TIVERTON, or TWYFORD-TOWN, a borough of England in Devonshire, is situated on the de clivity of a hill between the rivers Exe and Lo man. The town is nearly a mile long, and three fourths of a mile broad. The four principal streets inclose a quadrangular space forming dens, with a bowling green in the centre. The houses are chiefly of red brick or stone, and are covered with slate, but those on the outskirts of the town are earthen and thatched cottages. The castle, the church, the town-house, and the gram mar school, are the principal buildings. The grammar school is a fine building 170 long, erected in 1604. The castle seems to have been a quadrangle enclosing about an acre, and surrounded by walls about 22 feet high. Great part of the south and west walls, and portions of the towers at the angles still remain. The moat at the south side is converted into a good kitchen garden. The church is adorned with a good deal of interesting sculpture, and the tower, which is 116 feet high, is ornamented with battlements and pinnacles.
The town-house is a strong edifice. The other public buildings are a neat chapel of ease erected in 1733, several meeting houses for dissenters, the market house, the hospital or poor's house, and two alms houses. This town has long been cele brated for its woollen manufactures, especially that of kerseys. The chief articles now made are serges, druggets, durays, sagotees, drapins, &c. Tiverton sends two members to parliament. In 1591 the plague raged in the town, which was af terwards destroyed by fire. In 1612 and 1731 it suffered greatly from fire. Population of the town in 1821, 997 houses, 1262 families, 124 ditto em ployed in agriculture, 979 in trade, and total pop ulation 6712. See Dunsford's Historical Memoirs of Tiverton, and the Beauties of England, vol. iv.