SAWLEY, a village, a township, and a parish, in Shardlow district, Derbyshire. The village stands on the river Trent, near the Grand Trunk canal and the Derby and Nottingham railway, 8½ miles E S E of Derby; was once a market town; and has a post-office under Derby, a r. station, and a fair on 12 Nov. The township contains also Wilsthorpe village, and comprises 1, 915 acres. Real property, £3, 557. Pop., 1,082. Houses, 252. The parish contains likewise the township of Long Eaton, and comprises 3, 834 acres. Pop. in 1851, 1, 934; in 1861, 2, 633. Houses, 588. The increase of pop. arose fromfacilities of railway communication, and from erection of steam-factories. The property is subdivided. The manor belongs to the Earl of Harrington. The constructing of railway -carriage and railway -wheel works, and the making of fancy nets, are carried on. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Lichfield. Value, £300.* Patron, the Bishop of Lichfield. The church is ancient, and has a tower and lofty spire. The p. curacy of Long Eaton is a separate benefice. Three dissenting chapels, a national school, and charities £34, are in Sawley; and five dissenting chapels, a national school, and alms-houses are in Long Eaton.

(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))