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MARKET TOWNS OF HAMPSHIRE (from SDUK Penny Cyclopedia)

Ryde, Isle of Wight, in 1843

Ryde is situated in the parish of Newchurch, in the liberty of East Medina, on the north-east shore of the island. The town is modern ; the streets are wide and tolerably regular, well paved, and cleansed under commissioners appointed by an act passed in 1829. The houses being generally stuccoed, and of various forms and sizes, and intermingled with the foliage of trees in the numerous gardens, the appearance of the town is very picturesque. The market-house and town-hall form a handsome building 198 feet by 56. St. Thomas’s chapel and St. James’s chapel are both dependent on the parish church of Newchurch, which is seven miles distant. There is an Independent chapel and a Methodist chapel. There is a free-school, and there are Sunday-schools attached to St. James’s chapel and the two dissenting chapels. There are baths near the pier. The town has considerable trade : it exports corn, flour, sheep, calves, lambs, &c., and East and West India ships frequently call here to supply themselves with provisions for their voyages. Tuesday and Friday are the market-days. Boat and yacht building are carried on, and occasionally larger vessels are built. The pier was erected at an expense of £12,000. The foundation was laid June 29, 1813, and the structure, which is mostly of wood, was completed in 1814 ; it extends 1,740 feet into the sea. A landing may be made in calm weather at all times of the tide. It is furnished with an iron railing and covered seats, and forms a very fine parade. The population of the parish in 1841 was 8,370, consisting of 3,742 males and 4,628 females. The population of the town, according to the census of 1831, was 3,396 : it is now probably between 4,000 and 5,000.