Family history often begins with a few names and dates, but sometimes it uncovers unexpected treasures. While tracing her Conway ancestors from Armitage, Sheila Cochrane discovered an eighteenth-century marriage bond carrying a remarkable £500 penalty. What at first seemed a mystery became the starting point for a fascinating journey through old records, family connections and the lives of her Staffordshire ancestors.
Tag: Armitage
Assault and battery in the church
A peaceful Sunday service at St. John the Baptist Church erupted into violence when a dispute over a family pew ended with one worshipper being dragged from her seat in front of the entire congregation. The incident led to a remarkable court case that sheds light on church life, social status and the surprising value once attached to pew ownership.
Jack Whitehouse MM
Jack Whitehouse lied about his age to serve in the First World War and went on to earn the Military Medal for rescuing a wounded comrade under fire. Returning to Armitage, he spent the rest of his life working down the pit, serving as a parish councillor and becoming a leading figure in the British Legion. His story reflects both the courage of a decorated soldier and a lifetime of service to his community.
The Silver Fork Society
Armitage Park produced an unlikely literary celebrity. Born there in 1800, Thomas Henry Lister drew on his experience of fashionable Regency society to write novels filled with aristocrats, politicians, glittering balls and sharp social satire, becoming one of the leading voices of the Silver Fork movement.
The Croft School, Armitage
The Croft School opened in 1915 to relieve overcrowding at Armitage’s older schools and served generations of village children. Using the original managers’ minute books and school log, Roy Fallows traces its construction, early staff and the everyday events—from cess pits to Wembley trips—that brought the school to life.
Antoine Albena Mountsoy – an Armitage celebrity
Born in France during the eighteenth century, Antoine Albena Mountsoy survived capture during the Napoleonic Wars, served in the Royal Navy at the bombardment of Algiers and spent much of his life at sea before settling in rural Staffordshire. Researched by local historian Roy Fallows, this remarkable biography traces the adventures of a man whose extraordinary journey eventually brought him to Armitage, where he spent his final years.
Edward Johns
What sort of a person was Edward Johns?
Armitage – birthplace of science fiction?
Could Armitage claim a place in the origins of science fiction? In 1830, Thomas Henry Lister imagined a world of automation, rapid communication, global travel and futuristic technology—decades before Jules Verne or H.G. Wells. This article explores his remarkable vision of the future and asks where it belongs in the history of speculative writing.
Cannock tramp – native of Armitage
In 1912 the Lichfield Mercury told the remarkable story of John Bailey, an Armitage-born chorister whose supposed career took him from Lichfield Cathedral to aristocratic kitchens, royal patronage and eventually life as a wandering tramp. But how much of the tale was true? This article follows Bailey’s extraordinary claims, comparing them with surviving records to separate fact from fiction and uncover the life behind a fascinating newspaper story.
My disappearing landmark
For decades the cooling towers of Rugeley Power Station dominated the skyline of Armitage-with-Handsacre. This article explores how the station came to be built, the engineering ambitions behind it, and its lasting impact on the parish through employment, housing, changing boundaries and the disappearance of an older landscape beneath one of Britain’s largest industrial developments.