Pelsall
Encyclopedia
Pelsall is an area of Walsall
in the West Midlands
, England
. It is part of the Parliamentary Constituency of Aldridge-Brownhills
.
) by Wulfrun
, a Mercia
n noblewoman. At this time it was called Peolshalh, meaning 'a nook' or 'land between two streams belonging to Peol'.
The name Peolshalh is sometimes referred to by the local population as Peolsford
which would appear to be a more modern Anglo-Saxon
interpretation of the original name Peolshalh, with examples of the word occurring after the 1950s. Official Local Government recognition of the name Peolsford
came in the 1950's when a road within a residential development close to the centre of the village was named Peolsford Road.
The Domesday entry of 1086 describes Pelsall as being waste, still belonging to the Church. This part of Staffordshire
had probably been devastated in 1069 by King William's forces when dealing with the uprising following the Norman Conquest.
Very little is known about the village during the ensuing centuries, but as a chapel of ease was built in c.1311, it must be assumed that a settlement had been established there by then. The population was small and a return of 1563 lists only 14 householders. The economy at that time would have been agrarian and evidence of the medieval strip farming system can still be seen on the tithe map
of c.1840. The original centre of the village was the area now known as Old Town. In 1760, the remaining open fields were enclosed, but some holdings survived into the next century in Hall Field, High Ley, The Riddings Field and Final Field.
By the second quarter of the 19th century, Pelsall had a more scattered appearance, with clusters of houses developing on the fringes of the extensive commonland and at the Newlands. The greatest concentration were in what is now the village centre. This area gradually developed; a Methodist Chapel and school were opened in c.1836, in the modern day Station Road and a new St. Michael's Church was built in 1844 - the former in Paradise Lane had been considered too small for the growing population. Towards the end of the 19th century shops became established in Norton Road and High Street. The population in 1801 was 477 and by 1901 had grown to 3,626.
Pelsall had become a mining village; in places deposits of coal were found only a few yards from the surface and c.1800 the shallow and deep seams were 'much worked'. The cutting of the canal
in c.1794 had opened up the area for industrialisation, with entrepreneurs and landowners quickly exploiting the mineral wealth. Nailmaking, traditionally a cottage industry, was also carried out locally; in the census of 1841 thirty men gave this as their occupation.
On November 14, 1872, 22 miners died when the Pelsall Hall Colliery was flooded. 21 of the 22 miners were buried underneath a polished granite obelisk in the churchyard of St Michael and All Angels Church.
An ironworks was established on the North Common which grew into a sizeable concern under the ownership of Messrs. Davis and Bloomer. This, together with Yorks Foundry and that of Ernest Wilkes and Co. at Mouse Hill, gave Pelsall a share of the heavy iron trade during the 19th century. Ernest Wilkes and Co. survived until 1977, but the others ceased trading in the 1890s and the pits became unworkable, mainly due to continual flooding problems.
The village managed to keep its rural atmosphere well into the 20th century, with several working farms surviving until after the Second World War. Since then much land has been utilised for housing development but the ancient common remains.
Pelsall was served by a railway line that ran along the fringes of what is modern day Pelsall and the line was closed as were many of the branch lines. The bridges and other items of the railway era survived marginally longer, but they are all now a distant part of history with only the main road bridges still in existence.
The village remains served well by local buses transporting people in several locations.
constituency. At the 2010 general election, the seat was held by Richard Shepherd (Conservative
) with a majority of 15,266 over Labour
's Ashiq Hussain. The seat has been held by the Conservative Party since 3 May 1979.
In the 2008 local elections
, the Pelsall ward was won by Garry Perry (Conservative) with a majority of more than 2,000 over the Liberal Democrat
candidate. Labour were third.
Road and Lichfield
Road. Since the late 1990s, Pelsall has also had a Millennium Stone, marking the 994-1994 millennium of the village.
Pelsall is well known for its carnival, with decorated floats
and bric-a-brac
stalls. It has run continuously since 1972.
Pelsall is quite 'green' with a large turf central common around which there are several public house
s, including The Old Bush, The Railway, The Old House at Home, The Old Bush, The Red Cow and The Queens, plus the newly refurbished Fingerpost pub - and three fish and chip shops, as well as the village's high street
, which includes a post office
.
