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\Dictotfa  Ibfstor^  of  the 
Counties  of  Enolanb 

EDITED  BY  WILLIAM  PAGE,  F.S.A. 


A    HISTORY    OF 
STAFFORDSHIRE 

VOLUME     I 


THE 

VICTORIA  HISTORY 

OF  THE  COUNTIES 
OF  ENGLAND 


STAFFORDSHIRE 


LONDON 
ARCHIBALD    CONSTABLE 

AND    COMPANY    LIMITED 


This  History  is  issued  to  Subscribers  only 
By  Archibald  Constable  &  Company  Limited 
and  printed  by  Eyre  &  Spottiswoode 
H.M.  Printers  of  London 


INSCRIBED 

TO  THE   MEMORY  OF 

HER     LATE      MAJESTY 

QUEEN    VICTORIA 

WHO      GRACIOUSLY      GAVE 

THE       TITLE       TO       AND 

ACCEPTED      THE 

DEDICATION    OF 

THIS  HISTORY 


THE  ADVISORY  COUNCIL 
OF  THE  VICTORIA   HISTORY 


His   GRACE   THE    LORD   ARCH- 
BISHOP OF  CANTERBURY 

His   GRACE   THE    DUKE  OF 
BEDFORD,  K.G. 

President  of  the  Zoological  Society 

His  GRACE  THE  DUKE  OF  DEVON- 
SHIRE, K.G. 

Chancellor  of  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge 

His   GRACE   THE   DUKE  OF 
PORTLAND,  K.G. 

His   GRACE   THE    DUKE  OF 
ARGYLL,  K.T. 

THE    RT.    HON.    THE    EARL   OF 
ROSEBERY,  K.G.,  K.T. 

THE    RT.   HON.   THE    EARL    OF 
COVENTRY 

President  of  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society 

THE    RT.    HON.   THE  VISCOUNT 
DILLON 

Late    President   of   the    Society    of 
Antiquaries 

THE  RT.  HON.  THE  LORD  LISTER 

Late  President  of  the  Royal  Society 

THE    RT.   HON.    THE    LORD 
ALVERSTONE,  G.C.M.G. 

Lord  Chief  Justice 

THE  HON.  WALTER  ROTHSCHILD, 

M.P. 
SIR    FREDERICK  POLLOCK,  BART., 

LL.D.,  F.S.A.,  ETC. 


SIR  JOHN  EVANS,  K.C.B.,  D.C.L., 
LL.D.,  F.R.S.,  ETC. 

SIR  EDWARD  MAUNDE  THOMP- 
SON, K.C.B.,  D.C.L.,  LL.D., 
F.S.A.,  ETC. 

Director  of  the  British  Museum 

SIR  CLEMENTS  R.  MARKHAM, 
K.C.B.,  F.R.S.,  F.S.A. 

President  of  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society 

SIR  HENRY  C.  MAXWELL-LYTE, 
K.C.B.,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  ETC. 

Keeper  of  the  Public  Records 

SiREowiN  RAYLANKESTER.K.C.B., 
M.A.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.,  KTC. 

Late  Director  of  the  Natural  History 
Museum,  South  Kensington 

SIR  Jos.  HOOKER,  G.C.S.I.,  M.D., 
D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  ETC. 

COL.  SIR  DUNCAN  A.  JOHNSTON, 
K.C.M.G.,  C.B.,  R.E. 

Late  Director  General  of  the  Ordnance 
Survey 

SIR  ARCHIBALD    GEIKIE,  LL.D., 

F.R.S.,  ETC. 
REV.  J.  CHARLKS  Cox,  LL.D., 

F.S.A. ,  ETC. 
LIONEL  CUST,  M.V.O.,  M.A., 

F.S.A.,  ETC. 

Director  of   the    National   Portrait 
Gallery 

CHARLES  H.  FIRTH,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

Regius  Professor  of  Modern  History, 
Oxford 


ALBERT  C.  L.  G.  GUNTHER,  M.A. 
M.D.,  F.R.S.,  PH.D. 

Late  President  of  the  Linnean  Society 

F.    HAVERFIELD,    M.A.,  LL.D., 
F.S.A. 

Camden  Professsor  of  Ancient  History 

REGINALD  L.   POOLE,  M.A.  . 

University  Lecturer    in   Diplomatic, 
Oxford 

].  HORACE  ROUND,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

WALTER  RYE 

W.   H.  ST.  JOHN   HOPE,  M.A. 

Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries 


Among  the  original  members  of 
the  Council  were 

THE  LATE   DUKE   OF   RUTLAND 
THE  LATE  MARQUESS  OF  SALISBURY 

THE     LATE     DR.     MANDELL 
CREIGHTON,  BISHOP  OK  LONDON 

THE    LATE    DR.   STUBBS,    BISHOP 
OF  OXFORD 

THE  LATE  LORD  ACTON 

THE   LATE  SIR  WILLIAM   FLOWER 

THE   LATE    PROFESSOR    F.     YORK 
POWELL 

and 
THE   LATE   COL.   SIR   J.    FARQI-- 

HARSON 


General  Editor — WILLIAM   PARE,   F.S.A. 


GENERAL    ADVERTISEMENT 

The  VICTORIA  HISTORY  of  the  Counties  of  England  is  a  National  Historic  Survey 
which,  under  the  direction  of  a  large  staff  comprising  the  foremost  students  in  science,  history, 
and  archaeology,  is  designed  to  record  the  history  of  every  county  of  England  in  detail.  This 
work  was,  by  gracious  permission,  dedicated  to  Her  late  Majesty  Queen  Victoria,  who  gave  it 
her  own  name.  It  is  the  endeavour  of  all  who  are  associated  with  the  undertaking  to  make  it 
a  worthy  and  permanent  monument  to  her  me.nory. 

Rich  as  every  county  of  England  is  in  materials  for  local  history,  there  has  hitherto  been 
no  attempt  made  to  bring  all  these  materials  together  into  a  coherent  form. 

Although  from  the  seventeenth  century  down  to  quite  recent  times  numerous  county 
histories  have  been  issued,  they  are  very  unequal  in  merit ;  the  best  of  them  are  very  rare 
and  costly  ;  most  of  them  are  imperfect  and  many  are  now  out  of  date.  Moreover,  they  were 
the  work  of  one  or  two  isolated  scholars,  who,  however  scholarly,  could  not  possibly  deal 
adequately  with  all  the  varied  subjects  which  go  to  the  making  of  a  county  history. 


vn 


In  the  VICTORIA  HISTORY  each  county  is  not  the  labour  of  one  or  two  men,  but  of  many, 
for  the  work  is  treated  scientifically,  and  in  order  to  embody  in  it  all  that  modern  scholarship 
can  contribute,  a  system  of  co-operation  between  experts  and  local  students  is  applied,  whereby 
the  history  acquires  a  completeness  and  definite  authority  hitherto  lacking  in  similar 
undertakings. 

The  names  of  the  distinguished  men  who  have  joined  the  Advisory  Council  are  a 
guarantee  that  the  work  represents  the  results  of  the  latest  discoveries  in  every  department 
of  research,  for  the  trend  of  modern  thought  insists  upon  the  intelligent  study  of  the  past 
and  of  the  social,  institutional,  and  political  developments  of  national  life.  As  these  histories 
are  the  first  in  which  this  object  has  been  kept  in  view,  and  modern  principles  applied,  it  is 
hoped  that  they  will  form  a  work  of  reference  no  less  indispensable  to  the  student  than 
welcome  to  the  man  of  culture. 

THE   SCOPE  OF  THE   WORK 

The  history  of  each  county  is  complete  in  itself,  and  in  each  case  its  story  is  told  from  the 
earliest  times,  commencing  with  the  natural  features  and  the  flora  and  fauna.  Thereafter 
follow  the  antiquities,  pre-Roman,  Roman,  and  post-Roman  ;  ancient  earthworks  ;  a  new 
translation  and  critical  study  of  the  Domesday  Survey  ;  articles  on  political,  ecclesiastical,  social, 
and  economic  history ;  architecture,  arts,  industries,  sport,  etc. ;  and  topography.  The  greater 
part  of  each  history  is  devoted  to  a  detailed  description  and  history  of  each  parish,  containing 
an  account  of  the  land  and  its  owners  from  the  Conquest  to  the  present  day.  These  manorial 
histories  are  compiled  from  original  documents  in  the  national  collections  and  from  private 
papers.  A  special  feature  is  the  wealth  of  illustrations  afforded,  for  not  only  are  buildings  of 
interest  pictured,  but  the  coats  of  arms  of  past  and  present  landowners  are  given 

HISTORICAL  RESEARCH 

It  has  always  been,  and  still  is,  a  reproach  that  England,  with  a  collection  of  public 
records  greatly  exceeding  in  extent  and  interest  those  of  any  other  country  in  Europe,  is  yet 
far  behind  her  neighbours  in  the  study  of  the  genesis  and  growth  of  her  national  and  local 
institutions.  Few  Englishmen  are  probably  aware  that  the  national  and  local  archives  contain 
for  a  period  of  800  years  in  an  almost  unbroken  chain  of  evidence,  not  only  the  political, 
ecclesiastical,  and  constitutional  history  of  the  kingdom,  but  every  detail  of  its  financial  and 
social  progress  and  the  history  of  the  land  and  its  successive  owners  from  generation  to 
generation.  The  neglect  of  our  public  and  local  records  is  no  doubt  largely  due  to  the  fact 
that  their  interest  and  value  is  known  to  but  a  small  number  of  people,  and  this  again  is 
directly  attributable  to  the  absence  in  this  country  of  any  endowment  for  historical  research. 
The  government  of  this  country  has  too  often  left  to  private  enterprise  work  which  our  con- 
tinental neighbours  entrust  to  a  government  department.  It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  to  find 
that  although  an  immense  amount  of  work  has  been  done  by  individual  effort,  the  entire 
absence  of  organization  among  the  workers  and  the  lack  of  intelligent  direction  has  hitherto 
robbed  the  results  of  much  of  their  value. 

In  the  VICTORIA  HISTORY,  for  the  first  time,  a  serious  attempt  is  made  to  utilize  our 
national  and  local  muniments  to  the  best  advantage  by  carefully  organizing  and  supervising 
the  researches  required.  Under  the  direction  of  the  Records  Committee  a  large  staff  of  experts 
has  been  engaged  at  the  Public  Record  Office  in  calendaring  those  classes  of  records  which  are 
fruitful  in  material  for  local  history,  and  by  a  system  of  interchange  of  communication  among 
workers  under  the  direct  supervision  of  the  general  editor  and  sub-editors  a  mass  of  information 
is  sorted  and  assigned  to  its  correct  place,  which  would  otherwise  be  impossible. 

THE  RECORDS  COMMITTEE 

SIR  EDWARD  MAUNDK  THOMPSON,  K.C.B.      C.  T.  MARTIN,  B.A.,  F.S.A. 
SIR  HENRY  MAXWELL-LYTE,  K.C.B.  J.  HORACE  ROUND,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

W.  J.  HARDY,  F.S.A.  S.  R.  SCARGILL-BIRD,  F.S.A. 

F.  MADAN,  M.A.  W.  H.  STEVENSON,  M.A. 

G.  F.  WARNER,  M.A.,  F.S.A. 

viii 


CARTOGRAPHY 

In  addition  to  a  general  map  in  several  sections,  each  History  contains  Geological,  Oro- 
graphical,  Botanical,  Archaeological,  and  Domesday  maps ;  also  maps  illustrating  the  articles  on 
Ecclesiastical  and  Political  Histories,  and  the  sections  dealing  with  Topography.  The  Series 
contains  many  hundreds  of  maps  in  all. 

ARCHITECTURE 

A  special  feature  in  connexion  with  the  Architecture  is  a  series  of  ground  plans,  many 
of  them  coloured,  showing  the  architectural  history  of  castles,  cathedrals,  abbeys,  and  other 
monastic  foundations. 

In  order  to  secure  the  greatest  possible  accuracy,  the  descriptions  of  the  Architecture, 
ecclesiastical,  military,  and  domestic,  are  under  the  supervision  of  Mr.  C.  R.  PEERS,  M.A., 
F.S.A.,  and  a  committee  has  been  formed  of  the  following  students  of  architectural  history 
who  are  referred  to  as  may  be  required  concerning  this  department  of  the  work  : — 


ARCHITECTURAL  COMMITTEE 

J.  BILSON,  F.S.A.,  F.R.I.B.A.  J.  A.  GOTCH,  F.S.A.,  F.R.I.B.A. 

R.  BLOMFIELD,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  A.R.A.  W.  H.  ST.  JOHN  HOPE,  M.A. 

HAROLD  BRAKSPEAR,  F.S.A.,  A.R.I.B.A.  W.  H.  KNOWLES,  F.S.A.,  F.R.I.B.A. 

PROF.  BALDWIN  BROWN,  M.A.  ROLAND  PAUL,  F.S.A. 

ARTHUR  S.  FLOWER,  M.A.  J.  HORACE  ROUND,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

GEORGE  E.  Fox,  M.A.,  F.S.A.  PERCY  G.  STONE,  F.S.A.,  F.R.I.B.A. 

H.  THACKERAY  TURNER,  F.S.A. 


The  general  plan  of  Contents  and  the  names  among  others  of 
those  who  are  contributing  articles  and  giving  assistance  are  as 
follows  : — 

Naural  History 

Geology.     CLEMENT  REID,  F.R.S.,  HORACE  B.  WOODWARD,  F.R.S.,  and  others 
Paleontology.     R.  LVDEKICER,  F.R.S.,  F.L.S.,  F.G.S. 

/'Contributions  by  G.  A.  BOULENGER,  F.R.S.,  H.  N.  DIXON,  F.L.S.,  G.  C.  DRUCE,  M.A.,  F.L.S., 
Flora  J  WALTER  GARSTANG,  M.A.,  D.Sc.,  F.L.S.,  HERBERT  Goss,  F.L.S.,  F.E.S.,  R.  I.  POCOCK,  REV. 
Fauna  j  T.  R.  R.  STEBBING,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  etc.,  B.  B.  WOODWARD,  F.G.S.,  F.R.M.S.,  etc.,  and 

^         other  Specialists 

Prehistoric  Remains.     SIR  JOHN   EVANS,   K.C.B.,  D.C.L.,  LL.D.,  W.  BOYD  DAWKINS,  D.Sc.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S., 
F.S.A.,  GEO.  CLINCH,  F.G.S.,  JOHN  GARSTANG,  M.A.,  B.LiTT.,  F.S.A.,  and  others 

Roman  Remains.     F.  HAVERFIELD,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  F.S.A.,  and  others 

Anglo-Saxon  Remains.     C.  HERCULES  READ,  F.S.A.,  REGINALD  A.  SMITH,  B.A.,  F.S.A.,  and  others 

Domesday  Book  and  other  kindred  Records.     J.  HORACE  ROUND,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  and  other  Specialists 

Architecture.     C.  R.  PEERS,  M.A.,    F.S.A.,  W.    H.  ST.  JOHN    HOPE,    M.A.,  HAROLD  BRAKSPEAR,  F.S.A., 
A. R. I.E. A.,  and  others 

Ecclesiastical  History.      R.  L.  POOLE,  M.A.,  and  others 

Political   History.     PROF.  C.  H.  FIRTH,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  W.  H.  STEVENSON,  M.A.,  J.  HORACE  ROUND,  M.A., 
LL.D.,  PROF.  T.  F.  TOUT,  M.A.,  PROF.  JAMES  TAIT,  M.A.,  and  A.  F.  POLLARD 

History  of  Schools.     A.  F.  LEACH,  M.A.,  F.S.A. 

Maritime  History  of  Coast  Counties.     SIR  JOHN  K.  LAUCHTON,  M.A.,  M.  OPPENHHIM,  and  others 

Topographical  Accounts  of  Parishes  and  Manors.      By  Various  Authorities 

Agriculture.     SIR  ERNEST  CLARKE,  M.A.,  Sec.  to  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society,  and  othen 

Forestry.     JOHN  NISBET,  D.CEc.,  and  others 

Industries,  Arts  and  Manufactures 

Social  and  Economic  History 

Ancient  and  Modern  Sport.     E.  D.  CUMINC,  the  REV.  E.  E.  DORLING,  M.A.,  and  others 
Cricket.     SIR  HOME  GORDON,  BART. 


V  By  Various  Authorities 


THE 

VICTORIA  HISTORY 

OF  THE  COUNTY  OF 

STAFFORD 


EDITED    BY 

WILLIAM     PAGE,     F.S.A 


VOLUME    ONE 


LONDON 

ARCHIBALD   CONSTABLE 

AND   COMPANY   LIMITED 


CONTENTS    OF    VOLUME    ONE 


Natural  History  (continued) 
Zoology  (continued) 

Spiders     .... 

Acarina  (Mitej) 
Crustacean*       . 

Fishes       .... 

Reptiles  and  Rur.ichi.ins 
Birds        .... 
Mammals          . 

Early  Man        .... 

Romano-British  Staffordshire 

Anglo-Saxon  Remains 

Political  History 

Social  and  Economic  History     . 
Table  of  Population,  1 80 1  - 1 90 1 

Ancient  Earthworks 


By  the  late  F.  O.  PICKARD-CAMBRIDGE,  M.A. 
By  the  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  JOURDAIN,  M.A  ,  etc. 

By  the  Rev.  T.  R.  R.  STEBBING,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
F.Z.S 

By  G.  H.  STORER,  F.Z.S 

»  »»•••• 

By  J.  R.  B.  MASEFIELD,  MA 

By  G.  H.  STOKER,  F.Z.S 

By  GEORGE  CLINCH,  F.G.S.      .... 
By  W.  PAGE,  F.S.A.,  and  Miss  KEATE 
By  REGINALD  A.  SMITH,  B.A.,  F.S.A. 

By  W.  H.  R  CURTLER 

By  Miss  MILDRED  SPENCER  .... 
By  GEORGE  S.  MINCHIN  ..... 
By  CHARLES  LYNAM,  F.S.A.  .... 


PAGE 


120 
124 

i*5 
133 

137 

'39 
i6a 
169 

•83 
199 
217 

275 

331 


XI 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Steel  Works,  Bilston.       By  WILLIAM  HYDE  ........          .     Frontispiece 

Granite  Axe-Head  found  at  Stone        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .170 

Plan  of  Interments  in  Barrow  at  Top  Low,  Swinscoe      .          .          .          .          .          ,          .  1 74 

Bronze-Age  Pottery  found  in  Sepulchral  Barrows,  Plate  I         ...        full-page  plate,  facing     178 
Iron  Lance-Head  found  at  Stone          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .180 

Bronze-Age  Pottery  found  in  Sepulchral  Barrows,  Plate  1 1       .  .      full-page  plate,  facing      180 

Plan  of  Wall 195 

Bronze  Object  from  Wall) 

Tile  from  Wall       .          .1  '      ****&.&*     '9« 

Pig  of  Lead,  found  at  Hints        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .197 

Iron  Knife,  found  at  Wetton       .          .  .........      197 

Lead  Collar,  found  at  Wetton     .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .  197 

Iron  Knife,  found  at  Wetton        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .197 

Bone  Drinking-Cup,  found  at  Wetton.          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .197 

Whetstone,  found  at  Wetton        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .197 

Horn  Object,  found  at  Wetton   .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .197 

Bronze  Brooches,  Tweezers,  and  Chatelaine,  Stapenhill  ......     200 

Vase,  found  at  Stapenhill   ...          ...          ...          ....     201 

Iron  Spear-Heads,  Wichnor         ............     205 

Iron  Buckle,  Wichnor,  with  Section     ...........     206 

Brooch,  found  at  Wichnor  ............     206 

Iron  Shield-Bosses,  Wichnor        ............     207 

Pottery  Vases,  Wichnor      .............     207 

Grave  at  Barlaston  (Plan  and  Section)  ...........      209 

Remains  of  Bronze  Bowl  and  Enamelled  Discs  found  at  Barlaston     .          .          .          .          .          .211 

Coin-Pendant,  Forsbrook  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .212 

Ancient  Earthworks  : — 

Bunbury  Hill,  Alton  .  . 334 

Bury  Ring,  Bradley 335 

Castle  Ring,  Cannock  .          . -337 

Kinver  Edge  Camp     .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          •     33^ 

Berth  Hill,  Maer 339 

Castle  Old  Fort,  Shenstone  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .     341 

Bury  Bank,  Stone 343 

Camp  near  Green's  Forge,  Kingswinford        .  .......      344 

Longdon  Camp  ....  ........     345 

Knaves  Castle,  Ogley  Hay 345 

Barrow  Hill,  near  Rocester .     347 

Camp  at  Shareshill 348 

Camp  at  Chesterton,  Wolstanton  ..........     349 

Alton  Castle 350 

Heighley  Castle,  Audley 351 

\V 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 


Ancient  Earthworks  (continued) 

Caverswall  Castle        .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .352 

Site  of  Castle,  Newcastle  under  Lyme  .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         -353 

Dudley  Castle  ..............     354. 

Stafford  Castle 355 

Tamworth  Castle .         .         .         .         .356 

Tutbury  Castle  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          -357 

Littywood,  Bradley .          .          .          .          .          -359 

Ely  the  Wood  Moat,  Checkley 360 

Chartley  Holme  :  Chartley  Castle,  Chartley  Hall  Moat,  and  an  Earthwork  called  '  Daffodil 

Wood' 361 

Moat  at  Coppcnhall  Gorse  ............      362 

Thorntree  House,  Uttoxeter         ...........     367 

Stourton  Castle,  Kinver       .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .369 

Eccleshall  Castle         .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .370 

Lichfield  Ditch,  East  and  North  of  Cathedral          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .371 

Tyrley  Castle    .  .  .  .          .          .          .          .  .  .  .          .          .  .371 

Mottley  Pits  Terraces,  Stone        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          •     373 

Saxon  Low,  Stone       .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          -377 


LIST    OF    MAPS 

Geological  Map fac;ng          , 

Orographical  Map     ............  n            25 

Botanical  Map  A  , 

•  »            4-1 

Pre-Historical  Map   ............  160 

Roman  Map     ......                     .....  185 

Anglo-Saxon  Map      .......                     ....  ion 

Ancient  Earthworks  Map   .  ,7I 

„ 


XVI 


PREFACE 

STAFFORDSHIRE  has  from  an  early  date  attracted  the  attention 
of  the  topographer.  Jn  1593  Sampson  Erdeswicke  began  his 
View  and  Survey  of  Staffordshire,  which  he  left  unfinished  at  his 
death  in  1603.  What  became  of  the  original  manuscript  of 
his  work  is  unknown,  but  several  copies  exist,  and  although  they  were 
referred  to  by  subsequent  writers,  none  of  them  was  printed  till  1717 
when  Curll  issued  the  Survey,  together  with  a  letter  written  in  1669 
'  from  Sir  Simon  Degge,  setting  out  the  condition  of  the  county  at  that 
date.  The  next  to  interest  himself  in  the  county  was  Robert  Plot,  who 
settled  in  Oxford  for  a  time  after  taking  his  degree,  and  in  1677 
published  The  Natural  History  of  Oxfordshire.  Upon  the  reputation  he 
acquired  from  this  volume  he  was  invited  by  Walter  Chetwynd  of 
Ingestry  to  undertake  a  similar  work  for  Staffordshire,  and  in  1686  The 
Natural  History  of  Staffordshire  was  issued.  Under  the  term  natural 
history  Plot  included  the  archaeological  remains  of  the  county,  and  it  is 
for  the  record  of  these  that  his  work  is  most  valuable.  In  the  unfinished 
History  and  Antiquities  of  Staffordshire,  published  in  1798,  the  Rev.  Steb- 
bing  Shaw  made  use  of  Erdeswicke's  collections,  and  added  much  from 
the  manuscript  sources  at  the  British  Museum  and  elsewhere.  He  only 
completed  his  history  up  to  the  first  part  of  the  second  volume  and  died 
in  1802.  William  Pitt  published  A  Topographical  History  of  Staffordshire 
in  1817,  which  is  largely  based  on  the  work  of  the  earlier  historians  of 
the  county,  particularly  that  of  Robert  Plot.  The  history  of  Stafford- 
shire, however,  will  always  be  associated  with  the  name  of  William  Salt, 
who,  although  not  claiming  to  be  an  historian,  yet  collected  the  material 
upon  which  all  future  work  on  the  topography  of  the  county  must  be 
largely  based.  Shortly  after  his  death  in  1863  his  collections  were 
housed  at  Stafford  and  form  a  remarkable  memorial  of  his  industry. 
The  work  which  he  began  is  being  continued  and  expanded  by  '  The 
William  Salt  Archaeological  Society,'  whose  volumes  have  added  much 
valuable  material  for  the  history  of  the  county. 

The  Editor  has  to  regret  that  Professor  Haverfield  was  unable  to 
undertake  the  article  on  the  Roman  Remains  of  the  county  owing  to 
the  pressure  of  other  engagements.  The  Editor,  however,  wishes  to 
express  his  thanks  to  Professor  Haverfield  for  reading  the  proofs  of  this 
article  and  to  Mr.  Charles  Lynam,  F.S.A.,  for  the  information  and  great 
assistance  afforded  on  the  same  subject.  He  also  desires  to  acknowledge 
his  indebtedness  to  Mr.  Josiah  Wedgwood,  M.P.,  for  reading  some  of 
the  proofs  and  for  advice  generally  on  the  volume,  and  to  Mr.  E. 
Howarth  and  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  for  illustrations. 

xvii  c 


TABLE    OF    ABBREVIATIONS 


Abbrev.  Plac.  (Rec. 

Com.) 
Acts  of  P.C.      .     . 

Add 

Add.  Chart.      .     . 

Admir 

Agarde  .... 
Anct.  Corresp. .  . 
Anct.  D.  (P.R.O.) 

A  2420 
Ann.  Mon. . 
Antiq 

App 

Arch 

Arch.  Cant. 
Archd.  Rec.      .     . 

Archit 

Assize  R.  .  .  . 
Aud.  Off.  .  .  . 
Aug.  Off.  .  .  . 
Ayloffe  .  .  . 


Abbreviatio  Placitorum  (Re- 
cord Commission) 

Acts  of  Privy  Council 

Additional 

Additional  Charters 

Admiralty 

Agarde's  Indices 

Ancient  Correspondence 

Ancient  Deeds(Public  Record 
Office)  A  2420 

Annales  Monastic! 

Antiquarian  or  Antiquaries 

Appendix 

Archsologia  or  Archaeological 

Archaeologia  Cantiana 

Archdeacons'  Records 

Architectural 

Assize  Rolls 

Audit  Office 

Augmentation  Office 

Ayloffe's  Calendars 


Bed Bedford 

Beds Bedfordshire 

Berks       ....  Berkshire 

Bdle Bundle 

B.M British  Museum 

Bodl.  Lib.    .      .      .  Bodley's  Library 

Boro Borough 

Brev.  Reg.   .     .     .  Brevia  Regia 

Brit Britain, British,  Britannia,  etc. 

Buck Buckingham 

Bucks      ....  Buckinghamshire 


Cal 

Camb.    . 

Cambr 

Campb.  Chart.. 

Cant 

Cap 

Carl 

Cart.  Antiq.  R. 
C.C.C.  Camb.  . 

Certiorari       Bdles. 

(Rolls  Chap.) 
Chan.  Enr.  Decree 

R. 

Chan.  Proc.       .     . 
Chant.  Cert. 


Chap.  Ho.   .     .     . 
Charity  Inq. 
Chart.  R.  20  Hen. 
III.  pt.  i.  No.  10 


Calendar 

Cambridgeshire  or  Cambridge 

Cambria,  Cambrian,  Cam- 
brensis,  etc. 

Campbell  Charters 

Canterbury 

Chapter 

Carlisle 

Cartae  Antiquae  Rolls 

Corpus  Christi  College,  Cam- 
bridge 

Certiorari  Bundles  (Rolls 
Chapel) 

Chancery  Enrolled  Decree 
Rolls 

Chancery  Proceedings 

Chantry  Certificates  (or  Cer- 
tificates of  Colleges  and 
Chantries) 

Chapter  House 

Charity  Inquisitions 

Charter  Roll,  20  Henry  III. 
part  i.  Number  10 


Chartul 

Chas 

Ches 

Chest 

Ch.    Gds.     (Exch. 
K.R.) 

Chich 

Chron 

Close       .... 

Co 

Colch 

Coll 

Com 

Com.  Pleas  .  .  . 
Conf.  R.  .  .  . 
Co.  Plac.  .  .  . 

Cornw 

Corp 

Cott 

Ct.  R 

Ct.  of  Wards     .     . 

Cumb 

Cur.  Reg.     .     .     . 

D 

D. and  C.    .      .      . 
De  Bane.  R.     .     . 
Dec.  and  Ord  . 
Dep.  Keeper's  Rep. 

Derb 

Devon     .     .      .      . 

Dioc 

Doc 

Dods.  MSS.  .  . 
Dom.  Bk.  .  .  . 

Dors 

Duchy  of  Lane. 
Dur 

East 

Eccl 

Eccl.  Com. 

Edw 

Eliz 

Engl 

Engl.  Hist.  Rev.    . 

Enr 

Epis.  Reg.    . 
Esch.  Enr.  Accts.  . 
Excerpta  e  Rot.  Fin. 

(Rec.  Com.) 
Exch.  Dep.       .     . 
Exch.  K.B.       .     . 
Exch.  K.R.       .     . 

Exch.  L.T.R. 


Chartulary 

Charles 

Cheshire 

Chester 

Church    Goods    (Exchequer 

King's  Remembrancer) 
Chichester 

Chronicle,  Chronica,  etc. 
Close  Roll 
County 
Colchester 
Collections 
Commission 
Common  Pleas 
Confirmation  Rolls 
County  Placita 
Cornwall 
Corporation 
Cotton  or  Cottonian 
Court  Rolls 
Court  of  Wards 
Cumberland 
Curia  Regis 

Deed  or  Deeds 

Dean  and  Chapter 

De  Banco  Rolls 

Decrees  and  Orders 

Deputy  Keeper's  Reports 

Derbyshire  or  Derby 

Devonshire 

Diocese 

Documents 

Dodsworth  MSS 

Domesday  Book 

Dorsetshire 

Duchy  of  Lancaster 

Durham 

Easter  Term 
Ecclesiastical 

Ecclesiastical  Commission 
Edward 
Elizabeth 

England  or  English 
English  Historical  Review 
Enrolled  or  Enrolment 
Episcopal  Registers 
Escheators  Enrolled  Accounts 
Excerpta   e    Rotulis   Finium 

(Record  Commission) 
Exchequer  Depositions 
Exchequer  King's  Bench 
Exchequer    King's    Remem- 
brancer 

Exchequer  Lord  Treasurer's 
Remembrancer 


xix 


TABLE    OF    ABBREVIATIONS 


Exch.  of  Pleas,  Plea 

R. 

Exch.  of  Receipt    . 
Exch.  Spec.  Com.  . 


Feet  of  F.   .     .     . 
Feod.  Accts.  (Ct.  of 

Wards) 
Feod.  Surv.  (Ct.  of 

Wards) 
Feud.  Aids  .     .     . 

fol 

Foreign  R.  .     .     . 
Forest  Proc. 


Exchequer  of  Pleas,  Plea  Roll 

Exchequer  of  Receipt 
Exchequer  Special  Commis- 


Feet  of  Fines 

Feodaries  Accounts  (Court  of 

Wards) 
Feodaries  Surveys  (Court  of 

Wards) 
Feudal  Aids 
Folio 

Foreign  Rolls 
Forest  Proceedings 


Gaz Gazette  or  Gazetteer 

Gen Genealogical,      Genealogica, 

etc. 

Geo George 

Glouc Gloucestershire  or  Gloucester 

Guild Certif.(Chan-)  Guild  Certificates  (Chancery) 
Ric.  II.  Richard  II. 


Hants 

Harl. 

Hen.  *• 

Heref. 

Hertf. 

Herts 

Hil 

Hist. 


Hist.  MSS.  Com. 
Hosp.     .     .     . 
Hund.  R.    .     . 
Hunt.     .     .     . 
Hunts    .     .     . 


Inq.  a.q.d. 
Inq.  p.m. 
Inst 
Invent.   . 


Itin. 


Journ 

Lamb.  Lib.       .     . 

Lane 

L.     and     P.    Hen. 

VIII. 
Lansd. 
Ld.  Rev.  Rec.  .     . 

Leic 

Le  Neve's  Ind. 

Lib 

Lich 

Line 

Lond.     .     . 


m. 
Mem. 


Hampshire 

Harley  or  Harleian 

Henry 

Herefordshire  or  Hereford 

Hertford 

Hertfordshire 

Hilary  Term 

History,  Historical,Historian, 

Historia,  etc. 

Historical  MSS.  Commission 
Hospital 
Hundred  Rolls 
Huntingdon 
Huntingdonshire 

Inquisitions  ad  quod  damnum 
Inquisitions  post  mortem 
Institute  or  Institution 
Inventory  or  Inventories 
Ipswich 
Itinerary 

James 
Journal 

Lambeth  Library 
Lancashire  or  Lancaster 
Letters    and    Papers,    Hen. 

VIII. 

Lansdowne 

Land  Revenue  Records 
Leicestershire  or  Leicester 
Le  Neve's  Indices 
Library 
Lichfield 

Lincolnshire  or  Lincoln 
London 

Membrane 
Memorials 


Memo.  R.    .     .     . 

Mich 

Midd 

Mins.  Accts. 
Misc.   Bks.   (Exch. 

K.R.,      Exch. 

T.R.   or  Aug. 

Off.) 


Mon. 

Monm.  .     . 
Mun. 
Mus. 

N.  andQ.   . 

Norf.       .     . 
Northampt. 
Northants     . 
Northumb.  . 
Norw.     . 
Nott. 


N.S. 


Off.   .     . 
Orig.  R. 
O.S.  .     . 
Oxf.  . 


Palmer's  Ind.  . 
Pal.  of  Chest.  . 
Pal.  of  Dur.  . 
Pal.  of  Lane.  . 

Par 

Parl 

Parl.  R.  .     .     . 
Parl.  Surv.   . 
Panic,  for  Gts. 

Pat 

P.C.C. 


Pet  ...... 

Peterb  ..... 

Phil  ..... 

Pipe  R  ..... 

Plea  R  ..... 

Pop.  Ret.     .     .     . 

Pope     Nich.    Tax. 

(Rec.  Com.) 
P.R.O  ..... 

Proc  ..... 

Proc.  Soc.  Antiq.   . 


Pub. 


R 

Rec.  .  .  . 
Recov.  R.  .  . 
Rentals  and  Surv. 

Rep 

Rev 

Ric.  . 


Memoranda  Rolls 

Michaelmas  Term 

Middlesex 

Ministers'  Accounts 

Miscellaneous  Books  (Ex- 
chequer King's  Remem- 
brancer, Exchequer  Trea- 
sury of  Receipt  or  Aug- 
mentation Office) 

Monastery,  Monasticon 

Monmouth 

Muniments  or  Munimenta 

Museum 

Notes  and  Queries 
Norfolk 
Northampton 
Northamptonshire 
Northumberland 
Norwich 

Nottinghamshire  or  Notting- 
ham 
New  Style 

Office 

Originalia  Rolls 
Ordnance  Survey 
Oxfordshire  or  Oxford 

Page 

Palmer's  Indices 

Palatinate  of  Chester 

Palatinate  of  Durham 

Palatinate  of  Lancaster 

Parish,  parochial,  etc. 

Parliament  or  Parliamentary 

Parliament  Rolls 

Parliamentary  Surveys 

Particulars  for  Grants 

Patent  Roll  or  Letters  Patent 

Prerogative  Court  of  Canter- 
bury 

Petition 

Peterborough 

Philip 

Pipe  Roll 

Plea  Rolls 

Population  Returns 

Pope  Nicholas'  Taxation  (Re- 
cord Commission) 

Public  Record  Office 

Proceedings 

Proceedings  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries 

Part 

Publications 

Roll 

Records 

Recovery  Rolls 

Rentals  and  Surveys 

Report 

Review 

Richard 


xx 


TABLE    OF    ABBREVIATIONS 


RofF.       ....     Rochester  diocese 
Rot.  Cur.  Reg.       .     Rotuli  Curise  Regis 
Rut Rutland 


Topog. 


Sarum    .... 

Ser 

Sess.  R 

Shrews 

Shrops    .... 

Soc 

Soc.  Antiq.  .     .     . 

Somers 

Somers.  Ho. 

S.P.  Dorn.   .     .     . 

Staff.       .... 

Star  Chamb.  Proc. 

Stat 

Steph 

Subs.  R.       .     .     . 

Suff. 

Surr 

Suss 

Surv.  of  Ch.  Liv- 
ings (Lamb.)  or 
(Chan.) 


Salisbury  diocese 
Series 

Sessions  Rolls 
Shrewsbury 
Shropshire 
Society 

Society  of  Antiquaries 
Somerset 
Somerset  House 
State  Papers  Domestic 
Staffordshire 

Star  Chamber  Proceedings 
Statute 
Stephen 
Subsidy  Rolls 
Suffolk 
Surrey 
Sussex 

Surveys   of  Church  Livings 
(Lambeth)  or  (Chancery) 


Trans. 
Transl. 
Treas. 
Trin. 


Topography  or  Topographi- 
cal 

Transactions 
Translation 
Treasury  or  Treasurer 
Trinity  Term 


Univ University 


Valor    Eccl. 

Com.) 

Vet.  Mon.  . 
V.C.H.  .     . 

Vic.  .     .     . 
vol.    . 


(Rec. 


Warw.  . 
Westm.  . 
Westmld. 
Will.  . 
Wilts  . 
Winton. 
Wore.  . 

Yorks 


Valor  Ecclesiasticus  (Record 

Commission) 
Vetusta  Monumenta 
Victoria  County  History 
Victoria 
Volume 

Warwickshire  or  Warwick 

Westminster 

Westmorland 

William 

Wiltshire 

Winchester  diocese 

Worcestershire  or  Worcester 

Yorkshire 


A    HISTORY    OF 
STAFFORDSHIRE 


""HUH  i  It  1 

i  j  ii* 


Bin 


GEOLOGY 


JUST  as  the  county  of  Staffordshire  is  situated  toward  the  centre  of 
England,  so  the  geological  formations  met  within  its  boundaries 
occupy  a  similar  position  in  the  geological  scale.  Tracing  the 

well-known  orderly  ascending  sequence  of  rocks  from  the  oldest 
in  Wales  to  the  newest  in  the  eastern  counties,  we  find  in  the  Triassic 
formation  of  the  midlands  the  central  link  between  these  two  extremes. 

The  rocky  ridges  which  characterise  the  older  formations  on  the 
Welsh  borderlands,  when  traced  eastward,  pass  gradually  beneath  a 
mantle  of  red  Triassic  sandstones  and  marls,  until  in  Staffordshire  the 
latter  form  the  commonest  features  of  the  landscape.  Rising  as  islands 
out  of  them  much  older  formations  appear  at  the  surface  in  the  north 
and  south,  where  by  their  bolder  scenic  aspects  they  afford  a  sharp  contrast 
to  the  monotonous  and  softer  outline  of  the  red  rocks  ;  and  since  the 
minerals  essential  to  modern  civilization  are  found  in  these  older  strata 
their  presence  is  indicated  by  the  great  centres  of  population  whose 
natural  wants  have  been  largely  supplied  from  the  rich  grazing  lands  and 
vast  reservoirs  of  pure  underground  water  existing  in  the  enveloping 
newer  formation.  The  study  of  the  geology  of  the  county  therefore 
forms  the  natural  prelude  to  its  history. 

Extending  as  they  do  over  by  far  the  larger  part  of  the  county,  the 
red  Triassic  rocks,  which  have  been  aptly  compared  to  a  solidified  sea, 
afford  a  datum  to  which  the  other  stratified  deposits  may  be  conveni- 
ently referred.  This  great  spread  of  one  formation  has  been  brought 
about  by  the  dying  away,  ere  it  reaches  the  centre  of  the  county,  of  the 
great  Pennine  uplift,  which  further  north  divides  the  Trias  into  an 
eastern  and  western  portion.  Thrown  into  wide  gentle  undulations 
where  the  major  Pennine  movement  has  died  away,  the  formation 
naturally  covers  a  wide  expanse  ;  but  these  red  rock  waves  may  be  said 
to  have  piled  themselves  up  and  broken  against  two  ancient  ridges  : 
first,  in  North  Staffordshire  against  the  carboniferous  offshoot  of  Derby- 
shire ;  secondly,  against  the  carboniferous  uplift  in  South  Staffordshire. 
In  this  way  the  conspicuous  island  character  of  these  older  deposits  has 
arisen.  Further,  in  the  highest  summits  of  the  South  Staffordshire  island 
we  recognize  in  the  Dudley  Hills  and  Sedgley  Beacon  the  unburied  peaks 
of  Silurian  strata,  standing  as  lonely  outposts  of  the  Silurian  territory  to 
the  west. 

It  will  be  gathered  from  this  that  the  formations  represented  are 
few  in  number.  Of  the  three  main  divisions  into  which  geologists  have 
separated  the  stratified  rocks,  only  the  later  portion  of  the  great  Palae- 
ozoic, the  early  stages  of  the  Mesozoic  and  latest  phases  of  the 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Kainozoic  eras  are  met  with.  The  history  of  the  formations  present 
is  however  replete  with  interest,  for  not  only  are  they  grandly 
developed,  but  they  have  attracted  the  attention  of  some  of  the  most 
celebrated  observers  in  British  geology,  and  conclusions  which  have 
revolutionized  the  science  have  been  arrived  at  from  investigations  of 
these  rocks  in  the  laboratory  or  in  the  field. 

In  the  following  tables  giving  the  classification  and  sub-divisions  of 
the  Staffordshire  rock  formations  in  descending  order  the  results  of  recent 
investigation  and  re-surveys  have  been  embodied ;  where  the  age  of 
certain  groups  remains  under  discussion  the  published  opinions  of  the 
latest  authorities  have  been  adhered  to.1 

TABLE   OF   STRATA   IN   STAFFORDSHIRE 


Period 


Formation 


Character  of  Material 


Approximate  thick- 
ness in  feet 


Recent 


Alluvium,  Peat . 


Mud,  silt,  gravel,  peat ; 
bordering  streams,  rivers 
and  in  hollows  . 


up  to  15 


Pleistocene 


Old  River  Drift 
Glacial  Deposits 


Gravel,  sand,  loam,  etc., 
of  ancient  river  terraces 

Pebbly  loam  (Ratchel), 
sand,  gravel,  clay,  cave 
earth  . 


up  to  40 


up  to  130 


Keuper 


Rhaetic    .      . 
Keuper  Marl 


Waterstones    and    Lower 
Keuper   Sandstone 


Grey  marl  and  black  shales 
Red  marls  with  thin  sand- 
stones (skerries),  beds  of 
rock  salt  and  gypsum    . 
Red  and  white  sandstones, 
building    stones    and 
false-bedded    red    sand- 


stones , 


up  to  125 


up  to  2,000 


up  to  400 


1  For  more  detailed  information  the  following  works  should  be  consulted  :  Memoirs  of  the  Geological 
Survey,  'The  Geology  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield,'  by  J.  Beete  Jukes  (1859)  ;  The  Iron  Orel 
of  Great  Britain,  pts.  ii.  and  iv.,  by  Sir  W.  W.  Smyth  (i  862),  for  a  description  of  the  ironstones  and  for  a 
list  of  fossils  by  J.  W.  Salter  ;  The  Geology  of  the  country  round  Stockfort,  Maccksfield,  Congleton  and  Leek,  by 
E.  Hull  and  A.  H.  Green  (i  866)  ;  The  Triassic  and  Permian  Rocks  of  the  Midland  Counties  of  England,  by 
E.  Hull  (i  869)  ;  The  Geology  of  the  country  round  Stoke-upon-Trent,  by  W.  Gibson  and  C.  B.  Wedd  (1902); 
The  Geology  of  the  Cheadle  Coalfield,  by  G.  Barrow  (1903)  ;  Summaries  of  Progress  of  the  Geological  Survey 
from  1899  to  1902.  A  Sketch  of  the  Geology  of  the  Birmingham  District,  by  Prof.  C.  Lapworth,  Geologists' 
Association,  1898,  gives  a  concise  account  of  the  stratified  deposits  of  South  Staffordshire,  also  a  short 
description  of  the  igneous  rocks  by  Prof.  W.  W.  Watts,  and  a  brief  summary  of  the  ancient  glaciers 
of  the  midland  counties,  by  W.  J.  Harrison  ;  there  is  in  addition  a  useful  list  of  bibliographical  refer- 
ences. A  full  account  of  the  organic  remains  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Coalfield  has  been  published  by 
John  Ward  in  Trans.  North  Staff.  Inst.  Min.  Eng.  vol.  x.  (1890)  ;  while  the  order  and  nature  of  the 
ironstones  and  coals  are  given  by  C.  J.  Homer  in  the  Proc.  Inn  and  Steel  Inst.  (1875).  Several 
important  papers  treating  of  the  local  geology  are  scattered  through  the  Trans.  Birm.  Philos.  Sac.,  The 
Midland  NaturaKst,  and  the  Trans.  North  Staff.  Field  Club.  The  last-mentioned  society  publishes  from 
time  to  time  a  bibliography  by  John  Ward. 

The  county  includes  the  following  maps  of  the  Geological  Survey  on  the  scale  of  one  inch  =  one 
mile  :  Sheets  (Old  Series)— 62,  N.E.  Lichfield,  Tamworth  ;  62,  N.W.  Cannock  Chase  ;  62,  S.E.  Sutton 
Coldfield,  Birmingham,  Coleshill  ;  62,  S.W.  Wolverhampton,  Walsall,  Dudley  ;  72,  N.W.  Hanley,  Stoke- 
on-Trent;  72, N.E.  Ashbourne  ;  72,8. W.  Stafford,  Stone;  72, S.E.  Burton-on-Trent, Tutbury  ;  72, S.E. 
Market  Drayton,  Eccleshall.  Sheets  (New  Series)— 123,  Stoke-upon-Trent  ;  1 10,  Maccksfield. 


GEOLOGY 


Period 

Formation 

Character  of  Material 

Approximate  thick- 
ness in  feet 

Upper  Mottled  Sandstone 

False-bedded     red     sand- 

stones   

up  to  70O 

Bi  i  n  fpr 

Pebble  Beds  

Red     pebbly     sandstones 

r           O 

UI1  LCI 

with  beds  of  shingle   . 

up  to  500 

Lower  Mottled  Sandstone 

False  -  bedded    red    sand- 

stones   

UD  to  7OO 

r         .j 

Upper  Red  Sandstones  and 

Marls,    sandstone    and    a 

Permian 

Marls  of  Enville 
Middle  Red  Sandstone  and 

band  of  breccia  . 
Sandstone,  marls,   conglo- 

up to  150 

Marls  of  Enville 

merates    and    '  trappoid 

breccia'    

up  to  550 

Keele      Sandstones      and 

Red  sandstones  and  marls, 

Marls,     Lower       Red 

thin  beds  of  earthy  lime- 

Sandstones  and    Marls 

stone,    occasional    thin 

of  Enville 

seams  of  coal  (N.  Staffs). 

over  800 

Newcastle  -  under  -  Lyme 

Grey  sandstones  and  marls, 

Series    and    Halesowen 

thin  coals  and  two  thin 

Sandstones 

limestones  at  the  base  . 

up  to  400 

Etruria  Marls  and  Oldhill 

Red  marls  with  thin  beds 

Brick  Clays 

of  earthy  limestone,  ashy 

green  grits  and  conglo- 

merates      

up  to  1,100 

Blackband  Series  of  North 

Grey  marls  and  sandstones, 

Staffordshire 

thin  seams  of  coal  and 

beds  of  laminated  iron- 

Carboniferous 

stones  (N.  Staffs),   and 

bands   of  earthy  lime- 

stone   

up  to  4.  So 

Middle  Coal  Series      .     . 

Grey  and  black  shales  with 

r          ^  j 

numerous  coals  ;  beds  of 

grit  and  ironstone    . 

Up  to   I,2OO 

Lower  Coal  Series  . 

Grey    and     black    shales, 

bands     of     sandstone  ; 

numerous  seams  of  coal 

up  to  4,000 

Millstone    Grits    and 

Grits,  sandstones,  shales  ; 

Pendleside  Series 

thin  seams  of  coal  and 

beds    of    dark    impure 

limestone  

up  to  2,000 

Carboniferous  Limestone  . 

Compact  highly  fossilifer- 

Great,  but  unde- 

ous limestone 

termined 

Ludlow  Shales  and  Lime- 

Grey shales    and   beds  of 

stones 

limestone  

up  to  1,050 

Silurian 

Wen  lock  Limestone    and 

Grey  shales   and    beds  of 

Shales 

limestone  

up  to  i,  600 

Woolhope  Beds 

Limestone    

up  to  80 

r 

Upper  Llandovery  or  May 

Sandstone  and  grits 

not  known 

Hill  Sandstone 

A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

SILURIAN    SYSTEM 

In  the  adjoining  county  of  Shropshire  the  Pre-Cambrian,  Cambrian, 
Ordovician  and  Silurian  formations  follow  each  other  in  natural  con- 
secutive order.  Of  these  only  the  Silurian  emerges  in  Staffordshire, 
from  under  the  intervening  Red  Rocks,  on  the  crests  of  the  three 
anticlines  of  Sedgley  Beacon,  Dudley  Hills  and  Walsall. 

The  complete  sequence  of  the  sediments  composing  this  essentially 
marine  deposit,  the  oldest  of  the  county,  does  not  occur  in  any  one  of 
the  three  localities  ;  yet  by  piecing  together  the  information  obtained 
in  one  district  with  that  in  another  it  is  found  that,  excepting  the  initial 
stages  represented  by  the  Lower  Llandovery  sub-formation  and  that  of 
the  final  close  of  the  period  (Ludlow  Passage  Beds),  there  is  present,  in 
the  heart  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield,  a  typical  development  of 
that  most  famous  of  British  formations — the  Silurian.  In  one  of  its 
stages,  that  of  the  Wenlock,  the  district  of  Dudley  has  become  especially 
celebrated  both  on  account  of  its  furnishing  Murchison  with  material 
for  his  great  work  on  the  Silurian  system  and  also  for  the  abundance 
of  typical  fossils,  excellently  preserved. 

Upper  Llando'very  or  May  Hill  Sandstone. — The  first  deposits  of  the 
Silurian  seas  indicate  shallow  water  conditions.  They  afford  a  very 
limited  exposure,  and  that  only  in  the  Walsall  area,  where  they  con- 
sist of  pale  yellow,  brown,  or  occasionally  white  sandstones  poorly 
representing  the  littoral  and  sub-littoral  deposits  of  the  Upper  Llan- 
dovery or  May  Hill  Sandstone  of  the  Welsh  borderland.  Among  other 
fossils  the  characteristic  brachiopods — Stricklandinia  /ens,  S.  Strata,  and 
the  trilobite  Encrinurus  punctatus  are  not  uncommon. 

Barr  Limestone. — The  May  Hill  Sandstone  is  closely  followed  by  a 
band  of  richly  fossiliferous  limestone,  well  known  to  local  geologists  from 
its  containing  at  Hay  Head,  in  the  parish  of  Barr,  fine  examples  of 
a  trilobite — Ilcenus  barriensis — a  fossil  characteristic  of  the  Woolhope 
Limestone  of  other  Silurian  regions,  and  to  which  the  Barr  Limestone, 
as  it  is  locally  known,  corresponds.  The  limestone  was  formerly 
extensively  quarried,  but  little  opportunity  of  obtaining  fossils  now 
exists. 

Wenlock  Limestone  and  Shale. — The  next  overlying  sub-division  con- 
sists of  slightly  consolidated  dark  blue  and  grey  mudstones  and  shales 
about  800  feet  thick,  at  the  summit  of  which  lie  two  bands  of  limestone 
(Wenlock  Limestone]  separated  by  about  800  feet  of  shale.  The  lower 
shales  are  inclined  at  gentle  angles  in  the  Walsall  area,  and  consequently 
cover  a  considerable  extent  of  ground.  They  are  not  well  exhibited  in 
sections,  but  abundant  fossils — chiefly  brachiopods  and  corals — can  be 
obtained  in  the  railway  cutting  at  Five  Lanes.  The  limestones  occur 
only  in  the  western  extremity  of  the  inlier  and  are  exposed  in  the  rail- 
way cuttings  within  the  town  of  Walsall  and  in  some  old  quarries  in  the 
neighbourhood.  In  the  Dudley  Castle  Hills  and  Wren's  Nest  the  Wen- 
lock  strata  are  bent  up  into  an  elongated  dome  dislocated  by  faults.  The 

4 


GEOLOGY 

core  of  the  hills  consists  of  the  lower  shales  ;  the  flanks  of  the  two  beds 
of  limestone  with  their  intervening  shales  and  overlying  Ludlow  Shales. 
Owing  to  their  purity  and  excellence  as  a  flux,  their  proximity  to  the 
blast  furnaces,  and  to  the  high  inclination  rendering  the  extraction  of 
the  stone  a  cheap  and  simple  process,  the  limestones  have  been  quarried 
for  many  centuries.  This  industry  was  sufficiently  striking  to  attract 
the  attention  of  Dr.  Plot  in  1686,  who  also  unmistakably  figures  some 
of  the  common  fossils.  At  the  present  day  the  underground  excavations 
extend  for  great  distances  and  to  considerable  depths  into  the  heart  of 
the  hills,  beneath  which  they  form  vast  gloomy  caverns,  through  which 
there  wanders  a  long  canal  used  in  the  transportation  of  the  quarried 
stone. 

Fossils  abound,  some  thin  layers  of  the  limestone  being  crowded 
with  organic  remains — corals,  brachiopods,  bryozoa.  The  district  has 
become  especially  famous  for  the  extremely  beautiful  and  extensive 
series  of  crinoids  (stone-lilies)  and  for  the  excellent  preservation  and 
large  number  of  trilobites  which  have  not  only  enriched  several  local 
collections,  but  have  found  their  way  into  many  cabinets  abroad. 

Ludlow  Shales  and  Aymestry  Limestone. — At  Walsall  the  Wenlock 
limestones  are  succeeded  immediately  by  the  unconformable  Coal-measures, 
but  around  Dudley  Castle  they  pass  up  into  bluish  grey  shales  belonging 
to  the  Ludlow  sub-division,  which  in  turn  become  covered  up  by  Coal- 
measure  strata.  In  the  Sedgley  inlier  the  upward  sequence  is  further 
continued.  Here,  at  Hurst  Hill,  a  sharp  anticline  brings  up  the  Wen- 
lock  limestones  with  some  overlying  calcareous  shales — 1,000  feet  thick 
— and  the  fossil  contents  indicate  an  horizon  equivalent  to  the  Lower 
Ludlow  Shales.  To  these  succeeds  a  bed  of  limestone  25  feet  thick, 
locally  known  as  the  Sedgley  Limestone.  It  is  not  so  pure  as  the  Wen- 
lock  Limestone,  and  burns  into  a  greyish  variety  of  lime  locally  dis- 
tinguished as  '  black  lime,'  that  made  from  the  Wenlock  Limestone 
being  termed  '  white  lime.'  The  commonest  fossil  is  Pentamerus  knightii, 
which  stamps  it  at  once  as  the  equivalent  of  the  Aymestry  Limestone  of 
Shropshire. 

Upper  Ludlow  Shales. — Whenever  present  in  full  sequence  the 
Silurian  deposits  indicate  a  piling  up  of  sediments  on  an  oscillating  sea 
floor  until,  towards  the  summit,  the  accumulations,  assisted  by  gentle 
uprisings,  gradually  approached  the  surface  of  the  sea.  The  commence- 
ment only  of  these  conditions  is  met  with  in  Staffordshire,  and  this 
in  the  Sedgley  area  alone,  where  a  mere  fragment  of  the  lower  portion 
of  the  Upper  Ludlow  Shales  has  been  preserved  in  the  centre  of  a  syncline 
under  a  capping  of  Coal-measure  sandstone,  which  has  prevented  its 
destruction  by  denudation.  In  sinking  the  Manor  Pits  near  Hales- 
owen,  it  is  stated  that  somewhat  higher  beds  containing  fossils  of  the 
Passage  beds  into  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  were  entered  beneath  the  Coal- 
measures,  but  nowhere  has  any  undoubted  Old  Red  Sandstone  been  met 
with,  and  the  formation  next  succeeding  is  separated  by  a  great  interval 
of  time  from  the  highest  Silurian  strata  exposed  on  Sedgley  Beacon. 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

CARBONIFEROUS    SYSTEM 

We  have  seen  that  the  geological  history  of  Staffordshire  presents, 
in  the  absence  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone,  one  of  those  tantalizing  breaks 
so  frequent  in  the  imperfect  record  of  the  rocks.  The  missing  chapters 
are  found  in  Worcestershire,  Herefordshire,  and  in  South  Wales,  where 
the  lacustrine  deposits  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  indicate  an  elevation 
of  the  Silurian  sea  floor  and  the  subsequent  formation  of  large  fresh- 
water lakes.  So  great  was  the  time  represented  by  the  missing  period 
that  the  fauna  of  the  Carboniferous  strata — the  next  group  met  with 
— has  a  totally  distinct  aspect :  many  new  orders,  many  new  genera 
make  their  appearance,  while  the  species  differ  from  those  of  the  Silurian 
seas  ;  the  vertebrata  have  increased  in  numbers  and  are  very  much 
more  highly  organized. 

The  Carboniferous  system  commences  abruptly  with  the  marine 
conditions  of  the  richly  fossiliferous  Mountain  Limestone  of  North 
Staffordshire,  when  the  ocean  waters  were  warm  and  clear,  and  coral 
reefs,  on  which  flourished  a  prolific  marine  fauna,  extended  their  fringes 
along  the  coast  line.  A  large  river  then  appears  to  have  entered  the  sea 
driving  away  the  corals  and  many  other  life  forms,  and  laying  down  first 
the  muds  and  grits  of  the  Pendleside  Series,  and  then  the  grits  and  shales 
of  the  Millstone  Grit  period.  Ultimately  a  delta  appears  to  have  been 
formed  in  which,  or  along  its  margins,  the  muds,  shales,  sandstones  and 
numerous  seams  of  coal  constituting  the  Coal-measures,  were  deposited. 

The  Carboniferous  rocks  stand  out  boldly  above  the  Triassic  plain 
in  the  North  and  South  Staffordshire  Coalfields.  Though  separated  from 
each  other  by  the  intervening  red  strata,  it  is  now  almost  beyond  dispute 
that  these  isolated  coalfields  are  connected  underground.  Local  inter- 
ruptions there  may  be,  such  as  are  shown  at  the  surface  in  the  Silurian 
hills  of  Dudley  and  Walsall,  but  recent  borings  and  shaft-sinkings  to  the 
east  and  west  of  the  present  outline  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield 
prove  conclusively  the  extension  of  the  Coal-measures  in  these  directions; 
while  the  identity  of  the  Coal-measure  sequence  as  a  whole  in  North  and 
South  Staffordshire  is  strongly  in  favour  of  the  sediments  having  been 
deposited  in  the  same  basin. 

The  exact  nature  of  the  pre-carboniferous  floor  has  not  been  ascer- 
tained, but  the  thinning  away  and  final  disappearance  of  the  individual 
members  of  the  system,  when  traced  from  the  north-north-west  to  the 
south-south-east,  shows  it  to  have  sloped  rapidly  upwards  to  the  south- 
south-east,  and  at  a  still  greater  rate  due  south.  Thus  the  southern  area 
appears  to  have  lain  above  water  during  the  long  period  represented  by 
the  great  thicknesses  of  the  Carboniferous  Limestone,  Pendleside  Series 
and  Millstone  Grits  of  the  north,  and  not  to  have  been  submerged  until 
Coal-measure  times. 

The  filling  up  of  the  basin  and  its  submergence  does  not  appear  to 
have  been  a  simple  process,  for  a  study  of  the  Carboniferous  rocks  of  the 
Midlands,  especially  in  North  Staffordshire,  clearly  shows  that  the  period 

6 


GEOLOGY 

was  marked  by  minor  earth  movements  temporarily  raising  one  area  and 
depressing  a  closely  contiguous  one.  Therefore,  in  the  important  search 
for  coal  underneath  the  red  rocks,  it  will  long  remain  uncertain  what 
particular  member  of  the  Carboniferous  System  will  be  encountered  or 
what  its  thickness  will  be. 

Differences  in  the  distribution  of  the  fossils  have  been  taken  to 
mark  out  the  Carboniferous  System  into  an  Upper  and  a  Lower  portion, 
but  authorities  are  at  variance  as  to  where  the  divisional  line  should  be 
drawn.  The  plants  and  fishes  indicate  a  change  at  the  top  of  the  so-called 
Yoredales  (Pendleside  Series)  of  Staffordshire  ;  the  mollusca  on  the 
other  hand  show  no  such  differences,  but  many  of  the  marine  forms  con- 
tinue from  the  base  of  the  Pendleside  Series  to  high  up  in  the  Coal- 
measures.  In  a  short  sketch  however  it  is  out  of  place  to  enter  into  a 
discussion  of  this  vexed  question  ;  whatever  floral  and  faunal  changes 
may  ultimately  be  found  to  differentiate  the  various  stages,  stratigraphi- 
cally,  as  Ramsay  always  contended,  the  Carboniferous  System  can  be 
regarded  as  a  unit. 

CARBONIFEROUS    OR    MOUNTAIN    LIMESTONE 

The  celebrated  scenery  of  Dovedale  and  the  beautiful  valley  of  the 
Manifold  owe  their  charms  to  the  rocks  of  this  important  sub-division. 
Excavated  into  deep  gorges  and  pinnacles  of  fantastic  shapes,  enhanced 
by  the  soft  verdure  of  peculiar  vividness  and  the  delicacy  of  outline 
of  numerous  limestone-loving  plants,  threaded  with  caves  and  mysterious 
underground  water  channels,  the  Carboniferous  Limestone  country  ever 
exerts  a  strong  impression  on  the  mind. 

The  Carboniferous  Limestone,  which,  as  previously  mentioned,  only 
occurs  in  the  north  of  the  county,  consists  of  an  undivided  mass  of  pale 
grey,  white  or  blue  limestone  of  great  but  undetermined  thickness.  The 
quality  of  the  rock  varies  from  place  to  place  ;  that  at  Caldon  Low  in  the 
Weaver  Hills  is  of  exceptional  purity,  and  thousands  of  tons  are  annually 
quarried  for  use  as  a  flux  in  the  iron  furnaces  of  Staffordshire  and  for 
the  production  of  alkalies  and  lime  for  various  purposes.  The  pipes  and 
hollows  traversing  the  rocks  have  also  yielded  large  quantities  of  copper 
and  lead,  the  famous  mines  at  Ecton  being  considered,  toward0  rhe  com- 
mencement of  the  eighteenth  century,  to  be  the  richest  copper  mines  in 
Europe. 

The  outcrop  of  limestone  in  the  Weaver  Hills  and  the  Manifold  Valley 
forms  a  southerly  extension  of  the  large  massif  of  the  Carboniferous  Lime- 
stone of  Derbyshire,  and  similarily  owes  its  existence  to  a  strong  anti- 
clinal uplift  bringing  it  to  the  surface  from  under  the  denuded  cover  of 
the  shales  and  grits  of  the  Pendleside  Series.  The  convolutions  visible 
in  the  Staffordshire  lobe  of  the  Derbyshire  limestone  west  of  the  Dove 
are  doubtless  continued,  underneath  the  folded  Pendleside  strata,  to  the 
west  of  the  main  limestone  outcrop  in  the  Weaver  Hills.  This  is  shown 
to  be  the  case  by  the  small  mass  of  limestone  which  comes  to  the  surface 

7 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

at  Mixon  on  the  crest  of  a  long  oval-shaped  dome  that  is  bent  into  a  large 
number  of  lesser  anticlines  and  synclines,  and  threaded  with  mineral  lodes 
containing  ores  of  copper  and  lead.  The  top  beds  are  also  brought  up  on 
another  sharp  fold  in  an  old  quarry  near  Congleton  Edge,  close  to  the 
county  border,  west  of  Biddulph.  In  this  section  the  highest  thin  bands 
of  limestone  are  intercalated  with  layers  of  tuffs,  fragments  of  lava  and 
ashy  fossiliferous  limestone,  thus  denoting  the  presence  of  volcanic  action 
during  the  deposition  of  the  strata.1  Such  evidences  of  igneous  or  vol- 
canic activity  during  or  closely  subsequent  to  the  deposition  of  the  limestone 
are  abundant  in  Derbyshire,  but  do  not  actually  occur  within  the  county. 

A  curious  bed  made  up  of  rolled  shells  and  fragments  of  waterworn 
limestone  has  been  traced  by  Dr.  Wheelton  Hind  in  the  valley  of  the 
Manifold,  from  Apes  Tor  to  Ecton  Bridge  and  Warslow.  It  occurs  at 
or  near  the  summit  of  the  limestone,  a  position  it  occupies  in  several 
places  in  Derbyshire,  notably  near  Castleton. 

The  Carboniferous  Limestone  abounds  in  fossils,  including  genera 
and  species  of  corals,  brachiopods,  lamellibranchs,  gasteropods,  crustaceans 
and  cephalopods,  and  other  invertebrates.  The  prolific  trilobite  fauna 
of  the  Silurian  and  Devonian  seas  is  however  represented  by  only 
three  genera — Bracbymetopus,  Griffitbides  and  Pbillipsia — forms  distinct 
from  those  of  the  preceding  formations.  Fish  remains  are  not 
abundant  within  the  Staffordshire  area,  but  numerous  specimens  have 
been  obtained  at  Park  Hill  in  Derbyshire,  just  across  the  county  border, 
including  types  with  pavement  teeth  such  as  would  be  adapted  for 
grinding  and  crushing  corals.  Attempts  have  been  made,  but  with  little 
success,  to  distinguish  one  part  of  the  massive  limestone  from  another 
by  means  of  the  fossils.  Dr.  Wheelton  Hind  regards  the  limestone  as 
one  big  zone,  of  which  Productus  giganteus,  P.  cora,  Ghonetes  papilionacea, 
Amplexus  coralloides  constitute  the  zonal  forms,  and  have  a  general  dis- 
tribution throughout  the  deposits  of  the  period. 

PENDLESIDE   SERIES 

The  clear  waters  of  the  limestone  seas  became  ultimately  charged 
with  silts  and  muds  brought  down  by  a  large  river  which  spread  its 
deposits  not  only  over  North  Staffordshire  but  also  over  a  wide  area  in 
mid-England,  and  which  possibly  reached  the  Isle  of  Man.2 

With  this  change  of  conditions  the  varied  marine  fauna  of  the  Car- 
boniferous Limestone  seas  vanished  and  was  replaced  by  a  few  mud-loving 
molluscs,  some  of  which  are  found  attached  to  pieces  of  timber  floated 
out  into  the  turbid  waters.  Muds  ceased  at  times  to  be  borne  seaward, 
enabling  a  marine  fauna  to  establish  itself.  These  periods  of  compara- 
tively clear  water,  of  which  the  fauna  is  abundantly  preserved  on  Congleton 
Edge  in  the  strata  exposed  in  a  quarry  to  the  east  of  the  limestone  inlier, 

1  W.    Gibson  and  W.    Hind,    'On   Agglomerates  and   Tuffs  in   the   Carboniferous    Limestone 
Series  of  Congleton  Edge,'  Quart.  Journ.  Geol.  Sac.  p.  548  (1899). 
J  W.  Hind,  Stuart.  Journ.  Geol.  Soc.  Ivii.  374  (i9O1)- 

8 


GEOLOGY 

were  of  brief  duration  and  of  sparse  recurrence,  for  the  series  consists 
essentially  of  clays,  shales,  muds  and  sandstones  of  a  united  thickness  of 
many  hundreds  of  feet.  Occasionally  the  quantity  of  vegetable  matter 
floated  down  was  in  excess  of  any  other  material,  and  a  mass  of  decaying 
vegetable  debris  accumulated,  to  be  ultimately  converted  into  a  seam  of 
coal,  or  it  may  be  the  carbonaceous  matter  collected  in  swamps  lying  at 
or  near  sea  level. 

The  Pendleside  Series  occurs  in  two  areas  to  the  east  and  west  of 
Leek,  being  brought  into  this  position  by  two  major  folds  separated  by  the 
trough  enclosing  the  Coal-measures  of  the  Cheadle  and  Shaffalong  Coal- 
fields with  their  enveloping  Millstone  Grits.  The  major  folds  are  made 
up  of  minor  convolutions,  frequently  of  great  complexity,  of  which  a 
striking  illustration  is  afforded  by  a  section  in  Badgers  Clough  near  Pye- 
Clough.  The  extensive  quarries  on  the  anticline  of  Gun  Hill,  west 
of  Meerbrook,  also  forcibly  illustrate,  in  the  bent  and  shattered  Pendleside 
grits  and  shales,  the  violent  nature  of  the  disturbances  and  the  amount  of 
compression  the  strata  have  undergone  ;  nor  is  this  to  be  wondered  at, 
seeing  that  these  sections  lie  well  within  the  influence  of  the  Great 
Pennine  uplift — the  dominant  structural  feature  of  mid-England. 

With  the  exception  of  deep  dingles  or  gorges  like  those  of  the  Dane 
Valley  system  and  Churnet  Valley  the  scenery  is  tame,  consisting  for  the 
most  part  of  open  grassy  moorland.  This  is  due  chiefly  to  the  preponderance 
of  soft  shales,  but  also  in  part  to  the  frequent  low  inclination  of  the  strata. 
Whenever  ridges  such  as  Catsedge,  Gun  Hill  and  Morridge  relieve  this 
monotony  they  are  found  to  be  composed  of  sandstone  or  grit,  of  which 
the  harder  and  more  siliceous  varieties  are  known  as  Crowstones,  when 
they  are  extensively  quarried  for  rough  road  metal.  Coal  smuts,  thin  seams 
of  coal  with  fireclays,  occasionally  underlie  these  grits,  and  were  formerly 
worked  to  a  limited  extent. 

Fossils  are  comparatively  rare  and  poorly  preserved.  They  occur 
in  certain  restricted  bands  in  the  shales,  but  are  more  abundant  and  better 
preserved  in  some  thin  layers  and  nodules  (bullions)  of  dark  earthy  lime- 
stones clearly  exposed  in  the  banks  of  the  Dane  south  of  Wincle.  They 
include  several  species  of  Gonia  fifes  (Glyphioceras),  Posidonomya  Becheri, 
Pterinopecten  papyraceus,  Posidoniella  /avis,  fossils  Messrs.  Hind  and  Howe 
find  characterizing  a  similar  set  of  strata  above  the  Mountain  Limestone 
in  adjacent  counties,  especially  on  Pendle  Hill  (Lancashire),  from  which 
the  series  derives  its  name. 

The  river  system  which  transported  the  sediments  of  the  Pendleside 
Series  is  considered  by  Dr.  Hind  to  have  flowed  from  the  east  and  north- 
east. He  observes  the  series  to  be  thickest  over  Lancashire,  where  the 
succeeding  Millstone  Grits  are  also  at  their  maximum  development, 
while  from  this  centre  the  beds  thin  out  in  all  directions ;  thus  North 
Staffordshire  lay  towards  the  southern  margin,  South  Staffordshire  wholly 
beyond  it. 

These  strata  have  for  long  been  regarded  as  the  southern  equivalent 
of  the  thick  bands  of  white  limestone  and  interbedded  shales  of  Yoredale, 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

whence  they  were  termed  '  Yoredale  Rocks,'  the  change  from  this  supposed 
northern  type  being  considered  to  take  place  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
great  Craven  faults.  According  to  Messrs.  Hind  and  Howe  the  Yore- 
dales  of  Yorkshire  are  the  equivalents  of  the  undivided  massive  limestone 
of  Derbyshire,  which  splits  up  in  the  north  into  several  bands  separated 
by  inter-bedded  shales.  The  Pendleside  Series  they  regard  as  occupying 
a  superior  position,  and  containing  a  fauna  distinct  from  the  Carboniferous 
Limestone  of  Derbyshire  and  the  Yorkshire  Yoredales.1 

MILLSTONE   GRIT   SERIES 

This  sub-division  lithologically  resembles  the  Pendleside  Series, 
differing  chiefly,  as  the  name  implies,  in  the  greater  prevalence  of  gritty 
material,  aggregated  into  bands  of  considerable  thickness  separated  by 
black  and  grey  shales.  While  a  definite  band  of  grit  (First  Grit  or 
Rough  Rock)  happens  to  separate  the  sub-division  from  the  Coal- 
measures  above,  no  such  well  marked  or  persistent  bed  indicates  its 
junction  with  the  Pendleside  Series,  to  which  it  is  allied  in  the  closest 
possible  stratigraphical  manner. 

Conspicuous  objects  in  the  landscape,  the  different  bands  of  grit 
follow  each  other  in  consecutive  order  with  their  separating  bands  of 
shale,  and  have  been  named  from  above  downward  :  First  Grit  (Rough 
Rock  or  Farewell  Rock  of  the  miner),  Second  Grit  (Haslingden  Flags  of 
Lancashire),  'Third  Grit  (Roaches  Grit),  Fourth  and  Fifth  Grits  (Kinder- 
scout  Grits).  These  constitute  in  the  north  and  north-east  portion  of 
the  county  grit  bands  of  singular  persistency,  but  traced  southward  they 
are  found  to  decrease  gradually  till  around  the  Pottery  and  Cheadle 
Coalfields  only  the  First  and  Third  Grits  remain. 

Some  distance  below  the  Kinderscout  Grits  and  separated  from  them 
by  shales  there  lies  an  impersistent  bed  of  grit,  sometimes  known  as  the 
'  Yoredale  Grit,'  which  has  been  regarded  in  Derbyshire  as  the  base 
of  the  series,  though  avowedly  an  artificial  datum  line.2 

Throughout  nearly  the  whole  length  of  their  outcrop  the  Millstone 
Grits  can  be  recognized  almost  at  a  glance  by  the  distinctive  features  to 
which  they  give  rise.  The  splendid  escarpment  of  the  Roaches  and 
'  The  Rocks,'  the  crags  of  Ipstones  and  the  numerous  '  Edges ' — Axe 
Edge,  Ladderedge,  Brown  Edge,  Congleton  Edge — and  other  less  marked 
but  still  conspicuous  ridges  have  been  carved  by  denudation  out  of  the 
various  bands  of  grit  whose  broad  sheets  of  heather-clad  rocks  end  in 
rugged  crags  standing  boldly  out  in  the  air,  while  the  flanks  and  valleys 
lying  at  their  feet  have  been  fashioned  out  of  the  interbedded  shales. 
These  bold,  bare,  rocky  ridges  impressed  early  writers  and  seem  to 

1  For  a  full  account  of  the  Pendleside  Series  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  paper  by  W.  Hind  and 
J.  A.  Howe,  '  The  Geological  Succession  and  Paleontology  of  the  Beds  between  the  Millstone  Grit  and 
the  Limestone  Massif  of  Pendle  Hill,  and  the  equivalents  in  certain   other   parts   of  Britain,'  Quart. 
Journ.  Geol.  Soc.  Ivii.  347  (1901). 

2  '  The   Carboniferous   Limestone,   Yoredale    Rocks  and  Millstone  Grits  of  North  Derbyshire ' 
(Mem.  Geol.  Survey),  p.  8  (1887). 

IO 


GEOLOGY 

have  exerted  a  powerful  influence  on  the  ancient  inhabitants,  appearing 
to  them  as  something  above  the  common  and  therefore  fit  burial  places  for 
their  chiefs.  Many  of  the  stream-cut  gorges  are  strikingly  deep  and 
gloomy ;  while  elsewhere  the  rocks  have  been  opened  out  into  curious 
chasms,  such  as  the  impressive  cleft  of  Ludchurch — 100  yards  long,  30  to 
40  feet  deep,  and  6  to  i  o  feet  wide — south  of  the  Castle  Cliff  Rocks. 

The  Millstone  Grits  are  arranged  in  lesser  or  greater  synclinal  folds 
•completely  or  partially  surrounding  the  coalfields;  frequently,  as  in  the 
small  elongated  trough  of  Goldsitch  Moss  with  perfect  symmetry. 
Denudation  has  removed  vast  masses  of  material,  thus  severing  the  outcrops 
and  forming  detached  areas,  of  which  the  outlier  of  the  Third  or  Roaches 
Grit  on  the  summit  of  Sheen  Hill  is  the  most  remote. 

Seams  of  coal  which  are  rare  in  the  Pendleside  Series  become  of 
greater  frequency  and  are  usually  present  a  few  feet  above  or  lying 
directly  on  the  grit  bands.  The  most  persistent  is  a  seam  above  the 
Third  Grit,  which  was  formerly  worked  to  a  considerable  extent  in 
the  Roaches  and  Ipstones  areas.  Another  seam,  known  as  the  Feather 
Edge  Coal,  lying  above  the  First  Grit,  also  proved  to  be  workable  around 
parts  of  the  Goldsitch  Moss  Coalfield,  though  the  seam  should  more 
properly  be  included  in  the  Coal-measures.  The  commercial  value  of 
the  sub-division  however  mainly  consists  in  the  fairly  good  quality  of  the 
building  stones  afforded  by  the  First  and  Third  Grits,  both  of  them, 
but  especially  the  latter,  being  extensively  quarried. 

The  fossils  of  the  '  grits  '  consist  of  the  remains  of  plants — Ca/amifes, 
Lepidodendron.  Plant  remains  are  also  met  with  in  the  shales,  but 
the  most  interesting  fossils  are  the  marine  organisms — Ptennopecten  papy- 
raceus,  Posidoniella  /&vis,  Goniatites — which  occur  in  abundance  in  certain 
dark  bands  of  impure  limestone  lying  in  muddy  shales  between  the  First 
and  Third  Grits,  of  which  the  banks  of  the  Trent  to  the  east  of  Knypers- 
ley  Reservoir  afford  an  excellent  section. 

COAL    MEASURES 

The  detritus-bearing  currents — now  swift,  now  gentle — which  de- 
posited the  grits  and  shales  of  the  Pendleside  Series  and  Millstone  Grits 
continued  to  carry  their  burden  seaward  long  after  the  First  Grit  was  laid 
down.  The  pauses  in  sedimentation  however  became  more  prolonged, 
the  sea  was  frequently  excluded,  and  the  floor,  owing  to  constant 
deposition  aided  by  local  elevation,  was  even  raised  above  sea-level.  The 
lower  portion  of  the  Coal-measure  formation,  with  its  great  thicknesses 
of  shales,  clays,  sandstone  and  intercalated  coal  seams,  ironstones  and 
marine  bands,  demands  some  such  varied  conditions  of  origin.  During 
the  later  stages  of  the  period  the  pauses  became  brief  and  a  large  body  of 
sediment  was  deposited,  but  now  under  new  conditions.  A  land-locked 
area  appears  to  have  been  formed  upon  whose  continuously  sinking 
floor  mainly  red  sediments  thickly  accumulated.  The  end  of  the  story 
however  is  not  known ;  the  record  is  lost  or  buried  deep  under  the 
overlying  Triassic  rocks  with  their  history  of  a  new  order  of  events. 

ii 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

We  know  however  that  before  the  commencement  of  the  Trias  era  the 
Carboniferous  strata  were  intensely  folded,  fractured  and  extensively  de- 
nuded, resulting  in  their  more  or  less  complete  isolation,  so  that  in  North 
Staffordshire  we  find  the  four  detached  coal  basins  of  the  Potteries, 
Cheadle,  ShafFalong  and  Goldsitch  Moss,  while  the  South  Staffordshire 
Coalfield  is  separated  from  the  northern  field  by  a  wide  expanse  of 
Triassic  rocks. 

Though  the  coalfields  of  the  north  and  south  possess  many  points 
in  common  the  northern  area  presents  the  type  development  and  will 
therefore  be  described  first. 


THE   NORTH   STAFFORDSHIRE   COALFIELD 

Lower  and  Middle  Coal-measures. — Situated  on  the  line  of  the  great 
Pennine  uplift  or  along  its  western  margin  it  is  not  surprising  to  find 
this  coal-bearing  region  complicated  by  numerous  faults  and  folds.  The 
folds  trend  in  a  general  north  and  south  direction,  and  enclose  the  four 
separate  coalfields  mentioned  above.  The  Cheadle,  ShafFalong  and 
Pottery  Coalfields  may  be  connected  under  the  Trias  of  Caverswall,  but 
the  small  coalfield  of  Goldsitch  Moss  is  sunk  deep  in  a  fold  of  Millstone 
Grits,  and  removed  several  miles  from  its  sister  coalfields.  The  im- 
portant coalfield  of  the  Potteries  can  be  further  naturally  divided  into  a 
central  synclinal  region  and  a  western  anticlinal  portion.  In  the  latter 
the  coal  seams  are  frequently  vertical  and  occasionally  bent  on  themselves; 
in  the  former  the  coals  are  sometimes  highly  inclined  but  never  vertical. 
The  faults,  the  majority  of  which  trend  north  and  south,  are  not  only 
many  but  of  very  great  throw  ;  one,  known  as  the  Apedale  Fault,  tra- 
versing the  central  portion  of  the  Pottery  Coalfield  in  a  north  and  south 
direction  exceeds  600  yards  in  vertical  displacement,  while  an  even 
larger  dislocation  extends  along  the  western  margin  of  the  coalfield.  The 
faults  have  exerted  a  strong  influence  on  the  physiography  of  the  district. 
Thus  the  Apedale  Fault  lets  in  a  strip  of  barren  measures  in  the  heart  of 
the  coalfield  so  that  the  ancient  town  of  Newcastle-under-Lyme  lies  in  a 
pleasant  agricultural  district,  while  immediately  east  and  west  there  extends 
the  usual  grimy  landscape  of  a  coal-mining  district ;  again,  on  the  west  a 
large  fault  suddenly  introduces  unproductive  measures,  when  the  mining 
industry  abruptly  ends. 

The  Coal-measures  have  been  sub-divided  into  Lower,  Middle  and 
Upper;  but  the  exact  horizons  at  which  the  dividing  lines  should  be 
drawn  have  not  been  definitely  settled.  Whatever  scheme  is  adopted  the 
lower  and  middle  sub-divisions  constitute  the  storehouse  of  the  chief 
seams,  of  which  the  most  important,  commencing  with  the  Winpenny 
Coal,  about  1,200  feet  above  the  First  Grit,  are  grouped  together.  Above 
this  coal  there  are  no  less  than  thirty  recognized  seams,  making  a  total 
thickness  of  over  1 40  feet  of  coal.  A  seam  towards  the  middle,  known 
as  the  Ash  Coal,  has  been  taken  by  some  geologists  as  the  base  of  the 
middle  sub-division,  while  another  seam — Bassey  Mine  Coal — has  been 

12 


GEOLOGY 

chosen  as  the  base  of  the  upper  sub-division.  The  unequal  rate  of 
deposition  of  the  Coal-measures  is  accentuated  in  the  Pottery  Coalfield, 
where  the  strata  between  the  Bassey  Mine  and  Winpenny  Coals  approxi- 
mate to  1,200  yards  at  Shelton,  whereas  at  Apedale,  4  miles  to  the 
west,  they  are  under  800  yards  thick,  from  which  the  rate  of  diminu- 
tion can  be  calculated  to  be  about  i  in  17,  equivalent  to  a  gradient  of 
over  3  degrees. 

Below  the  Winpenny  the  coal  seams  are  of  small  value,  but  one 
called  the  Crabtree  Coal,  a  few  yards  above  the  First  Grit,  is  well  known 
from  its  shale  roof,  yielding  in  all  four  areas  abundant  specimens  of 
Goniatites,  Pterinopecten  and  Lingula.  The  strata  below  the  Winpenny 
occur  in  all  the  four  areas,  while  they  constitute  the  entire  measures  of 
the  small  basin  of  Shaffalong  and  a  considerable  portion  of  that  of  Cheadle 
and  Goldsitch  Moss. 

The  strata  enclosing  the  coals  and  ironstones  consist  of  clays,  marls, 
fireclays  and  shales  with  an  occasional  band  of  sandstone  very  impersistent 
and  of  no  great  thickness.  The  colour  is  generally  a  dull  grey  excepting 
a  few  bands  of  intensely  black  shales  or  an  occasional  impersistent  stratum 
of  a  red  colour.  The  absence  of  any  great  mass  of  hard  rocks  is  reflected 
in  the  scenery,  which  is  tame  and  uninteresting,  but  whenever  a  ridge 
breaks  the  monotony  it  is  almost  certainly  found  to  consist  of  one  of  the 
bands  of  sandstone,  and  inasmuch  as  the  sandy  material  is  more  prevalent 
in  the  north  so  the  ridgy  character  of  the  coalfield,  as  in  the  Norton 
district,  becomes  more  pronounced. 

The  numerous  coal  seams  between  the  Ash  and  Winpenny  Coals 
constitute  the  chief  seams  of  the  Pottery  Coalfield.  They  include  varieties 
suitable  for  house  purposes,  for  making  gas  and  coke,  for  raising  steam,  or 
for  use  in  the  arts  and  manufactures  of  the  district.  The  only  ironstone 
at  present  raised  is  the  Burnwood  Stone  of  the  variety  known  as  semi- 
blackband.  In  the  adjacent  Cheadle  Coalfield  there  are  also  several  valuable 
coal  seams,  but  they  have  not  been  satisfactorily  identified  with  those  of 
the  Pottery  Coalfield.  A  peculiarity  in  the  distribution  of  the  coals  in 
the  Pottery  area  is  the  fact  that  certain  easily  recognized  seams,  which  are 
gas  or  coking  coals  in  the  western  area,  rapidly  lose  a  large  quantity  of 
their  bituminous  matter  when  traced  eastward,  until  they  become  house 
or  steam  coals. 

The  commonest  fossils  are  molluscs,  of  which  the  most  abundant 
belong  to  the  genus  Carbonicola  (Anthracosia)^  regarded  as  a  freshwater, 
mud-loving  animal.  They  occur  in  great  profusion  in  the  ironstones 
and  shales  overlying  the  Cockshead,  Ten-feet  and  other  coals,  forming 
the  so-called  '  mussel  or  cockle  bands  '  of  the  miner.  In  comparison  with 
the  Middle  Coal-measures,  fish  remains  may  be  said  to  be  rare  ;  of  great 
interest  are  fragments  of  various  parts  of  the  skeleton  of  the  amphibian 
Loxomma,  met  with  in  the  shale  overlying  the  Cockshead  Coal  at  Adderley 
Green.  Within  recent  years  a  number  of  thin  bands  of  shales  and  cal- 
careous nodules  containing  marine  organisms  have  been  brought  to  light 
at  no  less  than  seven  widely  separated  horizons  ;  the  lowest,  as  previ- 

13 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

ously  mentioned,  is  the  one  above  the  Crabtree  Coal  ;  the  highest  occurs 
only  a  few  yards  below  the  Ash  Coal,  while  the  remainder  are  found  at 
intervals.  In  the  highest  band — that  above  the  Gin  Mine  Coal — Mr. 
John  Ward  collected  over  twenty  different  species  ;  in  the  other  bands 
Goniafites,  Lingu/a,  Pterinopecten,  Posidoniella  occur  most  frequently,  and 
include  some  of  the  species  of  the  Pendleside  Series.  As  might  be 
expected  plant  remains  are  not  infrequent,  though  met  with  most 
abundantly  on  certain  definite  horizons.  Among  these  Neuropteris 
heterophylla^  Alethopteris  loncbitica  indicate,  according  to  Mr.  R.  Kidston, 
a  low  horizon  throughout  the  Coal-measures  of  Great  Britain.1 

The  strata  between  the  Ash  and  Bassey  Mine  Coals  (Middle  Coal- 
measures)  by  their  strict  resemblance  in  colour,  texture,  composition 
and  by  their  stratigraphical  conformity  to  the  rocks  below  denote  the 
continuation  of  similar  conditions.  The  coal  seams  number  over  four- 
teen, representing  a  collective  thickness  of  nearly  50  feet  of  coal.  The 
quality  however  is  inferior  to  the  seams  of  the  lower  sub-division, 
though  they  are  of  great  value  to  the  potter  in  baking  his  wares, 
and  being  near  the  surface  over  a  large  portion  of  the  area  are  in 
great  request.  The  Middle  Coal-measures  contain  several  bands  of 
ironstone,  but  of  these  only  the  semi-blackband,  laminated  Chalkey 
Mine  Ironstone  is  raised  in  any  quantity.  The  number  and  variety  of 
fish  remains  is  extraordinary,  especially  in  the  shales  associated  with  the 
Winghay  or  Knowles  Ironstone  of  Longton  and  Fenton  ;  with  them 
the  remains  of  amphibia  are  sparingly  associated.  The  mollusca  are 
abundant  in  the  lower  portion,  but  become  gradually  rarer  towards  the 
summit.  The  flora,  notably  on  the  horizon  of  the  Great  Row  Coal, 
is  particularly  rich. 

The  strata  above  the  Bassey  Mine  Coal  (Upper  Coal-measures]  belong 
to  a  different  class  of  sediments,  being  made  up  chiefly  of  red  sandstones 
and  marls,  among  which  grey  rocks  retain  a  definite  but  quite  subordinate 
position.  Coal  seams  are  thin  and  lie  on  widely  separated  horizons,  but 
bands  of  earthy  limestone,  crowded  with  Entomostraca  and  very  rare  in 
the  inferior  sub-divisions,  become  a  marked  constituent.  Four  distinct 
groups  of  rock  individualize  the  Upper  Coal-measures. 

In  the  lowest  (Blackband  Series]  the  material  remains  much  the  same 
as  in  the  Middle  Coal-measures,  but  there  is  a  tendency  for  red  marls  to 
be  developed  along  definite  horizons.  Several  bands  of  Blackband  iron- 
stones frequently  exceeding  4  feet  in  thickness,  readily  calcined  and  rich 
in  metallic  iron,  render  the  group  of  great  economical  importance  ; 
while  the  associated  grey  marls,  along  whose  outcrop  the  pottery  towns 
have  gradually  extended,  may  be  said  to  have  initiated  the  pottery  trade. 
Even  now,  when  clays  foreign  to  the  district  have  come  into  general  use, 

1  The  organic  contents  as  a  whole  have  been  fully  dealt  with  by  John  Ward,  Trans.  North  Staff. 
Inst.  Mining  Engineers,  vol.  x.  (1890),  and  Proc.  North  Staff.  Field  Club  (1893-4).  For  the  plants  see 
R.  Kidston,  Trans.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.  vol.  xxxv.  (l  891)  and  Proc.  Royal  Physical  Society  Edin.  vol.  xii.  (i  893-4). 
The  Lamellibranchs  are  described  by  Wheelton  Hind,  Palaontografhical  Society,  vols.  xlviii.-l.  For  a  recent 
account  of  the  marine  beds  the  reader  may  consult  J.  T.  Stobbs,  Tram.  North  Staff.  Field  Club,  vols. 
xxrv.,  xxxvi.  and  Trans.  Fed.  Inst.  xxii.  229  (1902). 


GEOLOGY 

the  local  marls  continue  to  furnish  the  material  for  the  vessels  in  which 
the  pottery  is  baked  in  the  kilns  in  addition  to  being  extensively 
used  for  other  purposes.  The  fauna  indicates  the  conditions  under  which 
the  strata  were  deposited  ;  for,  excepting  Entomostraca,  which  constitute 
three  or  more  thin  bands  of  impure  limestone,  and  a  few  fishes,  the  animal 
life  consisted  of  the  delicate  thin  valved  mollusc  Antbracomya  pbillipsi, 
met  with  in  countless  numbers  in  the  Blackband  Ironstones.  The  flora, 
occasionally  rich  in  species  and  numbers,  partakes,  according  to  Mr. 
Kidston,  of  a  transitional  character  between  Middle  and  Upper  Coal- 
measures,  thus  further  illustrating  the  gradual  passage  of  one  stage  into 
the  other. 

The  Etruria  Marls,  which  succeed,  consist  almost  exclusively  of  red 
and  mottled  marls  exceeding  i,ooofeet  in  thickness  in  the  central  area. 
Thin  bands  of  green  grits,  apparently  derived  in  great  part  from  the 
breaking  down  of  igneous  rocks,  are  interstratified  at  intervals.  Only 
one  locally  developed  coal  seam  has  been  met  with,  and  excepting  two 
thin  beds  of  limestone  containing  the  serpula  Spirorbis  the  entire  group 
consists  of  practically  unstratified  red  marls. 

The  Newcastle-under-Lyme  Series  conformably  overlying  the  Etruria 
Marls  shows,  as  far  as  the  colour  and  nature  of  the  material  is  concerned, 
a  return  to  the  conditions  of  the  Blackband  group.  Grey  sandstones 
and  shales,  in  which  lie  four  thin  seams  of  coal,  constitute  almost  the 
entire  bulk.  Plant  remains  are  numerous,  including  the  characteristic 
Upper  Coal-measure  fossil,  Pecopteris  arborescens,  but  associated  with 
others  of  Middle  Coal-measure  age.  Two  thin  bands  of  limestone  with 
Entomostraca  and  a  minute  shell  (Anthracomya  calcifera)  which  are  exposed 
in  the  marl  pits  between  Etruria  and  Longport,  invariably  commence 
the  sequence. 

In  the  Keele  Series?  into  which  these  grey  strata  graduate  upward, 
we  again  find  rocks  of  a  brilliant  red  colour,  mainly  red  sandstones  with 
intercalated  red  marls,  among  which  at  intervals  thin  beds  of  limestone 
with  Entomostraca  are  interstratified.  The  flora,  though  badly  preserved, 
as  in  most  red  rocks,  contains  species  having  a  wide  range  throughout 
the  Coal-measure  period.  For  how  long  the  Carboniferous  period  con- 
tinued beyond  the  record  contained  in  these  red  rocks  remains  uncertain, 
since  the  strictly  unconformable  Triassic  rocks  conceal  the  top  beds  of 
the  Keele  Series  or  whatever  strata  may  elsewhere  succeed,  and  thus 
the  legend  in  North  Staffordshire  abruptly  terminates. 

THE   SOUTH   STAFFORDSHIRE   COALFIELD 

The  Carboniferous  strata  of  this  coalfield  are  arranged  in  a  dome 
possessing  a  length  of  about  23  miles  and  a  breadth  of  6  miles.  This 
main  anticline,  broken  by  three  subsidiary  folds,  constitutes  the  Dudley, 

1  This  group  was  formerly  placed  in  the  Permian  System.  The  reasons  for  the  classification  here 
adopted  will  be  found  in  a  paper  by  the  author,  <%uart.  Journ.  Geol.  Sue.  Ivii.  256  (1901),  and  in  the 
'Geology  of  the  Country  around  Stoke-upon-Trent '  (Mem.  Geol.  Survey),  pp.  45-7  (1902). 

15 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Barr  and  Netherton  anticlines,  between  which  lie  the  faulted  synclines 
of  Bilston,  Corngreaves  and  Pensnett.  The  coalfield  is  completely 
surrounded  by  the  unconformable  Triassic  rocks,  underneath  which  it 
slopes  gradually  on  the  south  and  north,  and  against  which  it  is 
faulted  on  the  east  and  west  by  the  great  '  Boundary  Faults.'  The  suc- 
cession consists  in  the  main  of  a  replica  of  that  in  North  Staffordshire,  but  it 
is  doubtful  if  the  district  came  within  reach  of  the  Carboniferous  waters 
until  a  considerable  portion,  if  not  the  whole,  of  the  Lower  Coal- 
measures  of  North  Staffordshire  had  been  deposited.  The  Carboniferous 
Limestone,  Pendleside  Series  and  Millstone  Grits  are  certainly  absent, 
the  Coal-measures  being  deposited  on  an  irregular  floor  of  Silurian  rocks 
visible  at  the  surface  in  the  Dudley,  Walsall  and  Sedgley  areas,  but  also 
encountered  underground  between  West  Bromwich  and  Oldbury,  where 
they  constitute  the  so-called  '  Silurian  bank.' 

Lower  or  'True  Coal-measures.1 — In  composition  the  strata  (500 
to  1,050  feet  thick)  resemble  the  chief  coal-bearing  rocks  of  North 
Staffordshire,  consisting  of  grey  and  white  sandstones,  shales,  clays, 
ironstones  and  seams  of  coal.  The  most  remarkable  of  the  seams  known 
as  the  '  Ten  Yard  '  or  '  Thick  Coal,'  underlies  Smethwick,  Dudley, 
Walsall  and  Bilston,  and  was  formerly  quarried  in  the  open  near 
Tipton.  It  is  not  an  undivided  stratum  of  coal,  but  is  made  up  of  thir- 
teen or  fourteen  distinct  layers  separated  from  each  other  by  thin  partings 
of  shaly  material  or  '  bat.'  South  of  Halesowen  it  thins  out  and 
becomes  mixed  with  shaly  matter  ;  but  what  is  more  remarkable  when 
traced  northward  the  component  seams  gradually  separate  until  at  Essing- 
ton  and  Pelsall  the  Thick  Coal  is  represented  by  fourteen  seams  lying  in 
a  mass  of  shales  and  sandstones  between  250  and  300  feet  in  thickness — 
an  excellent  example  of  the  unequal  rate  of  sedimentation  under  which  the 
Coal-measures  were  deposited.  The  Thick  Coal  has  been  proved  to  extend 
beyond  the  visible  limits  of  the  coalfield,  having  been  recently  encountered 
beneath  the  Red  Rocks  to  the  west  at  Himley,  while  it  is  being  worked 
under  the  same  formation  to  the  east  in  the  Sandwell  Park  and  Hamstead 
Collieries.  Again,  to  the  north  of  the  coalfield,  pits  have  been  sunk 
through  the  '  Pebble  Beds '  of  Cannock  Chase,  and  a  new  coalfield 
developed  in  this  direction. 

The  scenery  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield  is  aptly  described 
under  the  name  '  Black  Country.'  The  original  surface  features  over 
wide  areas  are  not  only  entirely  obliterated  by  refuse  heaps  and  grimy 
manufacturing  towns  and  villages,  but  over  all  there  rests,  day  and  night, 
a  canopy  of  black  smoke. 

In  past  years  a  large  quantity  of  local  ironstone  was  raised,  but  at 
the  present  day  the  greater  bulk  of  the  ore  for  use  in  the  iron  furnaces 
comes  from  Northamptonshire,  the  Potteries  and  elsewhere  ;  but  it  was 
the  presence  of  iron  ores,  in  conjunction  with  large  quantities  of  cheaply 

1  The  title  assigned   to  the  Coal-measures  of  South  Staffordshire  by   Prof.   Lapworth.     Vide  A 
Sketch  of  the  Geology  of  the  Birmingham  District,  Geologists'  Association  (1898). 

16 


GEOLOGY 

got  coal,  which  has  made  Birmingham  and  Wolverhampton  the  great 
hardware  manufacturing  centres  of  the  world. 

The  Dudley  Coalfield  has  been  regarded  as  the  typical  area  for  the 
Middle  Coal-measure  flora  of  Great  Britain.  The  genus  Sphenopteris  in  this 
sub-division  attains  its  maximum  development.  Stumps  of  the  gigantic 
lycopod,  Lepidodendron,  have  been  met  with  in  such  profusion  in  the 
workings  of  the  Parkfield  Colliery  as  to  form  a  veritable  fossil  forest. 
As  in  North  Staffordshire  the  commonest  mollusc  is  Carbonicola  (Anthra- 
cosia).  In  addition  to  remains  of  fishes  the  coalfield  has  also  yielded 
specimens  of  Arachnida  and  insects,  types  rare  or  unknown  in  North 
Staffordshire.  All  these  fossils,  excepting  the  Fishes,  indicate  the  close 
proximity,  if  not  the  absolute  presence,  of  land  ;  but  below  the  Thick 
Coal,  fossils — such  as  Lingula,  Productus,  Discina  and  Pterinopecten — show 
a  temporary  incursion  of  the  sea  ;  though  these  marine  episodes  do  not 
appear  to  have  been  of  such  frequent  recurrence  as  in  the  north. 

Upper  Coal  Measures. — The  gradual  infilling  of  the  basin  and  final 
change  in  the  character  of  the  sediments,  accompanied  by  the  gradual 
passing  away  of  the  fauna,  is  as  clearly  illustrated  in  the  southern  part  of 
the  county  as  it  is  in  the  Potteries.  In  the  districts  of  Corngreaves  and 
Oldhill  the  ordinary  grey  Coal-measures  graduate  upwards  into  a  con- 
siderable thickness  (over  300  feet)  of  red  clays  (Red  Coal-measure  Clays  of 
Jukes)  indistinguishable  from  the  Etruria  Marls  of  the  northern  coalfield. 
Moreover  they  contain  similar  thin  bands  of  ashy  green  grits  known  as 
'  Espley  Rocks,'  As  the  area  is  not  far  distant  from  the  Cambrian  and 
Pre-Cambrian  ridges  of  the  Lickey  Hills,  these  green  grits,  as  might  be 
expected,  contain  angular  fragments  of  the  Lickey  rocks.  Occasionally 
the  grits  are  so  coarse  as  to  form  a  true  breccia,  interesting  as  fore- 
shadowing the  breccia  conditions  so  prevalent  in  the  succeeding 
'  Permian  '  rocks  of  South  Staffordshire.  The  red  clays  afford  some  of 
the  material  for  the  famous  South  Staffordshire  blue  bricks,  and  large 
quarries  have  been  opened  round  Oldhill. 

The  brick  clays  pass  up  near  Halesowen  (just  beyond  the  county 
limits)  into  grey  sandstones  and  marls  (Halesowen  Sandstone  Group],  about 
400  feet  thick,  containing  an  occasional  thin  seam  of  coal  and  a  well 
marked  band  of  Spirorbis  limestone  near  the  summit.  These  in  turn  are 
surmounted,  quite  conformably,  by  red  sandstones  and  marls,  generally 
included  in  the  '  Permian  '  formation,  but  identical  with  the  Keele  type 
of  North  Staffordshire. 

The  sequence  of  the  Upper  Coal-measures  of  North  Staffordshire 
is  thus  at  once  seen  to  be  repeated  around  the  southern  margins  of  the 
South  Staffordshire  Coalfield,  and  the  connection  of  the  two  fields — 
either  absolutely,  or  at  least  as  regards  the  similarity  in  the  sequence 
of  events — proved  beyond  dispute.  The  same  sequence  too  has  been 
detected  in  the  deep  sinkings  and  borings  outside  the  exposed  coalfields, 
where  the  green  '  Espley  Rocks '  at  once  afford  the  miner  a  clue  to  his 
position  in  the  Coal-measure  sequence. 

Origin  of  Coal. — As  the  county  abounds  in  this  mineral  a  few  words 
i  17  3 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

may  be  said  regarding  the  prevalent  opinions  as  to  its  mode  of  formation. 
The  one  most  in  vogue  regards  each  seam  as  representing  an  ancient  bed 
of  vegetation,  and  the  usually  accompanying  underclay  or  fireclay  as 
the  soil  on  which  it  grew.  Another  opinion  considers  that  some 
at  least  of  the  coals  are  made  up  of  floated  vegetable  matter,  tranquilly 
deposited  in  still  water  at  a  time  when  other  sedimentation  was  at  a 
standstill.  Under  either  view  there  cannot  be  any  doubt  that  each  seam 
indicates  a  pause  of  more  or  less  duration  and  of  frequent  recurrence 
throughout  the  Coal-measure  period.1 

PERMIAN    SYSTEM 

The  red  sandstones  and  marls  succeeding  the  Halesowen  Sandstone 
group  have  been  regarded  as  belonging  to  a  special  type  of  '  Permian ' 
developed  only  on  the  west  side  of  the  Pennine  Chain,  but  recent  borings 
in  Nottinghamshire  have  clearly  shown  the  same  type  to  be  present  on 
the  east  side  of  the  Pennines.  The  limitation  of  the  Permian  system 
therefore  needs  revision,  but  it  would  be  superfluous  to  discuss  this  ques- 
tion here.  The  red  strata  overlying  the  grey  Halesowen  Sandstone 
group  are  succeeded  conformably  by  another  set  of  red  sandstones  and 
marls  with  lenticular  bands  of  calcareous  conglomerates,  which  in  turn 
are  overlain  by  the  so-called  '  Trappoid  Breccia  '  of  the  Clent  Hills  (on 
the  northern  boundary  of  Worcestershire).  These  rocks  have  been 
classed  as  Middle  Permian.2  Very  much  the  same  succession  occurs 
round  Enville,  but  above  the  '  Trappoid  Breccia '  a  set  of  red  marls 
with  an  intercalated  band  of  breccia  conformably  follows,  and  has  been 
regarded  as  forming  an  Upper  Permian  sub-division. 

Whether  these  distinct  groups  of  rocks  are  the  equivalent  of  the 
continental  Permian  system  or  not,  it  is  beyond  dispute  that  in  this 
country  they  are  intimately  related  to  the  Coal-measures,  but  separated 
from  the  Triassic  system  by  one  of  the  greatest  unconformities  known  in 
British  geology.  On  the  other  hand  the  Magnesian  Limestone  Series  of 
the  eastern  counties — considered  to  be  the  equivalent  of  the  Permian 
Zechstein  of  Germany — is  removed  from  the  highest  Coal-measures  by 
a  strong  unconformity,  but  is  hardly  separable  from  the  Triassic 
deposits. 

The  breccia  bands  which  characterize  the  South  Staffordshire 
'  Permian  Rocks '  retain  a  general  lithological  facies  throughout  the 
district.  Set  in  a  sandy  or  marly  paste,  angular  fragments  or  blocks  of 
volcanic  rocks,  mingled  with  others  of  fossiliferous,  Carboniferous, 
Silurian  and  Cambrian  sandstones  and  limestones,  show  the  varied 
source  of  their  derivation.  Their  origin  has  therefore  led  to  much  con- 

1  For  a  recent  discussion  on  this  interesting  subject  see  Report  of  the  British  Association  (1901), 
Bradford. 

*  Quite  recently  a  band  of  Spirorbis  limestone  has  been  discovered  in  the  so-called  Middle  Permian 
at  Franldey  Lodge  farm  in  the  Clent  area  by  T.  C.  Cantrill  (Summary  of  Progress  of  the  Geological 
Survey  for  1901),  pp.  63,  64. 

18 


GEOLOGY 

troversy,  of  which  there  are  two  opposing  views.  Some  geologists, 
following  the  brilliant  researches  of  Ramsay,1  claim  a  glacial  origin  for  this 
heterogeneous  collection  of  rock  fragments.  Others2  maintain  them 
to  be  scree  material  swept  down  by  sub-aerial  torrents  from  a  pre-Triassic 
hilly  region  situated  in  the  south. 

TRIASSIC    SYSTEM 

To  whatever  origin  the  '  Permian  '  breccias  of  Clent  and  Enville  be 
attributed,  the  next  group — the  unconformable  Triassic  rocks — affords  a 
typical  example  of  deposits  laid  down  under  continental  conditions, 
as  was  long  ago  pointed  out  by  Ramsay  and  Godwin-Austen.  The 
change  from  the  river-borne  muds  and  silts  of  the  Carboniferous  period 
is  not  only  vividly  contrasted  in  the  loosely  compacted  red  sandstones 
and  conglomerates  of  the  Trias,  but  the  vast  interval  of  time  intervening 
between  the  close  of  the  one  set  of  events  and  the  opening  of  another 
is  forcibly  demonstrated  by  the  newer  formation  reposing  horizontally  or 
at  gentle  angles  on  the  denuded  and  intensely  plicated  carboniferous 
strata.  This  is  recognized  by  geologists  ending  the  Palaeozoic  era  with 
the  Carboniferous  or  Permian  systems,  and  starting  an  altogether  fresh 
time  epoch  (Mesozoic)  with  the  red  rocks  of  the  Trias. 

At  its  commencement  in  the  Bunter  period  the  Triassic  continent — 
an  elevated  Carboniferous  sea  floor — presented  a  very  irregular  rocky 
surface  fashioned  out  of  a  plane  of  marine  denudation  during  upheavals 
succeeding  the  Carboniferous  period,  and  carved  out  by  long  subsequent 
denudation.  This  rugged  surface  of  pre-Triassic  hill  and  dale  and 
possibly  mountainous  country  became  gradually  levelled  by  dry  weather- 
ing, torrential  rains  and  wind,  while  the  material  derived  from  these 
sources  was  swept  into  and  slowly  accumulated  in  the  hollows.  In  the 
succeeding  Keuper  stage  the  broader  depressions  were  further  rilled  with 
sediments  deposited  in  a  great  lake  subjected  to  such  intense  evaporation  as 
to  result  in  the  deposition  of  thick  beds  of  rock-salt  and  gypsum.  Finally, 
at  the  close  of  the  Keuper  period  the  area  became  depressed,  by  gentle 
sinking  movements,  beneath  the  waters  of  the  Rhaetic  and  Jurassic  seas. 

The  Triassic  system  is  built  up  of  sandstones  and  marls  of  an 
almost  universal  red  colour  due  to  a  thin  film  of  oxide  of  iron  coating 
each  particle.  Traced  across  the  district  from  west  to  east  the  individual 
members  show  a  rapid  decrease  in  thickness  :  collectively,  on  the  west 
side  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield  the  thickness  amounts  to  3,500  feet, 
which  has  dwindled  to  about  1,200  feet  on  the  east  side  of  this  coalfield, 
but  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  in  the  centre  of  the  basin  to  the  north 
of  Stafford  the  westerly  amount  is  reached  or  even  exceeded.  Owing  to 
the  general  slight  inclination  of  the  strata  the  outcrops  are  especially 
broad  ;  they  are  narrowest  round  the  Carboniferous  tracts  in  the  north 

1  'On  the  Occurrence  of  Angular,  Subangular,  Polished  and  Striated  Fragments  and  Boulders  in 
the  Permian  Breccia  of  Shropshire,  Worcestershire,  etc.,'  <$uart.  Journ.  Geol.  Soc.  xi.  185  (1855). 

3  '  On  the  Permian  Conglomerates  of  the  Lower  Severn   Basin,'  by  W.  Wickham  King,  Quart. 
Joum.  Geol.  Soc.  Iv.  97-128  (1899). 

19 


A    HISTORY    FO    STAFFORDSHIRE 

and  south,  from  off  which  they  dip  to  all  points  of  the  compass,  and  are 
broadest  in  the  great  central  syncline  occupied  by  the  Keuper  Marls. 

BUNTER    PERIOD 

Lower  Red  and  Mottled  Sandstone. — If  the  sub-aerial  origin  of  the 
Bunter,  as  is  now  generally  accepted,  be  correct,  we  might  expect  to 
find  a  varied  distribution  of  the  sediments  ;  especially  would  this  be  the 
case  with  the  wind-borne  deposits,  to  which  some  geologists  consider  a 
large  portion  of  the  Lower  Mottled  Sandstone  may  be  directly  or  in- 
directly attributed.  To  the  west  of  Wolverhampton,  where  this  sub- 
division appears  at  its  best,  it  reaches  a  thickness  of  300  feet ;  it  is  only 
met  with  locally  in  North  Staffordshire,  and  is  altogether  absent  on  the 
east  side  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield. 

In  the  Wolverhampton  area  the  strata  consist  of  sandstones  of  the 
most  varied  hues,  ranging  from  yellow  through  brown  to  bright  ver- 
milion. Here  also  the  remarkable  false-bedding  or  '  oblique  lamination,' 
characteristic  of  the  sub-division,  is  admirably  exhibited  in  a  road  cutting 
near  the  entrance  to  the  lower  town.  Whether  this  be  due  to  currents 
of  water  or  wind  the  general  roundness  of  the  sand  particles  must  be 
attributed  to  wind  action,  for  no  other  agency  is  considered  to  be  capable 
of  rounding  small  sand  grains,  while  it  is  one  of  the  characteristic  features 
of  the  desert  sands  of  to-day.1 

Owing  to  their  soft  nature  the  rocks  are  generally  denuded  into 
broad  valleys,  but  in  the  interesting  escarpment  of  Kinver  Edge  the  top 
beds  have  been  hardened  by  a  calcareous  cement,  and  overhang  a  deep 
valley  excavated  in  the  underlying  softer  portion.  The  ease  with  which 
the  stone  can  be  quarried  has  been  taken  advantage  of  by  the  inhabitants 
of  Enville  and  Kinver,  the  neighbourhood  of  these  villages  showing 
numerous  rock  houses,  of  which  those  cut  out  of  the  sandstone  of  Holy 
Austin  Rock  are  the  best  known. 

Bunter  Pebble  Beds. — The  strata  of  this  sub-division  are  well 
developed  in  the  north  and  south,  where  they  hem  in  the  Carboniferous 
formations  against  which  they  abut,  sometimes  with  a  faulted  junction, 
but  more  frequently  unconformably  superimposed.  They  consist  essen- 
tially of  coarse  false-bedded  sandstones,  through  which  pebbles  of  vein 
quartz  and  other  rocks  are  widely  scattered  or  are  massed  together 
with  little  or  no  intervening  matrix,  forming  beds  of  shingle  sometimes 
over  50  feet  thick.  At  their  outcrop  the  sandstones  and  conglomerates 
are  usually  incoherent,  but  in  wells  and  borings  the  matrix  is  often 
highly  calcareous,  when  the  rock  is  intensely  hard  and  much  dreaded  by 
well-sinkers.  In  the  shingle  beds  the  pebbles  are  of  all  sizes  up  to  or 
slightly  exceeding  that  of  a  man's  head.  The  majority  are  quartzites — 
white,  brown,  yellow  or  liver-coloured  ;  others  consist  of  well  rounded 
fragments  of  Mountain  Limestone,  chert,  grits  of  various  Palaeozoic 

1  For  our  knowledge  of  desert  conditions  the  student  is  referred  to  Das  gesetz  der  Wtistenbildung,  by 
Professor  Walther  (Berlin,  1900). 

20 


GEOLOGY 

formations,  and  an  occasional  fragment  of  granite  or  volcanic  grit.1 
Speaking  generally  the  massed  gravels  are  more  abundant  in  the  north 
than  in  the  south,  and  more  persistent  towards  the  base  of  the  sub- 
division than  near  its  summit.  They  are  largely  quarried  for  road  metal 
and  gravel  in  Trentham  Park,  Cannock  Chase,  south  of  Cheadle,  Longton, 
and  in  many  localities  bordering  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield. 

To  the  west  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield  the  sub-division  is 
situated  with  apparent  perfect  conformity  between  the  Lower  and  Upper 
Mottled  Sandstone,  but  elsewhere  in  the  county  rests  with  a  great  discord- 
ance on  the  various  members  of  the  Carboniferous  rocks  or  on  'Permian.' 
This  unconformity  can  nowhere  be  better  illustrated  than  by  the  outliers 
at  Endon  and  around  Leek,  where  the  nearly  horizontal  pebbly  Bunter 
sandstones  rest  on  highly  inclined  or  sharply  folded  Lower  Carboniferous 
rocks. 

In  its  course  along  the  western  margin  of  the  South  Staffordshire 
Coalfield  the  outcrop  is  indicated  by  conspicuous  ridges,  such  as  Abbots 
Castle  Hill,  near  Trysull,  and  Kinver  Edge.  Along  the  eastern  side  of 
the  coalfield  the  outcrop  extends  in  a  well  marked  ridge  from  near 
Birmingham  northward  to  Aldridge.  The  greatest  expanse  however 
constitutes  the  open  undulating  heather-clad  moorland  of  Cannock  Chase 
on  which  the  characteristic  weathering  into  deep  coombes  with  inter- 
mediate rounded  lobes  is  admirably  illustrated.  The  same  character  is 
clearly  portrayed  round  the  North  Staffordshire  Coalfield,  where  the 
sub-formation  gives  rise  to  the  picturesque  woodlands  of  Maer,  Swyn- 
nerton  Park,  Trentham  Park,  Burnt  Wood  and  Bishops  Wood.  Perhaps 
the  most  interesting  outcrop  occurs  in  the  Churnet  valley  between 
Cheddleton  and  Leek,  where  a  small  patch  about  seven  miles  long  has 
been  preserved  in  a  deep  pre-Triassic  hollow  excavated  in  the  Lower 
Carboniferous  rocks  which  on  all  sides  surround  and  overlook  the 
much  newer  formation. 

The  mode  and  place  of  origin  of  the  sandstones  and  shingle  beds 
have  given  rise  to  much  controversy  among  geologists.  They  have 
been  regarded  as  the  products  of  powerful  oceanic  currents  ;  another 
opinion  holds  them  to  be  of  sub-aerial  origin,  brought  together  by 
large  rivers  liable  to  heavy  floods,  or  else  by  tumultuous  torrents  the  effect 
of  cloudbursts.  Some  geologists  consider  the  pebbles  to  be  derived  from 
the  breaking  up  of  the  conglomerates  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  ;  others 
again  would  derive  them  from  Palaeozoic  rocks  of  different  ages  in  rapid 
course  of  destruction  by  the  ordinary  agents  of  denudation  acting  during 
the  Bunter  period.  Again,  the  views  as  to  the  source  of  origin  are 
widely  divergent :  some  geologists  maintain  that  the  pebbles  were  derived 
from  the  older  formations  in  the  north  of  England  and  Scotland  ;  others 
look  to  their  source  from  an  old  rocky  ridge  extending  between  the  south- 
west of  England  and  western  France  ;  while  others  think  it  not  improb- 
able that  much  of  the  material  might  have  been  obtained  from  the  older 

1  W.   Molyneux,  '  On  the  Gravel   Beds  of  Trentham  Park,'  Trans.  North  Staff.  Nat.  Field  Club 
(1886)  ;  Geol.  Mag.  iv.  173  (1867). 

21 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

formations  known  to  exist  in  the  Midlands  beneath  the  Trias.  Diver- 
gent as  these  views  appear,  they  probably  all  contain  an  element  of 
truth,  for  not  from  one  but  from  many  areas  should  the  pebbles  be  derived  if 
they  were  laid  down  under  continental  conditions.1 

The  strata  are  almost  wholly  unfossiliferous.  In  other  parts  of 
England  the  presence  of  Labyrinthodonts  has  been  detected,  but  then 
only  rarely,  and  consisting  chiefly  of  footprints.  The  spongy  nature  of  the 
sandstone  and  shingle  beds  renders  the  sub-division  an  almost  unlimited 
reservoir  of  underground  water,  admirably  suited  for  drinking  pur- 
poses. The  pebble  beds  are  thus  the  source  from  which  the  chief  towns 
of  Staffordshire  obtain  their  water  supply.  The  strong  springs,  issuing 
from  the  rocks  along  lines  of  faults  and  major  joints,  or  at  their  junction 
with  the  less  pervious  Carboniferous  strata,  help  in  no  small  degree  to 
keep  the  streams  and  rivers  from  running  dry  during  the  summer  months. 
The  springs  at  Wall  Grange  pouring  out  over  2,000,000  gallons  daily, 
supplied  to  the  Potteries,  are  a  case  in  point  ;  the  Tern  river  also  issues 
from  the  spring-fed  lake  at  Maer  Hall  as  a  stream  of  no  inconsiderable 
size.  In  other  respects  the  Pebble  Beds,  beyond  yielding  road-metal  for 
second  class  roads,  possess  little  commercial  importance. 

Upper  Mottled  Sandstone. — This  sub-division  of  vermilion-coloured 
non-pebbly  sandstone,  closely  resembling  the  lower  sub-division,  follows 
conformably  and  runs  parallel  with  the  outcrop  of  the  Pebble  Beds  to  the 
west  of  the  southern  coalfield,  but  is  hardly  separable  from  them  and  not 
always  present  in  North  Staffordshire.  One  of  the  best  sections  in  the 
Midlands  is  opened  out  in  the  road  cutting  at  Tettenhall  to  the  west  of 
Wolverhampton.  Flanked  by  the  Pebble  Beds  and  overlain  by  the  hard 
Keuper  basement  beds  the  Upper  Mottled  Sandstone  usually  occupies  low 
lying  tracts  overlooked  by  the  inferior  and  superior  sub-divisions  of  the 
Trias.  Some  of  the  most  beautiful  country  lanes  have  been  cut  deep  into 
these  soft  red  sandstones,  whose  bright  red  colours  so  strikingly  contrast 
with  the  delicate  greens  of  lichen,  moss  and  fern  which  cling  to  their 
damp  crumbling  surfaces. 

The  soft  incoherent  nature  of  the  stone  renders  it  a  favourite  source 
of  building  sand,  while  the  more  loamy  varieties  yield  good  foundry  and 
moulding  sand,  and  are  extensively  quarried  at  Baldwins  Gate  near  Maer 
for  the  Crewe  Engineering  Works. 

KEUPER   PERIOD 

Keuper  Basement  Beds  and  Waterstones. — During  the  whole  of  the 
Bunter  period  the  elevatory  forces  were  going  on  or  were  only  temporarily 
stationary  :  in  the  succeeding  Keuper  period  the  successive  overlaps  of 
the  individual  members  point  to  a  cessation  of  any  upward  movements, 
while  towards  its  close  the  Triassic  continent  began  to  slowly  sink  until 
it  became  finally  submerged  beneath  the  seas  which  were  to  hold  sway 
during  the  whole  of  Mesozoic  times. 

1  T.  G.  Bonney,   Geol.  Mag.   Dec.    n,  vii.  404   (1880),  ibid.   Dec.   4,  ii.  75   (1895);  W.  J. 
Harrison,  Proc.  Birm.  Phil.  Soc.  vol.    iii.  (1881-3). 

22 


GEOLOGY 

The  Keuper  Basement  Beds,  or,  as  they  are  sometimes  called,  Lower 
Keuper  Sandstones,  are  typically  developed  in  the  western  portion  of  the 
county  where  they  conformably  surmount  the  Upper  Mottled  Sandstone. 
Owing  to  the  general  presence  of  a  hard  conglomerate  or  occasionally  a 
breccia  at  the  base  they  overlook  the  inferior  sub-division  in  the  form  of 
well-marked  scarps  particularly  well  exhibited  to  the  west  of  Wolver- 
hampton  between  Tettenhall  and  Shifnall  and  in  the  ridges  west  of 
Eccleshall.  But  it  is  at  Alton  where  denudation  has  most  successfully 
picked  out  these  harder  strata  and  fashioned  a  combination  of  escarpment, 
rocky  cliff  and  deep  ravine  unrivalled  by  any  other  Triassic  area. 

In  the  eastern  part  of  South  Staffordshire  and  generally  in  North 
Staffordshire  the  basal  conglomerate  and  breccia  are  absent  and  the  Keuper 
Waterstones  rest  with  apparent  conformity  or  apparent  discordance  on  the 
'  Pebble  Beds.'  In  most  places  the  basement  beds  are  succeeded  by  even 
bedded  red  and  white  sandstones  with  interstratified  layers  of  red  and  grey 
marl.  Toward  the  summit  the  marl  partings  become  more  numerous 
and  thicker  with  a  consequent  thinning  of  the  intercalated  sandstones,  and 
so  gradually  pass  into  the  Waterstones,  so  called  from  the  thin  sandstones 
possessing  a  fancied  resemblance  to  watered  silk  and  not  to  their  affording 
a  good  water-bearing  stratum  as  is  sometimes  stated. 

The  red  and  white  sandstones  overlying  the  basement  beds  yield  an 
excellent  building  stone  extensively  quarried  around  Wolverhampton, 
Rugeley  and  south  of  Cheadle.  At  Hollington  and  Stanton  the  stone  is 
of  exceptional  quality,  yielding  large  blocks  sent  to  many  parts  of  the 
kingdom.  It  has  been,  and  still  remains,  a  favourite  stone  for  ecclesiastical 
architecture,  country  mansions  and  the  larger  buildings  of  many  of  the 
midland  cities.  Alton  Towers  is  built  of  a  freestone  of  Lower  Keuper 
age  obtained  close  at  hand. 

The  Lower  Keuper  Sandstones  and  building  stones  yield  a  few  fossils 
of  which  remains  of  plants,  poorly  preserved,  are  not  infrequent,  but  the 
most  interesting  are  the  rare  remains  of  the  gigantic  Amphibian  belong- 
ing to  the  sub-order  Labyrinthodontia. 

The  impressions  of  the  hand-like  feet — chirosaurus  (C  heir  other  mm) — 
of  this  animal  have  been  met  with  on  the  surface  of  slabs  of  sandstones 
in  many  quarries,  notably  at  Hollington,  but  the  finest  remains,  consist- 
ing of  a  nearly  complete  skull,  9  inches  long  and  6  inches  wide,  were 
obtained  in  the  quarries  at  Stanton.1 

Throughout  the  Lower  Keuper,  but  also  occasionally  in  the  Bunter, 
the  cementing  material  frequently  consists  of  barium  sulphate  standing  out 
in  relief  on  the  weathered  surfaces  as  star-like  forms  or  else  leached  out 
and  redeposited  as  small  veins  filling  joints.  Copper-ore,  consisting  of  the 
blue  and  green  carbonates,  is  occasionally  present  and  has  been  worked  at 
Bearstone. 

Keuper  Marls. — Nearly  the  whole  of  the  central  and  low-lying 
portions  of  the  county  are  occupied  by  this  sub-division.  Made  up 

1   John   Ward,    'On  the  Occurrence  of  Labyrinthodont  Remains  in   the   Keuper   Sandstone    of 
Stanton,'  Tram.  North  Staff.  Field  Club  (1900). 

23 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

essentially  of  soft  red  marls  of  nearly  uniform  composition,  and  lying  at  a 
gentle  angle  across  the  great  syncline  of  central  Staffordshire,  the  scenery 
of  the  Keuper  Marl  country  lacks  interest.  Low  scarps  and  ridges,  where 
the  strata  consist  of  thin  bands  of  brown  and  white  flags  (skerries)  occasion- 
ally break  the  monotony,  but  except  towards  the  base  these  features  are 
impersistent.  In  the  past  the  Keuper  Marl  country  was  largely  covered 
with  woods,  of  which  Needwood  Forest  and  Chartley  Park  remain  as 
relics. 

The  marls  are  of  great  thickness,  possibly  as  much  as  2,000  feet  to 
the  north-east  of  Stafford.  That  they  were  laid  down  under  water,  in  a 
large  lake  subjected  to  intense  evaporation,  the  beds  of  rocksalt  and 
gypsum  afford  the  most  conclusive  evidence.  As  the  basin  became  rilled 
up  the  marls  gradually  extended  over  the  underlying  sub-divisions,  and 
finally  in  the  north  overlapped  them  all  until  they  invaded  the  bays  and 
hollows  of  the  Carboniferous  rocks  which  here  formed  the  margins  of  the 
basin. 

The  red  marl  forms  an  excellent  soil  and  was  formerly  dug  for 
'  top-dressing,'  the  small  pits  excavated  for  this  purpose  or  for  drinking 
troughs  lying  scattered  in  countless  numbers  all  over  its  outcrop.  The 
celebrated  alabaster  quarries  of  Fauld  near  Tutbury  lie  in  the  Keuper 
Marl.  Alabaster  is  here  obtained  in  large  slabs,  and  was  used 
extensively  for  the  ornamental  work  of  Croxden  Abbey  and  Lichfield 
Cathedral.  Two  hundred  years  ago,  and  long  before  it  was  quarried  near 
Tettenhall,  the  Burton  workers  in  alabaster  had  attained  a  considerable 
status.  Brine  wells  have  been  sunk  into  the  marls  to  the  north  of 
Stafford  and  at  Shirleywich. 

RHjETIC   PERIOD 

The  gradual  passing  away  of  the  Triassic  continental  period  is  revealed 
in  the  interesting  outliers  of  the  Rhaetic  formation  in  Needwood  Forest 
and  Bagots  Park  to  the  west  of  Burton-on-Trent.  The  sections  are  very 
meagre,  the  best  being  the  exposure  at  Marchington  Cliff  where  the 
red  Keuper  Marls  pass  up  imperceptibly  into  bluish  white  conchoidal 
marls  and  impure  limestones  containing  Axinus  cloacinus  and  overlain  by 
a  few  feet  of  the  characteristic  black  Rhastic  shales. 

With  the  Rhastic  Beds  the  geological  history  of  the  county  as  re- 
corded in  the  solid  rock  formations  terminates.  We  know  that  the  Rhaetic 
deposits  mark  the  commencement  of  a  great  regional  depression  during 
which  Britain  and  western  Europe  lay  submerged  for  a  vast  interval  of 
time  beneath  the  ocean,  but  of  which  no  relics  have  been  detected  in 
Staffordshire.  To  the  east  the  Jurassic  and  Cretaceous  systems  follow 
each  other  in  consecutive  order  ;  to  the  west,  at  Audlem,  it  is  known  that 
at  least  the  Jurassic  seas  extended,  but  from  Staffordshire  its  sediments 
have  been  swept  away.  Of  the  early  stages  of  the  Tertiary  period,  so 
well  exhibited  in  the  south-eastern  counties,  Staffordshire  again  presents 
a  blank,  so  that  volume  after  volume  of  the  geological  record  has  been 

24 


GEOLOGY 

destroyed  and  we  pass  abruptly  from  the  deserts  of  the  Trias  to  the  arctic 
conditions  of  the  Pleistocene  period. 

Before  describing  this  wonderful  contrast  of  events  we  must  however 
retrace  our  steps  and  briefly  consider  the  igneous  rocks  breaking  through 
the  formations  previously  described. 

IGNEOUS    AND    VOLCANIC    ROCKS 

The  stratified  deposits  are  in  many  places  but  a  thin  skin  overlying 
a  reservoir  of  molten  material  ever  ready  to  burst  forth  and  intrude  itself 
along  lines  of  weakness.  Evidences  of  such  weak  spots  are  to  be  met 
with  again  and  again  among  the  formations  whose  history  we  have  been 
tracing,  yet  it  was  only  rarely  that  the  underlying  molten  matter  found 
egress  from  its  subterranean  reservoir. 

The  earliest  record  is  afforded  by  the  limestone  quarry  on  Congleton 
Edge  (p.  8),  where  it  becomes  evident  that  during  the  closing  scenes  of 
the  Carboniferous  Limestone  epoch  a  volcano  was  close  at  hand  vomiting 
forth  ashes  and  dust  which  fell  into  the  surrounding  seas  and  possibly 
sending  forth  a  submarine  lava  stream. 

The  famous  basalts  or  trap  rocks  intruded  into  the  Coal-measures  of 
South  Staffordshire  present  the  next  example.  These  cover  no  inconsider- 
able area  at  Rowley  Regis,  Barrow  Hill,  Pouk  Hill,  and  again  round 
Wednesfield.  Each  occurs  as  a  '  sill  '  whose  intrusive  character  is  shown 
by  the  coal-seams  being  charred  where  they  came  in  contact  with  the 
molten  mass  or  by  the  baking  of  the  black  Coal-measure  shales  at  their 
junction  with  the  basalt  above  and  below.  The  largest  sill  forms  the 
Rowley  Regis  mass,  through  which  the  tunnel  between  Rowley  Regis 
Station  and  Old  Hill  passes.  The  lava  was  here  injected  into  the  space 
of  an  arched  up  mass  of  Coal-measure  strata  forming  what  is  known  as 
a  '  laccolite,'  of  which  the  cover  has  been  removed  by  denudation. 
During  the  process  of  cooling,  a  beautiful  columnar  structure,  excellently 
preserved  in  Turner's  Pit,  was  set  up.1  Huge  spheroids  of  basalt  are 
frequently  enclosed  between  the  joints  which  transversely  divide  the 
columns  at  fairly  regular  intervals.  The  Rowley  Rag  is  largely  used 
for  road  metal. 

Some  uncertainty  exists  as  to  the  age  of  the  intrusions  owing  to  the 
want  of  conclusive  field  evidence.  Professor  Watts3  comments  on  the 
fresh  appearance  of  the  constituent  minerals  and  the  many  features  they 
possess  in  common  with  the  well  known  Tertiary  dykes  of  the  north  of 
Ireland  and  Scotland,  and  also  on  the  fact  that  the  Rowley  mass  partakes 
in  the  fractures  affecting  the  coalfield,  some  of  which,  such  as  the 
Great  Boundary  Faults,  traverse  Jurassic  rocks.  None  of  the  South 
Staffordshire  intrusions  pierce  rocks  later  than  high  Coal-measures,  but  an 
interesting  dyke  met  with  in  North  Staffordshire  traverses  the  marls  of 
the  Keuper  period.  This  is  a  very  narrow  basaltic  dyke,  never  more 

1  T.  G.  Bonney,  S>uart.  Joum.  Geol.  Soc.  xxxii.  151  (1876). 

a  W.  W.  Watts,  Geologists'  Association,  p.  399  (1898),  op.  cit.,  in  which  references  to  the  literature 
on  the  igneous  rocks  are  also  given. 

I  25  4 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

than  a  few  feet  across,  which  has  been  traced  from  near  Keele  to  a  little 
north  of  Chebsey.1  In  its  course  it  cuts  across  and  alters  rocks  of  Upper 
Coal-measure,  Bunter  and  Keuper  ages.  The  mineral  constituents  are 
exceedingly  fresh,  and  in  many  respects  the  rock  closely  resembles  the 
South  Staffordshire  intrusions. 

«. 

PLEISTOCENE   AND    RECENT 

GLACIAL    DEPOSITS 

The  third  great  epoch  of  which  the  county  presents  a  complete  and 
most  interesting  record  is  that  of  the  Pleistocene  or  Quaternary  Period. 
There  is  abundant  evidence  to  show  that  at  this  late  geological  time  two 
great  ice  sheets  were  formed  by  the  piling  up  of  snow  and  ice  over  the 
North  Sea  and  the  Irish  Sea  and  converged  until  their  margins  touched 
in  Staffordshire  somewhere  in  the  region  of  Burton-on-Trent  ;  at  the 
same  period  local  glaciers  descended  from  the  Derbyshire  and  Welsh 
hills,  spreading  out  their  debris  at  their  feet  and  mingling  it  with  that 
carried  inland  by  the  two  great  ice  sheets  coming  up  from  the  sea. 

Compared  with  the  events  recorded  in  the  latest  of  the  solid  geolo- 
gical formations — the  Rhaetic — dealt  with  in  this  article,  this  refrigera- 
tion, which  extended  over  the  whole  of  northern  Europe,  happened 
but  yesterday,  its  close  according  to  some  calculations  not  being  further 
removed  from  the  present  day  than  10,000  years.  At  its  commence- 
ment the  configuration  of  the  land  was  much  as  it  is  to-day  ;  all  that 
it  accomplished  was  a  little  rounding  off  of  surface  inequalities  by  the 
rasping  power  of  the  ice  and  the  filling  up  of  pre-existing  hollows  or 
alteration  of  previous  surface  drainage  by  the  accumulation  of  detritus 
or  by  barriers  of  ice. 

To  understand  the  significance  of  the  phenomena  met  with  in 
Staffordshire  it  is  essential  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  Welsh,  Cumbrian, 
Scotch  and  Pennine  hills  were  as  high  at  the  commencement  of  the 
period  as  they  are  to-day,  and  that  the  chief  valleys  and  plains  of  central 
England  were  in  the  main  blocked  out.  This  being  recognized,  the 
course  which  the  ice  sheets  took  will  be  easily  comprehended.  The 
one  from  the  Irish  Sea  invaded  the  Cheshire  and  Shropshire  plains,  to 
be  there  joined  by  the  more  local  ice  flows  from  the  Welsh  hills  ;  the 
one  from  the  North  Sea  spread  over  the  eastern  counties  and  pushed  its 
way  up  the  Trent  valley,  to  be  joined  near  Derby  by  the  glaciers  sent 
off  from  the  Derbyshire  hills.  Such  are  the  broad  general  outlines  of 
the  period.  The  existence  of  these  moving  masses  of  ice  is  plainly 
demonstrated  by  the  character  of  the  foreign  material  or  train  of  boulders 
left  scattered  over  the  country,  and  by  the  ice  grooves  on  the  solid  rocks 
radiating  outwards  from  the  elevated  regions  or  pointing  in  the  direction 
of  the  paths  taken  by  the  Irish  Sea  and  North  Sea  ice. 

The  three  largest  glaciers  have  been  named :  (i)  The  Arenig  Glacier, 

1  J.  Kirkby,  '  On  the  Trap  Dykes  in  the  Hanchurch  Hilh,'  Tram.  North  Staff.  Field  Club,  vol. 
xxviii.  (1894). 

26 


GEOLOGY 

(2)  the  Irish  Sea  Glacier,  (3)  the  North  Sea  Glacier,  while  the  one  from 
the  Derbyshire  hills  may  be  termed  (4)  the  Pennine  Glacier.  Their 
history  has  not  been  completely  made  out,  and  the  order  in  which  they 
invaded  the  district  is  uncertain,  but  the  local  glaciers  had  probably 
reached  a  considerable  size  before  the  foreign  ice  penetrated  into  the 
heart  of  the  country. 

We  will  now  briefly  describe  the  phenomena  presented  by  the 
different  ice  masses,  mentioning  neighbouring  areas  where  necessary  for 
a  complete  comprehension  of  the  subject : — 

Arenig  Glacier. — Descending  from  the  Arenig  Hills  (2,817  ^eet) 
this  glacier  passed  down  the  Vale  of  Llangollen  and  then  debouched  on 
to  the  Shropshire  plain,  where  it  threw  down  the  masses  of  morainic 
material  at  Ruabon  and  Ellesmere.  It  would  be  natural  to  suppose  that 
it  would  then  have  passed  northward  down  the  Dee  valley  with  over- 
flows to  the  south  along  the  Severn  valley.  The  northern  path  however 
was  blocked  with  ice  coming  from  the  Irish  Sea  and  the  southern  course 
barred  with  ice  from  Plinlimmon.  It  was  therefore  compelled  to  assume 
a  south-easterly  course,  impinging  upon  Staffordshire,  round  Wolverhamp- 
ton  and  the  ground  to  the  south,  where  occasional  boulders  of  Welsh 
rocks,  but  mixed  with  others  brought  by  the  Irish  Sea  ice,  are  met 
with.  Around  the  southern  margins  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coal- 
field boulders  from  Wales  become  common,  but  the  greatest  number  and 
the  best  sections  in  the  drift  lie  beyond  the  county  border.  The  Rowley 
Hills  lie  in  the  direct  path  of  the  Arenig  glacier.  Mr.  Jerome  Harrison1 
finds  no  foreign  drift  on  their  summit,  but  on  the  contrary  a  train  of  basalt 
boulders  has  been  traced  from  them  for  some  distance  to  the  south  and 
east.  On  the  rock  being  bared  in  quarrying  operations,  clearly  striated 
rock  surfaces,  with  the  stria?  pointing  N.W.  to  S.E.,  have  been  laid  bare, 
and  the  general  contour  of  the  hills  Mr.  Harrison  regards  as  that  of  a  great 
roche  moutonnee. 

Carried  along  by  the  great  moving  mass  of  the  Irish  sea  ice — which 
also  probably  helped  to  push  the  Arenig  glacier  up  the  south-western 
flanks  of  the  South  Staffordshire  Coalfield — the  glacier  from  Wales  may 
have  impinged  on  the  northern  coalfield,  as  along  its  western  margin 
some  boulders  are  met  with  which  correspond  very  well  with  the 
rhyolitic  lavas  of  Arenig. 

Irish  Sea  Glacier. — This  was  the  dominant  and  all-powerful  mass  of 
ice  of  which   the  presence   can  be   traced   over  the  greater  part  of  the 
county.      Its  great  thickness  and  power  was  derived  from  the  glaciers  of 
the  south  of  Scotland,  Ireland  and  the  Lake  district,  which  during  glacial 
times  descended  into  the  Irish  Sea  basin,  and  uniting  there  with  the  glaciers 
resulting  from  the  accumulated  snowfall  became  ultimately  piled  up  until 
the  ice  overrode  the  summit  of  Snaefell  (2,024  feet)  in  the  Isle  of  Man. 
Advancing  southward  it  met  with  the  resistance  of  the  Welsh  hills,  and 
consequently  split  into  one  lobe  which  passed  down  St.  George's  Channel, 

1   '  Glacial  Geology  of  the  Birmingham  District,'  op.  cit. 
27 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

and  into  another  which  swept  across  the  Cheshire  plain  and  finally  in- 
vaded Staffordshire.  Exactly  where  this  great  ice-sheet  terminated  has 
not  been  made  out,  but  it  may  be  roughly  taken  to  have  come  to  rest 
along  a  line  joining  Burton,  Lichfield,  Wolverhampton  and  Enville  ; 
for  north  of  this  line  the  country  is  strewn  with  boulders  and  glacial 
detritus ;  while  to  the  south  the  relics  are  scanty  and  difficult  to 
separate  from  the  material  spread  out  by  the  streams  issuing  from  the 
foot  of  the  ice.  As  the  western  ice  approached  the  northern  borders 
of  the  county  it  encountered  the  bold  front  of  the  North  Staffordshire 
hills,  which  are  only  breached  near  Kidsgrove  and  to  the  east  of  Congle- 
ton.  The  ice  however  was  of  sufficient  weight  and  thickness  to  override 
the  Pottery  Coalfield,  and  further  north,  in  the  direction  of  main  move- 
ment, even  reached  an  altitude  of  1,300  feet  to  the  east  of  Macclesfield. 
The  gaps  near  Congleton  however  presented  an  easy  overflow,  and 
consequently  we  find  an  ice  lobe  penetrated  down  the  Trent  valley 
system,  scattering  its  sands,  clays  and  boulders  in  irregular  mounds 
between  Biddulph  and  Stoke-upon-Trent.  To  the  south-east  however 
the  high  ground  around  Cheadle  almost  completely  arrested  the  further 
eastward  course  of  the  western  ice,  and  consequently  we  meet  with  none 
or  very  little  of  its  detritus  between  Uttoxeter  and  Cheadle  ;  on  the  con- 
trary the  influence  of  the  local  Pennine  glacier  becomes  apparent. 

The  greatest  accumulation  of  boulders  is  found  on  the  western 
flanks  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Coalfield  and  between  Wolverhampton 
and  Enville  in  South  Staffordshire.  As  might  be  expected,  they  comprise 
a  heterogeneous  collection  of  Scotch  and  Lake  district  rocks,  mingled  with 
an  occasional  boulder  from  Wales,  where  the  ice-sheet  came  into  contact 
with  the  Arenig  glacier.  The  commonest  Lake  district  rocks  are  boulders 
of  the  red  granite  of  Eskdale,  granophyres  from  Buttermere,  basalts  with 
large  crystals  of  augite,  streaky  garnetiferous  lavas,  amygdaloidal  basalts  and 
rhyolites.  Rocks  from  Scotland  are  represented  by  blocks  of  hornblende- 
bearing  granites  and  the  tonalites  of  Galloway.  The  iceborne  fragments 
are  of  all  sizes,  from  mere  pebbles  up  to  blocks  over  12  feet  in  length. 
Many  of  the  larger  boulders  have  been  removed  by  man  from  their 
original  resting-places  and  set  up  along  the  roadsides  or  at  the  corners 
of  the  streets  in  towns  and  villages,  or  in  public  parks,  as  at  Wolver- 
hampton and  Longton  ;  while  in  the  western  villages  the  streets  are 
sometimes  cobbled  with  the  smaller  stones.  The  boulders  however 
represent  but  a  small  amount  of  the  transported  material.  There  are 
besides  thick  masses  of  '  Boulder  Clay,'  in  which  stones  large  and  small 
lie  scattered  at  all  angles — constituting  in  places  a  true  ground  moraine — 
among  which  lenticular  beds  and  sheets  of  sand  are  intercalated.  The 
colour  of  the  clay  varies  according  to  the  nature  of  the  ground  swept 
over  by  the  ice  :  it  is  brown  or  red  when  it  lies  on  or  has  previously 
crossed  an  outcrop  of  Triassic  rocks  ;  it  is  a  deep  dirty  blue  colour  over 
tracts  of  Carboniferous  rocks  or  in  contiguous  areas  in  advance  of  the 
ice-sheet,  when  it  contains  fragments  of  the  Lower  Carboniferous  rocks, 
pieces  of  coal  and  even  in  one  case  portions  of  a  coal  seam,  disrupted  and 

28 


GEOLOGY 

carried  onward  by  the  ice.  The  clays  are  in  many  places  used  for  bricks. 
The  intercalated  sands  occur  in  masses  sometimes  exceeding  a  hundred  feet 
in  thickness,  and  are  generally  clean  red,  yellow,  or  buff  sands,  sometimes 
free  of  pebbles,  but  more  often  containing  lenticles  of  gravel.  They 
have  been  a  favourite  source  for  local  water  supplies,  and  the  sites  of 
many  of  the  villages — such  as  Betley,  Wrinehill  and  Madeley — were  no 
doubt  originally  selected  for  this  reason.  It  was  originally  thought,  and 
the  opinion  is  still  sometimes  upheld,  that  the  clays  and  sands  maintain  a 
definite  relationship.  Thus  there  is  considered  to  be  an  old  stiff  clay 
full  of  scratched  stones  (Till  or  Lower  Boulder  Clay]  on  which  the  sands 
and  gravels  (Middle  Glacial  Sands]  rest.  The  latter  have  been  taken  by 
some  glacialists  to  indicate  an  amelioration  of  climate  and  depression, 
followed  by  a  re-elevation  and  second  refrigeration  represented  by  an 
overlying  sheet  of  clay  (Upper  Boulder  Clay).  In  the  Trent  basin  Mr. 
Deeley1  introduces  further  sub-divisions,  each  of  which  he  regards  as 
indicative  of  different  stages  of  glaciation.  Though  this  threefold  sub- 
division can  be  frequently  observed,  it  is  commonly  acknowledged  that 
the  presence  of  the  three  members  at  any  one  spot  is  accidental,  while 
one  or  even  two  are  as  often  absent  as  present. 

Both  sands  and  clays,  but  more  frequently  the  coarser  bands  of  sand 
and  lenticles  of  gravel,  contain  fragments  of  recent  marine  shells  of  types 
met  with  in  the  Irish  Sea  and  in  more  northern  waters.  An  entire 
specimen  is  the  exception,  the  merest  fragments  being  generally  met 
with.  Faint  glacial  stria?  can  sometimes  be  observed  on  the  larger 
fragments.  The  commonest  shells  and  fragments  are  cockle  (Cardium 
edu/e),  Mytilus  edu/is,  Turritella  terebra^  Tellina  balthica,  Cyprina,  My  a. 
They  are  to  be  found  in  fair  abundance  round  Wolverhampton,  Madeley 
(Staffs),  from  Woore  to  Alsager,  and  near  Biddulph,  in  pits  opened  in 
the  clays  and  sands. 

North  Sea  Glacier. — While  the  Irish  Sea  basin  was  filling  up  with 
ice,  the  North  Sea,  fed  with  glaciers  from  Scandinavia,  was  likewise 
being  piled  thick  with  ice  which  reached  the  English  coast  a  little  north 
of  Flamborough  Head.  Sweeping  inland  it  crossed  the  Trent  at  Gains- 
borough, and  thence  pushed  its  way  up  the  Trent  valley  to  Derby  and 
Burton-on-Trent.  Its  influence  on  Staffordshire  is  scarcely  appreciable, 
though  it  exercised  a  strong  hold  on  Leicestershire.  Passing  as  it  did 
over  the  Jurassic  and  Cretaceous  deposits  of  the  eastern  counties,  its  debris, 
gathered  from  these  rocks,  is  at  once  distinguishable  from  the  fragments 
of  Palasozoic  rocks  brought  into  the  county  by  the  Irish  Sea  glacier. 
Flints,  Chalk  and  fragments  of  the  Lias  and  Oolites,  mingled  with  an 
occasional  Scandinavian  gneiss  or  igneous  rock,  at  once  betray  the  presence 
of  the  North  Sea  ice.  Only  its  fringe  however  reached  Staffordshire, 
and  scattered  its  far  distant  collected  rocks  around  Burton-on-Trent, 
Abbots  Bromley  and  possibly  even  as  far  west  as  Uttoxeter,  though  here 
the  flinty  gravel  may  in  part  be  attributed  to  material  washed  out  of 
the  eastern  ice. 

1  'The  Pleistocene  Succession  in  the  Trent  Basin,'  Quart.  Journ.  Geol.  Soc.  xlii.  437  (1886). 

29 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Pennine  Glacier.  —  The  Pennine  hills  evidently  nourished  their 
glaciers  at  the  time  the  Welsh  hills  were  swathed  in  ice.  Their 
lobes  of  ice  descended  down  the  main  valleys — the  Dove  and  Derwent 
— carrying  with  them  the  rocks  of  the  Derbyshire  hills,  and  spreading 
them  out  on  the  rising  ground  south  of  Uttoxeter,  Tutbury  and  Derby. 

Clear  as  to  its  origin,  and  of  comparatively  recent  geological  date, 
the  Pleistocene  period  plainly  shows  its  influence  on  the  pre-existing 
physiographical  outlines  of  the  county.  Remove  the  drift  deposits 
on  the  north-western  borders  of  the  county,  and  a  hollow,  occasionally 
sinking  below  sea-level,  would  extend  where  now  there  is  a  plain 
from  200-300  feet  above  sea-level.  Before  the  ice  dropped  its  detritus 
in  the  Trent  valley,  between  Bucknall  and  Stockton  Brook,  it  can  be 
clearly  shown  that  the  Trent  flowed  at  the  foot  of  the  high  bank  of 
Carboniferous  rocks  descending  from  Wetley  Moor,  and  that  it  is 
less  in  volume  by  that  now  carried  ofF  by  the  Stockton  Brook,  which 
feeds  the  Churnet,  but  in  pre-glacial  times  flowed  into  the  Trent.  It  is 
probable  also  that  greater  changes  in  drainage  took  place  in  the  Dove 
valley  system,  but  this  comparatively  modern  line  of  research  has  not 
been  worked  out  for  this  valley. 

RIVER    DRIFT   AND   CAVE   EARTH 

Between  the  final  passing  away  of  the  ice-sheets  and  the  earliest 
records  of  the  human  period  in  Staffordshire  a  long  time  elapses,  during 
which  the  rivers  were  gradually  assuming  their  present  channels  and  rate  of 
flow.  The  history  of  these  lesser  changes  of  river  shrinkage  and  alteration 
of  channel,  accompanied  by  a  slow  modification  of  the  fauna  and  flora, 
has  not  been  sufficiently  studied  throughout  the  county,  and  the  results 
obtained  have  depended  largely  upon  chance  excavations,  so  that  our 
knowledge  is  necessarily  imperfect. 

The  older  river  deposits  consist  of  terraces  of  gravel,  sand  and  loam 
frequently  met  with  at  levels  high  above  the  present  streams,  though  in 
some  cases  glacial  gravels  may  have  been  mistaken  for  former  river 
deposits  and  vice  versa. 

On  the  west  banks  of  the  Trent,  at  Burton,  old  river  gravels  have 
been  met  with  at  Stretton  100  feet  above  the  present  water-level  of  the 
Trent.  At  a  lower  level,  from  18  to  36  feet  above  the  Trent,  another 
platform  of  gravel  extends  between  Stretton  and  Horninglow. 

Further  down  in  the  valley  the  town  of  Burton  is  situated  on  an 
old  river  gravel  from  8  to  10  feet  above  the  present  water-level.  The 
material  composing  it  consists  of  well  washed  sand  and  gravel,  from  20 
to  30  feet  thick.  High  Street,  Burton,  and  the  older  parts  of  the  town 
are  located  on  this  terrace,  the  gravels  and  sands  of  which  for  many  years 
alone  yielded  the  water  used  in  the  celebrated  breweries.  Bones,  jaws 
and  teeth  of  Sus  scrqfa,  Bos  taurus  var.  longifrons,  horse  and  those  of  the 
dog  and  wolf  have  been  obtained  at  times  from  these  deposits. 

From  the  older  river  gravels  of  the  Trent  at  Trentham  Dr.  Plot 

30 


GEOLOGY 

mentions  the  unearthing  of  the  tusk  of  elephant  ;  Dr.  Garner  *  also 
records  remains  of  elephant  and  rhinoceros,  associated  with  the  bones 
of  red  deer  and  roebuck,  from  the  '  diluvial '  gravels  of  the  same 
neighbourhood.  In  altering  the  course  of  the  Fowlea  brook  a  fine 
skull  of  the  wild  bull  (Bos  taurus  var.  primigenius)  with  the  horn  cores 
complete  was  found  near  Etruria  station.3  Remains  of  Bos  taurus  var. 
longifrons  and  Bos  urus  have  also  been  met  with  at  Stone.3 

It  might  be  expected  that,  regarding  their  frequent  occurrence  in 
Derbyshire  where  recent  discoveries  show  that  the  caves  have  probably 
existed  from  Pliocene  times,4  the  remains  of  animals  would  be  plenti- 
fully met  with  in  fissures  and  caverns  of  the  Carboniferous  Limestone 
country  of  Staffordshire.  This  however  is  not  the  case,  but  from  a 
fissure  in  the  limestone  at  Bank  End  quarry,  Waterhouses,  in  the  valley 
of  the  Hamps,  a  large  number  of  remains  of  Elepbas  primigenius 
(mammoth)  have  been  extracted  from  a  red  loamy  clay  mixed  with 
fragments  of  limestone  and  rolled  boulders  of  grit.6 

The  rivers  continued  to  suffer  shrinkage  down  to  the  historical 
period  and  further  modified  their  channels.  This  is  best  exhibited 
around  Burton,"  in  the  Trent  valley,  where  a  narrow  fringe  of  alluvium 
borders  the  river.  This,  as  well  as  the  higher,  more  elevated  terraces, 
has  been  liable  to  floods,  of  which  the  record  will  be  dealt  with  by 
the  historian. 

The  solid  framework  of  the  county  has  now  been  traced  from  the 
earliest  rock-written  record  to  the  time  when  the  landscape  assumed  its 
familiar  outline.  Everywhere  physical  feature  has  been  found  dependent 
on  geological  structure  :  the  diversified  moorland  of  the  north,  the  two 
great  coalfields,  the  enveloping  lowlands,  have  all  been  traced  to  the 
composition  of  the  rocks  and  their  structure.  The  history  of  the  past 
contained  in  the  rocks  is  everywhere  incomplete,  and  may  be  faithfully 
summed  up  in  the  words  of  Charles  Darwin  in  speaking  of  the 
geological  record  as  a  whole  :  '  For  my  part,  I  look  at  the  geological 
record  as  a  history  of  the  world  imperfectly  kept,  and  written  in  a 
changing  dialect — only  here  and  there  a  short  chapter  has  been  pre- 
served ;  and  of  each  page  only  here  and  there  a  few  lines.' 


1  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,  p.  202  (1686). 

J  Trans.  North  Staff.  Field  Club,  vol.  for  1878. 

3  Ibid.  xxx.  1 10. 

4  W.  Boyd  Dawkins,  Quart.  Journ.  Geol.  Soc.  vol.  xlix.  (1903). 

5  W.  Brockbank,  Proc.  Lit.  and  Phill.  Soc.    Manchester  (1862-4)  ;     J.   Aitken,   Traits.  Manchester 
Geol.  Soc.  vol.  xii.  (1870-3). 

8  W.  Molyneux,  Burton-on-Trent ;  its  History,  its  Waters,  etc.  (1868). 


PALAEONTOLOGY 


WITH  the  exception  of  a  very  few  obtained  from  the  superficial 
deposits,  the   vertebrate  fossils  of  Staffordshire  seem  to  be 
restricted    to    the    horizons    of   the    Trias    and    the    Coal 
Measures.       Although    the    Coal   Measure   vertebrates  are 
by  far  the  more  numerous,  those  from  the  Trias  are,  as  a  whole,  much 
the  more  interesting,  on  account  of  the  rarity,  at  least  in  this  country,  of 
the  types   to  which   they  belong.      An  exception   in  this  respect  must, 
however,    be    made    in    the    case    of   the   shark-remains  from  the  Coal 
Measures  belonging   to   the  genus   Edestus,  of  which   they  are  the  only 
known  British  representatives. 

Of  mammalian  remains  from  the  Pleistocene  formations  of  the 
county  a  list  has  been  drawn  up  by  Mr.  John  Ward  of  Longton,  and 
published  in  the  Transactions  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club  for 
igoa.1  The  earliest  record  dates  back  to  1688,  when  Robert  Plot, 
in  his  Natural  History  of  Staffordshire p,  relates  that  a  jaw  and  a  tooth 
of  a  young  elephant — doubtless  the  mammoth  (Elephas  primigenius] — 
were  found  in  a  marl-pit  near  Trentham.  Probably  it  is  these  speci- 
mens which  are  referred  to  on  page  258  of  Owen's  British  Fossil 
Mammals  and  Birds,  as  having  come  under  the  observation  of  Dean 
Buckland.  Be  this  as  it  may,  Robert  Garner,  in  his  Natural  History  of 
the  County  of  Stafford  (1844),  refers  to  the  occurrence  at  Trentham  and 
other  places  in  the  county,  both  in  diluvial  gravel,  and  also  in  the  clay  at 
the  bottom  of  certain  caves,  of  the  bones  of  the  red  deer  (Cervus  elaphus), 
roe-buck  (Capreolus  capreolus),  rhinoceros,  elephant,  and  hyaena.  The 
rhinoceros  was  doubtless  the  woolly  Siberian  Rhinoceros  antiquitatis,  while 
the  elephant  was  probably  the  mammoth,  and  the  hyaena  the  large  cave 
race  (Hyaena  crocuta  spelaea]  of  the  existing  South  African  spotted 
species. 

Parkinson,  in  his  Organic  Remains,  figured  a  mammoth's  molar  from 
Staffordshire,  which  figure  is  reproduced  on  page  239  of  Owen's  work 
already  cited;  and  in  1864  Mr.  J.  Plant*  exhibited  before  the  Man- 
chester Geological  Society  a  series  of  the  teeth  and  bones  of  the 
mammoth,  the  woolly  rhinoceros,  and  the  Pleistocene  race  of  the 
hippopotamus  (Hippopotamus  amphibius  major)  which  had  been  found  in 
the  county. 

1  Vol.  xxxvi,  90.  *  Trans.  Manchester  Geol.  Sue.  v,  42. 

1  33  5 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

In  1864  Mr.  Brockbank8  recorded  from  a  fissure  in  the  Carboni- 
ferous Limestone  at  Bank  End  Quarry,  Waterhouses,  on  the  bank  of  the 
River  Hamps,  numerous  remains  of  the  mammoth,  and  it  has  been 
subsequently  stated  *  that  the  collection  obtained  by  Plant  came  from 
this  spot. 

Mr.  Ward  records  the  extinct  wild  ox,  or  aurochs  (Bos  taurus 
prim/genius),  from  a  bed  near  Etruria  station,  where  a  fine  skull  was 
found  in  1877,  and  also  a  mammoth-tusk  from  Fenton.  The  aurochs 
and  the  domesticated  Celtic  shorthorn  (the  so-called  Bos  longifrons]  are 
also  recorded  from  Stone. 

The  first  evidence  of  vertebrate  life  recorded  from  the  Keuper,  or 
Upper  Division  of  the  Trias  (New  Red  Sandstone),  was  in  the  form  of  casts 
of  footsteps.  These  have  been  observed  in  quarries  at  Hollington  and 
Alton  *  in  North  Staffordshire,  in  the  building-stones  of  the  Lower 
Keuper  ;  while  others  have  been  recorded  from  South  Staffordshire 
along  the  outcrop  of  the  harder  beds  of  the  Keuper  a  few  miles  north- 
west of  Wolverhampton.'  Yet  others  have  been  described  from  Stanton, 
two  and  a  half  miles  from  Burton-on-Trent,  and  also  from  Coven,  near 
Brewood,  in  the  southern  division  of  the  county.7  These  latter  have 
been  provisionally  assigned  to  the  rhynchocephalian  reptile  Rhynchosaurus, 
a  forerunner  of  the  living  New  Zealand  tuatera  (Spbenodon)t  of  which 
remains  are  recorded  from  the  Keuper  of  Grinshill  in  Shropshire.  Of 
those  from  the  first-named  localities  some,  at  any  rate,  are,  however, 
referable  to  Cbirosaurus  (or  Cbirotberiuni),  creatures  definitely  known 
only  by  footprints  of  this  type,  but  which  have  been  generally  regarded 
as  large  primeval  salamanders,  or  labyrinthodont  amphibians. 

This  view  is  to  some  extent  supported  by  the  discovery  in  the 
Staffordshire  Keuper  of  the  skull  of  an  undoubted  labyrinthodont 
of  considerable  size,  although  not  perhaps  sufficiently  large  to  have 
made  footsteps  of  the  biggest  size  known.  This  skull,  which  exhibits 
chiefly  a  cast  of  the  inside  of  the  upper  surface,  was  discovered  in 
a  quarry  at  Stanton,  about  three  miles  from  Norbury,  in  the  building- 
stone  of  the  Keuper.  It  was  first  described  and  figured  by  the  late 
Mr.  John  Ward  in  the  Transactions  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field 
Club  for  1900,'  where  it  is  referred  to  the  genus  Dasycefs,  typically 
from  the  Permian  of  Kenilworth  ;  but  it  has  been  again  described  and 
figured  by  Dr.  A.  Smith  Woodward  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Zoological 
Society  of  London  for  1904,' under  the  name  of  Capitosaurus  stantonensis. 
The  genus  to  which  the  Stanton  labyrinthodont  is  now  referred  occurs 
typically  in  the  Keuper  of  Wiirtemberg. 

Some  of  the  Keuper  footprints  may,  on  the  other  hand,  have 
belonged  to  rhynchocephalian  reptiles,  of  the  occurrence  of  which  in  this 
formation  decisive  evidence  has  been  recently  obtained.  This  evidence 

Proc.  Manchester  Lit.  and  Phil.  Soc.  (1864),  46.  '  Aitkin,  Trans.  Manchester  Geol.  Soc.  xii,  25. 

H.  C.  Beasley,  Proc.  Liverpool  Geol.  Soc. 

J.  Lomas,  Rep.  Brit.  Assoc.  for  1903,  p.  5  ;  and  Beeby  Thompson,  Geol.  Mag.  (4),  ix,  (1902). 

Lydekker,  Cat.  Foss.  Rept.  Brit.  Mus.  iv,  2  1 9. 

Vol.  xxxiv,  1 08,  pis.  iv,  v.  9  Vol.  ii,  171,  pis.  xi,  xii. 

34 


PALAEONTOLOGY 

takes  the  form  of  a  slab  of  Keuper  Sandstone  obtained  by  Mr.  J.  N.  B. 
Masefield  from  the  Hollington  quarries,  displaying  in  great  perfection  the 
impression  of  the  peculiar  system  of  abdominal  ribs  characteristic  of 
these  reptiles.  The  specimen  has  been  described  and  figured  by  Dr. 
Smith  Woodward,10  and  referred  to  the  genus  Hyperodapedon,  an  ally  of 
Rhynchosaurus,  of  which  other  remains  are  known  from  the  Keuper  of 
Warwick  and  Devonshire. 

Passing  on  to  the  vertebrate  fauna  of  the  Coal  Measures  of  the 
county,  we  have  first  to  refer  to  the  occurrence  in  this  formation  of 
remains  of  primeval  salamanders,  some  of  which  belong  to  true  laby- 
rinthodonts,  while  others  are  referable  to  allied  sections  of  the  group 
now  collectively  known  as  Stegocephalia.  These  are  recorded  by  Mr. 
John  Ward  in  two  papers,  the  first  of  which  was  contributed  to  the 
Transactions  of  the  N.  Staffordshire  Institute  of  Mining  Engineers  for  1890," 
and  the  second  to  the  Transactions  of  the  N.  Staffordshire  Field  Club  for  i  goo.12 

First  in  the  list  comes  the  fully-armoured  species  described  by 
Professor  Huxley  on  the  evidence  of  a  Yorkshire  specimen  under  the 
name  of  Pholiderpeton  scutiferum,  of  which  genus  it  is  the  type.  The 
species  was  recorded  from  the  Coal  Measures  of  Fenton  by  Mr.  Ward  in 
i875-13  Many  years  ago  (1844)  Mr.  Garner  in  his  Natural  History  of 
the  County  of  Stafford  figured,  as  that  of  some  kind  of  unknown  fish,  a 
tooth  from  Skelton  Colliery,  which  now  turns  out  to  belong  to  the 
labyrinthodont  known  as  Loxomma  allmanni.  This  large  species,  of 
which  a  practically  entire  and  uncrushed  skull  is  known,  is  characterized 
by  the  large  size  and  diamond-shape  of  the  sockets  of  the  eyes  and  by 
the  lancet-like  teeth  ;  and  a  fine  series  of  its  remains  has  been  discovered 
in  the  county.  They  occur,  for  instance,  in  the  shale  overlying  the 
Cockshead  Ironstone  at  Adderley  Green  ;  in  shale  above  the  Knowles 
and  Chalky  Mine  Ironstones  at  Fenton  and  Longton  ;  in  the  Brown 
Mine  Ironstone  at  Silverdale  ;  and  in  the  Gubbin  Ironstone  at  Skelton. 
Of  the  still  larger  Coal  Measure  labyrinthodont  described  by  Huxley  as 
Anthracosaurus  russelli^  a  number  of  well-preserved,  although  fragmentary, 
remains  have  been  obtained  from  the  Rag  Mine  Ironstone  at  Fenton  and 
the  Ash  Ironstone  at  Longton. 

By  far  the  most  interesting  of  the  Staffordshire  stegocephalians  is, 
however,  Ceraterpeton  gafaani,  a  member  of  the  group  Microsauria, 
measuring  about  ten  inches  in  total  length,  and  typically  from  Jarrow 
Colliery,  Kilkenny.  A  single  skeleton  has  been  obtained  from  the  shale 
overlying  the  Ash  Ironstone  at  Longton  Hall  Colliery,  Longton,  which 
has  been  described  by  Dr.  C.  W.  Andrews.1*  At  one  time  it  was 
incorrectly  identified  with  the  allied  genus  Urocordylus.  The  genus 
Ceraterpeton  takes  its  name  from  the  long  horn-like  projections  arising 
from  the  hind  border  of  the  skull. 

In  addition  to  the  forms  above-mentioned,  remains  of  other  stego- 
cephalians are  known  from  the  Coal  Measures  of  the  county,  some  of 

10  Tram.  N.  Staff.  Field  Club,  xxxix,  115,  pi.  iii  (1905).  "  Vol.  x.  "  Vol.  xxxiv,  101. 

"  Trans.  N.  Staff.  FieU  Club  (1875),  p.  ^\^.  "  Geol.  Mag.  (4),  ii,  83  (1895). 

35 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

which  are  provisionally  assigned  by  Mr.  Ward  to  the  species  known  as 
Pteroplax  cornuta,  typically  from  the  Northumberland  Coal-field. 

Of  the  fishes  of  the  Coal  Measures  of  the  county,  by  far  the  most 
interesting  is  a  species  of  shark  of  the  genus  Edestus,  the  only  British 
representative  of  its  kind  at  present  known.  For  many  years  certain 
remarkable  bodies,  somewhat  resembling  a  large  watch-spring  armed  on 
the  convex  side  with  teeth,  have  been  known  from  the  Carboniferous  and 
Permian  rocks  of  various  countries  :  the  most  nearly  complete  coming 
from  Russia.  There  has,  however,  been  much  uncertainty  as  to  their 
true  nature.  At  first  they  were  supposed  to  be  the  fin-spines  of  fishes  ; 
but  the  aforesaid  Russian  specimens  clearly  showed  that  they  belong  to 
the  front  of  the  jaws  of  sharks,  and  that  they  are  true  teeth,  which  are 
mounted  upon  their  supporting  bases  in  such  a  manner  as  to  form  a 
spiral.  Hence  the  name  of  spiral-sawed  sharks  for  the  group  to  which 
they  pertained.  For  a  long  time  this  group  was  known  only  from  North 
America,  Australia,  Japan,  and  Russia  ;  the  type  genus  being  Edestus. 
Mr.  E.  T.  Newton,  in  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society,™ 
has,  however,  described  part  of  the  '  saw  '  of  one  of  these  remarkable 
sharks  from  a  marine  band  in  the  Coal  Measures  of  Nettlebank,  North 
Staffordshire,  giving  the  name  of  Edestus  triserratus  to  the  species  it 
represents. 

Of  the  primitive  group  of  shark-like  fishes  known  as  Ichthyotomi, 
and  characterized,  among  other  features,  by  the  exceedingly  imperfect 
calcification  of  the  spinal  column  and  the  long-jointed  axis  of  the  pectoral 
fins,  there  are  several  Staffordshire  representatives,  belonging  to  the 
family  Pleuracanthidae.  Of  these,  the  species  P/eu;  acanthus  laevissimus  is 
typified  by  a  fin-spine  from  Staffordshire,  and  is  known  to  occur  in  the 
Coal  Measures  of  the  southern  half  of  the  county  and  at  Longton.  The 
second  species,  P.  cylindricus,  which  occurs  both  at  Longton  and  Fenton, 
and  is  also  known  by  the  spines,  does  not  appear  to  have  been  originally 
named  from  Staffordshire  specimens.  The  genus  Diplodus  takes  its  name 
from  having  been  founded  on  peculiar  two-pronged  teeth,  which  may 
really  belong  to  Pleur acanthus.  The  species  D.  gibbosus  was  established 
on  the  evidence  of  teeth  of  this  type  from  the  Coal  Measures  of  Silver- 
dale,  in  South  Staffordshire,  but  it  also  occurs  at  Longton. 

