Kelly’s Directory of Lincolnshire 1885.
Wrangle.
Wrangle is a parish near the seashore in the Southern division of the County, parts of Holland, in Ashwardhurn wapentake, Boston union and county court district, rural deanery of North Holland No. 2, arch-deaconry and diocese of Lincoln, 9 miles north-north-east of Boston, 4 miles south-east from the Old Leake station on the East Lincolnshire railway and 117 miles from London.
The church of St. Mary & St. Nicholas is a building of stone in the Late Norman or Transitional, Early English or Later styles, consisting of chancel, clerestoried nave of six bays south porch and a tower containing 6 bells. The earliest feature in the church is a richly worked arch of Late Norman or Transitional character between the tower and the nave, and next, the Early English doorway of the porch, which is itself perpendicular. The chancel is Decorated, the nave arcades and clerestory chiefly Perpendicular and both clerestory and aisles have embattled parapets. The chancel retains its sedilia and an aumbry. The windows of the north aisle contain considerable remains of the ancient glass placed here by John Harold and Alice, his wife, John Haliday, formerly vicar of Wrangle, Alan Haliday , Agnes Haliday and Thomas de Weyversty, Abbot of Waltham. The glass is, in part, heraldic, and otherwise consists of figures of prophets and subjects from the New Testament, together with figures of saints and angels. On the south side of the chancel are the recumbent effigies, inscribed in Latin, to Sir John Reade, a member of a family of wealthy merchants once resident here, who died November 12th, 1626; the tomb was erected by Ann, his wife, daughter of Sir John Garret, Lord Mayor of London, who also placed her own effigy thereon. The tomb also bears figures of their children and an English inscription with 12 lines of verse in rhyming couplets. The pulpit is a good example of Jacobean work and has a canopied sounding board. The font was given by Richard Bailey, vicar, in 1724. There are several tablets to the Bailey and Wright families. The register dates from the year 1653.
The living is a vicarage, gross yearly value £760, including 12 acres of glebe with residence, in the gift of Mrs. Wright and held, since 1858, by Rev. R.F. Wright M.A. of St. John’s College, Oxford. There are Wesleyan and Primitive Methodist chapels. There are charities of about £80 yearly value for distribution.
The Ecclesiastical Commissioners, J.Swain, R.Keal, C.F.Swain, G.Gask and A.Chapman esqrs. are the principal land owners but there are innumerable smaller landowners. The soil is rich loam; sub-soil clay. The chief crops are corn, potatoes, mangel-worzel and turnips with a good portion of pasture land. The area is 6800 acres of land and 2890 of water, rateable value of £8290. The population in 1881 was 1650.
The Rev. Thomas Alanson devised 70 acres of land, now producing £183 yearly, one moiety of which is applied for teaching poor children & the other for the maintenance of three bedesman and two bedeswomen, each of whom receive 6s. weekly; this fund was further augmented by by rents of land devised by the Rev. W.Erskine, late vicar of Wrangle, now producing £30 yearly.
Post Office. - R.Osbourne. The nearest money order & telegraph office is Leake.
Schools. - Bede & Free; J.Harrison, Master; Mrs. Harrison, Mistress.
Built in 1665 for 100 children.
- National, Low Grounds; F.Rose, Master, Mrs. Rose, Mistress.
Built in 1861 for 100 children.
- National, Low Gate; Mistress, Miss E.Hubbard.
Built in 1870 for 60 children.
Officer in charge of Coastguards. - William Clark.
Residents.
Vicar. - Rev. R.F.Franklin M.A.; Parish Clerk. R.Wright.
Surgeon. - B.Bubb A.K.C.L.
A.Chapman; R.Keal; D.J.Millington; T.P.Saul; O.Taylor; T.Waite; G.Welsh.
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Beer Retailer. - W.Allen; H.Green; R.Harrow; J.Snowden.
Blacksmith. - J.Dawson; J.Haynes; D.Tilley; G.Woods.
Bricklayer. - S.Humble.
Butcher. - S..Bontoft; S.Spence.
Carpenter. - W.Dawson.
Castrator. - J.Scrimshaw.
Farmer. - W.T.Balderson; A.Blake; A.Chapman; J.Clark; T.Clarke; J.Codd; G.Collins; J.R.Collins; C.Dowlman; T.Edwards; E.Exton; G.Foster; M.Greenfield; T.Haynes; C.Hornsby; E.Humble; J.Idle; R.Keal; W.Keal; J.Kew; E.Leary; W’Limb; F.Longden; J.&G.Pitcher; F.Reeson; T.Reeson; J.Roworth; T.P.Saul; E.Simpson; T.Simpson; B.J.Skinner; J.Smith; H.Stephenson; P.Stephenson; J.Swain; H.Taylor; O.Taylor; T.Waite; E.Ward; J.Watts; G.Welsh; J.White; W.Whiting;
Inns & Public Houses.- J.Hardy, Black Bull; J.Mason, White Horse; S.Royle, Angel Inn;
Market Gardener. - J.Mason.
Miller. - J.W.Cooper; J.B.Harrison.
Shoe Maker. - J.Evison; G.Mitchell.
Shopkeeper. - J.S.King; Mrs. E.Mountain; W.Wray.
Taylor. - W.Misdall.
Wheelwright. - C.W.Bowser.
Carrier to Boston. - J.Blanshhard; W.Pepper. (Wed & Sat.).