The borough of Portsmouth contains twelve churches and chapels of the establishment. The church of St. Thomas, Portsmouth, is a spacious cruciform structure, built in the early English style, but corrupted by successive additions. At the west end is a tower 120 feet high, surmounted by a cupola and lantern. St. Mary's, the parish church of Portsea, is an ancient structure iu the suburb of Kingston, surrounded by one of the largest burial-grounds in the kingdom. The garrison chapel, on the Grand Parade, is a part of the ancient hospital of Domus Dei, fitted up for its present purpose. St. Paul's,' Southsea, and All Saints, Mile End, are in the perpendicular style. The Baptists have eleven places of worship, the Independents six, the Wesleyan Methodists six, the Bible Christians two, and the Primi tive Methodists, Plymouth Brethren, Roman Catholics, Unitarians, Mormons, and Jews have oue each. The public schools sire, two Grammar schools, four National, four British, an Infant and a Bethel school. There is a philosophical society in Portsmouth, with a hall and a museum of considerable extent ; Portsea has an athenmum and mechanics iustitute with a library of 1500 volumes ; and the Watt institute at Landport has a library of 550 volumes.
The other principal buildings in Portsmouth are, the governor's house, on the Grand Parade, originally part of Domus Dei hospital, the residence of the lieutenant-governor; the town-hall, the new county court, the new market-house, the theatre, the custom-house, the United Service club-house, the Four House barracks, and the Marine barracks on the south-west margin of the town, the Cambridge bar racks on the east, the Colewort barracks on the north, the new barracks at the cud of High-street, the almshouses, the jail, and house of correction. In Portsea are St Paul's academy, the Beueficial Society's hall, a general hospital, a savings bank, and on Mile End road the Dillon workhouse, a female penitentiary, and the Portsmouth and Farliugton water-works. At Laudport are the Tipner and Hilsea barracks, and near Southsea Castle is the laboratory of the Royal Marine Artillery. About two miles north from Portsmouth, between the London road and the harbour, is an extensive cemetery.
The Naval Dockyard at Portsea, the largest in the kingdom, covers an area of nearly 120 acres. It is separated from the town by a wall 14 feet high, and along the harbour it has a wharf-wall of nearly three-quarters of a mile in length. It includes the residences of the port-admiral, the admiral-superintendent, and other officers, the guard-house and pay office, a school for naval architecture, and a chapeL Besides extensive storehouses for hemp, cordage, canvass, sails, blocks, masts, rigging, and other requisites for naval architecture and outfit, it contains a rope-work and sail-lofts, a smithery, an iron mill, a copper-sheathing foundry, an anchor forge, with Nasmyth's huge steam-hammer, and the remarkable block-machinery invented by the late Sir Mark Brunel. Forty-fonr block-making machines, impelled
by a steam-engine, are arranged in three sets for blocks of different sizes. Receiving the rough timber, they cut it up, shape, and bore it, and continue the process till the block is complete. In the centre of ' the wharf-wall is the entrance to the great basin, which has an area of 21 acres, and four dry docks attached, with an additional dry dock on each aide, all capable of receiving the largest vessels. There is besides a double-dock for frigates. For the building of vessels there are six slips, two for ships of the first class. The Victoria steam-basin, lately formed at the north end of the dockyard, is 3000 feet in length. A range of engineers' shops, provided with every mechanical aid, occupies the western side of the basin. Close to the dockyard on the south is the Gun-wharf, with various ranges of building for ordnance stores. Gone of every calibre, with immense pyramids of shot adapted to them, occupy a spacious area of 14 acres. An ornamental building, called the Small Arms Armoury, contains upwards of 20,000 stand of arms for sea service. The Royal Victualling Yard at \Yeovil, and Hadar Hospital for sick and wounded seamen, are noticed under 1 Goseons. The harbour is crossed every half-hour by a floating bridge, which plies between Gosport and a suburb called the Point on the west side of Portsmouth. A small bay called the Camber, ex tending between the Point and the Gun-wharf, forms the harbour for merchant shipping. It is lined by an excellent quay, at which large vessels load and unload. The Victoria and Albert piers, two hand some erections, afford additional accommodation. An inland navigation proceeding by the channel at the north end of Portsea Island to the Portsmouth and Arundel Canal, and continued by the Aruu and Junction Canal and the river Wey to the Thames, connects Portsmouth with London. The South Western railway, which has its terminus at Gosport, and the Brighton and South Coast railway, which has its terminus at Portsea, connect Portsmouth by land with the metropolis. A short line running along the northern margin of the harbour unites the two railways. Steam-packets ply several times a day between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, and there is a regular communica tion by steamers with London, Southampton, Plymouth, Liverpool, Dublin, and Havre. The trade of Portsmouth depends on the dock yard and other public establishment,. Great numbers of persons, especially females, are employed in Portsea and Landport, in the manufacture of articles of outfit for penmen. There are extensive market-gardens In the neighbourhood.