|
To
search for properties for sale and rent in Leicestershire
click here............
Description in 1887 "Leicestershire, inland county of England,
bounded N. by Notts, E. by Lincolnshire and Rutland, SE. by
Northamptonshire, SW by Warwickshire, and NW. by Derbyshire;
greatest length, about 44 miles; greatest breadth, about 40
miles; area, 511,907 acres, population, 321,258. Low undulating
hills cover the surface of the county, the highest elevation
being Fardon Hill (902 ft.), in the Charnwood range. Charnwood
Forest, in the NW., is now nearly destitute of trees. The
principal rivers are tributaries of the Trent, which flows
in the NW. of the county; these are the Soar, Wreak, Anker,
Devon, and Mease. The Avon and Welland flow in the S. Two
canals, the Union and the Grand Union, are connected with
the Grand Junction Canal. Much of the soil is loamy, and the
richest districts are kept in pasture, upon which are reared
the varieties of sheep and cattle for which the county is
famous. Dairy farms are numerous, especially in the vicinity
of Melton Mowbray, where the well-known Stilton cheese is
largely produced. Leicestershire consists mostly of the new
red sandstone formation. The coal measures have a total area
of ahout 15 square miles, the most productive mines being
in the neighbourhood of Ashby de la Zouch. Hosiery is the
leading manufacture, the wool employed being that of Leicestershire
sheep." [Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles, 1887]
|
