In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Wigston like this:
WIGSTON-MAGNA, a large village, a parish, and a subdistrict, in Blaby district, Leicestershire. The village stands near the Leicester and Market-Harborough and the Leicester and Rugby railways, 4 miles SSE of Leicester; has recently undergone much improvement; carries on considerable trade, in framework-knitting and in other departments; and has a post-office‡ under Leicester, two r. ...
stations, a mortuary old church with restored tower and spire, a handsome parochial church with lofty spire, an ornate Independent chapel of 1841, three other dissenting chapels, national and British schools, alms houses with £151 a year, and other charities £66. The parish comprises 2,780 acres. Real property, £9,863. Pop. in 1851, 2,441; in 1861, 2,521. Houses, 556. The property is much subdivided. W. Hall is the seat of M. Turner, Esq. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Peterborough. Value, £220.* Patron, alternately the Haberdashers' Company and Christ's Hospital, London.—The sub-district contains 5 parishes and 2 parts. Acres, 13,210. Pop., 7,314. Houses, 1,630.
Wigston through time
Wigston is now part of Oadby and Wigston district. Click here for graphs and data of how Oadby and Wigston has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Wigston itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Wigston, in Oadby and Wigston and Leicestershire | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/776
Date accessed: 20th April 2024
Not where you were looking for?
Click here for more detailed advice on finding places within A Vision of Britain through Time, and maybe some references to other places called "Wigston".
