The first church in the parish was St. Magdelene. It is likely to have originally been a timber-built structure and rebuilt in stone by the Normans but very little is known about the building. The only written reference to the name of the church found so far is from a court case in 1386 concerning… Continue reading St. Magdelene Church
Tag: Handsacre
Thomas William White
In October 1962, Thomas William White celebrated his 90th birthday, honouring his service to Handsacre Methodist Church and the community. Born in Rugeley, White worked various jobs before becoming a blacksmith. A dedicated Methodist preacher since 1894, he also served as Parish Council Chairman and Lichfield District Councillor. Married to Alice Elizabeth Hughes in 1898, he continued his community service until his death in 1965 at age 92. In 1966, a silver birch cross was dedicated to his memory at Handsacre Methodist Temple
Thomas Bond Part 3 – brickmaker
By December 1819, Thomas Bond restarted his business post-bankruptcy, moving to Handsacre for a malting and brickyard operation. His fifth child, Edwin, was born around 1821, with two more children following. In 1830, Thomas leased land with a brickyard but no malthouse. By 1835, the Bond family operated three brickyards. Thomas relocated to Birmingham by 1841, with his sons taking various paths in brickmaking. Some sons suffered multiple bankruptcies, but his eldest son, John, succeeded, leaving £20,000 upon his death in 1880. His legacy includes stamped bricks, reflecting the mechanization of the industry.
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
Signing the pledge
The Pledge Book above is from Handsacre Primitive Methodists and I would first like to thank Gifford Foote for allowing me access to their historical records and for his encouragement in my research on the village. The temperance movement in the UK was a social movement that campaigned against the recreational use and sale of… Continue reading Signing the pledge
Sixteen years on the run
There weren’t many people to watch John Walthew (Waltho) on his wedding day as he limped, (courtesy of a broken left thigh some years earlier), down the aisle at St. John the Baptist church, Armitage on 26th September 1789. John was just short of 31 years old and his bride was 17-year-old Sarah Lamsdale and… Continue reading Sixteen years on the run
World champion
The Regal Cinema Social Club in Lichfield were always looking for ways to get more people interested in joining and, in the autumn of 1970, as a bit of a laugh, they decided to set up a prune eating world record bid. The cinema and club manager, John Terry, announced the idea at the weekly… Continue reading World champion
A coronation carnival
If you are looking for events with which to celebrate King Charles’ coronation this year then why not take a look at the 1937 version and stage pillow fighting, cutting down a leg of mutton or even ‘climbing the greasy pole’? Like most towns and villages at that time a lot of effort was put… Continue reading A coronation carnival
The Magazine Bridge
Two or three years ago I was asked about the origin of the name of the ‘Magazine Bridge’. Not only did I not know, I didn’t even know where it was! After a bit of searching I found out where it was – the canal bridge at the far end of Handsacre towards Kings Bromley… Continue reading The Magazine Bridge
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.