By September 1815, Thomas Bond was imprisoned for debt in Stafford gaol, a harsh reality for many in 19th-century England. After a period of uncertainty, he resumed his malting and brickmaking business while venturing into pottery. Despite efforts to expand, mounting financial troubles led to his bankruptcy in 1819.
Category: Miscellaneous
The founding of Armitage potbank
In November 1817, Thomas Bond purchased land in Armitage, marking the start of his pottery venture. By 1819, multiple potteries operated in the area, with Bond’s business eventually facing bankruptcy. The legacy of Armitage potbank would later evolve into the global brand of Edward Johns Co. Ltd., later Armitage Ware and Armitage Shanks.
Thomas Bond Part 1 – maltster, brickmaker, potter and gaolbird
Thomas Bond, a maltster, brickmaker, and potter, is credited with founding Armitage’s first pottery. Before this, he ran brickworks and malting operations. Despite early ventures in pottery and partnerships, financial troubles led to bankruptcy. In 1815, his failed pottery venture resulted in imprisonment for debt.
The pre-fabs
In October 1946 the Housing Committee of Armitage-with-Handsacre Parish Council convened a public meeting to ‘discuss the unsatisfactory progress of the new houses’. Held in the Parish Hall, crowded with many young married couples including young babies, the meeting was at times quite tempestuous. The Council Chairman, H. Wright, told the meeting about the unsatisfactory… Continue reading The pre-fabs
Occupations
When researching a person the occupation begins to tell something of that person’s story although it is always more interesting when an unusual occupation is encountered. As you might expect, there is not much in the way of written information about occupations in medieval times but records of court cases provide some information. After the… Continue reading Occupations
And the next prize is …
In the early 1800s, the Staffordshire Agricultural Society, with Sir George Pigot as President and the Lord Talbot as Vice-President, held an annual meeting at which various awards were handed out. The 8th August 1803 edition of Aris’s Birmingham Gazette, at the not inconsiderable price of 6d per copy, reported on the awards. There were… Continue reading And the next prize is …
Field names
What is known as the Tithe Commutation Act map (tithe map) of 1841 and its accompanying book showing tenants, owners etc. for the parish of Armitage-with-Handsacre gives us most of the information we have on old field names although estate maps also provide some information. The different documents do not all agree, and some information… Continue reading Field names
The first issue of the Parish Magazine
The very first edition of Armitage parish magazine came out in January 1892,priced one penny. The rendition of the church on the front cover, shown below, is stated as being a woodcut owned by Miss Birch, of Armitage Lodge, and is from a photograph taken by Mr. H. Cecil Gardner, of The Towers. The parish… Continue reading The first issue of the Parish Magazine
Pit ponies
Jack Smith was born on 1st November 1899 in Wednesbury to John and Eliza Ann nee Love who had got married the previous Christmas Eve. John gave his occupation as a plate leveller on his marriage certificate and as a straightener on the baptism record for young Jack so he presumably worked in the metal… Continue reading Pit ponies
The oldest item in the village
In the Anglo-Saxon, Norman and Medieval eras the main way of portraying Christian beliefs and stories was through imagery; most people couldn’t read and church services were held in Latin anyway. Ideas and beliefs were conveyed in wall paintings, stained glass, statues of wood and stone, carvings on the furniture, and on the walls and… Continue reading The oldest item in the village