Sir John Cope, Bart., about the year 1700, resided in a large house at Little Chelsea, according to Bowack, which was subsequently occupied as a private mad house. The house has been pulled down, and its site is now called Odell’s Place. Sir John sat for Oxfordshire and Banbury in several Parliaments. He married Anne, daughter of Mr. William Booth, by whom he had seven sons, and one daughter. There are some entries of their baptisms in the Parish Register. Sir John died January 11th, 1721. His fourth son, Galen, born at Chelsea, resided there about the time of his father’s death. The worthy baronet was a magistrate for this county, and his name regularly appears for a series of years affixed, in confirmation of the parochial rates. * * * * * Robert Boyle, Esq., a most distinguished philosopher and chemist, the seventh son of Richard, Earl of Cork, resided, in 1661, at Little Chelsea, and there he was visited by the learned and eminent of his time. Monsieur de Monconys, in his Travels, thus mentions a visit which he made to Mr. Boyle at this place:—“I went after dinner with Mr. Oldenburg and my son, two miles from London, in a stage coach, for five shillings, to a village called Little Chelsea, to visit Mr. Boyle.” After giving an account of several experiments which Mr. Boyle made in his presence, he thus proceeds:—“He has a very fine laboratory, where he makes all his extracts, and other operations, one of which he shewed me with salt, which being put in quite dry with gold leaves sixteen times thicker than that used by gilders into a crucible on a slow fire, even over a lighted candle, the salt calcined the gold so perfectly that water afterwards dissolved them both, and became impregnated with them in the same manner as with common salt. He possesses a very fine telescope, and two excellent microscopes, which are larger than mine.” Mr. Evelyn, in his Diary, has also recorded a visit to the same place. “I went with that excellent person and philosopher, Sir Robert Murray, to visit Mr. Boyle at Chelsea, and saw divers effects of the Eolipile for weighing air.” Bishop Burnet, in Mr. Boyle’s funeral sermon, has given an eloquent account of this great philosopher and scholar. * * * * * Charles, fourth Earl of Orrery, grand-nephew to Mr. Boyle, was born at Little Chelsea in 1676. He was author of a comedy, entitled, “As you Find it,” and of some verses which discover his wit and poetical genius. Queen Anne created him a peer of Great Britain in 1711, by the title of Lord Boyle, of Marston, in the county of Somerset. His lordship died in 1737. He was the improver of that noble instrument the Orrery, which, in honour of him, was called after his name. * * * * *