Newham in 1838

Newnham, 9½ miles south-west of Gloucester, stands on an eminence rising from the western banks of the river Severn, which is here nearly a mile across at high-water. There is a ferry established at this place. Newnham is of great antiquity. In the Norman times it appears to have been a fortified town designed to repress the incursions of the Welsh ; and in ancient records mention is often made of the castle here. The former consequence of the town may be inferred from many names of lanes and streets which appear in ancient grants, but the situations of which are now forgotten. The houses are now principally ranged in one long street, and the church stands on a cliff near the river. In the middle of the last century a quay for vessels of 110 tons burthen was built here by one of the Pyrke family ; and some trade is now carried on with Bristol and London, and other parts. The population of the town in 1831 was 1,074 ; the number of houses 184.