CREDENHILL is a parish and railway station on the Hereford, Hay, and Brecon branch of the Midland railway, and about 1 mile N. of the river Wye, which infamous for its salmon, trout, and grayling fishing. The village is intersected by the main road between Hereford and Kington, and is distant 4½ miles N.W. of Hereford, 16¼ E. of Hay, 33¾ from Brecon, 14½ S.E. of Kington, and 12 S. by W. of Leominster; is in Grimsworth hundred, Hereford union, county court district, and petty sessional division, and Yazor polling district. The population in 1861 was 199; in 1871, 225; inhabited houses, 48; families or separate occupiers, 53; area of parish, 1,217 acres; annual rateable value, £2,780. The trustees of the Credenhill estate are lords of the manor, and with Charles Hardwick, Esq., are the chief landowners. The parish is fertile and well wooded; soil, loam and gravel; subsoil, red marl; chief produce, wheat, barley, clover, roots, &c.

On the summit of Credenhill are the remains of a Roman encampment, the area of which comprehends between 30 and 40 acres, bounded by a double ditch and rampart, and surrounded by almost inaccessible works, and forming a very beautiful and conspicuous object. From the irregularity of its form, it is supposed to have been of British origin, but afterwards strengthened by the Romans as an exploratory camp for the defence of Kenchester (Magna Castra); the works are broken in many places, and the ditches partly obscured. The view from the summit of this camp is one of the most extensive in Herefordshire, and equally beautiful. Roman coins and other antiquities are frequently found in the vicinity. Credenhill is in the diocese and archdeaconry of Hereford and rural deanery of Weston; living, a rectory; value, £364, with residence and 28 acres of glebe; patrons, the trustees of the Credenhill estate; rector, Rev. Charles Henry Bulmer, M.A., of Magdalen College, Cambridge, who was instituted in 1861.

The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is an old Gothic structure of stone, with square ivy-mantled tower containing two bells. It was partially restored in 1862, and subsequently the tower has been repaired, and the south front repointed by private subscription. A thorough restoration is about to commence under the superintendence of Thomas Nicholson, Esq., F.I.B.A., of Hereford. The church consists of nave, chancel, south porch, modern font, and several marble monuments to the Eckley family. In the chancel is a stained glass window to the memory of St. Thomas à Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury, and St. Thomas Cantilupe, Bishop of Hereford, both of whom were canonized in the same year. There is also a very handsome specimen of modern glass, manufactured by Messrs. Clayton & Bell, in the east window, bearing the following inscription:-

The window on south side of chancel is also filled with stained glass by Messrs. Gibbs, in memory of Elizabeth, the beloved wife of John Reynolds, 1875. The parish registers begin with the year 1671. The charities amount to £3 10s. yearly. A new school, to accommodate 35 children, has been erected by the trustees of the Credenhill estate. It is under Government inspection; average attendance, about 30. Credenhill Park, the residence of Francis William Herbert, Esq., is a modern mansion, eligibly situated amongst picturesque plantations, and commanding most extensive views and delightful scenery. The Rectory House, the residence of the Rev. C. H. Bulmer, M.A., is situate in a very beautiful spot a little below the park; its grounds abound with choice shrubs, roses, &c.