FULHAM, a parish in the Kensington division of
the hundred of OSSULSTONE, county of MIDDLESEX,
containing, with the chapelry of Hammersmith, 15,301
inhabitants, of which number, 6492 are in. the township
of Fulham, 4 miles (S.W.byW.) from London, This
place, situated on the north bank of the Thames, consists
of several irregularly built streets, some of which
are paved, and lighted with gas, and. is amply supplied
with water from the river and from springs. It
is a place of considerable antiquity, the Danes having
fixed their head-quarters here during their invasion of
England in 879 , from which, after wintering there, they
set sail for Flanders in the spring. In 1642, the Earl
of Essex, the parliamentary general, caused a bridge
to be built, on barges and lighters, across the Thames,
from Fulham to Putney, for the conveyance of his
army and artillery into Surrey; and the parliamentary
army under Sir Thomas Fairfax was quartered
here in 1647. The manor, which appears to have
belonged to the see of London from the end of the
seventh century, was sold by order of the parliamentary
commissioners in 1647, but restored in 1660; and the
manor-house, or palace of Fulham, has been, from a
very early period, the usual summer residence of the
bishops of London. It is built of brick, the oldest part
having been erected in the reign of Henry VII., by Bishop
Fitz-James. The edifice consists of buildings surrounding
two courts; on the north side of the inner
court is the chapel, the windows of which are ornamented
with stained glass, the greater part of which
was removed from the chapel of London House, Aldersgate-
street. Bishop Compton, distinguished as a botanist
in the beginning of the last century, improved
the gardens by the introduction of a number of curious
plants and forest trees, particularly from North America.
In the vicinity of Fulham are several extensive
nursery-grounds, and much of the land is occupied by
market-gardeners, who are noted for the cultivation of
asparagus. A manufactory for earthenware, in imitation
of porcelain, was established in 1684; but this has been
long since superseded by a manufactory for brown stoneware.
There is an extensive malt-kiln. About 1763,
the manufacture of carpets and tapestry was introduced
on a small scale, but the undertaking was soon abandoned
from want of success. Near Wormholt, or
Wormwood Scrubs, is a detached portion of the parish
through which the Paddington canal passes; a design
has been projected to form a communication with this
canal and the Thames, by a navigable line commencing
jnear Fulham, but the undertaking has not been carried
into effect further than Kensington, where there is a
basin. This place is connected with Putney in Surrey
by a wooden bridge over the Thames, built by Mr.
Philips, carpenter to George II. Fulham is within the
jurisdiction of a court of requests for the recovery of
debts under 40s., held in Kingsgate-street, Holborn.
The living comprises a rectory and a vicarage, in
the archdeaconry of Middlesex, and diocese of London,
the former a sinecure, rated in the king's books at £26,
and in the patronage of the Bishop of London; and the
latter rated at £10, in the patronage of the Rector.
The church, dedicated to All Saints, is an ancient stone
structure, consisting of a nave, aisles, and chancel, with
a handsome tower at the west end, in the decorated
English style: within it is a single stone stall, with
a canopy ornamented with quatrefoils} and some
ancient sepulchral monuments. Among the distinguished
persons interred here may be mentioned Dr.
William Butts, physician to Henry VIII.; Dr. Richard
Zouch, professor of Civil Law at Oxford, in the reign of
Charles I.; Bishops Compton, Gibson, Sherlock, and
Lowth; Dr. Richard Fiddes, author of a Life of Cardinal
Wolsey j and Dr. William Cadogan, an eminent
physician, who died in 1797. There is a chapel at Waiham
Green, dedicated to St. John, which was erected in
1829, at the expense of £9683. 17. 9., raised by subscription
and a grant from the parliamentary commissioners:
it contains one thousand three hundred and
seventy sittings, of which five hundred and forty-four are
free. In the Fulham division of the parish, on the south
side of the road between Kensington and Hammersmith,
is a proprietary chapel, erected in 1813 at the expense
of Richard Hunt, Esq., and dedicated to St. Mary; and
in the Hammersmith division are the church of St.
Paul, and the chapel of St. Peter, the latter built by
parliamentary grant in 1829. There is a place of worship
for Independents. A library is supported by subscription.
A National school for boys, and another for
girls, containing about three hundred children of both
sexes, eighty of whom are clothed, were established in
1811, and endowed with the produce of various benefactions,
amounting to about £ 50 per annum; but they
are principally supported by voluntary contributions.
An infant school was established in 1830. Sir William
Powell, Bart., in 1680, founded twelve almshouses for
poor widows, and endowed them with property producing
£51 per annum, to which considerable additions have
been made by subsequent benefactors. Dr. Thomas
Turner, in 1706, bequeathed £100, directing the produce
-to be applied in apprenticing poor children; and there
are many other donations for charitable purposes.