Most  of  the  other  Staffordshire  shark-like  fishes  (Elasmobranchii) 
belong  to  the  existing  group  Selachii,  although  chiefly  to  extinct  families. 
In  the  family  Petalodontidae,  characterized  by  the  teeth  being  so  much 
reflexed  and  thickened  that  in  some  cases  they  almost  assume  a  crushing 
type,  we  have  in  the  first  place  remains  of  the  two  common  Carboniferous 
species  Janassa  linguaeformis  and  y.  clavata  from  the  Coal  Measures  of 
the  county.  To  the  same  family  belong  the  species  Ctenoptychius  apicalis. 
from  Silverdale,  Longton,  Fenton,  and  Harecastle,  and  Callopristodus 
pectinatus,  from  Fenton,  neither  of  which  is,  however,  typically  from  the 
county.  On  the  other  hand,  Helodus  simplex  and  Pleuroplax  rankinei^  belong 
to  another  family,  the  Cochliodontiae,  a  specialized  ancestral  type  of  the 

15  Vol.  Ix,  i  (1904). 
36 


PALAEONTOLOGY 

modern  Port  Jackson  sharks  (Cestraciontidae),  characterized  by  the  fusion 
of  their  crushing  teeth  into  spirally  twisted  oblique  plates.  The  first- 
named  species,  which  is  the  sole  representative  of  its  genus,  appears  to 
have  been  founded  on  the  evidence  of  teeth  from  Staffordshire,  where  it 
occurs  at  Longton,  Fenton,  and  Silverdale,  but  the  second  seems  to  be 
typically  from  Northumberland.  The  existing  Cestraciontidae  have  a 
Staffordshire  representative  in  the  form  of  Spbenacantbus  hybodoides,  a 
member  of  a  widely  spread  extinct  genus  with  several  species.  Within 
the  county  it  occurs  at  Longton  and  also  near  Dudley. 

The  other  Staffordshire  elasmobranch  fish  is  Acanthodes  ivardi,  which 
takes  its  specific  title  from  the  late  Mr.  John  Ward,  of  Longton,  who  did 
such  good  work  in  collecting  and  describing  the  fossil  vertebrates  of  the 
county.  It  is  a  member  of  the  Palaeozoic  group  Acanthodii,  charac- 
terized among  other  features,  by  the  persistent  notochord,  and  the  pres- 
ence of  prominent  dermal  appendages  to  the  gill-arches,  which  during 
life  probably  carried  flaps  of  skin  ;  from  this  character  the  members  of 
the  group  have  been  called  fringe-gilled  sharks.  Acantbodes  includes 
several  other  species,  but  A,  ivardi  occurs  typically  in  the  Deep-Mine 
Ironstone  of  Longton,  although  it  is  also  known  from  the  Scottish  Coal- 
fields. A  species  of  the  allied  genus  Acantbodopsis  from  the  Woodhouse 
Coal  of  the  Cheadle  Coalfield  has  been  described  by  Dr.  R.  H.  Traquair 
in  the  Annals  and  Magazine  of  Natural  History  for  1894  16  as  A.  microdon, 
on  the  evidence  of  a  specimen  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  certain  fin  or  dorsal  spines  of  sharks  or 
chimaeroids  have  been  recorded  from  the  Coal  Measures  of  the  county 
belonging  to  so-called  genera  of  which  the  precise  systematic  position 
cannot  at  present  be  determined.  Such  is  Gyracanthus  formosus,  widely 
distributed  in  the  British  Coalfields,  and  occurring  in  the  county  at 
Fenton.  Another  type  is  Euctenius  unilateralis,  originally  described  from 
a  Lanarkshire  specimen.  Greater  interest  attaches  to  two  masses  of  rock 
discovered  by  Mr.  John  Ward  in  the  Middle  Coal  Measures  of  North 
Staffordshire  containing  numerous  species  of  the  doubtful  type  long 
known  as  Listracantbus.  These  have  been  described  by  Dr.  Smith 
Woodward,17  and  are  made  the  type  of  a  new  species,  Listracantbus  wardi. 
From  these  specimens  it  appears  evident  that  the  Listracantbus  spines 
are  strangely  modified  dermal  tubercles  occurring  in  considerable  numbers 
on  part  at  least  of  the  head  and  body  of  the  fish  to  which  they  pertain. 
They  are  identical  with  at  least  some  of  the  structures  from  the  Coal 
Measures  of  Indiana,  U.S.A.,  described  as  Petrodus. 

With  Ctenodus  cristatus  and  Ct.  murchisoni  we  come  to  two  well- 
known  representatives  of  the  typical  genus  of  the  Carboniferous  family 
Gtenodontidae^  which  belongs  to  the  sub-class  of  Dipnoi,  or  lung-fishes, 
and  takes  its  name  from  the  somewhat  comb-like  structure  of  the  fine 
ridges  on  the  large  and  flattened  palatal  teeth.  The  first  species  is 
recorded  from  Hanley  and  Tunstall,  and  the  second  from  the  Bassey  Mine 
Ironstone  of  the  Middle  Coal  Measures. 

16  Ser.  6,  xiv,  372  (1894.).  "  Geol.  Mag.  (4),  x,  486  (1903). 

37 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  ganoids,  or  enamel-scaled  fishes,  of  the  Staffordshire  Coal 
Measures  include  a  considerable  number  of  species  belonging  to  the 
primitive  fringe-finned  group  (Crossopterygii),  now  represented  by  the 
bichir  and  the  reed-fish  (Polypteridae)  of  the  rivers  of  tropical  Africa. 
In  the  Palaeozoic  family  Rhizodontidae,  characterized  by  the  foldings  of 
the  walls  of  the  base  of  the  teeth  in  a  manner  recalling  that  of  the 
labyrinthodonts,  we  have,  in  the  first  place,  two  species  of  the  genus 
Strepsodus  from  Longton,  namely  S.  sauroides  and  S.  sulcidens,  the  former 
being  widely  distributed  in  the  British  Coalfields,  while  the  latter  is- 
known  elsewhere  from  Midlothian  and  Northumberland.  The  second 
Staffordshire  member  of  the  family  is  the  widely  distributed  Rhizodopsif 
sauroides,  of  which  remains  are  recorded  from  Fenton.  The  allied  family 
Osteolepididae,  in  which  the  walls  of  the  teeth  are  less  folded  while  the 
scales  are  rhomboidal  (instead  of  cycloidal)  and  more  fully  enamelled,  is 
represented  by  four  species,  Megalichthys  bibberti,  M.  coccolepis,  M.  inter- 
medius,  and  M.  pygmaeus,  of  which  the  first  is  very  widely  distributed, 
while  neither  of  the  others  is  peculiar  to,  or  typically  from,  the  county. 
Finally,  in  the  family  Coelacantbidae,  characterized  by  the  cycloidal  scales 
and  (in  the  fossil  state)  the  hollow  spines  of  the  vertebrae,  we  have  the 
species  Cae/acanthus  e/egans,  which  although  typically  from  the  Coalfields 
of  Ohio,  is  also  common  in  those  of  England. 

Passing  on  to  the  fan-finned  group  (Actinopterygii),  we  have  among 
the  section  Chondrostei,  or  sturgeon-like  fishes,  numerous  representatives 
of  the  extinct  families  Palaeoniscidae  and  Platysomatidae.  Both  these,  it 
may  be  observed,  are  fully  scaled  types,  the  former  characterized  by  the 
elongated,  and  the  latter  by  the  deep  contour  of  the  body.  In  the  first- 
named  of  these  a  fish  from  the  Deep-Mine  Ironstone  Shale  of  Longton, 
at  first  described  under  the  name  of  Microconodus  mo/yneuxi,  has  been 
provisionally  included  in  the  genus  Gonatodus,  although  its  real  systematic 
position  is  still  uncertain.  To  the  same  family  belongs  Cycloptychius  car- 
bonarius,  typified  by  a  fish  from  the  aforesaid  bed  at  Longton,  collected 
by  Mr.  Ward,  and  the  type  of  the  genus.  The  allied  Rhadinicbthys  is 
represented  by  the  four  species,  R.  ivardt,  R.  monensis,  R.  macrodon,  and 
R.  planti,  of  which  the  first  and  third  arc  peculiar  to  the  county.  Of 
the  genus  JLlonicbtbys,  which  is  more  nearly  allied  to  the  typical  Permian 
Pa/aeom'scus,  no  less  than  five  species  have  been  recorded  from  the  Car- 
boniferous of  the  county,  although  some  of  these  are  still  imperfectly 
known.  They  are  E.  semistriafus,  from  the  Knowles  Ironstone  Shale  of 
Fenton,  E.  aitkeni,  from  the  Lower  Coal  Measures  and  Millstone  Grit  of 
North  Staffordshire,  E.  egertoni,  from  Silverdale,  Fenton,  Longton,  and 
Hanley,  E.  microlepidotus,  from  Longton,  and  E.  oblongus,  from  Fenton. 
All  but  the  second  were  described  from  Staffordshire  specimens,  and  the 
last  two  are  known  only  from  the  county.  Another  species  peculiar 
to  the  county  is  Eurylepis  angtica,  described  in  1894  by  Dr.  R.  H. 
Traquair18  on  the  evidence  of  a  specimen  from  the  Ash  Shale  of 
Longton. 

18  Ann.  Mag.  Nat.  Hist.  (6),  xiv,  372  (1894). 
38 


PALAEONTOLOGY 

In  the  family  Platysomatidae  the  two  recognized  representatives  of 
the  genus  Mesolepis,  namely  M.  ivardi  and  M.  scalaris,  were  described  from 
Staffordshire  specimens,  the  first  alone  being  known  elsewhere,  and  then 
but  doubtfully.  Mesolepis,  it  may  be  mentioned,  is  characterized  by  the 
very  deeply  fusiform  contour  of  the  trunk,  which  is  angulated  at  the 
back-fin,  as  is  also  the  head.  Finally  the  type  genus  Platysomus,  in  which 
the  body  is  fully  rhomboidal,  is  represented  by  P.  parvulus,  a  species 
named  on  the  evidence  of  specimens  from  the  Knowles  Ironstone  Shale 
of  Fenton.  Chirodus  granulatus  is  another  member  of  the  family  of  which 
remains  have  been  obtained  from  the  Staffordshire  Carboniferous. 

Towards  the  close  of  his  career  the  late  Mr.  John  Ward,  who  did  so 
much  for  the  palaeontology  of  the  country,  contributed  (in  conjunction 
with  Mr.  J.  T.  Stobbs)  to  the  transactions  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field 
Club 19  a  paper  on  a  newly  discovered  fish-bed  in  the  Cheadle  Coalfield, 
with  notes  on  the  distribution  of  fossil  fishes  in  that  district.  The 
remains  occur  in  a  bed  overlying  the  Cobble  Coal,  and  are  referable  to 
Acanthodes  ivardi,  Gyracanthus  fumosus,  Lepracanthus  colei,  Pleuracanthus 
cylindricus,  Pleuroplax  rankinei,  Helodus  simplex,  Sphenacantbus  hybodoides, 
Ctenoptychius  apicalis,  Megalichthys  hibberti,  M.  coc  cole  pis  (?),  Strep sodus 
sauroides,  Elonichtbys  semistriatus,  E.  aitkini,  Platysomus  parvulus,  and 
Goelacanthus  elegans.  All  are  well-known  species,  but  a  few,  like  Lepra- 
canthus co/ei,  are  unknown  elsewhere  in  the  county. 

"Vol.  xi,87  (1905-6). 


39 


BOTANY 


GENERAL   PHYSICAL   CHARACTER    OF   THE   COUNTY   WITH 
RELATION   TO   THE   FLORA 

STAFFORDSHIRE  is  rhomboidal  in  shape  and  somewhat  irregular 
in  outline  ;  its  surface  is  richly  undulating  and  greatly  diversified. 
The  long  range  of  hills  extending  from  the  Cheviots  in  Scotland 
southward  enters  Staffordshire  at  the  extreme  north,  and  forms  a 
range  of  mountain-like  hills  having  a  south-west  direction  from  above 
Flash  to  below  Bosley,  and  rising  from  600  to  over  1,700  feet  above  sea 
level.  On  the  north-west  side  of  the  county  this«elevated  ridge  is  con- 
tinued past  Cloud  Hill  and  over  Congleton  Edge  and  Mow  Cop,  and  the 
elevation  in  many  places  is  over  1,000  feet  above  the  sea.  The  prevailing 
geological  character  of  the  rocks  are  those  of  the  Coal  Measures  and  Mill- 
stone Grit,  and  the  prevailing  vegetation  is  that  peculiar  to  the  mountain 
moorland,  such  as  the  black  crowberry  (Empetrum  nigrum),  the  whortle- 
berry (Vaccmlum  Vitis-Idaa),\mg  (Calluna  Vulgaris],  heath  (Erica  cinerea), 
bilberry  (Vaccinium  Myrtilhts},  an  abundant  growth  of  bracken  (Pteris 
aquilina))  thin  grass,  grey  lichens  and  dark  masses  of  hair  moss  (Poly- 
tricbum  commune].  A  narrow  belt  of  mixed  woodland,  Forest  Banks  and 
Back  Forest  clothe  a  portion  of  the  summit  above  Swithamley.  Here  is 
found  the  cow  wheat  [Melampyrum  pratense],  moss  crop  (Scirpus  caspitosus) 
and  the  hawkweed  (Hieracium  umbellatum).  The  intervening  valleys  have 
a  somewhat  impervious  subsoil,  and  are  watered  by  frequent  springs, 
which  render  them  swampy,  hence  many  of  the  bog-loving  species  are 
abundant,  as  sheep's  rot  (Hydrocotyle  vu/garis),  sundew  (Drosera  rotundi- 
folia),  the  arrow  grass  (Triglochin  palustre]  and  the  pearl  wort  (Sagina 
nodosd).  A  ridge  of  high  land,  over  which  the  high  road  from  Leek  to 
Buxton  is  carried,  rising  from  500  feet  at  Leek  to  about  1,400  feet  at 
Axe  Edge,  forms  the  partings  of  the  Dane  and  several  of  the  important 
rivers  of  the  county — the  Dove,  Manyfold,  Churnet  and  Hamps.  The 
country  they  water  is  wild  flat  lands,  grass  lands,  moors  and  some  little 
arable  land,  with  small  woodlands  and  several  round  topped  hills,  attain- 
ing in  places  an  elevation  of  1,200  to  1,300  feet  above  the  sea.  These 
hills  are  covered  with  short  herbage,  beautifully  green  in  the  early  season, 
but  soon  scorched  in  the  hotter  months  of  summer.  The  limestone 
rock  is  abundantly  exposed  on  their  sides,  and  many  of  the  more  rare 
lime-loving  species  have  here  their  home,  such  as  wild  pansy  (Viola 
/utea),  the  rock  rose  (Heliantbemum  vu/gare),  the  Jacob's  ladder  (Po/emo- 
nium  caru/eum),  Corydalls  cla-uiculata  and  the  rare  little  Hutcbinsia  petreea. 
i  4i  6 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  country  around  is  broken  by  deep  valleys,  dales  or  gullies,  watered 
by  rivers  and  rivulets,  in  which  are  found  the  trailing  stems  of  the  water 
milfoil  (Myriopbyllum  spicatum)  or  streaming  stems  of  water  ranunculus 
(Ranunculus  pseudo-Jiuitans),  and  on  the  marshy  moorlands  the  golden 
saxifrage  (Chrysosplenium  alternifolium),  the  marsh  violet  (Viola  palustris} 
and  the  beautiful  grass  of  Parnassus  (Parnassia  palustris) .  In  the  beauti- 
ful Dove  dale  the  limestone  rocks  have  been  rent  by  the  geological 
convulsions  of  nature,  and  present  their  naked  faces  or  escarpments  in 
the  form  of  perpendicular  rocks  rising  high  above  the  level  of  the 
stream,  attaining  an  elevation  of  over  1,000  feet  above  sea  level,  to 
which  many  fanciful  names  have  been  given.  These  rocks,  abound- 
ing in  fissures,  are  the  homes  of  many  of  the  rarest  plants  of  the 
district,  as  the  hairy  violet  (Viola  birta},  the  barberry  (Berberis  -vul- 
garis},  the  wall  whitlow  grass  (Draba  muralis},  the  rare  bitter  cress 
(Cardamine  impatient),  the  kidney  vetch  (Anthyllis  Vulneraria}  and  the 
dwarf  furze  (Ulex  nanus}.  In  the  valleys  of  the  Hamps  and  Manyfold 
are  similar  mountain  limestone  rocks,  fantastic  in  appearance,  one  of 
the  more  notable  being  Beeston  Tor.  Here  is  found  the  wild  pansy 
(Viola  lutea},  the  white  beam  (Pyrus  Aria)  and  the  mossy  saxifrage 
(Saxifraga  hypnoides},  and  on  Ecton  Hill  the  vernal  sandwort  (Arenaria 
verna).  South  of  this  are  the  fine  limestone  eminences,  the  Weaver 
Hills,  rising  to  some  1,150  feet  above  the  sea,  clothed  with  rich  grass  in 
spring,  but  very  bare  in  the  hotter  months,  and  with  abundant  exposed 
rocky  surfaces,  affording  a  home  for  many  of  the  limestone  loving  species, 
such  as  the  rock  rose  (Helianthemum  vu/gare),  the  dropwort  (Spirtza  Fili- 
pendtila),  the  sandwort  (Arenaria  tenuifolia},  the  autumn  gentian  (Gentiana 
Amarella},  the  field  gentian  (G.  campestris]  and  the  long-stalked  crane's 
bill  (Geranium  columbiniim}.  In  the  southern  portion  of  the  county, 
south-west  of  Rugeley,  the  country  though  richly  undulating  rarely  rises 
to  greater  altitudes  than  from  600  to  800  feet  above  sea  level.  Here 
are  a  series  of  round  topped  hills,  a  portion  of  the  extensive  Cannock 
Chase.  These  are  usually  clothed  with  thin  grass,  abundant  bracken 
(Pteris  aquilina},  and  grey  with  a  rich  clothing  of  ling  (Calluna  vulgaris}, 
heath  (Erica  cinerea  and  E.  tetralix),  with  dark  green  bushes  of  crow- 
berry  (Empetrum  nigrum),  the  whortleberry  (Vaccinium  Vitis-Id<£#},and  here 
and  there  gay  with  the  golden  flowers  of  the  broom  (Cytisus  scoparius}, 
but  with  furze  and  bramble  really  rare  ;  very  well  wooded  in  parts  with 
oak,  elm  and  pine,  and  with  a  rich  undergrowth  of  bilberry  and  bracken 
and  often  bluebells  (Scilla  nutans).  In  the  valleys  between  the  hills  are 
swampy  grass  lands,  watered  by  small  rapid  streams  and  rich  in  marsh 
plants,  as  the  forget-me-not  (Myosotis  palustris},  and  here  also  the  bog 
asphodel  (Narthecium  ossifragum),  the  grass  of  Parnassus  (Parnassia  palus- 
tris), the  marsh  violet  (Viola  palustris)  and  the  trailing  stems  of  the 
cranberry  are  abundant.  South-west  of  this  are  the  limestone  hills  of 
Dudley  Castle  and  Sedgley  Beacon.  These  are  slight  elevations,  but 
appear  more  elevated  by  contrast  with  the  low  level  of  most  of  the 
country  around.  Dudley  Castle  is  730  feet  above  the  sea,  and  its  ruins 

42 


BOTANY 

were  formerly  the  home  of  Cheiranthus  Cbeiri,  and  in  the  grounds  is  the 
toothwort  (Lathraa  Squamaria)  and  the  deadly  nightshade  (Atropa  Bella- 
donna}. Sedgley  Beacon  is  about  716  feet  above  the  sea,  the  limestone 
quarries  there  being  the  home  of  the  rare  woolly  thistle  (Carduus  hetero- 
phyllus],  the  hawkweed  (Picris  hieracioides],  the  mignonette  (Reseda  luted] , 
the  gromwell  (Litbospermttm  officinale]  and  the  rare  soft  rose  (Rosa  mollis}. 
The  igneous  rocks  of  Rowley  Regis  (820  ft.)  do  not  harbour  any  special 
plants. 

In  several  places  in  the  county  salt  springs  exist,  and  at  Shirley 
Wich,  Ingestre  and  Salt  are  the  seat  of  extensive  salt  works.  In  these 
localities  maritime  plants  have  been  found  and  sometimes  in  abundance  ; 
these  are  lingerers  possibly  of  a  former  rich  maritime  flora.  Among  the 
more  notable  are  the  sea  aster  (Aster  T'ripolium] ,  the  sea  milkwort  (G/aux 
maritima),  the  stork's-bill  (Erodium  maritimum),  the  sea  sandwort  (Spergu- 
laria  maritima)  and  the  celery  Apium  graveo/ens.  Near  these  localities 
is  Kingston  Pool  near  Stafford,  formerly  an  extensive  sheet  of  water 
yielding  many  salt  loving  plants,  as  Erodium  maritimum,  sea  sedge  (Scirpus 
maritimus)  and  the  sea  dock  (Rumex  maritimus]  ;  and  at  Branstone  near 
Burton-on-Trent  salt  springs  also  exist,  and  here  are  found  jR.  maritimus 
and  the  celery  Apium  graveo/ens. 

Marshes  and  bogs  have  in  former  times  been  extensive  in  many  of 
the  districts,  more  especially  in  the  north  and  north-west,  where  even  in 
comparatively  recent  times  extensive  moorlands  existed  ;  but  drainage, 
reclamation  and  the  growth  of  centres  of  industry  have  greatly  lessened 
their  area.  The  remains  of  what  have  been  extensive  bogs  or  mosses  are 
still  found  near  Biddulph  and  Congleton  Edge,  where  are  the  rare  marsh 
hawkweed  (Crepis  paludosa],  the  golden  saxifrage  (Chrysosplenium  oppositi- 
folium),  sheep's  penny  rot  (Hydrocotyle  vu/garis)  and  the  pondweed  Pota- 
mogeton  rufescens. 

About  Betley  and  Madeley  much  of  the  moorland  is  still  marsh 
and  bog,  as  at  Craddock's  Moss,  formerly  very  extensive  and  the  home 
of  many  rare  bog  plants,  as  the  bladderwort  (Utricularia  minor),  the 
bogbell  (Andromeda  Polifolia],  grass  of  Parnassus  (Parnassia  palustris], 
the  rare  water  soldier  (Stratiotes  aloides],  the  sundew  (Drosera  longifolia) 
and  the  small  reed  mace  (Typha  angustifolia)  ;  and  a  most  notable  marshy 
bog  still  exists  near  the  ancient  Chartley  Castle,  Chartley  Moss.  Here 
until  lately  the  surroundings  remained  in  their  primitive  condition, 
and  many  of  the  rarest  paludal  plants  were  to  be  found,  such  as  the 
marsh  St.  John's  wort  (Hypericum  elodes),  the  cranberry  (Vaccinium  oxy- 
coccus),  the  bog  pimpernel  (Anagalis  tenella),  the  bogbell  (Andromeda 
Polifolia),  the  fen  sedge  (Cladium  Mariscus),  the  royal  fern  (Osmunda 
regalis]  ;  and  in  the  adjoining  woods,  the  rare  shield  ferns,  Nephrodium 
crisfatum,  N.  Thelypteris  and  N.  Oreopteris.  In  the  southern  part  of  the 
county  was  an  extensive  morass,  Norton  Bog,  now  a  great  mining  centre  ; 
but  here  still  linger  noticeable  bog  plants,  as  the  black  schcenus  (Schcenus 
nigricans),  the  butter  wort  (Pinguicula  vulgaris),  the  marsh  violet  (Viola 
palustris},  the  marsh  crowfoot  (Ranunculus  Lenormandi]  and  the  marsh 

43 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

bedstraw   (Galium  uliginosum)  ;   and  a  small  marsh   near   Penkridge  has 
yielded  one  of  our  rarest  marsh  plants,  Elatine  Hydropiper. 

There  are  no  natural  lakes  in  Staffordshire,  but  many  of  the  pools 
are  natural  and  some  of  them  exten'sive  and  like  lakes  in  character. 
The  large  lake  at  Rudyard  is  purely  artificial  and  has  been  formed  by 
damming  up  a  deep  valley.  Swampy  places  are  on  its  margins,  where 
are  found  the  mud  wort  (Limosel/a  aquatica),  the  marsh  cinquefoil  (Co- 
marum  palustre),  the  money  wort  (Lysimachia  vu/garis),  and  on  the  bank 
the  trailing  stems  of  Corydalis  clauiculata.  On  the  north-west  borders  at 
Betley  and  Balterly  are  large  pools  where  are  found  several  water-loving 
plants  as  the  white  water  lily  (Nymphcea  alba],  the  sweet  flag  (Acorus 
Calamus)  and  the  frog  bit  (Hydrocbaris  Morsus-Ranee) ,  and  in  the  valley 
of  the  Sow  is  the  natural  pool,  Copmere  Pool,  very  picturesque,  clothed 
with  a  fringe  of  tall  rushes  and  bulrushes,  and  in  its  waters  a  too  abun- 
dant growth  of  Anacbaris ;  here  are  also  Ranunculus  circinatus,  the  pond 
weed  Potamogeton  filiforme,  and  all  the  British  duck  weeds  (Lemna  trisulca, 
L. gibba,  L.  polyrbizza  and  L.  minor).  Near  this  is  the  large  pool  of  Maer, 
in  which  is  an  abundant  growth  of  sweet  flag  (Acorus  Calamus),  and  on 
its  banks  the  trailing  St.  John's  wort  (Hypericum  bumifusum).  In  the  park 
at  Trentham  is  a  fine  lake-like  pool  formed  by  the  river  Trent.  This  is 
beautifully  reed  grown  and  fringed  with  the  flowering  rush  (Butomus 
umbel/atus],  the  arrow-head  (Sagittaria  sagittifolia) ,  the  rare  bur  reed  (Spar- 
ganium  neglectum),  wood  sedge  (Scirpus  sy/vaticus),  wood  rush  (Luzula 
syhatica),  and  the  rare  pillwort  (Pilularia  pilulifera).  But  the  finest  natural 
sheet  of  water  in  the  county  is  the  large  one,  perfectly  oval  in  form, 
called  Aqualate  Mere,  which  is  one  mile  long  and  half  a  mile  broad; 
the  margins  are  marshy  and  yield  much  floral  wealth  ;  here  are  found 
the  water  violet  (Hottonia  palustris),  the  brook  weed  (Samolus  Valerandi], 
the  reed  grasses  Calamagrostis  Epigejos  and  C.  lanceolatus,  and  on  the 
banks  the  wild  liquorice  (Astragalus  glycyphyllos) ,  the  spindle  tree  (Euony- 
mus  europteus),  the  bog  myrtle  (Myrica  gale] ,  and  the  narrow-leaved  reed 
mace  (Typba  angustifo/ia]  ;  near  here  is  Forton  Pool,  where  are  the  pond- 
weeds  Potamogiton  heteropbyllus  and  P.  peclinatus.  In  the  south-west  of 
the  county  is  Perton  Pool;  here  are  the  mare's  tail  (Hippurus  vu/garis), 
and  the  rare  water  milfoil  (Myriopbyllum  verticillatum),  and  on  the  con- 
fines of  Birmingham  is  Harborn  reservoir,  where  are  Ranunculus  circinatus 
and  the  rare  mousetail  (Myosurus  minimus}.  The  woodlands  of  Stafford- 
shire are  extensive,  forming  indeed  one-twentieth  of  the  whole  area  ; 
those  of  the  southern  portion  of  the  county  are  usually  destitute  of  any 
special  wild  flora,  though  often  beautiful  in  the  summer  by  the  abun- 
dance of  wild  hyacinth  (Scilla  nutans],  but  in  the  north  the  woodlands 
are  extensive  and  are  the  homes  of  some  of  our  rarer  native  plants. 
The  woods  near  Belmont  in  the  valley  of  the  Churnet  possess  craggy 
ravines  watered  by  rapid  streams,  their  banks  clothed  with  a  rich  abun- 
dance of  wild  vegetation,  and  here  are  found  the  globe  flower  (Trollius 
europaus],  the  bear's  foot  (Helleborus  fcetidus),  the  everlasting  pea  (Lathyrus 
Nissolia]  and  the  London  pride  (Saxifraga  umbrosa)  ;  and  in  the  rich 

44 


BOTANY 

woods  about  Frog  Hall  and  Oakamore  are  water-worn  ravines  yielding 
a  wealth  of  rare  plants,  as  the  mountain  nightshade  (Circcea  alpina),  the 
mountain  polypody  (Polypodium  Dryopteris],  the  winter  green  (Pyrola 
rotundifolia],  the  mountain  valerian  (Valeriana  pyrenaica),  sweet  Cicely 
(Myrrbis  odorata),  the  bladder  fern  (Gystopteris  fragilis)  and  Veronica  Bux- 
baumia  ;  and  on  the  rocks  near  Alton  Castle  the  deadly  nightshade 
(Atropa  Belladonna).  On  the  north-west  side  of  the  county  are  the  ex- 
tensive woodlands  about  Whitmore,  where  are  the  smaller  skullcap  (Scu- 
tellaria  minor),  abundance  of  woodruff  (Asperula  odorata)  and  the  rare 
bramble  Rubus  suberectus.  South  of  this  is  Bishop's  Wood  ;  here  are 
found  the  columbine  (Aquilegia  vu/garis),  the  stork's  bill  (Erodium  mos- 
cbatum),  the  bog  bean  (Menyantbes  trifoliata),  the  sundew  (Drosera  rotundi- 
folia} and  the  shield  ferns  Nepbrodium  filix-mas  and  N.  spinulosum.  Near 
High  Offley  are  the  woods  around  Norbury,  rich  in  rare  brambles  such 
as  Rubus  Lejeuni,  R.  birtus  and  R.  Bellardi,  and  near  the  large  pool  the 
sedges  Carex  stricta  and  C.  teretiuscula  and  the  rare  water  dropwort 
(Enanthe  Phellandrium.  In  the  south-west  of  the  county  in  the  valley  of 
the  small  river  Smestow  are  extensive  woodlands  around  Himley  and 
Bagginton  ;  here  are  found  the  elecampane  (Inula  Helenium),  the  rare  white 
mullein  (Ferbascum  Lycbnites],  the  mignonette  (Reseda  luted],  herb  Paris 
(Paris  quadrifolid) ,  the  lily  of  the  valley  (Convallaria  maja/is]  and  the 
rare  Lonicera  Xylostcum;  on  the  south-eastern  side  of  the  county  are  ex- 
tensive elevated  woodlands,  the  remains  of  the  great  forest  of  Needwood, 
where  are  still  found  lingerers  of  a  former  rich  sylvan  flora,  as  the  needle 
furze  (Genista  anglica],  the  small-leaved  lime  (Ti/ia  parvifolia],  frog 
orchis  (Habernaria  Kindts],  mezerion  (Daphne  Mezereori),  Jacob's  ladder 
(Polemonium  cceruleum],  the  borage  (Borago  officinale]  and  the  burnet  saxi- 
frage (Pimpinella  major). 

A  comparison  may  be  made  here  between  the  flora  of  Staffordshire 
and  that  of  the  surrounding  counties.  Staffordshire  has  94  plants  not 
found  in  Worcestershire,  70  not  recorded  from  Warwickshire,  118  not 
recorded  from  Leicestershire,  168  not  recorded  from  Derbyshire,  121  not 
recorded  from  Cheshire,  and  106  not  recorded  from  Shropshire.  Wor- 
cestershire has  65  not  recorded  from  Staffordshire,  Warwickshire  65, 
Leicestershire  50,  Derbyshire  26,  Cheshire  85,  and  Shropshire  38.  The 
total  flora  of  Staffordshire  is  948  species,  including  flowering  plants, 
ferns,  horsetails  and  charas.  The  total  flora  of  Great  Britain  is  1,958 
species ;  hence  it  will  be  seen  that  Staffordshire  yields  less  than  half  the 
British  species. 

From  its  central  position  it  naturally  possesses  a  large  percentage 
of  the  common  or  British  type,  namely  515  out  of  532  for  the  whole 
kingdom;  of  the  southern  or  English  type  295  out  of  409,  one-eighth 
of  the  western  type,  one-sixth  of  the  eastern  type,  and  about  one- 
eighth  of  the  northern  type. 

The  botanical  districts  are  based  on  the  river  basins.  These  are : 
I,  the  Weaver;  2,  the  Dove;  3,  the  Trent;  4,  the  Sow;  5,  the  Severn. 
With  the  exception  of  the  Dane  all  the  rivers  of  Staffordshire  rise 

45 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

within  the  limits  of  the  county,  and  nearly  all  have  their  whole  course 
in  the  county  and  are  tributary  to  the  Trent.  By  an  Act  of  Parliament, 
1897,  the  small  peninsula-like  prolongation  of  Staffordshire  in  which 
Upper  Arley  is  situated  has  been  added  to  Worcestershire,  so  that  the 
Severn  proper  flows  through  no  portion  of  the  county,  but  drains  a 
portion  of  the  west  and  south-west  by  streams  tributary  to  the  Severn. 

i.     THE  WEAVER 

The  Weaver  is  a  Cheshire  river  tributary  to  the  Mersey,  and  is  fed  by  the  waters  of 
several  streams  draining  the  north  and  north-west  of  Staffordshire.  The  most  important  is 
the  Dane.  This  river  enters  Staffordshire  at  Three  Shires  Head  north-east  of  Flash,  and  is  a 
rapid  mountain  stream  forming  the  boundary  between  Staffordshire  and  Cheshire  from  near 
Flash  to  below  Bosley  ;  here  it  passes  into  Cheshire,  and  after  a  long  and  varying  course 
joins  the  Weaver  near  Northwick.  It  drains  by  numerous  small  tributaries  a  considerable 
portion  of  north  Staffordshire,  such  as  the  country  around  Flash,  Quarnford,  the  Roaches, 
Gradbach  Hills,  Swithamley,  Rushton  Marsh,  and  by  an  important  stream  rising  on  the  east 
side  of  Mow  Cop  and  Bradley  Green,  Gillow  Heath  and  Biddulph.  A  portion  of  the  county 
south-west  of  Biddulph  is  drained  by  small  streams  tributary  to  the  Wheelock,  which  enters 
the  Dane  near  Middlewick,  and  by  Checkley  Brook  which  joins  the  Weaver  near  Nantwich. 
These  minor  streams  drain  the  country  around  Kidsgrove,  Audley,  Betley,  Wrinehill,  Made- 
ley  and  the  northern  portion  of  Whitmore,  a  district  rich  in  some  of  the  rarer  plants,  among 
which  are : — 

Ranunculus  fluitans  Andromeda  polifolia  Utricularia  vulgaris 

Nymphaea  alba  Vaccinium  Vitis-Idaea  —  minor 

Empetrum  nigrum  —  Oxycoccus  Potamogeton  rufescens 

Cotyledon  Umbilicus  Cynoglossum  officinale  Osmunda  regalis 
Crepis  paludosa 

2.     THE  DOVE 

The  Dove  rises  in  a  natural  spring  on  Axe  Edge  at  an  elevation  of  1,684  feet  above  sea 
level  and  enters  the  county  near  Patch  Edge,  and  flows  south-east  through  a  narrow  valley  to 
Longnor,  where  it  receives  a  small  feeder  from  the  west  rising  on  the  high  ground  near 
Quarnford.  After  flowing  4  miles  through  another  narrow  valley  it  passes  near  Hartington. 
From  here  its  course  is  a  little  more  south  through  Pike  Pool  in  Berresford  Dale  and  2  miles 
further  through  the  weird  narrow  dale,  the  entrance  to  which  it  appears  to  have  carved  out  of 
the  solid  rock.  From  this  it  flows  between  the  craggy  hills  of  Mill  Dale,  and  below  the 
beautiful  Alstonfield  church  to  the  wild  and  romantic  Dove  Dale.  Dove  Dale  is  nearly  3 
miles  long  and  is  entered  by  a  pathway  between  of  lofty  rocks  and  cliffs,  surmounted  by  isolated 
crags  called  tors.  The  rocks  are  grand  in  aspect  and  covered  with  vegetation,  trees  and 
shrubs  and  smaller  plants,  many  of  them  the  rarest  elements  of  the  county  flora,  too  frequently 
growing  in  inaccessible  places.  Here  the  Dove  murmurs  along  over  miniature  falls  and  weirs, 
and  amid  boulders  covered  with  rare  cryptogamic  wealth,  with  floating  masses  of  Ranunculus 
pseudo-fluitam  and  the  local  float-grass  Glyceria  fluitans,  and  passing  under  Dove  Bridge  enters  a 
broad  fertile  valley,  and  near  Ham  is  joined  by  its  important  affluent  the  Manyfold.  The 
Manyfold  is  formed  by  streams  rising  in  the  moorlands  near  Flash  and  near  Croft  Bottom, 
and  flows  south-east  by  Wiltshaw  Hill  and  east  through  part  of  Longnor,  then  south  through 
Ludbourne  and  Brund  to  Hulme  End.  Here  the  limestone  hills  divert  its  course  south-west 
by  Ecton  Hill,  near  where  it  is  fed  by  Blake  brook  and  Warslow  brook,  draining  a  large 
extent  of  country  around  Warslow ;  thence  flowing  through  the  beautiful  Wetton  valley,  past 
Ossum's  Hill  and  Thor's  Cave  to  Beeston  Tor,  its  bed  unites  with  that  of  the  Hamps.  Near 
Wetton  the  river  disappears  for  several  miles,  passing  through  an  underground  channel  and 
emerging  at  Ham.  The  Hamps  rises  on  the  wild  moors  south-west  of  the  Manyfold  and  has 
a  course  of  5  miles  south  through  Keywall  Green  to  Onecote  ;  it  then  flows  eastward  through 
Ford,  then  west  through  Winkshill  ;  here  the  high  limestone  hills  divert  its  course  easterly  by 
Crowtrees  and  Waterhouses  to  Stoneyrock,  where  its  course  becomes  northward  through  a 
beautiful  rocky  valley  of  about  3  miles  to  the  union  of  its  bed  with  that  of  the  Manyfold  at 
Beeston  Tor.  This  river  near  here  disappears  for  several  miles  and  emerges  at  Ham,  where  it 
unites  with  the  Manyfold,  and  the  united  stream  joins  the  Dove  near  Thorpe.  The  Dove 

46 


BOTANY 

now  continues  its  southward  course  near  Okeover,  Mayfield  and  Rocester,  near  where  it  is 
joined  by  the  Churnet.  The  Churnet  rises  on  the  moorlands  near  Stoke  Gutter  and  has  a 
westerly  course  of  about  4  miles  to  Tettesworth  Reservoir,  where  it  receives  waters  from 
Leek  Frith  and  takes  a  southerly  course  through  Tettesworth  Reservoir,  then  westerly  past 
Leek  and  near  Rudyard,  receiving  waters  from  Wolf  Low  and  Fair  Edge,  and  here  turns 
southward  past  Longsdon  and  then  flows  south  and  south-west  through  Cheddleton,  Kingsley, 
Oakamore  and  Alton  to  its  confluence  with  the  Dove  below  Rocester.  The  beautiful  Churnet 
valley  from  Cheddleton  to  beyond  Alton  is  formed  by  high  rocks  and  rocky  woods  with 
deep  rocky  ravines  whose  steep  banks  are  clothed  with  trees,  shrubs  and  rare  wild  flowers  and 
mosses.  Emerging  from  the  hills  the  Churnet  flows  through  a  wide  expanse  of  flat  lands  and 
enters  the  Dove  below  Rocester.  Still  flowing  south  past  Uttoxeter  the  Dove  receives  two 
small  feeders,  Tean  brook  and  Stoneyford  brook,  draining  the  country  around  Cheadle,  Leigh 
and  Uttoxeter  ;  the  Dove  now  flows  south-east  past  Marchington,Draycote  and  Tutbury,  and 
enters  the  Trent  near  Newton  Solney.  The  total  length  of  the  Dove  is  45  miles  ;  it  has  a 
fall  of  1,55°  feet  from  its  source  to  its  mouth,  and  drains  nearly  400  square  miles  of  country. 
The  following  are  some  of  its  rarer  plants  : — 

Helleborus  foetidus  Anthyllis  vulneraria  Polemonium  ceruleum 

Fumaria  Vaillantii  Lathyrus  Nissolia  Veronica  polita 

Arabia  hirsuta  Prunus  Padus  Salvia  Verbenaca 

Cardamine  impatiens  Rubus  gratus  Daphne  Mezereon 

Draba  muralis  -  Leyanus  Carex  pallescens 

Helianthemum  vulgare  —  serpens  Avena  pratensis 

Viola  hirta  -  saxatilis  Melica  nutans 

Silene  nutans  Rosa  involuta  Polypodtum  calcareum 

Stellaria  nemorum  Saxifraga  umbrosa  Botrychium  Lunaria 

Geranium  pusillum  Doronicum  Pardialianches  Lycopodium  clavatum 
—  columbinum 

3.     THE  TRENT 

The  Trent  rises  in  the  north-west  of  the  county    between   Biddulph   and    Mow  Cop  at 
about  700  feet  above  sea  level.      The  stream  almost  immediately  passes  into  Knypersley  Pools, 
where  several  streams  unite,  with   the   surplus  water   proceeding  from  Biddulph   Moor.      The 
Trent  now  flows  on  3  miles  to  Norton,  below  which   a  considerable  tributary  comes  in  called 
Fowlea,  which  rises  near  the  Trent  source,  and  flows  through   a   parallel  valley.     The  united 
stream  flows  about  3  miles  to  Stoke-upon-Trent,  passing  the  town  of  Hanley  and  a  long  line 
of  thickly-populated  country,  which  it  leaves   to   the   west.      Beyond    Stoke    it  flows   2    miles 
further  to  Hanford,  where  it  receives  the  Lyme  from  the  north,  a  brook  about   5    miles  long 
flowing  near  Newcastle.      A  short  distance  from  this  it  enters  Trentham  Park,  where  it  forms 
a  lake  of  about    80  acres.     After  leaving  Trentham   it   flows   near   Barlaston,   being  fed   by 
waters  from  the  high  lands  about  Hilderstone,  and  passing  west  of  Stone   it   flows  south-east 
near  Sandon,  Salt  and  Weston-on-Trent,  being  joined  by    Amerton  brook  and    Gayton  brook 
on  its  left  bank  and  waters  from  Ingestre  and  Tixall  on  its  right  bank,  and  at  Great  Heywood 
is  joined  on  its  right  bank   by  its  important  tributary  the  Sow.      From  its  confluence  with  the 
Sow  it  still  flows  south-east  through  Rugeley,  receiving  on  its  right  bank  the  Sherbrook,  which 
waters  a  rich  botanical  valley   on  Cannock  Chase,  and   flowing   through   Armitage  its  course 
becomes  more  easterly  by  Pipe  Ridware,  where  it  is  joined   by  the  river  Blythe.     The  Blythe 
rises  north-east  of  Chartley  Park  and  flows  south-east  towards  Leigh   and   through   Gradwich 
and  Grindley  under  Blithe  Bridge,  near  Blithford  Hall  and  through  Blithford  and  Sandborough 
to  its  confluence  with  the  Trent  near  Kings  Bromley,  being  fed  by  waters  from  Chartley, 
Bagot  Wood,  Rake  End  and  Kingston.     The  Trent  now  flows  west  near  Wichnor  Park,  and 
above  Alrewas  to  its  confluence   with   the  Tame  near  Croxall.     The  Tame  rises  north   of 
Pelsall  in  the  south  of  Cannock  Chase,  collecting  waters  from  the  Silurian  Hills  about  Dudley 
and  also  from  the  country  east  of  Wolverhampton  and  from  the  western    ridge  of  Hamstead 
Hill  and  Walsall.      These  numerous  feeders  join   the  Tame  near  West  Bromwich,  and  the 
Tame  flowing  through  Perry  Barr  enters  Warwickshire  at  Witton.     Flowing  through  Castle 
Bromwich,  Curdworth  and  Fazely  it  re-enters  Staffordshire  at  Tamworth,  receiving   here  an 
important  tributary,  Black  brook,  which  drains  a  large   extent  of  country  about  Chesterfield, 
Stonnall,  Weeford  and  Hints,  and  passing  through    Drayton  Park   unites  with  the  Tame  near 
Fazeley.    The  Tame  then  flows  through  Elford  to  its  confluence  with  the  Trent  near  Croxall. 

47 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  Trent  now  makes  a  sharp  turn  to  the  north  and  takes  the  direction  of  the  Tame  at  the 
confluence.  After  a  further  flow  of  6  miles  it  reaches  Burton-on-Trent,  and  2  miles  lower 
receives  the  Dove.  The  area  drained  by  the  Trent  is  about  800  square  miles,  and  in  a 
distance  of  about  50  miles  the  bed  of  the  river  has  fallen  from  700  feet  above  sea  to  1 80  feet, 
most  part  of  this  fall  of  520  feet  occurring  in  the  first  n  miles,  between  the  source  and 
the  confluence  with  Fowlea  brook,  where  the  bed  of  the  stream  is  not  more  than  370  feet 
above  sea.  The  mean  fall  of  the  first  5  miles  of  the  Trent  is  at  the  rate  of  nearly  50  feet 
to  the  mile,  and  of  the  next  five  of  18  feet.  After  this  the  fall  nowhere  exceeds  8  feet  to  a 
mile.  The  following  are  some  of  the  more  noteworthy  species  : — 

Myosurus  minimus  Rosa  rubiginosa  Habenaria  conopsca 

Ranunculus  Lingua  Sedum  Telephium  Galanthus  nivalis 

Cheiranthus  Cheiri  Drosera  intermedia  Fritillaria  Meleagris 

Lepidium  ruderale  Carum  segetum  Acorus  Calamus 

Dianthus  Armeria  Sambucus  Ebulus  Triglochin  maritimum 

Hypericum  elodes  Carduus  eriophorus  Scirpus  pauciflorus 

Radiola  Millegrana  Lactuca  virosa  Agrostis  fulvus 

Genista  anglica  Campanula  hederacea  Polypodium  Dryopteris 

Trifolium  striatum  Andromedia  polifolia  Lycopodium  Selago 

Rubus  suberectus  Linaria  repens  Nitella  flexilis 

—  micans  Scutellaria  minor  —  opaca 

Rosa  mollis  Orchis  pyramidalis 

4.     THE  Sow 

The  Sow  rises  about  I  mile  south-west  of  Hookham  in  a  spring  called  Sowhead,  617 
feet  above  sea,  and  flows  south  by  Bishop's  Wood  and  New  Inn  Bank  ;  here  its  course  turns 
eastward  above  Bishop's  Offley  and  through  Copmere  and  north  of  Eccleshall,  where  it  re- 
ceives a  stream  coming  from  the  north  near  Foxley  ;  still  flowing  south-east  to  Worston  Mill 
it  is  joined  by  a  considerable  stream,  Meece  brook,  from  the  north-west.  The  Meece  origi- 
nates from  three  small  streams  south-west  of  Keel  Park  ;  these  unite  near  Whitmore,  passing 
through  the  large  pool  in  Whitmore  Park  and  running  parallel  with  the  railway  for  several 
miles,  flowing  through  Mill  Mease  and  Norton  Bridge,  receiving  tributaries  on  either  side 
and  draining  a  wide  area  east  and  west.  The  Sow  now  flows  through  Great  Bridgeford  and 
Stafford,  being  fed  by  waters  from  Seighford  and  on  the  east  from  Marstone.  Below  Stafford 
the  Penk  enters  its  right  bank  from  the  south-west.  The  Penk  rises  north-west  of  Wolver- 
hampton,  and  is  joined  by  Billbrook  near  Codsall,  and  flows  north  through  Brewood  and  Penk- 
ridge,  bringing  waters  from  Teddesley,  Acton  Trussell  and  Radford,  north  of  which  village 
it  enters  the  Sow,  draining  a  wide  extent  of  country  around  Gnosall  and  Biymhill  and  the 
west  portion  of  Cannock  Chase.  The  Sow  continues  to  flow  south-east  to  its  union  with  the 
Trent  at  Great  Heywood,  at  an  elevation  of  238  feet  above  the  sea. 

The  Sow  has  a  course  of  2O  miles,  draining  about  150,130  acres;  it  flows  through  a 
comparatively  flat  country  and  has  a  fall  of  about  380  feet.  The  following  are  some  of  the 
more  noticeable  plants  : — 

Ranunculus  hirsutus  Rubus  Boreanus  Glaux  maritima 

Sisymbrium  Sophia  • —  crineger  Limosella  aquatica 

Lepidium  hirtum  — -  Bloxamianus  Orobanche  major 

Cerastium  quaternellum  Rosa  coriifolia  Quercus  sessiliflora 

Geranium  lucidum  Myriophyllum  verticillatum  Sparganium  minimum 

Erodium  moschatum  CEnanthe  Phellandrium  Sagittaria  sagittifolia 

Elatine  Hydropiper  Anthemis  nobilis  Calamagrostis  lanceolata 

Euonymus  europaeus  Specularia  hybrida  Pilularia  globulifera 

Onobrychis  sativa  Pyrola  rotundifolia  Chara  fragilis 

5.     THE  SEVERN 

The  Severn  drains  a  large  portion  of  the  west  and  south-west  of  Staffordshire  by  small 
streams,  which  are  the  tributaries  of  larger  streams  flowing  in  Shropshire  ;  that  portion  of  the 
county  south-west  of  Wolverhampton  is  watered  by  the  two  small  rivers,  the  Smestow  and 
Stour. 

The  river  Tern  is  a  brook-like  stream,  forming  the  boundary  between  Shropshire  and 
Staffordshire  for  many  miles,  that  is  from  Willoughby  Wells  to  a  point  south-east  of  Market 

48 


BOTANY 


Drayton,  and  is  fed  by  streams  from  Maer  and  west  of  Fair  Oak.  The  Meese,  a  tributary 
to  the  Tern,  receives  Lanco  brook,  draining  Offley  Marsh,  High  Offley  and  the  surrounding 
country,  and  has  feeders  from  Norbury  and  Oulton  ;  and  Dawford  brook,  draining  Weston 
under  Lizard  and  part  of  Blymhill,  and  flowing  through  Aqualate  Mere,  enters  the  Meese 
near  Forton.  Farther  south  the  county  is  watered  by  the  Stour  and  its  affluents.  The  Stour 
enters  the  county  east  of  Cradley,  forming  the  county  boundary  for  several  miles,  and  drains 
a  thickly  populated  district,  yielding  little  of  interest  except  the  ever  present  coltsfoot,  and 
passing  through  Stourbridge  and  Prestwood  is  joined  by  the  small  river  Smestow  at  Stourton. 
The  Smestow  with  its  affluents  is  far  reaching,  receiving  waters  from  Patingham,  Wolver- 
hampton,  the  west  side  of  Dudley,  Himley,  Trysull  and  Enville,  and  at  Stourton  joins  the 
Stour.  The  Stour  here  takes  the  course  of  the  Smestow,  and  flowing  through  Kinver  and 
part  of  Worcestershire  joins  the  Severn  at  Stourport. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  more  rare  plants  of  this  district  : — 


Ranunculus  parviflorus 
Aquilegia  vulgaris 
Diplotaxis  tenuifolia 
Senebiera  didyma 
Reseda  lutea 
Viola  canina 
Silene  anglica 
Cerastium  semidecandrum 
—  arvense 
Vicia  lathyroides 


Hypericum  Androsxmum 
Erodium  maritimum 
Lathyrus  Aphaca 
Rubus  curvidens 
—  Babingtonii 
Potentilla  procumbens 
Rosa  scabriuscula 
Ribes  rubrum 
Caucalis  nodosa 
Hippopithys  multiflora 


Utricularia  neglecta 
Myrica  Gale 
Habenaria  albida 
Sparganium  minimum 
Potamogeton  trichojes 
Carex  teretiuscula 
Festuca  elatior 
Asplenium  Ceterach 
Chara  hispida 


SUMMARY  OF  ORDERS,  NUMBER  OF  GENERA  AND  OF  SPECIES  IN 

EACH  ORDER,  ETC. 


Number 
of 
Genera 

Number 
of 
Species 

Ex- 
cluded 
Species 

Number 
of 
Genera 

Number 
of 

Species 

Ex- 
cluded 
Species 

CLASS  I 

Div.  II.      Calyciflora: 

DlCOTYLYDONES    OR 
ExOGENj'E 

22.   Celastrinea; 
23.   Rhamneas    . 

I 

I 

I 

2 



24.   Sapindaceae  . 

I 

I 

I 

Div.  I.      ThalamiftorfS 

25.   Leguminosas     . 

15 

40 

6 

I.   Ranunculaceae  . 

IO 

3° 

2 

26.   Rosaceas 

12 

92 

2 

2.  Berberideae  . 

I 

i 

I 

27.   Saxifrages  . 

4 

IO 

I 

3.  Nymphzaceae  . 

2 

2 



28.   Crassulaceas 

2 

5 

2 

4.  Papaveraceae 

2 

4 

I 

29.   Droseraceas. 

I 

2 

— 

5.  Fumariaceae 

2 

5 

2 

30.   Halorageas  . 

3 

7 

— 

6.  Cruciferae     . 

'9 

42 

7 

3  1  .   Lythraceae  . 

2 

3 

— 

7.   Resedaceae  . 

I 

2 



32.   Onagrarieas 

2 

1  1 

I 

8.   Cistineae 

I 

I 



33.   Cucubitaceas 

I 

i 

— 

9.   Violaceae 

I 

8 



34.   Umbelliferae 

23 

31 

5 

10.  Polygaleas    . 

I 

2 



35.  Araliaceas     . 

I 

i 

— 

12.  Caryophylleas   . 

12 

37 

2 

36.   Cornaceas     . 

I 

i 

— 

I  T..   Portulaceae  . 

I 

i 

2 

o 
14.  Elatineae 

I 

i 

Div.  III.      Corolliflora: 

15.   Hypericineas     . 

I 

8 



37.   Caprifoliaceae    . 

4 

5 

i 

1  6.  Malvaceae    .     .      . 

I 

3 

I 

38.   Rubiaceas    . 

3 

1  1 

— 

17.  Tiliacea; 

I 

i 

I 

39.   Valerianeas  . 

2 

6 

2 

1  8.  Lineae    .... 

2 

4 

I 

40.   Dipsaceae     . 

2 

5 



19.   Geraniaceas 

4 

*3 

I 

41.   Composite  . 

40 

81 

5 

20.  Ilicineae  .... 

i 

i 



42.   Campanulaceae 

4 

8 

— 

21.  Empetraceae 

i 

i 



43.  Ericaceae      .     .     . 

5 

ii 

i 

49 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Number 

Number 

Ex- 

Number 

Number 

Ex- 

of 

of 

cluded 

of 

of 

cluded 

Genera 

Species 

Species 

Genera 

Species 

Species 

44.  Monotropeae     . 

I 

I 



CLASS  II 

46.  Primulaceae 

7 

12 



MONOCOTYLEDONS 

47.  Oleaceae 

2 

2 



Div.  I.     Petaloidete 

48.  Apocynaceae     . 
49.  Gentianeae  . 
50.  Polemoniaceae  . 
51.  Boragineas  . 
52.  Convolvulaceae 
53.  Solanaceae    . 
54.  Plantagineas 
55.   Scrophularineas 
56.  Orobancheae     . 
57.   Lentibularineas 
58.   Verbenaceae 
59.  Labiatae. 

I 

4 
i 
6 

2 

3 

2 

J3 
I 

2 
I 

'  15 

I 

5 
i 

14 
3 
4 
5 
34 

2 

4 

i 

34 

I 

3 
i 

i 

2 

5 

75.  Hydrocharideae 
76.  Orchideae    . 
77.  Irideae     .... 
78.  Amaryllideae     . 
79.  Dioscoreae    . 
80.  Liliaceae 
81.  Junceae  .... 
83.  Typhaceae  . 
84.  Aroideae 
85.  Lemnaceae  . 
86.  Alismaceas  . 
87.  Naiadaceas  . 

2 

8 
I 

2 
I 

9 

2 
2 
2 
I 

3 
3 

2 

18 

I 
2 

I 
12 
15 

7 

2 

4 
4 
J9 

I 

2 
2 

Div.IV.  Monochlamydets 

Div.  II.     Glumaceie 

60.  Illecebraceae 

2 

2 

— 

88.  Cyperaceae  . 

7 

5i 



61.   Chenopodiaceas 

2 

9 

— 

89.   Gramineas   . 

32 

67 

3 

62.   Polygonaceae 

2 

20 

I 

CLASS  III 

64.  Thymelaeaceas  . 
66.   Loranthaceae    . 

I 
I 

2 
I 



ACOTYLEDONS    OR 

68.  Euphorbiaceae  . 

3 

7 

I 

CRYPTOGAMIA 

69.   Urticaceae    . 

3 

6 

— 

Div.  I.      Vasculares 

70.   Myricaceas  . 

i 

i 

— 

90.   Filices     .... 

12 

27 

— 

71  .   Cupuliferae  . 

6 

8 

— 

91.   Equisetaceae 

I 

6 

— 

72.   Salicineas 
73.   Ceratophylleae  . 

2 
I 

21 
I 

— 

92.   Lycopodiaceae  . 
94.   Marsileaceas 

I 

I 

3 
i 

— 

Div.  V.    Gymnospermcs 

Div.  II.      Cellularei 

74.   Coniferae 

3 

3 

— 

95.   Characeae     . 

2 

6 

— 

SUMMARY    OF    THE   GEOGRAPHICAL   DISTRIBUTION 
OF   SPECIES    AND    VARIETIES1 


RANUNCULACEJE 
Clematis  Vitalba,  L.      3-5 
Thalictrum  flavum,  L.      3-5 
Anemone  nemorosa,  L.      1-5 
[Adonis  autumnalis],  L.      3 
Myosurus  minimus,  L.      3,  5 
Ranunculus  circinatus,  Sibth.      2-5 

-  fluitans,  Lam.      1-5 

b.  Bachii,  Wirtg.      2,  3,  5 

-  pseudo-fluitans,  Bab.      2,  3,  5 

-  trichophyllus,  Chaix.     4,  5 

—  Drouettii,  Godr.      3-5 

b.  Godronii,  Gren.     4 

-  heterophyllus,  Web.      2 

—  peltatus,  Schrank.      2—4 

b.  truncatus,  Hiern.      3,  4 

c.  floribundus,  Bab.      1-5 

d.  penicillatus,  Hiern.      2 

—  Lenormandi,  F.  Schultz.      1-5 

—  hederaceus,  L.      1—5 


Ranunculus  sceleratus,  L.      1-3 

—  Flammula,  L.      1-5 

b.  pseudo-reptans,  Syme. 

—  Lingua,  L.      3-5 

—  auricomus,  L.      2-5 

—  acris,  L.      1-5 

—  repens,  L.      1-5 

—  bulbosus,  L.      1-5 

—  hirsutus,  Curtis.      3-5 

—  parviflorus,  L.      2-5 

—  arvensis,  L.      2-5 
-  Ficaria,  L.      1-5 

Caltha  palustris,  L.      1-5 

b.  Guerangerii,  Bor.      3 
Trollius  europaeus,  L.     2 
Helleborus  viridis,  L.      2,  3 

—  fcetidus,  L.     2 
Aquilegia  vulgaris,  L.      3-5 
[Delphinium  Ajacis],  Reichb.     3 
Aconitum  Napellus,  L.     2,  3 


1  The  numbers  refer  to  the  botanical  districts. 
50 


BOTANY 


BmniBUi 

Berberis  vulgaris,  L.      2-5 
[Epimedium  alpinum],  L.     3 

NYMPHS  ACE.K 
Nuphar  luteum,  Sm.  1-5 
Nymphaea  alba,  L.  1—5 

PAPAVERACE.S: 
[Papaver  somniferum],  L.  2,  5 

—  Rhceas,  L.      1-5 

b.  strigosum,  Boenn.     4 

—  dubium,  L.      1—5 

b.  Lecoqii,  Lam.      2 

—  Argemone,  L.     2—5 
Chelidonium  majus,  L.      1-5 

FUMARIACE.K 
[Corydalis  bulbosa],  DC.  2,  3,  5 

—  lutea],  DC.      3 

—  claviculata,  DC.      1-5 
Fumaria  pallidiflora,  Jord.      3,  4 

—  muralis,  Sender.      3 

—  officinalis,  L.      I  — ; 

—  Vaillantii,  Loisel.      2 

CRUCIFER^E 

Cheiranthus  Cheiri,  L.      3 
Nasturtium  officinale,  R.  Br.      1-5 

—  sylvestre,  R.  Br.      3-5 

—  palustre,  DC.      2-5 

— •  amphibium,  R.  Br.      2-5 
Barbarea  vulgaris,  R.  Br.      1-5 

-  arcuata,  Reichb.      5 
[ —  przcox],  R.  Br.      3 
Arabis  hirsuta,  Scop.      2 

—  perfoliata,  Lam.      3-5 
Cardamine  amara,  L.      1-5 

—  pratensis,  L.      1-5 

—  hirsuta,  L.      1-5 

-  flexuosa,  With.      1-5 

—  impatiens,  L.      2,  3,  5 

—  bulbifera,  Syme.      3 
[Alyssum  calycinum],  L.      3,5 
Draba  muralis,  L.     2,  3 

—  incana,  L.      2 
.Erophila  vulgaris,  DC.      1-5 
[Cochlearia  Armoracia],  L.      3,  4 
[Hesperis  matronalis],  L.     2,  4. 
Sisymbrium  Thalianum,  Hook.      1-5 

—  Sophia,  L.     2-4 

—  officinale,  Scop.      1-5 

—  Alliaria,  Scop.      1-5 
Erysimum  cheiranthoides,  L.      2-5 
[Brassica  Napus],  L.      1-5 

-  Rutabaga,  DC.      1-5 

-  Rapa,  L.     2,  3,  5 

b.  sylvestris,  H.  C.  Wats.      2 

—  nigra,  Koch.     2-5 

—  Sinapis,  Visiani.      1-5 

-  alba,  Boiss.      3,  4 
Diplotaxis  muralis,  DC.      3 

—  tenuifolia,  DC.     3-5 
[Camelina  saliva],  Crantz.     2 
Capsella  Bursa-pastoris,  Moench.      1-5 
Senebiera  didyma,  Pers.      3,  4 

—  Coronopus,  Poir.      2-5 


Lepidium  rudcrale,  L.      3 
[ —  sativum],  L.     4 

—  campestre,  R.  Br.      1-5 

-  Smithii,  Hook.      I,  3-5 
Thlaspi  arvense,  L.      3-5 
Iberis  amara,  L.     2 

Teesdalia  nudicaulis,  R.  Br.     2,  3,  5 
Hutchinsia  petrza,  R.  Br.      2 
Raphanus  Raphanistrum,  L.      I,  3-5 

RESEDACE./E 
Reseda  Luteola,  L.      1-5 

-  lutea,  L.     3,  5 

ClSTINEJE 

Helianthemum  vulgare,  Gaertn.     2 

VIOLACE^E 
Viola  palustris,  L.      1-5 

-  odorata,  L.      1-5 

b.  alba,  Besser.      2-5 

c.  lilacea,  Auct.      I 

-  hirta,  L.      2 

-  flavicornis,  Sm.      2-5 

-  sylvatica,  Fr.      1-5 

-  Reichenbachiana,  Bor.      2,  3-5 

-  tricolor,  L.      2-5 

-  arvensis,  Murr.      1-5 

-  lutea,  Huds.      I,  2 

b.  amajna,  Syme.      2 

POLYGALE./E 
Polygala  vulgaris,  L.      2,  3,  5 

-  deprcssa,  Wend.      2—5 

CARYOPHYLLEJE 
Dianthus  Armeria,  L.      3 

-  deltoides,  L.      2,  5 
Saponaria  officinalis,  L.      3-5 
Silcne  Cucubalus,  Wibel.      1-5 

-  gallica,  L.,  a.  anglica,  L.      3,5 

-  nutans,  L.      2 

• —  noctiflora,  L.      3 
Lychnis  Flos-cuculi,  L.      1-5 

-  diurna,  Sibth.      1-5 

-  vespertina,  Sibth.      1-5 
Githago  segetum,  Desf.      3,  5 
Cerastium  quarternellum,  Fenzl.      3-5 

-  tetrandrum,  Curtis.     4 

—  semidecandrum,  L.      3,  5 

—  glomeratum,  Thuill.      1-5 

—  tnviale,  Link.      1  —  5 

—  arvense,  L.      5 
Stellaria  aquatica,  Scop.      2-5 

—  nemorum,  L.      2 

—  media,  Vill.      1-5 

b.  neglecta,  Weihe.      2,  3 

—  umbrosa,  Opiz.      3 

—  Holostea,  L.      1-5 

—  palustris,  Ehrh.      3,  5 

—  graminea,  L.      1—5 

—  uliginosa,  Murr.      1-5 
Arenaria  verna,  L.      2 

—  tenuifolia,  L.   2 

—  trinervia,  L.      1-5 

—  serpyllifolia,  L.      l-J 

c.  leptoclados,  Guss.      3,  5 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Sagina  apetala,  L.     2-4 

—  ciliata,  Fries.     3,  5 

—  procumbens,  L.      1—5 

—  subulata,  Presl.      2,  3 

—  nodosa,  E.  Mey.     2-5 

Spergula  arvensis  a.  vulgaris,  Boenn.      I -5 

b.  saliva,  Boenn.      3,  5 
Spergularia  rubra,  Pers.      1—5 

—  salina,  Presl.     3 

PORTULACE* 
Montia  fontana,  L.,  a.  repens,  Pers.      1-5 

b.  rivularis,  Gmel.      3—5 
[Claytonia  perfoliata],  Donn.      3 
[ —  Sibirica],  L.      3 

ELATINE.S 
Elatine  Hydropiper,  L.     4 

HYPERICINEJE 
Hypericum  Androszmum,  L.      3-5 

-  perforatum,  L.      1-5 

b.  angustifolium,  Bab.      5 

-  quadrangulum,  L.      3-5 

-  tetrapterum,  Fries.      3-5 

-  humifusum,  L.      2-5 

-  pulchrum,  L.      1-5 

-  hirsutum,  L.      2-5 

-  montanum,  L.      3 

-  elodes,  Huds.      3,  5 

MALVACE./E 
Malva  moschata,  L.      2—5 

-  sylvestris,  L.      2-5 

-  rotundifolia,  L.      3-5 
[-  alcea.]      3 

TlLIACEJE 

[Tilia  vulgaris],  Hayne.      1-5 

-  parvifolia,  Ehrh.      3,  4 

LINE* 

Radiola  linoides,  Gmel.      3,  5 
Linum  catharticum,  L.      1-5 

-  perenne,  L.      3,  4 

-  angustifolium,  L.      3 

[ —  usitatissimum],  L.      1-5 

GERANIACE^E 
Geranium  sylvaticum,  L.      3 

-  pratense,  L.     2-5 

—  perenne,  Huds.      2,  5 
[—  Pheum.],  L.     5 

-  molle,  L.      1-5 

-  pusillum,  L.     3-5 

-  columbinum,  L.     2,  3,  5 

-  dissectum,  L.      I— 5 

-  Robertianum,  L.      1-5 

-  lucidum,  L.      2-4 

Erodium  cicutarium,  L'Herit.      2—5 

-  moschatum,  L'Herit.     4,  5 

-  maritimum,  L'Herit.      3,  5 
Oxalis  Acetosella,  L.     2-5 

forma  subpurpurascens,  DC.      I 
[Impatiens  parviflora],  DC.     5 

ILICINE* 
Ilex  Aquifolium,  L.      1-5 


EMPETRACEJE 
Empetrum  nigrum,  L.      1—3 

CELESTRINE/E 
Euonymus  europzus,  L.      1-5 

RHAMNE/E 
Rhamnus  catharticus,  L.      1—5 

—  Frangula,  L.      1-5 

SAPINDACE.S: 

Acer  campestre,  L.     2-5 
[ —  Pseudo-platanus],  L.      1-5 

LEGUMINOS.S 
Genista  tinctoria,  L.      2-5 

-  anglica,  L.      2,  3,  5 
Ulex  europaeus,  L.      1-5 

—  nanus,  Forst.     5 

—  Gallii,  Planch.     2-5 
Cytisus  scoparius,  Link.      1-5 
Ononis  spinosa,  L.     2—4 

-  repens,  L.     2,  3,  5 
[Medicago  sativa],  L.     2,  3,  5 

—  lupulina,  L.      1-5 

—  denticulata,  Willd.      5 
Melilotus  altissima,  Thuil.      2—4 

-  alba,  Desr.     3-5 

[ —  officinalis],  Desr.  3,  \ 

[ —  parviflora],  Lam.  5 

Tri folium  pratense,  L.  I-; 

-  arvense,  L.      2—5 

[ —  incarnatum],  L.      1,2 
• —  medium,  Huds.      1-5 

—  striatum,  L.      3,  4 
• —  repens,  L.      1-5 

[ —  hybridum],  L.      2,  3 

—  procumbens,  L.      1—5 

—  dubium,  Sibth.      1—5 

—  filiforme,  L.      3,  5 
Anthyllis  Vulneraria,  L.      2 
Lotus  corniculatus,  L.      I— 5 

-  tenuis,  Waldst  and  Kit.      2,  4,  5 

—  uliginosus,  Schk.      1—5 
Astragalus  glycyphyllos,  L.      3-5 
Ornithopus  perpusillus,  L.      2—5 
Hippocrepis  comosa,  L.     2 
Onobrychis  sativa,  Lamk.     4 
Vicia  tetrasperma,  Mcench.      2—4 

—  hirsuta,  Koch.      1—5 

—  Cracca,  L.      1—5 

-  sylvatica,  L.     2,  3,  5 

-  sepium,  L.      1-5 
[ —  sativa],  L.      2-4 

• —  angustifolia,  Roth.      1—5 

b.  Bobartii,  Forst.     3-5 

-  lathyroides,  L.     4,  5 
Lathyrus  Aphaca,  L.      5 

—  Nissolia,  L.      2-4 

—  pratensis,  L.      1—5 

—  sylvestris,  L.     3 

—  macrorrhizus,  Wimm.     2-5 

b.  tenuifolius  (Roth.).     2,  5 

ROSACES 
Prunus  communis,  Huds.      1—5 

—  insititia,  L.      3,  5 


BOTANY 


Primus  Avium,  L.      2-5 

—  Cerasus,  L.     4 

—  Padus,  L.      2-5 
Spiraea  Ulmaria,  L.      1-5 

-  Filipendula,  L.      2,  3 
[ —  salicifolia],  L.      3 
kubus  idasus,  L.      1-5 

—  fissus,  Lindl.      2,  3 

— •  suberectus,  Anders.      3,  5 

-  plicatus,  W.  &  N.      1-3 

-  hitidus,  W.  &  N.      3 

-  carpinifolius,  W.  &  N.      1-4 

-  incurvatus,  Bab.      3,  5 

—  Lindleianus,  Lees.      1-5 

-  erythrinus,  Genev.      3—5 

-  rhamnifolius,  W.  &  N.      2-5 

-    b.  Bakeri,  F.  A.  Lees.     3-5 

—  nemoralis,  P.  J.  Muell.      3 

b.  glabratus,  Bab.      3-5 

—  pulcherrimus,  Neum.      1-5 

—  Lindebergii,  P.  J.  Muell.      1-3,  5 

-  villicaulis,  Koehl.     2,  3,  5 

b.  Selmeri,  Lindeb.      I,  3-5 

c.  insularis,  F.  Aresch.      3 

d.  calvatus,  Blox.      1-5 

—  gratus,  Focke.      2 

—  argentatus,  P.  J.  Muell.      3 

b.  robustus,  P.  J.  Muell.      3 

—  rusticanus,  Merc.      1-5 

—  pubescens,  Weihe.      2,  3 

b.  subinermis,  Rogers.      5 

—  thyrsoideus,  Wimm.      5 

—  macrophyllus,  W.  &  N.      3-5 

b.  Schlectendalii,  Weihe.      3 
d.  amplificatus,  Lees.      2-5 

—  Sprengelii,  Weihe.      2-4 

—  micans,  Gren.  &  Godr.      3 

—  hirtifolius,  Muell  &  Wirt.      I,  3 

-  pyramidalis,  Kalt.      1-5 

—  leucostachys,  Schliech.      1-5 

—  Boraeanus,  Genev.     3—5 

—  curvidens,  A.  Ley.      3,  5 

—  mucronatus,  Blox.      2—5 

—  Gelertii  b.  crinigcr,  Linton.      2-5 

—  anglosaxonicus,  Gelert.      2-5 

b.  raduloides,  Rogers.      I 

—  infestus,  Weihe.      3—5 

—  Leyanus,  Rogers.      2—4 

—  radula,  Weihe.      1-5 

b.  anglicanus,  Rogers.      3—5 

-  podophyllus,  P.  J.  Muell.      1-3 

—  echinatus,  Lindl.      2-5 

—  oigoclados,  Muell  &  LefV.      3 

b.  Newbouldii,  Bab.      3—5 

c.  Bloxamianus,  Coleman.     4 

—  Babingtonii,  Bell  Salt.      3,  5 

—  Lejeunii  b.  ericetorum,  Lefv.      5 

—  Bloxamii,  Lees.     2—5 

—  scaber,  W.  &  N.      2-5 

-  foscus,  W.  &  N.     3 

b.  nutans,  Rogers.      3 

—  pallidus,  W.  &  N.     2,  5 

—  foliosus,  W.  &  N.     4,  5 

—  rosaceus,  W.  &  N.     2,  4,  5 

b.  hystrix,  W.  &  N.      1-5 

c.  sylvestris,  P.  J.  M.      3,  5 


Rubus  rosaceus,  W.  &  N. 

e.  infecundus,  Rogers.      2-5 

—  adornatus,  P.  J.  Muell.      3,  5 

—  Koehleri,  W.  &  N.     2,  3,  5 

c.  dasyphyllus,  Rogers.      1-5 

—  fusco-ater,  Weihe.     3,  5 

—  Bellardi,  W.  &  N.     2,  5 

b.  dentatus,  Bab.     4,  5 

—  serpens,  Weihe.      2 

-  hirtus,  W.  &  N.      5 

b.  rotundifolius.     4,  5 

c.  Kaltenbachii,  Metsch.      3 

—  tereticaulis  b.  minutiflorus.      5 

—  dumetorum,  W.  &  N.     3-5 

var  diversifolius,  Lindl.     2-5 
Tar.  tuberculatus,  Bab.     3-5 
var.  concinnus,  Warren.      2-5 
var.  fasciculatus,  P.J.M.     2-5 

—  corylifolius  var.  sublustris,  Sm.     2-j 

var.  cyclophyllus,  Linden.      3 

—  Balfourianus,  Blox.      2-5 

-  caesius,  L.      1—3,  5 

+  tenuis,  Bell  Salt.      2,  3,  5 

—  saxatilis,  L.      2 
Geum  urbanum,  L.      1—5 

—  rivale,  L.      2-5 

+  intermedium,  Ehrh.      4 
Fragaria  vesca,  L.      1-5 
Potentilla  Comarum,  Nestl.      2-5 

-  Tormentilla,  Scop.      1-5 

-  procumbens,  Sibth.      i,  5 

+  mixta,  Nalte.      3,  5 

-  reptans,  L.      1-5 

-  anserina,  L.      1-5 

-  Fragariastrum,  Ehrh.     1-5 

-  argentea,  L.     3,   5 
Alchemilla  arvensis,  Lamk.      1-5 

—  vulgaris,  L.      1  —  5 
Agnmonia  Eupatoria,  L.      I  — ? 

-  odorata,  Mill.      4 
Poterium  Sanguisorba,  L.      2—4 
[ —  muricata],  Spach.      3 

—  officinale,  Hook  fil.      2-5 
Rosa  spinosissima,  L.      2 

— •  Sabini,  Woods.      2 

-  rubiginosa,  L.      2-5 

-  micrantha,  Smith.     2,  4 

-  tomentosa,  Smith.      2-5 

b.  subglobosa,  Smith.      1—4 

d.  scabriuscula,  Smith.      2-5 

-  canina  a.  lutetiana,  Leman.      1-5 

c.  sphaerica,  Gren.      z 

d.  senticosa,  Ach.     2 

e.  dumalis,  Bech.      1-5 

f.  vinacea,  Bnkcr.     2 

g.  urbica,  Leman.      1-4 
h.  frondosa,  Steven.     1 ,  3 
i.  arvatica,  Baker.     2,  3 

j.  dumetorum,  Thuill.      i,  4 
k.  obtusifolium,  Desv.      3 
».  tomentilla,  Leman.      3—5 
p.  verticillacantha,  Merat.      1-5 
q.  collina,  Jacq.      3 
/.  cassia,  Smith.      3,  4 
v.  glauca,  Vill.      1-5 
vi.  subcristata,  Baker.      2-5 


53 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Rosa  canina 

X.  coriifolia,  Fr.      1-5 
y.  Watsoni,  Baker.      2,  3 
z.  Borreri,  Woods.     4 

—  arvensis,  Huds.      1—5 
Pyrus  communis,  L.      3,  4 

—  Malus  a.  acerba,  DC.      1-5 

b.  mitis,  Wallr.      I,  2,  5 

—  torminalis,  Ehrh.     2-5 

—  Aria,  Ehrh.      I,  2 

b.  rupicola,  Syme.      2 

c.  scandica,  Syme.      5 

-  Aucuparia,  Ehrh.      1-5 
Crataegus  Oxyacantha,  L.      2,  3,  5 

var.  laciniata,  Wallr.      2 
var.  monogyna,  Jacq.      1-5 

SAXIFRAGES 
Saxifraga  umbrosa,  L.      2 

—  tridactylites,  L.      2-5 

—  granulata,  L.     1-5 

-  hypnoides,  L.      2 
Chrysosplcnium  alternifolium,  L.      2-4 

-  oppositifolium,  L.      1-5 
Parnassia  palustris,  L.      2-5 
[Ribes  Grossularia],   L.      2-5 

—  alpinum,  L.      2,  3 

—  rubrum,  L.      4,  5 

—  nigrum,  L.      3,  4 

CRASSULACE.S 

Cotyledon  Umbillicus,  L.      1,2 
Sedum  Telephium,  L.      2-4 

—  album,  L.     3 

—  acre,  L.      2-4 

[ —  reflexum],  L.      1-4 
[Sempervivum  tectorum],  L.      3 

DROSERACEJE 
Droscra  rotundifolia,  L.      I,  3-5 

—  intermedia,  Hayne.      2,  3,  5 

HALORACE/E 

Hippuris  vulgaris,  L.      4,  5 
Myriophyllum  verticillatum,  L.      4,  5 

—  alterniflorum,  DC.      3-5 
-  spicatum,  L.      2,  3,  5 

Callitriche  platycarpa,  Kuetz.      1-5 

—  hamulata,  Kuetz.      2,  3 

—  obtusangula,  Leg.      3 

LYTHRARIE.S; 
Lythrum  Salic.iria,  L.      2-5 

—  hyssopifolia  (?),  L.      3 
Peplis  Portula,  L.      2,  3 

ONAGRARIEJE 
Epilobium  angustifolium,  L.      2-5 

—  hirsutum,  L.      1-5 

—  parviflorum,  Schreb.      1-5 

—  montanum,  L.      1-5 

—  roseum,  Schreb.      2,  3 

f.  roseum  obscurum.      3 

—  obscurum,  Schreb.      2,  3 

—  tetragonum,  L.     3,  5 

—  palustre,  L.     3-5 
[CEnothera  biennis],  L.     3 


Circaja  lutettana,  L.      2—5 

—  intermedia,  L.  C.      2 

—  alpina,  L.      I,  2 

CUCUBITACEJE 

Bryonia  dioica,  L.      3—5 

UMBELLIFER.S 

Hydrocotyle  vulgaris,  L.      1-5 
Sanicula  europasa,  L.      2-5 
Conium  maculatum,  L.      1-5 
[Smyrnium  Olusatrum],  L.     3 
Apium  graveolens,  L.      2,  3 

—  nodiflorum,  Reichb.      1-5 

b.  repens,  Hook  fil.      3,  4 

—  inundatum,  Reichb.     2,  3,  5 
Cicuta  virosa,  L.      3,  4 

[Carum  Petroselinum],  B.  &  H.      2 

—  segetum,  B.  &  H.      2,  3 
[—  Carui],  L.     3,  5 
Sison  Amomum,  L.     4 
Sium  angustifolium,  L.      2—5 
jEgopodium  Podagraria,  L.      1-5 
Pimpinella  Saxifraga,  L.      2—5 

—  magna,  Huds.      2-5 
Conopodium  denudatum,  Koch.      1-5 
Myrrhis  odorata,  Scop.      1—4 
Chasrophyllum  temulum,  L.      1-5 
Scandix  Pecten-Veneris,  L.      1-5 
Anthriscus  vulgaris,  Pers.      3,  4 

—  sylvestris,  Hoffm.      1-5 
CEnanthe  fistulosa,  L.      2—5 

—  crocata,  L.      3,   5 

—  Phellandrium,  Lam.      2,  4,  5 
./Ethusa  Cynapium,  L.      1-5 
Silaus  pratensis,  Bess.      2—5 
Angelica  sylvestris,  L.      1-5 
[Archangelica  officinalis],  Hoff.      3 
[Peucedanum  Ostruthium],  Koch.      2,  3 

-  sativum,  Benth.      2-5 
Heracleum  Sphondylium,  L.      1-5 
Daucus  Carota,  L.      1-5 
Caucalis  Anthriscus,  Huds.      1-5 

-  arvensis,  Huds.      2-5 

—  nodosa,  Scop.      2,  5 

ARALIACE.S 

Hedera  Helix,  L.      1-5 
CORNACEJE 

Cornus  sanguinea,  L.      2-5 
CAPRIFOLIACE./E 
Viburnum  Opulus,  L.      1-5 
Sambucus  Ebulus,  L.      2,  3 

—  nigra,  L.      1-5 

Adoxa  Moschatellina,  L.      1-5 
Lonicera  Periclymenum,  L.      1—5 
[ —  xylosteum],  L.      3,  5 

RUBIACEJE 
Galium  verum,  L.     1-5 

—  cruciata,  Scop.      1-5 

—  palustre,  L.      1—5 

b.  elongatum,  Presl.      2,  5 

c.  Witheringii,  Sm.      3,  5 

—  uliginosum,  L.      5 

—  saxatile,  L.      1-5  • 


51 


BOTANY 


Galium  sylvestre,  Poll.     2 

—  Mollugo,  L.     2,  3,  5 

—  erectum,  Huds.      3 

—  Aparine,  L.      1-5 
Asperula  odorata,  L.      2-5 
Sherardia  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

VALERIANE.S 
Valeriana  dioica,  L.      1-5 

—  Mikani,  Syme.      2 

—  sambucifolia,  Willd.      2-5 
[ —  pyrenaica],  L.      2 
[Centranthus  ruber],  DC.     2 
Valerianella  olitoria,  Poll.      2-4 

—  dentata,  Poll.     2-4 

b.  mixta,  Dufr.      2,  3 

—  eriocarpa,  Desv.      2,  3 

DIPSACE;E 
Dipsacus  sylvestris,  L.      2-5 

—  pilosus,  L.     2-5 
Scabiosa  succisa,  L.      3,  5 

—  Columbaria,  L.      2 

—  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

COMPOSITE 

Eupatorium  cannabinum,  L.      1-5 
Aster  Tripolium,  L.      3,  4 
Erigeron  acre,  L.      2,  3,  5 
[ —  canadense],  L.      3 
Bellis  perennis,  L.      1-5 
Solidago  Virgaurea,  L.      z,  3,  ; 
Inula  Conyza,  DC.      5 

—  Helenium,  L.      I,  ; 
Pulicaria  dysenterica,  Gaert.      i  -  5 
Gnaphalium  sylvaticum,  L.      3,  5 

—  uliginosum,  L.      1—5 
Antennaria  dioic.i,  Br.      2 
[ —  margaritacea],  Br.      2 
Filago  germanica,  L.      1-5 

—  minima,  Fr.     2,  3,  5 
Bidens  cernua,  L.     2-5 

b.  radiata,  Sond.     4 

—  tripartita,  L.      2,  3,  5 
Anthemis  arvensis,  L.      2-5 

—  Cotula,  L.      1-5 

—  nobilis,  L.      3~5 
Achillea  Ptarmica,  L.      3-5 

—  Millefolium,  L.      1-5 
Matricaria  Chamomilla,  L.      2-5 

—  inodora,  L.      1-5 
Chrysanthemum  segetum,  L.      1,3 

—  Leucanthemum,  L.      1—5 

[ —  Parthenium],  Pers.      2,  3,  5 
Tanacetum  vulgare,  L.      2-5 
Artemisia  vulgaris,  L.      1-5 

b.  coarctata  (Forcell).      3-5 

—  Absinthium,  L.     4,  5 
Petasites  vulgaris,  Desf.      1-5 
[ —  alba],  Gaert.      2 
Tussilago  Farfara,  L.      1-5 
Doronicum  Pardalianches,  L.      2 
Senecio  vulgaris,  L.      1-5 

—  sylvaticus,  L.     2-5 

—  Jacobaea,  L.      1-5 

—  erucifolius,  L.      1-5 


Senecio  aquaticus,  Huds.      1-5 
[ —  saracenicus],  L.      3 
Arctium  majus,  Schk.     3,  5 

—  nemorosum,  Lej.     2-5 

—  minus,  Schk.      1-5 

—  intermedium,  Lange.      3,  5 
Carlina  vulgaris,  L.     2—5 
Centauria  nigra,  L.      1-5 

—  Scabiosa,  L.     2-5 

—  Cyanus,  L.      1-4 
Serratula  tinctoria,  L.      2,  3,  5 
Carduus  nutans,  L.      2-5 

—  crispus,  L.      2-5 

Cnicus  lanceolatus,  Willd.      1-5 

—  eriophorus,  Roth.      3,  5 

—  arvensis,  Hoffm.      1-5 

—  palustris,  Willd.      1-5 

—  pratensis,  Willd.     2—5 

- — -  heterophyllus,  Willd.     2 
Onopordon  Acanthium,  L.      5 
[Sylybum  Marianum],  Gaert.      2,  3 
Cichorium  Intybus,  L.     3,  4 
Lapsana  communis,  L.      1  —  5 
Picris  hieracioides,  L.      2,  3,  5 
Crepis  virens,  L.      1-5 

—  paludosa,  Moench.      i,  2,  4 
Hieracium  Pilosella,  L.      1-5 

-  anglicum,  Fries.      2 

—  murorum,  L.      2,  5 

-  sylvaticum,  Sm.      i,  3-5 

—  maculatum,  Sm.      4 

-  sciaphilum,  Uechtr.      \ . 

-  tridentatum,  Fr.      3,  5 

-  umbellatum,  L.      1,3,5 

-  boreale,  Fr.      1-5 
Hypochxris  glabra,  L.      3 

-  radicata,  L.      1-5 
Leontodon  hirtus,  L.     2,  3,  5 

-  hispidus,  L.      1-5 

—  autumnalis,  L.      1—5 
Taraxacum  officinalc,  Web.      1-5 

b.  erythrospermum  (Andrz.).      2,  3,  5 

c.  palustre  (DC.).      2,  3,  5 

d.  udum  (Jord.).      3 
Lactuca  virosa,  L.      2,3 

—  muralis,  Fresen.      1-5 
Sonchus  oleraceus,  L.      1-5 

-  asper,  Hoffm.      1-5 

-  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

-  palustris,  L.      4  (?) 
Tragopogon  pratense,  L.      2-5 

b.  minus  (Mill.).      1-5 
[ —  porrifolium],  L.     2,  3,  5 

CAMPANULACE^ 

Jasione  montana,  L.      1-5 
Wahlenbergia  hederacea,  Reich.      3 
Campanula  rotundifolia,  L.      1-5 

b.  lancifolia  (Mert.  &  Kit.).      3 

—  Rapunculus,  L.      3,  J 

-  patula,  L.     3,  5 

-  latifolia,  L.     2-4 

b.  flore-alba  (Auct.).      3 
[ —  Rapunculoides],  L.     3 

—  Trachelium,  L.     2,  3,  5 
Specularia  hybrida,  DC.     4,  5 


55 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


ERICACEJE 
Vaccinium  Myrtillus,  L.      2,  4,  5 

—  intermedia  (Ruthe).     3,  4 

—  Vitis-Idaea,  L.      1-5 

—  occycoccus,  L.      1-5 
Andromeda  polifolia,  L.      I,  3,  4 
Erica  Tetralix,  L.     1-5 

—  cinerea,  L.      1—5 
Calluna  vulgaris,  Salisb.      1-5 

b.  incana  (Auct.).      3,  4 
Pyrola  minor,  Sw.     2 

—  media,  Sw.      5 

-  rotundifolia,  (?)   L.     2-4 

MONOTROPE.S 
Hypopithys  monotropa,  Crantz.      5 

PRIMULACEJE 

Primula  vulgaris,  Huds.      1-5 

b.  caulescens  (Auct.).      2,  3,  5 

—  veris,  L.      1-5 
Lysimachia  vulgaris,  L.      2,  3,  5 

-  nemorum,  L.      2-5 

-  Nummularia,  L.      2-5 
Glaux  maritima,  L.      3,4 
Centunculus  minimus,  L.      3 
Anagalis  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

—  cerulea,  Schreb.      3 

-  tenella,  L.      3-5 
Hottonia  palustris,  L.      3,  5 
Samolus  Valerandi,  L.      5 

OLEACEJE 

Ligustrum  vulgare,  L.      2-4 
Fraxinus  excelsior,  L.      1-5 

APOCYNACE.* 
Vinca  minor,  L.      1-5 
[—  major],  L.      3,  5 

GENTIANE.S 

Chlora  perfoliata,  L.      2-5 
Erythnea  Centaurium,  Pers.      1-5 
Gentiana  Amarella,  L.      2,  5 

—  campestris,  L.      3 
Menyanthes  trifoliata,  L.      1-5 

PoLEMONIACE.'E 

Polemonium  ceruleum,  L.      2,  3,  5 

BORACINJUB 

Echium  vulgare,  L.      3-5 
[Borago  officinalis],  L.      2,  3 
Symphytum  officinale,  L. 

b.  patens  (Sibth.).      I 

—  tuberosum,  L.      2,  3 
Anchusa  arvensis,  Bieb.      3-5 
[ —  sempervirens],  L.      3 
Lithospermum  officinale,  L.     2,  3,  5 

-  arvense,  L.      2-5 
[Pulmonaria  officinalis],  L.      3 
Myosotis  palustris,  Relh.      3—5 

b.  strigulosa  (Mert.  &  Koch).      I, 

—  repens,  G.  Don.      1-4 

-  csespitosa,  Schultz.     2-5 

—  sylvatica,  Hoffrn.      2-4 

-  arvensis,  Lam.      1-5 

b,  umbrosa  (Bab.).      2-5 

—  collina,  Hoffm.     2,  3,  5 


Myosotis  versicolor,  Reich.      1-3 
Cynoglossum  officinale,  L.      1-3,  5 

CONVOLVULACE.K 
Convolrulus  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

—  sepium,  L.      1-5 
Cuscuta  europara,  L.      3 
[—  Trifolii],  Bab.     3 

SOLANACE^E 

Hyoscyamus  niger,  L.      2—4 
Solanum  Dulcamara,  L.      1-5 

—  nigrum,  L.     3,  5 
Atropa  Belladonna,  L.      2-5 
[Datura  Stramonium],  L.     3 

PLANTAGINE.S: 
Plantago  major,  L.      1-5 

b.  intermedia,  Gilib.      3 
•  —  •  media,  L.      2-5 

—  lanceolata,  L.      1—5 

b.  Timbali,  Jord.      3 

-  Coronopus,  L.     2,  3,  5 
Littorella  lacustris,  L.      2-4 

SCROPHULARINE./E 
Verbascum  Thapsus,  L.      2-5 

—  Lychnites,  L.      5 

—  nigrum,  L.      3,  5 

—  Blattaria,  L.      3,  5 
[Linaria  Cymbalaria],  Mill.      1-5 

—  vulgaris,  Mill.      1-5 

—  repens,  Mill.      3 

—  minor,  Desf.      3,  5 
Antirrhinum  Orontium,  L.     3 
[  —  majus],  L.      3 
Scrophularia  nodosa,  L.      1-5 

-  aquatica,  L.      1-5 

—  umbrosa,  Dum.      5  (r) 
[Mimulus  luteus],  L.      2,  3 
Limosella  aquatica,  L.  2-5 
Digitalis  purpurca,  L.      2-5 
Veronica  agrestis,  L.      1-5 

-  polita,  Fr.     2,  3 

-  Buxbaumii,  Ten.     2-5 

-  hederasfblia,  L.      1-5 

-  arvensis,  L.      1-5 

—  serpyllifolia,  L.      1—5 

•  —  officinalis,  L.      1-5 

—  Chamzdrys,  L.      1-5 

—  montana,  L.     2-5 

-  scutellata,  L.      2-5 

-  Beccabunga,  L.      1-5 

-  Anagallis,  L.      3-5 

Bartsia  Odontites  a.  verna,  Reich. 
b.  serotina,  Reich.      2,  3,  5 
Euphrasia  officinalis,  L.      1-5 
Rhinanthus  Crista-galli,  L.      1-5 

—  major,  Ehrh.      2,  4 
Pedicularis  palustris,  L.      2-5 

—  sylvatica,  L.      1—3,  5 
Melampyrum  pratense,  L.      3-5 
Lathrxa  squamaria,  L.      2,  3,  5 

OROBANCHEJE 
Orobanche  major,  L.      i,  2,  4,  5 

—  elatior,  Sutt.     2 


3-5 


BOTANY 


LENTIBULARINEJE 
Pinguicula  vulgaris,  L.  2—5 
Utricularia  vulgaris,  L.  1-3,  5 

—  neglecta,  Lehm.      5 

—  minor,  L.      I,  3 

VERBENACE.S 
Verbena  officinalis,  L.      2—4 

LABIATJE 

Mentha  sylvestris,  L.      2,  3 
[ —  viridis],  L.      1,3 

—  piperita,  Huds.      2,  3,  5 

—  hirsuta,  L.      1-5 

b.  citrita,  Ehrh.      3 
• —  sativa,  L.      2—5 

—  rubra,  Sm.     2,  5 

-  arvensis,  L.      2—5 

-  Pulegium,  L.      1,5 
Lycopus  europsus,  L.      1-5 
Origanum  vulgare,  L.      I,  2 
Thymus  Serpyllum,  L.      1-5 
Calamintha  officinalis,  Moench.      1-4 

—  Clinopodium,  Spenn.      2-5 

—  Acinos,  Claire.      2-5 

var.  flore-albo  (Auct.).      2,  5 
Salvia  Verbenaca,  L.     2,  5 
Nepeta  Cataria,  L.      1-4 

—  Glechoma,  Benth.      1-5 
Prunella  vulgaris,  L.      1-5 
Scutellaria  galericulata,  L.      1-5 

—  minor,  L.      3,  5 
Stachys  sylvatica,  L.      1—5 

—  palustris,  L.      1-5 

var.  ambigua  (Sm.).      z      , 

—  arvensis,  L.      2—4 

-  Betonica,  Benth.      1-4 
[ —  annua]  (L.).      2 
Galeopsis  Ladanum,  L.      2-5 

-  Tetrahit,  L.      1-5 

—  speciosa,  Mill.      2-5 
[Marrubium  vulgare],  L.      3 
[Leonorus  Cardiaca],  L.      3,  5 
Lamium  purpureum,  L.      1-5 

-  hybridum,  Vill.      3,  4 

-  amplexicaule,  L.      i,  3-5 

—  album,  L.      1—5 

[ —  maculatum],  L.      i,  3 

—  Galeobdolon,  Crantz.      1-4 
Ballota  nigra,  L.      2-5 

b.  alba  (Lam.).      3 
Teucrium  Scorodonia,  L.      1-5 
Ajuga  reptans,  L.      1-5 

ILLECEBRACEJE 

Illecebrum  verticillatum,  L.      3 
Scleranthus  annuus,  L.      1-5 

CHENOPODIACE.S; 
Chenopodium  Vulvafia,  L.      3 

—  polyspermum,  L.      2,  4 

-  album,  L.      1-5 

—  ficifolium,  Sm.      3 

-  urbicum,  L.     3,  5 

—  rubrum,  L.      5 

—  Bonus-Henricus,  L.      2—5 
Atriplex  patula,  L.      1-5 

b.  angustifolia,  Sm.      3 


57 


Atriplex  hastata,  L.      i,  3 

POLYGONACEJE 

Polygonum  Bistorta,  L.     2-4 

—  amphibium,  L.     2—5 

—  lapathifolium,  L.      1-5 

b.  maculatum,  Dyer.     3 

—  Persicaria,  L.      1-5 

—  mite,  Schrank.      3 

—  Hydropiper,  L.      1-5 

—  minus,  Huds.     3 

—  aviculare,  L.      1-5 

var.  arenastrum,  Bor.     3,  4 

—  Convolvulus,  L.      1-5 
Kumex  obtusifolius,  L.      1-5 

—  acutus,  L.      2 

• —  pulcher,  L.      3,  4 

—  maritimus,  L.      3-5 
• —  palustris,  Sm.      3,  4 

—  crispus,  L.      1-5 

—  sanguineus,  L.      2 

—  conglomerate,  Mur.      1-5 

—  Hydrolapathum,  Huds.      1-5 
[ —  alpinus],  L.      2 

—  Acetosa,  L       1-5 

—  Acetosella,  L.      1-5 

THYMEL^EACEJE 
D.iphne  Laureola,  L.      2-5 

—  Mezereum,  L.      2-4 

LORANTHACE./E 
Viscum  album,  L.      2,  3,  5 

EUPHORBIACEJE 
Euphorbia  Helioscopia,  L.      1-5 

—  amygdaloides,  L.      2-5 

-  Peplus,  L.      1-5 

-  exigua,  L.      1-5 

[ —   Cyparissias],  L.      5 

-  Lathyris,  L.      5 
Buxus  sempervirens,  L.      l 
Mercurialis  perennis,  L.      1-5 

URTICACE./E 
Ulmus  montana,  Sm.      1—5 

-  campestris,  Sm.      1-5 
Urtica  urens,  L.      1-5 

-  dioica,  L.      1-5 
P.irietaria  officinalis,  L.      i-r 
Humulus  Lupulus,  L.     2-5 

MYRICACE.S 
Myrica  Gale,  L.      1,5 

CUPULIFER^ 
Betula  alba,  L.     1-3,  5 

—  glutinosa,  Fries,      i,  3,  4 
Alnus  glutinosa,  Ga;rt.      1-5 
Quercus  Robur,  L.      1-5 

-  sessiliflora,  i,  3—5 
Fagus  sylvatica,  L.      1-5 
Corylus  Avellana,  L.      1-5 
Carpinus  Betulus,  L.      2-f 

SALICINE.S 
Populus  alba,  L.      i,  3-5 

—  canescens,  Sm.      3-5 

—  tremula,  L.      1—5 

—  nigra,  L.      2-5 

8 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Salix  triandra.     3,  4 

—  amygdalina,  L.     4 

—  Hoffmanniana,  Sm.      3,  4 

—  undulata,  Ehrh.     3,  5 

—  pentandra,  L.      1-4 

—  fragilis,  L.     2-5 

b.  brittanica,  F.  B.  White,      i,  5 

—  alba,  L.      1-5 

b.  caerulea,  Sm.      3 

c.  vitellina,  L.      1,3 

—  Caprea,  L.     1—5 

—  cinerea,  L.      1—5 

-  aurita,  L.      1-5 

-  repens,  L.     2,  5 

—  laurina,  Sm.      5 

—  viminalis,  L.      1—5 

—  Smithiana,  Willd.      1-5 

—  purpurea,  L.      1—3 

—  rubra,  Huds.      4 

—  Lambertiana,  Sm.      5 

CERATOPHYLLE^E 
Ceratophyllum  demersum,  L.      3-5 

CONIFERS 

Pinus  sylvestris,  L.      1-3 
Juniperus  communis,  L.      I 
Taxus  baccata,  L.      2-4 

HYDROCHARIDE.K 

Hydrocharis  Morsus-Ranx,  L.      1,5 
Stratiotes  aloides,  L.      I 
[Elodea  canadensis],  Michx.      1-5 

ORCHIDEJE 

Neottia  Nidus-avis,  L.      2,  4 
Listera  ovata,  Br.      2-5 
Spiranthes  autumnalis,  Rich.      5 
Epipactis  latifolia,  Sw.      2-5 

—  palustris,  Sw.      I,  3,  4 
Cephalanthera  ensifolia,  Rich.      4 
Orchis  mascula,  L.      1-3 

-  latifolia,  L.      2-5 
— .  maculata,  L.      1-5 

-  Morio,  L.     2,  3,  5 

—  ustulata,  L.      5 

—  pyramidalis,  L.      2,  3 
Ophrys  apifera,  Huds.      3,  5 
Habenaria  conopsea,  Benth.      2,  3,  5 

—  viridis,  Br.      1-5 

—  albida,  Br.      5 

—  bifolia,  Br.      2,  3,  5 

—  chlorantha,  Bab.      1-3 

IRIDEJE 

[Crocus  vernus],  All.      3 
[ —  nudiflorus],  Sm.      2,  3 
Iris  pseud-acorus,  L.      I,  3-5 

AMARYLLIDEJE 

Narcissus  Pseudo-narcissus,  L.      1-5 
[ —  biflorus],  Curt.      3 
[ —  poeticus],  L.     3 
Galanthus  nivalis,  L.     2-4 

DIOSCORE.K 
Tamus  communis,  L.      1-5 


LlLIACEJE 

Convallaria  majalis,  L.     2,  3 
Polygonatum  multiflorum,  All.      2,  3 
Allium  vineale,  L.     2 

—  oleraceum,  L.      2,  3 

—  ursinum,  L.      1—5 
Scilla  autumnalis,  L.      3 

—  nutans,  Sm.      1—5 
Fritillaria  Meleagris,  L.      2,  3,  5 
Tulipa  sylvestris,  L.      3 
Colchicum  autumnale,  L.      3>  5 
Narthecium  ossifragum,  Huds.      2,  3,  5 
Paris  quadrifolia,  L.     2-5 

JUNCACE./E 

Juncus  effusus,  L.      1-5 

—  conglomerate,  L.      1-5 

—  glaucus,  Ehrh.      1—5 

—  squarrosus,  L.      I,  3,  4 

—  compressus,  Jacq.      3,  4 

—  Gerardi,  Loisel.      3 

—  obtusiflorus,  Ehrh.     3 

—  acutiflorus,  Ehrh.      1-5 

—  supinus,  L.     Moench.      1-5 

—  lamprocarpus,  Ehrh.      1-5 

—  bufonius,  L.      1—5 
Luzula  maxima,  DC.      1-5 

—  vernalis,  DC.      1—5 

—  campestris,  Willd.      1-5 

—  erecta,  Desv.     2,  3 

b.  congesta,  Koch.      I,  5 

TYPHACE* 
Sparganium  ramosum,  Huds.      1-5 

—  simplex,  Huds.      1-5 

—  neglectum,  Beeby.      1-5 

—  affine,  Sch.     4,  5 

—  minimum,  Fries.      3,  5 
Typha  latifolia,  L.      1-5 

—  angustifolia,  L.      1-5 

AROIDE^E 

Arum  maculatum,  L.      1-5 
Acorus  Calamus,  L.      I,  3,  4 

LEMNACE^E 
Lemna  minor,  L.      1-5 

—  trisulca,  L.      2-5 

—  gibba,  L.     3-5 

—  polyrrhiza,  L.     3-5 

ALISMACEJE 

Alisma  Plantago,  L.      1-5 

b.  lanceolatum,  With.      3-5 

—  ranunculoides,  L.      3-5 
Sagittaria  sagittifolia,  L.      2-5 
Butomus  umbellatus,  L.      3-5 

NAIADACEJE 
Triglochin  palustre,  L.     2-5 

—  maritimum,  L.      3 
Potamogeton  natans,  L.      1,3-5 

—  polygonifolius,  Power.      2-4 

—  rufescens,  Schrad.      I,  3,  5 

—  heterophyllus,  Schreb.      3 

—  lucens,  L.      1-5 

—  praelongus,  Wulf.      J,  4 


BOTANY 


Potamogeton  perfoliatus,  L.      3—5 

—  crispus,  L.      1—5 

—  densus,  L.      2 

—  zosterifolius,  Schum.      3,  4 

—  obtusifolius,  Mert.  &  Koch.      3 

—  pusillus,  L.      2-5 

—  Friesii,  Rupr.      3 

—  trichodes,  Cham.     5 

—  pectinatus,  L.      1—5 

—  flabellatus,  Bab.      3-5 
Zannichellia  palustris,  L.      3-5 

CYPERACE^E 

Eleocharis   acicularis,  Sm.      3 

—  palustris,  Sm.      1-5 

—  multicaulis,  Sm.     3,  4 
Scirpus  lacustris,  L.      I-; 

—  Tabernaemontani,  Gmel.      3,  5 

—  maritimus,  L.     3,  4 

—  sylvaticus,  L.     2,  3,  5 

—  setaceus,  L.      1-5 

—  fluitans,  L.      I,  3,  5 

—  casspitosus,  L.      1,3 

—  pauciflorus,  Lightf.      3 
Eriophorum  vaginatum,  L.      1-4 

—  angustifolium,  Roth,      i-t 
Rhynchospora  alba,  Vahl.      I,  3 
Schoenus  nigricans,  L.      3,5 
Cladium  Mariscus,  Br.      3,  4 
Carex  dioica,  L.      3,  4 

—  pulicaris,  L.      3,  5 

—  disticha,  Huds.      3-5 

—  paniculata,  L.      1-5 

—  teretiuscula,  Good.     5 

—  muricata,  L.     3-5 

—  divulsa,  Good.     2,  3 

—  vulpina,  L.      1-5 

-  echinata,  Murr.     1-5 

—  remota,  L.      1-5 

—  leporina,  L.      1-5 

—  canescens,  L.      2-5 

—  acuta,  L.     3—5 

—  stricta,  Good.      3,  5 

—  Goodenovii,  Gay.      1-5 

—  limosa,  Schreb.     4(.')>  5  (.") 

—  glauca,  Schreb.      1-5 

—  pallescens,  L.      i,  3,  5 

—  panicea,  L.      1-5 

—  pendula,  Huds.      1-4 

-  praecox,  Jacq.      I,  3,  4 

—  pilulifera,  L.      1-5 

—  him,  L.      1-5 

—  flava,  L.      1-5 

b.  lepidocarpa,  Tausch.      3,  4 

—  distans,  L.     4,  5 

—  fulva,  Good,      i,  4 

—  binervis,  Sm.      1—5 

—  laevigata,  Sm.      3 

—  sylvatica,  Huds.      2,  3,  5 

—  strigosa,  Huds.     2,  3,  5 

—  vesicaria,  L.      1-5 

—  ampullacea,  Good.      1-5 

—  Pseudo-cyperus,  L.      1-5 

—  paludosa,  Good.      2-5 

—  riparia,  Curt.      2—5 


Guifnui 

Setaria  viridis,  Beauv.      3 
[Phalaris  canariensis],  L.      3,  5 

—  arundinacea,  L.      1-5 
Anthoxanthum  odor.itum,  L.      1-5 
[ —  Puelii],  Lecoq.      3-5 
Alopecurus  agrestis,  L.      3,  4 

—  pratensis,  L.      1-5 

—  geniculatus,  L.      1—5 

—  fulvus,  Sm.      3 
Milium  effusum,  L.     2-5 
Phleum  pratense,  L.      1-5 
Agrostis  canina,  L.      2-5 

—  vulgaris,  With.      1-5 

b.  pumila,  L.      3 

—  nigra,  With.      3-5 

—  alba,  L.     2-5 

b.  stolonifera,  L.      5 
Calamagrostis  Epigejos,  Roth.      3-5 

—  lanceolata,  Roth.     3-5 
Aira  caryophyllea,  L.      i,   3-5 

—  praxox,  L.      1,3-5 
Deschampsia  flexuosa,  Trin.      1-5 

—  caespitosa,  Beauv.      1-5 
Holcus  lanatus,  L.      1-5 

—  mollis,  L.     2-5 

Trisetum  flavescens,  Beauv.      1-5 

Avena  fatua,  L.      3 

[ —  strigosa],  Schreb.      3 

—  pratensis.      2,  3 

—  pubescens,  Huds.      1-5 
Arrhenatherum  avenaceum,   Beauv.      I 
Triodia  decumbens,  Beauv.      1-5 
Phragmites  communis,  Trin.      1,3-5 
Cynosurus  cristatus,  L.      1-5 
Kochleria  cristata,  Pers.      z 
Molinia  cscrulea,  Mcench.      i -.;. 
Catabrosa  aquatica,   Beauv.      2—5 
Melica  nutans,  L.      2 

—  uniflora,  Retz.      1-5 
Dactylis  glomerata,  L.      1-5 
Briza  media,  L.      2-5 

Poa  annua,  L.      1-5 

—  pratensis,  L.      1-5 

b.  subcerulea,  Sm.      3,  4 

—  compressa,  L.      3 

—  trivialis,  L.      1-5 

—  nemoralis,  L.      1—4 
Glyceria  aquatica,  Sm.      1-5 

—  fluitans,  Br.      1-5 

b.  plicata,  Fr.      2-4 

c.  pedicellata,  Towns.      2,3,5 
Festuca  elatior,  L.      3,  5 

—  pratensis,  Huds.      3 

—  gigantea,  Vill.      1-5 

—  sylvatica,  Vill.      5  (?) 

—  ovina,  L.     2—5 

—  duriuscula,  L.      3 

—  rubra,  L.      i,  3 

—  myuros,  L.      5 

—  sciuroides,  Roth.      1-5 

—  rigida,  Kth.      2,  3 
Bromus  asper,  Murr.      1-5 

—  sterilis,  L.      1-5 

—  mollis,  L.      1-5 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Bromus  racemosus,  L.     2,  3 

—  secalinus,  L.     3 

—  commutatus,  Schreb.      z,  3,  ; 
Brachypodium  sylvaticum,  R.  &  S.      1-5 

—  pinnatum,  Beauv.     3 
L.olium  perenne,  L.      1—5 

b.  italicum,  Br.      3 
Agropyrum  caninura,  Beauv.      3-5 

-  repens,  Beauv.      1-5 
Nardus  stricta,  L.      1—5 
Hordeum  pratense,  Huds.      2-4 

—  murinum,  L.      1—4 

FILICES 

Hymenophyllum  unilaterale,  Willd.      l 
Pteris  aquilina,  L.      1—5 
Lomaria  Spicant,  Desv.      I,  3—5 
Asplenium  Ruta-muraria,  L.      2-5 

-  Trichomanes,  L.      1-4 

—  viride,  Huds.      2 

—  Adiantum-nigrum,  L.      1,2 

—  filix-foemina,  Bernh.      1-5 

b.  rhaeticum,  Roth.      2-5 

—  Ceterach,  L.      2,  5 
Scolopendnum  vulgare,  Sm.      3,  4 
Cystopteris  fragilis,  Bernh.      2,  3 
Aspidium  aculeatum,  Sw.      2-5 

-  lobatum,  Sw.      2—4 

-  angul.ire,   Willd.      2,  4,  5 
Nephrodium  Filix-mas.      1-5 

b.  affinis,  Fisch.      2-4 

c.  Borreri,  Newm.      2,  3,  5 

—  cristata,  Rich.      3,  4 

b.  uliginosum,  Newnm. 

-  spinulosum,  Desv.      2-5 

—  dilatatum,  Desv.      2-5 


Nephrodium  Thelypteris,  Desv.      3,  5 

—  Oreopteris,  Desv.     2,  3,  5 
Polypodium  vulgare,  L.      1-5 

—  Phegopteris,  L.      3 

—  Dryopteris,  L.      2,  3,  5 

—  Robertianum,  Hoffm.     2 
Osmunda  regalis,  L.      I,  3,  5 
Ophioglossum  vulgatum,  L.      2—5 
Botrychium  Lunaria,  Sw.      1-3,  5 

EQUISETACE./E 
Equisetum  arvense,  L. 

—  maximum,  Lam.     2,  3,  e 

—  sylvaticum,  L.      2-4 

—  palustre,  L.      1-5 

b.  nudum,  NeWm.      3,  4 
• —  limosum,  L.     2-4 

b.  fluviatile,  L.      2-4 

—  variegatum,  Schliech.      2,  3,  5 

LYCOPODIACE/E 
Lycopodium  clavatum.      1-4 

-  inundatum.      2,  3,  5 

-  Selago,  L.      I,  3,  5 

MARSILEACE.* 
Pilularia  globulifera,  L.      1,4,  5 

CHARACE.S 
Chara  fragilis,  Desv.      3—5 

d.  Hedwigii,  Kuetz.      3 

-  hispida,  L.      I,  3,  5 

-  vulgaris,  L.      2,   3,  5 
Nitella  translucens,  Agard.      3,  4 

-  flexilis,  Agard.      3,  5 

—  opaca,  Agard.      3 


THE    MOSSES  (Musci) 

Although  a  considerable  area  of  Staffordshire  is  thickly  populated 
and  has  the  contaminated  neighbourhood  of  busy  centres  of  industry, 
there  are  still  large  stretches  of  undulating  moorland,  usually  watered 
by  streams  liable  to  flooding,  with  marshy  and  boggy  surroundings  favour- 
able to  a  rich  growth  of  mosses  and  their  moisture  loving  allies  the 
hepatics.  Such  is  Sherbrook  Valley,  and  there  are  many  similar  valleys 
north  of  Cannock  where  are  found  many  of  the  rarer  sphagnums,  such 
as  Sphagnum  viride.  Again  west  of  Cannock  are  the  remains  of  what 
were  formerly  extensive  bog  lands,  such  as  Norton  bog,  where  is  the  rare 
S.  tenellum,  and  near  Uttoxeter,  in  the  deep  and  treacherous  Chartley  bog, 
are  many  of  the  sphagnums  and  other  moisture  loving  species,  such  as  the 
rare  Polytrichum  strictum.  The  woodlands  of  the  county,  though  ex- 
tensive, are  usually  dry  and  rarely  the  homes  of  any  but  the  more  com- 
mon species ;  but  some  of  the  woodlands  around  Gnosall  and  Norbury 
yield  rarer  mosses,  such  as  the  hair  moss  Polytrichum  graa'/e,  Bryum  uligi- 
nosum and  Fontinalis  squamosa  and  other  rare  species  ;  and  the  rich  wood- 
lands of  the  south-west  have  yielded  some  of  our  rarest  species,  such 
as  Fumaria  ericetorum,  Pterygophyllum  lucens  and  the  rare  Heterocladium 

60 


BOTANY 

fallax,  first  recorded  from  that  locality  as  a  British  moss.  But  the  most 
fertile  localities  for  our  rarer  mosses  are  the  water-splashed  rocks  of  the 
limestone  districts,  as  in  the  Dove  dale ;  here  the  ever  present  humidity 
renders  the  moss  flora  rich  and  varied ;  on  rocks  in  the  stream  are  Eu- 
rhynchium  crassinervium,  Brachythecium  illecebrum^  and  on  the  limestone 
rocks  the  rare  Amblestegium  confervoides,  its  first  British  locality,  and 
great  masses  of  Weissia  rupestris,  Hypnum  rugosum,  and  now  and  again 
T'richostomum  mutabile.  The  calcareous  rocks  too  of  the  Manyfold  valley 
yield  many  lime  lovers  of  interest,  such  as  Weissia  verticillata  and  Tricbo- 
stomum  crispulum,  and  on  the  grit  and  limestone  walls  of  Alton  Encalypta 
streptocarpa  is  abundant,  and  the  only  fruiting  example  of  Aulocomnion 
androgynum  found  in  Britain  was  from  these  stone  fences.  In  some  of 
the  limestone  valleys  of  the  Manyfold  and  Churnet  are  hollow  cave-like 
openings  worn  out  by  water  action  in  the  ages  past,  and  in  these  is  seen, 
though  rarely,  the  phosphorescent  luminosity  of  the  pretty  little  cavern 
moss  Scbistostega  osmundacea  and  some  of  the  more  delicate  forms  of 
Webera.  The  total  moss  flora  of  Staffordshire  is  larger  than  that  of  any 
of  the  surrounding  counties  so  far  as  these  are  known,  but  as  there  are 
no  properly  representative  lists  published  of  some  of  them  comparisons 
would  be  valueless.  The  total  moss  flora  of  Staffordshire  is  285  species 
and  83  varieties,  a  total  of  368  for  the  county. 

To  show  in  a  slight  measure  the  distribution  of  the  mosses  enumer- 
ated, the  county  has  been  divided  into  the  three  districts  drained  by  the 
rivers:  (i)  the  Weaver;  (2)  the  Trent,  including  the  Dove  and  the 
Sow;  and  (3)  the  Severn;  and  the  numbers  given  in  the  list  following 
refer  to  these  districts. 


Sphagnum  cymbifolium,  Ehrh.      1-3 
ft.  squarrosulum,  N.  &  H.      2 

—  papillosum,  Ldb.      2,  3 

ft.  confertum,  Ldb.      2 
y.  stenophyllum,  Ldb.      2 

-  molle,  Sull.      2 

y.  tenerum,  Braith.      2 

-  tenellum,  Ehrh.     2 

-  subsecundum,  Nees.      1-3 

ft.  contortum,  Schp.      1-3 
S.  obesum,  Schp.      2 
e.  viride,  Boul.      1-3 

-  squarrosum,  Pers.     2 

—  acutifolium,  Ehrh.      2 

ft.  rubellum,  Russ.  2 
/x.  patulum,  Schp.  2 
v.  hetevirens,  Braith.  2 

—  Girgensohnii,  Russ.     2 

—  fimbriatum,  Wils.      2 

-  intermedium,  Hoffm.      2 

ft.  riparium,  Ldb.  2 
y.  pulchrum,  Ldb.  2 

—  cuspidatum,  Ehrh.      i,  2 

ft.  falcatum,  Russ.     2 
Tetraphis  pellucida,  Hedw.      1-3 
Catharinea  undulata,  W.  &  N.      1-3 

y.   Haussknechtii,  Dixon.      3 
Oligotrichum  incurvum,  i,  2 


3 


Polytrichum  nanum,  Neck. 

ft.  longisetum,  Ldb.      z 

-  aloides,  Hedw.      2,  3 

-  urnigcrum,  Linn.      I,  2 

-  piliferum,  Schreb.      1—3 

-  juniperinum,  Willd.      2,  3 

-  strictum,  Banks.      2 

-  gracile,  Dicks.      2 

-  formosum,  Hedw.      2,  3 

—  commune,  Linn.      1-3 

ft.   perigoniale,  B.  &  S.      2 
y.  minus,  Weis.      2 
Buxbaumia  aphylla,  Linn.     2 
Diphyscium  foliosum,  Mohr.      2 
Archidium  alternifolium,  Schp. 
Pleuridium  axillare,  Ldb.     2 

—  subulatum,  Rab.      2,  3 

—  alternifolium,  Rab.      2 
Ditrichum  homomallum,  Hpe.      : 

—  flexicaule,  Hpe.      i,  2 

ft.  densum,  Braith.      2 
Seligeria  pusilla,  B.  &  S.      2 
Ceratodon  purpureus,  Brid.      1-3 

ft.  paludosa,  Bagnall.      2 

—  conicus,  Ldb.      i 
Rhabdoweissia  fugax,  B.  &  S.     2 
Cynodontium  Bruntoni,  B.  &  S. 
Dichodontium  pellucidum,  Schp. 


61 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Dichodontium  pellucidum,  Schp. 
ft.  fagimontanum,  Schp.      2 

—  flavescens,  Ldb.      I,  2 
Dicranclla  heteromalla,  Schp.      1-3 

y.  interrupta,  B.  &  S.      2 
o.  sericea,  Schp.      2,  3 

—  cerviculata,  Schp.     2 

ft.  pusilla,  Schp.      2 

—  crispa,  Schp.      2 

—  rufescens,  Schp.     2,  3 

—  varia,  Schp.      2,  3 

y.  tenella,  Schp.      3 

—  Schreberi,  Schp.     2 

ft.  elata,  Schp.     2,  3 

—  squarrosa,  Schp.      I,  2 
Dicranoweissia  cirrata,  Ldb.      1-3 

—  crispula,  Ldb.      I,  2 
Campylopus  flexuosus,  Brid.      I,  2 

y.  paradoxus,  Husn.      2 

—  pyriformis,  Brid.      1-3 

-  fragilis,  B.  &  S.      1,2 
Dicranodontium  longirostrum,  B.  &  S.      2 
Dicranum  Bonjeani,  De  Not.      1—3 

S.  rugifolium,  Bosw.      2 

—  scoparium,  Hedw.      1-3 

J3.   paludosum,  Schp.      z 
y.   orthophyllum,  Brid.      2 

—  majus,  Turn.      2,  3 

—  fuscescens,  Turn.      2,  3 

y.  congestum,  Husn.      l 

—  strictum,  Scliech.      2 

—  flagellare,  Hedw.      2 

—  montanum,  Hedw.      2,  3 
Leucobryum  glaucum,  Schp.      i,  2 
Fissedens  exilis,  Hedw.      2 

—  viridulus,  Wahl.     2,  3 

/?.  Lylei,  Wils.      2 

—  exiguus,  Sull.      2 

-  pusillus,  Wils.      3 

—  incurvus,  Starke.      2 

—  tamarindifolius,  Wils.      2,  3 
• —  bryoides,  Hedw.      1-3 

—  crassipes,  Wils.      3 

—  adiantoides,  Hedw.      2.  3 

—  decipiens,  De  Not.      2,  3 
— -  taxifolius,  Hedw.      1—3 
Grimmia  apocarpa,  Hedw.      1-3 

ft.  rivularis,  W.  &  M.     1-3 
y.   gracilis,  W.  &  M.      3 
8.  pumila,  Schp.      i,  2 

—  pulvinata,  Sm.      1—3 

ft.   obtusa,  Hub.      I,  2 

—  trichophylla,  Grev.      I,  2 

—  ovata,  Schwgr.      2 
Rhacomitrium  aciculare,  Brid.      1-3 

ft.  denticulatum,  B.  &  S.      I 

—  fasciculare,  Brid.      i,  2 

—  heterostichum,  Brid.      I,  2 

ft.  alopecurum,  Hub.      i,  2 

—  lanuginosum,  Brid.      i,  2 

—  canescens,  Brid.      I,  2 

ft.  cricoides,  B.  &  S.     2 
Ptychomitrium  polyphyllum,  Fur.      2,  3 
Hedwigia  ciliata,  Ehrh.      i 
Acaulon  muticum,  C.M.     2 


Phascum  cuspidatum,  Schreb.      2,  3 
ft.  piliferum,  H.  &  T.      2 
y.  Schreberianum,  Brid.      2 
o.  curvisetum,  N.  &  H.     2 

Pottia  bryoides,  Mitt.      2 

—  truncatula,  Lind.      1-3 

—  intermedia,  FUr.      2,  3 

—  minutula,  FUr.     2,  3 
.  —  lanceolata,  C.M.      2 

Tortula  rigida,  Schrad.      2 

—  ambigua,  Angst.      2,  3 

—  aloides,  De  Not.     2 

—  cuneifolia,  Roth.      3 

—  marginata,  Spr.      2,  3 

—  muralis,  Hedw.      1-3 

ft.  rupestris,  Wils.      2,  3 
y.  sestiva,  Brid.     2 

—  subulata,  Hedw.      1-3 

-  mutica,  Ldb.     2,  3 

-  Izvipila,  Schw.      3 

-  intermedia,  Berk,      i,  2 

—  ruralis,  Ehrh.      1-3 
Barbula  lurida,  Ldb.      2 

—  rubella,  Mitt.      1-3 

ft.  dentata,  Braith.     2 
y.  ruberrima,  Braith.      2 

-  tophacea,  Mitt.      1-3 

—  fallax,  Hedw.      1-3 

ft.  brevifolia,  Schultz.      2 

—  recurvifolia,  Schp.      i,  2 

-  spadicea,  Mitt.      I,  2 

—  rigidula,  Mitt.      2 

-  cylindrica,  Schp.      2,  3 

-  vinealis,  Brid.     2,  3 

—  sinuosa,  Braith.     2 

-  Hornschuchiana,  Schultz.      2,  3 

-  revoluta,  Brid.      1-3 

-  convoluta,  Hedw.      2 

ft.  Sardoa,  B.  &  S.      2 

—  unguiculata,  Hedw.      1-3 

ft.  cuspidata,  Braith.      2,  3 
8.  obtusifolia,  Shultz.      2 

Leptodontium  flexifolium,  Hampe.      i,  2 

Weissia  crispa,  Mitt.     2 

-  microstoma,  C.M.      2,  3 

-  tortilis,  C.M.     2 

—  viridula,  Hedw.      1-3 

y  gymnostomoides,  B.  &  S.      2 

—  mucronata,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  tenui,  C.M.      2 

—  rupestris,  C.M.      2 

ft.  ramosissima,  C.M.      2 

—  verticillata,  Brid.      2 
Trichostomum  crispulum,  Bruch.      2 

—  mutabile,  Bruch.     2 

y.  cophocarpum,  Schp.      2 

—  tenuirostre,  Ldb.      2 

—  nitidum,  Schp.      2 

—  tortuosum,  Dixon.      2 
Cinclidotus  Brebissoni,  Husn.      3 

—  fontinaloides,  P.  B.     2,  3 
Encalypta  vulgaris,  Hedw.      2,  3 

£.  pilifera,  Funck.      2 

y.  obtusifolia,  Funck.      2,  3 

—  streptocarpa,  Hedw.      1—3 
Anaectangium  compactum,  Schwg.      2 


62 


BOTANY 


Zygodon  viridissimus,  R.  Br.      2,  3 
ft.  rupcstris,  Ldb.      2 

—  Stirtoni,  Schp.      z 
Ulota  crispa,  Brid.      2 
Orthotrichum  anomalum,  Hcdw.      2 

/?.  saxatile,  Milde.      2 

—  cupulatum,  HofFm.      2 

/?.  nudum,  Braith.      2 

—  leiocarpum,  B.  &  S.      3 

—  affine,  Schrad.      2,  3 

—  rivulare,  Turn.      2,  3 

—  Sprucei,  Mont.      3 

—  stramineum,  Hornsch.      2 

—  diaphanum,  Schrad.     z,  3 
Schistostega  osmundacea,  Mohr.      2 
Splachnum  ampullaceum,  Linn.      2 
Ephemerum  serratum,  Hampe.      2 
Physcomitrella  patens,  B.  &  S.      2 
Physcomitrium  sphaericum,  Brid.      2 

—  pyriforme,  Brid.      1-3 
Funaria  fascicularis,  Schp.      3 

—  ericetorum,  Dixon.      3 

—  calcarea,  Wahl.      3 

—  hygrometrica,  Sibth.      1-3 

ft.  calvescens,  B.  &  S.      3 
Aulacomnium  palustre,  Schwg.      1-3 

-  androgynum,  Schwg.      1-3 
Bartramia  pomiformis,  Hedw.     2,  3 

ft.  crispa,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  CEderi,  Sw.      2 
Philonotis  fontana,  Brid.      1-3 

8.  pumila,  Dixon.      2 

-  caespitosa,  Wils.      1 ,  2 

-  calcarea,  Schp.      2 
Breutelia  arcuata,  Schp.      2 
Orthodontium  gracile,  Schw.      2 
Leptobryum  pyriforme,  Wi!s.      2 
Webera  elongata,  Schw.      2 

—  cruda,  Schw.     2 

—  nutans,  Hedw.      1-3 

/3.  longiseta,  B.  &  S.      2 

—  annotina,  Schw.      2 

—  carnea,  Schp.      2,  3 

—  albicans,  Schp.      2,  3 
Bryum  pendulum,  Schp.      2,  3 
• — •  lacustre,  Brid.      I,  2 

-  inclinatum,  Bland.      I,  2 

-  uliginosum,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  pallens,  Sw.      2,  3 

—  turbinatum,  Schw.     2 

-  bimum,  Schreb.     2 

—  pseudo-triquetrum,  Schw.      2 

-  affine,  Ldb.     2 

-  intermedium,  Brid.      2 

—  casspiticium,  Linn.      1-3 

—  capillare,  Linn.      1-3 

y.  macrocarpum,  Hdbn.      2,  3 
t.  flaccidum,  B.  &  S.     2,  3 

—  erythrocarpum,  Schw.      2 

—  atropurpureum,  W.  &  M.     2,  3 

/?.  gracilentum,  Tayl.      2 

—  murale,  Wils.      2 

- —  argentcum,  Linn.  1-3 
/8.  majus,  B.  &  S.  2 
y.  lanatum,  B.  &  S.  3 

—  roseum,  Schreb.      2 


Mnium  cuspidatum,  Hedw.     2 

—  affine,  Bland.     2 

—  rostratum,  Schrad.      2,  3 

—  undulatum,  Linn.      1-3 

—  hornum,  Linn.      1-3 

—  serratum,  Schrad.      2 
- —  stellare,  Reich.     2,  3 

—  punctatum,  Linn.      2,  3 

/J.  elatum,  Schp.     2 

—  subglobosum,  B.  &  S.      2,  3 
Fontinalis  antipyretica,  Linn.      1-3 

y.  gracilis,  Schp.      1-3 

—  dolosa,  Card.     2 

—  squamosa,  Linn.     2,  3 
Cryphaea  heteromalla,  Mohr.      3 
Neckera  crispa,  Hedw.      1-3 

ft.   falcata,  Boul.      2 

—  complanata,  Htlbn.      2,  3 
Homalia  trichomanoidcs,  Brid.      2,  3 
Pterygophyllum  lucens,  Brid.      3 
Leucodon  sciuroides,  Schw.      2,  3 
Antitrichia  curtipendula,  Brid.      I 
Porotrichum  alopecurum,  Mitt.      2,  3 
Leskea  polycarpa,  Ehrh.      1-3 

ft.  paludosa,  Schp.      2,  3 
Anomoden  viticulosum,  H.  &  T.      2 
Hcterocladium  heteropterum,  B.  &  S.      3 

p.  fallax,  Milde.      3 
Thuidium  tamariscinum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

—  recognitum,  Lindb.      2 
Climacium  dendroides,  W.  &  N.      2 
Isothecium  myurum,  Brid.      2,  3 

ft.  robustum,  B.  &  S.      2 
Pleuropus  sericeus,  Dixon.      1-3 
Camptothedum  lutescens,  B.  &  S.      2 
Ijr.ichythecium  glareosum,  B.  &.  S.      2,  3 

-  albicans,  B.  &  S.      2,  3 

—  salebrosum,  B.  &  S.      3 

ft.  palustre,  Schp.      2,  3 

-  rutabulum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

/3.  robustum,  Schp.      2,  3 
y.   longisetum,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  rivulare,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

8.   chrysophyllum,  Bagnall.      2 

—  velutinum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

-  populeum,  B.  &  S.      2,  3 

—  plumosum,  B.  &  S.      1—3 

ft.  homomallum,  B.  &  S.      I 

-  caespitosum,  Dixon.     2,  3 

-  illecebrum,  De  Not.      2 

-  purum,  Dixon.      1-3 
Hyocomium  flagellare,  B.  &  S.      2 
Eurhynchium  piliferum,  B.  &  S.      2,3 

—  crassinervum,  B.  &  S.      2 

—  praslongum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

J3.  Stokesii,  L.  Cat.      2,  3 

-  Swartzii,  Hobk.     2,  3 

-  pumilum,  Schp.      2,  3 
• —  Teesdalei,  Schp.      3 

• —  tenellum,  Milde.      2,  3 

—  myosuroides,  Schp.      1-3 

—  striatum,  B.  &  S.      2,  3 

—  rusciforme,  Milde.      1-3 

ft.  prolixum,  Brid.      2 
y.  atlanticum,  Brid.      I 

—  murale,  Milde.      1-3 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Eurhynchium  murale,  Milde. 

y.  julaceum,  Schp.      1-3 

—  confertum,  Milde.      1—3 

—  megapolitana,  Bland.      3 
Plagiothecium  depressum,  Dixon.      ; 

-  Borrerianum,  Spruce.      2,  3 

—  denticulatum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

ft.  aptychus,  L.  Cat.      2,  3 
t.  laxum.     3 

—  sylvaticum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

—  undulatum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 
Amblestegium  confervoides,  B.  &  S. 

-  serpens,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

ft.  majus,  Brid.      3 

-  varium,  Ldb.      2 

-  irriguum,  B.  &  S. 

—  fluviatile,  B.  &  S. 

—  filicinum,  De  Not.      1-3 
Hypnum  riparium,  Linn.      1-3 

ft.  longifolium,  Schp.      2, 
y.   splendens,  De  Not.      3 

-  polygamum,  Schp.      2,  3 

ft.  stagnatum.      3 

-  stellatum,  Schrcb.      2 

ft.  protensum,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  chrysophyllum,  Brid.      2,  ^ 

ft.   erectum,  Bagnall.      2 

-  Sommerfeltii,  Myr.      2 

-  aduncum,  Hedw.      2,  3 

ft.   Knieffii,  Schp.      2,  3 

—  fluitans,  Linn.      1-3 

ft.  submersum,  Schpr.      2 
• —  exannulatum,  Gtimb.      2 


2 
2 


Hypnum  uncinatum,  Hedw.      I,  2 

—  vernicosum,  Ldb.      2 

—  revolvens,  Sw.      1—3 

ft.  Cossonii,  Ren.      I,  2 

—  commutatum,  Hedw.      2,  3 

—  fulcatum,  Brid.      2 

ft.  gracilescens,  Schp.      2 

—  cupressiforme,  Linn.      1—3 

ft.  resupinatum,  Schp.      1-3 
y.  filiforme,  Brid.     2,  3 
8.   minus,  Wils.      2 
f.  ericetorum,  B.  &  S.     z,  3 
r/.  tectorum,  Brid.     2,  3 
0.  elatum,  B.  &  S.     2,  3 

-  Patienti*,  Ldb.      2,  3 

-  molluscum,  Hedw.      1-3 

y.  fastigiatum,  Bosw.      I,  3 

—  palustre,  Linn.      1-3 

ft.  hamulosum,  B.  &  S.     2,  3 
y.  subsphaericarpon,  B.  &  S.      2 

-  ochraceum,  Turn.      I,  2 

—  stramineum,  Dicks,      i,  2 

-  cordifolium,  Hedw.      2,  3 

-  giganteum,  Schp.      2 

-  cuspidatum,  Linn.      1-3 

-  Schreberi,  Willd.      1-3 
Hylocomium  splendens,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

-  loreum,  B.  &  S.     2,  3 

-  squarrosum,  B.  &  S.      1-3 

ft.  calvescens,  Hobk.      2,  3 

-  triquetrum,  B.  &  S.      I  -3 
• —  rugosum,  De  Not.      2 


THE    LIVERWORTS   (Hefatica) 

The  following  list  of  the  liverworts  of  Staffordshire  is  incomplete, 
for  this  interesting  group  of  plants  has  been  only  studied  incidentally. 
The  natural  features  of  the  county  are  such  as  promise  a  much  richer 
record  ;  the  wide  moorlands  of  the  northern  portion  of  the  county  will 
probably  yield  many  species  not  recorded  below,  and  the  valleys  of  the 
Dove,  the  Manyfold  and  the  Churnet  have  been  only  partially  examined; 
these  districts  alone  if  fully  explored  should  very  materially  increase  the 
record. 

The  total  number  here  recorded  is  only  82  species  and  varieties, 
being  little  more  than  one-third  of  those  recorded  for  Great  Britain. 
The  more  rare  of  these  are  Lejeunia  Mackaii,  Kantia  arguta,  Scapania 
curia,  Cephalozia  lunulcefolia,  Jungermania  cordifolia  and  Fossombronia 
cristata.  So  little  has  been  done  in  the  study  of  this  group  of  plants 
in  the  neighbouring  counties  as  to  render  any  attempt  at  a  comparison 
of  little  real  value. 


Frullania  Tamarisci,  L.      1-3 

—  dilatata,  L.      1-3 
Lejeunea  Mackaii,  Hook.      2 

—  serpyllifolia,  Dicks.      2,  3 
Radula  complanata,  L.      1-3 
Porella  Izvigata,  Schrad.      2 

—  platyphylla,  L.      2,  3 


Blepharozia  ciliaris,  L.      2 
Trichocolea  tomentella,  Ehrh.      2,  3 
Blepharostoma  trichophyllum,  Dill.      3 
Lepidozia  reptans,  L.      2,  3 
—  setacea,  Web.      2 
Bazzania  trilobata,  L.     2 
Kantia  trichomanis,  L.      2,  3 


64 


BOTANY 


Kantia  arguta,  Mart.      2 
Cephalozia  lunulaefolia,  Dum.      2 

—  bicuspidata,  L.      1-3 

—  Lammersiana,  Huben.      2 

—  connivens,  Dicks.      2 

—  Sphagni,  Dicks.     2 

—  divaricata,  Sm.      2,  3 

var.  byssacea,  Roth.     2 

—  stellulifera,  Tayl.     2 
Scapania  resupinata,  Dill.  ;  L.      2 

—  aequiloba,  Schw.     2 

—  aspera,  Mull.  &  Bern.      2 

—  nemorosa,  L.      2,  3 

—  undulata,  L.      2,  3 

—  irrigua,  Nees.      2 

—  curta,  Mart.      2 

—  umbrosa,  Schrad.      2 
Diplophyllum  albicans,  L.      1-3 
Lophocolea  bidentata,  L.      1-3 

—  cuspidata,  Limpr.     2 

—  heterophylla,  Schrad.      1-3 
Chiloscyphus  polyanthos,  L.      1-3 

b.  rivularis,  Nees.      2 
Mylia  Taylori,  Hook.     2 

—  anomala,  Hook. 
Plagiochila  asplenioides,  L.      2,  3 

c.  minor,  Carr.      3 
Jungermania  cordifolia,  Hook.      2 

—  pumila,  With.      3 

—  riparia,  Tayl.      3 

-  inflata,  Huds.     2,  3 

-  turbinata,  Raddi.      3 

-  sphaerocarpa,  Hook.      2 

—  exsecta,  Schmid.     2 


Jungermania  Flcerkii,  Web.  &  Mohr.     2 

—  barbata,  Schmid.     2 

—  Lyoni,  Tayl.     2 

—  incisa,  Schrad.      2 

—  capitata,  Hook.     2 

—  bicrenata,  Schmid.     2 

—  porphyroleuca,  Nees.     2 

—  ventricosa,  Dicks.     2,  3 

—  crenulata,  Sm.      2 

-  gracillima,  Sm.      3 
Eucalyx  hyalina,  Lyell.     2 
Nardia  scalaris,  Schrad.     2,  3 

6.  major,  Carr.     2 
Saccogyna  viticulosa,  Mich.      3 
Fossombronia  caespitiformis,  De  Not.     2 

—  pusilla,  L.      2,  3 

-  cristata,  Lindb.     2 
Blasia  pusilla,  L.      2,  3 
Pcllia  epiphylla,  L.      2,  3 
• —  calycina,  Tayl.      3 
Aneura  multifidia,  L.  2 

—  sinuata,  Dicks.      2,  3 

—  pinguis,  L.     2,  3 
Metzgeria  pubescens,  Schrank.      2 

—  furcata,  L.      2,  3 
Marchantia  polymorpha,  L.      2,  3, 
Conocephalus  conicus,  L.      2,  3 
Reboulia  hemispherica,  L.      2 
Lunularia  cruciata,  L.      2,  3 
Targionia  hypophylla,  L.      2 
Riccia  glauca,  L.      2,  3 

—  glaucescens,  Carr.      2 
Anthoceros  punctatus,  L.      z,  3 


THE    LICHENS   (Licbenes) 

The  lichens  are  a  large  tribe  of  cryptogams  intermediate  between 
the  alga?  and  the  fungi,  approaching  the  alga?  through  the  gelatinous 
forms  of  the  Collemacei  and  the  fungi  through  the  Ascomycetes,  but  they 
differ  from  the  fungi  in  not  deriving  nourishment  from  the  matrix  on 
which  they  grow  but  from  the  atmosphere,  in  their  slow  growth,  their 
perennial  existence,  and  in  the  presence  in  their  structure  of  the  green 
algae-like  bodies,  the  gonidia.  The  researches  of  Schwendener  have 
shown  that  the  lichens  are  true  fungi,  parasitical  on  unicellular  alga?,  the 
gonidia,  which  exist  immediately  beneath  the  cortical  layer,  being  alga? 
forms  allied  to  Nostoc,  Chroolepus  or  Palmella.  The  lichens  are  found 
throughout  the  county  in  one  or  other  form  from  the  low-lying  heath- 
lands  of  the  south  to  the  highest  points  of  the  north,  but  are  abundant  in 
the  normal  condition  only  where  the  atmospheric  conditions  are  good 
and  wholesome.  Over  a  large  portion  of  the  colliery  districts  and  the 
more  smoky  surroundings  of  the  Potteries  they  do  not  fully  develop, 
but  exist  in  an  abnormal  state,  forming  dust-like  or  filamentous  patches, 
usually  greyish  white  or  yellow,  on  walls,  trees  or  rocks,  and  in  this 
state  will  exist  for  an  indefinite  time,  increasing  as  do  the  alga?  by 
the  division  of  their  cells  ;  this  condition  was  known  to  the  older 
botanists  by  the  pseudo-generic  names  of  Lepraria,  Variolaria^  etc.  But 
1  65  9 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

in  the  more  open  districts,  as  on  the  high  lands  about  Swithamly, 
Flash  and  Quanford  the  gritstone  and  limestone  rocks  are  rich  in  such 
species  as  Placodium  murorum,  Coniocype  furfuraceum,  Gladina  pungens,  Pla- 
tysma  triste  and  Alec toria  jubata.  In  the  Wetton  valley  and  the  beautiful 
valley  of  the  Dove  the  rocks  of  mountain  limestone  form  a  congenial 
home  for  some  of  the  rarer  species,  as  Umbillkaria  polyphila,  Platysma 
g/auca,  bright  yellow  patches  of  Lecidia  geographica,  Spbcerophoron  coral- 
/oides,  Squamaria  crassa,  Lecanora  parella  and  Solorina  saccata;  over  a  great 
portion  of  the  county  the  more  conspicuous  tree-loving  species  are  singu- 
larly absent,  and  only  rarely  are  the  tree  trunks  beautified  with  the  con- 
spicuous fronds  of  Ramalina  fraxinea ,  R.  fastigiata  or  Usnea  barbate, 

In  the  rich  woodland  districts  around  Whitmore  and  Trentham  the 
trees  are  clothed  with  grey  patches  of  Parmelia  puherulenta^  P.  pbysodes 
and  P.  stellaris  ;  the  old  palings  of  some  of  the  damp  woods  are  coated 
with  Lecanora  candelaria,  Usnea  birta,  Parmelia  olivacea  and  P.  parietina  ; 
and  the  wild  moorlands  about  Cannock  and  Norton,  notwithstanding  the 
proximity  of  large  colliery  workings,  are  still  a  home  for  many  of  the 
heath-loving  species,  as  Cladonia  pyxidata,  C.  cornucopioides,  C.  digitata, 
C.  rangiferina  and  Cladina  syhatica.  The  sandstone  rocks  of  the  country 
around  Stone  yield  their  special  species,  as  Lecanora  squamulosa,  Placodium 
cal/opismum  and  Verrucaria  rupestris,  and  on  the  smooth  bark  of  the  holly 
the  lime  and  crab  are  the  singular  forms  of  Graphis  scripta,  G.  e/egans, 
Arthonia  astroidea,  A.  lurida,  Opegrapba  imlgata  and  O.  atra. 

The  following  list  is  an  incomplete  record  of  the  Staffordshire  lichens 
compiled  in  part  from  Garner's  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford 
and  the  writer's  personal  observations. 


Family  I.     COLLEMACEI 
Collema  melaenum,  Ach. 

—  crispum,  Huds. 

—  cristatum,   Hoffm. 

—  flacciclum,  Ach. 

—  multipartitum,  Sm. 

—  nigrescens,  Huds. 
Leptogium  lacerum,  Ach. 

var.  pulvinatum  (Hoff.) 

—  fragrans,  Sm. 

—  tremelloides,  L. 

—  turgidum,  Ach. 

—  Schraderi,  Bernh. 

Family  II.     LICHENACEI 
Sphinctrina  turbinata,  Pers. 

—  anglica,  Nyl. 
Calcium  trichiale,  Ach. 

var.  ferrugineum  (Borr.) 

—  hyperellum,  Ach. 

—  trachelinum,  Ach. 

—  quercinum,  Pers. 

—  curtum,  Borr. 
Coniocybe  furfuracea,  Ach. 
Trachylia  tigillaris,  Fr. 

—  tympanclla,  Fr. 
Sphaerophoron  coralloides,  Pers. 


66 


Sphaerophoron  fragile,  Pers. 
Baeomyces  rufus,  DC. 

—  icmadophilus,  Ehrh. 
Cladonia  pungens,  Flk. 

—  cervicornis,  Schaer. 

—  delicata,  Flk. 

var.  subsquamosa  (Nyl.) 

—  alcicornis,  Flk. 

—  pyxidata,  Fr. 

var.  fimbriata  (Hoffm.) 

—  gracilis,  Hoffm. 

—  furcata,  Hoffm. 

—  squamosa,  Hoffm. 

—  cornucopioides,  Fr. 

—  deformis,  Hoffm. 

var.  macilenta  (Hoffrn.) 
var.  polydactyla  (Flk.) 
Cladina  sylvatica,  Hoffm. 

—  rangiferina,  Hoffm. 

—  uncialis,  Hoffm. 
Stereocaulon  pascliale,  Ach. 

—  denudatum,  Flk. 
Usnea  barbata,  L. 

var.  florida  (L.) 
var.  hirta  (L.) 
var.  plicata  (L.) 


BOTANY 


Alectoria  jubata,  L. 

—  lanata,  L. 

Evernia  furfuracea,  Mann. 

—  prunastri,  L. 
Ramalina  calicaris,  Hoffm. 

—  farinacea,  L. 

—  fraxinea,  L. 

—  fastigiata,  Pers. 

—  evcrnioides,  Nyl. 
Cetraria  aculeata,  Fr. 
Platysma  triste,  Web. 

—  diffusum,  Web. 

—  glaucum,  L. 

Nephromium  lusitanicum,  Schaer. 
Peltigera  canina,  L. 

—  rufescens,  Hoffm. 

—  spuria,  Ach. 

—  horizontalis,  L. 
Solorina  saccata,  L. 
Stictina  scrobiculata,  Scop. 
Sticta  pulmonaria,  Ach. 
Ricasolia  amplissima,  Scop. 
Parmelia  caperata,  L. 

—  olivacea,  L. 

—  physodes,  L. 

—  ambigua,  Wulf. 

—  perlata,  L. 

—  pertusa,  Schrank. 

—  tiliacea,  Ach. 

—  Borreri,  Turn. 

—  fuliginosa,  Dub. 

—  perforata,  Wulf. 

—  conspersa,  Ehrh. 

—  acetabulum,  Neck. 

—  saxatilis,  L. 

var.  omphalodes  (L.) 
Physcia  flavicans,  Sw. 

—  parietina,  L. 

var.  lychnea  (Ach.) 
var.  polycarpa  (Ehrh.) 

—  ciliaris,  L. 

—  pulverulenta,  Schreb. 

/.  pityrea  (Ach.) 

—  obscura,  Ehrh. 

—  stellaris,  L. 

var.  tenella  (Scop.) 
var.  cassia  (Hoffm.) 
Umbilicaria  pustulata,  Hoffm. 

—  polyphylla,  L. 

f.  congregata  (T.  &  B.) 

—  flocculosa,  Wulf. 

—  erosa,  Ach. 

—  polyrhiza,  L. 
Psoroma  hypnorum,  Vahl. 
Pannaria  pezizoides,  Web. 

—  nigra,  Huds. 
Amphiloma  lanuginosum,  Ach. 
Squamaria  crassa,  Huds. 

—  saxicola,  Poll. 
Placodium  murorum,  Hoffm. 


Placodium  callopisum,  Ach. 

—  citrinum,  Ach. 

—  candicans,  Dicks. 
Lecanora  vitellina,  Ach. 
• —  candelaria,  Ach. 

• —  glaucocarpa/  pruinosa  (Ach.) 

—  squamulosa,  Schrad. 

—  fuscata,  Schrad. 

—  tartarea,  L. 

—  varia,  Ehrh. 

—  atra,  Huds. 

—  sulphurea,  Hoffm. 

—  symmicta,  Ach. 

—  lutescens,  DC. 

—  subfusca,  L. 

—  galactina,  Ach. 

—  calcarea,  L. 

f.  HofFmanni  (Ach.) 

—  Dicksonii,  Ach. 

—  badia,  Ach. 

—  parella,  L. 

f.  pallescens  (L.) 

—  rupestris,  Scop. 

/.  calva  (Dicks.) 

—  glaucoma,  Hoffm. 
-  albella,  Pers. 

• —  aurantiaca,  Lightf. 
• —  ochracea,  Schaer. 
- —   ferruginea,  Huds. 

—  cerina,  Ehrh. 

—  arenaria,  Pers. 

—  sophodes,  Ach. 

f.  exigua  (Ach.) 

—  haematomma,  Ehrh. 

—  ventosa,  L. 
Pertusaria  dealbata,  Ach. 

—  communis,  DC. 

f.   rupestris  (DC.) 

—  fallax,  Pers. 

—  globulifera,  Turn. 

—  leioplaca,  Ach. 
Phlyctis  agelaea,  Ach. 

—  argena,  Ach. 
Thelotrema  lepadinum,  Ach. 
Urceolaria  scruposa,  L. 
Lecidea  ostreata,  Hoffm. 

—  fuliginosa,  Tayl. 

—  dispansa,  Nyl. 

—  lucida,  Ach. 

—  flexuosa,  Fries 

f.  aeruginosa  (Borr.) 

—  decolorans,  Flk. 

—  vernalis,  L. 

—  atrofusca,  Hepp. 

—  dubia,  Borr. 

—  quernea,  Dicks. 

—  viridescens,  Schrad. 

—  sanguinaria,  L. 

—  parasema,  Ach. 

var.  elzochroma  (Ach.) 


67 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Lecidea  uliginosa,  Schrad. 

—  coarctata,  Sm. 

—  rivulosa,  Ach. 

—  contigua,  Fr. 

f.  leprosa  (Leight.) 
f.  flavicunda  (Ach.) 

—  calcivora,  Ehrh. 

—  canescens,  Dicks. 

—  myriocarpa,  DC. 

—  alocizoides,  Leight. 

—  chalybeia,  Borr. 

—  grossa,  Pers. 

—  caeruleonigricans,  Light. 

—  denigrata,  Fr. 

—  tricolor,  With. 

—  Ehrhartiana,  Ach. 

—  diluta,  Pers. 

—  Caradocensis,  Leight. 

-  incompta,  Borr. 

-  alboatra,  Hoffm. 

f.  epipolia  (Ach.) 

-  aromatica,  Sm. 

-  carneo-lutea,  Turn. 

-  umbrina,  Ach. 

—  pachycarpa,  Dur. 

-  milliaria,  Fr. 

-  sabuletorum,  Flk. 

-  premnea,  Ach. 

-  carneola,  Ach. 

-  endoleuca,  Nyl. 

—  rubella,  Ehrh. 

—  geographica,  L. 

-  petrza,  Wulf. 

-  concentrica,  Dav. 

-  cupularis,  Ehrh. 

-  trucigena,  Ach. 

-  Parmeliarum,  Smrf. 

-  parasitica,  Flk. 


Opegrapha  herpetica,  Ach. 
/.  rubella  (Pers.) 
/.  rufescens  (Pers.) 

—  atra,  Pers. 

—  Turneri,  Leight. 

—  varia,  Pers. 

/.  notha  (Ach.) 
f.  diaphora  (Ach.) 

—  vulgata,  Ach. 

—  Leightonii,  Crombie 

—  lyncea,  Sm. 
Stigmatidium  crassum,  Dub. 
Arthonia  lurida,  Ach. 

—  astroidea,  Ach. 

—  Swartziana,  Ach. 

—  pruinosa,  Ach. 
Graphis  elegans,  Sm. 

—  scripta,  Ach. 

var.  serpentina  (Ach.) 
var.  pulverulenta  (Ach.) 

—  inusta,  Ach. 

—  sophistica,  Nyl. 
Endocarpon  miniatum,  L. 

—  hepaticum,  Ach. 
Verrucaria  epigea,  Ach. 

—  Dufourei,  DC. 

—  nigrescens,  Pers. 

—  glaucina,  Ach. 

-  viridula,  Schrad. 

—  rupestris,  Schrad. 

—  conoidea,  Fries 

—  gemmata,  Ach. 

• —  epidermidis,  Ach. 

-  biformis,  Borr. 

-  chlorotica,  Ach. 

f.   trachona  (Tay.) 

—  nitida,  Weig. 


THE    FRESHWATER    ALG^ 

The  freshwater  algas  are  universally  distributed  and  are  to  be 
found  in  every  situation  where  moisture  exists,  amid  the  most  deleterious 
surroundings  or  where  the  atmospheric  conditions  are  good  and  health- 
ful ;  '  on  damp  walls  and  palings,  on  soil  heaps,  damp  earth,  pathways, 
roadsides  ;  on  wet  rocks,  stones  in  streams,  in  every  ditch  and  water- 
course ;  in  canals,  ponds,  and  attached  to  the  various  aquatic  plants 
therein,  in  puddles,  and  the  hoof  holes  of  cattle  in  boggy  places,'  etc. 
The  green  dust-like  growth  on  tree  trunks,  palings  and  old  walls  is  one 
of  the  lower  forms  of  alga?,  Pleurococcus  vu/garis  ;  in  nearly  every  ditch 
one  or  other  species  of  Vaucheria  may  be  found  ;  old  canals  are  frequently 
covered  with  the  yellowish  green  masses  of  Enteromorpba  intestinalis,  and 
many  of  the  old  clay  holes  in  the  coal  districts  are  rich  in  species  of 
Nostoc  and  Conferva.  The  bogs,  pools  and  watercourses  of  the  Cannock 
district  yield  many  of  the  more  rare  and  beautiful  species,  as  Chcetophora 

68 


BOTANY 

elegans,  C.  endivtefolia,  or  the  elegant  fronds  of  Drapardnaldia  plumosa,  the 
tufts  of  sphagnum  rich  gatherings  of  Desmids.  The  hoof  holes  formed 
in  the  marshy  heathland  are  usually  rich  in  Micrasterias,  Euastrum  and 
Straurastrum,  and  in  some  of  the  clear  pools  the  beautiful  Vohox  globata 
may  be  found  in  abundance.  On  wet  rocks  in  the  Dove  dale  Glceocystis 
botryoides,  Nostoc  pruniforme  and  Chroolepus  aureus  have  been  found,  and 
in  the  Dove  and  other  rapid  streams  of  that  district  the  gelatinous  masses 
of  Batrachospermum  moniliforme  and  B.  atrum  are  sometimes  abundant. 

The  following  list  of  freshwater  algas  has  been  compiled  partly  from 
Garner's  Natural  History  of  Staffordshire,  from  the  Proceedings  of  the 
Birmingham  Natural  History  Society  and  from  the  writer's  observations. 


Ord.  I.  COCCOPHTCE&. 
I.  PALMELLACE^: 

Pleurococcus  vulgaris,  Menegh 
Gleocystis  botryoides,  Kutz 
Palmella  hyalina,  Breb. 
Porphyridium  cruentum,  Nag. 
Botrydina  vulgaris,  Breb. 
Tetraspora  bullosa,  Ag. 

—  lubrica,  Ag. 
Botryococcus  Braunii,  Kutz 
Apiocystis  Brauniana,  Nag. 

II.     PROTOCOCCACE^: 

Protococcos  viridis,  Cohn 
Scenedesmusquadricaudatus,  Br6b. 
Pediastrum  angulosum,  Ehr. 

—  Boryanum,  Turp. 

III.     VOLVOCINE^E 

Chlamydococcus  pluvialis,  A.  Braun 
Volvox  globator,  L. 
Pandorinum  morum,  Ehr. 
Gonium  pectorale,  Mtill. 

Ord.  II.     ZTGOPHTCE& 
IV.     DESMIDIE^ 

Desmidium  Swartzii,  Ktitz 
Closterium  lunula,  Mull. 

—  Dianas,  Ehr. 

—  juncidum,  Ralfs. 

—  rostratum,  Ehr. 
Penium  digitus  (Ehr.),  Ralfs. 
Tetmemorus  Brebissonii,  Ralfs. 
Micrasterias  rotata,  Ralfs. 

—  denticulata,  Br6b. 

—  truncata,  Corda 

—  papillifera,  Breb. 
Euastrum  verrucosum,  Ehr. 

-  oblongum,  Ehr. 

-  didelta,  Turp. 

—  insigne,  Hass. 

—  elegans,  Ehr. 
Cosmarium  pyramidatum,  Bre'b. 


Cosmarium  Meneghinii,  Ralfs. 

—  undulatum,  Cor. 

—  Brebissonii,  Meneg. 

—  botrytis,  Bory. 

—  biretum,  Breb. 
Xanthidium  cristatum,  Ralfs. 
Arthrodesmus  incus,  Breb. 
Straurastrum  dejectum,  Ralfs. 

—  polymorphum,  Br6b. 

—  orbiculare,  Ralfs. 

-  punctulatum,  Breb. 

-  hirsutum 

V.     ZYGNEMACE/E 

Zygnema  cruciata,  Vauch. 
Spirogyra  nitida,  Dillwyn 

—  condensata,  Vauch. 

—  flavescens  (Hass.),  Cleve. 

—  longata,  Vauch. 

—  porticalis  v.  quinina,  Ag. 
Zygogonium    ericetorum   v.    terrestris,   De 

Bary 
Mesocarpus  scalaris,  Hass. 

Ord.  III.     SIPHOPHTCE& 
VI.     BOTRYDIACE^: 

Botrydium  granulatum,  L. 

VII.     VAUCHERIACE^: 

Vaucheria  Dillwynii,  Ag. 

—  terrestris,  Lyngb. 

—  sessilis,  Vauch. 

—  geminata,  Vauch. 

Ord.  IV.     NEMATOPHTCE& 
VIII.     ULVACE^E 

Prasiola  crispa,  Kutz 
Enteromorpha  intestinalis,  Link. 

IX.     CONFERVACE^: 

Conferva  bombycina,  Ag. 
Cladophora  crispata,  Roth. 

—  glomerata,  L.  (Dillw.) 


69 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

X.     CEDOGONIACE^  Nostoc  commune,  Vauch. 

Bulbochaete  setigera,  Ag.  —  csruleum,  Lyng. 

—  verrucosum.  Vauch. 
XL     ULOTRICHE^E 

Schizogonium  murale,  Kdtz  XVI.     LYNGBY^E 

XII.     CHROOLEPIDE^E  Oscillaria  tenuis,  Ag. 

Chroolepus  aureus  (L.),  KUtz  ~  1'mosa,  Ag. 

—  nigra,  Vauch. 
XIII.     CH^TOPHORACE^:                    Lyngbia  ochracea,  Thur. 

Stigeoclonium  nanum  (Dillw.),  Kdtz 

Draparnaldia  glomerata,  Ag.  XVIII.     CALOTRICHE^ 

-  plumosa  (Vauch.),  Ag.  Gloiotrichia  natans,  Thur. 

Chastophora  pisirormis,  Ag. 

BATRACHOSPERME^ 


—  aendivxfolia,  Ag.  Batrachospermum  moniliforme,  Roth. 

CLASS  II.  PHYCOCHROMOPHYCE^: 
Ord.  II.     NEMATOGENEJE 

XV.     NOSTOCE^  XXII.     LEMANEACE^E 

Nostoc  muscorum,  Ag.  Lemanea  fluviatilis,  Ag. 

THE  FUNGI 

The  following  list  of  the  fungi  of  Staffordshire  is  in  no  way  a 
complete  one  ;  the  county  has  not  been  exhaustively  examined  from 
a  botanical  point  of  view.  Many  of  the  districts,  such  as  the  extensive 
woodlands  about  Trentham,  Swinnerton  and  Maer,  have  yielded  a  rich 
fungus  flora,  among  others  Polyporus  hispidus,  P.  abietinus^  P.  frondosay 
P.  annosus,  the  esculent  Boletus  edulis  and  Fistulina  bepatica,  and  in 
some  of  these  woods  Boletus  subtomentosus  and  B.  Jfavus  are  abundant, 
and  in  places  where  the  soil  has  been  burnt  and  on  the  dried  twigs 
abundance  of  the  singular  Hydnum  membranaceum  has  been  seen.  The 
esculent  Cantbarellus  cibarius  is  sometimes  abundant  in  the  woods,  on 
the  heathy  lands  the  beautiful  C.  aurantiacus,  and  in  boggy  places  near 
Betley  C.  lobatus.  In  many  of  these  woodlands  the  beautiful  but  fetid 
Phallus  impudicus  is  frequent,  and  in  those  of  Swinnerton  the  rarer  and 
less  fetid  Cyanophallus  caninus  has  been  found.  In  the  district  around 
Blymhill  many  rare  species  have  been  recorded  in  the  long  past,  as 
Cortinarius  vio/aceus,  C.  gentilis,  Lactarius  torminosus  and  the  edible  L. 
deliciosus,  and  frequently  throughout  the  county  the  fairy  ring  fungus 
(Marasmius  oreades],  is  abundant.  In  the  limestone  districts  of  the  Wetton 
valley  some  of  the  rarer  species  of  Peziza  are  found,  the  common 
morel  (Morcbella  esculenta),  Helvetia  crispa,  'Thelepbora  canina  and  Boletus 
asper  ;  but  to  localize  even  a  tithe  of  the  more  interesting  species  would 
occupy  too  much  space  ;  all  at  present  known  to  the  writer  are  recorded 
below. 

The  nomenclature  is  that  of  Fries'  Hymenomycete  JLuropcea^  and 
Berkley's  Outlines  of  British  Fungology  ;  the  authorities  quoted  are  Garner's 
Natural  History  of  'Staffordshire  ;  The  Reports  and  Transactions  of  the  North 
Staffordshire  and  Archaological  Society  and  the  writer. 

70 


BOTANY 


Family.  I.  HYMENOMYCETES 
Genus  I.     AGARICUS,  L. 
Sub-genus  I.      AMANITA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  phalloides,  F. 
var.  vernus  (Bull.) 

—  mappa,  Fr. 

—  muscarius,  L. 

—  pantherinus,  DC. 

—  rubescens,  Pers. 

—  nitidus,  Fr. 

—  asper,  Fr. 

—  vaginatus,  Bull. 

—  strangulatus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  II.     LEPIOTA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  procerus,  Scop. 

—  rachodes,  Vitt. 

-  clypeolarius,  Bull. 

—  carcharius,  Pers. 

—  granulosus,  Batsch. 

—  amianthinus,  Scop. 

Sub-genus  III.     ARMILLARIA,  Fr. 
Agaricus  melleus,  Vahl. 

Sub-genus  IV.     TRICHOLOMA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  sejunctus,  Sow. 

—  albo-brunneus,  Pers. 

—  rutilans,  Schseff. 

—  luridus,  Schzff. 

—  columbetta,  Fr. 

—  scalpturatus,  Fr. 

-  imbricatus,  Fr. 

-  vaccinus,  Pers. 

—  terreus,  Schaeff. 

—  saponaceus,  Fr. 

—  cuneifolius,  Fr. 

—  virgatus,  Fr. 

—  borealis,  Fr. 

—  personatus,  Fr. 

—  nudus,  Bull. 

—  grammopodius,  Bull. 

—  melaleucus,  Pers. 

—  brevipes,  Bull. 

Sub-genus  V.     CLITOCYBE,  Fr. 

Agaricus  nebularis,  Batsch. 

—  clavipes,  Pers. 

—  odorus,  Bull. 

—  phyllophilus,  Fr. 

—  pithyophilus,  Fr. 

—  candicans,  Pers. 

—  dealbatus,  Sow. 

—  gallinaceus,  Scop. 

—  giganteus,  Fr. 

—  infundibuliformis,  Schaeff. 

—  geotropus,  Bull. 

—  inversus,  Scop. 


Agaricus  tuba,  Fr. 

—  cyathiformis,  Fr. 

—  brumalis,  Fr. 

—  metachrous,  Fr. 

—  ditopus,  Fr. 

—  fragrans,  Sow. 

—  laccatus,  Scop. 

var.  amethystinus,  Bolt. 

Sub-genus  VI.     COU.YBIA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  radicatus,  Relhan. 

—  platyphyllus,  Fr. 

—  maculatus,  A.  &  S. 

—  fusipes,  Bull. 

—  butyraceus,  Bull. 

—  velutipes,  Curt. 

—  vertirugis,  Cooke 

—  confluens,  Pers. 

—  conigenus,  Pers. 

—  cirrhatus,  Schum. 

—  tuberosus,  Bull. 

—  collinus,  Scop. 

—  dryophilus,  Bull. 

—  rancidus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  VII.     MVCENA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  purus,  Pers. 

—  pseudo-purus,  Cooke 

—  flavo-albus,  Fr. 

—  galericulatus,  Scop. 

var.  calopus,  Fr. 

—  polygrammus,  Bull. 

—  ammoniacus,  Fr. 

—  metatus,  Fr. 

—  tenuis,  Bolt. 

—  filopes,  Bull. 

—  amictus,  Fr. 

—  vitilis,  Fr. 

—  acicula,  Schaeff. 

—  sanguinolentus,  A.  &  S. 

—  galopus,  Pers. 

—  leucogalus,  Cooke 

—  epipterygius,  Scop. 

—  tenerrimus,  Berk. 

—  electicus,  Buckn. 

—  corticola,  Schum. 

Sub-genus  VIII.     OMPHALIA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  sphagnicola,  Berk. 

—  hepaticus,  Batsch. 

—  umbelliferus,  Linn. 

—  stellatus,  Fr. 

—  fibula,  Bull. 

Sub-genus  IX.     PLEUROTUS,  Fr. 

Agaricus  corticatus,  Fr. 

—  dryinus,  Pers. 

—  ulmarius,  Bull. 

—  fimbriatus,  Bolt. 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Agaricus  ostreatus,  Jacq. 

—  salignus,  Fr. 

—  acerosus,  Fr. 

—  applicatus,  Batsch. 

—  chioneus,  Pers. 

Sub-genus  X.     VOL v ARIA,  Fr. 

• 

Agaricus  speciosus,  Fr. 

—  parvulus,  Weinm. 

Sub-genus  XI.     PLUTEUS,  Fr. 

Agaricus  cervinus,  SchaefF. 

—  nanus,  Pers. 

—  chrysophaeus,  Schaeff. 

—  phlebophorus,  Dittm. 

Sub-genus  XII.     ENTOLOMA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  sinuatus,  Fr. 

—  prunuloides,  Fr. 

—  jubatus,  Fr. 

—  sericellus,  Fr. 

—  clypeatus,  Linn. 

—  rhodopolius,  Fr. 

—  sericeus,  Bull. 

—  nidorosus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XIII.     CUTOPII.US,  Fr. 

Agaricus  prunulus,  Scop. 

—  cancrinus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XIV.     LEPTONIA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  lampropus,  Fr. 

—  euchrous,  Pers. 

—  chalybaeus,  Pers. 

—  incanus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XV.     NOLANEA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  pascuus,  Pers. 

—  pisciodorus,  Ces. 

Sub-genus  XVI.     CLAUDOPUS,  Fr. 
Agaricus  variabilis,  Pers. 

Sub-genus  XVII.     PHOLIOTA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  durus,  Bolt. 

—  radicosus,  Bull. 

—  heteroclitus,  Fr. 

—  aurivellus,  Batsch. 

—  squarrosus,  Mull. 

—  spectabilis,  Fr. 

—  adiposus,  Fr. 

—  mutabilis,  SchaefF. 

Sub-genus  XVIII.     INOCYBE,  Fr. 

Agaricus  lanuginosus,  Bull. 

—  scaber,  Mall. 

—  fiocculosus,  Berk. 

—  rimosus,  Bull. 

—  asterosporus,  Quel. 

—  eutheles,  B.  &  Br. 


Agaricus  geophyllus,  Sow. 

Sub-genus  XIX.     HEBELOMA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  fastibilis,  Fr. 

—  testaceus,  Batsch. 

—  versipellis,  Fr. 

—  mesophaeus,  Fr. 

—  sinapizans,  Fr. 

—  crustuliniformis,  Bull. 

Sub-genus  XX.     FLAMMULA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  lentus,  Pers. 

—  flavidus,  SchaefF. 

—  inopus,  Fr. 

—  sapineus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XXI.     NAUCORIA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  melinoides,  Fr. 

—  striae  pes,  Cooke 

—  sideroides,  Bull. 

—  ped  fades,  Fr. 

—  semiorbicularis,   Bull. 

—  conspersus,  Pers. 

—  escharoides,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XXII.     GALERA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  lateritius,  Fr. 
- —  tener,  SchaefF. 

—  hypnorum,  Batsch. 

—  mycenopsis  (Fr.) 

Sub-genus  XXIII.     TUBARIA,  Fr. 
Agaricus  furfuraceus,  Pers. 

