Colton, Staffordshire
Encyclopedia
Colton is a village and civil parish
in Lichfield District
, Staffordshire
, England. It is situated just outside the town of Rugeley
.
Colton is the home to Border Collie Trust GB, a registered charity rescuing and rehoming Border Collie
s and Collie crosses throughout the UK.
There is also a village hall and a small church. There is a bypass that has just been built near Rugeley the town nearest Colton. There is also a park for young children.
Colton lies just off the B5013, which runs from Rugeley, local pronunciation 'Rudge-Lee' or 'Rewj-uh-lee', to Uttoxeter ('Utch-eater').
The village is entered by way of a hump-back bridge over the Moreton Brook, which has a ford alongside for large vehicles. It is said that in WWII, a US army lorry took the bridge at speed and overturned, killing two soldiers. St. Mary's Church stands on the right, with St. Mary's School on the left. There used to be a pool on the left a short distance beyond the school, on which people would skate, or slide, during the frequent very cold winters of the 1960s. A hundred yards further on is the Forge, where the Williscroft family would with a steel hoop re-tyre your cart wheel, make you a toboggan for use in the snow on The Martlin Hill, or dig your grave, make your coffin and conduct your funeral.
Colton House had a large British Army camp during the early years of WWII. With their being no telephone at Colton House, a soldier, with a bicycle, was permanently stationed a few hundred yards up the road outside the telephone box at the bottom of Martlin Lane, to respond as necessary when the telephone rang, in true Dad's Army fashion. The telephone service in those days was part of the post office, and the soldier on duty at night would be comforted by a tray of cocoa and biscuits brought down the lane by the post-mistress's son.
At the foot of Martlin Lane is the 'Pinfold'. Entering the Pinfold from the South is a public footpath which crosses the fields from Rugeley, having left the main B5013 near to the Trent Valley Railway Station. Red bricks can be seen embedded in the ground at points on this walk, and they are believed to have been laid by prisoners taken during the Napoleonic War. Alongside the Pinfold is the village War Memorial. Almost opposite is The Greyhound Inn.
Continuing through the village, Malt House Farm is passed, the former home of the late prominent Euro-sceptic Tory MP Nick Budgen. High House (the former village shop) is passed, and if you continue ahead you continue to Blithbury and 'The Bull and Spectacles' Inn. However, turning left takes you further up the village. Modern houses show where a number of older houses have been replaced, until the top of the village is reached, surrounding the 'Dun Cow' Inn. The Manor Farm sits above, and Heath Way leads to the hamlet of Stockwell Heath, whose duck pond has for several generations been referred to tongue-in-cheek as 'Stockwell Heath Docks'.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in Lichfield District
Lichfield (district)
Lichfield is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. It is administered by Lichfield District Council, based in Lichfield.The dignity and privileges of the City of Lichfield are vested in the parish council of the 14 km² Lichfield civil parish...
, Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, England. It is situated just outside the town of Rugeley
Rugeley
Rugeley is a historic market town in the county of Staffordshire, England. It lies on the northern edge of Cannock Chase, and is situated roughly midway between the towns of Stafford, Cannock, Lichfield and Uttoxeter...
.
Colton is the home to Border Collie Trust GB, a registered charity rescuing and rehoming Border Collie
Border Collie
The Border Collie is a herding dog breed developed in the Anglo-Scottish border region for herding livestock, especially sheep. It is the most widespread of the collie breeds....
s and Collie crosses throughout the UK.
There is also a village hall and a small church. There is a bypass that has just been built near Rugeley the town nearest Colton. There is also a park for young children.
Colton lies just off the B5013, which runs from Rugeley, local pronunciation 'Rudge-Lee' or 'Rewj-uh-lee', to Uttoxeter ('Utch-eater').
The village is entered by way of a hump-back bridge over the Moreton Brook, which has a ford alongside for large vehicles. It is said that in WWII, a US army lorry took the bridge at speed and overturned, killing two soldiers. St. Mary's Church stands on the right, with St. Mary's School on the left. There used to be a pool on the left a short distance beyond the school, on which people would skate, or slide, during the frequent very cold winters of the 1960s. A hundred yards further on is the Forge, where the Williscroft family would with a steel hoop re-tyre your cart wheel, make you a toboggan for use in the snow on The Martlin Hill, or dig your grave, make your coffin and conduct your funeral.
Colton House had a large British Army camp during the early years of WWII. With their being no telephone at Colton House, a soldier, with a bicycle, was permanently stationed a few hundred yards up the road outside the telephone box at the bottom of Martlin Lane, to respond as necessary when the telephone rang, in true Dad's Army fashion. The telephone service in those days was part of the post office, and the soldier on duty at night would be comforted by a tray of cocoa and biscuits brought down the lane by the post-mistress's son.
At the foot of Martlin Lane is the 'Pinfold'. Entering the Pinfold from the South is a public footpath which crosses the fields from Rugeley, having left the main B5013 near to the Trent Valley Railway Station. Red bricks can be seen embedded in the ground at points on this walk, and they are believed to have been laid by prisoners taken during the Napoleonic War. Alongside the Pinfold is the village War Memorial. Almost opposite is The Greyhound Inn.
Continuing through the village, Malt House Farm is passed, the former home of the late prominent Euro-sceptic Tory MP Nick Budgen. High House (the former village shop) is passed, and if you continue ahead you continue to Blithbury and 'The Bull and Spectacles' Inn. However, turning left takes you further up the village. Modern houses show where a number of older houses have been replaced, until the top of the village is reached, surrounding the 'Dun Cow' Inn. The Manor Farm sits above, and Heath Way leads to the hamlet of Stockwell Heath, whose duck pond has for several generations been referred to tongue-in-cheek as 'Stockwell Heath Docks'.