-two parishes in central Shropshire, stretching from the Severn valley up into the northern fringes of the south Shropshire hills. Much new evidence is brought forward on landscape history and on the evolution of the distinctive pattern of settlement in this part of England. There are descriptions of such well-known buildings as Acton Burnell Castle, Pitch-ford Hall, and Condover Hall, and attention is paid to many more modest houses. These include a high proportion of medieval date. Though predominantly agricultural the district includes the sites of several 17th century ironworks, numerous coal mines, and the Snailbeach lead mine.

Ecclesiastical history, the history of public schools and endowed grammar schools, and sporting history provide the bulk of the content in Volume II. The opening chapter deals not only with the territorial organization of the established church in Shropshire but also with the history of Roman catholic and protestant nonconformist organization. There are separate articles on 40 religious houses including the abbeys of Buildwas, Haughmond, Lilleshall, and Shrewsbury and the priory of Wenlock; an account of the Ludlow Palmers' Guild, which maintained a college of chaplains in St Lawrence's church, is also included. Among the 15 schools whose histories are treated are Ludlow Grammar School and Oswestry School, whose origins lie in the Middle Ages, and Shrewsbury School, founded in 1552 to become one of the leading schools of Elizabethan England and restored to greatness in the early 19th century under the energetic rule of Samuel Butler. The dozen articles on the sporting history of Shropshire, besides illuminating the social basis of some sports, revive the memory of such noteworthy sportsmen as John Mytton of Halston and John Purcell,the sporting parson of Sidbury. A table of population completes the volume; based on the official censuses 1801-1961, the table gives statistics of each parish and for various other local government areas.