Sub-genus  XXIV.     CREPIDOTUS,  Fr, 

Agaricus  alveolus,  Lasch. 

—  mollis,  Schaeff. 

Sub-genus  XXV.     PSALLIOTA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  arvensis,  SchaefF. 

—  campestris,  Linn. 

Sub-genus  XXVI.     STROPHARIA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  aeruginosa,  Curt. 

—  albo-cyaneus,  Desm. 

—  squamosus,  Fr. 

—  stercorarius,  Fr. 

—  semiglobatus,  Batsch. 

Sub-genus  XXVII.     HYPHOLOMA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  sublateritius,  Fr. 

—  fascicularis,  Huds. 

—  lacrymabundus,  Fr. 

—  velutinus,  Fr. 

—  Candolleanus,  Fr. 

—  appendiculatus,  Bull. 

—  hydrophilus,  Bull. 


BOTANY 


Sub-genus  XXVIII.     PSILOSYBE,   Fr. 

Agaricus  ericaeus,  Pers. 

—  udus,  Pers. 

—  semilanceatus,  Fr. 

—  spadiceus,  Fr. 

—  foenisecii,  Pers. 

Sub-genus  XXIX.     PSATHYRA,  Pers. 
Agaricus  mastiger,  B  &  Br. 

—  corrugis,  Pers. 

—  spadiceogriseus,  SchaefF. 

—  pennatus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XXX.     PANJEOLUS,  Fr. 
Agaricus  separatus,  Linn. 

-  leucophanes,  B.  &  Br. 

—  fimiputris,  Bull. 

—  retirugis,  Fr. 

—  campanulatus,  Linn. 

—  papilionaceus,  Fr. 

—  acuminatus,  Fr. 

Sub-genus  XXXI.     PSATHYRELLA,  Fr. 

Agaricus  gracilis,  Fr. 

—  pronus,  Fr. 

-  atomatus,  Fr. 

—  disseminatus,  Fr. 

Genus  III.     COPRINUS,  Fr. 

Coprinus  comatus,  Fr. 

—  ovatus,  Fr. 

—  atramentarius,  Fr. 

—  fimetarius,  Fr. 

var.  cinereus  (SchaefF.) 

—  tomentosus,  Fr. 

—  niveus,  Fr. 

—  micaceus,  Fr. 

—  deliquescens,  Fr. 

—  congregatus,  Fr. 

—  domesticus,  Fr. 

—  lagopus,  Fr. 

—  ephemerus,  Fr. 

—  plicatilis,  Curt. 

Genus  IV.     BOLBITIUS,  Fr. 

Bolbitius  titubans,  Fr. 

—  fragilis,  Fr. 

Genus  V.     CORTINARIUS,  Fr. 

(Phlegmacium)  varius,  Fr. 

—  anfractus,  Fr. 

—  multiformis,  Fr. 

—  purpurascens,  Fr. 
(Myxacium)  collinitus,  Fr. 

—  elatior,  Fr. 

—  delibutus,  Fr. 
(Inoloma)  violaceus,  Fr. 

—  pholideus,  Fr. 
(Dermocybe)  ochroleucus,  SchaefF. 

—  decumbens,  Pers. 


73 


(Dermocybe)  tabularis,  Fr. 

—  caninus,  Fr. 

—  anomalus,  Fr. 

—  sanguineus,  Fr. 

—  cinnamomeus,  Fr. 
(Telamonia)  bulbosus,  Sow. 

—  torvus,  Fr. 

—  hinnuleus,  Fr. 

—  gentilis,  Fr. 

—  brunneus,  Fr. 

—  rigidus,  Scop. 
(Hydrocybe)  castaneus,  Bull. 

—  leucopus,  Bull. 

—  decipiens,  Pers. 

Genus  VI.     GOMPHIDIUS,  Fr. 

Gomphidius  glutinosus,  Fr. 

—  viscidus,  Fr. 

—  gracilis,  B.  &  Br. 

Genus  VII.     PAXILLUS,  Fr. 
Paxillus  involutus,  Fr. 

Genus  VIII.      HYGROPHORUS,  Fr. 

(Limacium)  eburneus,  Fr. 

—  hypothejus,  Fr. 
(Camarophyllus)  pratensis,  Fr. 

—  virgineus,  Fr. 
(Hygrocybye)  laetus,  Pers. 

—  ceraceus,  Wulf. 

-  coccineus,  SchaefF. 

-  miniatus,  Fr. 

-  puniceus,  Fr. 

-  conicus,  Fr. 

—  chlorophanus,  Fr. 

—  psittacinus,  SchaefF. 

—  unguinosus,  Fr. 

Genus  IX.     LACTARIUS,  Fr. 

(Piperites)  torminosus,  Fr. 

—  cilicioides,  Fr. 

-  turpis,  Fr. 

—  controversus,  Fr. 

—  insulsus,  Fr. 

—  utilis,  Wcinm. 

-  blennius,  Fr. 
- —  hysginus,  Fr. 

-  uvidus,  Fr. 

—  pyrogalus,  Bull. 

—  pergamenus,  Fr. 

—  vellereus,  Fr. 
(Dapetes)  deliciosus,  Lim. 
(Russulares)  pallidus,  Pers. 

—  quietus,  Fr. 

—  rufus,  Scop. 

—  glyciosmus,  Fr. 

—  serifluus,  De  Cand. 

—  subdulcis,  Bull. 

—  mitissimus,  Fr. 

—  camphoratus,  Bull. 

10 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Genus  X.     RUSSULA,  Pers. 
Russula  nigricans,  Fr. 

—  adusta,  Fr. 

—  furcata,  Fr. 

—  depallens,  Fr. 

—  drimeia,  Cooke 

—  virescens,  SchaefF. 

—  rubra,  Fr.  ^ 

—  vesca,  Fr. 

—  cyanoxantha,  Fr. 

—  consobrina,  Fr. 

var.  sororia  (Fr.) 

—  foetens,  Fr. 
-  fellea,  Fr. 

—  emetica,  Fr. 

—  ochroleuca,  Fr. 

—  citrina,  Gillet 

—  fragilis,  Fr. 

var.  violacea  (Quillet) 

—  decolorans,  Fr. 

—  aurata,  Fr. 

—  alutacea,  Fr. 

—  lutea,  Fr. 

Genus  XI.    CANTHARELLUS,  Adans. 

Cantharellus  cibarius,  Fr. 

—  aurantiacus,  Fr. 

—  lobatus,  Fr. 

Genus  XII.     NYCTALUS,  Fr. 
Nyctalis  parasitica,  Fr. 

Genus  XIII.     MARASMIUS,  Fr. 

Marasmius  urens,  Fr. 

—  peronatus,  Fr. 

—  oreades,  Fr. 

— -  fusco-purpureus,  Pers. 

—  rotula,  Fr. 

—  androsaceus,  Fr. 

—  epiphyllus,  Fr. 

Genus  XIV.     LENTINUS,  Fr. 
Lentinus  tigrinus,  Fr. 

—  cochleatus,  Fr. 

Genus  XV.     PANUS 

Panus  torulosus,  Fr. 

—  stypticus,  Fr. 

Genus  XVII.     LENZITES,  Fr. 

Lenzites  betulinus,  Fr. 

—  saepiaria,  Fr. 

Ord.  II.     POLTPOREI 
Genus  XVIII.     BOLETUS,  Dill. 
Boletus  luteus,  Linn. 

—  elegans,  Schum. 

—  flavus,  With. 

—  granulatus,  Linn. 

—  bovinus,  Linn. 


Boletus  badius,  Fr. 

—  piperatus,  Bull. 

—  striaepee,  Seer. 

—  chrysenteron,  Fr. 

—  subtomentosus,  Linn. 

—  parasiticus,  Bull. 

—  pachypus,  Fr. 

—  edulis,  Bull. 

—  impolitus,  Fr. 

—  luridus,  SchaefF. 

—  laricinus,  Berk. 

—  scaber,  Fr. 

—  castaneus,  Bull. 

Genus  XIX.     FISTULINA,  Bull. 
Fistulina  hepatica,  Fr. 

Genus  XX.     POLYPORUS,  Fr. 
Polyporus  leptocephalus,  Fr. 

—  rufescens,  Fr. 

—  perennis,  Fr. 

—  squamosus,  Fr. 

—  varius,  Fr. 

—  frondosus,  Fr. 

—  intybaceus,  Fr. 

—  cristatus,  Fr. 

—  giganteus,  Fr. 

—  sulphureus,  Fr. 

—  nidulans,  Fr. 

—  fumosus,  Fr. 

—  hispidus,  Fr. 

—  dryad eus,  Fr. 

—  betulinus,  Fr. 

—  fomentarius,  Fr. 

—  igniarius,  Fr. 

—  conchatus,  Fr. 

—  ulmarius,  Fr. 

—  annosus,  Fr. 

—  radiatus,  Fr. 

—  versicolor,  Fr. 

—  abietinus,  Fr. 

—  sanguinolentus,  Fr. 

Genus  XXI.     TRAMETES,  Fr. 

Trametes  gibbosa,  Fr. 

—  serpens,  Fr. 

Genus  XXII.     D/EDALEA,  Fr 

Daedalea  quercina,  Pers. 

—  unicolor,  Fr. 

Genus  XXIII.     MERULIUS,  Fr. 

Merulius  corium,  Fr. 

—  lachrymans,  Fr. 

Ord.  III.     HTDNEI 
Genus  XXV.     HYDNUM,  Linn. 

Hydnum  repandum,  Linn. 

—  auriscalpium,  Linn. 

—  ferruginosum,  Fr. 


74 


BOTANY 


Hydnum  udum,  Fr. 

—  niveum,  Pers. 

—  farinaceum,  Pers. 

Genus  XXX.     PHLEBIA,  Fr. 
Phlebia  merismoides,  Fr. 

Genus  XXXI.     GRANDINIA,  Fr. 
Grandinia  granulosa,  Fr. 

Ord.  IV.     THELEPHOREI 
Genus  XXXIV.     CRATERELLUS,  Fr. 
Craterellus  cornucopioides,  Fr. 
Genus  XXXV.    THELEPHORA,  Ehrh. 
Thelephora  laciniata,  Pers. 

Genus  XXXVI.     STEREUM,  Fr. 

Stereum  purpureum,  Fr. 

—  hirsutum,  Fr. 

—  spadiceum,  Fr. 

—  sanguinolentum,  Fr. 

Genus  XXXVII.     HYMENOCH^TE, 

Lev. 

Hymenochaete  rubiginosa,  Lev. 

—  corrugata,  Berk. 

Genus  XXXVIII.      AURICULARIA, 

Bull. 
Auricularia  mesenterica,  Fr. 

Genus  XXXIX.     CORTICIUM,  Fr. 

Corticium  evolvens,  Fr. 

—  giganteum,  Fr. 

—  heve,  Fr. 

—  sanguineum,  Fr. 

—  quercinum,  Fr. 

—  cinereum,  Fr. 

—  incarnatum,  Fr. 

—  nudum,  Fr. 

—  aridum,  Fr. 

—  sambuci,  Fr. 

Genus  XL.     CYPHELLA,  Fr. 
Cyphella  capula,  Fr. 

Ord.  V.     CLAVARIEI 
Genus  XLI.     CLAVARIA,  Linn. 

Clavaria  fastlgiata,  Linn. 

—  coralloides,  Linn. 

—  cinerea,  Bull. 

—  cristata,  Pers. 

—  rugosa,  Bull. 

—  flaccida,  Fr. 

—  stricta,  Pers. 


Clavaria  inequalis,  Fl.  Dan. 

—  vermicularis,  Scop. 

—  fragilis,  Holmsk. 

—  pistillaris,  Linn. 

Genus  XLII.     CALOCERA,  Fr. 

Calocera  viscosa,  Fr. 

—  cornea,  Fr. 

Genus  XLIV.     PISTILLARIA,  Fr. 
Pistillaria  quisquiliaris,  Fr. 

Ord.  VI.     TREMELLIN1 
Genus  XLV.     TREMELLA,  Fr. 

Tremella  foliacea,  Pers. 

—  mesenterica,  Retz. 

—  albida,  Huds. 

Genus  XLVI.     EXIDIA,  Fr. 
Exidia  glandulosa,  Fr. 

Genus  XLVII.      HIRNEOLA,  Fr. 
Hirneola  Auricula-Juda?,  Berk. 

Genus  XLIX.     DACRYMYCES,  Nees 
Dacrymyces  stillatus,  Nees 

Family  II.     GASTEROMYCETES 

Ord.  VIII.     PHALLOIDEI 
Genus  LIX.     PHALLUS,  Linn. 
Phallus  impudicus,  Linn. 

Genus  LX.     CYNOPHALLUS,  Fr. 
Cynophallus  caninus,  Fr. 

Ord.  IX.     TRICHOGASTRES 
Genus  LXIV.     GEASTER,  Mich. 

Geaster  fornicatus,  Fr. 

—  fimbriatus,  Fr. 

Genus  LXV.     BOVISTA,  Dill. 

Bovista  nigrescens,  Pers. 

—  plumbea,  Pers. 

Genus  LX VI.    LYCOPERDON,Tourn. 

Lycoperdon  giganteum,  Batsch. 

—  cselatum,  Fr. 

—  gemmatum,  Fr. 

—  pyriforme,  Schzff. 

Genus  LXVII.    SCLERODERMA,Pers. 

Scleroderma  vulgare,  Fr. 

—  verrucosum,  Pers. 

—  Geaster,  Fr. 


75 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


ADDENDA 

Since  the  above  has  been  printed  the  following  species  have  been 
recorded  for  the  county  : — 

PLANTAGINEAE  EMPETRACEAE 

Plantago  major,  L.      1-5  Empetrum  nigrum,   L.      1-3 

—  media,   L.      2-4 

-  lanceolata,   L.      1-5 

—  coronopus,  L.     2-4 
Littorella  juncea,  Berg.     2,  3 


76 


ZOOLOGY 

MOLLUSCS 


With  the  exception  of  the  limestone  patches  in  the  extreme  north 
and  south  of  the  county,  the  soil  of  Staffordshire  is  not  favourable  to 
molluscan  life,  consequently  the  greater  number  of  the  land  shells  are 
recorded  from  those  calcareous  districts.  The  larger  Helices  cannot  be 
called  abundant  in  any  part  of  the  county,  and  are  most  numerous  along 
roadsides  and  in  gardens,  suggesting  their  comparatively  late  incursion 
into  the  area.  The  aquatic  species  on  the  other  hand  are  abundant,  and 
some  forms  such  as  Dreissensia  appear  to  be  extending  their  range. 

Altogether  ninety-three  species  have  been  recorded  for  the  county, 
exclusive  of  the  following,  due  mostly  to  errors  of  identification,  viz. 
Pupa  seca/e,  Glausilia  biplicata,  Succlnea  oblonga,  Amphipeplea  glutinosa, 
Planorbis  hneatus,  Viiiipara  contecta  and  Pisidium  mtidum,  as  well  as 
Helicella  virgafa  and  H.  cantiana ;  the  two  last  are  however  represented 
by  colonies  introduced,  the  former  at  Wren's  Nest  in  1887  and  the 
latter  at  Sedgley  in  1886. 

An  introduction  from  abroad  of  some  note  is  Physa  beterostropha, 
Say,  an  American  species  that  has  recently  been  taken  in  a  millpond 
fed  by  the  Tame  at  Wood  Green,  Wednesbury. 

The  whole  assemblage  is  of  the  average  British  facies,  with  the 
interesting  addition  of  Acanthinula  lamellata,  which  till  lately  was 
thought  to  attain  its  southernmost  present  day  range  in  this  county, 
though  formerly  it  lived  quite  down  in  the  south  of  England  ;  recently 
however  it  has  been  ascertained  that  it  occurs  close  to  Reading. 

The  principal  records  are  those  of  Robert  Garner,1  Edwin  Brown,3 
J.  R.  B.  Masefield 3  and  G.  Sherriff  Tye.4 

A.  GASTROPODA 

I.    PULMONATA  Limax  maximus,  Linn. 

—  flavus.  Linn.      Cheadle  ;   Stone  ;   Stafford 
a.  STYLOMMATOPHORA  _  arhorum^  Bouch.-Chant. 

Testacella  ha/iotidea,  Drap.      Hanchurch   near      Agriollmax  agrestis  (Linn.) 
Trentham  -  Itevit  (Mull.) 

1  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford  ( 1 844). 

2  In  Sir  O.  Moseley's  Naturat  History  of  Tutbury  (1863). 

3  '  The  Land  and  Freshwater  Mollusca  of  North  Staffordshire,'  Trans.  North  Sta/s  field  Club,  vol. 
xxxvi.  (1902). 

4  'Mollusca  of  Birmingham  and  neighbourhood,  Journ.  Conch.  (1874),  i.  57,  68. 

77 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


Amalia  iawerbii  (Fir.)  Garden  of  the  Old 
Hall,  Stone.  ?  Introduced 

—  gagates    (Drap.)       Two    specimens    near 

Stafford.      ?  Introduced 
Vitrina  pellucida  (Mull.) 
V'ttrea  crystallina  (Mall.) 

—  alliaria  (Miller) 

—  glabra  (Brit.  Auct.)     Stafford  ;  Heighley 

Castle  ;   Consall  near  Cheadle  ;  Long- 
don 

-  ctllaria  (Mall.) 

—  nitidula  (Drap.) 

—  pura  (Aid.)     Stafford  ;   Cheadle  ;  Wren's 

Nest  ;   Stone 

—  radiatula      (Aid.)        Stafford  ;     Cheadle ; 

Stone  ;    Wren's  Nest 

—  excavata    (Bean)      Maer ;    Basford,    near 

Leek  ;  Oakamoor  ;  Stafford 

—  nitida  (Mall.) 

—  fuha  (Moll.) 

Arlon  ater(L\nn.)  Common;  a  white  variety 
has  been  taken  at  Xrentham 

—  hortensis,  Fdr. 

-  circumscriptus,  John.      Cheadle  ;   Stafford  ; 

Harborne 

-  intermedium,  Norm. 

—  subfuscus    (Drap.)       Cheadle  ;     Stafford  ; 

Brewood  ;    near  Birmingham 
Punctum  pygmceum  (Drap.)       Cheadle  ;    Staf- 
ford ;   Stone 
Pyramidula  rupestris  (Drap.) 

—  rotundata   (Mull.) 

Helicella  itala  (Linn.)  Dovedale  ;  Grindon  ; 
Wren's  Nest  ;  Walsall  ;  Sedgley 

—  caperata  (Mont.) 

Hygromia  fusca  (Mont.)  Rare,  Weaver  Hills 
and  Cotton  Dale,  Oakamoor  ;  Wren's 
Nest  ;  Harborne 

—  hispida  (Linn.) 

—  rufescens  (Penn.)      Very  local 
Acanthinula  aculeata  (Mull.) 

—  Icimellata  (Jeff.)     Cotton  Dale,  Oakamoor, 

under  beech  leaves  ;  Stafford  (one  dead 

specimen) 

Vallonia  pukhella  (Mall.) 
Helicigona  lapicida  (Linn.) 

—  arbustorum  (Linn.) 

Helix  asfersa,  Mall.  Rare  and  local  ;  said 
not  to  occur  further  north  than  Barlas- 
ton 

—  nemoraliif  Linn. 

—  hortensis,  Mall. 
Buliminus  obscurus  (Mall.) 
Cochlicopa  lubrica  (Mull.) 

Azeca  trident  (Pult.)  Ham  ;  Weaver  Hills  ; 
Clent,Wolverhampton;  Sedgley;  Him- 
ley  ;  near  Harborne 

Ctecilianella  acicula  (Mall.)  Grindon  ;  Dove- 
dale  ;  Sedgley  ;  Wren's  Nest 


Pupa  cylindracea  (Da  C.) 

—  muscorum  (Linn.)      Grindon  ;   Stone 
Sphyradium     edentulum     (Drap.)        Cheadle  ; 

Leek  ;    Stafford 
Vertigo  substriata  (Jeff.)     Leek  (one  specimen) 

—  pygm*a  (Drap.)     Grindon ;  Weaver  Hills ; 

Sedgley  ;  Dovedale 
Baled  perversa  (Linn.)      Rare  and    local  in 

the  north 
Clauiilia  laminata  (Mont.) 

—  bidentata  (Strfim.) 
Succinea  putrit  (Linn.) 

—  e/egans,  Risso.     Stafford  ;   Stone  ;    Dove- 

dale 


b.  BASOMMATOPHORA 

Carychium  minimum.  Mill!. 
Ancylus  fluviatilit,  Mall. 
Velletia  lacustris  (Linn.) 
Limneea  auricularia  (Linn.) 

—  pereger  (Mall.) 

—  palustris  (Mall.) 

—  truncatula  (Mall.) 

—  stagnal'n  (Linn.) 

—  glabra  (Mull.)      Local  in    limestone  dis- 

trict of   the  north  ;     canal  at  Stoke  ; 
ponds  near  Cheadle 
Planorbis  corneas  (Linn.) 

—  albus,  Mall. 

—  nautileus    (Linn.)       Maer  ;     Coppenhall  ; 

Tixall ;  Stafford  ;  River  Penk 

—  carinatus,  Mall. 

—  marginatus,  Drap. 

—  vortex  (Linn.) 

—  spirorbis,   Mttll.      Stafford  ;    Stone  ;  Frog- 

hall  ;  Lithfield 

—  contortus  (Linn.)     Stone  ;   Stafford 

—  fontanus  (Lightf.)      Stafford  ;   Oakamoor  ; 

Harborne 
Physa  fontinalis  (Linn.) 

—  hypnorum  (Linn.)     Stafford  ;  near  Weston  ; 

Burton-on-Xrent  ;   Oldbury  ;  Wolver- 
hampton 


II.  PROSOBRANCHIATA 

Paludeitrina  jenkinsi  (Smith)      Canal  at  Dud- 
ley ;  canal  at  Lichfield  ;  Willenhall 
Bithynia  tentaculata  (Linn.) 

—  leachii  (Shepp.) 
Vivipara  vivipara  (Linn.) 
Vahata  p'ucinalis  (Mall.) 

—  criftata,  Mttll.     Stafford 

Neritina  flu-viatil'u  (Linn.)  Canal  at  Col- 
wich  ;  Stone  ;  Kings  Bromley  ;  Lich- 
field ;  Milford 


MOLLUSCS 
B.  PELECYPODA 

Drtisiensla  polymorpba  (Pall.)      Canals  as  far  Sph&rium   ovale   (F£r.)       Canals :   Stoke-on- 
north    as    Stoke-on-Trent.     Specimens  Trent ;  Froghall ;  Stone ;  Dudley  Port 

have    been     found    containing    pearls  —  lacustre  (Mtill.) 

(North  Staff.  Field  Club  Report,  xxxiv.  Pisidium  amnicum  (Mull.) 

65)  —  pusil/um  (Gmel.) 

Unto  pictorum  (Linn.)  —  fontinale    (Drap.)       Common    (the    form 

—  tumidus,  Retz.  P.  henslowianum   occurs  at   Lichfield) 
Anodonta  cygntea  (Linn.)  —  milium     (Held.)         Froghall  ;      Milford  ; 
Sphterium  rivicola  (Leach)  Coppenhall 

—  cerneum  (Linn.) 


79 


INSECTS 


ORTHOPTERA 

(Earwigs,  Cockroaches,  Grasshoppers,  and  Crickets) 

Very  little  recent  work  appears  to  have  been  done  in  this  order.  R.  Garner,  in  his 
Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford  (1844),  mentions  nine  species,  and  the  late  Edwin 
Brown,  in  his  l  Fauna  of  Burton-on-Trent'  (Natural  History  of  Tut  bury,  p.  163),  gives  a  list 
of  fourteen  species  from  the  Burton  district.  Anisolabis  maritima  appears  to  have  been 
introduced  in  bundles  of  returned  cask  staves  into  a  Burton  brewery.  Those  species  marked  t 
have  been  determined  by  Mr.  W.  J.  Lucas. 

R.G.  =  R.  Garner.  E.B.  =  Edwin  Brown.  F.J.  =  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain. 


FORFICULARIA 

Anisolabis  maritima,  Bonelli.  Several  living  speci- 
mens occurred  in  a  brewery  at  Burton  'some 
years  ago'  (E.B.)  [1863] 

Lnbia  minor,  L.      (R.G.)  ;  frequent,  Burton  (E.B.) 

Forficula  auricularia,  L.     General 

BLATTODEA 

BlatU  orientalis,  L. 

Periplaneta  americana,  L.  First  recorded  from 
Burton  by  E.B.  in  1842  (R.G.)  ;  now  resi- 
dent there 

ACRIDIODEA 

Stenobothrus  viriJulus,  L.  Common  Burton  dis- 
trict (E.B.);t  common  on  slopes  near 
Ramshom  Woods,  Ellastone  (F.J.) 

—  parallelus,  Zett.t  Also  common  near  Rams- 
horn  Woods,  Ellastone  (F.J.) 

Gomphocerusmaculatus.Thnb.  (biguttatus,  Charp.). 
Said  to  have  been  taken  near  Burton  (E.B.);t 
among  the  screes  on  Bunster,  Dovedale 
(FJ.) 


ACRIDIODEA  (continued') 

Pachytylus   migratorius,   L.     '  Has  been   captured 
.    .  .  many  times   in   this  district'   (E.B.)  ; 
one  at  Burton  in    1842  ;  another  in    1846, 
also  at  Stoke-on-Trent  in  1857  (R.G.) 
—  cinerascens,  Fb.    One  taken  near  Burton  (E.B.) 
Schistocerca   peregrina,   Oliv.     Visited  the  south- 
eastern counties  in  some  numbers  in    1869, 
spreading   into  Derbyshire,  Staffordshire,  &c. 
No  later  records 

GRYLLODEA 


'  Rare,   but    caught    in    A'. 
Requires  confirmation] 


[Gryllus   campestris. 
Staffs:  (R.G.) 

—  domesticus,  L. 

[Gryllotalpa  gryllotalpa,  L.  '  Taken  in  gardens 
about  Birmingham'  (R.G.).  Not  confirmed 
by  subsequent  observers.  One  was,  how- 
ever, found  in  1898  in  a  stove-house  at 
Meaford  Hall,  near  Stone,  and  a  second  was 
discovered  while  unloading  a  truck  of 
'  oxide  '  at  Longton  on  1 4  September,  1 906, 
both  probably  imported  accidentally  (Zoo/. 
1906,  p.  437)] 


NEUROPTERA 

(Psocids,   Stone   Flies,  Dragon   Flies,   Lace-wings,  etc.) 

The  Neuroptera  of  Staffordshire  have  been  but  little  studied.  Mr.  E.  Brown  (Natural 
History  of  Tutbury,  pp.  171-4)  mentions  ten  species  of  Odonata,  but  gives  very  scanty 
information  regarding  the  rest  of  the  order.  Upwards  of  thirty  years  ago  Mr.  Brown's 
collection  was  critically  examined  by  Mr.  R.  McLachlan,  F.R.S.,  and  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Eaton. 
As  will  be  seen  from  the  following  list,  our  knowledge  of  the  Perlidae,  Ephemeridae,  and 
Hydroptilidae  of  Staffordshire  is  practically  confined  to  what  has  been  recorded  by  the 
Rev.  A.  E.  Eaton,  who  paid  special  attention  to  those  families  in  the  Dove  Valley  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Ashburne. 

R.G.  =  R.  Garner.  E.B.  =  E.  Brown.  A.E.E.  =  A.  E.  Eaton. 

McL.  =  R.  McLachlan.  G.P.  =  G.  Pullen.  R.C.B.  =  R.  C.  Bradley. 

W.H.B.  =  W.  Harcourt  Bath.  A.D.I.  =  A.  D.  Imms. 

F.J.  =  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain.  Ent.  =  Entomologist. 

80 


INSECTS 


PSEUDO-NEUROPTERA 

(Psocids,  Stone  Flies,  and  May   Flies) 


PSOCIDAE 

Atropos  divinatoria,  Mull.  '  In  great  numbers  in 
our  houses'  (E.B.) 

Lachesilla  fatidica,  Westw.  Not  nearly  so  plenti- 
ful (E.B.) 

PERLIDAE 

Dictyopteryx  microcephala,  Pictet  (bicaudata, 
Steph.).  The  Dove  (coll.  E.B.) 

Pcrla  marginata,  Panz.  The  Dove,  near  Mapleton 
(A.E.E.)  ;  Dovedale  (G.P.) 

—  cephalotes,  Curt.     The  Dove,  Mafleton,  plenti- 

ful (A.E.E.) 
Chloroperla   grammatica,    Poda    (virescens,   Pict.). 

Not    uncommon    near    the    Dove     (E.B.)  ; 

Uapleton  (A.E.E.) 
Isopteryx  tripunctau,  Scop.    Generally  distributed 

in  the  Dove  Valley 
Taeniopteryx  nebulosa,  L.     Occurs  in   March  on 

a  bridge  over  the  Trent  (coll.  E.B. ;  A.E.E.) 
Leuctra   geniculata,   Steph.     The  slower  parts  of 

the  Dove,  near  Mapleton,  common  (A.E.E.) 
Nemoura  variegata,   Oliv.  ?   Morton.     Burton  dis- 
trict (E.B.)  ;  common  near  Ashburne  (A.E.E.) 

EPHEMERIDAE 

Ephemera  vulgata,  L.  Common  on  the  Trent 
near  Burton  (coll.  E.B.) 

—  danica,     Mull.       The     mayfly    of    the    Dove 

(A.E.E.) 


EPHEMERIDAE  (continued) 

Leptophlebia  submarginata,  Steph.  (helvipes,  Steph. ; 
geerii,  Pict.).     Dovedale  (A.E.E.) 

—  cincta,  Retz.     Trout  streams  in  the  lower  parts 

of  the  county  (A.E.E.) 

Ephemerella  ignita,  Poda.     The  Dove  and  smaller 
streams  (A.E.E.) 

—  Caenis    dimidiata,     Steph.       On     the     Trent 

(A.E.E.) 

—  rivulorum,  Eaton.     The  Dove,  near  Mayfeld. 

Abundant  in  June  (A.E.E.) 

—  halterata,  Fb.     Trent  and  lower  parts  of  the 

Dove  Valley  (A.E.E.) 

Baetis  scambus,  Eaton.     The  Dove,  near  Hanging 
Bridge  and  Nortury  (A.E.E.) 

—  vernus,   Curt.     Streams  and   brook;,  common 

(A.E.E.) 

—  rhodani,  Pict.     The  Dove,  &c.  (A.E.E.) 

-  pumilus,     Burmeister.       Brooks     and     trout- 
streams  (A.E.E.) 
Centroptilum  luteolum,  Moll.      Common  (A.E.E.) 

—  pennulatum,     Eaton.     The     Manifold,     Ham 

(A.E.E.) 
Rhithrogena   semicolorata,   Curt.       Swift    parts  of 

the  Doi-e,  near  Mayfield,  &c.  (A.E.E.) 
Heptagenia  sulphurea,  Mull.     Map,eton  (A.E.E.) 
Ecdyurus  venosus,   Fb.     The  Dove,  near   Thoipe 

(A.E.E.) 

—  insignis,  Eaton.     Near  Mafleton  :  needs   con- 

firmation (A.E.E.) 


ODONATA 

(Dragon  Flies) 


ANISOPTERIDES 

LlBELLULIDAE 

Leucorrhina  dubia,  Lind.      Cannock  Chase  (R.C.B. 

in  Ent.  1895,  p.  282) 
Sympetrum     striolatum,     Charp.       Probably    the 

species  recorded  by  E.  Brown   from  Branston 

as  L.  flaveola,  L. 

—  scoticum,  Don.      Whitmore  Moss  (R.G.) 
Libellula  depressa,  L.      Common  (R.G.) ;  frequent 

in  Burton  district  (E.B.)  ;  occasional  in 
Dove  Valley  (F.J.)  ;  once  Alstonfield  (\V.  H. 
Purchas) 

—  quadrimaculata,  L.     The    Trent,   near  Burton 

(FJ.) 

Cordulia  aenea,  L.  Moist  woods  (R.G.)  F  ;  Staf- 
fordshire (W.H.B.  in  Handbook) 

AESCHNIDAE 

Cordulegaster  annulatus,  Latr.  Birmingham  dis- 
trict (A.D.I.) 

Aeschna  juncea,  L,.  Button  Park  (R.C.B.)  ;  Dove 
Valley,  1903-7  (F.J.) 

—  cyanea,  Mttll.     Very  common,  Burton  (E.B.)  ; 

Sutton  Park  (R.C.B.)  ;  a  $,  Stone,  1904 
(E.  D.  Bostock) 


ANISOPTERIDES  (continued) 

AESCHNIDAE  (Continued) 

Aeschna  grandij.L.  Common  (R.G.);  very  common, 
Burton  (E.B.)  ;  Dove  Valley  (F.J.)  ;  Sutton 
Park  (R.C.B.)  ;  Birmingham  district  (A.D.I.) 

ZYGOPTERIDES 

ACRIONIDAE 

Calopteryx    virgo,    L.       Common    (R.G.)  ;    near 

Bretby  Mill  (E.B.) 
—  splendens,    Harr.       Common    on    the     Trent 

(E.B.)  ;  Cannock  Chase  (W.  J.  Lucas) 
Erythromma     naias,     Hansem.       Cannock     Chase 

(R.C.B.)  ;  Sutton  Park  (R.C.B.) 
Pyrrhosoma   nymphula,    Sulz.    (minium,    Harr.). 

Common  near  the  Trent  (E.B.)  ;  Birmingham 

district,  abundant   (A.D.I.)  ;    Mayfield  and 

Dove  Valley  (F.J.) 
Ischnura  elegans,  L'nd.     Common  near  the  Trent 

(E.B.  ;  F.J.) 
Agrion   puella,  L.      Common    (R.G.)  ;    common 

near  the  Trent  (E.B.)  ;  Birmingham  district, 

common  (A.D.I.) 
Enallagma    cyathigerum,    Charp.      Cannock  Chase 

(R.C.B.)  ;  Sutton  Coldfield  (A.D.I.) 


81 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


PLANIPENNIA 
(Snake  FKes,  Laceviing  Flies,  and  Scorfion  Fiiei) 


SIALIDAE 

Sialis  lutaria,  L.     Common  on  the  banks  of  ponds 
and  rivers  ;  banks  of  Dove  and  Treat  (E.B.) 
—  fuliginos.i,  Pict.     Near  Mapleton  (A.E.E.) 

HEMEROBIIDAE 
Osmylus     fulvicephalus,    Scop,    (chrysops,    auct.). 

Near  Mapleton  (A.E.E.) 
Sisyra  fuscata,  Fb.     Common  (A.E.E.) 
Micromus  variegatus,  Fb.     Common  (A.E.E.) 
Hcmerobius   [the   Staffordshire    species    have    not 

been  worked  out] 


CONIOPTERYGIDAE 

Goniopteryx  tineiformis,  Curt.    Common  (A.E.E.) 

CHRYSOPIDAE 

Chrysopa  vittata,  Wesm.    '  Common  in  our  wooJs,' 

Burton  district  (E.B.) 
—  perla,   L.     'Also   common   in  woods,'   Burton 

district  (E.B.) 

PANORPIDAE 

Panorpa  communis,  L.     Common    (R.G.)  ;  very 
common,  Burton  district  (E.B.) 


TRICHOPTERA 

(Caddis  Flies) 

The  few  species  of  Staffordshire  Caddis  flies  here  mentioned  are  mostly  recorded  from 
this  county  in  the  monographs  of  Robert  McLachlan,  F.R.S.,  published  in  1865  and  from 
1874  to  1884,  and  in  the  pages  of  the  Entomologist?  Monthly  Magazine. 

E.  M.  M.  =  Entom.  Monthly  Magazine.  McL.  =  R.  McLachlan. 

A.  E.  E.  =  A.  E.  Eaton.  ]•  C.  =  Joseph  Chappell. 


INA   QUIPALPIA 

PHRYGANEIDAE 

Neuronia  clathrata,  Kol.  First  recorded  from  Britain 
by  J.  Chappell  in  the  EMM.,  1868,  §  i, 
vol.  iv,  p.  204,  as  taken  in  Bishop's  Wood 

LlMNOPHIUDAE 

Limnophilus  vittatus,  Fab.  Burnt  and  Bishop's 
Woods  (}.  C.  in  EMM.,  1868,  §  I,  vol.  v, 
p.  48) 

-  auricula,    Curt.      Burnt    and    Bishop's    Woods 

(J.  C.  ibid.) 

• —  luridus,  Curt.  In  a  greenhouse  at  Willough- 
bridge  (J.  C.  ibid.) 

-  fuscicornis,  Ramb.  (fumigatus,  Hag.).     Burton- 

on-Trent  (McL.) 

Stenophylax  alpestris,  Kol.  Recorded  for  the  first 
time  in  Great  Britain  by  R.  McLachlan  in 
the  EMM.,  1868,  §  I,  vol.  iv,  p.  205,  as 
taken  in  Burnt  H'oods  by  J.  Chappell.  (In 
Dale's  mus.) 

Metanaea  (Halesus)  flavipennis,  Pict.  (guttatipen- 
nis,  McL.).  Probably  taken  by  Edwin 
Brown  near  Burton-on-Trent  (McL.) 


INAEQUIPALPIA  (continued} 
SERICOSTOMATIDAE 

Lasiocephala   (Mormonia)   basalis,   Kol.     Dovedale 
(A.  E.  E.) 

AEQUIPALPIA 

LEPTOCERIDAE 

Leptocerus  alboguttatus,  Hag.  (bimaculatus,  Steph.). 
Burton-on-  Trent  (McL.) 

—  annulicornis,  Steph.     Burton-on-Trent  ;McL.) 
Triaenodes  commutatus,  McL.     Dovedale  (McL.) 

—  conspersa,     Ramb.     Dovedale    (B.     Cooke     in 

Dale's  mus.) 

RHYACOPHILIDAE 
Glossoma  boltoni,  Curt.     Near  Ashburne  (A.  E.  E.) 

HYDROPTILIDAE 

Hydroptila    (Phrixocoma,     Eaton)    sparsa,     Curt. 
Burton-on-Trent,  abundant  (A.  E.  E.) 

—  forcipata,  Eaton.      Oakamoor  and  the  R.  Dove, 

near  Nortury  and  Ashburne  (A.  E.  E.) 

—  occulta,    Eaton.     The   R.  Dove,  near  Mapleton 

(A.  E.  E.) 

—  femoralis,    Eaton    (longispina,    McL.,    1884). 

The  R.  Dove,  near  Mapleton  (A.E.E.) 


HYMENOPTERA 

(Ants,   Wasps,  Bees,   Saw/lies,   &c.) 

The  following  list  has  been  compiled  from  various  sources  which  may  be  summarized  as 
follows : — 

The  earliest  county  list  is  that  of  R.  Garner  (History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,  1 844),  a 
brief  list  of  some  nineteen  species  of  no  particular  value.  In  1863  was  published  Edwin 
Brown's  '  Fauna  of  Burton  '  (Natural  History  of  Tutbury),  which  contains  lists  of  sixty-eight 
species  of  Phytophagous  and  eighty-one  Aculeate  Hymenoptera.  The  Entomophaga  are 

82 


INSECTS 

scarcely  more  than  noticed  in  passing,  but  five  species  of  Chrysididae  are  mentioned.  As 
Mr.  Brown's  collections  have  been  dispersed  and  the  specimens  are  not  available  for  examina- 
tion, the  synonomy  presents  many  difficulties  and  a  good  deal  of  uncertainty  is  attached  to  the 
identification  of  several  species.  The  area  included  is  also  somewhat  vaguely  defined,  embracing 
parts  of  Derbyshire  and  Leicestershire,  and  only  in  a  few  cases  is  the  exact  locality  given. 

ACULEATA 

Of  late  years  Mr.  E.  D.  Bostock  has  contributed  a  list  of  nineteen  species  taken  near  Stone 
in  1888  to  the  Report  of  the  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club  for  1889,  p.  17,  and  a  brief  list  of  twelve 
species  from  near  Tittensor  by  the  Rev.  F.  A.  Walker  appeared  in  the  same  publication 
in  1896  (p.  63).  Mr.  J.  R.  B.  Masefield  took  thirty-four  species  of  Aculeata  near  Cheadle 
in  1896,  which  were  determined  by  Mr.  E.  Saunders  (Report  N.S.F.C.,  1897,  p.  59),  and  nas 
since  supplemented  this  list  by  several  fresh  records.  Mr.  A.  H.  Martineau  has  also  furnished 
me  with  a  list  of  twenty-seven  species  which  he  has  taken  at  Colwich  and  has  kindly  contri- 
buted some  notes  on  the  Heterogyna.  Most  of  these  records  are  incorporated  in  a  paper  by  the 
writer  in  the  Report  of  the  N.  Staffs,  Field  Club  for  1902-3,  pp.  81-7,  in  which  1 13  species  are 
recorded. 

From  the  above  it  will  be  seen  that  the  only  recent  work  is  that  which  has  been  done 
in  the  Aculeata  ;  with  the  exception  of  a  few  notes  by  Mr.  Brett  on  the  gall-makers,  the 
Phytophaga  have  been  unworked  for  forty  years  past,  and  the  Entomophaga  have  up  to  the 
present  received  no  attention  whatever. 

The  following  abbreviations  have  been  used  : — 

R.  G.  =  R.  Garner  (Nat.  Hist,  of  the  County  of  Stafford) 

E.  B.  =  E.  Brown  (Burton) 

F.  D.  M.  =  the  Rev.  F.  D.  Morice 
J.  R.  B.  M.  =  J.  R.  B.  Masefield  (Cheadle) 
E.  D.  B.  =  E.  D.  Bostock  (Tixall) 
A.  H.  M.  =  A.  H.  Martineau  (Colwich) 

R.  C.  B.  =  R.  C.  Bradley  (Cannock  Chase) 
F.  A.  W.  =  the  Rev.  F.  A.  Walker  (Tittensor) 
C.  B.  =  Cyril  Brett  (Alton) 

F.  J.  =  the  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain  (Mayfield,  &c.) 

An  asterisk  (*)  prefixed  to  the  name  of  any  species  signifies  that  specimens  have  been 
determined  by  Mr.  E.  Saunders.  Where  Burton  is  given  as  the  locality,  without  authority, 
the  record  is  taken  from  Mr.  E.  Brown's  list. 

HYMENOPTERA    ACULEATA 

(Ants,   Wasps,  and  Bees) 

HETEROGYNA  HETEROGYNA  (continued) 

FORMICIDAE  MVRMICIDAE  (continued') 

Formica  rufa,  L.     Common  in  most  large  woods         Leptotliorax  acervorum,  Fb.     Rare,  usually  found 

—  fusca,    Latr.       Very    common    generally,    in  under  bark  in  old  stumps,  Cohvich  (A.  H.  M.) 

banks  and  hedgerows  Myrmica  rubra,  L.     Common,  nesting  in  ground 

Lasius  fuliginosus,  Latr.      Outwood  Hills  (E.  B.)  ;  (A.  H.  M.)  ;  race  scabrinodis,  Nyl.     Near 

not  common,   generally  nests   in    decayed  Burton. 

stumps,  &c.  (A.  H.  M.)  [Crematogaster    scutellaris,    Oliv.     Recorded  by 

—  umbratus,  Nyl.     Colwich,  but  not  common  as  Dr.  Mason  from  a  fernery  at  Burton  ;  prob- 

a    rule  ;     near    roots    of    decayed    stumps  ably   imported   with   cork   (EMM.,  xxv, 

(A.  H.  M.)  330;  Ent.   1889,  p.  191.)] 

—  flavus,  De  G.    Very  common  on  eastern  slope 

of  Qutvuod  Hills  (E.  B.)  ;  generally  common  FOSSORES 

in  fields  where  soil  is  light  (A.  H.  M.)  SAPYGIDAE 

—  niger,  L.     Common,  Burton ;  very  common,        Sapyga  quinquepunctata,  Fb.     Burton 

often  in  gardens  (A.  H.  M.)  —  clavicornis,  L.     Burton,  not   common   ('one 

in  P.  B.  Mason's  collection,  without  data, 

MYRMICIDAE  E.  Saunders ').     Mr.  A.  H.  Martineau  in- 

Myrmecina  latreillii,  Curt.      Cannock  (Ent.  1901,  forms  me  that  Dr.  Mason  has  also  taken  this 

p.  232)  ;  Colwich  in  dead  tree  stumps,  not  species  on  several  occasions  at  Burton  since 

common  (A.  H.  M.)  the  publication  of  Saunders'  monograph 

83 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


FOSSORES  (continued) 

PoMPILIDAE 

Pompilus  viaticus,  L.  (fuscus,  Sm.).     Burton 

—  gibbus,   Fb.     The  Oaks  marlplt,  near  Burton; 

Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
*—  pectinipes,  V.  de  L.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
Salius  exaltatus,  Fb.     Burton 
*—  pusillus,  Schiod.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 

SPHEGIDAE 

Tachytes  pectinipes,  L.    One  taken  at  Cannock  (Ent. 
1899,  p.  46)  ;  Colwich,  common  (A.H.M.) 
Trypoxylon    figulus,    L.      Burton ;     Colwich,    in 
wood  posts,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  clavicerum,  St.   F.     Colteich,  in  wood  posts, 

rare  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  attenuatum,    Sm.      Colwich,    in   wood    posts, 

rare  (A.  H.  M.) 
Ammophila  sabulosa,  L.      Cannock  (R.  C   B.,  Ent. 

1894,  p.  77) 
Pemphredon     shuckardi,      Moraw.       (Cemonus 

unicolor,  Smith  pars).     Burton. 
Diodontus  minutus,  Fb.     Burton 

—  tristis,  V.  de  L.     Burton 
Psen  pallipes,  Pz.      Burton 

'Gorytes  mystaceus,  L.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ; 

Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
'Mellinus    arvensis,    L.     Shobnall,    &c.    (E.    B.)  ; 

Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
Oxybelus     uniglumis,     L.        Colwich,     common 

(A.  H.  M.) 
"Crabro   palmipes,    L.      Ckeadle   (J.   R.   B.   M.)  ; 

Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
*—  elongatulus,  V.  de  L.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 


FOSSORES  (continued) 
SPHEGIDAE  (continued) 

*Crabro  dimidiatus,  Fb.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
*—  cephalotes,  Pz.     Cheadle  0-  R-  B.  M.) 

—  cribrarius,  L.     Shohnalt,  &c.  (E.  B.) 

—  chrysostoma,  St.  F.  (xylurgus,  Shuck).    Burton 

—  peltarius,  Schr.  (patellatus,  Pz.).     Burton 

DIPLOPTERA 

VESPIDAE 

Vespa  crabro,  L.     Not  rare,  Whitmore  (R.  G.)  ; 

rare  in  Burton  district  ;    Mayfield,  a  nest 

Sept.  1902  (F.  J.) 

* —  vulgaris,  L.     Common  everywhere 
' —  germanica,  Fb.     Also  vary  common 

—  rufa,  L.     Dovedale,  not  uncommon  (E.   B.)  ; 

Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 

*  —  sylvestris,     Scop.      Burton,    scarce  ;     Cheadle 

(J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Tittensor  (F.  A.  W.)  ;  Dove 
Valley  (F.  J.) 

* —  norvegica,  Fb.  Burton,  not  uncommon  ; 
$  Cheadle,  1903  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Dove 
Valley  (F.J.) 

EuMENIDAK 

Odynerus  spinipes,  L.     Burton 

—  parietum,  L.     Common  :    Burton ;   Mayfield 

and  Dove  valley  (F.  J.) 
*—  pictus,  Curt.     Eccleshall  (F.  D.  M.)  ;  Cheadle 

(J.  R.  B.  M.) ;  Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
* —  trimarginatus,  Zett.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  • 

Mayfield™&  Dove  Valle-j  (F.  J.) 

*  -  parietinus,  L.     Cheadie  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 


ANTHOPHILA 


OBTUSILINGUES 

CoLLETIDAE 


Colletes  succinctus,  L.      Cannock  (F.  D.  M.) 

-  davicsanus,   Smith.     Burton  ;  one  $,  Colvilch 

(A.  H.  M.) 

*—  cunicularius,  L.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
Prosopis  communis,  Nyl.     Burton 

ACUTILINGUES 

ANDRENIDAE 

Sphecodes  gibbus,  L.     Shobnall  marlpit  (E.  B.)  ; 
Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  subquadratus,  Smith.     Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

-  pilifrons,    Thorns,     (prob.     rufescens,     Sm.). 

Burton  ? 

—  affinis,  V.  Hag.    Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
*Halictus    rubicundus,   Chr.      General  :    Burton ; 

Stone  (E.  D.  B.)  ;  Uayfield  (F.  J.)  ;  Cheadle 
(J.  R.  B.  M.) ;  Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  quadrinotatus,  Kirb.     Burton 

—  cylindricus,  Fb.     Burton 

—  albipes,  Kirb.     Burton 

—  longulus,  Smith.     Burton  (?) 

•—  nitidiusculus,  Kirb.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ; 
Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  tumulorum,  L.    Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 


ACUTILINGUES  (continued) 
ANDRENIDAE  (continued) 

Halictussmeathmanellus,Kirb.    Cheadle (J.R.B.M.) 

—  morio,  Fb.     Burton 

'Andrena     albicans,      Kirb.        Burton  ;     Ckeadle 
(}.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

*—  rosae,  Pz.      Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 

var.  trimmerana,  Kirb.     Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  nitida,  Fourc.     Burton  ;  Trentham  Park,  very 

common  (F.  A.  W.) 

—  cineraria,  L.       Burton ;     Store    (E.    D.    B.)  ; 

Trentham  Park,  very  local  (F.  A.  W.) 
* —  fulva,  Schr.     Burton;  Cheadle,  large  colonies 

(J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Stone  (E.  D.  B.)  ;  Trentham 

Park,  not  very  common  (F.  A.  W.) 
* —  nigroaenea,  Kirb.     Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ; 

Trentham  Park,  very  common  (F.  A.  W.) 
* —  angustior,    Kirb.       Cheadle    (].   R.   B.    M.)  ; 

Colwich,  rare  (A.  H.  M.) 
*—  helvola,  L.     Cheadle   (J.  R.   B.  M.)  ;    Stone 

(E.  D.  B.) 
*  —  fucata,  Smith.    Cheadk  (J.  R.  B.  M.) ;  CoAcicA, 

rare  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  fuscipes,  Kirb.     Several  on   heather,  Cannock 

Chase  (F.  D.  M.) 

—  fulvicrus,  Kirb.     Burton 


84 


INSECTS 


ACUTILINGUES  (continued) 
ANDRENIDAE  (continued') 

Andrena  cingulata,  Fb.      Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
*—  albicrus,  Kirb.     Burton  ;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) ; 

Stone    (E.    D.     B.)  ;     Colwich,     common 

(A.  H.  M.) 

—  minutula,  Kirb.   Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
*—  nana,  Kirb.     $,  CheaJle,  1903  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 

—  wilkella,  Kirb.    Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 
* —  similis,  Smith.      Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 

Nomada  succincta,  Pz.     Shobnall,  &c.  (E.  B.) 
*—  alternata,  Kirb.     CheaJle  (].  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Stone 
(E.    D.    B.)  ;     Trentham    Park,    plentiful 
(F.  A.  W.) 

—  lathburiana,   Kirb.     Stone,   rare   (E.   D.   B.)  ; 

Colwich,  rare  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  ruficornis,  L.      Cannock  (R.  C.  B.,  Ent.  1895, 

p.  283) ;  Stone  (E.  D.  B.) ;  Colwich,  common 
(A.  H.  M.) 

*—  bifida,  Thorns.  CheaJle  (].  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Col- 
wich (C.  J.  W.,  Ent.  1896,  p.  222)  ;  Stone, 
rare  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  lateralis,  Pz.      Trentham  Park,  near   Tittensor, 

one  or  two  only  (F.  A.  W.) 

—  ochrostoma,  Kirb.    Burton ;  Cannock  (R.  C.  B. 

Ent.    1895,   p.    283)  ;    Colwich,   common 
(A.  H.  M.) 

—  ferruginata,  Kirb.  (germanica,  Smith).      Bur- 

ton 

—  fabriciana,    L.     Burton ;    Stone   (E.   D.    B.)  ; 

Colwich,  common  (A.  H.  M.) 

—  flavoguttata,  Kirb.    Burton  ;  Cannock  (R.  C.  B. 

Ent.  1895,  p.  283) 

APIDAE 

Chelostoma    florisomne,    L.      Burton ;     Colwich, 

common  (A.  H.  M.) 
Coelioxys     elongata,     St.     F.     (simplex,     Nyl.). 

Burton 


ACUTILINGUES  (continued) 
APIDAE  (continued) 

'Megachile  willughbiella,  Kirb.  Burton;  Cheadle 
(J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  MayfieU  (F.  J.) 

* —  centuncularis,  L.  Maer  and  Whltmore  (R.  G.); 
Burton ;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 

•Osrnia  rufa,  L.  Burton;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ; 
Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  bicolor,  Schr.     Burton 
Anthidium  manicatum,  L.     Burton 

Eucera  longicornis,  L.     Scalpcli/ Hill  near  Burton 

(E.  B.) 

Melecta  armata,  Pz.     Burton 
Anthophora     pilipes,    Fb.    (acervorum,    Smith). 

Burton  ;  Stone  (E.  D.  B.) 
*Psithyrus     vestalis,     Fourc.       Burton  ;     Cheadle 

(J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 
*—  campestris,  Pz.     Burton;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 

—  quadricolor,  St.  F.  (barbutellus,  Smith).  Burton 
*Bombus  venustus,  Smith  (senilis,  Fb.).     Burton  ; 

Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
* —  agrorum,  Fb.     Burton  ;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M)  ; 

Trentham  Park  (F.  A.  W.)  ;  Marftld(¥.  ].), 

&c. 
*—  hortorum,  L.    Burton  ;  CheaJle  (].  R.  B.  M.). 

var.    harrisellus,Kirb.    CheaJle  (J.R.B.M.) 
*—  latreillellus,  Kirb.   Burton  ;  Cheadle  (J.R.B.M.) 

-  sylvarum,  L.     Burton 

—  derhamellus,  Kirb.     Burton 

*  —  lapidanus,  L.  Common,  Burton  ;  Cheadle 
(J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Stone  (E.  D.  B.)  ;  one,  at 
Tittensor  (F.  A.  W.)  ;  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

-  lapponicus,  Fb.     One  $  Cannock  (F.  D.  M.) 
* —  pratorum,  L.     Burton;  Cheadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.); 

Stone  (E.  D.  B.)  ;  Mayfield  (F.  J.),  &c. 
* —  terrestris,  L.      Very  common.      Var.*  virgin- 

alis.     One  J>,  Cheadle,  1903  (J.  R.  B.  M.) 
Apis  mellifica,    L.      Occasionally    reverts    to    wild 

state.   Nests  in  woodpeckers'  holes,  Cannock 

Chase  (F.  J.)     Var.  ligustica,  introduced 


PHYTOPHAGA 

(Saw  Flies  and  Gall  Flies) 


TENTHREDINIDAE 
TENTHREDINA 


Tenthredo  livida,  L.     Burton 

—  solitaria,  Scop.     Burton 

—  rufiventris,  Pz.     Burton 

,  —  punctulata,  Klug.     Burton 

—  viridis,  L.     Burton 

—  gibbosa,  Fall,  (aucupariae,  Klug.),  Burton 
Tenthredopsis  nigricollis,  St.  F.     Burton 

—  scutellaris,  Fb.     Burton 

—  nassata,  L.  (melanorrhaea,  Gmel.),  Burton 
Pachyprotasis  rapae,  L.     Burton 
Macrophya  blanda,  Fb.     Burton 

—  neglecta,  Klug.     Burton 

—  albicincta,  Schr.     Burton 

—  punctum  album,  L.  (punctum,  Fb.).     Burton 
Allantus  scrophulariae,  L.     Burton 

— •  tricinctus,  Fb.  (vespiformis,  L.).     Burton 

—  marginellus,  Fb.  (viennensis,  Pz.).     Burton 


TENTHREDINIDAE  (continued) 
TENTHREDINA  (continued) 

Allantus  arcuatus,  Forst.     Burton 

—  macula,   Fourc.    (zonata,   Pz.),    Burton ;  Dove- 

dale,  W.  E.  Ryles 
Dolerus  gonagra,  Fb.     Burton 

—  chappelli,     Cam.     '  One    taken     by     Mr.    J. 

Chappell   in   Staffordshire  '  (Cameron,    Man. 
Phyt.  Hymcnoptera,  \,  I  66) 
• —  haematodis,  Schr.     Burton 

-  coracinus,  Klug.      Burton 

—  niger,  L.      Burton 
Strongylogaster  cingulatus,  Fb.     Burton 

-  delicatulus,  Fall  (eborinus,  Klug.).      Burton 
Selandria  serva,  Fb.     Burton 

—  stramineipes,  Klug.     Burton 

Taxonus  glabratus,  Fall  (rufipes,  St.  F).     Burton 
Eriocampa   limacina,  Retz.     Burton  ;  Dove  Valley, 
(F.J.) 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


TENTHREDINIDAE  (continued) 

TENTHREDINA  (continued) 
Eriocampa   rosae,  Harris.     Occasionally  in  south 

(F-  JO 

Blennocampa  albipes,  Gmel.     Burton 

—  bipunctata,  Klug.     Burton 

• —  fuscipennis,  Fall,  (luteiventris,  Klug.)     Burton 

—  fuliginosa,  Schr.     Burton 

—  pusilla,  Klug.     Burton 

Athalia   spinarum,  Fb.     The   '  nigger '  or  turnip 
fly.     Burton,  &c. 

—  rosae,  L.     Burton 

NEMATINA 

Dineura  stilata,  Klug.  (bicolor,  Steph.)     Burton 
Cladiuspectinicornis,  Fourc.  (difformis,  Pz.)    Burton, 
common 

—  viminalis,  Fall  (grandis,  St.  F.),  Burton 

-  eradiatus,  Htg.  (morio,  St.  F.).  Burton,  common 
Nematus    appendiculatus,    Htg.    (pallipes,  St.  F.), 

Burton 

-  lucidus,  Pz.      Burton 

-  haem:>rrhoidalis,  Cam.     Burton 

-  miliaris,  Pz.      Burton 

-  myosotidis,  Fb.     Burton 

-  croceus,  Fall   (dorsalis,  St.  F.).     Burton 

-  salicis,  L-  (capreae,  Fb.).     Burton 

—  ribesii,     Scop,     (trimaculatus,   St.  F.),   R.  G.  ; 

Burton  ;  Dcre  Val.'ey  (F.  J.),  &c. 

—  salicis-cinereae,  Retz.     On  Salix  alba  at  Alton, 

August,  03  (C.B.) 

-  gallicola,  Westw.,  on   Salix   fragilis,   L.     Alton 

(C.B.)  ;  R.  Trent  (F.J.) 

ClMBIClNA 

Cimbex  lutea,  L.  (femorata,  L.).     Near  Burton,  on 

alder  and  birch,  rare 

Trichiosoma    lucorum,     L.      Common     in     early 
spring,  Burton  ;  Dove  Valley   (F.  J.) 

HYLOTOMINA 

Hylotoma  rosae,  L.     Burton,  infests  rose  trees 

—  cyaneocrocea,  Forst.     Burton 

PAMPHILINA 
Pamphilus  sylvaticus,  L.     Burton 


TENTHREDINIDAE  (continued) 
CEPHIDAE 

Cephus  phthisiacus,  Fb.  (pallipes,  Klug.).     Burton 

—  tabidus,  Fb.     Burton 

—  pygmaeus,  L.     Burton 

SIRICIDAE 

Sirex  gigas,  L.  Females  occur  occasionally,  Ham 
(R.G.)  ;  Dove  Valley  ;  Uttoxeter  (F.  J.)  ; 
Hanley  (W.  Bladen)  ;  Stone,  fairly  common  ; 
Cbeadle  (J.  R.  B.  M.)  ;  Helelgh  Castle  Wood 
(T.  W.  Daltry) 

—  juvencus,  L.     Large  numbers  found  in  a  dead 

spruce-fir,  in  all  stages  of  development,  in 
August,  1850  (Sir  O.  Mosley,  Zoo!.  1850, 
p.  2960).  'Produced  some  years  ago  in 
great  numbers  from  a  diseased  spruce  fir  at 
Rolleston'  (E.  B.)  [1863];  one  taken  near 
Stone  (W.  Wells  Bladen) 

—  melanocerus, Thorns,  (noctilio,  Fb.).       $  taken 

at  Cheadle  in  1897  (J.  R.  B.  M.,  N.S.F.C. 
Report,  1 898,  p.  64).  (Regarded  by  Cameron 
as  probably  not  a  distinct  species.) 

CYNIPJDAE 

Rhodites  cgianteriae,  Htg.  On  Rosa  canina,  L., 
at  Alton  (C.  B.) 

—  rosae,  L.     Generally  distributed 

—  forma-tuberculata.     Great  Gate  (C.  B.) 
Aulax     heiracii,     Bouche.     On     H.     umbellatum 

(R.  G.) 

Xestophanes  brevitarsis,  Thorns.  On  Potentilla 
silvestris,  Neck.  Alton  (C.  B.) 

Andricus  fecundatrix,  Htg.  On  Quercus  robur,  L. 
Alton  (C.B.) 

Cynips  kollari,  Htg.  Already  established  in  the 
district  round  Burton  in  1863  ;  now  com- 
mon on  Q.  robur,  L.  everywhere 

Biorhiza  terminalis,  Fb.  Also  common  on  Q.  ro- 
bur, L.  everywhere 

Dryophanta  folii,  Htg.  (scutellaris,  Adler)  ?  Alien 
(C.  B.) 

Neuroterus  numismatis,  Oliv.     Common 

—  lenticularis,  Oliv.     Common  on    Q.  robur,  L. 

Alton  (C.  B.) 


HYMENOPTERA  ENTOMOPHAGA 


(Cbrjsids,   Ichneumons, 


CHRYSIDIDAE 

Cleptes  pallipes,  St.  F.  (semiaurata,  L.).     Burton 
Elampus  (Hedychrum)  auratus,  L.     Burton 
Chrysis  cyanea,  L.     Burton 

—  viridula,  L.     Burton 

—  ignita,  L.     Burton  ;  Mayfeld,  and  Dove  Valley, 

not  uncommon    (F.J.) 

IcHNEUMONIDAI 

[Still  remain  unworkcd.  R.  C.  Bradley  (Eat. 
1896,  p.  222)  records  a  pair  of  Banchus 
pirtuJ,  Fb.  from  Cokvich,  and  specimens  of 


[Also 


ICHNEUMONIDAE  (continued) 

Pimpla  turionellae,  L.  and  Ichneumon  ex- 
tensorius,  L.  were  identified  by  Mr.  C. 
Morley  among  some  insects  taken  at  Cheadle 
in  1903] 

BRACONIDAE 

unworked  up  to  the  present.  Edwin  Brown 
mentions  Microgaster  glomeratus  as  '  very 
common,'  and  also  records  Evania  appendi- 
gaster  as  parasitic  on  the  cockroach  in  the 
Burton  district] 


86 


INSECTS 


COLEOPTERA 

(Beetles) 

The  materials  from  which  the  subsequent  list  has  been  compiled  are  mainly  as  follows  : — 
(i)  R.  Garner's  Natural  History  cf  the  County  of  Stafford,  1844,  with  a  supplement  dated  1860, 
containing  a  list  of  171  species  in  all  ;  most  of  these  are  species  of  ubiquitous  occurrence,  and 
the  identifications  in  some  cases  are  almost  certainly  wrong.  Garner  had  the  assistance 
of  Messrs.  Finder  and  J.  B.  Davis  in  drawing  up  his  list  of  Coleoptera,  and  says  (p.  241) 
that  to  Mr.  Davis  he  is  indebted  to  a  considerable  extent  for  the  list.  (2)  A  list  in  Fauna  of 
the  Neighbourhood  of  Burton  on  Trent  by  Edwin  Brown  (J.  Van  Voorst),  1863.  This  contains 
623  species,  mostly  collected  in  Staffordshire,  but  a  few  are  from  Derbyshire  only,  the  district 
round  Burton  embracing  portions  of  both  counties.  (3)  A  list  of  '  Coleoptera  collected  in  the 
Neighbourhood  of  Burton,'  by  H.  W.  'Bates,  in  the  Zoologist  for  1848,  p.  1997,  noting  77 
species.  (4)  A  list  of  491  species  by  Mr.  L.  H.  Jahn  in  the  Report  of  the  N.  Staffs.  Field 
Club,  1904-5,  pp.  73-90,  and  a  supplementary  list  of  93  species,  i.e.,  1906-7,  p.  81-5. 
Nearly  all  Mr.  Jahn's  material  has  been  through  my  hands.  It  includes  several  purely  northern 
forms  introduced  in  timber  for  the  pits,  but  as  several  of  these  seem  to  be  establishing  them- 
selves in  the  Hanley  neighbourhood,  it  is  better  to  include  them. 

I  have  been  able  to  supplement  these  lists  considerably  from  scattered  records  in  Fowler's 
British  Coleoptera  and  in  the  Entomologist's  Monthly  Magazine,  as  well  as  from  a  small  list 
of  captures  at  Cheadle  by  Mr.  Johnston.  It  is  hoped  that  the  county  list  thus  compiled, 
though  very  imperfect,  especially  in  the  Staphylinidae  and  Curculionidae,  will  act  as  a  useful 
basis  and  stimulus  for  further  collecting.  Where  no  authority  for  the  record  is  given,  it  is  to  be 
understood  that  it  stands  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Brown  (Burton),  Canon  Fowler,  or  myself 
(Cannock  Chase  and  Needwood  Forest)  ;  Mr.  Jahn  (Hanley  and  Swynnerton)  or  Mr.  Johnston 
(Cheadle).  Otherwise  the  author's  name  is  invariably  given.  Species  whose  occurrence  in  the 
county  seems,  for  various  reasons,  to  need  confirmation,  are  inclosed  in  square  brackets  [  ]. 
Absence  of  locality  points  to  general  distribution,  inferred  at  present  rather  than  ascertained. 


ClCINDELlDAE 

Cicindela  campestris,  L. 

CARABIDAE 

Cychrus  rostratus,  L. 
Carabus  granulatus,  L. 

—  monilis,  F. 

—  catenulatus,  Scop. 

—  nemoralis,  Mull. 

—  violaceus,  L. 

—  nitens,    L.       Cannock    Chase 

(Brown)  ;      Wetley    Moor 
(Jahn) 
Notiophilus  biguttatus,  F. 

—  aquaticus,  L. 
Leistus  spinibarbis,  F. 

—  fulvibarbis,  Dej. 

—  ferruginous,  L. 

—  rufescens,  F. 
Ncbria  brevicollis,  F. 

—  gyllenhali,  Sch.       Cheadle 

—  livida,     F.       Cannock    Chase 

(Garneys  and  Harris) 
Elaphrus  riparius,  L. 

—  cupreus,  Duft. 
Loricera  pilicornis,  F. 
Clivina  fossor,  L. 

—  collar. s,  Hbst.    Hanley  ;  Bur- 

ton, occasional 

Dyschirius   aeneus,  Dej.     Burton 
and  CannockChase(¥ovt\er) 


CARABIDAE  (cont.) 

Miscodcra  arctica,  Payk.  Cannock 
Chase;  cf.  Ent.  1898, 
p.  271 

Brojcus  cephalotes,  L.  Stvynner- 
ton 

Badister  bipustulatus,  F. 

Licinus  depressus,  Payk.  Dove- 
dale  (Brown  and  Jahn) 

Chlaenius  vestitus,  Payk.  Can- 
nock Chase 

—  nigricornis,     F.         Dovcstde 

(Brown) 

Oodes  helopioides,  F.     Burton 
Acupalpus  meridianus,  L.     Hen- 
hurst  (Brown) 
Bradycellus  cognatus,  Gyll. 

—  verbasci,  Duft. 

—  harpalinus,  Dej. 

Harpalus  rupicola,  St.  Burton 
(Fowler) 

—  ruficornis,  F. 

—  aeneus,  F. 

—  latus,  L. 

Anisodactylus  binotatus,  F.  Bur- 
ton 

Stomis  pumicatus,  Panz.  Burton  ; 
Cheadle;  Hanley 

Platyderus  ruficollis,  Marsh. 
Lichfield  and  Burton 
(Fowler) 

Pterostichus  cupreus,  L. 

87 


CARABIDAE  (com.) 

Pterostichus  vcrsicolor,  St. 

-  madidus,  F. 

—  lepidus,    F.      Cannock    Chase 

in  some  number,  vide  also 
Ent.  1895,  p.  236 

—  niger,  Sch. 

-  vulgaris,  L. 

-  nigrita,  F. 

-—  gracilis,  Dej.      Burton   (Fow- 
ler) 

—  strenuus,  Panz. 

-  diligens,  St. 

—  picimanus,     Duft.       Cannock 

Chase 

-  vernalis,  Gyll.      Burton 

—  striola,  F. 
Amara  apricaria,  Payk. 

—  consularis,     Duft.       Cannock 

Chate 

-  aulica,  Panz. 

-  patricia,  Duft.    Cannock  Chase 

—  bifrons,      Gyll.          Manifold 

Valley  (Jahn) 
• —  ovata,  F.     Cheadle 

—  similata,       Gyll.         Burton  ; 

Cheadle 

—  acuminata,  Payk.     Burton 

—  tibialis,  Payk. 

—  lunicollis,     Sch.         Burton  ; 

Cannock  Chase 

—  sprcta,  Dej.     Cannock  Chase 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


CARABIDAE  (coat.) 

Amara  familiaris,  Duft. 

—  anthobia,  Villa.     Hanley 

—  trivialis,  Gyll. 

• —  communis,  Panz. 

—  plebeia,  Gyll 
Calathus   cisteloides,  Panz. 

—  fuscus,  F.     Stone  and  Dove- 

dale  (Jahn) 

-  melanocephalus,  L. 

-  piceus,     Marsh.        Trentkam 

(Jahn) 

Taphria  nivalis,  Panz.  Burton,  rare 
Pristonychus  terricola,  Hbst. 
Sphodrus      leucophthalmus,     L. 

Burton 
Anchomenus  angusticollis,  F. 

-  dorsalis,  Mull. 

-  albipes,  F. 

-  marginatus,  L. 

-  sexpunctatus,  L.     One  speci- 

men in  Dovedale  (Jahn) 

-  parumpunctatus,  F. 

-  viduus,  Panz.,  and  var.  moes- 

tus,  Duft.     Hanky,  Burton 

-  fuliginosus,  Panz. 

-  gracilis,  Gyll.     Hanley 

-  piceus,  L.      Hanley,  Burton 

-  thoreyi,  Dej.     Burton  (Fow- 

ler) 

—  puellus,  Dej.     Burton  (Fow- 

ler) 

Olisthopus  rotundatus,  Payk. 
Bembidium  rufescens,  Guer. 

-  quinquestriatum,  Gyll.    Bur- 

ton    (Fowler)  ;       Churnet 
Galley  (Jahn) 

-  obtusum,  St. 

-  guttula,  F. 

-  mannerheimi,   Sahl.     Hanley 

-  biguttatum,  F. 

-  articulatum,  Panz.     Burton 

-  lampros,  Hbst. 

—  nigricorne,    Gyll.        Cannock 

Chase  (Blatch) 

—  atrocaeruleum,  Steph.   Burton 

(Bates) 

—  tibiale,  Duft.     Burton  (Fow- 

ler) 

—  decorum,     Panz.          Burton 

(Bates) 
— •  monticola,  St.     Burton 

-  quadriguttatum,  F. 

—  quadrimaculatum,  Gyll. 

—  femoratum,  St. 

—  bruxellense,  Wesm.      Cannock 

Cfiaie 

—  littorale,  Ol. 

—  fluviatile,  Dej.     Burton 

—  punctulatum,  Drap.     Burton 

—  bipunctatum,    L.       Cannock 

Chase 

—  flammulatum,  Clairv.   By  the 

Trent  and  Dove  (Garneys 
and  Gorham) 


CARABIDAE  (cont.) 

Bembidium  obliquum,  St.  Near 
Burton.  one  specimen 
(Fowler) 

Tachypus  flavipes,  L. 

Trechus  discus,  F.  Rare  by  the 
Trent  and  Dove  (Garneys) 

—  rubens,  F.    Canmck    Chase; 

Hanley 

—  minutus,  F. 

—  secalis,  Payk.     Burton 
Patrobus  excavatus,  Payk. 

—  assimilis,  Ch.     Cannock  Chase 
Cymindis  vaporariorum,  L.    Can- 
nock    Chase     (Smith     in 
Ent.    1895,    p.    236,    and 
Blatch,  I.e.  1890,  p.  208) 

Lebia  chlorocephala,  Hoff.  Bur- 
ton, occasional  ;  Dovedale 
(Jahn) 

Demetrias  atricapillus,  L. 

Dromius  linearis,  Ol. 

—  agilis,    F.     Burton  common, 

Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  quadrimaculatus,  L. 

—  quadrinotatus,  Panz. 

—  melanocephalus,  Dej. 
Metabletus  foveola,  Gyll. 

—  truncatellus,  L.  Cannock  Chase 

HALIPLIDAE 

Brychius  elevatus,  Panz.    R.Dove 

(Jahn) 
Haliplus  obliquus,  Er. 

-  mucronatus,  Steph.     Burton, 

very  rare  (Garneys) 

-  flavicollis,  St.     Burton  (Bates) 

—  variegatus,  St. 

-  ruficollis,  De  G. 

-  fluviatilis,    Aube.     Newcastle 

under  Lyme  (Jahn) 
— •  lineatocollis,  Marsh. 

PELOBIIDAE 

Pelobius  tardus,  Hbst.  Two  at 
Stone  (Jahn) 

DYTISCIDAE 

Noterus  clavicornis,  De  G.  Bur- 
ton 

-  sparsus,     Marsh.       Newcastle 

under  Lyme  (Jahn) 
Laccophilus  interruptus,  Panz. 

—  obscurus,  Panz. 
Hyphydrus  ovatus,  L. 
Coelambus  versicolor,  Sch. 

—  inaequalis,  F. 

—  parallelogrammus,  Ahr.   Bur- 

ton 
Deronectes  depressus,  F. 

—  assimilis,  Payk.     One  at  Bur- 

ton (Bates) 
Hydroporus  pictus,  F. 

88 


DYTISCIDAE  (cont.} 

Hydroporus  dorsalis,  F.  Neu-cast,'f 
under  Lyme  (Jahn) 

—  rivalis.Gyll.  Burton,not  scarce 

in  River  Dove  (Jahn) 

—  lineatus,  F. 

—  palustris,  L. 

—  erythrocephalus,  L. 

—  pubescens,  Gyll. 

—  planus,  F. 

—  melanarius,  St.  Canned  Chaset 

a  specimen  intermediate 
between  type  and  var. 
monticola  Sharp 

—  marginatus,  Duft.       Cannock 

Chase  (Blatch) 

Agabus  guttatus,  Payk.  New- 
castle  under  Lyme  (Jahn), 
CktaMt 

—  paludosus,  F.     Burton 

—  nebulosus,  Forst. 

—  sturmi,  Gyll. 

—  chalconotus,  Panz. 
• — •  bipustulatus,  L. 
Platambus  maculatus,  L. 
Ilybius  fuliginosus,  F. 

—  fenestratus,  F.  Burton  (Bates) 

—  ater,  De  G. 

—  obscurus,  Marsh.     Burton 
Rhantus    exoletus,    Forst.       Re- 
corded by  Garner 

—  bistriatus,     Berg.          Burton 

(Fowler) 

Colymbetes  fuscus,  L. 
Dytiscus  marginalis,  L. 

-  punctulatus,  F. 
Acilius  sulcatus,  L. 

GYRINIDAE 

Gyrinus  natator,  Scop. 

—  elongatus,    Aube.       Cannock 

Chase 

Orectochilus  villosus,  Mull. 
Burton 

HYDROPHILIDAE 

Hydrobius  fuscipes,  L. 

Philhydrus  nigricans,  Z.  New- 
castle under  Lyme  (Jahn), 
Swynnerton 

—  minutus,  F.     Burton 

—  coarctatus,  Gred.     Hanley 
Anacaena  globulus,  Payk. 

—  limbata,  F. 
Helochares  lividus,  Forst. 
Laccobius    minutus,    L.     Need- 
wood  Forest 

—  nigriceps,  Thorns. 
Berosus  luridus,  L.     Burton 
Limnebius  truncatellus,  Th. 
Chaetarthria  seminulum,  Herbst. 

Cannock  Chase 
Helophorus  rugosus,  Ol. 


INSECTS 


HYDROPHILIDAE  (cortt.) 

Helophorus  aquaticus,  L.  and  var. 
aequalis,  Th.  Ckeadle 

—  aeneipennis,  Thorns. 

—  mulsanti,  Rye.     Cheadle 

—  brevipalpis,  Bedel 
Hydrochus      elongatus,      Schall. 

Hartley,  common 
Henicocerus   exsculptus,    Germ. 

Burton  (Bates) ;  Stone  (Jahn) 
Hydraena       pulchella,       Germ. 

River  Dove,   near    Burton 

(Fowler) 

—  palustris,  Er.     Cheadle 
Sphaeridium  scarabaeo'des,  F. 

—  bipustulatum,  F.  and  var.  mar- 

ginatum,  F. 
Cercyon  haemorrhoidalis,  Herbst. 

—  obsoletus,  Gyll.  Hanky  ;  Bur- 

ton (Fowler) 

—  flavipes,  F. 

—  lateralis,  Marsh. 

—  melanocephalus,  L. 

—  unipunctatus,  L. 

—  quisquilius,  L. 

—  pygmaeus,  111.     Burton 
Megasternum     boletophagum, 

Marsh. 
Cryptopleurumatomarium,Muls. 

STAPHYLIMDAE 
Aleochara  fuscipes,  F. 

—  lanuginosa,  Gr. 

—  moerens,       Gyll.          Burton 

(Fowler) 

Oxypoda       spectabilis,        Mark. 
Hanky 

—  alternans,  Grav. 

—  nigrina,     Wat.         Needwood 

Forest 

Isc.hnoglossa  prolixa,  Grav.    Bur- 
ton (Fowler) 

—  corticina,  Er.  Needwood Forest 
Ocyusa  incrassata,  Kr.    Needwood 

Forest 
Phloeopora  reptans,  Grav. 

—  corticalis,     Grav.        Cannock 

Chase  ;  Needuood  Forest 
Ocalea  castanea,  Er.  Hanky 
Calodera  aethiops,  Grav.  Need- 

ivood  Forest 

Astilbus  canaliculatus,  F. 
Homalota     gyllenhali,     Thorns. 

Needivood  Forest 

—  hygrotopora,    Kr.       Cannock 

Chase 

—  silvicola,  Fuss.    Cannock  Chase 

—  graminicola,  Gyll. 

—  aequata,  Er.    Ncedwood  Forest 

—  linearis,  Gr.      Cannock  Chase 

—  pilicornis,  Thorns.    'Needwood 

Forest 

—  immersa,  Er.  Cannock  Chase  ; 

'Needwood  Forest 

—  trinotata,  Kr. 


STAPHYLINIDAE  (font.) 

Homalota    xanthopus,     Thorns. 
Needtvood  Forest 

—  diversa,       Sharp.        Cannock 

Chase     (Blatch     in     Eat. 
1890,  p.  208) 

—  sodalis,  Er.     Needivood  Forest 

—  nigra,  Kr. 

—  cinnamoptera,  Thorns.  Need- 

wood  Forest 

—  marcida,  Er.     Hanky 

—  pygmaea,  Gr.    Cannock  Chase 
Tachyusa    atra,    Gr.        Cannock 

Chase 

Autalia  impressa,  Ol. 

Encephalus  complicans,  Westw. 
Needwood  Forest 

Gyrophaena  affinis,  Man.  Can- 
nock Chase 

—  pulchella,  Heer.     Hanchurch 

—  nana,  Payk.     Cannock  Chase 

—  laevipennis,  Kr.       Hanchurch 

(Jahn) 
Agaricochara      laevicollis,       Kr. 

Cannock  Chase 
Placusa    pumilio,   Gr.     Cannock 

Chase 

Bolitochara  lucida,  Gr.       Hanley 
Hygronoma       dimidiata,        Gr. 

Hanky 
Gymnusa       brevicollis,        Payk. 

Cannock  Chase 

-  variegata,     Kies.         CanuocA 

Chase 
Hypocyptus  longicornis,  Payk. 

-  laeviusculus,  Man.      Cannock 

Chase 

Conosoma  pubescens,  Gr. 
Tachyporus  obtusus,  L. 

—  chrysomelmus,  L. 

-  humerosus,  Er. 

-  hypnorum,  F. 

—  brunneus,  F. 
Cilea  silphoides,  L. 
Tachinus  humeralis,  Gr. 

-  rufipes,    L.       A   ferruginous 

var.  near   Burton  (Fowler) 

-  subterraneus,  L. 

-  marginellus,  F. 
Megacronus     cingulatus,     Man. 

Cannock  Chase 

-  analis,  F.     Cheadle ;  Cannock 

Chase 

—  inclinans,  Gr.     Hanchurch 
Bolitobius  lunulatus,  L. 

-  trinotatus,  Gr. 

-  pygmaeus,  F. 
Mycetoporus  lucidus,  Er. 

—  lepidus.Gr.  Hanchurch  (Jahn) 

—  splendidus,  Gr. 
Heterothops  dissimilis,  Gr. 
Quedius  ventralis,  Kr.     Rudyard 

(Jahn) 

—  mesomelinus,  Marsh.       Stone 

(Jahn) 

89 


STAPHYLINIDAE  (cor.t.) 

Quedius  fulgidus,  F.       Burton 

—  cruentus,  Ol.     Stvynnerton 

—  xanthopus,  Er.     Burton 

—  impressus,     Panz.      (cinctus, 

Payk) 

-  fuliginosus,  Gr. 

—  tristis,  Gr. 

—  molochinus,  Gr. 

-  nigriceps,  Kr.     Burton 

-  umbrinus,  Er.     Hanley 

—  scintillans,     Gr.       Needviood 

Forest 

-  rufipes,  Gr. 

-  attenuatus,  Gyll.       Burton 

—  semiaeneus,  Sieph.     Cannock 

Chase  ;  Needuood  Forest 
Creophilus  maxillosus,  L. 
Leistotrophus  nebulosus,  F. 
— •  murinus,  L.      Burton 
Staphylinus     pubescens,    De    G. 

Burton 

—  stercorarius,    Ol.        Burton  ; 

Doredale  (fahn) 

—  latebricola,  Gr.     Burton 

-  erythropterus,  L. 

-  cacsareus,  Ceder 
Ocypus  olens,  Mull. 

—  similis,  F.     Burton 

—  brunnipes,  F.  Dwedale  (Jahn) 

—  cupreus,  Rossi 

-  morio,  Gr. 

—  compressus,  Marsh.       Burton 
Philonthus  splendens,  F. 

-  intermedius,  Boisd. 

-  laminatus,   Cr. 

-  aeneus,  Rossi 

-  proximus,  Kr.  Cannock  Chase 

-  decorus,  Gr. 

-  politus,  F. 

—  varius,  Gyll. 

-  marginatus,  F. 

-  fimetarius,  Gr. 

—  ebeninus,  Gr.     Hanky 

-  sanguinolentus,  Gr.     Burton; 

Hanley 

—  cruentatus,  Gm. 

—  varians,  Payk 

—  nigrita,  Nord.  Cannock  Chase 

—  fulvipcs,  F.     Burton  (Fowler) 

—  puella,     Nord.        Needwood 

Forest ;   Dovedale 
Cafius  xantholoma,  Gr.     Burton; 

Cannock  Chase  (Jahn) 
Xantholinus  glabratus,  Gr. 

—  punctulatus,  Gr. 

—  tricolor,  F.     Cheadle 

—  linearis,  Ol. 

—  longiventris,  Hcer 
Nudobius   lentus,    Gr.       Hanley 

No  doubt  introduced 
Baptolinus  alternans,  Gr. 
Othius  fulvipennis,   F. 

—  myrmecophilus,  Kies. 
Lathrobium  elongatum,  L. 

12 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


STAPHYLINIDAE  (cant.) 

Lathrobium  fulvipenne,  Gr. 

—  brunnipes,  F. 

--  rufipcnne,    Gyll.       Cannock 
Chase  (Blatch) 

—  longulum,  Gr.     Burton 

- —  multipvmctum,  Gr.     Burton 
Cryptobium  glaberrimum,  Hbst. 

Cannock  Chase 
Stilicus  orbiculatus,  Er.     Burton  ; 

Needtvood  Forest 

-  affinis,  Er. 

Medon  obsoletus,  Nord.    Burton 

(Harris) 

Lithocharis  ochracea,  Gr.  Burton 
Sunius  angustatus,  Payk. 
Paederus  littoralis,  Gr. 

—  riparius,  L.     Burton 
Evaesthetus     ruficapillus,      Lac. 

Needti-ood  Forest 
Dianous       coerulescens,       Gyll. 

Dovedale  (Fowler) 
Stenus  biguttatus,  L.     Banks  of 

Dot'e  near  Burton  (Fowler) 

—  bipunctatus,    Er.     Banks    of 

Dove  near  Burton  (Fowler) 

-  guttula,     Mull.       Banks     of 

Dove  near  Burton  (Fowler) 

-  juno,  F. 

-  guynemeri,   Duv.       Cannock 

Chase     (Blatch      in     Ent. 
1890,  p.  208) 

-  speculator,  Er. 

-  brunnipes,  Steph. 

—  impressus,  Germ. 

-  carbonarius,    Gyll.        Burton 

(Fowler) 

-  pallipes,  Gr.    Ncedzt-ood  Forest 

-  flavipes,  Gr.    N  cedti-ood  Forest 

-  pubescens,  Steph. 

-  binotatus,  Lj.  Cannock  Chase 

-  cicindeloides,  Gr. 

-  similis,  Hbst. 

Bledius    opacus,    Block.     Burton 
(Fowler);  Hanchurch  (Jahn) 
Platystethus  arenarius,  Fourc. 
Oxytelus  rugbsus,  Gr. 

—  fulvipes,  Er.    Needviood  (Gor- 

ham,  Harris,  and  others) 

—  laqueatus,  Marsh 

—  inustus,  Gr.      Cannock  Chase 

—  sculpturatus,  Gr. 

-  tetracarinatus,  Block 
Trogophloeus     rivularis,     Mots. 

Cannock  Chase 

—  corticinus,  Gr.    Cannock  Chase 

—  pusillus,  Gr.  Burton  (Fowler) 
Lesteva  longelytrata,  Goeze 
Olophrum  piceum,  Gyll. 
Lathrimaeum  unicolor,  Steph. 
Deliphrum  tectum,  Payk.     Han- 

ley 
Cory  phi  urn    angusticolle,   Steph. 

Needwood  Forest 
Homalium  rivulare,  Payk. 


STAPHYLINIDAE  (cant.) 

Homalium  oxyacanthae,  Grav. 

—  excavatum,  Steph.     Burton 

—  rufipes,  Fourc. 

—  deplanatum,   Gyll.     Cannock 

Chase 
Anthobium  minutum,  F. 

—  ophthalmicum,  Payk. 

—  torquatum,  Marsh. 
Proteinus  brachypterus,  F. 
Megarthrus  depressus,  Lac. 
Prognatha     quadriconiis,     Lac. 

Needtvood  Forest 

LEPTINIDAE 

Leptinus  testaceus,  Mull.  Need- 
wood  Forest,  in  large  num- 
bers, in  a  humble-bee's  nest 
(Gorham) 

SILPHIDAE 

Agathidium  nigripenne,  Kug. 
Needwood  Forest ;  Trent- 
ham  (Jahn) 

—  atrum,  Payk.    Cannock  Chase  ; 

Needtvood  Forest 

—  seminulum,  L.    Cannock  Chase 

—  varians,  Beck.  N eedtvood Forest 

—  globosum,     Muls.       Cannock 

Chase 

—  rotundatum,  Gyll.       Cannock 

Chase 

—  nigrinum,      St.        Needwood 

Forest ;  Trcntham  (Jahn) 
Amphicyllis  globus,  F.  Burton 
Liodes  humeralis,  Kug. 

—  orbicuhris,    Hbst.       Cannock 

Chase 

Anisotoma  calcarata,  Er.  Stvyn- 
ncrton  ;  Cannock  Chase 

—  punctulata,     Gyll.        Burton 

(Harris) 

—  cinnamomea,  Panz.      Cheadle 
Necrophorus  humator,  Goeze 

—  mortuorum,  F. 

—  ruspator,  Er.     Hanley 

—  vespillo,  L. 

—  vestigator,    Hers.       Burton ; 

Hanley  (Garner) 

Necrodes  littoralis,  L.  Trentham 
(Jahn),  Throwley  and  Tit- 
tensor  (Garner")  ;  Burton 

Silpha  nigrita,  Cr.     Burton 

—  obscura,  L.     Burton,  also  re- 

corded by  Garner 

—  quadripunctata,    L.      Burton 

(Fowler)  ;  Stvynnerton 
-  opaca,  L.     Cannock  Chase 

—  thoracica,  L. 

—  rugosa,  L. 

—  sinuata,  F. 

—  laevigata,  F.  Cannock  Chase; 

Burton 

90 


SILPHIDAE  (cent.) 

Silpha  atrata,  L. 

var.  brunnea,  Hbst.       Re- 
corded by  Garner 
Choleva  angustata,  F.      Burton 

—  cisteloides,    Panz.      Cheadle; 

Hanley 

—  coracina,    Kell.        Needwood 

Forest ;  Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  grandicollis,  Er. 

—  nigrita,  Er.     Cannock  Chase 

—  tristis,  Pz. 

—  kirbyi,Spence.   Cannock  Chase 

—  chrysomeloides,  Panz. 

—  fumata,  Spence 
Catops  sericeus,  F. 

SCYDMAENIDAE 

Neuraphes  sparshalli,  Den.    Bur- 
ton (Fowler) 
Scydmaenus  collaris,  Mull. 

—  exilis,    Er.     Cannock  Chase, 

Hanchtirch  (Jahn) 

PSELAPHIDAE 

Pselaphus  heisei,  Hbst.  Hen- 
hurst  (Brown) ;  R.  Doze 
(Bates) 

Tychus  niger,  Payk. 

Bythinus  puncticollis,  Den.  Bur- 
ton, common  (Fowler) 

—  curtisii,       Den.         Henhurst 

(Brown) 

Bryaxis  fossulata,  Reich.  Hen- 
hurst  (Brown) 

—  haematica,   Reich.      Henkurst 

(Brown)  ;  R.  Dove  (Bates) 

—  impressa,  Panz. 

Batrisus  venustus,  Reich.  Bagofs 
Park  (Gorham) 

Bibloporus  bicolor,  Den.  Can- 
nock Chase 

Euplectus  punctatus,  Muls.  Can- 
nock Chase 

—  karsteni, Reich.  CannockChase 

—  nanus,  Reich.    Cannock  Chase 

—  piceus,  Mots.     Cannock  Chase 

TRICHOPTERYGI  DAE 

Pteryx  suturalis,  Heer.  Han- 
church  (Jahn) 

Ptinella  denticollis,  Fairm.  Need- 
wood  Forest  (Blatch) ;  Hanley 

—  aptcra,  Gu6r.     Cannock  Chase 

—  angustula,  Gill.  Cannock  Chase 
Trichopteryx     thoracica,     Walt. 

Burton ;  Needu-ood  Forest 
Nossidium     pilosellum,     Marsh. 

Needti-ood  Forest  (Gorham) 
Ptenidium     evanescens,     Marsh 

Needwood  Forest  (Gorham). 

PHALACRIDAE 

Phalacrus  corruscus,  Payk. 
Stilbus  testaceus,  Panz. 


INSECTS 


COCCI  NELLI  DAE 

Subcoccinella  z^-punctata,  L. 
Burton  ;  Dovedale  (Jahn) 

Hippodamia  variegata,  Goeze. 
Burton 

Anisosticta  ig-punctata,  L.  Can- 
nock  Chase  (Jahn) 

Adalia  obliterata,  L. 

—  bipunctata,  L. 

Mysia  oblongoguttata,  L.  Swyn- 
nerton ;  Cannock  Chase 
(Brown)  ;  Cheadle 

Anatis  ocellata,  L. 

Coccinella  lo-punctata,  L. 

—  hieroglyphica,    L.       Cannock 

Chase 

—  I  l-punctata,  L. 

—  5-punctata,  L.     Burton 
-   7-punctata,  L. 

Halyzia  14-guttata,  L. 

—  i8-guttata,  L. 

—  conglobata,  L.     Szvynnerton 

—  22-punctata,  L. 
Micraspis  i6-punctata,  L.  Burton 
Hyperaspis       reppensis,       Hbst. 

Staffordshire  (Fowler) 
Scymnus    nigrinus,    Kug.     Can- 
nock  Chase 

—  capitatus,  F.     Cannock  Chase; 

Hanky 
Chilocorus  similis,  Rossi.     Burton 

—  bipustulatus.L.  CannockChase; 

Burton 
Exochomus  quadripustulatus,   L. 

Cannock  Chase  ;  Burton 
Rhizobius  litura,  F. 
Coccidula  rufa,  Hbst. 

ENDOMYCHIDAE 
Mycetaea  hirta,  Marsh.     Hamey 

EROTYLIDAI 

Dacne   humeralis,   F.     Needwood 
Forest 

—  rufifrons,  F.      Burton  ;  Han- 

church  (Jahn) 

Triplax    russica,    L.      Needwood 
Forest ;  Cannock  Chase 

—  aenea,Schall.  Needwood  Forest; 

Byrkley  Park  (Brown) 
Cyrtotriplax  bipustulata,  F.  Han- 
church  (Jahn) 

CoLYDIIDAE 

Cerylon  histeroides,  F. 
• —  ferrugineum,  Steph.    Cannock 
Chase ;  Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  fagi,  Bris.    One  at  Hanchurch 

HlSTERIDAE 

Hister  unicolor,  L 

—  cadaverinus,  HofF.      Hanley 

—  succicola,    Thorns.      Cannock 

Chase 

—  purpurascens,Hbst.    Burton 


HISTERIDAE  (eont.) 
Hister  carbonarius,  111. 

—  bimaculatus,  L. 
Gnathoncus   nannetensis,  Marsh. 

Cannock  Chase 
Saprinus  nitidulus,  Payk. 

—  aeneus,  F. 
Onthophilus  striatus,  F. 

MlCROPEPLIDAE 

Micropeplus  margaritae,  Duv. 

NlTIDULIDAE 

Brachypterus  pubescens,  Er. 
Cercus'  rufilabris,  Latr. 
Epuraea  aestiva,  L. 

—  deleta,  Er.     Hanley 

—  obsoleta,  F. 

—  pusilla,  Er. 

—  angustula,  Er.     Stone  (Jahn) 
Nitidub  bipustulata,  L. 
Soroniapunctatissima,  111.   Burton 

-  grisea,  L. 
Omosita  colon,  L. 

-  discoidea,  F. 

Pocadius  ferruginous,  F.     Burton 
Meligethes  rufipes,  Gyll. 

—  aeneus,  F. 

—  viridescens,  F. 

—  difficilis,  Heer.    Staffordshire 

(Fowler) 

Cychramus  luteus,  F.     Lurlon 
Ips  quadriguttat.i,  F.        Necdtvood 

Forest ;  Hanckurch  (Jahn) 

—  quadripunctata,  Hbst.     Need- 

wofd     Forest ;      Hanchurch 
(Jahn) 

Rhizophagus  parallelocollis,  Er. 
Cannock  Chase 

—  ferrugincus,  Pk. 

—  nitidulus,  F.   Cannock  Chase ; 

Needwood  Forest 

—  dispar,  Gyll 

—  bipustulatus,  F. 

TROGOSITIDAE 

Nemosoma  clongatum,  L.  In- 
troduced in  Welsh  timber 

Thymalus  limbatus,  F.  Dore- 
dale  (Jahn) ;  Cannock  Chase 

LATHRIDIIDAE 

Lathridius  lardarius,  De  G. 

Coninomus  nodifer,  Westw. 

[ —  constrictus,  Humm.  Record- 
ed doubtfully  by  Fowler 
from  Burton] 

Enicmus  minutus,  L. 

—  fungicola,  Thorns.      Cannock 

Chase,  in  numbers 

—  brevicornis,  Mannh.   Cannock 

Chase,   under    birch    bark 

(Blatch) 
Cartodere  filum,  Aubi.     Burton, 

in  a  herbarium  (Fowler) 
Corticaria  pubescens,  Gyll.  Hanky 

91 


LATHRIDIIDAE  (cont.~) 

Melanophthalma  gibbosa,  Hbst. 

—  fuscula,  Humm. 

Pediacus   dermestoides,  F.    Stone 


CuCUJIDAE 

Silvanus  unidentatus,  Ol. 

BYTURIDAE 
Byturus  tomentosus,  F. 

CRYPTOPHAGIDAE 

Antherophagus  nigricornis,  F. 
Hanchurch  (Jahn) 

-  pallens,  Gyll.     Cannock  Chase 
Cryptophagus  lycoperdi,  Hbst. 

—  scanicus,  L. 

—  dentatus,  Hbst. 
Micrambe  vini,  Panz. 
Atomaria  barani,  Bris.     Hanley 

-  fuscipes,  Gyll.    CannockChase 

—  nigripennis,     Payk.       Burton 

(Harris) 

—  fuscata,  Sch. 

—  pusilla,  Payk. 

—  basalis,  Er.      Burton  (Fowler) 

—  mesomelas,     Hbst.       Burton 

(Bates) 

—  ruficornis,  Marsh. 

ScAPHIDIIDAE 

Scaphidium  quadrimaculatum,  Ol. 
Cannock  Chase 

Scaphisoma  boleti,  Panz.  Need- 
wood  Forest ;  Hanley 

MYCETOPHAGIDAE 
Typhaea  fumata,  L. 
Triphyllus  suturalis,  F. 

—  punctatus,  F.    Burton  ;  Swyn- 

nerton 
Litargus   bifasciatus,   F.       Swyn- 

nerton  and  Meaford  (Jahn) 
Mycetophagus    quadripustulatus, 

L. 

—  piceus,  F. 

—  atomarius,  F.     Burton 

DEKMESTIDAE 

Dermestes     vulpinus,    F.       Wol- 
stanton  (Jahn) 

—  murinus,  L.     Knightley  Park 

(Brown)  ;  Hanley 

—  lardarius,  L. 
Attagenus  pellio,  L. 
Megatoma  undata,  Er.     Burton  ; 

Cannock  Chase 
Anthrenus  musaeorum,  L.  Burton 

—  claviger,  Er.     Meaford  (Jahn) 

BYRRHIDAE 

Byrrhus  pilula,  L. 

—  fasciatus,  F. 

—  dorsalis,  F. 

Simplocaria  semistriata,  F.     Can- 
nock Chase 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


FARM  DAE 

Elmis  aeneus,  Mull. 

—  volkmari,       Panz.        Burton 

(Fowler) 
Potaminus  substriatus,  Mull. 

R.     Dove      near     Burton 

(Fowler) 
Parnus  auriculatus,  Panz. 

—  prolifericornis,  F. 

LUCANIDAF 

Dorcus  parallelopipedus,  L. 
Brereton  (R.G.)  ;  Burton, 
one  at  Trentham  (Jahn) 

Sinodendron  cylindricum,  L. 

SCARABAEIDAE 

Copris     lunaris,     L.       Whitmore 

(Chappell) 

Onthophagus    ovatus,  L.     Scalp- 
cliff  Hill  (Brown)  ;   Burton 

(Bates),   also   recorded   by 

Garner 

-  coenobita,   Hbst.      Needwood 

Forest 
Aphodius  erraticus,  L.     Burton 

-  subterraneus,  L. 

-  fossor,  L. 

-  haemorrhoidalis,  L. 

-  foetens,  F. 

-  fimetarius,  L. 

-  scybalarius,  F. 

-  ater,  De  G. 

-  granarius,  L. 

-  sordidus,  F.     Burton 

-  rufescens,  F.     Burton 

-  pusillus,  Hbst. 

-  merdarius,  F. 

-  inquinatus,  F.     Hanky 

-  sticticus,Panz.  Burton  (Bates) 

-  punctatosulcatus,  St. 

-  prodromus,  Br. 

-  contaminatus,  Hbst. 

-  obliteratus,  Panz.     Needwood 

Forest 
Aphodius  luridus,  F.     Burton 

var.    nigripes,    F.     Burton 
(Bates) 

-  rufipes,  L. 

-  depressus,  Kug. 
Aegialia  arenaria,  F.     Hanley 
Gcotrupes  typhoeus,  L.     Abun- 
dant   on     Swynnerton    and 
Whitmore    Heaths    (Pinder 

fide  Garner) 

-  stercorarius,  L. 

-  spiniger,  Marsh 

-  mutator,    Marsh.     Needuiood 

Forest ;  Dovedale  (Brown) 

-  vernalis,    L.       Recorded    by 

Garner 

-  sylvaticus,      Panz.       Hanley, 

common 


SCARABAEIDAE  (cant.) 

Trox  sabulosus,  L.  Burton  ,- 
Cannock  Chase,  vide  also 
Ent.  1896,  p.  200 

Hoplia  philanthus,  Fuss.    Hanley 

Serica  brunnea,  L. 

Melolontha  vulgaris,  F. 

Rhizotrogus  solstitialis,  L.  One 
at  Stone  (Jahn) 

Phyllopertha  horticola,  L. 

Cetonia  aurata,  L.  North  Staffs. 
(Garner) 

BUPRESTIDAE 
Agrilus  viridis,  L.  Burton  (Bates) 

THROSCIDAE 

Throscus  dermestoides,  L.  Han- 
ley  ;  Cannock  Chase 

ELATERIDAE 

Lacon  murinus,  L. 
Cryptohypnus    quadripustulatus, 
F.  Burton;  Dovedale  (Jahn) 

—  riparius,  F. 

Elater  pomorum,  Hbst.  Cannock 
Chase 

—  balteatus,  L.    Cannock  Chase  ; 

Hanley 

—  nigrinus,  P.nyk.     Burnt  Wood 

(Chappell)  ;          Trentham 

(Jahn) 

Melanotus  rufipes,  Hbst. 
Athous  niger,  L. 

—  haemorrhoidalis,  F. 

—  vittatus,  F.     Burton;  Cannock 

Chase 

—  longicollis,  Ol.      Burton 
Limonius  minutus,  L.     Burton 
Sericosomus  brunneus,  L.     Can- 
nock   Chase  ;    Burnt   Wood 
(Fowler) 

Adrastus  limbatus,  F. 
Agriotes  sputator,  L. 

—  obscurus,  L. 

—  lineatus,  L. 

—  sobrinus,  Kies. 
-  pallidulus,  111. 

Dolopius  marginatus,  L. 
Corymbites      pectinicornis,      L. 
Burton  ;  Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  cupreus,  F. 

var.   aeruginosus,   F. 

—  tessellatus,  F.     Burton 

—  quercus,  Gyll 

var.  ochropterus,  Steph. 
0  Cheadle ;         Cannock 

'ia;  Chase 

•L    holosericeus,  F.     Burton 

—  aeneus,  L.     Burton  ;  Cannock 

Chase 
Campylus  linearis,  L. 

92 


DASCILLIDAE 

Dascillus  cervinus,  L.     Burton  ; 

Dovedale  (Jahn) 
Helodes  marginata,  F. 

—  minuta,  L. 
Microcara  livida,  F. 
Cyphon  coarctatus,  Payk 

—  nitidulus,  Th. 

—  variabilis,  Th. 

—  pallidulus,     Boh.        Cannock 

Chase 

LAMPYRIDAE 

Lampyris  noctiluca,  L.  Widely 
distributed 

TELEPHORIDAE 

Podabrus  alpinus,  Payk.  Can- 
nock Chase  ;  Wee/ and  Stone 
(Jahn) 

Ancistronycha  abdominalis,  F. 
Dovedale  (Jahn) 

Telephone  fuscus,  L.  (fide  Gar- 
ner) 

—  rusticus,  Fall 

—  lividus,  L. 

var.  dispar,  F.     Cheadle 

—  pellucidus,  F. 

—  nigricans,  Mll'l. 

var.     discoideus,     Steph 
Cheadle 

—  lituratus,  Fall. 

—  bicolor,  F. 

—  haemorrhoidalis,  F.      Trent- 

ham  (Jahn),  Burton 

—  flavilabris,  Fall. 

—  thoracicus,  Ol.     Burton 
Rhagonycha      unicolor,       Curt. 

Cannock  Chase 

—  fulva,  Scop. 

—  testacea,  L. 

—  limbata,  Thorns. 

—  pallida,  F. 
Malthinus  punctatus,  Fourc. 

—  fasciatus,  Ol.     Burton 

—  frontalis,    Marsh.        Camtock 

Chase 
Malthodes  marginatus,  Latr. 

—  guttifer,       Kies.         Cannock 

Chase  (Blatch) 

—  minimus,  L. 

MELYRIDAE 

Malachius  aeneus,  L.     Burton 

—  bipustulatus,  L. 

—  viridis,    F.      Trentham   Park 

(Garner) 

Axinotarsus  ruficollis,  Ol.  Bur- 
ton (Bates) 

Anthocomus  fasciatus,  L.  Hanley 
Dasytes  aerosus,  Kies.     Burton 
Haplocnemus  impressus,  Marsh. 
Cannock  Chase 


INSECTS 


CLERIDAE 

Thanasimus      formicarius,       L. 

Hanley 

Necrobia  ruficollis,  F.     Burton 
Corynetes     coeruleus,     De     G. 

Burton 

LlMEXYLONIDAE 

Hylecoetus  dermestoides,  L. 
Cannock  Chase 

PTINIDAE 
Ptinus  fur,  L. 

—  lichenum,  Marsh.     Burton 
Niptus   hololeucus,   Fald.     fide 

Mason  in  E.M.M.  1893, 
p.  238 

—  crenatus,  F.     Burton;  Staffs. 

(Garner) 

,  Hedobia  imperialis,  L.     Burton  ; 
Needwood  Forest ;  Hanley 

ANOBIIDAE 

Dryophilus  pusillus,  Gyll. 
Priobium  castaneum,  F. 
Anobium  domesticum,  Fourc. 

—  paniceum,  L.     Burton 
Xestobium  tessellatum,  F.      Bur- 
ton ;  Needwood  Forest 

Ptilinus  pectinicornis,  L.     Bur- 
ton ;  Sivy  nner ton 
Ernobius  moliis,  L.     Burton 
Xyletinus    ater,    Panz.       Burton 
(Bates) 

BOSTRICHIDAE 

Bostrichus  capucinus,  L.  Bur- 
ton (E.  Brown  in  coll. 
Power) 

SPHINDIDAE 

Sphindus  dubius,  Gyll.  Cannock 
Chase 

ClSSIDAE 

Cis  boleti,  Scop. 

—  villosulus,  Marsh.      Needwood 

Forest 

—  hispidus,      Payk.        Cannock 

Chase 

—  bidentatus,      Ol.         Cannock 

Chase 

—  pygmaeus,  Marsh.  Burton 

—  fuscatus,      Mell.         Cannock 

Chase 
Ennearthron     cornutum,     Gyll. 

Cannock  Chase 
Octotemnus  glabriculus,  Gyll. 

PRIONIDAE 

Prionus  coriarius,  L.  Old  trees 
in  Staffs.  (Garner),  Can- 
nock Chase  in  1890  and 
1892  (Masefield),  one  at 
Trentham  (Jahn) 


CERAMBYCIDAE 

Aromia  moschata,  L.     Burton 
Callidium  violaceum,    L.    North 

Staffs.  (Garner) 
Clytus  arietis,  L. 

—  mysticus,  L.     Burton 
Gracilia  minuta,  F.     Burton 
Rhagium  inquisitor,   F.     Trent- 
ham  (Garner) 

—  bifasciatum,      F.        Scalpdijf 

Hill,  Brown  ;   Swynncrton, 
common  (Garner) 

—  indagator,  Gyll.     Swynnerton. 

This    northern    species    is 

very  rare  in  England 
Toxotus  meridianus,  Panz.     Bur- 
ton ;  Barlaston  (Jahn) 
Pachyta    cerambyciformis,    Schr. 

On  wild  Angelica  (Garner) 
Leptura  livida,  F.     Burnt  Wood 

(Fowler) 
Strangalia  quadrifasciata,  L.  One 

at  Sivynnerton 

—  armata,  Hbst. 

—  melanura,  L.       Burnt  Wood 

(Fowler) 

Grammoptera  tabacicolor,  De  G. 
Oakamoor  (Garner)  ,-  Han- 
church  (Jahn) 
-  ruficornis,  F. 

[ —  praeusta,  F.  Oakamoor 
(Garner)] 

LAMIIDAE 

Acanthocinus  aedilis,  L.  One 
in  the  Trent  meadows  be- 
low Hanley,  four  at  Han- 
ky and  Stoke  (Jahn) 

Pogonochaerus  fasciculatus,  De  G. 
Hanley 

—  bidentatus,  Th. 

—  dentatus,  Fourc.     Sivynnerton 
Leiopus  nebulosus,   L.     Cannock 

Chase  ;   Trentham  (Jahn) 
Monochammus  sutor,  L.  Burton  ; 

introduced  in  timber 
Agapanthia     lineatocollis,     Don. 

Cannock  Chase  (Jahn) 
Saperda  populnea,  L. 
Tetrops  praeusta,  L.     Burton 
Stenostola    ferrea,     Schr.     Hen- 
hurst  (Brown) 

BRUCHIDAE 
Bruchus  rufimanus,  Boh.   CheaJle 

EUPODA 

Donacia  crassipes,  F.  Burton 
(Fowler)  ;  Trent  side 
(Brown) 

—  versicolorea,  Brahm.    Burton; 

Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  sparganii,  Ahr.     Burton 

—  limbata,  Panz.     Burton 

93 


EUPODA  (cant.) 

Donacia  bicolora,  Zsch.  Cannock 
Chase  ;  Burnt  Wood  (Fow- 
ler) 

—  simplex,      F.        Trent     side 

(Brown)  ;  Hanley,  common 

—  ssmicuprea,  Panz.     Hanley 

—  clavipes,  F.     Burton  (Fowler) 

—  sericea,     L.       Burton,     very 

common,  Trentham  (Jahn) 

—  discolor,  Panz.  Cannock  Chase 

—  affinis,    Kunze.     Trent    side 

(Brown) 

[Haemonia  curtisi,  Lac.  Trent 
side  and  Burton,  probably 
should  be  succeeding 
species] 

—  appendiculata,  Panz.     Burton 

(Rev.  C.  F.  Thornewill) 
Zeugophora  subspinosa,  F.   Bur- 
ton ;  Hanley 
Lema  cyanella,  L. 

—  lichenis,  Voet. 

—  melanopa,  L. 

Crioceris  asparagi,  L.  Burton ; 
Hanley 

CAMPTOSOMATA 

Clythra  quadripunctata,  L.  Burnt 
Wood  (Fowler)  ;  two  in 
Churnet  Galley  (Jahn) 

Cryptocephalus  coryli,  L.  Can- 
nock Chaseon  birch(Blatch) 

—  bipunctatus,L.  var.  lineola,F. 

Chartley  Moss  and  Burnt 
Wood  (Fowler)  ;  Dovcdale 
(Jahn) 

—  aureolus,      Suffr.        Dovedale 

on  Hieracium  (Fowler  and 
Jahn) 

—  punctiger,     Payk.       Cannock 

Chase 

-  parvulus,  Mull.  Chartley 
Moss  and  Burnt  It'ood 
(Fowler) 

—  decemmaculatus,  L.  Chartley 

Moss  (Harris  and  Garneys) 
var.  bothnicus,  L.  Chart- 
ley  Moss  (Harris  and 
Garneys) 

—  fulvus,  Goeze.     Hanley 

—  pusillus,  F.     Burton 

—  labiatus,  L. 

CYCLICA 

Timarcha  tenebricosa,  F. 

—  violaceonigra,  De  G. 
Chrysomela  staphylea,  L. 

—  polita,  L. 

—  orichalcia,     Mull.       Burton ; 

Hanley 

—  varians,  Sch. 

—  goettingensis,  L.     Near  Bur- 

ton (Fowler) 

—  graminis,  L.     Burton 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


CYCLICA  (font.) 

Chrysomela  menthrasti,  Suff. 
Burton  (Fowler) ;  Cheadle  ; 
common  on  mint  in  gardens 
at  Wolverhampton  (Jahn) 

—  fastuosa,      Scop.         Burton  ; 

Cbeadle  ;  Swynnerton 

—  didymata,     Scr.        Henburst 

(Brown)  ;  Burton 

—  hyperici,    Forst.       Henhunt 

(Brown)  ;  Dovedale  (Jahn) 
Melasoma  aeneum,  L.  Dave- 
dale  (Brown)  ;  Burnt 
Wood  (Fowler)  ;  Cannock 
Chase 

—  populi,  L.     Cannock    Chase ; 

only  at  Swynnerton  (Jahn) ; 
recorded  by  Garner 

—  longicolle,   Suffr.      Dovedale, 

not     uncommon    (Jahn)  ; 
recorded  by  Garner 
Phytodecta  rufipes,  De  G.   Burnt 
Wood    (Fowler)  ;      Burton 
(Bates) 

—  olivacea,  Forst.     Burton 

—  pallida,    L.     Burton  (Bates)  ; 

Cheadle 

Gastroidea  viridula,  De  G.  Bur- 
ton ;  Cbeadle 

—  polygoni,  L. 
Phacdon  tumidulus,  Germ. 

—  armoraciae,       L.        Burton  ; 

Hanley 

• —  cochleariae,  F. 
Phyllodecta  vulgatissima,  L. 

—  vitellinae,  L. 
Hydrothassa  aucta,  F. 

-   marginella,  L. 
Prasocuris  junci,  Br. 

—  phellandrii,  L. 
Phyllobrotica      4-maculata,      L. 

Swynnerton  ;          Trentham 
(JaEn) 
Luperus  rufipes,  Scop. 

—  flavipcs,  L.      Cheadle 
Lochmaea  caprcae,  L. 

—  suturalis,   Thorns      Cheadle; 

Hanley 

—  crataegi,  Forst. 
Galerucella  viburni,  Payk.     Bur- 
ton (Bates) 

—  nymphaeae,      L.         Cannock 

Chase 

—  sagittariae,  Gyll.     Burton 

—  tenella,  L.     Burton 
Adimonia  tanaceti,   L.     Burton 

Cannock      Chase ;       Burnt 
Wood  (Fowler) 
Sermyla  halensis,  L. 

HALTICIDAE 

Longitarsus  luridus,  Scop. 

—  suturellus,  Duft. 

—  atricillus,  L. 

—  melanocephali  s,  All. 


HALTICIDAE  (font.) 

Longitarsus  nasturtii,  F.      Near 
Burton  (Fowler) 

—  lycopi,  Foudr.     Hanley 

—  membranaceus,  Foudr.    Han- 

ley 

—  flavicornis,  Steph.     Hanley 

—  pusillus,  Gyll. 

—  reichei,  All.     Needtvood Forest 

(Gorham) 

—  jacobaeae,  Wat. 

—  gracilis,  Kuts. 

—  laevis,  Duft.     Hanley 

—  pellucidus,  Foudr.     Hanley 
Haltica  oleracea,  L. 

—  ericeti,  All. 

Phyllotreta    nigripes,    F.     Need- 
wood  forest  (Gorham) 

—  punctulata,    Marsh.       Need- 

wood  Forest 

—  atra,  Pk.     Cannock  Chase 

—  cruciferae,  Goeze 

—  vittula,  Redt. 

—  undulata,  Kuts. 

—  nemorum,     L.        Very     de- 

structive in  1843  (Garner) 

—  cxclamationis,  Th.     Cannock 

Chase 
Aphthona  nonstriata,  Goeze 

—  venustula,     Kuts.     Needwood 

Forest 

—  virescens,    Foudr.      Dovedale 

(J^n) 
Sphaeroderma  testaceum,  F. 

—  cardui,  Gyll.      Recorded   by 

Garner 
Mniophila      muscorum,      Koch. 

Hanley 
Mantura     chrysanthemi,     Koch. 

Trentham  (Garner) 
Crepidodera  transversa,  Marsh. 

—  ferruginea,  Scop. 

—  rufipes,  L. 

—  helxines,   L.      Rolleston,    &c. 

(Brown) 

—  nitidula,     L.      Hanley ;     re- 

corded by  Garner 

—  aurata,  Marsh. 
Hippuriphila  modeeri,  L. 
Chaetocnema  hortensis,  Fourc. 
Plectroscelis  concinna,  Marsh. 
Psylliodes  chalcomera,  111. 

—  chrysocephala,  L.     Hanley 

—  napi,  Koch. 

—  affinis,  Payk.     Hanley 


CRYPTOSTOMATA 

Cassida  vibex,  F.    Dovedale  (Jahn) 

—  flaveola,  Th.     Burton,  Hanley 

—  equestris,  F.     Burton 

—  viridis,  F. 

—  hemisphaerica,  Hbst.     Near 

Burton  (Harris) 

94 


TENEBRIONIDAE 

Blaps  mortisaga,  L.  Burton. 
Garner's  records  of  Shelton 
and  Madeley  Mill  probably 
refer  to  B.  mucronata 

—  mucronata,    Latr.     One    at 

Hanley 

Crypticus  quisquilius,  L.     Hanley 
Scaphidema  metallicum,  F.    Lich- 
field     (Fowler)  ;     Byrkley 
Park  (Brown) 
Tenebrio  molitor,  L. 
Gnathocerus  cornutus,  F.    Hanley 
Tribolium  ferrugineum,  F.    Bur- 
ton (Fowler) 

—  confusum,     Duv.          Burton 

(Fowler) 

Hypophloeus  linearis,  F.  Trent- 
bam  (Jahn) 

Helops  striatus,  Fourc. 

LAG  RI  i  DAE 

Lagria  him,  L. 
Cistela  murina,  L 


MELANDRVIDAE 


Can- 


Tetratoma  fungorum,  F. 
nock  Chase 

Orchesia  micans,  Panz.  Burton, 
Cannock  Chase.  (Ellis  in 
Ent.  1898,  p.  271) 

Hallomenus  humeralis,  Panz. 

Conopalpus  testaceus,  Ol. 

PYTHIDAE 

Pytho  depressus,  L.  Hanley,  in 
imported  timber 

Salpingus  castaneus,  Panz.  Can- 
nock Chase 

—  aeratus,  Muls.     Hanley 
Lissodema  quadripustulata, 

Marsh.     Burton 
Rhinosimus  ruficollis,  L. 

—  planirostris,  F. 

OEDEMERIDAE 

Oedemera  nobilis,  Scop. 

Nacerdes  melanura,  Schm.  Bur- 
ton, probably  introduced 
with  timber 

PYROCHROIDAE 
Pyrochroa  serraticornis,  Scop. 

MORDELLIDAE 

Anaspis  frontalis,  L. 

—  pulicaria,  Costa.      Needwood 

Forest 

—  geoffroyi,  Mull. 

—  ruficollis,  F. 

—  maculata,  Fourc. 

ANTHICIDAE  i 

Anthicus  floralis,  L. 

—  antherinus,  L 


INSECTS 


MELOIDAE 

Meloe  proscarabaeus,  L. 

—  violaceus,    Marsh.       Bagnall 

(Garner)  ,•  Button 

PLATYRRHINIDAE 

Brachytarsus  fasciatus,  Forst.  Bur- 
ton ;  Cannock  Chase 

—  varius,  F.     Burton  ;  Stable  ford 

(Jahn) 

CURCULIONIDAE 

Apoderus  coryli,  L.     Burton 
Attelabus       curculionoides,      L. 

Burnt     Wood     (Fowler)  ; 

Cheadle ;  Burton  ;  Stoynner- 

ton 
Rhinomacer       attelaboides,      F. 

Sviynnerton,  not  common 
Rhynchites  aequatus,  L.     Burton 

—  cupreus,  L.     Ckeadle;  Stvyn- 

nerton 

—  aeneovirens,   Marsh.      Burnt 

Wood  (Fowler)  ;  Burton 

—  coeruleus,  De  G.     Button 

—  minutus,  Hbst. 

-  interpunctatus,  Steph.     Bur- 

ton 

—  nan  us,  Payk.     Hanky 

—  uncinatus,  Thorns.     Cannock 

Chase 

—  sericeus,  Hbst.  Burton  (Bates) 

-  pubescens,  F.     Burton;  a  few 

at  Stvynnerton 
Deporaus  megacephalus,  Germ. 

—  betulae,  L. 
Apion  pomonae,  F. 

-  craccae,  L.     Burton 

-  ulicis,  FOrst. 

-  malvae,  F.     Burton 

-  haematodes,  Kirby 

-  miniatum,  Germ.     Burton 

-  rufirostre,  F.     Burton 

—  varipes,  Germ. 

-  apricans,  Hbst.     Burton 

-  assimile,  Kirby 

—  trifolii,  L. 

—  dichroum,  Bed. 

—  nigritarse,  Kirby 

—  aeneum,  F. 

—  carduorum,  Kirby 

-  pisi,  F. 

—  striatum,  Kirby 

—  ervi,  Kirby 

—  vorax,  Hbst.    Burton;  Cheadle 

—  meliloti,  Kirby.     Burton 

-  scutellare,  Kirby 

-  loti,  Kirby 

—  seniculum,  Kirby 

—  violaceum,  Kirby 

—  hydrolapathi,  Kirby 

—  humile,  Germ. 
Otiorrhynchus  tenebricosus.Hbst. 

Burton ;  also  recorded  by 
Garner 


CURCULIONIDAE  (cant.) 

Otiorrhynchus  picipes,  F.  Here 
belong  Garner's  O.  notatus 
and  O.  septentrionis 

—  sulcatus,  F. 

—  rugifrons,  Gyll. 

—  ovatus,  L. 

—  muscorum,    Bris.       Hanley  ; 

banks  of  R.  Dove,  near 
Burton  (Fowler) 

Trachyphloeus  squamulatus,  Ol. 
Cannock  Chase  ;  Burton 

Caenopsis  fissirostris,  Walt.  Can- 
nock  Chase  and  Hednesford 
(Blatch) 

—  waltoni,   Boh.   Cannock  Chase 
Strophosomus  coryli,  F. 

—  capitatus,  De  G. 

-  retusus,  Marsh. 

-  lateralis,  Payk. 
Exomias  araneiformis,  Sch. 
Omias  mollinus,  Boh.     Burton 
Brachysomus    echinatus,    Bonsd. 

Burton  ;  Sviynnerton 
Sciaphilus  muricatus,  F. 
Tropiphorus  tomentosus,  Marsh. 

Burton 

Liophloeus  nubilus,  F.      Burton 
Polydrusu;    micans,    F.       Burton 

(Bates)  ;   recorded  also   by 

Garner 

-  tereticollis,  DC  G. 

—  pterygomalis,  Boh. 

—  cervinus,  L. 
Phyllobius  oblongus,  L. 

—  calcaratus,    F.      Recorded  by 

Garner 

-  urticae,  De  G. 

-  pyri,  L. 

— •  argentatus,  L. 

—  rruculicornis,  Germ. 

—  pomonae,  Ol. 

-  viridiaeris,  L;iich. 

—  viridicollis,      F.        Dovtdale 

(Fowler)  ;   Cheadle  ;  Sfvyn- 

nerton 

Philopedon  geminatus,  F.   Burton 
Atactogenus     exaratus,      Marsh. 

Burton  (Bates) 
Barynotus  obscurus,  F. 

—  schbnherri,  Zett.     Hanley 

-  elevatus,  Marsh.     Burton 
Alophus  triguttatus,  F. 
Sitones  cambricus,  Steph.     Bur- 
ton (Bates) 

—  regensteinensis,  Hbst. 

-  tibialis,  Hbst. 

[ —  crinitus,  Hbst.  Recorded 
as  well  as  S.  griseus,  F.  by 
Garner,  but  both  require 
confirmation  ;  cf.  Fowler 
on  these  two  species] 

-  hispidulus,  F. 

-  humeralis,  Steph.     Burton 

—  flavescens,  Marsh. 

95 


CURCULIONIDAE  (cont.) 

Sitones  puncticollis,  Steph.  Re- 
corded by  Garner 

—  suturalis,  Steph. 

—  Hneatus,  L. 

-  sulcifrons,  Th. 
Hypera  punctata,  F. 

—  rumicis,  L. 

—  suspiciosa,  Hbst. 

-  polygon!,  L. 

-  variabilis,  Hbst. 

-  plantaginis,  De  G. 

—  trilineata,    Marsh.      Burton  ; 

Cburnet  Valley  (Jahn) 

-  nigrirostris,  F. 

Cleonus  sulcirostris,  L.     Burton 

-  nebulosus,  L.     Burton 
Liosoma  ovatulum,  Clair. 
Liparus  coronatus,  Goeze.     Bur- 
ton ;      also      recorded     by 
Garner 

Curculio  abietis,  L. 
Pissodes  pini,  L.      Hanley,  in  in- 
troduced timber 

-  notatus,  F.     Hanley 
Orchestes  quercus,  L. 

-  alni,  L. 

-  ilicis,  F.     Burton  (Bates) 

-  fagi,  L. 

-  rusci,  Hbst.     Hanley 

-  avellanae,  Don.      Eu  -ton 

—  sahcis,  L.   Henhurst  (Brown) ; 

Hanley 

Rhamphus  flavicornis,  Clair. 

Grypidius  equiseti,  F.  Need- 
wood  Forest  ;  Cannock  Chase 

Erirrhinus  bimaculatus,  F. 
Knightley  Park  (Brown) 

—  acridulus,  L. 

[ —  aethiops,  F.  Burton  (Bates 
and  Brown) ;  recorded  also 
by  Garner,  but  in  view  of 
its  rarity  requires  confir- 
mation. Fowler  does  not 
give  these  records] 

Thryogenes  nereis,  Payk.  NeeJ- 
tvood  Forest 

Dorytomus  vorax,  F.  Hanley, 
common 

—  tortrix,  L.      Burton    (Bates)  ; 

Henhurst  (Brown) 

—  pectoralis,       Panz.        Burton 

(Bates)  ;  Needwood  Forest ; 
Stcynnerton 

—  validirostris,  Gyll.     Needivood 

Forest  (Gorham) ;  Henhurst 
(Brown) 

—  maculatus,  Marsh. 

var.     costirostris,     Gyll. 

Henhurst  (Brown) 
Tanysphyrus  lemnae,  F. 
Bagous  alismatis,  Marsh. 
[ —  frit,  Hbst.  Burton] 

—  tempestivus,  Marsh.     Burton 
Anoplus  plantaris,  Naez. 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


CuRCULIONIDAE 

Elleschus  bipunctatus,  L.  Burton 
(Bates);  Henhurst (Brown); 
Burnt  Wood  (Fowler) 

Tychius  mcliloti,  Steph.     Burton 

—  tomentosus,  Hbst.     Burton 
Miccotrogus  picirostris,  F. 
Mecinus  pyraster,  Hbst. 
Anthonomus  ulmi,  De  G. 

—  pedicularius,  L. 

-  pomorum,  L.     Burton 

—  rubi,  Hbst. 
Clonus  scrophulariae,  L. 

-  blattariae,  F. 

-  pulchellus,  Hbst. 
Cryptorrhynchuslapathi,L.  Bur- 
ton ;  Cannock  Chase 

Acalles  roboris,  Curt.  Cannock 
Chase 

—  ptinoides,    Marsh.     Burton  ; 

Cannock  Chase 
Coeliodes  rubicundus,  Hbst. 

-  quercus,  F. 

-  quadrimaculatus,  L. 
Poophagus  sisymbrii,  F. 
Ceuthorrhynchus  assimilis,  Payk. 

-  erysimi,    F.       Recorded    by 

Garner  ;    one  at  Su-ynner- 
ton  (Jahn) 

-  contractus,  Marsh. 

-  quadridens,  Panz. 


CuRCULIONIDAE   (fOnt.) 

Ceuthorrhynchus         pollinarius, 
Forst. 

—  litura,  F. 

—  trimaculatus,     F.      Dovedalc 

Oahn) 
Ceuthorrhynchidius  floralis,Payk. 

—  pyrrhorhynchus,  Marsh. 

—  troglodytes,  F. 

Amalus       haemorrhous,      Hbst. 

Cheadle 
Rhinoncus  pericarpius,  L. 

—  perpendicularis,  Reich. 
Litodactylus  leucogaster,  Marsh. 

Burton  (Bates) 

Limnobaris  T-album,  L.    Hanley 
Baris  picicornis,  Marsh.  Knightley 

(Brown) 
Balaninus  venosus,   Gr.     Sandon 

(Jahn) 

—  nucum,  L. 

—  villosus,     F.        Burnt    Wood 

(Fowler) 

—  pyrrhoceras,  Marsh. 

—  salicivorus,  Payk. 
Calandra  granaria,  L. 

—  oryzae,  L. 

Magdalis  carbonaria,  L.     Burton 
(Bates  and  Brown) 

—  armigera,    Fourc.       Hanley  ; 

Burton 


CURCULIONIDAE  (coat.) 

Magdalis  cerasi,L.  Cannock  Chase; 
Sandon  (Jahn) 

—  pruni,  L. 

SCOLYTIDAE 

Scolytus  destructor,  Ol. 
Hylastes  ater,  Pk. 

—  palliatus,  Gyll 

Hylesinus  crenatus,  F.  Burton  ; 
very  common  and  destruc- 
tive about  Madelty  (Bland- 
ford)  ;  Meaford  (Jahn) 

—  fraxini,  Panz. 

—  vittatus,  F.      Burton  ;   'Need- 

wood  Forest ;  Trentham 
(Fowler) 

Myelophilus  piniperda,  L. 

Pityophthorus  pubescens,  Marsh. 
Burton  (Fowler) 

Dryocaetes  autographus,  Ratz. 
Hanley,  probably  in  im- 
ported timber 

—  villosus,  F. 

Tomicus  typographus,  L.  Hanley 

—  acuminatus,  Gyll.     Hanley 

—  laricis,  F.     Hanley 
Pityogenes       chalcographus,     L. 

Hanley 

—  bidentatus,  Hbst. 
Trypodendron  domesticum,  L. 


The  following  species  have  from  time  to  time  occurred  at  Hanley  in  imported 
timber  : — Ernobius  nigrinus,  St.  ;  Anthaxia  quadripunctata,  L.  ;  Semanotus  undatus,  L.  ;  Cal- 
lidiurn  coriaceum,  Pk.  ;  Curcu/io  piceus,  de  G.  ;  Crypturgui  pusil/us,  Gyll.  The  last-named 
seems  to  be  establishing  itself  locally. 


LEPIDOPTERA 

(Butter/lies  and  Moths] 

Staffordshire  cannot  be  said  to  be  rich  in  Rhopalocera  (Butterflies)  as  only  forty-two  or 
rather  more  than  half  of  the  British  species  have  been  met  with  in  the  county,  and  these 
with  the  exception  of  the  commoner  '  Whites,'  E.  cardamines,  V.  urticae,  and  atalanta  and  perhaps 
E.  ianira,  cannot  be  considered  as  abundant  or  even  fairly  common.  The  rarer  species  are 
uncertain  both  in  appearance  and  in  numbers,  and  generally  very  local  in  distribution.  Two 
species  (L.  sinapis  and  A.  paphia]  are  only  represented  in  the  county  records  by  a  single 
occurrence  each,  although  other  records  may  have  been  overlooked.  The  county  is,  however,  of 
great  interest  to  entomologists  as  it  was  formerly  a  home  of  the  now  extinct  large  Copper  Butterfly 
(Polyommatus  dispary  Haw.)  if  the  following  account  of  its  occurrence  in  Staffordshire  is  authentic. 
The  late  Richard  Weaver,  in  The  Entomologist's  Weekly  Intelligencer  for  1856,  p.  1 8  (quoted  in 
The  Field  in  December,  1893),  states  : — 'A  few  days  ago  a  gentleman  brought  and  showed 
me  a  male  and  female  of  that  species,  namely  Polyommatus  dispar.  Haw.  (the  large  Copper 
Butterfly),  which  he  had  captured  last  year  in  Staffordshire.  This  is  a  new  locality  to  me  and 
I  suppose  is  to  most  entomologists.' 

The  species  of  Heterocera  (moths)  found  in  the  county  are  on  the  other  hand  numerous, 
and  many  of  the  species  are  themselves  frequently  met  with  in  great  numbers,  and  their  larvae 
are  at  times  most  destructive  to  trees  and  crops.  The  county  of  Stafford  being  situated  nearly 
in  the  centre  of  England,  and  the  northern  portion  of  it  being  at  an  altitude  running  to 
considerably  over  1,000  ft.  above  sea  level,  may  be  considered  as  somewhere  about  the 
dividing  line  between  the  northern  and  southern  species  of  British  Lepidoptera,  and  thus  we 
find  many  species  of  both  .northern  and  southern  insects  in  our  lists. 

96 


INSECTS 

The  county  is  an  attractive  one  from  the  fact  that  two  of  our  rarest  British  moths 
(Lasdocampa  ilicifolia,  L.  and  Notodonta  bicolor,  Hb.)  were  first  captured  within  its  bounds. 
The  first  authentic  British  record  of  L.  ilicifiHa  was  of  a  specimen  taken  by  Atkinson  on 
Cannock  Chase  on  17  May,  1851,  although  Stephens  had  previously  described  this  moth  as 
British  in  1828,  and  it  is  figured  by  Humphreys  and  Westwood,  but  at  that  time  no  British 
specimen  was  known.  Atkinson's  insect  was  exhibited  at  a  meeting  of  the  Entomological 
Society  in  London  on  2  June,  1851,  by  Mr.  Smith.  Since  then  other  specimens  have  been 
taken  on  Cannock  Chase  by  Partridge,  Weaver  and  the  Brothers  Bonney,  and  on  the 
17  May,  1896,  an  anniversary  of  the  date  of  the  capture  of  the  first  insect  of  this  species, 
Dr.  Freer  took  the  last  recorded  example  of  this  moth  from  that  locality.  Larvae  have  since 
been  met  with  in  the  same  locality.  N.  bicolor,  Hb.,  the  other  rare  British  insect  before 
mentioned,  was  taken  in  the  Burnt  Woods  in  Staffordshire  on  several  occasions  in  1861  and 
following  years.  The  only  other  reputed  British  locality  for  this  insect  is  Killarney,  in  Ire- 
land. The  actual  number  of  species  of  the  various  families  recorded  as  having  been  met 
with  in  Staffordshire  is  as  follows  : — 

British  Liat      Staffordshire  List 

Rhopalocera      ........  65  42 

Heterocera 

Sphinges  ........  39  23 

Bombyces          .......  1 1 1  69 

Noctuae  ........  324  182 

Geometrae         .......  280  178 

Pyralides  ........  78  34 

Pterophori          .......  37  11 

Crambi     ........  83  27 

Tortrices .          .......  343  144 

Tineae     ........  720  238 


2,080  948 

The  principal  authorities  on  the  Macro-Lepicloptera  of  Staffordshire  are  Garner's 
Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,  published  in  1840  ;  Sir  O.  Mosley's  Natural  History 
of  Tutbury,  published  in  1863,  which  contains  a  list  of  the  Lepidoptera  of  the  Burton  district 
by  the  well-known  entomologist,  Mr.  Edwin  Brown  ;  Contributions  to  the  Fauna  and  Flora  of 
Repton,  by  Mr.  W.  Garneys  and  others  (ed.  2,  1881)  ;  the  Annual  Reports  of  the  North  Staf- 
fordshire Field  Club  (1866  to  1906)  ;  a  paper  on  'the  Lepidoptera  of  Burton-on-Trent  and 
neighbourhood,'  which  first  appeared  in  the  Entomologist  for  1885,  and  was  afterwards 
reprinted  with  additions  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Burton-on-Trent  Natural  History  Society  for 
1889  ;  besides  various  notes  and  papers  which  have  appeared  in  the  Entomologist,  the  Midland 
Naturalist,  and  other  Natural  History  magazines  and  works  on  Entomology.  In  the  following 
list  the  records  of  Macro-Lepidoptera  are  taken  from  the  reports  of  the  North  Staffordshire 
Field  Club  unless  otherwise  stated. 

Much  less  attention  has  been  given  to  the  Micro-Lepidoptera.  Mr.  Brown's  list  com- 
prised some  280  species  of  Tortrices  and  Tineae  ;  Mr.  C.  G.  Barrett  collected  sixty  species, 
chiefly  at  Cannock,  in  June  1886  (Report  N.S.F.C.  1887,  p.  13),  and  in  1880  the  Rev.  T.  W. 
Daltry  contributed  his  first  notes  on  the  subject  to  the  same  publication.  In  1891 
(Report,  p.  17)  seventy-nine  species  had  been  recorded  by  him,  and  subsequently  a  few  more 
have  been  added.  In  1892  Messrs.  J.  T.  Harris  and  P.  B.  Mason  published  a  list  of  the 
Crambi,  Tortrices,  and  Tineae  of  the  Burton  district  (Transactions  Burton-on-Trent  Natural 
History  Society,  ii,  p.  l),  while  in  the  Report  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club  for 
1899,  p.  60,  Mr.  E.  D.  Bostock  recorded  17  species,  many  of  which  were  new  to 
the  county  list.  The  present  list  also  contains  a  number  of  records  by  Messrs.  W.  G. 
Blatch  and  R.  C.  Bradley,  for  which  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  C.  J.  Wainwright,  and  Dr.  R. 
Freer  has  contributed  a  list  of  131  species  taken  by  himself  in  the  Rugeley  district  and  the 
adjoining  part  of  Cannock  Chase. 

E.  B  =  E.  Brown.          C.  G.  B.  -  C.  G.  Barrett.          T.  W.  D  =  Rev.  T.  W.  Daltry. 

B.  L.  =  Burton  Society,  List  of  Macro-Lepidoptera  (1885-9). 

B.  S.  =  J.  T.   Harris  and  Dr.  Mason  (1892).  E.  D.  B.  =  E.  D.  Bostock. 

C.  J.  W.  =  C.  J.  Wainwright.  R.  C.  B.  =  R.  C.  Bradley. 

W.  G.  B.  =  W.  G.  Blatch.  R.  F.  =  Dr.  R.  Freer. 

i  97  '3 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


RHOPALOCERA 


PlERIDAE 


NYMPHALIDAE  (cont.) 


Pieris  brassicae,  L.     General 

—  rapae,  L.     Plentiful  throughout  the  county 

—  napi,  L.      In  gardens  and  meadows,  but  not  so 

plentiful  as  the  two  last  species 
Euchk>5    cardamines,    L.     Very    general    in     the 

spring  and  frequents  lilac  bloom 
Leucophasia  sinapis,  L.     Only  recorded  as  having 

occurred  once  at  Stvynnerton  by   Mr.  Alfred 

Smith 
Colias  edusa,  Fb.     Rare,  but  has  been  observed  in 

most  parts  of  the  county.     The  var.  helice, 

Hb.  has  been  taken  once  near  Stafford 
Gonopteryx  rhamni,   L.     Rare.     Madeley,   Crad- 

docKt    Moss,    Dovedale,    Cheadle,    Oakamoor, 

Hamfs  Valley,  Mayfeld 

NYMPHALIDAE 

Argynnis  selene,  Schiff.  Burnt  Woods,  Bagofs 
Park,  Dovedale,  Chartley  (B.  L.) 

—  euphrosyne,   L.     Common  in   Burnt  Woods  in 

some  seasons 

—  aglai.i,  L.      Fairly  plentiful  on   Cannock   Chase, 

one  dark  var.  formerly  Dcvedale 

—  adippe,    L.       Trentl.am    in   June,    1901,    and 

Downs  Banks,  near    Stone,     1893  ;    formerly 
Dovedale  (late  Rev.  H.  Harpur  Crevve) 
-  paphia,   L.       One    in    Swynnerton    Old  Park, 

1890 

Mclitaea  aurinia,  Rott.  CraJdock's  Moss,  but  very 
uncertain  in  appearance  ;  one  at  Burton 
(B.  L.) 

—  athalia,  Rott.     Burnt  Woods  (}.   B.  Hodgkin- 

son),  abundant  in  one  locality  in  South 
Staffordshire  (J.  Hardy,  vide  Newman's 
British  Butterflies,  48) 

Vanessa  C-album,  L.  A  few  noted  most  years, 
but  far  from  common.  Madeley,  Cheadle, 
Oakamoor,  Cannock  Chase,  Leek,  Tixall, 
Stone 

—  polychloros,  L.     One  pupa   at   Madeley.     An 

imago,  Alstonfield,  1875  ;  Dovedale,  Frads- 
vj ell  Heath,  near  Stone,  1902  ;  Burton,  'Need- 
wood  Forest  (B.  L.) 

—  urticae,    L.      Very  common  everywhere,  and 

often  emerges  from  hibernation  on  sunny 
days  in  winter 

• —  io,  L.  Very  general  in  September  and  hiber- 
nated specimens  in  early  spring 

—  antiopa,  L.     Very  rare,  but  has  been  taken  at 

Badenhall  near  Eccleshall,  Swynnerton,  Stvyth- 
amley,  Madeley,  and  has  been  observed  at 
Alstonfieldty  Rev.  W.  H.  Purchas  in  1880. 
A  noticeable  immigration  of  this  insect  into 
North  Staffordshire  took  place  in  1872. 
One  was  seen  near  Warslovi  on  28  August, 
and  another  in  the  same  district  about  the 
same  time.  Miss  Malleson  observed  one 
near  Hit/me  End  the  same  morning,  and 
Miss  Purchas  took  a  specimen  (probably  the 
same  individual)  on  the  following  after- 
noon. Another  was  taken  near  Longnor  on 


2  September,  and  two  not  far  from  Leek  on 

3  September.       Mr.  Hugo    H.  Crewe    saw 
one    near    Warslow   on    5    September,    and 
two  more  were  taken  on  the  moors  shortly 
after 

Vanessa  atalanta,  L.  Some  years  very  abundant  and 
general  throughout  the  county 

—  cardui,  L.     Very  uncertain,  but  plentiful  some 

years 

SATYRIDAE 

Pararge   megaera,    L.  Occasional,    but    nowhere 

common  ;  Forest  Banks,    Needwood  (B.  L.). 

Not     met     with  in     the     north     of     the 

county 

Satyrus  semele,  I,.  Bunster  Hill,  Dovedale 

(B.  L.) 

Epinephele  ianira,  L.  Common  generally,  but 

local 

—  tithonus,  L.     Not   common.     Cannock   Chase, 

Madeley,  Burton  (B.  L.) 
-  hyperanthes,  L.    Local.    Burnt  Woods,  Madeley, 

Needwood  Forest  (B.  L.) 

Coenonympha  typhon,  Rott.  Very  local.  Chartley, 
Chorlton  Moss,  and  all  the  specimens  appear 
to  be  of  the  var.  rothliebi,  Stgr.  Stafford- 
shire appears  to  be  about  the  southern  limit 
of  this  insect 

—  pamphilus,  L.     Very  common  on  heaths 

LYCAENIDAE 

Thecla  W-album,  Knoch.  One  taken  near  Mod- 
dershall  in  1899  ;  Burton,  Knightley  Perk, 
(B.  L.),  Market  Drayton,  1902  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  quercus,  L.     Stvynnerton,  plentiful 

—  rubi,  L.     Common,  but  local.    Cannock  Chase, 

Cheadle,    Maer,    Stone,    Dovedale;    formerly 

plentiful  (B.  L.) 
Polyommatus   phloeas,  L.     Common  generally   in 

late  summer  and  autumn 
Lycaena  aegon,  Schiff.     Very  rare  at   Wolverhamp- 

ton     (F.  O.   Morris,  vide  Newman's  British 

Butterflies,  p.  121) 

—  astrarche,   Bgstr.       Some   years    abundant     in 

Dovedale 

—  icarus,  Rott.     Fairly  common,  but  not  in  great 

abundance 

—  argiolus,    L.      Maer,    Needwood   Forest,    Bunit 

Woods,  Rugeley,  Whitman,  Parson's  Brake 

—  minima,  Fues.      Rare,  Dovedale 

HESPERIIDAE 

Syrichthus  malvae,  L.     Very  rare.     Burnt  Woods 
Nisoniades  tages,  L.     Leycett  on  coal-pit  lows,  near 

Market  Drayton;  Dovedale  (B.  L.) 
Hesperia  thaumas,  Hufn.     Local  on  railway  banks 

at  Madeley  ;  Burton,  not  uncommon  (B.  L.) 

—  sylvanus,   Esp.      Local,  Burnt  Woods,  Maer ; 

Bagofs  Park,   common  ;    Chartley ;    Burton, 
not  uncommon  (B.  L.) 

—  comma,  L.      Chartley  (B.  L.) 


INSECTS 


HETEROCERA 


SPHINGES 
SPHINGIDAB 


BOMBYCES 

NYCTEOLIDAE 


Acherontia  atropos,  L.  Very  general.  No  less 
than  200  larvae  of  this  species  were  brought 
to  one  entomologist  in  this  county  in  1900 

Sphinx  convolvuli,  L.  Occurs  occasionally,  Made- 
ley,  Stone,  several  years  ;  Stoke  and  Hanley, 
1903  ;  Rugeley,  1904  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  ligustri,  L.     The  larva   is   said  to   have  been 

taken  near  Stoke  on  Trent ;  not  infrequent  at 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

Deilephila  gallii,  SchifF.  One  taken  at  Handsworth, 
1888  (C.  J.  Wain wright) 

—  livornica,  Esp.     Taken  twice  at  Wolstanton  in 

1897  and   1900.     One  at  Mayjield  on    18 
May,  1904 

Choerocampa  '  cclerio,  L.  One  at  Rugeley,  1853 
(R.  W.  Hawkins).  One  taken  at  Burton  in 
October,  1880  (B.  L.) 

—  porcellus,  L.     Not  uncommon  at  valerian  and 

rhododendron      flowers,       Stone,      Stafford, 
Cheadle  ;  Oakedge,  Rugeley  (B.  L.) 
- —  elpenor,  L.     General  in  larval  stage 
Smsrinthus   ocellatus,  L.     General  in  the  middle 
and  south  of  the  county  in  orchards 

—  populi,  L.     Common  throughout  the  county 

—  tiliae,   L.     Very  rare.     Larvae  said   to    have 

been  taken  at  Trentbam,  and  one  imago  near 
Market  Dray  ton.  Two  larvae  Rugeley,  1902 
Macroglossa  stellatarum,  L.  Very  general  most 
years,  appearing  in  spring,  and  again  in 
early  autumn 

—  bombyliformis,  Och.     CraJilock's  Moss 

SESIIDAE 

Trochilium  apiformis,  Clerck.  Rare,  Stoke-on- 
Trent,  Cheadle,  Warslow 

—  crabroniformis,  Lewin.     General 

Sesia  sphegiformis,  Fb.  Plentiful  in  Burnt  Woods 
some  years,  Craddocki  Moss 

—  tipuliformis,     Clerck.       General     in     gardens 

where  currants  are  grown 

—  culiciformis,  L.      Plentiful  some  years  in  Burnt 

Woods,  Cannock  Chase,  E.  D.  B. 


ZVGAENIDAE 

Ino  statices,  L.     Rare  and  local,  Madeley  ;    Dove- 
dale  (B.  L.) 

—  geryon,  Hb.      Rare,  Staffordshire  side  of  Dove- 

dak 

Zygaena  trifolii,  Esp.      Rare   and  local   Cannock 
Chase 

—  lonicerae,  Esp.     Canal  bank  Cheswardine,  rare 

—  filipendulae,   L.     Rare,   railway    cutting   near 

Madeley,   Cannock  Chase,   Grindon;    Burton, 
Dwedale  (B.  L.) 

1  Choerocampa  nerii,  L.    One  at  Burton,  1888  (B.  L.)  One 
«t  Hanley,  Sept.  1896. 


Sarothripus  undulanus,  Hb.     One  at  Stvynnerton 
Hylophila  prasinana,  L.  Not  uncommon  in  woods, 
Madeley,  Leek  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  bicolorana,  Fues.     One  pupa  at  Stone  in  1905, 

which  duly  hatched  out  (E.  D.  B.) 

NOLI  DAE 

Nola  cucullatella,  L.  Not  generally  common, 
Madeley,  Rugeley;  common  at  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  confusalis,  H.-S.     Bishop')  and   Burnt  Woods  ; 

Burton  (B.  L.) 

LlTHOSIIDAE 

Nudaria  mundana,  L.  General,  Madeley,  Cborlton 
Moss,  Weaver  Hills,  Dovedale,  Leek ;  scarce, 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

Lithosia  me;omella,  L.  Burnt  Woods,  Swynnerton, 
Cannock  Chase,  Chartley 

—  lurideola,  Zinck.     Common,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

EUCHELIIDAE 

Deiopeia  pulchella,  L.     Once  taken  in  a  mendow 

near   Walton's    Wood,    Madeley,     25     June, 

1892 
Euchelia   iacobaeae,  L.      Pell  Wall  near   Market 

Drafton,  and  larvae  on  Cannock  Chase  ;   in  a 

garden  at  Burton  once  (B.  L.) 

CHELONIIDAE 

Nemeophila  russula,  L.  ($  sannio,  L.).  Not  un- 
common on  most  mosses 

—  plantaginis,    L.      Local,   but   occurs    in    many 

districts 
Arctia  caia,  L.      Common  in  south  of  county,  but 

gets  rarer  further  north,  and  doubtful   if  it 

occurs  at  all  in  extreme  north  of  the  county 
Spilosoma   fuliginosa,   L.     Not  common,  Chorhon 

Moss,  Stone,  Cannock  Chase,  Gun  near  Leek  ; 

Chartley,  Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

—  mendica,  Clerck.     Near  Marchlngton  (E.  B.) 

.  *       .'  „"'  \  Very  common  everywhere 

—  menthrastn,  Esp.  j        ' 

—  urticae,  Esp.     Larvae  found  once  near  Burton 

(E.  B.) 

HEPIALIDAE 

Hepialus  humuli,  L.  Common  in  meadows,  the 
silvery  white  wings  of  the  male  being  very 
conspicuous  at  dusk  when  hovering  over 
grass 

—  sylvanus,  L.     General 

—  velleda,  Hb.     General   on   heaths   and    com- 

mons, but  Staffordshire  is  about  the  southern 
limit  where  this  insect  is  found  commonly 
-  lupulinus,  L.j  v  mjnon 

—  hectus,  L.      j 


99 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


BOMBYCES  (continued) 

COSSIDAB 

Cossus  ligniperda,   Fb.     Not  common,  larvae  in 

ash  and  willow  trees 
Zeuzera  pyrina,  L.     Rare,  Toxall  (E.  B.),  Burton, 

Rolleston  (B.  L.)  ;    Stafford,  Hanlty,  Cheadle  ; 

Handsttiorth  (C.  J.  W.),  Stone,  E.  D.  B. 

COCHLIOPODIDAE 

Heterogenea  limacodes,   Hufn.      Two  specimens 
taken  at  Hanky,  15  July,  1903 

LIPARIDAE 

Porthesia  chrysorrhoea,  L.     Several  at  Rugeley  in 

1892-3  ;  at    electric  light  at  Stoke  Station, 

1905 
—  si  mills,     Fues.        Common     throughout     the 

county 

Leucoma  salicis,  L.     Burton  (B.  L.) 
Dasychira  pudibunda,  L.    Not  uncommon  in  south, 

but  not  recorded  in  north  of  the  county 
Orgyia   gonostigma,    Fb.     One    larva   at    Rugeley 

(B.  L.) 
-  antiqua,  L.     General,  and  some  years  abundant 

as  far  north  as  Cheadle  and  Leek 


BOMBYCIDAE 

Trichiura  crataegi,  L.  Rare,  two  taken  at  gas 
lamps  at  Stone  ;  larva,  Market  Dray  ton;  Bur- 
ton (B.  L.) 

Poecilocampa  populi,  L.  Not  uncommon  coming 
to  light,  Stvynnerton,  Stone,  Tlxall,  Rugeley, 
Cheadle  ;  Needwood  (B.  L.) 

Eriogaster  lanestris,  L.  Nests  of  larvae,  Market 
Drayton  ;  'Needwood  forest,  common  Burton 
(B.  L.) 

Bombyx  rubi,  L.  Common  on  heaths,  Madeley, 
Leek  ;  Cannock  Chase  ;  Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

—  quercus,  L.     Common  some  years  about  Stone 

and  other  places,  but  generally  of  the  variety 

callunae,  Palmer 
Cdonestis  potatoria,  L.     Common  throughout  the 

southern  half  of  the  county 
Lasiocampa   quercifolia,   L.       Larvae   taken     near 

Rugeley  (B.  L.) 

—  ilicifolia,  L.     Taken  several  times  on   Cannock 

Chase,  which  is  one  of  the  very  few  localities 
where  this  moth  occurs  in  England.  (For 
particulars  see  p.  97) 

ENDROMIDAE 

Endromis  versicolor,  L.  Used  to  be  taken  in  the 
Burnt  Woods 

SATURNHDAE 

Saturnia  pavonia,  L.  Common  on  heaths  all 
through  the  county.  Males  assemble  from 
long  distances  to  a  virgin  female 


BOMBYCES  (continued) 
DREPANULIDAE 

Drcpana  lacertinaria,  L.  Fairly  common  on  birch 
trees 

—  falcataria,  L.     Not  uncommon 

—  binaria,  Hum.     Burnt  Woods,  1902 

Cilix  glaucata,  Scop.  Common  some  years.  Stone, 
Cheadle,  Rugeley,  Market  Drayton ;  Burton 
(B.  L.) 

DlCRANURIDAE 

Dicranura  bicuspis,  Bork.  Not  common.  Chorlton 
Moss  ;  Cannock  Chase,  Rolleston  (B.  L.) 

—  furcula,  L.     Occasional,  Burnt  Woods,  Madeley; 

Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  bifida,  Hb.     Occasional,  Stoke-on-Trent,  Stone, 

Burnt  Woods,  Cannock  Chase  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  vinula,   L.      Very  common    throughout    the 

county 

NOTODONTIDAE 

Pterostoma    palpina,   L.      Chorlton,    Stone,    Burnt 

Woods,  Cannock  Chase  ;  Burton  (B.L.) 
Lophopteryx  camelina,  L.     Common 

—  carmelita,  Esp.     Rugeley  (B.  L.) 
Notodonta  bicolor,  Hb.     Eight  specimens  of  this 

rare  moth  were  taken  in  the  Burnt  Woods 
by  Messrs.  I.  Smith,  Chappell,  and  Charlton 
(see  Zoologist,  1861,  p.  7682  ;  also  New- 
man's British  Moths,  p.  228).  The  following 
is  an  account  of  the  capture  of  the  first 
specimen  of  this  insect  in  Staffordshire,  taken 
from  the  Zoologist,  1861,  p.  7682  :  'At  the 
ordinary  monthly  meeting  of  the  Manchester 
Entomological  Society  held  on  3  July, 
Mr.  John  Smith,  an  artisan  collector  resi- 
dent here,  exhibited  a  specimen  of  Noto- 
donta bicolor  captured  by  himself  at  Burnt 
Woods,  Staffordshire,  in  the  latter  part  of 
June  last.  The  specimen,  a  fine  male, 
though  a  little  rubbed  through  being  boxed 
out  of  the  net,  excited  much  interest  at  the 
meeting  as  being  the  first  of  the  species 
known  to  have  occurred  in  Great  Britain, 
J.  Hardy,  pro  Sec.' 

—  dictaea,  L.    Not  uncommon.    Whitmore,  Stoke- 

on-Trent,  Cannock  Chase,  Cheadle,  Burnt 
Woods ;  Bur/on  (B.  L.) 

—  dictaeoides,    Esp.     Not    uncommon,    Bishop's 

Woods,  Cannock  Chase,  Leek 

—  dromedarius,  L.     The  larvae  frequently  taken 

Madeley,  Stvynnerton,  Burnt  Woods,  Cheadle, 
Consall ;  Cannock  Chase  (B.  L.) 

—  ziczac,  L.     Larvae  not  uncommon  on  willow 

and  sallow  ;  Madeley,  Ckeadle,  Bishop's  and 
Burnt  Woods 

—  trepida,  Esp.     Rare  Stvynnerton,  Burnt  Woods 

—  chaonia,  Hb.     One  at  Steynnerton 

—  trimacula,    Esp.      Burnt    Woods,    Stvynnerton, 

Cannock  Chase 

PYGAERIDAS 

Phalera  bucephala,  L.  Very  common,  the  larvae 
frequently  stripping  branches  of  trees  of  all 
their  leaves. 

Pygaera  curtula,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.) 


100 


INSECTS 


BOMBYCES  (continued) 
CYMATOPHORIDAE 


Thyatira  derasa,  L.  Not  common  Macteley,  Burnt 
Woods,  Dovedale,  Leek  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  batis,  L.     General,  but  not  plentiful;  Cheadle, 

Madeley,  Rugeley,  Leek,  Burnt  Woods  ;  Bur- 
ton (B.  L.) 

Cymatophora  duplaris,  L.  Not  uncommon,  Can- 
nock  Chase,  MaJeley,  Burnt  Woods,  Cheadle  ; 
Henhurst  near  Burton  (E.  B.) 

Asphalia  diluta,  Fb.  Rare,  Burnt  Woods;  Hen- 
hurst  near  Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  flavicornis,  L.      Common,  Swynnerton,  Cannock 

Chase,  Cheadle  ;  Burton  once  (B.  L.) 

—  ridens,  Fb.     Rare,  Staynnerton,  Trentham 

NOCTUAE 
BRYOPHILIDAE 

Bryophila  perla,  Fb.  Common  on  walls,  the  larvae 
feeding  on  lichens 

BoMBYCOIDAE 

Demas  coryli,  L.  Rare,  larvae  on  birch  and  oak 
at  Staynnerton  and  Dtmmingsdale  near  Cheadle; 
Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

Acronycta  tridens,  Schift'.  Fairly  common  at  Bur- 
ton (B.  L.),  Rugeley 

—  psi,  L.     Common  throughout  the  county 

• —  leporina,  L.  General,  but  not  common,  Leek, 
Chorlton,  Cheadle,  Barlaston,  Burnt  Woods, 
Cannock  Chase,  Chartlcy  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

-  megacephala,  Fb.      Not  common,  Bishop's  and 

Burnt  Woods,  Cannock  Chase 

-  alni,  L.     General,   and   reported   from    most 

parts  of  the  county 

-  rumicis,  L.     Common,   and   variety   '  salicis ' 

not  uncommon 

—  menyanthidis,   View.     Rare,   Craddock's  Moss, 

Chorlton,  War  slow,  Chartlcy,  Leek 
Diloba  caeruleocephala,  L.     Common  throughout 
the  middle  and  south  of  the  county 

LEUCANIIDAE 

Leucania  conigera,  Fb.     Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  lithargyria,  Esp.     Common 

—  comma,  L.     Burnt  Woods,  Rugeley  ;    Henhurst 

and  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  impura,  Hb.) ,-, 

„         T        (•  Common 

—  pallens,  L.     J 

Coenobia  rufa,  Haw.     Henhurst  near  Burton  (E.  B.) 
Tapinostola  fulva,  Hb.     Fairly  common,  Chorlton, 
Madeley,  Betton,   Cheadle,    Cannock    Chase ; 
Bagofs  Park,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

Nonagria  arundinis,  Fb.  Larvae  common  in  bul- 
rushes 

—  lutosa,  Hb.     One  at  light  Stone  ;  at  light  Bur- 

ton (B.L.) 

APAMEIDAE 

Gortyna  ochracea,  Hb.     Fairly  common 
Hydroecia  nictitans,  Bork.     Not  common,   Whit- 
more,  Cheadle,  Burnt  Woods,  Cannock   Chase  ; 
Henhurst,  Burton,  Rugeley  (B.  L.) 


NOCTUAE  (continued) 
APAMEIDAE  (continued) 

Hydroecia  petasitis,  Dbl.  One  at  Froghall  near 
Cheadle,  and  larvae  in  stems  of  Petasitis  vul- 
garis 

—  micacea,  Esp.     Occasional,  Swynnerton,  Madeley, 

Oakamoor,  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Axylia  putris,  L.     Fairly  common 
Xylophasia   rurea,   Fb.     Common    with   the  var. 

combusta,  Dup. 

—  lithoxylea,  Fb.     Common 

—  monoglypha,   Hufn.     Very    abundant    every- 

where with  its  melanic  var. 

—  hepatica,   L.     Not  common,   Madeley  ;    Hen- 

Aunt,  Burton  (B.  L.) 
—  scolopacina,    Esp.     Local.      Cheadle;    Leek; 

Knightley     Park ;     Shobnall    (B.  L.)  ;     Burnt 

Woods,  E.  D.  B. 
Dipterygia     scabriuscula,    L.      Rare.      Swynnerton  ; 

Madeley  ;  Bunt  Woods 
Aporophyla  australis,  Bdv.     One  at  light  at  Stoke- 

on-Trent 
Neuria  reticulata,  Vill.      Sviyntierton  ;  Burnt  Woods  ; 

Henhurst,  nr.  Burton  (E.  B.) 
Neuronia     popularis,     Fb.      General.      Madeley ; 

Cheadle ;    Rugeley  ;  Market  Dray  ton  ;  Burton 

(B.L.) 

Charaeas  graminis,  L.      Common 
Cerigo    matura,    Hufn.      Rugeley    occasionally     at 

light  ;  one  at  Branston,  Sept.   1905  ;  Knight- 
ley  (E.  B.) 
Luperina  testacea,  Hb.      Common 

—  cespitis,  Fb.      General 

Mamestra  sordida,  Bork.  Market  Dray  ton  ;  Burton, 
at  sugar  (B.  L.) 

—  brassicae,  L.      Very  abundant,  and  the  larvae 

very  destructive  to  plants  of  the  cabbage  tribe 

-  persicariae,  L.     Local.     Burton  (B.  L.)  ;  Made- 

ley  ;  Rugeley  ;  Handsmrth  (C.  J.  W.) 
Apamea     basilinea,     Fb.     Common,     and     larvae 
destructive 

—  gemina,   Hb.      Not  uncommon,  and   the  vnr. 

remissa,  Tr.  occasionally 

-  unanimis,  Tr.     Not  common.    Clayton  ;  Made- 

ley  ;  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

-  leucostigma,  Hb.     Occasional.     Cannock  Chase, 

Tixall 

—  didyma,  Esp.     Common 

Miana  strigilis,  Clerck.  Abundant  and  very  varia- 
ble, the  black  form  being  very  common 

—  fasciuncula,  Haw.     Fairly  common.     Madeley  ; 

Cheadle ;    Rugeley  ;    Burnt  Woods ;    Burton 
(B.L.) 

—  literosa,  Haw.     Occasional.     Madeley ;    Burnt 

Woods ;  Rugelet 

—  bicoloria,  Vill.     Rare.     Chorlton  Moss;  Rugeley 

—  arcuosa,   Haw.      Not   uncommon.     Madeley  ; 

Dovedale ;     Cheadle  ;     Rugeley  ;     Henhurst ; 
Burton  (E.  B.) 
Celaena  haworthii,  Curt.     Rare.     Dane  Valley 

CARADRINIDAE 

Grammesia    trigrammica,    Hufn.      Not    common. 

Dovedale  ;  Stvynnerton  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Stilbia  anomala,  Haw.    Not  uncommon  in  Cannock 

Chase 


101 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


NOCTUAE  (continued) 
CARADRINIDAB  (continued') 

Caradrina  morpheus,  Hufn.     Common 

—  alsines,   Brahm.     Local  ;    very  plentiful  some 

years  at  Rugeley 

—  taraxaci,    Hb.       Rugeley ;     Madeley ;    Market 

Drayton 

-  quadripunctata,  Fb.     Very  common 
Rusina    tenebrosa,    Hb.       Common    in    woods, 
coming  to  sugar 


NOCTUIDAE 

Agrotis  suffusa,  Hb.  Rare.  Madeley ;  Burnt 
Woods;  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  saucia,  Hb.    Rare.    Stvynnerton  ;  Chorlton  Moss  ; 

Clayton ;  Burnt  Woods ;  Rugeley ;  Burton 
(B.  L.) 

-  segetum,    SchifF.     Very    common,  and  larvae 

destructive  to  farm  crops 

-  exclamationis,  L.     Very  abundant 

-  corticea,  Hb.     Rare.     Sviynnerton 

-  nigricans,  L.     Local  ;  Rugeley  ;  common  some 

years 

-  tritici,    L.      Not    common.      Market  Drayton ; 

Rugeley 

-  aquilina,  Hb.      The  Lawns,  Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  strigula,  Thnb.     Common  some  years.     Szvyn- 

nerton  ;  Burnt  Woods  ;  C hartley  Moss  ;  Can- 
nock  Chase 

-  obscura,  Brahm.     One   Burnt  Woods;  Burton, 

rare  (E.  B.) 

-  simulans,  Hufn.      Reported  from  Staffordshire 

(see  Newman's  British  Moths,  p.  336) 
Noctua     glareosa,     Esp.      Common     some    years, 
Madeley  ;   Cheadle  ;  Burnt  Woods  ;    Cannock 
Chase  ;  Rugeley 

—  augur,  Fb.     Common  throughout  the  county 

-  P|eCU'  L'    .      I      General 

—  C-mgrum,  L.    J 

-  triangulum,   Hufn.     Madeley ;    Burnt   Woods ; 

Rugeley  ;  Henhurst,  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  brunnea,  Fb.      Common 

—  festiva,  Hb.      Very  abundant 

- —  dahlii,   Hb.     Fairly  common,   but   uncertain. 

Cheadle  ;  Burnt  Woods,  very  abundant  Aug., 

1905  ;  Cannock  Chase 
• —  rubi,  View.     General 

—  umbrosa,  Hb.  ) 
-    baia,  Fb.  j 

—  castanea,    Esp.      Often    plentiful    on    heaths  ; 

Stvynnerton  ;  Burnt  Woods.  Very  variable  in 
colouration.  A  striking  yellow  variety  (var. 
xanthe)  has  been  taken  by  Mr.  Woodforde 
in  the  Burnt  Woods  several  years  in  August, 
and  is  not  known  to  occur  elsewhere  (see 
Rep.  North  Staffs.  Field  Club  1900-1,  p.  64, 
for  a  paper  and  coloured  plate  of  this  in- 
teresting variety) 

—  xanthographa,   Fb.     Common   generally  with 

many  red  and  dark  varieties 

Triphaena  ianthina,  Esp.  Fairly  common.  Made- 
ley  ;  Craddock'j  Moss  ;  Cheadle  ;  Stone  ;  Ruge- 
ley  ;  Henhurst;  Burton  (B.  L.) 


Common 


NOCTUAE  (continued) 
NOCTUIDAE  (continued) 

Triphaena  fimbria,  L.  Uncertain  in  appearance, 
but  common  some  years.  Stvynnerton  ;  Stone  ; 
Cheadle  ;  Burnt  Woods,  in  all  its  varieties. 
Rugeley  ;  Henhurst;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  interjecta,  Hb.  Rare.    Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  comes,  Hb.      Common  some  years 

—  pronuba,  L.     Very  abundant  everywhere.      A 

hermaphrodite  variety  was  taken  by  Mr. 
E.  W.  H.  Blagg  and  Mr.  F.  C.  Woodforde 
in  Dovedale  in  1893  with  left  forewing,  var. 
inuba,  and  right  forewing  mottled  as  in  the 
type 

AMPHIPYRIDAE 

Amphipyra  pyramidea,  L.  Rare.  Stvynnerton ; 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  tragopogonis,  L.     Very  common 
Mania  typica,  L.     Very  common 

—  maura,  L.     Common 

ORTHOSIIDAE 

Panolis  piniperda,  Panz.    Common  at  sallow  bloom 

and  in  pine  woods 
Pachnobia  rubricosa,  Fb.   Common  at  sallow  bloom 

Taeniocampa  gothica,  L.    )    ,, 

r,_,   c  [    Very  common 

—  mcerta,  Hufn. 

—  opima,  Hb.     Two  specimens  taken  at  Cannock 

Chase  by  Mr.  Burnett 

—  populeti,  Fb.     Not  common.    Madeley  ;  Leek  ; 

Cheadle ;  Burnt  Woods ;  Henkurst,  nr.  Bur- 
ton (B.  L.) 

—  stabilis,  View.     Very  abundant 

—  gracilis,  Fb.     Rare.     Madeiey  ;  Rugeley  ;  Bur- 

ton ;  Branston  (B.  L.).  Not  reported  in  the 
north  of  the  county 

—  miniosa,  Fb.     Rare.    Stvynnerton ;  Burnt  Woods 

—  munda,  Esp.     Not  common.    Madeley  ;  Burnt 

Woods 

—  pulverulenta,  Esp.    Common  at  sallows  in  south 

of  the  county,  rare  in  the  north 
Orthosia  suspecta,  Hb.    Common  locally  and  vari- 
able in  colour 

—  upsilon,  Bork.     Not  common.    Chorlton,  larva  ; 

Cheadle  ;  larvae  common,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  lota,  Clerck          j 

—  macilenta,  Hb.     J 

Anchocelis  rufina,  L.     Common  some  years 

—  pistacina,  Fb.    Not  uncommon.    Burnt  Woods ; 

Market  Drayton  ;  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  litura,  L.     Common 
Cerastis  vaccinii,  L.  "j 

—  spadicea,  Hb.  \     Very  common 
Scopelosoma  satellitia,  L.   J 

Xanthia  citrago,  L.  Not  uncommon.  Cheadle; 
Rugeley  ;  Market  Drayton 

—  fulvago,    L.     Common,    var.   flavescens,    Esp. 