Donna Cooper died after being knocked over by a stolen car on 6 January 1993, at the age of 13. The driver, 17-year-old Carl Sherwood from Goscote
, who was on bail
for another motoring offence at the time, admitted manslaughter
and sentenced to seven years detention; he was freed in September 1997 after serving four-and-a-half years. His accomplice Nigel Button, aged 26 and from Blakenall Heath
, was found guilty of aggravated vehicle taking and failing to stop after an accident. He received a four-and-a-half year prison sentence which was later reduced by one year on appeal. Rear seat passengers Stuart Rollinson (aged 15 and from Aldridge
), David Teale (aged 14 and from Blakenall Heath) and Shaun Brockhouse (aged 13 and from Darlaston
) were given two-year supervision orders for aggravated vehicle taking.
After the trial, it was revealed that Sherwood and Button were both on bail after being arrested in connection with a hit-and-run incident in which two men had been injured just weeks before Donna Cooper's death.
The garden was designed between 1997 and 1999, and was commissioned by Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council
, who also maintain it. It was designed by Anuradha Patel
, and the metal installations were manufactured by West Midlands Gates & Trailers. The entrance consists of an arched gateway of galvanised steel, painted green. It is 2.5 metres (8 ft) tall and 2.07 metres (7 ft) wide. At the centre of the archway is an owl
motif, taken from a design drawn by Donna Cooper shortly before her death. Another feature is a galvanised steel tree, also painted green with a height of 2.34 metres (8 ft). Located throughout the garden are various pine tree stumps, varying in width up to 25 centimetres (10 in) in diameter. The garden itself is 200 metres (656 ft) long and 25 metres (82 ft) wide. The garden was created by Groundwork Black Country and Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council.
wedding (a popular TV show hosted by Cilla Black
) took place at St. Michael's Church in 1991 when
Sue Middleton of Pelsall married Alex Tatham. They had met on the show three years previously. They now have a son (Charlie) and a daughter (Emily).
The event received national media coverage.
Pelsall was previously home to Pelsall Comprehensive School
, which opened in the autumn of 1963 as an 11-15 secondary modern school before adopting 13-18 comprehensive status in September 1972. The transfer age was reduced to 11 in September 1986 under Walsall's reorganisation of education in the former Aldridge-Brownhills area but falling pupil numbers led to its closure in July 1994.
The old Pelsall Comprehensive buildings are now home to Rushall JMI School, Education Walsall offices and a teacher training centre.
Walsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is part of the Parliamentary Constituency of Aldridge-Brownhills
Aldridge-Brownhills (UK Parliament constituency)
Aldridge-Brownhills is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
.
History
Pelsall was first mentioned in a charter of 994, when it was amongst various lands given to the monastery at Heantune (WolverhamptonWolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
) by Wulfrun
Wulfrun
Wulfrun was an Anglo-Saxon noble woman and landowner, who established a landed estate at Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England in 985. Contemporary knowledge of her comes from several text sources:...
, a Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
n noblewoman. At this time it was called Peolshalh, meaning 'a nook' or 'land between two streams belonging to Peol'.
The name Peolshalh is sometimes referred to by the local population as Peolsford
Peolsford
Peolsford is a modern Anglo-Saxon interpretation of the historical Celtic name Peolshalh, which refers to the village of Pelsall in the West Midlands.- Meaning and origin :...
which would appear to be a more modern Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
interpretation of the original name Peolshalh, with examples of the word occurring after the 1950s. Official Local Government recognition of the name Peolsford
Peolsford
Peolsford is a modern Anglo-Saxon interpretation of the historical Celtic name Peolshalh, which refers to the village of Pelsall in the West Midlands.- Meaning and origin :...
came in the 1950's when a road within a residential development close to the centre of the village was named Peolsford Road.
The Domesday entry of 1086 describes Pelsall as being waste, still belonging to the Church. This part of 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...
had probably been devastated in 1069 by King William's forces when dealing with the uprising following the Norman Conquest.
Very little is known about the village during the ensuing centuries, but as a chapel of ease was built in c.1311, it must be assumed that a settlement had been established there by then. The population was small and a return of 1563 lists only 14 householders. The economy at that time would have been agrarian and evidence of the medieval strip farming system can still be seen on the tithe map
Tithe maps
The term Tithe map is usually applied to a map of an English or Welsh parish or township, prepared following the Tithe Commutation Act 1836. This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods. The map and its accompanying schedule gave the names of all owners and occupiers of land in the...
of c.1840. The original centre of the village was the area now known as Old Town. In 1760, the remaining open fields were enclosed, but some holdings survived into the next century in Hall Field, High Ley, The Riddings Field and Final Field.
By the second quarter of the 19th century, Pelsall had a more scattered appearance, with clusters of houses developing on the fringes of the extensive commonland and at the Newlands. The greatest concentration were in what is now the village centre. This area gradually developed; a Methodist Chapel and school were opened in c.1836, in the modern day Station Road and a new St. Michael's Church was built in 1844 - the former in Paradise Lane had been considered too small for the growing population. Towards the end of the 19th century shops became established in Norton Road and High Street. The population in 1801 was 477 and by 1901 had grown to 3,626.
