Chiswell Langhorne

Colonel Chiswell Dabney Langhorne (November 4, 1843 – February 14, 1919) was an American railroad industrialist. He was the father of Nancy Witcher Langhorne and the maternal grandfather of both Joyce Grenfell and Michael Langhorne Astor.

Langhorne was born in Lynchburg, Virginia at Point of Honor. He was the eldest son of John Scarsbrook Langhorne (who inherited Langhorne Mills in Lynchburg along with the bulk of his father Henry's property) and Sarah Elizabeth Dabney (whose family owned the Edgemont plantation). The family were wealthy planters and slave-owners before the American Civil War. The Confederate General Jeb Stuart was a relative .

The Langhorne family lived in greatly reduced circumstances after the war. But, during the next quarter century, "Chilly" made a new fortune working first in the tobacco auctioneering business and then in railroads.

As a young man, Langhorne entered the Confederate Army and served with distinction during the war. Soon after the Civil War, he moved to Danville, Virginia, a major center for bright leaf tobacco. The sale of loose-leaf tobacco by auction on a warehouse floor had originated there just before the Civil War. The practice, which was called the "Danville System", was quickly and widely adopted. It is said that Langhorne originated the auctioneer's fast-talking "chant," which proved very effective at evoking a heightened sense of bidding, and was also copied everywhere.

Chiswell

Coordinates: 50°33′43″N 2°26′55″W / 50.5620°N 2.4487°W / 50.5620; -2.4487

Chiswell (once known as Chesilton) is a small fishing village at the southern end of Chesil Beach, in Underhill, on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, and is the oldest settlement on the island. The small bay at Chiswell is called Chesil Cove. The promenade and sea wall which forms Chiswell's coastal defences are a prominent feature. The village itself is almost indistinguishable from Fortuneswell, the largest village on the island, as the two settlements are very close. However this distinction can be made: Chiswell occupies flat land close to sea level, whereas Fortuneswell's streets wind up and down the steep hills. At the entrance to the village is the 19th-century development of Victoria Square.

As with the rest of Portland's villages and settlements, Chiswell has been designated as a conservation area, as it is a place of special architectural and historic interest. Underhill, including Chiswell and other settlements, became designated in 1976 with boundary extensions in 1997 and 2000. Today the village is maintained by the Chiswell Community Trust.

Chiswell (surname)

Chiswell is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:

Villages of Portland

The Isle of Portland, Dorset, contains eight settlements, the largest being Fortuneswell in Underhill and Easton in Tophill. Castletown and Chiswell are the other villages in Underhill, and Weston, Southwell, Wakeham and the Grove occupy Tophill.

Villages

Southwell

Southwell (pronounced /ˈsaʊθˌwɛl/) 50°32′N 2°27′W / 50.533°N 2.450°W / 50.533; -2.450 is a small coastal village in Tophill on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, between Portland Bill and the village of Easton. Like many of the other villages on Portland, Southwell has commercial industry (Southwell Business Park). The village has one Primary School, Southwell County Primary School.

Easton

Easton 50°33′N 2°26′W / 50.550°N 2.433°W / 50.550; -2.433 is the second largest of eight villages on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The village is situated on the top of the island or Tophill, in the English Channel, and was where the Easton Massacre took place. The village has a small square with many shops and shopping arcade, a Secondary school, four churches, a small park, and other amenities. Easton is also the location of Portland Young Offenders Institution. At the south end of Easton is Portland Museum.