In 1834 the system for poor relief in England and Wales was completely changed by the Poor Law Amendment Act, also known as the New Poor Law. The Parish was no longer allowed to provide out-relief i.e. help out the poor with financial help. Relief would only be given in workhouses and, furthermore, it was… Continue reading Caring for the needy – Part Three
Category: Miscellaneous
Caring for the needy – Part Two
A similar fate to James Conway befell two Waltho children, William and Jane, at even younger ages. Richard Waltho from Armitage had married Hannah Cox in Hamstall Ridware in 1785 and they had a son and a daughter in Hamstall Ridware. By 1791 the family was living in Armitage and reliant on poor relief as… Continue reading Caring for the needy – Part Two
Caring for the needy – Part One
In the 16th C there was no formalised practice for relief of the poor but the Act for the Relief of the Poor 1597 began a long process of setting up a legal requirement for helping the needy of each and every Parish in England and Wales. One of the first principles established was that… Continue reading Caring for the needy – Part One
The origin of the word ‘loo’
If you are going to write about the history of Armitage potbank how can you resist looking up the origins of the word ‘loo’? The word itself first appeared in print in the 1922 book, Ulysses, by James Joyce so it was obviously already in popular use by that time. There’s all sorts of claims… Continue reading The origin of the word ‘loo’
Murder in the Church
Sir Simon died in 1373 leaving a widow and three young daughters – as you can imagine, with so much land, money and power up for grabs, the vultures gathered.
New transcriptions added
Transcriptions of the Parish Registers for St. John the Baptist church for the years 1900 to 1930 are now on the website under the Records tab.
Drunk and …
The introduction of beerhouses in 1830 led to more disorder and drunkenness and this is just a selection of the troubles our ancestors got into because of drink.
Soldiers from the Great War
Many of the survivors of The Great War had also been wounded or gassed or otherwise injured. On walking around the churchyard, you can see a number of gravestones for those who died after the war.
Marriage Bonds
I started looking into my family history back around the year 2000. My dad’s surname was Conway and he came from a small village called Armitage in Staffordshire.
Handsacre poachers
By 1849 the pottery was shut. The pits were really struggling and there were no jobs down the pits for any miners in either Armitage or Handsacre. But you could always go foraging for wild fruit and roots, like your distant ancestors. Or go hunting for food, like your distant ancestors. Only they had brought in the hated Game Laws so now it was called poaching.