Madeley 

—  flavago,  Fb.     Common  some  years.     Rugeley  ; 

Cheadle  ;  Burnt  Woods  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  gilvago,  Esp.     Not  common.     Burnt  Woods  ; 

Rugeley  ;  Oakamoor  ;  Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  circellaris,  Hufn.     Common 


Common 


102 


INSECTS 


NOCTUAE  (continued) 
ORTHOSIIDAE  (continued) 

Cirrhoedia  xerampelina,  Hb.  Common  some 
years.  Madeley  ;  Stone  ;  Tixall ;  Chead/e  ; 
Leek,  nr.  Mow  Cop  ;  Dovedale ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

CoSMIIDAE 

Tethea  subtusa,  Och.  Larvae,  Stoke-on-Trent ; 
Madeley ;  Henburst,  nr.  Burton  (E.  B.)  ; 
Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  retusa,  L.     Larvae  on  sallow,  Wrinehill 
Cosmia  paleacea,  Esp.     Very  local  and  not  com- 
mon.    Cannock  Chase 

Calymnia  traperina,  L.     Common 

—  diffinis,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  affinis,  L.    Rare.    Burnt  Woods  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

HADENIDAE 

Dianthoecia  nana,  Rott.      Rare.     Market  Drayton 

—  capsincola,  Hb.     Common 

—  cucubali,    Fues.       Not    common.       Madeley  ; 

Rugeley  ;  Burton,  common  (B.  L.) 

—  carpophaga,  Bork.     Rare.     Rugeley  ;  Shobnall ; 

Burton  (B.  L.) 

Hccatera  serena,  Fb.  Not  common.  Stuynnerton  ; 
Leek;  Rugeley 

Polia  chi,  L.  Generally  common,  especially  in  the 
north  of  the  county 

Dasypolia  templi,  Thnb.  One  at  Cheadle ;  Wan- 
low  (Hugo  H.  Crewe)  ;  Cauldon,  nr.  Cheadle, 
1906 

Cleoceris  viminalis,  Fb.  Rudyard;  Madeley  ;  Chart- 
ley  ;  Leek  ;  Rugeley  ;  Burnt  Woods  ;  Hen- 
hurst,  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 

Miselia  oxyacanthae,  L.  Very  common,  and  var. 
capucina  frequent 

Agriopis  aprilina,  L.  ~\ 

Euplexia  lucipara,  L.  >     Common 

Phlogophora  meticulosa,  L.  J 

Aplecta  prasina,  Fb.  Fairly  common.  Swynner- 
ton  ;  Madelcy  ;  Burnt  Woods ;  Cheadle  ;  Dove- 
dale 

—  occulta,     L.       One     taken     in     Bagofs    Park 

(C.  A.  E.  Rodgers,  Ent.  1895,  p.  284.) 

—  nebulosa,  Hufm.     Common  in  woods 

• —  tincta,    Brahm.     Common    at    sugar.      Burnt 

Woods  ;  Cannock  Chase 
Hadena  adusta,  Esp.  Not  common.    Burnt  Woods  ; 

Cannock  Chase  ;  Henhurst ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  protea,  Bork.    Fairly  common.   Cheadle  ;  Leek  ; 

Cannock  Chase ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  glauca,    Hb.     Not    uncommon.     Swynnerton ; 

Cannock  Chase;  Burnt  Woids ;  Leek 

—  dentina,  Esp.     Not  common.    Madeley ;  Burnt 

Woods  ;  Rugeley  ;  common  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  trifolii,    Rott.     Larvae    occasionally    Rugeley. 

This  county  is  probably  the  northern  limit 
for  this  species ;  common  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  dissimilis,   Knoch.     Not  common,  Whitmore ; 

Market  Drayton  ;  Madeley  ;  scarce  at  Rugeley  ; 
Henhurst ;  and  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  oleracea,  L.     Common  everywhere 


NOCTUAE  (continued) 
HADENIDAE  (continued) 

Hadena  pisi,  L.  Common  some  seasons,  and  larvae 
on  broom  and  sallow 

—  thalassina,  Rott.     Common 

—  contigua,    Vill.     Fairly    common   on   Cannock 

Chase 

—  genistae,  Bork.      Rare.     Burnt  Woods 

XYLINIDAK 

Xylocampa  areola,  Esp.     General 
Calocampa  vetusta,  Hb.     Rare.    Swynnerten  ;  Burnt 
Woods ;  Henhurst ;    and  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  exoleta,  L.    General.     Burnt  Woods  ;  Cheadle  ; 

Henhurst,  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  solidaginis,  Hb.      Common  where  the  bilberry 

grows.     Stvythamley  ;  Leek ;  Cannock  Chase  ; 

Burnt  Woods 
Asteroscopus  sphinx,  Hufn.     At  lamps  on  Burton 

Bridge  (E.  B.) 
Cucullia  verbasci,  L.    Larvae  taken  at  Madeley,  and 

at    Grindon,    June,     1905,    in    considerable 

numbers 
- —  chamomillae,  Schiff.     Not   common  Madeley; 

Market  Drayton;  Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  umbratica,    L.      Common.       Cheadle;  Stone; 

Market  Drayton  ;  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

GONOPTERIDAE 

Gonoptera  libatnx,  L.     Common  everywhere 

PLUSH  DAE 

Habrostola  tripartita,  Hufn.  Local.  Cheadle; 
Rugeley  ;  Market  Drayton  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  triplasia,  L.     Fairly  common.    Cheadle ;   Rugf- 

ley  ;  Market  Drayton  ;  Burton  (B.  L.)  ;  Hands- 
Dearth 
Plusia  chrysitis,  L.     Common 

—  fe.'tucae,  L.      Local.     Madeley  ;  Betton  Moss  ; 

Leek  ;    Cheadle  ;   Rugeley  ;    Burton    (B.  L.)  ; 
common  Trent  Galley,  nr.  Lichfield 

—  iota,  L.  "I 

—  pulchrina,  Haw.     >•     Common 

—  gamma,  L.  J 

—  interrogationis,   L.       Rare.       Maer ;    Cannock 

Chase;  Leek 

HELIOTHIDAE 

Anarta  myrtilli,  L.  Common  on  heather  through- 
out the  county 

Heliaca  tcncbrata,  Scop.  Not  common.  Swynner- 
ton  ;  Madeley  ;  Rugeley ;  common  some  years, 
Burton 

PoAPHILIDAE. 

Phytometra  viridaria,  Clerck.  Craddock'i  Moss; 
Cannock  Chase 

EUCLIDIIDAE 

Euclidia  mi,  Clerck.  Rare.  Craddock's  Moss; 
Dovedale  ;  The  Lawns,  Burton  ;  and  Chartley 
(B.  L.) 

—  glyphica,  L.     Rare.     Madeley 


I03 


A    HISTORY    OF 

NOCTUAE  (continued) 
CATOCALIDAE 

Catocala  fraxini,  L.  Once  at  Burton,  2  Oct.  1852 
(E.B.) 

AVENTIIDAE 

Aventia  flexula,  SchifF.     Chartley  Moss 

HERMINIIDAE 

Zanclognatha  grisealis.  Hb.  Not  uncommon. 
Rugeley  ;  Walton's  Wood ;  Madeley ;  Burnt 
Woods  ;  Henhurst,  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.)  /  Hands- 
worth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  tarsipennalis,  Tr.  One  at  Tixa/l,  and  one  at 
Market  Drayton 

Pechypogon  barbalis,  Clerck.     Burnt  Woods 


STAFFORDSHIRE 

NOCTUAE  (continued) 
HERMINIIDAE  (continued) 

Bomolocha  pontis,  Thnb.  Common  but  locaL 
Stuymterton  Heath ;  Burnt  Woods ;  Maer  ; 
Cheadle 

Hypena  proboscidalis,  L.  Common  everywhere  on 
nettles 

Hypenodes  costaestrigalis,  St.  Bunt  Woods,  very- 
abundant,  Aug.  1905  (E.  D.  B.) 

BREPHIDES 

Brephos  parthenias,  L.  Plentiful  in  March  around 
birch  trees.  Swynnerton ;  Cheadle ;  Burnt 
Woods  ;  Chartley  ;  Cannock  Chase 


GEOMETRAE 


UROPTERYCIOAE 

Uropteryx  sambucaria,  L.      Common  throughout 
the  county 

ENNOMIDAE 

Epione  apiciaria,  Schiff.     Not  common.  Madeley  ; 

BagofsPark;  Cheadle;  Handsworth  ;  Rugcley  ; 

Henhurst ;  and  Burton  (E.  B.) 
Rumia  luteolata,  L.     Common 
Venilia   macularia,  L.     Rare    and  local.   Dovedale; 

Dydon  Wood  (B.L.) 
Angerona  prunaria,  L.     Local.   Swynnerton  ;  Burnt 

Woods 
Metrocampa     margaritaria,  L.     General.     Stone ; 

Cheadle  ;  Cannock  Chase  ;  Swynnerton  ;  Burton 

(B.L.) 
Ellopia    prosapiaria,    L.        Common    in    all    pine 

woods 
Eurymene    dolobraria,     L.        Rare.     Sivynnerton ; 

Burnt  Woods  ;  Madeley  ;    Henhurst  nr.   Bur- 
ton (E.  B.) 
Pericallia  syringaria,    L.      Occasional.      Madeley  ; 

Stone  ;  Ellastone  ;  Burnt  If 'cods  ;  Rolleston;  and 

Burton  (B.L.) ,-  Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 
Selenia  bilunaria,  Esp.  )      General  in  the  southern 

—  lunaria,  SchifF.         j  half  of  the  county 
Odontopera  bidentata,  Clerck.      Common 
Crocallis  elinguaria,  L.     Very  generally  distributed 
Eugonia  almaria,  L.      Choriton  Moss  ;  Burnt  Woods; 

Cannock  Chase  ;  Oakedge  ;  and  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  fuscantaria,  Haw.     One  at  Madeley  ;  Stone,  at 

light  ;   Stoke-on-Trent,  at  electric  light ;  Bur- 
ton (E.  B.) 

-  erosaria,    Bork.       Swynnerton ;      Burnt  Woods ; 
Madeley  ;  Burton,  rare  (E.  B.) 

—  quercinaria,    Hum.       Fairly  common.     Burnt 

Woods  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Himera  pennaria,  L.     Common 

AMPIIIDASYDAE 


AMPHIDASYDA-E  (continued) 

Amphidasys  strataria,  Hufn.  General,  but  not 
common.  Trentham,  Madeley,  Stone,  Cheadle, 
Rugeley ;  Cannock  Chase  and  Burton  (B.  L.)  ; 
Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  betularia,  L.     Fairly  common  and  the  variety 

doubledayaria,  Mill,  more  common  than  the 
type  of  recent  years 

BOARMIIDAE 

Hemerophila  abruptaria,  Thnb.  Rare.  Madeley, 
Market  Drayton ;  Burton  (B.  L.)  ;  Hands- 
worth  (C.  J.  W.) 

Cleora  lichenaria,  Hufn.  Henhurst  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Boarmia    repandata,     L.         Very    common     and 
variable  in  markings  and  colour,  and  given  to 
melanism 

—  gemmaria,  Brahm.     Common  everywhere 

Tephrosia  crepuscularia,  Hb.    )    .-, 

u-      j   i    •      T>     i  r    Common 

—  biundulana,  Bork.  J 

—  punctularia,     Hb.          Common     on     Cannock 

Chase 

GEOMETRIDAE 

Geometra  papilionaria,  L.  Not  uncommon. 
Choriton  Moss,  Cannock  Chase,  Burnt  Woods, 
Cheadle  ;  Oakedge,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

Phorodesma  pustulata,  Hufn.  Once  taken  at 
Stvynnerton  ;  once  Shobnall  (B.  L.)  ;  at  electric 
light,  Hanley,  July,  1905 

lodis  lactearia,  L.  Rugeley ;  Burton,  com- 
mon (B.  L.) 

Hemithea  strigata,  Mall.  Market  Drayton;  Hen- 
hurst nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 

EPHYRIDAE 

Zonosoma  porata,  Fb.  Not  common.  Swynnerton, 
Burnt  Woods 

—  punctaria,  L.  Burnt  Woods;  Cannock  Chase  (B.  L.) 

—  pendularia,  Clerck.     Numerous  some  years  in 

Burnt  Woods 


Phigalia  pedaria,  Fb.     Plentifully  distributed  ACIDALIIDAE 

Nyssia  hispidaria,  Fb.     Rare.      Bishop's  Woods,  in      Asthena  luteata,  SchifF.     Local.     Burnt  Woods  and 

March  Cannock  Chase  ;  Oakedge  (B.  L.) 

Bistonhirtaria,Clerck.  Rugeley  (Z.L.);  Stone,  Trentham      —  candidata,  SchifF.     Fairly  common 

104 


INSECTS 


GEOMETRAE  (continue*!) 
ACIDALIIDAE  (continued) 

Asthena  sylvata,  Hb.  Not  common.  Bishop's  Woods, 
Madeley,  Dovedale,  Rushton ;  Henhunt  nr. 
Cannock  Chase  (B.  L.) 

—  blomeri,    Curt.      Very  local  and   rare,    Stone, 

Dovedale,     Shobna/l,  Hoar   Cross,  and  Need- 

toood  (B.  L.) 
Euoisteria    obliterata,   Hufn.       Burnt  Woods   and 

Cannock  Chase  ;  Oakedge,  common  (B.  L.) 
Venusia    cambrica,    Curt.         Common  in    woods 

around  Cheadle  and  Leek,  which  is  probably 

the  southern  limit  of  this  insect 
Acidalia  dimidiata,  Hufn.^ 

—  bisetata,  Hufn.  I   Fairly  common 
- —  virgularia,  Hb.             J 

- —  subsericeata,  Haw.     Local,  Dovedale 

• —  immutata,  L.      Chartley 

—  remutaria,  Hb.      Common 

—  fumata,  St.     Sttynnerton,    Maer    nr.    Cheadle, 

Dovedale  ;  Chaitley  (B.  L.) 

—  imitaria,  Hb.     Scarce.  Madeley,  Market  Dray- 

ton,  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  aversata,  L.     Common  generally 

—  inornata,     Haw.       Swynnerlon,    Burnt    Woods, 

Cannock  Chase 

—  emarginata,  L.    Rare.    Madeley;  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Timandra  amataria,  L.     Rare  and  local.     Stoke-on- 

Trent,    Rugeley  ;    Tatenhill  and  Henhurst  nr. 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

CABERIDAE 

Cabera  pusaria,  L.     Common 

—  rotundaria,  Haw.     Very  rare,  Heleigh  Castle  nr. 

MaJeley 

—  exanthemata,  L.     Very  general 

Bapta  temerata,  Hb.     Henhurst  nr.  Burton  (E.  B.) 

MACARIIDAE 

Macaria  notata,  L.  Local,  Swynnerton,  Burnt  Woods, 
very  abundant  some  years 

—  liturata,   Clerck.      Swynnerton,    Maer,   Cheadle, 

Cannock  Chase 
Halia  vauaria,  L.     Very  common 

Fl  DON  1 1  DAE 

Panagra  petraria,  Hb.     Common  on  heaths 
Numeria    pulveraria,   L.     Occasional    and    local, 

Burnt  Woods  ;  Henhurst  nr.  Burton  (E.  B.) 
Scodiona  belgiaria,  Hb.     Rare,  one  at   Whitmore, 

Cannock  Chase,  nr.  Cheadle,  Leek 
Ematurga  atomaria,  L.  "j 

Bupalus  piniaria,  L.  L  Abundant 

Aspilates  strigillaria,  Hb.       J 

ZERENIDAE 

Abroxas  grossulariata,  L.    Very  common  in  gardens 

—  sylvata,  Scop.     General  and  abundant  in  many 

valleys  in  the  north  of  the  county. 
Ligdia     adustata,     Schiff.        Very    rare,    one    at 

Madeley 
Lomaspilis  marginata,  L.     Common  locally 


GEOMETRAE  (continued) 
HYBERNIIDAE 


Hybernia  rupicapraria,  Hb. 

—  leucophearia,  Schiff. 

—  aurantiaria,  Esp. 

—  marginaria,  Bork. 

—  defoliaria,  L. 


Common  through - 
I      out  the  county 


J 


Anisopteryx  aescularia,  Schiff.     General 


LARENTIIDAE 


Abundant 


Cheimatobia  brumata,  L. 

-  boreata,  Hb. 

Oporabia  dilutata,  Bork.     Common 

-  filigrammaria,  H.  S.      Rare.    Gun  nr.  Leek 
Larentia  didymata,  L.      Very  common 

—  multistrigaria,  Haw.    Fairly  common.   Madeley, 

Cheadle,  Burnt  Woods,  Cannock  Chase 

—  caesiata,  Lang.     On  heaths,  Cheadle  and  Leek, 

not  further  south  ;  Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

—  flavicinctata,  Hb.     Rare,  Dovedale 

—  salicata,  Hb.     Moors  nr.  Leek 

—  olivata,  Bork.      Rare,  one  in  Dovedale,  1886 

—  vindaria,  Fb.      Common  in  woods 
Emmelesia  affinitata,  St.     Common,  but  local 

—  alchemillata,  L.     Not     uncommon,    Whitmore, 

Stone,  Stoke-on-Trent,  Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  albulata,  Schiff.      Common   where  food  plant 

(Rhinanthus  crista-galli)  grows 

-  decolorata,    Hb.        Local,    Madeley,     Cheadle, 

Rugeley  ;  Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

-  taeniata,  St.     Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

Eupithecia  venosata,  Fb.     Ashley,   Rugeley  ;  Sfiob- 
nall  (B.  L.) 

-  linariata,  Fb.      Market  Drayton 

—  pulchellata,  St.     Common 

-  oblongata,    Thnb.      Rugeley  ;    Burton    (B.  L.), 

Madeley,  1902 

—  succenturiata,  L.     Rugeley 

-  subfulvata,  Haw.     Madeley,  Rugeley,  Stone 

-  plumbeolata,   Haw.      Stvynnerton,  Bishop's  and 

Burnt  Woods,  Cannock  Chase 

—  isogrammaria,  H.  S.      One  at  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  pygmaeata,  Hb.      Chorlton  Moss,  Burnt  Woods 

-  satyrata,  Hb.      Cannock  Chase,  Burnt  Woods 

-  castigat.i,   Hb.     Common 

-  trisignaria,  H.  S.     Market  Drayton 

—  fraxinata,    Crewe.     Madeley,  Rugelcy  ;    Burton 

(B.  L.)  ;  Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

-  valerianata,    Hb.    nr.    Madeley,    1907    (F.  C. 

Woodforde) 

-  indigata,  Hb.     Common  in  pine  woods 

-  nanata,  Hb.     Common    on     heaths,     Cannock 

Chase,  Chartley,  Burnt  Woods 

—  subnotata,  Hb.       )    „ 

\   Common 

—  vulgata,  Haw.        J 

—  albipunctata,  Haw.     Rugeley,  occasionally 

var.  angelicata,  Bar.     Madeley 

—  abslnthiata,  Clerck.    Common  where  food  plant 

grows 

—  minutata,  Gn.     Madeley,  Burnt  Woods,  Rugeley 

—  assimilata,  Gn.     Common  on  food  plant 

—  tenuiata,  Hb.    Swynnerton,  Madeley,  Bagot's  Park 

—  lariciata,  Frr.     Common  in  larch  woods 

—  abbreviata,   St.     Not  uncommon,    Swynnerton, 

Cheadle,  Burnt  Woods;  Burton  (B.  L.) 


I05 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


GEOMETRAE  (continued) 
LARENTIIDAE  (continued) 

Eupithecia  exiguata,  Hb.     Common 

—  sobrinata,  Hb.  Local,  Madeley  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  pumilata,  Hb.     Not  common 

—  rectangulata,  L.      General,  Madeley,   Cheadle, 

Rugeley  ;  Handsviorth  (C.  J.  W.)  ;Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  debiliata,  Hb.  Common  nr.  Cheadle  and  where 

bilberry  grows 

Lobophora  halterata,  Hufn.      Burnt  Woods ;  Hen- 
hurst  nr.  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  viretata,  Hb.     Burnt    Woods ;  Bishop's  Woods, 

Parson's  Brake  (B.  L.) 

—  carpinata,    Bork.      Stvynnerton  ;    Burnt  Woods  ; 

Hcnhurst,  Hopwas  Wood  (B.  L.) 
Thera  variata,  Schiff.      j    Common  in  pine  woods, 

-  firmata,  Hb.  J        general 

Hysipetes  ruberata,  Frr.     Chorlton  Moss,   Cheadle, 
Rugeley,  Warslow 

—  trifasciata,  Bork.     Local,  Burnt  Woods,  Cannock 

Ckase  ;  Netvborough,  Oakedge,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  sordidata,    Fb.       Common      throughout     the 

county,  and  very    variable    in    colour    and 
markings 

Melanthia  bicolorata,  Hufn.     Knightley  and   Oak- 
edge  Park  (B.  L.)  ;  Chorlton,  Cannock  Chase 

—  ocellata,  L.      General 

--  albicillata,  L.     Not  uncommon 
Melanippe  hastata,  L.     Fairly  common  some  years, 
CraddtcVi  Moss,  Bishop's  and  Burnt  Woods, 
Hanchurch,  Rugeley 

-  tristata,  L.      Not    common,     Chartley,    Leek ; 

common,  Rugeley  (B.  L.) 

—  procellata,  Fb.     Very  rare,  two  at  Trtntham  in 

two  successive  years 

-  rivata,  Hb.      Rare,  Burnt  Woods 

-  sociata,   Bork.  >    y 

-  montanata,  Bork.     J 

-  galiata,  Hb.     Local  and  rare,  Dovedale,  Cheadle 

—  fluctuata,  L.      Common 

Anticlea  badiata,  Hb.     Not  uncommon 

-  nigrof.isciaria,  Goze.      Fairly  common 
Coremia  munitata,  Hb.      Very  rare,  one  Trentkam 

-  designata,  Hufn. 

—  ferrugata,  Clerck. 

—  unidentaria,  Haw. 
Camptogramma  bilineata,  Lj 

-  fluviata,  Hb.     One  at  gas  light,  Trent  Vale 
Phibalapteryx  vittata,  Bork.      Stoke-on-Trent,  Mar- 
ket Drayton  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

Triphosa  dubitata,  L.     Not     common,     Madeley, 

In  limestone  caves,   Gnndon  and   Dovedale  ; 

Burnt  Woods   at    sallow,     Rugeley ;     Burton 

district  (B.  L.) 
Eucosmia  certata,  Hb.     Market  Drayton,  Rugelfy  ; 

Burton  (B.L.) 

—  undulata,    L.     Stvynnerton,       Maer,      Cheadle, 

Bishop's  and   Burnt   Woods;  Cannock    Chase 

(B.  L.) 

Scotosia  rhamnata,  Schiff.      Rare,  Dovedale 
Cidaria  siderata,  Hufn.     One  near  Market  Drayton 

—  miata,  L.     Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

—  corylata,  Thnb.     Common  in  woods 

—  truncata,  Hufn.     Common  in  pine  woods 

—  immanata,  Haw.  .  Very  common 


common 


Common 


GEOMETRAE  (continued) 
LARENTIIDAE  (continued) 

Cidaria  suffumata,  Hb.  General,  Chorlton  Moss, 
Bishop's  and  Burnt  Woods;  Stone,  Leek; 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

var.  piceata,  St.       Stone,  Trentham,  Tixall 
(E.  D.  B.) 

—  silaceata,  Hb.     Not  common,   Madeley,  Dove- 

dale;  Henhurst  and  Knightley  Park  ;    Burton 
(B.  L.) 

—  prunata,  L.      Bishop's  Woods,  Cheadle,  Rugeley, 

Market  Drayton  ,•  Burton,  Colwlch  (B.  L.) 

—  testata,  L.         "j 

—  populata,  L.       I  Common 

—  fulvata,  Forst.   J 

—  dotata,  L.     Fairly  common 

—  asiociata,  Bork.     Common 

Pelurga  comitata,  L.  Market  Drayton;  Burton, 
Shobnall  (B.L.) 

EuBOLIIDAE 

Eubolia  cervinata,  Schiff.  Local,  Madeley,  Market 
Drayton  ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  limitata,  Scop.      Common 

—  plumbaria,  Fb.     Common  on  heaths 

—  bipunctaria,  Schiff.     Common  on  the  limestone 

in  the  north  of  the  county 

Carsia  paludata,  Thnb.  Rare,  C  hartley  ;  sparingly 
in  Dovedale  (B.  L.) 

Anaitis  plagiata,  L.  Fairly  common  on  the  lime- 
stone in  the  north  of  the  county  ;  Cannock 
Chase 

Chesias  spartiata,  Fues.  Chorlton,  Pipe  Gate,  Stone  ; 
Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Handsviorth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  rufata,   Fb.      Rare,   Chorlton,  Market  Drayton  ; 

one  at  light,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

SlONIDAE 

Tanagra  atrata,  L.  Common,  especially  in  dales 
in  the  north  of  the  county 

PYRALIDES 

PYRALIDIIDAE 

Aglossa  pinguinalis,  L.     General,  Madeley,  Rugeley, 

Burton,  &c. 
Pyralis  glaucinalis,  L.     Burnt  Woods,  Burton  (B.  L.) 

—  farinalis,  L.     Common  throughout  the  county 
Scoparia  ambigualis,  Tr.     Common 

—  cembrae,    Haw.        Fairly     common,    Cannock 

Chase 

—  dubitalis,   Hb.      Common,  Dovedale,   Cannock 

Chase 

—  murana,  Curt.     Burton,  Cannock  (B.  L.) 
[—  ingratella,  Zell.      ?  Parson's  Brake  (B.  L.)] 

—  mercurella,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  ulmella,  Dale.     Wood  near  Uttoxeter  (B.  L.)  ; 

Cannock  Chase 

—  crataegella,  Hb.     Rugeley 

-  truncicolella,Sta.     Common  in  woods. 
Nomophila  noctuella,  Schiff.       Madeley,     Burton 

(B.L.) 
Pyrausta  aurata,  Scop.     Dovedale 

—  purpurales,  L.     Not  common,  Craddock's  Moss, 

Dovedale,     Cannock    Chase,    Knightley    Park 
(E.  B.) 


1 06 


INSECTS 


PYRALIDES  (continued) 
PYRALIDIIDAE  (continued') 

Herbula  cespitalis,  SchifF.     Weaver  Hills,  Dovedale 
Ennychia  cingulata,  L.     Dovedale 

BOTYDAE 

Eurrhypara  urticata,  L.     Common  on  Kettles. 
Scopula  lutealis,  Hb.^ 

—  olivalis,  Schiff.      !•     Common 

—  prunalis,  SchifF.    J 

—  ferrugalis,  Hb.     Burnt  Woods 
Botys  pandalis,  Hb.      Tixall 

—  rur.ilis,  Schiff.     One  at  Little  Madeley,  Rugeley, 

common,  Burton  district  (B.  L.) 

—  Fuscalis,  SchifF.     Common  in  meadows 
Ebulea  crocealis   Hb.      Grafton's   Wood,  Madeley, 

Cannock  Chase 

—  sambucalis,  SchifF.     Common  on  elder 
Spilodes  verticalis,  L.     Stone,  (E.  D.  B.) 
Pionea  forficalis,  L.     Common 

HYDROCAMPIDAE 

Cataclysta  lemnata,  L.     Common  on  duckweed 
Paraponyx      stratiotata,      L.        Madeley  ;      Burton 

(B.  L.) 
Hydrocampa  nymphaeata,  L.     Common 

—  ;tagnata,    Don.      Madeley ;    Burton,  common 

(B.  L.) 

ACENTROPODIDAE 

Acentropus  niveus,  Oliv.  Common  on  the  Trent, 
Burton  (B.  L.) 

PTEROPHORI 
CHRYSOCORIDIDAE 

Chrysocorus  festaliella,  Hb.  Henhurst  near  Burton 
(E.  B.) 

PTEROPHORIDAE 

Platyptilia  gonodactyla,  SchifF.    Near  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Amblyptilia  acanthodactyla,  Hb.     Burton,  Cannock 

Chase 

Oxyptilus  teucrii,  Greening.      Cannock  Chase 
Mimaeseoptilus  plagiodactylus,  Su.      Tixall 

-  pterodactylus,  L.      Tixall ;  Burton  (B.  L.) 
Aedematophorus   lithodactylus,  Tr.     Near  Burton 

(B.  L.) 
Pterophorus   monodactylus,   L.     Common  Burton 

(B.  L.) 
Aciptilia  tetradactyla,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  pentadactyla,   L.      Common   Burton   (B.  L.) ; 

Mayfeld,  very  common  (F.  J.) 

ALUCITIDAE 

Alucita  hexadactyla,  L.  Common  Burton  (B.  L.); 
Dove  Valley,  occasional  (F.  J.)  ;  Alstonfield 
(W.  H.  Purchas) 

CRAMBI 
CHIUDAE 
Schoenobius  forficellus,  Thnb.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  mucronellus,   SchifF.      Rare,  one  at  Madeiey ; 

one  at  Rugeley  ;  Shobnall  Canal  (B.  S.) 

—  gigantellus,  SchifF.     Burton  (B.  S.) 


CRAMBI  (continued') 
CRAMBIDAE 

Crambus  falsellus,  SchifF.     Rugeley  ;  Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  pratellus,  L.     Common  in  gras;fields 

—  pascuellus,  L.     Common 

—  uliginosellus,  Zell.     Tixall,  rare 

—  margaritellus,  Hb.     Common  on  mosses,  Chorl- 

ton,  Cannock  Chase 

—  pinellus,  L.       One  in  Burnt  Woods ;  common 

Cannock  Chase 

—  perlellus,  Scop.     Two  at  Su-ynncrton,  Rugeley  ; 

Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  warringtonellus,    Zell.        Chorlton,     Craddock's 

Moss 

—  tristcllus,  Fb.     Common 

—  inquinatellus,    SchifF.       Rugeley;    Sinai     Park 

(B.  S.) 

—  culmellus,  L.       ) 
-  hortuellus,  Hb.    } 

PHYCIDAE 

Ephestia  elutella,  Hb.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  ficclla,  St.     Madeley 
Cryptoblabes  bistriga,  Haw.      Hopwas 
Plodia  interpunctella,  Hb.      Madeley 
Phycis  betulae,  G5zc.      Stvynnerton 

—  fusca,   Haw.       Common    on    heaths,    Cannock 

Chase,  Sivy  nner ton 

Nephopteryx  spissicella,  Fb.      Swynnertcn 
Pempelia,  palumbella,  Fb.       Cannock  Chase,  Sx-yn- 

nerton 
Rhodophaea  advenella,  Zinck.     Rugeley 

—  consociella,  Hb.      Common,  Sti-ynnerton 

GALLKRIDAE 

Aphormia  sociella,  L.     Market  Drayton 
Achroea  grisella,  Fb.     Madeley  ;  Burton  (B.  S.) 

TORTRICES 

ToRTRICIDAE 

Tortrix  podana,  Scjp.  Burton,  common  (E.  B., 
B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  com- 
mon, Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  xylosteana,    L.     Burton    (E.    B.,    B.    S.)  ;    N. 

Staffs.  (T.  D.  W.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  sorbiana,  Hb.     The  Oaks,  &c.  (E.  B.)  ;  Burton 

(B.  S.)  ;    N.   Staffs.   (T.  W.  D.)  ;    common, 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  rosana,   L.      Burton,    common   (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

N.    Staffs.     (T.  W.  D.)  ;     very     common, 
Rugeley,  (R.  F.) 

—  cinnamomeana,    Tr.       Maer    Woods    plentiful 

(T.  W.  D.) 

-  heparana,  SchifF.     N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very 
common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  ribeana,  Hb.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

N.    Staffs.    (T.  W.    D.)  ;     very     common, 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  corylana,    Fb.        Henhurst    (E.    B.)  ;    Burton 

(B.  S.)  ;  Swynnerton  Old  Park   (T.  W.  D.)  ; 
common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  unifasciana,    Dup.       Burton,  common   (E.  B.. 

B.  S.)  ;  very  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 


I07 


HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


TORTRICES  (continued) 
TORTRICIDAE  (continued) 

Tortrix  costana,  Fb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;  very  com- 
mon, Rugeley  (R.  F,) 

—  viburnana,  Fb.      Burton,  rare  (E.  B.)  ;     Can- 

nock  Chase  (C.G.K.);  Rugeley,  common  (R.F.) 

—  palleana,  Fb.     Burton,  rare  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

var.  icterana,  Frol.     N.  Staffs  (T.W.D.) 

—  viridana,     L.        Everywhere    very     common 

(E.  D.  B.)  ;  Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs. 
(T.  W.  D.)  ;  Dydon  Wood  (F.  I.)  ;  Rugeley, 
(R.  F.) 

—  ministrana,  L.     Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.,  R.  F.) ; 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

var.  fcrrugana,  Hb.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  forsterana,  Fb.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley,  very  com- 
mon (R.  F.) 

Amphisa    gerningana,     SchifF.         Chorlton     Moss 
(T.  W.  D.) 

-  prodromana,  Hb.      Chorlton  Moss  (T.  W.  D.) 
Oenectra  pilleriana,  SchifF.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Leptogramma  literana,  L.      Burton,  rare  (E.  B.)  ; 

Madeley  and  Swymerton  (T.  W.  D.) 
Pcronea  sponsana,  Fb.      Drakelow  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 

—  rufana,  Schift.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  mixtana,     Hb.        Maer     Woods      in     heather 

(T.  W.  D.) 

-  schalleriana,  L.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

-  variegana,    SchifF.      Burton   (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  N. 

Stiffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  common,  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 

—  ferrugana,  Tr.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) ;  N.  Staffs. 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley    R.  F.) 

-  aspersana,  Hb.     A'.  Staffs.  (T.  VV.  D.) 
Rhacodia  caudana,  Fb.    Henhurst,  common  (E.  B.)  ; 

Burton  (B.  S.) 
Teras  contaminana,  Hb.     Burton,  common  (E.  B., 

1?.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  common, 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Dictyopteryx  loeflingiana,  L.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ; 

Burton  (B.  S.) ;  A'.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  holmiana,  L.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;  Burton  (B.S.); 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common,  Rugeley 
(R.F.) 

—  bergmanniana,  L.      Burton,    common    (E.  B., 

B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common, 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  forskalcana,  L.      Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  common,  Rugtley 

(R.  F.) 
Argyrotoxa    conwayana,    Fb.        Burton,    common 

(E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Stafford  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  N.  Staffs. 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;  common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Ptycholoma  lecheana,  L.     Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B., 

R.  C.  B.)  ;    Hopuias  Wood  (W.  G.  B.)  ;    N. 

Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

PENTHINIDAE 

Penthina  corticana,  Hb.     N.   Staff's.  (T.  W.  D.)  ; 
very  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F) 

—  betulaetana,    Haw.       Burton    (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

Cannock  (C.  J.  W.)  ;  Sutton  (R.  C.  B.)  ; 
Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 


TORTRICES  (continued) 
PENTHINIDAE  (continued) 

Penthina  sororculana,  Zett.    Cannock  (W.  G.  B.) ;  A^. 
Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common,  Rugeley,  (R.  F.) 

—  pruniana,    Hb.       Burton   (E.  B.,   B.    S.)  ;  N. 

Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  ochroleucana,   Hb.      Tixall  (E.  D.  B)  ;  com- 

mon, Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  variegana,    Hb.      Burton   (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;     very 

common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  sauciana,    Hb.       Plentiful    Maer    Woods,    &c. 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;    Cannock   (C.  J.  W.)  ;    Sutton 
(W.  G.  B.) 

—  marginana,  Haw.     Burton,  rare  (E.  B.) 

—  fuligana,  Hb.     Burton,  rare  (E.  B.) 

SPILONOTIDAE 

Hedya  ocellana,  Fb.  Burton,  common  (E.  B., 
B.  S.)  ;  very  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  neglectana,  Dup.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.) 
Spilonota    trimaculana,    Haw.      Burton,   common 

(E.  B.)  ;  Tixall  (E.  D.  B.)  ;    very  common, 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  rosaecolona,   Dbl.      Burton,  common   (E.    B., 

B.  S.)  ;  very  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  roborana,  Tr.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)- 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

Pardia  tripunctana,  Fb.  Burton,  common  (E.  B.)  ; 
N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  common,  Ruge- 
ley (R.  F.) 

SERICORIDAE 

Aspis  udmanniana,  L.  Henhurst  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 
Burton  (B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  com- 
mon Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Sideria  achatana,  Fb.     N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Sericoris    bifasciana,    Haw.    (decrepit.ina).       One 
beaten     from     Scotch    fir,     Cannock    Chase 
(W.  S.  Atkinson) 

—  rivulana,    Scop.       Burton    (F.    B.)  ;     Cannock 

Chase  (W.  G.  B.) 

—  urticana,  Hb.      N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  lacunana,  Dup.      Burton,  very  common  (E.  B., 

B.  S.) ;  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  N.  Staffs. 

(T.  W.  D.) 
Mixodia  schulziana,  Fb.     Craddock's  Moss,  Chartley 

Moss  (R.  C.  B.) 
Roxana  arcuana,  Clerck.     Cannock  Chase,  abundant 

in     June     (W.    S.    Atkinson)  ;     N.     Staffs. 

(T.  W.  D.) 
Orthotaenia  antiquana,  Hb.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  striana,  SchifF.      Burton,    rare   (E.  B.,  B.  S.) ; 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

SciAPHILIDAE 

Phtheochroa  rugosana,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

one  at  Handstvorth  (C.  J.  W.) 
Cnephasia  musculana,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

Cannock   Chase  (C.  G.  B.,  VV.  G.  B.)  ;    N. 

Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Sciaphila  nubilana,  Hb.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.); 

common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  subjectana,  Gn.  Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) ; 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 


108 


INSECTS 


TORTRICES  (continued) 
SCIAPHILIDAE  (continued) 

Sciaphila  virgaureana,  Tr.  Burton,  common  (E.  B., 
B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffi.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common, 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  pascuana,  Hb.      Tixall   (E.  D.  B.)  ;     Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  chrvsantheana,  Dup.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  hybridana,     Hb.       Burton,    common    (E.  B., 

B.  S.)  ;     Stafford    (C.  G.  B.)  ;      N.    Stafs. 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Sphaleroptera  ictericana,  Haw.  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Capua  favillaceana,  Hb.      Cannock  Chan  (G.  C.  B.) ; 

N.  Staffi.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Clepsis  rusticana,  Tr.      Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 


GRAPHOLITHIDAE 

Bactra  lanceolana,  Hb.  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B); 
N.  Staffi.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  very  common,  Rage- 
Ay  (R.  F.) 

Phoxopteryx  myrtillana,  Tr.  Cannock  Chase  and 
Rugeley,  abundant  (R  F.,  C.  G.  B.,  W.  G.  B  ) ; 
Maer,  CraddocKs  Moss,  plentiful  on  bilberry 
(T.  W.  D.) 

-  lundana  Fb.     Burton,  common  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

Stafford  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  on  trefoil  (T.  W.  D.) 

-  diminutana,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  mitterpacheriana,    Schiff.        Bur/on,     common 

(E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

-  lactana,  Fl.     N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.,) 
Grapholitha  ramella,  L.      Burton  (E.  B.)  ;   Hoftcas 

Wood  (W.  G.  B.)  ;  common,  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  nisella,  Clerck.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
— •  subocellana,  Don.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  trimaculana,   Don.      Burton,   common    (E.  B., 

B.  S.) 

—  penkleriana,  Fisch.      Burton   (E.  B.)  ;    Cannock 

(R.  C.  B.)  ;  N.  Stafs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

-  naevana,  Hb.     N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  geminana,  St.     Plentiful  in  pine  and  fir  woods 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Phloeodes   tetraquetrana,    Haw.       Burton   (E.   B., 

B.  S.)  ;   Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.,  W.  G.  B.); 

Rugeley  (R.  F.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Hypermecia   angustana,   Hb.       Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ; 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Batodes    angustiorana,    Haw.        Burton,    common 

(E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Ruge- 
ley (R.  F.) 
Paedisca  bilunana,  Haw.   Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ; 

Rugeley,    very    common    (R.   F.)  ;    Hopwas 

Wood  (W.  G.  B.) 

—  ratzeburghiana,  Sax.      The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.  B., 

B.  S.) 

—  corticana,  Hb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Hop- 

was  Woods  (W.  G.  B.)  ;  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) ; 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

-  occultana,   Dougl.       N.   Staffs.    (T.  W.  D.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

-  solandriana,  L.    Henhurst  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Made- 

ley,    on  birch   (T.  W.  D.)  ;     Cannock  Chase 
(W.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 


TORTRICES  (continued) 
GRAPHOLITHIDAE  (continued) 

Ephippiphora  similana,  Hb.      N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  cirsiana,  Zell.      N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  pflugiana,     Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;    N. 

Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) ; 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  brunnichiana,    FrOl.       Burton    (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F  ) 

[ —  foenella,  L.  Cannock  Chase  ?  (C.  G.  B.,  fide 
B.  S.)  ;  probably  for  pflugiana,  Haw.] 

—  nigricostana,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  trigeminana,  St.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  tetragonana,  St.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

Semasia  ianthinana,  Dup.  Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  rufillana,  Wilk.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  woeberiana,  Schift".      Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
Coccyx  argyrana,   Hb.     Burton   (E.  B.)  ;  Cannock 

Chase  (C.  G.  B.) :  Necdwood  (B.  S.)  ;  Sutton 
(R.  C.  B.)  ;  Hopu-as  (W.  G.  B.)  ;  N.  Staffs. 
(T.W.  D.)  &c. 

—  taedella,  Clerck.    Burton,  Sic.,  common,  (E.  B., 

B.  S.)  ;  Milford  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Maer  Woods, 
abundant  on  spruce  (T.  W.  D.) 

-  nanana,  Tr.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
Heusimine  fimbriana,  Haw.     Steynnerton  Old  Park 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;  Sutton  Park  (W.  G.  B.) 
Retinia  buoliana,  Schift".      Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  pinivorana,    Zell.        Beaten    from    Scotch     fir 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;   Ruge/ey  (R.  F.) 
Carpocapsa  pomonella,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Endopisa  nigricana,  St.      Burton  (E.  B.) 
Stigmonota  coniferana,   (Rlz.).       The   Oaks,  Burton 

(E.  B.) 

—  perlepidana,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  nitidana,  Fb.      Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  regiana,  Zell.  Madeley,  on  sycamore  (T.  W.  D.) 

-  roseticolana,  Zell.      Burton  (E.  B.) 
Dicrorhampha  sequana,  Hb.      Burton  (B.  S.) 

-  petiverella,  L.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

-  plumbana,  Scop.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

— •  saturnana,  Gn.  Burton  \  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 

-  plumbagan.t,  Tr.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  acuminata,  Zell.     Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  tanaceti,   St.      Rugeley,  very   common    locally 

(R.  F  ) 

Catoptria  ulicetana,  Haw.  Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 
on  gorse  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  Cannock  Chase 
(W.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley,  very  common 
(R.  F.) 

—  hypericana,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  cana,  Haw.      The  Oaks  (B.  S.) 

—  scopoliana,  Haw.      The  Oaks  (E.  B.) 

—  expallidana,  Haw.      The  Oaks  (E.  B.) 

—  citrana,  Hb.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Trycheris  aurana,  Fb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 


PYRALOIDIDAE 

Symaethis  oxyacanthella,  L.  Burton,  very  common 
(E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  very  common  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 


109 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


TORTRICES  (continued) 

CONCHYLIDAI 

Eupoccilia  nana,  Haw.  The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.B.), 
abundant  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  very- 
common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  dubitana,  Hb.     Rugeley   (R.  F.) 

—  hybridella,  Hb.     The  Oaks,  Burton   (E.  B.)  ; 

on  heaths  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  angustana,   Hb.      The    Oaks,    Burton  (E.  B.)  ; 

abundant  on  all  heaths  (T.  W.D.);  Cannock 
(R.  C.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  roseana,    Haw.     The     Oaks,   Burton    (E.  B.)  ; 

Shobnall  marlflt  (B.  S.) 

Xanthosetia  zoegana,  L.  Burton,  Sinai  Park 
(B.  S.),  N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.)  ;  common 
Rugeley  (R.F.) 

—  hamana,    L.       The  Oaks,  &c.  (E.  B.),   Burton 

(B.  S.),  N.  Staffs.  (T.W.D.),  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Chrosis  alcella,  Schutz.  N.  Staffs^.  (T.  W.  D.) 
Argyrolepia     hartmanniana,    Clerck.        Craddock's 

Moss  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  zephyrana,  Fr.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ? 

-  badiana,   Hb.      The   Oaks,  Burton  (E.B.)  ;  N. 
Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 

—  cnicana,  Dbl.      The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Col- 

wich  (C.  G.  B.) ;?  Cannock  (C.  G.  B.  fide  B.  S.) 
Conchylis  straminea,   Haw.     Madeley   on   thistles 
(T.  W.  D.);  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

APHELIIDAE. 

Aphelia   osseana,  Scop.      Burton   (B.  S.)  ;  A'.  Staffs. 

(T.  W.  D.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Tortricodes  hycmana,  Hb.     Henkurst,  &c.,  (E.  B., 

B.S.)  ;     Sutton   Park,    common   (C.  J.  W.)  ; 

N.  Staffs.  (T.  W.  D.) 


TINEAE 
EPIGRAPHIIDAE 

Lemnatophila  phryganella,  Hb.      Common  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 
Diurnea  fagella,    Fb.     Burton,    common   (E.  B.)  ; 

very    common,    Rugeley  (R.  F.)  ;  probably 

common  everywhere  (E.  D.  B.) 
Semioscopus     avellanella,     Hb.        Hopwas     Wood 

(W.G.  B.);  Rugeley  (R.F.) 
Epigraphia     steinkellneriana,     Schiff.         Henhurst 

(E.  B.);  RUge/ey(R.F.) 

PSYCHIDAE 

Talaeporia  pseudo-bombycella,  Hb.  Cannock  Chase 
(C.  G.  B.,  W.  G.  B.) ;  common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Fumea  intermediella,  Brd.  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B., 
R.  F.)  ;  common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Solenobia  inconspicuella,  Sta.  Hofwas  Wood  (E.  B.) ; 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

TlNEIDAE 

Diplodoma  marginepunctella,   St.       Cannock  Chase 

(C.  G.  B.) 

Scardia  corticella,  Curt.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
—  granella,  L.     Burton  (B.  S.) 


TINEAE  (continued) 
TINEIDAE  (continued) 

Scardia  cloacella,  Haw.  Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 
Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  very  common 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  arcella,  Fb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 
Blabophanes  rusticella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 

Cannock    Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;    very    common 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Tinea  fulvimitrella,  SoJof.  Burton  (E.  B.,  B.S.)  ; 
Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.,  W.  G.  B)  ;  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 

—  tapetzella,  L.     Burton  common   (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

common  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  misella,  Zell.  Tatenhill  (E.  B.);  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  pellionella,  L.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  fuscipunctella,    Haw.        Tatenhill  and     Burton 

(E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  pallescentella,  Sta.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

-  lapella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  merdella,  Zell.      Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  semifulvella,  Haw.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;   Burton 

(B.  S.)  ;    Tixall  (E.  D.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Tineola  biscllie'.la,  Hm>.      Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 
Lampronia  luzella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  praelatella,  SchifF.     Sinai  Park  (E.  B.) 

-  rubiella,  Bjerk.      Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 
Incurvaria  muscalella,  Fb.     Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.)  ; 

Cannock    Chase   (C.  G.  B.)  ;     Hoptvas    Wood 
(W.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  pectinea,  Haw.  Hofwas  Wood  (R.  C.  B.) ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  capitella,  Clerck.      Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 
Micropteryx     calthella,     L.        Henhurst     (E.B.)  ; 

Burton  (B.S.)  ;  Stafford  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  seppella,  Fb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

—  aureatclla,    Scop.       Burton    (E.  B.)  ;      Cannock 

Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  thunbergella,  Fb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

-  fastuosella,  Zell.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  semipurpurella,  St.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

— •  subpurpurella,  Haw.  Henhurst  (E.  B.);  Burton 
(B.  S.)  ;  Hofu-as  Wood  (W.  G.  B.) 

Nemophora  swammerdammella,  L.  Burton  (E.  B.) ; 
Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  schwarziella,   Zell.       Burton    (E.  B.) ,-    Cannock 

Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  metaxella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

ADELIDAE 
Scop.        Needwood,    common 


Adela    rufimitrel'a, 
(B.  S.) 

—  croesella,  Scop. 

—  degeerella,    L. 


Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 
Cannock    Chase    (C.  G.  B.)  ; 
Ruge/ey,  common  (R.  F.) 
-  viridella,  L.  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley, 
common  (R.  F.) 


HYPONOMEUTIDAE 

Swammerdammia  combinella,  Hb.  Henhurst  (E.  B.); 
Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  caesiella,  Hb.    Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.) 

—  oxyacanthella,  Dup.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  pyrella,  Vill.     Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  spiniella,  Hb.     Burton  (B.  S.) 


110 


INSECTS 


TINEAE  (continued) 
HYPONOMEUTIDAE  (continued) 

Hyponomeuta  padellus,  L.  Burton,  common  (E.  B., 
B.  S.)  ;  Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 

—  cagnagellus,   Hb.      Burton  (E.  B.)  ?  ;   Rugeley, 

very  common  (R.  F.) 

—  evonymellus,  L.     Near  Uttoxeter  (E.  B.) 
Prays   curtisellus,  Don.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;    com- 
mon  in   Handsworth,  both    type    and   black 
form  (C.  J.  W.)  ;  Rugeley,  common  (R.  F.) 

PLUTELLIDAE 

Plutella  cruciferarum,  Zell.  Burton,  common 
(E.  B.)  ;  Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley, 
very  common  (R.  F.) 

—  porrectella,  L.     Burton,  rare  (B.  S.) 
Cerostoma  vittella,  L.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

—  radiatella,  Don.     Henhurst,  common  (E.  B.) 

—  costella,  Fb.     Henhurst,  common  (E.  B.) 
Harpipteryx  nemorella,  L.  Henhurst,  scarce  (E.  B.) 

—  xylostella,     L.       Henhurst,    common   (E.  B.)  ; 

Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 

GELECHIIDAF. 

Orthotelia  sparganella,  Thnb.     Burton  (B.  S.) 
Phibalocera  quercana,  Fb.     Burton  (?  B.  S.)  ;  Can- 
nock  Chase  (E.  D.  B.)  ;   Rugeley,  very  common 
(R.  F.) 

—  Depressaria    costosa,    Haw.     Burton    (E.  B.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  flavella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  assimilella,  Tr.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

-  arenella,  SchifF.     Henhurst,  common  (E.  B.) 

-  propinquella,  Tr.     Henhurst,  common  (E.  B.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

-  alstroemeriana  Clerck.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

-  purpurea,  Haw.     Henhurst  (E.B.) 

-  -  liturella,  Hb.      The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  angelicella,  Hb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

-  ocellana,  Fb.     Henhurst  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

-  applana,  Fb.    Burton,  common  (E.  B.) ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  ciliella,  Sta.     Henhurst,  plentiful  (E.  B.) 

—  heracleana,  De   G.     Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley, 

common  (R.  F.) 
[Gelechia  malvella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  E.JSJe  B.  S.)] 

-  velocella,  Fisch.     Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  ericetella,     Hb.        Cannock    Chase,    swarming 

(C.  G.  B.);  Ruge/ey,\ery  common  (R.  F.) 

—  sororculella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  longicornis,    Curt.     Cannock    Chase,    common 

(C.G.B.);  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  diffinis,  Haw.     Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  rhombella,  Schiff.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Brachmia  mouffetella,  SchifF.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Bryotropha  terrella,  Hb.    Burton,  common  (E.  B.); 

Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) ;   Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  politella,  Dougl.     Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  senectella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  affinis,  Dougl.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  domestica,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Lita  artemisiella,  Tr.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  viscariella,  Logan.     Stapenhill  (B.  S.) 


TINEAE  (continued) 
GELECHIIDAE  (continued) 

Lita  maculea,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  tricolorella,  Haw.      Tatenhi/l,  common  (B.  S.) 

—  fraternella,  Dougl.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  maculiferella,  Dougl.     Burton. 

—  hubneri,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.);  Hoftvas  Wood 

0-  Sang) 

—  atriplicella,  Fisch.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

Teleia  proximella,  Hb.   Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.); 
Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 

-  notatella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  vulgella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  luculella,  Hb.   Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Hop- 

was  Wood(C.  }.  W.)  ;  Sutton  Park  (W.  G.  B.) 

-  fugitivella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  triparella,  Zell.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Ptocheuusa  subocellea,  St.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Ergatis  ericinella,  Dup.     Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 
Doryphora  lucidella,  St.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Monochroa  tenebrell.i,  Hb.     Burton  (K.  B.) 
Lamprotes  atrella,  Haw.      Burton  (E.  B.) 
Anacampsis  ligulella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  15.) 

-  anthyllidella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Brachycrossata  cinerella,  Clerck.      Burton  (E.  B.) 
Ceratophora  rufescens,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Chelaria  hubnerella,  Don.     Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Anarsia  spartiella,  Schr.      Railway  cuttings  (B.  S.) 
Hypsilophus  marginellus,  Fb.     Burton  (E.B.) 
Pleurota   bicostella,   Clerck.      Cannock  Chase,  com- 
mon (C.  G.  B.)  ;   Chartley   Moss   (R.  C.  B.)  ; 
Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 
Harpella     geoftrelh,    L.      Burton     (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ; 

Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

Dasycera  sulphurell.i,  Fb.  Burton,  common  (E.  B.); 
Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.  fide  B.  L.);  Stafford, 
everywhere  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley,  common 
(R.  F.) 

Oecophora  minutella,  L.  Henhurst  (E.  B.) ;  Rugelfy 
(R.  F.) 

—  fulviguttella,  Zell.      Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;  llopwas 

Wood  (W.  G.  B.) 

—  stipella,  L.      Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  fuscencens,  H;iw.      Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  pseudopretella,   Sta.      Burton     (E.  B.,    B.  S.)  ; 

Tixall  (E.  D.  B.)  ;     Rugeley,   very    common 
(R.  F.) 

Endrosis  fenestrella,  Scop.  Tixall  (E.  D.  B.)  ; 
Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 

GLYPHIPTERYGIDAE 

Glyph iptery x  fuscoviridella,  Haw.    Burton  (E.B.); 

Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.)  ;  Rugeley,  (R.  F.) 
• —  equitella,  Scop.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  fischeriella,  Zell.     Burton   (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Staf- 

ford (C.  G.  B.) 
Heliozele  sericiella,  Haw.     Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

ARGYRESTHIIDAE 

Argyresthia  ephippella,  Fb.       Stapenhill,  &c  (B.  S.) 

—  nitidella,  Fb.     Henhurst,  &c.,  common  (E.  B.); 

Cannock  Chase  (B.  S.,  C.  G.  B.) 


ill 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


TINEAE  (continue d) 
AIGYRESTHIIDAE  (continued) 

Argyresthia  spiniella,  Zell.    Burton  (F.  B.) ;  Rugeley 
(R.  F.) 

—  albistria,  Haw.    Henhunt,  &c.  common  (E.  B.) ; 

Tutbury  Road,  Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  semifusca,     Haw.      Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  glaucinella,  Zell.     Bradgate  Park  (B.  S.) 

—  retinella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  dilectella,  Zell.     Stafenhil!  (B.  S.) 

—  curvella,    L.      The  Oaks,  &c.,  Burton  (E.  B.)  ; 

Rugeley,  very  common  (R.  F.) 

—  pygmaeella,    Hb.        Henhurst,     &c.     (E.  B.)  ; 

Chartley  (R.  C.  B.) 

—  goedartella,  L.    Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.)  ;  Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

—  brochella,  Hb.     Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.)  ;   Tixall 

(E.  D.  B.) 

Zelleria   insignipennella,  Sta.        Henhunt    (E.  B.); 
Shobna.l,  Burton  (B.  S.) 

GRACILARHDAE 

Gracilaria  alchimiella,  Scop.    Henhurst,  &c.  (E.  B.) 

-  stigmatella,   Fb.     Henhunt    (E.  B.)  ;     Rugeley 

(R.F.) 

-  hemidactylella,  Fb.     Henhunt  (E.  B.) 

-  elongella,   L.       Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;   Cannock 

Chase  (C.  G.  B.,  R.  C.  B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  syringella,  Fb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  auroguttella,  St.     Henhunt  (E.  B.) 
Coriscium  culculipennellum,  Hb.   Henhunt  (E.  B.) 
Ornix    anglicella,    St.       Burton   (E.  B.)  ;    Cannock 

Chase  (C.G.B.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  betulae,   Sta.     Cannock    Chase    (C.  G.  B.)   and 

(W.  G.  B.) 

-  torquilella,  Sta.      Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  guttea,  Haw.     Rugeley  (R.  F.) 


TINEAE  (continued) 
ELACHISTIDAE  (continued) 

Laverna  propinquella,  Sta.     Burton  (E.  B.)  r 

—  epilobiella,  Schr.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  decorella,  St.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  vinolentella,  H.  S.      Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  atra,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.);  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Chrysoclysta    schrankella,   Hb.         Cannock    Chafe 

(C.J.W.)  ;  Sutton  (R.C.  B.) 

—  aurifrontelh,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
Asychna  terminella,  Dale.     Rosliston  Road,   Burton 

(B.  S.) 
Stephensia   brunnichella,    L.       The    Oaks,    Burton 

(E.  B.) 
Elachista  albifrontella,    Hb.     The    Oaks,     Burton 

(E.  B.)  ;  Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  atricomella,  Sta.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  luticomella,  Zell.     The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.  B.)  ; 

Henhurst  (B.  S.)  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  monticola,  Wk.     Drakelow   Mill  (B.  S.) 

—  nigrella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.)  ? 

—  subnigrella,  Dougl.      (B.  S.) 

—  humilis,  Zell.      Burton  (E.  B.)  ? 

—  perplexella,  Sta.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  obscurella,  Sta.   Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;    Cannock 

Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  zonariella,  Tgstr.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  megerlella.Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
-  cerussella,  Hb.      Burton   (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  paludum,  Frey.     Drakelow  Mill  (B.  S.) 

—  biatomella,  Sta.      Tixall  (E.  D.  B.) 

—  rufocinerea,  Haw.  Burton,  very  common  (E.  B., 

B.S)  ;  Rugeley  (R.F.) 

—  argentella,  Clerck.      The  Oaks,  Burton  (E.  B.)  ; 

Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.).  ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 
Tischeria  complanelh,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.); 
Cannock  Chase  (C.   G.   B.)  ;     H  of  was    Wood 
(W.  G.  B.) 

—  marginea,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 


COLEOPHORIDAE 

Coleophora  paripennella,  Zell.     Burton,  &c.  (B.  S.) 

—  murinipennella,  Fisch.     Burton  (E.  B.)  ? 

-  caespititiella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Can- 

nock Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

-  laripennella,   Zett.      Henhurst   (E.  B.)  ;   Burton 

(B.S.) 

-  argentula,  Zell.    Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  albiursella,  Zell.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

-  nigricella,  St.     Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Cannock  Chase 

(C.  G.  B.) ;  Rugeley  (R.  F.) 

—  fuscedinella,   Zell.     Burton   (E.  B.)  ;     Rugeley 

(R.  F.) 

-  gryphipennella,   Bonche.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  siccifolia,  Sta.     Tutbury  Road,   Burton   (B.  S.)  ; 

Tixall  (E  .D.  B.) 

—  viminetella,  Heyd.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  badiipennella,  Fisch.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

ELACHISTIDAE 

Batrachedra  praeangusta,  Haw.     Burton  (B.  S.) 
Chauliodus  illigerellus,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 


LlTHOCOLLETI  DAE 

Lithocolletis  roboris,  Zell.   Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  pomifoliella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

-  coryli,  Nicelli.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  spinicolella,  Kol.     Rolleston  Road,  Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  faginella,  Mann.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  salicicolella,  Sircom.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  ulmifoliella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S)  ;  Can- 

nock  Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

—  spinolella,  Dup.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  quercifoliella,   Fisch.       Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  -T 

Cannock  Chase  (C.  G.  B  ) 

—  messaniella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  corylifoliella,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  viminiella,  Sircom.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  alnifoliella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  heegeriella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  cramerella,  Fb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.)  ;  Can- 

nock Chase  (C.  G.  B.) 

-  sylvella,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  nicellii,  Zell.     Burton,  common  (B.  S.) 

—  tristrigella,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  trifasciella,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.) 


112 


INSECTS 


TINEAE  (continued} 
LYONETIIDAE 

Lyonetia  clerckella,  L.     Henhurst  (E.  B.)  ;  Burton 

(B.  S.) 
Cemiostoma  spartifoliella,  Hb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  laburnella,  Heyd.     Burton,  common  (B.  S.) 

-  scitella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 
Bucculatrix  ulmella,  Mann.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  crataegi,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

-  boyerella,  Dup.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

—  thoracella,  Thnb.     Burton  (E.  B.) 

NEPTICULIDAE 

Nepticula  ruficapitella,  Haw.   Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  anomalella,  Goze.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  pygmaeella,  Haw.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  oiyacanthella,    Sta.     Burton     (B.  S.)  ;     Tlxall 

(E.  D.  B.) 


TINEAE  (continued) 
NEPTICULIDAE  (continued) 

Nepticula  intimella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  sub-bimaculella,  Haw.     Burton  (B.S.) 

—  trimaculella,  Haw.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  floslactella,  Haw.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  myrtillella,  Edl.     Cannock  Chase  (C,  G.  B.) 

—  microtheriella,  Wing.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  ignobilella,  Sta.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  argentipedella,  Zell.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  plagicolella,  Sta.     Henhurst  (B.  S.) 

—  tityrella,  Dougl.     Branston  (B.  S.) 

-  malella,  Sta.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

-  angulifasciella,  Sta      Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  gratiosella,  Sta.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  marginicolella,  Sta.     Burton  (B.  S.) 

—  aurella,  Fb.     Burton  (E.  B.,  B.  S.) 

—  splendidissimella,  H.  S.     Burton  (B.  S.) 


DIPTERA 

Flies 

The  following  list  can  only  be  regarded  as  a  first  instalment  towards  the  compilation  of 
a  county  list,  for  the  number  of  species  therein  recorded  only  amounts  to  a  little  over  300, 
while  some  3,000  species  of  Diptera  are  known  to  exist  in  Great  Britain.  It  is  founded  on 
the  late  Mr.  Edwin  Brown's  list  of  the  Diptera  of  the  Burton-on-Trent  district,  published  in 
the  Natural  History  of  Tutbury  in  1863  (pp.  210-23).  Several  species  as  to  the  identification 
of  which  some  doubt  exists  or  which  are  not  now  recognized  as  British,  have  been  omitted. 
An  asterisk  (*)  prefixed  to  the  name  of  any  species  denotes  that  local  specimens  are  to  be 
found  in  the  British  Museum  collection  of  British  Diptera.  Some  notes  on  the  gall-making 
Cecidomyidae,  by  Mr.  Cyril  Brett,  as  observed  in  the  Alton  district,  have  appeared  in  the 
Reports  and  Transactions  of  the  North  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1902-3  (pp.  92-3)  and  1905-6, 
(pp.  75-6). 

Where  Burton  is  given  as  a  locality  without  further  particulars  it  must  be  understood  that 
the  statement  is  made  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  E.  Brown's  list. 

Species  marked  (t)  have  been  kindly  determined  by  the  Rev.  A.  Thornley,  and  those 
marked  (11)  by  Mr.  E.  E.  Austen. 

The  following  abbreviations  have  been  used  : — 

R.  G.  =  R.  Garner,  Nat.  History  of  the  County  oj  Stafford  (1840) 

E.  B.  =  Edwin  Brown,  'Fauna  of  Burton-on-Trent'  in  Nat.  Hist.  ofTutbury  (1863) 

R.  C.  B.  =  R.  C.  Bradley  (Cannock  Chase) 

C.  J.  W.  =  C.  J.  Wainwright  (Handsworth) 

C.  B.  =  Cyril  Brett  (Alton) 

F.  J.  =  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain  (Dove  Valley) 

G.  H.  V.  =  G.  H.  Verrall  (Dovedale  and  Colwich) 

Br.  Fl.  =  G.  H.  Verrall,  British  Flies,  vol.  viii. 

E.  M.  M.  =  The  Entomologists'  Monthly  Magazine 

Ent.  =  The  Entomologist 


NEMATOCERA 

PULICIDAE 

Pules  irritans,  L. 

—  canis,  Curt.     On  dogs 
Trichopsylla   sciurorum,  Bouch6. 

(E.  B.) 

—  gallinae,  Schrk.     In  fowl  houses,  general 


ORTHORRHAPHA 

NEMATOCERA  (continued) 

PULICIDAE  (continued) 

On    the   house 

A       rf  ' 

On  squirrels 


Trichopsylla    hirundinis,   Curt. 

martin  (E.  B.) 
Ctenopsyllus     musculi,     Dug&. 

(E.  B.) 


On     the    rat 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


NEMATOCERA  (continued) 
CECIDOMYIDAE 

Cecidomyia  betulae,  Winn.  Alton,  galls  on 
Betula  verrucosa,  Erhrh.  Sept.  1902  ; 
Coombe  Woods,  22  July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  bursaria,  Bremi.     Common,  galls  on   Nepeta 

glechoma,  Benth.  (C.  B.) 

—  crataegi,  Winn.     Common,  galls  on  Cratae- 

gus  oxyacantha,  L.  (C.  B.) 

—  galii,    Lw.       Between    Alton   and    Denstone, 

galls  on  Galium  verum,   25   July,    1904  ; 
Three  Lowes,  14  Aug.,  1905  (C.  B.) 

-  lathyri,  Frfld.  Cotton,  31  July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

-  marginem-torquens,  Bremi.      Galls  on  Salix 

viminalis,  L.  (C.  B.) 

—  persicariae,  L.     Bradley,  galls  on  Polygonum 

amphibium,  L.,   25    Sept.,    1902  ;    Alton, 
July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  pteridis,   Mull.      Common,    galls    on    Pteris 

aquilina,    L.,      Aug.,     1903;  Beliiont,    22 
July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

-  ranunculi,   Bremi.       Three  Lowes,    22   Aug., 

1905   (C.  B.) 

-  rosarum,  Hardy.      Common,  1903,  on  Rosa 

canina,  L.  (C.  B.) 

-  taxi,   Inch.    Bradley,  galls  on  Taxus  baccata, 

L.,  Sept.,  1903  (C.  B.) 

-  tiliae,  Schrk.     Alton,  galls  on  Tilia  grandifolia, 

Ehrh.     22      July,      1903  ;      Rudyard,    25 
July,  1905  (C.B.) 

—  ulmariae,   Bremi.        Alton  district,   common, 

galls  on   Spiraea    ulmaria,  L.,  July,    1903 
and  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  urticae,     Perns.        Alton    district,    galls    on 

Urtica  dioica,  L.,  Aug.,  1903  (C.  B.) 

—  veronicae,  Vallot.   Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  common, 

galls  on  Veronica   chamaedrys,  L.  (C.  B  ) 
Diplosis  botularia,VVinn.  Alton,  galls  on  Fraxinus 
excelsior,  L.,  Aug.,  1903  (C.  B.) 

-  loti,  Deg.     Alton,  5  Aug.,  1905  (C.  B.) 

-  tritici,  Kirb.      In  wheat  ears  (E.  B.) 
Hormomyiaannulipes,  Hart,  (piligera,  Lw.).  Com- 
mon, galls  on   Fagus  silvatica,  L.;  Rudyard, 
25  July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  capreae,  Winn.     On  Salix  caprea,  L.     Alton, 

Aug.,   1903  (C.  B.) 

—  fagi,   Hart.       Dimmingsdale,  galls   on   F.  sil- 

vatica,   L.,    Sept.,     1902  ;      Rudyard,    25 
July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  millefolii,  Lw.     Three  Louies,    n  Aug.,  1905 

(C.  B.) 

MYCETOPHILIDAE 

Sciara  thomae,  L.     Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  Ent.    1891, 

p.  78) 

*Mycetophila  lineola,  Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 
*Rhymosia  fasciata,  Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 

—  fenestralis,  Mg.     Common 
Exechia  fungorum,  De  G.     Burton 
Allodia  crassicornis,  Stan.     Burton 

Phronia  crassipes,  Winn.  Colwlch,  common 
(G.  H.  V.  in  E.  M.  M.  xxx,  78) 

-  dubia,  Dzied.     Colwich  (G.  H.V.  in  E.  M.  M. 

xxx,  79) 


N  E  M  ATOC  ERA  (continued ) 
MYCETOPHILIDAE  (continued) 

'Boletina  trivittata,  Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 

[Lasiosoma  maura,  Wlk.      Barton] 

Sciophila  fasciata,  Ztt.     Burton 

Platyura  fasciata,  Ltr      Burton 

Macrocera  lutea,  Mg.     Burton 
*—  centralis,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 
'Bolitophila  cinerea,  Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 

BIBIONIDAE 

Scatopse   notata,   L.      Common    about     manure 
heaps 

—  pulicaria,     Lw.         Colwich    (G.    H.    V.     in 

E.  M.  M.  xxx,  79) 
Bibio  pomonae,  F.     '  Frequent '  (R.  G.) 

-  marci,  L.     Common 

—  leucopterus,  Mg.     Burton 

—  ferruginatus,  Gmel.     Burton 

—  laniger,  Mg.     Burton 

—  clavipes,  Mg.     Burton 

SlMULIDAE 

Simulium  reptans,  L.     Common 

—  nanum,  Ztt.    Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.  in  E.  M.  M. 

xxx,  79) 

CHIRONOMIDAE 

Chironomus  plumosus,  L.     Burton 

—  prasinus,  Mg.      Burton 

—  tentans,  F.      Burton 

* —  pcdellus,   De    G.       Common,    Burton  ;    also 
Dovedale  (G.  H.  V '.) 

—  viridis,  Mcq.     Very  common,  Burton 
*—  viridulus,  L.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 

* —  nigrimanus,  Staeg.      Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 
*—  pictulus,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.V.) 
* —  albimanus,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 
*—  nubilus,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 
*Cricotopus  tremulus,    L.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 
*Orthocladius       variabilis,       Staeg.  Dovedale 

(G.  H.  V.) 

'Diamesa  obscurimanus,   Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 
Tanypus  varius,  F.     Burton 

—  nebulosus,  Mg.     Burton 

'—  punctatus,  F.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.) 

—  ornatus,  Mg.     Colwlch  (G.  H.  V.  in  E.  M.  M. 

xxx,  79) 
* —  trifascipennis,  Ztt.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.)  and 

Colwich,  abundant  (G.  H.  V.  in  E.  M.  M. 

xxx,  79) 

[ —  zonatus,  F.     Burton] 
Ceratopogon  pulicaris,  L.      Burton,  very  common 

-  nitidus,  Mcq.     Burton,  very  common 
•—  femoratus,  Mg.     Colwich  (G.  H.  V.) 

PsYCHODIDAE 

Pericoma  nubila,  Mg.     Burton 

Psychoda  phalaenoides,  L.     Burton,  common 

CULICIDAE 

Corethra  plumicornis,  F.     Burton 
Culex  annulatus,  Schrk.     Very  common 

—  nemorosus,  Mg.     Very  common 

—  pipiens,  L.  (ciliaris,  L.).     Very  common 


114 


INSECTS 


NEMATOCERA  (continued} 

PTYCHOPTERIDAK 
'  Ptychoptera  paludosa,  Mg.  Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 


LIMNOBIDAE 


Burton 


Burton 
Burton  , 

Egg- 


Cohaich 
Dwedale 


Burton 
Dovedale  (G   H.  V.)  ; 
C.  B.    in    E.  M.  M. 


Limnobia  nubeculosa,  Mg. 

—  tripunctata,  F.     Burton 
Dicranomyia  modesta,  Mg. 

*Rhiphidia    maculata,    Mg. 

(G.  H.  V.) 
'Molophilus       propinquus, 

(G.  H.  V.) 

Rhypholophus  lineatus,  Mg. 
'Lipsothrix  errans,  Wlk. 

also    Cannock    (R. 

xxxii,  53) 
Ephelia  submarmorata,Verr.  Colw'uh  (G.  H.  V.); 

also  Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  ibid.) 

—  marmorata,  Mg.     Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  ibid.) 
*Dactylol.ibis       frauenfeldi,       Egg.          Dovedale 

(G  H.  V.) 

Trichocera  hiemalis,  De  G.     Very  common 
Pedicia  rivosa,  L.     (R.  G.) 
Cylindrotoma     distinctissima,     Mg.        Cannock 

(R.  C.  B.  in  E.  M.  M.  xxxii,  53) 

TlPULIDAE 

Dolichopeza  sylvicola,  Curt.      Cannock  (R.  C.  B. 

ibid.) 
Pachyrrhina    crocata,     L.        Burton ;     Cannock 

(R.  C.  B.  ibid.) 

—  maculosa,  Mg      Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  ibid  ) 

—  quadrifaria,  Mg.      Burton 

—  annulicornis,  Mg.  Burton  ;  Cannock  (R.  C.  B. 

ibid.) 
"Tipula  varipennis,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.)  ; 

Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  ibid.) 
-   lunata,  L.      Cannock  (R.  C.  B    ibid) 

—  gigantea,    Schrk.     Common,  Burton ;    Dove 

fal/ey   (F.  J.)  ;    Ckeadle  (}.    Masefield)  ; 
Cannock  (R.  C.  B.  ibid.) 

—  lutescens,  F.     Very  common 

—  oleracea,  L.     Very  common 

BRACHYCERA 
STRATIOMYIDAE 

Oxycera  pulchella,  Mg.  (rara,  Wlk.).      Burton 
Chrysonotus  bipuncta;us,  Scop.      Burton 
Sargus  flavipes,  Mg.     Burton 

—  cuprarius,  L.     Burton 


BRACHYCERA  (continued) 
STRATIOMYIDAE  (continued) 

Chloromyia  Formosa,  Scop.     Burton 
Microchrysa  polita,  L      Burton 
Beris  clavipes,  L.     Burton 

TABANIDAE 

Haematopota  pluvialis,  L.     Common 
Therioplectes  tropicus,  Mg.     Burton 
Tabanus   bovinus,  L.     Cannock  Chase   (E.  B.) 
Chrysops  caecutiens,  L.     Common  (R.  G.) 

LEPTIDAE 

Leptis  scolopacea,  L.     Burton  ;  Dove  Valley,  &c. 
Chrysopilus  aureus,  Mg.     Burton 
Atherix  ibis,  F.     Burton 

ASILIDAE 

Dioctria  oelandica,  L.     Burton 

—  rufipes,  De  G.     Burton 

Asilus  crabroniformis,  L.     Burton,  rare 

BoMBYLIDAE 

[Anthrax  hottentotta,  L.  (?)     Burton\ 

Bombylius,  sp.  (?)     Burton 

THEREVIDAE 
Thereva  annulata,  F.     Burton 

EMPIDAE 

•Rhamphomyia  nigripes,  F.  Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 

-  sulcata,  Fin.     Burton 
Kmpis  tessellata,  F.     Burton 

-  livida,  L.     Burton 

* —  bilineata,  Lw.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 

-  chioptera,  Fin.     Burton 
Hil.ira  cilipes,  Mg.     Burton 

-  maura,  F.      Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 

-  fuscipes,  F.     Colwich  (G.  H.  V.) 

* Tachydromia  agilis,  Mg.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.) 

DoLICHOPODIDAE 

Poecilobothrus  nobilitatus,  L.     Burton 
•Porphyrops  praerosa,  Lw.    Dwedale  (G.  H.  V.) 

LoNCHOPTERIDAE 

Lonchoptera  punctum,  Mg.      Burton 
—  trestes,  Mg.     Burton 


CYCLORRHAPHA 


PROBOSCIDEA 

SYRPHIDAE 

Paragus  tibialis,  Fin.  (obscurus,  Mg.).     Burton 

Pipizella  flavitarsis,  Mg.     Burton 

Pipiza  noctiluca,  L.     Burton 

—  bimaculata,  Mg.  (guttata,  Mg.).     Burton 

Cnemodon  vitripennis,  Mg.     Burton 


PROBOSCIDEA  (continued) 
SYRPHIDAE  (continued) 

Liogaster    metallina,     F.      (Jiscicornis,     Mg.). 

Burton 

Chrysogaster  splendens,  Mg.      Burton 
[ —  hirtella,  Lw.   (?  viduata,  Fin.).     Burton\ 
-  solstitialis,  Fin.  (fumipennis,  Steph.).    Burton 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


PROBOSCIDEA  (continued) 
SYRPHIDAE  (continued) 

Chilosia  scutellata,  Fin.     Burton 

—  pulchripes,  Lw.     Dovedale  (Br.  Fl.) 

—  variabilis,  Pz.     Burton 

[ —  illustrata,  Harr.  (?  oestracea,  L.).     Burton] 

—  grossa,  Fin.     Burton 

fPlatychirus     manicatus,     Mg.     Burton;     Dove 
Valley  (F.  J.) 

—  clypeatus,  Mg.     Burton 
Pyrophaena  granditarsa,  Forst.     Burton 

—  rosarum,  F.     Burton 
Melanostoma  mellinum,  L.     Burton 

—  scalare,  F.     Burton 

Leucozona  lucorum,  L.      Burton ;  Dove  Valley 

(F.  J-) 
Ischyrosyrphus  glaucius,  L.     Burton 

-  laterarius,  Mull.     Burton 

tCatabomba  pyrastri,  L.     Burton;  Mayfield  and 

Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 
Syrphus  albostriatus,  Fin.     Burton 

—  torvus,  O.-S.  (topiarius,  Mg.).     Burton 

1  'f —  ribesii,    L.     Burton ;  Dove  Valley,  common 

.  (.F-  •>•). 

—  vitripennis,  Mg.      Burton 

—  corollae,  F.     Burton 

-  bifasciatus,  F.     Burton 

t —  balteatus,    De    G.     Burton;    Mayfield    and 
Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

-  auricollis,  Mg.     Burton 

-  umbellatarum  F.    Burton  ;  Coltcich  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  compositarum,  Verr.     Colwicb  (C.  J.  W.) 

-  arcticus,  Ztt.     Colwich  (C.  J.  W.) 
Xanthogramma  ornatum,  Mg.     Burton 

-  citrofasciatum,  De  G.     Burton 
Baccha  obscuripennis,  Mg.     Burton 

-  elongata,  F.      Burton 

tSphegina  clunipes,  Fin.     One  in  Dove  Valley, 

6  Sept.,  1902  (F.  J.) 
Ascia  podagrica,  F.     Burton 
Brachyopa  bicolor,  Fin.     Burton 
Rhingia  rostrata,  L.     Burton 
t —  campestris,  Mg.     Mayfield  and  Dove  Valley 

(F.  JO 

Volucella  bombylans,  L.     Burton 
f —  pellucens,     L.     Henhurst    (E.     B.)  ;     Dove 

Valley  (F.  J.),  &c. 
Eristalis  sepulchralis,  L.     Burton 
t —  tenax,  L.     Common 

ft —  intricarius,  L.     Burton ;  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 
ft —  arbustorum,     L.        Burton  ;     Dove     Valley 

(F.  J.) 

f —  nemorum,  L.     Burton  ;  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 
ft —  pertinax,  Scop.     Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

-  horticola,  De  G.     Burton 
Myiatropa  florea,  L.     Burton 

Helophilus  trivittatus,   F.     Cannock  (R.  C.  B. 

Ent.  1890,  p.  352) 

t —  pendulus,   L.     Burton  ;    Mayfield  and  Dove 
Valley  (F.  J.) 

—  lineatus,  F.     Burton 
Criorrhina  asilica,  Fin.     Burton 
Xylota  segnis,  L.     Burton 

—  lenta,  Mg.     Burton 

—  sylvarum,  L.     Burton 


PROBOSCIDEA  (continued) 
SYRPHIDAE  (continued) 

Xylota  nemorum,   F.       Colwich  (C.  J.  W.)  ;  Can- 
nock,   one    (R.   C.  B.    in    EMM.    xxxii, 

P-  SO 

f  Syritta  pipiens,  L.     Burton  ;  Dove  Valley,  com- 
mon (F.  J.) 

Eumerus  strigatus,  Fin.     Burton 
Chrysochlamys  cuprea,  Scop.     Burton 
Calliprobola  speciosa,  Rossi.     Burton  ? 
'Sericomyia    borealis,    Fin.        Burton  ;    also  Can- 
nock  (F.  D.  Morice) 

—  lappona,  L.      Burton 
Chrysotoxum  arcuatum,  L.     Burton 

—  bicinctum,  L.     Burton 

CONOPIDAE 

Conops  quadrifusciata,  De  G.     Burton 
t —  flavipes,  L.     Mayfield  and  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 
Oncomyia  atra,  F.     Burton 
Sicus  ferrugineus,  L.     Burton 

OESTRIDAE 

Gastrophilus  equi,  F.     Common 
Hypoderma   bovis,  De  G.     Common,  doing  con- 
siderable damage  to  the  hides  of  oxen 
Oestrus  ovis,  L.     Very  common  in  some  years 


TACHINIDAE 

tOlivieria    lateralis,    F.        Burton  ;    Mayfield  and 
Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

Micropalpus  vulpinus,  Fin.     Burton 

Echinomyia  fera,  L.     Burton 

Fabricia  ierox,  L.     Burton 

tSarcophaga  carnaria,    L.     Generally  distributed 
tvar.  similis,  Meade.     Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

—  melanura,  Mg.     Burton 

Dexiosoma  caninum,  F.     Burton 

Prosena  sybarita,  F.     Burton 


MUSCIDAE 

Stomoxys  calcitrans,  L.     Burton ;  scarce  in  Dove 

Valley  (F.  J.) 
Pollenia  vespillo,  F.     Burton 

—  rudis,  F.     Burton 
Graphomyia  maculata,  Scop.     Burton 
Musca  domestica,  L.     Everywhere 

—  corvina,  F.     Burton 
Cyrtoneura  stabulans,  Fin.     Burton 
Morellia  hortorum,  Fin.     Burton 
Mesembrina  meridiana,  L.      Frequently  seen  on 

the  trunks  of  trees  in  many  places  (R.  G.); 
Burton 

Pyrellia  lasiophthalma,  Mcq.     Burton 
Calliphora  vomitoria,  L.     Everywhere 
Euphoria  cornicina,  F.     Burton 
tLucilia  caesar,  L.     Common 
[ —   illustris,  Mg.      ?  Burton] 


INSECTS 


PROBOSCIDEA  (continued) 
ANTHOMYIOAE 

Polietes  lardaria,  F.     Burton 
Hyetodesia  incana,  W.     Burton 

—  signata,  Mg.     Burton 

—  erratica,  Fin.     Burton 
Mydaea  angelicae,  Scop.     Burton 
Mydea  pagana,  F.     Burton 

—  impuncta,  Fin.     Burton 
Hydrophoria  conica,  W.     Burton 

*Hylemyia  virginea,  Mg.     Colwich  (G.  H.  V.) 

—  praepotens,  W.     Burton 
Anthomyia  pluvialis,  L.     Burton 

—  radicum,  L.     Burton,  &c. 
"Chortophila  cinerella,  Fin.     DoveJalt  (G.  H.  V.) 

—  sepia,  Mg.     Burton. 

Phorbia  cepetorum,  Meade.     Burton,  &c. 
Pegomyia  betae,  Curt.     Common  in  some  years 
Homalomyia  canicularis,  L.     Burton 
Caricea  tigrina,  F.     Burton 

CoRDYLURIDAE 

Scatophaga  lutaria,  F.     Burton 

—  stercoraria,  L.     Everywhere 

HELOMYZIDAE 

Helomyza  flava,  Mg.     Burton 
Blepharoptera  serrata,  L.     Burton 

SCIOMYZIDAE 

Dryomyza  flaveola,  F.     Burton 
Neottiophilum  praeustum,  Mg.     Burton 
Sciomyza  obtusa,  Fin.     Burton 

—  cinerella,  Fin.      Burton 

—  albocostata,  Fin.     Burton 
Tetanocera  ferruginea,  Fin.     Burton 

* —  robusta,  Lw.     Cannock  (R.  C.  B.) 
Limnia  marginata,  F.     Burton 

—  rufifrons,  F.     Burton 
Elgiva  cucularia,  L.     Burton 

PSILIDAE 

Psila  fimetaria,  L.     Burton 

—  pallida,  Fin.     Burton 

MlCROPEZIDAK 

Calobata  trivialis,  Lw.     Dovedale  (G.  H.  V.  in 
EMM.  xxx,  p.  145) 

ORTALIDAE 

Pteropaectria  afflicta,  Mg.     Burton 
Anacampta  urticae,  L.     Burton 
Platystoma  seminationis,  F.     Burton 
Seoptera  vibrans,  L.     Burton 

TRYPETIDAE 

Acidia  heraclei,  L.     Burton  ;  Hanttswort/i,  com- 
mon (C.J.W.) 
Spilographia  zoe,  Mg.     Handsworth  (C.  J.  W.) 

—  artemisiae,  F.     Burton 
Rhagoletis  cerasi,  L.     Burton 
Trypeta  cornuta,  ¥.     Burton 

—  serratulae,  L.     Burton 


PROBUSCIDEA  (Continued) 
TRYPETIDAE  (continued) 

Urophora  solstitialis,  L.  Burton ;  Denstone, 
28  July  and  Aug.,  1905,  Alton,  Aug., 
1905  (C.B.) 

Carphotricha  guttularis,  Mg.     Burton 

Tephrites  parietina,  L.     Burton 

—  leontodontis,  De  G.      Burton 
Urellia  stellata,  Fuessl.     Burton 

LoNCHAEIDAE 

Lonchaea  vaginalis,  Fin.     Burton 
Palloptera  saltuum,  L.     Burton 

—  ustulata,  Fin.     Burton 

—  umbellatarum,  F.     Burton 

—  arcuata,  Fin.     Burton 

SAPROMYZIDAE 

Lauxania  cylindricornis,  F.     Burton 

—  aenea,  Fin.      Burton 

OPOMYZIDAE 

Balioptera  combinata,  L.      Burton 
Opomyza  florum,  F.      Burton 

SEPSIDAE 
Nemopoda  tarsalis,  Wlk.     Burton 

PlOPHILIDAE 

Piophila  casei,  L.     Larvae  in  cheese 

EPHYDRIDAE 

Notiphila  cinerea,  Fin.     Burton 
Psilopa  leucostoma,  Mg.      Burton 
Ephydra  riparia,  Fin.     Burton 

CHLOROPIDAE 

Meromyza  variegata,  Mg.     Burton 
Chlorops  cinctipes,  Mg.      Burton 

PHYTOMYZIDAE 
Napomyza  lateralis,  Fin.     Burton 

BORRORIDAE 

Borborus  nitidus,  Mg.     Burton 

—  equinus,  Fin.     Burton 
Sphaerocera  subsultans,  F.     Burton 
Limosina  sylvatica,  Mg.     Burton 

—  ochripes,  Mg.     Burton 

—  fungicola,  Hal.      Burton 

PHORIDAE 
Phora  rufipes,  Mg.     Burton 

EPROBOSCIDEA 

HlPPOBOSCIDAE 

Ornithomyia  avicularia,  L.     On  owls,   &c.,  at 

Burton 
Stenopteryx  hirundinis,    L.     On    martins    and 

swallows  (E.  B.,  F.J.) 
Melophagus    ovinus,    L.      Common    on    sheep 

everywhere 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


HEMIPTERA    HETEROPTERA 

(Bug,) 


GYMNOCERATA 
PENTATOMIDAE 

Asopus  punctatus,  L.      Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 
Acanthosoma  haemorrhoidale,  L.     Cannock  Chase 
(Blatch) 

LYGAEIDAE 

Gastrodes  abietis,  L.     Burton  (J.  T.  Harris) 
TINGIDAE 

Monanthia  costata,  Fieb.    Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

-  humuli,  Fb.     Button  Park  (Blatch) 

HEBRIDAE 
Hebrus  ruficeps,  Thorns.      Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

HYDROMETRIDAE 

Mesovelia  furcata,  Muls.  and  Rey.  One  from  the 
R.  Trent,  near  Burton  (E.B.)  ;  see  E.  M.  M. 
iv,  5  (1867) 

Hydrometra  stagnorum,  L.      Common. 

Vclia  currens,  Fb.     On  the  R.  Trent  (E.  B.) 

Gerris  paludum,  Fb.     Very  abundant 

SALDIDAE 

Salda  orthochila,  Fieb.      Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

-  cocksii,  Curt.     Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

-  cincta,  H.  Sch,     Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

Cl.MICIDAE 

Cimex  lectularius,  L. 

Piezostethus  cursitans,  Fall.  Needtcood  Forest 
(Blatch) 


GYMNOCERATA  (continued) 
CAPSIDAE 

Lopus  gothicus,  L.     Cannock  Chase  (Bhtch) 

—  flavomarginatus,  Don.     'On  nettles'  (R.  G.) 
Calocoris  sex-guttatus,  Fl.     Common  near  Barlas- 

ton  (J.  W.  Ellis) 

—  alpestris,  Mey.     Burton  (E.  B.) 
Atractotomus  mali,  Mey.     Cannock  Chase  (Blatch) 

CRYPTOCERATA 
NAUCORIDAE 

Naucoris  cimicoides,  L.  Common  in  brooks 
(R.  G.)  ;  in  railway  cuttings  at  Wetmore 
(E.  B.) 

NEPIDAE 

Nepa  cinerea,  L.  Common.  Canals  at  Stoke-on- 
Trent  (R.  G.),  &c.  ;  Burton  (E.  B.)  ;  Dot'e 
ralky  (F.  J.) 

NoTONECTIDAE 

Notonecta  glauca,  L.  Very  common.  Fenton  Pool 
(R.  G.),  &c. 

var.  furcata  and  maculata  (E.  B.) 

CORIXIDAE 

Corixa  geoffroyi,  Leach.  Not  uncommon,  Burton 
district  (E.B.) 

—  atomaria,  Illig.  (affinis,  Leach).   Common  (E.B.) 
-  coleoptrata,  Fl.     Burton  (W.  W.  F.) 

Sigara  minutissima,  L.  Burton  (W.  W.  F.);  not  un- 
common in  the  R.  Trent  near  Burton  (E.B.) 


HEMIPTERA    HOMOPTERA 


CICADINA 

ISSIDAE 


CICADINA  (continued) 
CERCOPIDAE 


Issus  coleoptratus,  Geoff.     Near  Burton,  not  com-       :  Triecphora  vulnerata,  Illig.  ? 
mon  (E.  B.)  ;  Dovedale  (B.  Cooke)  Philaenus  spumarius,  L.     Verj 


ClXIIDAE 


Very  common 
LEDRIDAE 

Ledra  aurita,  L.     Burton  district,   in   woods,   rare 
Cixius  pilosus,  Ol.,  or  nervosus,  L.   (rcynosbatis,  (E.B.) 

fb.   of  E.  B.).     Common  in  woods,  Burton 
district  (E.  B.) 


DELPHACIDE 

['  Several  species  are  abundant '  (E.  B.)] 
[Stiroma  borealis,  J.  Sahl.     In  mus.  P.  B.  Mason  of 
Burton,  but  without  locality] 


118 


ACOCEPHALIDAE 

Acocephalus  nervosus,  Schr.  ? 

PSYLLINA 

PSYLLIDAE 

Psylla.     [Many  species,  E.  B.] 


INSECTS 


APHIDES,   &c. 

The  late  Sir  O.  Mosley  contributed  some  articles  on  Aphides  to  the  early  volumes  of  the 
Gardeners'  Chronicle,  and  Mr.  E.  Brown  gives  some  observations  in  his  account  of  the  fauna 
of  the  Burton  district  (Natural  History  of  Tutbury,  &c.,  p.  167).  Mr.  C.  Brett  has  also 
recorded  a  few  species  from  the  Alton  district  (Report  North  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1905-6, 
p.  75-6). 

Sir  O.  Mosley  =  O.M.  E.  Brown  =  E.B.  C.  Brett  =  C.B.  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jour- 
dain  =  F.  J. 


APHIDIDAE 

.  Siphonophora  pisi,  Kalt.  (lathyri)  (O.  M.) 

-  avellanae,  Schr.  (coryli)  (O.  M.) 

Phorodon  humuli,  Schr.      On    Humulus   lupulus 

(E.  B.,  F.  J.) 

Myzus  ribis,  L.     Alton,  July,  1905  (C.  B.) 
Rhopalosiphum  ribis,  L.     On  Ribes  nigrum,  Dove 

Valley,  common  (F.  J.)  ;    Uttoxeter,  August, 

1904  (C.B.) 
Siphocoryne  xylostei,  Schrank.     On  Lonicera  peri- 

clymenum,  Alton,  August,  1903  (C.  B.) 
Aphis  brassicae  L.     On  Brassica  oleracea,  common 

(F-  JO 

—  crataegi,    Kalt.      On     Crataegus    oxyacantha, 

Dove  Valley  (F.  J.);  Alton,  July,  1904  (C.  B.) 

—  malvae,  Walk.  (O.  M.) 

-  mali,  Fb.     On  Pyrus  malus,  Dove  Valley  (F.  J.) 

-  atriplicis,  L.     On  Atriplex  patula,  Alton,  July, 

1903  ;  Denstone,  July,  1905  (C.  B.) 

—  rumicis,  L.     On  Hedera  helix,  &c.  (F.  J.) 

—  amygdali,  Fonsc.      'On  Peach  and  Plum  trees' 

(E.  B.) 

-  pyri,  Fonsc.     On  Pyrus  malus,  Alton,  ^  \  July, 

1 904  (C.B.) 

Callipterus  coryli,   Gotze.     On   Corylus  avellana, 

&c.  (O.  M.) 
Dryobius  roboris,  L.  (O.  M.) 


APHIDIDAE  (continued} 

Schizoneura   lanigera,    Hausm.     '  Eriosoma   mali' 

(O.  M.)  ;     '  American  Blight,'   Dave   Valley 

(F.  J.) 
-   ulmi,  L.     On  Ulmus  montana,  Alton,  August, 

1903  (C.B.) 
Tetraneura  ulmi,   De   Geer.     On    U.   campestris, 

Roston,  August,  1903  (C.  B.) 
Chermes  abietis,  L.      On  spruce  fir  (E.  B.)  ;  Alton, 

on  Abies  excelsa,  August,  1903  (C.B.) 

—  laricis,  Htg.     On  larch  (E.  B.) 

COCCI  DAE 

Aspidiotus,  sp.  (Scale  Insects).  Common  on  green- 
house plants 

Lecanium  persicae,  Burm.  'On  plum  and  apricot 
trees.  Burton  '  (E.  B.) 

Dorthesia  cataphracta,  Shaw.      Henhurst  (E.  B.) 

ALEYRODIDAE 

Alleyrodes  proletella,  Wlk.  Frequently  found  flying 
in  lanes  (E.B.) 

—  fragariae,  Wlk.     On  strawberry  (E.  B.) 

—  phillyreae,  Hal.     Common  on  Phillyrea  (E.  B). 
Dactylopius,  sp.  (Mealybug).       On  vines  in  green- 
houses (F.J.) 


719 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


ARACHNIDA 

Spiders,  etc. 

Very  few  species  of  spiders,  eighty-two  in  all,  have  been  collected 
in  the  county  of  Staffordshire,  and  the  greater  number  of  these  were 
taken  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Handsworth  by  Mr.  F.  P.  Smith,  while 
the  rest  were  taken  by  myself  near  Cannock. 

ARANE^ 

ARACHNOMOR  PHM 

DYSDERIDjE 

Spiders  with  six  eyes  and  two  pairs  of  stigmatic  openings,  situated  close  together  on  the 
genital  rima  ;  the  anterior  pair  communicating  with  lung  books,  the  posterior  with  tracheal 
tubes.  Tarsal  claws,  two  in  Dysdera,  three  in  Harpactes  and  Segestria. 


1.  Dysdera  cambridgii,  Thorell. 

Cannock. 

Not  uncommon  under  stones  and  bark  of 
trees,  where  it  lurks  within  a  tubular  retreat. 
The  spider  is  easily  recognizable  by  its  elon- 
gate  form,  orange  legs,  dark  mahogany  cara- 
pace  and  pale  clay-yellow  abdomen.  The 
palpal  bulb  of  the  male  has  no  cross-piece  at 
the  apex.  The  spider  is  also  known  as  D. 
erytbryna,  Blackwall. 

T-,     ,  ,-,    T     V 

2.  Dysdera  crocota,  C.  L.  Koch. 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Larger  than  the  last  species,  with  a  deep 
orange-pink  carapace,  orange  legs,  and  abdo- 


men  with  a  delicate  rosy-pink  flush.  The 
palpal  bulb  of  the  male  has  a  cross-piece  at 
the  apex.  This  spider  is  also  known  as  D. 
rubtcunda,  Blackwall. 

3.  Segestria  senocu/ata  (Linnaeus). 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 
Not  common  .  under  bark  of  trees>  in  the 

crevices  of  loose  stone  walls  and  amongst 
detached  rocks.  Recognizable  by  its  linear 
form  and  the  black  diamond-shaped  blotches 
on  the  dorsal  surface  of  the  abdomen. 

4.  Oonops  pulcher,  Templeton. 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 
Rare  ;  a  very  small  linear  brick-red  spider. 


DRASSIDjE 

Spiders  with  eight  eyes,  situated  in  two  transverse  rows.  The  tracheal  openings  lie  just 
in  front  of  the  spinners.  The  tarsal  claws  are  two  in  number,  the  anterior  pair  of  spinners 
are  set  wide  apart  at  the  base,  and  the  maxillae  are  more  or  less  impressed  across  the  middle. 


5.   Drassodes  lapidosus  (Walckenaer). 
Cannock. 


Very  common  under  stones. 
as  Drassus  lapidicolens. 


Also  known 


CLUBIONID^E 


Spiders  with  eight  eyes,  situated  in  two  transverse  rows.  The  tracheal  openings  lie 
immediately  in  front  of  the  spinners.  The  tarsal  claws  are  two  in  number,  but  the  anterior 
pair  of  spinners  are  set  close  together  at  the  base  ;  the  maxillae  are  convex  and  not  impressed 
across  the  middle. 


9.  Clubiona  corticalis,  Walckenaer. 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

10.  Clubiona  trivia/is,  L.  Koch. 
Cannock. 


6.  Clubiona  pallidula  (Clerck). 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

7.  Clubiona  terrestris,  Westring. 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

8.  Clubiona  compta,  C.  L.  Koch. 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


The  spiders  of  this  family  resemble  those  of  the  Clubionidte  in  most  respects,  except  that 
the  tracheal  stigmatic  openings  beneath  the  abdomen  are  situated  about  midway  between  the 

120 


SPIDERS 

genital  rima  and  the  spinners,  and  not,  as  in  the  last  family,  immediately  in  front  of  the 
spinners.  One  species  only  is  indigenous  to  Great  Britain  and  is  very  common  amongst  the 
foliage  of  trees  in  May  and  June. 

11.  Anypbeena  accmtuata  (Walckenaer).     Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

THOMISID^E 

Spiders  with  eight  eyes,  situated  in  two  transverse  rows,  two  tarsal  claws  and  anterior 
spinners  close  together  at  their  base.  Maxillae  not  impressed.  The  crab-like  shape  and  side- 
long movements  of  these  spiders  are  their  chief  characteristics,  enabling  them  to  be  easily 
distinguished  from  the  more  elongate  Drassidte  and  Clubionidte. 

12.  Philodromus  aureolus  (Clerck).  14.  Xysticus  cristatus  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.).  Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

13.  Tibellus  oblongus  (Walckenaer).  15.   Oxyptlla  prattcola  (C.  L.  Koch). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.).  Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

ATTID^E 

The  spiders  of  this  family  may  be  recognized  in  a  general  way  by  their  mode  of  pro- 
gression, consisting  of  a  series  of  leaps.  More  particularly  they  may  be  known  by  the  square 
shape  of  the  cephalic  region  and  the  fact  that  the  eyes  are  arranged  in  three  rows  of  4,  2,  2, 
the  centrals  of  the  anterior  row  being  much  the  largest.  Otherwise  the  spiders  are  simply 
specialized  Clubionids  with  two  tarsal  claws  and  other  minor  characters  possessed  in  common 
with  other  members  of  this  family. 

1 6.   Salticus  scenicus  (Clerck).  17.    Ergane  falcata  (Clerck). 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.)  ;  Cannock.  Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Known  also  as  Salticus  ceronatus,  BLickwall. 

PISAURID^ 

Spiders  with  eight  eyes  in  three  rows  of  4,  2,  2  ;  the  small  anterior  eyes  being  sometimes 
in  a  straight  line,  sometimes  recurved  and  sometimes  procurved.  Those  of  the  other  two  rows 
are  situated  in  the  form  of  a  rectangle  of  various  proportions  and  are  much  larger  than  the 
eyes  of  the  anterior  row.  The  tarsal  claws  are  three  in  number.  Pisaura  runs  freely  over 
the  herbage,  carrying  its  egg-sac  beneath  the  sternum  ;  while  Dolomedes  is  a  dweller  in  marshes 
and  swamps. 

1 8.  Pisaura  mirabilis  (Clerck).  Known  also  as  Dolomedes,  or  Ocyale,  mirabilis. 
Cannock. 

LYCOSIDjE 

The  members  of  this  family  are  to  be  found  running  freely  over  the  ground,  and  carry- 
ing the  egg-sac  attached  to  the  spinners.  Many  of  the  larger  species  make  a  short  burrow  in 
the  soil  and  there  keep  guard  over  the  egg-sac.  Eyes  and  tarsal  claws  as  in  the  Phauridie, 
with  slight  differences. 

19.  Lycosa  ruricola  (De  Geer).  22.   Pardosa  lugubrts  (Walckenaer). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.).  Cannock. 

Known  also  as  L.  campestris,  Blackwall.  23.   Pardosa  pullata  (Clerck). 

Cannock. 

20.  Lycosa  terrico/a,  Thorell.  Known  also  as  Lycosa  otscura,  Blackwall. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

„  .  r  •       T.I     ,       11  24-    "ardosa  prattvaga  (C.  L.  Koch). 

Known  also  as  L.  agrettca.  Blackwall.  „     ,         ./»£»» 

Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

21.  Lycosa  pulverulenta  (Clerck).  This   species   is  given   in    Mr.   Campbell's 
Cannock  ;   Handsworth  (F.P.S.).                            list  as  Lyceta  r'Paria,  C-  L.  Koch. 

Known  also  as  L.   rapax,   Blackwall,  and      25.   Pardosa  amentata  (Clerck). 
Tarentula  pulverulenta.  Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

I  121  16 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


AGELENID^: 

Spiders  with  eight  eyes,  situated  in  two  straight  or  more  or  less  curved  transverse  rows. 
Tarsal  claws,  three.  The  species  of  this  family  spin  a  large  sheet-like  web,  and  construct  a 
tubular  retreat  at  the  back  of  it,  which  leads  to  some  crevice  amongst  the  rocks  or  in  the 
herbage,  or  in  the  chinks  in  the  walls  of  outhouses  and  barns,  wherever  the  various  species  may 
happen  to  be  found.  The  habits  of  Argyroneta,  the  water  spider,  are  however  quite  different. 
The  posterior  pair  of  spinners  is  much  longer  than  the  others  in  the  more  typical  genera  of 
this  family. 


26.  Agelena  labyrinthica  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

27.  Ttgenaria  derhami  (Scopoli). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

A  very  common  species  everywhere. 


28.  Tegenaria  silvestrii,  L.  Koch. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

29.  Ccelotes  atropos  (Walckenaer). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


The  spiders  included  in  this  family  have  eight  eyes,  situated  in  two  rows,  the  lateral  eyes 
of  both  rows  being  usually  adjacent,  if  not  in  actual  contact,  while  the  central  eyes  form  a 
quadrangle.  The  tarsal  claws  are  three,  often  with  other  supernumerary  tlaws.  The  web  is 
either  an  orbicular  snare,  as  in  the  case  of  the  '  common  garden  spider,'  or  consists  of  a  sheet 
of  webbinsj,  beneath  which  the  spider  hangs  and  captures  its  prey  as  it  falls  upon  the  sheet. 
This  immense  family  includes  those  usually  separated  under  the  names  Epeiridte  and  Linyphiidts. 


30.  Nesticus  cellulanus  (Clerck). 
Cannock. 

Known  also  as  Linyphia  cryptico/ens,  Black- 
wall. 

31.  Meta  segmentata  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Very   abundant.      Known    also    as    Epeira 
indinata,   Blackwall. 

32.  Meta  meriarue  (Scopoli). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Not   uncommon.      Known   also  as  Epeira 
antriada,  Blackwall,  and  a  striking  variety  as     43 
E.  celata,  Blackwall. 

33.  Cyclosa  conica  (Pallas). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

A  few   specimens   only   have    been    taken. 
Known   also  as  Epeira  conica,   Blackwall. 

34.  Zilla   x  -  notata  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Very    common.     Known    also    as    Epeira 
simi/is,    Blackwall. 

35.  Zilla  atrica,  C.  L.  Koch. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Almost  as  common  as  the  above.     Known 
also  as  Epeira  callophylla,  Blackwall. 

36.  Araneut  diadematus  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.)  ;  Cannock. 

37.  Araneus  gibbosus  (Walckenaer). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

38.  Pachygnatha  clerckiiy  Sun dc vail. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


39.  Pachygnatha  degeerii,  Sundevall. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

40.  Pachygnatha  listeri,  Sundevall. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Much    rarer   than    the    other    two    species 
above. 

4 1 .  Linyphia  triangularis  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

42.  Linyphia  clathrata,  Sundevall. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Drapetisca  soda/is  (Sundevall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

44.  Stemonyphantes  lineatus  (Linnzeus). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

45.  Labulla  thoracica  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

46.  Bolypbantes  luteolus  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

47.  Tapinopa  longideus  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

48.  Lepthyphantes  minutus  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

49.  Lepthyphantes  leprosus  (Ohlert). 
Cannock. 

50.  Lepthyphantes  nebulosus  (Sundevall). 
Cannock. 

51.  Lepthyphantes  ericeus  (Blackwall). 
Cannock. 

52.  Lepthyphantes  tenuis  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


122 


SPIDERS 


53.  Lepthyphantes  blackwaUii,  Kulczynski. 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

54.  Batbyphantes  dorsalis  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

55.  Bathyphantes  gracilis  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

56.  Bathyphantes  concolor  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

57.  Centromerus  sylvaticut  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

58.  Macrargus  rufui  (Wider). 
Cannock. 

59.  Centromerus  simplex  (F.  P.-Cambridge). 
Cannock,  Brewery  cellar. 

60.  Microneta  viaria  (Blackwall). 
Cannock. 

6 1.  Microneta  fuscipalpis  (C.  L.  Koch). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

62.  Pedanostethus  lividus  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


63.  Kulczynskiellum  fuscum  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

64.  Gonatium  rubens  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

65.  Dicyphus  cornutui  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

66.  Dicymbium  nigrum  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

67.  Erigone  dentipalpis  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

68.  Tiso  vagans  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

69.  Lophomma  punctatum  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

70.  Plcesiocrarus  fuscipes  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

71.  Entelecara  acuminata  (Wider). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

72.  Arrecerus  acuminatus  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.)  ;  Cannock. 


THERIDIID^E 

The  members  of  this  family  have  eight  eyes,  situated  very  much  like  those  of  the  Argio- 
pidit  ;  but  the  mandibles  are  usually  weak,  the  maxillae  are  inclined  over  the  labium,  and  the 
posterior  legs  have  a  comb  of  stiff  curved  spines  beneath  the  tarsi.  The  web  consists  of  a 
tangle  of  crossing  lines,  and  the  spider  often  constructs  a  tent-like  retreat  wherein  the  egg-sac 
is  hung  up.  The  tarsal  claws  are  three  in  number. 


73.    Theridion  pictum  (Walckenaer). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 


74 


75 


Theridion  iisyphium  (Clerck). 
Cannock. 
Known  also  as  T.  nervoium,  Blackwall. 

Theridion  denticulatum  (Walckenaer). 
Cannock. 


76. 


77- 


Theridion  varians,  Hahn. 
Cannock. 


Theridion  ovatum  (Clerck). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

78.  Pholcomma  gibbum  (Westring). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

79.  Crustulina  guttata  (Wicler). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

MIMETID^ 

Spiders  of  this  family  are  similar  in  general  respects  to  the  Theridiidie,  having  eight  eyes 
and  three  tarsal  claws.  The  species  of  Era  construct  a  small  brown  pear-shaped  or  cylindrical 
egg-cocoon  suspended  on  a  fine  silken  stalk. 

80.  Erofurcata  (Villers).       Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

This  spider  is  known  also  as  E.  thoracica  and  Theridion  variegatum,  Blackwall. 

DICTYNID^E 

The  spiders  belonging  to  this  family  possess  three  tarsal  claws,  and  the  eyes,  eight  in 
number,  situated  in  two  transverse  rows,  the  laterals  being  in  contact.  The  cribellum  (or 
extra  pair  of  spinning  organs)  and  the  calamistrum  (a  row  of  curving  bristles  on  the  protarsi  of 
the  fourth  pair  of  legs)  are  present  in  all  members  of  the  family.  They  construct  a  tubular 
retreat  with  an  outer  sheet  of  webbing,  which  is  covered  with  a  flocculent  silk  made  with  the 
calamistrum  from  threads  furnished  by  the  cribellum. 

81.  Amaurobiut  fenestralis  (Stroem).  82.  Amaurobius  similis  (Blackwall). 
Handsworth  (F.P.S.).  Handsworth  (F.P.S.). 

Not  so  common  as  simi/is.     Known  also  as          Common.     Known  also  under   the 
Ciniflo  atroxy  Blackwall.  Ciniflo. 

123 


name 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 
ACARINA 

Mites 

The  following  list  is  compiled  from  the  records  contributed  by  Mr.  Cyril  Brett  to  the 
Reparts  of  the  N.  Staff.  Field  Club  for  1902-3  (pp.  92-3),  and  1905-6  (pp.  75-6). 


ERIOPHYINAE 

Eriophyes  aucupariae,  Conn.  On  Pyrus  aucuparia 
Gaert.,  Alton,  Aug.  1903  ;  Rudyard,  25 
July,  1905  ;  Manifold  Valley,  Aug.  190; 

-  axillaris,  auct.     On  Alnus  glutinosa,  Medic., 

Alton,    12   Sept.  1902  ;  Consall,  Rudyard, 
July,  1905 

—  invitarau,  Nal.     On  Alnus  glutinosa,  Medic., 

Alton,  1 1  Sept.  1902 

—  goniothorax,   Nal.     On   Crataegus   oxyacantha, 

L.,  Alton,  Aug.  1903  ;  Belmont,  July,  1905 

-  lact'u,  Nal.    On  Alnus  glutinosa,  Medic.,  Alton, 

12  Sept.  1902 

-  macrochilus,    Nal.      On    Acer     campestre,    L., 

Denstone,  Aug.   1903 

-  macrorbynchus,  Nal.     On  Acer  campestre,  L., 

Denstone,  Aug.  1903  ;  near  Prestwood,  20 
Aug.  1905 

-  rut/it,   Canest.      On    Betula   verrucosa,    Erhr., 

common,  Alton,  Sept.  1902 


ERIOPHYINAE— continued 

Eriophyfs    thomasi.      On    Thymus    serpyllum,    L., 
Ramshorn,  July,  1903 

—  slmilis,  Nal.     On  Prunus  spinosa,  L.,  Alton,  2 1 

July,  1904;  Denstone,  n  Aug.  1905 

—  tctanothrix  laevis,  Nal.     On  Salix  caprea,  L., 

Alton,  Aug.  1903 


PHYLLOCOPTINAE 

Pbyllocoptes  acericola,  Nal.  On  Acer  pseudo- 
platanus,  L.,  Dimmingsdale,  24  Sept. 
1902 

—  arianus,  Nal.     On  leaves   of  Pyrus  aria,  Erhr., 

Belmont  Woods,  22  July,  1905 

—  fraxini,  Nal.     On  Fraxinus  excelsior,  L.,  Alton, 

Aug.  1903  ;  Belmont,  22  July;  Rudyard,  25 
July  ;  near  Foxt,  31  July,  1905 


124 


CRUSTACEANS 


In  maritime  counties  this  branch  of  our  fauna  forces  itself  upon  the  attention  of  the  most 
unobservant.  In  many  inland  districts,  on  the  other  hand,  the  keenest  students  of  natural 
history  have  suffered  it  to  lie  in  absolute  neglect.  Staffordshire,  therefore,  is  rather  exception- 
ally fortunate  in  having  been  long  exempt  from  this  indifference.  The  earlier  notices,  it  is 
true,  have  their  scientific  interest  suffused  with  an  antiquarian  glamour.  At  many  points  also 
they  attest  the  presence  of  crustaceans  in  the  bogs  and  streams  of  the  county  by  implication 
rather  than  by  express  mention  of  any  particular  genera  and  species.  Amongst  these  remote 
authorities  The  Natural  History  of  Staffordshire,  by  Robert  Plot,  LL.D.,  Keeper  of  the 
Ashmolean  Museum  and  professor  of  chemistry  in  the  University  of  Oxford,  has  the  first 
claim  on  our  consideration.  For  a  predominantly  aquatic  group  of  animals  we  must  welcome 
Plot's  quaint  conclusion  in  dealing  with  the  hydrography  of  the  shire  : — 

All  which  summ'd  up  together,  we  find  at  the  foot  of  the  account,  that  it  is  water'd  with  no 
less  than  24  Rivers  of  name,  though  a  Mediterranean  county  ;  besides  the  endless  number  of 
anonymous  RinJles  and  small  brooks  that  must  needs  attend  them  ;  a  number  perhaps  that  very 
few  Countries  of  the  like  extent  can  be  found  to  surpass,  if  any  that  equals  it.1 

It  is,  in  fact,  in  anonymous  rindles  and  small  pools  that  some  species  of  Entomostraca  are  most 
surely  obtained.  For  direct  record,  however,  of  any  crustacean,  Plot  must  be  consulted  in  a 
part  of  his  work  which,  with  our  modern  views  of  classification,  would  be  thought  very  unlikely 
to  supply  it.  The  heading  'Of  Brutes'  to  the  chapter  in  question  is  more  concise  than  dis- 
criminating. '  Under  the  title  of  Brute!,'  he  says,  '  I  comprehend  (as  in  Oxfordshire)  all 
Animals  whatever  that  have  sense  and  locomotion,  except  the  rational,  whether  they  are  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Air,  Water,  or  Earth,  such  as  Birds,  Insects,  Fishes,  Reptiles,  and  Quadrupeds.''  * 
A  long  period  indeed  elapsed  before  either  popular  or  scientific  opinion  effectively  disentangled 
Crustacea  from  the  insects  and  fishes  of  this  miscellaneous  host.  After  a  discussion  of  the 
burbot  or  birdbolt,  sometimes  called  the  nonsuch  because  of  its  rarity,  and  provisionally  identified 
with  Mustela  Jluviatilis,  Plot  remarks  : — 

But  though  I  heard  only  of  this  single  fish  that  I  think  undescribed  (for  that  there  are  a  sort  of 
Crevices  in  the  stream  that  passes  by  Overend  and  Longdon,  that  will  not  boile  red,  is  only 
accidental,  as  was  shown  before  in  Oxfordshire)  yet  I  was  informed  of  divers  very  unusual 
observations,  concerning  scaled,  as  well  as  smooth  fish.3 

The  crevices  mentioned  in  the  queer  parenthesis  are  obviously  the  common  river  crayfish, 
properly  called  Potamobius  pallipcs  (Lereboullet).  In  his  next  section  Plot  says  :  — 

There  are  other  fish,  too,  both  of  the  scaled  and  shell'd  kinds,  that  will  live  and  breed  in 
places  very  uncommon  to  their  species,  thus  Gudgeons  and  Crevices  live  well  and  breed  in  the 
pooles  at  Bentley  and  thrive  to  a  just  magnitude,  but  then  these  ponds  are  always  fedd  with 
Springs. 

In  the  distinction  between  scaled  fishes  on  the  one  hand  and  smooth  or  shelled  fishes  on  the  other, 
there  seems  to  be  a  glimmering  of  suspicion  that,  though  the  crevice  with  its  polished  coat  was 
just  as  much  a  fish  as  the  barbel  and  the  carp,  it  was  still  a  fish  with  a  difference.  That  the 
Entomostraca  parasitic  on  carp  and  other  freshwater  fishes  did  not  attract  Plot's  attention  is  a 
definite  loss,  as  we  are  left  without  any  of  the  unusual  observations  upon  them  which  he  might 
otherwise  have  reported.  He  discusses  at  much  length  the  brine-pits  of  Staffordshire,  but  takes 
no  notice  of  the  so-called  brine-worm,  Artemia  salina  (Linn.),  once  so  abundant  at  Lymington, 

1  Op.  cit.  chap.  2,  §  21,  p.  43  (1686).  *  Ibid.  chap.  7,  p.  228. 

3  Ibid.  §  29,  p.  241. 

125 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

in  Hampshire.  It  may  reasonably  be  inferred  from  Plot's  silence  on  the  subject  that  this 
interesting  phyllopod  did  not  occur  in  Staffordshire. 

An  interval  of  more  than  a  hundred  years  brings  us  to  the  publication  of  another  important 
work,  The  History  and  Antiquities  of  Staffordshire,  by  the  Rev.  Stebbing  Shaw,  B.D.,  F.A.S., 
and  fellow  of  Queens'  College,  Cambridge.  Although  this  intervening  period  includes  the 
birth  and  death  of  Linnaeus,  and  great  strides  in  carcinology,  due  to  such  men  as  Pallas, 
J.  C.  Fabricius,  and  Herbst,  it  cannot  be  said  that  Mr.  Shaw's  work  betrays  any  acquaintance 
with  the  progress  made  in  this  branch  of  science.  Only  a  single  passage  from  his  two  folio 
volumes,  other  than  quotations  from  Plot,  has  any  direct  bearing  on  our  subject.  In  the 
account  of  Mavesyn  Ridware  (proper),  when  describing  the  fishery  within  Armitage  and 
Handsacre,  he  explains  that  there  the  River  Trent  is  not  navigable,  adding, 

and  perhaps  within  the  boundaries  of  this  fishery  there  is  an  unusual  number  of  deeps  and 
shallows,  so  necessary  to  the  different  tribes  with  which  it  is  plentifully  stored.  The  best  sorts 
are  pike,  perch,  greyling,  eel,  gudgeon,  and  crawfish  in  plenty  ;  more  rare  are  trout  and  burbot  ; 
of  tench  3  or  4  in  a  year  ;  carp  very  rare  ;  and  within  memory  a  brace  or  two  of  salmon  ;  but 
these  were  white  and  out  of  season.  Of  the  coarse  sorts,  barbel  and  chub  may  be  seen  in  large 
shoals.4 

The  crayfish,  it  will  be  observed,  is  here  still  counted  as  a  fish.  To  this  day  apparently  the 
spelling  and  pronunciation  of  the  name  varies  without  rule  in  different  parts  of  England  between 
crayfish  and  crawfish.  As  a  matter  of  convenience  the  latter  should  be  restricted  to  the  marine 
Palinurus,  sometimes  called  the  spiny  lobster,  leaving  the  term  crayfish  to  the  river  species. 
Shaw's  work  contains  a  long  catalogue  of  plants  by  Samuel  Dickenson,  LL.B.,  rector  of 
BIymhill,  Staffordshire,  ending  with  'Utricularia  vulgaris — hooded  water-milfoile.  Bogs.  In 
a  bog  near  BIymhill.'  6  Just  as  the  names  of  fishes  are  an  indirect  testimony  to  the  occurrence 
of  various  Entomostraca  known  to  be  commonly  parasitic  upon  them,  so  the  names  of  various 
water-plants  in  Mr.  Dickenson 's  list  are  a  guarantee  that  a  large  assemblage  of  Cladocera  and 
Copepoda,  which  almost  invariably  accompany  these  plants,  will  not  be  found  wanting  to  the 
waters  of  the  county. 

From  the  life  of  the  celebrated  entomologist  and  palaeographer,  John  Obadiah  Westwood, 
it  appears  that  he  was  born  in  Sheffield  in  1805,  and  at  first  educated  there,  but  afterwards  at 
a  school  in  Lichfield,  whither  the  family  had  removed.6  Professor  Westwood,  as  is  well 
known,  made  his  mark  in  carcinology  as  well  as  in  other  departments  of  learning,  and  in  this 
respect  it  is  interesting  to  trace  his  connexion  with  this  county.  In  the  British  Cyclopaedia  of 
Natural  History,  by  Charles  Partington,  Westwood  wrote  sundry  articles  on  Crustacea,  one 
of  which  contains  the  following  passages : — '  Cray  fish.  A  crustaceous  animal,  belonging 
to  the  order  Decapods  and  section  Macroura,  and  forming  the  genus  Potamobius  of  Leach, 
although  Desmarets  and  others  unite  it  with  the  lobster  in  the  genus  Astacus.'  Further 
on  he  says  : — 

They  are  caught  by  sinking  a  net,  or  spiny  faggots,  in  the  middle  of  which  a  piece  of 
putrid  meat  is  placed.  We  well  remember  the  delight  with  which  in  our  schoolboy  days  we 
would  escape  from  the  trammels  of  Bonnycastle  and  Virgil,  and  go  groping,  with  our  shirt  sleeves 
tucked  up,  in  the  holes  in  brooks  where  the  crayfish  were  met  with,  and  can  therefore  speak  from 
experience  of  the  sharpness  of  the  bite  they  can  inflict  with  their  claws.7 

As  Bonnycastle  and  Virgil  must  have  been  concerned  with  his  later  schooldays,  it  is  fair  to 
conclude  that  the  youthful  Westwood  was  nipped  by  the  chelipeds  of  Staffordshire  crayfish. 
His  determination  of  the  generic  name  should  not  be  overlooked. 

A  few  years  later  The  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,  by  Robert  Garner,  F.L.S., 
considerably  enlarges  our  outlook.  Under  the  heading  '  Crustacea,'  Mr.  Garner  supplies  the 
following  information  : — 

The  animals  composing  the  Crustacea  are  very  beautiful  ;  most  of  them  inhabit  salt  water, 
many,  however,  fresh,  and  of  these  some  are  interesting. 

Argulus  foRaceus. — Very  common  on  the  stickleback  ;  most  of  which  little  fish,  in  our  canals, 
we  have  noticed  to  be  affected  with  this  parasite.  The  Argulus  is  very  curious,  and  adheres  to 
the  fish  by  two  round  suckers,  generally  about  the  head,  or  to  the  side  ;  when  detached  it  swims 
beautifully. 

'  Op.  cit.  (1798),  vol.  i,  pp.  1 88,  189.  5  Ibid.  pp.  97-115. 

6  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.,  Art.  '  Westwood.'  '  Op.  cit.  (1836),  vol.  ii,  p.  187. 

126 


CRUSTACEANS 

Astacus  communis. — Crawfish.  Abundant  in  clear  streams.  This  will  live  long  out  of  water, 
but  a  short  time  if  placed  in  water  from  a  pond  or  well. 

Gammarus  Pulex. — Fresh-water  shrimp.  Common  :  this  is  by  no  means  a  test  of  the  purity 
of  water,  as  has  been  said  ;  I  find  it  in  muddy  brooks,  as  well  as  in  fountains. 

Asellus  vulgaris. — Common  with  the  preceding. 

Cyclops  vulgaris. — This  and  the  following  are  very  minute,  and  both  may  be  seen  in  water 
from  most  streams  or  ponds. 

Dapknia  Pulex? 
The  following  are  terrestrial  : — 

Oniscus  Asellus. — Common  ;  congregated  under  stones,  &c. 

PorcelRo  scaber. — Abundant  in  decayed  wood  ;  Swinnerton  Park. 

Armadillo  vulgaris. — Under  stones,  &c.     Cheshire  cavern.' 

By  the  designation  Astacui  communis  the  river  crayfish  is  evidently  intended.  The  intima- 
tion that  it  will  live  longer  out  of  water  than  in  water  from  a  pond  or  well  is  probably  based  on 
the  amphibious  habits  of  this  animal.  Those  who  try  to  domesticate  it,  often  no  doubt  with 
the  kindest  intentions,  plunge  it  into  a  bowl  or  other  aquarium  so  plentifully  supplied  with 
water  that  the  creature  is  soon  practically  drowned.  Since  it  is  not  adapted  for  climbing  steep 
and  slippery  walls  of  glass  or  earthenware,  the  depth  of  liquid  in  its  prison  should  be  only 
between  one  and  two  inches,  to  give  it  the  same  chance  which  it  has  in  its  native  haunts  of 
changing  from  aquatic  to  aerial  surroundings.  Other  comments  on  Mr.  Garner's  records  may 
be  reserved  till  after  the  introduction  of  a  still  later  and  fuller  authority  covering  much  the 
same  ground,  but  with  additional  knowledge  and  more  regard  for  scientific  classification.  The 
work  in  question  is  The  Natural  History  of  Tutbitry,  by  Sir  Oswald  Mosley,  bart.,  D.C.L., 
F.L.S.,  together  with  the  Fauna  and  Flora  of  the  district  surrounding  Tutbury  and  Burton-on- 
Trent,  by  Edward  Brown,  with  an  appendix.  This  local  fauna  contains  the  following 
notices  : — 

Sub-class     Crustacea  : — 

Order    Podophthalma.        Tribe    Decapoda     Macroura. 

Family  Astacidea. — Astacus  Jiuviatills  (Fabr.).  The  Common  Crayfish.  This  diminutive 
freshwater  lobster  is  found  abundantly  in  the  Dove,  in  which  stream  it  is  easily  captured  by 
means  of  basket  traps  baited  with  bullock's  liver.  It  is  valued  as  an  ornamental  garnish  for 
dishes,  as  well  as  for  its  own  edible  properties.  It  is  found  occasionally  in  the  Wimshill  Brook, 
a  small  stream  that  runs  into  the  Trent,  but  I  have  never  known  it  to  be  taken  from  that  river 
itself. 
Order  Edriophthalma.  Tribe  Amphipoda. 

Family     Gammaridae.  —  Gammarus    pulex    (Fabr.).      The    Freshwater    Shrimp.       Very 
abundant  in  the  Trent.     It  is  an  interesting  species  to  keep  in  an  aquarium,  owing  to  its  lively 
and  eccentric  movements 
Tribe  Isopoda. 

Family  Asellidae. — Asellus  vulgaris  (Latr.).  The  Freshwater  Asellus.  Exceedingly 
numerous  in  the  Trent,  where  it  abounds  together  with  the  last-mentioned  species,  more 
especially  in  the  beds  of  Anacharis  alslnastrum.  It  is  probably  to  be  found  in  all  the  running 
streams  of  the  district.10  Oniscus  ascllus  (Linn.).  The  Wood  Louse.  Very  common  under- 
neath stones  and  rotten  wood.  A  large  light-coloured  form,  occurring  underneath  stones  at 
Dovedale,  is  probably  a  distinct  species. 

Family   Porcellionidae. — Porcellio   scaber   (Latr.).     The  Scabrous  Wood  Louse  ;    Sclater  or 
Slater.     Common  in  similar   situations  with  the  last.     Armadillo   vulgaris  (Latr.).      The   Lesser 
Pill  Millepede.      Common  amongst  moss  and  underneath  stones. 
Order    Poecilopoda. 

Family  Argulidae. — Argulus  foliaceus  (Jurine).  The  Fish  Louse.  Found  sometimes  para- 
sitic upon  freshwater  fishes  in  ponds.  Daphnia  pulex  (Latr.).  The  Water  Flea.  Common 
in  stagnant  and  slowly-running  water.  Daphnia  vetula  (Straus).  The  Blunt-headed  Water 
Flea.  Common  in  similar  situations  with  the  last.  The  bivalve  shells  of  some  species  of 
Daphnia  occur  in  the  peat  bed  at  Burton-on-Trent. 

Family  Lynceidae. — Several  undetermined  species  of  the  genera  Euryanus  and  Chydorus 
are  common  in  stagnant  water. 

Family  Cypridae. — Species  of  the  genera  Cyfrit  and  Candona  are  abundant  in  ditches. 
The  minute  shell-cases  of  these  little  animals  are  very "  indestructible  in  their  nature.  A 
species  of  Cypris  or  Cythere  occurs  in  a  fossil  state  abundantly  in  the  shales  beneath  the  Wood- 
field  seam  of  coal  at  Newhall  and  Swadlincote. 

8  Op.  cit.  (1844),  p.  329.  '  Ibid.  p.  330. 

"  Ibid.  (1863),  p.  130.  "  Ibid.  p.  131. 

127 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Family  Cyclopidac. — Cyclops   quadricornis  (Mtlll.).     The  Four-horned   Cyclops   or  Lesser 
Water  Flea.     This  species  swarms  in  water  that  is  at  all  stagnant.     I  have  known  it  to  make  its 
appearance  in  an  elevated  roof  water-cistern  a  very  few  months  after  the  cistern  had  been  made. 
The  eggs  must,  apparently,  have  been  conveyed  to  the  roof  either  by  rain  or  wind. 
Order  Rotifera. 

This  order,  which  consists  of  interesting  microscopic  forms  of  life,  has  generally  been 
classed  with  the  Infusoria  :  but  the  organization  of  the  Rotifera  shows  clearly  they  naturally  be- 
long to  the  Crustacea,  and  that  they  follow  the  Entomostraca  in  a  lineal  series.  The  species  of 
this  order  are  not  numerous  in  the  district,  but  Rotifer  vulgaris  (Ehr.),  the  Common  Wheel 
Animalcule,  is  very  abundant  in  the  dirt  that  accumulates  in  spouts  and  in  roof-gutters,  and  it 
is  a  most  pleasing  object  for  the  microscope." 

So  full  and  intelligent  an  account  of  the  Crustacea  is  quite  exceptional  in  the  faunistic 
catalogues  of  inland  districts  at  the  date  when  the  above  report  by  Mr.  Edward  Brown  was 
published.  That  it  should  now  in  some  points  be  open  to  criticism  is  in  no  way  a  reproach, 
but  the  natural  consequence  of  such  progress  as  science  has  happily  been  making  in  the 
interval.  Thus,  to  begin  with,  the  systematic  position  of  the  rotifers,  as  at  present  accepted, 
while  ranking  them  far  above  infusorians,  by  no  means  gives  them  admission  into  the  class 
with  which  we  are  here  dealing.  There  is  a  vast  group  or  phylum  of  animals  to  which 
Sir  E.  Ray  Lankester  has  applied  the  term  Appendiculata,  because  their  more  or  less 
segmented  bodies  are  capable  of  bearing  on  each  body-segment  a  pair  of  hollow  lateral  append- 
ages or  parapodia  moved  by  intrinsic  muscles  and  penetrated  by  blood-spaces.  The  phylum  is 
divided  into  three  sub-phyla,  respectively  called  Rotifera,  Chaetopoda,  Arthropoda.  See- 
ing that  the  Chaetopods  or  true  worms  are  interposed  between  the  first  of  these  groups  and  the 
Arthropoda,  with  jointed  legs,  to  which  the  crustaceans  and  other  important  classes  belong, 
the  relationship  between  a  rotifer  and  a  shrimp  is  evidently  very  remote.  In  the  general 
history  of  animals  this  relationship  is  not  to  be  disregarded,  but  it  will  not  justify  the  inclusion 
of  creatures  so  very  distinct  in  one  and  the  same  class. 

The  genera  and  species  mentioned  by  Mr.  Garner  and  Mr.  Brown  are  not  very 
numerous,  compared  with  the  whole  number  which  will  beyond  doubt  be  eventually  found 
within  the  waters  of  Staffordshire.  But  few  as  they  are,  they  fortunately  spread  themselves 
over  most  of  the  chief  sections  of  the  class  likely  to  be  represented  in  the  district.  Any  one, 
therefore,  who  made  himself  acquainted  with  these  examples  alone  would  lay  the  foundation 
for  a  very  complete  mastery  of  the  whole  subject.  He  would  have  to  do,  however,  only  with 
two  of  the  sub-classes,  the  Malacostraca  and  Entomostraca,  and  in  the  former  he  would  make 
no  intimacy  with  the  stalk-eyed,  ten-footed,  short-tailed,  true  crabs,  the  Brachyura.  This 
highly  organized  group  might  be  inclined,  after  Dr.  Plot's  example,  to  lump  together  almost 
all  other  crustaceans  as  being  in  comparison  with  their  own  intelligent  selves  mere  brutes.  In 
the  tropics  they  have  indeed  some  worthy  competitors  among  the  Macrura  anomala.  But 
none  of  the  specially  gifted  land  crustaceans  have  been  attracted  to  our  uncertain  climate.  In 
the  central  parts  of  England  the  highest  representative  of  the  class  is  the  podophthalmous, 
macruran  decapod,  already  often  mentioned,  Potamobitu  pallipes.  This  is  included  with  the 
lobster  in  the  tribe  Astacidea,  but  belongs  to  a  separate  family,  the  Potamobiidae.  As  being 
podophthalmous  the  river  crayfish  shares  with  an  endless  variety  of  crabs,  lobsters,  prawns,  and 
shrimps,  the  peculiarity  of  having  its  eyes  on  movable  stalks  or  peduncles.  The  theory  is  that 
the  organs  of  vision  have  been  developed  on  the  pair  of  appendages  pertaining  to  the  first  body- 
segment,  although  in  almost  all  cases  the  segment  itself  has  become  immovably  fused  with  the 
segment  behind  it.  Also  in  common  with  the  animals  classified  in  popular  speech  under  the 
four  names  above  given,  the  crayfish  is  a  decapod.  Its  ten  feet  are  distributed  in  pairs  to  the 
body-segments  numbered  from  the  tenth  to  the  fourteenth.  The  Malacostracan  body  is 
composed  of  twenty-one  segments,  each  of  them,  with  doubtful  exception  of  the  last,  being 
endowed  actually  or  potentially  with  a  pair  of  appendages.  More  or  fewer  of  these  are  called 
feet,  according  as  they  show  more  or  less  plainly  an  analogy  with  the  legs  and  arms  of  verte- 
brate animals.  From  crabs  the  crayfish  is  separated  by  being  macrurous  or  long-tailed.  Yet 
in  both  the  tail  or  pleon  consists  of  the  last  seven  body-segments,  from  the  fifteenth  to  the 
twenty-first.  But  somehow,  apart  from  the  question  of  length  or  shortness,  an  additional 
distinction  has  arisen,  that,  while  in  the  genuine  Macrura  the  last  segment  but  one  always 
carries  a  pair  of  appendages,  this  pair  is  always  wanting  in  the  genuine  Brachyura. 

The  drop  in  dignity  is  rather  abrupt  from  the  only  stalk-eyed  decapod  which  our  inland 
counties  possess  to  the  Edriophthalma  tetradecapoda,  or  sessile-eyed,  fourteen-footed  Malacos- 

11  Op.  cit.  (1863),  p.  132. 
128 


CRUSTACEANS 

tracans.  The  latter  are  so  insignificant  in  size  compared  with  the  crayfish,  and  differ  from  it 
so  much  in  general  appearance  as  well  as  in  some  obvious  details  of  structure,  that  an  unin- 
structed  observer  would  be  little  likely  to  suspect  their  near  relationship.  To  Gammarus  pulex 
(de  Geer),  so  widely  distributed  and  so  abundant  in  our  brooks  and  ponds,  both  Garner  and 
Brown  give  the  vernacular  name  of  freshwater  shrimp.  Adam  White,  on  the  other  hand,  in 
his  Popular  History  of  British  Crustacea,  calls  it  the  '  freshwater  screw.' 13  In  his  general 
survey  he  had  other  uses  for  the  term  '  shrimp,'  which  precluded  his  applying  it  to  any  sessile- 
eyed  species.  The  shrimp  or  shrimps  of  commerce,  some  of  which  can  live  in  fresh  water 
are  Macrura  decapoda  like  the  crayfish.  But  G.  pulex,  besides  having  no  ocular  peduncles,  has 
seven  pairs  of  leg-like  appendages,  beginning  with  the  eighth  instead  of  the  tenth  body-segment. 
Nevertheless  these  striking  differences  do  not  outweigh  its  other  shrimp-like  affinities.  The 
eyes,  it  is  true,  being  seated  in  the  head,  give  no  direct  evidence  of  the  initial  segment,  but  the 
second  and  third  segments  in  front  of  the  mouth  are  attested  by  the  two  pairs  of  antennae,  a 
true  crustacean  characteristic,  while  at  and  behind  the  mouth  we  find  in  true  malacostracan 
sequence  the  mandibles,  two  pairs  of  maxillae,  and  one  pair  of  maxillipeds.  The  difference 
which  then  presents  itself  is  far  less  schismatical  than  might  at  first  be  supposed.  In  the 
higher  groups  the  eighth  and  ninth  pairs  of  appendages  are  definitely  organs  of  the  mouth, 
known  as  second  and  third  maxillipeds.  These  pairs  in  the  lower  groups  are  concerned  more 
in  grasping  the  food  than  in  mincing  it  up.  They  are  called  gnathopods,  a  name  which  can- 
not well  be  distinguished  by  interpretation  from  maxillipeds,  the  implication  being  in  each 
case  that  the  appendages  in  question  are  either  legs  that  have  made  themselves  useful  as  jaws 
or  jaws  that  have  made  themselves  useful  as  legs.  In  the  family  Gammaridae,  of  which 
G.  pulex  is  an  excellent  representative,  the  nearly  related  genera  Niphargus  and  Crangonyx 
contain  species  which  from  their  habitat  have  received  the  common  designation  of  well- 
shrimps.  It  remains  to  be  seen  whether  the  wells  of  Staffordshire  will,  like  those  of  some 
neighbouring  counties,  yield  any  of  these  exceptionally  interesting  and  rather  rarely-seen, 
forms. 

Like  the  Amphipoda  just  described  the  Isopoda  are  sessile-eyed.  They  have,  too,  the 
same  disposition  of  the  mouth-organs,  followed  by  the  legs  in  seven  pairs.  In  both  orders 
alike  the  cephalothoracic  shield  or  carapace  is  only  produced  to  cover  the  maxillipeds,  not  as  in 
the  Brachyura  and  Macrura  extended  to  the  fourteenth  segment  of  the  body.  A  rather  start- 
ling difference,  however,  sets  the  two  orders  somewhat  widely  apart.  For,  whereas  the 
breathing  organs  of  the  Amphipoda  are,  like  those  of  the  crayfish,  all  in  front  of  the  pleon,  all 
those  of  the  genuine  Isopoda  are  within  it.  To  counterbalance  such  separative  distinctions 
among  the  malacostracan  orders,  it  may  be  noticed  as  a  unifying  character  that  all  along  the 
line  the  sexual  openings  of  the  female  belong  to  the  twelfth  body-segment,  and  those  of  the 
male  to  the  fourteenth.  Of  freshwater  isopods  our  Mediterranean  counties,  as  Plot  calls  them, 
have  only  one  species,  the  proper  name  of  which  is,  not  Asellus  vulgaris  (Latreille),  but  Asellus 
aquaticus  (Linn.).  It  has  as  much  or  as  little  right  as  Gammarus  pulex  to  be  called  the  fresh- 
water shrimp.  To  call  it,  as  Brown  does,  the  freshwater  Asellus,  is  not  much  to  the  purpose, 
because  in  this  genus,  established  by  Geoffroy  in  1762,  all  the  species  belong  exclusively  to 
fresh  water.  It  may  also  be  thought  superfluous  to  have  the  typical  species  named  aquaticus, 
since  none  of  the  species  are  other  than  aquatic.  But  the  explanation  is  found  when  we  look 
a  little  further  back  into  its  scientific  history.  Linnaeus  regarded  it  as  belonging  to  the  old 
comprehensive  genus  Oniscus,  which  at  one  time  included  all  the  terrestrial  isopods,  so  that  a 
species  found  constantly  in  water  and  nowhere  else  could  naturally  be  distinguished  as  a  water- 
dwelling  Oniscus.  Again,  among  the  land-dwelling  species  Oniscus  asellus,  Linn.,  was  the  most 
familiar,  so  that  Geoffroy,  when  separating  the  aquatic  species  from  its  sub-aerial  companions, 
may  have  thought  it  well  to  preserve  a  memory  of  the  old  connexion  by  taking  Asellus 
as  the  name  of  his  new  genus.  The  differences  between  the  two  species  which  are 
thus  partially  namesakes  are  now  recognized  as  very  considerable,  with  the  result  that  Asellus 
aquaticus  is  allotted  to  a  family  Asellidae  in  the  tribe  Asellota,  while  Oniscus  asellus  stands  in  a 
family  Oniscidae  in  the  tribe  Oniscidea.  Concerning  the  large  light-coloured  form  to  which 
Mr.  Brown  alludes  as  possibly  deserving  to  be  specifically  distinguished  from  the  last-named 
species,  the  caution  may  be  expressed  that  in  some  of  our  common  land  isopods  variations  of 
colour  appear  without  affecting  their  other  characteristics.  This  is  eminently  true  of  the  next 
species,  Porcellio  scaber,  Latreille.  It  belongs  to  the  same  family  as  the  Oniscus,  is  nearly  its 
equal  in  size,  and  perhaps  fully  its  equal  in  abundance.  It  is  rather  narrower  in  shape  and 

"Op.  cit.  (1857),  p.  184. 
I  129  17 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

has  a  rougher  surface.  The  flagellum  or  slender  lash-like  part  of  its  second  antennae  is 
divided  into  only  two  joints  instead  of  three,  and  the  first  two  pairs  of  pleopods,  appendages  of 
the  first  and  second  pleon-segments,  are  furnished  with  pseudo-tracheae,  aids  to  aerial  respira- 
tion which  are  wanting  in  Oniscus.  The  third  species  of  this  tribe  in  Mr.  Brown's  catalogue 
should  be  called  Armadillidium  vulgare  (Latreille).  It  belongs  to  a  separate  family,  Armadilli- 
diidae.  Its  antennae  and  pleopods  have  the  characters  above  mentioned  as  pertaining  to 
P.  scaber,  but  among  marks  distinguishing  it  from  that  species  are  the  globular  form  into  which 
the  body  can  be  composed,  and  the  structure  of  the  uropods  or  last  pair  of  appendages,  which 
have  the  outer  branch  laminar  instead  of  cylindrical.  The  vernacular  names,  wood  louse, 
scabrous  wood  louse  or  slater,  and  lesser  pill  millepede  are  of  old  standing  and  will  not  perhaps 
easily  be  dislodged,  but  they  conceal  the  true  position  of  these  animals  in  the  system  of  nature. 
By  calling  them  woodland  shrimps  or  garden  shrimps  we  at  least  run  a  happy  risk  of  bringing 
home  to  the  unscientific  understanding  the  fact  that  they  are  true  crustaceans.  The  last  of 
the  three  might  better  be  called  in  English  the  pill  shrimp  than  the  pill  millepede.  It  is  pro- 
perly distinguished  by  Mr.  Brown  from  Glomeris  marginata,  Olivier,  the  greater  pill  millepede,14 
which  really  is  not  a  crustacean,  but  a  species  of  the  family  Glomeridae,  in  the  order  Diplo- 
poda,  among  the  myriapods.  Armadillidium  vulgare,  with  its  modest  supply  of  fourteen  legs, 
has  no  claim  to  be  noted  as  either  a  lesser  or  a  greater  member  of  that  many-footed 
company. 

The  sub-class  Entomostraca,  divided  into  three  great  sections,  Branchiopoda,  Ostracoda, 
Copepoda,  does  not  display  that  arithmetical  unity  of  body  segmentation  observable  in  the 
Malacostraca.  On  the  contrary,  the  segments  are  sometimes  many  more  than  twenty-one, 
and  sometimes  are  left  almost  entirely  to  the  imagination.  The  family  Argulidae,  which 
Mr.  Brown  assigns  to  the  Poecilopoda,  as  to  an  order  of  equal  rank  with  the  Entomostraca, 
is  now  generally  grouped  with  the  latter.  Its  peculiarities,  however,  still  leave  its  exact  status 
uncertain.  Some  authorities  place  it  among  the  Branchiopoda,  others  among  the  Copepoda. 
In  the  former  section  it  has  to  be  distinguished  from  the  Phyllopoda  and  Cladocera  as  an  order 
Branchiura,  or  as  a  sub-order,  if  the  Branchiopoda  are  themselves  regarded  as  an  order.  The 
genus  ArgultU)  O.  F.  Mtlller,  has  the  strange  character  that  its  second  maxillae  are  metamor- 
phosed into  sucker-disks,  by  which  it  can  attach  itself  firmly  to  a  fish,  and  also  march  freely 
over  the  surface  of  its  victim  by  holding  on  with  one  sucker  and  moving  the  other  alternately. 
These  disks  are  a  striking  example  of  the  adaptability  with  which  crustacean  appendages  lend 
themselves  to  varying  circumstances.  The  adhesive  apparatus  in  the  Argulidae,  however, 
is  not  always  or  entirely  dependent  on  the  method  of  suction,  but  is  always  partially  and 
sometimes  wholly  contrived  by  hook  and  by  crook.  In  any  case  the  adhesion  is  intended  to 
subserve  another  kind  of  suction,  effected  by  the  siphon  or  mouth-tube,  in  the  structure  of 
which  the  lips,  mandibles,  and  first  maxillae  take  part.  An  unpaired  venomous  sting  may  or 
may  not  be  present.  Argulus  foliaceus  (Linn.),  sometimes  called  the  carp-louse,  is  a  very 
indiscriminate  feeder,  attaching  itself  not  only  to  carp  and  sticklebacks,  but  to  several  other 
freshwater  fishes,  and  even  to  tadpoles.  It  is  a  powerful  swimmer.  If  it  is  to  be  classed  with 
the  parasitic  Copepoda,  it  markedly  differs  from  that  group  in  general  in  that  the  females  do 
not  carry  their  eggs  about  with  them  after  extrusion,  but  deposit  them  on  some  extraneous 
substance. 

Records  of  Phyllopoda  arc  for  the  moment  wanting  in  this  county.  The  Cladocera 
have  received  more  attention.  For  though  Mr.  Brown's  examples  are  for  the  most  part  very 
vague,  a  welcome  contribution  to  this  branch  of  our  subject  was  supplied  in  1895  in  the 
Synopsis  of  the  British  Cladocera  1§  by  Mr.  T.  V.  Hodgson,  a  gentleman  since  distinguished  as 
biologist  to  the  National  Antarctic  Expedition  on  the  'Discovery.'  In  the  same  year  was 
published  the  first  part  of  a  classical  work  on  this  group,  entitled  Revision  des  Cladaceres,  by 
Jules  Richard.16  M.  Richard  defines  the  Cladocera  as 

small  free  Entomostraca,  with  distinct  head,  the  rest  of  the  body  usually  compressed  from  side  to 
side,  and  enclosed  in  a  two-valved  carapace  ;  the  antennae  of  the  second  pair  two-branched,  each 
branch  carrying  setae,  and  composed  of  only  two  to  four  joints  ;  the  mandibles  altogether  devoid 
of  palps  ;  the  pairs  of  feet  four  to  six  in  number,  of  which  usually  the  majority  or  all  are 
foliaceous,  lobate  ;  the  eye  single." 

11  Nat.  Hist.  Tutbury,  p.  137. 

11  Jount.  Birmingham  Nat.  Hist,  and  Phil.  Soc.  101.  , 

"  Ann.  Sci.  Nat.  Zoo/,  (ser.  7),  vol.  xviii,  p.  279,  continued  in  (ser.  8)  vol.  ii,  p.  187  (1896). 

"  Op.  cit.  304. 

I30 


CRUSTACEANS 

Unlike  most  crustaceans,  the  Cladocera  swim  by  means  of  the  branching  second  antennae,  to 
which  the  name  of  the  group  refers.  Another  comparatively  uncommon  feature,  uncommon 
at  least  as  affecting  adult  life,  is  the  extreme  transparency  of  the  test  or  carapace  which  covers 
without  concealing  the  details  of  the  organism.  There  are  two  sections  of  the  group,  each 
divided  into  two  subsections,  but  as  it  happens  all  the  species  as  yet  definitely  recorded  from  this 
county  belong  to  one  and  the  same  subsection.  In  the  section  Calyptomera,  the  feet  and 
body  of  the  animal  are  well  covered  by  the  carapace.  In  the  subsection  Anomopoda,  instead 
of  six  pairs  of  feet  all  alike  foliaceous,  branchial,  and  non-prehensile,  there  are  five  or  six  pairs, 
of  which  the  two  anterior  are  more  or  less  prehensile,  not  branchial  and  foliaceous,  and  differing 
from  the  hinder  pairs.  -  This  sub-section  includes  the  majority  of  the  Cladocera  in  general,  and 
among  them  that  which  is  most  widely  known,  Daphnia  pulex  (de  Geer).  The  familiarity 
which  breeds  contempt  allows  men  to  speak  and  write  of  this  innocent  crustacean  as  'the  water 
flea.'  That  either  Mr.  Garner  or  Mr.  Brown  observed  the  true  D.  pulex  in  this  county,  it  is 
impossible  to  guarantee.  Within  the  genus  Daphne  or  Daphnia  there  are  many  species  and 
varieties  which  only  experts  laboriously  distinguish.  That  the  family  Daphniidae  is  here 
really  represented  may  be  trusted  from  the  mention  of  Daphnia  vetula  (Straus)  as  the  blunt- 
headed  water  flea.  But  this  species  dates  back  further  than  Straus  to  O.  F.  Muller,  and  at  a 
later  date  became  the  type  of  Schodler's  genus  Simocephalus,  so  named  because  the  head  is 
obtuse  at  the  top  instead  of  keeled,  as  in  Daphnia.  The  new  generic  name,  however,  was 
preoccupied,  and  has  recently  been  changed  by  Dr.  Norman  to  Simosa.  Two  other  members 
of  the  same  family  have  been  found  by  Mr.  Hodgson  in  Staffordshire,  namely,  Scapholeberis 
mucronata  (O.F.M.)  at  Kingswood,  and  Moina  rectirostris  (Jurine)  in  a  horsepond  near  Harborne.18 
The  last  genus  is  distinguished  from  the  other  three  by  not  having  a  distinct  rostrum,  and  by 
having  the  first  antennae  of  the  female  long  and  freely  mobile.  In  Daphnia  the  dorsal  and 
ventral  margins  of  the  valves  are  drawn  gradually  together  to  end  in  a  long  or  short  process, 
which  may  be  ventral,  or  inclining  to  dorsal,  but  which  leaves  nothing  that  can  be  clearly 
distinguished  as  a  hind  margin.  In  Scapholeberis,  on  the  other  hand,  the  straight  or  nearly 
straight  ventral  margins  are  produced  into  processes,  the  bases  of  which  are  connected  with  the 
dorsal  edge  by  a  clear  stretch  of  hind  margin.  In  Simosa  the  hind  margin  is  large  and  rounded 
off  at  each  extremity.  Mr.  Hodgson  reports  Ilyoeryptus  sordidus  (Lievin)  from  Kingswood. 
This  mud-loving  species  belongs  to  the  family  Macrotrichidae,  in  which  long  and  mobile  first 
antennae  are  the  rule,  instead  of  the  exception  as  in  the  case  of  Moina  among  the  Daphniidae. 
The  species  with  which  we  are  here  concerned  is  said  to  lead  an  unromantic  existence,  having 
given  up  the  natural  use  of  its  second  antennae  as  swimming  organs,  to  employ  them  only  for 
crawling  over  the  mud  or  burrowing  in  it,  usually  in  a  considerable  depth  of  water.  Under 
the  family  Lynceidae  Mr.  Brown  reports  that  several  undetermined  species  of  the  genera 
Eurycercus  and  Chydorus  are  common  in  stagnant  water.  The  statement  is  partially  redeemed 
from  indefiniteness  by  the  circumstance  that  the  former  genus  is,  so  far  as  known,  represented 
in  England  only  by  a  single  species,  Eurycercus  lamellatus  (O.F.M. ).  Chydorus,  it  is  true,  has 
some  four  or  five  species  recorded  from  the  British  Isles,  but  of  these  C.  sphaericus  (O.F.M.) 
is  considered  to  be  the  commonest  and  most  widely  distributed  of  all  the  Cladocera,  so  that  its 
occurrence  here  may  be  regarded  as  certain.  Alonella  nanus  (Baird)  was  taken  by  Mr.  Hodgson 
at  Kingswood.  For  the  family  containing  these  three  species  the  name  Chydoridae  should  be 
adopted  in  place  of  Lynceidae,  since  the  genus  Lynceus  has  been  shown  to  have  its  systematic 
place  elsewhere.19  A.  nanus  is  said  to  be  the  smallest  Entomostracan  known  at  present.20  It 
may  well  be  called  the  dwarf,  since  the  female  is  only  just  over  and  the  male  is  just  under  one 
hundredth  of  an  inch  in  length.  Chydorus  sphaericus,  however,  in  the  male  sex  is  never  much 
longer.  But  its  female  is  sometimes  twice  as  long,  and  this  in  turn  is  surpassed  in  sevenfold 
degree  by  the  female  of  Eurycercus  lamellatus.  That  species,  therefore,  exhibits  a  veritable 
giant  measuring  nearly  a  sixth  of  an  inch  from  head  to  tail,  and  matching  this  length  by  a 
similarly  unusual  depth  between  the  dorsal  and  ventral  margins. 

Concerning  the  Ostracoda  or  box-entomostracans — which,  unlike  the  Cladocera,  have  no 
distinct  head,  but  are  shut  up  in  their  two  valves  like  little  molluscs — authorities  for  this  county 
supply  no  definite  information.  That  species  of  the  genera  Cypris,  Muller,  and  Candona, 
Baird,  both  belonging  to  the  family  Cyprididae,  '  are  abundant  in  ditches,'  is  a  statement  that 
would  no  doubt  be  applicable  to  all  our  counties. 

18  Synopsis,  p.  in. 

"  TheZool.  (1902),  p.  101. 

*°  Journ.  Quekett  Microsc.  Club  (ser.  2),  vol.  viii,  p.  444  (1903). 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Similarly,  with  regard  to  the  Copepoda  or  oar-footed  Entomostraca,  the  notice  that 
Cyclops  quadricornis,  Mtlller,  of  the  family  Cyclopidae,  occurs  in  stagnant  water,  is  not  very 
instructive.  It  is  uncertain  which  of  several  species  may  be  intended  by  the  name  quadricornis, 
and  the  use  of  it  without  any  explanatory  details  implies  a  rather  superficial  acquaintance  with 
Copepoda  in  general. 

In  1895  Mr.  D.  J.  Scourfield  made  a  guarded  suggestion  that  the  little-known  ento- 
mostracan  fauna  of  Wales  might  eventually  show  some  essential  differences  from  that  of  the 
south-east  of  England,  which  has  been  investigated  with  much  assiduity.31  Should  this  prove 
to  be  so  it  will  be  interesting  to  learn  where  the  line  of  cleavage  or  fusion  between  the 
discrepant  faunas  should  be  drawn,  and  whether  the  rarities  or  distinctive  species  of  east  and 
west  may  chance  to  have  a  common  gathering  place  in  the  waters  of  Staffordshire. 

11  Journ.  Quekett  Microsc.  Club  (ser.  2),  vol.  vi,  137. 


132 


FISHES 


In  compiling  the  following  list  recently  introduced  species,  such  as 
the  American  brook  trout  (Salmo  fontinalis,  Mitch.),  the  rainbow  trout 
(S.  irideus,  Giinther),  etc.,  have  not  been  mentioned,  the  indigenous  and 
long-resident  species  only  being  included.  I  must  here  acknowledge 
my  indebtedness  to  the  lists  of  the  late  Robert  Garner  and  Edwin 
Brown,  the  names  of  these  authorities  being  mentioned  whenever  their 
observations  have  been  quoted.  A  paper  on  '  North  Staffordshire  Fresh- 
water Fish,'  by  Mr.  John  R.  B.  Masefield,  M.A.,  in  the  Annual  Report 
and  'Transactions  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Naturalists'  Field  Club  and 
Archaeological  Society,  vol.  xxviii.,  is  especially  useful  from  containing 
lists  of  localities  which  show  the  distribution  of  the  several  species  in 
the  district  of  which  he  treats. 


TELEOSTEANS 


ACANTHOPTERYGII 

1.  Perch.      Perca fluvlatUis,  Linn. 
Common  throughout  the   county.     Perch 

have  been  taken  in  the  Trent  up  to  4^  Ib. 
in  weight. 

2.  Ruffe  or   Daddy   Ruffe.       Acerina  cernua, 

Linn. 

Common  in  rivers  and  canals. 

3.  Bullhead  or  Miller's  Thumb.      Coitus  gobio, 

Linn. 

Plentiful   in   streams    and   in   rivers  where 
gravel  and  stones  are  found. 

ANACANTHINI 

4.  Burbot  or  Burbolt.      Lota  vulgaris,  Cuv. 

Locally,  Eel  Pout. 

This  curious  and  interesting  fish  is  occa- 
sionally taken  in  the  Trent  and  its  larger 
tributaries  up  to  4  Ib.  in  weight.  It  has 
long  been  known  as  a  Staffordshire  fish, 
having  been  very  quaintly  described  and 
figured  by  Plot  in  his  Natural  History  of 
Staffordshire  (1686).  Plot's  figure  is  a  re- 
duced copy  of  a  picture  drawn  for  Colonel 
Comberford  of  a  specimen  '  taken  in  the 
Tame,  near  Faseley  Bridge,  by  Goody er 
Holt,  a  Free  Mason,  as  he  was  repairing 
it,  August  nth,  1654.'  Plot  recorded  three 
other  instances  of  the  occurrence  of  the 
burbot  in  Staffordshire. 


HEMIBRANCHII 


Gastrosteus 


5.  Three  -  spined     Stickleback. 
aculeatus,   Linn. 

This  little  fish  is  common  in  rivers,  streams 
and  ponds  throughout  the  county,  and  the 
forms,  originally  described  as  distinct  species 
and  now  considered  only  varieties,  known  as 
the  rough-tailed  (G.  trachurus,  Cuv.),  half- 
armed  (G.  semiarmatus,  Cuv.)  and  smooth- 
tailed  sticklebacks  (G.  leuirus,  Cuv.),  are  all 
found  in  the  Trent  and  its  tributaries.  The 
brilliant  colours  assumed  by  the  males  during 
the  breeding  season,  their  pugnacity  and  especi- 
ally their  nest-building,  have  rendered  these 
little  fish  famous,  but  the  nest,  according  to 
my  own  observations,  is  often  a  very  flimsy 
affair,  being  at  times  merely  a  little  heap  of 
Conferva  or  other  weed  through  which  the 
body  of  the  male  has  made  a  tunnel  and 
which  he  jealously  guards.  The  best  example 
however  of  a  stickleback's  nest  which  I  have 
ever  seen  I  found  in  a  pond  in  the  neighbour- 
ing county  of  Leicester.  This  was  a  well- 
built,  roughly  cylindrical  structure  of  roots 
and  small  twigs,  so  well  placed  together  that 
the  whole  did  not  collapse  when  taken  from 
the  water.  In  this  case  the  materials  of  the 
nest  were  not  glued  or  cemented  together  in 
any  way,  and  I  have  never  been  able  to  see 
the  male  engaged  in  strengthening  the  walls 
of  his  house  by  means  of  the  sticky  mucus  he 


133 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


is  said  to  exude  for  this  purpose.1  The  parti- 
cular nest  just  described  resembled  very  greatly 
a  diminutive  copy  of  the  play-bowers  of  the 
Australian  bower-birds,  but  unlike  them  was 
well  roofed  in  above. 

The  large  short-spined  stickleback  (G.  bra- 
chycentrus,  Cuv.),  regarded  by  GUnther  as  a 
separate  species  and  by  White  and  others 
as  a  variety  only  of  G.  acultatus,  has  been 
recorded  from  Stow  Pool  near  Lichfield  by 
Thompson  in  his  Natural  History  of  Ireland. 
In  July,  1 836,  Thompson  obtained  from  Stow 
Pool  the  largest  example  of  this  fish  which 
had  come  under  his  notice,  and  gives  this 
place  as  the  only  English  habitat  known  to 
him.  Up  to  the  present  I  have  not  met  with 
this  fish  myself  in  Staffordshire,  but  have  taken 
it  in  company  with  the  common  stickleback 
in  Leicestershire  and  have  kept  it  in  aquaria. 
Unfortunately  all  my  specimens  proved  to  be 
females,  and  as  they  were  unprovided  with 
nests  the  ova  were  devoured  by  the  other 
sticklebacks  as  soon  as  deposited.  There  is 
little  doubt  but  for  the  solicitude  bestowed 
on  the  developing  eggs  and  young  fry  by  the 
male  fish  the  voracity  of  the  stickleback  would 
long  ago  have  led  to  its  own  annihilation. 

Amongst  the  many  names  by  which  the 
common  stickleback  is  known  locally  are 
robin — applied  to  the  male  in  his  breeding 
dress,  jack-sharp  and  jack-bannock. 

6.  Ten-spined  Stickleback.    Gastrosteus  pungi- 

tius,  Linn. 

Generally  distributed,  but  not  so  abundant 
as  the  common  stickleback.  This  is  more 
slender  in  form  than  the  last-named  and  less 
brilliantly  coloured,  being  olive  green  on  the 
back  and  white  on  the  sides  and  belly.  The 
fins  and  frequently  the  whole  body  are  suf- 
fused with  a  yellowish  tinge.  The  under- 
side is  generally  marked  with  little  black 
spots,  which  in  the  male  predominate  to 
such  a  degree  that  it  is  not  inaptly  called 
the  '  tinker  '  by  boys. 

HAPLOMI 

7.  Pike  or  Jack.     Esox  lucius,  Linn. 
Common  and  of    large  size.      Several  of 

20  Ib.  weight  have  been  taken  near  Burton, 
and  fish  of  30  Ib.  and  over  have  been  re- 
corded from  the  Trent. 

OSTARIOPHYSI 

8.  Carp.      Cyprinw  carpio,  Linn. 

In  the  large  pools  and  ponds  of  the  county 


1    GUnther,  quoting  Coste,  in  Introduction  to  the 
Study  of  Fishes  (1880),  p.  506. 


and  in  the  Trent  carp  of  1 5  (Plot)  and  even 
of  1 9^  Ib.  have  been  recorded  (Garner). 

9.  Crucian  Carp.     Cyprinus  carassius,  Linn. 
Naturalized  in  ponds  in  the  county,  as  are 

also  its  varieties,  the  gold  carp  (C.  auratus, 
Linn.)  and  the  Prussian  carp  (C.  gibe/io,  Bloch). 

10.  Barbel.      Barbus  vu/garis,  Fleming. 
Common  in  the  Trent  and  the  lower  part 

of  the  Dove,  and  attaining  a  large  size.  There 
are  several  noted  haunts  of  the  barbel  near 
Burton,  and  when  fhe  water  is  clear  the  fish 
may  be  seen  rooting  like  swine  in  the  mud 
of  the  deep  holes. 

11.  Gudgeon.      Goblo  fluviatilis,  Fleming. 

12.  Roach.      Leuciscus  rutilus,  Linn. 

In  rivers  and  meres  :  very  common.  In 
Aqualate  Mere  the  hybrid  between  this  fish 
and  the  bream  (Abramh  brama.  Linn.),  known 
as  the  Pomeranian  bream  (A.  buggenhagii, 
Bloch)  exists,  and  an  interesting  account  of  its 
capture  there  is  given  by  the  Rev.  W.  Hough- 
ton  in  his  British  Freshwater  Fishes. 

13.  Chub.      Leuciscus  cepha/us,  Linn. 

14.  Dace.      Leuciscus  dobulay  Linn. 

Day — Leuciscus  vulgaris. 

15.  Rudd  or  Red-eye.    Leuciscus  erythrophthal- 

musy  Linn. 

1 6.  Minnow.      Leuciscus  pboxinus,  Linn. 
Locally  called  '  pink,'  from  the  bright  tints 

it  assumes  in  the  breeding  season. 

17.  Tench.      Tinea  vulgaris,  Cuv. 
In  pools  and  meres. 

1 8.  Bream.      Abramis  brama.  Linn. 

In  rivers  and  meres.  Up  to  7  Ib.  in 
weight  (Garner). 

19.  White  Bream  or  Bream  Flat.     Abramis 

b/icca,  Bloch. 

This  fish  is  included  in  the  Staffordshire 
lists  on  the  authority  of  the  late  Mr.  Edwin 
Brown,  who  wrote  :  '  Bailey,  the  angler  of 
Nottingham,  says  this  fish  is  mixed  up  with 
the  preceding  in  the  Trent.' 

20.  Bleak.     Alburnus  lucidus,  Heck,  et  Kner. 

21.  Loach.     Nemachilus  barbatu/us,  Linn. 

22.  Spined  Loach.      Cobitis  taenia,  Linn. 

This  fish,  generally  considered  somewhat 
rare,  is  common  in  the  Trent,  but  is  fre- 
quently confused  with  small  individuals  of 
the  last  species.  The  presence  of  the  small 


134 


FISHES 


bifid  spine  beneath  the  eye  will  at  once  dis- 
tinguish the  spined  loach  from  the  common 
or  '  stone  '  loach. 

MALACOPTERYGII 

23.  Salmon.      Salmo  salar,  Linn. 

Passes  up  the  Trent  on  its  way  from  the 
sea  to  spawn,  but  at  Newton  Solney,  where 
the  Dove  joins  the  main  river,  the  salmon 
almost  invariably  enter  the  smaller  stream. 
At  Dove  Cliff,  two  miles  above  this  point,  is 
a  well  known  salmon  leap  provided  with  a 
ladder,  where  on  favourable  occasions  the 
keeper  of  the  mill  told  me  he  had  seen  as 
many  as  twenty  salmon  ascend  in  an  hour. 
Some  individuals,  especially  when  the  river 
is  in  flood,  pass  onwards  up  the  Trent  and 
have  even  forced  their  way  into  ditches, 
where  when  the  water  has  fallen  they  have 
met  an  ignominious  death. 

24.  Trout.      Salmo  trutta,  Linn. 
According  to  the  latest  authorities  the  sea 

trout  (S.  trutta,  S.  cambricus)  and  the  brown 
river  trout  (S.  fario)  are  regarded  as  merely 
local  races  of  one  species. 

It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  say  that  the 
brown  trout  is  common  in  Staffordshire,  and 
that  from  the  days  of  Izaac  Walton  at  least 
the  Dove  has  been  famous  for  its  large  and 
well  flavoured  fish. 

The  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain  has  called  my 
attention  to  the  following  records  of  what 
must  have  been  the  largest  trout  ever  taken  in 
Staffordshire  : — 

From  the  Zoologist  for  1848,  p.  2342  : 
'  Capture  of  an  enormous  trout  at  Drayton 


Manor. — A  trout  weighing  upwards  of  21 
Ib.  and  measuring  41 J  inches  in  length  was 
taken  on  the  4th  of  November  [1848],  in  a 
small  tributary  of  the  Trent,  on  the  property 
of  Sir  Robert  Peel,  at  Drayton  Manor.  It 
was  transmitted  to  London  by  Sir  Robert, 
and  a  faithful  portrait  of  the  fish  has  been 
painted  for  the  honourable  baronet  by  Mr. 
Waterhouse  Hawkins. — Edward  Newman.' 

Again,  in  the  Zoologist  for  1896,  p.  360, 
the  following  extract  from  the  Angler's  Journal 
of  20  December,  1884,  is  quoted,  and  seems 
to  indicate  the  same  fish  as  that  referred  to  by 
E.  Newman,  although  the  weights  given  are 
not  identical  :  '  The  largest  English  trout  on 
record  is  believed  to  be  that  from  Drayton 
Park,  which  weighed  22j  Ib.,  the  skeleton  of 
which  was  presented  to  the  College  of  Sur- 
geons.' 

25.  Grayling.      Thymallus  vexillifer,  Linn. 
Common  in  many  of  our   rivers,  especially 

the  Dove  and  the  Blythe. 

APODES 

26.  Common  Eel.      Anguilla  vu/garis,  Turt. 
Both    varieties    of   the    common    eel — the 

sharp-nosed  (A.  acutirostris,  Yarrell)  and  the 
broad-nosed  eel  or  grig  (A.  /atirostris,  Yarrell) 
are  common  in  Staffordshire.  Adult  eels  begin 
to  descend  the  Trent  towards  the  sea,  with 
us,  in  July.  They  breed  in  the  sea,  and  from 
the  larval  form,  the  Leptocephalus  brevirostris, 
Kaup.,  is  developed  the  young  eel  or  elver 
which  ascends  the  rivers  in  numbers  during 
spring  and  early  summer. 


GANOIDS 


27.  Sturgeon.      Acipenser  sturio,  Linn. 


made   its  way  up  the   Trent  as  high  as  this 


The  late  Mr.  Edwin   Brown,  writing  in      district  [Burton],  but  no  such  occurrence  has 
1863,  says  :   'Instances  are  on  record  of  this,      been  known  of  late  years.' 
the  so-called  royal,  fish  having  in  olden  times 


CYCLOSTOMES 


28.  Sea  Lamprey.  Petromyzon  marinus,  Linn. 
Rarely  ascends  from  the  sea  as  far  as  Staf- 
fordshire. Brown  mentions  an  instance  of 
one,  2^  feet  in  length,  taken  in  the  Dove  in 
June,  1863. 


