Kelston

"KELSTON, (or Kilveston), a parish in the hundred of Bath Forum, county Somerset, 4 miles N.W. of Bath, and 8 E. of Bristol, its post town. It is situated on the river Avon, and formerly belonged to Shaftesbury Abbey. At the Dissolution it was given to the natural daughter of Henry VIII., from whom it passed to the Harringtons of Kelston House. A fountain was erected here in 1858, at the expense of Colonel Inigo Jones. The soil is clayey and the surface diversified with hills. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £240. The living is a rectory* in the diocese of Bath and Wells, value £296. The church, dedicated to St. Nicholas, is a stone structure with tower containing four bells. The church was rebuilt in 1860. In the interior are the tombs of Sir John Harrington, the poet, author of "Oceans," and godson to Queen Elizabeth, Henry Harrington, M.D., the famed musician, and Sir William Cockburn, Bart., Dean of York. The register dates from 1538. There is a parochial school, with the endowment of £5 per annum, for both sexes, also a Sunday-school. The principal residence is Kelston Park, situated on the banks of the river Avon." From The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868) Transcribed by Colin Hinson © 2003