Pelsall had become a mining village; in places deposits of coal were found only a few yards from the surface and c.1800 the shallow and deep seams were 'much worked'. The cutting of the canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
in c.1794 had opened up the area for industrialisation, with entrepreneurs and landowners quickly exploiting the mineral wealth. Nailmaking, traditionally a cottage industry, was also carried out locally; in the census of 1841 thirty men gave this as their occupation.
On November 14, 1872, 22 miners died when the Pelsall Hall Colliery was flooded. 21 of the 22 miners were buried underneath a polished granite obelisk in the churchyard of St Michael and All Angels Church.
An ironworks was established on the North Common which grew into a sizeable concern under the ownership of Messrs. Davis and Bloomer. This, together with Yorks Foundry and that of Ernest Wilkes and Co. at Mouse Hill, gave Pelsall a share of the heavy iron trade during the 19th century. Ernest Wilkes and Co. survived until 1977, but the others ceased trading in the 1890s and the pits became unworkable, mainly due to continual flooding problems.
The village managed to keep its rural atmosphere well into the 20th century, with several working farms surviving until after the Second World War. Since then much land has been utilised for housing development but the ancient common remains.
Pelsall was served by a railway line that ran along the fringes of what is modern day Pelsall and the line was closed as were many of the branch lines. The bridges and other items of the railway era survived marginally longer, but they are all now a distant part of history with only the main road bridges still in existence.
The village remains served well by local buses transporting people in several locations.
Politics
Pelsall is part of the Aldridge-BrownhillsAldridge-Brownhills (UK Parliament constituency)
Aldridge-Brownhills is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
constituency. At the 2010 general election, the seat was held by Richard Shepherd (Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
) with a majority of 15,266 over Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
's Ashiq Hussain. The seat has been held by the Conservative Party since 3 May 1979.
In the 2008 local elections
United Kingdom local elections, 2008
The 2008 United Kingdom local elections were held on 1 May 2008. These elections took place in 137 English Local Authorities and all Welsh Councils....
, the Pelsall ward was won by Garry Perry (Conservative) with a majority of more than 2,000 over the Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
candidate. Labour were third.
Landmarks
The main landmark in Pelsall is The Fingerpost, at the junction of NortonNorton Canes
Norton Canes is a village and civil parish on the southern periphery of Cannock Chase District, in Staffordshire, England. It is situated out of the centre of Cannock. At the 2001 census it had a population of 6,394...
Road and Lichfield
Lichfield
Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...
Road. Since the late 1990s, Pelsall has also had a Millennium Stone, marking the 994-1994 millennium of the village.
Pelsall is well known for its carnival, with decorated floats
Float (parade)
A float is a decorated platform, either built on a vehicle or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parades, such as those of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Carnival of Viareggio, the Maltese Carnival, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Key West Fantasy Fest parade, the...
and bric-a-brac
Bric-a-brac
Bric-à-brac , first used in the Victorian era, refers to collections of curios such as elaborately decorated teacups and small vases, feathers, wax flowers under glass domes, eggshells, statuettes, painted miniatures or photographs, and so on...
stalls. It has run continuously since 1972.
Pelsall is quite 'green' with a large turf central common around which there are several public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s, including The Old Bush, The Railway, The Old House at Home, The Old Bush, The Red Cow and The Queens, plus the newly refurbished Fingerpost pub - and three fish and chip shops, as well as the village's high street
High Street
High Street, or the High Street, is a metonym for the generic name of the primary business street of towns or cities, especially in the United Kingdom. It is usually a focal point for shops and retailers in city centres, and is most often used in reference to retailing...
, which includes a post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
.
Donna Cooper Memorial Garden
In 1997, a memorial garden was erected in the village in memory of Donna Cooper.Donna Cooper died after being knocked over by a stolen car on 6 January 1993, at the age of 13. The driver, 17-year-old Carl Sherwood from Goscote
Goscote
Not to be confused with Goscote, WalsallGoscote was a wapentake of Leicestershire, England, consisting of the north and north-west of the county...
, who was on bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
for another motoring offence at the time, admitted manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
and sentenced to seven years detention; he was freed in September 1997 after serving four-and-a-half years. His accomplice Nigel Button, aged 26 and from Blakenall Heath
Blakenall Heath
Blakenall Heath is a neighbourhood in Walsall, West Midlands, England. It straddles the border of Walsall and neighbouring town Bloxwich.It was originally a rural area north of Walsall, but the face of the area changed dramatically between 1918 and 1939....