29.  Lampern  or  River  Lamprey.      Petromyzon 

ftuviatilis.  Linn. 
Not  uncommon. 

30.  Mud    Lamprey    or    Pride.       Petromyzon 

branchia/is,   Linn. 


135 


REPTILES 
AND    BATRACHIANS 

Staffordshire  is  not  rich  either  in  the  number  of  species  of  its 
reptiles,  as  compared  with  more  southern  counties,  or  in  the  individual 
abundance  of  such  forms  which  do  occur  within  the  county  boundaries. 
Thus  Staffordshire  possesses  two  lizards — the  common  lizard  and  the 
blindworm,  and  two  snakes — the  harmless  grass  snake  and  the  viper. 
Neither  the  sand  lizard  (Lacerta  agi'/is,  Linn.)  nor  the  smooth  snake 
(Coronella  austriaca,  Laur.)  are  found  in  Staffordshire,  although  both 
have  been  reported,  on  one  occasion  each,  as  met  with  by  individuals 
quite  incapable  of  identifying  these  species  at  a  glance,  and  no  specimen 
of  either  has  hitherto  been  obtained  in  Staffordshire. 

Staffordshire  can  claim  one  species  of  frog,  one  toad  and  three 
newts  in  her  list  of  batrachians.  In  the  neighbouring  county  of 
Chester  however  the  second  British  species  of  toad  is  met  with— 
the  pretty  active  natterjack  toad  (Bufo  calamita^  Laur.),  and  from  thence 
many  years  ago  specimens  were  introduced  into  Staffordshire  by  the 
late  Mr.  Edwin  Brown,  and  turned  out  by  Sir  Oswald  Mosley  in  his 
grounds  at  Rolleston.  This  colony  still  survived  ten  years  after  its 
introduction,  so  that  it  is  just  possible  that  descendants  may  still  exist 
and  be  claimed  as  indigenous  by  some  observer  ignorant  of  their  history. 
In  a  somewhat  similar  manner  I  was  myself  the  means  of  unintentionally 
introducing  the  natterjack  into  Leicestershire,  having  presented  a  series 
of  living  specimens  of  various  ages  to  the  Leicester  Museum,  which  I 
had  collected  in  Lancashire.  Some  of  these  were  turned  out  in  the 
museum  grounds  by  the  curator,  Mr.  Montagu  Browne,  F.G.S.,  F.Z.S., 
as  recorded  in  his  Vertebrate  Animals  of  Leicestershire  and  Rut/and,  p.  182. 
It  is  scarcely  probable  that  in  this  case  any  would  long  survive. 

It  may  be  well  to  mention  perhaps  that  the  natterjack  toad  may 
readily  be  recognized  by  the  yellow  line  down  the  middle  of  the  back 
and  by  its  active  movements.  It  can  also  withstand  heat  far  better  than 
the  common  toad. 

REPTILES 

LACERTILIA  Cannock  Chase.     In  Staffordshire  however  it 

never  appears  in  such  numbers  as  it  does  in 

i.  Common,    Scaly,    or    Viviparous    L.zard.      the  Charnwood  Forest  district  of  Leicester- 
Lacerta  vtvifara,  Jacqum.  shire>  where  j  haye  more  frequently  met  with 

Not  uncommon  in  the  wilder,  heathy  parts      it  than   in  any  other  part  of    the    midlands 
of  the  county,  especially  in  the  north  and  on      known  to  me. 

I  137  18 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


2.  Blind-worm  or  Slow-worm.     Anguls  fra- 

gilis,  Linn. 

Not  uncommon  in  similar  situations  to 
those  affected  by  the  common  lizard.  The 
blind-worm  varies  greatly  in  colour  according 
to  age.  The  young,  for  some  time  after 
birth,  are  nearly  white  above  and  black  below. 
Half-grown  individuals  are  sometimes  copper 
coloured,  whilst  mature  specimens,  especially 
females,  become  dark  grey  and  so  thick  as  to 
be  mistaken  for  vipers  at  a  casual  glance  by 
unsophisticated  persons.  Although  usually  the 
most  gentle  of  reptiles  and  possessing  only  the 
startling  habit  of  suddenly  breaking  off  the 
tail  when  seized,  such  aged  individuals  will 
occasionally,  though  rarely,  strike  at  the  hand 
in  a  very  snake-like  manner. 

OPHIDIA 

3.  Common  Ringed  or  Grass  Snake.      Tropi- 

donotus  natrix,  Linn. 

Ray — Natrix  torquata. 
Generally  distributed,  but  becoming  more 


rare  every  year,  although  it  holds  its  own 
against  the  advance  of  cultivation  far  better 
than  does  the  viper  or  even  the  blind-worm. 

4.  Viper  or  Adder.     Vipera  berus,  Linn. 

Occurs  at  Chartley  Park,  Cannock  Chase 
and  other  places  in  the  county,  but  is  de- 
creasing in  numbers  as  its  haunts  become 
drained  and  the  land  cultivated.  It  was 
formerly  abundant  at  Chartley,  where  Sir 
Oswald  Mosley  records  that  in  a  single  day's 
shooting  he  has  '  disturbed  several  of  them  ; 
and  their  venomous  bite  has  sometimes  proved 
fatal  to  valuable  pointers,  which  stand  at  them 
as  if  they  had  the  scent  of  game '  (Natural 
History  of  Tutbury,  p.  60). 

Although  the  viper  varies  a  great  deal  in- 
dividually both  in  ground  colour  and  markings, 
this  is  largely  a  matter  of  sex  ;  bright,  light- 
coloured  specimens  with  a  black,  well  defined 
zig-zag  dorsal  line  being  males,  whilst  the 
shorter,  thinner-tailed  females  are  brown  or 
reddish  with  the  markings  more  indistinct. 


BATRACHIANS 


ECAUDATA 

1.  Common  Frog.      Rana  temporaria,  Linn. 
Common  and  generally  distributed. 

2.  Common  Toad.     Bufo  vulgaris,  Laur. 
Fairly  abundant. 

CAUDATA 

3.  Great   Crested   or  Warty  Newt.     Molge 

crlitata,  Laur. 
Common  in  ponds  and  ditches. 

4.  Smooth  Newt.     Molge  vulgaris,  Linn. 
Abundant  in  similar  situations  to  the  last. 

This  species  possesses  the  power  of  restoring 
its  damaged  members,  and  is  sometimes  met 
with  having  additional  toes  on  either  the  fore 
or  the  hind  feet.  Mr.  James  Yates,  M.R.C.S., 
of  Cambridge,  for  many  years  resident  in  Staf- 
fordshire, writes  me  under  date  4  February, 
1901,  that  he  has  frequently  seen  newts  in 
cellars  from  which  they  could  not  set  out  in 
search  of  ponds,  and  in  such  places  he  has 
'  seen  their  eggs  connected  together  like  a 


string  of  pearls.'  This  is  also  the  case, 
according  to  my  own  experience,  when  the 
ova  are  deposited  in  water  containing  no 
aquatic  plants.  Ordinarily,  as  is  well  known, 
the  female  newt  carefully  encloses  each  egg 
in  the  coil  of  a  leaf  which  forms  a  hollow 
cylinder  around  it,  and  whilst  it  protects  the 
egg  allows  free  access  of  water  to  the  develop- 
ing embryo. 

5.   Palmated  Newt.     Molge  pa/mata,  Sch. 

Mr.  J.  R.  B.  Masefield,  M.A.,  informs  me 
that  he  has  a  note  of  the  occurrence  of  this 
interesting  species  of  newt  in  the  south  of  the 
county,  but  in  Staffordshire  it  would  seem  to 
be  local,  as  I  have  been  unable  to  meet  with 
it  in  mid-Staffordshire,  and  Mr.  Masefield 
himself  has  failed  to  obtain  it  in  the  Cheadle 
district. 

The  palmated  newt,  especially  when  im- 
mature, is  doubtless  frequently  confused  with 
the  smooth  newt,  from  which  however  it  can 
always  be  distinguished  by  its  unspotted  throat, 
and  the  male  in  the  breeding  season  by  his  web- 
bed feet  and  the  curious  mucro  or  thread  at 
the  end  of  his  tail. 


138 


BIRDS 

As  Staffordshire  is  an  exclusively  inland  county,  and  occupies  an  area 
comprising  some  of  the  highest  land  in  the  centre  of  England,  with  bleak 
moorlands  rising  to  an  altitude  of  upwards  of  1,500  feet  above  sea  level 
it  contains  no  large  rivers,  but  at  the  same  time  it  is  the  birthplace  of 
the  Trent  and  the  Dove,  and  numerous  smaller  streams  which  become 
tributaries  of  the  Severn  and  the  Mersey.  These  smaller  streams  have 
in  many  cases  during  past  centuries  gradually  formed  deep  gorges  and  well 
sheltered  and  wooded  valleys  much  frequented  by  many  of  the  warblers 
and  other  small  birds,  and  forming  also  the  home  of  the  dipper  (Cinclus 
aquaticus]  and  the  ring-ouzel  (Turdus  torquatus}.  The  large  meres  of 
Aqualate  and  Copmere  and  lakes  and  reservoirs  at  Trentham,  Han- 
church,  Rudyard,  Madeley,  Chillington  and  elsewhere  find  a  home  for 
the  grebes  and  are  frequented  in  winter  time  by  many  species  of  wild- 
fowl. In  the  south-east  of  the  county  we  have  the  extensive  and  barren 
heather  covered  tract  known  as  Cannock  Chase,  where  the  red  grouse 
(Lagopus  scoticus]  and  the  black  grouse  (Tetrao  tetrix),  owing  to  careful 
protection,  once  more  abound,  after  having  at  one  time  almost  reached 
the  verge  of  extinction.  The  physiographical  features  of  the  county 
before  referred  to  attract  several  species  of  wild  birds  in  the  breeding 
season  which  do  not  nest  in  many  counties  in  England,  such  as  the  curlew 
(Numenius  arquata),  the  ring-ouzel  (Turdus  torquatus] ,  the  grey  wagtail 
(Motacilla  melanope}^  and  the  dipper  (Cinclus  aquaticus}.  Staffordshire  also 
borders  closely  upon,  if  it  does  not  actually  lie  within,  the  range  of 
one  of  the  great  flight  lines  of  many  of  our  British  migratory  birds, 
namely  that  from  the  mouth  of  the  Humber  and  the  north-east  coast 
across  England  to  the  Bristol  Channel.  '  By  this  flight  line,'  says 
Whitlock  (Birds  of  Derbyshire,  pp.  16,  17),  '  travel  in  autumn  the 
whimbrel,  curlew,  greenshank,  green  sandpiper,  wood  sandpiper,  little 
stint,  longtailed  duck,  common  scoter,  Manx  shearwater,  gulls,  terns, 
lapwings,  golden  and  ringed  plovers,  hooded  crows,  fieldfares,  redwings, 
sky-larks,  chaffinches  and  mistle-thrushes,  with  occasional  visits  of  the 
grey  plover  and  bar-tailed  godwit.'  The  return  migration  of  these  birds 
takes  place  by  the  same  route  to  a  great  extent,  and  these  birds  meet  our 
spring  migrants  coming  by  the  same  route,  and  thus  Whitlock  goes  on  to 
say  '  we  have  two  opposing  streams  of  birds  on  the  move  at  the  same 
time.'  Referring  to  this  same  flight  line  Dr.  McAldowie  1  says : — 

I  believe  this  migratory  route  to  be  of  great  ornithological  importance  not  only  to 
Staffordshire   but  to  the  country  generally.     It  brings  many  fine  birds  to  our  county 

1  '  Birds  of  Staffordshire  '  in  Report  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club,  \  893,  pp.  15-17. 

139 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

...  I  believe  it  is  an  ancient  route  and  in  pleistocene  times  was  a  great  migratory 
highway  and  that  it  has  been  gradually  abandoned  by  the  majority  of  migrants  since 
the  formation  of  the  present  coast  line  .  .  .  Staffordshire  appears  to  be  the  natural 
boundary  between  the  habitats  of  northern  and  southern  species  of  birds  in  Great 
Britain,  for  example  it  forms  the  northern  boundary  of  the  Nightingale,  the  Nuthatch, 
the  Reed  Warbler  and  perhaps  of  the  Hobby,  and  on  the  other  hand  to  limit  on  the 
south  the  haunts  of  the  Red  Grouse  and  the  Sandpiper  ...  A  hill  route  migration  in 
which  the  Dotterel  and  the  Rough-legged  Buzzard  are  prominent  species  also  affects 
our  county. 

The  list  of  Staffordshire  birds  though  somewhat  deficient  in  aquatic 
species  otherwise  compares  favourably  with  those  of  adjoining  counties. 
At  the  time  of  publication  of  the  Birds  of  Staffordshire  (1893)  no  fewer 
than  234  species  were  included  in  the  county  list,  of  which  66  were 
then  considered  as  residents,  30  as  summer  migrants,  18  as  winter 
migrants  and  120  as  occasional  visitors  and  stragglers.  A  revision  of 
this  list  shows  that  considerable  alterations  must  be  made  in  order  to  gain 
a  correct  idea  of  our  county  avifauna.  Three  new  species  may  be  added 
since  1893,  namely  white-tailed  eagle,  shore-lark  and  flamingo.  On  the 
other  hand  the  records  of  the  following  species  must  be  considered  as  too 
doubtful  to  be  retained  in  the  list  :  black  redstart  (mistaken  identification 
of  eggs),  pine-grosbeak  and  great  black  woodpecker  ;  and  the  following 
species  were  included  in  error,  not  having  been  recorded  within  the  limits 
of  our  county  :  Bewick's  swan,  long-tailed  duck,  purple  sandpiper,  black- 
tailed  godwit  ;  while  the  following  species  must  be  regarded  as  escapes 
and  are  not  included  in  the  British  list  :  Virginian  colin,  Canada  goose, 
Egyptian  goose,  summer  duck. 

In  the  case  of  the  following  species  the  evidence  is  at  present 
insufficient  to  admit  them  into  our  list  :  Aquatic  warbler,  Dartford 
warbler,  firecrest,  mealy  redpoll,  crested-lark,  bean-goose,  little  crake, 
eared  grebe,  little  stint,  grey  plover. 

The  evidence  is  also  somewhat  unsatisfactory  with  regard  to  two 
species  mentioned  below,  but  they  are  retained  in  the  list  :  blue-headed 
wagtail  and  marsh-harrier. 

The  revised  total,  including  the  3  new  species  and  exclusive  of 
the  21  which  have  been  removed  from  the  list,  now  amounts  to  216 
Of  these  94  breed  regularly  in  the  county  and  9  others  have  been  known 
to  nest,  while  there  is  some  reason  to  suppose  that  the  hobby,  shoveler 
.and  spotted-crake  may  nest  occasionally,  and  the  hen-harrier,  honey 
buzzard,  kite,  raven,  bittern  and  bearded-tit  undoubtedly  bred  formerly 
in  the  county. 

The  following  species  regularly  nest  in  the  county  :— 

1.  Mistle-Thrush  10.  Lesser  Whitethroat  19.   Grasshopper- Warbler 

2.  Song-Thrush  n.  Blackcap  20.   Hedge-Sparrow 

3.  Blackbird  12.  Garden-Warbler  21.  Dipper 

4.  Ring-Ouzel  13.  Goldcrest  22.   Long-tailed  Tit 

5.  Wheatear  14.  Chiffchaff  23.   Great  Tit 

6.  Whinchat  15.  Willow- Warbler  24.  Coal-Tit 

7.  Redstart  16.  Wood-Warbler  25.   Marsh-Tit 

8.  Redbreast  17.  Reed-Warbler  26.  Blue  Tit 

9.  Whitethroat  18.  Sedge-Warbler  27.  Nuthatch 

140 


BIRDS 


28.  Wren 

29.  Tree-Creeper 

30.  Pied  Wagtail 

31.  Grey  Wagtail 

32.  Yellow  Wagtail 

33.  Tree-Pipit 

34.  Meadow-Pipit 

35.  Red-backed  Shrike 

36.  Spotted  Flycatcher 

37.  Swallow 

38.  House-Martin 

39.  Sand-Martin 

40.  Greenfinch 

41.  Hawfinch 

42.  Goldfinch 

43.  House-Sparrow 

44.  Tree-Sparrow 

45.  Chaffinch 

46.  Linnet 

47.  Lesser  Redpoll 

48.  Bullfinch 

49.  Corn-Bunting 

50.  Yellow  Hammer 


51. 
52. 

53- 

54. 
55. 
56. 
57 


Reed-Bunting 
Starling 


Magpie 
Jackdaw 
Carrion-Crow 
Rook 

58.  Sky-Lark 

59.  Swift 

60.  Nightjar 

61.  Green  Woodpecker 

62.  Great     Spotted    Wood- 

pecker 

63.  Lesser   Spotted    Wood- 

pecker 

64.  Kingfisher 

65.  Cuckoo 

66.  Barn-Owl 

67.  Long-eared  Owl 

68.  Tawny  Owl 

69.  Sparrow-Hawk 

70.  Kestrel 

71.  Heron 


72.  Mute  Swan 

73.  Mallard 

74.  Teal 

75.  Tufted-Duck 

76.  Wood-Pigeon 

77.  Stock-Dove 

78.  Turtle-Dove 

79.  Black  Grouse 

80.  Red  Grouse 

8 1.  Pheasant 

82.  Partridge 

83.  Red-legged  Partridge 

84.  Land-Rail 

85.  Water-Rail 

86.  Moorhen 

87.  Coot 

88.  Lapwing 

89.  Woodcock 

90.  Common  Snipe 

91.  Common   Sandpiper 

92.  Curlew 

93.  Great  Crested  Grebe 

94.  Little  Grebe 


The  following  occasionally  nest  in  the  county  :— 


95.  Stonechat 

96.  Nightingale 

97.  Twite 


98.  Crossbill 

99.  Wood-Lark 
IOO.  Wryneck 


id  I.   Merlin 

102.  Quail 

103.  Redshank 


The  birds  of  prey  are  well  represented,  and  several  species  might 
once  again  become  general  if  not  destroyed  owing  to  the  supposed 
exigencies  of  game  preservation  and  its  accompanying  cruel  pole-trap, 
while  on  the  other  hand  game  preservation  and  the  consequently  quiet 
and  carefully  guarded  woods  have  during  recent  years  conduced  to  the 
nesting  of  the  woodcock  (Scolopax  rusticula)  in  increasing  numbers  and 
of  the  tufted-duck  (Fuligula  cristata),  many  pairs  of  which  now  breed 
in  the  south-west  of  the  county. 

The  greater  interest  recently  taken  in  wild  bird  life  has  directed 
public  attention  to  our  fast  diminishing  avifauna,  with  the  result  that  the 
County  Council  orders  made  in  pursuance  of  the  Wild  Bird  Protection 
Acts  are  without  doubt  beginning  to  bear  fruit,  and  it  is  possible  that 
some  species  of  wild  birds  such  as  the  great  crested  grebe  (Podicipes 
cristatus),  the  kingfisher  (Alcedo  ispida)  and  the  white  owl  (Strix  fammea) 
now  fast  decreasing  in  numbers  in  the  county,  may  yet  be  saved.  As 
education  advances  and  the  game  preserver  and  gamekeeper  become 
conversant  with  the  life  history  and  food  of  the  hobby  (Fa/co  sub- 
buteo),  the  merlin  (Fa/co  <zsa/on),  the  nightjar  (Caprimulgus  europceus) 
and  the  woodpeckers,  it  is  to  be  hoped  they  may  stay  their  hand  when 
on  the  trigger  of  deadly  firearms,  and  also  abolish  the  cruel  pole-trap 
which  even  proves  fatal  sometimes  to  the  very  birds  which  it  is  supposed 
to  protect. 

141 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


with    supplement, 
Mosley,     D.C.L., 


The  bibliography  of  Staffordshire  birds,  or  list  of  books  containing 
references  thereto,  commences  with  the  year  1676  and  is  as  follows  : — 

1676. — Ornithologia  (London),  Francis  Willoughby. 

1678. — English  translation  of  same  (London),  John  Ray. 

1686.— Natural  History  of  Staffordshire  (Oxford),  Dr.  Robert  Plot,  LL.D. 

1798. — History    and  Antiquities  of  Staffordshire  (London),    Stebbing    Shaw,  containing 

sketch  of  Zoology  of  Staffordshire  by  John  H.  Dickenson. 
1836. — British  Song  Birds  (London),  Neville  Wood. 
1836. — The  Ornithologist's  Text  Book  (London),  Neville  Wood. 
1 844. — Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,   Robert    Garner, 

i860. 
1863. — The    Natural  History  of  Tutbury    (London),    Sir    Oswald 

including  the  Fauna  of  Burton-on-Trent,  Edwin  Brown. 
1865  to    1903. — Papers  and   Notes  in    Reports  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club,  by 

Dr.  McAldowie,  Ernest  W.   H.   Blagg,  M.B.O.U.,  John  R.  B.  Masefield,  M.A., 

W.  Wells  Bladen  and  others. 

1878. — Scientific  Rambles  around  Macclesfield,  J.  D.  Sainter. 
1879. — 'Birds  and   their  Habits,'  pt.  I,  Midland  Naturalist  (London  and  Birmingham), 

H.  G.  Xomlinson. 

1880. — '  Birds  and  their  habits,'  pt.  2,  Burton-on-Trent  Natural  History  Society  Report. 
1 88 1. — 'Our  Summer  Migrants,'  Midland  Naturalist. 
1892. — Birds  of  Derbyshire  (London  and  Derby),   F.  B.  Whitlock. 
1893.— Birds  of  Staffordshire  (Stoke-on-Trent),  A.  M.  McAldowie,  M.D.,  F.R.S.Ed. 

To  the  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain  our  thanks  are  especially  due  for 
his  invaluable  assistance  and  for  many  notes  and  additions  to  the  following 
list  of  Staffordshire  birds. 


1.  Mistle-Thrush.      Turdus  viscivorus,  Linn. 

Locally,  Shrite,  Stormcock  (Garner),  Thrice- 
cock. 

A  common  resident,  nesting  in  woods, 
copses  and  orchards,  and  migrating  south  in 
severe  weather. 

2.  Sons-Thrush.      Turdus  musicus.  Linn. 

O  / 

Locally,  Throstle. 

Common  and  partly  migratory  in  winter. 
Pied  varieties  have  occurred  at  Xhickbroom 
in  1842  and  Swythamley  in  1859  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  36). 

3.  Redwing.      Turdus  iliacus,  Linn. 

A  winter  visitor  in  flocks  to  our  meadows, 
arriving  in  October  and  roosting  in  sheltered 
woods  or  thick  shrubberies,  where  they  are 
frequently  followed  and  preyed  upon  by  the 
sparrow-hawk. 

4.  Fieldfare.      Turdus  pilaris,  Linn. 

A  winter  visitor  in  flocks,  feeding  upon 
holly  berries,  hips  and  haws,  and  occasionally 
remaining  till  May.  A  somewhat  shyer  bird 
than  the  redwing.  Mr.  E.  Brown  ('  Fauna 
of  Burton-on-Trent,'  p.  94  in  Sir  O.  Mosley's 
Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury)  asserts  that  a  nest  was 
obtained  by  Mr.  Allen  at  Longcroft  a  few 
years  ago. 


5.  Blackbird.      Turdus  merula,  Linn. 

Very  common.  Many  migrate  south  in 
severe  weather.  Albino,  pied  and  cream  or 
buff  varieties  are  not  uncommon. 

6.  Ring-Ouzel.      Turdus  torquatus,  Linn. 

A  regular  summer  visitant  to  the  high 
moorland  districts  in  the  north  of  the  county, 
where  it  nests  regularly,  assembling  in  flocks 
prior  to  migration  in  autumn.  The  berries  of 
the  mountain  ash  (Pyrus  aucuparia)  are  a 
favourite  food  of  this  bird. 

7.  Wheatear.      Saxicola  cenanthe  (Linn.) 

A  summer  visitor  to  our  heaths  and  moor- 
lands,even  frequenting  disused  colliery  mounds, 
but  has  diminished  in  numbers  of  late  years. 

8.  Whinchat.     Pratincola  rubetra  (Linn.) 

Locally,  Utic. 

A  common  summer  visitant  to  heaths  and 
meadows. 

9.  Stonechat.      Pratincola  rubicola  (Linn.) 
Formerly  a  common  resident,  but  now  only 

occasionally  seen  and  its  nest  rarely  found. 

I  o.  Redstart.     Ruticilla  phaenicurus  (Linn.) 

Locally,  Firetail. 
A  summer  migrant,  generally  distributed, 


142 


BIRDS 


and  nesting  in  walls  and  holes  of  trees.  It  is 
a  shy  bird  and  its  soft  alarm  note  is  frequently 
heard  when  the  bird  itself  is  not  seen.  Mr. 
E.  W.  H.  Blagg  has  taken  eggs  with  distinct 
fine  red  spots. 

[Black  Redstart.  Ruticilla  titys  (Scopoli) 
The  Zoologist  for  1852  (p.  3503)  contains  an 
account  of  the  discovery  of  a  nest  supposed  to 
belong  to  this  species,  which  is  also  referred  to 
by  Hewitson  in  the  third  edition  of  his  Eggs 
of  British  Birds  (p.  1 06).  The  birds,  how- 
ever, do  not  appear  to  have  been  identified  at 
the  nest,  and  the  description  of  the '  situation 
in  which  the  nest  was  found  points  pretty 
conclusively  to  the  next  species,  which  is  known 
occasionally  to  lay  white  eggs.] 

1 1 .  Redbreast.     Erithacus  rubecula  (Linn.) 
Common  and  partially  migratory  in  very 

severe  weather.  A  pied  variety  was  observed 
by  Mr.  E.  W.  H.  Blagg  at  Forsbrook  near 
Cheadle  in  1892  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 

43) 

12.  Nightingale.     Daulias  lusdnia  (Linn.) 

A  rare  summer  visitor.  Mr.  E.  Brown 
(Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  96)  records  it  as  extra- 
ordinarily abundant  near  Burton  about  1853, 
but  rare  subsequently.  Further  notes  of  its 
appearances  will  be  found  in  the  Birds  of 
Staffordshire  (p.  43)  and  the  Reports  of  the  North 
Staffordshire  Field  Club  for  1880,  1893  and 
1896. 

13.  Whitethroat.      Sylvia  cinerea  (Bechstein) 
Locally,  Peggy  Whitethroat. 

A  very  common  summer  migrant,  arriving 
in  May. 

14.  Lesser     Whitethroat.        Sylvia     curruca 

(Linn.) 

A  summer  migrant,  but  rarer  than  the  last 
named  species. 

15.  Blackcap.      Sylvia  atricapilla  (Linn.) 

A  fairly  common  summer  visitor,  with  a 
sweet  little  song. 

1 6.  Garden-Warbler.      Sylvia  hortensis  (Bech- 

stein) 
A  summer  visitant  and  generally  distributed. 

[Dartford  Warbler.  Sylvia  undata  (Bod- 
daert) 

This  species  is  said  to  have  been  observed 
on  Cannock  Chase,  but  no  specimen  appears 
to  have  been  obtained,  and  without  further 
evidence  its  occurrence  so  far  from  its  usual 
habitat  can  hardly  be  considered  as  proved 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  47).] 


17.  Goldcrest.       Regulus     cristatus,     K.     L. 

Koch. 

A  resident  and  to  be  found  in  small  family 
parties  in  winter. 

[Firecrest.  Regulus  ignicapillus  (C.  L. 
Brehm) 

Noted  by  Garner  as  'occasional,'  and 
included  in  Sainter's  list,  but  no  satisfactory 
identification  of  this  bird  has  been  recorded  in 
the  county.] 

1 8.  Chiffchaff.     Phylloscopus  rufus  (Bechstein) 
The    earliest    of  our    summer    migrants, 

arriving    in   March    and    common    in    most 
districts. 

19.  Willow- Warbler.        Phylloscopus    trochilus 

(Linn.) 
Locally,  Peep. 

A  common  summer  visitant  throughout  the 
county. 

20.  Wood-Warbler.       Phylloscopus      sibilatrix 

(Bechstein) 

A  summer  migrant,  arriving  later  than  the 
willow-warbler.  It  is  generally  distributed 
in  fair  numbers  in  the  valleys  of  the  county. 

21.  Reed-Warbler.        Acrocephalus       streperus 

(Vieillot) 

Locally,  Reed  Sparrow  (E.  Brown). 
A  local  summer  migrant  to  the  Trent,  the 
lower  part  of  the  Dove  and  the  larger  meres 
of  the  county,  such  as  Aqualate,  Copmere, 
etc.  It  is  much  less  common  now  than 
formerly  on  the  Trent  and  Dove. 

22.  Sedge-Warbler.      Acrocephalus    phragmitis 

(Bechstein) 

A  common  summer  visitor  to  marshy 
districts. 

[Aquatic  Warbler.  Acrocephalus  aquaticus 
(J.  F.  Gmelin) 

A  nest  and  eggs  supposed  to  belong  to  this 
species  have  been  taken  at  Copmere,  but  no 
specimens  of  the  bird  have  been  secured  and 
the  resemblance  of  the  eggs  of  the  aquatic 
warbler  to  those  of  the  preceding  species 
renders  identification  very  doubtful  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  50).] 

23.  Grasshopper-Warbler.      Locustella     navia 

(Boddaert) 

A  summer  migrant,  local  in  its  distribution 
and  far  from  common.  It  has  been  recorded 
as  nesting  near  Cheadle  (1888),  Trentham, 
Stone  and  Burton-on-Trent  (see  Reports  of 
the  North  Staffs  Field  Club). 


143 


A   HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


24.  Hedge  -  Sparrow.       Accentor      modularis 

(Linn.) 

A  common  resident  throughout  the  county. 
It  has  a  cheerful  song,  and  is  one  of  our  most 
useful  and  harmless  birds. 

25.  Dipper.     Cine/us  aquaticus,  Bechstein. 

A  fairly  common  resident  on  most  of  the 
streams  in  the  north  of  the  county,  nesting 
regularly  under  bridges  and  against  rocks.  A 
few  nests  are  placed  under  banks  and  in 
hollows  of  tree  stumps.  It  is  also  found 
occasionally  in  other  parts  of  the  county  as  far 
south  as  Stone,  where  it  breeds,  and  Madeley, 
and  it  has  been  recorded  in  winter  from 
Handsworth  (12  Jan.  1882). 

26.  Reedling  or  Bearded  Tit.      Panurus  biar- 

micus  (Linn.) 

The  only  record  of  this  species  is  that  of 
Garner,  who  says,  '  Rare,  but  has  occurred  at 
Aqualate  Mere  and  on  the  Dove  :  Mr. 
Emery  '  (p.  280).  Mr.  Francis  Boughey  of 
Aqualate,  writing  on  9  December  1888,  says  : 
'  I  have  still  got  two  eggs  that  were  taken  out 
of  a  nest  here  in  my  possession  ;  they  were 
taken  out  of  a  gorse  bush  about  half  a  mile 
from  the  house  ;  the  remainder  of  the  nest  of 
eggs  were  left  to  hatch  which  I  believe  they 
did  and  the  old  birds  were  seen  often.  I 
understand  also  that  one  specimen  of  the 
bearded  tit  was  shot  afterwards  here.' 

27.  Long-tailed  Tit.      Acredula  caudata,  Linn. 
Locally,  Bottle  Tit. 

Generally  resident  throughout  the  county, 
occurring  in  small  flocks  or  family  parties 
during  the  winter. 

28.  Great  Tit.      Parus  major,  Linn. 
Locally,  Sawyer,  Ox-eye,  Blackcap. 

Resident  and  common. 

29.  Coal-Tit.      Parus  ater,  Linn. 
Resident  and  generally  distributed,  but  not 

so  common  as  the  great  or  blue  tit. 

30.  Marsh-Tit.     Parus  palustris,  Linn. 
Resident,   but   local  and  scarcer    than   the 

preceding  species. 

31.  Blue  Tit.     Parus  caeruleus,  Linn. 
Locally,  Tomtit. 

Resident  and  common. 

32.  Nuthatch.     Sitta  carsia,  Wolf. 

Local  and  scarce.  A  few  pairs  however 
breed  with  us,  and  nests  have  been  recorded 
at  Eccleshall  in  1884,  and  at  Sandon  and 
Barlaston  in  1897  (Report  North  Staff's  Field 


Club,  1898).  Sir  O.  Mosley  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  p.  48)  relates  how  on  16  August, 
1846,  at  least  a  hundred  of  these  birds  visited 
the  gardens  at  Rolleston,  many  remaining  till 
the  following  November.  Mr.  Meynell 
reported  it  at  Farley  near  Cheadle  in  1889 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1890,  p.  22). 

33.  Wren.     Troglodytes parvulus,  K.  L.  Koch. 
Resident  and  common.    In  winter  a  number 

of  these  little  birds  frequently  roost  together  in 
holes  or  old  nests  apparently  for  warmth 
(cf.  Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  p.  48,  and  Report 
North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1896,  p.  49). 

34.  Tree-Creeper.      Certhia  familiaris,  Linn. 

Resident,  breeding  not  uncommonly  in  the 
wooded  districts,  but  rarer  in  the  north  of  the 
county. 

35.  Pied  Wagtail.     Motacilla  lugubris,  Tem- 

minck. 

A  partial  migrant,  many  moving  south  in 
severe  weather,  although  they  may  be  seen 
during  every  month  in  the  year.  A  common 
foster  parent  of  the  cuckoo  and  one  of  our 
most  useful  birds,  being  exclusively  an  insect 
feeder. 

36.  White  Wagtail.     Motacilla  alba,  Linn. 
Mr.   E.    Brown   (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.    98) 

describes  this  bird  as  mostly  occurring  in 
autumn  in  the  Burton  district,  and  Messrs. 
E.  A.  Brown  and  H.  G.  Tomlinson  have  also 
noticed  it  on  the  Trent,  but  there  is  no 
definite  record  of  its  appearance  in  any  other 
part  of  the  county.  Possibly  it  has  been 
overlooked  on  account  of  its  general  resem- 
blance to  the  last  species. 

37.  Grey  Wagtail.  Motacilla  melanope,  Pallas. 
A     resident    or    partial    migrant,    breeding 

annually  by  the  Dove  and  other  streams  in 
the  northern  parts  of  the  county,  but  scarce  on 
the  Trent,  where  however  it  is  well  known 
as  a  winter  visitor.  Normally  the  grey  wag- 
tail does  not  breed  in  the  counties  south-east 
of  Staffordshire,  although  it  has  been  known  to 
do  so  exceptionally. 

38.  Blue-headed  Yellow  Wagtail.      Motacilla 

flava,  Linn. 

The  evidence  with  regard  to  the  occurrence 
of  this  species  is  not  very  satisfactory.  Garner 
states  that  it  occurs  at  Betley  and  it  is  also 
mentioned  in  Mr.  Sainter's  list. 

39.  Yellow  Wagtail.     Motacilla  rait  (Bona- 

parte) 

A  common  summer  migrant,  arriving  about 
the  beginning  of  April,  but  Mr.  H.  G. 


144 


BIRDS 


Tomlinson  has  occasionally  seen  one  in 
March  at  Burton  (Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  66). 

40.  Tree-Pipit.     Anthus  trivia/is  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Titlark,  Bank  Lark. 

A  common  spring  visitor,  generally  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  county,  except  on  the 
moors,  where  it  is  replaced  by  the  meadow 
pipit.  It  is  very  conspicuous  in  spring  on 
account  of  its  habit  of  ascending  from  its 
perch  on  the  top  of  a  tree  and  returning  again 
to  its  post  with  outstretched  wings,  singing  all 
the  way. 

41.  Meadow-Pipit.      Anthus  pratensls  (Linn.) 
Common  on  the    uplands  and  moors,  and 

partially  migratory  in  its  habits,  moving  south 
in  severe  weather.  Many  cuckoos  are  reared 
in  nests  of  this  species  in  north  Staffordshire. 

42.  Richard's  Pipit.    Anthus  richardi  (Vieillot) 
Garner  in  his  Appendix  (p.  34)  mentions  one 

example,  which  was  obtained  near  Stone  and 
was  in  Mr.  Ration's  collection  (Garner  MS.) 
Mr.  R.  W.  Chase  has  an  adult  male  which 
was  taken  near  Handsworth  on  21  October 
1887  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  59). 

43.  Golden  Oriole.     Oriolus  galbula,  Linn. 
A  rare  visitor   which    has  occurred  twice. 

One  was  shot  near  Barton-urider-Needwood 
about  1869  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  59),  and 
another  was  killed  by  a  boy  near  Burton-on- 
Trent  on  19  April  1871  (Birds  of  Derbyshire, 
p.  69). 

44.  Great    Grey    Shrike.       Lanius    excubitor, 

Linn. 

Another  rare  visitor,  usually  occurring  in 
the  autumn  and  winter  months.  Garner 
(p.  274)  says  it  has  been  obtained  at  Need- 
wood,  Bramshall,  etc.,  and  in  his  MS.  notes 
mentions  a  later  occurrence  at  Stone,  where 
it  was  shot  by  Mr.  Hatton  (Birds  of  Stafford- 
shire, p.  60).  Sir  O.  Mosley  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  p.  37)  mentions  two  :  one  shot  at 
Burton  Bridge  on  2  December  1844,  and 
the  other  killed  by  a  stone  on  4  April  1845 
between  Dunstall  and  Burton  (Zoo/,  p.  1209). 
In  the  North  Staffs  Field  Club  Report  for  1886 
two  are  recorded  as  having  been  killed  near 
Alton  in  the  spring  of  the  previous  year. 
Somewhere  about  this  time  one  was  shot  at 
Mayfield  and  passed  through  the  hands  of 
Poole,  the  Ashbourne  bird-stuffer.  The  latest 
occurrence  is  that  of  one  at  Grindon  in  1898 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1899). 

45.  Red-backed  Shrike.     Lanius  collurio,  Linn. 
A  regular  summer   migrant  to  the  south, 


but  rare  in  the  north  of  the  county.  Nests 
are  mentioned  in  the  Birds  of  Staffordshire 
(p.  60)  at  Clayton,  King's  Bromley  (1891), 
near  Stoke  and  Alton  (1892).  A  pair  gener- 
ally breed  near  the  entrance  to  Dovedale. 

46.  Waxwing.     Ampelis  garrulus,  Linn. 

A  rare  winter  visitor.  Garner  includes  it 
in  his  list  on  the  authority  of  Dr.  Hewgill  and 
Mr.  Brown.  Sir  O.  Mosley  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  p.  43)  says  that  it  visits  the  banks  of 
the  Trent  at  irregular  periods  during  the 
winter  months,  and  that  many  were  observed 
in  the  Burton  district  in  1827,  l%35  ar>d 
1850.  Writing  later  in  the  Zoologist  (1868) 
he  states  that  on  Sunday,  31  May,  a  young 
bird  was  caught  by  his  brother  near  a  Pinus 
douglasii  in  his  grounds.  When  placed  on  an 
iron  railing  the  two  old  birds  immediately 
came  to  it  and  were  distinctly  identified,  the 
red  marks  on  the  wing-tips  being  clearly  seen. 
Although  the  whole  family  were  noticed  by 
several  people  for  upwards  of  a  week  after- 
wards none  were  captured.  A  nest  was  sub- 
sequently found  on  a  branch  of  the  Douglas 
pine  about  60  ft.  from  the  ground,  and  '  con- 
sisted of  wool  intermixed  with  fibres  of  grass 
and  bits  of  the  same  fir.'  In  January  1893 
one  was  killed  by  a  boy  at  Oulton  near  Stone 
while  feeding  on  the  fruit  of  the  wild  rose. 


47.   Pied    Flycatcher. 
Linn. 


Muscicapa    atricapilla, 


A  rare  summer  visitor,  recorded  by  Garner 
from  Bagot's  Park  and  Trentham  (1843). 
Mr.  E.  Brown  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  94)  says 
it  has  '  been  killed  at  Bagot's  Park  and  at 
Stretton,  near  Burton-on-Trent.'  Mr.  W. 
Wells  Bladen  found  a  nest  at  Sandon  on  7 
May  1880  which  he  took  to  be  that  of  this 
bird,  but  the  date  is  unusually  early  and  the 
situation  unlikely.  In  1883  Mr.  E.  W.  H. 
Blagg  obtained  a  male  near  Cheadle,  and  Mr. 
H.  Meynell  observed  one  at  Alton  on  2  May 
1889,  while  Dr.  McAldowie  saw  one  at 
Northwood  near  Trentham  in  June  1892. 
Mr.  H.  G.  Tomlinson  saw  a  cock  bird  in 
May  1898  near  Tutbury,  and  Mr.  Forshaw 
two  at  Uttoxeter  the  same  year,  and  another 
was  seen  by  the  writer  at  Cheadle  28  April 
1902  (Reports  North  Staffs  Field  Club}. 

48.  Spotted    Flycatcher.      Muscicapa    grisola, 

Linn. 

An  abundant  and  familiar  summer  migrant, 
arriving  in  May  and  frequenting  garden  rail- 
ings and  bare  branches  in  orchards,  from 
which  it  takes  short  flights  in  search  of  prey, 
returning  to  the  same  spot  after  the  capture  of 
each  fly  or  other  insect.  Very  soon  after  its 


145 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


arrival  this  bird  proceeds  to  build  its  nest  in 
creepers  or  shrubs  trained  against  walls,  or  on 
beams  or  even  door-hinges,  seeming  to  prefer 
the  vicinity  of  human  dwellings. 

49.  Swallow.     Hirundo  rustica,  Linn. 

A  common  summer  migrant,  arriving 
according  to  F.  B.  Whitlock  by  the  Trent 
valley  migration  route.  Several  instances  of 
white  or  cream-coloured  varieties  are  recorded 
in  the  Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  64.  In  1887 
many  were  killed  by  a  sudden  fall  of  tempera- 
ture in  May  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club), 
and  the  same  thing  appears  to  have  taken  place 
on  31  May  1855  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  50). 

50.  House-Martin.     Chelidon  urbica  (Linn.) 
A  common  summer  migrant,  but  decreasing 

in  numbers  owing  chiefly  to  the  persecution 
to  which  they  are  subjected  by  the  house 
sparrow,  which  destroys  both  eggs  and  young, 
evicting  the  rightful  owners  from  their  nests. 
The  latest  date  recorded  for  the  stay  of  this 
species  with  us  is  7  November  1891,  on 
which  date  three  were  seen  at  Cheadle  (Birds 
of  Staffordshire,  p.  65). 

51.  Sand-Martin.      Cotile  riparia  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Bank  Swallow. 

A  common  summer  visitor,  but  rather  local, 
varying  in  numbers  according  to  the  accom- 
modation afforded  by  gravel  and  sandpits,  river 
banks  and  railway  cuttings  for  nesting  pur- 
poses. 

52.  Greenfinch.      Ligurinus  Moris  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Green  Linnet. 

Resident  and  abundant  throughout  the 
county,  flocking  in  winter,  and  frequenting 
fields  and  stackyards. 

53.  Hawfinch.    Coccothraustes  vulgaris,  Pallas. 
Although  formerly  regarded  as  a  rare  winter 

visitor,  the  hawfinch  has  established  itself  of 
recent  years  as  a  breeding  species  and  now 
nests  regularly  in  woods  and  orchards  in  many 
parts  of  the  county.  Mr.  E.  Brown  (Fauna 
of  Burton,  p.  100)  seems  to  have  been  the 
first  to  suspect  that  it  bred  with  us  (1863). 
At  the  present  time  it  may  be  said  to  be 
abundant  in  the  Cheadle  and  Stone  districts, 
and  breeds  in  fair  numbers  round  Eccleshall 
and  Abbots  Bromley.  In  the  autumn  small 
flocks  frequent  gardens  and  feed  on  peas, 
cherries,  yew,  hawthorn  and  holly  berries. 

54.  Goldfinch.     Carduelis  elegans,  Stephens. 
Locally,  Seven-coloured  Linnet,  Red  Linnet. 

A  partial   migrant   formerly   abundant  but 


becoming  rarer  every  year.  It  still  breeds  in 
a  few  localities  and  is  not  uncommon  in  the 
damson  orchards  of  the  Dove  valley.  Flocks 
appear  occasionally  in  the  north  of  the  county 
during  the  winter.  The  seeds  of  thistles 
form  the  principal  food  of  this  bird,  and  its 
wholesale  capture  is  a  serious  injury  to 
farmers. 

55.  Siskin.     Carduelis  spinus  (Linn.) 

A  local  winter  visitor  appearing  in  flocks 
which  feed  on  the  seeds  of  the  alder  (Alnus 
glutinosa].  Large  numbers  were  observed  in 
Consall  Woods,  October  1885,  and  near 
Trentham,  January  1893  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
p.  67).  During  hard  weather  they  have  been 
observed  feeding  on  the  seeds  of  spent  hops 
from  breweries  in  the  town  of  Stone.  A 
regular  winter  visitant  at  Willoughbridge 
(Report  North  Staff's  Field  Club,  1894,  p.  55). 

56.  House-Sparrow.     Passer  domesticus  (Linn.) 
Abundant  and  resident.     Albino   and   pied 

varieties  have  frequently  been  met  with  (Birds 
of  Staffordshire,  p.  70). 

57-  Tree-Sparrow.  Passer  montanus  (Linn.) 
A  resident  in  fair  numbers,  but  local  and 
frequently  overlooked  from  its  general  resem- 
blance to  the  last  species.  Mr.  W.  W. 
Bladen  noticed  a  colony  at  Stafford  Castle  in 
1879,  an<1  Mr.  E.  W.  H.  Blagg  observed  a 
large  flock  at  Rocester,  but  as  a  rule  it  is  found 
in  small  colonies. 

58.  Chaffinch.      Fringilla  ccelebs,  Linn. 
Locally,  Piedfinch,  Piedy,  Redfinch,  Spink  or 

Pink. 

A  very  abundant  species,  resident  and 
assembling  in  large  flocks  in  winter. 

59.  Brambling.    Fringilla  montifringilla,  Linn. 
A   winter    visitant  arriving  in   flocks  and 

feeding  on  beech  mast.  In  severe  weather  it 
frequents  stack  yards  in  company  with  other 
birds. 

60.  Linnet.      Linota  cannabina  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Brown  Linnet. 

A  common  resident,  especially  on  downs 
and  heaths. 

[Mealy  Redpoll.      Linota  linaria  (Linn.) 
Included  in  Mr.  Sainter's   list  without  any 
particulars.      Further    evidence    is   necessary 
before  it  can  be  admitted  to  our  list.] 

61.  Lesser  Redpoll.    Linota  rufescens  (Vieillot) 
Resident  and   fairly  common  in  some  dis- 
tricts, nesting  regularly  near  Cheadle,  Sandon 
and  in  the  Dove  valley. 


146 


BIRDS 


62.  Twite.      Linota  flavirostris  (Linn.) 
Resident  and  not  uncommon    in  the  moor- 
lands  in  the  north   of  the   county.     It  is  a 
northern  species,  and  Staffordshire   forms  part 
of  the  southern  limit  of  its  breeding  range. 

63.  Bullfinch.      Pj/rrhula  europtea,  Vieillot. 
A  very  generauy   distributed   resident.      It 

is  common  in  the  woods  of  north  Stafford- 
shire during  the  winter  months. 

[Pine-Grosbeak.  Pyrrhula  enucleator  (Linn.) 

Garner's  work  (p.  279)  contains  the  follow- 
ing reference  to  this  species  :  '  Needwood. 
Bred  in  an  orchard,  north  Staffordshire,  1842.' 
Probably  the  hawfinch  was  mistaken  for  the 
present  species.] 

64.  Crossbill.      Loxia  curvirostra,  Linn. 

An  uncertain  visitor  occurring  in  flocks 
during  the  winter  months.  As  it  is  a  very 
early  breeder  possibly  some  of  the  birds  which 
have  been  observed  in  the  spring  may  have 
bred  in  the  county.  Garner  records  the 
crossbill  as  '  seen  near  Burton,  Uttoxeter,  etc.,' 
and  E.  Brown  says  it  occurred  plentifully  in 
the  fir  plantations  near  Burton  about  1838 
(Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  100).  It  has  also  been 
reported  from  Barhill  (near  Madeley)  and  near 
Burton  in  1879,  and  regularly  for  some  years 
at  Swynnerton  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  74). 
A  bird  in  the  red  plumage  from  the  Blurton 
collection  of  Staffordshire  birds  is  now  in  the 
Derby  Museum.  Both  old  and  young  birds 
have  been  observed  in  woods  near  Cheadle 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1896). 

65.  Corn-Bunting.     Emberiza  miliaria,  Linn. 
Local  in  the  north   of  the  county   but  not 

uncommon  in  the  south  and  south-east,  where 
it  breeds.  It  also  occurs  in  the  west  of  the 
county  at  Willoughbridge  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1894,  Pr  55). 

66.  Yellow     Hammer.      Emberiza    citrinella, 

Linn. 

Locally,  Goldfinch. 

Very  common  throughout  the  county,  sing- 
ing all  through  the  summer  from  the  highest 
twigs  of  hedgerows  and  feeding  in  winter  in 
farmyards  with  other  birds. 

67.  Cirl  Bunting.      Emberiza  cirlus,  Linn. 

A  nest  with  four  eggs  is  said  to  have  been 
found  at  Eccleshall  on  24  May  1883  (Birds 
of  Staffordshire,  p.  75).  It  is  also  said  on  Mr. 
E.  A.  Brown's  authority  to  have  been  recorded 
from  near  Burton. 


68.  Reed  -  Bunting.        Emberiza      schceniclus, 

Linn. 

Locally,  Reed-Sparrow. 

Fairly  common  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
water,  especially  where  reeds  are  found. 

69.  Snow  -  Bunting.        Plectrophenix     nivalis 

(Linn.) 

A  rare  winter  straggler.  There  are  two 
specimens  in  the  Rolleston  Hall  museum,  one 
of  which  was  killed  by  a  labourer  with  a 
stone  on  Rolleston  meadows  in  October 
1847  (Nat.  Hist.  ofTutbury,  p.  44).  Garner 
records  it  as  seen  at  Burton,  Whitmore  Heath 
and  Swynnerton,  and  in  1871  he  says  it  has 
been  shot  at  Cloud  Hill.  Mr.  R.  W.  Chase 
states  that  one  was  found  at  Beech  Lanes, 
Harborne,  on  9  February  1888  (Birds  of  Staf- 
fordshire, p.  76).  Dr.  McAldowie  reports 
one  shot  on  22  January  1895  at  Cliffe  Ville 
close  to  Stoke-on-Trent  while  feeding  in 
company  with  larks  (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club,  1895,  p.  88). 

70.  Starling.      Sturnus  vulgaris,  Linn. 
Abundant   everywhere,  often  seen    in  im- 
mense flocks  during   the  autumn  and  winter. 
Three  white    birds   and   one  cream-coloured 
are     recorded    in     the    Birds  of  Staffordshire 
(p.  76). 

71.  Rose-coloured     Starling.        Pastor    roseus 

(Linn.) 

One  was  seen  near  Rushton  Spencer  in 
1875  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  77). 

72.  Jay.      Garrulus  glandarius  (Linn.) 

Still  fairly  numerous  in  wooded  districts 
although  persistently  trapped  and  shot  by 
keepers. 

73.  Magpie.      Pica  rustica  (Scopoli) 
Locally,  Chatterpie. 

Not  very  numerous,  but  one  or  two  pairs 
are  nearly  always  to  be  seen  on  the  moorlands 
and  near  common  lands.  In  winter  flocks  of 
twenty  to  thirty  are  sometimes  seen  in  the  north 
of  the  county,  and  Mr.  R.  H.  Read  once 
counted  as  many  as  ninety  in  one  plantation 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1894,  p.  50). 
Instances  of  the  eviction  of  magpies  from  their 
nests  by  kestrels,  and  also  apparently  by  jack- 
daws, have  been  noted  in  the  Reports  of  the 
North  Staffs  Field  Club. 

74.  Jackdaw.      Corvus  monedula,  Linn. 

A  common  resident  everywhere,  often 
nesting  in  large  colonies  in  holes  of  trees 
where  there  is  much  old  timber  as  at  Okeover, 
as  well  as  in  chimneys  and  church  towers  in 


147 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


many  towns  and  villages.  At  Moddershall 
near  Stone  a  colony  exists  which  usually  build 
domed  nests  in  high  trees  (Reports  North  Staffs 
Field  Club,  1898  and  1901).  A  hatch  of  five 
chocolate-coloured  jackdaws  appeared  atWood- 
head  near  Cheadle  in  1900. 

75.  Raven.     Corvus  corax,  Linn. 
Formerly  a  not  uncommon  resident  breed- 
ing amongst  other  places  at  Dovedale,  Ramsor, 
Cheadle  and  Dimminsdale  as    late  as  1844, 
and  Copmere  near  Eccleshall    (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,    1879,  p.  6 1 ).     Plot  in  his 
County  History  has  the  following  curious  note: 
'  The  worthy  Mr.  Chetwynd  in   his  park  at 
Ingestre  observed  young  ravens  to  go  to  bough 
on  New  Year's  day  which   therefore  must  be 
hatch't  in  the  winter  near  Christmas,  as  some 
also    were    in   Ashmer's  Park  near  Wolver- 
hampton,  an.  1665,  by  a  Raven  that  constantly 
built     there     for     many    years.'       Needwood 
Forest  was  also   a   well  known   haunt  of  this 
bird.      At  Swythamley   where   they  formerly 
bred   one  was  shot  in    1850.     In  1881  one 
visited   Hardiwick  Wood  near   Stone,  and  in 
the  spring  of   1883  one  was  seen  in  the  early 
morning    on    Stoke-on-Trent    church    tower 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  So).     In   1894  two 
were   reported    from   Cheadle   (Report    North 
Sta/s  Field  Club,  1895,  p.  47),  and   in    1898 
another  was  seen  at   the  entrance  to   Dove- 
dale. 

76.  Carrion-Crow.      Corvus  corone,  Linn. 
Getting  rarer  every  year   through    persecu- 
tion by  game  preservers,  but  still   breeds  in  a 
good  many   places   and   is  common  in  Dove- 
dale  and  the  Ham  valley. 

77.  Hooded  Crow.      Corvus  comix,  Linn. 

A  casual  visitor  on  migration,  recorded 
from  Needwood,  Uttoxeter,  in  1841  (Garner), 
Swythamley  (1853),  on  the  Trent  near  Burton 
in  January  1884,  near  Cheadle  in  1886 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  79),  and  one  in  Hose 
Wood,  Draycot-in-the-Moors,  in  November, 
1895  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1897, 
p.  51). 

78.  Rook.     Corvus  frugilegus,  Linn. 

Very  abundant,  rookeries  being  numerous 
all  over  the  county.  In  winter  immense 
numbers  of  rooks  congregate  together  and 
roost  in  some  sheltered  wood,  scattering  during 
the  day  for  many  miles  ajsuiid  in  order  to 
feed  and  returning  to  the  same  roost  every 
night.  The  average  date  for  the  first  eggs 
in  the  north  of  the  county  is  about  16  March, 
for  about  that  time  the  hens  first  begin  to 
stay  all  night  at  their  nests.  Pied  varieties 
are  not  uncommon  and  albinos  have  been 


observed.  In  1893  Dr.  McAldowie  estimated 
the  number  of  rooks  in  Staffordshire  at  over 
60,000,  but  at  the  present  time  this  number 
is  probably  below  the  mark. 

79.  Sky-Lark.     Alauda  arvensis,  Linn. 

A  common  resident  even  close  to  populous 
towns,  but  much  persecuted  by  bird  catchers 
and  diminishing  in  numbers  prior  to  the  pub- 
lication of  the  Wild  Bird  Protection  Orders. 

80.  Wood-Lark.     Alauda  arborea,  Linn. 
Local  and  rare,  but  may  have   been  over- 
looked.    In  Mr.  Neville  Wood's  time  it  was 
plentiful  in  the  Dove  valley,  from  which  it 
has  now  completely  disappeared.     A  nest  was 
found  at  Eccleshall  in  1883  (Birds  of  Stafford- 
shire, p.    81),  and   Mr.  E.  A.  Brown   says  it 
has  occurred  near  Burton.     Mr.  James  Yates 
records  it  at  Sugnal   (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club,  1879,  p.  62). 

[Crested  Lark.     Alauda  cristata,  Linn. 

Included  in  Sainter's  list,  but  can  scarcely 
be  given  a  place  in  our  local  fauna  without 
further  evidence.] 

8 1.  Shore  Lark.      Otocorys  alpestris  (Linn.) 
One  occurrence  only  of  this  rare  lark  has 

been  noted,  a  specimen  having  been  shot  at 
Enville  near  Dudley  on  17  December  1879 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1900,  p.  53). 

82.  Swift.      Cypselus  apus  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Squealer. 

A  summer  migrant  arriving  in  May,  but 
nowhere  abundant.  Dr.  McAldowie  is  of 
opinion  that  this  species  must  have  been  less 
plentiful  two  centuries  ago  on  the  strength  of 
the  following  passage  from  Plot's  History  of 
Staffordshire  :  '  Of  unusual  small  birds  here 
are  also  several  .  .  .  such  as  the  Hirundo  apus 
or  black  martin  here  called  the  martlet,  which 
I  believe  is  the  bird  intended  by  that  name  in 
Heraldry  and  not  the  Hirundo  agrestis  sive 
rustica  Plinii,  it  having  so  very  long  wings  and 
so  short  legs  and  small  feet  that  it  cannot 
easily  rise  from  the  ground  unless  it  be  very 
plain  and  free  from  grass  ;  wherefore  it  either 
always  flies  or  sits  on  the  top  of  Churches 
Towers  or  else  hangs  on  other  ancient  buildings 
by  its  sharp  claws,  from  which  it  falls  and  so 
takes  its  flight  ;  of  these  I  saw  at  Shareshill 
near  Hilton  and  Beaudesert.' 

83. v  Nightjar.     Caprimulgus  europteus,  Linn. 

Locally,  Fern  Owl,  Goatsucker. 
A  common  summer  migrant  to  our  heaths 
and  ferny  commons.     It   is   a  most   valuable 
bird,  feeding  exclusively   on  insects,  many  of 
which  are  injurious  to  the  agriculturist. 


148 


BIRDS 


84.  Wryneck.      lynx  torquilla,  Linn. 

A  rare  summer  migrant  which  has  been 
recorded  several  times  as  nesting  in  the  county 
at  Rolleston  and  Sandon. 

85.  Green    Woodpecker.        Gecinus     vlridis 

(Linn.) 

A  resident,  generally  distributed  in  wooded 
districts  and  on  the  heaths  of  central  and 
southern  Staffordshire  ;  common  on  Cannock 
Chase  and  around  Ashley. 

86.  Great  Spotted  Woodpecker.    Dendrocopus 

major  (Linn.) 

Resident,  and  not  uncommon,  especially  in 
woods  in  the  north-west  and  west  of  the 
county  and  on  Cannock  Chase. 

87.  Lesser  Spotted  Woodpecker.    Dendrocopus 

minor  (Linn.) 

A  local  resident  and  has  been  recorded  from 
Burton,  Uttoxeter  and  Barlaston  and  found 
nesting  at  Sandon,  Maer,  Bishop's  Woods, 
Dimminsdale  near  Cheadle  and  Ramsor. 
Probably  the  shyness  of  this  little  bird  is  the 
cause  of  its  supposed  scarcity. 

[Great  Black  Woodpecker.     Picus    martius, 
Linn. 

Garner  says  of  this  species,  '  We  may  add 
Picus  martius  on  Mr.  Brown's  authority.'  Pro- 
bably the  statement  was  based  on  a  misunder- 
standing, for  Mr.  Brown  when  compiling  his 
list  of  the  birds  of  the  Burton  district  omits 
all  mention  of  this  bird  (1863).] 

88.  Kingfisher.     Alcedo  ispida,  Linn. 
Resident   and   formerly  fairly   common   on 

all  our  streams  and  lakes,  but  now  scarce  ex- 
cept in  the  Dove  valley  below  Dovedale, 
where  a  considerable  increase  in  numbers  has 
taken  place  during  the  last  few  years  owing  to 
the  protection  extended  by  several  riparian 
owners.  A  few  pairs  still  breed  on  backwaters 
of  the  Trent  in  the  Burton  district  and  on 
streams  near  Stone. 

89.  Roller.      Coracias  garru/us,  Linn. 
Included  by  Mr.  Sainter  in  his  list  of  birds 

recently  met  with  near  Macclesfield  (1878). 
Mr.  E.  Brown  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  102) 
states  that  one  has  '  been  seen  near  Berkeley.' 

90.  Hoopoe.      Upupa  (pops,  Linn. 

A  rare  visitor  on  migration  recorded  by 
Garner  from  Abbots  Bromley,  Barton  and 
Tutbury.  '  One  was  winged  a  few  years 
back  at  Whitmore  and  afterwards  kept  in  a 
cage.'  Sir  O.  Mosley  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  48)  saw  one  on  the  Dove  while  fishing 
near  Rolleston.  One  was  reported  from  near 


Loxley  in  the  summer  of  1885  by  Mr.  Wil- 
kins,  and  Mr.  R.  W.  Chase  records  one  in 
1893  from  Quinton  near  Birmingham  (Birds 
of  Staffordshire,  p.  86). 

91.  Cuckoo.      Cuculus  canorus,  Linn. 

A  common  summer  migrant  arriving  in 
April  and  especially  plentiful  in  the  moorland 
districts.  The  young  cuckoo  somewhat  re- 
sembles a  kestrel  in  the  colour  and  marking 
of  the  plumage,  hence  a  foolish  saying  that 
the  young  cuckoo  eventually  turns  into  a 
hawk  !  Among  the  rarer  foster  parents  re- 
corded from  Staffordshire  may  be  mentioned 
the  thrush  and  the  pheasant  (Sandon  Wood, 
1879)  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1896, 
p.  24). 

92.  White  or  Barn-Owl.  Strix  famrnea,  Linn. 
A  resident,  most  valuable  to  the  farmer  and 

once  common,  but  has  unfortunately  become 
rarer  of  recent  years  owing  in  a  great  measure 
to  the  use  of  the  pole-trap.  Still  breeds  where 
protected. 

93.  Long-eared  Owl.    Asia  otus  (Linn.) 
Resident,  and  found  in  most  thick  fir  woods 

where  not  killed  by  gamekeepers. 

94.  Short-eared  Owl.    Asia  accipitrinus  (Pallas) 
A  rare  autumn  and  winter  migrant.      Gar- 
ner describes    it   as    '  frequent,'   and   Mr.  E. 
Brown    (Fauna  of  Burton,   p.    92)    says   that 
many  are  killed  in  the  Burton  district  at  the 
beginning  of  winter   by  sportsmen.      Sir   O. 
Mosley  shot  one   near   Tutbury  in    October 
1840   (Nat.    Hist,    of  Tutbury,    p.   37),    and 
mentions  others   killed  in  the  neighbourhood 
soon    afterwards.       To    other    parts    of    the 
county  it  is  a  rare  occasional  visitor  but  has 
been   recorded   from   Swythamley,   Eccleshall 
and   near  Alton  in    1883  (Birds  of  Staffs,  p. 
88). 

95.  Tawny  Owl.      Syrnium  aluco  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Brown  Owl. 

A  not  uncommon  resident,  breeding  usually 
in  hollow  trees,  but  also  occasionally  in 
deserted  nests.  May  frequently  be  heard 
hooting  at  night. 

96.  Snowy  Owl.      Nyctea  scandiaca  (Linn.) 
The   only   reference   to  the  occurrence  of 

this  species  in  the  county  is  a  rather  vague 
notice  by  Mr.  A.  O.  Worthington  in  Contri- 
butions to  the  Flora  and  Fauna  of  Repton,  p.  77. 
'  Sir  John  Crewe  records  one  killed  near 
Burton-on  -Trent.' 


97.  Marsh-Harrier.   Circus  eeruginosus  (Linn.) 
Garner  says,  '  Not  very  rare,'  but  no  further 


149 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


particulars  are  given,  and  without  stronger 
evidence  the  record  cannot  be  considered  as 
satisfactory. 

98.  Hen-Harrier.     Circus  cyaneus  (Linn.) 
Formerly  common  and  bred  in  the  county, 

but  now  a  rare  occasional  visitor.  It  is 
noticed  without  remark  by  Dickenson  in  1 798. 
Garner  describes  it  as  occasional.  In  1852 
one  was  shot  at  Swythamley,  where  it  has 
bred.  Mr.  Sainter  includes  it  in  his  list  of 
breeding  birds.  At  Burton  it  has  once  been  re- 
corded (E.  A.  Brown).  Near  Stone  it  has 
been  seen  on  the  wing  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
p.  90).  One  was  shot  on  Cannock  Chase  in 
1899,  and  another  in  1900,  both  in  Lord 
Lichfield'scollectionat  Shugborough.  This  bird 
is  observed  on  Cannock  Chase  most  years  but 
unfortunately  shot  or  trapped,  or  would  pro- 
bably remain  to  breed  (Report  North  Staffs 
Field  Club,  1903). 

99.  Common      Buzzard.       Buteo     vulgaris, 

Leach. 

Now  a  rare  visitor  to  the  north  of  the 
county  but  eighty  or  ninety  years  ago  it  was 
a  common  resident  in  the  wooded  districts, 
such  as  Needwood  Forest  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tut- 
bury,  p.  33).  One  was  killed  at  Horninglow 
in  1860  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  92),  and  others 
have  been  reported  from  Oakamoor  in  March 
1886,  and  also  in  1893,  May  Bank  in  1879, 
and  Endon  in  1894  (Reports  North  Staff's  Field 
Club}.  Mr.  Sainter  mentions  one  shot  on  the 
Roaches  near  Leek  about  1872  (Sci.  Rambles 
round  Macclesfield). 

100.  Rough-legged  Buzzard.      Buteo  lagopus 

(J."F.  Gmelin) 

Occasionally  visits  the  moorlands  of  north 
Staffordshire  on  migration  and  has  several 
times  been  observed  in  the  south  of  the 
county.  Garner  mentions  one  shot  near  Leek 
and  another  from  Needwood.  This  latter 
bird  is  probably  the  male  in  the  Rolleston 
Hall  museum  which  was  shot  at  Rangemoor 
in  1840.  Another  was  seen  at  Rolleston  for 
several  days  in  January  1846,  but  was  not 
shot  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tut  bury,  p.  34).  One  shot 
on  Cannock  Chase  in  January  1895  is  now 
in  the  collection  at  Shugborough  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

101.  Golden  Eagle.    Aquila  chrysaetus  (Linn.) 
Some  doubt  rests  upon  the  reported  occur- 
rences of  this  species,  as  probably  the  writers 
were    not    in    every    case    competent  to  dis- 
tinguish between  this  species  and  the  imma- 
ture sea  eagle.    Plot  in  1686  writes,  '  Witness 
the  eagle  in  Beaudesert  Hall  killed  in  the  Park.' 
Eagles  have  been  observed  too  in  the  forest  of 


Needwood.  Garner  in  1844  Sa7s  '*  nas  been 
seen  at  Needwood  '  in  late  years '  and  that 
one  was  shot  on  Lichfield  Cathedral  in  the 
reign  of  Charles  I.  About  1873  Mr.  H. 
Evans  and  Lord  Waterpark  had  a  good  view 
of  one  in  Brakenhurst  Cover  perched  in  a  tree 
about  60  yards  away. 

102.  White-tailed  Eagle.      Haliaetus  albicilla 

(Linn.) 

The  two  eagles  mentioned  by  Dickenson 
in  1798  as  seen  on  Cannock  Chase  a  few 
years  before,  and  one  of  which  was  shot  by 
Sir  Edward  Littleton's  gamekeeper,  have  been 
proved  to  be  of  this  species  ('  Notes  on  Birds ' 
by  W.  E.  Beckwith  in  Trans.  Shropshire  Arch. 
Soc.  1887). 

103.  Goshawk.      Aitur  palumbarius  (Linn.) 
One  was  shot    at    Swythamley   in    1853. 

Another,  a  male  bird,  was  killed  at  Rolleston 
in  1877  and  is  now  in  the  Rolleston  mu- 
seum. 

104.  Sparrow-Hawk.     Accipiter  nisus  (Linn.) 
One  of    the   few   hawks  which  still  nest 

regularly  in  the  county  and  is  not  uncommon 
except  where  exterminated  by  gamekeepers. 
Several  instances  have  been  recorded  within 
the  county  where  this  bird  has  been  killed 
outright  or  stunned  by  flying  against  plate- 
glass  windows  when  in  pursuit  of  small  birds. 

105.  Kite.     Milvus  ictinus  (Savigny) 
Although  at  one  time  a  common  bird  the 

kite  has  long  been  a  rare  visitor  to  the  county. 
Garner  speaks  of  it  as  '  occasional,'  and  says 
it  has  been  trapped  in  Needwood  Forest.  Mr. 
E.  Brown  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  92)  mentions  one 
seen  near  Branstone  in  1855,  and  Mr.  Rising's 
collection  contained  a  pair  of  Staffordshire 
killed  birds,  while  Mr.  R.  W.  Chase  has  one 
shot  at  Ornslow  many  years  ago  in  his  col- 
lection. The  latest  occurrence  was  in  1877 — 
one  seen  at  Swynnerton  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
p.  93).  Dovedale  is  supposed  to  have  been 
a  former  breeding  place  of  this  bird. 

1 06.  Honey-Buzzard.   Perms  apivorus  (Linn.) 
Garner  records  one  shot   at  Trentham  in 

1844,  and  in  August  1885  (in  error  this  date 
is  given  as  October  1884)  a  second  was  shot 
at  Swynnerton  (Reports  North  Staffs  Field  Cluby 
1885).  J.  E.  Harting  states  that  the  nest 
has  been  found  in  Stafford  (Buchanan)  in  his 
handbook.  In  the  Zoologist,  1888  (p.  394) 
one  is  recorded  as  having  been  shot  at  Beau- 
desert  on  27  July  1888,  and  another  at 
Little  Aston  near  Birmingham  on  16  June 
1891  (Zool.  1897,  p.  271).  One  shot  at  The 
Wergs,  near  Wolverhampton,  19  June  1903. 


150 


BIRDS 


107.  Greenland  Falcon.     Fako  candlcans  Q. 

F.  Gmelin) 

The  only  record  is  that  of  Garner,  who 
states  that  it  has  been  'shot  in  Beaudesert 
Park'  (p.  271). 

1 08.  Peregrine    Falcon.        Fako    peregrinus, 

Tun  stall. 

The  Rolleston  Hall  collection  contains  an 
adult  female  shot  at  Beaudesert,  probably  the 
bird  referred  to  by  Garner  as  having  been 
killed  there  in  1841.  An  adult  cock  shot  near 
Codsall  in  1897  's  now  'n  tne  possession  of 
Mr.  Heathley  of  Stoke-on-Trent. 

109.  Hobby.      Fako  subbuteo,  Linn. 

A  scarce  summer  visitor,  but  has  been  ob- 
served several  times.  Garner's  MS  notes 
contain  a  reference  to  one  shot  in  Needwood 
Forest  in  1847.  In  1883  Dr.  McAldowie 
saw  a  hobby  take  a  swallow  on  the  wing  at 
Han  ford  near  Stoke  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 
95),  and  in  the  Rolleston  Hall  museum  is  a 
specimen  which  was  shot  in  June  1890. 
Judging  from  the  date  this  bird  may  have  been 
breeding  in  the  neighbourhood.  Mr.  R.  H. 
Read  shot  a  hobby  at  Lee  Head  near  Maer 
in  the  summer  of  1 88 1  (Report  North  Staff's 
Field  Club,  1894,  p.  48). 

110.  Merlin.      Fako  eesalon,  Tunstall. 

A  few  pairs  still  breed  on  the  moorlands  in 
the  north  of  the  county,  and  stragglers  are 
occasionally  observed  in  other  parts.  Garner 
records  merlins  from  Needwood  Forest,  Tean 
and  Burton,  and  the  Rolleston  museum  con- 
tains one  shot  on  15  October  1853  ln  tne 
churchyard  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  p.  34).  Sir 
O.  Mosley  in  the  same  work  describes  it  as 
'  not  infrequently  seen,'  and  in  the  Derby 
Museum  is  a  skin  from  the  Blurton  collection. 
One  was  shot  in  1891  at  Swythamley,  where 
it  breeds,  and  a  nest  with  eggs  was  found 
'  some  years  ago  '  at  Newcastle-under-Lyme 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  95). 

111.  Kestrel.      Fako  tinnunculus,  Linn. 
Fairly  common  and  a  partial  migrant.   Not 

so  plentiful  as  formerly  but  still  nests  regu- 
larly. A  most  useful  bird  in  helping  to  keep 
down  mice  and  voles. 

112.  Osprey.      Pandion  haliaetus  (Linn.) 

An  occasional  visitant.  Garner  mentions 
specimens  shot  at  Stafford  and  Burton  '  a  few 
years  back,'  and  Sir  O.  Mosley  observed  one 
at  Rolleston  in  1841  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  33).  In  the  summer  of  1860  Mr.  Brown 
saw  one  near  Burton  which  was  afterwards 
shot  lower  down  the  Trent  (Fauna  of  Burton, 
p.  227).  Mr.  R.  W.  Chase  has  an  immature 


female  in  his  collection  shot  near  Lichfield 
26  September  1 88 1,  and  another  was  seen 
for  a  week  at  Copmere  in  October  1882 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  96).  In  January 
1893  one  was  shot  at  Sneyd  Green  near 
Burslem  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1894, 
p.  42). 

113.  Cormorant.    Phalacrocorax  carbo  (Linn.) 
A  straggler  to  Aqualate  on  several  occasions 

and  has  also  been  observed  in  the  Trent 
valley.  Dickenson  in  1798  notes  it  as  'fre- 
quently seen  in  winter  about  Aqualate  mere.' 
Sir  O.  Mosley  says  one  was  seen  on  the  Trent 
and  Dove  about  20  years  previously  to  1863, 
and  that  he  saw  one  fishing  in  the  Dove  '  be- 
tween 30  and  40  years  ago '  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  p.  57).  Mr.  E.  Brown  records 
another  killed  at  Burton  in  1838  (Fauna  of 
Burton,  p.  110),  and  one  was  killed  during 
the  winter  of  1885  at  the  same  place  (Natur- 
alist''! World].  There  is  also  a  specimen  at 
Swythamley  shot  in  1872  (Birds  of  Stafford- 
shire, p.  97). 

114.  Shag  or  Green  Cormorant.      Phalacro- 

corax graculus  (Linn.) 

One  shot  at  Burton  weir  by  Mr.  Charles 
Hanson  'some  years  ago'  (1893)  (Birds  of 
Derbyshire,  p.  152).  Three  were  seen  at  the 
same  place  in  September  1902  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

115.  Gannet  or  Solan  Goose.      Sula  bassana 

(Linn.) 

According  to  Garner,  '  Occasional  on  the 
Trent  and  Dove  ;  Aqualate.'  Sir  O.  Mosley 
(Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  p.  57)  mentions  one 
killed  at  Yoxall  on  8  November  1853,  and 
in  the  same  work  Mr.  Brown  says  it  has 
twice  been  killed  within  a  few  miles  of  Tut- 
bury (p.  no),  but  probably  one  of  these  cases 
refers  to  the  Yoxall  bird.  One  shot  near 
Grindon,  1899.  On  4  August  1900  two 
were  seen  at  Clifton  flying  down  the  Dove 
valley  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1901). 

1 1 6.  Common  Heron.      Ardea  cinerea,  Linn. 
Locally,  Yarn  (Dickenson),  Heronshaw  (Plot), 

obs. 

A  resident  in  fair  numbers.  Dr.  Plot 
writing  in  1686  says,  'and  of  unusual  birds 
frequenting  the  water  here  are  also  divers 
kinds,  some  of  them  cloven  footed  and  pisci- 
vorous though  they  build  their  nests  on  the 
tops  of  trees  ;  as  the  Ardea  cinerea,  or  common 
heron  or  heronshaw  whereof  I  saw  divers 
sitting  on  the  tops  of  the  highest  trees  in 
Norbury  Park."  Garner  in  his  supplement 
(1860)  mentions  nests  at  Swythamley,  Trent- 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


ham  and  Betley,  but  none  of  these  ever  be- 
came established  heronries.  In  1893,  when 
the  Birds  of  Staffordshire  was  published,  three 
heronries  were  mentioned  at  Aqualate,  where 
there  were  only  about  six  nests  in  1892  but 
none  in  1893,  although  as  many  as  forty  or 
fifty  have  been  built  in  some  years  in  Bagots 
Park,  where  there  were  nineteen  nests  on 
young  oak  trees  in  1893,  and  at  Patshull 
where  there  were  about  ten  nests,  and  the 
birds  are  strictly  preserved  by  Lord  Dartmouth. 
In  1901  there  were  only  two  or  three  nests  at 
Aqualate.  The  Aqualate  and  Bagots  Park 
heronries  are  of  ancient  origin,  but  that  of 
Patshull  is  more  recent.  A  curious  point  in 
reference  to  the  Aqualate  birds  is  that  every 
year  one  or  more  pairs  nested  among  the 
reeds  at  the  side  of  the  mere.  Some  large 
pellets  picked  up  at  Bagots  Park  were  com- 
posed of  the  hair  of  voles,  rats  and  mice. 
Isolated  pairs  have  been  also  known  to  breed 
in  Dovedale  and  the  Ham  valley. 

117.  Purple  Heron.      Ardea  purpurea,  Linn. 
One  was  shot  at  Wetmore  on  I  July  1856 

(E.  Brown,  Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  105).  Some 
additional  particulars  are  given  in  the  Birds  of 
Derbyshire,  p.  154,  on  the  authority  of  Mr. 
C.  Hanson,  who  states  that  it  was  killed  as  it 
sat  in  a  pollard  willow  on  the  banks  of  the 
Trent  on  the  Derbyshire  side,  as  he  thinks. 

1 1 8.  Squacco  Heron.    Ardea  ralloides,  Scopoli. 
Recorded  as  having  occurred  in  the  county, 

a  male  having  been  shot  on  the  banks  of  the 
Dove  near  Colon  on  17  May  1874  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  ioi  ;  see  also  Science  Gossip, 
1875,  p.  4). 

119.  Little  Bittern.     Ardetta  minuta  (Linn.) 
A    rare    straggler.     Garner    mentions    one 

from  the  Dove  or  Trent  (Mr.  Emery),  and 
Mr.  E.  Brown  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  228) 
states  that  one  was  killed  at  King's  Bromley 
about  1838.  One  is  reported  to  have  been 
shot  near  Hanley,  May  1901,  but  further 
details  are  needed. 

1 2O.  Bittern.      Botaurus  stellaris  (Linn.) 
Formerly  plentiful,  nesting  in  the  county. 

Sir  O.  Mosley  states  that  when  a  boy  he  fre- 
quently heard  in  the  evening  the  '  boom  '  of 
the  bittern,  which  then  frequented  the  osier 
beds  on  the  banks  of  the  Trent  and  Dove 
(Nat.  Hist.  ofTuttury,  p.  53).  A  few  still 
visit  us  as  winter  migrants,  but  most  of  them 
are  unfortunately  shot.  Stuffed  specimens  ob- 
tained in  the  district  are  to  be  found  in  many 
cottages  round  Eccleshall.  In  the  Birds  of 
Staffordshire  (p.  ioi)  definite  records  of  some 
twelve  occurrences  are  given. 


121.  White  Stork.     Cicoma  alba,   Bechstein. 
Garner  says  vaguely  that  it    has  occurred 

several  times  on  the  Dove  (p.  284).  Sir  O. 
Mosley  gives  some  details  :  one  was  shot  by 
Mr.  Emery  some  years  since  and  another  is 
said  to  have  been  obtained  near  Abbots 
Bromley  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp.  54, 
105). 

122.  Glossy  Ibis.    P/egadis  falcinellus  (Linn.) 
One  was  shot  on  the  Trent  at  Fradley  in 

1840  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp.  54,  105). 
Another  was  shot  'many  years  ago'  at  Walton- 
on-Trent  (Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  159). 

123.  Spoonbill.      Platalea  leucorodia,  Linn. 
One  shot   by  Mr.    D.    Hopkins  in  Rolles- 

ton  Park  on  14  June  1872,  is  now  in  the 
Rolleston  Hall  museum. 

124.  Flamingo.      Phoenicopterus  roseus,  Pallas. 
Early  in  September   1881    an  adult  flam- 
ingo was  seen  for  a  week  or  so  on  the  estate 
of  the    late    Sir    John     H.    Crewe    in    the 
northern    part    of    Staffordshire,    but   having 
crossed  the  river  Manifold  to  another  property 
it  was  captured  and  taken  to  the  owner  of  the 
land,    by  whom  it  was  kept  alive  for  a  few 
days  and  then  killed  (H.   Saunders,  Manual, 
ed.    2,    1899,    p.   395,  and  Yarrell's  British 
Birds,  ed.  4,  iv.  245). 

125.  Grey  Lag-Goose,  dnsercinereus,  Meyer. 
A  rare   winter  visitor,  formerly  frequently 

seen  passing  over  the  county  on  migration. 
Sir  O.  Mosley  and  Mr.  E.  Brown  agree  that  it 
was  plentiful '  fifty  years  ago '  (i.e.  about  1813), 
but  it  is  doubtful  whether  any  of  the  geese 
that  still  visit  the  Trent  valley  belong  to  this 
species.  Mr.  E.  A.  Brown  has  examined  one 
killed  at  Burton  and  another  was  shot  at 
Swythamley  in  1869  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
p.  103). 

126.  White-fronted    Goose.      Anser    albifrons 

(Scopoli) 

This  species  is  included  in  Garner's  list  but 
no  details  are  given.  It  is  however  known 
to  visit  the  Trent  valley  (Birds  of  Derbyshire, 
p.  1 60).  One  was  shot  near  Wolverhampton 
12  January  1901  by  Mr.  Harold  Twentyman 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

[Bean  Goose.    Anser  segetum  (J.  F.  Gmelin) 
Included  in   Sainter's  list ;  a  very  doubtful 
record.] 

127.  Pink-footed  Goose.  Anser  brachyrhynchus, 

Baillon. 

Probably  this  is  the  species  most  frequently 
seen  in  the  Trent  valley,  but  specimens  are 


152 


BIRDS 


seldom  killed.  One  killed  at  Winshill  in 
1856  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  107),  and  others 
have  since  been  killed  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Burton-on-Trent. 

128.  Barnacle-Goose.          Bernicla        leucopsis 

(Bechstein) 

Occasionally  shot  near  Tutbury  ;  one 
associated  with  some  Canada  geese  at  Rolles- 
ton  in  December  1859  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tut- 

bury,  p-  55)- 

129.  Brent  Goose.      Bernicla  brenta  (Pallas) 
Included  in  Garner's  list.     One. seen  in  the 

flesh  in  March  1893  said  to  have  been  shot 
in  Staffordshire  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  104). 
One  shot  at  Rocester  about  25  January  1903 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

[Canada  Goose.  Bernicla  canadensis  (Linn.) 
An   introduced    species,    flocks    of    which 
often  pass  up  and  down  the  Dove  valley.] 

[Egyptian  Goose.        Chenalopex  regyptiaca, 
Linn. 

Has  several  times  been  shot  on  the  Trent ; 
probably  escaped  birds.] 

130.  WhooperSwan.     Cygnus  musicus,  Bech- 

stein. 

Locally,    Whistling   Swan   (Mosley),   Elk     or 
Wild  Swan  (Brown). 

Has  frequently  been  observed  in  the  Trent 
valley  in  small  flocks.  One  was  shot  at 
Swythamley  in  1875  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
p.  1 06). 

[Bewick's  Swan.      Cygnus  bewicki,  Yarrell. 

The  bird  of  this  species  mentioned  in  the 
Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  1 06,  was  killed  in 
Derbyshire.] 

131.  Mute  Swan.      Cygnus  olor  (J.  F.  Gme- 

lin) 

In  a  semi-domesticated  condition  on  oui 
larger  rivers  and  on  lakes. 

132.  Common  Sheld-Duck.      Tadorna  cornuta 

(S.  G.  Gmelin) 

This  beautiful  duck  has  been  shot  several 
times  in  the  county.  The  birds  recorded  by 
Mr.  E.  A.  Brown  as  breeding  near  Burton- 
on-Trent  were  probably  captives  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  106). 

133.  Mallard  or  Wild   Duck.     Anas    boscas, 

Linn. 

Resident  and  fairly  plentiful  where  pre- 
served on  large  meres.  It  is  also  numerous  in 
the  Dove  valley  between  Rocester  and  Dove- 
dale.  Our  resident  birds  are  frequently 
joined  by  flocks  of  migrants  in  winter. 


134.  Gadwall.      Anas  strepera,  Linn. 

A  very  rare  visitor.  One  obtained  on  the 
Tame  at  Comberford  near  Lichfield  22 
December  1873  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 
108). 

135.  Shoveler.      Spatula  clypeata  (Linn.) 

A  rare  winter  visitor.  Mr.  E.  Brown 
(Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  1 08)  says  that  many 
have  been  killed  on  the  Trent  but  it  is  now 
rarely  seen  there.  A  drake  was  shot  at 
Rolleston  on  3  April  1866,  and  two  others 
at  Woore  in  September  1896.  Mr.  Harting 
states  that  the  nest  has  been  found  in  the 
county  (Handbook  of  Brit.  Birds,  ed.  I, 
p.  62). 

136.  Pintail.      Dafila  acuta  (Linn.) 

A  winter  visitor  of  which  several  occur- 
rences have  been  recorded.  Not  uncommon 
in  the  Tutbury  and  Burton  districts  (Nat. 
Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp.  56,  108).  A  young  drake 
shot  at  Barlaston  in  November  1885,  four  at 
Leigh  in  1895,  one  at  Bloxwich  in  February 
1898,  and  a  drake  at  Hilderstone  Hall  on  4 
February  1901  (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club,  1901). 

137.  Teal.      Nettion  crecca  (Linn.) 

Breeds  very  sparingly  in  Staffordshire  (Birds 
of  Staffordshire,  p.  108).  In  winter  and  spring 
small  flocks  visit  the  middle  and  south  of  the 
county.  Frequents  the  scattered  pits  at  Lea 
Head  singly  or  in  pairs  most  winters  (Report 
North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1894,  p.  58. 

[Summer  Duck.      Aix  sponsa  (Linn.) 
One   killed     on     the   Trent    near    Drake- 
low  a  few  years  previous  to  1863   (E.  Brown, 
Fauna     of    Burton,    p.    228).      Probably    an 
escaped  bird.] 

138.  Garganey.      Querquedula    circia   (Linn.) 

Sir  O.  Mosley  and  Mr.  E.  Brown  both 
state  that  this  duck  has  occasionally  but  very 
rarely  been  killed  on  the  Trent  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  pp.  56,  1 08).  No  recent  occur- 
rences. 

139.  Wigeon.      Mareca  penelope  (Linn.) 

A  winter  visitor  frequently  occurring  in 
large  flocks  during  severe  weather  on  Aqua- 
late,  Trentham,  Rudyard  and  other  large 
lakes  as  well  as  on  the  Trent. 

140.  Pochard.      Fuligula  ferina  (Linn.) 

A  winter  visitant,  not  uncommon  on  the 
Trent  in  hard  winters  such  as  1890-1. 


141.  Tufted  Duck.     Fuligula  cristata  (Leach) 
By  means  of  careful  preservation  this  duck 


153 


20 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


has  now  become  resident  and  has  nested  regu- 
larly since  1880  at  Weston  Park  on  the 
borders  of  Stafford  and  Shropshire.  About 
twenty  pairs  were  breeding  here  in  1900 
(H.  E.  Forrest,  Zool.  1900,  p.  506).  It  also 
breeds  at  Patshull  and  is  occasionally  met 
with  in  other  parts  of  the  county,  at  Cheadle 
in  1886  and  not  infrequently  on  the  Trent, 
Willoughbridge  in  1892,  Aston  1879  (Re- 
ports  North  Staffs  Field  CM,  1894,  p.  58). 

142.  Scaup-Duck.  Fuligula  marila  (Linn.) 
A  winter  visitant  not  uncommon  on  the 
Trent  during  the  frost  of  1890-1.  Lord 
Lewisham  observed  several  near  Wolver- 
hampton  in  November  1887  (Reports  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1 


143.  Goldeneye.      Clangula  glaucion  (Linn.) 
An  occasional  winter  visitant.      Frequently 

seen  near  Rolleston,  and  a  female  killed  on 
22  November  1847  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  56),  one  near  Burton  in  1881  (E.  A. 
Brown),  one  near  Cheadle  in  the  winter  of 
1888-9,  two  at  Madeley  in  1893,  and  one  at 
Great  Gnosall,  6  January  1901  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club}. 

[Long-tailed  Duck.  Harelda  glacialis 
(Linn.) 

Included  in  the  birds  of  Staffordshire,  but 
the  specimen  referred  to  was  killed  at  Twy- 
ford  in  Derbyshire  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
pp.  56,  109).] 

144.  Common  Scoter.    CEdemia  nigra  (Linn.) 
A    marine    species    which   has    frequently 

visited  the  Rolleston  district.  One  remained 
on  the  pools  at  Rolleston  in  January  and 
February  1854  (Nat.  Hist,  of  'Tut  bury  ',  p.  56). 

145.  Velvet  Scoter.     CEdemia  fusca  (Linn.) 
Dickenson  in    1798   mentions  one  shot  at 

Batchacre,  and  Garner  (p.  287)  gives  also 
Aqualate  and  Burton-on-Trent,  1841,  as 
localities  for  this  species. 

146.  Goosander.      Mergus  merganser,  Linn. 
Locally,     Sowgouder     (Dickenson),     Green- 

headed  Goosander  (Garner),  obs. 
An  occasional  winter  visitant.  Dickenson 
in  1798  records  it  from  Aqualate;  Sir  O. 
Mosley  mentions  two,  a  male  shot  on  the 
Dove  and  female  killed  at  Burton  in  January 
1854  (Nat.  Hist.  of  Tutbury,  p.  56).  A  female 
was  shot  at  Swythamley  in  1880  and  another 
at  Leigh  on  1  1  January  1901  ;  the  latter  was 
accompanied  by  a  second  bird  (Report  North 
Sta/s  Field  Club,  1901).  Mr.  R.  H.  Read 
has  observed  this  bird  at  Sidway  near  Wil- 
loughbridge several  times  (Report  North  Staffs 


Field  Club,  1894,  p.  58).  Three  of  these 
birds,  a  male  and  two  females,  were  shot  on  the 
Sow  at  Shugborough  a  few  years  ago  out  of 
a  flock  and  are  now  in  Lord  Lichfield's  collec- 
tion (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

147.  Red-breasted  Merganser.     Mergus  ser- 

rator,  Linn. 

Has  occasionally  been  shot  in  the  Trent 
valley  and  is  given  in  Garner's  list,  but  with- 
out particulars  (p.  288).  One  seen  at  Sid- 
way  near  Willoughbridge  in  the  winter  of 
1880  by  Mr.  R.  H.  Read  (Report  North  Staffs 
Field  Club,  1894,  p.  58). 

148.  Smew.      Mergus  albellus,  Linn. 
Locally,    Whiteheaded  Goosander     (Garner), 

obs. 

Sir  O.  Mosley  records  two  killed  at 
Sudbury  on  the  Dove '  some  years  ago,'  and 
a  male  and  female  shot  at  Fradley  in  1855 
(Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  p.  56).  Mr.  E.  A. 
Brown  also  speaks  of  several  records  from 
near  Burton. 

149.  Ring-Dove  or  Wood-Pigeon.      Columba 

palumbus,  Linn. 

Resident  and  very  generally  distributed. 
In  winter  its  numbers  are  increased  by 
migratory  flocks  which  feed  upon  acorns  in 
woods  during  severe  weather. 

150.  Stock  Dove.      Columba  anas,  Linn. 
Not  so    common    as    the  last  species  and 

more  local.  Nests  in  hollow  trees  or  thick 
ivy  and  in  winter  associates  with  wood- 
pigeons. 

151.  Turtle-Dove.      Turtur  communis,  Selby. 
A  summer  migrant  which  has  extended  its 

range  of  late  years  and  is  common  in  the 
middle  and  south  of  the  county  but  rare  in 
the  north.  First  observed  breeding  at  Chea- 
dle in  1887  and  now  nests  there  regularly, 
also  at  Oakamoor  in  1901. 

152.  Pallas's Sand-Grouse.  Syrrhaptes paradoxus 

(Pallas) 

The  two  great  immigrations  of  this  central 
Asian  species  took  place  in  1863  and  1888. 
In  the  first-named  year  the  two  first  British 
examples  were  shot  in  Northumberland  on 
2 1  May,  and  on  the  following  day  three  more 
were  killed  out  of  a  flock  of  about  twenty  near 
Eccleshall  in  Staffordshire  by  a  man  who 
was  returning  home  at  dusk  when  the  birds 
flew  over  his  head.  In  1888  a  female  was 
shot  at  Rough  Hill,  Wolverhampton,  on  23 
May,  and  in  September  a  male  at  Ipstones,  a 
moorland  village  five  miles  north  of  Cheadle 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  1 1 3). 


154 


BIRDS 


153.  Black  Grouse.      Tetrao  tetrix,  Linn. 
Still     breeds    annually     in     the    moorland 

districts  near  Cheadle  and  Leek,  on  the 
Weaver  Hills,  on  Cannock  Chase,  in  the 
Bishops'  Wood  near  Eccleshall  and  at 
Chartley. 

154.  Red  Grouse.      Lagopus  scoticus  (Latham) 
Locally,  Garcock  or  Red  Game  (Plot),  (obs) 

Resident  and  plentiful  on  the  moors  in  the 
north  of  the  county  and  also  on  Cannock 
Chase.  In  severe  winters  they  have  been 
seen  at  Rolleston  (1859),  Burton-'on-Trent 
(1860-1)  and  Cheadle  (1885-6).  In  the 
Swythamley  collection  is  a  slate  coloured 
variety  shot  in  1862  (Birds  of  Staffordshire, 
P.  1 1 8). 

155.  Pheasant.      Phasianus  colchicus  (Linn.) 
Abundant     where    preserved.      Owing    to 

crossing  and  interchange  of  eggs  varieties  of 
plumage  are  very  common,  and  in  some 
districts  it  is  quite  the  exception  to  meet  with 
the  normal  plumage  of  the  old  English  bird. 

156.  Partridge.      Perd'ix  cinerea,   Latham. 
Not  so   common   as   formerly  when   there 

was  more  arable  land.  In  September  1900, 
five  specimens  of  a  dark  chestnut  or  ery- 
thristic  variety  were  shot  at  Pyrehill  near 
Stone,  which  correspond  with  the  Perdix 
montana  of  Brisson  (Report  North  Staff's 
Field  Club,  1901).  Two  others  of  the  same 
variety  were  shot  near  Pyrehill  in  October 
1901.  Mr.  J.  Whitaker  has  a  very  pale 
bird  from  Staffordshire,  formerly  in  the  col- 
lection of  the  late  Mr.  F.  Bond.  Four 
others  of  the  rufous  variety,  but  three  of  them 
much  splashed  with  creamy  white,  were  shot 
on  Lord  Lichfield's  Staffordshire  estates  and 
are  in  the  Shugborough  collection. 

157.  Red-legged     Partridge.       Caccabis    rufa 

(Linn.) 

Garner  mentions  this  species  as  introduced 
at  Teddesley,  etc.  It  is  still  rare,  but  has 
been  recorded  from  Great  Barr  (1881), 
Woore  (1894)  and  Stone  (1900),  while  nests 
have  been  found  at  King's  Bromley  (1886) 
and  Caverswall  (1896)  (Reports  North  Staffs 
Field  Club).  In  1901  this  bird  was  reported  by 
sportsmen  from  several  districts  in  the  county 
and  seems  to  be  on  the  increase. 

158.  Quail.      Coturnix  communis,  Bonnaterre. 
An   occasional   summer    migrant.      Sir   O. 

Mosley  mentions  one  killed  at  Rolleston  on 
15  December,  1856  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  52).  Near  Burton  it  has  occurred  several 
times  and  nests  have  been  recorded  from 


King's  Bromley  in  1887  and  1892  and  near 
Stoke  sewage  works  in  1893.  Two  brace 
were  shot  at  Gnosall  in  September  1885,  and 
it  has  also  occurred  several  times  near  Eccle- 
shall (Reports  North  Staff's  Field  Club,  1888, 
p.  21,  and  1894,  p.  41). 

[Virginian       Colin.        Ortyx      virginianus 
(Linn.) 

An  introduced  species  mentioned  in  Mr. 
Sainter's  list.] 

159.  Land-Rail  or  Corn-Crake.  Crex pratemis, 

Bechstein. 

A  common  summer  migrant,  arriving  in 
April  and  leaving  in  September,  but  a  few 
young  birds  occasionally  stay  later. 

1 60.  Spotted     Crake.        Porzana     maruetta 

(Leach) 

Occurs  not  infrequently  in  the  lower  part 
of  the  Trent  valley  but  is  a  rare  visitor  to 
other  parts  of  the  county  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tut- 
bury, p.  55).  The  Garner  MS.  mentions 
Burslem  and  Stone  ;  others  have  been  recorded 
from  Fauld  (1841),  Handsworth  (3  Nov. 
1890)  and  Morredge  (1891).  Lea  Head  near 
Maer,  1881  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club, 
1894,  p.  52). 

[Little  Crake.       Porzana  parva  (Scopoli) 
In  Sainter's  addenda  (p.    147)   but   without 
any  details.] 

161.  Water-Rail.      Rallus  aquaticus,  Linn. 
Not  uncommon,  but  seldom  seen.      Said  to 

have  nested  at  Swythamley  and  certainly  does 
so  in  the  Dove  valley.  Usually  met  with  by 
sportsmen  in  hard  winters. 

162.  Moor-hen.      Gallinula  chloropus  (Linn.) 
Common  on  all  our  rivers,  lakes  and  pools, 

and  semi-domesticated,  feeding  on  lawns  at 
Trentham,  Draycot-in-the-Moors  Rectory, 
Milwich  Hall  and  other  places. 

163.  Coot.   Fulica  atra,  Linn. 

Frequent  on  large  pools  and  meres  but  not 
so  common  as  the  moor-hen. 

164.  Little  Bustard.      Otis  tetrax,  Linn. 
One    specimen  shot  at   Birchfield    'many 

years  ago '  is  now  in  the  collection  at  Aston 
Hall.  Another  was  killed  by  a  keeper  about 
1899  at  Warslow  and  is  now  in  the  Calke 
Abbey  collection. 

165.  Dotterel.      Eudromias  morinellus  (Linn.) 
A  rare  spring  and  autumn  visitor  on  migra- 
tion.     '  Its  line    of   migration  appears  to  be 


155 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


through  Staffordshire  by  Cannock  Chase  and 
the  hilly  district  in  the  south  of  the  county  ' 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  124).  Ten  were 
shot  on  Cannock  Chase  on  15  May  1875, 
two  at  Perry  Barr  in  1882,  and  one  at  Great 
Barr  on  4  September  1887,  and  lastly  one  was 
shot  by  a  keeper  on  the  Weaver  Hills  in 
October  1895  (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club,  1901). 

1 66.  Ringed      Plover.       Mgialitis       hiaticula 

(Linn.) 

Has  occurred  several  times  on  the  Trent 
but  is  a  very  rare  visitor  to  other  parts  of  the 
county.  Recorded  by  Garner  from  the 
Churnet  and  Cheddleton  and  at  Madeley 
(1889). 

167.  Golden    Plover.      Charadrius    pluvialis, 

Linn. 

Flocks  occasionally  visit  us  during  the  winter 
and  early  spring  months.  Garner  records  it 
from  Uttoxeter  and  Stoke  meadows  (1843). 
Sir  O.  Mosley  says  considerable  flocks  are 
found  occasionally  in  the  meadows  near  Tut- 
bury  after  winter  floods  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury, 
p.  52).  Large  numbers  were  seen  at  Draycot 
in  1884  ;  one  shot  at  Great  Barr  2  January 
1885;  recorded  from  Cheadle  in  1886  ;  flocks 
at  Cauldon,  Endon  and  Draycot  in  hard 
weather,  1890-1,  and  a  flock  of  about  forty 
at  Cheadle  in  March  1892  (Reports  North 
Staffs  Field  Club}. 

[Grey  Plover.      Squatarola  helvetica  (Linn.) 
Included     in     Garner's    appendix     (1860) 

without  details.     In  his  MS.  notes  Mr.  Hilton 

is  given  as  his  informant.] 

1 68.  Lapwing.      Vanellui  vulgaris,  Bechstein. 
A  common   resident  but  partially  migrant 

in  severe  weather.  Diminishing  in  numbers 
owing  to  the  persistent  taking  of  the  eggs  for 
sale,  thus  depriving  the  farmer  of  one  of  his 
most  useful  friends. 

169.  Turnstone.      Strepsilas  interpret  (Linn.) 
Mr.  E.  A.  Brown  states  that  this  bird  has 

occurred  near  Burton-on-Trent  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  125). 

170.  Oyster-Catcher.     Heematopus  ostralegus, 

Linn. 

A  rare  visitor.  Garner  and  Sir  O.  Mosley 
say  that  it  has  occurred  on  the  Trent,  and 
the  latter  writer  states  that  one  was  shot  on 
the  Dove  on  10  September  1841  (Nat.  Hist, 
of  Tut  bury,  p.  53).  In  November  1883,  two 
were  seen  at  Wootton-under- Weaver,  one  of 
which  was  killed  by  a  keeper  and  is  now  in 
his  possession.  One  was  picked  up  exhausted 


at  Seabridge  near  Newcastle  on  15  October 
1902  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

171.  Avocet.      Recurvirostra  avocetta,  Linn. 
Professor  Newton   (Dictionary  of  Birds,   p. 

24)  says  :  '  Plot  mentions  it  so  as  to  lead  one 
to  suppose  that  in  his  time  (1686)  it  bred  in 
Staffordshire.  The  actual  words  are,  "  Of 
whole  footed  waterfowl  the  Avocetta  Italorum 
or  Recurvirostra,  is  also  found  here  as  well  as 
in  the  Eastern  parts  of  Norfolk  and  Suffolk, 
there  having  been  of  them  killed  at  the  black 
lakes  near  Aqualet,  eight  of  them  being  seen 
first  in  the  morning  and  but  six  at  night  when 
they  shot.'  "  It  will  be  seen  from  the  latter 
part  of  the  passage  that  the  evidence  is  not 
very  conclusive.  One  was  shot  on  the  Dove 
near  Scropton  '  recently  '  (Garner). 

172.  Grey    Phalarope.      Phalaropus  fulicarius 

(Linn.) 

A  rare  visitor.  Garner  and  the  authors  of 
the  Natural  History  of  Tutbury  record  it  from 
near  Uttoxeter  and  other  localities  in  the 
district,  and  Mr.  E.  A.  Brown  says  it  has 
occurred  near  Burton.  Others  have  been 
killed  at  Harborne  (Oct.  1885),  Handsworth 
(16  Oct.  1891)  and  Rowley  Regis  (20  Oct. 
1891)  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  126).  An 
adult  female  was  shot  on  4  October  1893,  at 
Willenhall  (Zoo/.  1894,  p.  112). 

173.  Red-necked      Phalarope.       Phalaropus 

hyperboreus  (Linn.) 

One  specimen  shot  at  Handsworth  on  24 
August  1887  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  126). 

174.  Woodcock.      Scolopax  rusticula,  Linn. 

A  regular  winter  visitant,  a  fair  number 
remaining  to  breed  in  the  larger  woods.  In 
Garner's  time  it  was  noted  as  having  bred  at 
Betley,  and  more  recently  it  has  been  recorded 
as  breeding  from  Whitmore,  Beaudesert, 
Needwood  Forest,  Marchington,  Bishops' 
Wood  near  Cheadle,  Ellastone,  Stanton  and 
Ham.  Varieties  of  a  light  drab  colour  from 
Swythamley  (1847)  and  cream  colour  (1871) 
are  on  record  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  127). 

175.  Great    Snipe.      Gallinago    major    (J.   F. 

Gmelin) 

Garner  marks  this  species  as  '  occasional,' 
and  Mr.  E.  Brown  (Fauna  of  Burton,  p.  106) 
says  two  or  three  specimens  have  occurred  in 
the  district. 

176.  Common  Snipe.    Gallinago  coelestis  (Fren- 

zel) 

Fairly  common,  nesting  regularly  in  the 
north  of  the  county.  Sometimes  met  with  in 
turnip  fields  in  autumn. 


156 


BIRDS 


177.  Jack  Snipe.      Galllnago  gallinula  (Linn.) 
A  winter  visitor.     The  earliest  record  of 

its  arrival  is  28  August  1884,  when  one  was 
shot  near  Cheadle  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 
127).  A  curious  variety  is  recorded  from 
Endon  with  dirty  white  streaks  in  place  of  buff 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1901). 

178.  Dunlin.      Tringa  alpina,  Linn. 
Occasionally   met    with    in    autumn    and 

winter  in  the  Trent  valley  and  probably  on 
migration  in  other  parts.  One  at  Madeley  on 
28  March  1892  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  128). 

[Little  Stint.      Tringa  minuta,  Leisler. 
Mentioned  in  Garner's  list  on  Dr.  Hewgill's 
authority  without  details.] 

[Purple  Sandpiper.      Tringa  striata,  Linn. 

The  birds  of  this  species  recorded  in  the 
Birds  of  Staffordshire  (p.  128)  were  not  killed 
at  Burton-on-Trent  but  on  the  Burton  sewage 
farm  which  is  near  Egginton  in  Derbyshire.] 

179.  Knot.      Tringa  canutus,  Linn. 

Three  shot  near  Burton  on  5  October  1891 
(Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  209),  where  they  have 
occasionally  been  killed  in  former  years.  One 
was  killed  at  Tittensor  in  December  1892 
(Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  128;  Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1893,  p.  55). 

1 80.  Sanderling.       Calidris    arenaria   (Linn.) 
Three    shot    at    Walton-on-Trent    about 

1878  (Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  210). 

1 8 1.  Ruff.     Machetes  pugnax  (Linn.) 

Two  birds  in  immature  plumage  were  shot 
near  Burton  in  the  summer  of  1857  (Fauna  of 
Burton,  p.  1 06). 

182.  Common  Sandpiper.      Totanus  hypoleucus 

(Linn.) 

A  summer  migrant  breeding  regularly  on 
streams  in  the  north  of  the  county.  In  1891 
a  pair  hatched  off  their  young  in  the  vicarage 
garden  at  Madeley  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 
129). 

183.  Green     Sandpiper.       Totanus      ochropus 

(Linn.) 

An  occasional  visitor.  Garner  records  one 
from  Betley,  and  Mosley  and  Brown  note  it 
as  frequently  occurring.  Several  seen  at 
Alton  in  \  884-5  and  one  killed.  The  Rolles- 
ton  Hall  museum  contains  a  specimen  shot  in 
January  1894,  on  the  estate. 

184.  Redshank.      Totanus  calidris  (Linn.) 
Locally,  Whistling  Plover. 

Formerly  only  an  occasional    visitor,    but 


within  the  last  thirty  years  has  established 
itself  as  a  breeding  species  in  the  valleys  of 
the  Trent  and  lower  Dove.  A  good  many 
pairs  now  nest  annually  in  the  meadows  by 
these  rivers  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club, 


185.  Spotted      Redshank.        Totanus     fuscus 

(Linn.) 

Mr.  Edwin  Brown  possessed  one  specimen 
which  was  killed  on  the  Dove  (Fauna  of 
Burton,  p.  1  06). 

1  86.  Greenshank.      Totanus   canescens   (J.    F. 
Gmelin) 

Recorded  in  the  Birds  of  Staffordshire  (p. 
130)  as  having  been  sometimes  seen  near 
Burton-on-Trent  and  shot  near  Brereton 
Lodge. 

187.   Bar-tailed     Godwit.      Limosa     lapponica 

(Linn.) 

A  rare  straggler.  Two  were  shot  near 
Burton  '  many  years  ago  '  and  identified  by 
Mr.  C.  Hanson  (Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  215). 
Sir  O.  Mosley  and  Mr.  Brown  state  that  it 
has  occurred  several  times  on  the  Trent. 

[Black-tailed  Godwit.  Limosa  belgica  (J.  F. 
Gmelin) 

The  entry  with  regard  to  this  species  in  the 
Birds  of  Staffordshire  is  erroneous  ;  no  mention 
of  it  occurs  in  the  Natural  History  of  Tutbury.~\ 

1  88.   Common    Curlew.      Numenius    arquata 

(Linn.) 

A  few  pairs  of  these  birds  still  breed  on  the 
moors  in  the  north  of  the  county  and  on 
Cannock  Chase  and  Chartley  under  careful 
preservation.  Several  times  recorded  in  other 
parts  of  the  county  (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club}. 

189.  Whimbrel.      Numenius  ph&opus  (Linn.) 
A  rare  visitor.     F.   B.    Whitlock  says  that 

a  few  pass  up  and  down  the  Trent  valley  on 
migration  to  and  from  the  north.  Two 
whimbrels  which  were  accompanied  by  a 
curlew  at  the  time  were  shot  at  Swinscoe  on 
30  April,  1899  (Report  North  Staffs  Field 
Club,  1901  ;  see  also  1894,  pp.  53-4). 

190.  Black       Tern.       Hydrochelidon       nigra 

(Linn.) 

A  rare  straggler  during  the  summer  months. 
One  shot  near  Patshull  House,  Wolverhamp- 
ton,  about  1876  and  another  seen  for  some 
days  in  August  1886,  on  the  same  piece  of 
water  (Field).  One  killed  at  Madeley  Pool 
in  1889  (Reports  North  Staffs  Field  Club) 
and  another  shot  at  Rolleston  10  May  1894 
is  now  in  the  museum. 


157 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


191.  Roseate    Tern.     Sterna  dougalli,  Mon- 

tagu. 

A  rare  straggler  noted  in  Garner's,  Sir  O. 
Mosley's  and  E.  Brown's  lists  but  without 
details.  No  recent  occurrences. 

192.  Common  Tern.      Sterna  jtuviatilis,  Nau- 

mann. 

An  occasional  visitor  especially  to  the  Trent 
and  Dove  valleys.  One  shot  at  Swythamley 
in  1862,  and  a  flock  visited  Madeley  Pool  in 
1889  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  132).  On  the 
Trent  it  is  not  uncommon,  and  large  numbers 
were  seen  in  May  1842  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tut- 

v-  57)- 


193.  Arctic     Tern.      Sterna    macrura,    Nau- 

mann. 

Another  occasional  visitor.  '  Great  num- 
bers of  this  species  visited  North  and  South 
Staffordshire  in  May,  1842'  (R.  Garner,  p. 
289).  One  taken  near  Hanley  in  September 
1888  (Report  North  Sta/s  Field  Club,  1889, 
p.  24). 

194.  Little  Tern.      Sterna  minuta,  Linn. 
One   was  killed    at   Drakelow  on    1  7  Sep- 

tember, 1855  (Nat.  Hist.  ofTutbury,  p.  57), 
and  another  shot  on  the  Trent  near  Burton 
(Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  220),  and  one  at  Tean 
near  Cheadle  5  August  1895,  and  one  at  Pipe 
Gate  in  August  1902  (Reports  North  Staffs 
Field  Club}. 

195.  Sooty    Tern.      Sterna  fu/igmosa,    J.    F. 

Gmelin. 

A  single  specimen  of  this  tropical  species 
was  killed  near  Tutbury  in  1852  and  is  now 
in  the  collection  at  Drakelow  near  Burton- 
on-Trent.  This  was  the  first  record  of  the 
appearance  of  this  bird  in  England,  though 
two  other  instances  have  since  been  noted 
(Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp.  57,  102). 

196.  Little  Gull.      Larus  minutus,  Pallas. 
Has  been  shot    on    the    Trent   in    several 

places  near  Burton  (McAldowie,  p.  138). 

197.  Black-headed  Gull.       Larus  ridibundus, 

Linn. 

The  most  common  of  all  the  gulls  seen  in 
the  county,  and  this  species  once  bred  regularly 
at  Norbury  near  Eccleshall.  Dr.  McAldowie 
says  :  '  The  writings  of  Willoughby,  Ray  and 
Plot  have  made  this  gullery  the  most  famous 
in  the  history  of  ornithology.  No  work  on 
Staffordshire  would  be  complete  without  a 
record  of  the  writings  relating  to  this  interest- 
ing breeding  place.'  Ray  visited  the  colony 
in  1662  and  says  :  '  We  diverted  out  of  our 
way  to  see  the  Puits  which  we  judged  to  be 


a  sort  of  Lari  in  a  meer  at  Norbury,  belong- 
ing to  Colonel  Skrimshaw.  They  build 
together  in  an  islet  in  the  middle  of  a  pool 
(Itin.  pp.  216-7). 

Willoughby 's  description  states  :  '  Of  this 
kind  also  are  those  birds  which  yearly  build 
and  breed  at  Norbury  in  Staffordshire  in  an 
island  in  the  middle  of  a  great  pool.  .  .  . 
When  the  young  are  almost  come  to  their 
full  growth  those  entrusted  by  the  Lord  of  the 
soil  drive  them  from  off  the  island  through  the 
pool  into  nets  set  on  the  banks  to  take  them. 
When  they  have  taken  them  they  feed  them 
with  the  entrails  of  beasts,  and  when  they  are 
fat  sell  them  for  four  pence  or  five  pence 
apiece.  They  take  yearly  about  a  thousand 
two  hundred  young  ones.' 

Plot  says  :  '  But  the  strangest  whole  footed 
water  fowl  that  frequents  this  county  is  the 
Larus  cinereus  Ornithologi,  the  Larus  Anereus 
tertius  Aldrovandi  and  the  Cepphus  of  Gesner 
and  Turner :  in  some  counties  called  the 
black  cap,  in  others  the  sea  or  mire-crow,  here 
the  pewit,  which  being  of  the  migratory  kind 
come  annually  to  certain  pools  in  the  estate  of 
the  right  worshipful  Sir  Charles  Skrymsher, 
Knight,  to  build  and  breed.'  He  then  pro- 
ceeds to  describe  in  detail  the  arrival  and 
nesting  of  these  birds  as  well  as  the  method  of 
capture  and  disposal  of  the  young,  which 
realized  an  annual  profit  of  from  £50  to  j£6o 
at  the  rate  of  5;.  per  dozen,  '  they  being 
accounted  a  good  dish  at  the  most  plentiful 
tables.' 

Here  they  continued  to  breed  for  nearly  a 
hundred  years  after  occasionally  shifting  their 
ground  until  1794,  since  which  time  scarcely 
a  bird  has  bred  in  the  county. 

198.  Common  Gull.      Larus  canus,  Linn. 
An  occasional   visitor,    generally   in    small 

flocks  after  stormy  weather  on  migration.  Sir 
O.  Mosley  records  the  visit  of  a  flock  of  over 
100  to  the  pool  at  Rolleston  (Nat.  Hist,  of 
Tutbury,  p.  57).  Two  were  shot  at  Whiston 
near  Cheadle  in  September  1 888  (Report 
North  Sta/s  Field  Club,  1890,  p.  22). 

199.  Herring-Gull.      Larus  argentatus,  J.   F. 

Gmelin. 

Parties  are  occasionally  seen  passing  over 
the  county,  generally  going  north  in  early 
spring.  They  have  been  observed  in  the 
Trent  and  Dove  valleys  and  also  at  Hanford^ 
while  one  was  shot  at  Swythamley  in  1875. 

200.  Lesser  Black-backed  Gull.     Larus  fuscus, 

Linn. 

A  rather  infrequent  visitor  to  the  Trent 
valley,  usually  in  immature  plumage.  An  old 


I58 


BIRDS 


bird  was  shot  at  Handsworth  on  29  April 
1886,  and  an  immature  one  at  Cheadle  in 
July  1899. 

20 1.  Great  Black-backed  Gull.     Larus  mari- 

nus,  Linn. 

An  occasional  visitor  to  the  Trent  valley. 
One  recorded  from  near  Stafford  in  1899 
(Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1900). 

202.  Kittiwake.     Rissa  tridactyla  (Linn.) 
An  occasional  visitor,  common  in  the  Trent 

valley.  Several  were  observed  near  Tunstall 
in  January  1891  ;  also  recorded  from  Cheadle 
and  Uttoxeter  (Reports  North  Staffs  Field  Club, 
1892,  p.  57,  and  1896,  p.  48),  and  from 
Madeley  in  1889. 

203.  Pomatorhine   Skua.      Stercorarius  poma- 

torhinus  (Temminck) 

There  is  a  rather  doubtful  reference  to  this 
species  in  the  Natural  History  of  Tutbury  (p. 
58),  but  Mr.  R.  W.  Chase  has  recorded  one 
as  shot  at  Oldbury  in  October  1879  (Birds  of 
Staffordshire,  p.  138). 

204.  Arctic  or  Richardson's  Skua.      Stercora- 

rius crepidatus  (J.  F.  Gmelin) 
Two  immature  birds  killed   near  Rolleston 
(Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp.  58,  III). 

205.  Long-tailed  or  Buffon's  Skua.      Stercora- 

rius parasiticus  (Linn.) 
Under  the  name  of  Arctic  skua  Sir  O. 
Mosley  doubtfully  refers  to  this  species  as 
killed  near  Burton,  but  Mr.  Brown  makes  no 
mention  of  it  in  his  list.  There  is  however 
in  the  Derby  Museum  a  Staffordshire  speci- 
men which  formed  part  of  the  Blurton  col- 
lection when  dispersed  in  1883,  and  an 
immature  bird  was  shot  on  the  Lichfield  race- 
course on  7  October  1874  (Birds  of  Stafford- 
shire, p.  139). 

206.  Guillemot.      Uria  troile  (Linn.) 

One   recorded   by   Garner  near  Stoke-on- 
Trent  in  1841  during  a  severe  frost  (p.  289). 

207.  Little  Auk.     Mergulus  alle  (Linn.) 
Several   were  shot  on    the    Trent  after   a 

storm  about  1843  (Nat.  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  pp. 
57,  109).  One  was  picked  up  exhausted 
between  Walsall  and  Birmingham  about 
1870  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  144),  and 
another  in  a  similar  state  at  Wheaton  Aston 
near  Stafford  in  January  1901  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1902). 

208.  Great  Northern  Diver.      Colymbus  glaci- 

alis,  Linn. 
This  fine  bird  has  occurred  several  times  in 


winter  within  the  county  at  Aqualate  (Garner) 
on  the  Tame  near  Comberford,  the  Dove 
near  Uttoxeter  and  several  times  on  the 
Trent  (Sir  O.  Mosley)  and  near  Macclesfield 
(Sainter).  More  recent  occurrences  are  at 
Rolleston,  a  female  shot  on  29  November, 
1869,  and  another  about  the  same  time  at 
Wombourne  near  Wolverhampton,  while  a 
third  was  killed  at  Tipton  on  8  January 
1877. 

209.  Red-throated    Diver.      Colymbus    septen- 

trionalis,  Linn. 

An  occasional  straggler.  Garner  records 
it  from  Rocester  and  near  Uttoxeter.  One 
was  shot  at  Swythamley  in  1880  and  in  1871 
one  was  taken  alive  near  Tean  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1886).  An  immature  bird 
was  also  killed  on  the  Dove  below  Okeover 
in  the  winter  of  1895. 

210.  Great  Crested  Grebe.      Podicipes  cristatus 

(Linn.) 

Dr.  McAldowie  says  truly  :  '  This  fine 
bird  is  the  greatest  ornithological  ornament  of 
our  county.'  It  breeds  in  some  numbers  at 
Aqualate  and  usually  at  Copmere  and  occa- 
sionally on  other  pieces  of  water  such  as 
Trentham  Lake,  Beech  Pool,  Knypersley 
(1892),  etc.  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  142). 

211.  Red-necked  Grebe.     Podicipes  griseigena 

(Boddaert) 

Included  in  Garner's  list  without  any 
particulars.  One  shot  at  Burton,  April  1849 
(J.  C.  Garth,  Zoologist,  1850,  p.  2706).  One 
obtained  at  Burton,  20  November  1 898  (Report 
North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1903). 

212.  Slavonian      Grebe.        Podicipes     auritus 

(Linn.) 

This  species  is  figured  by  Plot  in  his 
History  of  Staffordshire  (tab.  22,  fig.  i),  and  a 
description  is  given  of  a  specimen  killed  at 
Comberford  which  had  apparently  assumed 
the  full  breeding  plumage.  Garner  includes 
it  in  his  list,  and  in  December  1893,  one  was 
obtained  at  Brewood  reservoir  (Report  North 
Staffs  Field  Club,  1901). 

[Eared   Grebe.       Podicipes  nigricollis  (C.  L. 

Brehm) 
Included  in  Garner's  list  without  data.] 

213.  Little    Grebe   or    Dabchick.      Podicipes 

fluviatilh  (Tunstall) 
Locally,  Dipper,  Doucker  (obs.) 
A  resident  on   our  larger  rivers  and  pools, 
and  a  summer  visitor  to  small  sheets  of  water, 
but  not  so  plentiful  as  in  former  years. 


159 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


214.  Storm-Petrel.    Procellaria  pelagica,  Linn. 
Occasionally  storm-driven  into  the  county. 

One  was  shot  about  1885  at  Buckmere  by 
Dr.  Baddcley,  and  two  have  been  caught,  one 
near  Handsworth  in  October  1888,  and  the 
other  between  Smethwick  and  Birmingham  on 
4  November  1863  (Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p. 

139)- 

215.  Leach's    Fork-tailed    Petrel.       Oceano- 

droma  leucorrhoa  (Vieillot). 
Another  occasional  straggler.  Sir  O. 
Mosley  states  that  both  this  and  the  preceding 
species  have  been  several  times  picked  up 
exhausted  on  the  banks  of  the  Trent  (Nat. 
Hist,  of  Tutbury,  p.  58).  One  was  found 
dead  at  Barton-under-Needwood  in  March 
1890,  and  another  in  a  similar  state  was 
picked  up  in  the  grounds  of  Wootton  Lodge 


on  II  November  1899  (not  1900  as  there 
stated)  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club,  1901), 
and  Mr.  Fitzherbert  Brockholes  reports 
another  picked  up  in  a  turnip  field  at  Swyn- 
nerton  on  18  November,  1901. 

2 1 6.  Manx    Shearwater.     Puffinus   anglorum 

(Temminck) 

Has  occurred  several  times  in  the  county. 
One  recorded  from  Weston  in  1882,  another 
rrom  Kingsley  on  9  September  1887,  a  third 
near  Stone  in  September  1891,  and  a  fourth 
at  Lower  Gornal  near  Dudley,  9  September 
1891  (Report  North  Staffs  Field  Club  and 
Birds  of  Staffordshire,  p.  140).  On  3  Sep- 
tember 1892,  one  was  caught  in  an  exhausted 
state  in  Burton,  and  another  is  said  to  have 
been  taken  previously  in  the  same  district 
(Birds  of  Derbyshire,  p.  232). 


ADDENDA 

The  following  records  have  been  received  since  the  above  list  was 
written  : — 


12.   Nightingale.      Daulias  luscinia  (Linn.) 

A  recent  occurrence  of  this  species  in  the 
county  is  noted  in  Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club 
for  1905. 

I&A.  Dartford      Warbler,         Sylvia      undata 
(Boddaert) 

This  species  can  now  be  included  in  the 
county  list,  as  it  is  proved  to  have  nested  on 
Cannock  Chase  in  1870  (Zool.  November, 
1903,  p.  423,  and  Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club, 
1906,  p.  46). 

57.  Tree  Sparrow.      Passer  montanus  (Linn.) 

In  1905  and  subsequent  years  this  species 
has  greatly  increased  in  numbers,  and  nests 
regularly  at  Cheadle  in  boxes  put  up  for  tits. 

84.  Wryneck.      lynx  torquilla,  Linn. 

Mr.  Walter  Marchant  observed  one  of 
these  birds  near  Weston  under  Lizard  on 
2O  April,  1907. 

95A.   Little  Owl.     Athene  noctua  (Scopoli) 

A  bird  of  this  species  was  shot  in  October, 
1906,  in  the  county  near  Newport,  Shrops. 
Probably  it  had  strayed  from  one  of  the  counties 
where  many  of  this  species  have  been  turned 
out  in  recent  years,  and  nest  regularly. 


98.   Hen  Harrier.      Circus  cyaneus  (Linn.) 

One  was  shot  at  Enville  in  December, 
1879,  and  is  now  in  Lord  Bradford's  collec- 
tion (Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1905). 

1 0 1 .  Golden  Eagle.    Aquila  chrysaetus  (Linn.) 

Mr.  Francis  Monckton,  of  Stretton  Hall, 
states  that  a  pair  of  eagles  visited  Somerford, 
near  Brewood,  in  1856  or  1857,  and  one  was 
shot.  He  believes  it  to  have  been  of  this 
species. 

0 O2.  White-tailed  Eagle.      Haliae'tus  albicilla 

(Linn.) 

A  young  female  was  trapped  on  Cannock 
Chase  on  4  December,  1905,  and  is  now  in 
Lord  Lichfield's  collection  at  Shugborough. 

ii  6.  Common  Heron.     Ardea  cinerea,  Linn. 

A  new  heronry,  with  about  nine  nests,  was 
found  in  a  large  wood  near  Cheadle  in  1904, 
and  a  few  pairs  have  nested  every  year  since 
(Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1904). 

126.  White-fronted  Goose.      Anser  albifrons 
(Scopoli) 

One  shot  near  Stafford,  and  another  at 
Stretton,  near  Stafford  (Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field 
Club,  1906,  p.  47). 


1 60 


BIRDS 

Cygnus  muitcus,  Bech- 


132. 


130.  Whooper  Swan 

stein 

Nine  of  these  swans  visited  Gailey  Pools  on 
13  March,  1891  (Rep.  N.  Stafs.  Field  Club, 
1906,  p.  50). 

J3OA.  Bewick's  Swan.  Cygnus  bnv icki,  Yarrell 
The  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain  saw  a  herd  of 
forty  flying  down  the  Dove  Valley  near 
Mayfield  on  27  February,  1904  (Rep.  N. 
Stafs.  Field  Club,  1904). 

Common  Sheld  Duck.    Tadorna  cornuta 

(S.  G.  Gmelin) 
A    flock    of   these  birds  was  observed    on 
Gailey  Pools  on  30  December,  1904,  and  one 
was  shot  at  Cheadle  2   January,    1906    (Rep. 
N.  Stafs.  Field  Club,  1906,  pp.  48,  52). 

135.  Shoveler.     Spatula  clypeata  (Linn.) 
Visits  Gailey  Pools  most  years. 

140.  Pochard.      Fuligula  ferina  (Linn.) 
Breeds  at  Gailey  Pools. 

142.  Scaup-Duck.      Fuligula  marila  (Linn.) 
This  duck  also  visits  Gailey  Pools  in  winter. 

I43A.  Long-tailed  Duck.      Hare/da   glacialis 
(Linn.) 

One  was  shot  at  Weston  by  Lord  Newport 
on  6  November,  1871  (Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field 
Club,  1905). 

144.   Common  Scoter.    Oedemia  nigra  (Linn.) 

Small  flocks  were  seen  on  Gailey  Pools  in 
August,  1887,  October,  1890,  and  Novem- 
ber, 1891-2  (Rep.  N.  Stafs.  Field  CM, 
1906,  pp.  42-52). 

148.  Smew.      Afergus  albellus,  Linn. 

An  annual  winter  visitor  to  Gailey  Pools. 

1 60.  Spotted      Crake.        Porzana      maruetta 
(Leach) 

One  was  shot  at  Gnosall  in  August,  1904, 
and  being  a  young  bird  may  have  been  bred 
in  the  county. 

1 66.  Ringed      Plover.       Aegialitis     hiaticula 
(Linn.) 

Two  at  Gailey  Pools  24  September,  1896 
(Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1906,  p.  51). 

172.   Grey  Phalarope.     Phalaropus  fulicarius 
(Linn.) 

One  shot  near  Anslow  in  November,  1904 
(Rep.  N.  Stafs.  Field  Club,  1905). 


Gallinago    major  (J.    F. 


175.   Great    Snipe. 
Gmelin) 

One  was  shot  at  Stafford  some  years  ago, 
and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Conway 
Morgan,  of  Stafford. 

i82A.  Wood     Sandpiper.     Tetanus     glareola 
(J.  F.  Gmelin) 

One  was  shot  at  Barr,  near  Birmingham, 
on  26  August,  1858  (Zool.  1858,  p.  6266). 

1 86.   Greenshank.       Totanus    canescens  (J.  F. 
Gmelin) 

Three  were  seen  at  Gailey  Pools  on 
10  August,  1896  (Rep.  N.  Stafs.  Field  CM, 
1906,  p.  51). 

190.   Black  Tern.  Hydrochelidon  nigra  (Linn.) 

Forty  visited  Gailey  Pools  in  August,  1887, 
and  stayed  several  days  (Rep.  N.  Stafs.  Field 
Club,  1906,  p.  49). 

192.   Common  Tern.    Sterna JJuviatilis,  Nau- 
mann 

Occurred  at  Gailey  Pools  in  1896. 

206.   Guillemot.     Uria  troile  (Linn.) 

One  was  shot  on  Gailey  Pools  20  April, 
1889,  and  another  at  the  same  place  in  June, 
1901  (Rep.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  1906,  pp. 
49>  52)- 

208.   Great  Northern  Diver.  Colymbus  glacialis, 
Linn. 

One  shot  at  Gailey  Pools  4  January,  1898, 
and  another  seen  there  4  January,  1899  (Rep. 
N.  Stafs.  Field  Club,  p.  51). 

2o8A.  Black-throated  Diver.  Colymbus  arcticus, 
Linn. 

One  was  shot  at  Gailey  Pools,  near  Penk- 
ridge,  II  December,  1896  (Rep.  N.  Stafs. 
Field  Club,  1906,  p.  51). 

2 1 6.  Manx     Shearwater.     Puffinus    anglorum 

(Temminck) 

In  June,  1904,  one  at  Gailey  Pools,  and  one 
at  King's  Bromley,  7  September,  1905  (Rep. 
N.  Stafs.  Field  Club,  1906,  p.  47,  50). 

217.  Fulmar.     Fulmarus  glacialis  (Linn.) 

A  specimen  of  this  bird  was  captured  in  a 
field  at  Perry  Barr  in  January,  1863  (Zool. 
1863,  p.  8448). 


161 


21 


MAMMALS 

Thirty-six  species  of  mammals  may  be  included  in  the  fauna  of 
Staffordshire  as  still,  or  very  recently,  living  more  or  less  in  a  state  of 
nature  within  the  borders  of  the  county. 

Of  the  Cheiroptera  or  bats  7  species  are  recorded,  the  rarest  being 
Natterer's  bat  (Myotis  nattereri)  of  which  one  instance  only  is  known. 
The  whiskered  bat  (M.  mystacinus)  has  of  late  years  proved  to  be  more 
abundant  in  the  county  than  was  formerly  thought  to  be  the  case,  especi- 
ally in  the  north.  In  other  districts  it  may  possibly  be  confounded  some- 
times with  a  black  variety  of  the  pipistrelle. 

All  five  British  species  of  Insectivora  are  represented  in  Staffordshire, 
the  hedgehog,  mole  and  common  shrew  abundantly,  whilst  the  pigmy 
shrew  and  water  shrew  are  more  local  in  their  distribution. 

The  genuine  wild  cat  and  the  wolf  have,  of  course,  long  been  ex- 
tinct in  the  county,  although  the  latter  continued  abundant  even  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  II.  The  fox,  the  weasel  and  the  stoat  still  abound,  but 
the  pine  marten  became  extinct  about  fifty  years  ago,  and  the  last  pole- 
cat seems  to  have  been  killed  about  1884.  The  badger,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  still  far  from  rare  in  the  wilder  parts  of  Staffordshire,  and, 
thanks  to  the  humane  preservation  that  is  afforded  it  at  the  hands  of  a 
small  but,  we  are  glad  to  note,  increasing  number  of  landowners,  may 
probably  long  remain  so.  The  outlook  for  the  otter  is  not  so  bright, 
but  it  still  occurs  in  most  of  our  rivers,  particularly  in  the  Dove,  where 
as  I  learn  from  the  Rev.  F.  C.  R.  Jourdain,  protection  is  afforded  it  '  by 
a  few  riparian  owners,  particularly  Capt.  H.  E.  Clowes  of  Norbury,  and 
Mr.  A.  C.  Duncombe  of  Culwich.'  On  the  upper  waters  of  the  Dove 
otters  are  shot  down  relentlessly,  and  Mr.  Jourdain  considers  that  'probably 
most  of  the  otters  that  are  seen  on  the  Dove  and  Trent  are  wanderers 
from  the  protected  length.' 

The  rodents  are  well  represented — perhaps  too  much  so,  the  brown 
rat  especially  being,  sixty  years  ago,  quite  a  scourge  in  the  valley  of 
the  Trent.  This  happily  is  no  longer  the  case,  but  it  is  still  far  too 
abundant  and  in  some  districts  is  almost  as  amphibious  as  the  water 
vole.  The  black  rat  appears  to  have  been  early  exterminated,  as  John 
Horatio  Dickenson  in  his  '  Sketch  of  the  Zoology  of  Staffordshire '  in 
Shaw's  History  says  that  it  had  become  extinct  in  his  time  (1798).  The 
mountain  or  '  Scotch  '  hare  has  been  recently  introduced  into  the  moor- 
land districts  of  the  county,  but  Staffordshire  has  long  been  noted  for 
the  large  size  and  weight  of  its  indigenous  '  brown  '  hares. 

162 


MAMMALS 

Turning  now  to  the  ungulates  or  hoofed  mammals,  passing  reference 
must  be  made  to  the  famous  herd  of  wild  white  cattle  at  Chartley. 
These  grand  animals  which  numbered  29  head  in  March,  1901,  by 
April,  1903,  were  reduced  to  less  than  a  dozen  through  tuberculous 
disease.  A  fine  young  bull  and  three  heifers  have  been  separated  from 
the  remainder  of  the  herd  in  the  hopes  that  they  may  thus  escape  con- 
tagion. Should  they  unfortunately  fail  to  do  so  there  is  every  probability 
that  this  historic  herd  may  speedily  become  extinct. 

Of  our  three  species  of  deer  the  red  deer  is  now  entirely  a  park 
animal,  although  formerly  common  enough  in  the  county,  and  even  so 
late  as  1853  one  was  at  large  in  Swythamly  Woods,  and  in  1870  one 
was  killed  there  (vide  North  Staffs  Field  Club  Report,  1894,  p.  39).  The 
wild  fallow  deer  which  in  Dickenson's  time,  1798,  were  estimated  at 
more  than  3,000,  are  now  represented  by  a  few  scattered  individuals 
wandering  amongst  the  oaks  and  hollies  in  the  Needwood  Forest  estates 
and  on  Cannock  Chase  ;  but  many  are  kept  in  semi-domestication  in  the 
deer  parks  of  the  county. 

The  beautiful  little  roe  deer  owes  its  inclusion  in  our  list  to  the 
discovery  of  its  cast  antlers  in  Needwood  Forest  by  Sir  Oswald  Mosley, 
where  it  undoubtedly  lived  when  the  wild  boar  whetted  his  curved  tusks 
on  the  trunks  of  the  oaks,  and  possibly  long  after  he  was  exterminated. 

CHEIROPTERA 


1 .  Lesser  Horseshoe  Bat.       Rhinolophus  hippij- 

sideruS)  Bechstein. 

This  species  is  included  by  the  late  Mr. 
Edwin  Brown  in  his  Fauna  of  Burton-on- 
Trent,  although  his  specimens  came  from 
Derbyshire,  where  it  is  not  uncommon.  The 
lesser  horseshoe  bat  does  not  seem  to  have 
occurred  in  Staffordshire  of  late  years,  but  I 
am  still  in  hopes  that  further  research  in  the 
limestone  district  of  north  Stafford  will  result 
in  its  discovery  as  a  resident  in  the  county. 

2.  Long-eared  Bat.      Plecotus  auritus,  Linn. 
Generally  distributed  throughout  the  county. 

It  may  be  seen  on  the  wing  from  March  till 
November,  and  is  extremely  active  in  turning 
and  wheeling  in  the  air,  as  well  as  in  rising 
from  the  ground. 

3.  Great  Bat.     Piphtrella  noctu/a,  Schreber. 

Bell — Scotophilus  noctula. 
White — Vespertirio  altivolans. 

This  grand  bat — justly  named  by  Mr. 
Trevor-Battye  in  honour  of  the  great  natura- 
list who  first  described  it  as  a  British  species, 
White's  bat  —  is  generally  distributed  in 
Staffordshire,  and  may  be  observed  in  flight 
from  May  till  August  or  early  September.  It 
is  often  seen  abroad  in  the  day  and  then  flies 
very  high  in  the  air,  but  I  have  frequently 


seen  it  skimming  the  meadows  near  Burton- 
on-Trent  late  in  the  evening  at  an  elevation 
of  6  feet  or  less.  At  Trentham  Park  Mr. 
Collins  obtained  thirty  specimens  from  a 
hollow  ash  in  which  they  were  hibernating.1 
These  were  exhibited  alive  at  the  Annual 
Meeting  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club 
held  at  Stoke  on  Thursday,  19  March,  1891, 
Mr.  Collins  subsequently  took  ten  specimens 
out  of  a  hollow  Scotch  fir  in  the  same  locality.3 
In  captivity,  for  a  bat,  this  species  evinces 
considerable  intelligence.  One  that  I  kept 
for  several  weeks  became  remarkably  tame, 
readily  recognized  my  voice  and  distinguished 
it  from  that  of  any  other  person.  When 
called  it  hurried  towards  me  with  a  peculiar 
movement  of  its  long  fore-arms  as  if  it  were 
mounted  on  stilts,  and  having  reached  me 
climbed  about  my  person  with  every  evidence 
of  satisfaction. 

4.  Pipistrelle.  Pipistre/lus  plpistret/us,  Schreber. 

Bell — Scotophilus  pipistrellus. 
Common  and  generally  distributed.   Owing 
to  its  partiality  for  house-roofs  and  churches 
this  is  our  most  familiar  bat.    Its  winter  sleep 

1  North  Staffordshire  Naturalists'  Field  Club  Report, 
1891,  p.  65. 

2  Ibid.  1894,  p.  38. 


I63 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


is  very  slight  and  when  the  weather  becomes 
mild  this  bat  awakes  and  ventures  out  to  prey 
upon  the  few  insects  which  are  then  abroad. 
In  different  years  I  have  seen  it  in  flight 
during  each  month  from  January  to  Decem- 
ber. Mr.  John  R.  B.  Masefield  has  recorded 
the  receipt,  in  June  1893,  of  sixty-one  pipis- 
trelles  from  one  of  the  lodges  in  Trentham 
Park1 — a  very  large  colony  for  this  species. 


5.  Natterer's  Bat.     Myotis  nattereri,  Leisler. 

Bell — Vespertilio  nattereri. 

Rare.  One  example  only  recorded.  Of 
this  specimen  the  late  Mr.  Edwin  Brown 
wrote  :  '  Captured  in  the  roof  of  Stapenhill 
House  some  years  ago,  and  is  now  in  the 
Burton  Museum."  This  was  in  1863,  and 
Burton  does  not  now  possess  a  museum.  It 
would  be  interesting  to  learn  if  this  specimen 
is  still  in  existence,  but  up  to  the  present  I 
have  been  unable  to  trace  it. 

6.  Daubenton's    Bat.         Myotis    daubentoni, 

Leisler. 

Bell — f^etptrtilit  daubentonii. 
Not  common.  Has  occurred  near  Uttoxeter 
(C.  Oldham)  and  at  Stafford  (L.  E.  Adams). 
In  June,  1899,  I  saw  two  bats  playing  over 
the  water  of  the  Trent  at  Drakelow  Deeps, 
which  from  their  manner  of  touchine  the 

O 

water,  doubtless  when  taking  gnats  from  the 


surface,  and  their  silence  whilst  on  the  wing, 
I  imagine  to  have  been  of  this  species.  On 
the  following  evening  I  saw  the  same  or 
similar  bats  on  the  Derbyshire  side  of  the 
river — which  here  forms  the  boundary  between 
the  two  counties,  at  the  point  where  the 
Leicester  line  bridge  crosses  the  Trent.  It 
is  probable  that  when  more  attention  has  been 
directed  to  the  habits  of  our  local  bats,  Dau- 
benton's bat  will  prove  to  be  much  less  un- 
common than  is  at  present  supposed  to  be  the 
case. 

7.  Whiskered  Bat.    Myotis  mystacinus,  Leisler. 

Bell — Vespertilio  mystacinus. 
First  recorded  for  the  county  by  Garner  in 
his  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford 
(1844),  and  again  by  Sir  Oswald  Mosley  in 
the  Natural  History  of  Tut  bury  (1863),  appar- 
ently from  the  same  specimen  captured  near 
Burton.  This  bat  was  for  many  years  con- 
sidered to  be  one  of  our  rarest  species.  Of 
late  however  many  examples  have  been  cap- 
tured especially  in  the  north  of  the  county, 
and  in  the  Cheadle  district  Mr.  Masefield 
considers  it  the  commonest  bat.  This  is 
however  by  no  means  the  case  near  Burton 
and  south  of  the  Trent,  where,  according  to 
my  experience,  a  small  almost  black  variety 
of  the  pipistrelle  is  by  far  the  most  abundant 
species. 


INSECTIVORA 


8.  Hedgehog.      Erinaceus  europeeus,  Linn. 
Generally  distributed    and   fairly  common, 

though  much  persecuted  by  gamekeepers 
because  of  its  depredations  on  the  eggs  and 
young  of  game  birds.  Rewards  were  formerly 
given  in  Staffordshire  for  killing  hedgehogs. 

9.  Mole.      Talpa  europaea,  Linn. 
Common. 

10.  Common  Shrew.      Sorex  araneus,  Linn. 
Locally,  Nurserow. 

Common  everywhere  in  fields  and  hedge- 
rows. 

11.  Pigmy  Shrew.      Sorex  minutus,  Linn. 

Bell — Sorex  pygmteus. 

Far  less  common  than  the  preceding.  The 
first  local  specimen  was  found  dead  near  Con- 
sail  on  17  September,  1885,  by  Mr.  E.  W. 
H.  Blagg,  and  since  then  the  remains  of  others 
have  been  found  by  Mr.  L.  E.  Adams  in  the 
pellets  disgorged  by  owls  at  Penkridge  and 


near  Stafford    (reported  by  Mr.  Masefield   in 
N.S.F.C.  Reports,  1886,  1897). 

12.   Water  Shrew.     Neomys  fodiens,  Pallas. 
Bell — Crossopus  fodiens. 

Widely  distributed  in  the  county  and  not 
uncommon.  I  have  myself  observed  it  at 
various  places  in  the  Trent  and  in  the  Dove, 
and  on  one  occasion  an  individual  was  cap- 
tured in  the  canal  at  Branston  by  a  terrier 
belonging  to  me  and  killed  before  there  was 
time  for  interference.  This  animal  some- 
times wanders  far  from  any  water.  Thus  on 
1 8  August,  1899, 1  found  an  adult  male  speci- 
men lying  dead  on  the  roadside  between 
Rolleston  and  Horninglow,  and  on  the  same 
road  the  dead  bodies  of  four  common  shrews. 

The  oared  shrew,  which  was  formerly  con- 
sidered to  be  a  distinct  species,  but  is  now 
known  to  be  merely  an  aged  form  of  the 
water  shrew,  is  stated  by  Garner  to  have  been 
taken  several  times  at  Great  Fenton  and  other 
places  in  the  county. 


1  North  Staffordshire  Naturalists'  Field  Club  Report,  1894,  p.  38. 

164 


MAMMALS 


CARNIVORA 


13.  Fox.      Cants  vulpes,  Linn. 

Bell — Vulpes  vulgaris. 
Common  and  generally  distributed. 

14.  Pine  Marten.     Mustela  martes,  Linn. 

Bell — Marlei  abietum. 

Extinct  within  the  memory  of  men  still 
living,  and  formerly  fairly  distributed  in  suit- 
able localities,  especially  in  the  northern  half 
of  the  county.  Garner  says  that  it  has 
occurred  in  v/oods  in  Dilhorne,  Consall,  in 
Needwood  Forest  and  in  the  limestone  dis- 
trict. It  seems  probable  that  the  headquarters 
of  this  species  in  Staffordshire  were  the  wood- 
lands of  the  north  and  east,  and  that  it  was 
never  so  abundant  south  of  the  Trent.  Dick- 
enson  writing  about  1798,  although  well 
acquainted  with  the  badger,  otter  and  polecat, 
which  he  calls  fitchet,  does  not  mention  the 
pine  marten,  so  that  it  seems  possible  that 
even  in  his  day  the  '  sweet  mart  '  was  very 
rare  even  if  at  all  known  in  the  centre  of  the 
county — with  which  portion  he  was  evidently 
most  familiar. 


15. 


Polecat    or 
Linn. 


Fitchet.      Putorius 


Bell — Mustela  putorius. 

Nearly  if  not  quite  extinct  although  for- 
merly occurring  in  most  parts  of  the  county. 
Dickenson  knew  it  well  under  the  name  of 
*  fitchet,'  by  which  it  is  still  commonly  referred 
to  in  Staffordshire,  and  records  that  he  has 
known  '  a  fitchet  when  confined  and  unable 
to  escape,  attack  a  large  greyhound.'  In 
1863  Sir  Oswald  Mosley  wrote  that  it  was 
still  found  near  Tutbury,  '  although  becoming 
more  scarce  every  year,'  and  at  the  same  time 
Mr.  Edwin  Brown  reported  it  as  '  occasionally 
haunting  detached  out-houses '  near  Burton- 
on-Trent.  It  appears  to  have  maintained  a 
precarious  footing  in  the  west  of  the  county 
until  about  1884,  when,  as  I  am  informed  by 
Mr.  James  Yates,  M.R.C.S.,  one  was  killed 
at  Swinnerton.  On  asking  Mr.  Yates  for 
further  particulars,  he  very  kindly  wrote  me 
as  follows,  under  date  29  January,  1901  :  'I 
am  sorry  I  am  not  able  to  give  you  a  very 
satisfactory  account  of  the  polecat  which  was 
killed  at  Swinnerton  about  1884.  I  was  told 
of  the  fact  by  a  gamekeeper  who  lived  between 
Trentham  and  Swinnerton,  but  I  had  not  the 
opportunity  of  seeing  the  animal  myself. 
When  I  was  a  boy  the  "  fitchet "  was  fairly 
common  at  Horsley — a  farm  a  few  miles  from 
Eccleshall — I  have  frequently  seen  them 
caught  in  a  rat-trap  which  was  covered  with 


fine  moss  and  half-surrounded  by  a  fence 
made  of  sticks.  The  bait  was  usually  a 
hen's  egg.' 

1 6.  Stoat.      Mustela  erminea.  Linn. 
Common.      In  the    winter    specimens    in 

the  white  or  '  ermine  '  dress  are  sometimes 
obtained. 

17.  Weasel.      Putorius  niva/is,  Linn. 

Bell — Mustela  vulgaris. 

Common,  and  more   frequently  seen   near 
farms  and  out-houses  than  the  last  named. 


Badger. 


Meles  me/es,  Linn. 
Bell — Melcs  taxus. 


Notwithstanding  the  persecution  to  which 
the  badger  has  been  so  long  subjected,  this 
animal  is  still  far  more  abundant  in  Stafford- 
shire than  is  usually  supposed.  Its  chief 
haunts  are  in  the  high  banks  and  wild  park- 
lands  of  the  Needwood  Forest  district,  and  in 
the  north  and  west.  The  nocturnal  habits 
of  the  badger  doubtless  tend  to  its  preservation, 
but  occasionally  it  ventures  from  its  burrow 
long  before  sundown,  and  has  several  times 
been  seen  and  captured  in  broad  daylight. 
Where  it  has  long  been  undisturbed  its  bur- 
rows are  extremely  extensive  and  might  almost 
be  described  as  cavernous.  Very  heavy  bad- 
gers are  sometimes  captured.  One,  weighing 
34^  Ib.  was  taken  alive  in  1894  in  the  Burnt 
Woods  near  Ashley,  and  the  event  was  re- 
ported at  the  time  in  the  Field  newspaper. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  landowners  will  do 
all  they  can  to  discourage  the  destruction  of 
this  very  interesting  mammal. 

19.   Otter.      Lutra  lutra,  Linn. 

Bell— Lutra  vulgaris. 

Although  much  rarer  than  the  badger  in 
Staffordshire,  instances  of  the  otter  being  seen, 
and  too  often  killed,  in  the  county  are  recorded 
nearly  every  year.  Sometimes  cubs  are  killed 
— showing  that  the  otter  still  breeds  within 
the  county  boundaries.  It  occurs  chiefly  in 
the  Trent,  in  the  Dove  and  in  other  smaller 
tributaries,  and  also  enters  Staffordshire  from 
the  Severn  which  crosses  the  south-western 
extremity  of  the  county  near  Arley.  Otters 
have  on  several  occasions  come  down  the 
Trent  to  Burton,  and  on  23  April,  1884, 
they  were  seen  from  Burton  Bridge,  and,  as  I 
learn  from  Mr.  J.  E.  Nowers,  one  was  shot 
about  this  time  within  the  borough  boundaries. 
I  heard  of  another  example  being  seen  near 
the  weir  in  November,  1899,  and  chased  by 
two  ardent,  if  amateur,  sportsmen  with  a 


165 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


terrier  and  a  dachshund — I  need   hardly  say 
unsuccessfully. 

According  to  Sir  Oswald  Mosley,  otters 
were  formerly  hunted  in  his  district  but  never 
with  much  success,  and  the  sport  has  been 
discontinued  for  many  years. 


In  Plot's  time  the  otter  must  have  been 
common  in  Staffordshire,  for  at  Ingestre  the 
worthy  doctor  was  regaled  with  a  dish  of 
'  potted  '  otter,  '  so  well  ordered  by  the  cook,' 
he  remarked,  '  that  it  required  a  very  nice 
palate  to  distinguish  it  from  venison.' 


RODENTIA 


20.  Squirrel.     Sciurus  leucourus,  Kerr. 

Bell — Sciurus  vulgaris. 

Generally    distributed    in    plantations    and 
woods. 


Muscardinus     avellanarius, 


21.  Dormouse. 

Linn. 

Bell — Myoxus  avellanarius. 
Not  rare  in  the  wooded  portions  of  the 
county,  but  owing  to  its  retiring  habits  seems 
to  be  much  less  common  than  is  really  the 
case.  Mr.  James  Yates  writes  me  that  he 
has  seen  the  dormouse  amongst  hazels  at 
Oakamoor,  and  at  Keele  he  knew  of  a  farmer 
who  had  taken  several  from  a  nest.  These 
dormice  were  examined  by  Mr.  Yates  as 
well  as  the  nest — originally  built  by  a  wren — 
which  they  had  adopted  as  their  home. 

22.  Harvest  Mouse.      Mus  minutus,  Pallas. 
Occurs  in   cornfields  and  in  rough  marshy 

places.  Mr.  Yates,  in  the  letter  referred  to 
above,  writes  as  follows  concerning  this 
species  :  '  I  have  found  the  nest  of  the  harvest 
mouse  in  many  places — at  Keele,  Horsley, 
Alton,  etc.,  but  I  have  never  seen  the  nest 
fixed  on  corn-stalks.  It  has  always  been  in 
very  coarse  grass  or  sedges  ;  in  particular  in 
tussocks  of  Carex  paniculata.  The  nest  is 
woven  into  a  dense  mass  and  it  is  very  diffi- 
cult indeed  to  find  the  entrance.'  To  this  I 
may  add  that  the  entrance — always  I  believe 
in  the  side — is  frequently  carefully  closed  by 
the  mice,  and  although  I  have  seen  the  nest 
built  amongst  corn,  it  is  also  sometimes  affixed 
to  brambles  and  even  thistles  as  well  as  to  the 
plants  mentioned  above  by  Mr.  Yates.  The 
notion  that  this  species  is  confined  to  corn- 
fields is  quite  erroneous. 

23.  Wood     Mouse     or     Long-tailed     Field 

Mouse.     Mui  syfvaticus,  Linn. 
Common  in  fields  and  gardens. 

24.  House  Mouse.     Mus  musculus,  Linn. 

25.  Black  Rat.     Mus  rattus,  Linn. 

The   black  rat  was    probably    very    early 
driven  out  of  Staffordshire  by  the   brown  rat 


and  totally  exterminated,   for  Dickenson  says 
that  it  had  become  extinct  in  his  time  (1798), 


and  as  the  earliest  possible  date  of  the  arrival 
of  the  brown  rat  in  this  county  is  1728,  the 
latter  must  soon  have  entered  upon  a  warfare 
of  extermination  against  the  creature  it  found 
in  possession. 

26.  Brown  Rat.      Mus  decumanus,  Pallas. 
Far  too  abundant,  and  in  the  valley  of  the 

Trent  almost  as  amphibious  as  the  water  vole 
taking  up  its  residence  in  the  river  banks,  and 
feeding  indiscriminately  on  dead  fish,  frogs 
and  farmer's  produce.  Brown  says  that 
previous  to  1852  the  'numbers  that  were 
found  in  the  drains  in  our  meadows  were 
perfectly  frightful,'  but  that  the  great  floods 
which  prevailed  at  Burton  in  that  year  con- 
siderably thinned  their  ranks,  and  they  have 
never  occurred  in  such  numbers  since. 

27.  Field  Vole.     Microtus  agrestis,  Linn. 

Bell — Arvmla  agreit'u. 
Abundant. 

28.  Bank  Vole.     Evotomys  glareolus,  Schreber. 

Bell — Arvicola  glareolus. 

Apparently  much  less  common  than  the 
last-named  species,  but  has  probably  been 
confused  with  it  in  many  parts  of  the  county. 
It  has  been  reported  from  the  northern 
district,  and  I  have  myself  also  found  it  at 
Tutbury  and  Horninglow  in  the  east  of  the 
county. 

29.  Water  Vole.     Microtus  amphibius,  Linn. 

Bell — Arvicok  amphibius. 

Common,  and  generally  distributed. 

30.  Common  Hare.     Lepus  eurap&us,  Pallas. 

Bell — Lepus  timldus. 

Common,  and  frequently  attaining  to  a 
large  size  and  heavy  weight. 

31.  Mountain  Hare.     Lepus  timidus,  Linn. 

Bell — Lepus  variobiRs. 

Introduced  in  the  county.  Mr.  Masefield 
in  the  North  Staffordshire  Naturalist's  Field 
Club  Report,  1895,  xxix.  46,  says:  'Sports- 
men have  reported  to  me  last  season  that 
several  mountain  hares  (Lepus  variabilis)  have 


166 


MAMMALS 


been  killed  around  Cheadle — some  of  these  I 
find  were  turned  out  in  the  spring  of  last  year, 
but  Mr.  Bill  of  Farley  tells  me  that  there 
have  generally  been  a  few  in  the  moor- 
land district  of  our  county.'  Of  course  no 


one  will  suppose  that  the  mountain  or  '  Scotch 
hare  is  indigenous  in  Staffordshire. 


32.   Rabbit. 
Plentiful. 


Lefus  cuniculus,  Linn. 


UNGULATA 


33.  Chartley  White  Cattle.  Bos  taurus,  Linn. 

No  account  of  the  mammals  of  Staffordshire 
could  be  considered  complete  without  refer- 
ence to  the  famous  herd  of  white  cattle  so 
long  preserved  in  a  half-wild  condition  at 
Chartley  Park  by  the  Earls  Ferrers.  These 
magnificent  animals  are  white,  with  the  ears, 
hoofs,  and  generally  the  muzzle,  black.  Black 
spots  and  blotches  are  usually  seen  on  the 
lower  part  of  the  fore-legs  and  sometimes  on 
the  hind-legs  also.  The  horns  are  white  finely 
tipped  with  black,  are  long  and  sweeping,  not 
short  and  sharply  curved  upwards  as  in  the 
Chillingham  and  Cadzow  herds,  and  remind 
one  of  the  fine  Old  English  long-horn  cattle 
and  the  Highland  breed  in  the  bold  way  in 
which  they  stand  out  from  the  sides  of  the 
head.  A  remarkable  feature  is  a  large  tuft  of 
long  curly  hair  which  adorns  the  forehead  and 
reaches  as  low  as  the  inner  corners  of  the 
eyes,  and  especially  in  old  bulls  possesses  a 
parting  down  the  centre  which  gives  to  the 
tuft  the  appearance  of  a  carefully  arranged 
and  very  beautiful  wig.  In  the  cows  the 
horns  are  thinner  than  in  the  bulls  and  with  a 
more  decided  upward  trend. 

As  a  rule  the  disposition  of  these  Chartley 
cattle  is  mild  and  timorous,  and  when 
approached  by  strangers  the  herd  slowly 
retreats.  At  certain  seasons  the  animals  be- 
come dangerous,  and  it  is  at  all  times  unsafe 
to  approach  too  closely  to  the  cows  when 
accompanied  by  their  calves,  the  first  signs  of 
a  projected  attack  being  stamping  with  the 
fore-feet  and  an  angry  tossing  of  the  head. 
When  alarmed  the  members  of  the  herd 
collect  together  and  at  first  retreat  a  short 
distance.  They  then  suddenly  turn  and  face 
the  object  of  their  resentment,  the  herd 
standing  in  the  form  of  a  semicircle.  On 
being  further  pressed  they  again  retreat  and 
again  turn  towards  their  adversary,  and  if  still 
molested  do  not  hesitate  to  charge.  Few 
spectators,  however  rash  and  curious,  will  be 
found  to  await  the  latter  consummation,  and 
prudently  retire  to  the  shelter  of  some  pine- 
clump  or  group  of  birch  trees  after  one  or  two 
demonstrations  of  hostility  on  the  part  of  the 
herd.  Even  young  calves  but  a  few  days  old 
when  met  with  away  from  their  dams  butt 
with  great  spirit  and  fierceness. 


Black  calves  are  occasionally  born  and  are 
invariably  destroyed  by  the  keepers,  but  black 
and  white  calves  seem  to  be  unknown.  The 
birth  of  a  black  calf  was  anciently  considered 
to  foretell  disaster  to  some  member  of  the 
Ferrers  family. 

Originally  driven  into  Chartley  Park  from 
Needwood  Forest  by  William,  Earl  of  Derby, 
in  the  reign  of  Henry  III.,  these  cattle  have 
been  carefully  preserved  pure  by  his  descend- 
ants, the  Earls  Ferrers,  and  although  inbred 
for  over  650  years  they  still  survive.  At 
times  however  they  have  been  very  near 
extinction,  for  about  twenty  years  ago  they 
were  reduced  to  17  head.  By  1887  the  herd 
had  doubled  in  numbers,  and  from  1890  to 
1900  averaged  about  45  head.  Within  the 
last  few  years  the  numbers  have  steadily 
declined,  and  in  April,  1903,  they  were 
reduced  to  less  than  a  dozen. 

34.  Red  Deer.      Cervus  e/afhus,  Linn. 

The  red  deer  preserved  at  Chartley,  Bagot's 
Park,  and  elsewhere  in  the  county  are  probably 
the  direct  descendants  of  the  wild  deer  which 
anciently  inhabited  Needwood  Forest,  the 
largest  herd  being  that  at  Chartley  which  now 
numbers  50  head. 

35.  Fallow  Deer.      Cervus  dama,  Linn. 

Although  not  indigenous  to  Staffordshire  any 
more  than  to  other  parts  of  these  islands, 
fallow  deer  have  from  very  ancient  days 
abounded  in  the  county  and  great  herds 
wandered  at  liberty  on  Needwood  Forest,  and 
in  smaller  numbers  on  Cannock  Chase,  down 
to  comparatively  recent  times.  In  1798 
Dickenson  estimated  the  number  of  deer  on 
Needwood  Forest  at  more  than  3,000,  and 
remarked  that  many  of  them  were  of  the  dark 
brown  variety  '  introduced  from  Norway  by 
James  I.'  Dickenson,  like  many  a  writer 
since  his  day,  was  probably  in  error  when  he 
penned  the  remark  quoted  above,  for  Mr. 
J.  E.  Harting  has  shown  (Essays  on  Sport  and 
Natural  History)  that  a  dark  race  of  fallow 
deer  existed  in  England  as  early  as  1465. 

In  a  state  of  semi-domestication  fallow  deer 
are  kept  in  the  deer-parks  at  Chartley,  Bagots- 
Bromley,  Wooton,  Dunstall,  etc.,  whilst  a  few 
exist  in  a  state  of  freedom  on  Cannock  Chase, 


167 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


and  one  or  two  stray  an  finals  appear  from  time 
to  time  in  the  woods  and  plantations  at  Swilcar 
Lawn  and  elsewhere  on  Needwood  Forest. 

36.   Roe  Deer.      Capreolus  capreolus.  Linn. 

Bell — Capreolus  cafrea. 

Sir    Oswald    Mosley    (Natural   History  of 
Tutburyy  p.  1 7)  says:  'Several  horns  of  the  roe- 


buck have  been  found  on  Needwood  Forest,' 
and  then  goes  on  to  describe  the  fallow  deer 
found  there  before  the  enclosure  ;  with  this 
exception  I  can  find  no  recent  reference  to  the 
occurrence  of  this  little  deer  in  Staffordshire, 
and  it  seems  certain  that  for  the  last  hundred 
years  at  least  the  roe  deer  has  been  extinct  in 
the  county. 


NOTE. — I  cannot  conclude  this  paper  without  expressing  my  indebtedness  to  the  pages  of 
the  Reports  and  Transactions  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club  (especially  the  Reports 
of  the  section  on  Zoology  compiled  by  the  chairman,  John  R.  B.  Masefield,  Esq.,  M.A.) 
and  to  the  works  of  Plot,  Dickenson  (in  Shaw's  Staffordshire),  Garner,  Sir  Oswald  Mosley 
and  Edwin  Brown.  My  thanks  are  also  due  for  much  interesting  information  to  James 
Yates,  Esq.,  M.R.C.S.  ;  to  J.  E.  Nowers,  Esq.  ;  and  for  particulars  as  to  the  cattle  and  deer 
of  Chartley  Park  to  Earl  Ferrers'  head  keeper,  Mr.  W.  Goring. 


168 


PREHISTORIC  MAP 

of 

STAFFORDSHIRE 


Reference 

*  Miscellaneous  finds.  Neolithic   Implements  etc: 

*  Bronze  Implements 

9  Interments  These  are  m&rked  &pproxim&lely:  it  is  not 
possible  in  such  a  sm&ll  m&p 
to  indicate  Uielr  exact  position 
or  precise  number 


DERBYSHIRE 


EARLY  MAN 


I 


BRACES  of  man  in  very  early  times,  prior  to  the  period  of  written 
records,  are  by  no  means  rare  in  Staffordshire,  and  although  the 
actual  antiquities  are  now  somewhat  scattered,  it  is  an  interesting 
fact  that  Dr.  Robert  Plot,  in  his  well-known  Natural  History  of 
the  county,  was  one  of  the  first  to  record  and  figure  prehistoric  implements 
of  bronze  and  stone.  The  book  was  printed  in  1686,  and  contains  in  the 
tenth  chapter  '  Of  Antiquities '  descriptions  and  copper-plate  engravings  of 
several  well-known  types  of  Neolithic  and  Bronze  Age  weapons.  The 
fact  that  Dr.  Plot  assigns  the  bronze  celts,  etc.,  to  a  Roman  origin  excites  no 
wonder  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  field  of  prehistoric  archaeology  was  at 
that  time  quite  unexplored.  One  must  be  grateful,  rather,  for  such  an  early 
record  of  local  antiquities. 

Of  the  earliest  prehistoric  period,  the  Palaeolithic  Age,  when  man 
shaped  his  flint  tools  merely  by  chipping  and  was  ignorant  of  the  art  of 
grinding  them,  Staffordshire  affords  no  evidence. 


THE  NEOLITHIC  AGE 

The  traces  of  man's  presence  in  Staffordshire  in  the  Neolithic  Age  are 
neither  numerous  nor  important,  but,  as  will  presently  be  shown,  they  are 
really  of  considerable  interest  as  showing  the  diffusion  of  what  was  probably 
the  earliest  race  to  inhabit  this  part  of  Britain. 

A  word  or  two  may  here  be  said  as  to  the  conditions  of  life  at  this 
remote  period.  The  Neolithic  Age  represents  a  phase  of  civilization  ante- 
cedent to  the  use  of  metal,  yet  not  devoid  of  certain  accomplishments.  For 
instance,  Neolithic  man  was  able  to  make  his  tools  and  weapons  of  stone  and 
flint  not  merely  by  chipping,  but  also  by  grinding,  whereby  regular  smooth 
edges  were  produced.  He  was  able  to  till  the  soil,  to  construct  dwellings 
and  to  throw  up  earthworks  as  a  defence  against  his  enemies.  He  had  also 
acquired  the  art  of  making  a  rough  kind  of  pottery.  Altogether,  considering 
the  very  early  period  in  which  he  lived,  he  had  made  substantial  progress  in 
civilization,  and  it  is  practically  certain  that  our  inability  to  recognize  his 
proper  place  in  the  scale  of  human  progress  arises,  not  so  much  from  the  bar- 
barity of  the  times,  as  from  the  fact  that  many  traces  of  such  a  remote  period 
have  necessarily  perished  by  decay. 

Dwellings,  and  many  of  the  appliances  of  Neolithic  life,  have  to  a  very 
large  extent  been  swept  away,  and  this  gives  a  special  value  to  the  buried 
sepulchral  remains,  both  in  the  form  of  actual  human  remains  and  grave 
furniture,  such  as  pottery,  flint  implements,  and  many  other  objects  which 
were  commonly  interred  with  the  dead. 

The  stone  implements  found  in  Staffordshire,  some  of  which  evidently 
belong  to  the  Neolithic  Age  and  some  to  the  Bronze  Age,  present  one  or  two 
i  169  22 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

interesting  facts  which  are  worthy  of  consideration.  These  points  consist 
mainly  of  the  association  of  the  stone  objects  with  other  articles  rather  than 
individual  and  actual  features,  and  they  tend  to  illustrate  the  transition  and 
overlapping  of  the  ages  of  stone  and  metal. 

Thus,  in  the  Mouse  Low  barrow,  a  flint  arrow-head  (a  weapon  which 
it  was  formerly  the  custom  to  regard  as  Neolithic)  was  found  in  a  Bronze 
Age  drinking-cup,  a  circumstance  which  implies  but  does  not  prove  con- 
temporaneity, because  the  arrow-head  may  have  been  preserved  as  a  relic 
from  a  former  age.  At  Mouse  Low,  also,  two  barbed  arrow-heads  of  flint 
were  found  in  association  with  bone  pins.  The  same  combination  of 
objects  was  found  in  Ribden  Low  barrow. 

Thor's  Cave,  at  Wetton,  furnished  two  decidedly  curious  objects,  viz., 
a  carved  sandstone  vessel  and  a  bronze  kettle-like  vessel.  The  objects  are 
probably  both  later  than  the  Bronze  Age,  as  the  handle  is  of  iron.  The 
sandstone  vessel  belongs  to  a  type  found  in  more  abundance  in  Scotland  than 
England,  where  they  are  decidedly  rare. 

In  the  details  of  the  contents  of  Staffordshire  barrows  given  in  this 
article  it  will  be  noted,  again  and  again,  that  flint  flakes  and  implements  occur 
in  the  sepulchral  mounds  in  intimate  association  with  burnt  burials  and 

pottery  bearing  the  char- 
acteristics, both  in  fabric 
and  decoration,  of  the 
Bronze  Age.  The  con- 
clusion to  which  these 
facts  point  is  that  the  two 
races,  the  Neolithic  and 
the  Bronze-using  people, 
intermingled,  intermar- 
ried, and  buried  their  dead 
side  by  side,  some  indivi- 
duals retaining  the  old  cus- 
toms and  others  adopting 
the  new. 

The  bone  pins  re- 
ferred to  may  be  either  of  the  Neolithic  or  the  Bronze  Age.  Their  purpose 
has  been  the  subject  of  a  good  deal  of  speculation  amongst  antiquaries, 
some  regarding  them  as  instruments  for  piercing  leather  or  soft  materials. 
When  they  occur  in  barrows,  however,  there  seems  reason  to  believe 
that  they  served  as  fastenings  for  some  kind  of  shroud  in  the  case  of  unburnt 
interments,  and  in  the  case  of  burnt  burials  it  is  believed  that  they  served  to 
pin  together  the  cloth  in  which  the  ashes  were  placed,  after  being  collected 
from  the  funeral  pile.1 

THE  BRONZE  AGE 

The  main  points  of  difference  between  the  later  age  of  stone  or  the 
Neolithic  Age,  and  the  earliest  period  of  metal  or  the  Bronze  Age,  may  be 
summed  up  in  a  few  words,  although  it  would  be  difficult,  if  not  impossible, 
for  us  in  modern  times  to  realize  all  that  the  great  transition  meant. 

