Billesdon, Leicestershire

Description
Billesdon, a small town and parish in Leicestershire. The town lies 3 1/2 miles N E of the Via Devana, 4 1/2 from Tilton station on the G.N. and L. & N.W. Joint railway, and 8 1/2 E by S of Leicester. The parish includes the chapelries of Goadby and Rolleston, and has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Leicester. Area, 2150 acres; population of the civil parish, 754; of the ecclesiastical, with Goadby and Rolleston, 904. Formerly a market-town, Billesdon held three fairs annually, but the market lias become extinct, and only one fair, chiefly for cattle, is held�on the first Monday in October. An ancient market-cross still stands in the old market-place. The soil is stiff, heavy clay, formerly used in the making of earthenware, and now used for making bricks and tiles. A Roman camp of 18 acres, with ditcli and rampart, occurs at Billesdon-Coplow; was the site of a Roman temple, and commands a fine view. The living is a vicarage, including the perpetual curacies of Goadby and Rolleston, in the diocese of Peterborough; gross joint yearly value, £279 with residence. The church is an ancient building of stone in the Early English style, has a western tower surmounted by a lofty spire, and was restored in 1865. It is dedicated to St John the Baptist. There are Baptist and Wesleyan chapels, almshouses, and a workhouse, with accommodation for 100 inmates. Villiers, first Duke of Buckingham, is said to have received his early education here. The Coplow, a fine country seat, stands on a height about a mile N of the village, and is surrounded by beautiful woods and grounds.