, was found guilty of aggravated vehicle taking and failing to stop after an accident. He received a four-and-a-half year prison sentence which was later reduced by one year on appeal. Rear seat passengers Stuart Rollinson (aged 15 and from Aldridge
Aldridge
Aldridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England. Historically it was part of the county of Staffordshire, but in 1974 it was incorporated into the Walsall borough as well as the West Midlands county.- History :...
), David Teale (aged 14 and from Blakenall Heath) and Shaun Brockhouse (aged 13 and from Darlaston
Darlaston
Darlaston is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the West Midlands of England.-History:Archaeological evidence of the history of Darlaston has been destroyed by The de Darlaston family owned Darlaston and lived in the manor between the 12th century and 15th century. When the de...
) were given two-year supervision orders for aggravated vehicle taking.
After the trial, it was revealed that Sherwood and Button were both on bail after being arrested in connection with a hit-and-run incident in which two men had been injured just weeks before Donna Cooper's death.
The garden was designed between 1997 and 1999, and was commissioned by Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council
Metropolitan Borough of Walsall
The Metropolitan Borough of Walsall is a local government district in the Black Country part of the West Midlands, England, with the status of a metropolitan borough. It is named after its largest settlement, Walsall, but covers a larger area which also includes the towns of Aldridge, Brownhills,...
, who also maintain it. It was designed by Anuradha Patel
Anuradha Patel
-Early life:She was born in Mumbai. She is the maternal grand daughter of famous Hindi actor Ashok Kumar.-Personal life:She is married to actor Kanwaljit Singh. They have two sons Sidharth and Aaditya and a god-daughter, Mariam, who resides in the United States....
, and the metal installations were manufactured by West Midlands Gates & Trailers. The entrance consists of an arched gateway of galvanised steel, painted green. It is 2.5 metres (8 ft) tall and 2.07 metres (7 ft) wide. At the centre of the archway is an owl
Owl
Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
motif, taken from a design drawn by Donna Cooper shortly before her death. Another feature is a galvanised steel tree, also painted green with a height of 2.34 metres (8 ft). Located throughout the garden are various pine tree stumps, varying in width up to 25 centimetres (10 in) in diameter. The garden itself is 200 metres (656 ft) long and 25 metres (82 ft) wide. The garden was created by Groundwork Black Country and Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council.
Blind Date Wedding
The first ever Blind DateBlind Date (UK TV series)
Blind Date is a British dating game show produced by London Weekend Television. An unscreened pilot was made with comic Duncan Norvelle as presenter but it was eventually hosted by Cilla Black, who already hosted the LWT series, Surprise, Surprise...
wedding (a popular TV show hosted by Cilla Black
Cilla Black
Cilla Black OBE is an English singer, actress, entertainer and media personality, who has been consistently popular as a light entertainment figure since 1963. She is most famous for her singles Anyone Who Had A Heart, You're My World, and Alfie...
) took place at St. Michael's Church in 1991 when
Sue Middleton of Pelsall married Alex Tatham. They had met on the show three years previously. They now have a son (Charlie) and a daughter (Emily).
The event received national media coverage.
Education
Pelsall is currently home to three primary schools: St Michael’s C of E Primary, Pelsall Village School and Ryders Hayes School, and one pre school for children aged 2 to 4 years namely Piccolo Bambini Playgroup & Nursery held in Pelsall Community Centre.Pelsall was previously home to Pelsall Comprehensive School
Pelsall Comprehensive School
Pelsall Comprehensive School was a secondary school located in Pelsall, an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the West Midlands of England....
, which opened in the autumn of 1963 as an 11-15 secondary modern school before adopting 13-18 comprehensive status in September 1972. The transfer age was reduced to 11 in September 1986 under Walsall's reorganisation of education in the former Aldridge-Brownhills area but falling pupil numbers led to its closure in July 1994.
The old Pelsall Comprehensive buildings are now home to Rushall JMI School, Education Walsall offices and a teacher training centre.
Places of worship
The parish church of Pelsall is St Michael and All Angels Church http://www.stmichaelspelsall.co.uk/. Besides this, Pelsall is also home to Pelsall Evangelical Church and Pelsall Methodist Church.External links
- Webpage about Pelsall
- Information relating to the Pelsall Hall Colliery disaster of 1872
- The story of the 32nd (Aldridge) Battalion, South Staffordshire Home Guard, 1940-1944
- Pelsall History Centre's site
- Piccolo Bambini Playgroup & Nursery
- St Michaels and All Angels Church in Pelsall
- St Michael's Primary School