1  Evans,  Stone  Imp.  (and  ed.),  432. 
170 


GRANITE  AXE-HEAD   FOUND  AT  STONE  (12  in.  in  length) 


EARLY    MAN 

The  introduction  of  metal  in  the  place  of  stone  must  have  given  to  the 
possessors  immense  advantages  in  warfare,  in  the  chase,  and  in  the  ordinary 
pursuits  of  life,  and  one  would  naturally  be  inclined  to  imagine  that  a  struggle 
for  supremacy  would  take  place  between  those  who  possessed  the  secret  of 
working  bronze,  and  those  who  did  not  possess  it.  If  such  a  conflict  occurred 
it  must  have  been  of  short  duration  ;  at  any  rate  its  effects  are  not  per- 
ceptible in  the  surviving  remains,  sepulchral  deposits  indicating  that  there 
was  a  more  or  less  friendly  relation  between  the  two  races. 

The  knowledge  of  working  in  bronze  is  believed  to  have  been  intro- 
duced by  a  branch  of  the  Celtic  family  known  as  Goidels,  or  Gaels. 

One  natural  effect  of  the  discovery  of  the  properties  of  such  a  metal  as 
bronze  was  to  put  into  the  hands  of  the  builders  of  houses  the  power  of 
cleaving  and  shaping  large  timbers.  Houses  of  the  Bronze  Age,  therefore, 
in  strong  contrast  with  those  of  the  Neolithic  circular  huts,  were  built  in 
rectangular  plan  and  with  regular  gabled  roofs. 

From  what  has  been  already  stated  it  will  be  gathered  that  the  evidence 
of  the  Neolithic  Age  and  the  Bronze  Age,  as  far  as  Staffordshire  is  concerned, 
indicates  a  considerable  amount  of  transition  and  overlapping.  This  is  more 
particularly  apparent,  perhaps,  in  the  case  of  sepulchral  deposits,  and  it  will 
be  convenient  at  this  stage  to  deal  with  these  remains  before  describing  the 
isolated  finds  which  are  unquestionably  referable  to  the  Bronze  Age. 

SEPULCHRAL  MOUNDS  OR  BARROWS 

Some  important  details  of  the  prehistoric  archaeology  of  Staffordshire 
are  given  in  Bateman's  Ten  Years'  Diggings,  a  work  published  in  1861. 
The  facts  were  obtained  by  Mr.  Samuel  Carrington  during  exploratory 
excavations  in  barrows  extending  over  the  years  1848  to  1858.  The  fol- 
lowing are  the  more  important  of  the  discoveries. 

1.  Barrow   situated   on   a  hill   called   Hanging    Bank,   at   Ecton    Mine, 
20  yds.  in  diameter,  4ft.   high,  and  concave   in   centre  like  a  bowl. — In  the 
middle  was  found  a  deposit   of  calcined  human   bones   accompanied  by  bones 
of  the  water-rat  in  abundance,  and  also  a  large  bone  pin  5  in.  in  length,  two 
spear  points  and  two  arrow-heads  of  flint,  all  of  which  bore  traces  of  having 
passed  through  the  fire. 

2.  Barrow  on  Arbour  Hill,  near  Throwley  Hall,  30  yds.  in  diameter. — 
This  contained   a  cist  constructed  of  flat  slabs  of  limestone  neatly  arranged. 
In  the  cist  were  found  burnt  human   bones  and  a  flint  arrow-point.       There 
was  a    smaller  cist   adjoining    the   eastern    end   of   that  just   described   con- 
taining burnt   bones.      Another  interment  contained  two  skeletons   in   close 
proximity   and  each    buried  in  a    contracted    posture.      One    skeleton,    that 
of  a  young  person,  was  accompanied  by  a  slender  arrow-head  of  flint.      In 
yet  another  interment  in  this  barrow  was  found  an   iron  spike  about  3  in. 
long,  which  had  been  inserted  into  wood. 

3.  Barrow  on  the  top  of  Mare  Hill,  near  Throwley  Hall. — In  this  was 
found  a  grave  cut  in  the   rock,   containing   two   skeletons  with  a  spear-point 
of  calcined  flint.      A  piece  of  pottery,  and  a  small   quantity   of  lead  (which 
had  been  accidentally  fused  from  metalliferous  gravel  present  upon  the  spot 
where  a  cremation  took  place)  were  found  near  the  grave. 

171 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  barrow  also  contained  a  cist  in  which  were  three  interments  on 
different  levels.  A  bronze  dagger  3  in.  in  length  was  found  with  the  remains 
of  the  burnt  burial,  which  occupied  a  middle  position  between  the  lowest 
interment,  which  consisted  of  almost  an  entire  skeleton,  and  the  uppermost, 
which  was  the  skeleton  of  a  child. 

In  still  another  part  of  the  barrow,  at  a  depth  of  about  2  ft.  from  the 
surface,  was  the  skeleton  of  a  child,  laid  on  the  left  side,  with  the  knees 
drawn  up.  An  ornamented  vase  or  urn,  5  in.  in  height,  lay  close  by.  In 
addition  to  the  interments  described  traces  of  three  or  four  other  burials  were 
noticed.  It  is  obvious  that  the  barrow  must  have  been  an  important  burial- 
place  and  that  both  Stone  Age  and  Bronze  Age  folk  buried  their  dead  within  it. 

4.  A  barrow  at  Deepdale,    17  yds.   in  diameter  and  of  small  elevation, 
was  found  to  contain  a  grave  in  which  was  a  human  skeleton,  in  a  crouched 
posture,  accompanied  by  a  well-preserved  bronze  dagger  provided  with  three 
rivets  by  which  it  had  been  fastened  to  a  semi-lunar  handle. 

5.  A  barrow,  called  Mouse  Low,  situated  between   Deepdale  and  the 
village   of  Grindon,    14  yds.    in    diameter,    and   about  2  ft.  high,  upon   being 
examined  was  found  to  contain  the  skeleton  of  a   large  man  in  contracted 
posture.     Near  the  head  was  a  peculiarly  elegant  and  well-finished  drinking 
cup,  within  which  there  were  two  implements  cut  from  the  ribs  of  a  large 
animal,  a  spear  head,  and  two  beautiful  barbed  arrows  of  white  flint.     Out- 
side the  cup  were  two  more  arrows  of  the  same  kind. 

6.  Small  barrow,  known  as  Green  Low,  at  Castern. — In  this  was  found 
the  skeleton  of  a   child,  with   a  flint    arrow-point,  and    certain    objects    of 
later  date,  including  a  Roman  fibula  of  bronze. 

7.  Musden    Low,   a  barrow  situated   on    Musden    Hill,    near    Calton, 
originally   27  yds.   in   diameter,    on    examination    was    found    to    contain    a 
skeleton   completely  embedded    in   rats'   bones.     Close    by    were  found    the 
remains  of  a  burnt  interment,  the  fire  employed  for  which  having  partially 
blackened  both  the  skeleton   and  the   rats'   bones.     Calcined  implements  of 
flint,  and  pieces  of  urns,  ranging  apparently  from  the  Celtic  to  the  Romano- 
British  period,  were  found  in  the  barrow. 

8.  A  tumulus  called  Thorncliff,  situated  on   Calton  Moor,  about  a  mile 
from  the  village  of  Calton,  contained  the  remains  of  a  large  skeleton  '  accom- 
panied by  a  neat  instrument  of  flint  and  a  bronze  dagger,  with  three  rivets 
of  the  usual  form.' 

9.  A  second  barrow  at  Musden  Hill  (see   7)   upon  being  opened  was 
found   to   contain   a  human  skeleton  with   the  head    to  the  outside  of  the 
barrow.       Above  and   around   it   were  fragments   of  two   globular   narrow- 
necked  urns,  ornamented  with  a  few  projections   upon  the  shoulders,  which 
had  contained  burnt   bones.     The  discoverers  were  inclined   to  assign   this 
interment   to  the  Anglo-Saxon   period,  but  it  seems  just  possible   that  the 
pottery  found  was  Neolithic. 

10.  A  barrow  on  Readon   Hill,  Ramshorn,  was  opened  and  found  to 
contain  about  the  centre  two  extended  skeletons.     They  were  accompanied 
by  an  iron  spear  and  a  narrow  iron  knife.     These  may  have  been  Anglo- 
Saxon  interments. 

1 1 .  A  barrow  at  Dale,  near  Stanton,  on  being  opened  was  found  to  contain 
two  skeletons  lying  on  the  original  surface  of  the  earth.     These  presented 

172 


EARLY    MAN 

evidences  of  an  unusual  method  of  sepulture  differing  from  any  other 
that  had  previously  been  noticed.  It  was  clear  that  the  bodies  had  been 
intentionally  subjected  to  the  action  of  fire  upon  the  spot  where  they 
lay,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  preserve  the  bones  in  their  natural  order, 
entire  and  unwarped  by  the  heat.  The  bones,  which  were  of  both  sexes, 
were  surrounded  by  charcoal  and  earth,  to  which  a  red  colour  had  been 
imparted  by  the  operation,  themselves  exhibiting  a  curious  variety  of  tints 
from  the  same  cause.  They  were  accompanied  simply  by  some  chips  of 
flint  and  one  piece  of  primitive  pottery. 

12.  Two  contracted  and  much  decayed  skeletons  inclosed  within  a  rude 
kind  of  cist,  and  accompanied  by  '  a  few  mean  implements   of  flint,'  were 
found  in  a  barrow  at  Stanton. 

1 3.  Another  cist-burial  was  discovered  in  a  barrow  called  Ribden  Low, 
situated  between  the  villages  of  Cotton  and  Caldon.     There  were  actually 
two  cist-burials  in  the  mound,  and  the  objects  found  with  the  skeletons  com- 
prised three  barbed  arrow-heads  of  flint,   three  large  flint  implements,  five 
bone  implements,  and  two  very  small  pieces  of  bronze  slightly  ornamented. 
The  bone  implements  were  of  peculiar  interest  from  the  fact  that  some  were 
pointed  at  each  end  and  perforated  through  the  middle,  and  had  apparently 
been  used  as  netting  tools. 

14.  A    barrow  of  unusual    form    near  the  village  or  Calton,   opened 
in     1849,    was    found   to     contain     evidence    of    repeated     interments    dis- 
tributed throughout    the   area    of    the    mound.       The    barrow  was    of    the 
type   designated  '  Druid   Barrows '   by   Stukeley  and   Hoare.     Charcoal  and 
numerous    calcined    flint  implements   were  found    in    association   with    the 
human  remains. 

15.  In  a  barrow  situated  on  an  eminence  called   the   Cop,  near  Calton, 
was  found  an    interesting  example   of  the  careful   interment   of  part  of  the 
head  of  an  ox.      It  also  contained    (i)    a  small  quadrangular  cist,  in  which 
were  the  bones  of  a  young  person   about   twelve   years   of  age  ;    (2)   another 
small  cist  constructed  of  four  flat  stones  ;   and  (3)  still  another  cist  of  circular 
form.      Within  the  small  cist  (2)   was  found  the   right  half  of  the  upper  jaw 
of  an  ox,  making  the  fifth   instance   of  the  intentional   burial   of  ox  bones,  a 
circumstance  which  goes  far  to  prove   the   existence   of  some  peculiar  super- 
stition or  rite  connected  with  the  bones  of  that  animal. 

1 6.  In  a  tumulus  situated  midway  between  Throwley  and  Calton,  and 
composed  almost  entirely  of  burnt  earth,  was  found  a  deposit  of  large  pieces 
of  calcined   human    bone   placed  within  a  circular  hole   in    the   natural  soil 
about  a  foot  deep.      This  hole  was   of  well-defined  shape,   resulting  from 
contact   with   a   wooden   or   wicker-work  vessel  in  which    the    bones    were 
placed  when   buried.     On  the  bones  lay  part  of  a  small   bronze  pin,  and  a 
very  beautiful   miniature  '  incense   cup'  2  J  in.  high   and    3  Jin.  in  diameter. 
Among  the  bones  were  found  two  small  pointed  pieces  of  flint  and  a  quartz 
pebble,  and  close  by  the  deposit  were  four  other  small  heaps  of  calcined  bone 
in  the  form  of  powder. 

17.  In  a  field  called  Stonesteads,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  village  of 
Waterhouses,  was  a  barrow  in  which  the  skeleton  of  a  tall  and  strongly-built 
•man   was  found  lying  on  a  pavement   of  thin   flat  stones   raised  6  in.  above 
the  natural  level  of  the  ground.     Near  the  feet  was  the  tusk  of  a  large  boar 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


rubbed  down  on  the  inner  surface  to  about  half  the  natural  thickness.  Part 
of  an  arrow-point  and  several  pieces  of  cut  bone  were  found  near  the 
skeleton. 

1 8.  Cist  interment  at   Lumberlow,  near  Waterhouses. — The  cist  con- 
tained the  skeleton  of  a  fully-grown    young   person,  a  good  spear-head  of 
mottled  grey  flint,  and  a  highly   polished  flint   implement  of   uncertain  use. 
Above  it  were   numerous  pebbles,  the  leg-bone  of  a  large   dog,  and  a  little 
charcoal. 

19.  '  Druid  Barrow,' called  Farlow,  near  Caldon. — This  contained  the 
skeleton  of  a  young  person  laid  upon  the  ribs  of  an  ox  or  other  large  animal 
placed  transversely  to  the    human  bones,  at   regular   intervals  side   by  side. 
The  barrow  also  contained  the  skeleton  of  a    young  person  in  a  rock  grave, 

accompanied  by  an  ornamented 
vase  5  in.  high,  perhaps  a  '  drink- 
ing cup.'  Part  of  a  large  urn, 
the  upper  portion  of  which 
was  ornamented  with  cheverons, 
had  been  found  at  an  earlier 
period,  and  was  broken  up  into 
fragments  in  order  that  each 
bystander  might  possess  a  me- 
mento of  the  discovery. 

20.  Swinscoe.  —  An  im- 
portant elliptical  or  long  bar- 
row, called  Top  Low,  measur- 
ing 45  ft.  long  by  21  ft.  wide, 
was  found,  on  examination,  to 
contain  evidences  of  no  less 
than  fourteen  interments.  The 
barrow  is  believed  to  have  been 
originally  circular,  and  to  have 
assumed  an  elliptical  shape  in 
consequence  of  subsequent  addi- 
tions. The  following  are  brief 
particulars  of  the  various  burials 
in  this  barrow,  which  are  also 
indicated  on  the  accompanying 
plan  : — 

1.  Skeleton  of  a  young  person 
in  a  contracted  posture  in  a  shallow 
grave,  cut  about  six  inches  deep  in 
the  chert    rock,    having    a    stone 
placed  on  edge  at  each  end.  With 
it    were     a    three-cornered     piece 
of  flint    and  a    small  bronze  clasp 
which     had     been     riveted     to     a 
strap. 

2.  Skeleton  of  young   adult, 
with  an  upright  stone  at  the  head, 
and  a  round-ended   flint  near  the 
feet. 


PLAN  OF  INTERMENTS  IN   BARROW  AT  TOP  Low, 
SWINSCOE 


174 


EARLY    MAN 

3.  Skeleton  of  middle-aged   person,  accompanied   by  a  neatly   chipped  spear-nead  of 
flint. 

4.  Skeleton   of  a  young  hog   inclosed   in  a  roughly  constructed  cist.     A  tine   from  a 
stag's  horn  was  buried  with  the  hog. 

5.  Cinerary  urn  decorated  with  a  cheveron  pattern  containing  calcined  bones,  portions 
of  bone  implements  (probably  tools  for  modelling  pottery),  and  part  of  a  fine  flint  which  had 
been  damaged  by  fire. 

6.  Skeleton  with  legs  drawn  up.     Near  it  was  a  thin   layer  of  charred  wood   and  two 
flakes  of  flint. 

7.  Deposit  of  calcined  bones. 

8.  Skeleton  accompanied  by  an  arrow-head  of  white  flint,  and  pieces  of  ornamented 
pottery. 

9.  Two  skeletons,  one  that  of  an  adult,  the  other  that  of  a  child  a  few  months  old. 

10.  Skeleton  of  an  aged  man  with  legs  drawn  up,  accompanied  by  a  handsome  drinking 
cup  7  J  in.  high,  and  a  few  chippings  of  flint. 

1 1.  This  was  a  somewhat  doubtful  deposit  near  one  end  of  the  ellipse,  consisting  mainly 
of  rats'  bones,  pebbles,  and  a  long  triangular  flake  of  calcined  flint. 

12.  Decayed    bones  including  part  of  a  skull  were  placed  within  a  pentagonal  cist,  and 
covered  by  a  broad  and  thin  slab. 

13.  Skeleton   of  very  young  person,  placed  close  to  an  upright   flat  stone,  and  accom- 
panied by  a  flint  chip. 

14.  Skull,  much  decayed,  accompanied  by  one  piece  of  burnt  flint. 

The  great  importance  of  this  series  of  interments  within  one  mound  is 
obvious  ;  and  not  the  least  remarkable  feature  is  the  cist  containing  the 
skeleton  of  a  hog.  This  deposit,  it  will  be  noticed,  occupies  practically  the 
central  position  in  the  barrow.  It  is  impossible  to  resist  the  impression  that 
this  burial  must  have  been  closely  associated  with  superstitions  or  religious 
beliefs  of  the  ancient  people  who  here  buried  their  dead. 

21.  Wetton  near  Hill. — Two  skeletons  were  found  in  this  barrow,  one 
being   accompanied   by  a  beautiful  little   earthen   vase,  4^  in.   high,   with  a 
fluted  border  and  four  perforated  ears.      Pieces  of  flint  and  a  tine    of  stag's 
horn  lay  near. 

22.  Ham. — In   a  barrow   on   the    top   of    Hazleton    Hill   above   Inkley 
Wood,  and  at  the  back  of  Ham  Hall,  were  found  : — 

1.  A  rock  grave  surrounded  by  flat  stones  placed  on  edge,  and  divided   into  two  equal 
compartments  by  the  same  means,  one  containing  calcined  human  bones,  two  inferior  arrow- 
points  of  flint  and  a  broken    pebble,  and  the  other   containing  wood   ashes  and  a  few  pieces 
of  bone. 

2.  A  plain    urn  of  thin    pottery  inverted   over  a  few  burnt   bones  which    lay  on  a  flat 
stone. 

3.  Pieces   of   a   coarse   urn,  black  ashes,    burnt  earth,  a  fine  circular  instrument,  and 
numerous  pieces  of  calcined  flint,  all  contained  in  a  depression  in  the  earth. 

4.  A  similar  deposit  surrounded  by  large  stones  containing  a  few  calcined  bones,  a  fine 
round  instrument  and  chippings  of  flint,  and  a  piece  of  lead  weighing  3^  oz. 

5.  There  were  also  found  in  the  barrow  four  more  circular   instruments,  numerous 
pebbles,  and  a  piece  of  iron  ore. 

23.  Gateham. — In   a  flat   barrow  near  Gateham   were   found,  under  a 
broken  urn  with  cheveron  pattern  in  dotted  lines,  a  few  crumbling  fragments 
of  calcined  bone. 

24.  Blore. — Barrow  in  a  field  called  Nettles.     On  being  opened  there 
were  found  a  deposit  of  calcined  bones  and  a  broken  urn  of  red  clay  contain- 
ing a  small  vase  or  incense  cup.     The  larger  vessel  had  a  deep  border  orna- 
mented with   diagonal    lines   disposed  in   triangles  in    alternate    directions. 

175 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Traces  were  also  found  of  a  later  interment  consisting  of  parts  of  an  unburnt 
skeleton,  a  small  iron  ring,  and  the  bottom  of  a  kiln-baked  vessel  of  blue  clay 
turned  on  the  potter's  wheel. 

25.  Stanshope. — In  a  barrow  here  four  different   interments  were  dis- 
covered, viz.  : — 

1.  Two  deposits  of  calcined  bones. 

2.  Calcined  bones,  two  flint  implements,  and  two  bone  needles. 

3.  Two  skeletons  buried  in  a  kind  of  cist,  and 

4.  A  very  large   and  coarse  sepulchral  urn  inverted   over  a  deposit  of  burnt    bones. 

The  first  and  second  interments  had  been  made  in  natural  clefts  of  rock. 

26.  Wetton. — In    1849  a  very  large   cist  was  found   in   a  barrow   at 
Long  Low,  near  Wetton,  the  stone-paved  floor  of  which  was  covered  from  end 
to  end  with  remains  of  human  beings,  bones  of  the  ox,  hog,  deer,  and  dog, 
also  three  very  finely  chipped  arrow-heads  and  many  other  pieces  of   calcined 
flint.     The  discovery  was  one  of  unusual  interest  and  importance,  and  there 
was  evidence  that  the  remains  discovered  represented  at  least  thirteen  human 
beings,  some  being  women. 

The  barrow  evidently  belonged  to  a  period  anterior  to   the  discovery  of 
metal,  and  may  be  regarded  as  a  typical  Neolithic  sepulchral  mound. 

27.  Ecton. — A  barrow  on  Ecton  Hill  was  opened  and  found  to  contain 
a  deposit  of  burnt   bones   placed   in    a   large  urn,   with    a   projecting  border 
ornamented  with  diagonal  lines. 

28.  Musden. — Fourth     barrow.      This    was    found    to    contain    twelve 
interments. 

29.  Caldon   Hill. — A   third   barrow   opened  here  contained  a  broken, 
slightly  ornamented  cinerary  urn  and  some  burnt  bones,  beneath  which  was 
a  small  hole    in   the    rock   filled  with    charcoal.      One  arrow-head  and  some 
flint  chippings  were  found  in  the  barrow. 

30.  In  a  barrow  on  Calton  Moor  were  found  a  cist  with  double  walls  of 
stones  set  on  edge  covered  over  by  two  larger  slabs  and  inclosing  a  deposit  of 
calcined  bones  accompanied  by  two  burnt  flint  implements. 

3  i .   Mayfield  Low,  Mayfield. — This  was  a  flat  barrow,  1 8  yds.  in  diameter, 
containing  a  stone  cist  in  which  an  urn  was  found. 

32.  Castern. — In  a  barrow  situated  between  Bitchin    Hill  and   Castern, 
I  8  yds.  in   diameter,  were   found  (i)  the  decayed  skeleton  of  a  young  person, 
(2)   a   large   skeleton  lying  on   its  left   side   in   a  contracted   posture,  at  the 
bottom  of  an  oval  grave,  (3)    quite    near    the  skeleton  a  highly  polished  stud 
of  jet  with  two  oblique  holes  meeting  at  an   angle  behind,  (4)  a  small  piece 
of    calcined    flint,    (5)    many  rats'  bones,  and   (6)   the   remains  of  a  young 
person. 

33.  Grindon. — In  the  hamlet  of  Deepdale  a  barrow  was   opened  con- 
taining the  skeleton  of  a  young  person,  some   bones  of  a  child,  and  broken 
pieces  of  a  drinking  cup. 

34.  Throwley. — Barrow  containing  large  sepulchral  urn  with  the  mouth 
uppermost,   in  which   were    found   a   double-edged    axe    of    basaltic    stone, 
bronze  awl,  and  bone  pins,  &c. 

35.  Blore. — Barrow   called   Lady   Low   containing  deposit   of  calcined 
bones,  arrow-head  of  flint,  bone   pin,  and  fragments  of  very   thin   bronze  ; 

176 


EARLY    MAN 

also  a  small   oval  cavity  suggestive  of  a  wooden  or  wicker  vessel  long  since 
decayed. 

36.  Throwley. — In    a    barrow    at    Throwley    Moor,    opened    by   Mr. 
Carrington   in    1849,  were  found  fragments   of   a  large    but    plain,  globular 
earthen  vessel,  perforated  at  the  side  with  two  small  holes. 

37.  At  Stanshope,  a  hamlet  in  the  parish   of  Alstonfield,  a  barrow  at 
Ram's  Croft  Field  was  opened,  and  in  it  were  discovered   several  interments 
and  flint   implements,  bronze  dagger,  earthern   drinking  cup,  &c.,  indicative 
of  the  Bronze  Age. 

38.  Wetton,  Thor's  Cave. — An  interment  of  considerable  importance  was 
opened  here.     Near  the  centre,  about  a  foot  below  the  surface,  two  curious 
vessels  were  found  ;  one  of  rather  globular  form,  4  in.  high,  carved  in  sand- 
stone, and  ornamented  by  four  grooves  round  the  outside  ;  the  other  was  a 
bronze   pan  or   kettle,  4  in.  high  and  6  in.  across,  and  was  furnished  with  a 
slender  iron  bow  like   a   bucket  handle.     It  had   been   first  cast  and  then 
hammered,  and  was  found  in  an  inverted  position. 

In  addition  to  the  above  barrows,  some  important  sepulchral  deposits 
were  found  at  Warslow,  Elkstone,  Sheen,  and  Leek,  and  fuller  details  than 
are  here  necessary  may  be  found  in  Bateman's  Ten  Tears'  Diggings. 

This  important  group  of  ancient  burials  in  North  Staffordshire,  large 
as  it  is,  may  really  be  considered  as  part  of  the  group  in  the  adjoining  county 
of  Derby.  The  sepulchral  pottery  and  other  remains  found  in  the  course  of 
the  explorations  of  Mr.  Thomas  Bateman,  his  son  Mr.  William  Bateman, 
F.S.A.,  and  their  antiquarian  coadjutors,  are  now  preserved  as  part  of  the 
Bateman  Collection  in  the  Public  Museum,  Weston  Park,  Sheffield.8  The 
collection  also  comprises  many  antiquities  of  like  character  found  under 
similar  circumstances  in  Derbyshire  and  in  the  North  Riding  of  Yorkshire. 

Compared  with  the  Derbyshire  barrows,  the  Staffordshire  interments 
afford  proportionately  a  larger  number  of  drinking-cups,  some  examples  of 
which  are  figured  in  this  article. 

These  vessels,  known  as  '  drinking-cups,'  are  of  peculiar  interest  from 
the  fact  that  they  usually  occur  with  unburnt  burials,  and  are  sometimes 
found  in  association  with  implements  of  flint  and  polished  stone.  There  is 
reason  to  believe  that  they  represent  the  earliest  type  of  pottery  made  by 
Bronze  Age  man  in  this  country.  The  name  '  drinking-cup '  has  been 
applied  not  as  an  indication  of  the  purpose  of  this  class  of  pottery,  but 
simply  to  identify  the  form.  Like  '  incense-cup  '  and  '  food-vessel,'  it  has 
been  adopted  as  a  convenient  method  of  describing  Bronze  Age  urns,  &c., 
without  any  intention  of  defining  their  purpose.  Vessels  of  the  drinking- 
cup  type  occur  throughout  England,  and  particularly  in  Wiltshire,  but 
they  are  not  found  in  Ireland. 

The  methods  of  ornamentation  are  ingenious,  consisting,  as  will  be 
noticed  in  the  accompanying  plates,  of  horizontal  lines  running  round  the 
circumference  of  the  vessels,  and  a  series  of  zig-zags  or  cheveron-like  mark- 
ings, which  appear  in  some  cases  to  have  been  impressed  in  the  moist  clay 
by  means  of  an  instrument  having  a  series  of  tooth-like  projections.  The 
result  is  a  number  of  punctured  marks,  and  this  is  particularly  well 

'  The  writer  wishes  to  record  his  thanks  for  the  permission  of  the  museum  authorities  to  inspect  and 
photograph  the  objects  found  in  Staffordshire. 

I  177  23 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

shown  on  the  vessel,  7  in.  high,  found  in  a  barrow  at  Stanshope.  Here 
the  horizontal  lines,  as  well  as  the  rather  roughly  executed  zigzags,  have 
been  produced  with  the  same  instrument. 

Another  interesting  '  drinking-cup,'  of  even  larger  size,  measuring 
8|  in.  in  height,  found  in  a  barrow  at  Castern,  is  represented  beside  the 
Stanshope  specimen.  The  ornamentation,  which  is  of  the  same  general 
character,  has  been  executed  with  far  more  care. 

In  the  Mouse  Low  and  Top  Low  examples  the  body  of  each  urn 
is  covered  with  a  species  of  lozenge  ornament  produced  by  ingenious  varia- 
tions of  the  cheveron  form.  The  four  urns  figured  on  this  plate  afford 
what,  perhaps,  may  be  taken  as  a  chronological  sequence  in  the  appearance 
and  development  of  the  rim.  In  the  Stanshope  urn  it  is  entirely  wanting  ; 
it  appears  in  the  Castern  cup  as  a  bevel  on  the  upper  part  sloping  inwards  ; 
and  in  the  two  other  specimens  we  find  two  stages  of  the  appearance  of  a 
raised  rib,  and  the  development  of  breadth  of  rim. 

The  four  vessels  figured  in  the  second  plate  furnish  examples  of  types 
quite  distinct  from  the  '  drinking-cup  '  form.  The  Throwley  '  incense-cup  ' 
is  figured  full-size,  namely  2j  in.  high.  Its  ornamentation  consists  of  both 
horizontal  lines  and  roughly -executed  cheverons.  The  lip  is  well  developed 
and  projecting,  and  the  outline  has  a  character  which  suggests  a  somewhat 
late  date.  Just  below  the  middle  ridge  of  the  body  there  are  shown  two 
holes  pierced  through  the  clay.  Perforations  of  this  kind,  but  proportion- 
ately larger  and  more  numerous,  are  usually  found  in  *  incense-cups,'  and 
afford  one  of  the  reasons  why  this  term  was  applied  to  them.  This  kind  of 
small  vessel  is  always  found  in  association  with  burnt  burials,  and  their 
geographical  distribution  corresponds  with  that  of  cinerary  urns. 

The  three  other  urns  figured  belong  to  a  type  usually  called  '  food- 
vessels,'  the  predominant  forms  of  which  will  be  seen  from  the  illustrations. 
The  three  specimens  given  are  arranged,  as  far  as  may  be,  in  order  according 
to  development,  especially  with  regard  to  their  outline,  and  the  growth  of 
hollows  or  grooves  round  the  body.  The  decoration  of  the  Mare  Hill  urn 
has  obviously  been  produced  by  means  of  a  sharp  flat  instrument,  possibly  a 
flake  of  flint,  or  a  fragment  of  stone  rubbed  down  for  the  purpose.  The 
other  urns  are  decorated  with  less  care  but  in  a  similar  manner.  The 
occurrence  of  fragments  of  bone,  the  remains  of  a  cremation,  in  the  Narrow- 
dale  Hill  urn  enables  us  to  classify  it  with  the  grave  furniture  of  a  burnt 
burial,  and  it  may  therefore  be  regarded  as  a  small  cinerary  urn  made  possibly 
to  contain  only  a  portion  of  the  remains  of  the  body. 

These  interesting  pieces  of  pottery,  apart  from  their  antiquity  and  the 
information  they  give  as  to  ancient  interments,  have  a  special  value  from  the 
fact  that  they  represent  probably  the  very  earliest  efforts  in  the  direction  of 
the  artistic  decoration  of  pottery. 

Amongst  the  antiquities  of  unquestionable  Bronze  Age  character  found 
in  the  county  there  are  some  of  very  great  importance,  although  the  finds 
cannot  be  considered  remarkable  numerically. 

One  of  the  more  important  discoveries  was  the  hoard  of  bronze  weapons 
found  in  the  year  1824  at  Shenstone.  It  comprised,  according  to  the  brief 
account  published  in  Arcbaeologiaf  '  two  swords,  some  spear-heads,  celts,  and 

*  Arch,  xxi,  548-9. 
I78 


'DRINKING  Cup'   (7  in.   high),  STANSHOPE 


'DRINKING  Cu-p'   (SJ  in.  high),  CASTKRN 


'DRINKING  CUP'   (8J  in.  high),  MOUSE  Low, 
NEAR  DEEPDALE 


'DRINKING   Cup'    (7  in.   high),  TOP   Low, 

NEAR    SwiNSCOE 


PLATE  I  :    BRONZE-AGE    POTTERY    FOCND    IN    SEPULCHRAL    BARROWS 


EARLY    MAN 

several  reliques,  all  of  bronze.'  The  discovery  of  '  fragments  of  human  bones, 
and  a  piece  of  decayed  wood  about  the  size  of  two  hands,'  by  labourers 
employed  in  digging  out  sand,  suggested  to  the  discoverers  that  the  deposit 
was  of  a  sepulchral  character  ;  indeed,  the  account  communicated  to  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London  expressly  mentions  '  a  grave  cut  north  and 
south  in  the  sand-rock.'  The  explanation,  apparently,  is  that  a  hoard  of 
bronze  objects  was  hidden  during  the  Bronze  Age  on  Greensborough  Hill,  a 
pleasant  knoll  overlooking  an  extensive  tract  of  country.  On  the  same 
natural  hill,  either  before  or  after  this  period,  a  grave  was  cut  into  the 
ground,  and  some  human  remains  were  deposited  therein. 

Hoards  of  bronze  objects,  of  which  this  affords  an  instance,  are  among 
the  most  valuable  of  the  traces  of  this  remote  age  which  we  possess.  We 
may  regard  them,  in  certain  respects,  as  of  even  greater  importance  than 
sepulchral  deposits,  partly  from  the  fact  that  the  contents  are  of  a  practically 
indestructible  character,  but  mainly  because  they  represent  the  collected 
valuables  belonging  to  a  worker  or  dealer  in  bronze.  The  archaeological 
value  of  associated  objects  of  one  definite  period  is,  of  course,  very  great, 
proving  the  contemporaneity  of  forms  of  tools,  weapons,  &c.,  in  the  earliest 
age  of  metal. 

In  addition  to  the  Shenstone  hoard  there  are  several  individual  bronze 
objects  worthy  of  note.  Among  them  are  : — 

1.  A  bronze  armilla,  made  of  a  flat  piece  of  metal,  half  an  inch  in  breadth,  having  on 
the  outside  a  lozengy  pattern  engraved,  found  at  Castern,  near  Wetton. 

2.  Another  armlet   (imperfect),  made   of  thick   bronze   wire,   found  in   a  barrow  at 
Wetton. 

3.  Bronze  knife-daggers  found   at  Lett  Low,  near  Warslow  ;  Musden  ;  Lady  Low 
Barrow,  near  Blore ;  and  Stanshope. 

4.  Palstaves  found  at  firewood  ;   Biddulph  ;   Bushbury  ;  and  Stretton. 

5.  Bronze  sword  with  seven  rivet-holes  found  at  Alton  Castle. 

6.  A  leaf-shaped  spear-head  found  at  Yarlet. 


THE  EARLY  IRON  AGE 

Staffordshire  has  furnished  only  a  few  remains  which  can  be  with  any 
certainty  referred  to  this,  the  last  period  of  prehistoric  time.  The  intro- 
duction of  iron  as  a  material  for  making  implements  and  weapons  must  have 
given  an  immense  advantage  to  its  possessors,  and  it  marked  a  very  distinct 
stage  in  the  progress  of  human  civilization.  It  is  possible  that  the  fewness  of 
Early  Iron  Age  discoveries  in  the  county  may  be  accounted  for  by  the  perish- 
able nature  of  the  newly-discovered  or  imported  metal,  but  it  is  perhaps  more 
particularly  due  to  the  comparative  shortness  of  the  period  between  the 
introduction  of  iron  and  the  beginning  of  the  historic  period  which  dates 
from  the  appearance  of  the  Romans. 

Among  the  discoveries  to  be  recorded  is  a  leaf-shaped  iron  lance-head  * 
found  in  1895  at  Stone,6  in  association  with  a  flint  flake,  and  bones  of  Bos 

4  Mr.  Reginald  A.  Smith,  F.S.A.,  who  has  kindly  favoured  the  writer  with  his  opinion  on  this  lance-head, 
considers  that,  whilst  the  form  of  the  blade  resembles  Anglo-Saxon  workmanship,  the  unsplit  socket  is 
sufficient  and  conclusive  evidence  that  it  belongs  to  the  Early  Iron  Age. 

'  North  Staffs.  Nat.  field  Club  and  Arch.  Soc.  Tram,  xxx,  108-1 5. 

I79 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


primigenius,  B.  tongifrons,  horse,  red  deer,  sheep,  and  goat.     These  discoveries 
were  made  in  the  course  of  excavations  for  a  deep-drainage  scheme. 

Another   indication   of  this   early  period  was  found   in  the  Late  Celtic 
ornament  on   a  bronze  bowl  found   in  an  interment  at  the  Upper  House, 
Barlaston,  soon  after  the  year  1850.     All  the  circumstances 
of  the  burial  point  to  an  Anglo-Saxon  date,  but  the  orna- 
ment certainly  displays  Late  Celtic  tradition. 

An  interment  in  a  barrow  called  Steep  Low,  near 
Alstonfield,  which  the  late  Mr.  J.  Romilly  Allen  considered 
to  be  of  the  Early  Iron  Age,8  was  discovered  by 
Mr.  Thomas  Bateman  in  1845.  The  barrow,  a  mound 
about  50  yds.  in  diameter,  and  1 5  ft.  in  elevation  in  the 
centre,  was  constructed  almost  entirely  of  loose  stones,  a 
circumstance  which  made  its  exploration  at  once  difficult 
and  dangerous.  Previously  to  the  examination  by 
Mr.  Bateman  the  neighbouring  villagers,  in  the  course  of 
searching  for  treasure,  had  found  the  skeleton  of  a — 


\ 


Romanized   Briton,    extended     on    its   back,    accompanied    by     an 
'/  W  iron    spear-head,  a  lance-head   and   knife   of  the  same,  placed   near 

the  head,  and  three  Roman  coins,  in  third  brass,  namely,  one  of 
Constantine  the  Great,  one  of  Tetricus,  the  other  illegible  from  the 
friction  of  sand-paper  applied  by  the  finder.  .  .  .  They  also  found 
some  pieces  of  a  highly-ornamental  drinking-cup,  a  curious  piece  of 
iron  ore,  and  various  animal  bones.7 

In  addition  to  these  relics  there  were  found  (i)  a 
small  stud  or  circular  ornament  of  amber,  perforated  with 
a  double  hole  at  the  back  for  attachment,  and  (2)  a  large 
plain  urn  of  globular  form,  with  four  holes  through  the 
upper  edge,  and  containing  burnt  human  bones,  two 
quartz  pebbles,  and  a  piece  of  flint. 

Two    important    gold   collars   or   torques    have    been 
found  in  the  county  ;    one  at   Pattingham   in    1700,   mea- 
suring 2ft.  in  length,  and  weighing  3lb.  2oz.,  and  another 
at  Hanbury  in  1848,  which  is  now  in  the  royal  collections 
at  Windsor  Castle. 
The  writer  desires  to  express  his  thanks  for  kind  assistance  to  Mr.  Charles 
Lynam,  F.S.A.,   and  Mr.  Reginald  A.  Smith,  B.A.,  F.S.A. 


IRON  LANCE-H  HAD 
FOUND  AT  STONE 
(f  Actual  Size) 


TOPOGRAPHICAL    LIST 

Arch.  °Journ.  =  Archaeological  "Journal. 

Arch.  =  Archaeologia. 

Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  =  Ancient  Bronze  Implements,  &c.      By  Sir  John  Evans. 

Evans,  Brit.  Coins  =  Ancient  British  Coins.      By  Sir  John  Evans. 

Evans,  Stone  Imp.  =  Ancient  Stone  Implements,  2nd  ed.     By  Sir  John  Evans. 

ALTON. — Perforated  stone  axe-hammer,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Walker  of  Alton. 

ALTON  Castle. — Bronze  sword  with  seven  rivet-holes.     \_Arch.  xi,  431  ;  Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  282.] 

BARLASTON. — Bronze  bowl  with  late  Celtic  ornamentation.     [Arch.  Ivi,  44,  45.] 

•  Celtic  Art,  68. 

r  Vestiges  of  the  Antiq.  ofDerb.  76-7. 

1 80 





•INCENSE  Cup'  (2^  in.  high),  THROWLEY 


URN    ['Fooo   VESSEL'?]    (5  in.   high),   MARE    HILL 


'FooD  VESSEL'    (6  in.   high),  WETTON   HILL 


URN  CONTAINING  BONES  (5$  in.   high),  NARROWDALE  IIit.L 
NEAR  ALSTONFIELD 


PLATE    II  :    BRONZE-AGE    POTTERY     FOUND    IN    SEPULCHRAL    NARROWS 


EARLY    MAN 

EERESFORD  HALL. — Barbed  flint  arrow-head.     [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  396.] 
Socketed  chisel,  or  celt  of  bronze.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  404.] 

BREWOOD. — Palstave,  without  loops.     [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  403  ;  Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  86.] 
BUSHBURY. — Palstave,  without  loops.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  403  ;   Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  86.] 
CALDON. — Neolithic  flint  celts. 
CASTERN. — Piece  of  sandstone  rubbed  hollow  on  one  side,  found  in  barrow.     Jet  button,  ij  in. 

in  diameter,  found  in  barrow.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  263,  455.] 

Bronze  armilla,  found  in  barrow.      [Bateman,  Ten  Years'  Diggings,  167.] 
CHEADLE. — Stone  celt  found  in  a  peat  bog. 
ELKSTONE. —  Large  piece  of  sandstone,  with  a  small  bowl-shaped  concavity  worked  in  it  (?  Neolithic), 

found  in  a  barrow.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  253.] 
GRUB  Low  (situated  between   Grindon   and  Waterfall). — Leaf-shaped  arrow-head  of  flint,    found 

with  bones  in  a  barrow.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  377.] 

HANBURY. — Fine  gold  collar  made  of  seven  strands  of  twisted  wire  uniting  in  a  loop  at  each  termina- 
tion, found  in  1848,  and  now  in  the  royal  collection  at  Windsor  Castle.    [Arch,  xxxix,  175-6.] 
HANDSWORTH. — Bronze  palstave  without  loops,  described   by  Plot  [Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  403]  as 

the  '  brass  head  of  the  bolt  of  a  Catapulta.' 
ILAM. — Plain  bronze  celt,  described  by  Plot  [Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  403-4]  as  the  '  Head  of  a  Roman 

Securis  with  which  the  popae  slew  their  sacrifices.'     [Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  42.] 

At  ILAM  MOOR. — Bronze  awl  found  in  barrow.      [Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  190.] 
LADY  Low. — Small  bronze  blade  found  in  barrow.     [Arch,  xliii,  pi.  xxxiii,  fig.  4.] 

Bronze  dagger  found  in  barrow.      [Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  224.] 
LEEK. — Flint  arrow-head,  with  jagged  edges  and  two  barbs,  found  near  Leek.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of 

Staffs.  396  ;  Evans,  Stone  Imp.  362.] 
LEIGH. — Bronze  celt,  or  axe-head  found  at  the  foot  of  a   rounded  eminence.      [Trans.  N.  Staffs. 

Field  Club,  xxxix,  141.] 

MILWICH. — Stone  celt  or  hatchet,  7  in.  long,  found  in  a  stream. 
MORRIDGE. — Bronze   palstave   without  loop,  found   in  a  barrow.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  403  ; 

Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  86.] 
MOUSE  Low. — Flint  arrow-head   (?  Neolithic),  found   in  Bronze  Age  drinking-cup.      [Evans,  Stsne 

Imp.  399  ;   Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  1 1 6.] 

Bone  pins,  found  with  two  bashed  flint  arrow-heads.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  432]. 
MUSDEN. — Trimmed   flint  flake,  flat  on   one  face  and  carefully  chipped  to  a  convex  shape  on  the 

other,  found  in  barrow  ;   probably  a  knife  of  the  Bronze  Age.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  330.] 

Bronze  knife-dagger  found  in  barrow.      [Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  240.] 
NEEDWOOD   FOREST. — Polished  flint  celt  and  Bronze  Age  palstave,  with  loop  (broken),  f  .and   in 

1864,  both  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
PATTINGHAM. — Gold  torque,  found  in  1700.      [Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough,  1789),   ii,  380;   Arch. 

xxxiii,  176.] 

RIBDEN  Low. — Flint  knife,  probably  of  the  Bronze  Age,  found  in  barrow  ;   a'so  barbed  flint  arrow- 
heads and  bone  pins  found  in  barrow.      [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  330,  432.] 

SAXON  Low. — Fragments  of  Bronze  Age  urns,  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Charles  Lynam,  F.S.A. 
SHARPCLIFFE,  NEAR  LEEK. — Perforated  boulder  or  pebble,  stone  maul,  and  bronze   (or   rather  nearly 

pure  copper)  palstave,  with  curiously  narrow  blade. 
SHENSTONE. — Hoard  of  bronze  objects,  comprising  two  swords,  some  spear-heads,  celts,  and  several 

other  relics,  found  at  Greensborough  Hill,  lying  in  loose  sand.      [Arch,  xxi,  548-9.] 
STAFFORDSHIRE,  LID  Low. — Fragments  of  a  Bronze  Age  urn,  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
STONE. — Fine  perforated  axe-head  of  granite,  12  in.  long,  now  in  the  British  Museum.     [Evans, 

Stone  Imp.  202]. 

Early  Iron  Age  leaf-shaped  lance-head.    [N.  Staffs.  Nat.  Field  Club  Trans,  xxx,  108-15.] 
STRETTON. — Bronze  palstave  with  one  loop.     [Arch,  v,  113.] 
TRENTHAM. — Neolithic  celt,  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Masefield. 

WARSLOW. — Bronze  knife-dagger  found  in  Lett  Low,  a  barrow.     [Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  225.] 
:  WATERHOUSES. — Socketed  and  looped  bronze  celt,  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
WETTON  LONG  Low. — Three  leaf-shaped  arrow-heads  and  many  hakes  of  flint.     [Evans,  Stone  Imp. 

377.]      Imperfect  armlet  of  thick  bronze. 
THOR'S  CAVE. — Two  curious  vessels,  one  of  carved  sandstone,  and  one  of  cast  and  hammered 

bronze,  with  iron  handle,  found  in  barrow.     [Evans,  Stone  Imp.  45 1  ;  Evans,  Bronze  Imp.  409 ; 

Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  173.] 
WEAVER  HILLS,  between  Ramshorn  and  Blore. — Stone  axe,  entirely  ground,  and  the  sides  having  an 

inward  curvature.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  397.] 
YARLET. — Socketed  bronze  spear-head.      [Plot,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffs.  404,  pi.  xxxiii,  fig.  8.] 

181 


ROMAN     MAP 

STAFFORDSHIRE 

Scale  of  Miles 


R  eference 

O  Camps.  /  'Possibly  Roman)  +     Burials. 

D  Pillages.  H,   Lead. 

A  Villas. 
•  Miscellaneous  finds. 


n   Cafes. 

—  -  Roman  Road. 

----Probable.  Roman  Roods, 


ROMANO-BRITISH 
STAFFORDSHIRE 


DURING  the  period  of  the  Roman  occupation  of  Britain  there 
were  no  districts  which  correspond  to  our  present  counties. 
Neither  the  boundaries  of  the  British  tribes  nor  those  of  the 
Roman  administrative  areas,  as  far  as  we  know  them,  agree 
exactly  with  existing  county  boundaries.1  At  the  time  of  the  Roman  invasion 
the  greater  part  of  Staffordshire  was  most  probably  inhabited  by  the 
Cornavii,  a  British  tribe  whose  territory,  we  learn  from  Ptolemy,  writing 
about  A.D.  1 20,  included  Deva  (Chester),  and  Viroconium  (Wroxeter).2 

The  Roman  occupation  under  the  Emperor  Claudius  began  in  A.D.  43  ; 
at  first  the  subjugation  of  the  country  was  comparatively  easy.  A  strong 
foot-hold  was  obtained  in  Kent  and  Essex,  and  then  the  army  was  formed  into 
three  divisions,  the  Second  Legion  going  south-west  towards  Somerset  and 
Devon,  the  Fourteenth  and  Twentieth  Legions  north-west  towards  Shrews- 
bury and  Chester,  and  the  Ninth  Legion  north  towards  Lincoln.  Professor 
Haverfield,  in  writing  of  this  period,  divides  Britain  into  two  districts  ; s  the 
lowlands,  comprising  the  southern,  south-western,  and  eastern  districts  up  to 
the  Humber  he  describes  as  civilian  ;  whilst  the  uplands,  including  the 
northern  and  western  districts,  he  describes  as  military.  The  former, 
including  probably  the  southern  and  middle  parts  of  Staffordshire,  was 
occupied  by  A.D.  47  or  48,  and  the  latter,  possibly  comprising  the  northern 
part  of  the  county,  which  partakes  of  the  characteristics  of  Derbyshire,  was 
subjugated  about  A.D.  48  or  shortly  afterwards. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  at  the  time  of  the  Roman  occupation  of 
Britain,  Staffordshire  was  woodland  or  waste,  and  thinly  populated.  For  this 
reason  the  Romano-British  period  as  regards  this  district  has  little  history. 
The  county  is  mostly  hilly.  In  the  north  it  rises  in  places  to  1,500  ft. ;  in  the 
middle  it  is  undulating  and  was  formerly  forest  ;  to  the  south  it  is  again 
hilly.  By  the  Romans  it  would  have  been  thought  unattractive  and  inhos- 
pitable, and  it  therefore  became  to  them  merely  a  portion  of  territory  through 
which  roads  and  waterways  passed  across  Britain.  Except  in  the  extreme 
north  of  the  county  few,  if  any,  Roman  remains  have  been  found  away  from 
the  great  highways — the  roads  and  the  rivers. 

1  Much  of  the  information  contained  in  this  article  has  been  taken  from  Professor  Haverfield's  contribu- 
tions on  '  Roman  Remains '  to  the  volumes  of  this  series. 

'  Ptolemy,  Geographic  (ed.  Firmin  Didot,  1883),  i,  99.  There  is  no  satisfactory  evidence  that  the 
Cornavii  also  inhabited  Warwickshire,  Worcestershire,  and  part  of  Derbyshire,  as  stated  by  Camden,  Horsley, 
and  Baxter.  See  as  to  this  point  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough)  ;  Horsley,  Brit.  Rom.  368  ;  Baxter,  Glossarium 
Antiqultatum  Brit.  (1709),  73  ;  Haverfield,  in  V.C..H.  Warw.  i,  229. 

3  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  192. 

183 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  iron  and  coal  fields  of  Staffordshire,  which  attract  so  large  a 
population  in  the  present  day,  were  little  if  at  all  known  during  the 
Roman  occupation.  Iron  ore  was  possibly  smelted  in  the  district  during 
the  late  Celtic  age,  in  evidence  of  which  some  smelted  ore  has  been  found 
in  barrows,  probably  of  this  date,  at  Alstonfield  and  elsewhere,*  but  nothing 
has  hitherto  been  discovered  to  indicate  that  it  was  worked  here  in  the  Romano- 
British  period.  The  Romans  apparently  used  coal  as  fuel  in  this  country, 
but  there  is  no  evidence  that  the  Staffordshire  coalfields  were  known  to  them. 

Lead-mining  was  carried  on  actively  in  Derbyshire  by  the  Romans,  and 
there  is  some  evidence  that  this  mineral  was  worked  in  the  northern  part  of 
Staffordshire,  which  forms  a  portion  of  the  same  beds.  At  Wetton  there 
appears  to  have  been  a  Romano-British  village  where  lead  ore  and  the 
remains  of  a  smelting  furnace  are  said  to  have  been  found.6  This  village, 
being  within  the  lead-mining  district,  may  have  been  a  miners'  settlement, 
and  from  the  objects  found  in  it  the  inhabitants  appear  to  have  been  poor 
and  probably  of  the  labouring  class.  One  pig  of  lead  was  discovered  beside 
Watling  Street,  at  Hints  in  the  south-east  of  the  county,  but  from  the  inscrip- 
tion upon  it  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  came  from  the  Flintshire  mines  and  had 
no  connexion  with  the  locality  in  which  it  was  found.6 

What  is  now  known  as  potter's  clay  is  not  found  in  Staffordshire, 
and  though  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  clays  indigenous  to  the  county 
were  used  for  pottery  discovered  at  Viroconium  and  on  other  Roman  sites,7 
there  is  no  evidence  in  favour  of  its  local  manufacture  on  any  considerable 
scale,  as  at  Castor  in  Northamptonshire,  or  at  Upchurch,  and  in  the  New 
Forest.  It  has  been  thought  that  indications  of  ancient  kilns  have  been 
discovered  at  Burslem,  but  whether  they  were  Roman  is  altogether  uncertain. 
Pieces  of  rough  pottery  are  said  to  have  been  found  in  digging  foundations 
in  the  neighbourhood,  but  again  there  is  no  certainty  as  to  their  Romano- 
British  origin.8 

We  are  no  better  off  with  regard  to  the  agricultural  resources  of  the 
middle  and  south  of  the  county.  As  yet  there  have  been  found  none  of  the 
villas  so  frequently  discovered  in  the  south  of  England,  which  formed  the 
country  houses  of  the  wealthy,  and  the  farm-houses  of  the  agricultural  class. 

The  most  important  of  the  permanent  settlements  of  the  Romano- 
British  period  in  the  county  is  Letocetum — often,  but  incorrectly,  called 
Etocetum — now  Wall,  at  the  crossing  of  Watling  Street  and  Rycknield 
Street.  From  the  remains  found  this  would  appear  to  have  been  one  of  the 
more  important  '  stations '  along  Watling  Street,  and  perhaps  even  a  small 
walled  town  with  buildings  of  considerable  size. 

The  actual  site  of  Pennocrucium,  a  station  on  Watling  Street  which  is 
placed  at  Stretton,  is  not  definitely  known,  and  there  is  nothing  apparently 
above  ground  to  indicate  its  position.  It  was  probably  only  a  small  posting 
station,  such  as  existed  elsewhere  along  the  Roman  roads,  without 
masonry  walls  or  earthworks.  The  name  survives  in  Penk  and  Penk- 
ridge.  At  Chesterton  there  is  a  large  camp  which  may  have  formed  a 

Bateman,  Vestiges,  76,  77,  &c. 

Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  194-6  ;  Carrington,  ReRq.  v,  20 1  ;  Intellectual  Observer,  vii,  391. 

See  Hints  in  Topog.  Index. 

Wright,  Celt.  Rom.  Sax.  ;  Jewitt,  Ceramic  Art  in  Great  Brit.  32. 

Aikins,  Hist.  Manchester,  524-6  ;  Ward,  Hist.  Stoke-on-Trent,  24. 

184 


ROMANO-BRITISH    STAFFORDSHIRE 

station  on  the  conjectured  Roman  road  from  Derby,  which  runs  through 
Stoke-upon-Trent  and  continues  in  a  north-easterly  direction.  At  Rocester 
is  another  Roman  site  near  the  same  road.  Romano-British  villages 
existed  at  Wetton  and  Uttoxeter,  and  a  settlement  probably  adjoined  the 
cemetery  discovered  at  Yoxall.  There  are  some  indefinite  records  of  settle- 
ments at  Madeley  and  Tettenhall,  but  they  are  too  vague  to  enable  zn^ 
opinion  to  be  formed  regarding  them.  Besides  these  there  are  numerous 
camps  generally  attributed  to  the  Roman  period  which  appear  mostly  to  lie 
in  the  valleys  of  the  rivers.  Along  the  western  side  of  the  River  Dove  below 
Dovedale  there  are  camps  at  Okeover,  Rocester,  and  Uttoxeter  ;  in  the 
Trent  valley,  at  Stoke-upon-Trent  and  Stone  ;  in  the  valley  of  the  Churnet, 
at  Leek  ;  in  the  valley  of  the  Penk,  at  Teddesley  Hay  and  Shareshill  ;  in 
the  valley  of  the  Stour,  at  Kinver  and  Kingswinford  ;  and  in  the  valley  of 
the  Smestow  River  at  Seisdon.  These  may  possibly  have  been  used  during 
the  early  part  of  the  Roman  occupation  and  afterwards  abandoned,  or  may 
have  been  Romano-British  villages.  But  most  of  them  probably  are  not 
Roman  at  all,  and  in  hardly  any  have  Roman  objects  been  found.  The 
spade  alone  can  decide  their  origin  and  use. 

The  limestone  region  on  the  border  of  Derbyshire  contains  numerous 
caves  of  various  forms  and  sizes,  which  have  at  different  times  provided 
habitations  for  men  or  beasts.  The  best  known  of  these  belong  to  pre-historic 
ages,  but  a  few  of  them  have  been  found  to  contain  in  the  upper  and  lower 
strata  of  their  floors  traces  of  habitation  dating  from  the  Roman  period.* 
The  most  important  of  such  caves  in  Staffordshire  are  '  Thor's  Cave,' 10  near 
Wetton,  '  Thirse  House '  at  Alton,  and  that  known  locally  as  '  Old 
Hannah's  Cave '  near  Redhurst.11  The  explanation  usually  offered  of  the 
cave  life  of  the  Romano-British  period  is  that  fugitives  took  refuge  in  these 
caves  in  the  fifth  or  sixth  century,  when  fleeing  from  the  English  invaders.12 
But,  as  Professor  Haverfield  has  pointed  out,  the  evidence  of  date  from  the 
remains  found  contradicts  this  theory,  as  hardly  a  trace  occurs  of  anything 
later  than  the  third  century.  The  objects  also  in  the  more  important  caves 
imply  a  tolerably  long  occupation,  and  a  more  plausible  explanation  is  that 
in  some  hill  districts  cave  life  formed  a  feature  of  Romano-British  civiliza- 
tion. Here,  apparently,  some  of  the  poorest  and  wildest  of  the  hill-men 
lived,  probably  largely  on  robbery.  Plot  mentions  that  as  late  as  1680 
Thirse  House  Cave  at  Alton  or  Alveton  was  definitely  occupied,  and  doubt- 
less many  parallels  could  be  cited  from  even  later  ages.13 

Sepulchral  mounds  or  barrows  exist  in  great  numbers  over  Staffordshire. 
Many  were  scientifically  excavated  by  Mr.  Bateman  and  Mr.  Carrington 
between  1848  and  1858.  In  these  tumuli  were  found  numerous  varieties  of 
remains,  chiefly  Celtic,  but  including  a  sufficient  number  of  Roman  objects 
to  show  that  the  barrows  were  occasionally  used,  or  perhaps  re-used,  for 
sepulchral  purposes  during  the  Roman  period.14 

Only  four  hoards  of  coins  have  been  recorded  in  the  county,  one  at 
Tatenhill  of  thirty  gold  coins  dating  from  B.C.  29  to  A.D.  96  ;  one  at  Rowley 

9  y.C.H.  Derb.  \,  233.  10  See  Wetton  in  Topog.  Index. 

11  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  xxxiii,  105.  "  Green,  Making  of  Engl.  67-68. 

"  Haverfield  in  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  242.  Besides  the  caves  in  Derbyshire  and  Staffordshire  others  occur  in 
the  limestone  hills  of  Craven  in  West  Yorkshire,  also  near  Arncliffe,  Settle,  and  Giggleswick,  and  two  in 
Devonshire.  "  Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  Int.  xii,  xiiu 

I  185  24 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Regis,  of  over  a  thousand  silver  coins,  covering  the  '  whole  period '  of  the 
Roman  occupation  ;  one  at  Madeley  of  late  copper  coins,  from  A.D.  235  to 
340  ;  and  one  at  Mayfield,  which  was  dispersed  and  the  coins  unidentified. 
Three  gold  coins  were  found  at  Alton  dating  from  A.D.  70  to  A.D.  96.  No 
very  definite  information  can  be  deduced  from  these  particular  finds  beyond 
the  fact  that  the  Romans  probably  occupied  this  part  of  the  country  from  an 
early  period. 

A  reference  should  perhaps  be  made  to  the  theory  which  has  been  put 
forward 15  that  a  line  of  forts  was  built  between  the  Dove  and  the  Severn  by 
Ostorius  Scapula  after  the  campaign  of  A.D.  50,  which  line  formed  the  Limes 
Britannicus  of  the  Notitia.™  This  limes  consisted  of  a  supposed  chain  of  stations 
with  a  connecting  road,  and  an  occasional  raised  earthwork  or  wall  for  further 
defence.  The  most  important  evidence  of  the  link  between  the  various 
stations  is  the  Grey  Ditch  at  Bradwell  in  Derbyshire,  considerable  traces  of  a 
•vallum  on  a  hill  called  Gun  above  Leek  in  Staffordshire,  and  of  a  vallum  or 
raised  road  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Ranton  Abbey.  Leek  is  identified  as  the 
Concangios  of  the  Notifia,  Stone  as  Lavatres,  Gnosall  as  Veterum  or  Veteris, 
and  Shifnal  as  Braboniacum.  Professor  Haverfield,  however,  states  that  the 
Grey  Ditch  is  not  Roman,17  and  it  is  plain  that  Lavatres,  Veteris,  and 
Braboniacum  probably  represent  Lavatris,  Verteris,  and  Bravonacis,  three 
stations  in  the  second  Iter  of  Antoninus  which  lay  between  Isurium  (Aid- 
borough  in  Yorkshire)  and  Carlisle,  and  must  have  been  far  removed  from 
Staffordshire.  Professor  Haverfield  has  further  shown  that  the  whole  theory 
of  the  Ostorian  forts  has  been  founded  upon  a  corrupt  text  and  bad  translation 
of  Tacitus.  The  passage  referred  to  does  not  relate  to  a  line  of  forts,  but 
probably  to  a  consolidation  of  the  Roman  dominion  within  the  frontiers  of 
the  Severn  and  Trent.18 

THE  ROADS 

There  are  two  sources  from  which  evidence  of  Roman  roads  can  be 
obtained,  namely,  archaeological  and  literary.  The  first  of  these  is  supplied 
by  the  actual  remains,  such  as  Roman  milestones  or  ancient  metalling,  and 
occasionally  by  the  persistent  straightness  with  which  a  road  runs  from  one 
Roman  site  to  another.  The  written  evidence  is  principally  obtained  from  the 
Itinerarium  Antonini,  a  Roman  road-book  which  gives  the  distances  between  the 
'stations'  on  the  various  routes  in  the  empire.  The  date  of  this  work  is  uncer- 
tain. Only  one  of  the  routes  mentioned  in  this  itinerary  passes  through  Stafford- 
shire, and  that  is  the  well-known  Roman  road  called,  since  the  Saxon  period, 
Watling  Street.  There  are  also  portions  of  the  Rycknield  or  Icknield  Street, 
and  a  road  running  from  Derby  possibly  to  Chester.  Besides  these  there  are 
certain  roads  which  have  been  suggested  as  Roman,  some  of  which  are  prob- 
able, but  there  appears  to  be  insufficient  evidence  for  the  others. 

i.  Watling  Street. — This  road  forms  a  part  of  the  second  Iter  of  the 
Antonine  itineraries.  It  starts  from  the  Roman  port  of  Richborough  in  Kent 
and  runs  in  a  north-westerly  direction  through  London  and  the  Midlands  to 

15  The  Rev.  T.  Barns  in  Antiq.  xxiviii,  337  et  seq. 

16  Netitia  Dignitatem  (ed.  O.  Seeck,  1876).  17  y.C.H.  Deri,  i,  255. 

18  Tacitus,  Ann.  xii,  31  ;    H.  Bradley,  Academy,  April,  July,   1883;    V.C.H.  Somert.  i,   217;  V.C.H. 
Northanti,  i,  213. 

186 


ROMANO-BRITISH    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Wroxeter.  Its  course  is  definite  almost  throughout  its  length,  being  used  at 
the  present  day  as  one  of  the  main  highways  across  England.  After  leaving 
Viroconium  (Wroxeter)  it  runs  to  Uxacona  (probably  Oakengates  in  Shrop- 
shire), eleven  Roman  miles;  thence  to  Pennocrucium  (which  has  been  identified 
with  Stretton  where  the  road  crosses  the  River  Penk),  a  distance  of  twelve 
Roman  miles,  which  corresponds  approximately  with  the  actual  distance. 
The  next  station  from  Pennocrucium  is  Letocetum  or  Etocetum  (Wall), 
according  to  the  itinerary  a  distance  of  twelve  Roman  miles,  which,  if  the 
identification  of  Pennocrucium  with  Stretton  is  correct,  is  too  short,  the 
actual  distance  being  about  thirteen  and  a  quarter  English  miles  or  fifteen 
Roman  miles.  A  little  to  the  east  of  Wall  Wading  Street  crosses  Rycknield 
Street.  From  Letocetum  the  road  runs  to  Manduessedum  (Mancetter  in  War- 
wickshire), and  so  on  in  a  south-easterly  direction.  Throughout  its  course  in 
Staffordshire  Wading  Street  runs  from  point  to  point  in  straight  lines  ;  that  is 
to  say  from  Oakengates  to  Gailey,  2  miles  east  of  Stretton,  it  runs  almost  due 
east  and  west.  From  Gailey  it  turns  slightly  southward  to  Wyrley  Common 
and  Knaves  Castle,  and  then  again  turns  almost  due  east  and  west  to  Wall.  At 
this  point  its  course  is  not  quite  certain,  the  existing  road  called  Watling  Street 
from  the  south-east  joins  the  Rycknield  Street  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
south  of  Wall,  but  apparently  the  Roman  road  turned  in  a  south-easterly 
direction  a  quarter  of  a  mile  east  of  Wall,  following  the  line  of  an  existing 
footpath,  and  joined  the  present  road  at  Lawton  Grange,  continuing  in  a 
straight  line  to  Hints.  It  there  takes  another  turn  in  a  slightly  less  southerly 
direction  to  the  county  boundary  at  Fazeley.1  On  the  25-in.  Ordnance  map 
the  position  of  a  stone  to  the  south-east  of  Wall  is  marked  which  is  supposed 
to  indicate  the  intersection  of  Watling  Street  and  Rycknield  Street. 

2.  Rycknield  or  Icknield  Street. — This  road  starts  from  the  Fosse  at 
Bourton-on-the- Water  in  Gloucestershire,  running  through  Alcester  and 
Birmingham,  where  it  enters  what  is  now  the  county  of  Stafford.  Its 
course  in  this  county  does  not  exist  as  a  modern  road  to  the  south  of  Kettle 
House  in  Perry.  From  this  point  it  runs  for  approximately  four  miles  in 
an  almost  straight  line  to  the  park  of  Little  Aston  Hall,  and  for  about  two 
miles  of  this  distance  it  forms  the  county  boundary.  A  piece  of  it,  about  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  in  length,  is  found  slightly  to  the  north  at  Little  Aston, 
where  again  it  is  lost  till  another  small  portion  of  it  is  apparent  at  Shenstone 
in  a  short  straight  piece  of  road  about  half  a  mile  in  length,  running  from 
the  Waterworks  northward  towards  Chesterfield.  Here  again  it  is  lost,  but 
it  probably  crossed  Watling  Street  at  the  point  where  the  site  of  a  stone  before 
referred  to  is  shown  on  the  Ordnance  maps,  and  thence  in  a  straight  line  to 
Knowle  Farm,  where  it  changes  its  direction  a  little  to  the  east,  and  continues 
in  a  straight  line  to  Branston,  where  its  course  is  again  lost  for  about  two  and  a 
half  miles.  It  is,  however,  found  again  to  the  north  of  Burton-on-Trent, 
whence  it  runs  in  the  same  straight  line  to  the  county  boundary,  crossing  the 
River  Dove  at  Monks  Bridge  and  keeping  a  direct  course  to  Derby.  At 
Wichnor  Bridges  the  road  was  formed  on  piles  over  the  marshy  meadows,  and 
when  in  1795  these  bridges  were  destroyed  by  a  flood  the  road  was  washed 
away,  leaving  the  piles  exposed.2  It  is  of  course  not  wholly  certain  that  these 

1  Codrington,  Rom.  Roads  in  Britain,  75-6  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  3. 

1  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs.  \,  1 8,  125  ;   Pennant,  Journey  from  Chester  to  London,  121-3. 

187 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

piles  date  so  far  back  as  the  Roman  period.  There  is  no  indication  of  a  station 
between  Wall  and  Derby,  a  distance  of  about  twenty-four  miles,  but  not  being  one 
of  the  Antonine  routes  we  have  little  information  in  this  respect  regarding  it. 
At  Sutton  Coldfield,  where  it  forms  the  boundary  between  the  counties  of 
Stafford  and  Warwick,  it  was  in  1752  said  to  be  in  its  original  condition,  and 
was  described  as 

a  very  spacious  road,  not  less  than  sixty  feet  in  breadth,  though  the  surface  be  in  general 
over-run  with  heath,  and  for  a  short  space  in  the  park  overspread  with  oaks  of  considerable 
magnitude  ...  It  is  formed  by  gravel  and  materials  on  the  spot,  high  raised  in  the  centre, 
— the  preservation  wonderful — owing  to  its  not  being  a  public  road.* 

3.  Road  from  Derby  to  Stoke-upon-Trent, — This  road,  which  has  also  been 
called  Rycknield  Street,4  apparently  follows  an  almost  straight  line  from  Derby 
past   Rocester  to   Totmonslow  near  Draycott-in-the-Moors,  and  then  turns 
slightly  northward  to  Stoke-upon-Trent,  from  which  point  its  course  is  lost. 
An  ancient  boulder  pavement  was  found  at  Stoke-upon-Trent  in  1903  '  at 
the  junction  of  the  London  Road  and  High  Street  which  probably  formed  a 
part  of  this  road. 

4.  Probable  road  from  Stretton  to  the  Longford  Road. — There  are  indications 
of  a   Roman   road   running  apparently  from   Whitchurch  in   Shropshire    to 
Stretton,  identified  as   Pennocrucium  on   Watling  Street,  which  would  have 
formed    a    short    cut   to    Chester.       Certain    traces   of   it   are   found    in   the 
long  straight  piece   of  road  called  the   Long   Ford,  running  from  Bletchley 
near  Market  Drayton  to  Hinstock  in  Shropshire.      It  is  here  lost  for  nearly 
two   miles,   and   then   forms  the  county    boundary    between    Shropshire   and 
Staffordshire  for  about  three  miles.      Its  course  is  again  lost,  but  it  probably 
passed  to  the  north  of  Aqualate  Mere  in  Forton  parish  by  Rye  Mill  to  a  point 
near  to  Longnor  Hall,  where  there  is  a  straight  road  of  about  three  miles  in 
length  which  joins  Watling  Street  at  Stretton.6 

English  antiquaries  have  often  laid  down  on  their  maps  and  in  their 
books  a  '  Via  Devana '  running  more  or  less  directly  from  Colchester  by 
Cambridge  and  Huntingdon  to  Leicester,  and  finally  to  Chester,  the  Roman 
fortress  of  Deva.  There  is  no  evidence  of  the  existence  of  this  supposed 
'through-route'  across  Britain,  and  the  name  '  Via  Devana'  is  a  modern 
invention.  Parts  of  the  route  may  be  accepted  as  independent  roads  of  really 
Roman  origin,7  and  it  has  been  suggested  that  this  way  crossed  Staffordshire 
from  Burton-upon-Trent,  through  Needwood  Forest  to  Uttoxeter,  thence  to 
Longton  and  Chesterton,  and  so  on  to  Chester.  There  does  not  seem,  how- 
ever, to  be  any  evidence  of  this  road  in  the  county.8 

Other  supposed  Roman  roads  are  one  from  Wroxeter  to  Chesterton,  and 
another  from  Chester  to  Chesterton.  The  existence  of  these  roads  has  been 
suggested  by  reason  of  the  identification  of  Chesterton  with  the  Antonine 
station  of  Mediolanum,  mentioned  in  the  second  and  tenth  itineraries.  But 
the  exact  site  of  Mediolanum  referred  to  in  the  second  itinerary  is  quite 

J  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,    1 8.     For  the  name  of  the   road,  Rycknield  or  Icknield  Street,  see 
Professor  Haverfield's  notes  in  V.H.C.  Warw.  i,  241  ;  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  245-6. 
4  Molyneux,  Journ.  Brit.  Arch.  Asioc.  xxix,  288  ;  f.C.H.  Derb.  i,  246. 
1  North  Staffs.  Field  Club,  xxxviii,  159. 

'  See  y.C.H.  Shrops.  i,  section  on  Roman  roads,  for  a  further  account. 
1  y.C.H.  Northants.  i,  207. 
1  Molyneux,  Journ.  Brit.  Arch.  Asm.  xxix,  288. 

188 


ROMANO-BRITISH    STAFFORDSHIRE 

unknown.  It  is  impossible  that  it  can  have  been  situated  at  Chesterton, 
as  by  the  course  of  the  itinerary  it  must  have  been  somewhere  to  the 
west  in  Shropshire.  The  reason  for  identifying  Mediolanum  of  the  tenth 
itinerary  with  Chesterton  is  that  its  position  agrees  approximately  with 
the  distance  given  by  Antoninus  (nineteen  Roman  miles)  from  Condate 
(Kinderton  in  Cheshire),  the  previous  station;  but  it  is  improbable  that  there 
should  have  been  two  stations  of  the  same  name  comparatively  near  to  one 
another.9  The  remains  as  yet  discovered  at  Chesterton  do  not  indicate  more 
than  the  existence  of  a  large  rectangular  camp  of  an  (as  yet)  undetermined 
age,  lying  on  the  west  side  of  the  road  leading  from  Audley  to  Newcastle- 
under-Lyme,  here  called  Newcastle  Street,  which  road  may  here  be  part  ot 
a  Roman  highway  from  Stoke-upon-Trent  to  Kinderton.  The  evidence  as 
to  its  identification  with  Mediolanum,  however,  is  wholly  inconclusive. 


INDEX 

ALSTONFIELD. — In  1845  a  large  barrow  called  'Steep  Lowe"  was  opened  near  Alstonfield.  It  was 
about  50  yds.  in  diameter,  15  ft.  in  central  elevation.  A  skeleton,  two  iron  spear-heads,  a 
drinking  cup,  some  smelted  iron  ore,  animal  bones,  and  three  Roman  coins  were  found.  The 
coins  were  third  brass,  one  of  Tetricus  (A.D.  768-73),  one  of  Constantine  (A.D.  306-37), 
the  third  was  undecipherable.  Later,  other  objects,  probably  of  an  earlier  period,  were 
found.  [Ante,  '  Early  Man  '  ;  Bateman,  Vestiges  of  Antiq.  of  Derb.,  76-7.]  In  the  following 
year  two  barrows  were  opened  in  Stanshope  Pasture,  near  Dovedale,  in  the  same  parish.  One 
contained  coarse  pottery,  calcined  bones,  and  flint  ;  the  second  a  few  fragments  of  a  human 
skeleton  and  some  pieces  of  Samian  ware.  Bateman  records  that  this  is  the  only  instance  of 
Samian  ware  being  found  in  a  sepulchral  deposit  in  the  counties  of  Derby  and  Stafford 
[Bateman,  op.  cit.  86]. 

ALTON. — In  1725,  about  900  yds.  from  Alton  Castle,  were  found  three  gold  coins,  one  of  Vespasian 
(A.D.  70-7) ;  one  of  Titus  (A.D.  79-81) ;  and  one  of  Domitian  (A.D.  81-96).  Plot  mentions 
that  a  cave  at  '  Alveton  '  called  '  Thurse  House 'was  inhabited  as  late  as  1680.  It  was  of 
the  same  type  as  the  limestone  caves  of  Derbyshire,  and  '  Thor's  Cave '  [see  Wetton.  Plot, 
Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  172  ;  V.C.H.  Deri,  i,  233,  note  i]. 

ARELEY. — (See  UPPER  ARELEY.) 

BARR. — (See  GREAT  BARR.) 

BILSTON. — Coins  are  said  to  have  been  found  here  [Willmore,  Hist.  IVahall,  25]. 

BRANSTON. — On  the  summit  of  a  hill  (called  Sinai  Park)  in  the  village  are  the  remains  of  a 
'  Roman  camp.'  Stebbing  Shaw  and  others  have  endeavoured  to  identify  the  site  with  the 
station  of  Ad  Trivoman  mentioned  by  Richard  of  Cirencester,  though  not  by  Antoninus,  but 
the  evidence  of  a  Roman  station  either  of  this  name  or  on  this  site  is  very  problematical 
[Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  21  ;  Reliq.  ii,  208]. 

BURTON-ON-TRENT. — Stukeley  supposed  that  a  Roman  station  was  situated  here,  but  no  record  of 
the  discovery  of  Roman  remains  has  been  made,  except  the  somewhat  indefinite  statement 
that  in  pulling  down  the  old  bridge  over  the  Trent  in  1876  it  was  found  that  the  buttresses 
were  built  on  oak  piles,  and  some  of  the  older  stones  were  thought  to  be  Roman  [Pitt,  Hist. 
Staffs.,  41  ;  Burton-on-Trent  Nat.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Sac.  v,  pt.  i,  p.  4]. 

CALLINGWOOD. — (See  TATENHILL.) 

CASTERN. — (See  ILAM.) 

CHESTERTON. — The  distance  given  in  the  tenth  tier  of  the  Antonine  Itinerary  from  Mediolanum  to 
Condate  (Kindeston),  19  Roman  miles,  has  been  thought  sufficient  to  justify  the  identification 
of  Chesterton  and  Mediolanum,  but  as  has  been  stated  under  the  heading  of 'Roads'  in  this 
article,  the  evidence  of  such  an  identification,  as  far  as  our  present  information  goes,  appears 

9  There  is  probably  an  error  in  the  distance  in  this  section  of  the  second  itinerary  (f.C.H.  Shropt.  i,  '  Roman 
Remains ').  The  Mediolanum  of  the  second  iter  was  on  the  road  from  Viroconium  (Wroxeter)  to  Deva 
(Chester)  between  Rutunium  near  Roden  in  Shropshire  and  Bovium,  probably  near  to  Stretton  in  Cheshire. 
Mediolanum  was  described  by  Ptolemy  as  a  town  of  the  Ordovices,  which  would  also  place  it  west  of 
Staffordshire.  See  further  Chesterton  in  Topog.  Index. 

189 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

to  be  inadequate.  The  name  alone  is  suggestive  of  Roman  origin.  The  north  vallum  and  fosse 
still  remain,  and  the  east  and  west  defences  can  be  traced  [jfourn.  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  (New  Ser.), 
ii,  121  et  seq.].  The  camp  forms  a  parallelogram  measuring  365  yds.  by  300  yds.  (outside 
measure),  and  incloses  upwards  of  20  acres,  the  ditch  being  about  20  yds.  wide.  So  far  as 
is  known  no  Roman  or  other  relics  have  been  found  on  the  site.  Erdeswick,  writing 
about  1603,  mentions  remains  of  masonry  which  were  to  be  seen  in  his  time  in  sufficiently 
good  preservation  for  it  to  be  perceived  '  that  the  walls  have  been  of  marvellous  thickness ' 
[Erdeswick,  Surv.  of  Staffs,  (ed.  Harwood,  1844),  22].  The  site  was  excavated  in  1905,  and 
the  only  result  was  the  finding  of  some  pieces  of  flat  red  sandstone  joined  with  mortar. 
Mr.  Charles  Lynam,  however,  does  not  seem  to  have  considered  that  the  mortar  was  Roman 
[Journ.  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  (Ser.  2),  ii,  121  et  seq.]. 

CROXDEN. — Roman  remains  are  reported  to  have  been  turned  up  on  a  farm  about  three-quarters  of 
a  mile  south-east  of  Croxden  Abbey.  The  supposed  Roman  road  between  Hollington  and 
Rocester  is  not  far  from  this  place  [Antiq.  xxviii,  255]. 

ELLASTONE. — Some  gold  coins  of  the  Roman  period '  are  said  to  have  been  found  near  Wootton 
Lodge  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  32]. 

FORTON. — Plot  and  Camden  record 'some  Roman  works'  at  Moreton,  not  far  from  this  place. 
The  Ordnance  map  marks  a  Roman  well  on  the  north  side  of  the  mere  called  Aqualate  in 
this  parish  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  395  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough),  ii,  380;  Antiq.  xxviii, 
255].  At  Oulton,  about  a  mile  off,  some  arms  were  found  which  it  has  been  suggested  were 
Roman  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  275]. 

GREAT  BARR. — On  Hardwick  Farm,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  Icknield  Street,  was  found  the 
boss  or  umbo  of  a  shield,  thought  to  be  Roman.  It  was  made  of  bronze  ornamented  with 
embossed  figures,  and  measured  about  2  in.  across  [Willmore,  Hist.  Wahall,  25]- 

GREENSFORGE. — (See  KINGSWINFORD.) 

GOURNAL. — (See  SEDGLEY.) 

HAWKBACK. — (See  UPPER  ARELEY.) 

HINTS. — In  1771  a  pig  of  lead  was  discovered  on  Hints  Common,  with  the  following  inscription 
on  the  bottom,  in  relief :  IMP.  VESP.  vu.  T.  IMP.  v.  cos.  (Imperatore  Vespasiano  septimum. 
Tito  Imperatore  quintum,  Consulibus).  On  the  side,  DECEAN.  G.  The  date  would  have  been 
about  A.D.  76.  The  letters  on  the  side  are  thought  to  refer  to  the  Deceangi,  a  tribe  which 
inhabited  the  district  about  the  county  of  Flint,  and  the  pig  is,  therefore,  supposed,  with  others 
found  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  to  have  come  from  that  locality.  The  weight  is 
150  lb.,  the  length  22^  in.,  and  it  was  found  at  a  depth  of  4  ft.  below  the  surface.  It  is  now 
in  the  British  Museum  [Gent.  Mag.  (1772),  p.  558  ;  (1773),  p.  6 1  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed. 
Gough),  ii,  382  ;  Httbner,  Corpus  Inscrip.  vii,  1205  ;  Arch,  v,  371  ;  Ivii,  402  ;  Arch.  "Joum. 
xvi,  28  ;  Haverfield,  Proc.  Sac.  Antiq.  (Ser.  2),  xv,  187  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  164  ;  Stebbing 
Shaw,  Hist,  Staffs,  i,  331]. 

HOPTON. — An  iron  spear-head  was  found  when  making  a  road  near  Hopton  in  1792  which  Bateman 
thought  to  be  Roman  [Bateman,  op.  cit.  10]. 

ILAM. — In  1845  two  barrows  known  as  Bitchenhill  Harbour,  between  Wetton  and  Ham,  were 
opened.  In  one  was  found  the  remains  of  an  urn  of  coarse  pottery  with  a  deposit  of  burnt 
bones,  and  a  third  brass  of  Constantine  the  Great  (A.D.  291-306)  [Bateman,  op.  cit.  8iJ. 
A  small  barrow  called  '  Green  Low '  in  the  hamlet  of  Castern  was  opened  in  1 860.  It  was 
in  the  same  field  as  a  larger  one  excavated  in  1846,  which  was  not  thought  to  contain  any- 
thing Roman.  In  '  Green  Low '  several  articles  of  different  periods  were  found  ;  a  green  hone 
celt,  a  round-ended  flint,  a  piece  of  coarse  pottery,  and  a  very  perfect  harp-shaped  bronze 
fibula,  said  to  be  of  a  Roman  type.  These  articles  appeared  to  be  independent  of  each  other 
or  of  any  interment.  In  another  cutting  the  skeleton  of  a  child  with  a  flint  arrow  point  was 
discovered,  and  in  a  third  trench  another  juvenile  skeleton.  Pieces  of  stags'  horns,  animals' 
teeth,  rats'  bones,  numerous  pebbles  and  flints  were  also  found  [Bateman,  Ten  Fears'  Diggings, 
116  ;  Ante,  'Early  Man']. 

KINGSWINFORD. — There  is  said  to  be  a  Roman  camp,  on  the  level  ground  called  Ashwood  Heath,, 
near  Greensforge,  in  the  parish  of  Kingswinford.  It  is  square,  easily  to  be  traced,  and  lies  on 
the  south-east  side  of  the  road.  It  measures  206  yds.  in  length  and  160  yds.  in  width, 
containing  an  area  of  6f  acres,  and  is  surrounded  by  a  single  ditch  [O.S.  Staffordshire,  25  in., 
Ixx,  4],  It  used  to  be  known  as  '  Wolverhampton  Church  Yard.'  The  road  crosses  it,  and 
the  western  side  is*the  most  perfect.  Coins  have  been  found  in  the  locality.  The  camp  at 
Chesterton  in  Shropshire,  on  the  same  road,  is  said  to  resemble  it  very  closely  [Ante, 
'Ancient  Earthworks';  Camden,  Brit.  (add.  by  Gough),  ii,  380;  Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs. 
406  ;  Erdeswick,  Survey  of  Staffs.  374  ;  Cox,  Mag.  Brit,  v,  35,  46  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist* 
Staffs,  ii,  233  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  5,  193]. 

190 


ROMANO-BRITISH    STAFFORDSHIRE 

KINVER. — On  the  height  known  as  '  Kinver  Edge '  half  a  mile  east  of  the  village,  are  the  remains 
of  an  encampment  of  oblong  form  measuring  300  yds.  by  1 80  yds.,  with  a  single  ditch  [Past, 
'  Anct.  Earthworks'].  It  is  supposed  to  be  Roman,  but  there  is  no  record  of  Roman  remains 
having  been  found  within  it  [O.S.  Staffordshire,  25  in.  Ixx,  15],  Near  it  is  a  large  square 
stone  about  6  ft.  in  height  and  1 2  ft.  in  circumference,  tapering  towards  the  top,  where  it  is 
divided  into  three.  It  is  known  as  the '  Barton,'  '  Boltstone,'  or  '  Battlestone,'  and  is  generally 
considered  Celtic,  like  the  '  Devil's  Bolts '  in  Yorkshire,  or  '  Devil's  Coits '  in  Oxfordshire. 
Mr.  Coote  suggests,  however,  that  it  was  an  agrimensura  or  terminal  stone  [Coote,  Romans  of 
Britain,  98  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staff's,  i,  22,  37,  263  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  197  ;  Cox, 
Mag.  Brit,  v,  33  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (adds,  by  Gough),  ii,  381].  There  are  no  records  of  coins 
or  other  remains  discovered  in  the  neighbourhood. 

LEEK. — There  are  traces  of  an  entrenched  camp  of  an  oblong  shape,  with  rectangular  corners,  in 
the  fields  to  the  east  of  Abbey  or  Abbey  Green  Farm,  at  a  little  distance  from  the  town  \Antiq. 
xxxviii,  337  (1902)].  On  the  top  of  a  hill  called  'Gun,'  about  i£  miles  from  the  abbey,  is 
another  square  entrenchment,  said  to  be  Roman,  but  the  identification  of  both  sites  is  very  pro- 
blematical \_Antiq.  xxxviii,  359;  Staffs.  Field  Club  (1902-3),  xxxviii,  150].  Several  relics, 
thought  to  be  pieces  of  Roman  armour,  &c.,  have  been  found  near  the  town  [Kelly,  Dir.  224.]. 

LICHFIELD. — A  tradition  exists  that  '  Christianfield,'  near  Stitchbrook,  was  the  supposed  scene  of  the 
execution  of  i, ooo  martyrs  during  the  persecution  of  Maximian  (A.D.  286),  but  no  evidence 
can  be  adduced  in  support  of  this  legend.  At  Pipe  Hill,  between  Wall  (q.v.)  and  Lichfield, 
are  the  remains  of  what  is  called  a  '  barricade,'  said  to  be  of  the  Roman  period  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist. 
Staffs.  398—9].  It  is  made  of  the  whole  trunks  of  oak  trees,  fixed  at  some  depth  in  the  ground. 
The  upper  part  had,  of  course,  vanished,  but  a  great  deal  of  the  lower  part  was  found  intact, 
the  wood  being  quite  black,  uniform  in  length  and  shape,  the  marks  of  the  axe  being  still 
visible.  From  some  which  had  apparently  fallen  and  remained  whole  under  the  surface,  it 
was  concluded  that  the  height  was  12  ft.,  the  largest  diameter  being  from  12  in.  to  14  in.,  and 
it  is  said  to  have  been  flanked  with  bastions.  Each  piece  of  timber  had  a  cavity  4  in.  wide, 
3  ft.  from  the  top,  cut  down  its  middle.  The  barricade  was  traced  for  500  yards,  not  quite 
straight,  so  as  to  include  a  natural  swell  or  bank  of  earth.  Palisades  as  defences  were,  how- 
ever, used  for  a  considerable  time  before  and  after  the  Roman  occupation  of  Britain,  and  the 
structure  was  possibly  of  a  date  later  than  the  Roman  occupation.  A  copper  coin  of  Hadrian 
(A.D.  1 20)  was  found  on  the  site  [MS.  Min.  Soc.  Antiq.  xxvi,  317  (1794) ;  Erdeswick,  Surv. 
of  Staffs,  (ed.  Harwood),  302  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staff's,  i,  128  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staff's,  i,  19]. 

LONGDON. — To  the  north-east  of  Longdon  Church  are  traces  of  a  fortification  thought  to  be  Roman, 
the  east  and  west  sides  being  still  apparent  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs,  406  ;  Cox,  Mag.  Brit,  v, 
35  ;  Antiq.  ii,  272].  The  remains  consist  of  several  short  lengths  of  slopes,  but  without 
discernible  boundaries  [Post,  'Anct.  Earthworks']. 

MADELEY. — In  1817  two  urns,  containing  a  quantity  of  Roman  copper  coins,  were  turned  up  by 
the  plough  on  a  farm  called  Little  Madeley  Parks,  about  three  miles  from  Chesterton.  The  urns 
were  destroyed  ;  a  horseshoe  and  a  key  were  found  at  the  same  time.  The  coins  identified 
were  as  follows  : — Maximinus  (A.D.  235-238),  Diocletian  (A.D.  284-305),  Constantine  (A.D. 
306-337),  Licinius  (A.D.  307-324),  Crispus  (A.D.  317-326),  Constantine  P.F.  (four  reverses) 
(A.D.  317-337),  Constantine  Junior  (four  reverses)  (A.D.  337-340)  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  447]. 
During  draining  operations  in  a  field  called  'Cheshire  Meadow,"  foundations  of  buildings, 
carved  and  moulded  stone  work,  are  said  to  have  been  discovered  ;  a  field  adjoining  this,  called 
Wall  Croft,  has  a  deep  fosse  and  a  vallum,  which  may  give  its  name  to  the  croft.  In  Made- 
ley  field  is  an  entrenchment,  and  in  1871  Roman  pottery,  corroded  pieces  of  iron,  and  an  iron 
fibula  were  found  there.  Near  the  camp  is  a  hollow,  paved  with  large  boulders,  and  over  the 
field  traces  of  roads  and  buildings  are  said  to  exist  below  the  surface.  A  little  north  of  the 
camp,  at  Overton,  a  circular  leaden  case  was  found,  from  i6in.  to  i8in.  across,  gin.  in 
depth,  which,  it  is  suggested,  may  have  been  a  sepulchral  urn  case,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  it  was 
Roman  [Redfern,  Hist.  Uttoxeter,  63]. 

MAYFIELD. — In,  a  field  called  Dale-close,  an  urn  containing  Roman  coins  was  found,  and  in  Church- 
town-field  in  Upper  Mayfield  another  urn  was  discovered  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  404  ;  Cox, 
Mag.  Brit,  v,  105  ;  Brayley,  Beauties  of  Engl.  and  Wales,  xiii,  pt.  2,  pp.  1006,  1018]. 

MORETON. — See  Forton. 

OFFLEY  (or  HIGH  OFFLEY). — It  was  conjectured  by  Pitt  in  his  history  of  Staffordshire  that  the 
station  called  Mediolanum  stood  here,  but  there  is  little  evidence  in  support  of  such  a  theory. 
Traces  of  a  Roman  road  are  thought  to  have  been  discovered,  and  Roman  coins  in  great 
numbers,  tiles,  armour,  fragments  of  pottery,  &c.,  have  been  found  on  the  side  of  a  hill  south 
of  the  churchyard  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs.  319].  These  remains  have  either  been  grossly 
exaggerated  by  Pitt  or  his  informants,  or  they  indicate  a  house  or  hamlet  of  some  sort. 

191 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

OGLEY  HAY. — There  are  slight  remains  of  an  earthwork  here,  known  as  '  Knaves'  Castle  '  [Post, 
'  Anct.  Earthworks' ;  Erdeswick,  Surv.  of  Staffs.  302]. 

OKEOVER. — A  square  intrenchment,  called  'The  Halsteads,'  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  south  of  the 
church,  is  considered  possibly  Roman  [Cox,  Mag.  Brit,  v,  107  ;  Plot,  Hist.  Staffs.  404]. 

PATTINGHAM. — Several  Roman  relics  (not  described)  are  said  to  have  been  found  here  at  different 
times  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  ii,  279  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  188  ;  Cox,  Mag.  Brit,  v,  43  ; 
Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough),  ii,  380], 

PIPE  HILL.— See  Lichfield  and  Wall. 

ROCESTER. — While  making  foundations  for  a  cotton  mill  in  1792  some  foundations  were  discovered, 
together  with  a  brass  spear-head  and  some  copper  coins,  much  corroded  and  defaced,  which 
were,  however,  thought  to  be  Roman.  Human  bones  and  fragments  of  pottery  were  also 
found  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  34,  note].  In  a  field  near  the  church  is  an  earthwork 
about  45  yds.  square,  with  a  circular  mound  in  the  centre,  and  the  remains  of  a  vallum  on 
three  sides  [Antiq.  xxviii,  238  ;  Redfern,  Hist.  Uttoxeter,  65].  About  three-quarters  of  a 
mile  north  of  Rocester  is  a  '  camp '  called  Barrow  Hill,  on  the  side  of  Dove  Cliff.  The 
camp  is  rectangular,  with  rounded  angles,  measuring  147  yds.  north  and  south,  167  yds.  east 
and  west,  and  contains  an  area  of  6f  acres.  The  north-west  and  south-east  angles  are  extant, 
and  the  sides  can  be  traced.  In  1894  some  fragments  of  Roman  pottery  and  glass  were 
disclosed  slightly  under  the  surface  [Post,  'Anct.  Earthworks';  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club  (1894)]. 
In  a  barrow  or  tumulus  to  the  north  of  the  camp  Roman  coins  and  pottery  were  found  in 
1872  [O.S.  Staffs,  xxvi,  6]. 

ROWLEY  REGIS. — In  1794,  in  pulling  down  an  old  stone  wall,  an  urn,  described  as  an  'earthen 
globe,'  was  found,  containing  about  1,200  silver  coins.  They  were  all  dispersed  except  300, 
which  were  kept  by  the  Rev.  J.  Cartwright,  and  were  said  to  cover  the  whole  period  of  the 
Roman  occupation  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  35  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  8].  In  1804  a 
further  discovery  of  coins  was  made,  one  said  to  be  a  silver  denarius  of  Marcus  Aurelius  (A.D. 
161-180)  [Gent.  Mag.  1805,  ii,  696]. 

RUSHALL. — In  1795  some  silver  and  two  copper  coins,  together  with  two  pieces  of  metal,  supposed 
to  be  fibulae,  were  found  in  digging  a  canal  here  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  35  ;  Pitt, 
Hist.  Staff s.i,  148]. 

SEDGLEY. — At  Gournal,  in  the  parish  of  Sedgley,  Roman  foundations  are  supposed  to  have  been  dis- 
covered in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  mention  is  made  of '  grindstones  '  or  querns  being  found 
in  the  same  place,  but  there  is  nothing  to  show  that  they  were   Roman   [Erdeswick,   Surv.  of 
Staffs,  (ed.  Harwood,  1844),  370]. 

SEISDON. — On  Seisdon  Common,  near  Abbots'  or  Apwood  Castle,  is  a  small  square  intrenchment 
with  a  single  ditch,  situated  on  a  round  promontory.  [Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough),  ii,  381  ; 
Pitt.  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  187  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staff's,  ii,  210].  Near  the  common  is  a  large 
triangular  stone  called  the  War  Stone,  which  Mr.  Coote  suggests  is  a  '  trifinnial '  boundary 
stone  [Coote,  Romans  of  Britain,  97  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  187  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs. 
ii,  210]. 

SHARESHILL. — On  the  north  and  south  sides  of  this  village  were  vestiges  of  two  encampments,, 
supposed  from  their  square  form  to  have  been  Roman  ;  remains  of  one  still  exist  [Post,  '  Anct. 
Earthworks';  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  259  ;  Brayley,  Beauties  of  Engl.  and  Wales,  xiii,  868]. 

STAPENHILL. — Roman  coins  were  found  here  in  a  Saxon  cemetery  [P.C.H.  Derb.  i,  262]. 

STONE. — An  urn  of  unglazed  red  clay  was  dug  up  in  the  corner  of  Stoke  Lane,  at  the  east  entrance 
into  Stone.  It  was  of  a  wide-mouthed  or  '  bell '  shape,  diameter  3^  in.  at  the  bottom,  9  in.  at 
the  top  ;  height  i  o  in.  ;  it  was  ornamented  with  incised  lines  in  a  zigzag  pattern,  and  contained 
ashes  and  small  pieces  of  human  bones  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  6  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs* 
i>  35]-  There  is  a  square  entrenchment  a  mile  out  of  Stone,  at  Hollywood,  in  a  coppice 
known  as  Campfield,  and  in  the  meadows  near  the  Hilderstone  Brook  is  another  earthwork  with 
a  double  fosse,  the  outer  one  representing  a  quadrilateral  figure  of  200  yds.  A  small  bronze 
Roman  coin  was  dug  up  here.  On  the  road  from  Stone  to  Gnosall  was  a  'high  paved  way* 
near  Eccleshall,  mentioned  by  Plot  about  1686  [Antiq.  xxxviii,  361  ;  Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs. 
402]. 

STRETTON  (near  Brewood). — The  site  of  Pennocrucium,  the  Roman  station  of  the  Antonine  Itinerary 
on  Wading  Street,  12  Roman  miles  from  Uxacona  (Oakengates)  and  12  from  Letocetum 
(Wall),  is  generally  thought  to  be  here  because  the  distances  approximately  agree.  The  name 
Pennocrucium  suggests  a  connexion  with  the  River  Penk  which  the  Watling  Street  here 
crosses,  and  the  name  of  Stretton  suggests  a  Roman  site.  No  Roman  coins  or  other  antiquities, 
however,  have  been  discovered,  but  no  systematic  excavations  have  been  attempted.  There 
are  two  small  eminences  near  the  street,  called  Rowley  Hill  and  Beacon  Hill.  The  larger, 
Rowley  Hill,  occupies  about  five  acres,  rises  from  meadows  near  the  river,  and  is  sur- 

192 


ROMANO-BRITISH    STAFFORDSHIRE 

mounted  by  a  tumulus  in  which  a  few  Celtic  remains  have  been  found  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i, 
260;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  31;  Wright,  Celt.  Rom.  Sax.  124;  Horsley,  Brit. 
Rom.  420  ;  MS.  Min.  Soc.  Antiq.  i,  203 ;  Arch,  v,  1 13  ;  Plot,  Hist.  Staffs.  401]. 

STRETTON  (near  Burton-on-Trent). — In  the  '  Monks'  Bridge,'  which  crosses  the  river  here,  certain 
remains  of  wooden  piles  have  been  found,  which,  it  has  been  suggested,  formed  part  of  a 
Roman  bridge  carrying  the  Rycknield  Street  across  the  River  Dove  [Trans.  Burton-on-Trent 
Nat.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Soc.  iv,  32  ;  cf.  Burton-on-Trent]. 

TATENHILL. — An  old  road  way,  a  field  or  two  from  the  east  end  of  the  church,  is  said  to  be  of 
Roman  construction.  An  ornament,  probably  a  fibula ,  was  found  in  1819  near  the  road 
[N.  Staff's.  Field  Club,  xxxvii,  153;  MS.  Min.  Antiq.  Soc.  xxxiv,  188].  In  the  hamlet  of 
Callingwood,  about  a  mile  west  of  the  Rycknield  Street,  on  the  border  of  Needwood  Forest, 
were  found  in  1793  upwards  of  thirty  gold  coins  in  very  good  preservation  ;  of  Augustus  (B.C.  29- 
A.D.  14),  Nero  (A.D.  54-68),  Galba  (A.D.  68-69),  Vespasian  (A.D.  70-79),  Domitian  (A.D. 
81-96)  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staff's,  i,  18,  35  ;  Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  8  ;  Gent.  Mag.  (1796), 
983  ;  Reliq.  ii,  209]. 

TEDDESLEY  HAY. — In  Teddesley  Park  is  a  small  square  entrenchment,  and  in  the  fosse  a  short 
sword  or  dagger  of  iron,  considered  Roman,  was  found  in  1780  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs. 
ii,  2]. 

TETTENHALL. — In  the  hamlet  of  Wrottesley  are  the  remains  of  foundations.  Dr.  Plot,  about  1686, 
stated  that  he  was  able  to  trace  the  lines  of  streets,  &c.  The  circuit  of  the  whole  was  said  to 
be  between  three  and  four  miles,  lying  partly  in  Staffordshire,  partly  in  Shropshire.  The  foun- 
dations have  unfortunately  been  dug  up  and  used  for  various  purposes.  Squared  stones,  metal 
clamps  or  hinges,  and  a  bronze  dagger  have  been  found  at  different  times.  There  is,  however, 
no  evidence  as  to  the  date  of  these  remains,  which  may  have  been  later  than  the  Roman  period. 
Near  the  place  is  the  '  Low  Hill '  field,  where  many  human  bones  have  been  discovered  [Plot, 
Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  394  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  ii,  194  ;  Cox,  Mag.  Brit,  v,  47,  48]. 

UPPER  ARELEY. — A  square  entrenchment  surrounded  with  double,  and  on  one  side  treble,  ditches 
is  in  Areley  Wood.  Remains  indicative  of  a  Roman  settlement  are  said  to  have  existed  at 
Hawkback.  Roman  coins  have  been  found  in  the  vicinity,  some  said  to  be  gold,  one  of  Tiberius 
(A.D.  14-37)  [P'tt>  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  202;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough),  ii,  381  ;  Stebbing  Shaw, 
Hist.  Staffs,  ii,  253].  This  parish,  originally  in  Staffordshire,  is  now  included  in  Worcester- 
shire. 

UPPER  STONNAL. — On  a  hill  in  this  parish  a  camp  exists  which  Plot  thought  Roman.  Spear-heads 
and  other  implements  have  been  dug  up  on  the  site,  but  whether  they  were  of  Roman  date  is 
uncertain  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  396].  Coins  are  also  said  to  have  been  found  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood [Willmore,  Hist.  Wahall,  25]. 

UPPER  TEAM. — In  1728  two  urns  of  unglazed  red  clay,  holding  about  six  quarts  apiece  were  found 
in  a  garden.  They  were  in  an  inverted  position,  and  under  one  of  them  were  several  frag- 
ments of  human  bones,  skulls,  &c.  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  35]. 

UTTOXETER. — Romano-British  pottery  and  bronze  articles  have  been  found  here.  In  1872  two 
pieces  of  pottery  were  found  on  LJttoxeter  Heath,  near  the  Ash  bourne  Road.  An  entrenchment 
on  the  south  of  the  town  is  quadrangular  in  form  and  of  a  fairly  large  size  ;  the  north  side  is 
perfect,  in  a  field  known  as  the  '  Sandfort '  field.  The  west  and  south  sides  are  also  dis- 
cernible. Pottery  has  been  found  on  the  site,  and  an  amphora  near  it.  In  Bradley  Street 
numerous  fragments  of  pottery  were  found,  also  a  large  quantity  of  grey  clay,  and  one  piece  of 
unfinished  ware,  which  led  to  the  conjecture  that  the  articles  may  have  been  manufactured  on 
the  spot.  There  were  found  also  a  bronze  buckle,  part  of  a  brass  fibula  enamelled  in  red,  a 
white  hard  metal  button  or  ornament,  a  bronze  disc,  a  piece  of  lead  with  a  circular  edge,  the 
handle  of  a  bronze  key,  a  quern,  boars'  tusks,  pieces  of  iron,  a  coin,  and  fragments  of  pottery 
scattered  for  70  yds.  round.  Only  one  piece  of  Samian  ware  was  discovered.  In  all  parts  of 
the  town  potsherds  and  small  coins  have  been  found  [Redfern,  Hist.  Uttoxeter,  50-1].  At 
Stramshall  in  this  parish  a  field  was  opened  in  five  different  places,  and  fragments  of  pottery 
were  discovered  at  each  place,  but  no  Samian  ware.  An  old  well  near  the  church,  surrounded 
by  pavement  a  foot  below  the  surface,  was  supposed  to  be  Roman  [Journ,  Brit.  Arch.  Soc. 
xxix,  263].  It  was  faced  from  top  to  bottom  with  stone  ;  at  the  bottom  was  a  sandstone  flag, 
with  a  hollow  space  chiselled  out  in  the  centre  about  one  foot  in  width.  Pottery  was  found 
in  a  bank  near  it  [Redfern,  Hist.  Uttoxeter,  59]. 

WALL. — Here  was  undoubtedly  the  station  of  Letocetum  or  Etocetum  of  the  Antonine  Itinerary 
and  the  '  Lectoceto  civitas '  of  Ravennas,  the  distances  laid  down  in  the  second  Iter 
agreeing  approximately  with  the  actual  measurements  [Haverfield,  V.C.H.  Wore,  i,  214; 
Horsley,  Brit.  Rom.  436;  Journ.  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  ii,  15;  Arch,  viii,  95;  xi,  92;  Pitt, 
Hist.  Staffs,  i,  4  ;  Wrottesley,  in  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club  Trans.  (1901-2),  xxxvi,  130-1  ; 

i  193  25 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Stukeley,  I  tin.  Cur.  i,  58  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough),  ii,  385].  The  site  of  the  Roman  town 
appears  to  have  been  on  high  ground  north  of  Watling  Street,  extending  from  a  line  running 
north  in  a  field  called  Castle  Croft  on  the  east  to  the  brook  just  beyond  the  village  pound  on 
the  west ;  the  northern  limit  appears  to  have  been  to  the  north  of  a  field  called  '  the  Butts,' 
and  so  in  a  line  eastward.  This  would  give  an  area  of  about  30  acres.  Indications  of  earth- 
works may  perhaps  be  traced  here  and  there  along  these  lines.  Unlike  the  usual  practice  of 
the  Roman  period  the  town  does  not  stand  at  the  actual  crossing  of  the  two  Roman  roads, 
but  is  about  half  a  mile  from  the  point  where  Watling  Street  crosses  Rycknield  Street. 
Unfortunately,  we  know  very  little  of  the  Roman  town  ;  from  time  to  time  excavations 
have  been  made,  but  no  plans  having  been  preserved  they  have  yielded  us  practically  no 
information.1  It  is  conjectured  that  Letocetum  was  a  walled  site,  as  foundations  of  a 
wall  about  II  ft.  thick,  traced  for  50  yds.,  were  discovered  by  the  late  Colonel  Bagnall 
in  1887  in  Castle  Croft,  which  could  scarcely  have  been  other  than  the  east  wall  of  the 
town,  but  the  report  on  the  excavations  gives  neither  the  exact  site  nor  direction  of  the 
wall  [Journ.  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  xlvi,  228].  Probably  it  was  this  same  wall  which  was 
referred  to  by  Stebbing  Shaw,  writing  about  1752,  who  stated  that  by  the  side  of  the  road 
going  northward  from  Wall  to  Pipe  Hill  (probably  Wall  Lane)  the  Roman  walls  were  then 
to  be  seen  extending  for  100  yds.  made  up  of  ragstone  with  sloping  courses  of  bonding 
tiles  held  together  with  very  strong  white  mortar.  The  best  portion  of  the  wall  was  in 
Stebbing  Shaw's  time  to  be  seen  in  the  garden  of  Mr.  Thomas  Jackson  [Stebbing  Shaw, 
Hist.  Staffs,  i,  1 8,  19,  356].  The  only  pieces  of  Roman  wall  now  showing  above  ground 
are  at  the  points  marked  A  and  B  on  the  accompanying  plan,  and  apparently  belonged  to 
some  important  building.  Although  a  considerable  quantity  of  Roman  remains,  including 
some  tesserae  and  the  base  of  a  column,  have  been  found  on  the  south  side  of  Watling  Street, 
there  is  great  doubt  whether  the  Roman  area  extended  across  the  road.  There  is  no  evidence 
that  the  tesserae  and  base  were  in  situ,  and  the  other  remains  discovered  indicate  rather  the 
site  of  the  cemetery,  which  undoubtedly  extended  along  Watling  Street  to  the  east  of  Wall 
[Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  401  (1686)]. 

Probably  the  greater  part  of  the  remains  have  been  found  in  the  field  called  '  the  Butts,'  on 
the  west  side  of  the  site.  Erdeswick,  writing  in  the  sixteenth  century,  speaks  of  walls  being 
visible  here  which  were  afterwards  carried  away  for  building  purposes.  Writers  of  the 
eighteenth  century  mention  walls  3  ft.  thick,  12  ft.  high,  running  equidistant  12  ft.  apart, 
forming  rooms  'like  square  cellars'  [Stukeley,  Itin.  Cur.  i,  58  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough), 
ii,  385  ;  Erdeswick,  Surv.  of  Staffs,  (ed.  Harwood),  301;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  18,  19]. 
Plot,  in  1686,  mentions  that  in  the  field  called  'the  Butts'  he  was  shown  two  pavements  'one 
above  another  at  least  4  ft.,'  the  uppermost  (which  lay  within  18  in.  of  the  surface)  being 
made  for  the  most  part  '  of  lime  and  rubble  stone  ' ;  and  the  lowermost  '  of  pebbles  and  gravel 
knit  together  with  a  very  hard  cement  about  4  in.  thick  laid  upon  a  foundation  of  Roman 
brick  ;  and  under  them  boulder  stone  of  a  foot  thick  or  more.'  Above  the  uppermost  of 
these  Roman  coins  were  often  found,  and  he  was  shown  three,  one  of  Nero  (A.D.  54-68),  one 
of  Domitian  (A.D.  81-96),  and  one  undecipherable  [Plot,  Nat.  Hist.  Staffs.  401].  In  1887 
some  excavations  were  made  by  Colonel  Bagnall,  and  in  the  lower  part  of  '  the  Butts,' 
south  of  the  footpath  across  the  field,  several  chambers  were  discovered,  each  about  6  ft. 
square  with  floors  of  layers  of  charcoal.  A  large  quantity  of  roof-tiles  and  common  pottery, 
some  blue-grey,  some  red  and  whitish  yellow,  and  some  with  potters'  marks  ;  tiles  with 
PS  on  them  (now  in  the  Lichfield  Museum)  and  animal  bones,  quantities  of  wall-plaster, 
with  stripes  of  red,  brown,  and  green,  many  oyster  and  snail  shells,  fragments  of  Bangor  slates 
perforated  with  holes  for  nails,  many  iron  nails  and  some  circular  earthen  pipes  about  I J  in. 
in  diameter  were  also  found.  Near  these  chambers,  in  a  hedge,  was  discovered  a  large  worked 
stone  with  a  hole  in  the  middle  where  a  hinge  might  work,  and  not  far  off  what  is  thought  to 
have  been  a  road  made  of  common  pebbles  {Joum.  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  (Ser.  i),  xlvi,  227—31], 
It  is  said  in  Lomax's  Guide  to  Licbfield  that  a  man  employed  in  draining  the  land  near  Wall 
mentioned  that  he  often  found  coins  and  other  relics,  and  once,  where  the  church  now  is,  he 
found  'a  figure  of  earthenware  as  big  as  a  man,  but  a  woman's  figure — in  a  strange  dress  — 
with  a  man's  cap  like  a  soldier's  helmet  ;  we  broke  it  in  pieces  to  mend  the  bank  of  the 
drain.'  The  coins  were  said  to  be  of  Tiberius  (A.D.  14-37)  an<^  otners>  'n  g°W,  silver,  and 
copper.  Not  far  off,  but  whether  within  or  outside  the  Roman  town  is  not  stated,  a  farmer 

1  These  finds  are  recorded  by  '  Antiquary  '  in  a  letter  to  the  Staffs.  Advertiser  in  1859  ;  by  Col.  Bagnall 
in  a  communication  to  the  Birmingham  and  Midland  Institute  in  1873,  and  by  Mr.  J.  T.  Irvine  in  the 
Journ.  of  the  Brit.  Arch.  Assoc.  for  1890.  All  three  accounts  appear  to  be  substantially  the  same,  and  to  note 
the  same  discoveries. 

194 


s 

z 
a* 


195 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


found    three   earthen    r  esses    full   of  bones,  bat  brake   diem   to 
Butts,    other  walls  weie  found,  apparently  of  a  large  number  of 

copprr  articles,  draught  to  be  a  buckle  and  a  brooch,  and  bones  of  a«;«Ml«  There  a  a 
tradition  in  die  neighbourhood  dut  a  subterranean  passage  went  from  '  die  Butts '  to  Casde 
Croft,  and  dtat  it  was  opened  when  die  road  was  altered,  bat  k  could  not  be  found  in  1872, 
-hough  search  was  made  for  it  \Jmrm.  Brit.  Arct.  Asm.  (Ser.  \\  rhri,  227-31].  The  field 
called  'Casde  Croft*  is  said  to  hare  been  surrounded  by  walk,  apparently  risible  in  1817,  and 
in  a  garden  there  pavements,  said  to  be  '  of  Roman  brick,  and  great  qiiaKBJCs  of 
stones  were  dug  up  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  128-9;  Cox.  Mag.  Brit,  r,  25]. 

Some  excavations  were  made  in  1859  in  Casde  Croft,  when  a  trench  was  a 
a  wall,  apparently  to  die  south-west  of  die  field  running  paraDd  to  Wading  Street,  and 
'  a  quadrangular  room  was  opened,  though  not  cleared,  with  a  floor  about  3  ft.  below  die 
surface  composed  of  hard  concrete  curaed  with  a  coat  of  plaster.  Here  was  an  abundance 
of  ridged  tiles  of  fine  red  clay.'  These  tiles  were  probably  floe-tiles,  one  of  diem  had  die 
letters  PS  upon  it  (see  awte) ;  slates  of  a  greenish  colour  widi  nail  or  peg  boles  and  die 
"*"f^  ptryr ^  of  wall  plaster  corered  with  stripes  of  red,  tfttfm}  yellow,  uuwii  ana  white  vuc 
also  found.  Animal  bones,  oyster  shells,  potsherds,  glass,  coins  supposed  to  be  of  Nero  (A.D. 
54-68)  and  Constantius  (A.D.  291-306)  were  ako  discovered  and  sent  to  die  Lkhfield 
Museum  [Letter  by  'Antiquary '  to  die  Staffs.  Advertiser,  1 8  June,  1859].  This  site  was 
apparently  again  excavated  in  1872  ;  a  small  chamber,  die  walk  of  which  were  2  ft.  thick, 
was  disclosed.  No  coins  were  found,  bat  Samian  ware  and  other  pottery,  large  worked  stones 
about  i  ft.  square,  fragments  of  roofing-tiles,  coloured  wall  plaster  widi  floral  ifc  »£••,  blocks  of 
concrete  made  of  pounded  brick  and  Wakall  lime,  ako  pebbles  and  lime  and  a  great  variety  of 
other  remains  of  buildings  were  discovered.  Human  and  animal  booes  are  said  to  hare  been 
found  \Jrum.  Brit.  Arch.  Ass*.  (Ser.  i),  xxix,  1 1 6].  Many  fragments  of  Samian 
were  discovered  in  Castle  Croft,  though  there  were  none  in  '  die  Butts.'  A  few  coins, ; 
of  flint  and  a  very  little  ?lass  were  also  found.  In  die  field  on  die  south  side  of  Wading 
Street  called  Chesterfield  w*-e  found  remains  which  have  been  conjectured,  probably  on 
insufficient  grounds,  to  hare  been  lead  works.  There  are  no  traces  of  masonry,  but  at  about 
4  ft.  from  die  surface  a  layer  of  clay  was  found,  about  6  in.  thick,  and  under  it,  in  different 
places,  charcoal  and  sand  ;  the  clay  must  hare  been  brought  to  die  spot,  as  diere  is  none  in  die 
neizhbourhood.  Beneath  it  were  quantities  of  animals'  bones,  and  pieces  of  iron  and  iron- 
cinder.  One  piece  of  iron  was  thought  to  be  a  horse-bit,  and  two  were  probably  door-handles 
1 6  in.  in  lenzth.  Very  little  pottery  was  seen,  bur  quantities  of  lead  and  copper,  some  umh»J 
!ead,  a  copper  key,  a  finite,  small  copper  naik,  pieces  of  plate  or  sheet  copper,  a  few  coins  and 
some  fragments  or"  glass.  A  considerable  amount  of  ashes  and  burnt  day  was  ako  found  with 
the  metals  [^jin.  Brit.  Ar;b.  AUK.  (Ser.  i),  xlvi,  227-31].  In  Chesterfield  Roman  COMB 
were  found.  One  of  Nero  (A-D.  54-6?),  one  of  Vespasian  (A.D.  70—9),  one  of  Domrtian 
(A.D.  8 1-96}  'O.S.  Kiii,  6],  also  the  remains  of  a  column,  already  alluded  to,  a  piece  of  Samian 
ware,  some  tnstrat  from  a  pavement,  ice.  A  gold  Otho  (A.D.  69)  was  dog  up  in  1690,  but 
exactly  where  is  not  known  [Plot,  \af.  Hist.  Staffs.  401  ;  Erdeswick,  Sxrv.  rf  Staffs,  (ed. 
Harwood),  301  ;  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  18].  Colonel  Bagnall  states  dut  he  was  told 
upon  good  authority  diat  in  Green  Lane,  near  the  point  where  it  branches  off  from  Wading 
Street,  a  stone  coffin  containing  human  remains  was  discovered  [jfmrm.  Brit.  Arch.  Ante. 
(Ser.  i),  xlvi,  230].  If  die  coffin  was  Reman  this  is  an  improbable  site,  as  die  Romans  did 
not  bury  their  dead  within  their  towns. 

Probably  we  h^ve  here  a  village  or  even  a  small  town,  but  proper  excavation  alone  can 
tell  us  its  story. 

WAI* *ii- — At  Linley,  near  Wakall,  a  fibula  and  several  coins  were  found  in  1759  [Willmore,  Hist. 
Walsall,  25]. 

WEDXESBCKT. — A  quantity  of  Roman  coins  in  good  preservation  was  dug  up  on  Sir  H.  St.  Paul's 
properrr  in  1817.  Among  diem  were  said  to  be  coins  of  Nero  (A.D.  54-68),  Vespasian  (AJX. 
70-9), 'and  Trajan  (AJ>.  98-117)  \Gtmt.  Mag.  (1817),  ii,  551  ;  Willmore,  Hist.  WabalL, 

25]-' 
Wrrros. — Between  1848  aad  1852  die  fields  known  as  die  '  Borough  Hole'  near  Wetton  were 

systematically  excavated,  and  die  sites  of  numerous  dwellings,  forming  probably  a  Romano- 
British  village,  were  discovered.  This  settlement  may  possibly  hare  been  inhabited  by  die 
miners  who  worked  at  die  lead  mines  in  this  district  during  die  Romano-British  period. 
Pavements  of  rough  limestone,  large  blocks  of  stone,  quantities  of  charcoal,  ashes,  animal 
bones,  numerous  pieces  of  Roman  and  British  pottery,  broken  querns,  iron  utensik,  &c. 
were  disinterred.  Coins  of  Gallienus  (A.D.  253-68),  Tetricus  (A.D.  268-73)  an^ 

196 


OI.TCT    FICIZ    WU-L 


TJIE 


22*  " 


PIG    OF   LEAD,   FOUND   AT    HINTS 


IRON    KNIFE, 
FOUND    AT    WETTON 


LEAD    COLLAR, 
FOUND    AT    WKTTON 


IRON    KNIFE, 
FOUND    AT    WETTON 


BONE    DRINKING-CUP, 
FOUND    AT    WETTON 


WHETSTONE,    FOUND    AT    WETTON 


HORN    OBJECT,    FOUND    AT   WETTON 


197 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

(A.D.  306-37)  were  found,  some  glass  and  a  plain  bronze  ring  fibula.  In  one  place  a 
female  skeleton  with  some  beads,  &c.,  and  in  other  places  human  bones  and  skulls  were  dug 
up.  Among  the  two  or  three  fibulae  found  was  one  in  bronze,  enamelled  with  red  and  yellow 
lozenges,  but  most  of  the  articles  were  of  a  rough  and  primitive  character  [Carrington, 
Reliq.  v,  2OI  ;  Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  193-203  ;  Intellectual  Observer,  vii,  391].  The 
site  has  evidently  been  used  as  a  quarry  for  building  materials  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  neighbour- 
hood. The  following  articles  found  at  Wetton  were  preserved  in  Mr.  Bateman's  collection 
[Catalogue  Bateman  Collection,  Lomberdale  House,  1855].  Those  marked  with  an  asterisk  were 
afterwards  presented  to  the  Sheffield  Museum  [Catalogue  Bateman  Antiquities,  Sheffield  Museum, 
1899]  : — *  Part  of  a  reeded  handle  from  a  glass  vase  ;  pieces  of  burnt  glass  ;  lilac  and  blue  glass 
beads  ;*  harp-shaped  bronze  fibula,  enamelled  with  a  diamond  pattern  in  yellow,  red,  and 
green  ;  *  bronze  ring  fibula,  if  in.  in  diameter  ;  small  slip  of  bronze,  perforated  at  each  end  ; 
bronze  pin  i£  in.  long,  the  thicker  end  representing  the  foot  of  an  ox  ;  iron  knives,  one 
with  stag's  horn  handle,  fibulae  ;  shears,  spear-heads,  nails,  &c.  ;  two  cinerary  urns ;  fragments 
of  mortaria  and  other  vessels  ;  *  small  cylindrical  vessel,  3^-  in.  high,  if  in.  in  diameter,  with 
cheveron  pattern,  made  of  one  large  bone  ;  two  imitations  of  brass  coins  of  Tetricus  ;  *  two 
flat  sandstone  pebbles,  worked  to  a  circular  shape,  2  in.  and  2  J  in.  in  diameter  ;*  perforated  disc 
of  red  earthenware  ijin.  in  diameter  ;*  whetstones,  one  of  grey  sandstone,  in  Sheffield 
Museum  ;  *  pieces  of  red  paint ;  pieces  of  stag's  horn  with  marks  of  tooling.  Twenty-three 
barrows  or  lows  have  been  investigated  in  the  vicinity  since  1845,  which  showed  evidences  of 
occupation  from  remote  times  to  the  Roman  period.  A  '  third  brass '  of  Gallienus  (A.D. 
253-68)  was  found  in  one  of  them  with  a  skeleton.  '  Thor's  Cave,'  which  is  in  the  side 
of  a  lofty  precipice  above  the  River  Manifold,  about  half  a  mile  from  Wetton,  was  explored  in 
1864-5,  ancl  'n  it  were  found  Samian  and  other  Roman  potsherds,  stone  querns,  a  sandstone 
disk,  bone  pins  and  combs,  iron  knives  and  arrow-heads,  a  lead  spindle-whorl,  a  'second  brass' 
coin  of  Hadrian  (A.D.  1 17-38),  a  bronze  armlet,  pins  and  two  fibulae,  which  maybe  ascribed  to 
the  second  or  early  third  century.  All  these  objects  were  found  in  the  earth  forming  the  floor 
of  the  cave,  together  with  many  animal  bones  and  signs  of  cooking  and.  fires.  Some  human 
bones  were  also  discovered,  but  no  distinct  vestiges  of  a  burial  [Pitt,  Hist.  Staffs.  \,  240  ; 
Haverfield  in  F.C.H.  Derb.  i,  238  ;  Carrington  in  Reliq.  v,  201—17  ;  Brown  in  Mid. 
Scient.  Assoc.  Papers  (1864-5)].  Professor  Haverfield  identifies  '  Thor's  Cave '  with  Thirst  or 
Thirse  House,  the  name  of  one  of  the  most  extensively  explored  Romano-British  caves  in 
Derbyshire,  and  also  of  two  other  caves  in  Staffordshire,  one  at  Alton  and  one  near  Wetton 
\y.C.H.  Derb.  i,  233,  n.  l]. 

WICHNOR. — In  the  park  are  remains  of  an  intrenchment  where  several  Roman  coins  have  been 
found  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  18,  125  ;  Pennant,  Journey  from  Chester  to  London, 
121-2]. 

WOLSTANTON. — See  CHESTERTON. 

WOLVERHAMPTON. — A  Roman  urn,  9^  in.  deep,  2  ft.  in  girth  in  the  thickest  part,  of  a  coarse 
texture  and  pale  red  clay,  was  found  in  1793  near  St.  Peter's  Church.  It  lay  on  its  side  9  ft. 
below  the  surface,  and  contained  dark  earth.  The  surrounding  stratum  was  sand.  Near  it 
were  considerable  remains  of  human  bones  and  teeth  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  Staffs,  i,  35].  A 
bronze  ring  was  also  found  here  [Proc.  Soc.  Antiq.  (Ser.  2)  vi,  415]. 

YOXALL. — In  levelling  a  piece  of  ground  in  1778  nearly  forty  urns  of  coarse  brown  pottery  were 
found,  containing  ashes  and  fragments  of  human  bones.  Most  of  the  vessels  were  broken  in 
taking  them  up,  but  one  is  in  the  Lichfield  Museum.  The  site  was  probably  a  Romano- 
British  cemetery  near  to  which  there  may  have  been  a  settlement  [Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist. 
Staffs,  i,  35,  331  ;  Gent.  Mag.  xliv,  358  ;  Camden,  Brit.  (ed.  Gough)  ii,  393]. 


198 


of 


<:• 


STAFFORDSHIRE 


Sca-le  of  Miles 


•'-• 


c      E 


•     Interments    . 

+    Mis  c  e  //&  n  e  ou  s  fin  c/s  . 


ANGLO-SAXON 
REMAINS 


districts  occupied  by  the  Teutonic  invaders  of  Britain  in  the 
sixth  century  are  approximately  defined  by  sepulchral  relics  re- 
covered from  the  soil.  Such  discoveries  are,  in  the  nature  of 
things,  accidental,  and  are  generally  due  to  workmen,  who  are 
seldom  at  the  pains  to  ensure  a  complete  record  of  the  finds.  Much  valuable 
material  has  been  lost  in  this  way,  and  doubtless  many  areas  at  present  un- 
productive only  await  excavation  to  fill  up  gaps  in  our  knowledge  of  the 
period  ;  but  it  may  be  taken  for  granted  that  where,  in  spite  of  all  hindrances, 
much  of  the  kind  has  been  discovered  the  pagan  population  was  comparatively 
dense.  The  converse  is  not  so  safe  a  rule,  but  negative  evidence  may  be  some- 
times corroborated  by  a  consideration  of  the  geographical  features,  as  the  early 
Anglo-Saxon  settlers  were  all  on  the  same  level  of  culture,  and  would  have 
the  same  preferences  in  the  matter  of  soil  and  situation.  To  such  arguments 
may  be  added  the  few  indications  in  history  or  tradition  as  to  the  origins  of 
England,  but  it  must  be  confessed  that  for  most  of  the  English  counties  early 
records  are  either  wanting  or  open  to  more  than  one  interpretation,  and  it  is 
now  only  in  the  domain  of  archaeology  that  there  is  any  hope  of  fuller 
information. 

The  present  county  owes  its  geographical  limits  to  the  political  arrange- 
ments of  the  later  Saxon  period,  when  England  had  become  a  kingdom  ;  but 
as  most  of  the  remains  to  be  considered  in  this  chapter  are  clearly  of  the  pagan 
period,  the  present  boundaries  must  be  disregarded  in  favour  of  certain 
archaeological  and  physical  divisions.  Further,  for  the  period  in  question, 
the  coalfields  and  potteries  may  be  neglected,  though  during  the  Roman 
occupation  coal  was  evidently  used  for  fuel,  and  the  clays  of  this  neighbour- 
hood were  used  for  pottery.1  A  pastoral  and  agricultural  people  would 
naturally  settle  in  the  vicinity  of  rivers,  which,  indeed,  offered  one  of  the 
easiest  roads  into  the  interior  before  the  primeval  forests  were  cleared  or  the 
marsh  lands  drained. 

The  accompanying  map,  which  aims  at  locating  all  the  authentic  Anglo- 
Saxon  discoveries  of  the  pagan  period,  makes  it  clear  that  the  earliest  Teutonic 
settlements  fall  into  two  main  groups,  on  the  north  and  east  of  the  present 
county.  Except  for  the  south  Staffordshire  coalfield,  practically  all  south  of 
Cheadle  and  Stone  is  Triassic  formation,  consisting  of  the  Keuper  and  Bunter 
beds,  which  are  peculiarly  productive  of  forest.  Such,  for  instance,  is  the 

1  Hence  the  name  '  Salopian '  applied  by  Thos.  Wright  and  others  to  pottery  found  on  the  Roman  site  of 
Uriconium  (Wroxeter),  and  probably  manufactured  in  the  vicinity  of  Broseley. 

199 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

geological  basis  of  the  vast  areas  known  as  Sherwood,  Arden,  and  Charn- 
wood,  where  no  Anglo-Saxon  remains  are  found  ;  and  it  is  not,  therefore, 
surprising  to  find  that  Needwood  and  Cannock  Chase  are  similarly  unpro- 
ductive. Besides  the  two  coalfields  (Cheadle  and  Potteries)  in  the  north  of 
the  county  there  is  an  area,  mainly  east  of  Leek,  consisting  of  Yoredale  and 
carboniferous  limestone  rock  connected  with  a  much  larger  area  of  the  same 
formation  in  the  north-west  of  Derbyshire.  South  of  High  Peak  this  soil 
was  evidently  appreciated  by  the  early  Anglo-Saxon  inhabitants,  who  have 
left  numerous  traces  of  their  settlements  and  civilization.  South  of  Ashbourne 
and  Derby  is  an  unproductive  area  of  Triassic  formation  continuous  with 
central  Staffordshire,  but  Anglo-Saxon  cemeteries  again  appear  in  the  Trent 
valley  at  Melbourne  and  Foremark.8 

It  is  with  the  traces  of  a  further  advance  up  the  Trent  valley  that  a  survey 
of  post-Roman  Staffordshire  may  best  begin  ;  and  the  first  discovery  on  entering 

this  county  from  this 
side  has,  indeed,  been 
noticed  under  Der- 
byshire, as  the  site 
has  only  recently 
been  added  to  Staf- 
fordshire. 

The  most  im- 
portant Anglo-Saxon 
discovery  in  the 
county  was  made  in 
1 88 1  at  Stapenhill,  a 
village  just  within 
the  boundary  of  Bur- 
ton  -  on-Trent, 
though  on  the  Der- 
byshire bank  of  the 
river.8  The  site  of 
what  proved  to  be  a 
cemetery  is  on  the 
crest  of  a  ridge  1 20  ft. 
above  the  level  of  the 
Trent  and  300  ft.  a- 
bove  sea-level.  The  village  lies  to  the  north,  the  parish  church  being  about 
half  a  mile  north-north-west;  and  the  burial  ground  lies  between  the  Stan  ton 
and  Rosliston  roads,  but  nearer  the  former.  Plans  and  details  of  the  burials, 
with  several  plates  of  the  antiquities  discovered,  were  published  in  the  follow- 
ing year  by  the  Burton-on-Trent  Natural  History  and  Archaeological  Society, 
and  an  excellent  description  of  the  excavations  undertaken  by  a  committee  for 
the  society  was  furnished  by  Mr.  John  Heron.*  From  that  account  a  good 
deal  may  be  learnt  with  regard  to  the  first  Anglo-Saxon  occupation  of  this 
part  of  the  county,  and  the  following  is  a  summary,  with  additional  remarks 
as  to  similar  finds  elsewhere. 

1  The  distribution  is  clear  from  the  map  of  Anglo-Saxon  remains  in  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  265. 

*  Ibid,  i,  266,  273.  '  Trans,  vol.  i,  156-93,  plates  i-x,  and  frontispiece. 

200 


nl 


FIG.   i. — BRONZE  BROOCHES,  TWEEZERS,  AND  CHATELAINE,  STAPENHILL 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

The  actual  area  of  the  brickfield  examined  was  about  150  ft.  by  96  ft., 
its  length  being  approximately  on  an  east-and-west  line.  While  excavating 
for  brick-earth  the  workmen  came  upon  two  large  earthenware  urns,  and 
straightway  destroyed  them  in  the  vain  hope  of  finding  treasure.  The  frag- 
ments show  their  Anglo-Saxon  origin,  and  one,  if  not  both,  contained  in- 
cinerated human  remains.  Near  the  spot  was  found  an  iron  javelin  head, 
6  in.  long,  which  may  safely  be  attributed  to  the  same  era.  Two  skeletons 
laid  at  full  length  were  next  discovered,  and  others  were  subsequently  un- 
earthed, but  further  investigations  were  entrusted  to  the  society  by  the  pro- 
prietor, and  proved  most  successful.  As  many  as  thirty-one  skeletons  were 
noticed,  in  various  conditions,  and  five  cases  of  cremation  are  recorded,  the 
ashes  having  been  collected  and  placed  in  rudely-made  cinerary  urns  of  the 
ordinary  type.  In  nineteen  cases  the  direction  of  the  interment  could  be 
determined,  the  head  in  five  cases  being  at  the  west  end  of  the  grave,  as  was 
customary  in  early  Christian  times.  Six  more  were  approximately  north- 
west, and  four  inclined  towards  south-west,  showing  that  the  western  position 
was  by  far  the  most  usual  here  ;  and  the 
variations  to  the  north  or  south  may  pos- 
sibly be  due  to  the  interments  having  been 
made  at  different  seasons,  bearings  being 
no  doubt  taken  at  sunrise  or  sunset  for  the 
purpose  of  orientation.  The  head  in  one 
case,  however,  was  at  the  east  end,  another 
lay  east-north-east,  and  two  more  south- 
south-east,  so  that  uniformity  was  not 
enforced  ;  and  it  would  in  any  case  be  rash 
to  infer  that  the  east-and-west  burials  were 
necessarily  Christian.  Cremation,  which 
appears  to  have  been  practised  side  by  side 
with  inhumation  on  this  site,  was  frankly 
pagan,  and  even  apart  from  signs  of  partial 
cremation  noticed  in  some  cases,  the  pre- 
sence of  weapons,  ornaments,  and  utensils  in  several  of  the  graves  shows  that 
the  Christian  rule  was  not  rigidly  observed. 

The  richest  and  most  interesting  grave  was  that  of  a  woman  of  middle 
age,  whose  height  was  5  ft.  10  in.  The  bones  were  in  excellent  preser- 
vation, and  the  body  had  been  laid  on  the  back  with  the  head  towards 
the  west  ;  the  right  arm  was  by  the  side,  the  left  across  the  chest,  and  the 
legs  straight.  Close  to  the  left  side  of  the  head  was  a  vase  of  dark  pottery 
decorated  in  the  usual  manner,  with  groups  of  incised  lines  and  a  band  of 
stamped  star  pattern  (fig.  2).  It  measured  5^  in.  in  height,  with  a  maximum 
diameter  of  5  in.,  being  somewhat  smaller  than  the  average  cinerary  urn. 
On  either  shoulder  was  a  brooch  of  bronze-gilt,  with  trefoil  or  cruciform 
head  and  punched  borders  (fig.  i).  It  belongs  to  a  type  fairly  common 
in  this  country,  and  related  to  the  '  long  '  brooch  of  Scandinavia,  though  the 
latter  terminates  at  the  foot  in  a  conventional  horse's  head.  The  spreading 
foot  of  the  Stapenhill  example  points  rather  to  Prussia  as  the  centre  of  dis- 
persion,' but  it  is  clear  that  the  evolution  of  the  brooch  was  not  uniform  in 

5  Haakon  Schetelig,  Cructfirm  Brooches  of  Norway,  49,  50,  86,  146. 

26 


FIG.  2. — VASE  FOUND  AT  STAPENHILL  (J) 


2OI 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

all  the  Teutonic  areas,  and  this  expanding  foot  seems  to  be  a  specially 
English  feature.  Round  the  neck  of  the  skeleton  was  a  string  of 
twenty  or  more  beads,  some  being  annular  specimens  of  dark  blue  glass, 
and  one  (described  as  glass)  was  evidently  of  crystal  ;  four  were  of 
amber,  roughly  shaped  like  a  spindle-whorl ;  one  consisted  of  a  pierced 
garnet  disc,  and  the  rest  were  of  opaque  glass  of  various  colours.  Near 
the  beads  were  several  pieces  of  tubular  bronze,  such  as  have  been  found 
elsewhere  on  necklaces ;  and  on  the  chest  were  fragments  of  a  clasp, 
apparently  of  the  type  sometimes  found  at  the  wrist,  to  fasten  a  bracelet. 
An  iron  buckle  at  the  waist  evidently  belonged  to  a  leathern  girdle,  and 
there  were  also  two  key-shaped  objects  of  bronze  which  are  usually  called 
chatelaines  or  girdle-hangers,  and  may  have  been  worn  as  a  symbol,  just 
as  keys  were  carried  by  Roman  matrons.  A  spindle-whorl  of  Kimmeridge 
shale  completed  the  list  from  this  burial,  which  agrees  closely  with 
several  in  the  Anglian  districts,  and  may  be  regarded  as  typical  of  the 
richer  class. 

It  will  not  be  necessary  to  describe  the  graves  individually,  but  the  next 
deserves  special  mention.  Of  the  skeleton,  nothing  remained  but  the  teeth  * 
of  a  child,  but  from  their  position  it  was  clear  that  the  body  had  been  buried 
unburnt,  or  possibly  after  partial  cremation,  as  a  small  vase  near  the  teeth 
showed  traces  of  intense  heat.  In  the  position  of  the  shoulder  was  a  small 
gilded  bronze  brooch  of  a  form  most  unusual  in  England,  but  allied  to  certain 
German  specimens,  and  near  it  lay  four  beads,  including  Roman  melon- 
shaped  specimens  of  turquoise  glass.  The  partial  burning  suggested  here 
finds  parallels  in  the  same  cemetery  and  elsewhere  in  England.  Two  Stapen- 
hill  burials — one  in  a  triple  grave  and  the  other  that  of  a  body  with  the  head 
west-north-west — were  surrounded  by  a  ring  of  charcoal,7  and  in  the  former 
case  the  bones  that  remained  showed  evident  traces  of  fire,  while  in  two  other 
graves  were  lumps  of  iron  that  had  been  subjected  to  great  heat.  Though 
in  some  cases  decayed  wood  may  have  been  mistaken  for  charcoal  (which  is 
often  found  in  graves),  there  is  positive  evidence  at  Stapenhill  of  a  practice 
that  may  well  represent  a  compromise  between  the  pagan  and  Christian 
ritual.  It  is  most  improbable  that  the  bulk  of  unburnt  burials  are  those  of 
Christian  Anglo-Saxons,  but  it  is  fairly  certain  that  no  convert  was  cremated 
at  that  period  ;  and  in  view  of  Christian  relics  in  the  adjoining  county  of 
Derby  it  is  possible  that  a  ceremonial  burning  of  the  dead  was  retained,  in 
deference  to  pagan  traditions,  for  some  time  after  inhumation  had  been 
introduced.  The  transition  may  be  further  illustrated  by  the  unburnt  graves 
at  Stapenhill  that  have  not  the  Christian  orientation,  but  the  question  cannot 
be  settled  without  further  evidence.  The  direction  of  the  Stapenhill 
interments  without  grave-furniture  is  by  no  means  uniform  ;  and  weapons 
were  found  in  others,  a  spear  or  lance-head,  when  present,  being  on  the  right 
of  the  skull  ;  and  in  one  case  a  shield  lay  on  the  left  arm,  the  iron  boss  and 
handle  being  preserved,  as  well  as  several  rivets,  that  showed  the  '  war-board  ' 
to  have  been  f  in.  thick.  The  knife,  which  was  commonly  carried  by  both 
sexes  for  use  at  meals,  was  frequently  found  in  this  cemetery,  but  its  position 
was  not  constant.  A  few  rude  vases  of  pottery  were  found  either  near  the 

•  A  similar  case  at  Wyaston  :  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  269  ;  Bateman,  Ten  Tears'  Diggings,  1 8  8. 
7  For  examples  in  Derbyshire  see  f.C.H.  Derb.  \,  274. 

\ 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

head  or  shoulder,  and  were  probably  placed  in  the  grave  to  contain  food  or 
drink  for  the  dead,8  though  they  may  also  represent  the  cinerary  urns  of  the 
pagan  period. 

One  skeleton  was  found  without  the  skull,  and  the  upper  part  of  another 
was  wanting.  This  may  be  due  to  subsequent  disturbance  (and  there  seems 
to  have  been  much  rubbish  buried  on  this  site),  but  such  occurrences  are  not 
uncommon,9  and  may  be  due  to  the  fortune  of  war,  stray  skulls  being 
included  in  several  graves  at  Mitcham,  Surrey.  Nor  are  flexed  skeletons 
peculiar  to  this  cemetery  ;  slight  contraction  of  the  lower  limbs  was  noticed 
in  five  cases  ;  but  such  was  the  general  rule  in  the  extensive  cemetery  at  Slea- 
ford,  Lines.,  and  many  casual  instances  are  recorded 10  both  in  England  and 
across  the  Channel. 

Bronze  was  comparatively  scarce,  but  besides  the  objects  already 
mentioned  was  a  ring-brooch  from  a  child's  grave,  which  also  contained 
beads  and  a  coin  of  Constantine  (struck  in  327)  pierced  for  use  as  a  pendant. 
A  pair  of  tweezers  was  found  with  another  skeleton,  the  customary  knife  in 
this  instance  being  still  in  its  sheath  ;  one  cinerary  urn  contained  an  engraved 
spindle-whorl  made  of  deer-horn,  and  inside  another,  with  cremated  bones, 
were  several  beads  and  part  of  a  thin  bronze  disc,  which  was  doubtless  the 
base  of  a  brooch  of  the  '  applied  '  variety,  the  position  of  the  pin-head  and 
catch  being  distinguishable  on  one  side.  The  type  is  practically  confined  to 
England,  a  late  Roman  specimen  from  Sigy,  near  Neufchatel  (Seine- 
inferieure),11  giving  some  clue  to  its  origin  :  the  principal  site  is  the  ceme- 
tery at  Kempston,  Beds.,  but  all  were  there  found  in  association  with 
skeletons.12  It  is  noteworthy  that  the  same  cemetery  produced  a  trefoil- 
headed  brooch  almost  identical  with  that  from  Stapenhill,  and  what  seems 
to  be  the  prototype  of  the  equal-armed  brooch  here  illustrated  (fig.  i). 
The  latter  closely  resembles  one  from  Cambridgeshire,  but  the  type  is 
rare  in  England,  and  only  a  few  specimens  are  known  abroad.  This 
equal-armed  brooch  differs  widely  from  that  found  in  southern  France, 
and  probably  reached  England  and  southern  Scandinavia  from  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Hanover,  where  elaborate  examples  of  earlier  date  are 
comparatively  common.  And  it  is  remarkable  that  the  fifth-century 
specimens  in  England  outnumber  those  of  the  sixth,  which  are  plain  and 
common-place  as  that  from  Stapenhill.  The  evolution  of  this  type  has 
been  briefly  indicated  by  Dr.  Bernhard  Salin,  who  illustrates  the  specimens 
mentioned  above.133 

Both  at  Stapenhill  and  Kempston  were  found  coins  of  the  Constantine 
period,  pierced  for  suspension,  and  tubular  '  beads  '  of  bronze.  Further,  the 
cinerary  urns  and  accessory  vessels  are  of  the  same  types,  and  both  cemeteries 
contained  cremations  as  well  as  inhumations.  Partial  cremation  was  also 

8  Pottery  vessels  were  included  in  coffins  of  the  Middle  Ages:  Arch,  xxxvii,  417. 

*  White  Horse  Hill,  Berks.  (Crania  Britannica,  pt.  ii)  ;  E.  Yorkshire  (Mortimer,  Thirty  Tears'  Researches, 
pp.  xxxiii,  xxxvi,  321)  ;  Mitcham,  Surrey  (Arch.  Ix,  53,  57). 

10  Sleaford,  Arch.   1,    385  ;    other  instances    in  E.  Yorks.  ;    Kempston,   Beds.  ;    Marston   St.  Lawrence, 
Northants  ;  Leagrave,  Beds.     Cf.  Cochet,  Normandie  Souterraine  (ed.  2),  218. 

11  Proc.  Soc.  Antij.  Land.  (Ser.  l),  iv,  237. 

11  V.C.H.  Beds,  i,  180  (figs,   n   and    13  on  plate)  ;  other  brooches  referred  to  are  fig.  2  on  plate,  and 
'  engraved  bronze  brooch '  on  p.  1 79. 

u*  Die  A  Itgermaniiche  Thlenrnamentik,  74,  figs.  1 74,  1 76,  699,  &c. 

203 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

noticed  at   Kempston,  and  the  following   extract   throws  some  light  on  the 
process  : — 

A  pit  was  discovered  over  7  ft.  in  length,  from  3  to  4  ft.  wide,  and  the  same  in  depth, 
where  a  body  stretched  at  full  length  had  been  consumed  by  fire.  About  2  ft.  from  the 
surface  was  a  large  quantity  of  ashes,  and  among  them  were  found  portions  of  a  human 
skull,  vertebrae  and  other  bones,  all  charred,  but  the  leg-bones  showing  less  traces  of  fire 
than  the  rest  of  the  skeleton.  In  the  ashes  and  on  the  left  side  of  the  body  was  a  long 
iron  spear-head  witli  a  portion  of  the  wooden  shaft  left  in  the  socket,  and  also  an  iron 
knife ;  while  surrounding  these  remains  lay  numerous  pieces  of  charred  wood,  and  ends  of 
branches  not  quite  burnt  through.  It  seemed  as  if  the  pit  had  been  partially  filled  with 
live  embers,  on  which  the  deceased  was  laid,  and  then  large  branches  heaped  over.13 

Animal  bones  were  found  in  at  least  four  of  the  Stapenhill  graves,  and 
in  large  quantities  elsewhere  on  the  site,  especially  in  a  trench  92  ft.  long, 
5  ft.  9  in.  deep  at  the  south  end,  and  2  ft.  6  in.  deep  at  the  north.  Plans 
and  sections  are  given  in  the  original  account,  but  it  seems  clear  that  this 
fosse  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  burials,  but  was  dug  for  the  reception  of 
rubbish  by  the  previous  Romano-British,  or  even  pre-Roman,  inhabitants; 
and,  to  judge  from  the  few  Anglo-Saxon  sherds  near  the  surface  of  the  ditch, 
the  site  may  have  been  occupied  by  Teutonic  settlers  before  it  was  appro- 
priated for  burials.  No  grave-mounds  were  observed  by  the  excavators ;  and 
as  the  plan  shows  great  irregularity,  surface  indications  were  perhaps 
dispensed  with  altogether,  but  even  on  sites  where  some  memorial  must  have 
existed  to  mark  the  regular  lines  of  interments  u  all  trace  has  disappeared 
before  our  time.  The  discoveries  in  this  cemetery  are  held  to  prove  that 
the  two  rites  of  burial  (cremation  and  inhumation)  were  practised  by 
contemporaries,  and  such  seems  to  be  the  case  on  certain  other  sites  ;  but  the 
contention  would  be  hard  to  prove  by  crucial  instances. 

Facing  Stapenhill,  on  the  other  side  of  the  Trent,  is  another  Anglo- 
Saxon  burial  ground,  of  which  a  few  details  are  recorded  by  Molyneux.16 
Some  gravel  pits  adjoining  the  Lichfield  Road,  close  to  the  Leicester  branch 
of  the  railway,  yielded  about  1868  an  iron  spear-head,  gin.  long  and  much 
corroded,  also  some  fragments  of  brown  pottery  '  which  agrees  in  appearance 
rather  with  the  Saxon  than  the  Roman  form  of  manufacture.'  The  nature 
of  these  finds  is  clear  from  Stapenhill  and  other  discoveries  higher  up  the 
valley. 

The  next  site  to  be  noticed  is  close  to  the  Barton  and  Walton  station,, 
on  the  south  side,  and  is  recorded  by  Molyneux.  A  ballast  pit  was 
opened  by  the  Midland  Railway  Company  about  1851,  and  a  great  number 
of  urns  containing  human  bones  were  then  found  about  three  feet  below  the 
surface.  Some  were  described  as  British  and  others  as  Roman  or  Saxon, 
but  as  two  iron  knives  were  found  with  the  bones  in  one  specimen,  and  iron 
weapons  were  found  in  others,  their  Anglo-Saxon  origin  is  fairly  established. 
The  field  from  which  these  remains  were  exhumed  consisted  of  a  somewhat 
circular  knoll  of  gravel  that  sloped  gently  down  to  the  banks  of  the  old 
river-course,  and  was  beyond  question  the  site  of  an  ancient  cemetery.16 

The  sepulchral  series  from  Wichnor,  now  happily  preserved  by  the 
Natural  History  Society  at  Burton,  includes  some  interesting  types  of  the 

11  V.C.H.  Beds.  \,  177  ;  Roach  Smith,  Collectanea  Antiqua,  vi,  205. 

14  Mounds  existed  on  Farthing  Down  (V.C.H.  Surr.  i,  265),  but  not  in  recent  times  on  High  Down 
(r.C.H.  Suss,  i,    341). 

15  Burton-on-Trent  (1869),  22.  "  Molyneux,  Burton-tm-Trent,  189  note. 

204 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

more  ordinary  objects,   but    has    little   artistic  importance.       The   sand-pit, 
in  which  several  burials  were   found,  is  alongside  the  railway  on  the  east  side, 
close  to  the  junction  of  Wichnor,  about  ij  miles  south  of  the  site  just  men- 
tioned ;  and  details  have  been  kindly  supplied  by  Mr.  H.  L.  Hind,  of  Burton. 
The  remains  found  in    1899"   were  about  four  feet  below  the  surface 
of  the  pit,   and    more  have  been    found    since  ;     but    the  conditions    were 
unfavourable  for  determining  their   association,  and  all  that  is  now   possible 
is  to   consider   them     under   various   headings  as 
products  of  a  single  cemetery.      Several  warriors 
were  evidently  buried   here,  as   six  shield-bosses 
(fig.    6)   are  preserved,   slightly  varying   in   their 
dimensions,  but  all  of  the  same  general  form  :  the 
largest  diameter  of  the  base  rim  is  6J  in.,  with  a 
height  of  2|  in.,  while  the  tallest  specimen  mea- 
sures 3  in.,  and  is  nearly  5  in.  across  at  the  base. 
These  bosses  are  usually  very  well  wrought   and 
are  exceptionally  durable,  testifying  to  the  skill  of 
the   Anglo-Saxon    armourer,   whose    praises  were 
sung  in  verse  and  whose  life  was  assessed  very  high 
in  the  primitive  code  of  laws.     The  spear-heads 
belong  to   two  main  types  (fig.   3),  most  on  this 
site  being  of  the  willow-leaf  form,  one  specimen 
measuring    i6jin.,  without   its   point   or   socket. 
Three    others    belong    to   a    common    type   with 
waved  edges  to  the   blade  and  a  sudden  widening 
at  the  base.      The  sockets,  where  preserved,  are  as 
usual  split  to  receive  and  hold  firmly  the  wooden 
shaft,  and   there  is  one  ferrule,  3 Jin.   in  length, 
originally  fixed   to   the   butt-end.      Of  the   small 
knife   usually  found   in    the   graves,  only   a   tang 
2|in.  long  remains,  the  bone  or  horn  handle  having 
perished.     The  only  other  iron   object  is  a  small 
oval   buckle    (fig.   4),  but   so   corroded   as   to   be 
barely   recognizable.      It   probably  belonged   to  a 
leather  girdle,  and   the   type  is  commonly  found. 
Unfortunately  only  one  brooch  was  found,  and  that 
is  without  the  foot  (or  part  of  the  stem  below  the 
bow),  which  is  indicated  in  the  illustration  (fig.  5). 
It  has  a  square  head-plate  with  trefoil  extensions, 
and  closely  resembles  the  only  brooch  of  the  kind 
found  at   Stapenhill.     To   the   bronze  body   was 
attached  an  iron  pin  at  the  back,  but  only  a  rusted 
fragment  remains.      Remains   of  the   textile  which   the   brooch  was   used  to 
fasten  are  often  found  preserved  by  rust  on  the  back,  but  the   only  trace  at 
Wichnor  is  on  one  of  the  spear-heads.      There  were  besides  several  staves  of  a 
small  bronze-mounted  bucket,  commonly  found  at  the  head  or  feet  of  the  skele- 
ton, but  at  present  of  uncertain  use  and  meaning.     The  present  example  was 
about  3!  in.  high,  and  the  groove  in  which  the  bottom  was  inserted  is  plainly 

17  J.  O'Sullivan,  Trans.  Burton-tm-Trent  Nat.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Soc.  iv,  pt.  ii,  80. 

205 


Fie.    3. — IRON   SPEAR-HEADS, 
WICHNOR  (^) 


FIG.  4. — IRON  BUCKLE,  WICHNOR, 
WITH  SECTION      ) 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

visible.  Of  pottery  four  well-preserved  but  very  rude  hand-made  specimens 
are  extant  :  they  are  quite  devoid  of  ornament,  and  of  different  profile 
(see  fig.  7),  the  base  being  more  or  less  rounded  as  if  intended  to  rest  on 

soft  earth,  and  the  paste  being  soft  and  fairly 
smooth,  of  a  brownish  colour.  The  tallest  measures 
51  in.,  and  the  smallest  3&in.,  and  they  were  all 
evidently  used  as  accessory  vessels,  not  as  cinerary 
urns  to  contain  cremated  remains.  Mr.  J.  O'Sul- 
livan  states  that  no  bones,  weapons,  or  other  anti- 
quities were  found  with  the  two  urns  that  were 
first  discovered.  All  had  been  buried  in  holes  or 
trenches,  about  3  ft.  or  4  ft.  deep  and  about  8  ft. 
apart.  The  other  objects  enumerated  above  were 
found  subsequently,  but  not  in  association  with  the  pottery. 

At  Burrough  Fields  Farm,18  south  of  Walton,  bones  and  other  objects 
not  specified  were  found  many  years  ago,  and  the  name  is  suggestive  of  a 
cemetery,  but  no  other  remains  are  reported  from  this  part  of  the  Trent 
Valley,  and  it  is  highly  probable  that  Needwood  and  Cannock  Chase 
discouraged  further  advance  in  this  direction,  at  least  along  the  main  stream  : 
the  pioneers  may  at  this  point  have  turned  south  along  the  Tame  and 
founded  Tamworth.  Whether  the  lower  valley  of  the  Dove  was  occupied 
by  these  early  settlers  is  not  apparent  ;  but  there  is  one  site  to  be  noticed  in 
the  angle  made  by  that  river  with  the  Trent,  and  its  proximity  to  the  Roman 
road  which  here  passes  into  Derbyshire  is  significant.  During  excavations 
for  the  original  branch  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Railway,  through  the 
rising  ground  on  the  south  or  Burton  side  of  Stretton,  several  cinerary  urns 
of  reddish  clay  containing  bones  and  ashes  are  reported  to  have  been  found 
and,  as  usual,  broken  by  the  workmen.  At  the  same  time 
a  human  skeleton,  lying  at  full  length  with  the  feet  point- 
ing south,  is  said  to  have  been  discovered  near  the  village. 
Some  years  previously  numerous  urns  containing  ashes  and 
bones,  deposited  about  3ft.  below  the  surface,  were  exhumed 
from  some  gravel  workings  in  a  field  near  the  house  occu- 
pied by  Mr.  Gretton  at  the  Beach.  They  are  described  as 
being  made  of  soft  reddish  clay,  and  the  mouth  of  each 
was  closed  with  a  small  slab  of  sandstone.  The  author 
refers  the  pottery  to  the  Britons  rather  than  the  Romans, 
and  adds  that  the  skeleton  may  be  later.19 

Except  that  the  pottery  was  evidently  of  poor  quality 
and  not  wheel-made,  one  might  be  inclined  to  regard  the 
cemetery  as  Roman,  especially  as  it  adjoined  the  Icknield 
Street  ;    but  the  sepulchral  pottery  of  the  Anglo-Saxons 
was  a  blackish  or  brownish  grey,  the  larger  (cinerary)  urns 
being  generally  ornamented  on  the  shoulder  with   incised 
lines  and  stamped  patterns.     No  mention  is  made  of  such 
designs,  but  it  is  possible  that  red  earth  was  still  attached  to  the  pottery  when 
examined,  and  the  ornamentation,  if  any,  passed  unnoticed.     It  should  be 
remarked,  however,  that  a  few  specimens  found  at  Stapenhill  were  '  so  highly 

w  Trans.  Burton-on-Trent  Arch.  Soc.  iv,  pt.  ii,  81.  "  Wm.  Molyneux,  Burton-on-Trent,  zi. 

206 


Fie.  5. — BROOCH 

FOUND    AT    WlCHNOR 

<*) 


f- 

H 
O 
P-, 


207 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

burnt  as  to  acquire  a  reddish-brown  tinge,  and  are  extremely  hard  to  the 
touch.' so  There  is  also  some  doubt  as  to  the  origin  of  the  unburnt  burial  in 
the  same  neighbourhood.  The  grave-furniture,  such  as  spear-head,  knife,  and 
shield,  or  brooches  and  beads,  may  have  been  overlooked  or  concealed  by  the 
workmen,  and  the  position  is  by  no  means  unusual  at  this  period  both  in 
England  (as  at  Little  Wilbraham,  Cambs.)  and  in  Normandy. 

Obviously  distinct  from  the  sites  already  dealt  with  are  several  in  the 
north-east  angle  of  the  county  that  as  clearly  range  with  a  compact  group 
beyond  the  Dove  in  Derbyshire,  and  the  physical  similarity  of  the  two  areas 
has  been  noticed  above.  At  Steep  Low,  near  Alstonfield,  there  seems 
clear  evidence  of  secondary  Anglo-Saxon  burials.  The  large  mound,  1 50  ft. 
in  diameter  and  15  ft.  high,  was  opened  in  1845,  and  found  to  contain 
Bronze  Age  incinerations  quite  near  the  surface,  but  the  primary  burial  was 
not  reached.  Before  the  excavators  arrived  some  villagers  had  found  near 
the  top  the  body  of  a  '  Romanized  Briton,'  extended  on  his  back,  accom- 
panied by  an  iron  spear-head,  and  a  lance-head  and  knife  of  the  same 
material21  placed  near  the  head,  also  three  Roman  coins,  one  being  of 
Constantine  (307-337),  and  another  of  Tetricus  (268-273).  The  coins 
simply  show  that  the  burial  was  not  earlier  than  the  fourth  century,  and 
Constantinian  coins  are  frequently  found  in  Anglo-Saxon  burials,  whereas 
weapons  are  not  found  with  Romano-British  interments,  either  burnt  or 
unburnt.  Further,  the  present  specimens  have  the  split-socket  characteristic 
of  early  Anglo-Saxon  times,  and  it  may  be  assumed  that  one  warrior,  at  least, 
was  laid  to  rest  in  a  shallow  grave  cut  in  the  mound  that  had  been  used  for 
burials  about  1,000  years  before. 

At  the  Boroughs,  Wetton,  there  seem  to  have  been  several  Anglo-Saxon 
inhumations,  but  the  remains 32  are  very  fragmentary,  and  the  records  in- 
complete. A  flat  bronze  ring  with  rust  at  one  point  may  be  a  ring-brooch 
with  remains  of  the  pin  ;  and  an  iron  ring  belongs  to  a  type  common  in 
Anglo-Saxon  graves,  perhaps  attached  to  the  girdle.  More  determinate  are 
a  tanged  knife,  part  of  a  pair  of  shears,  and  part  of  a  whetstone  of  blue  slate, 
all  found  with  a  skeleton  here  in  1852.  There  are  Roman  objects  from  the 
same  site,  and  evidence  of  a  Romano-British  village  near  Wetton.83  An  iron 
spear-head  lo^in.  long,  and  a  knife  6  in.  long,  found  with  a  skeleton  in  a 
mound  at  the  Boroughs  in  1844,  are  sufficient  evidence  of  an  Anglo-Saxon 
warrior's  burial,  either  primary  or  secondary,  and  render  it  at  least  probable 
that  another  iron  knife,  6  in.  long,  also  belonged  to  a  burial  of  the  period." 
A  knife  of  this  kind  seems  to  have  been  commonly  carried  by  both  sexes  for 
use  at  meals,  and  was  usually  deposited  in  the  grave,  as  at  Barlaston. 

Somewhat  doubtful  is  an  iron  knife,"  now  in  fragments,  from  a  barrow 
at  Blore's  field,  Calton  (1849);  an^  a  ^at  iron  rmg>S8  if  in.  in  diameter, 
found  in  a  barrow  near  Blore  in  the  same  year  is  insufficient  evidence  of  a 
burial,  though  such  rings  are  frequently  found  in  Anglo-Saxon  graves.  The 
presence  of  such  people  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Throwley  is  attested  by  an 
iron  spear-head27  of  ordinary  type  gin.  long  found  near  the  River  Manifold 

10  Trans.  Burton  Nat.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Sac.  i,   185. 

"  Sheffield  Mus.  Cat.  99,  232  (figs.),  235  ;  Bateman,  Vestiges,  p.  76. 

"  Sheffield  Mus.  Cat.  195-219.  »  Bateman,  Ten  Yearf  Diggings,  194. 

"  Sheffield  Mus.  Cat.  232  (1844),  235  (1857).  "  Ibid.  220. 

*  Ibid.  139.  «  Ibid.  232. 

208 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

in  1858,  and  a  glass  bead88  of  ring  pattern,  I  in.  in  diameter,  found  in  a  field 
in  1856.  An  almost  identical  bead,  of  translucent  yellow  glass  with  a  thread 
of  bright  yellow  within  the  ring,  is  exhibited  with  it  at  Sheffield,  and  came 
from  Kirkham's  land,  Middleton  Moor  (by  Youlgreave),  Derbyshire. 

The  Anglo-Saxon  origin  of  a  find  on  Readon  (Wredon)  Hill,  one  mile 
north  of  Ramshorn,  is  open  to  question.  On  4  September,  1848,  a  barrow 
1 9  yds.  in  diameter  and  3ft.  high  was  opened  and  found  to  contain  two 
skeletons  extended  near  the  centre,  with  no  protection  but  a  few  stones  in 
contact  with  one  of  the  bodies,  which  was  possibly  interred  later  than  the 
other.  It  was  not  more  than  2  ft.  from  the  surface,  while  the  other  lay  on 
the  natural  level  at  least  3  ft.  from  the  turf  covering  the  mound.  Of  the 
former,  the  skull,  which  was  that  of  a  young  man  with  a  longitudinal  index 
of  76,  remained  in  perfect  preservation  with  some  of  the  hair,  and  a  small 
pebble  was  found  at  the  right  hand.  The  lower  skeleton  was  covered  with 
a  layer  of  charcoal,  and  the  skull  belonged  to  a  middle-aged  man.  An  iron 
spear-head  lay  at  least  two  yards  from  the  upper,  and  further  from  the  lower 
burial,  and  measures 
I  3  in.,  with  part  of  the 
shaft  still  preserved  by 
rust  in  the  socket.  With 
it  was  a  narrow  war 
knife  8  in.  long,  and 
their  association  points 
to  an  Anglo  -  Saxon 
burial ;  but  they  do  not 
seem  to  have  belonged 
to  either  of  the  bodies 
found.  The  microscope 
revealed  the  fact  that 
the  shaft  of  the  spear 
was  of  ash,  and  the  sur- 
face of  the  weapon  and 
knife  shows  traces  of 
grass  and  the  larvae  of  insects  with  which  they  had  been  in  contact.8 

There  are  reasons  for  classing  with  those  in  the  north  (the  nearest  of 
which  is  12  miles  distant)  an  isolated  burial  in  the  Trent  valley,  but  nearly 
30  miles  above  Wichnor,  and  separated  by  the  whole  width  of  Needwood 
Forest.  This  remarkable  discovery  was  made  in  1850  on  the  estate  of  the 
late  Mr.  Francis  Wedgwood,  at  Barlaston,  some  twenty  years  before  it  was 
first  published  by  Llewellyn  Jewitt.30  It  has  since  been  included  in  a  paper 
on  bronze  bowls  with  enamel  mounts,  by  the  late  Mr.  Romilly  Allen,31  and 
an  illustrated  account  was  presented  to  the  local  society  by  Mr.  Lawrence 
Wedgwood  in  1905. 

On  a  slope  of  red  sandstone  a  grave  (fig.  8)  7  ft.  long  and  2  ft.  wide  was 
found  cut  into  the  solid  rock  when  the  gravel-pit  hill  to  the  east  of  the  house 
was  dug  over  for  the  planting  of  trees.  It  was  evidently  an  isolated  burial,  and 

>8  Sheffield  Mus.  Cat.  227.  "  Diggings,  122-3  ;  SheffieUMus.  Cat.  162  (skull),  235. 

80  Grave-mounds  and  their  Contents  (1870),  258,  figs.  434,  435  ;  Lawrence  Wedgwood,   'Notes  on  Celtic 
Remains  found  at  the  Upper  House,  Barlaston,'  Trans.  N.  Staffs.  Field  Club,  xl  (1906),  148.          "  Arch.  Ivi,  44. 
I  209  27 


SECTION  OF  THE  GRAVE 
FIG.   8. — GRAVE   AT   BARLASTOJ    (PLAN  AND  SECT.-ON) 


29 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

lay  north  and  south,  the  greatest  depth  (15  in.  in  the  rock)  being  at  the 
south-east  corner.  About  8  in.  of  soil  covered  the  rock,  and  the  floor  of  the 
grave  at  the  north  end  was  immediately  beneath.  At  that  end  there  was  a 
basin-shaped  cavity  two  or  three  inches  deep  in  the  rock  beyond  the  original 
position  of  the  skull,  though  the  skeleton  had  completely  disappeared.  On 
the  right  or  western  side  of  the  grave,  near  and  parallel  to  the  side,  was  a  long 
two-edged  sword,  and  to  the  north-east  of  the  handle  was  an  iron  knife 
characteristic  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  period. 

Such  is  the  story  derived  from  the  published  accounts,  and  the  site  is 
now  carefully  railed  in  for  preservation.  A  few  remarks  may  be  added  by 
way  of  comment  and  illustration,  but  little  is  as  yet  known  as  to  the  precise 
significance  of  the  enamelled  bowls  of  this  period  found  in  various  parts  of 
England.  The  Barlaston  specimen,  though  sadly  injured  by  time,  must  have 
been  exceptionally  ornate,  and  is  peculiar  in  having  been  cast,  not  wrought 
like  the  rest.  It  is  on  this  account  comparatively  heavy,  and  there  are  marks 
of  the  lathe  on  the  base,  which  seems  to  have  been  indented  and  ornamented 
on  the  outside88  with  the  enamelled  ring  (fig.  9).  The  three  discs  were 
attached  originally  to  the  outside  of  the  bowl  at  equal  intervals  below  the 
rim,  which  is  slightly  thickened,  and  served,  with  the  hooks  above  the  discs, 
to  form  loops  for  suspension  by  three  chains  which  have  as  usual  perished. 
The  enamelled  discs  are  of  the  ordinary  size  and  character,  mounted  in 
circular  frames  of  bronze  ;  and  the  ornamentation  on  them  and  the  ring  that 
fitted  into  the  base  is  of  the  late  Celtic  character.  The  enamel  which  fills 
the  ground  is  of  the  usual  red  colour,  but  is  remarkable  in  another  respect. 
Irregularly  set  in  it  are  discs  of  millefiore  glass,  produced  by  cutting  thin 
slices  off  a  bundle  of  glass  rods  so  that  the  arrangement  of  the  coloured 
chequers  is  constant.  This  inlaying  of  millefiore  in  enamel  is  again  seen  on 
similar  discs  for  a  bowl  found  in  the  north  of  England,  and  acquired  for  the 
national  collection  ;  and  the  fourth  enamelled  disc  in  that  find  may  well 
have  been  inserted  in  a  broad  ring  at  the  base  like  that  found  at  Barlaston. 
The  narrow  bronze  bands  ornamented  with  incised  rings  were  evidently 
fixed  horizontally  to  the  outside  of  the  bowl  between  the  three  discs,  their 
centre  line  being  about  |  in.  below  the  rim,  as  is  shown  by  rivet-holes  for 
repair  ;  but  these  strips  were  originally  fixed  without  rivets  (perhaps  by  brazing), 
and  the  reason  for  their  slanting  ends  is  not  obvious.  They  are  5  J  in.  long 
on  the  outside  curve,  whereas  the  intervals  between  the  disc-frames  must 
have  been  about  /in.,  the  circumference  being  about  27^  in.,  and  each  of 
the  disc-frames  being  just  over  2  in.  across. 

Though  an  isolated  burial  the  Barlaston  discovery  falls  into  line  with 
others  made  just  across  the  Derbyshire  border.  Remains  of  no  less  than 
three  such  bowls 33  have  been  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Dovedale  :  at 
Middleton-by-Youlgreave,  Over  Haddon,  and  Benty  Grange,  the  last  lying 
in  the  grave  beside  the  hair  of  a  warrior,  in  association  with  a  leather  bowl 
ornamented  with  applied  crosses.  At  Barlaston  the  bowl  was  found  just 
where  the  head  would  have  lain,  and  seems  to  have  been  in  the  centre  line 
of  the  grave,  so  that  perhaps  the  head  rested  within  it  at  the  time  of  burial. 

"  At  Caistor,  Lines,  the  ring  was  apparently  inside.     The  form  of  the  base,  whether  indented  or  pro- 
truding, is  often  uncertain,  but  ornament  may  have  been  applied  on  both  sides  (Prof.  Sec.  Antiq.  xxi,  78). 
"  All  noticed  in  Arch.  Ivi,  42,  46  ;  V.C.H.  Derb.  i,  271,  269,  fig.  on  left  of  plate. 

