The History and Antiquities of Horsham

Church monuments, paved streets, and a changing town hall give Howard Dudley's account of Horsham its close attention to place. Published in 1836, this illustrated local history considers the town's possible name origins, parliamentary representation, public buildings, and recent improvements. Its description of St. Mary's Church moves from the avenue of lime trees to carved roof details, memorial figures, and inscriptions, recording the objects that caught an antiquarian's eye.

The account also follows roads into the surrounding countryside. At Warnham, Dudley describes the church and its family monuments, then turns to Warnham Court and Field Place, identified as Percy Bysshe Shelley's birthplace. St. Leonard's forest brings together traces of ironworking and a local ghost legend. Wood engravings and lithographic views accompany this interest in buildings and landscape. Readers researching local history or older approaches to architectural description can use it as a detailed record of how Dudley saw the district.