STAFFORDSHIRE, an inland and central county of England. It is bounded on the north by Cheshire and Derbyshire, on the east by Leicestershire, on the west by Shropshire, and on the south by Warwick shire and Worcestershire. Its figure is that of an oblong, extending from north to south. Its utmost length from north-cast to south-west is 60 miles, and its greatest breadth from east to west is 38 miles. It contains 1148 statute miles, or 734,720 acres, the greater part of which is arable. The civil divisions are five hundreds, one city, (Litchfield)three boroughs, and twenty-four market towns. Staffordshire is in the province of Canterbury, and, with the exception of a small portion in the diocese of Litchfield and Coventry, it contains 180 parishes, and is included in the archdeaconry of Stafford. The general appear ance of the county varies extremely in the different districts; thus, the middle and southern parts, which consist of one level plain, only interrupted by a few inconsiderable elevations, present a remarkable con trast to the northern district, which is distinguished by desolate and unproductive hills, and by the general air of bleakness that pervades its scenery. In this district, which is called the moorlands, there are several hills of considerable height, of which Bunster and the Weever Hills are the highest; the latter are 1154 feet above the level of the sea. The general elevation of the moorlands above the southern dis tricts, is between 100 and 200 yards. Although the appearance of the uplands is so desolate, yet there are some districts in the southern part of the county, on the banks of the rivers, which may vie with any other part of England in beauty of scenery, and luxu riance of vegetation, the most celebrated of which are the banks of the Dove, especially at Ilam, and the country between Litchfield and Stone.
Staffordshire contains almost every variety of soil, but the most prevalent are the strong clays, and the gravelly and sandy soils. There is very little calca reous soil, and no chalk. In the waste lands, there is abundance of peat, which, however, when drained is highly capable of improvement. The meadows, particularly those on the banks of the Trent, are rich and fertile. The climate of Staffordshire is decidedly wet and moist. The annual fall of rain is about 36 inches. In winter, a considerable quantity of snow falls on the moorlands, which may accouut for the coldness of that district.
The rivers of Staffordshire, most of which have their origin in the moorlands, are not of any great size, and none of them are navigable. Yet they are of inestimable value to the county, as they supply with water the numerous canals that intersect it. The principal rivers are the Trent, which is the third river in England, the Dove, the Stour, the Blythe, the Tame, and the Pcnk, which last are all tributaries of the Trent. The Trent has its source at Newpool, near Biddulph, on the borders of Cheshire; it enters Derbyshire at Burton, where it receives the Dove. While it flows through Staffordshire it is a bold and rapid stream, bearing some resemblance to the Thames. After flowing through Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, it empties itself into the Humber, about forty miles below Gainsborough, to which place it is navigable for vessels of considerable burthen. The Dove, which is the river in Staffordshire next in importance to the Trent, rises in the moorlands, and after running through the beautifully picturesque coun try called Dovedale, and receiving the Alantfold and Ilamps, it joins the Trent at Burton in Derbyshire. Staffordshire is better supplied with navigable canals than any other county of England, which amply com pensate for the want of navigable rivers, which other wise would be a serious loss to the commercial interest of the county. The Grand Trunk Canal, which was planned and carried through by the late celebrated engineer Mr. Brindley, unites the three ports of Liver pool, Bristol, and hull. Its total length is about ninety-one miles; the fall of water on the northern side is about 326 feet, and on the southern 'side 316. In the former there are thirty-live locks, and in the latter forty; the usual breadth at the top is twenty nine feet, and it is four and a half feet deep. '['he numerous branches of this canal serve to establish a regular communication between the principal sea ports and the central districts, and also a ready mode of conveyance for those goods, the value of which, owing to their weight and bulk, would be more than counterbalanced by the expense attending the carriage by land. There are few lakes of any size in this county, but the largest is that of Aquelate, which is 1848 yards long, and 672 broad.