2IO 


FIG.   9. — REMAINS  OF  BRONZE  BOWL  AND  ENAMELLED  Discs  FOUND  AT  BARLASTON 

211 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

According  to  the  plan  the  knife  would  be  as  usual  at  the  waist,  and  the 
sword,  as  occasionally  elsewhere,8*  beside  the  right  leg. 

Special  interest  is  attached  to  the  discovery  of  an  Anglo-Saxon  jewel  at 
a  point  between  the  burials  of  the  north-east  and  Barlaston.  The  latter  site 
now  appears  to  be  an  outpost  of  the  community  centred  in  the  Peak  district, 
and  in  contact  with  the  Celtic  population  which  had  not  been  displaced  by 
the  Teutonic  advance  westward.  Jewellery  of  the  period  is  specially  abun- 
dant in  Derbyshire,  and  extremely  rare  in  the  Trent  valley  cemeteries  already 
noticed,  so  that  the  connexion  is  practically  demonstrated  in  spite  of  the 
absence  of  details  as  to  the  discovery.  All  that  is  known  is  that  in  levelling 
a  hedge  bank  at  Forsbrook,  about  half  a  mile  from  Blyth  Bridge  station  about 
1879,  the  coin-pendant  here  illustrated  (fig.  10)  was  found  by  a  labourer  and 
subsequently  passed  into  the  British  Museum.  Its  excellent  condition  sug- 
gests that  it  accompanied  an  unburnt  burial,  but  nothing  further  was  noticed 
on  the  site  or  in  the  neighbourhood.  The  centre  of  the  pendant  consists  of 
a  gold  casting  from  a  coin  of  the  Emperor  Valentinian  II  (375—92),  but  the 
reverse  is  hidden  by  a  plain  gold  plate  at  the  back,  and  round  the  edge  are 
slight  mouldings  separated  by  two  twisted  strands  of  gold.  The  front  border 
is  inlaid  with  garnets  relieved  by  blue  glass  in  the  semi- 
circular cells,  the  whole  being  a  typical  example  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  cloisonne  work  in  gold.  Some  of  the  settings  are 
now  missing,  both  from  the  border  and  barrel-shaped  loop 
for  suspension,  but  otherwise  the  pendant  is  perfect.  This 
style  of  ornament  is  particularly  common  in  Kent,  where 
the  richest  graves  belong  to  the  sixth  and  early  seventh 
centuries,  and  any  erroneous  conclusions  from  the  inclosed 
coin  of  the  Staffordshire  specimen  may  be  avoided  by 

FIG.    10.  —  COIN-PEN-  r  ,  1-1  •         i          «        • 

DANT,  FORSBROOK  (*)  reference  to  other  examples  in  the  national  collection. 
Thus  a  pendant  from  Bacton,  Norfolk,  which  bears  a 
striking  resemblance  to  it,  incloses  a  coin  of  the  Emperor  Mauritius 
(582-602)  ;  and  a  jewelled  cross  from  Wilton,  in  the  same  county,  with 
a  coin  of  Heraclius  and  Heraclius  Constantine  (6 1 0-4 1 ) ,34a  must  be  of 
about  the  same  date,  though  of  somewhat  finer  workmanship.  That  the 
coins  of  earlier  emperors  were  utilized  in  the  seventh  century  is  shown  by  a 
somewhat  plainer  pendant,  of  the  same  type  as  that  from  Forsbrook,  contain- 
ing a  coin  of  Valens  (364—78)  ;  and  one  of  Valentinian  II  was  again  copied 
for  a  bracteate  found  in  England,  and  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The 
embossed  discs  of  gold-foil  that  are  known  under  that  name  are  plentiful  in 
Scandinavia,  and  exceedingly  rare  in  this  country,  but  two  specimens S4b  are 
preserved  from  the  adjoining  county  of  Warwick  ;  and  though  the  choice 
of  a  Valentinian  coin  for  the  design  was  no  doubt  accidental,  everything  points 
to  a  close  agreement  in  date  between  the  bracteates  and  coin-pendants  set 
with  garnets.  Imperial  coins  had  no  doubt  already  become  rare  curiosities 
in  England  when  the  Anglo-Saxon  goldsmith  showed  his  skill  upon  them. 

According  to  the  Ordnance  Survey  map  (6  in.  scale,  xx,  SW.)  a  Saxon 
sword  and   celt  were  found  in    1834  about  a   quarter  mile  west  of  Alton 

84  At  Sibertswold,  Kent  ;  Inventorium  Sepulchrale,  1 18,  124.     The  position  varied,  but  the  left  side  was 
more  usual.  Ma  Both  are  illustrated  in  colours  in  V.C.H.  Norf.  i,  341—2,  figs.  2  and  7  on  plate. 

"b  y.C.H.  Warw.  i,  263-4,  ^gs.  10,  n,  on  coloured  plate. 


212 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

Towers,  near  the  road  from  the  station,  but  the  association  does  not  inspire 
confidence,  and  need  only  be  mentioned.  On  the  same  sheet  is  marked  '  the 
site  of  a  battle  between  the  West  Saxons  and  Mercians  A.D.  716,'  at  Slain 
Hollow,  just  over  a  quarter  mile  east  of  the  mansion.  The  statement  appears 
arbitrary,  but  it  is  possible  that  burials  of  some  kind  on  the  site  have  given 
rise  to  the  name,  and  the  tendency  formerly  was  to  regard  such  a  discovery  as 
proof  of  a  battle  in  the  neighbourhood. 

The  foregoing  survey  of  Anglo-Saxon  remains  in  Staffordshire  may  now 
be  brought  into  touch  with  historical  records,  though  these  refer  mostly  to  a 
period  subsequent  to  that  treated  above.  The  early  history  of  Mercia  is 
even  more  obscure  than  that  of  the  other  kingdoms  that  disputed  the 
hegemony  of  Britain  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  centuries  ;  but  the  date  of 
one  important  event  can  be  decided  within  narrow  limits.  Penda,  who 
came  to  the  throne  in  626,  was  apparently  about  eighty  years  of  age  at 
his  death  in  655.85  He  fell  at  the  battle  of  the  Winwaed  as  the  stubborn 
antagonist  of  Christianity,  and  Oswiu  the  victor  came  into  temporary  pos- 
session of  the  great  dominion  built  up  by  Penda,  installing  the  latter's 
Christian  son  Peada  as  sub-king  of  the  South  Mercians  in  what  is  now 
Leicestershire.  From  that  date  Mercia  officially  professed  the  new  faith, 
and  in  673  the  seal  was  set  to  its  conversion  by  Archbishop  Theodore,  who 
consecrated  St.  Chad  the  first  bishop  of  Lichfield.  The  see  chosen,  about 
nine  miles  from  the  royal  seat  at  Tamworth,  shows  the  political  centre  of 
gravity  at  that  time,  and  marks  the  revival  of  Mercia  under  Penda's  son 
Wulfhere,  who  acceded  to  the  throne  in  659  and  reigned  for  sixteen  eventful 
years.  For  a  century  and  a  half  Mercia  was  the  dominant  power  in  England, 
under  a  succession  of  great  kings  ;  but  its  fortunes  as  a  Christian  power  will 
be  followed  elsewhere,  and  a  few  words  may  now  be  added  as  to  the  part 
played  by  those  early  settlers  whose  remains  are  here  under  discussion. 

The  name  Mercia  is  generally  held  to  mean  the  march  or  border- 
kingdom  ;  and  though  Offa's  Dyke  shows  the  position  of  the  frontier  against 
the  Welsh  or  Britons  in  the  latter  part  of  the  eighth  century,  it  is  certain 
that  two  hundred  years  earlier  the  natives,  who  were  slowly  driven  west  by 
the  English  advance,  retained  a  broad  belt  of  country  to  the  east  of  that 
north-and-south  line.  In  this  connexion  mention  must  be  made  of  the  view 
that  the  battle  of  Fethan-Leag,  mentioned  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle 
under  the  year  584,  was  fought  at  Faddiley  in  Cheshire,  five  miles  west  of 
Nantwich.  This  location  is  supported  by  the  tradition  that  Pengwyrn 
(Shrewsbury)  was  fired  and  Bassa's  churches  (perhaps  Baschurch)  wrecked, 
both  sites  being  on  the  road  north  from  Gloucestershire  ;  but  on  archaeo- 
logical grounds  the  site  of  the  battle  should  rather  be  looked  for  somewhere 
on  the  Warwickshire  Avon  ;  there  was,  in  fact,  a  place  called  Faehhaleah  not 
far  from  Stratford.86 

In  any  case  the  West  Saxons  under  Ceawlin  at  once  retreated  southward, 
and  it  may  be  assumed  that  beyond  Staffordshire,  if  not  along  the  western 
half  of  the  county  itself,  the  Britons  were  in  possession  when  the  Trent  and 
Dove  valleys  were  being  colonized  by  Teutonic  strangers.  The  evident 

33  Green  has  a  note  on  these  dates  :  Making  of  Engl.  (1897),  i,  97  ;  see  also  Chadwick,  Origin  of  the 
Engl.  Nation,  1 6. 

36  Trans.  Bristol  ana"  Glouc.  Anb.  Soc.  (1896-7),  254  ;  V.C.H.  Warm,  i,  252. 

213 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

connexion  between  the  find  at  Barlaston  and  the  series  from  the  north-east 
of  the  county  and  the  opposite  district  of  Derbyshire  has  been  already  noticed  ; 
and  we  cannot  be  far  wrong  in  identifying  the  Dove  valley  colonists  with  the 
Pecsaetan,  or  dwellers  in  the  Peak,  mentioned  in  the  remarkable  list  of  settle- 
ments known  as  the  Tribal  Hidage,  and  dating  from  the  first  half  of  the 
seventh  century.37  These  settlers  were  evidently  accustomed  to  bury  their 
dead  in  the  grave-mounds  or  barrows  of  the  Bronze  period,  but  the  reason 
may  simply  be  that  such  mounds  are  particularly  plentiful  and  conspicuous 
south  of  the  Peak,  and  the  practice  was  by  no  means  confined  to  this  area.88 

The  Pecsaetan  were  evidently  included  in  the  Mercian  kingdom,  but 
the  archaeological  material  is  too  meagre  to  settle  the  question  whether  they 
were  akin  to  the  occupants  of  the  Trent  valley  near  Burton.  The  available 
evidence  points  to  their  isolation,  and  the  frequent  discovery  of  enamels  executed 
in  the  traditional  British  style  points  to  their  close  contact  with  the  native 
element.  Further  investigations  with  regard  to  the  manufacture  and  distri- 
bution of  the  enamelled  bowls  may  eventually  throw  some  light  on  this 
question  of  intercourse. 

In  connexion  with  the  English  occupation  of  this  district,  reference  may 
be  made  to  the  varieties  of  dialect  observed  within  the  county  borders.38" 
East  and  west,  approximately  through  Stone,  runs  the  southern  limit  of  the 
use  of  a  '  suspended  /,  or  a  voiceless  th,  for  the  test-word  the  ;  and  this 
peculiarity  of  pronunciation  suggests  a  somewhat  close  racial  connexion 
between  the  inhabitants  of  the  Potteries  and  those  of  Cheshire,  Derbyshire, 
and  Nottinghamshire,  the  limit  following  roughly  the  line  of  the  Trent 
below  Burton.  Minor  differences  have  also  been  noticed  in  this  group  of 
counties,  and  in  view  of  what  has  been  said  with  regard  to  north  Staffordshire 
and  Derbyshire,  it  is  of  interest  to  find  that  the  dialect  of  Derbyshire  south 
of  Buxton  is  also  heard  along  a  strip  of  north-east  Staffordshire  parallel  to 
the  Dove,  and  bounded  by  a  line  from  Buxton  to  Uttoxeter,  thus  embracing 
practically  all  the  early  burials  apart  from  those  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Burton.  The  latter  is  connected  by  dialect  with  south  Staffordshire,  north 
Warwickshire,  Leicestershire,  and  east  Shropshire. 

It  is  probable  that  the  original  centre  of  Mercia  was  the  Trent  valley 
near  Burton,  and  the  remains  support  the  view  that  these  were  the  most 
westerly  body  of  Angles,  their  kinsmen  (the  Middle  and  South  Angles) 
having  occupied  or  obtained  control  of  that  part  of  the  Midlands  lying 
between  Sherwood  on  the  north  and  Arden  and  Rockingham  Forest  on  the 
south. S9  They  would  thus  be  the  neighbours  of  the  West  Saxons  and  their 
early  allies  the  Hwiccas  of  the  Lower  Severn  ;  but  as  the  southern  kingdom 
declined,  the  Mercians  pressed  south  and  became  the  masters  of  south-east 
England  in  the  days  of  Wulfhere.  This  digression  will  help  to  explain  why 
there  is  much  in  the  original  West  Saxon  area  that  resembles  the  products  of 
Anglian  graves  in  Staffordshire  and  other  parts  of  Mercia  ;  whereas  objects 
distinctively  West  Saxon  are  not  found  in  the  northern  Midlands.  If  there 

37  Trans.  Roy.  Hist.  Soc.  (New  Ser.),  xiv,  191. 

38  An  example  occurred  at  Oldbury,  near  Atherstone,  Warwickshire  (P.C.H.  If  am.  \,  267)  ;  and  many 
are  recorded  from  Yorkshire. 

**•  These  details  are  taken  from  A.  J.  Ellis,  EngRsh  Dialects,  their  Sounds  and  Homes,  7,  90,  92,  101,  and 
map. 

39  For  the  limits  of  Mercia  see  H.  M.  Chadwick,  Origin  of  the  Engl.  Nation,  j. 

214 


ANGLO-SAXON    REMAINS 

was  any  racial  difference  between  Angle  and  Saxon  *°  it  would  naturally  be 
reflected  in  the  archaeological  data. 

It  is  more  than  probable  from  the  map  that  the  Anglian  immigrants 
who  ventured  farthest  west  ascended  the  Trent  and  its  tributaries  ;  but 
another  means  of  access  to  the  interior  must  not  be  overlooked  in  tracing  their 
progress.  There  were  in  the  sixth  century  at  least  two  Roman  military  roads 
available  here  for  crossing  vast  areas  that  would  otherwise  have  remained 
practically  impassable.  Neither  forest  nor  swamp  could  deter  the  Romans, 
and  most  of  their  highways  through  Staffordshire  are  still  in  use  to-day.  The 
Watling  Street,  which  enters  the  county  at  Fazeley,  passes  through  Wall  and 
westward  south  of  Cannock  on  its  way  to  Wroxeter  and  Chester,  in  long 
straight  stretches  ;  and  from  the  south  the  Icknield  (or  Ryknield)  Street 41 
crosses  it  near  Wall  and  then  strikes  north-east  down  the  Trent  valley.  This 
road  would  not  have  materially  assisted  the  newcomers,  but  the  Watling 
Street  communicated  with  the  central  plain  and  London  ;  and,  at  least  in 
later  Anglo-Saxon  times,  was  recognized  as  a  thoroughfare  and  controlled  at 
the  county  border  by  the  stronghold  at  Tamworth  erected  by  ./Ethelflaed 
of  Mercia  in  914.  When  the  West  Saxons  were  pushing  northward  in  the 
sixth  century  both  roads  would  have  been  of  strategical  importance  ;  *2  and  it 
may  have  been  originally  due  to  such  considerations  that  the  Mercian  king 
frequently  resided  at  Tamworth.*3 

What  little  is  known  concerning  the  pagan  or  semi-pagan  settlers  who 
gained  a  footing  in  Staffordshire  in  post-Roman  times  is  derived  from  their 
grave  furniture  and  modes  of  burial  ;  and  it  should  be  observed  that  nothing 
definitely  referring  to  the  Christian  belief  has  been  recovered  from  their 
cemeteries.  Neither  is  there  anything  that  can  be  referred  to  the  fifth 
century,  when  we  may  suppose  the  Roman  tradition  was  still  strong  and  the 
Teutons  were  struggling  to  effect  an  entry  on  the  east.  It  is  therefore  to 
the  sixth  and  early  seventh  centuries  that  these  remains  must  be  attributed, 
and  some  of  the  graves  without  arms  or  ornaments  may  even  be  later,  for 
though  the  priest  may  have  effected  this  reform,  it  was  not  till  the 
middle  of  the  eighth  century  that  the  law  as  to  burial  of  converts  in  the 
consecrated  churchyard  was  rigidly  enforced.  Archaeology  suffers  by  these 
changes,  but  the  pious  then  began  to  found  monasteries  and  secure  charters, 
to  build  stone  churches,  and  place  carved  monuments  over  their  dead.  From 
that  time  forward  history  is  based  on  records  and  enduring  stone. 

10  This  point  is  disputed  by  Mr.  Chadwick,  op.  cit.  88. 

11  The  name  is  discussed  in  V.C.H.  Derb.  \,  246  ;  see  also  Arch.  Journ.  xiv,  102. 

**  Penda  was  at  Cirencester  in  628  ;  Roman  roads  would  have  served  him  all  the  way. 
43  For  details  of  the  position  see  J.  R.  Green,  Conquest  of  Engl.  (1899),  i,  223. 


215 


POLITICAL   HISTORY 


THE    history   of    Staffordshire  from  the    English    invasion    to    the 
Norman    Conquest    is    closely    connected    with    the    history    of 
Mercia.     Staffordshire  was  'Mercia  proper.'1    Tamworth,  though 
never  the  capital  in  the  sense  that  Winchester  was  the  capital  of 
Wessex,  was  the  royal  city  of  the  kingdom,  and  was  the  favourite  dwelling- 
place  of  several  Mercian  kings  ;    Repton   in   Derbyshire  being  their  West- 
minster Abbey. 

There  are  unfortunately  no  peculiarly  Mercian  chronicles  of  early  date, 
and  its  history  has  to  be  pieced  together  from  references  in  West  Saxon  and 
Northumbrian  chronicles,  and  from  charters  and  laws.  Its  founders  were 
the  Angles,  apparently  the  latest  comers  of  the  Low  German  tribes  who  in 
the  first  century  after  Christ  were  living  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Elbe  near 
its  mouth.2 

Whilst  some  of  the  Angles  were  pushing  up  the  Soar  to  what  is  now 
Leicester,  and  others  settling  in  Derbyshire,  more  important  bands  were 
coming  along  the  Fosse  Way  and  up  the  Trent,  who  founded  Tamworth  and 
Lichfield.  For  some  time  their  settlements  seem  to  have  been  confined  to 
the  district  round  these  two  places  and  the  upper  Trent  valley.  West  of 
this  the  wild  moorlands  checked  their  advance,  and  they  gained  from  their 
dwelling  on  the  borderland  between  Angle  and  Welshman  the  name  of 
Mercians  or  men  of  the  March.8 

The  origins  of  Mercian  history  are  involved  in  great  obscurity  ;  all  we 
know  is  that  at  the  end  of  the  sixth  century  the  kingdom  appears  as  a  powerful 
state,  but  it  has  no  distinctly  recorded  founder  or  date  of  origin.*  In  fact  it 
grew  from  the  union  5  of  a  large  number  of  small  and  wholly  independent 
principalities,  in  this  differing  from  the  other  kingdoms.6 

Crida,  whose  pedigree  was  traced  from  Woden,  is  the  first  Mercian 
chief  mentioned  in  the  documents  that  remain  to  us,  and  is  conjectured  by 
Henry  of  Huntingdon  to  have  been  the  first  king,7  but  Penda,  who  began  to 
reign  in  626,  seems  to  have  been  the  earliest  who  can  claim  the  title  without 
question.8  Penda  was  a  sturdy  heathen,  and  came  nearer  to  uniting  the  whole 
of  England  under  one  sceptre  than  any  king  before  Egbert,  but  at  last,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Winwaed  in  655,  he  was  defeated  by  Oswy  of  Northumbria 
and  killed. 

1  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  i,  123. 

*  Hodgkin,  Political  Hist.  ofEngl.  \,  80.     For  further  particulars  on  this  subject  see  the  article  on  'Anglo- 
Saxon  Remains.' 

*  Green,  Making  ofEngl.  85.  *  Freeman,  Norman  Conq.  i,  25. 

5  As  the  name  Mercia  was  extended  to  the  whole  of  central  England  it  must  have  lost  its  original  signi- 
fication. 

6  Freeman,  'Norman  Conq.  \,  26-7.  r  Hist.  Angl.  (Rolls  Ser.),  53. 

8  Turner,  Hist,  of  Anglo-Saxons,  i,  354.  ;  William  of  Malmesbury,  Gesta  Reg.  (Rolls  Ser.),  76. 

I  217  28 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

His  death  was  of  great  importance  to  Mercia,  for  it  removed  the  great 
obstacle  to  the  spread  of  Christianity  in  the  kingdom,  which  had  already 
begun  in  the  marriage  of  Penda's  son  Paeda  to  Oswy's  daughter. 

After  the  victory  of  the  Winwaed  Oswy  was  virtually  master  of  Mercia. 
His  son-in-law  Paeda  was  under-king  of  the  portion  of  the  kingdom  south  of 
the  Trent,  but  he  apparently  kept  Northern  Mercia  in  his  own  hands.9 
Paeda  did  not  enjoy  even  this  limited  authority  for  long,  as  next  year  he  was 
murdered,  and  in  658  Oswy  was  expelled  and  Wulfhere  reigned  once  more 
over  an  independent  Mercia. 

From  the  time  of  Wulfhere  dates  the  bishopric  of  Lichfield.  The 
first  three  Mercian  bishops  had  no  cathedral,  no  'sedes,'  they  were  missionaries; 
but  St.  Chad,  the  great  bishop,  whom  Wilfrid  recommended  to  Wulfhere, 
fixed  his  head  quarters,  and  built  a  small  church  and  monastery  near  the 
junction  of  Ryknield  and  Wading  Streets  in  669,10  a  centre  which  would 
give  him  easy  access  in  every  direction  into  his  province. 

The  Mercian  kings  of  the  end  of  the  seventh  and  the  beginning  of  the 
eighth  century  are  not  of  great  importance,  and  do  not  concern  our  county 
history  except  that  Ceolred,  who  died  in  716,  was  buried  at  Lichfield,11  but 
from  his  death  dates  the  period  of  the  greatest  glory  of  the  kingdom  under 
the  two  long  reigns  of  Ethelbald  and  Offa,  when  it  seemed  as  if  the  consoli- 
dation of  England  was  to  be  worked  out  by  Mercia  instead  of  Wessex,  and  as 
if  Lichfield  rather  than  Winchester  or  London  would  be  the  capital  of 
England.  But  Mercia  at  the  end  of  Ethelbald's  reign  sustained  a  grievous 
defeat  at  Burford  at  the  hands  of  Wessex,  and  her  supremacy  over  that 
kingdom  then  apparently  passed  away  for  ever. 

His  successor  Offa,  who  reigned  from  757  to  796,  loomed  more  largely 
in  the  eyes  of  his  European  contemporaries  than  any  previous  king  in 
Britain.  Hadrian  I,  writing  to  Charles  the  Great,  calls  Offa  '  rex  Anglorum,' 
and  Charles  himself,  in  his  famous  letter,  writes  as  '  the  king  of  the  Eastern 
Christians,'  to  the  '  mightiest  king  of  the  Western  Christians.' 

Offa,  like  many  of  the  Mercian  kings,  was  fond  of  the  fertile  valleys  of 
the  Dove  and  the  Trent ;  indeed,  it  was  in  such  districts  that  nearly  all  the 
ancient  towns  that  attained  greatness  were  built,  provided  they  also  afforded 
means  of  defence  and  commanded  the  country  around.  Tamworth  enjoyed 
all  these  advantages,  and  is  called  by  Offa  in  a  grant  of  land  to  Worcester 
Cathedral,  dated  781,'  his  royal  palace.' 12 

Cenwulf,  the  successor  of  Offa,  maintained  the  greatness  of  Mercia  for  a 
time,  but  in  827  the  kingdom  had  to  submit  to  Egbert,  and  though  retaining 
her  own  kings,  they  were  only  under-kings  who  received  their  crowns  from 
their  West  Saxon  overlords.13 

The  kings  of  Mercia,  under  the  overlordship  of  Wessex,  continued  to 
hold  their  Witans,  and  there  is  a  record  of  one  held  at  Tamworth  in  840  by 
Berhtwulf  on  Easter  Day,  but  the  business  transacted  there  did  not  concern 
Staffordshire.1* 

Between  872  and  875  the  Vikings  marched  through  Mercia,  dethroned 
Burhred,  who  retired  to  Rome,  and  set  up  a  puppet  Ceolwulf  in  his  stead. 

•  Hodgkin,  Political  Hist,  of  Engl.  i,  173.  10  Bede,  Hist.  Eccl.  iv,  3. 

11  Henry  of  Huntingdon,  Hist.  Angl.  (Rolls  Ser.),  in.  "  Birch,  Cart.  Sax.  i,  334. 

11  Freeman,  Norman  Conq.  (ed.  2),  i,  40.  "  Birch,  Cart.  Sax.  ii,  4-5. 

2l8 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

They  settled  at  Repton  in  874,  and  from  there  subdued  the  whole  of  the 
surrounding  country,15  destroying  and  plundering  Tamworth  and  Stafford. 

When  the  Treaty  of  Wedmore  put  an  end  for  a  time  to  this  ruinous 
war,  Watling  Street  may  be  taken  as  the  practical  boundary  between  the 
Danelaw  and  Alfred's  dominion.18  Staffordshire  therefore  was  divided 
between  the  two,  the  northern  and  central  portions  going  to  the  Danes,  the 
southern  to  Alfred.  How  far  did  the  Danes  fill  up  the  district  assigned  to 
them  ?  This  unfortunately  is  a  question  which  as  yet  we  have  not  sufficient 
materials  to  answer  definitely.  Our  best  guide  is  that  of  place-names,  the 
commonest  Danish  terminations  being  'by,'  'thorpe,'  and  'toft,'  and  according 
to  this  test  the  Danes  hardly  left  any  permanent  trace  in  Staffordshire. 

The  contest  soon  broke  out  again.  The  Danes,  thrown  back  from  the 
Continent  by  a  great  defeat  at  Louvain,  turned  their  attention  to  England 
with  renewed  vigour,  and  were  assisted  by  their  brethren  of  the  Danelaw. 
A  terrible  internal  struggle  was  waged  all  along  the  boundary,  Watling 
Street,17  and  must  have  involved  Staffordshire. 

However,  a  deliverer  was  at  hand.  In  910  Edward  the  Elder  met  the 
Danes  at  Tettenhall,18  and  defeated  them,  and  from  this  time  the  Viking  host 
was  steadily  pushed  eastwards.  The  chief  credit  for  the  conquest  of  Danish 
Mercia  must  be  given  to  Edward's  '  manlike  sister,'  Ethelfleda,  the  '  lady  of 
the  Mercians.'  The  daughter  of  a  Mercian  princess  and  married  to  one  who 
was  probably  connected  with  the  royal  line  of  Offa,  she  is  one  of  the  most 
capable  women  in  English  history.  After  her  husband's  death  in  911  she 
won  the  '  love  and  loyalty  of  the  Mercian  people  in  an  astonishing  degree 
and  wielded  the  warlike  resources  of  the  Midland  Kingdom  with  wonderful 
energy  and  success.'19  Her  plan  of  campaign  was  to  build  a  '  burh  '  in  the 
hostile  territory  and  hold  it  against  all  comers  till  the  surrounding  country 
was  entirely  subdued. 

In  the  year  9  i  3 

God  granting,  Ethelfleda,  lady  of  the  Mercians,  went  with  all  the  Mercians  to  Tnmworth, 
and  built  the  burh  there  in  the  early  summer,  and  before  the  following  Lammas  (Aug.  i) 
that  at  Stafford.  Then  in  the  year  after  this  that  at  Eddisbury  in  the  early  summer.20 

The  short  time  occupied  in  the  building  shows  that  the  burhs  must  have 
been  of  very  elementary  construction.  The  burhs  at  Tamworth  and  Stafford 
are  an  excellent  instance  of  the  military  genius  of  this  warlike  woman,  as  they 
blocked  the  way  along  the  Trent  and  Watling  Street,  which  the  Danes 
used  in  order  to  effect  a  junction  with  their  Irish  brethren  at  Chester. 

Ethelfleda  died  at  the  Tamworth  burh  which  she  had  built,  in  918,  and 
was  buried  at  Gloucester.21  Her  precise  relationship  with  her  royal  brother 
Edward  is  hard  to  define.  She  fought,  made  treaties,  and  governed  with 
apparently  entire  independence,  but  she  is  always  described  as  '  lady,'  never 
as  '  queen.'  Probably  Edward  was  her  '  mund— bora,' 23  or  protector,  and 

11  Angl.-Sax.  Chron  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  63.  "  Hodgkin,  op.  cit.  i,  315.  "  Ibid,  i,  309. 

"  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  77.  Symeon  of  Dur.  Hist.  Reg.  112  (Rolls  Ser.),  and  Flor.  of  Wore. 
Chron.  i,  izo,  say  911. 

**  Hodgkin,  op.  cit.  i,  321. 

K  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  78-9.  Matt.  Paris,  Chron.  Maj.  (Rolls  Ser.),  i,  443,  says  she 
restored  Tamworth  and  the  tower  at  Stafford,  no  doubt  referring  to  the  fact  that  they  had  lain  in  ruins 
since  874. 

11  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  81.  "  Hodgkin,  op.  cit.  i,  322-  3. 

219 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

knowing  her  capacity  allowed  her  the  widest  discretion,  but  not  absolute 
independence. 

In  the  midst  of  so  much  warfare  it  is  pleasant  to  be  able  to  turn  for  a 
moment  to  a  work  of  construction  in  which  the  creation  of  the  county  of 
Stafford  formed  part.  Mercia,  during  its  existence  as  a  kingdom,  was 
arranged  in  five  regions,  none  of  which  bore  the  name  of  shire,  one  of  them 
being  '  Mercia  proper  with  its  bishopric  of  Lichfield  and  its  royal  city  of 
Tamworth.'23  These  five  regions  represent  the  early  settlements  out  of  which 
the  Mercian  kingdom  was  created  by  Penda  and  his  immediate  predecessors, 
and  which  Theodore  of  Tarsus  arranged  as  dioceses  before  their  several 
nationality  had  been  forgotten.  After  the  reconquest  from  the  Danes  they 
were  rearranged  as  shires  and  named  after  their  chief  towns  by  Edward  the 
Elder,8*  and  in  this  they  differed  from  the  counties  of  Wessex,  which  keep  to 
this  day  the  names  and  boundaries  of  the  principalities  founded  by  the  first 
successors  of  Cerdic. 

In  the  year  924  Edward  the  Elder  died  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
Athelstan  '  the  glorious,'  who,  shortly  after  he  came  to  the  throne,  had  an 
interview  with  Sihtric,  the  Danish  king  of  the  Northumbrians,  at  Tarn- 
worth.25  There  Athelstan  gave  him  his  sister  in  marriage,  in  return  for 
which  Sihtric  probably  promised  to  become  a  Christian,  but  he  is  said  to 
have  repudiated  both  wife  and  religion  before  his  death  in  the  next  year. 

Edmund  his  brother  succeeded  Athelstan  in  940. 

In  the  first  year  of  Edmund's  reign  Anlaf  (Sihtric's  son)  after  besieging  Hamton  without 
result  turned  his  army  towards  Tamworth,  and  having  laid  waste  the  surrounding  country 
met  Edmund  with  his  army.  But  there  was  no  battle,  for  the  two  archbishops  appeased 
both  kings  and  prevented  it,  and  peace  was  accordingly  made.26 

This  peace  lasted  about  a  year,  for  in  943  Anlaf '  took  Tamworth  by  storm 
and  great  slaughter  was  made  on  either  side,  and  the  Danes  had  the  victory 
and  led  away  great  booty  with  them.' 27 

On  Edmund's  approach,  however,  they  retired  to  Leicester,  and  in  944 
Anlaf  was  driven  out  of  Northumbria  and  appears  no  more  on  the  scene.28 

In  957  England  was  divided  between  Edwy  and  Edgar,  owing  to  the 
dissatisfaction  of  the  people  with  the  former's  misgovernment,  and  Mercia, 
including  of  course  Staffordshire,  was  again  separated  from  Wessex  and 
given  to  Edgar,29  but  as  Edwy  died  in  959  the  arrangement  was  short-lived. 

In  987  the  Danes  commenced  anew  series  of  invasions,  and  Mercia  was 
ruled  at  this  time  by  two  men  whose  traitorous  conduct  is  one  of  the  puzzles 
of  our  history,  Elfric  and  Edric  '  Streona,'  who  did  their  best  to  render  the 
resistance  of  England  futile  and  the  task  of  the  Danes  easy. 

Staffordshire,  however,  seems  for  some  time  to  have  escaped  the  terrible 
ravages  which  the  rest  of  the  country  now  suffered,  but  in  1013  Edmund 
Ironside  and  Uhtred  of  Northumbria  ravaged  Shropshire,  Cheshire,  and 
Staffordshire,  because  those  counties  had  refused  to  help  them  against  the 
Danes.30 

*  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  i,  123.  "  Ibid. 

"  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  85.  M  Symeon  of  Dur.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  93. 

"  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  89.  *8  Hodgkin,  op.  cit.  i,  340. 

"  Matt.  Paris,  Chron.  Maj.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  460. 

30  Freeman,  Norman  Cony.  \,  415,  and  Roger  of  Hoveden,  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  i,  80. 


22O 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

In  that  year31  the  character  of  the  Viking  invasions  changed,  and  a 
period  of  regular  and  systematic  conquest  under  Sweyn  and  his  son  Canute 
set  in.  In  three  years  Staffordshire  changed  kings  three  times:  for  in  1013 
it  submitted  with  the  rest  of  England  to  Sweyn;  on  his  death,  with  the  whole 
country,  it  reverted  to  Ethelred;  and  in  1016,  on  the  division  of  the  country 
at  Olney,  it  went  with  the  rest  of  Mercia  to  Canute. 

In  the  same  year,  just  before  the  treaty,  both  Canute  and  Edmund  harried, 
burned,  and  slew  in  the  county.82 

The  career  of  the  traitor  Edric  Streona  was  cut  short  by  Canute,  and 
he  was  succeeded  as  earl,  for  so  the  ealdormen  were  now  called,  of  Mercia 
by  Leofwine,  who  in  turn  was  followed  by  his  famous  son  Leofric.  He  died 
at  Bromley  in  Staffordshire  in  1057,  and  after  Elfgar  had  been  earl  a  few 
years  Edwin,  the  last  earl  of  Mercia,  succeeded  him  some  time  between 
1062  and  1065,  and  is  of  interest  to  us  as  many  of  his  estates  lay  in  the 
county.83 

On  his  death  the  earldom  of  Mercia  came  to  an  end,  and  its  last  earl 
cannot  be  said  to  have  dignified  that  end.  For  though  he  had  high  birth,  a 
handsome  person,  and  winning  manners,  added  to  the  piety  of  the  age,  he 
was  politically  worthless.84  When  Harold  Hardrada  sailed  up  the  Tyne  he 
left  the  coast  unguarded  ;  when  Harold  the  son  of  Godwine  was  marching 
south  to  fight  William  he  hung  back.  He  was  one  of  the  first  to  yield  to 
William,  yet  he  rebelled  against  the  Conqueror,  though  his  heart  failed  him 
before  a  blow  was  struck  ;  while  his  second  attempt  was  futile  and  ended  in 
his  assassination,  according  to  the  English  account,  by  his  own  men. 

His  estates  went  into  various  hands,  the  king  kept  the  lion's  share,  while 
many  went  to  found  the  two  palatinate  earldoms  of  Chester  and  Shrews- 
bury.86 

We  have  now  reached  '  the  turning  point  of  English  history.'  England 
seemed  conquered  by  the  battle  of  Hastings,  but  after  a  brief  lull  a  series  of 
isolated  risings  took  place,  which  were  beaten  in  detail  by  William. 

In  1069,  when  the  Danes  and  English  took  York,  Staffordshire  and 
Shropshire  broke  out  in  revolt,  probably  at  the  instigation  of  Edwin.  This 
district  must  have  been  imperfectly  subdued  up  to  this  time.  Both  town 
and  county  paid  dearly  for  their  outbreak,  for  William  in  his  northward 
march  conquered  them  ;  and  the  huge  confiscations,  which  were  always  great 
in  proportion  to  the  resistance  to  his  rule,  show  that  the  patriotism  of  the 
Staffordshire  men  had  led  to  a  vigorous  contest  that  was  punished  with 
merciless  severity.86 

In  the  next  year  occurred  William's  celebrated  winter  march  from  York  to 
Chester,  and,  provoked  by  the  stern  resistance  he  met  then,  the  neighbouring 
counties,  including  Staffordshire,  were  fearfully  ravaged  ;  '  men  young  and 
old,  women  and  children,  wandered  as  far  south  as  the  abbey  of  Evesham  in 
quest  of  a  morsel  of  bread.' "  It  was  probably  at  this  time  that,  according 
to  his  custom,  William  built  the  castle  in  the  town  of  Stafford,  which  was 

11  It  should  be  mentioned  that  Holinshed  fixes  the  scene  of  the  opening  of  the  massacre  of  St.  Brice's  Day 
at  Houndhill,  five  miles  from  Tutbury. 

"  Angl.-Sax.  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  121.  "  Eyton,  Staffs.  Domesday,  32. 

"  Freeman,  Norman  Cony,  iv,  182.  35  Eyton,  Staffs.  Domesday,  32. 

*  Freeman,  Norman  Conq.  (ed.  4),  iv,  282.  "  Ibid,  iv,   315. 

221 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

destroyed  before  the  end  of  his  reign,  and  at  the  date  of  Domesday  lay  in 


rums.88 


The  displacement  of  the  original  landowners  of  the  county  after  the 
Conquest  was  very  thorough,  no  doubt  aggravated  by  the  resistance  of  1069 
and  1070.  At  the  time  when  the  commissioners  of  the  Domesday  Survey 
visited  the  county  something  like  half  was  woodland,  and  generally  speaking  it 
was  thinly  inhabited,  incapable  of  ordinary  taxation,  and  badly  stocked.  At 
this  time  the  greatest  landowners  in  the  county  beside  the  king  were,  first 
of  all,  Robert  de  Tocni,  afterwards  called  de  Stafford,  who  took  his  name 
almost  certainly  from  Stafford,  of  which  he  was  governor.  All  that  he  held 
in  the  county  had  belonged  to  its  last  Saxon  earl,  Edwin,  and  he  was  the 
largest  lay  owner.  He  was  the  younger  son  of  Roger  de  Toeni,  the  hereditary 
standard-bearer  of  the  Conqueror,  but  in  spite  of  his  descent  and  his  great 
possessions  he  was  not  granted  the  dignity  and  power  of  an  earldom.  This 
Robert  de  Stafford  was  the  founder  of  the  great  house  of  Stafford,  whose 
descendants  in  the  fifteenth  century  became  dukes  of  Buckingham,  and 
perhaps  the  greatest  landowners  in  England.  Next  to  him  came  Roger  of 
Montgomery  Earl  of  Shropshire,  one  of  the  four  great  palatine  earldoms.39 
Then  came  William  Fitz  Anculf,  the  owner,  among  other  fiefs,  of  Dudley 
Castle,  of  whom  nothing  is  known  except  that  his  entire  barony  came  into  the 
possession  of  Fulke  Paynel,  who  probably  married  Fitz  Anculf's  heiress.*0 
Henry  de  Ferrers,  who  built  Tutbury  Castle,  was  one  of  the  commissioners 
of  the  Domesday  Survey.  His  estates  were  more  compact  than  those  of 
most  of  the  great  nobles,  whose  holdings  were  split  up  partly  by  the  policy 
of  the  Conqueror  and  partly  by  the  scattered  nature  of  the  lands  of  their 
Anglo-Saxon  predecessors.  Hugh  de  Montgomery,  one  of  the  sons  of  Earl 
Roger,  and  Richard  Forester  also  held  estates  in  the  county.41 

Some  lands  still  remained  in  the  possession  of  Saxon  thegns,  and  eccle- 
siastical landowners  had  a  goodly  share,  the  Bishop  of  Chester  being  the  largest, 
while  the  others  were  the  abbots  of  Westminster  and  Burton,  the  French 
abbey  of  Saint  Remy  at  Rheims,  and  the  canons  of  Stafford  and  Handone 
( Wolverhampton) . 

The  castles  mentioned  at  Tutbury  and  Dudley  were  most  probably  like 
other  castles  of  this  period,  of  very  simple  construction,  and  the  name  does 
not  necessarily  imply  even  the  use  of  stone  in  their  construction. 

After  its  terrible  experience  in  the  early  part  of  the  Conqueror's  reign 
Staffordshire  had  peace  till  1102,  in  which  year  the  great  house  of  Mont- 
gomery was  in  arms  against  Henry  I.  Robert  of  Belleme,  another  of  the 
sons  of  Roger  of  Montgomery,  forestalled  Henry's  summons  to  answer  for 
his  share  in  Duke  Robert's  invasion  the  preceding  year  '*  by  gathering  an 
army  of  Welsh  and  Normans.  With  these  he  and  his  brother  Arnold  laid 
waste  part  of  Staffordshire,  and  thence  carried  off  many  horses  and  other 
animals  and  some  men  into  Wales.43 

At  this  time  we  find  Stafford  Castle,  evidently  a  successor  of  that  which 
had  so  short  a  life  in  the  reign  of  William  I,  in  the  hands  of  the  king  under 
William  Pantulf  as  its  governor  ;  and  the  castle,  garrisoned  by  200  men-at- 

13  Freeman,  Norman  Cmq.  iv,  318.  M  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  i,  294. 

40  Coll.  for  a  Hiit.  of  Staffs.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  ix  (2),  6.  "  Eyton,  Staffs.  Domesday,  chap.  4. 

"  Davis,  Engl.  under  Normans  and  Angevins,  124.  °  Roger  of  Hoveden,  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  i,  159. 

222 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

arms,  was  a  royal  base  of  operations  against  Belleme,44  whose  castles  of  Bridg- 
north  and  Shrewsbury  were  captured  and  he  himself  driven  to  Normandy. 
The  downfall  of  this  man,  one  of  the  worst  examples  of  the  turbulent  Norman 
barons,  was  hailed  in  England  with  delight.45  His  life  was  spared,  but  his 
English  domains,  which  included  large  estates  in  Staffordshire,  were  confis- 
cated. The  royal  castle  after  this  declined  in  importance,  and  like  many 
others  degenerated  into  a  gaol,  though  it  was  occasionally  dignified  with  the 
name  of  castle,  even  as  late  as  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.46 

The  government  of  Henry  I,  '  the  Lion  of  Righteousness,'  though 
strong  and  just,  was  severe,  and  the  chroniclers  of  the  time  frequently  bewail 
the  taxation  which  was  '  not  so  burdensome  by  its  weight  as  by  its  regular 
and  inevitable  incidence.' 47 

From  the  report  of  the  sheriff  of  Staffordshire  it  appears  that  the  annual 

ferm  of  the  county,  that  is   the   amount   arising  from  the  king's   demesnes, 

territorial    rights,    and   profits   from  judicial   proceedings,  was   in   the   years 

1129—30   about   £127    i6j.   jd,  in   ordinary   or   unpurified  money.      Before 

rendering  his  account  the  sheriff  had  to   discharge   the   king's   debts   in   the 

county  by  paying   the   royal   benefactions   to   religious   houses,  providing  for 

/  the  maintenance  of  the  stock  on  crown  lands,  the  costs  of  public  business,  of 

provisions   supplied  to   the   court,  and   the   travelling   expenses   of  the    king 

;  within  his  district.48 

When  doing  so  at  Michaelmas,  i  130,  among  the  items  with  which  the 
sheriff  of  Staffordshire  charged  the  king  is  £4  ios.  paid  for  mead  and  ale  in 
supply  of  a  royal  corrody  (allowance  for  food),  showing  that  the  king  had 
recently  visited  the  county.49  The  Danegeld,  the  next  most  important  item  in 
the  sheriffs  account,  and  the  most  unpopular — for  out  of  it  he  probably  made 
his  greatest  profit — amounted  in  1130  to  £44  is.,  that  is,  2s.  per  hide  on 
440!  hides,  a  large  area  of  Staffordshire  being  ingeldable  by  prescription. 
The  rate  at  which  the  county  was  assessed  for  this  purpose  works  out  at  a^out 
one  twenty-seventh  of  £1  to  the  square  mile,  a  very  low  rate,  as  the  normal 
rate  per  square  mile  was  about  one-seventh  of  £i.  This,  however,  was 
not  altogether  an  indication  of  poverty,  especially  when  we  allow  for  the 
large  portion  of  ingeldable  land,  for  the  rich  county  of  Kent  was  assessed 
at  one-fifteenth,  and  it  is  almost  certain  that  the  assessment  differed 
according  to  the  polity  of  the  ancient  kingdoms  out  of  which  England 
had  been  formed.60 

The  most  heavily  assessed  counties,  for  instance,  were  those  of  Wessex, 
and  Shropshire,  part  of  which  belonged  to  Wessex,  was  twice  as  heavily 
assessed  as  its  neighbour  Staffordshire.61  At  Michaelmas,  1 156,  the  ferm  had 
increased  considerably  in  amount,  and  among  the  deductions  is  £29  1 8j.  for 
restocking  all  the  royal  manors  in  Staffordshire.63 

In  the  wars  of  Stephen's  reign  the  eastern  half  of  England  was  nominally 
for  the  king  and  the  western  for  Maud,  but  really  the  former  controlled  little 
more  than  the  counties  round  London,  and  the  latter  Gloucestershire  and  the 

"  Eyton,  Staffs.  Domesday,  20.  "  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  i,  334. 

46  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii  (2),  8.     The  collections  made  by  this  society  must  be  gratefully  acknow- 
ledged as  giving  most  valuable  assistance  to  the  writer  of  this  article. 
"  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  i,  339.  48  Ibid.  411. 

"  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  i,  5.  w  Round,  feud.  Engl.  95. 

"  Ibid.  96.  "  Call.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  i,  21. 

223 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

neighbouring  parts.  The  rest  of  the  country  was  a  scene  of  anarchy  and 
feuds  between  rival  nobles.  Of  the  great  men  of  Staffordshire  Robert  de 
Ferrers,  the  third  and  surviving  son  of  Henry  de  Ferrers  the  Domesday 
commissioner,  raised  a  body  of  men  from  the  country  round  his  castle  of 
Tutbury  and  from  Derbyshire  to  assist  in  defeating  the  Scots  at  Northallerton 
in  1 1 38,"  and  for  his  valour  was  made  an  earl  by  Stephen.  It  should  not  be 
forgotten  that  the  creation  of  earls  by  both  Stephen  and  Maud  was  an 
expedient  for  strengthening  their  respective  parties,  and  it  is  possible  that 
the  frequent  changing  of  sides  which  marked  the  struggle  may  have  been 
caused  by  the  desire  of  these  newly-created  nobles  to  obtain  confirmation  of 
their  titles  from  both  competitors.64 

One  staunch  supporter  in  Staffordshire  Stephen  had  in  the  person  of 
Robert  Marmion,  the  lord  of  Tamworth  Castle."  When  the  king  was  taken 
prisoner  at  Lincoln  his  estates  were  given  by  the  victorious  Maud  to  Sir 
William  de  Beauchamp,  but  Sir  Robert  was  loyal  in  spite  of  adversity,  and 
fighting  against  the  Earl  of  Chester  at  Coventry  met  his  death  by  a  curious 
accident.  Matthew  Paris  describes  him  as  a  warlike  man,68  who  had  expelled 
the  monks  of  Coventry  from  their  church  and  made  a  castle  of  it,  and  falling 
into  one  of  the  ditches  which  he  had  dug  for  its  protection,  he  broke  his 
thigh  and  was  dispatched  by  a  common  soldier  as  he  lay  helpless.67 

Ralph  Paynel  of  Dudley,  the  son  of  Fulke  Paynel,  who  is  thought  to 
have  married  Fitz  Anculf  s  heiress,  fortified  the  castle  against  Stephen,  who 
besieged  it,  and  '  having  burnt  the  country  around  and  taken  a  great  booty  of 
animals,  he  went  on  against  Shrewsbury  Castle.' 68  Gervase  Paynel,  too, 
Ralph's  son,  held  Ludlow  against  the  king. 

The  evils  of  '  uncurbed  feudalism  '  during  Stephen's  reign  of  anarchy 
made  the  law  and  order  enforced  by  Henry  II  additionally  welcome.  His 
activity  in  carrying  out  his  reforms  caused  him  to  exercise  a  close  superin- 
tendence over  his  officers,  and  between  1155  and  1 157  he  was  three  or  four 
times  in  Staffordshire.  In  1158  he  came  to  Tamworth  with  a  considerable 
train,  among  whom  was  Thomas  Becket  the  chancellor,  and  they  were  the 
guests  of  Robert  Marmion  at  Tamworth  Castle.  But  the  great  measures 
which  were  the  glory  of  Henry's  reign  found  no  favour  with  the  baronage, 
who  saw  their  own  influence  limited  by  them,  and  in  1173  they  formed  a 
vast  conspiracy,  finding  in  the  discontent  of  the  king's  sons  a  sufficient 
pretext.  The  revolt,  though  unsuccessful  in  1173,  was  renewed  next  year. 
But  Henry  had  the  support  of  the  Church,  the  towns,  the  mass  of  the  people, 
and  the  new  official  class,  and  by  August  the  rebellion  was  over  and  the 
castles  of  the  rebels  were  surrendered  one  by  one  with  little  resistance,  among 
them  being  Tutbury.69  Robert  de  Ferrers  had  assisted  in  the  burning  of 
Nottingham,  and  was  then  besieged  by  the  Welsh  at  Tutbury,  but  on  the 
approach  of  Henry's  army  he  went  to  Northampton  and  there  submitted  to 

a  Dugdale,  Baronage,  i,  259.  M  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  i,  391. 

55  This  Robert  was  the  son  of  Roger  Marmion,  who  had  probably  been  given  the  forfeited  estates  of  Robert 
Dispensator  by  Henry  I. 

M  Cbron.  Maj.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  177. 

57  Dugdale,  Baronage,  i,  376.    Round,  Feud.  Engl.    195,  does  not  allow   the  disinterestedness  of  Robert 
Marmion  ;  he  says,  '  in  their  rivalry  for  Tamworth  the  Marmions  embraced  the  cause  of  Stephen,  and  the 
Beauchamps  that  of  Maud,  their  variance  being  terminated  under  Henry  II  by  a  matrimonial  alliance.' 

58  Flor.  of  Wore.  Cbron.  (Engl.  Hist.  Soc.),  ii,  no. 
"  Roger  of  Hoveden,  Cbron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  65. 

224 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

the  king.60  Gervase  Paynel  also  took  part  in  the  rebellion,  and  for  his  share 
in  it  his  castle  of  Dudley  was  demolished.61 

In  1 175  Henry  was  again  in  Staffordshire,  and  when  at  Lichfield  on  his 
way  to  Nottingham,  pleas  were  held  there  by  William  Fitz  Ralph,  Bertram 
de  Verdon,  and  William  Basset  in  Curia  Regis.62 

The  possessions  of  the  crown  all  over  England  had  been  considerably 
diminished  during  the  reign  of  Stephen,  who  had  granted  many  estates  in 
order  to  obtain  the  support  of  those  whom  he  thus  favoured,  and  none  of 
Henry  IPs  acts  was  more  unpopular  with  the  barons  than  his  command  that 
the  royal  demesnes  bestowed  by  the  late  king  should  be  restored.63  The 
estates  of  the  crown  in  Staffordshire  in  the  reign  of  Henry  II  consisted  of — 

(a)  Such  manors  as  having  been  in  the  crown  or  in  the  Earl  of  Mercia 
before  the  Conquest   remained  in  the  crown  at  the  date  of  Domesday,  and 
came  into  Henry's  hands  as  ancient  demesne  or  ancient  escheat,  and  composed 
his  ferm  of  the  county :  M  Trentham,  Penkridge,  Wednesbury,  Walsall,  Wig- 
ginton,   Kingswinford    and   Clent,    Tettenhall,    Tarbeck,   Alrewas,    Bromley 
Regis,    Rugeley     and     Cannock,    Meretown,    Wolverhampton,     Willenhall, 
Bilston,  Rowley   Regis,  Wolstanton,  Penkhall,  Leek.      Between  the  date  of 
Domesday  and  the  accession  of  Henry  II,  Trentham,  Wolstanton,  and  Leek 
had   been   given   to  the   Earls  of  Chester,   but  the  grants  were  revoked  by 
Henry. 

(b]  Estates  of  ancient  demesne  or  escheat  which  were  never  incorporated 
in  the  ferm  of  the  county,  but  were  given  in  charge  to  bailiffs,  fermors,  and 
trustees  other  than  the  sheriff :   Borough  of  Stafford,  Half  borough  of  Tam- 
worth,  Kinver,  Cannock  and  its  forest,  Newcastle-under-Lyme,  Hopwas. 

(c)  Another  kind  of  crown  estate  consisted  either  in  the  ferm  of  manors 
which   had  been   severed  from  the  king's  demesnes  and  granted  to  fermors 
before  the  accession  of  Henry  II,  or  in   the  extra  values  placed  upon   estates 
of  ancient  demesne  or  ancient  escheat  after  his  accession,  these  were  :  Brome, 
Stafford    Mill,    Stafford   Smithy,   Rowley   Regis,    Cradley    Mill,    Trentham 
Market,  Walsall,  (Clent,  Kingswinford,  Meretown  had   a  collective  ferm  set 
upon  them),  Alrewas,  a  house  in  Stafford  which  had  belonged  to  Walter  the 
Provost,  who  had  been  outlawed  in  1 175  and  his  house  seized  by  the  sheriff 
as  an  escheat  of  the  crown. 

(d]  Escheated  '  tainlands  '  which  were  always  waste,  and  in   the  king's 
hands  because  no  one  had  wanted  them. 

At  the  same  time  the  estates  of  the  Earl  of  Chester  in  the  county 
probably  comprised  the  following  :  Chartley,  Sandon,  Eiford,  Drayton, 
Pattingham,  Leek,  Endon,  Rudyard,  The  Rushtons,  Alton.66 

From  1184  the  see  of  Lichfield66  was  occupied  by  a  man  who,  like 
many  of  the  ecclesiastics  of  that  age,  was  also  a  keen  politician  and  man  of 
affairs,  Hugh  of  Nonant,  who  combined  the  parts  of  bishop,  soldier,  justiciary, 

60  Matt.  Paris,  Chrtm.  Maj.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  297,  says  that  in  1175  Tutbury  was  levelled  with  the  ground 
by  Henry's  orders  in  revenge  for  the  wrongs  which  its  owner  had  often  done. 

61  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  ix  (2),  8. 

68  Eyton,  Itm.  of  Hen.  II,  193.  ^  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  i,  489. 

61  This  list  is  taken  from  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  ii,  171. 
65  Major-General  the  Hon.  G.  Wrottesley  in  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  i,  231. 

64  The  name  Lichfield  for  the  see  is  used  to  avoid  confusion  ;  it  was  frequently  called  the  see  of  Chester 
and  Coventry  in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries. 

I  225  29 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

and  sheriff  at  various  periods  of  his  life.  He  was  sheriff  of  the  county  from 
1190  to  1194,"  at  a  time  when  John  strove  to  undermine  the  authority 
of  his  absent  brother,  which  William  Longchamp  upheld.  Staffordshire 
felt  the  effect  of  John's  schemes,  and  the  sheriff  charged  the  crown  with 
,£9  2s.  6d.  for  defending  the  county  against  malefactors  ;  he  was  also  granted 
jT26  from  the  king's  purse  to  preserve  the  peace.88  The  shrewdness  of  this 
bishop  was  equal  to  his  activity  ;  he  took  advantage  of  Richard's  insatiable 
desire  for  money  to  buy  the  estates  of  Cannock  and  Rugeley  from  him  for 
25  marks  (£16  13^.  4*?.),  and  they  were  added  to  the  possessions  of  the  see. 

King  John  favoured  Staffordshire  with  several  visits,  no  doubt  because  the 
county  was  particularly  loyal  to  him,  also  because  he  was  fond  of  hunting  in 
its  forests.69  In  March,  1 200,  he  came  through  Burton  to  Lichfield,  where 
he  spent  two  days  ;  in  1204  he  was  again  at  Lichfield  for  three  days,  and 
two  years  afterwards  paid  another  visit,  at  which  date  he  bestowed  the  first 
charter  on  Stafford,  though  he  never  visited  that  town. 

A  letter  written  by  Thomas  de  Erdinton,  sheriff  of  Salop  and  Stafford- 
shire in  1215,  to  the  king  in  answer  to  his  question,  who,  and  how  many 
knights  bore  arms  against  him  in  the  war,  shows  the  state  of  parties  in 
Staffordshire  clearly.  He  tells  the  king  that  in  the  county  of  Stafford  there 
were  not  any  opposed  to  John  at  first  except  Robert  Marmion  (he  incurred 
John's  anger  by  this  opposition  so  that  his  castle  of  Tamworth  was  ordered  to 
be  razed,  but  the  order  was  not  carried  out),  who  still  remains  disaffected, 
and  Hervey  Bagot,  who  had  made  himself  Sheriff  of  Staffordshire  by  means  of 
the  barons,  but  had  accepted  the  king's  peace  at  the  hands  of  the  Earl  of 
Chester  ;  and  also  except  two  brothers  of  Hervey  Bagot,  who  were  still 
against  the  king  in  the  following  of  Fulk  Fitz  Warin.70 

Ranulph  Earl  of  Chester,  whom  Dugdale  calls  '  the  greatest  subject  of 
England  of  his  time,'  was  one  of  John's  chief  supporters,  though  he  was  not 
afraid  to  rebuke  him  for  his  evil  life.71  For  his  services  to  King  John  William 
de  Ferrers  was  confirmed  in  his  earldom  of  Derby,  and  was  also  rewarded  by 
many  grants  of  lands.  At  the  'fair  of  Lincoln'  in  1217  the  newly -created  earl 
and  the  Earl  of  Chester  helped  to  overthrow  the  French  party,72  but  in  the 
rising  of  Richard  Earl  of  Cornwall,  in  1227,  both  these  great  barons  joined 
him.  The  two  earls,  indeed,  seem  to  have  been  great  friends,  and  in  1217 
they  went  a  pilgrimage  to  Palestine  together. 

Ranulph  of  Chester  was  the  last  earl  but  one  of  his  line,  and  his  sister 
Agnes  brought  Chartley  to  the  Ferrers  family  by  marrying  William  de 
Ferrers.73  On  the  death  of  Ranulph's  nephew  John  the  earldom  came  to  the 
crown. 

During  the  early  years  of  Henry  III  Staffordshire  played  very  little  part 
in  history,  though  the  Bishop  of  Lichfield,  Alexander  de  Stavenby,  was  a 
politician  of  considerable  eminence.  In  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century 
several  catastrophes,  due  to  natural  causes,  occurred  in  the  county.  On  the 
night  of  2  October,  1254,  Burton  was  visited  by  a  fire,  but  the  amount  of 
damage  is  not  recorded,74  and  in  the  same  year,  about  20  November, 

67  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  ii,  10.  ™  Ibid,  ii,  14.  "  Eyton,  Antlj.  ofShrops.  ii,  185. 

70  Eyton,  Antlq.  ofShrops.  x,  326.  "  Dugdale,  Baronage,  i,  42. 

71  Matt.  Paris,  Chron.  Maj.  ii,  541.  n  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  45. 
74  Ann.  Man.  (Rolls  Sen),  i,  323. 

226 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

great  floods  are  recorded  by  which  a  large  number  of  people  of  both  sexes, 
old  and  young,  and  little  children  in  their  cradles,  were  drowned.  In 
the  next  year  an  extraordinary  hailstorm  visited  the  valley  of  the  Trent, 
followed  by  a  whirlwind  which  levelled  trees  and  buildings  with  the  earth, 
and  there  was  a  universal  destruction  of  hay  by  floods  such  as  had  not  happened 
for  many  years.75 

Through  the  writs  of  protection,  issued  to  those  who  applied  for  them 
while  employed  in  the  king's  service,  we  are  enabled  to  obtain  an  authentic 
record  of  those  Staffordshire  tenants  who  fought  in  the  various  wars  of  the 
thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries.  These  writs  gave  complete  protection 
against  all  personal  actions  and  against  any  pleas  in  the  superior  courts  of  law 
except  pleas  of  dower  and  last  presentation. 

When  Henry  III  invaded  Brittany  in  1230  such  writs  were  issued  to 
the  following  Staffordshire  tenants  : — 76  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton,77  Ralph 
Basset  of  Weldon,  William  de  Aldithele  (Audley),  Henry  de  Aldithele, 
William  de  Dustun,  Hervey  de  Stafford,78  Adam  Mauveisin,  Nicholas  de 
Verdun,  John  Fitz  Philip,  William  Basset,  Roger  de  Somery,79  Hugh  de 
Oddingesele,  Geoffrey  de  St.  Maur,  Ralph  de  Pexhale. 

In  1253,  during  the  suppression  of  the  rebellion  in  Gascony  by 
Henry  III,  the  following  had  writs  of  protection  in  the  county  : — 80  John  de 
Chetwinde,  Ralph  de  Arderne,  Walkeline  de  Arderne,  Adam  Mauveisin, 
William  le  Blund,  Robert  de  Stafford,  Peter  de  St.  Maur,  Adam  de  Brimton, 
Philip  Marmion,  Warinne  Fitz  Gerald,  John  de  Kaumville,  Geoffrey  de 
Genville,  John  de  Verdun,  Richard  de  Alazun,  Roger  de  Somery,  Roger  de 
Monhaut,  William  Hose. 

In  1257  several  Staffordshire  tenants  assisted  the  king  against  the  Welsh, 
and  others  accompanied  Richard  Earl  of  Cornwall,  who  had  been  elected 
king  of  the  Romans,  to  Germany.  In  the  former  expedition,  when  Henry 
went  on  to  Chester,  he  left  part  of  his  army  with  Richard  de  Clare,  who 
made  a  secret  journey,  with  only  one  knight,  to  confer  with  Queen  Eleanor 
at  Tutbury  Castle,  where  Eleanor  is  stated  to  have  been  staying  instead  of  at 
Nottingham  because  she  could  not  endure  the  smoke  of  the  sea  coal.81 

We  have  now  come  to  the  great  crisis  of  Henry's  reign,  when  clergy 
and  laity  found  a  leader  against  his  misgovernment  in  Simon  de  Montfort, 
and  in  the  barons'  wars  that  ensued  Staffordshire  was  almost  wholly  against 
the  king.  Not  more  than  three  of  the  principal  tenants  of  the  county  were 
on  his  side  :  Philip  Marmion,  the  last  of  the  male  line  of  that  family,  whose 
daughter  Jane  married  Sir  Alexander  de  Freville,  James  de  Audley  and  Roger 
de  Somery  ;  while  of  the  lesser  tenants,  only  William  Bagot  of  the  Hyde,  Adam 
de  Brimton,  William  Wyther,  and  Hugh  de  Okeover  adhered  to  the  king. 
Against  him  were  Robert  de  Ferrers,  Hugh  le  Despenser  the  Justiciary  of 
England,  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton,  Henry  de  Verdun,  William  de  Handsacre, 

74  Ann.  Mon.  (Rolls  Sen),  i,  336. 

:«  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii  (l),  2  ;  Cat.  of  Pat.  1225-32,  p.  357. 

77  This  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton  is  the  one  of  whom  Dugdale  says  he  was  first  of  the  family  in  any  way 
memorable  ;  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  375. 

78  Hervey  de  Stafford  was  the  son  of  Millicent,  the  daughter  and  heiress  of  Robert  de  Stafford  who  had 
married  Hervey  Bagot ;  ibid,  i,  613. 

79  Roger  de  Somery  must  have  been  the  de  Somery  who,  in  48  Hen.  Ill,  was  allowed  to  crenellate 
Dudley  Castle  because  he  supported  the  king  against  the  barons. 

60  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii  (2),  3  ;  Pat.  37  Hen.  III.  "  Ann.  Mm.  (Rolls  Ser.),  iii,  203. 

227 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

John  Fitz  Philip,  Geoffrey  de  Gresley,  John  de  Audley,  Roger  Bagot  of 
Brinton,  John  de  Swynnerton,  Richard  de  Bromley,  William  de  Rideware, 
Giles  de  Erdington,  and  many  more.8* 

Against  Robert  de  Ferrers  Henry  had  a  special  grudge  because  he  had 
married  the  king's  niece,  Mary  of  Angouleme,  and  yet  was  opposed  to  him. 
This  was  aggravated  by  Ferrers  capturing  Prince  Edward  and  imprisoning 
him.  In  1264  he  defeated  the  royalists  at  Chester,  but  soon  after  Edward, 
his  old  opponent,  laid  waste  his  lands  in  Derbyshire  and  Staffordshire,  and 
demolished  his  stronghold  of  Tutbury.85  Such  determined  hostility  brought 
about  his  own  downfall  and  that  of  his  family.  In  1265  he  was  brought  to 
trial,  confessed,  and  was  forgiven,  yet  with  extraordinary  infatuation  he  again 
raised  an  army  and  seized  Chesterfield,84  but  was  defeated,  attainted,  and  his 
lands  confiscated. 

Immediately  after  the  battle  of  Lewes,  Earl  Simon,  acting  in  the  name 
of  Henry,  appointed  for  the  first  time  a  '  custos  pacis '  in  every  county  in 
England,  who  appears  to  have  superseded  the  sheriff  and  wielded  almost 
despotic  power,  the  custos  for  Staffordshire  being  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton,85 
who  at  the  battle  of  Evesham  fell  fighting  against  the  king  with  Hugh  le 
Despenser,  Richard  Trussel  of  Kibblestone,  and  William  de  Bermingham.88 
The  last-named  was  a  tenant  of  Roger  de  Somery,  one  of  Henry's  few 
supporters,  and  their  being  found  on  opposite  sides  shows  that  the  feudal  tie 
was  severed.87 

It  is  perhaps  fitting  that  in  the  early  years  of  the  reign  of  the  great  legis- 
lator Edward  I  the  history  of  Staffordshire  should  be  concerned  with  a  famous 
lawsuit,  which  not  only  is  a  good  illustration  of  the  litigation  of  the  time, 
but  was  important  in  the  annals  of  the  county.  In  the  second  year  of  the 
reign  Robert  de  Ferrers,  the  staunch  opponent  of  Henry  III,  sued  Edmund 
Crouchback,  the  late  king's  son,  to  whom  all  Ferrers'  lands,  with  two  ex- 
ceptions, had  been  given,  that  he  might  redeem  his  lands  according  to  the 
Dictum  de  Kenilworth. 

This  was  an  agreement  drawn  up  between  Henry  and  his  tenants  in 
chief  during  the  siege  of  Kenilworth,  by  which  those  who  had  been  disin- 
herited might  upon  submission  recover  their  estates,  and  was  published  on 
31  October,  1266.  In  it  was  a  special  clause  by  which  Ferrers  was  to  pay 
seven  years'  revenue  and  give  up  his  castles.88  Edmund  appeared  and  said  that 
Ferrers  could  not  claim  the  benefit  of  the  Dictum  de  Kenilworth,  since  after 
it  was  passed  he  had  offered  of  his  own  free  will  to  redeem  his  lands  and 
himself  from  prison  for  £50,000  ;  an  enormous  sum  when  its  present  value 
is  considered,  and  especially  considering  that  the  annual  value  of  the  Earl  of 
Derby's  estates  at  this  time  was  put  at  jf^ooo.89 

This  sum  was  to  be  paid  by  the  Quindene  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  and 
if  not  paid  then  Edmund  was  to  hold  the  land  until  it  was  paid,  and  he 

81  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii  (2),  5.  ra  Dugdale,  Baronage,  263  ;  Ann.  Mon.  (Rolls  Ser.),  iii,  230. 

94  Ann.  Man.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  370  ;  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  16.  Robert  de  Ferrers,  though  hostile  to 
the  king,  was  not  a  loyal  supporter  of  the  barons ;  Rishangcr  says  of  him,  '  fidus  nee  Regi  nee  Baronibus' ; 
Chnn.  and  Ann.  (Rolls  Ser.),  13.  In  the  summer  of  1263  he  marched  about  the  country  plundering  and 
burning  indiscriminately.  He  incurred  the  hostility  of  Simon  de  Montfort  at  Lewes  and  was  imprisoned  by 
him  ;  Engl.  Hist.  Rev.  x,  3  I. 

85  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  4.  "  Ann.  Mon.  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  365. 

87  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  6.  M  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  ii,  too. 

89  Dugdale,  Baronage,  i,  265. 

228 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

produced  the  charter  of  Robert  de  Ferrers  to  that  effect.  Robert  pleaded 
that  this  charter  was  signed  by  him  when  in  prison  under  duress,  and,  there- 
fore, could  not  invalidate  his  claim.  However,  Edmund's  answer  to  this  was 
that  Robert  after  the  execution  of  the  charter  had  come  before  the  king's 
chancellor  and  enrolled  the  same,  and  that  an  act  so  done  could  not  be  pleaded 
as  the  act  of  a  prisoner.  Robert  was  obliged  to  admit  he  had  acknowledged 
the  validity  of  his  act  before  the  chancellor,  but  he  still  maintained  he  had 
done  it  under  duress,  for  the  chancellor  had  come  to  him  in  prison  with  the 
charter  in  his  hand,  and  he  had  acknowledged  it  under  bodily  fear;  moreover, 
the  chancellor  had  come  to  him  privately  and  not  as  chancellor.  But 
Edmund  finally  pleaded  that  as  Robert  did  not  deny  he  had  acknowledged 
the  deed,  nor  its  enrolment,  he  could  not  appeal  to  a  jury  now,  and  the 
court  found  in  his  favour  because  they  could  not  go  behind  the  chancellor's 
rolls,  especially  when  the  said  chancellor  had  quitted  office  and  delivered 
up  his  rolls  to  the  king,  who  had  given  them  into  other  custody.90 

Thus  the  bulk  of  the  estates  of  this  great  family  passed  away  from  them 
into  the  hands  of  the  house  of  Lancaster,  and  the  title  of  earl  disappeared  with 
them,  but  John  the  son  of  Robert  de  Ferrers  received  again  from  the  king 
the  castle  and  honour  of  Chartley,  and  his  family  long  flourished  as  Lords 
Ferrers,  Barons  of  Chartley,  until  Anne,  heiress  of  William  Lord  Ferrers, 
married  Sir  Walter  Devereux,  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VI,  and  Chartley 
passed  into  that  family.91 

In  1275  the  king  cautioned  Bogo  de  Knoville,  Sheriff  of  Shropshire  and 
Staffordshire,  regarding  his  dealings  with  Llewellyn,  Prince  of  Wales,  who 
was  at  that  time  dreaming  of  driving  the  Saxon  from  Britain,  and,  conse- 
quently, refused  to  do  homage  to  Edward  I,  a  refusal  that  next  year  caused 
Wales  to  be  invaded,  and  its  conquest  begun.93 

When  in  1282  the  Welsh  broke  out  into  revolt  and  made  their  last  bid 
for  independence,  many  Staffordshire  men  were  ordered  to  take  the  field  at 
once,  others  were  summoned  to  be  at  Worcester,  the  usual  basis  of  operations 
against  Wales,  by  Pentecost.93  Among  them  were  William  de  Aldithel, 
Roger  de  Somery,  Geoffrey  de  Geneville,  Richard  Basset  of  Weldon,  Richard 
de  Harcourt,  Theobald  de  Verdun,  Nicholas  the  Baron  of  Stafford,  and  John 
Fitz  Philip. 

Edward  was  a  great  general,  and  neglected  no  preparations ;  no  less  than 
310  carpenters  and  1,000  sappers  were  to  attend  the  king's  army,  of  whom 
Staffordshire  and  Salop  together  contributed  fifteen  carpenters,  and  forty 
sappers,  according  to  their  population. 

A  proclamation  was  issued  that  markets  were  not  to  be  held  in  Stafford- 
shire and  other  counties  until  further  orders,  Chester  being  appointed 
temporarily  as  the  sole  market  for  Stafford,  Lancaster,  and  Derby.94  The 
careful  preparations  and  sound  strategy  of  Edward  had  their  reward  and  the 
war  was  soon  over.  After  a  portion  of  the  English  troops  had  been  cut  to 
pieces  in  the  Isle  of  Anglesey,  among  whom  was  Sir  Thomas  de  Haughton, 
a  Staffordshire  knight,  Llewellyn  was  surprised  and  killed  near  Builth  in 

90  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  vi  (i),  63,  from  Coram  Reg.  Roll.Trin.  2  Edw.  I. 

91  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  29  ;  Dugdale,  Baronage,  i,  265  et  seq. 
"  Rymer,  FoeJtra  (orig.  ed.),  ii,  53. 

*  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  10;  Rymer,  Focdera  (orig.  ed.),  ii,  1 89.  *  Col!.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  1 1. 

229 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

December,  David  was  executed  at  Shrewsbury  in  the  following  year,  and 
with  them  fell  Welsh  independence. 

In  the  rising  of  1287  Staffordshire  and  Salop  were  ordered  to  array  500 
footmen  and  no  less  than  2,000  sappers  and  wood-cutters95  against  the 
Welsh,  and  it  was  during  this  campaign  that  Nicholas  the  Baron  of  Stafford 
was  killed  by  the  walls  of  the  castle  of  Drosselan  falling  on  him.96 

War  in  the  Middle  Ages  was  nearly  always  followed  by  demoralization 
in  civil  life,  so  we  are  not  surprised  to  find  in  1286  grievous  complaints  of 
many  persons  that  many  malefactors  were  overrunning  the  county  and  per- 
petrating robberies,  homicides,  and  other  enormities.  The  sheriff  was  there- 
fore ordered  to  bestir  himself  to  preserve  order,  and  among  other  things  to 
clear  '  the  passes'  of  the  woods.97 

In  the  famous  expedition  to  Flanders  in  1297,  when  Roger  Bigod  Earl  of 
Norfolk  refused  either  to  go  or  hang,  Staffordshire  tenants  mustered  in  great 
force,  and  the  long  Scottish  wars  having  now  commenced  a  fresh  field  was 
open  for  their  warlike  energies. 

July  22,  1298,  was  the  day  of  the  battle  of  Falkirk,  when  Edward  com- 
pletely defeated  William  Wallace,  and  it  was  in  this  fight  'that  the  valiant  Lord 
Rafe  Basset  of  Draiton  '  said  to  the  Bishop  of  Durham,  who  at  the  head  of 
the  second  division  hesitated  to  attack,  '  My  lord  bishop,  you  may  go  and  say 
mass,'  and  rushed  himself  upon  the  enemy,98  dispersing  the  Scottish  cavalry.9* 

But  the  stubborn  Scots  refused  to  recognize  that  they  were  beaten,  and 
year  after  year  Edward  continued  his  efforts,  in  which  he  was  aided  mainly 
by  levies  from  the  more  northern  counties,  Staffordshire  performing  its  due 
share  of  service.  Thus  in  1300  the  commissioner  of  array  for  the  county, 
William  de  Stafford,  was  ordered  to  select  500  footmen  and  take  them  to 
Berwick-on-Tweed. 

In  1301  writs  were  issued  to  all  those  tenants  who  held  £40  in  land, 
and  the  return100  gives  835  for  England  exclusive  of  Durham  and  Chester; 
Staffordshire  furnishing  seventeen,101  Salop  eleven,  and  Devon  making  the  best 
show  with  seventy-seven. 

Besides  these,  a  month  earlier,  John  de  Ferrers,  Hugh  le  Despenser, 
Geoffrey  de  Caumville,  Ralph  de  Grendon,  Edmund  Baron  Stafford,  and 
Theobald  de  Verdun,  jun.,  were  summoned.108 

In  1306,  the  year  when  Scotland  was  offering  a  national  resistance  for 
the  first  time,  Ralph  Basset  and  Roger  de  Mortimer  were  arrested  by 
the  Sheriff  of  Staffordshire  for  leaving  the  king's  army  in  Scotland  without 
leave,  and  all  their  lands  taken  from  them.  However,  their  punishment  was 

91  Rymer,  FoeJera  (orig.  ed.),  ii,  345.  *  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  14. 

97  Cat.  of  Close,  1279-88,  p.  434.  "8  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  20. 

99  But  it  was  not  until  the  king  brought  up  the  archers  and  the  third  division  of  horse  that  the  day  was 
won.     Fortescue,  Hut.  of  the  Army,  \,  18. 

100  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  22. 

101  The  Staffordshire  tenants  holding  £40  in  land  were  John  Doyley,  Robert  de  Staundon,  William  de 
Stafford,  Hugh  de  Blunt,  William  de  la  More,  Richard  de  Draycote,  Geoffrey  de  Gresele,  Robert  de  Knytele, 
Robert  de  Tock,  William  Wyther,  John  Hamelyn,  Ralph  le  Botiller,  jun.,  Edmund  de  Somerville,  Philip  de 
Chetwynde,  John  Fitz  Philip,  Richard  de  Vernun,  Henry  Mauveysyn. 

""  The  following  Staffordshire  tenants  holding  ^40  in  land  were  returned  under  other  counties  :  John 
de  Longford  and  William  de  Montgomeri  under  Nottinghamshire  and  Derbyshire  ;  Roger  Basset  and  Henry 
de  Erdington  under  Somerset  and  Dorset  ;  Robert  de  Stapleton,  Roger  de  Morteyn,  Walter  de  Aylesbury, 
and  Ralph  de  Grendon,  under  Warwickshire  and  Leicestershire  ;  Adam  de  Brimpton,  Robert  de  Halughton, 
and  Walter  Beisin  under  Salop  ;  John  de  Harecurt  and  Adam  de  Brimpton  under  Oxfordshire  and  Berkshire  ; 
John  de  Wasteneys  under  Lincolnshire.  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  23-5. 

230 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

of  short  duration,  for  in  the  next  year  they  were  pardoned  at  the  intercession 
of  the  queen  and  their  lands  restored. 

The  year  1295  is  one  of  the  most  important  in  English  history,  for  it 
may  be  accepted  as  fixing  finally  the  right  of  shire  and  town  representation,10* 
although  there  were  for  some  years  afterwards  various  anomalies  which  only 
illustrate  the  growth  of  the  new  system.  To  a  Parliament  summoned  to 
meet  at  Westminster  in  lago,10*  when  two  or  three  knights  were  summoned 
from  each  county  probably  to  grant  the  king  more  money,  Staffordshire  had 
sent  two  representatives,  William  de  Stafford  and  William  de  Mere,  but  from 
the  model  Parliament  of  1295  must  be  dated  the  first  regular  members  of 
Parliament  as  we  understand  them  to-day. 

To  this  came  earls,  barons,  two  knights  chosen  in  the  court  of  each 
shire  by  writs  sent  to  the  sheriff  of  the  shire,  and  two  citizens  from  every 
city  or  borough,  chosen,  like  the  knights,  in  the  county  courts.  The  arch- 
bishops and  bishops  brought  the  heads  of  their  chapters,  their  archdeacons, 
one  proctor  for  the  clergy  of  each  cathedral,  and  two  for  the  clergy  of  each 
diocese.105  To  this  'inauguration  of  the  representative  system'106  Staffordshire 
sent  four  members,  two  for  the  county,  Henry  de  Creswall  and  Richard 
Caverswall,  and  two  for  the  borough  of  Stafford,107  William  Reyner  and  John 
Beton. 

The  Parliament  of  1296  was  constituted  in  the  same  manner  as  its 
famous  predecessor,  but  the  returns  are  wholly  lost,  and  in  that  of  1297, 
when  two  knights  from  each  county  were  summoned,  but  no  representatives 
from  the  cities  and  boroughs,  the  returns  for  Staffordshire  are  missing. 

In  1298  the  model  of  1295  was  reverted  to,  but  though  Stafford  county 
sent  William  de  Stafford  and  Henry  Mauveysin,  the  borough  made  no  return, 
and  so  for  the  next  two  or  three  Parliaments  the  borough  of  Stafford  is  some- 
times represented  and  sometimes  not.  However,  in  1304-5  the  county  for 
the  first  time  sent  six  members  altogether,  two  for  the  county,  two  for  Lich- 
field  borough,  and  two  for  Stafford  borough. 

The  borough  representation,  however,  in  Staffordshire,  as  all  over  Eng- 
land, was  irregular.  In  1307  the  county  only  was  represented,  whereas  in 
1311,  1312,  and  1313  the  county,  Lichfield,  and  Stafford  sent  two  members 
each,  while  in  1315  Lichfield  drops  out  again,  as  in  the  next  year  did  Staf- 
ford borough.108 

Edward  I,  the  great  general,  statesman,  and  lawyer,  died  7  July,  1307, 
and  on  the  accession  of  his  worthless  son  we  enter  upon  an  era  of  cruelty, 
luxury,  factions,  foreign  wars,  social  rebellion,  and  religious  divisions.  In  the 
same  year  we  find  the  king  forbidding  the  holding  of  a  tournament  at  Staf- 
ford, and  the  sheriff  ordered  to  make  a  proclamation  that  no  one  is  to  hold  a 
tournament  without  the  king's  special  licence.10'  The  reason  in  this  instance 
is  not  given,  but  such  displays  were  sometimes  forbidden  as  tending  to  disturb 
the  king's  peace. 

105  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  ii,  235. 

104  Close,  1 8  Edw.  I,  pt.  vi,  m.  8  d.  To  this  Parliament  thirty -seven  English  counties  sent  two  members 
each,  and  this  county  representation  was  maintained  until  1545.  Lane  Poole,  Historical  Atlas,  notes  on 
map  xxiii. 

104  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  ii,  132.  1M  Ibid.  133. 

107  Parl.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (l),  6.  In  the  same  Parliament  Worcestershire  was  represented  by  no  less 
than  sixteen  members,  Derbyshire  by  four,  and  Salop  by  six. 

103  Ibid.  Ixii  (i).  109  Rymer,  FoeJera  (orig.  ed.),  iii,  76. 

231 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

It  was  about  this  time  that  John  de  Somery,  lord  of  Dudley  Castle,  took 
upon  himself  so  great  an  authority  in  Staffordshire  that  no  man  could  '  have 
law  or  reason  by  means  thereof,'  and  he  domineered  there  more  than  a  king, 
so  that  no  man  could  abide  in  those  parts  unless  he  well  bribed  John  de  Somery 
for  protection  or  helped  him  in  building  Dudley  Castle,  and  the  said  John 
beset  men's  houses  in  that  county  to  murder  them,  and  extorted  large  sums 
of  money  from  men.110  This  John  was  the  last  of  the  male  line  of  Somery  ; 
his  sister  Margaret  married  John  de  Sutton,  and  brought  Dudley  into  that 
family. 

In  1312,  when  the  barons  beheaded  the  hated  Piers  Gaveston  on  Black- 
low  Hill,  several  Staffordshire  tenants  were  on  their  side.  Edward  was 
greatly  enraged  at  his  favourite's  death,  but  was  unable  to  exact  any  punish- 
ment on  his  executioners,  for  his  army  deserted  him,  and  pardons  were  granted 
to  all  those  implicated,  among  whom  were U1  :  William  Trussell,  Ralph  de 
Grendon,  Roger  de  Somerville,  Nicholas  de  Audele,  John  de  Swynnerton, 
Thomas  de  Ardene,  Robert  de  Wolseley,  Edmund  son  of  Edmund  Trussell, 
John  d'Oddyngesels,  Hugh  de  Meignell,  Philip  Hastang,  Roger  de  Swynner- 
ton, Nicholas  de  Longford. 

The  disastrous  battle  of  Bannockburn  was  fought  in  1314,  a  contest  in 
which  the  number  of  the  English  troops  has  been  much  exaggerated,  but  we 
know  that  Staffordshire  and  Salop  provided  no  less  than  3,000  footmen 
equipped  to  proceed  against  the  Scots.112  Besides  the  foot-soldiers,  the  sheriffs 
of  Salop  and  Staffordshire  were  ordered  to  furnish  twenty  carts  with  four 
horses,  and  send  them  to  Berwick  on  Tweed,  while  twenty-nine  of  the  chief 
men  of  the  county,  including  the  Bishop  of  Lichfield,  followed  the  king  to 
the  unfortunate  campaign,  the  chief  absentee  being  Thomas  of  Lancaster, 
who,  through  his  father  Edmund  Crouchback,  now  held  the  Ferrers  estates 
in  the  county.113  After  Bannockburn,  Edward  was  hard  pressed  for  men,  and 
at  the  Parliament  at  Lincoln,  in  which  Lancaster  was  made  president  of  the 
royal  council,  the  lords  and  knights  promised  him  a  foot  soldier  from  every 
rural  township,114  and  the  sheriffs  were  ordered  to  certify  the  towns  or  vills 
in  each  hundred.  In  answer  to  this  the  sheriff  of  Staffordshire  returned  the 
names  of  twenty-eight  towns  in  Offlow  Hundred,  thirty  in  Cuttlestone  Hun- 
dred, twenty-one  in  Totmonslow  Hundred,  forty-four  in  Pirehill  Hundred, 
and  twenty-five  in  Seisdon  Hundred,  a  total  of  I48.116  However,  these  men 
were  never  employed  ;  Lancaster  refused  to  join  the  army,  and  the  summonses 
were  countermanded.  The  commissioners  appointed  to  make  this  levy  were 
William  Trussell,  John  Giffard  of  Chillington,  and  William  Trumwyn,  the 
last-named  being  also  the  Parliamentary  representative  with  Robert  de  Tok  at 
Lincoln  when  the  levy  was  ordered.116 

In  1315  the  condition  of  England  was  miserable  in  the  extreme,  dearth 
and  pestilence  were  added  to  the  misfortune  of  an  unsuccessful  war,  and  to 


110  Dugdale,  Warwickshire  (ed.  1656),  538. 

111  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  31  ;  Cal.  of  Pat.  1313-17,  p.  21  et  seq. 


'"  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  32,  where  the  total  number  of  infantry    is  put  at   17,500  ;  but  were  not 
many  of  the  orders  sent  to  the  sheriffs  lost  ?     See  Oman,  Art  of  War  in  the  Middle  Ages,  573. 

113  Stubbs  says  of  him  :   'His  hatred  for  his   cousin   was  a   stronger  motive  than  his  ambition,  or  else 
he  was  a  traitor  to  his  country  as  well  as  his  king.  .  .  .     The  Scots  spared  his  estates   when   they  ravaged 
the  North,  his  own  policy  towards  them  was  one  of  supineness,   if  not  of  treacherous  connivance '  ;    Const. 
Hist,  ii,  357.  "'  Ibid,  ii,  356. 

114  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  35  ;  Par!.  Writs,  ii  (4),  394.  m  Purl.  Accts.  and  Papers,  kii  (i),  e  I 

232 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

crown  all  came  the  king's  constant  demands  for  more  money.  We  are  not, 
therefore,  surprised  to  find  that  certain  of  the  people  of  Staffordshire  refused 
to  pay  the  twentieth  granted  to  Edward,  alleging  that  the  said  tax  had  been 
given  the  king  under  certain  conditions,  namely  that  he  would  observe  the 
Great  Charter,  the  Forest  Charter,  and  other  ordinances,  and  would  have  a 
perambulation  of  the  forests  conducted,  and  these  things  had  not  been  done. 
The  king  professed  great  astonishment,  as  he  had  commanded  the  said  ordin- 
ances to  be  observed  in  every  particular.  Apparently  with  a  real  desire  to 
learn  the  truth  of  the  matter,  he  issued  a  commission  to  make  strict  inquiry 
into  it.117 

At  the  end  of  1321  Edward  with  unwonted  energy  resolved  to  attack 
the  party  of  the  great  Earl  of  Lancaster,  to  whose  ascendancy  he  could  no 
longer  submit.  In  reply  Lancaster  collected  an  army  of  about  30,000  men 
at  Tutbury,  one  of  his  many  castles,  and  his  principal  residence.  On  the 
king's  approach,  in  order  to  prevent  his  crossing  by  the  bridge  at  Burton  on 
Trent  to  attack  Tutbury,  he  erected  defences  on  the  east  end  of  the  bridge 
about  10  March,  1322.  The  vanguard  of  the  king  made  an  assault  upon 
these,  and  was  repulsed  with  loss. 

A  halt  was  called  for  a  few  days,  and  at  a  council  of  war  it  was  decided 
to  divert  the  enemy's  attention  by  keeping  up  the  attack  on  the  bridge  at 
Burton  118  and  push  on  with  the  rest  of  the  troops  to  Salter's  Bridge,  a  few 
miles  distant.  However,  before  this  was  carried  into  effect  a  man  who  had 
suffered  from  the  exactions  of  Lancaster,  who  had  made  the  monks  of 
Burton  Abbey  assist  him  with  money  and  provisions,  and  quartered  his 
soldiers  on  the  inhabitants  of  the  town,  informed  the  king  of  a  ford  at 
Walton,  by  which  he  crossed.  He  was  on  the  point  of  attacking  when 
suddenly  the  younger  Despenser  leapt  from  his  horse,119  and  prostrating 
himself  before  the  king  on  the  snow  which  then  covered  the  ground,  be- 
sought him  not  to  unfurl  his  standard,  for  those  whom  he  was  about  to 
attack  were  the  nobles  and  lieges  of  his  kingdom,  and  were  not  led  by  wise 
advice  but  excited  by  youthful  ardour,  and  if  the  king's  standard  was 
unfurled  universal  war  would  lay  waste  the  whole  land,  which  could  hardly 
be  controlled  in  the  king's  time.  Whatever  might  have  been  the  effect  of 
this  curious  speech,  the  day  was  already  won,  for  in  the  meantime  the 
vigorous  attack  on  the  bridge  at  Burton  had  engaged  all  the  enemy's 
attention,  and  when  the  king  was  across  the  river  he  had  almost  surrounded 
Lancaster's  army.  They  were  seized  with  panic,  and  having  set  fire  to  part 
of  Burton  escaped  in  the  smoke  to  Pontefract.120 

At  Tutbury  the  king  captured  some  wounded  who  had  been  abandoned 
in  the  hasty  flight,  and  remained  there  five  days,  ordering  the  arrest  of 
Thomas  of  Lancaster  and  his  supporters.121  He  then  set  out  for  Pontefract, 
where  he  heard  the  news  of  Lancaster's  defeat  at  Boroughbridge,  a  defeat 
soon  followed  by  his  trial  and  execution.  In  these  troubles  several  Stafford- 
shire tenants  fought  against  the  king,  among  them  James  and  John  the 
sons  of  William  de  Stafford,  William  de  Chetelton,  Nicholas  de  Longford, 

117  Rot.  Par/.  (Rec.  Com.),  i,  449.  "'  Holinshed,  Chron.  of  Engl.  ii,  566. 

119  Chron.  of  Edio.  I  and  Edvi.  II  (Rolls  Ser.),  ii,  75,  267. 

IJO  Thos.  of  Walsingham,  Hist.  dngl.  (Rolls  Ser.),  i,  1 64.     A  chest  full  of  coins  discovered  in  the  River 
Dove  in  1831  is  supposed  by  Mosley  (Hist,  of  Tutbury)  to  have  formed  part  of  Lancaster's  treasure. 
121  Rymer,  FoeJera  (orig.  ed.),  iii,  933. 

I  233  30 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

William  Malveisin,  Richard  de  Stretton,  John  de  Miners,  Thomas  Wyther, 
John  de  Swynnerton,  William  de  Stafford,  and  the  elder  and  younger  Hugh 
de  Audley. 

On  the  other  hand,  for  their  loyal  services,  John  de  Somery,  whom  we 
have  seen  lording  it  over  the  county,  and  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton,  were 
rewarded  by  grants  of  manors.18* 

Such  rebellious  conduct  as  that  of  Lancaster  could  only  be  followed 
by  the  seizing  of  his  estates  into  the  king's  hands  ;  but  on  the  accession  of 
Edward  III  an  Act  of  Parliament  reversed  the  attainder,  and  Henry  the 
brother  of  Thomas  succeeded  to  nearly  all  his  vast  possessions.123  An  in- 
quisition taken  at  that  time  mentions  the  following  in  Staffordshire  :  Tutbury 
Castle,  Tutbury,  Rolleston,  Barton,  Agardsley,  Marchington,  Uttoxeter, 
Needwood  Chase,  Yoxall  Manor,  Rowley  Park,  Newcastle  under  Lyme, 
Keele.m 

In  1333,  when  Edward  was  raising  forces  for  the  endless  wars  against 
Scotland,  the  greater  part  of  the  1,000  foot  soldiers  to  be  raised  from  Salop 
and  Staffordshire  were  to  be  archers,  and  it  was  by  the  bowmen's  shafts  that ' 
the  battle  of  Halidon  Hill  was  won  and  Bannockburn  avenged.  Edward  III 
had  profited  by  the  tactical  ability  and  experience  of  his  grandfather,  the 
first  great  encourager  of  the  use  of  the  long  bow. 

The  writ  summoning  sixty  hobelars m  or  light  horsemen  from  the 
county  in  1335  shows  that  the  light  cavalryman  of  the  day  was  somewhat 
heavily  armed.  He  was  to  have  a  horse,  an  aketone,  or  heavily-plated 
doublet,  a  bacinet,  a  '  pisam '  or  a  '  colarettum,'  steel  gloves,  sword,  dagger 
and  lance,  or  other  arms.126  They  differed  from  the  pauncenars  in  not  having 
a  habergeon  or  sleeveless  coat  of  chain  mail,  and  as  a  rule  the  hobelars 
did  not  carry  lances.  The  heavy  cavalry  of  the  time  was  composed  of  the 
men-at-arms,  so-called  because  they  were  covered  with  defensive  armour 
from  head  to  foot,  while  their  horses  after  1298  were  also  heavily  protected. 
These  men  at  arms  were  all  squires  and  knights. 

In  1336  the  military  equipment  of  the  time  is  further  illustrated  in 
the  arms  demanded  from  the  2,000  men  arrayed  by  Staffordshire  in  that 
year.  Those  having  land  or  rent  between  £40  and  £20  were  to  be  provided 
with  competent  arms  and  horses  according  to  the  late  proclamation  of  the 
king;  those  having  £15  of  land,  or  chattels  to  the  value  of  40  marks,  with 
a  hauberk,  steel  cap,  sword,  dagger,  and  horse;  those  with  £10  of  land  or 
chattels  to  the  value  of  20  marks  with  hauberk,  steel  cap,  sword,  and  dagger; 
those  having  IOQJ.  of  land  with  a  steel  cap,  sword,  and  dagger,  and  lastly  those 
having  land  between  4OJ.  and  IDOJ.  with  sword,  bow,  arrows,  and  dagger.127 

At  the  commencement  of  the  great  war  with  France  the  English 
armies  were  raised  by  commissioners  of  array,  who  chose  from  each  county 
a  certain  number  of  men-at-arms,  archers,  and  other  soldiers,  and  from  the 


a  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  43. 

ln  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  57,  58  ;  Rymer,  Foedera  (orig.  ed.),  iv,  285. 
IM  Cat.  of  Inf.  p.m.  (Rec.  Com.),  ii,  8. 
115  So  called  from  the  hobbies  or  ponies  on  which  they  rode. 

IK  ' 


'  These  men  seem  more  heavily  armed  than  the  ordinary  hobelar,  whose  arms  are  stated  by  Fortescue 
(Hist,  of  the  Army,  \,  28)  to  have  been  merely  an  iron  helmet,  aketon,  gloves,  and  sword  ;  Coll.  (Salt  Arch. 
Soc.),  viii,  53.  Bacinet,  according  to  Littre,  was  a  kind  of  bonnet  placed  under  the  helmet ;  colarettum, 
a  gorget  ;  pisam,  a  weight  (?) 

117  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  57 

234 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

muster  rolls  of  thirty-seven  counties  in  February,  1339,  we  see  that  fewer 
and  possibly  better  men  were  picked  in  that  year  than  in  the  year  of 
Bannockburn,  Staffordshire  furnishing  55  men-at-arms,  220  archers,  and 
220  other  armed  infantry.128 

During  the  course  of  the  war  the  system  of  indenture  came  into  use 
by  which  the  king  bargained  with  his  baron  or  knight,  as  the  case  might 
be,  for  the  production  of  a  certain  number  of  men,  in  return  for  payments 
on  the  part  of  the  sovereign.  The  men  were  freely  enlisted,  and  better 
soldiers  than  the  pressed  men,  and  were  largely  recruited  from  old  soldiers 
who  pursued  the  trade  of  war  because  they  liked  it. 

The  sinews  of  war  were  provided  by  the  Parliament,  which  in  1338  129 
granted  Edward  half  the  wool  in  the  kingdom,  amounting  to  20,000  sacks. 
The  commissioners  appointed  to  collect  the  share  of  Staffordshire  were  two 
knights,  Sir  Robert  Malveisin,  and  Malcolm  de  Wasteneys  (who  was  also  a 
member  for  the  county  in  that  year),130  as  well  as  five  merchants,  Roger 
Bride,  Henry  de  Tytnesoure,  Nicholas  Reyner,  Thomas  the  Goldsmith,  and 
John  le  roter.131  Many  of  the  men  of  Staffordshire  concealed  their  wool,  and 
the  king  appointed  William  de  Myners  his  sergeant-at-arms  to  inquire  into 
the  matter  and  seize  the  wool  which  had  been  hidden  and  send  it  to  the  ports 
named  to  receive  it. 

At  Crecy  in  1346  Staffordshire  was  well  represented.  Ralph  de  Stafford, 
who  had  been  made  seneschal  of  Aquitaine  in  the  previous  year,  and  at  the 
siege  of  Aiguillon  filled  the  breaches  in  the  walls  with  wine  casks  full  of 
stones,132  had  an  eminent  command  in  the  van  of  the  army  under  the  Black 
Prince,  and  was  one  of  those  who  made  the  famous  report  on  the  number  of 
the  French  slain  :  eleven  great  princes,  eighty  bannerets,  1,200  knights,  and 
30,000  common  soldiers.133  Beside  him  served  a  great  number  of  the 
foremost  men  in  the  county.  In  addition  to  the  usual  writs  to  the  com- 
missioners of  array  writs  were  sent  to  the  mayors  of  the  towns,  and  while 
London  was  ordered  to  supply  100  men-at-arms  and  500  armed  men, 
Lichfield  provided  fifteen  men,  Stafford  eight,  Tamworth  four,  and  New- 
castle under  Lyme  three.134  The  pay  of  the  men  who  fought  at  Crecy  seems 
very  high  allowing  for  the  difference  in  the  value  of  money  ;  an  earl  received 
6s.  8</.,  a  knight  2s.,  an  esquire  is.,  a  mounted  archer,  a  pauncenar,  and  a 
hobelar  6d.,  a  foot  archer  3^.  per  day,  the  Welsh  spearman  coming  at  the 
bottom  of  the  list  with  2</.m 

About  this  time  Tamworth  was  visited  by  one  of  the  fires  that  were 
frequent  in  an  era  of  wooden  houses,  and  was  so  burnt  that  the  great  part  of 
the  people  of  the  town  described  themselves  as  reduced  to  beggary,  yet  in 
spite  of  this  calamity  the  tax  gatherers  demanded  of  them  the  full  amount  of 
their  taxes,  a  harshness  which  they  petitioned  the  king  to  mitigate. 


136 


"'  Oman,  Art  of  War  In  the  Middlt  Ages,  593  ;  Rymer,  Foedera  (Rec.  ed.),  ii  (2),  1070. 

189  In  this  Parliament  Stafford  county  and  borough  only  were  represented. 

150  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  123. 

131  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  62.  Nicholas  Reyner  and  John  le  roter  were  members  of  Parliament 
about  this  time. 

131  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),!,  160.  I!S  Ibid. 

134  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  80.  13i  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  the  Army,  \,  30. 

136  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  ii,  189,  where  the  date  of  the  petition  is  1347,  yet  in  Rymer's  Foedera 
(Rec.  ed.),  iii,  i,  57,  the  king  is  stated  to  have  ordered  a  new  assessment  in  1345  because  the  town  had 
suffered  from  fire.  And  see  Cal.  Close,  1343-6,  p.  605. 

235 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  return  of  the  triumphant  king  and  his  nobles  from  their  conquests 
at  Crecy  and  Calais  was  naturally  celebrated  after  the  fashion  of  that  age  by 
jousts,  tournaments,  and  other  chivalrous  festivities,  and  in  April,  1348, 
Lichfield  was  selected  as  the  scene  of  one  of  these  rejoicings,  which  were 
celebrated  with  great  splendour. 

The  prevailing  dress  for  both  ladies  and  gentlemen  was  a  blue  cloak 
with  a  white  hood  presented  by  the  king,  and  the  ladies  wore  various  masks 
or  visors.137  Among  those  who  were  thus  clothed  from  the  royal  wardrobe 
were  Sir  Walter  Manny,  John  de  L'Isle,  Hugh  Courtenay,  John  Grey, 
Robert  de  Ferrers,  Philip  de  Spenser,  Roger  de  Beauchamp,  Miles  de 
Stapleton,  Ralph  de  Ferrers,  and  the  Earl  of  Lancaster,  while  among  the  lady 
recipients  were  the  king's  daughter  Isabella,  the  ladies  Ulster,  Juliers,  Wake 
and  Segrave,  and  Darcy.  These  ladies,  with  others  of  high  rank,  watched 
the  king  and  seventeen  knights  joust  with  the  Earl  of  Lancaster  and  thirteen 
knights,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  here  the  incident  took  place  which 
suggested  to  the  chivalrous  king  the  founding  of  the  Order  of  the  Garter.138 

In  May,  1 349,  the  Black  Death  which  had  first  appeared  in  England  in 
the  preceding  year  showed  itself  in  Derbyshire,  and  for  the  next  four  months 
raged  with  fury  throughout  the  kingdom. 

At  Poictiers  in  1356,  '  a  battle  far  more  hazardous  and  far  better  fought 
than  that  of  Crecy,'139  Staffordshire  was  represented  by  Edward  le  Despenser, 
James  d'Audley,  Sir  Richard  de  Stafford,  and  Ralph  Basset  of  Drayton,  who 
was  as  doughty  a  knight  as  his  ancestor  who  won  fame  at  Falkirk.  Sir 
James  d'Audley  and  his  four  squires,  two  of  whom,  by  name  Dutton  and 
Delves,  were  Staffordshire  men,  performed  prodigies  of  valour,  fighting  in 
front  of  the  army.140 

For  the  expedition  of  1359,  which  ended  in  the  treaty  of  Bretigny, 
Staffordshire  contributed  forty  to  the  number  of  mounted  archers  '  of  the 
best  and  strongest  in  their  counties,  clothed  uniformly,' U1  who  were  now 
superseding  the  hobelars,  and  were  like  the  dragoons  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  rather  mounted  infantry  than  regular  cavalry.  One  of  the 
commissioners  who  drew  up  the  treaty  which  ended  the  war  was  Ralph 
the  great  Earl  of  Stafford,  a  man  renowned  in  war  and  peace,  who  had  been 
created  earl  by  Edward  III,  and  was  one  of  the  original  Knights  of  the 
Garter.  He  died  in  1372.  His  son  Hugh  was  worthy  of  him,  and  equally 
active  in  his  country's  business;  in  1376,  at  the  meeting  of  the  Good 
Parliament,  although  he  belonged  to  the  court  party,  he  was  one  of  the  four 
earls  appointed  with  four  bishops  arid  four  barons  to  confer  with  the 
Commons,142  and  was  a  member  of  the  standing  council  which  the  Commons 
proposed  and  the  king  accepted. 

When  John  of  Gaunt  in  1373  was  smitten  with  the  'midsummer 
madness '  which  made  him  dream  of  conquering  France  and  Castile  he  had 
Tutbury  Castle,  which  had  been  neglected  since  the  downfall  of  Thomas  of 
Lancaster,  prepared  for  his  children  and  the  '  queen  of  Castile.'  It  was  one 
of  the  numerous  castles,  more  than  thirty  in  number,  which  this  great 
prince  held  in  England,  and  had  come  to  him  through  his  marriage  with 

'"  Archaeohgia,  xxxi,  118.  m  ReKj.  six,  87. 

139  Oman,  Art  of  War  in  Middle  Ages,  632.  "°  CoU.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  viii,  99. 

141  Ibid.  102.  I4>  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  ii,  449. 

236 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

Blanche,  the  heiress  of  the  great  house  of  Lancaster.  Newcastle  under  Lyme 
was  another.  To  each  of  his  castles  Gaunt  appointed  a  constable  who  was 
responsible  for  its  military  efficiency,  whose  duty  it  was  to  provide  it  with 
artillery  and  bows  and  arrows,  see  that  the  walls  were  in  repair,  and  super- 
intend the  new  work  of  his  master,  the  greatest  builder  of  the  age.  In  time 
of  war  no  one  could  pass  the  gates  without  a  mandate  under  the  duke's  seal, 
and  in  time  of  peace  the  constable  might  have  the  custody  of  civil  prisoners, 
debtors,  and  other  evil  doers  until  the  justice  in  eyre  came  on  his  circuit.143 
Needwood  Chase  was  one  of  Gaunt's  innumerable  hunting  grounds. 

It  was  at  this  halcyon  period  in  the  history  of  Tutbury  Castle  that  the 
famous  minstrels'  court  and  the  king  of  the  minstrels  were  instituted.  For 
Gaunt  did  not  spend  much  of  his  time  there  with  his  wife,  as  his  attachment 
to  Catherine  Swynford  had  alienated  his  affections,  and  it  was  to  distract  the 
attention  of  his  neglected  wife  as  well  as  to  satisfy  her  great  love  of  music 
that  the  court  was  established.  Indeed,  it  had  become  necessary,  for 
Constance  of  Castile  had  introduced  so  many  musicians,  including  some  from 
her  own  land,  that  her  husband  appointed  a  governor  over  them  with  the 
title  of  king  of  the  minstrels,  and  soon  afterwards  a  court  was  established  to 
hear  plaints  among  them,  which  were  carried  out  with  strictness  and 
regularity.144 

The  reign  of  Edward  III  cannot  be  dismissed  without  a  reference  to 
the  great  number  of  crimes  of  violence  which  the  Plea  Rolls  and  similar 
records  of  the  time  mention.145  So  frequent  were  they  that  a  petition  was 
made146  to  his  successor  in  1379  by  the  people  of  Staffordshire  and  other 
counties  that  men  from  Cheshire  were  continually  coming  by  day  and  night 
in  great  numbers  to  make  war,  and  riding  through  the  county,  robbing, 
burning,  and  ravishing,  and  '  suddenly  beating  and  maiming  divers  men  '  of 
the  county,  returning  to  the  county  of  Chester  without  being  arrested,  so 
suddenly  did  they  come  and  go,  to  the  great  mischief  and  annoyance  of 
Staffordshire  and  the  other  counties.  And  because  Cheshire  was  a  palatine 
county  and  there  was  no  forfeiture  for  such  crimes  done  outside  their  county 
they  did  not  fear  to  commit  any  misdeed,  so  that  many  men  dared  not 
dwell  in  their  houses.  In  spite  of  complaints  to  Parliament  these  grievances 
had  not  been  remedied,  and  the  men  of  the  said  counties  petitioned  that 
these  criminals  should  be  restrained.  The  king  promised  in  answer  to  remedy 
this  state  of  affairs. 

There  is  another  petition  in  the  same  Parliament147  from  the  men  of 
Staffordshire  as  well  as  Herefordshire,  Gloucestershire,  Worcestershire,  and 
Salop  bearing  equal  testimony  to  the  inefficiency  of  the  law.  Therein  it  is 
stated  that  Welshmen  who  had  purchased  lands  in  those  counties  came  often 
with  their  kindred  and  friends  in  bands  of  from  one  to  three  hundred  or 
more,  armed  and  in  warlike  manner  to  kill,  rob,  and  ransom,  and  take 
beasts,  goods,  and  chattels,  and  convey  them  away  to  Wales,  where  the 
sheriffs  and  other  officers  of  the  king  dare  not  exercise  jurisdiction  ;  thus 
the  said  counties  have  been  wasted,  and  in  a  short  time  would  be  utterly 

143  Armytage  Smith,  "John  of  Gaunt,  zl8.  "4  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  77. 

144  One  of  the  grave  evils  at  this  period  was  that  justices  of  assize  acted  in  their  own  counties,  and  being 
friends  or  often  relations  of  the  local  magnates,  allowed  them  to  set  the  law  at  defiance  with   impunity. 
Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  ii,  640.     This  was  put  an  end  to  by  statute  in  1384  ;  Rot.  Par/.  (Rec.  Com.),  ii,  334. 

146  Rot.  Par/.  (Rec.  Com.),  iii,  81.  "7  Ibid. 

237 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

ruined.  They  therefore  prayed  that  henceforth  no  Welshmen  of  pure  blood, 
except  those  in  the  retinue  of  the  king  or  his  nobles,  should  purchase  any 
lands  in  the  said  counties  under  pain  of  forfeiture.  Their  petition  did  not 
mend  matters,  for  shortly  afterwards  the  same  incursions  are  complained  of. 

By  the  Great  Revolt  of  1381  Staffordshire,  and  the  whole  of  the  West 
Midlands  from  Gloucestershire  to  Derbyshire,  seem  to  have  been  practically 
undisturbed.  There  was  no  more  local  disturbance  than  was  common  to  all 
counties  of  mediaeval  England  when  village  ruffianism  was  a  normal 
feature.148  The  figures  returned  by  the  collectors  of  the  Poll  Tax  of  1381 
give  the  number  of  people  in  the  county  over  the  age  of  fifteen  as  15,993, 
but  the  figures  are  not  to  be  relied  on,  being  in  many  cases  obviously 
manipulated.1*' 

Let  us  turn  for  a  moment  from  the  wars,  lawlessness,  and  murders  of 
the  time  to  the  doings  of  men  who  were  laying  the  foundation  of  better  things. 
In  the  Parliament  of  1355  Newcastle  under  Lyme  was  first  represented 
by  John  de  Blorton  and  Richard  de  Podmor  ;  the  county  sending  Sir  John 
de  Draycote  and  Walter  Verdoun,  while  Stafford  borough  sent  Adam 
Rotour  and  William  de  Homeresleye  ;  Lichfield  makes  no  appearance.160 
The  like  representation  occurs  from  1358  till  1370—1,  when  the  borough  of 
Stafford  drops  out. 

To  the  Great  Council,  called  at  Winchester  in  June  of  the  same  year, 
the  county,  Stafford  borough,  and  Newcastle  under  Lyme  sent  one  member 
each  as  directed.151  To  the  Parliament  of  January  1376-7  the  county  sent 
Sir  Nicolas  de  Stafford  and  Adam  de  Peshale  ;  Newcastle,  Richard  Buntable 
and  Thomas  Thicknesse  ;  Stafford  borough,  Robert  de  Mersshe  and  Henry 
Prest  ;  U2  but  next  year  the  county  only  was  represented.  For  many  years 
after  this  Staffordshire  was  generally  fully  represented  with  the  exception  of 
the  borough  of  Lichfield. 

In  1 398,  after  the  coup  d'etat  by  which  he  overthrew  the  lords  appellant, 
we  find  Richard  II  at  Lichfield,  where  he  kept  Christmas  with  due 
solemnity,163  and  while  there  he  issued  a  pardon  to  those  Staffordshire  men 
who  had  supported  the  lords.16*  In  the  next  year  he  passed  through  Lich- 
field on  his  way  from  Chester  to  London,  practically  a  prisoner  in  the  hands 
of  Henry  of  Lancaster,  to  deposition  and  death. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  next  reign  Lichfield  was  again  the  scene 
of  important  events.  In  July,  1402,  upon  hearing  of  Edmund  Mortimer's 
defeat  by  the  Welsh,  Henry  IV  ordered  the  sheriffs  of  twenty-one  counties 
to  array  and  forward  all  their  available  forces  to  meet  him  at  Lich- 
field by  7  July,  and  a  few  days  before  that  the  Prince  of  Wales  had  gone 
forward  to  Tutbury.  From  Wigmore  southwards  the  defence  of  the 
frontier  was  entrusted  to  the  Earl  of  Stafford,  and  north  of  Wigmore  to  the 
Earl  of  Arundel,  who  commanded  the  Staffordshire  levies.  However,  these 
elaborate  preparations  came  to  nought,  the  weather  was  exceptionally  bad, 
and  the  English  host  was  driven  from  Wales  without  effecting  anything. 

148  Oman,  The  Great  Revolt  of  1 381,  p.  142.  "*  Ibid.  App.  ii. 

160  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  158. 

141  One  member  of  each  constituency  who  had  attended  the  previous  Parliament  was  summoned,  but 
the  member  for  Stafford  borough  must  have  been  summoned  for  this  Parliament  only. 
151  Par/.  Acctt.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (l),  196. 

143  Trokelowe,  Chron.  (Rolls  Ser.),  224.  IM  Rymer,  Foedera  (orig.  ed.),  viii,  40. 

238 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

The  ill  success  of  Henry  in  Wales  was  in  striking  contrast  to  the 
success  of  the  Percys  at  Homildon  Hill,  and  was  a  decided  factor  in  forming 
against  him  the  great  league  of  Northumberland  and  his  son  Hotspur, 
Douglas,  Glendower,  and  Mortimer  in  1403.  Henry  was  at  Lichfield  on 
1 1  July,  on  his  way  to  Scotland  to  assist  Northumberland,  and  probably 
there  heard  the  news  of  the  Percys'  rebellion.  He  accordingly  changed  his 
plans,  and  resolved  to  strike  a  sudden  blow  at  the  rebels  in  the  west,  and 
from  Burton  on  1 6  July  he  ordered  the  sheriffs  of  several  counties,  including 
Staffordshire,  to  cause  proclamations  to  be  made  that  all  lords,  knights,  esquires, 
and  yeomen  of  their  respective  bailiwicks  should  hasten  sufficiently  armed 
to  the  king's  person  to  resist  Sir  Henry  Percy,  and  they  were  to  arrest  any 
person  suspected  of  rebellion  whom  they  might  meet.155  The  king's  com- 
missioners to  issue  this  proclamation  in  Staffordshire  were  the  Earl  of  Stafford 
and  Robert  Fraunceys  the  sheriff.  The  king  also  wrote  from  Burton  to  the 
council  in  London  for  money,  assuring  them  he  was  strong  enough  to  over- 
throw any  combination  of  his  enemies,  and  then  marched  through  Lichfield 
with  all  speed  to  Shrewsbury,  evidently  without  waiting  for  the  money  or 
the  men  he  had  asked  for  when  at  Burton,  and  on  the  2ist  the  battle  was 
fought,  and  Hotspur  defeated  and  slain.156  At  the  battle,  in  which  the 
men  of  Cheshire  fought  gallantly  for  Hotspur,  Edmund  the  fifth  earl  of 
Stafford  and  father  of  the  first  duke  was  killed  fighting  for  the  king.157 

Staffordshire  must  have  been,  unlike  Cheshire,  overwhelmingly  on  the 
king's  side,  as  the  estates  of  the  house  of  Lancaster  had  now  come  to  the 
crown,  and  Stafford,  the  most  powerful  noble  in  the  county,  was  loyal  to  the 
throne. 

There  is,  however,  an  account  of  a  fight  which  shows  some  difference 
of  opinion,  for  the  two  knights  Sir  Robert  Mauveisyn  and  Sir  William 
Handsacre  marching,  the  former  to  help  Henry  and  the  latter  Hotspur,  for 
Shrewsbury  met  not  far  from  their  own  homes,  and  in  the  fight  that  followed 
Sir  William  was  slain,  and  Sir  Robert  went  on  to  meet  his  death  at 
Shrewsbury.158 

Four  days  after  the  battle  Henry  was  at  Stafford,  and  stayed  at  Lichfield 
from  the  26th  to  2 8th  July  on  his  way  to  Derby.  In  the  summer  of 
1404  Henry  IV,  who,  although  only  thirty-seven,  seems  to  have  already  fatally 
impaired  his  original  energy,  retired  to  his  northern  castles  and  was  at  Tutbury 
in  the  middle  of  August,  where  he  remained  until  the  2ist,  proceeding  to 
Lichfield,  where  he  had  ordered  a  grand  council  to  assemble.159  From  a  list 
still  preserved  16°  it  consisted  of  eight  bishops,  eighteen  abbots  and  priors, 
nineteen  lords  and  barons,  and  ninety-six  representatives  from  the  counties, 
the  cities  and  boroughs  not  being  represented.  The  situation  to  be  faced  was 
serious  ;  in  Wales  the  garrisons  were  clamouring  for  pay,  as  neither  the  king 
nor  anyone  else  seemed  to  have  any  money,161  the  troops  in  Scotland  were 
mutinous,  and  an  invasion  was  expected  from  France.  It  was  decided  that 
ihe  king  should  not  go  to  Wales,  but  remain  near  Tutbury  ready  for 

155  Rymer,  Foedera  (orig.  ed.),  viii,  313  ;  Cal.  ofPat.  1401-5,  p.  297. 

156  Wylie,  Engl.  under  Hen.  1Y,  i,  35  I. 

157  H.  S.  Riley,  Annals  ofRlc.  II  and  Hen.  IV,  i,  370. 

158  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs,  i,  49—50,  179.     Political  differences  were  aggravated  by  a  family  feud. 

159  Royal  and  Hist.  Letters  of  Hen.  IV  (Rolls  Ser.),  i,  433. 

160  Sir  Harris  Nicolas,  Ordinances  of  P.O.  (Rec.  Com.),  ii,  85.         '"  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist,  iii,  41. 

239 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

emergencies    till    the    Parliament    which    was    summoned   should    meet    at 
Coventry  and  writs  were  issued  to  the  sheriffs  to  summon  the  forces. 

Henry  was  perpetually  in  want  of  money,  and  at  this  juncture  the  Bishop 
of  Lichfield,  John  Burghill,  lent  him  the  not  very  munificent  sum  of 
100  marks.162  Loans  of  this  kind  were  of  very  little  use,  and  the  council 
issued  an  order  from  Lichfield  suspending  all  payments  of  pensions  and 
annuities  from  the  Exchequer  until  the  next  meeting  of  Parliament,  or  until 
further  orders.163 

After  this  important  council  was  dismissed  Henry  still  remained  in  the 
north,  and  on  i  September  left  Lichfield  for  Tutbury,  where  he  received  two 
commissioners  from  Robert  III,  king  of  Scotland,  and  took  an  oath  to  observe 
the  truce  with  him.16* 

To  the  Parliament  which  had  been  summoned  to  meet  at  Coventry  in 
October,  1404,  Staffordshire,  like  most  of  the  other  counties  in  England,  sent 
no  borough  representatives  ;  the  members  for  the  county  were  Sir  Robert 
Fraunceys  and  Sir  John  Bagot.165 

In  1407  we  have  a  harrowing  tale  of  the  disorder  wrought  by  war  in  the 
county.  Constant  attacks  were  made  on  the  king's  estates,  the  houses  of  his 
tenants  broken  into,  the  roads  about  Lichfield  and  Stafford  were  swarming 
with  marauders,  women  and  old  men  were  waylaid  and  beaten,  and  one  of  the 
king's  officers  was  attacked  while  collecting  the  taxes  and  stabbed  to  the 
heart.166  The  chief  leaders  of  these  riots  were  said  to  be  Hugh  de  Erdeswyk, 
Thomas  de  Swynerton,  John  Myners  and  his  two  brothers  Thomas  and 
William. 

In  the  second  year  of  his  reign  the  lawlessness  of  the  county  brought 
Henry  V  in  person  to  Lichfield,  where  he  remained  two  months  hearing 
every  kind  of  plaint.  The  number  of  assaults,  woundings,  robberies,  and 
murders  committed  by  gentle  and  simple  is  almost  incredible.  Occasionally 
the  county  was  in  a  state  of  civil  war  owing  to  these  private  feuds,  which 
were  aggravated  by  the  political  dissension  of  the  day,  as  shown  by  such 
presentments  as  the  following  : — Hugh  Erdeswyk  of  Sandon  and  Robert  his 
brother,  with  many  other  malefactors  to  the  number  of  1,000  men,  had 
congregated  to  kill  Sir  John  Blount  and  other  liegemen  at  Newcastle  under 
Lyme,  and  they  kept  the  field  arrayed  as  for  war  three  days  ;  and  on  another 
occasion,  members  of  the  same  family  with  a  large  body  of  men  beat  and 
wounded  several  of  their  neighbours,  and  would  have  killed  them,  but  were 
prevented  by  a  great  posse  of  the  county.  In  another  case  they  entered 
the  town  of  Newcastle  and  attacked  the  house  of  Sir  John  Boghay,  and 
intended  to  kill  him,  because  he  had  merely  done  his  duty  and  presented  them 
in  the  court  leet,  but  he  fortunately  took  refuge  in  a  church  and  escaped  them.167 
About  the  same  time  we  find  Edmund  Ferrers  of  Chartley  and  others  presented 
for  giving  liveries  of  cloth  to  various  squires  and  yeomen  contrary  to  the 
statute. 

The  question  of  livery  168  was  one  of  the  most  important  of  the  later 
Middle  Ages,  and  the  Statute  Book  is  full  of  Acts  on  the  subject.  Livery 

16>  Cat.  of  Pat.  1401-5,  p.  407.  I63  Wylie,  Engl.  under  Hen.  IY,  i,  462. 

1M  Rymer,  FoeJera  (orig.  ed.),  viii,  371.  I6i  Par!.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  267. 

IM  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  Hi,  630.  m  Ibid. 

168  Livery  (flberatlo)  originally  meant  the  allowance  in  food  and  clothes  given  to  the  servants  and  officers  of 
great  households,  but  became  restricted  to  the  allowance  of  clothing  only. 

240 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

was  granted  by  great  lords  to  many  besides  their  servants  in  order  to  swell  the 
number  of  their  adherents,  who  were  only  too  glad  to  avail  themselves  of  the 
protection  of  the  powerful  at  a  time  when  the  law  was  for  the  rich.  If  a 
man  wore  a  lord's  livery  the  lord  would  '  maintain '  his  suit  for  him  in  the 
law  courts,  and  liveries  had  also  become  the  uniforms  of  factions.169  Previous 
legislation  having  proved  ineffective,  a  statute  was  passed  in  1399  enacting  that 
the  lords  might  only  give  livery  of  cloth  to  their  menial  servants  and  officers, 
and  '  them  that  be  of  their  council,'  17°  and  it  was  clearly  this  statute  m  that 
Edmund  Ferrers  had  broken. 

We  also  find  Staffordshire  petitioning  against  another  grievance  common 
enough  then.  The  royal  courts  were,  as  we  have  seen,  ubiquitous,  and  were 
preceded  by  a  crowd  of  purveyors  seizing  provisions  and  demanding  services, 
but  paying  little  or  nothing  ;  '  Every  old  woman  trembled  for  her  poultry, 
the  archbishop  trembled  for  his  household  and  stud  until  the  king  went  by.'172 
In  1362 173  Edward  III  had  renounced  the  right  of  purveyance  except  on 
behalf  of  the  king  and  queen,  and  promised  to  make  payments  in  ready  money, 
but  the  promises  were  not  kept.  In  1406  Staffordshire  with  other  counties 
complained  that  the  purveyors  of  the  king  had  taken  cattle,  sheep,  pigs,  corn, 
litter,  and  hay  without  paying,  and  the  poor  commons  of  the  county  had 
applied  day  after  day  to  the  treasurer  of  the  king's  household  for  their  money, 
but  only  received  '  sticks  and  tallies  and  promises  to  pay,' 174  to  their  utter 
destruction  and  ruin,  so  that  they  had  nothing  to  live  on  and  were  becoming 
beggars.  The  king  graciously  answered  that  he  was  always  willing  that 
payment  should  be  made  by  his  purveyors,  and  they  would  find  no  fault  in 
him  in  that  respect  for  the  future,  and  all  the  statutes  previously  made  were 
to  be  observed. 

At  Agincourt  the  county  was  represented  by  many  valiant  soldiers,175  the 
following  barons  and  bannerets  displaying  banners  : — Edmund  Lord  Ferrers 
of  Chartley,  Hugh  de  Stafford  Lord  Bourchier,  and  Sir  John  Blount.  In  the 
king's  retinue  were  Sir  John  Gresley,  Sir  Thomas  Gresley,  Sir  John  Bagot, 
Ralph  de  la  Pole  of  Newborough,  John  Chetwynd. 

In  the  retinue  of  Lord  Ferrers  of  Chartley  were  William  Handsacre, 
William  Draycote,  WTalter  Yonge,  John  Bromshelf,  and  John  Walker. 
These  are  described  as  '  lances,'  that  is,  esquires  or  men-at-arms,  and  there 
were  with  them  nine  mounted  archers. 

In  the  retinue  of  Sir  John  Blount  were  Richard  Stafford,  Thomas 
Gifford  of  Chillington,  Giles  Gifford,  Thomas  Newport,  and  Robert  Whit- 
more,  men-at-arms. 

In  the  retinue  of  Hugh  de  Stafford,  lord  of  Bourchier  in  right  of  his 
wife,  were  Richard  Hampton,  Roger  Snede,  Nicholas  Pershale,  John  Acton, 
and  John  Bromley,  men-at-arms. 

In  the  retinue  of  Lord  Grey  were  John  Cokayn,  William  Bromley, 
Thomas  Fitz  Herbert,  and  John  Curson,  men-at-arms. 

169  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  2),  ii,  531  et  seq. 

170  Livery  of '  cloth '  was  distinguished  from  livery  of  '  company,'  which  was  an  imitation  of  the  order  of 
the  Garter,  whereby  lords  wore  each  other's  badges  out  of  compliment.  m  I  Hen.  IV,  cap.  7. 

171  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (ed.  4),  ii,  423.  m  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  ii,  270.  '"  Ibid,  iii,  592. 
176  This  list  was  compiled  by  Maj.-General    the    Hon.    G.  Wrottesley  from   the  Sloane  MSS.   6400, 

Miscellanea,  Treasury  of  Receipt  ^,  and  the  French  Roll  of  3  Hen.  V  (Rec.  Ser.).  See  also  Sir  Harris 
Nicolas,  Hilt,  of  Battle  of  Agincourt,  names  of  dukes,  erles,  barons,  &c. 

I  241  31 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

In  the  retinue  of  Richard  Earl  of  Warwick  were  Humphrey  Stafford, 
William  Burmyngham,  Richard  Curson,  Humphry  and  Edmund  Lowe, 
Thomas  and  Edmund  Swynarton,  men-at-arms. 

With  Sir  William  Bourchier  were  Sir  Roger  Aston  and  John  Hampton 
of  Stourton  ;  with  Lord  Talbot  was  Robert  Erdeswick ;  and  William 
Trussell  served  with  the  Duke  of  Gloucester. 

In  1421  Humphrey,  then  Earl  of  Stafford,  was  retained  by  indenture 
to  serve  the  king  in  France,  on  the  rupture  of  the  Treaty  of  Troyes,  with 
nine  men-at-arms  besides  himself,  and  thirty  mounted  archers,  taking  for 
himself  6s.  %d.  per  day,  for  the  rest  of  his  men-at-arms  twelve  pence, 
and  for  his  archers  sixpence,176  and  supposing  his  men-at-arms  were  esquires, 
the  scale  of  pay  was  the  same  as  in  the  year  of  Crecy.  In  addition  to  their 
pay  they  were  to  have  all  prisoners  they  might  take,  except  kings  and 
kings'  sons.  In  1435  the  number  of  his  followers  was  more  in  accordance 
with  his  power  and  wealth  ;  he  was  retained  to  serve  the  king  with  80 
knights  and  523  archers. 

In  1453  the  English  were  finally  expelled  from  Southern  France,  and 
in  this  year  the  quota  of  archers  demanded  from  Staffordshire  was  173, 
Derbyshire  sending  141,  and  Gloucestershire  424. 

Commissioners  were  to  be  sent  into  every  shire,  except  Cheshire,  to 
assign  the  number  of  these  soldiers  which  each  hundred,  city,  borough, 
township,  village,  and  hamlet  should  be  charged  with,  whose  inhabitants  were 
to  be  compelled  by  distress,  if  necessary,  to  provide  them.  The  archers  were 
to  be  '  ready  sufficiently  and  defensibly  arrayed  as  belongeth  to  an  archer,' 
to  take  sixpence  a  day  as  pay,  and  to  serve  six  months  from  the  time  of  their 
appearance.177 

In  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  which  we  have  now  reached,  the  main 
strength  of  the  Yorkists  lay  in  the  south  and  east,  while  the  north  was 
Lancastrian.  To  a  great  extent  the  wars  were  merely  a  series  of  faction 
fights,  fought  out  by  the  heads  of  the  great  families  and  their  retainers,  during 
which  the  greater  part  of  the  commonalty  went  on  with  their  daily  business, 
but  the  great  mass  of  the  people  were  in  favour  of  the  Yorkists  for 
the  plain  reason  that  the  triumph  of  that  party  would  give  them  the  order 
and  settled  government  under  which  that  daily  business  might  be  carried  on. 

Staffordshire  was  mainly  Lancastrian.  The  Duchy  of  Lancaster  had 
been  merged  in  the  crown  on  the  accession  of  Henry  IV,  and  Henry  VI 
had  granted  it  to  Margaret  of  Anjou  as  part  of  her  dower.  Tutbury  was 
the  chief  seat  of  the  duchy,  and  most  of  the  manors  in  the  northern  and 
eastern  parts  of  the  county  were  held  under  it.  Moreover,  the  greatest 
landowner  in  the  county,  and  perhaps  in  England,  Humphrey,  first  Duke  of 
Buckingham,  was  at  first  a  Lancastrian,  and  so  were  the  gentry  who  held 
under  him  ;  but  there  were  several  of  the  great  families  on  the  Yorkist 
side,  Wrottesley,  Audley,  Blount,  Stanley,  Sutton,  Wolseley. 

The  Duke  of  Buckingham  was  the  son  of  Edmund  Earl  of  Stafford  who 
was  killed  at  Shrewsbury,  and  Anne  the  daughter,  and  eventually  sole  heiress, 
of  Thomas  Duke  of  Gloucester,  the  youngest  son  of  Edward  III.  When  only 
twenty-eight  he  was,  in  1430,  made  constable  of  France,  and  in  1440  was 
created  Duke  of  Buckingham. 

176  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  165.  m  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  v,  232. 

242 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

In  1454  he  is  said  to  have  had  two  thousand  Stafford  Knots, 
his  badge  of  livery,  made  '  to  what  intent  men  may  construe  as  their  wits 
will  give  them.' 178  His  estates  at  this  time  stretched  all  over  central  England, 
from  Holderness  to  Brecknock,  and  from  Stafford  to  Tonbridge.17' 

The  political  state  of  Staffordshire  in  these  wars  is  clearly  shown  by  the 
first  commission  of  the  peace,  issued  by  Edward  IV  in  1461,  in  which 
the  only  Staffordshire  names  are  Sir  John  Sutton  of  Dudley,  Sir  Walter 
Blount,  John  de  Audeley,  John  Harpur,  Thomas  Everdon,  Thomas  Wolseley, 
Thomas  Asteley,  Walter  Wrottesley,  and  Nicholas  Waryng.180 

In  the  commission  issued  by  Richard  III  the  same  policy  can  be  traced, 
for  the  only  names  of  landowners  of  the  county  are  John  Sutton  Lord 
Dudley,  John  Blount  of  Mountjoy,  John  Gresley,  Richard  Wrottesley, 
Humphry  Persall,  Nicholas  Mountgomery,  Ralph  Wolseley,  and  John 
Cawardyne.181 

After  the  battle  of  St.  Albans  in  1455  there  was  no  chance  of  peace, 
and  in  September,  1459,  York  raised  his  standard  on  the  Welsh  border,  and 
it  was  to  join  him  there  that  Salisbury,  the  father  of  the  kingmaker,  with 
about  7,000  men,  marched  southward  from  Middleham  Castle.  Margaret 
had  collected  10,000  men  at  Market  Drayton  under  two  Staffordshire  peers, 
James  Touchet  (Lord  Audley)  and  John  Sutton  (Lord  Dudley),183  the  queen 
herself  being  at  Eccleshall  with  Prince  Edward.183 

To  the  queen,  when  at  Eccleshall,  Lord  Stanley,  who  had  been  raising 
men  for  the  Lancastrians  in  Lancashire,  promised  to  fight  against  the  Earl  of 
Salisbury,  and  his  failure  to  carry  out  this  promise,  although  he  was  at  New- 
castle, within  a  few  miles  of  the  battlefield,  was  a  chief  cause  of  the 
Lancastrian  defeat  at  Blore  Heath,  for  which  treachery  the  Commons 
impeached  him.18* 

York  had  arrived  at  Ludlow,  and  the  Lancastrian  forces  prevented  Salis- 
bury from  joining  him  there. 

On  22  September  Salisbury  took  up  a  strong  position  on  Blore 
Heath,  three  miles  east  of  Market  Drayton,  his  front  protected  by  the 
Hempmill  Brook,  a  tributary  of  the  Tern,  '  not  very  broad  but  somewhat 
deep.'  '  In  the  early  morning,'  on  the  twenty-third,  to  quote  Hall's 
account  : — 185 

He  caused  his  soldiers  to  shoot  their  flights  towards  the  Lord  Audeley's  company, 
which  lay  on  the  other  side  of  the  said  water,  and  then  he  and  all  his  company  made  a  sign 
of  retreat.  The  Lord  Audeley  suddenly  blew  up  his  trumpet  and  passed  the  water.  The 
earl  of  Salisbury,  who  '  knew  the  sleights,  stratagems,  and  policies  of  war,  suddenly 
returned  '  and  encountered  Audeley  when  his  forces  were  only  partly  across  the  water. 

'  The  fight  was  sore  and  dreadful,'  but  in  the  end  '  the  earl's  army  so  eagerly  fought 
that  they  slew  the  Lord  Audeley  and  all  his  captains,  and  discomfited  all  the  remnant  of 
his  people.' 

178  Paston  Letters,  \,  265  ;  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  165.  m  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  'Stafford.' 

180  Coll.   (Salt  Arch.  Soc.  New  Ser.),  vi   (2),   217.  1SI  Ibid.   249. 

188  The  peerage  had  practically  originated  in  the  writ  summoning  John  Sutton  to  Parliament  in  1440, 
though  a  predecessor  had  been  summoned  as  feudal  baron  of  Dudley.  He  had  been  wounded  at  St.  Albans 
in  1455.  He  was  a  successful  'trimmer,'  as,  though  a  supporter  of  Henry,  he  gained  Edward  IV's 
favour,  and  derived  grants  of  land  both  from  Richard  III  and  Henry  VII.  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.), 
ix  (2),  68. 

183  Paston  Letters,  i,  282. 

184  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  v,  369. 

185  Hall,  Chnn.  (ed.  1809),  240.     Holinshed's  account  is  identical. 

243 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

If  Holinshed  188  is  correct  in  saying  that  2,400  were  slain  in  this  battle  the 
fight  must  have  indeed  been  '  sore  and  dreadful,'  as  allowing  the  usual  propor- 
tion of  wounded  to  killed,  more  than  half  the  two  forces  must  have  been  put 
hors  de  combat.  Among  the  prisoners  taken  by  Salisbury  was  Lord  Dudley  ; 
on  the  other  hand  two  of  Salisbury's  sons,  pursuing  the  defeated  enemy  too 
far,  were  captured,  but  their  father  after  his  victory  succeeded  in  effecting  a 
junction  with  York  at  Ludlow. 

The  Duke  of  Buckingham,  who  had  been  wounded187  by  an  arrow  'in  the 
vysage '  at  the  battle  of  St.  Albans,  where  his  eldest  son  was  killed,  did  not 
remain  quite  loyal  to  Henry,  no  doubt  recognizing  the  rising  sun  and  fearing 
to  lose  his  vast  wealth.188  However,  on  the  whole  he  favoured  the  Lancas- 
trians, and  was  with  the  queen  in  London  in  I458189  at  the  '  loveday  ' 
between  the  two  parties,  and  in  1460  received  a  grant  of  land  from  that 
party  for  his  services.1'0  He  was  slain  just  before  the  battle  of  Northampton 
in  July  of  the  same  year.191 

In  1470  Sir  Walter  Wrottesley,  a  staunch  supporter  of  Warwick  the 
kingmaker,  probably  lost  his  life  in  that  cause.  He  was  with  Warwick  and  - 
Clarence  when  they  were  on  their  way  to  join  Sir  Robert  Welles,  who  had 
been  defeated  in  Lincolnshire.  Welles  disclosed  the  conspiracy  that  these 
two  had  entered  into,  and  on  the  king  summoning  them  to  answer  this 
charge  they  fled  ;  but  Sir  Walter  was  probably  among  those  of  Warwick's 
followers  who  were  hanged  at  Southampton.198 

During  the  Lancastrian  period  Staffordshire  was  until  the  Wars  of  the 
Roses  well  represented  in  Parliament  ;  the  county,  the  borough  of  Stafford, 
and  Newcastle  under  Lyme  generally  sending  two  members  each,  but 
Lichfield  is  not  mentioned.  The  last-named  town  was  one  of  those  that 
did  not  value  highly  the  privilege  of  representation.  In  fact  it  was  regarded 
more  as  a  burden  than  a  privilege,  so  that  there  was  great  difficulty  in  finding 
duly  qualified  members.  The  only  men  who  were  anxious  to  be  elected 
were  the  lawyers,  who  '  saw  the  advantage  of  combining  the  transaction  of 
their  clients'  business  in  London  with  the  right  of  receiving  wages  as  knights 
of  the  shire  at  the  same  time.'  m 

To  the  Parliament  of  1414  held  at  Leicester,  Stafford  county  sent  two 
members,  John  Meverell  and  William  Walshale,194  the  boroughs  being 
unrepresented. 

In  the  '  Parliament  of  bats  '  or  bludgeons,  summoned  to  meet  at 
Leicester  in  February,  1425-6,  where  the  parties  of  Gloucester  and  Beaufort 
met  in  hostile  attitude,  and  Bedford  arbitrated  between  them,195  six 
members  represented  Staffordshire  :  the  county  sending  Richard  Lane  of 
Bentley  and  Thomas  Arblaster  ;  Newcastle,  Robert  Wodehous  and  Henry 
Lilie  ;  Stafford  borough,  Robert  Whitegreve  and  William  Preston.196 

At  the  Parliament  held  at  Westminster  in  1455,  when,  after  the  battle  of 
St.  Albans,  Henry  was  obliged  to  declare  his  enemies  loyal,  no  returns  have 

1M  Holinshed,  op.  cit.  ii,  251.  1SI  Paston  Letters,  i,  327. 

88  Ibid,  i,  335.  "'  Ibid.  416,  426. 

190  Rymer,  Foedera  (orig.  ed.),  xi,  443. 

191  Hall,  Cbnn.  (ed.  1809),  244.  "'  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.),  vi,  (2),  227  (New  Scr.). 
193  Stubbs,  Const.  Hist.  (4th  ed.),  iii,  407.  "'  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  282. 
19sStubbs,  Const.  Hist,  iii,  103,  387  ;  Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  iv,  296-7. 

116 Par!.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  311. 

244 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

been  found  at  all  for  Staffordshire  ;  the  same  is  the  case  in  1459  and  1460, 
doubtless  owing  to  the  confusion  of  the  times  ;  while  of  the  Parliaments  of 
1461  and  1462—3  no  returns  for  any  part  of  England  have  been  discovered. 
Constitutional  forms  were  in  abeyance,  and  the  regular  machinery  of 
government  paralysed.  From  1462—3  to  1483  Parliaments  were  only  sum- 
moned irregularly.197 

The  part  played  in  the  reign  of  Richard  III  by  Henry  Stafford  the 
second  Duke  of  Buckingham,  grandson  of  the  duke  killed  before  the  battle 
of  Northampton,  and  descended  both  on  his  father's  and  mother's  side  from 
Edward  III,198  was  as  important  as  from  his  lineage  and  wealth  we  should 
expect.  He  was  the  greatest  of  the  old  nobility,  possessing  lands  in  half 
the  counties  in  England,  including  in  Staffordshire  the  castle  and  manor  of 
Stafford  and  the  manors  of  Billington,  Bradley,  Tillington,  Madeley,  Eaton, 
Darlaston,  Doddington,  Stalbroke,  Packington,  Wigginton,  Hartwell,  Tit- 
tensor,  and  the  fourth  part  of  the  manor  of  Blymhill.199  He  was  married  to 
Catherine  Woodville,  but  regarded  his  wife's  family  as  upstarts,  and  was 
naturally  in  return  hated  by  them.  On  the  death  of  Edward  IV  he  threw 
all  his  influence  upon  the  side  of  the  Duke  of  Gloucester,  and  he  was  mainly 
instrumental  in  effecting  the  arrest  of  his  own  brother-in-law  Lord  Rivers, 
and  Lord  Grey,  and  obtaining  possession  of  Edward  V. 

Gloucester  was  not  lacking  in  gratitude  for  the  support  of  the  head 
of  the  old  nobility,  and  he  was  invested  with  extraordinary  powers  in  Wales 
and  five  of  the  English  counties,  made  chief  justice  and  chamberlain  of  the 
principality  of  Wales,  and  constable  and  steward  of  all  the  royal  castles 
there,  in  the  marches,  and  in  the  counties  of  Salop,  Hereford,  Somerset, 
Dorset,  and  Wilts.200 

In  Richard's  coronation  procession  Buckingham's  magnificence  outshone 
everyone,  his  retainers  all  wearing  his  livery  of  the  Stafford  knot,201  and 
immediately  afterwards  he  was  made  steward  of  the  honour  of  Tutbury  and 
other  Duchy  of  Lancaster  estates  in  Staffordshire,  and  vast  additions,  by 
reason  of  his  descent  from  the  Bohuns,  were  promised  to  his  enormous 
possessions.202  Yet  in  a  little  while  he  was  in  revolt,  why  it  is  impossible 
to  determine  ;  and  after  some  hesitation,  during  which  visions  of  claiming 
the  throne  for  himself  may  have  crossed  his  mind,  he  decided,  with  the 
connivance  of  his  prisoner  Morton,  Bishop  of  Ely,  to  marry  the  earl  of 
Richmond  to  Elizabeth  of  York,  and  place  them  on  the  throne.203  His  fall 
was  terrible  in  its  suddenness  :  the  army  he  had  collected  dispersed  in  a  few 
days,  and  he  was  a  fugitive.  He  had  been  proclaimed  a  '  false  traitor  and 
rebel,'  m  his  hiding-place  was  discovered,  and  on  i  November  he  was 
brought  to  Salisbury,  where  he  was  executed  next  day,  and  his  vast  estates 
confiscated.205 

But  the  period  of  constant  strife  was  nearly  over.  On  7  August,  1485, 
Henry  Tudor  landed  at  Milford  Haven,  and  marched  by  way  of  Shrewsbury 

197  C.  H.  Parry,  Parliaments  and  Councils  of  England  under  the  above  dates. 

198  His  mother  was  Margaret,  daughter  of  Edmund  Beaufort,  second   Duke  of  Somerset,  great-grandson 
of  Edward  III.  '"Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,   166  ;  Cal.  of  Inj.  p.m.  (Rec.  Com.),  iv,  294. 

""Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  169  ;  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  Stafford. 

101  Hall,  Chron.  (ed.  1809),  375.  "'Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  168. 

""Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  169.  *" Rot.  Par!.  (Rec.  Com.),  vi,  245. 

104  Hall,  Chron.  (ed.  1809),  395. 

245 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

to  Stafford,  having  by  that  time  collected  a  considerable  force.  In  the 
mean  time  Richard  had  entrusted  the  defence  of  Lancashire,  Cheshire, 
and  North  Wales  to  Lord  Stanley  and  his  brother  Sir  William,  and  had 
taken  up  his  head  quarters  at  Nottingham.  From  Stafford  Henry  marched 
to  Lichfield,  and  lay  without  the  walls  in  his  camp  all  night,  entering 
the  town  next  morning,  when  he  was  received  '  with  all  honour  like  a 
prince.' 

A  day  or  two  before,  Lord  Stanley  with  5,000  men  had  been  in  the 
town,  but  evacuated  it,  being  afraid  to  commit  himself  by  any  definite  action, 
for  he  had  been  summoned  both  by  Henry  and  Richard,  and  was  as  yet 
undecided.  Henry  left  Lichfield  and  marched  towards  Tamworth,  meeting 
on  the  way  Sir  Walter  Hungerford,  Sir  Thomas  Bourchier  and  others  who 
joined  him.206  '  Divers  other  noble  personages  which  inwardly  hated  King 
Richard  worse  than  a  toad  or  serpent,'  also  came  to  him  now. 

Hall 207  gives  a  quaint  account  of  Henry's  wandering  away  from  his 
own  army  near  Tamworth,  perplexed  as  to  the  future  conduct  of  Stanley, 
and  passing  the  night  in  a  small  village,  three  miles  from  the  head  quarters 
of  his  force,  much  fearing  least  he  should  be  captured  by  King  Richard's 
scouts.  However  he  was  unmolested,  and  next  morning  after  giving  an 
excuse  to  his  men  for  his  absence,  and  riding  through  the  streets  of  the  town 
so  that  all  could  see  him,  he  went  to  Atherstone,  where  he  had  an  interview 
with  the  Stanleys,  then  either  returned  to  Tamworth,  or  slept  where  he 
was,  and  next  day  was  joined  by  his  army  and  marched  on  to  Bosworth. 
Shakespeare  makes  him  return  to  Tamworth,  where  on  '  the  plain  near 
Tamworth  ' 208  he  makes  his  address  to  his  troops. 

Among  those  who  died  fighting  for  Richard  at  Bosworth  was  Walter 
Devereux,  who  had  married  Anne  the  heiress  of  William  Lord  Ferrers  of 
Chartley,  and  had  been  advanced  to  the  dignity  of  a  baron  under  the  title  of 
Lord  Ferrers.209  Henry  VII  had  the  good  fortune  to  enjoy  a  reign  which, 
compared  with  those  immediately  preceding  it,  was  peaceful  and  quiet,  and 
he  had  leisure  to  enjoy  the  sport  of  hunting,  of  which  he  was  fond.  Need- 
wood  Forest  was  one  of  his  hunting  grounds,  and  he  often  brought  his  court 
to  Tutbury  for  that  purpose  when  on  his  way  to  Lathom  House  in  Lanca- 
shire to  see  his  mother  the  Countess  of  Derby.210 

In  1512  Staffordshire  was  summoned  to  provide  a  contingent  for  war 
with  France,  Henry  VIII  having  joined  the  Holy  League  ;  and  the  Earl  of 
Shrewsbury  was  directed  to  muster  '  as  many  of  our  subjects  able  men  for 
the  war  under  the  degree  of  a  baron  to  do  unto  us  service  as  be  our  own  tenants, 
and  other  our  subjects  within  our  counties  of  Derby,  Salop,  and  Stafford,' 
and  those  retained  for  the  war  were  to  have  delivered  to  them  tokens  or 
badges  to  wear,  but  the  expedition  was  a  failure.811 

The  chief  connexion  of  the  county  of  Stafford  with  the  political  history 
of  England  during  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII  is  furnished  by  the  life  of 
Edward,  third  Duke  of  Buckingham.  In  England,  by  the  time  of  Edward  I 
most  of  the  feudal  nobility  of  the  Norman  period  had  disappeared.  In  Stafford- 
shire, as  we  have  seen,  Fitz  Anculf  was  soon  only  a  memory,  and  the  great 

106  Hall,  Chrm.  (ed.  1 809),  413.  *»  Ibid.  ™  Ric.  Ill,  Act  v,  sc.  2. 

™>  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  ">>  177-  "°  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  132. 

111  Rymer,  Foedera  (orig.  ed.),  xiii,  337. 

246 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

Ferrers  family  forfeited  their  estates  after  Evesham,  the  male  line  of  the  Earls 
of  Chester  came  to  an  end  with  John  Scot  the  last  earl,  and  the  Paynels  in 
1194  handed  on  their  estates  through  a  woman.  In  England,  as  a  whole, 
between  1290  and  the  opening  of  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  many  more  great 
houses  of  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries  had  vanished  ;  and  those  wars 
exterminated  so  many  noble  families  that  by  the  time  of  Henry  VII  their 
power  and  wealth  were  concentrated  in  a  few  hands.  Stafford,  Nevill,  Percy, 
Howard,  and  Berkeley,  were  the  chief  of  these.  Edward  Stafford,  the  third 
Duke  of  Buckingham,  had  received  back  his  father's  lands  on  the  accession  of 
Henry  VII,  with  whom  he  was  high  in  favour,  and  this  royal  favour  he 
retained  at  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  He  accompanied 
Henry  to  the  Field  of  the  Cloth  of  Gold,  'fitting  himself212  with  more 
splendour  than  any  other  nobleman.'  The  state  he  maintained  was  almost 
regal.  But  he  was  too  great  a  man  by  descent,  wealth,  wide  estates,  and 
connexions  to  be  allowed  to  live  by  his  king.  He  was  brother-in-law  of  the 
Earl  of  Northumberland  ;  his  three  daughters  had  married  the  Earl  of  Surrey 
afterwards  Duke  of  Norfolk,  the  Earl  of  Westmorland,  and  Lord  Aber- 
gavenny,  and  his  son  had  married  Ursula,  sister  of  Cardinal  Pole,  grandson  of 
George  Duke  of  Clarence. 

He  was  the  mouthpiece  of  the  old  nobility  for  expressing  their  hatred 
of  the  upstart  Wolsey,  and  it  was  to  Wolsey  he  was  betrayed.  The  charges 
against  him  when  brought  to  trial  were  that  he  had  listened  to  prophecies  of 
the  king's  death  and  his  own  succession,  and  had  expressed  an  intention 
to  assassinate  the  king,  a  frivolous  accusation,  and  probably  untrue,  but 
sufficient  to  get  so  dangerous  a  subject  out  of  the  way,  and  he  was 
beheaded  on  Tower  Hill,  17  May,  1521.  On  hearing  of  his  death 
Charles  V  is  said  to  have  exclaimed,  '  A  butcher's  dog  has  killed  the  finest 
buck  in  England.' 213 

The  history  of  this  illustrious  house  had  of  late  been  marked  by  a  long 
list  of  calamities,  the  last  four  heads  of  the  house  had  all  met  violent  deaths 
as  well  as  the  eldest  son  of  the  first  duke,  and  with  the  third  duke  the 
magnificence  of  the  house  departed  for  ever.  His  son  Henry  received  back 
some  of  the  family  estates  in  Staffordshire  and  elsewhere,  and  in  1531  he 
was  granted  the  castle  and  manor  of  Stafford.21*  In  Edward  VI's  first 
Parliament  he  was  member  with  Richard  Forssett  for  the  borough  of 
Stafford,215  and  by  that  Parliament  he  was  restored  in  blood  and  made  Baron 
Stafford.  This  barony  devolved  at  last  upon  Roger,  who  sold  the  dignity  to 
Charles  I  for  £8oo.215a 

New  names  were  now  arising  in  Staffordshire,  as  all  over  England,  and 
old  ones  springing  into  greater  prominence,  and  from  the  family  of  Dudley 
came  men  who  had  a  decided  influence  on  the  history  of  their  country,  an 
influence  which  does  not  redound  to  their  credit. 

Edmund  Dudley,  who  with  Empson  is  notorious  for  filling  the  coffers  of 
Henry  VII,  was  a  representative  of  a  younger  branch  of  the  Suttons  of 
Dudley  Castle,  and  was  rewarded  by  Henry  VIII  for  the  vast  stores  of 

112  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  170. 
11  Ibid.  ;  Burke,  Extinct  Peerage,  Stafford  ;  Rupert  Simms,  Bibliotheca  StaforJiensis  ;  Diet.  Nat.  Biog. 


114  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  i,  170. 
"5  Part.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (i),  376. 
I15a  G.E.C.  Peerage,  vii,  214. 

247 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

wealth  s18  which  had  been  accumulated  for  him  to  squander  by  execution 
on  Tower  Hill.  He  had  married  his  ward,  Elizabeth  daughter  of  Lord  de 
Lisle,  and  their  son  was  John,  said  to  have  been  born  near  Okeover  in  1502. 

John  Dudley  was  able,  tactful,  and  resolute,  and  soon  made  his  way  to 
the  front.  In  1536  he  was  sheriff  of  Staffordshire,  and  about  that  time 
bought  the  Dudley  estates  from  a  member  of  the  Sutton  family.217  Created 
Earl  of  Warwick  and  Duke  of  Northumberland,  his  ambition  overleaped 
itself,  and  his  design  of  bringing  the  crown  into  his  own  family  is  familiar 
to  every  one.218 

He  was  the  ablest  man  of  his  time,  but  unscrupulous  ;  he  supported 
the  reformers  for  his  own  gain,  but  on  the  scaffold  attributed  the  troubles 
of  England  to  the  quarrel  with  the  Papacy. 

His  fifth  son  was  Robert  Dudley,  Earl  of  Leicester,  whose  story  is  too 
well  known  to  need  repetition  ;  he  is  chiefly  connected  with  Staffordshire 
by  the  fact  that  about  the  time  he  married  his  third  wife  Lettice,  countess 
of  Essex,219  whose  husband  he  was  suspected  to  have  poisoned,  he  bought 
Drayton  Basset,  where  he  visited  her  ;  her  son  Robert,  the  second  Earl  of 
Essex,  living  conveniently  near  at  Chartley. 

In  1547  the  county  had  to  bear  its  share  in  the  war  against  Scotland, 
and  the  Earl  of  Warwick  was  commissioned  for  the  '  North  partes,'  includ- 
ing Staffordshire,  to  levy  all  and  singular  the  king's  subjects  who  were  '  habill 
and  mete  for  the  warres,'  whenever  he  should  think  fit,  and  to  drill  and  arm 
them  at  his  discretion.  To  carry  out  this  commission  effectually  all  justices 
of  the  peace,  sheriffs,  mayors,  bailiffs,  stewards,  and  constables  were  to  obey 
his  orders.220 

In  1570  Pius  V  issued  a  bull  excommunicating  Queen  Elizabeth  and 
declaring  her  to  be  deposed  from  the  throne,  an  act  which  placed  the  Roman 
Catholics  in  England  in  a  most  unenviable  position,  as  Romanism  thereby 
became  identified  with  disloyalty.  It  also  had  its  effect  on  the  conduct  of 
Parliament,  which  in  1571  enacted  penal  statutes  against  the  Catholics  and 
made  assent  to  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  obligatory.  Yet  John  Giffard  of 
Chillington,  a  '  prominent  papist,'  in  the  year  when  the  Armada  brought 
forth  all  the  patriotism  of  the  country,  did  as  many  Roman  Catholics  did, 
took  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  Elizabeth.221  His  fourth  son,  as  we  shall  see, 
was  one  of  Walsingham's  tools  for  intercepting  the  correspondence  of  Mary 
Queen  of  Scots  when  at  Chartley. 

The  intrigues  of  the  Jesuits  against  Elizabeth  provoked  her  to  deal  still 
more  strongly  with  the  recusants.  In  1583  the  sheriff  of  the  county  was 
ordered  by  Burghley  and  Walsingham  to  make  an  inventory  of  the  property 
of  Lord  Paget  at  Beaudesert  who  was  '  affected  to  the  Romish  religion  ; ' 
and  for  favouring  Mary  his  lands  were  forfeited.  Elizabeth  evidently  had 

116  Henry  VII  after  Bo^worth  had  rewarded  many  of  his  followers  by  grants  of  land  in  Staffordshire,  but 
the  greatest  change  was  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII,  who  dissolved  thirty-six  religious  houses  in  the  county,  and 
gave  them  to  different  persons  ;  Harwood,  ErJestvick,  xi.     The  effects  of  the   suppressior.  of  the  monasteries 
are  discussed  in  the  Ecclesiastical  and  the  Social  and  Economic  Articles. 

117  Dugdale,  Baronage  (ed.  1675),  ii,  216. 

118  Lord   Guildford   Dudley,    the   husband  of    Lady    Jane    Grey,    was    fourth   son    of    the  Duke    of 
Northumberland. 

"  This  lady,  of  vigorous  character  and   wonderful   vitality,  lived  until  1634,  when  .she  died  at  the  age 
of  94.     She  was  the  great-niece  of  Anne  Boleyn. 

"•  Acts  of  the  P.C.  1547,  pp.  118-19.  MI  Cal.  ofS.P.  Dam.  158:1-90,  p.  561. 

248 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

good  cause  for  watching  the  recusants  in  Staffordshire  ;  Thomas  Morgan, 
Mary's  most  trusted  agent,  advised  her  'if  possible  not  to  go  out  of  Stafford- 
shire which  is  altogether  in  her  favour,' SM  and  '  Ridworth  '  (Ridware  ?)  is 
described  as  being  '  a  town  where  all  are  recusants.' 22S 

In  1585  people  refusing  to  attend  church  were  disarmed,  and  later  on 
the  arms  taken  from  such  persons  were  given  to  the  queen's  good  subjects  ; !2* 
consequently  fifteen  recusants  were  formally  disarmed,  of  whom  Sampson 
Erdeswick  of  Sandon  was  one.  The  commissioners  appointed  to  search  for 
recusants  displayed  in  some  cases  too  much  zeal,  some  of  them  having 
searched  Sampson  Walkeden's  house  at  Stone  in  a  manner  which  led  to 
inquiry  by  the  sheriff  on  the  order  of  the  council. 

There  is  a  list  dated  I592225  of  recusants  in  the  county  divided  into 
three  classes,  first  those  remaining  at  liberty,  who  were  John  Draicot  of 
Painesley  and  Francis  Gatagrea  of  Swynnerton,  esquires  ;  William  Stapleton 
of  Bradley,  John  Stapleton  of  the  same  place,  Philip  Draicot  of  Leigh,  Samp- 
son Erdeswick  of  Sandon,  William  Maxfield  of  Mere,  gentlemen  ;  secondly 
those  imprisoned,  Humphrey  Cumberford  of  Cumberford,  Erasmus  Wolseley 
of  Wolseley  Bridge,  Hugh  Erdeswick  of  Sandon;  and  thirdly  those  at  liberty 
upon  bonds,  John  'Jifford  '  of  Chillington,  Brian  Fowler  of  the  'Manor  upon 
Sow.' 

Queen  Elizabeth  visited  the  county  in  1575  after  her  entertainment  by 
Leicester  at  Kenilworth,  from  which  place  she  came  to  Lichfield  on  27  July, 
and  thence  went  for  some  days  to  Chartley,  whose  owner,  Walter  Devereux,226 
had  just  sailed  to  Ireland. 

Stafford  made  great  preparations  for  her  coming  ;  every  house  was 
newly  painted,  the  streets  gravelled,  and  the  cross  repaired. 

She  arrived  on  8  August,  and  was  met  by  the  bailiffs  on  foot,  who 
presented  to  her  a  cup  '  two  foote  or  more  in  height,'  which  she  most  lovingly 
received,  '  saying  most  gracious  favourable  words,'  which  were  duly  responded 
to.  She  then  passed  on  to  the  market-place,  and  pausing  there,  asked  the 
cause  of  the  decay  of  the  town,  and  was  told  that  the  decay  of '  Capping  ' 
and  the  taking  away  from  the  town  of  the  assizes  were  the  chief  causes. 
Elizabeth  answered  she  would  renew  and  establish  better  the  statute  relating 
to  capping,  and  the  assizes  should  be  held  there  for  ever.  After  this  gracious 
promise,  she  passed  on  through  the  town  to  the  castle,  where  she  dined  and 
'  sopted.' 

The  petition  of  the  Stafford  citizens  to  the  queen  on  the  matter  of  the 
capping  statute  was  backed  up  by  a  letter  dated  27  September  in  the  same 
year  from  Lord  Paget  to  Burghley,  bringing  to  his  recollection  a  petition  of 
the  poor  cappers  of  Lichfield  for  the  better  execution  of  the  statute  for  the 
wearing  of  caps,  and  commending  the  petitioners  to  his  lordship's  notice 
as  the  cappers  were  so  poor.227  Elizabeth  kept  her  promise,  for  not  long 

m  Rep.  on  Salisbury  MSS.  (Hist.  MSS.  Com.),  iii,  148. 

m  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1581-90,  p.  540.  *"  Hist.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  iv,  330. 

2"  Ibid,  iv,  272. 

8M  Walter  Devereux,  created  Earl  of  Essex  in  1572,  was  the  grandson  of  Walter  Devereux,  Viscount 
Hereford,  the  grandson  of  Sir  Walter  Devereux,  who  had  married  the  heiress  of  Lord  Ferrers,  and  fell  at 
Bosworth.  The  family  of  Devereux  provided  recorders  of  Lichfield  for  eight  successive  generations,  probably 
a  unique  record.  Hist.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  xi,  App.  v,  122. 

™  Rep.  onSaRsbury  MSS.  (Hist.  MSS.  Com.),  ii,  116. 

I  249  32 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

afterwards  we  read  that  the  statute  was  daily  put  in  execution  in  all  parts  of 
the  realm.839 

We  have  now  to  narrate  the  part  which  Staffordshire  played  in  the 
captivity  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  the  most  romantic  figure  in  English 
history. 

In  February,  1568-9,  Mary  arrived  at  Tutbury  from  Bolton,289  having 
been  transferred  thither  because  of  her  many  intrigues,  in  order  that  she 
might  be  in  closer  custody.  Tutbury  was  at  that  time  one  of  the  seven 
mansions  of  George  Talbot,  the  sixth  Earl  of  Shrewsbury,  who  held  it 
on  a  lease  from  the  crown,  and  was  used  by  him  as  a  hunting  box.  His 
wife,  the  famous  '  Bess  of  Hardwick,'  owned  two  more  in  her  own  right, 
so  that  Shrewsbury  was  almost  a  king  in  that  neighbourhood.  As  he  was 
'  half  a  Catholic '  and  a  nobleman  of  high  rank  and  character,  he  seemed 
peculiarly  fitted  to  be  Mary's  guardian. 

It  cannot  be  said,  reading  the  provision  made  for  Mary,  that  she  was  so 
badly  treated,  in  spite  of  the  house  being  poor.  She  was  allowed  two 
physicians  who  slept  in  the  house,  a  large  suite  of  more  than  fifty  persons 
attended  her,  ten  horses  were  provided,230  and  £52  a  week  was  allowed  for  her 
maintenance. 

She  was  not  destined  to  stay  at  Tutbury  long,  for  in  the  middle  of 
March  Shrewsbury  received  orders  to  remove  her  to  Wingfield  Manor, 
another  of  his  mansions,  and  a  great  change  for  the  better  for  the  captive. 
In  September  Mary  was  taken  back  to  Tutbury  in  order  to  be  again  in 
more  strict  custody,  as  Elizabeth  had  awakened  to  the  danger  of  Norfolk's 
plot  to  marry  Mary,  who  probably  was  all  the  time  only  using  Norfolk  as  a 
tool  whereby  she  might  obtain  her  freedom. 

Her  second  visit  to  Tutbury  marked  an  epoch  in  her  captivity,  for 
hitherto  she  had  been  treated  leniently  ;  now  her  retinue  was  diminished  and  her 
actions  more  closely  watched.  She  was  at  this  time,  indeed,  the  centre  of  plots 
against  Elizabeth  and  her  government  which  were  backed  up  by  Spain,  and  it 
was  now  that  the  conspiracy  of  the  northern  earls,  Westmorland  and  Northum- 
berland, came  to  a  head,  and  they  resolved  to  march  and  deliver  Mary  from 
Tutbury,  an  enterprise  which  failed  miserably.  If  it  had  been  resolutely 
carried  out  it  might  well  have  succeeded,  as  the  earls  got  within  fifty-four 
miles  of  the  castle,  a  weak  place  and  easily  stormed.  It  was  to  suppress  this 
rebellion  that  Walter  Devereux  Viscount  Hereford  raised  a  troop  of  horse, 
and  for  his  services  was  created  Earl  of  Essex.231  The  attempted  rescue 
caused  Mary  to  be  hurried  off  to  Coventry  23a  with  orders  that  if  she  tried  to 
escape  she  was  to  be  executed  forthwith. 

258  Acts  of  P.C.  1577-8,  p.  341.  The  evils  arising  from  the  decay  of  the  trade  of  cap-making,  which 
had  been  the  subject  of  several  Acts  of  Parliament,  by  the  disuse  of  caps,  had  received  attention  in  the  statute 
33  Eliz.  cap.  19,  some  time  before  the  queen's  visit.  By  this  every  person,  except  maiden  ladies,  and  gentle- 
women, all  noble  personages,  and  every  lord,  knight,  and  gentlemen  of  the  possession  of  twenty  marks  in  land 
by  the  year,  shall  on  Sundays  and  holidays  wear  on  their  head  a  cap  of  wool  made  in  England  by  the  cappers. 
The  penalty  was  3/.  ^d,  per  day. 

m  Cal.  of  Scot.  Pap.  ii,  616.  "°  MSS.  Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  iii,  41  ;  Cal.  of  Scot.  Pap.  ii,  617. 

831  Dugdale,  Baronage  (1675  ed.),  ii,  177.  There  are  many  letters  from  Mary  at  this  time  in  the  Cal. 
of  Scot.  Pap.  iii.  In  one  dated  from  'Tutbury  the  ix  of  November,  1569,"  to  Cecil,  she  prays  him  to 
ask  the  queen  to  '  have  pitie  on  our  estait '  as  the  writer  is  waiting  on  her  '  loofing  friendship '  and  has 
in  no  ways  done  anything  to  offend  her,  albeit  the  queen  may  be  otherwise  '  informit '  by  the  false  inventions 
of 'our  enemies.' 

131  Cal.  of  Scot.  Pap.  iii,  9. 

250 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

There  is  a  letter  from  Mary  dated  from  '  my  prison  at  Tutbury, 
October  ist,'  complaining  of  the  severity  shown  to  her  servants,  and  that  she 
was  not  allowed  to  receive  any  news  from  Scotland  or  France  : 

instead  of  which  they  have  forbid  me  to  go  out,  and  have  rifled  my  trunks,  entering 
my  chamber  with  pistols,  not  without  putting  me  in  bodily  fear,  and  accusing  my  people, 
rifle  them  and  place  them  under  arrest.233 

As  soon  as  the  rebellion  was  over  Mary  came  back  to  Tutbury,234  where, 
to  prevent  her  escape,  among  other  precautions,  the  lock  of  her  outer 
chamber  door  was  removed  so  that  her  movements  might  be  watched  more 
closely.  Next  May  she  went  to  Chatsworth.  In  the  beginning  of  1585  the 
ill-fated  queen  arrived  again  at  Tutbury  from  Wingfield,  most  reluctantly,  as 
it  was  the  most  wretched  of  all  her  prisons  in  England,  and  when  she  arrived 
she  found  her  rooms  had  been  unoccupied  since  her  last  stay.  The  place  was 
miserably  furnished,  the  walls  damp,  doors  and  windows  ill-fitting,  and  in  a 
letter  written  at  the  time  Mary  thus  describes  it  : — 

I  am  in  a  walled  enclosure  on  the  top  of  a  hill,  exposed  to  all  the  winds  and  in- 
clemencies of  heaven.  Within  the  enclosure  there  is  a  very  old  hunting  lodge,  built  of 
timber  and  plaster  cracked  in  all  parts ;  the  said  lodge,  distant  three  fathoms  or  there- 
abouts from  the  wall,  and  situated  so  low  that  the  rampart  of  earth  behind  the  wall  is 
on  a  level  with  the  highest  part  of  the  building  so  that  the  sun  can  never  shine  upon  it  on 
that  side  nor  any  fresh  air  come  to  it  ...  The  only  apartments  that  I  have  for  my  own 
person  consists  of  two  little  miserable  rooms  so  very  cold  that  but  for  the  ramparts  and 
entrenchments  of  curtains  and  tapestry  I  have  made  it  would  not  be  possible  for  me  to 
stay  in  them. 

The  garden  for  exercise  was  a  potato  ground  '  fitter  to  keep  pigs  in  than  to 
bear  the  name  of  a  garden,'  and  it  need  hardly  be  said  that  the  sanitary 
arrangements  were  disgusting.235 

The  neighbouring  gentry238  lent  her  linen  and  bedding,  otherwise  she 
would  have  fared  ill,  as  she  was  now  a  martyr  to  rheumatism  ;  and  little 
pity  could  be  expected  from  Sir  Amyas  Paulet,  who  was  made  her  guardian 
in  April. 

Elizabeth  apparently  was  not  aware  of  the  wretched  condition  of  the 
place,  for  when  she  heard  of  it  she  wrote  expressing  her  anger  at  the  persons 
'  who  had  furnished  Tutbury  so  basely,  and  thus  given  the  Queen  of  Scots 
such  just  cause  of  complaint  against  her." 

When  at  Tutbury  Mary  was  visited  by  Nicholas  White,  who  discreetly 
advised  that  '  very  few  should  have  access  to  or  conference  with  this  lady,  for 
besides  that  she  is  a  goodly  personage,  she  hath  without  an  alluring  grace, 
a  pretty  Scotch  speech,  and  a  searching  wit  clouded  with  mildness.' !S7 

At  the  end  of  the  year  she  was  removed  to  Chartley,  avowedly  in 
answer  to  her  own  demands  for  a  less  rigorously  unpleasant  residence,  but 
really  that  Walsingham  might  trap  her. 

Chartley  was  now  in  the  ownership  of  the  second  Earl  of  Essex,  then 
a  very  young  man,  whose  consent  to  Mary's  imprisonment  there  was  not 

233  Cal.  of  Scot.  Pap.  ii,  682.  *"  Ibid,  iii,  41. 

235  Strickland,  Letters  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  ii,  161. 

>3il  An  order  was  sent  to  Thomas  Gresley,  sheriff  of  the  county  7  Nov.  1 5  84,  to  convey  the  household 
stuff  of  Lord  Paget,  who  had  lately  been  attainted,  to  Tutbury  for  the  use  of  the  Queen  of  Scots,  but  it  was- 
of  indifferent  quality,  as  the  best  had  been  sold  ;  Harwood  (ed.  1844),  Erdeswick,  532  ;  and  see  Cal.  S.P. 
Dm.  1581-90,  p.  226.  ™  Rep.  on  SaRibury  MSS.  (Hist.  MSS.  Com.),  i,  400. 

251 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

asked,  and  who  objected,  when  told  it  had  already  been  decided  upon,  that 
the  house  was  too  small,  and  he  wanted  it  for  himself.  It  is  described  M8 
*  as  low  and  unhealthy,  and  the  water  surrounding  it  as  of  such  depth  as 
may  stand  instead  of  a  strong  wall,'  and  as  having  only  one  kitchen. 

Here  Mary's  health  was  very  poor,  so  bad  that  an  advocate  of  Eliza- 
beth's harshest  measures  wrote  of  her  that  she  was  '  so  sickly  and  impotent 
her  majesty  thought  it  impossible  she  should  be  anyways  able  to  annoy  her 
or  to  do  her  any  great  harm.' 

Walsingham  was  firmly  convinced  that  Mary  deserved  death,  and  that 
her  death  was  necessary  for  the  safety  of  England.  He  knew  that  Elizabeth 
would  not  consent  to  her  death  unless  she  knew  and  could  let  the  world 
know  that  Mary  had  been  plotting  against  her.  At  Tutbury  Mary  had  had 
no  chance  to  plot  because  she  was  so  rigorously  guarded  ;  at  Chartley  she 
was  to  have  more  scope,  and  the  Babington  conspiracy  followed  in  the  next 
spring.239 

The  plot  was  given  ample  time  to  develop,  and  it  was  not  until  August 
that  the  conspirators  were  seized,  and  it  was  then  resolved  to  take  stronger 
measures. 

Mary's  health  had  improved  at  Chartley,  and  one  day  Paulet  proposed 
a  visit  to  Tixall,  a  house  belonging  to  Sir  Walton  Aston  a  few  miles 
distant,  to  see  a  buck  hunt.  On  their  arrival  a  party  of  horsemen  awaited 
them,  who  poor  Mary  hoped  were  her  friends  at  last  come  to  rescue  her. 
But  their  leader  rode  forward  with  a  warrant  for  her  removal  to  Tixall,  and 
the  sending  of  her  secretaries  to  London,  and  she  was  forthwith  hurried  into 
the  house  and  kept  there  seventeen  days.  Paulet  in  the  meantime  hurried 
back  to  Chartley,  ransacked  all  Mary's  papers,  and  sent  every  scrap  to 
Windsor  for  Elizabeth's  perusal.  This  done  Mary  returned  there.240 

The  conspirators  were  tried  and  executed  in  September,  a  commission 
was  appointed  to  try  Mary  in  October,  and  she  was  removed  to  Fotheringhay 
at  the  end  of  September. 

In  the  year  of  the  Armada  letters  were  sent  to  the  lords-lieutenant  of 
several  counties,  including  Staffordshire,  for  the  training  and  mustering  of 
soldiers,241  and  from  the  abstract  of  the  certificate  returned  from  the  lord- 
lieutenant,  the  Earl  of  Shrewsbury,  the  following  were  the  '  able  trayned  and 
furnished  men  in  the  county,  *  reduced  into  bandes  under  Captaines,  and 
how  they  were  soarted  with  weapons '  in  April  of  that  year.843 

The  '  ablemen  '  numbered  1,910,  the  'furnished'  1,000;  there  were  two 
companies  of  '  trained '  men  numbering  200  each,  and  one  company  of 
'  untrained  '  men  of  the  same  strength. 

The  captains  of  the  two  trained  companies  were  Ralfe  Sneade  and 
Thomas  Horwood,  and  Ralfe  Sneade  commanded  the  untrained. 

138  Morris,  Letters  of  Sir  Amyas  Paulet,  94. 

ro  Innes,  England  under  the  Tudors,  335.  It  was  at  Chartley  that  the  Queen  of  Scots  received  and 
dispatched  her  letters  in  the  false  bottom  of  a  barrel  of  beer  which  used  to  come  every  week  from  Burton; 
and  these  Giffard  read  and  betrayed. 

140  Hosack,  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  and  Her  Accusers,  ii,  385  ;  Morris,  Letters  of  Sir  Amyai  Paulet,  2506!  seq. 
Paulet  gives  us  a  glimpse  of  the  wealth  of  the  country  gentlemen  of  the  time  :  '  Sir  W.  Aston  saith  he  hath 
upon  the  point  of  a  hundred  persons  uprising  and  downlying   in  his  house';  Letters  of  Sir  A.  Paulet,  98. 
Sir  W.  Aston  was  thanked  for  'yielding  his  house*  ;  Acts  ofP.C.  1586-7,  p.  210. 

141  Acts  of  P. C.  1588,  p.  1 6. 
141  Harl.  MSS.  No.  168. 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

Each  of  the  trained  companies  was  armed  thus  : — 

Men  Shott  Cortletts  Bows  Bill* 

200  85  cal.'43  60  20  2O 

15  mus. 

The  untrained  company  was  armed  in  a  slightly  different  manner  : — 

Men  Shott  Corsletts  Bows  Bills 

200  80  60  20  40 

The  cavalry  consisted  of  the  following  : — Launces,  28  ;  Light  Horse, 
50  ;  Petroneles,  26.244 

The  levies  summoned  to  resist  the  Armada  were  in  a  very  bad  state 
of  discipline  ;  Shrewsbury,  the  lord-lieutenant,  complained  to  his  deputy 
lieutenants  that  of  the  whole  band  of  horsemen  in  Staffordshire  only  six  were 
serviceable  and  furnished  as  they  ought  to  be.245 

It  was  the  old  tale  enforcing  the  old  lesson  which  the  English  have 
never  learnt,  that  false  economy  in  peace  means  extra  risk  and  extra  expense 
in  war ;  as  Leicester  wrote  to  Walsingham  :  '  Great  dilatory  wants  are 
found  upon  all  sudden  hurly  burlies.  If  the  navy  had  not  been  strong 
enough  what  peril  would  England  now  have  been  in.' 346 

Of  these  inefficient  troops  Staffordshire  furnished  the  commander-in- 
chief,  Leicester,  a  man  with  no  military  capacity,  but  he  fortunately  had  at 
his  elbow  Sir  John  Norreys,  the  one  experienced  captain  available.247 

In  the  order  of  27  June,  1588,  to  the  county  levies  in  England  to  be 
ready  to  go  where  directed  at  an  hour's  notice 248  Staffordshire  is  not  men- 
tioned, but  in  August  of  that  year  the  county  was  ordered  through  the 
lord-lieutenant  to  furnish  400  foot,  and  share  with  Derbyshire  in  providing 
thirty-four  horsemen  to  join  the  Earl  of  Huntingdon  in  the  north,  for  the 
Spanish  fleet  was  said  to  have  landed  men  at  Moray  Firth.249  In  October 
again  Staffordshire  was  one  often  counties  which  with  London  provided  1,500 
voluntary  soldiers  to  go  to  the  Low  Countries.250  In  1596  Staffordshire 
shared  with  the  counties  of  Warwick,  Worcester,  Gloucester,  and  Salop  in 
providing  800  men  to  go  to  Calles  (Cadiz)  in  the  brilliant  expedition  of 
Howard,  Essex,  and  Raleigh,  the  contingent  being  ordered  to  march  to 
Plymouth  under  Sir  Christopher  Blunt.251 

In  1599  and  1600  constant  levies  of  men  were  made  in  the  county  for 
the  wars  in  Ireland,  a  service  which  was  evidently  very  unpopular,  as  many 
of  the  men  deserted  and  their  places  were  filled  up  with  much  difficulty, 
a  task  which  the  authorities  were  by  no  means  ready  to  perform.252 

Under  Henry  VIII  and  his  three  successors  a  number  of  old  electoral 
boroughs  were  revived,  and  others  newly  summoned,  mainly  for  the  purpose 

"*  Presumably  '  cal '  means  calivers,  which,  according  to  Clepham  (Defensive  Armour  of  Mediaeval  Times 
and  the  Renaissance,  225),  means  a  'harquebus  or  light  musket,  of  a  standard  calibre,  introduced  into  England 
during  Elizabeth's  reign,  4ft.  loin,  in  length.'  The  musket  was  making  its  first  appearance  at  this  time. 

144  Petronel,  '  a  kind  of  hand  bombard  fired  by  a  horseman  from  a  forked  rest  fixed   on  the   saddle.' 
When  not  in  use  it  hung  suspended  from  the  rider's  neck;  Clepham,  op.  cit.  219. 

145  Hist.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  iv,  332. 

146  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1581-90,  p.  513.  '"  Innes,  England  under  the  Tudors,  362. 
"8  Acts  ofP.C.  1588,  p.  137. 

149  Ibid.  231  ;  Hist.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  xii,  App.   iv,  259,  which  says  thirty-six  launces  instead  of  thirty- 
four  horse. 

150  Acts  ofP.C.  1588,  p.  297.        •  '"  Rep.  on  SaKsbury  MSS.  (Hist.  MSS.  Com.),  vi,  206. 
M>  Acts  ofP.C.  1 599-1600  passim,  and  Hut.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  xii,  App.  iv,  276,  279,  331,  333. 

253 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

of  creating  votes  in  the  interests  of  the  crown,  and  the  Parliamentary 
representation  was  practically  set  upon  the  basis  which  it  retained  till 
1 832."" 

Lichfield,  which  had  been  unrepresented  for  200  years,  again  sent  two 
members  in  1552—3,  Mark  Wyrley  and  William  Fitzherbert,  the  county 
sending  to  the  same  Parliament  William  Devereux  and  Walter  Aston  ; 
Newcastle,  Roger  Fowke  and  John  Smyth  ;  and  the  borough  of  Stafford, 
Edward  Colborne  and  Francis  Smith.354  In  1563  Tamworth  appears  for  the 
first  time,  and  the  county  in  all  was  represented  by  ten  members. 

These  members  sat  for  a  considerable  time,  as  this  Parliament  was 
repeatedly  prorogued,  partly  on  account  of  the  plague  which  was  then  raging 
in  London  and  Westminster,265  and  partly  because  under  the  Tudors  it  had 
become  customary  to  resume  business  in  repeated  sessions  with  the  same  body 
of  members.256  The  Parliament  of  1572,  to  which  the  county  again  sent  ten 
members,  lasted  eleven  years.  In  1601  a  Northamptonshire  gentleman, 
Robert  Browne,  was  one  of  the  members  for  Lichfield.267  At  the  famous 
Parliament  of  1621,  which  attacked  monopolies,  impeached  Bacon,  and  entered 
in  the  journals  of  the  House  a  protestation  of  their  privilege  to  speak  freely 
on  all  subjects,  only  to  have  it  torn  from  the  book  by  the  king,  Sir  William 
Bowyer  and  Thomas  Crompton  represented  the  county  ;  William  Wingfield 
and  Richard  Weston  of  Rugeley,268  Lichfield  ;  Sir  John  Davis  and  Edward 
Kerton,  Newcastle ;  Matthew  Cradock  and  Richard  Dyott,  Stafford  borough  ; 
Sir  Thomas  Puckeringe  and  John  Ferrour,  '  merchant  of  London,'  Tarn- 
worth.259 

In  February,  i  604,  the  government,  alarmed  at  the  result  of  the  tolera- 
tion they  had  granted  to  the  Catholics,  determined  on  sterner  measures,  and 
the  result  was  the  Gunpowder  Plot,  of  which  Holbeche  House  saw  one  of 
the  closing  scenes.  The  original  conspirators,  Catesby,  Thomas  Percy, 
Thomas  Winter,  Guy  Fawkes,  and  John  Wright,  were  no  obscure  fanatics, 
but  gentlemen  of  name  and  blood,  and  if  they  had  kept  the  secret  to  them- 
selves the  House  of  Lords  would  probably  have  been  blown  up.  But  they 
committed  the  fatal  error  of  having  too  many  accomplices,  and  determined 
that  arms  and  men  should  be  ready  in  the  country  to  commence  war  as  soon 
as  Parliament  was  destroyed.  Tresham  betrayed  the  plot,  and  even  then  the 
conspirators  would  probably  have  escaped,  but  when  they  fled  into  the 
country,  leaving  Fawkes  grimly  sticking  to  his  post,  they  raised  open  insur- 
rection.260 As  they  rode  through  the  country  on  the  morning  of  5  November 
they  found  that  the  zeal  of  most  of  their  supporters  had  cooled,  and 
only  a  few  score  joined  them.  What  followed  may  be  told  in  the  words  of 
the  sheriff  of  Worcestershire  to  the  council.  After  describing  how  the 
rebellious  assembly  had  broken  into  Lord  Windsor's  house  at  Hewell  on 
7  November,  'taking  there  great  store  of  armour  and  artillery,'  he  relates  how 
they  passed  that  night  into  the  county  of  Stafford  unto  the  house  of  one  Stephen 
Littleton,  gentleman,  about  two  miles  distant  from  Stourbridge,  '  whither  we 

"'  Lane  Pool,  Hist.  Atlas.     Notes  on  Map  xxiii ;  Gneist,  Hist,  of  Engl.  Part.  (ed.  3),  232. 

154  Par/.  Accts.  and  Pap.  Ixii  (i),  379  ;  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs,  i,  318. 

'"  Parry,  Paris,  and  Councils  of  Engl.  216. 

>M  Gneist,  Hist,  of  Engl.  Par/,  (ed.  3),  241.  '"  Par/.  Accts.  and  Pap.  Ixii  (i),44O. 

m  Afterwards  baron  of  the  Exchequer.  '"Par/.  Accts.  and  Pap.  Ixii  (i),  453. 

M0  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  96. 

254 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

pursued,  with  the  assistance  of  several  gentlemen  and  the  power  and  force  of 
the  country.' 

We  made  against  them  upon  Thursday  morning,  and  freshly  pursued  them  until  the 
next  day,  at  which  time  about  twelve  or  one  of  the  clock  in  the  afternoon  we  overtook 
them  at  the  said  Holbeche  House,  the  greatest  part  of  their  retinue,  and  some  of  the  better 
sort  being  dispersed  and  fled  before  our  coming,  whereupon  and  after  summons  and  warning 
first  given,  and  proclamation  in  his  highness's  name  to  yield  and  submit  themselves,  who 
refusing  the  same  we  fired  some  part  of  the  house  and  assaulted  some  part  of  the  rebellious 
persons  left  in  the  said  house,  in  which  assault  one  Mr.  Robert  Catesby  is  slain,  and  three 
others  verily  thought  wounded  to  death  as  far  as  we  can  learn  are  Thomas  Percy  gentleman, 
John  Wright  and  Christopher  Wright,  gentlemen  ;  and  these  are  apprehended  and  taken, 
Thomas  Winter,  John  Grant,  Henry  Morgan,  Ambrose  Rokewood,  gentlemen,  and  six 
others  of  inferior  degree.  The  rest  of  that  rebellious  assembly  is  dispersed.261 

Percy,  John  Wright,  and  his  brother  died  of  their  wounds,  so  that  only 
Fawkes  and  Thomas  Winter  of  the  original  five  fell  into  the  government's 
hands  alive.  In  the  meantime  Fawkes,  under  dreadful  torture  in  the  Tower, 
was  telling  the  council  the  whole  of  the  plot,  and  it  was  not  long  before  the 
plotters  were  tried  and  punished. 

James  I  visited  Staffordshire  more  than  once ;  his  fondness  for  hunting 
attracted  him  to  Needwood,  where  his  favourite  eminence  for  resting  and 
looking  at  the  scenery  was  called  '  The  King's  Standing.' 263  In  1 6 1 7  he  visited 
Stafford,  and  was  received  most  loyally,  and  in  1619,  1621,  and  1624  he  was 
at  Tutbury,  the  scene  of  so  much  of  his  mother's  misery. 

In  1625  Staffordshire  gentlemen  were  fined  for  their  non-appearance  at 
the  coronation  of  Charles  I  to  receive  the  order  of  knighthood,  the  qualifica- 
tion for  which  had  been  fixed  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VI  at  the  annual  income 
of  £40,  an  increase  from  the  £20  enacted  by  the  Statute  '  de  Militibus.' 
The  fines  had  been  levied  at  the  coronations  of  Edward  VI,  Mary,  and 
Elizabeth,  but  not  by  James  I. 

The  average  fine  imposed  upon  a  defaulter  in  Staffordshire  was  £10, 
whereas  the  average  fee  for  knighthood  was  between  £60  and  £70.  So 
wide  was  the  net  cast  that  in  Staffordshire  a  yeoman  was  summoned. 

The  coronation  was  on  2  February,  1625-6,  but  it  was  not  until  1630 
that  decisive  steps  were  taken  to  enforce  the  fines  on  defaulters  residing  at  a 
distance  from  the  capital,  when  special  commissions  were  issued  to  prominent 
persons  in  each  county,  that  relating  to  Staffordshire  being  addressed  to 
Robert  Earl  of  Essex,  Walter  Lord  Aston,  Sir  Hugh  Wrottesley,  and  Sir 
William  Bowyer,  kts.,  and  Richard  Weston,  esq. 

Another  commission  was  issued  on  12  February,  1630—1,  and  another 
on  9  June,  1631.  Altogether  about  260  gentlemen  compounded,  the  com- 
positions varying  from  £10  to  £$o,  the  former  sum  being  that  generally 
paid,  and  no  doubt  the  far-reaching  nature  of  these  exactions  helped  to  turn 
the  country  gentlemen  against  the  king.  The  abolition  of  compulsory 
knighthood  was  one  of  the  first  Acts  of  the  Long  Parliament.263 

In  1636  the  Roman  Catholics  in  the  county  felt  the  benefit  of  Charles' 
more  lenient  treatment  of  their  co-religionists,  to  which  he  was  urged  by 
Henrietta  Maria  and  the  Archbishop  of  York.  Wentworth  and  others  were 
commissioned  to  lease  to  recusants  in  Staffordshire  and  other  northern  counties 

M1  S.  R.  Gardiner,  What  Gunpowder  Plot  Was,  46-7  ;   Cal.  S.P.  Dam.  1603-10,  pp.  247,  255. 

161  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  207.  *B  1 6  Chas.  I,  cap.  20. 

255 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

lands  which  had  been  forfeited  for  recusancy,  and  to  compound  with  them 
for  sums  of  money  due  by  reason  of  the  same  offence."*  This  leniency  gave 
great  offence  to  the  Puritans,  but  was  nobly  rewarded  in  the  approaching 
Civil  War  by  the  Roman  Catholics. 

The  same  year  the  king  visited  Tutbury,  and  a  proclamation  was  issued 
postponing  Tutbury  fair,  the  minstrels'  court,  and  the  bull-running  from 
15  August  to  22  August,  as  the  king  would  be  there  on  the  ifth,  intending 
to  spend  five  nights.  The  reason  given  for  this  was  that  a  great  confluence 
of  people  being  attracted  to  such  scenes  there  was  in  these  times,  when  the 
plague  was  an  ever-threatening  enemy,  great  danger  of  infection.8" 

In  the  second  Bishops'  War  in  1640  Charles  called  on  Staffordshire 
among  other  counties  for  its  quota  of  men,  who  were  furnished  him  in  the 
case  of  the  infantry  by  the  train-bands  and  by  impressment  ;  the  cost  of 
their  equipment  and  maintenance  until  they  had  crossed  the  borders  of 
the  county  *w  was  paid  by  the  shire  under  the  name  of  coat  and  conduct 
money,  but  many  of  the  country  gentlemen  refused  to  pay  it,  and  the  crown, 
knowing  its  unpopularity,  dared  not  prosecute  them.  The  men  were  promised 
8</.  a  day,367  but  owing  to  the  chronic  emptiness  of  the  royal  exchequer 
often  went  unpaid.  The  cavalry  contingent  from  Staffordshire  numbered 
sixty-nine  cuirassiers  and  thirty-one  light  horsemen.  The  infantry,  who  in 
the  previous  year  had  been  drawn  chiefly  from  the  northern  counties,  were 
now  drawn  from  the  southern,  which  had  no  traditional  feuds  with  the  Scots. 
Insubordination  was  rife,  the  men  supplemented  arrears  of  pay  by  plunder, 
and  in  Staffordshire,  among  other  offences,  they  pulled  down  fences  and  burnt 
them.268  An  amusing  letter  from  the  deputy-lieutenants  of  the  county  men- 
tions that  it  was  necessary  to  put  constables  in  charge  of  these  defenders  of 
their  country,  and  even  this  precaution  did  not  keep  them  within  bounds. 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  these  men  on  meeting  the  Scots  ran  like 
sheep. 

In  1641  the  king  visited  the  county,  and  in  the  same  year  the  Commons 
expressed  their  opinion  that  the  recusants  in  it  should  be  disarmed  of  all  war- 
like weapons,  but  without  violence.269  No  doubt  this  was  directed  against 
them  as  a  body  of  men  who  were  known  to  be  loyal  to  the  king. 
But  though  there  were  many  recusants  the  great  body  of  the  people  of 
the  county  viewed  the  king's  policy  with  alarm  ;  in  May,  1641,  more  than 
2,000  of  the  knights,  esquires,  gentlemen,  ministers,  freeholders,  and  other 
inhabitants  prayed  the  House  of  Lords  to  present  to  the  king  their  loyal  and 
humble  desires  that  he  would  settle  the  militia  question,  and  '  that  he  would 
lean  upon  the  hand  and  follow  the  counsels  of  Parliament,  and  would  send 
speedy  succour  to  their  brethren  in  Ireland.'270 

On  10  January,  1642,  Charles  fled  from  Whitehall,  and  for  the  next 
eight  months  both  sides  with  difficulty  prepared  for  war  a  nation  which 

164  Rymer,  FotJera  (orig.  cd.),  six,  740.  **  Ibid,  xx,  46. 

**  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  the  Army,  i,  1  96.     The  train-bands  were  now  composed  exclusively  of  musketeers 


and  pikemen,  bows  and  bills  having  been  abolished  in  1596,  and  calivers  a  generation  later  (Firth, 

Army,  8).     They  were  only  drilled  once  a  month,  and  treated  their  drills  as  '  matters  of  disport  and  things  of 

no  moment." 

867  The  ordinary  pay  of  the  infantry  of  the  day,  a  labourer  receiving  from  tenpence  to  a  shilling.  As 
money  then  went  three  times  as  far  as  it  does  now  his  pay  was  fair,  but  out  of  it  he  had  to  provide  money  for 
food  and  clothing  ;  Firth,  Cromwell's  Army,  189.  **  Cal.  S.P.  Dam.  1640,  pp.  477-8. 

169  Ibid.  1641-3,  p.  100.  m  Hut.  A/SS.  Com.  Rep.  v,  23. 

256 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

for  fighting  purposes  had  become  utterly  demoralized  by  peace.  Charles  at 
first  tried  to  raise  soldiers  by  commissions  of  array,  and,  this  failing,  by  dis- 
arming the  train-bands  and  giving  their  weapons  to  his  volunteers.  Parliament 
also  made  the  same  attempt  to  use  the  train-bands  and  failed.871  As  the  train- 
bands had  proved  unreliable  both  sides  began  the  war  by  voluntary  enlist- 
ment, appealing  for  subscriptions  of  men  and  horses,  and  this  was  succeeded 
by  issuing  commissions  to  officers  authorizing  them  to  raise  regiments,  an 
infantry  regiment  consisting  of  1,200  and  a  cavalry  regiment  of  500  men. 
The  regiments  raised  for  the  king,  unlike  those  of  the  Parliament,  seem  to 
have  been  equipped  at  the  expense  of  their  officers,  and  were  raised  from  the 
districts  where  the  colonel's  estates  lay,  Lord  Paget's,  for  example,  being 
raised  in  Staffordshire. 

The  issue  of  the  war  was  decided  by  two  small  minorities:  '  The  number 
of  those  who  desired  to  sit  still,'  said  Clarendon,  '  was  greater  than  of  those 
who  desired  to  engage  in  either  party.'  In  Staffordshire,  as  in  other  counties, 
a  neutral  party  was  formed  to  oppose  the  entry  of  any  armed  party  without 
the  joint  consent  of  king  and  Parliament,  but  these  arrangements  were  short- 
lived. The  Staffordshire  Roman  Catholics  all  fought  for  the  king  or  remained 
neutral,  as  was  inevitable  ;  but  most  of  the  Protestant  landowners  fought 
against  him.  Many,  like  Sir  Edmund  Verney  in  Buckinghamshire,  believed 
the  war  was  on  behalf  of  the  bishops,  for  whom  they  had  no  love,  and  a  con- 
siderable number  of  landowners  were  neutral,  the  sequestrations  after  the  war 
making  many  men  out  and  out  Royalists  who  would  not  have  been  so 
otherwise. 

A  considerable  amount  of  favour  was,  however,  shown  in  these  seques- 
trations, owing  doubtless  to  bribery,  the  most  signal  instance  of  which  was 
the  case  of  Walter  Astley  of  Patshull.  He  was  stated  to  be  a  disaffected 
Papist,  and  had  made  his  house  a  garrison  for  the  king,  for  whom  two  of  his 
sons  had  fought.  An  information  was  laid  against  him,  but  no  proceedings 
taken,  and  he  was  eventually  restored  to  the  full  possession  of  his  estates.2" 
Summing  up  the  position  of  Staffordshire  landowers  in  the  Civil  War,  sixteen 
Roman  Catholics  fought  for  the  king,  and  seven  remained  neutral.  Of  the 
Protestants  twelve  fought  for  the  king,  twenty  were  neutral,  and  no  less  than 
forty  were  against  him.  Mr.  Firth  27i)  calculates  that  of  the  two  Houses  of 
Parliament  thirty  peers  supported  Parliament,  eighty  the  king,  and  twenty 
were  neutral  ;  of  the  Lower  House  300  were  for  Parliament,  175  for  the 
king,  and  as  there  were  about  500  members,  this  would  leave  a  score  or  so 
neutral. 

Comparing  these  sets  of  figures  the  country  gentlemen  of  Staffordshire 
were  more  Puritan  than  the  rest  of  England,  for  the  House  of  Commons  cer- 
tainly represented  that  class  more  than  any  other  in  the  reign  of  Charles  I,  a 
period  when  its  character  and  public  spirit  touched  its  highest  level.  Indeed, 
it  was  composed  of  the  pick  of  the  country  gentlemen,  uncontaminated  by 
court  life,  and  with  no  idea  of  office-seeking,  'who  brought  to  the  counsels  of 
England  a  directness  of  intention  and  simplicity  of  mind,  the  inheritance  of 
modest  generations  of  active  and  hearty  rural  life,  informed  by  Elizabethan 

771  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  223  ;  Firth,  CromweWs  Army,  16,  17. 
nl  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.  New  Ser.),  vi  (2),  330. 
171  CnmweWs  Army,  69. 
i  257  33 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

culture  and  spiritualized  by  Puritanism.'37*  The  rural  labourer  remained 
neutral  to  the  end,  his  uneducated  mind  not  grasping  constitutional  questions. 
The  tenant  farmer  followed  his  landlord,  the  yeoman  in  the  east  was  for 
Parliament,  in  the  north  and  west  for  the  king  ;  the  tradesmen  as  a  rule  were 
for  Parliament."6  Following  the  examples  of  other  counties,  Staffordshire 
associated  with  Warwickshire  in  order  to  combine  into  active  resistance  the 
scattered  elements  of  the  Parliamentary  party  over  a  considerable  area,276  but 
the  king  had  many  friends  in  the  county  and  received  very  good  recruits  from 
it  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,877  the  association  being  opposed  at  once  on  the 
king's  behalf  by  Colonel  Hastings,  a  younger  son  of  the  Earl  of  Huntingdon, 
who  was  one  of  the  first  to  raise  a  troop.  Although  most  of  the  gentry  were 
for  Parliament,  of  the  strong  places  and  country  houses  more  were  garrisoned278 
for  the  king  than  for  his  foes.  Lichfield  declared  for  the  king  and  raised  a 
troop  of  horse  ;  Tutbury  was  garrisoned  for  him  under  Lord  Loughborough  ; 
so  were  Tamworth  and  Dudley  Castle,  the  latter  by  Sir  Thomas  Levison. 
Eccleshall  held  out  for  him  vigorously  for  a  long  time,  the  bishop,  Robert 
Wright,  helping  in  the  defence,  while  other  royal  posts  were  Stafford  Castle, 
Keele  House,  Patshull,  Swynnerton,  Bentley,  Reynolds  Hall.  For  the  Parlia- 
ment were  Painsley  House,  Caverswall  Castle,  Burton,  Rushall ;  and  Birming- 
ham was  hotly  Roundhead. 

Robert  Devereux,  the  third  Earl  of  Essex,379  was  from  the  first  opposed 
to  Charles's  political  and  ecclesiastical  policy,  and  in  1 640  had  first  shown  his 
hand  by  voting  with  the  minority  of  the  Lords  who  wished  to  refuse  assistance 
to  the  king  against  the  Short  Parliament.  Charles  tried  in  vain  to  gain  him 
over,  and  on  12  July,  1642,  he  was  made  general  of  the  Parliamentary  army, 
more  on  account  of  his  character  than  his  military  experience  ;  but  moral 
excellence  in  a  military  commander  is  not  all-sufficient  ;  his  tactics  through- 
out the  war  were  feeble,  and  culminated  in  the  surrender  at  Lostwithiel.  He 
had  the  good  sense  to  resign  before  the  second  Self-Denying  Ordinance,  and 
died  September,  i646.!8° 

After  Charles  had  unfurled  his  standard  at  Nottingham  on  25  August, 
1642,  he  withdrew  to  Derby,  and  then  to  Uttoxeter,881  whence  proceeding 
towards  Stafford  he  and  his  staff  passed  Chartley  Park,  Essex's  seat,  which  to 
the  great  chagrin  of  some  of  his  officers  was  by  the  king's  special  mercy  left 
untouched.  At  Stafford  he  was  received  loyally,  and  remained  there  a  day 
or  two  before  going  to  Shrewsbury.  '  A  more  general  and  passionate  expression 
of  affection  cannot  be  imagined  than  he  received  by  the  people  of  Derby, 
Stafford,  and  Shropshire  as  he  passed.'383  On  the  road  from  Nottingham  to 

874  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  102.  *"  Ibid.  277. 

876  S.  R.  Gardiner,  Hist.  ofGt.  Civil  War,  i,  90.  Staffordshire  afterwards  was  also  associated  with  Shropshire 
and  Cheshire  ;  Hist.  AfSS.  Com.  Rep.  v,  72,  80.  Clarendon  says  Shropshire,  Cheshire,  Warwickshire,  Leicester, 
Derbyshire,  and  Northants  associated  with  Staffordshire  ;  Hist,  of  Rebellion,  vi,  274..  This  association  must 
not  be  confused  with  the  more  famous  Eastern  Association. 

177  Clarendon,  Hist,  of  Rebellion,  vi,  22. 

878  The  garrison  system  proved  the  ruin  of  the  king.  Living  at  free  quarters  they  devoured  the 
country  side,  and  as  long  as  there  was  anything  left  to  plunder  would  never  move  to  where  they  were 
really  wanted  ;  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  245  ;  Firth,  Cromwell's  Army,  26. 

m  He  had  been  restored  in  blood  and  honour  by  Act  of  Parliament  in  1604.  His  wife,  Frances 
Howard,  left  him  for  Carr,  afterwards  Earl  of  Somerset. 

880  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  Robert  Devereux. 

881  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1641-3,  p.  390. 

888  Clarendon,  Hist,  of  Rebellion  (Clar.  Press  cd.),  vi,  29. 

258 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

Derby  '  the  lord  Paget,  who  to  expiate  former  transgressions  ' 88S  had  raised  a 
good  regiment  of  foot,  joined  the  king,  and  at  Shrewsbury  His  Majesty  was 
met  by  a  great  number  of  the  gentry  of  the  neighbouring  counties,  some  of 
whom  offered  to  raise  levies  for  him  at  their  own  expense.  Then  Charles 
entered  into  negotiations  with  the  Roman  Catholics  of  Salop  and  Stafford- 
shire, '  of  whom  there  were  a  good  number  of  very  valuable  men,'  with  the 
result  that  they  advanced  him  between  £4,000  and  £5,000,'"*  and  shortly 
afterwards  he  wrote  to  Sir  Edward  Mosley,  high  sheriff  of  Staffordshire, 
requiring  him  to  use  his  utmost  industry  with  the  well-affected  in  that  countv 
to  persuade  them  to  contribute  horses,  arms,  ammunition,  plate  or  money  for 
his  assistance.88' 

At  the  outset  matters  went  in  Charles's  favour,  and  in  the  midland 
counties  in  February,  1643,  he  was  steadily  gaining  ground.  Lord  Brooke 
was  therefore  chosen  to  redeem  the  day  at  the  head  of  the  force  of  the 
associated  counties.  He  drove  the  Royalists  out  of  Stratford  and  advanced  to 
Lichfield,  where  a  force  had  garrisoned  the  close,  aided  in  their  object  by  the 
walls  of  Bishop  Langton.  He  at  once  commenced  the  siege,  and  stepping 
into  the  street  to  watch  the  effect  of  a  cannon  shot  aimed  across  the  pool,  was 
shot  through  the  brain  !88  by  a  bullet,  according  to  tradition,  from  the  gun  of 
one  of  the  sons  of  Sir  Richard  Dyott,  who  with  the  Earl  of  Chesterfield  com- 
manded the  cathedral  garrison.  The  garrison  were  few  in  numbers,  and  ill 
provisioned,  and  in  three  days  surrendered  to  Sir  John  Cell,  who  succeeded 
Lord  Brooke.  A  contemporary  broadside S87  printed  in  London  makes  the 
following  comment  on  the  shooting  of  Lord  Brooke  by  Dyott : — 

to  whom  he  had  immediately  before  shewne  mercy,  by  which  we  may  see  what  their  dealings 
would  be  with  us  and  all  true  Protestants  if  they  were  peaceably  entertained  into  the  city, 
like  snakes  received  into  our  bosoms  we  should  be  in  continuall  danger  of  an  unexpected 
generall  throat  cutting  or  some  bloody  tragedy  :  the  Lord  have  mercy  upon  us  and  keep  us 
from  being  a  prey  to  the  wolf-like  cavaliers  and  bloody-minded  Papists. 

The  damage  done  during  the  siege,  short  as  it  was,  to  the  cathedral  at 
Lichfield,  was  immense,  and  the  wanton  destruction  committed  afterwards 
by  the  Puritans  as  bad.  Even  the  records  were  destroyed,  the  gravestones 
stripped  of  their  brasses,  the  tombs  broken  open  and  their  contents  scattered. 

Lichfield  was  not  to  remain  long  in  the  hands  of  the  Parliament,  for  its 
loss  was  felt  by  the  Royalists  as  weakening  the  king's  hold  upon  the  midlands 
where  it  was  most  important  he  should  be  strong.  The  Earl  of  Northampton 
was  therefore  dispatched  from  Banbury  to  retake  it,  and  met  Sir  John  Cell  at 
Hopton  Heath.  Of  the  battle  that  ensued  it  may  be  instructive  to  give  an 
account  written  by  either  side  :  the  Royalist  account  is  as  follows888  : — After 
the  surrender  of  Lichfield  Stafford  became  the  head  quarters  of  the  Royalists 
of  the  county,  and  against  this  Sir  John  Cell  led  his  troops,  flushed  by  the 
recent  victory.  But  the  Earl  of  Northampton  289  came  to  its  aid,  and  Sir  John 

283  William  fifth  Lord  Paget  had  at  first  been  against  the  king,  and  therefore  made  by  the  Parliament 
lord-lieutenant  of  Buckinghamshire  ;  Whitelocke,  Memorials,  58.  "*  Clarendon,  Hist,  of  Rebellion,  vi,  65. 

195  Mosley,  Hist.  ofTutbury,  220.  !M  Gardiner,  Civi/ffar,  i,  112. 

887  Now  in  Bodleian  Library.  >8S  Clarendon,  Hist,  of  Rebellion,  vi,  278  et  seq. 

169  Clarendon  says  of  him  :  '  He  was  a  person  of  great  courage,  honour,  and  fidelity,  and  not  well- 
known  till  his  evening,  having  in  the  ease  and  plenty  and  luxury  of  that  too  happy  time  indulged  to 
himself  with  that  license  which  was  then  thought  necessary  to  great  fortunes  ;  but  from  the  beginning  of 
these  distractions,  as  if  he  had  been  awakened  out  of  a  lethargy,  he  never  proceeded  with  a  lukewarm 
temper'  ;  Hist,  of  Rebellion,  vi,  283. 

259 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Gell  fell  back  to  form  a  junction  with  Sir  William  Brereton,  and  then  moved 
again  towards  Stafford.  The  earl  marched  to  meet  them  with  about  1,000 
men,  the  forces  of  the  Parliament  being  about  double,  and  found  them  await- 
ing him  at  Hopton  Heath  ;  he  charged  them  at  once  and  dispersed  them, 
taking  eight  pieces  of  cannon  ;  but  in  the  second  charge  the  earl's  horse  was 
killed  under  him,  and  he  was  surrounded.  He  refused  to  surrender,  and  was 
killed  fighting  gallantly.  After  this  Sir  Thomas  Byron,  who  commanded  the 
Prince  of  Wales  Regiment,  attacked  the  enemy's  infantry,  but  the  approach 
of  night  and  the  fact  that  many  coal  pits  made  the  ground  unfavourable  to 
cavalry  caused  fighting  to  cease.  In  the  night  the  enemy  decamped,  the 
Royalists,  much  fatigued  and  harassed,  and  having  no  officers  to  direct  them, 
for  Lord  Compton  and  Byron  were  both  disabled,  retired  to  Stafford  the  next 
day.  Clarendon  puts  the  Roundhead  loss  at  two  hundred  killed,  and  the 
Cavaliers'  at  twenty-five.290 

The  Parliamentary  story  of  the  fight  is  given  by  Sir  William  Brereton.291 
On  19  March,  about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  he  joined  Sir  John  Gell 
near  '  Salt  Heath,'  and  found  the  Royalists  in  much  superior  force,  especially 
in  cavalry,  of  whom,  according  to  some,  they  had  2,500,  whereas  he  only 
had  400  and  some  dragoons.  He  says  the  enemy  came  on  with  great  resolu- 
tion and  in  good  order,  and  they  fought  till  all  their  powder  and  bullet  was 
spent,  and  then  fell  to  with  the  butt-ends  of  their  muskets.  The  Roundhead 
horse,  however,  gave  way,  was  disordered,  and  routed.  He  estimates  his 
infantry  force  at  500  men,  who  were  attacked  by  the  royal  cavalry,  and  by 
the  first  volley  did  great  execution.  This  drove  them  back,  only  to  make  a 
second  desperate  charge  which  was  repulsed,  and  this  decided  the  day. 
Sir  William  puts  the  enemy's  loss  at  600  dead,  and  his  own  at  thirty  ;  and 
among  the  enemy's  slain  were  Captains  Middleton,  Baker,  Leeming,  Cressitt 
Bagott,  and  Biddulph  of  Biddulph,  '  a  recusant  in  Staffordshire.' 

Except  with  regard  to  the  losses,  the  two  accounts  are  not  so  divergent 
as  many  stories  of  battles  written  from  opposing  sides.  The  true  account  of 
the  engagement  seems  to  be  that  the  Royalist  cavalry  drove  the  enemy  off  the 
field  with  their  usual  impetuosity,  and  pursued  them  too  far.  Brereton  came 
up  with  fresh  troops,  and  enabled  those  of  the  Puritans  who  were  left  to  hold 
their  ground.292 

A  letter  293  written  by  a  Royalist  who  took  part  in  the  battle  says  that, 
besides  those  mentioned  by  Brereton,  Captain  Harvey  and  Ensign  Bowyer, 
Lieutenant  Greene  and  Cornet  Hall  were  killed  ;  and  Northampton's  son, 
writing  to  his  mother  from  Stafford  on  22  March,  confirms  the  story  of 
the  refusal  of  the  Parliamentary  generals  to  deliver  up  the  body  of  Lord 
Northampton.  Gell  and  Brereton  also  informed  the  son  that  his  father's 
armour  was  so  good  that  they  could  not  kill  him  till  he  was  '  downe  and  had 
undone  his  headpiece.' 2M 

As  Northampton  had  failed  in  the  object  of  his  expedition,  the  recapture 
of  Lichfield,  the  battle  must  be  taken  as  a  Royalist  defeat.  Rupert  was  sent 

190  A  contemporary  letter  published  in  London,  now  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  agrees  in  the  main  with  this 
account. 

191  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs.  \,  54.     Shaw  states  that  his  account  of  the  Civil  War  was  derived  from  contem- 
porary MSS.  letters  and  papers  which  he  had  access  to.  B>  S.  R.  Gardiner,  Civil  War,  i,  123. 

*"  Published  in  London  by  H.  Hall,  1643,  and  now  in  the  Bodleian  Library. 
™*  Letter  of  same  year,  also  in  Bodleian. 

260 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

to  do  what  Northampton  had  failed  in,  and  on  3  April  seized  Birmingham, 
and  on  the  loth  laid  siege  to  the  close  and  cathedral  at  Lichfield,  which 
surrendered  after  eleven  days'  resistance.  It  was  during  this  siege  that  Charles 
•delivered  his  final  terms,  which  asked  too  much  for  the  Parliament  to  grant. 

Soon  after  the  battle  of  Hopton  Heath,  Stafford  was  captured  by  a  very 
•small  force  of  Parliamentarians  ;  but  the  castle,  under  old  Lady  Stafford, 
refused  to  yield.  The  successor  to  Lord  Brooke  in  command  of  the  associated 
•counties  was  the  Earl  of  Denbigh,295  who  was  appointed  by  Essex  in  June, 
1643,  and  this  command  he  laid  down  in  April,  1645,  in  obedience  to  the 
Self-Denying  Ordinance.  He  joined  the  Parliamentary  cause  against  the 
wishes  of  many  of  his  family,  probably  because  he  was  convinced  the  cause 
was  just.  He  seems  to  have  done  his  best  to  alleviate  the  miseries  of  war, 
and  inspired  the  feeling  that  his  justice  could  be  relied  on  for  the  redress  of 
injuries.  On  the  occasion  of  some  differences  between  Denbigh  and  '  some 
of  the  country,'  which  caused  his  absence  for  a  time,  4,000  Staffordshire  men 
presented  a  petition  to  the  House  of  Commons  that  the  dispute  should  be 
ended  and  the  earl  sent  down  again  amongst  them,  and  letters  of  the  time 
show  that  his  return  to  his  command  was  eagerly  looked  for.296 

There  is  a  letter  written  by  Essex  in  the  summer  of  1643,  throwing 
light  on  the  feeling  of  the  county  at  a  time  when  all  seemed  going  in  favour 
of  the  king,  in  which  he  says  that  then  a  formidable  army  could  be  raised 
from  the  associated  counties  of  Stafford,  Warwick,  &c.,  as  the  people  were 
then  willing  to  rise,  both  because  they  feared  the  landing  of  the  Irish  in 
Wales,  and  many  Papists  were  flocking  to  that  district  ;  but  expedition  was 
necessary,  or  the  people  would  return  to  their  former  coldness.897 

After  Rupert  had  retaken  Lichfield  he  left  a  garrison  at  Burton  before 
returning  to  Oxford,  which  garrison  was  almost  immediately  captured  by  the 
troops  of  the  Parliament,  and  they  in  their  turn  were  driven  out  by  the 
queen  in  July,  1643.  Altogether,  Burton  changed  hands  six  times  during 
the  war. 

About  this  time  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  '  came  into  our  country,' 298 
where  he  had  considerable  estates,  miserably  plundered  it,  raised  great 
sums  of  money,  and  made  many  recruits.299  Wootton  Lodge,  the  house  of 
Sir  R.  Fleetwood,  one  of  the  strongest  places  in  the  county,  '  manned  with 
such  a  company  of  obstinate  papists  and  resolute  thieves  as  the  like  were 
hardly  to  be  found  in  the  whole  kingdom,'  was  captured  by  the  Parliamen- 
tarians.800 In  September,  1643,  Sir  William  Brereton  laid  siege  to  Eccleshall 
Castle,  then  garrisoned  by  '  the  great  cowstealers  the  lord  Capell  his  forces,' 
who  sent  to  Hastings  at  Tutbury  for  relief.  Hastings  at  once  came  to  their 
aid,  but  Brereton  laid  an  ambush  for  him  into  which  he  was  decoyed  by  an 
assumed  flight,  suddenly  attacked,  and  driven  back  to  Tutbury.  Hastings 
was  himself  besieged  in  Tutbury  Castle,301  and  the  place  would  have  fallen  but 
for  the  dissensions  which  were  rife  in  the  Roundhead  army  at  that  time,  each 

195  This  was  Basil  Feilding,  second  Earl  of  Denbigh.     His  father  was  mortally  wounded  in  Rupert's  attack 
on  Birmingham  ;  his  brother,  also  fighting  for  the  king,  was  killed  at  the  second  battle  of  Newbury. 

196  Hist.  AfSS.  Com.  Ref.  iv,  255.  *»  Ibid.  262. 

198  Firth,  Duke  of  Newcastle,  144.  *"  Shaw,  op.  cit.  i,  57. 

300  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs,  i,  57. 

301  The  town  appears  to  have  been  under  the  power  of  the  Parliament,  although  the  castle  was   held  for 
the  king.     Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  224.     An  excellent  example  of  the  divisions  of  the  time. 

261 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

commander  going  his  own  way  ;  the  consequence  was  that  the  castle  held 
out  till  1646,  when  it  surrendered  to  Brereton.  On  another  occasion,  as 
Hastings  was  marching  from  Ashby  to  Tutbury  he  was  attacked  by  the 
'valiant  Moorlanders,'  who  routed  his  troops,  killed  100,  and  took  many 
prisoners.802  As,  however,  they  were  unable  to  capture  Tutbury,  the  Round- 
heads placed  a  garrison  at  Barton  Blount,  about  four  miles  from  the  castle, 
to  interrupt  supplies  and  intercept  its  communications  with  the  north,  and  in. 
the  plain  between  many  a  skirmish  took  place. 

The  general  progress  of  the  war  in  Staffordshire  up  to  the  end  of  1643 
may  be  summed  up  as  follows  :  On  i  May  in  that  year  the  whole  of  the 
southern  and  central  portions  of  the  county  were  mainly  for  the  king,  and 
the  northern  for  the  Parliament  ;  by  December,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
isolated  posts,  only  Lichfield  and  Tamworth  and  a  small  region  round  remained 
to  Charles.803 

In  February,  1644,  Captain  Stone,  one  of  the  most  prominent  local 
Roundheads,  with  a  small  party  marched  against  '  Pattishall'  house,  'a  popish 
garrison  of  the  enemies,'  strongly  fortified,  and  seeing  that  the  drawbridge 
was  down,  rushed  in,  and  after  some  fighting  took  it,  capturing  Mr.  Astley, 
the  owner,  two  Jesuits,  and  about  sixty  or  seventy  officers  and  men.80* 

In  May  the  Earl  of  Denbigh  set  out  from  Stafford  with  the  intention  of 
attacking  Rushall  Hall,  then  held  by  Colonel  Lane,  which  had  been  captured 
by  Rupert  in  the  previous  year,  '  Mistress  Leigh  defending  it  gallantly  with 
only  her  men  and  her  maids '  ;  and  took  with  him  two  drakes,  two  sakers, 
and  '  the  Stafford  great  piece,'  and  among  other  troops  the  Stafford  horse 
and  the  Stafford  regiment  of  foot.  The  twenty-sixth  of  May  was  spent 
idly  at  Walsall  and  the  ayth  in  preparing  for  the  assault.  Next  day  a 
small  party  of  Royalists  coming  to  Lichfield  were  beaten  off,  and  on  the 
twenty-ninth  the  bombardment  of  the  house  began,  and  was  continued  until 
9  p.m.  The  church,  too,  which  had  been  garrisoned  by  the  Royalists, 
was  battered,  and  preparations  were  made  for  an  assault.  The  hearts  of  the 
Cavaliers,  however,  failed  them,  and  the  place  was  surrendered,  the  garrison 
being  allowed  to  march  out  without  their  arms  and  be  conveyed  to  Lichfield. sos 

In  the  same  month  the  Committee  of  Both  Kingdoms  stated  that 
Lord  Newcastle's  horse  had  done  great  damage  in  Staffordshire  and  Leicester- 
shire, and  recruited  themselves  to  a  great  strength  there,  raising  at  least 
1,000  horse  and  ^io,ooo.so*  Like  the  rest  of  England  the  county  suffered 
severely  from  the  exactions  of  both  parties  ;  Uttoxeter  in  1 644  alone  paid 
£158  towards  the  maintenance  of  the  royal  troops307  at  Tutbury,  and  in 
April  of  the  same  year  Rupert  plundered  the  town  of  Tutbury  and  stole  forty 
of  Hastings's  own  horses  !  But  though  there  was  much  plunder  the  war  was 

301  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs,  i,  60  ;  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  223. 

so>  See  maps  to  S.  R.  Gardiner's  Hist,  of  Civil  War,  passim.  In  the  map  of  23  Nov.  1644,  the  above 
two  places  hold  out,  with  a  dwindling  district  round  them.  In  the  map  of  23  July,  1645,  Tamworth  has 
gone.  These  maps  must  be  taken  broadly,  as  many  small  places  held  out  for  the  king  after  the  country  around 
was  practically  in  the  power  of  Parliament. 

304  Shaw,  Hist.  ofStafs.  i,  70. 

Ki  Cat.  S.P.  Dom.  1644,  p.  177—8,  giving  Denbigh's  own  account.  According  to  the  True  Informer  of 
I  June,  1 644,  the  force  at  Rushall  was  '  one  of  the  most  thieving  garrisons  of  the  Cavaliers  in  all  that  county," 
and  had  perpetually  robbed  the  carriers  who  came  from  London  and  other  parts  to  Lancashire  ;  Willmore, 
Hist,  of  Walsall,  317. 

"•  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1644,  p.  168.  M7  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  224. 

262 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

"humane,  no  portions  of  England  were  burnt  to  deserts,  towns  were  not 
reduced  to  half  their  size,  villages  did  not  disappear  wholesale.808 

In  June,  1 644,  Lord  Wihnot,  the  Earl  of  Northampton,  and  the  Earl  of 
•Cleveland  were  sent  to  relieve  Dudley  Castle  with  a  brigade  of  horse  and 
1,000  foot  ;  but  the  fighting,  judging  by  the  losses  incurred,  must  have  been 
very  mild  ;  and  in  a  letter  written  soon  after,  Lord  Denbigh,  describing  the 
•engagement,  says  he  beat  the  Royalists,  and  in  his  force  was  a  Staffordshire 
regiment  commanded  by  Colonel  Symon  Rugeley  and  Major  Pinkeney.309 

In  October,  Stafford,  where  there  was  a  magazine  of  importance,  was  in 
danger  of  treason  within  the  walls,  and  Sir  William  Brereton,  acting  on 
orders  of  the  Committee  of  Both  Kingdoms,  occupied  it  and  secured  the 
suspected  persons.310  Among  them  were  Colonel  Lewis  Chadwick,  Lieut. - 
Colonel  Chadwick,  and  Captain-Lieutenant  Hughes,  who  were  sent  away 
to  Eccleshall  Castle,  and  Captain  Stone  was  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the 
place. 

In  England  the  year  1 644  was  disastrous  for  the  king,  and  but  for  the 
victory  of  Lostwithiel  his  cause  would  have  been  utterly  ruined.  In  Stafford- 
shire a  list  of  the  places  held  by  the  two  parties  in  May,  1645,  given  by  a 
Royalist  officer,  Captain  Symonds,  discloses  a  very  different  state  of  affairs 
from  that  at  the  commencement  of  the  war.  '  Eccleshall,  Stafford,  Russell 
[Rushall  ?]  Hall,  Chillington,  Tamworth,  Alton,  Peynsley  House,  Caverswall 
House  are,'  he  says,  '  now  in  the  hands  of  Parliament  ;  Lichfield  and  Dudley 
Castle  are  held  for  Charles.' 311 

In  May  of  that  year  the  king  was  marching  north  to  the  defeat  of 
Naseby,  and  on  the  sixteenth  the  prince's  head  quarters  were  at  Wolver- 
hampton ;  the  king  lay  at  Bushbury.  On  the  twenty-second  the  royal  army 
arrived  at  Stone,  the  king  lying  at  the  house  of  Col.  Crompton,  '  a  rebel,' 312 
and  M.P.  for  the  county  1646—1660. 

On  the  twenty-fourth  it  reached  Uttoxeter,  and  marched  that  day  by 
Sir  H.  Bagot's  house  in  the  moorlands,  'a  rebellious  place.'  Although  in  the 
•enemy's  country,  the  king  was  unmolested,  Lord  Byron  having  informed  him 
that  the  troops  of  the  Parliament  upon  the  news  of  His  Majesty's  advance 
had  retreated.313  On  the  twenty-fifth  they  reached  Burton,  the  king  lying 
at  Tutbury  Castle,  then  under  Sir  Andrew  Kniveton. 

On  14  June  came  the  crushing  defeat  of  Naseby,  the  king  losing  all  his 
infantry  and  all  his  munitions  of  war ;  but  he  brought  off  his  cavalry  nearly 
intact  from  the  field,81*  and  still  had  a  force  of  all  arms  under  Goring  in  the 
south-west. 

The  unfortunate  monarch  was  at  Lichfield,815  one  of  the  few  places  now 
left  to  him,  on  1 5  June,  and  lay  in  the  Close  ;  and  next  day  he  marched  to 
Wolverhampton,  thence  into  Worcestershire,  Herefordshire,  Wales,  and 
Shropshire,  returning  to  Lichfield  on  10  August,  and  having  a  skirmish  with 
the  enemy,  from  their  post  at  Barton,  near  Tutbury  on  the  thirteenth,  in 

*M  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  230. 

**  Cal.  S.P.  Don.  1644,  p.  236.     Lord  Denbigh  in  his  account  says  the  fight  for  three-quarters  of  an 
hour  was  'very  hot,'  yet  the  losses  he  mentions  are  trifling.  "°  Ibid.  195. 

111  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staffs,  i,  72  ;  Harwood,  Erdestolck,  rvi. 
111  Shaw,  op.  cit.  i,  72  ;  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1644,  pp.  521-2,  534-5. 

115  Clarendon,  Civ.  War,  ix,  32.  *14  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  267. 

sls  Hist.  MSS.  Com.  Rep.  vii,  App.  i,  451. 

263 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

which  the  Royalists  had  the  advantage  ; 816  but  on  24  September  Charles  saw 
from  the  walls  of  Chester  the  defeat  of  his  last  army  at  Rowton  Heath. 

The  castle  of  Tutbury  was  one  of  the  last  places  in  the  county  that  held 
out  for  Charles  ;  the  strength  of  its  position  and  the  bravery  of  its  garrison 
had  defeated  numerous  attempts  of  the  Roundheads  to  take  it.  But  larger 
forces  were  concentrated  upon  it,  and  on  30  March,  1646,  Sir  William 
Brereton  closely  invested  it,  and  after  three  weeks'  gallant  resistance  Kniveton 
surrendered  on  20  April,  i646,817  and  next  year  the  castle  was  dismantled. 

In  May  Charles  took  refuge  with  the  Scottish  army  at  Newark  ;  on 
24  June  Oxford  capitulated,  but  it  was  not  till  10  July  that  Lichfield's 
gallant  resistance  came  to  an  end. 

In  1648  Staffordshire  saw  the  closing  scene  of  the  second  civil  war. 
Charles's  chief  hope  was  in  the  Scottish  army,  which  under  Hamilton  crossed 
the  border,  advanced  through  Lancashire,  and  was  cut  in  two  by  Cromwell 
at  Preston,  and  finally  crushed  at  Wigan  and  Warrington.  The  incapable 
Hamilton,  with  the  wreck  of  his  army,  reached  Uttoxeter  on  22  August,  and 
there  his  worn-out  soldiers  refused  to  go  any  further.  Three  days  after  he 
offered  to  capitulate  to  the  governor  of  Stafford,  but  before  they  came  to 
terms,  Lambert,  who  had  been  left  by  Cromwell  to  conduct  the  pursuit, 
came  upon  the  scene,  and  Hamilton  surrendered  to  him  on  the  terms  that  all 
were  to  be  prisoners  of  war,  '  having  their  lives  and  safety  of  their  persons 
assured  to  them.' 818  This  put  the  finishing  touch  to  the  destruction  of  the 
last  hopes  of  the  Royalists. 

Three  years  later  the  connexion  of  the  county  with  the  Stuarts  and 
their  cause  was  again  renewed.  Charles  was  a  fugitive  from  Worcester 
fight,  and  leaving  behind  him  the  small  body  of  trusty  adherents  who  had 
accompanied  him  at  White  Ladies,  he  took  refuge  in  a  wood  called  Spring 
Coppice  on  the  Penderels'  demesne,  the  family  being  tenants  of  the  Giffards 
of  Chillington.319 

After  his  stay  in  Spring  Coppice  Charles  put  on  rustic  disguise  at 
Richard  Penderel's  house  and  intended  to  cross  the  Severn  at  Madeley  to  take 
refuge  with  the  loyalists  in  Wales.  At  midnight  they  reached  the  house  of 
Mr.  Wolfe,  a  Royalist  gentleman  residing  at  Madeley,  who  was  informed  of 
the  rank  of  his  guest,  and  as  the  hiding-places  of  the  house  had  on  former 
occasions  proved  useless,  the  king  was  placed  in  a  barn  among  some  straw. 
In  the  meantime  Lord  Wilmot  had  arrived  at  Moseley  Hall,  the  owner  of 
which,  Mr.  Whitgreave,  had  fought  for  Charles  I.  From  there,  on  5  Sep- 
tember, Wilmot  found  means  of  communicating  with  Colonel  Lane  of  Bentley, 
a  staunch  Royalist  as  we  have  seen,  who  waited  on  Wilmot  that  evening,  and 
offered  his  house  and  services  in  the  royal  cause.  Charles,  unable  to  cross  the 
Severn,  came  to  Boscobel  again  and  there  sat  in  the  famous  oak  all  day  on 
6  September.  The  next  day  John  Penderel  and  Mr.  Whitgreave  arranged 

316  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  228  ;  Cal.  S.P.  Dam.  1645-7,  pp.  70-1. 

317  Mosley,  Hist,  of  Tutbury,  229  et  seq.     In  addition  to  the  horrors  of  civil  war  Tutbury,  Stafford,  Lich- 
field,  and  other  places  in  the  county  were  '  grievously  infected  with  the  plague '  at  this  time  ;  Cal.  S..P.  Dom. 
1645-7,  p.  520. 

318  Gardiner,  Civ.  War,  iii,  448.     On  22  Aug.  the  Committee  of  Both  Houses  told  Cromwell  they  had 
written  to  Staffordshire  and  the  neighbouring  counties  '  to  send  against  the  Scots  all  the  force  they  can  muster, 
and  to  endeavour  to  disperse  and  destroy  them '  ;   Cal,  S./*.  Dom.  1648-9,  p.  252. 

519  The  above  account  is  taken  mainly  from  J.  Hughes,  Boscobel  Tracts,  Clarendon's  narrative  being 
inaccurate. 

264 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

with  Wilmot  that  he  should  meet  the  king  that  night  at  Moseley,  whither  he 
set  out  accompanied  by  the  five  Penderels  and  their  brother-in-law,  all  well 
armed,  Charles  riding  on  Humphrey  Penderel's  mill  horse,  of  whose  roughness 
he  complained.  '  Can  you  blame  the  horse,  my  liege,'  said  the  miller,  '  to  go 
heavily  when  he  has  the  weight  of  three  kingdoms  on  his  back  ? '  At 
Moseley  he  arrived  safely,  meeting  Wilmot,  and  while  there  a  party  of  Round- 
heads came  in  pursuit,  but  Mr.  Whitgreave's  self-possession  foiled  them.  In 
the  evening  of  9  September  the  king  went  on  to  Bentley  Hall,  where,  next 
morning,  Colonel  Lane  converted  his  royal  master  into  a  serving-man  with 
the  intention  of  taking  him  to  Bristol,  and  mounting  his  sister  behind  him 
the  party  rode  off  for  Stratford,  where  they  arrived  safely,  although 
the  king  rode  right  through  some  Roundhead  horse  on  the  way,  and  that 
night  he  slept  safely  at  Long  Marston,  about  four  miles  beyond  Stratford. 
At  the  Restoration  the  Parliament  granted  Mistress  Lane  £1,000  to  buy 
a  jewel  for  this  service,320  and  the  king  granted  an  addition  to  the  arms  of 
the  family. 

In  the  first  Protectorate  Parliament,  summoned  in  September,  1654,  in 
which  the  Conservative  Puritans  were  in  the  majority,321  several  knights 
were  ordered  to  be  returned  for  each  county,  but  few  burgesses  were 
summoned,  and  accordingly  the  county  of  Stafford  sent  three  members,  the 
Right  Hon.  Sir  Charles  Wolseley,  bart.,  Col.  Thomas  Crompton,  and  Thomas 
Whitgreave ;  Newcastle  sent  Edward  Keeling  of  Wolstanton  ;  Stafford 
borough  John  Bradshawe,  serjeant-at-law,  who  had  presided  at  the  king's 
trial  ;  Lichfield  sent  Thos.  Miners,  and  Tamworth  was  unrepresented. 
In  the  Parliament  of  1656  the  representation  of  the  county  was  similar, 
Stafford  borough  sent  Martin  Noele  of  London,  Newcastle  Col.  John  Bowyer, 
Lichfield  Thos.  Miners.323  In  the  Cavalier  Parliament  the  county  and  the 
four  towns  each  again  sent  two  members,  who,  as  it  lasted  until  January, 
1678—9,  were  subject  to  many  changes. 

The  reign  of  terror  which  the  infamous  fabrications  of  Titus  Gates 
brought  upon  the  Roman  Catholics  found  its  victims  in  Staffordshire.  At 
the  assizes  held  in  August,  1 679,  nine  persons  were  accused  of  being  Popish 
priests,  two  of  whom  were  ordered  to  be  removed  to  London,  and  five  being 
'  violently  suspected  to  be  Jesuits  '  were  to  remain  in  custody  till  the  next 
assizes  that  evidence  might  be  accumulated  against  them.  The  remaining 
two,  Andrew  Bromwich  and  William  Atkins,  were  indicted  for  high  treason 
in-  taking  orders  beyond  the  sea,  and  afterwards  coming  into  England  and 
seducing  His  Majesty's  subjects  to  their  popish  religion,  it  being  fully  proved 
against  them  both  that  they  had  said  mass  and  administered  the  sacrament 
in  the  popish  manner  to  the  witnesses  that  gave  evidence  against  them, 
whereupon,  after  a  full  hearing  they  were  both  found  guilty.323 

In  the  year  1715  Jacobitism  seems  to  have  been  rampant  in  Stafford 
fanned  by  the  zeal  of  the  rector,  who  had  '  by  his  uncharitable  tenets  and 
unchristian  raillery  so  inflamed  the  minds  of  the  unthinking  that  their 
insolence  towards  the  Dissenters  since  his  coming  is  almost  unaccountable.'32* 
He  was  also  very  industrious  in  promoting  the  interest  of  Mr.  Sneyd,  who 

10  Harwood,  Erdeswick,  410.  "  Trevelyan,  Engl.  under  the  Stuarts,  307. 

>n  Purl.  Accts.  and  Paps.  Ixii  (i),  516.  sn  Domestic  Intelligence,  26  Aug.  1679. 

114  flying  Post,  8  Sept.  1715. 

i  265  34  f 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

had  been  a  member  of  the  last  Parliament,325  and  was  an  unsuccessful  candidate 
for  that  of  1714—1 5.  The  Pretender's  health  was  openly  drunk,  and  his  birth- 
day solemnized  with  ringing  and  other  rejoicings. 

H's  exhortations  infuriated  the  mob  to  such  an  extent  that  on  7  July 
they  began  to  pull  down  the  Presbyterian  meeting-house,  that  day  being 
publicly  kept  in  celebration  of  the  late  glorious  peace  of  Utrecht  with  bon- 
fires all  over  the  town,  in  express  contempt  of  the  Whig  government,  and 
with  the  connivance  of  the  magistrates.  They  continued  at  their  work  for  a 
fortnight  unhindered,  and  the  sheriff  of  the  county  allowed  a  month  to  pass 
before  he  ordered  a  court  to  be  summoned  in  the  Shire  Hall,  and  then  only 
a  small  number  of  the  rioters,  in  spite  of  positive  evidence,  were  found 
guilty.828  A  better  spirit  was  shown  at  the  assizes  when  the  grand  jury  agreed 
upon  an  address  to  the  king  expressing  their  abhorrence  of  the  recent  riots 
and  promising  to  discover  the  authors.  This  satisfied  the  king  so  well  that 
the  lords  of  the  Treasury  were  ordered  to  pay  the  high  sheriff,  Sir  Oswald 
Mosley,  £500  as  a  reward  for  the  extraordinary  expenses  he  had  incurred 
during  the  riots,  during  which  his  conduct  was  so  dilatory.827  Doubtless  the 
Hanoverian  dynasty  at  this  time  had  to  walk  warily. 

In  1745  the  invasion  of  the  young  Pretender  again  brought  a  Stuart  to 
Staffordshire.  When  Charles's  army  crossed  the  border  it  consisted  of  6,000 
men,  of  whom  500  were  cavalry,  but  the  Highlanders  soon  began  to  desert 
in  great  numbers,  and  by  the  time  they  reached  Penrith  there  were  only 
4,500  left.328  Few  recruits  came  to  make  good  these  losses,  even  Lancashire, 
devotedly  Stuart  by  profession,  was  lukewarm  in  action.  That  so  small  and 
ill-disciplined  a  host  could  march  into  the  heart  of  a  powerful  country  un- 
molested was  due  to  the  gross  military  incapacity  of  the  English  generals  and 
the  extraordinary  want  of  public  spirit  in  the  people,  whose  prevailing 
disposition  was  fear  or  sullen  apathy,  few  being  disposed  to  risk  anything 
on  either  side.329 

However,  England  recovered  from  the  disgraceful  panic  that  the 
Pretender's  march  had  occasioned:  Wade  was  with  one  army  in  Yorkshire, 
Cumberland  with  another  cantoned  from  Tamworth  to  Stafford,  and  George  II 
was  gathering  a  third  at  Finchley.  Early  in  December  Cumberland's 
advanced  guard  was  at  Newcastle,  with  a  small  party  of  horse  pushed 
forward.  Charles's  army  divided  into  two  columns,  and  Lord  George  Murray 
by  a  clever  ruse  deceived  the  duke,  advancing  to  Congleton  with  his  column, 
and  driving  before  him  the  advanced  party  of  horse  some  way  on  the  road  to 
Newcastle. 

Cumberland,  thinking  Charles  was  marching  for  Wales,  pushed  forward 
to  Stone  with  his  main  body,  but  Murray  turned  suddenly  to  the  left  and 
gained  Ashbourne  by  a  forced  march,  and  then  joining  the  prince,  who  had 
marched  through  Leek  with  his  motley  host,  headed  by  a  hundred  pipers,  ' 
entered  Derby,  where  his  officers  insisted  on  retreat.  Cumberland  mean- 
while had  marched  into  Warwickshire  to  bar  the  way  of  the  rebels  to 
London,  and  there  he  received  news  of  Charles's  retreat.  He  immediately 

"*  Ralph  Sneyd  of  Keele  and  Henry  Vernon  of  Sudbury  were  members  for  the  county  in  the  Parliament 
of  1713  ;  Par/.  Accts.  and  P apt.  Ixii  (2),  33. 

IK  Flying  Post,  8  Sept.  1715.  m  Cal.  ofTreas.  Paps,  cxci,  31. 

m  Stanhope,  The  Forty-five,  79. 

*"  Lecky,  Hist.  ofEngl.  in  Eighteenth  Cent.  \,  4.22. 

266 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

turned  northwards  and  went  in  pursuit  through  Lichfield,  Uttoxeter,  and 
Cheadle,  '  over  the  most  dreadful  country.'  83°  From  Lichfield  Cumberland 
wrote  to  Newcastle  : — 

They  march  at  such  a  rate  that  I  can't  flatter  myself  with  the  hopes  of  overtaking 
them,  though  I  set  out  this  morning  in  a  march  of  at  least  thirty  measured 
miles.331 

It  was  to  be  some  time  before  he  caught  them  up. 

The  general  feeling  of  the  county  in  this  rebellion  seems  to  have  been 
to  the  Hanoverian  dynasty.  The  country  people  cheerfully  brought 
their  horses  to  the  duke's  army,  and  when  he  was  pursuing  the  Pretender  the 
country  gentlemen  did  the  same,332  nor  does  the  invading  army  seem  to  have 
attracted  any  number  of  Staffordshire  recruits  worth  mentioning. 

Sir  Richard  Wrottesley,  a  staunch  Whig  and  Hanoverian,  armed  his 
servants  and  tenantry  for  George  II,  and  his  father-in-law,  Lord  Gower,  was 
raising  forces  on  the  same  side  in  the  north  of  the  county,  but  the  rebels 
retreated  before  they  had  a  chance  of  proving  their  courage.333 

Jacobites,  on  the  other  hand,  like  the  Giffards  and  Astleys,  in  the  same 
fashion  as  their  fellows  in  the  rest  of  England,  '  spilt  their  wine  more  than 
their  blood  '  for  the  Stuart  cause.33* 

No  doubt  their  loyalty  to  the  Stuarts  was  weakened  by  the  fact  that  the 
Pretender  had  called  the  French  to  help  him  ;  they  were  Englishmen  first 
and  Jacobites  after,  but  the  chief  reason  was  perhaps  that  Walpole  had  given 
the  country  a  long  period  of  peace  and  prosperity.  The  estates  of  the 
country  gentlemen  had  thereby  increased  largely  in  value,335  and  they  were 
not  likely  to  upset  a  rule  which  gave  them  so  much  benefit. 

The  early  military  history  of  the  county  has  been  set  forth  in  the  fore- 
going pages,  and  we  will  complete  it  by  a  brief  account  of  the  regular  and 
auxiliary  forces  since  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

In  the  year  1705  was  raised  the  first  regular  battalion  of  infantry 
connected  with  Staffordshire,  when  Parliament,  encouraged  by  the  campaign 
of  Blenheim,  voted  six  new  regiments,  of  which  the  one  connected  with 
this  county  alone,  and  originally  known  as  Lillingston's  Regiment,  exists 
to-day.336 

It  did  not  partake  in  the  glories  of  Marlborough's  wars,  for  in  1706  it 
went  to  the  West  Indies,  and  is  said  to  have  remained  there  for  sixty  years, 
during  which  detachments  served  at  the  capture  of  Guadaloupe  in  1759  and 
of  Martinique  in  iy62.™ 

In  1745  it  was,  like  the  rest  of  the  British  forces  at  home  and  abroad, 
in  a  miserably  neglected  condition  ;  at  St.  Kitts  not  forty  per  cent,  of  the 

330  Contemporary  Account  of  the  Rebellion  (Bod.  Lib.),  63. 

331  Ewald,  Life  of  Prince  Charles  Stuart,  1 84.  ***  Contemporary  Account  as  before. 
833  Coll.  (Salt  Arch.  Soc.  New  Ser.),  vi  (2),  347. 

334  The  chaplain  at  Okeover,  Jeremiah  Kitching,   gives   an  amusing    account    of    the    exactions  of  the 
Pretender's  troops  :  '  Upon  Tuesday  night  we  had  five  lay  with  us,  and  upon  Friday  night  as  they  returned 
from  Derby  four  lay  with  us  and  about  seven  o'clock  at  night  came  three  horsemen  and  said  they  wanted 
armour  and  plundered  the  house  and  stables  and  barns  and  the  church  :  and  they  have  taken  your  best  saddle 
trimmed  with  gold  lace,  and  your  lady's  bridle  and  two  other  saddles  .  .  .  and  upon  Saturday  morning  came 
three  ruffians  .  .  .  and  pick  the  servants'  pockets  of  their  money  and  my  silver  tobacco  box  '  !    Coll.  (Salt 
Arch.  Soc.  New  Ser.),  vii,  112. 

335  Morley,  Walpole,  133.  "*  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  Army,  \,  450. 
07  Lawrence  Archer,  Brit.  Army,  3 1 7. 

267 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

men  were  fit  for  service,  their  clothing  was  in  rags,  they  had  neither  hats, 
shoes,  cartridge  boxes,  nor  swords.838 

The  regiment  received  its  number  of  the  38th  Foot  in  1751,  and  was 
called  the  First  Staffordshire  Regiment  in  lySa.839 

The  long  period  of  foreign  service  in  the  West  Indies  came  to  an  end 
in  1765,  but  the  38th  was  one  of  the  first  regiments  to  be  sent  to  America 
when  war  threatened.  At  the  sanguinary  combat  of  Bunker's  Hill,  out  of 
400  men  present  150  were  killed  and  wounded.340  After  sharing  in  the 
victory  at  Brooklyn  and  the  capture  of  Fort  Washington,  the  regiment  841 
was  stationed  chiefly  at  New  York  and  in  Nova  Scotia,  and  so  missed  most 
of  the  subsequent  fighting,  but  the  flank  companies  served  at  another  capture 
of  Martinique  and  Guadaloupe  in  1794,  and  the  remainder  of  the  regiment 
shared  in  the  disastrous  retreat  to  Bremen. 

After  fighting  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  and  in  South  America  the 
38th  went  to  the  Peninsula,  and  was  at  Rolica,  Vimiero,  and  Corunna,  then 
took  part  in  the  wretched  Walcheren  expedition,  where  it  suffered  dreadful 
losses  from  disease,  and  after  recovering  its  strength  went  back  to  the 
Peninsula  842  and  fought  at  Salamanca,  Vittoria,  San  Sebastian,  the  passage  of 
the  Bidassoa,  Nive,  Nivelle,  and  Bayonne,  and  in  1815  this  hardworked  corps 
was  summoned  to  join  Wellington,  but  was  too  late  for  Waterloo. 

After  service  at  the  Cape,  in  the  Burmese  War  of  1822—6,  and  in  the 
Ionian  Isles,  it  served  all  through  the  siege  of  Sevastopol,  including  the 
Alma  and  Inkerman,  and  greatly  distinguished  itself  at  the  attack  on  the 
cemetery  in  June,  i855.343 

In  the  Indian  Mutiny  it  fought  in  many  actions  and  suffered  severe 
losses  at  the  capture  of  Lucknow,  was  in  the  Egyptian  campaigns  of  1882 
and  1884-5,  and  served  with  gallantry  in  the  South  African  War  ;  altogether 
a  splendid  record. 

The  next  battalion  in  point  of  seniority  is  one  now  known  as  the  first 
battalion  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Regiment,  formerly  the  64th  Foot,  which 
was  formed  in  1758  out  of  the  then  second  battalion  of  the  iith  Foot,841 
which  after  being  engaged  in  the  capture  of  Guadaloupe  in  1759,  fought  all 
through  the  American  War,  but  was  not  in  the  Peninsula  or  at  Waterloo. 

The  Persian  War  of  1856  then  claimed  its  services,  and  thence  the 
regiment  was  hurried  off  to  help  in  quelling  the  Indian  Mutiny,  suffering 
considerable  loss  in  the  advance  on  Cawnpore  under  Havelock,  Major  Stirling 
being  killed  at  the  head  of  the  regiment.845 

In  1793  was  raised  the  present  second  battalion  of  the  South  Stafford- 
shire, the  old  8oth,  by  Lord  H.  Paget,  nearly  all  the  men  coming  from  the 
Staffordshire  Militia,846  and  its  first  service  was  in  the  inglorious  campaign  of 
the  Duke  of  York  in  Flanders,  where  the  regiment  lost  over  half  its  strength 
in  the  retreat  to  Bremen. 

On  their  way  to  join  Abercromby  in  Egypt  in  1801  part  of  the 
regiment  was  wrecked,  and  another  detachment  was  again  wrecked  on  their 

38  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  Army,  ii,  565. 

39  Lawrence   Archer,   op.   cit.    316.      A  second   battalion   of   the   regiment    was    formed    during    the 
Peninsular  War,  which  fought  at  Busaco  and  Badajoz,  and  was  disbanded  after  the  peace. 

40  Fortescue,  op.  cit.  iii,  160.          M1  Lawrence  Archer,  op.  cit.  316.          ***  Ibid.  317.          S4S  Ibid.  318. 
44  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  Army,  ii,  300.      About  the  same  time  Pitt  made  the  daring  experiment  of  raising 

two  regiments  of  Highlanders.  S45  Lawrence  Archer,  op.  cit.  449.  34e  Ibid.  319. 

268 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

way  from  Egypt  to  India.  There  they  remained  from  1802  to  1818, 
during  which  time  most  of  the  recruits  were  derived  from  the  Staffordshire 
Militia. 

In  the  first  Sikh  War  the  regiment  made  up  for  missing  the  Peninsula 
and  Waterloo  by  distinguishing  itself  highly  at  Moodkee,  Ferozeshah,  and 
Sobraon,  but  took  no  part  in  the  Crimean  War,  and  only  reached  India  after 
the  backbone  of  the  Mutiny  was  broken,  yet  were  in  time  to  render  valuable 
service  as  part  of  one  of  the  flying  columns  in  1858.  During  the  Zulu 
ar  a  company  of  the  regiment  was  nearly  annihilated  at  the  Intombi 
Ri>er.M7 

The  last  regular  battalion  now  connected  with  the  county  to  be  formed 
was  the  9  8th  or  Second  Battalion  North  Staffordshire  Regiment,  raised  at 
Chichester  in  1824,  which  fought  in  the  China  War  of  1841,  the  Punjaub 
campaign  of  1846,  the  Indian  Mutiny,348  and  also  in  the  late  war  in  South 
Africa. 

The  condition  of  the  militia  during  the  seventeenth  and  the  greater  part 
of  the  eighteenth  century  can  only  be  described  as  disgraceful.  Under  the 
early  Stuarts  they  were  hardly  called  out  once  in  five  years  for  drill.349  In 
1745  the  march  of  the  Pretender  with  a  few  thousand  irregular  troops  into 
the  heart  of  England  proved  the  utter  incompetence  of  the  constitutional 
force. 

The  great  Chatham  inspired  the  country  with  a  new  spirit,  and  in 
1757,  when  England  was  fighting  in  all  parts  of  the  globe,  among  other 
measures  of  defence  a  new  Militia  Bill360  was  passed  remodelling  that  force, 
but  Staffordshire,  instead  of  balloting  for  its  quota,  paid  a  fine. 

However,  in  1778,  '  owing  to  warlike  preparations  in  France  becoming 
every  day  more  considerable,' su  the  militia  of  the  kingdom  were  embodied 
and  Staffordshire  furnished  560  men  ready  to  '  march  to  such  posts  as  shall 
be  judged  proper.' 8ES  Their  colonel  was  Lord  Paget,  their  lieutenant- 
colonel  Sir  John  Wrottesley,  and  the  other  commissioned  officers  were  a 
major,  six  captains,  nine  lieutenants,  an  ensign,  and  an  adjutant.853 

In  order  to  establish  the  seniority  of  the  various  regiments  for  that  year 
lots  were  drawn  at  the  St.  Albans  Tavern  in  London  by  the  lords-lieutenant 
or  their  deputies,  and  by  this  method  Staffordshire  came  fortieth  on  the  list. 


354 


347  Lawrence  Archer,  op.  cit.  321.  M  Ibid.  450. 

519  Fortescue,  Hist,  of  Army,  i,  194.  "°  30  Geo.  II,  cap.  25. 

851  Military  Entry  Bk.  No.  4,  148,  P.R.O. 

351  Ibid.  148,  202.     Clode,  Military  forces  of  Crown,  \,  48. 

353  The  property  qualification  required  for  officers  of  the  militia  by  30  Geo.  II,  cap.  25,  was  : 

For  a  colonel,  an  estate  of  the  yearly  value  of  £400          For  a  captain,  an  estate  of  the  yearly  value  of  £200 
„     lieut.-colonel   „  „  „          £300  „     lieutenant,       „  „  „          £100 

„     major  „  „  „          £300  „     ensign  „  „  „  £50 

Raikes,  Hist.  Rec.  of  First  Reg.  ofMiRtia,  App.  E. 

*"  From    'A    List    of  Officers  of  the  Militia  of  England   printed  in  London,    1779,'   now  in   Bodl. 

Lib.  which  also  gives  the  pay  as  follows  : — 

Subsistence 

j.  d. 

Sergeant     .          .          .10 

Corporal     ...  8 

Private        ...  6 
Drummers  and  Fifers, 

each  8 


269 


Full  Pay 

Subsistence 

£      '• 

d. 

!. 

d. 

Colonel     .                I      4 

0 

18 

O 

Lieut.-Colonel 

17 

o 

13 

O 

Major 

15 

o 

1  1 

6 

Captain    . 

10 

0 

7 

6 

Lieutenant 

4 

8 

3 

6 

Ensign     . 

3 

8 

3 

o 

Adjutant  . 

4 

o 

3 

o 

A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

At  the  peace  of  1783  the  regiment,  in  common  with  the  rest  of  the 
militia  in  the  country,  was  disembodied,  but  in  179  3s"  it  was  called  out 
again  owing  to  the  declaration  of  war  by  France  and  not  disembodied  till  the 
peace  in  1802,  which  was  short-lived,  for  the  year  i8o3356  saw  England  once 
more  threatened  by  the  ambition  of  Napoleon,  so  that  in  addition  to  the  em- 
bodiment of  the  militia,'"  volunteers  were  raised  all  over  the  kingdom,  being 
encouraged  to  serve  by  exemption  from  service  in  the  militia  and  regular 
army."8 

Staffordshire's  share  of  the  volunteers  was  represented  by  eight  troops 
of  cavalry  with  a  total  strength  of  664,  under  the  Hon.  E.  Monckton,  and 
troops  were  also  raised  by  Bilston,  Uttoxeter,  Stone  and  Eccleshall,  Hands- 
worth,  Tamworth,  and  Walsall,  the  total  number  of  cavalry  for  the  county 
being  1,090."' 

The  infantry  were  raised  locally  by  companies  varying  in  strength  from 
one  company  of  eighty  from  Bcrkswick  and  Walton  to  six  companies  of 
eighty  men  each  from  Newcastle,  the  total  strength  of  the  foot  being 
5,425  ;  36°  no  artillery  however  was  raised  by  the  county. 

England  was  deeply  stirred  by  the  insatiable  ambition  of  Napoleon,  and 
Lichfield  alone  in  August  of  this  year  raised  £2,193   for  clothing  and  arming  j 
the  volunteers  within  the  city,361  and  six  years  before  the  firm  of  Robert  Peel 
gave  £10,000  to  the  '  voluntary  contribution.'362 

In  i  805  George  III,  with  whom  the  regiment,  owing  to  its  good  conduct 
and  excellent  discipline  while  quartered  at  Windsor,  was  in  high  favour,  con- 
ferred upon  the  Staffordshire  Militia  the  title  of  '  King's  Own,'  and  the 
facings  were  changed  from  yellow  to  blue. 

In  1806  the  Staffordshire  Volunteers  were  included  in  the  'North 
Inland  District.'363  The  strength  of  the  cavalry  was  872  men  and  930 
horses,  but  only  313  and  355  respectively  were  present  at  inspection,  and  of 
the  infantry  establishment  of  5,440,  only  3,521  were  present. 

Both  infantry  and  cavalry  were  raised  locally  as  in  1 803,  and  of  the  former 
half  are  described  as  fit  to  act  with  troops  of  the  line,  two  companies  as 
'  deficient  in  discipline,'  the  rest  as  '  advancing  in  discipline.'  None  of  the 
cavalry  were  considered  fit  to  act  with  troops  of  the  line,  but  were  all 
described  as  advancing  in  discipline  except  the  Uttoxeter  troop,  which  was 
'  too  few  to  judge  of.' 8M 

The  militia  remained  embodied  until  the  peace  in  1814,  and  on 
Napoleon's  escape  from  Elba  were  again  called  upon,365  being  disembodied  in 
1816.  After  Waterloo  the  militia  was  suffered  to  fall  into  decay  until  just 
before  the  Crimean  War,  when  three  battalions  were  embodied  in  Stafford- 
shire.8611 The  first  went  in  1855  to  the  Ionian  Islands,  where  they  remained 


147 


Militia  Muster  Bk.  1793,  in  P.R.O.  »•  Ibid.  1803. 

In    1803   the    First    Staffordshire    Militia   consisted  of   thirty-three  commissioned   officers  and   838 
non-commissioned  officers  and  men,  under  Colonel  Lord  Oxbridge.     Militia  Muster  Bk.  1803. 
"'  Clode,  Military  Forces  of  Crown,  \,  312. 

*'  Return  of  the  Volunteers  of  the  United  Kingdom  for  1803,  printed  for  the  House  of  Commons. 
*°  Ibid.     The  Commandant  of  the  Caversall  Moorland  Company  was  the  Rev.  St.  George  Bowles. 
"  From  a  list  of  subscribers  in  '  Lichfield  Elections.'     A  collection  of  contemporary  MSS.  and  extracts 
in  Bodl.  Lib.  »'  '  Lichfield  Elections,'  as  above. 

10  Return  of  Yeomanry  and  Volunteer  Corps,  printed  for  House  of  Commons  in  1806. 
44  Ibid.     From  1793  to  1815  the  Staffordshire  Militia  provided  100  officers  and  4,000   men  for  the 
line. 

**  Militia  Muster  Bk.  1815,  P.R.O.  *«  Ibid.  1853. 

270 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

until  the  next  year  ;  the  second  did  valuable  garrison  duty,  and  the  third 
furnished  nearly  1,000  trained  men  for  the  regular  army. 

In  1859  Staffordshire  was  one  of  the  first  counties  to  respond  to  the  call 
for  volunteers,  and  six  companies  were  at  once  raised  from  Walsall,  Longton, 
Hanley,  Handsworth,  Lichfield,  and  Wolverhampton  ;  and  by  the  end  of  the 
next  year  forty  companies  of  riflemen  had  been  raised  who  were  organized 
into  five  battalions,  as  well  as  one  corps  of  artillery. 

In  the  territorial  organization  of  1881  the  South  Staffordshire  Regiment 
\comprised  the  38th  Foot  as  first  battalion,  the  8oth  as  second  ;  while  the 
third  and  fourth  battalions  were  composed  of  the  First  Staffordshire  Militia, 
with  three  volunteer  battalions.887  The  North  Staffordshire  Regiment  was 
composed  of  the  64th  and  gSth  Foot  and  the  Second  and  Third  Staffordshire 
Militia  with  two  volunteer  battalions  ;  and  this  arrangement  of  the  county 
forces  remained  for  five  and  twenty  years  unaltered.868 

To  the  South  African  War,  1899—1902,  besides  the  two  regular  bat- 
talions mentioned  above,  Staffordshire  sent  all  four  militia  battalions,  seven 
companies  of  volunteers,  and  one  company  of  imperial  yeomanry. 

The  list  of  members  of  Parliament  for  Staffordshire  during  the  eighteenth 
century  shows  a  constant  succession  of  well-known  county  names  :  Wrottes- 
ley,  Littleton,  Bagot,  Leveson-Gower,  Dyott,  Anson,  Chetwynd,  Paget,  etc., 
for  trade  had  made  as  yet  little  difference  to  the  ascendancy  of  the  old 
families. 

In  1747  the  elections  at  Lichfield  and  Stafford  were  marked  by 
unusual  rioting  ;  at  the  former  place  the  Hon.  R.  Leveson-Gower  polled 
278  votes,  and  Thomas  Anson,  the  brother  of  the  great  navigator,  272,  the 
defeated  candidates  being  Sir  Lister  Holt  with  237  votes  and  G.  F.  Vernon 
with  229. s" 

An  excellent  example  of  the  manner  in  which  territorial  magnates  con- 
trolled elections  at  this  period  is  given  by  the  following  agreement  drawn  up 
in  October,  1765,  between  Lords  Townsend  and  Weymouth  respecting  the 
Tamworth  election  : — 

In  consideration  of  opposition  to  Thurlow  upon  the  Manour  interest  being  dropped  by 
Lord  Townsend,  Lord  Weymouth  agrees  that  if  Townsend  and  Mr.  Luttrell  will  each  give 
.£500  towards  the  election,  Lord  Weymouth  will  provide  a  seat  in  the  next  parliament  for 
any  nominee  of  Townsend's. 

Weymouth  also  agreed  to  fill  up  by  his  interest  one  half  of  the  corporation  with 
Townsend's  friends.870  Accordingly  Edward  Thurlow  of  the  Inner  Temple 
was  elected  for  Tamworth  in  that  year,  and  re-elected  in  1770  on  his  appoint- 
ment as  Solicitor-General,  and  again  in  the  next  year  when  made  Attorney- 
General,871  a  position  which  he  occupied  till  raised  to  the  House  of  Lords. 

867  Army  List,  1881.  "•  Ibid.  1906. 

369  Contemporary  MS.  in  '  Lichfield  Elections '  in  Bodleian  Lib.     The  riots  are  thus  alluded  to  by  a 
contemporary  rhymer  :  — 

'  At  every  meeting  mobs  arose, 
And  freely  dealt  each  other  blows  ; 
Highfliers  quickly  were  brought  down 
By  a  swinging  knock  o'  the  crown  (!) 
In  chanels  weltring  lay  a  squire, 
A  lord  perhaps  flung  in  the  mire.' 

'The  Lichfield  Squabble,'  in  Bodleian  Lib. 
**  Hut.  AfSS.  Com.  Rep.  xi,  App.  iv,  401.  OT  Par!.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  131,  143. 

271 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

In  1780  Richard  Brinsley  Sheridan,  who  although  only  twenty-nine 
had  already  written  most  of  his  famous  comedies,  began  his  long  connexion 
with  Stafford  borough,  a  letter  from  the  Duchess  of  Devonshire  in  his 
favour  being  of  great  service  to  him  in  the  election.37*  His  first  speech  in 
Parliament  was  in  defence  of  a  charge  of  bribery  brought  against  him  by  his 
opponent  Whitworth,  and  it  was  successful  in  its  object. 

Sheridan  was  re-elected  in  1784,  1790,  1796,  1802,  and  in  1806  when 
appointed  Treasurer  of  the  Navy.873  He  was  diligent  in  the  discharge  of  his 
parliamentary  duties,  and  an  opponent  of  the  Game  Laws  and,  strange  to  relate, 
of  gambling.  In  1807  he  was  elected  for  Ilchester,  but  returned  to  his  old 
love  in  1812,  and  being  unable  to  bribe  the  voters  sufficiently  was  defeated, 
the  successful  candidates  being  Ralph  Benson  and  Thomas  Wilson.374 

In  1790  Robert  Peel  of  Bury,  in  the  county  of  Lancaster,  the  father  of 
the  great  statesman,  was  elected  for  Tamworth  as  an  ardent  supporter  of  Pitt, 
as  being  the  great  encourager  of  the  commercial  interests  of  England. 

In  the  election  of  1799,  when  Sir  John  Wrottesley  was  returned  at  the 
head  of  the  poll  for  Lichfield  with  295  votes,  the  opposite  side  asserted  that 
this  total  was  swollen  by  125  'unconstitutional  votes  of  annuitants,  and  of 
those  granted  burgages  during  the  election.'376  In  Sir  John's  election  address 
he  is  especially  recommended  as  one  '  who  will  see  that  the  Charities  of  | 
Lichfield  are  honestly  and  impartially  applied.  Therefore,  my  friends,  be  not 
imposed  upon  by  the  Black  gowned  tribe  with  young  Hotspur  at  their 
head.'378 

During  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  county  families 
maintained  their  position  as  parliamentary  representatives,  and  though  after 
1832  many  new  names  appear  with  increasing  frequency,  especially  for  the 
new  boroughs,  it  was  not  until  after  the  Reform  Bill  of  1867  that  they  were 
ousted  from  the  ascendancy  they  had  held  so  long.577 

In  July,  1830,  Sir  Robert  Peel,  then  Home  Secretary  and  leader  of  the 
House  of  Commons  in  the  Wellington  Ministry,  was  elected  for  Tamworth, 
but  by  November  he  was  in  opposition,  the  reforming  government  of  Earl 
Grey  having  come  in.  In  1835,  as  Prime  Minister,  he  issued  his  famous 
Tamworth  manifesto,  indicating  the  principles  and  reforms  of  which  he 
approved,  and  Tamworth  had  the  honour  of  electing  him  until  his  death  in 
1850. 

By  the  great  Reform  Bill  the  county  of  Stafford  was  divided  into  two 
divisions,  the  northern  and  southern,  each  sending  two  members,  and  three 
new  boroughs  were  created,  Stoke-on-Trent  and  Wolverhampton  with  two 
members  each  and  Walsall  with  one.378 

In  1835,  after  a  contest  lasting  three  weeks,  Mr.  C.  P.  Villiers  began 
that  long  connexion  with  Wolverhampton  which  only  ended  with  his  death 
in  1898.  In  his  first  address  to  the  electors  he  pledged  himself  to  oppose  all 
restrictions  upon  trade,  and  declared  himself '  a  decided  advocate  of  triennial 
parliaments  and  vote  by  ballot.'879 

171  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  Sheridan  ;  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  168. 
m  Par/,  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  181,  194,  207,  221.  m  Ibid.  264. 

375  'Lichfield  Elections,'  Bodl.  Lib.  92.  376  Ibid.  55. 

177  See  the  lists  in  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2). 

378  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  345  ;  2  Will.  IV,  cap.  45. 

379  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  C.  P.  Villiers. 

272 


Ba 

M 


POLITICAL    HISTORY 

By  the  Reform  Act  of  1867  the  county  was  freshly  divided  into  three 
divisions  with  two  members  each,  the  northern,  eastern,  and  western,  while 
a  new  borough,  Wednesbury,  with  one  member,  was  created,  and  Lichfield 
lost  one  of  its  representatives.380 

The  first  Parliament  after  the  Act  was  distinguished  in  the  county 
history  by  the  strong  representation  of  the  brewing  interest,  Mr.  M.  A, 
Bass  being  one  of  the  members  for  the  eastern  division  of  the  county  and 
r.  S.  C.  Allsopp  another  for  the  same  division  in  1873,  while  Mr.  Thomas 
Salt  was  elected  for  Stafford  borough  in  1869.  In  the  same  Parliament 
Sir  William  Henry  Lytton  Bulwer,  afterwards  Lord  Balling  and  Bulwer, 
was  one  of  the  members  for  Tamworth.881 

By  the  Redistribution  Act  of  1885,  Lichfield  and  Tamworth  ceased  to 
be  represented  as  boroughs.  Newcastle  under  Lyme,  Stafford,  and  Stoke  on 
Trent  each  lost  one  member. 

On  the  other  hand  Wolverhampton  gained  one  member,  and  the  new 
boroughs  of  Hanley  and  West  Bromwich  were  created  with  one  member 
each,  while  the  county  was  re-divided  into  the  following  seven  divisions 
with  one  member  each  :  Leek,  Burton,  Western,  North-western,  Lichfield, 
Kingswinford,  and  Handsworth.382 

sso  pari  jccts_  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  485  ;   30  &  31  Viet.  cap.  102. 

881  Par/.  Accts.  and  Papers,  Ixii  (2),  485.  S6a  48  &  49  Viet.  cap.  23. 


273  35 


SOCIAL  AND  ECONOMIC 

HISTORY 


IN  the  last  two  centuries  Staffordshire  has  been  transformed  from  a  thinly- 
populated,  poor,  and  mainly  agricultural  county,  into  one  which  is  rich 
and  densely  populated,  depending  chiefly  for  economic  prosperity  on 
its  mineral  resources  and  the  industries  based  on  these.      In  the  census 
returns  of  1901,  Staffordshire  stands  fourth  on  the  list  of  English  counties, 
but  all  the   available   evidence   goes   to   show  that  in   point  of  numbers  and 
wealth  this  county  ranked  very  low  till  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  Domesday  Commissioners  of  1085  found  but  few  people  dwelling 
there,  and  mention  many  isolated  estates  all  over  the  county  which  they 
describe  as  '  waste  lands.'  It  is  estimated  that  there  was  only  one  villein, 
boor,  or  serf,  to  two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  actual  surface.1 

The  assessment  returns  at  various  dates  since  give  the  same  result,  from 
the  Subsidy  Roll  of  1332—3  onwards,  including  the  assessment  for  a  special 
aid  made  by  Henry  VII  in  1503.* 

Rather  later,  in  the  returns  of  a  muster  roll  20  July,  1573,  it  is  said 
that  the  county  is  too  poor  to  support  the  expense  of  training  a  large  number 
of  men,3  and  this  is  the  general  record  till  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century. 

It  is  easy  to  see  why  it  remained  poor  for  so  long,  despite  its  rich  stores 
of  mineral  wealth,  notably  iron  and  coal,  for  up  to  the  eighteenth  century 
the  conditions  were  unfavourable  for  the  development  and  expansion  of  its 
industry  and  commerce. 

It  was  only  then  that  the  use  of  coal  for  smelting  iron  became  general, 
though  Dud  Dudley  obtained  a  patent  for  his  blast  furnace  for  making  iron 
by  means  of  coal  as  early  as  1639.* 

Further,  since  there  was  no  great  demand  for  Staffordshire  coal  till  the 
epoch  of  the  Industrial  Revolution,  the  mines  were  little  worked  till  the 
eighteenth  century,  nor  could  they  be  worked  effectively  till  the  ingenuity  of 
engineers  had  discovered  a  means  of  pumping  the  water  from  the  pits. 

Another  great  obstacle  to  industrial  and  commercial  development  was 
the  lack  of  communication  between  this  county  and  the  rest  of  England. 
Nothing  indeed  is  clearer  than  its  isolation  in  mediaeval  times,  lying  as  it 

1  R.  W.  Eyton,  Dom.  Studies,  Staffs.  1881,  pp.  17,  zi. 

'  The  (Pil/.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  x,  79  ;  and  Thorold  Rogers,  Hist,  of  Agric.  and  Prices,  iv,  89. 

1  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1547-80,  p.  465. 

4  See  his  Metallum  Mortis,  quoted  by  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staff.  \\,  8. 

275 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

did  far  from  London,  cut  off  from  easy  communication  with  the  continent 
of  Europe,  shut  in  on  the  north  by  wild  tracks  of  moorland  and  limestone 
hills,  with  the  thickly  wooded  Cannock  Chase  on  the  south  and  the  Welsh 
mountains  as  a  barrier  in  the  western  distance.  For  the  numerous  rivers 
of  Staffordshire,  though  excellent  for  fertilizing  purposes,  were  practically 
useless  for  navigation.  The  Trent  only  becomes  navigable  at  Burton,  and  its 
distance  at  this  point  from  the  eastern  sea  makes  it  negligible  as  a  ready 
means  of  communication.  All  the  other  rivers  of  any  importance  take  an 
easterly  direction,  and  there  was  thus  no  way  of  reaching  the  western  coast 
by  water  until  the  cutting  of  canals  in  the  eighteenth  century.  As  to  the 
roads,  which  are  now  excellent,  the  evidence  goes  to  show  that  in  the  central 
part  of  the  county  they  were  good,  but  not  elsewhere. 
Dr.  Plot,  writing  in  1686,  says — 

the  highways,  owing  to  the  gravelly  nature  of  much  of  the  soil,  are  universally  good,  except 
in  the  most  northerly  parts  of  the  moorlands,  where  they  are  nearly  impassable  .  .  .  and  a 
little  about  Wednesbury,  Sedgley,  and  Dudley,  where  they  are  necessarily  worn  by  the 
carriage  of  coal. 

He  goes  on  to  quote  a  remark  of  King  James,  who,  speaking  jocularly  of  this 
county,  once  remarked  that  it  was  '  fit  only  to  be  cut  out  into  thongs  to  make 
highways  for  the  rest  of  the  kingdom.'  6 

But  as  the  developing  industry  of  the  county  was  centred  within  these 
northern  and  southern  parts,  it  was  peculiarly  unfortunate  that  the  roads  there 
should  be  so  bad.  The  potters  suffered  much  in  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth 
century  from  the  badness  of  the  roads.  Many  of  the  materials  for  their 
manufacture  had  to  be  imported  from  outside  the  county,  and  these,  as  well 
as  the  finished  goods  for  export,  were  conveyed  by  means  of  '  pot-wagons,' 
or  on  the  backs  of  pack-horses.  The  roads  are  described  as  being  narrow, 
with  high  banks  at  their  sides,  always,  even  in  summer,  soft  and  clayey,  and 
full  of  deep  ruts.  In  winter,  the  strings  of  pack-horses  could  scarcely  get 
from  place  to  place,  and  many  a  poor,  horse  fell  dead  on  the  roadside,  breaking, 
as  it  fell,  the  heavy  load  of  crockery  it  bore  on  its  back.6 

Besides  coal  and  iron,  Staffordshire  possesses  other  mineral  resources  in 
limestone,  alabaster,  salt,  clays  and  marls  for  the  rougher  sort  of  pottery  ware, 
and  a  certain  amount  of  good  building  stone. 

Its  rock  formation  is  of  a  kind  to  ensure  a  pure  and  plentiful  water 
supply,  owing  to  the  porous  nature  of  the  new  red  sandstone  which  covers 
the  greater  part  of  the  county.  Besides  this,  the  hill  regions  of  millstone 
grit  and  carboniferous  limestone  which  lie  east  of  the  northern  coalfield  are 
the  source  of  innumerable  springs  of  pure  water,  and  the  slope  of  the  boundary 
hills  such  as  Mow  Cop  and  Cloud  is  such  as  to  keep  the  streams  well  within 
the  county.  The  millstone  grit  indeed  and  the  coal  measures  throw  off  most 
of  the  29  in.  of  annual  rainfall,7  though  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  water  drawn 
from  the  coal  measures  is  contaminated,  and  therefore  useless  for  purposes  of 
consumption.  Staffordshire  gains  a  further  supply  from  the  limestone  hills 
of  Derbyshire,  and  it  seems  probable  that  the  great  underground  reservoir  of 

*  Rob.  Plot,  The  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staff.  (1686),  no.  •  Llewellyn  Jewitt,  The  Wedgwoods,  170. 

'  The  general  average  for  the  county,  calculated  from  the  rainfall  returns  covering  a  period  of  twenty 
jrears,  is  29  in.     For  the  north-west  it  rises  to  33*12  in.  whilst  in  the  south-east  it  only  reaches  26  in. 

276 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

hard  water  beneath  the  town  of  Burton,  and  largely  utilized  for  the  making 
of  beer,  comes  in  part  from  that  source.8 

The  limestone  district  in  north-east  Staffordshire  does  not  get  the  full 
benefit  of  the  streams  that  pass  through  it,  owing  to  the  porous  character  of 
the  rocks,  and  to  fissures  through  which  much  of  the  water  disappears.  A 
notable  example  of  this  may  be  seen  in  the  Manifold  valley,  where  the  rivers 
Hamps  and  Manifold  run  underground  for  several  miles  of  their  course  to 
reappear  again  together  at  Ham.9 

It  was  along  the  river  valleys  that  the  most  important  towns  of  mediaeval 
Staffordshire  were  to  be  found — Stafford,  for  instance,  at  the  junction  of 
several  valleys  encircled  by  small  hills,  Lichfield  and  Tamworth,  respectively 
the  centres  of  the  ecclesiastical  and  political  life  of  the  old  Mercian  kingdom, 
Burton  on  the  banks  of  the  Trent,  the  seat  of  an  ancient  monastery  dating 
back  to  the  tenth  century.  Up  to  the  eighteenth  century  the  population 
was  fairly  evenly  distributed  over  the  county,  with  the  exception  of  the  barren 
moorland  regions  in  the  north  and  south.  Its  economic  prosperity  depended 
mainly  upon  agriculture,  carried  on  chiefly  in  the  well-watered  fertile  plain 
which  lies  between  the  northern  and  southern  coalfields,  and  which  is  still 
largely  an  agricultural  region. 

At  the  present  day  the  greater  part  of  the  population  is  found  massed 
together  in  two  great  industrial  regions,  known  respectively  as  the  Potteries 
and  the  Black  Country,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  two  great  coalfields.  It 
is  here  that  the  large  towns  of  modern  Staffordshire  are  to  be  found,  for 
Stafford  is  no  longer  '  the  most  considerable  town  in  the  county,  with  the 
exception  of  Lichfield,'  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  Defoe  (1778). 10 

Of  the  four  largest  towns,  judged  by  the  last  census  return  (1901),  three, 
Wolverhampton,  Walsall,  and  West  Bromwich,  are  in  South  Staffordshire, 
whilst  the  fourth  largest,  Hanley,  is,  of  course,  the  chief  of  the  pottery  towns, 
being  a  county  borough,  but  it  was  unknown  to  mediaeval  Staffordshire,  save 
as  an  insignificant  part  of  the  ancient  parish  of  Stoke  upon  Trent. 

The  situation  of  these  North  Staffordshire  pottery  towns  is  interesting 
and  significant,  showing  that  the  manufacture  of  pottery  has  from  very  early 
times  been  the  staple  industry  of  the  district.  For  though  as  towns  they  are 
of  comparatively  modern  growth,  they  date  back  to  early  times  as  villages, 
and  they  are  not  situated  along  the  outcrops  of  the  main  seams  of  coal,  but 
extend  in  an  almost  continuous  line  from  Longton  in  the  south  to  Tunstall 
in  the  north  along  the  outcrop  of  the  quick  burning  coals,  clays,  and  marls, 
which  were  once  used  in  the  manufacture  of  the  coarse  pottery  of  the  early 
days,  and  are  still  used  for  making  the  '  saggers '  in  which  the  ware  is  placed 
for  firing  in  the  ovens.  Newcastle-under-Lyme  is  not,  strictly  speaking, 
within  the  Potteries,  being  situated  on  a  wide  strip  of  barren  measures  let 
down  by  the  Apedale  Fault  between  the  pottery  towns  on  the  east  and  the 

8  H.  Evershed,  '  Agricultural  Surv.  of  Staff.'  Journ.  Roy.  Agric.  Sac.  (2nd  Ser.),  vol.  v,  1869,  p.  296. 

9  See  Dr.  Darwin's  description  of  these  rivers.      The  Botanic  Garden,  Part  ii,  Canto  iii,  129  : — 
'  Where  Hamps  and  Manifold  their  cliffs  among  On  beds  of  lava  sleep  in  coral  cells 

Each  in  his  flinty  channel  winds  along,  And  sigh  o'er  jasper  fish  and  agate  shells, 

With  lucid  lines  the  dusky  moor  divides  Till  where  famed  Ham  leads  his  boiling  floods 

Hurrying  to  intermix  their  sister  tides.  Thro'  flowery  meadows  and  impending  woods, 

Three  thousand  steps  in  sparry  clefts  they  stray  Pleas'd  with  light  spring  they  leave  the  dreary  night  ! 

Or  seek  thro'  sullen  mines  their  gloomy  way  ;  And  mid  circumfluent  surges  rise  to  light.' 

10  Defoe,,  Tour  through  Great  Britain  (8th  ed.),  ii,  358. 

277 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

mining  districts  of  Silverdale  and  Apedale  on  the  west.  Newcastle  is  therefore 
a  residential  rather  than  an  industrial  and  manufacturing  town,  and  may  be 
regarded  as  a  suburb  for  the  whole  of  the  pottery  district.101 

The  rainfall  varies  greatly  in  different  parts  of  the  county,  being  especially 
heavy  in  the  hilly  moorland  regions  of  the  north  and  north-east. 

But,  taken  as  a  whole,  the  climate  is  too  damp  for  corn  growing,  and 
both  climate  and  soil  are  better  adapted  for  pasturage,  the  central  part  of  the 
county  being  composed  largely  of  marls  intermixed  with  a  sandy,  gravelly 
soil,  found  largely  also  on  the  borders  of  the  southern  coalfield.  The  rich 
alluvial  deposit  of  the  river  valleys  produces  excellent  grass,  and  even  the 
limestone  uplands  produce,  as  Dr.  Plot  observed  in  1686 — 

a  short  but  fine  and  sweet  pasture,  and  large  oxen.  Much  more  [he  adds]  can  they  breed 
and  feed  cattle  in  the  rich  meadows  that  adorn  the  banks  of  Trent,  Blithe,  Terne,  Churnet, 
Hamps,  and  Manifold,  and  more  especially  on  the  famous  Dove  banks.11 

With  the  exception  of  a  tract  of  light  land  round  Stafford,  and  extending 
thence  through  Lichfield  to  Tamworth,  dairy-farms  are  the  rule,  Uttoxeter 
being  specially  famous  for  its  dairy  produce,  which  is  sent  thence  daily  to 
London  and  other  parts  of  the  country.12 

Corn  is  grown  to  some  extent  on  the  drift  plain  which  lies  to  the  west 
of  the  pottery  coalfield,  but  more  and  more  arable  land  is  being  turned  into 
pasture,  as  corn  becomes  less  and  less  profitable,  and  the  demand  for  dairy 
produce  increases  with  the  growth  of  industrial  populations  in  the  districts 
adjoining  the  agricultural  area. 

The  poverty  of  records  for  the  period  between  the  Domesday  Survey 
(1085)  and  the  opening  of  the  twelfth  century  makes  the  student  of  social 
history  in  Staffordshire  peculiarly  grateful  for  any  indication  of  the  life  of 
the  people  at  this  time.  One  very  valuable  record  for  a  part  of  the  county 
is  to  be  found  in  the  Burton  Chartulary  13  containing  the  early  surveys  of  the 
manors  belonging  to  that  monastic  foundation,  and  a  number  of  documents 
concerning  the  relationship  between  the  monks  and  their  tenants.  The  date 
of  the  surveys  has  now  been  conclusively  fixed  between  the  years  iioo  and 
ii33,uwhilst  the  other  documents  refer  to  times  as  late  as  the  reign  of 
Edward  II. 

The  surveys  show  that  the  tenants  on  the  Burton  manors  were  divided 
into  three  main  classes,  consisting  of  those  who  paid  rent  for  their  land,  and 
in  addition  performed  certain  fixed  agricultural  services ;  others  who  held  their 
land  in  return  for  fairly  arduous  labour  services,  with  food  contributions  and 
an  occasional  payment,  such  as  \d.  at  Martinmas  ;  and  finally  a  third  class 
of  cottars  who  held  a  cottage  and  a  croft  in  return  for  one  day's  work 
per  week  on  the  lord's  land.  Among  the  last  class  may  be  placed  the 
'  bovarii,'  a  few  men  on  each  manor  who  looked  after  the  lord's  oxen  for 
the  plough-team,  and  in  return  for  these  services  possessed  a  cottage  and 
a  small  plot  of  land. 

I0a  W.  Gibson,  '  North  Staff  Coalfield,'  Memoirs  of  the  Geolog.  Surv.  of  End.  and  Wales,  iqoc,  pp   «,  220 
11  Rob.  Plot,  The  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staff.  (1686),  107. 

11  In   Leland's  day  Uttoxeter  was  famous  for  its  dairy  produce.     See  his  I  tin.  (3rd  ed.  Hearne,  1769), 
vii,  26,  where  he  says  'the  men  of  the  town  useth  grazing,  for  there  be  wonderful  pastures  upon  Dove  ' 
"  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Stic.  Coll.  v,  pt.  i. 

14  Engl.  Hist.  Rev.  »,  275  et  seq.  ;  J.  H.  Round,  The  Burton  Abbey  Surv. 

278 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

There  were  no  tenants  paying  rent  alone  without  services,  and  none 
belonging  to  the  class  of  wholly  unfree  cultivators,  the  '  servi '  of  Domesday 
Book.16 

The  smith  often  held  his  land  in  consideration  of  giving  his  services  to 
the  monks,  but  at  Stretton  he  had  the  option  of  paying  i  zd.  a  year  instead.18 

A  consideration  of  the  surveys  shows  that  on  the  Burton  manors,  as  else- 
where, it  was  customary  for  the  ordinary  villein  to  give  two  days'  work  per 
week  to  his  lord,  and  to  perform  a  certain  number  of  miscellaneous  services. 
For  instance,  the  villeins  on  the  Wetmoor  manor  had  to  plough  twice  yearly, 
to  reap  for  three  days  in  August,  to  attend  the  hunt,  do  a  certain  amount  of 
carting,  to  make  contributions  of  fowls  at  Christmas  and  to  pay  certain  dues, 
such  as  8d.  for  the  use  of  the  lord's  fold.17 

The  rent-paying  tenant  was  free  from  the  ordinary  'week-work,'  but  he 
too  had  a  number  of  services  to  perform,  e.g.,  to  lend  his  plough  twice  a  year, 
as  at  Branston,  Stretton,  and  Abbot's  Bromley,  to  attend  the  hunt,  to  keep  up 
the  fences,  to  reap  in  harvest  usually  for  three  days.  Sometimes,  as  at 
Bromley,  Wetmoor,  Appleby,  and  Finden,  to  go  where  the  abbot  bade  him.18 

Sometimes  the  manor  was  farmed  by  a  number  of  the  tenants,  as  at 
Bromley,19  who  performed  certain  services  however  in  addition  to  payment  of 
rent,  the  abbot  keeping  the  wood  and  the  profits  thereof  in  his  own  hands. 

At  Branston  we  get  an  example  of  a  man  holding  8  bovates  of  land 
and  having  seven  men  under  him.20  Very  often  one  of  the  monks  farmed  the 
manor,  as  at  Winshill,  which  Edric  the  monk  farmed  for  £4  ioj.  per  year, 
exclusive  of  the  wood,  hay,  and  certain  lands  reserved  to  the  use  and  profit  of 
the  whole  monastic  body.21  Not  much  is  to  be  gathered  from  these  surveys 
as  to  the  progress  of  the  villeins  towards  commutation  of  services  for  money 
payment,  for  while  there  are  instances  of  men  holding  land  for  services  who 
formerly  paid  rent,  as  at  Stretton,22  there  are  other  cases  in  which  the  opposite 
holds  good. 

Later  on,  however,  in  the  time  of  Henry  III,  we  hear  of  an  attempt  of 
the  '  customary  tenants  '  to  gain  their  freedom  from  servile  tenure,  but  un- 
fortunately they  were  not  successful.  The  case  came  up  for  judgement  at 
Westminster,  and  the  record  states  that  the  abbot  sued  his  tenants 

for  customs  and  services  due  for  the  tenements  they  hold  of  him  in  Bromley,  inasmuch  as 
they  held  the  tenements  in  villeinage,  and  owed  villein  services,  viz.,  tallage  once  every  year 
at  his  will,  and  merchetum  for  marrying  their  daughters  and  other  services,  and  they  owed 
tallage  assessed  at  eight  marks  two  years  ago. 

The  marriage  payment  here,  as  elsewhere,  seems  to  have  been  the  distinctive 
mark  of  servile  status,  and  the  tenants  of  Bromley  denied  that  they  owed 
either  this  or  the  tallage,  and  asserted  that  they  held  their  tenements  by 
certain  fixed  services  and  a  payment  of  2os.  at  Christmas.  The  final  verdict 
was  not  given  till  1252  at  Nottingham,  when  eight  knights  and  eight  freemen 
who  formed  the  jury  stated  that  all  the  tenants  named,  and  their  ancestors 

15  The  analysis  of  the  Domesday  Survey  for  Staff,  gives  only  thirty-three  servi  for  the  whole  hundred  of 
Offlow,  fifty-seven  for  Seisdon,  sixty  for  Cuttlestone,  sixty-eight  for  Pirehill,  and  thirteen  for  Totmonslow 
(R.  W.  Eyton,  Dom.  Studies,  Staff.  1 5). 

"  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Sac.  Coll.  pt.  i,  v  (i),  19.  "  Ibid.  26. 

11  Engl.  Hist.  Rev.  xx,  284-6.  »  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Sac.  Coll.  pt.  i,  v,  20. 

M  Ibid.  25.     The  usual  holding  was  2  bovates.  ll  Ibid.  24.  "  Ibid.  19. 

279 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

before  them,  held  their  tenements  in  villeinage,  and  gave  merchetum  for 
marrying  their  daughters,  and  every  year  they  gave  '  stud  '  (tallage),  some- 
times more  and  sometimes  less,  at  the  will  of  the  abbot,  and  that  they  owed 
all  villein  services.28 

The  monks,  it  may  be  noticed,  showed  a  good  deal  of  pious  indignation 
at  the  presumption  of  their  tenants,  and  complacently  contrasted  the  pride  of 
the  latter  with  their  own  humility,  illustrating  and  concluding  their  homily 
by  the  text, '  God  resists  the  proud  and  gives  His  grace  to  the  humble.' 24 

It  is  to  be  feared  that  the  relations  of  the  abbots  and  their  tenants  were 
never  of  the  friendliest,  for  when  in  the  early  years  of  the  fourteenth  century 
the  abbot  was  prosecuted  in  the  hundred  of  Pirehill  for  '  fraudulently  con- 
cealing and  disposing  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  Thomas  earl  of  Lancaster,' 
the  jury  gave  the  verdict  against  him,  and  the  abbot,  who  denied  the  whole 
story  to  the  king,  maintained  that  the  jury  was  a  packed  one,  consisting  of 
men  evilly  disposed  towards  him.26  Indeed,  many  instances  might  be  given 
of  the  somewhat  truculent  behaviour  of  the  abbots,  not  only  towards  their 
tenants  but  in  their  relations  with  the  neighbouring  landowners,  with  whom 
they  were  frequently  in  conflict. 

From  an  old  survey  of  Tutbury,  made  in  Elizabeth's  reign,  we  know 
that  the  services  of  the  villeins  here  were  not  commuted  for  rents  till  the  reign 
of  Henry  V  (fifteenth  century),  and  reference  is  made  to  the  heaviness  of 
these  services  as  they  were  enforced  by  the  founder  of  Tutbury  Priory  in  1080: 

Part  of  the  lands  of  the  priory  (says  the  survey)  were  granted  to  his  bondmen,  for  no 
freemen  would  take  land  with  such  villainous  customs  as  were  found  in  an  ancient  record  at 
Tutbury  (called  the  Cowcher,  and  made  in  the  time  of  Henry  V),  viz.  to  mow  the  grass  in 
the  meadows,  make  the  hay  and  carry  it  into  the  castle,  and  the  arable  land  to  plow  it,  sow 
it,  harrow  it  and  reap  it,  and  carry  it  either  to  the  lord's  manor  house,  or  to  the  said  castle, 
at  their  own  costs  and  charges. 


They  were  also  bound  to  divers  customs,  services,  and  carriages  which 
at  the  making  of  the  old  Coucher  were  reduced  to  annual  rents.26 

From  the  available  records  we  see  that  in  the  latter  part  of  the  thirteenth 
century  the  process  of  commutation  was  going  on  gradually  all  over  the 
county,  if  not  very  rapidly.  From  a  number  of  '  extents  of  manors '  of  the 
time  of  Edward  I "  we  see  that  the  services  were  always  appraised  in  terms  of 
money,  and  it  may  be  concluded  that  it  was  sometimes  convenient  to  accept 
money  payment  rather  than  labour,  whilst  the  next  step  to  a  general  substitu- 
tion of  money  rents  is  not  difficult.  For  instance,  the  '  works '  of  the  cus- 
tomary tenants  at  Swinford  are  valued  at  5^.  each.  Again,  in  the  manor  of 
Sedgeley  we  hear  of  a  great  many  services  which  the  customary  tenants  ought 
to  perform,  such  as  mowing,  reaping,  carrying  hay  and  wood,  gathering  nuts, 
and  so  on,  but  in  each  case  they  are  valued  in  terms  of  money,  and  it  is  more 
than  likely  that  the  word  '  ought,'  which  occurs  in  this  and  other  records, 
points  to  an  ideal  of  duty  once  regarded,  but  now  repudiated.  This  conjecture 
is  the  more  likely  to  be  true  in  the  case  of  Sedgeley,  inasmuch  as  it  was,  even 
at  that  date,  a  place  of  some  industrial  and  commercial  importance — for  the 
same  record  speaks  of  four  coal-pits,  worth  yearly  £4,  and  of  sixteen  small 
shops.  Still  the  peasants  of  Sedgeley  were  as  yet  only  struggling  to  be  free, 

a  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  pt.  i,  v,  64-5.  "  Ibid.  65.  "  Ibid.  4-5. 

"  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hut.  of  Staff.  (1801),  i,  45.  "  The  mil.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  pt.  ii,  ix,  26-29. 

280 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 


'for   the  record   also  speaks  of  the    profit    accruing  from    the  '  market '  of 
daughters,  the  special  mark  of  servile  status  in  those  days.28 

The  examples  cited  refer  to  the  eastern  and  southern  part  of  the  county. 
The  state  of  affairs  as  it  existed  near  the  western  border  is  illustrated  by  the 
record  of  a  manor  court  held  at  Wrottesley  in  1382,  one  year  after  the 
Peasants'  Revolt.29  Of  the  seventeen  tenants  four  only  were  freeholders,  six 
are  described  as  '  holding  in  bondage,'  and  the  rest  were  crofters  or 
cottagers.  Reference  is  made  to  a  certain  Hugh  Roberdes  who  had  lately 
died,  leaving  a  daughter  who  had  recently  married  with  the  permission  of  the 
lord.  Yet  all  the  tenants  were  paying  rent  for  their  holdings,  despite  the 
dependence  of  their  position  in  some  ways  as  shown  by  the  lord's  control 
over  the  marriage  of  their  daughters  indicated  above. 

References  to  the  food  contributions  of  tenants  holding  in  bondage  persist 
till  quite  late  in  manor  rolls,  even  when  the  tenants  are  paying  rent,  e.g.  at 
Rolleston  in  I4I4.30  In  a  list  of  receipts  occurs  the  entry  of  5^.  J\d,  and  fifty- 
three  capons,  the  rent  of  tenants  'holding  in  bondage.'  Again,  in  1480,  in  a 
bailiff's  account  we  hear  of  the  contribution  of  capons  or  fowls  by  the 
Walsall  tenants,  and  reference  is  still  made  at  that  date  to  their  'works,'  though 
these  were  by  that  time  commuted.31 

At  Barton,  in  the  honour  of  Tutbury,  in  1463  some  tenants  were  still 
holding  land  in  return  for  services  alone,33  so  that  it  is  clear  that  villeinage  and 
its  servile  accompaniments  died  but  slowly  in  this  county.  A  fairly  late 
example  of  the  way  the  ordinary  villein  was  tied  to  the  soil  occurs  in  the 
record  of  a  '  Magna  Curia'  held  at  Wrottesley  in  1401,  in  which  the  jury 
presented  that  John  de  Green,  '  the  native,'  had  left  his  home  without  his 
lord's  permission,  a  serious  offence  in  mediaeval  times.33 

Of  the  wild,  barren,  moorland  region  of  North  Staffordshire  we  know 
but  little  in  early  times  ;  even  now  it  is  a  thinly  populated  district,  made  up 
chiefly  of  scattered  hamlets  and  villages,  and  containing  scarcely  any  towns. 
In  the  fourteenth  century,  apart  from  the  few  villages  in  the  region  now 
known  as  the  Potteries  and  those  districts  near  the  fertile  banks  of  the  Dove 
or  its  tributary  streams,  this  part  of  the  country  had  but  little  economic 
or  social  importance.84 

With  regard  to  the  Peasants'  Revolt  of  1381,  all  the  most  recent 
researches  have  failed  to  discover  that  the  Staffordshire  peasants  had  any  part 
in  it,  though  we  now  know  that  the  tenants  on  the  bishop  of  Chester's  manors 
in  the  Wirral  were  implicated. 

This  must  not  be  hastily  taken  to  prove  that  the  grievances  of  the  Stafford- 
shire peasants  were  less  severe  than  those  of  other  counties  ;  their  failure  to 
participate  in  the  movement  may  be  regarded,  in  part  at  any  rate,  as  a  result 

18  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Sac.  Coll.  pt.  ii,  ix,  29.  **  Ibid,  vi  (New  Ser.),  pt.  ii,  175. 

30  Mins.  Accts.  bdle.  988,  No.  20.  3I  Ibid.  bdle.  641,  No.  1041 1. 

"  Ibid.  bdle.  371,  No.  6197. 

0  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  pt.  i  (New  Ser.),  1 84.  There  are  in  Staffordshire,  as  elsewhere,  numerous 
instances  of  survivals  of  manorial  courts,  e.g.  the  case  of  Standon,  where  we  have  evidence  of  the  holding 
of  a  court  baron  at  least  as  late  as  1750,  and  the  record  of  fines  levied  on  freeholders  for  various  offences  such 
as  omitting  to  repair  roads,  ditches,  and  fences  (Edward  Salt,  Hist,  of  StanJon  (1888),  137). 

"  As  to  the  early  condition  of  the  villages  in  the  Potteries  see  Meteyard's  Life  of  Josiah  JVeJgatooJ, 
101,  where  she  affirms  her  belief  that  for  three  or  four  centuries  after  the  Norman  Conquest  the  liberty  of 
establishing  a  pot-works  on  the  waste,  and  of  digging  for  clay  and  coal,  was  conferred  by  manorial  lords  in 
return  for  services,  commuted  later  for  rents. 

I  28l  36 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

of  their  geographical  position — far  from  London  and  the  eastern  counties, 
and  with  little  means  of  communication  therewith.  Besides,  the  reaction  in 
favour  of  the  ruling  classes  was  so  swift  that  the  news  of  the  rising  probably 
only  reached  this  county  with  the  additional  information  that  it  had  been 
put  down  by  the  most  vigorous  methods.  Yet  there  is  reason  to  suppose 
that  the  effects  of  the  Black  Death  in  depopulating  the  county  were  not 
quite  so  serious  in  Staffordshire  as  in  some  parts  of  England,  and  that,  in  con- 
sequence, the  peasants  here  suffered  somewhat  less  from  the  operation  of  the 
Statutes  of  Labour  which  had  attempted,  though  vainly,  to  fix  the  rates  of 
wages  according  to  those  which  prevailed  before  the  plague.  There  is  a 
tradition  that  Wolverhampton  was  partially  devastated  by  the  disease,86  and 
here  and  there  in  the  records  there  are  indirect  references  to  its  ravages.88 
It  was  of  course  most  unlikely  that  this  county  should  have  escaped  the 
pestilence,  and  the  general  scantiness  of  the  ordinary  judicial  records  at  this 
time  renders  it  dangerous  to  make  serious  general  statements. 

There  is,  however,  a  distinct  statement  on  the  matter  in  a  letter  directed 
to  an  official  of  the  archdeaconry  of  Coventry  and  Lichfield  in  1361,  which 
points  to  the  comparative  immunity  of  the  county  in  the  second  great 
visitation  of  1361-2,  if  not  in  the  earlier  one  of  I  348-9." 

The  pestilence  (says  the  letter)  with  which  God  is  visiting  the  sins  of  the  people,  has 
not  yet  come  into  this  diocese,  but  many  other  parts  of  the  country  are  rendered  empty  by  it  ! 
Prayer  is  therefore  to  be  made  in  all  churches  for  the  staying  of  the  Plague. 

Certainly  it  was  felt  severely  round  about  the  Staffordshire  borders,  as 
appears  from  various  entries  in  the  Episcopal  Registers.  Thus  in  1380  a 
request  was  made  by  the  monks  of  Bordesley,  in  the  diocese  of  Worcester, 
for  the  appropriation  of  the  church  of  Kinver  in  the  archdeaconry  of  Stafford, 
the  abbot  pleading  poverty  on  the  ground  that  his  chief  endowment  is  in  land 
and  agriculture,  which  bring  in  nothing  through  lack  of  labourers  owing  to 
the  pestilence.  He  states  that  an  unusual  number  of  guests  have  visited  the 
monastery,  and  that  the  cattle  plague  has  further  reduced  his  resources.88 

As  regards  the  commercial  and  industrial  development  of  Staffordshire,  it 
is  quite  evident  that  there  was  but  little  progress  between  the  eleventh  and 
the  sixteenth  century.  We  know  that  the  county  suffered  considerably  in  the 
civil  war  of  Stephen's  day,  being  for  some  time  in  the  campaign  of  1153  the 
head  quarters  of  Matilda's  son  Henry.  In  1187—8  the  sheriff  reports  that 
84  hides  of  geldable  land  were  so  desolated  that  he  could  levy  nothing 
on  it.  '  Lo  it  was  near  one-fifth  of  the  geldable  area  of  the  county.' 89 

The  growth  of  the  towns  was  certainly  late.  From  the  Subsidy  Roll  of 
1332-3  we  see  that  Stafford,  one  of  the  ten  fortified  English  towns  mentioned 
in  Domesday  Book,  comes  first,  with  a  contribution  of  £13  8j.  io</.40  Lichfield 
is  next  on  the  list,  and  pays  £12  ;  the  third  town  is  Newcastle  under  Lyme, 
paying  £10  1 3-r.  4*/.,  whilst  Burton  contributes  only  £8,  and  the  other  towns 
are  inconsiderable,  and  come  far  behind.41 

*  F.  Burleigh,  Hist,  and  Descriptive  Guide  to  Wolverhampton,  4. 
"  The  mil.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  vii,  38  ;  ibid,  xii,  98  ;  ibid,  xiv,  73. 

57  Reg.  of  Bithop  Robert  de  Stretton  (Lich.  Epis.  Reg.),  printed  in  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  viii  (New 
Ser.),  99. 

>s  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  viii  (New  Ser),  141. 

89  Ibid.  x.  «°  Ibid,  x  (i),  79-1 32.  «  Ibid. 

282 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

From  the  Quo  Warranto  Pleas  of  1293  we  learn  that  Lichfield, 
Rugeley,  Cannock,  and  Brewood  possessed  no  market  till  the  reign  of 
Henry  III,  and  the  profits  went,  even  then,  to  the  bishop  of  Lichfield  and 
Coventry.42  The  market  at  Wolverhampton  also  dates  from  this  reign,  as  also 
does  that  of  Stone.43 

In  a  charter  granted  by  King  John  to  the  burgesses  of  Stafford,  that  town 
gained  the  privileges  of  a  free  borough  'with  freedom  from  toll,  suits  of  shires 
and  hundreds,  and  all  other  free  customs  of  the  free  boroughs  of  England.' 44 

Tamworth  also  gained  a  charter  of  privileges  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III, 
though  these  were  restricted  to  '  the  men  and  tenants  of  that  half  the  town 
of  Tamworth  which  had  been  ancient  demesne.'45  In  the  same  reign  Walsall 
also  gained  a  charter,  giving  the  burgesses  freedom  from  toll.46 

The  first  city  to  obtain  a  charter  of  incorporation  was  Lichfield,  in  1547. 
Stafford  was  incorporated  two  years  later,47  whilst  Tamworth  had  to  wait  till 
I56o.48  Newcastle  gained  its  charter  of  incorporation  in  the  reign  of 
Henry  VIII.49  The  other  corporate  boroughs  of  Staffordshire  are  of  modern 
origin. 

After  the  dissolution  of  the  religious  gild  of  St.  Mary,  which  had 
hitherto  managed  the  affairs  of  the  town,  the  only  town  possessing  a  merchant- 
gild  in  the  fourteenth  century  seems  to  have  been  Newcastle-under-Lyme,  and 
the  attempts  of  that  city  to  carry  out  a  policy  of  trade  protection  were  un- 
successful. In  an  interesting  case  which  came  before  the  judges  in  1279—80 
the  gild  tested  its  powers  of  exclusive  trading.  It  seems  that  a  burgess  of 
Stafford  named  William  de  Pykestoke  had  taken  out  a  summons  against 
certain  burgesses  of  Newcastle-under-Lyme  for  carrying  off  and  illegally 
detaining  his  chattels,  viz.  four  ells  of  cloth.  The  Newcastle  men  admitted 
the  fact,  but  in  defence  charged  the  said  William  with  keeping  a  shop,  cutting 
cloth,  and  selling  wool  and  fleeces  by  the  ell  without  having  been  received 
into  the  gild  and  contrary  to  the  regulations  of  the  gild  granted  to  Newcastle 
by  a  charter  of  Henry  III.60 

Pykestoke  on  his  part  admitted  that  he  was  not  a  gild  member,  but 
pleaded  that  by  virtue  of  the  charter  of  King  John  making  Stafford  a  free 
borough  he  ought  to  enjoy  the  liberty  of  free  trade  in  Newcastle.  He  further 
asserted  that  he  and  other  burgesses  had  enjoyed  these  privileges  till  a  year 
ago,  when  their  chattels  had  been  seized  as  aforesaid. 

After  many  adjournments  a  jury  decided  in  favour  of  the  Stafford  bur- 
gesses, despite  the  regulations  of  the  gild,  and  awarded  them  40^.  damages 
and  the  restoration  of  their  chattels.61 

We  see  therefore  that  the  general  civic  protection  of  the  middle  ages  was 
not  so  firmly  established  in  Staffordshire  as  in  many  other  counties,  where  it 
had  the  disastrous  result  of  driving  trade  and  industry  to  the  country  villages 
to  the  impoverishment  and  depopulation  of  the  towns.52 

41  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  vi  (i),  244.  "  Ibid.  249. 

44  Merewether,  Boroughs  and  Corporations,  i,  408,  who  gives  reference  Rot.  Cart.  2  John,  m.  7,  but  this  is. 
not  printed  by  the  Rec.  Com.  "  Pat.  4  Edw.  Ill,  m.  32.  46  Ibid.  47  Edw.  Ill,  pt.  2,  m.  35. 

"  Merewether,  Boroughs  and  Corporations,  iii,  2281.  "  Ibid. 

49  Staff.  Constitutional  Mag.  Feb.  1890,  p.  303. 

M  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  vi  (i),  1 1 1.  "  Ibid.  1 1 2. 

sf  See  Trans.  Roy.  Hist.  Soc.  vii  (New  Ser.),  1893,  for  acct.  of  the  Mercers'  Company,  Lichfield,  instituted 
1624  by  the  town  authorities,  who  were  empowered  by  royal  charter  to  regulate  the  trade  of  mercers,  grocers, 
linen  drapers,  woollen  drapers,  silkmen,  hosiers,  salters,  apothecaries,  and  haberdashers. 

283 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  industrial  development  of  the  county  was  no  more  rapid  at  this  time 
than  its  commercial  progress.  Staffordshire  played  no  part  in  the  early 
history  of  the  woollen  industry  in  England ;  the  Flemish  weavers  could  not 
come 'so  far  inland  as  this  to  teach  their  craft;  but  some  simple  form  of  cloth- 
making  there  was  here  as  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  it  is  said  that  the  wool 
trade  was  the  staple  trade  of  Wolverhampton  until  its  decline  in  the  sixteenth 
century. 

The  returns  of  the  Poll  Tax  of  1379-81  show  that  there  must  have 
been  a  considerable  manufacture  of  cutlery  at  Rugeley,63  and  reference  has 
already  been  made  to  the  coal-pits  of  Sedgeley,  which,  however,  only  brought 
in  £4  ioj.  a  year,  so  could  not  have  been  very  extensively  worked  (between 
£40  and  £50  of  modern  money).6*  Iron  mines  are  also  mentioned  at  Tunstall 
in  1361,"  but  we  know  that  until  the  eighteenth  century  there  was  no 
important  industrial  development  in  North  or  South  Staffordshire.  It  is 
believed  that  iron  smelting  was  carried  on  at  Uttoxeter  in  the  thirteenth 
century  and  wool  stapling  in  the  fourteenth.  The  smelting  of  iron  went  on 
to  some  extent  in  other  parts  of  the  country,  but  it  was  as  yet  effected  by 
means  of  charcoal,  easily  procurable  in  a  county  so  well  wooded.  For  the 
rest  the  return  of  the  Poll  Tax  of  i  379-8  i  for  the  hundreds  of  Offlow  and 
Cuttlestone 66  shows  us  a  miscellaneous  population,  shoemakers,  smiths, 
carpenters,  skinners,  fullers,  tailors,  butchers,  and  a  few  weavers,  with  a  very 
large  proportion  of  agricultural  labourers  or  husbandmen,  about  eighty-eight 
per  cent,  of  the  whole  number,  compared  with  twelve  per  cent,  employed  in 
trade  and  industry  other  than  agriculture. 

The  records  of  the  administration  of  justice  in  the  manorial  and  other 
courts,  including  those  of  the  forest,  throw  a  good  deal  of  light  upon  the  life 
and  customs  of  the  people  in  mediaeval  times.  They  show  us  a  community 
mainly  agricultural  whose  misdemeanours  are  chiefly  connected  with  field  and 
forest.  There  are  innumerable  fines  for  depasturing  sheep  and  cattle,  inclosing 
parts  of  the  forest  for  purposes  of  cultivation,  and  throwing  down  fences  on 
the  lord's  land,  and  so  on. 

In  1 129  the  men  of  Arley  are  amerced  ten  marks  for  lands  of  the  forest 
taken  by  them  unwarrantably  into  cultivation,  but  the  king  releases  them 
from  the  penalty  '  for  that  the  debtors  were  poor.' " 

After  the  passing  of  the  Statute  of  Merton  in  1235,  which  gave  the 
freeholders  the  right  to  protest  against  encroachments  of  the  lord  on  their 
pasture  land,  the  Assize  Rolls  of  Staffordshire  are  full  of  cases  in  which  the 
tenant  brings  an  action  against  the  lord  for  this  offence.  The  following  case 
is  only  one  of  many  of  the  kind  : — '  An  assize  if  John  Golde  had  unjustly 
disseised  Milicent  Basset  of  her  common  of  pasture  in  five  acres  in  Finchespath 
appurtenant  to  her  free  tenement.  Verdict  for  Milicent.' 68  The  fact  that 
in  most  cases  the  tenants  seem  to  have  got  favourable  verdicts  points  to  a 
rather  general  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  Staffordshire  lords  to  ignore  the 
rights  of  the  freeholders  in  this  respect.  It  is  worth  noting  in  passing  that 
the  Statute  of  Merton,  which  was  really  the  first  inclosure  act,  gave  no 


a  i 


'  The  mil.  Salt  Arch.  Sac.  Coll.  xvii,  1 86.  M  Ibid.  pt.  ii,  ix,  29. 

54  De  Banco  R.  405,  Hil.  35  Edw.  Ill,  m.  299^. 

*  The  If  ill.  Salt  Arch.  Sue.  Coll.  xvii,  61-205.  "  Ibid,  i,  8  ;  Pipe  R.  31  Hen.  I. 

M  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  vi   (i),  50  ;    Misc.  Assize  R.  55   Hen.  Ill,  Lichfield  ;  also  headed  Plea 
Rolls  of  reign  of  Edw.  I,  No.  121 7.     (The  Rolls  are  not  numbered  in  Salt.) 

284 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

rights  of  protest  to   the   villein   or  the  inhabitants   generally,    hence   much 
inclosure  must  have  taken  place  to  the  injury  of  these  people. 

An  interesting  example  of  the  summary  method  of  dealing  with 
'manifest  felons  '  occurs  in  the  records  of  the  Staffordshire  Assizes  in  1273. 

The  jury  of  the  hundred  of  Seisdon  presented  that  Roger  de  Reyneyde  was  arrested 
upon  suspicion  of  robbery  and  delivered  to  William  — ,  Peter,  etc.  to  convey  him  to  Bridg- 
north,  and  the  said  Roger  escaped  from  their  custody,  and  the  said  William  and  others 
followed  him  and  cut  off  his  head  and  brought  it  to  Stafford.  His  chattels  are  worth  22d.t 
and  the  jurors  say  he  was  a  robber  and  a  malefactor.59 

The  first  mention  of  a  jury  in  criminal  matters  occurs  in  1204  at 
Lichfield,80  and  numerous  entries  show  the  corporate  responsibility  of  the 
hundreds  for  crime  in  their  midst. 

Thus  in  1 1 74  we  are  told  that  nine  murders  in  Offlow  Hundred  had 
been  assessed  by  the  itinerant  justices  at  the  rate  of  one  mark  each,61  and  next 
year  the  '  tithing '  of  Newbold  was  fined  half  a  mark  for  the  sins  of  one  Brun 
of  Newbold,  an  escaped  felon  whose  chattels  the  sheriff  had  sold  for  five 
shillings.63  Many  examples  might  be  given  of  the  mediaeval  custom  of  valuing 
the  instrument  of  death,  whether  accidental  or  deliberate,  and  exacting  the 
money  from  the  owner  or  the  locality  implicated,  as  a  payment  or  '  deodand  '  to 
the  king.  For  instance,  the  vill  of  Weston  upon  Trent  is  chargeable  '  for  a 
sword  with  which  John  Gardyner  had  been  feloniously  killed  by  Stephen  Benet 
of  Creswalle — four  shillings.'  Likewise  the  vill  of  Leek  has  to  pay  2s.  6d., 
the  value  of  a  horse  which  was  the  cause  of  death  of  a  certain  Adam,  killed 
by  accident.63 

The  number  of  private  individuals  who  had  the  right  to  hang  thieves  on 
a  private  gallows  in  the  fourteenth  century  seems  to  have  been  considerable, 
and  included  the  priors  of  Stone,  Trentham,  and  Lapley,  as  well  as  the  abbot 
of  Burton,  whilst  the  claims  of  the  bishop  of  Lichfield  and  Coventry,  and  of 
the  dean  and  chapter  of  Penkridge,  were  under  consideration  at  the  time  when 
Edward  I  made  his  famous  inquiry  into  feudal  jurisdictions  in  the  interests  of 
national  justice.64 

With  regard  to  wages  and  prices  of  provisions  in  mediaeval  Stafford- 
shire the  evidence  is  rather  scanty,  but  there  is  enough  to  enable  us  to 
gather  some  general  idea  as  to  the  changes  in  these  between  the  eleventh 
century  and  the  fifteenth,  though  not  enough  to  warrant  the  drawing  of  any 
definite  conclusions  as  to  the  local  variations  in  the  county.  The  rent  of 
land  was  fairly  steady  during  this  time,  and  may  be  taken  as  6d.  per  acre, 
rising  to  8</.  for  specially  good  land,  and  falling  to  4^.  for  poor  soil. 

At  Tutbury  in  1257  a  quarter  of  wheat  could  be  bought  for  4^.  4</.65 
A  little  later,  in  1294,  it  was  sold  at  3^.  4^.  per  quarter  at  Stafford;66 
at  the  same  time  a  chicken  could  be  bought  for  a  halfpenny,  and  two 
oxen  for  i5/.  at  Wolverhampton.67  In  Berkeswich  (Baswich)  manor  wheat 
varied  from  3^.  to  4^.  per  quarter  in  I3I2.68  About  the  same  time  a 

»  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Sac.  Coll.  iii,  1 8.  M  Ibid,  iii,  98. 

61  Ibid,  i,  75  ;  Pipe  R.  21  Hen.  II.  "  Ibid,  i,  76  ;  Pipe  R.  21  Hen.  II. 

88  Ibid,  xvii,  1 3  ;  quoted  in  extracts  from  Plea  R.  Lichfield,  East,  z  Hen.  V. 
"  Ibid,  vi  (i),  243-9.  "  Mins.  Accts.  40-1  Hen.  Ill,  bdle.  1094,  No.  1 1. 

66  Bailiff's  Acct.  ;  quoted  in  The  Will.  Salt  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.  vi  (2),  71.  "  Ibid.  72. 

48  MSS.  pertaining  to  the  D.  and  C.  of  Lichfield,  N.  i. 

285 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

thatcher's   wages   in    Berkeswich  did    not    rise    beyond   a   penny,  though    a 
carpenter  could  earn  3</." 

By  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III 
wages  had  risen  considerably  :  a  thatcher  could  earn  i\d.  to  ^d.  per  day,  and 
other  skilled  labourers,  such  as  carpenters  and  masons,  rather  more. 

By  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  another  rise  may  be  seen,  and  from 
a  considerable  number  of  individual  accounts  the  wages  of  an  unskilled 
labourer  may  be  calculated  at  4^.  per  day,  whilst  masons,  sawyers,  and 
carpenters  earned  $d.  or  6</.70  The  average  price  of  wheat  for  the  whole 
country  from  1260  to  1400  is  estimated  by  Thorold  Rogers  at  5-r.  \Q\d.  per 
quarter;  and  from  1401  to  1540  one  penny  more,71  and  in  estimating  the 
purchasing  power  of  the  wages  given  above,  it  is  usual  to  suppose  the  value 
of  money  in  the  fifteenth  century  to  be  twelve  times  as  great  as  it  is  at 
present,72  and  is.  per  week  was  an  ordinary  estimate  for  the  board  of  a 
workman.73 

It  is  now  recognized  that  the  sixteenth  century,  though  marked  by 
glorious  national  achievements,  was  a  period  in  which  the  mass  of  the  people 
suffered  considerably,  and  the  inhabitants  of  Staffordshire  were  not  exempt 
from  the  social  distress  of  the  time.  The  influx  of  silver  from  the 
South  American  mines  (1540—1600),  and  the  systematic  debasing  of  the 
currency  in  the  reigns  of  Henry  VIII  and  Edward  VI  led  to  a  great  rise  in 
prices,  and  the  contemporary  documents  constantly  refer  to  the  dearness  of 
provisions,  and  especially  of  corn.  Unfortunately  for  the  labourer  his  wages 
did  not  rise  in  proportion,  so  that  his  lot  was  often  very  hard  at  this  time. 

The  dissolution  of  the  monastic  houses,  of  which  there  were  thirty-six 
in  Staffordshire,74  meant  inevitably,  here  as  elsewhere,  serious  economic  dislo- 
cation, for  with  the  change  of  landlords  came  frequently  change  in  the  use  to 
which  the  land  was  put,  since  the  growing  demand  for  wool  for  the  expanding 
cloth  industry  caused  many  landowners  to  inclose  for  pasture  land  which  had 
been  formerly  used  for  tillage.75 

The  tenants  and  labourers  of  the  old  monastic  landowners  in  Staffordshire 
must  inevitably  have  suffered  by  the  change,  even  though  there  is  good  reason 
to  suppose  that  inclosures  were  not  nearly  so  widespread  in  this  county  as  in 
many  others.  The  report  of  the  commissioners  appointed  to  inquire  into 
inclosures  in  1517  shows  that  in  this  county,  where  the  woollen  industry  had 
never  been  very  important,  there  was  no  serious  grievance.  The  total  number 
of  acres  inclosed  was  slightly  under  five  hundred  (48 8 £  acres).  Of  these 
i  1 8£  acres  were  in  the  hundred  of  Cuttlestone,  of  which  85  acres  only  were 
for  purposes  of  pasture,  and  none  occurred  before  1502.  In  Pirehill  Hundred 
100  acres  had  been  inclosed,  of  which  60  were  for  a  park  and  40  for  pasture, 
the  earliest  date  of  inclosure  there  being  1486.  In  Offlow  Hundred  80  acres 

69  Mins.  Accts.  Edw.  II,  bdle.  1132,  No.  7.  70  Mins.  Accts.  Hen.  VI,  bdle.  369,  No.  6179,  &c. 

"  See  Thorold  Rogers,  Six  Centuries  of  Work  and  Wages,  330. 

"Ibid.  539.  "Ibid.  329. 

74  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist,  of  Staff,  i,  51. 

1  Sir  Simon  Degge  gives  us  some  impressions  of  the  evil  results  of  the  monastic  dissolution.  See,  Sir 
Simon  Degge,  'Observations  on  the  Possessors  of  Monastery  Lands  in  Staffordshire,' printed  1717,  in  Sampson 
Erdeswick's  Surv.  of  Staff.  He  speaks  of  the  '  Sacrilegious  purchasers  of  this  Age,'  and  asserts  that  the  owners 
become  bankrupt  and  sell,  or  else  die  without  male  issue,  whereby  their  memories  perish,  and  he  adds,  '  the 
next  thing  that  hath  been  a  great  ruin  to  the  gentry  is  their  living  and  taking  pleasure  to  spend  their  estate  in 
London.' 

286 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

had  been  inclosed,  of  which  only  twenty  were  for  sheep  farming,  the  dates 
of  inclosure  being  1510  and  1576.  One  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  inclosed 
land  were  found  in  the  liberty  of  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster,  but  the  whole 
extent  was  for  park  land. 

The  fewest  inclosures  occurred  in  the  Seisdon  Hundred,  26  only,  and 
only  3  of  these  for  pasture.  For  Totmonslow  Hundred  there  was  no  return. 
The  total  number  of  acres  inclosed  for  pasture  amounted  to  148,  whilst  only 
28  were  inclosed  for  tillage,  and  the  remainder  was  imparked.  No  cases  of 
eviction  were  mentioned.76 

Unfortunately  there  is  no  information  for  Staffordshire  in  respect  to  the 
Inclosure  Commission  of  1548. 

The  monks  had,  of  course,  been  the  great  agents  of  charity  before  the 
dissolution  of  the  monasteries  in  Staffordshire,  and  this  event  must  have  been 
one  of  the  causes  of  the  multitude  of  vagrants  and  beggars  to  which  constant 
reference  is  made  in  the  records  of  the  time.  And  we  know  that  the  severe 
repressive  measures  adopted  for  solving  this  problem  had  to  give  place  to 
more  constructive  and  humane  methods  of  dealing  with  the  poor,  methods 
which  culminated  in  the  great  Act  of  1601,  which  provided  for  the  raising 
of  a  rate  in  each  parish  for  relieving  the  impotent,  setting  the  able-bodied  to 
work,  and  apprenticing  the  pauper  children  to  some  useful  trade. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  there  is  ample  evidence  of  the  poverty  of  the 
county  at  this  time.  In  1559  it  is  said  to  be  weakened  by  sickness.77  In 
1593  there  was  a  serious  visitation  of  the  plague  in  England,  and  more 
than  eleven  hundred  are  said  to  have  died  in  Lichfield  alone.78 

We  hear  also  of  the  decay  of  towns.  For  instance,  when  Queen 
Elizabeth  visited  Stafford  in  1575  the  burgesses  complained  of  the  decay  of 
the  town,  and  ascribed  it  to  the  depressed  and  dying  state  of  the  cap  trade.79 

Again,  in  an  Elizabethan  survey  of  Tutbury,  the  writer  laments  the 
general  decay  and  depopulation  of  towns,  and  says  that  there  ought  to  be 
more  markets  and  fairs  '  to  make  men  more  desirous  to  plant  their  habitations 
in  these  places.' 80 

Leland,  who  travelled  through  England  in  the  years  1536—9,  makes  no 
mention  of  the  Potteries.  He  describes  Walsall  as  a  little  market  town,  and 
Burton  as  a  place  where  '  there  be  many  marbellers  working  in  alabaster.' 8 
As  yet  there  is  no  mention  of  the  great  brewing  industry,  nor  of  the  clothing 
trade,  which,  according  to  Defoe,  was  carried  on  there  with  great  profit  in 
I778.82 

The  seventeenth  century  may  be  regarded  as  a  time  in  which  the  way 
was  prepared  for  the  industrial  developments  of  the  eighteenth  in  Stafford- 
shire. By  1639  Dudley  had  got  his  second  royal  patent  for  smelting  iron 
with  pit-coal  instead  of  charcoal,  and  he  was  carrying  on  his  experiments  with 
considerable  success  at  Sedgeley  in  spite  of  fierce  opposition  and  jealousy  on  the 
part  of  the  neighbouring  iron-masters.83  The  discovery  of  this  new  process, 

"  See  Inq.  of  1 5 1 7  (Inclosures  and  Evictions),  ed.  from  Lansdowne  MSS.  i,  1 5  3,  by  J.  S.  Leadam,  M. A. 
Trans.  Roy.  Hist.  Soc.  (New  Ser.),  vi  (1892),  310,  314. 

77  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1547-80,  p.  122.  ™  Stebbing  Shaw,  Hist.  ofS/af.i,  333. 

79  J.  L.  Cherry,  Stafford  in  Olden  Times  (1890),  quoting  an  old  document. 

80  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  i,  45.     Tutbury  paid  £l  161.  ^d.  to  the  subsidy  of  1590.     See  Talbot  Papers 
in  Coll.  of  Arms,  v,  218.  el  Leland,  I  tin.  (ed.  Hearne,  1769),  26. 

*  Defoe,  Tour  Through  Great  Britain  (8th  ed.),  ii,  365. 
83  Lord  Dudley,  Metallum  Mortis,   16,  17. 

287 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

coming  as  it  did  at  a  time  when  the  wood  supply  of  Sussex,  Surrey,  and  Kent 
was  seriously  diminished,  was  bound  to  lead  eventually  to  great  industrial 
developments  in  South  Staffordshire  where  the  coal  and  ironstone  lay  side  by 
side.  The  manufacture  of  the  iron  into  finished  goods  was  also  going  on  in 
the  district.  Henry  Powle,  who  wrote  an  account  of  the  iron  trade  in  1 677, 
points  out  how  the  '  sow '  iron  made  by  the  iron-workers  in  the  Forest  of  Dean 
found  its  way  up  the  Severn  into  the  Staffordshire  forges,  and  so  to  the  work- 
shops of  Wolverhampton,  Sedgeley,  and  Walsall,  where  it  was  made  into  the 
hardware  goods  for  which  the  district  was  already  becoming  famous.84  The 
nail  trade  had  become  localized  in  Staffordshire  towards  the  end  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  and  the  cost  of  nails,  so  typical  an  item  of  mediaeval  accounts, 
was  now  no  longer  credited  to  the  village  blacksmith.  Since  1565,  when 
Shutz,  a  German,  introduced  'slitting  mills,'  which  prepared  the  rods 
for  the  nailers,  this  industry  steadily  developed,  and  in  1584-5  a  Bill  was 
brought  into  Parliament  to  regulate  the  trade  by  statute,  and  to  make  nailing 
a  separate  employment  in  Staffordshire,  Worcestershire,  and  Salop.86 

Nail-making,  which  included  the  manufacture  of  nuts,  bolts,  rivets,  and 
screws,  was  purely  a  domestic  industry  till  the  eighteenth  century,  and  though 
the  nail  industry  is  now  carried  on  largely  in  factories,  there  is  still  a  con- 
siderable, though  declining,  amount  of  work  done  in  the  miserable  little  work- 
shops that  adjoin  the  homes  of  the  nailers  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Sedgeley 
and  Dudley  and  in  some  other  districts.  The  conditions  of  these  people  seem 
always  to  have  been  bad,  their  hours  long,  and  their  pay  poor.  In  an  '  Essay 
to  enable  the  Necessitous  Poor  to  pay  Taxes,' 86  it  was  stated  that  nailers 
worked  from  four  in  the  morning  on  Monday  till  late  on  Saturday  night, 
receiving  for  their  work  3^.,  or  less  if  the  iron  were  bad.  In  1760  screw- 
making  began  to  be  organized  on  the  factory  system,  but  little  progress  was 
made  till  the  inventions  of  Whitworth  in  1840,  and  the  domestic  system 
went  on  practically  unchanged  till  1861  in  all  other  branches,  despite 
numerous  inventions  between  1760  and  1841.  The  nut  and  bolt  trade,  now 
practically  a  factory  industry,  was  the  next  to  succumb,  and  at  the  present 
time  only  certain  kinds  of  nails  are  made  in  domestic  workshops,  and  chiefly 
by  women,  children,  and  old  men.87 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  relative  wealth  and  importance  of  the 
Staffordshire  towns  at  this  time.  In  the  assessment  for  ship-money,  1635, 
the  whole  county  was  assessed  at  £2,000.  Lichfield  contributed  far  the 
most,  viz.  £100  ;  Walsall  came  next  with  a  payment  of  £25  ;  Stafford,  not 
yet  the  seat  of  the  boot  and  shoe  trade,  paid  only  £20  ;  and  Newcastle 
under  Lyme  £i6.Ba  The  position  of  Walsall  is  interesting  as  evidence 
of  the  growing  industrial  prosperity  of  the  South  Staffordshire  towns, 
and  because  it  still  stands  second  in  the  list  of  Staffordshire  cities,  though 
Wolverhampton  and  not  Lichfield  ranks  first  in  point  of  population  and 
general  importance. 

Two  years  later,  and  again  in  1665,  when  the  plague  was  raging  in 
London,  the  Walsall  authorities  took  the  most  serious  precautions  to  preserve 
the  immunity  of  their  town,  as  may  be  read  in  an  old  record  of  the  regula- 

84  W.  A.  S.  Hewins,  Engl.  Trade  and  Finance  (1892),  14,  15. 

"Ibid.  1 6.  "Ibid.  17.  "Ibid.  19. 

w  J.  Langford,  Staff,  and  Warvi.  Past  and  Present,  429. 

288 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

tions  issued  to  the  constable  of  Walsall  borough.89  Four  sufficient  house- 
keepers are  to  be  appointed  to  keep  out  all  strangers  from  entering  the  town 
unless  they  bring  certificates  that  they  do  not  come  from  infected  places  ; 
and  ale-house  keepers  are  to  refuse  all  guests  save  under  the  same  conditions. 
This  was  in  1637,  but  in  1665  the  regulations  are  more  detailed  and  rigorous, 
and  are  interesting  as  a  specimen  of  sanitary  precautions  in  an  age  not  given 
overmuch  to  such  things.90  The  first  regulation  says  : — 

That  if  any  carrier  Shall  for  the  future  desperately  adventure  to  travel  to  London  untill 
it  shall  please  God  upon  the  removeall  or  good  abatement  of  the  Sicknes  wee  may  goe  with 
lesse  danger  and  more  Safety,  and  shall  presume  to  come  home  to  his  owne  house  at  Walsall, 
that  his  house  shall  be  shutt  upp  for  the  space  of  one  month  at  the  least. 

The  other  regulations  are  similar  in  intention,  and  provide  for  the  whole 
body  of  citizens  acting  as  special  constables  to  keep  out  infected  persons. 
The  strictest  prohibitions  are  also  laid  on  the  inhabitants  as  to  the  entertain- 
ment of  the  aforesaid  carriers  or  any  suspicious  strangers,  and  nobody  is — 

to  receve  any  goods  or  wares  brought  down  (by  the  carriers)  before  the  same  have  been 
aired  by  the  space  of  one  month  at  the  least,  upon  the  payne  of  having  their  house  shutt 
upp  and  to  be  other  wayes  proceeded  against  as  dangerous  persons  and  contemners  of 
authority. 

From  a  document  in  the  Corporation  Records  at  Stafford  we  learn  that 
in  1646  there  was  a  great  visitation  of  the  plague  in  that  town,  '  which  by 
that  meanes  is  now  growne  so  poore,  that  unless  some  speedie  course  be 
taken  for  their  relief,  the  meaner  sort  of  people  must  of  necessitie  break  out 
for  want  of  sustenance.' 91 

As  for  the  Pottery  district  at  this  time,  its  area  was  much  the  same  as 
at  present,  but  the  population  was  scanty,  probably  not  more  than  four 
thousand  ;  and  it  was  distributed  in  small  hamlets  and  villages  separated  by 
strips  of  wild  moorland,  with  two  or  three  potworks  in  each  village,  each 
giving  occupation  to  about  eight  persons.  Sometimes  the  family  alone  were 
sufficient  to  carry  on  the  various  processes  of  the  primitive  manufacture  of 
that  day,  and  the  women  of  the  family  usually  had  the  task  of  driving  the 
loaded  and  panniered  asses  to  the  distant  towns  where  they  sold  their 
pottery,  and  whence  they  brought  back  food  and  other  household  necessaries 
on  the  backs  of  their  animals.  As  late  as  1653  Burslem  is  described  as  a 
mere  village,  with  few  houses  and  a  scanty  population.  Hanley  was  still 
smaller,  and  Stoke  on  Trent  a  small  aggregation  of  thatched  houses  and  two 
potworks  gathered  round  the  ancient  parish  church.92 

The  pottery  industry  had  existed  in  some  rude  form  in  North  Stafford- 
shire from  time  immemorial,  but  though  certain  advances  had  been  made  in 
the  seventeenth  century,  such  as  the  discovery  that  glazing  could  be  effected 
by  salt  in  1680,  the  manufacture  of  pottery  was  still  in  a  primitive  stage  of 
development,  was  a  purely  domestic  industry,  and  was  confined  chiefly  to  the 
making  of  common  vessels  of  everyday  use.  No  serious  general  advance  was 
made  indeed  until  the  genius  and  industry  of  Josiah  Wedgwood  in  the 
eighteenth  century  transformed  a  rude  and  primitive  industry  into  an  elabo- 
rate and  beautiful  art,  and  in  so  doing  changed  the  social  condition  of  a  wide 
district  and  a  large  population. 

89  E.  L.  Glew,  Hist,  of  Borough  and  Foreign  of  Walsall  (1856),  119.  *  Ibid.  1 20. 

91  J.  L.  Cherry,  Stafford  In  Olden  Times,  56.  M  Meteyard,  Life  of  Joslab  Wedgwood  (1865),  i,  96-9. 

I  289  37 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Dr.  Plot,  writing  in  1686,  says  : — 'The  greatest  pottery  they  have  in 
this  county  is  carried  on  at  Burslem,  .  .  .  where  for  making  their  several 
sorts  of  pots  they  have  as  many  different  sorts  of  clay,  which  they  dig  round 
about  the  towne  .  .  .  the  best  being  found  nearest  the  coale.' 9S 

One  of  the  chief  articles  made  at  Burslem  was  the  long  cylindrical 
butter-pot,  made  of  coarse  material  and  unglazed,  which  one  may  regard  as 
the  link  between  the  industrial  and  the  agricultural  workers  of  Staffordshire, 
and  symbolical  of  the  dependence  of  the  one  upon  the  other. 

Dr.  Plot  mentions  this  butter-pot  incidentally  in  his  description  of  the 
dairy  industry  in  the  limestone  district  and  on  the  banks  of  the  Dove, 

from  which  limestone  hills  and  rich  pastures  and  meadow  the  great  Dairies  are  main- 
tained in  this  part  of  Staffordshire,  that  supply  Uttoxeter  Market  with  such  vast  quantities- 
of  good  butter  and  cheese  that  the  cheesemongers  of  London  have  thought  it  worth  their 
while  to  set  up  a  Factorage  here  for  these  commodities.  .  .  The  butter  they  buy  by  the 
Pot  of  a  long  and  cylindrical  form  made  at  Burslem  in  this  County  of  a  certain  size.94 

The  main  feature  of  the  industrial  revolution  in  England  at  the  end  of 
the  eighteenth  century  was  the  widespread  change  from  a  system  of  domestic 
industry  to  one  in  which  large  numbers  of  wage-earners  worked  in  large 
factories  belonging  to  capitalist  landowners,  a  change  which  brought  with  it 
a  vast  increase  in  the  population  of  this  country  and  a  redistribution  of  popu- 
lation. It  was  made  possible  by  the  discovery  and  working  of  the  great 
coalfields  of  northern  and  midland  England,  accompanied  by  a  succession  of 
important  mechanical  inventions,  and  completed  by  the  application  of  steam 
to  machinery  as  a  motive  power,  in  place  of  water,  which  had  been  used  in 
the  new  factories  that  sprang  up  all  over  the  country  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  In  1750  Staffordshire  was  still  one  of  the  thinly 
populated  counties,  though  since  1700  it  had  probably  increased  its  population 
by  30  per  cent.95  Toynbee  estimated  its  population  in  1750  as  140  to  the 
square  mile  compared  with  862  in  1881.  The  inventions  we  are  accustomed 
to  connect  most  nearly  with  the  industrial  revolution  are  those  associated 
with  the  textile  industries  ;  these  only  indirectly  affected  Staffordshire  by 
increasing  the  demand  for  coal  and  also  for  machinery,  both  needed  in 
increasing  quantities  by  the  growth  of  the  factory  system  made  possible  by 
these  inventions.  There  were  new  cotton  factories  started  at  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century  on  the  banks  of  the  Dove  and  Trent,  at  Fazeley,  Tarn- 
worth,  Rocester,  Tutbury,  and  Burton.96  But  it  was  the  inventions  in  con- 
nexion with  the  mining  and  iron  industries  that  made  the  industrial  expansion 
of  Staffordshire  possible  at  this  date,  and  especially  the  introduction  of  the 
new  steam-engine  of  Watt  and  Boulton,  first  used  at  the  engineering  works- 
at  Soho,  whence  so  much  of  the  machinery  of  the  factories  was  supplied. 
For  though  the  coal  had  always  been  there,  in  Staffordshire,  the  mines  had 
only  been  worked  to  a  very  slight  extent  ;  hence  neither  the  coal  nor  the  iron 
industry  could  make  much  progress.  The  new  engine  was  used  not  only  to 
pump  water  out  of  the  mines,  but  also  to  sink  shafts  to  bring  the  coal  up  from 
the  pits. 

93  Rob.  Plot,  The  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staff.  (1686),  122. 

94  Ibid.  108-9.     An  Act  °f  '66 1    regulated  the  size  of  this  butter-pot  ;  it  was  to  hold  14  Ib.  of  butter 
and  to  be  made  of  material  hard  enough   not  to  imbibe  moisture  ;  it  was,  moreover,  to  be  14 Jin.  high  and. 
6  A  in.  in  diameter. 

B  Toynbee,  Indwtrlal  Revolution,  34-5.  *  Pitt,  Agrlc.  Surf.  (1796),  171. 

290 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

The  result  was  an  enormous  development  in  the  output  of  coal  in 
Staffordshire  and  the  other  coalfields  of  England,  followed  by  an  immediate 
revival  in  the  coal  and  iron  trades,  which  had  greatly  declined  between  1737 
and  I74O.97 

At  the  same  time  there  was  a  series  of  important  inventions  affecting 
the  manufacture  of  iron,  and  as  a  result  all  the  various  branches  of  the  hard- 
ware trade  received  an  immense  impulse,  and  population  grew  rapidly  in  all 
the  towns  and  manufacturing  villages  of  the  district. 

In  North  Staffordshire  a  similar  effect  was  seen  in  the  mining  and 
pottery  industries.  In  the  latter,  great  progress  had  been  made  under  the 
influence  and  guidance  of  Wedgwood,  especially  since  the  introduction  of 
china  clay  from  Devon,  Dorset,  and  Cornwall  had  led  to  the  establishment 
of  the  porcelain  manufacture  in  this  county,  and  consequently  to  a  vast 
extension  of  the  pottery  trade  there. 

Arthur  Young,  whose  account  of  his  northern  tour  through  England 
was  published  in  1771,  speaks  of  the  rapid  increase  of  the  industry  and  its 
considerable  export  trade  to  Ireland,  most  of  the  European  countries,  America, 
and  the  East  Indies,  despite  the  great  obstacles  arising  from  the  extraordinary 
difficulty  of  transporting  the  goods  to  the  coast  by  means  of  wagons  and 
pack-horses  along  the  narrow  clayey  roads  which  led  out  of  the  county.98 

The  success  of  Brindley's  effort  in  1758  in  making  a  canal  for  the  Duke 
of  Bridgewater's  colliery  at  Worsley  caused  the  progressive  spirits  among  the 
North  Staffordshire  manufacturers,  led  by  Wedgwood,  to  agitate  for  a  similar 
enterprise  in  that  district.99  There  was  great  opposition  from  the  people  of 
Newcastle,  as  they  feared  the  traffic  might  be  diverted  from  their  town,  to  the 
detriment  of  their  trade.  But  despite  opposition  the  Grand  Trunk  or  Trent 
and  Mersey  Canal  was  opened  in  1777,  and  very  greatly  increased  the  trade 
of  the  Potteries,  passing  as  it  does  through  its  chief  towns,  and  connecting 
these  with  the  centres  of  the  salt  industry  of  Cheshire  and  with  the  ports  on 
the  coast,  notably  Liverpool.  Other  canals  followed  in  quick  succession, 
chief  among  them  being  the  Staffordshire  and  Worcester  Canal,  projected  to 
unite  the  Severn  with  the  Trent,  and  connected  with  the  system  now  known 
as  the  Birmingham  Navigation,  which  in  its  turn  connects  Birmingham  with 
Wolverhampton,  Bilston,  and  other  centres  of  the  iron  and  coal  industry  in 
South  Staffordshire,  so  that  this  district  presents  a  perfect  network  of  canals 
with  innumerable  foundries,  coal-pits,  and  other  works  clustered  along  their 
banks  for  convenience  of  transport. 

Among  other  short  branch  canals  may  be  mentioned  one  of  eighteen 
miles  which  runs  from  Uttoxeter  up  the  Churnet  Valley  till  it  joins  the  one 
at  Caldon,  and  finally  meets  the  Grand  Trunk  at  Stoke  on  Trent. 

About  the  same  time  that  canals  were  being  constructed  all  over  Stafford- 
shire, the  turnpike  roads  were  undergoing  great  improvement,  firstly  by 
means  of  Acts  of  Parliament  which  enabled  tolls  to  be  levied  for  their  upkeep, 
and  afterwards  owing  to  the  improved  methods  introduced  by  Metcalfe, 
Telford,  and  Macadam. 

There  was  an  early  system  of  primitive  railways  in  this  county,  in  con- 
nexion with  the  mines,  e.g.  there  was  a  system  of  wayleaves  at  Newcastle 

w  De  Gibbins,  Industry  in  Engl.  (1906),  352-3. 

98  Arthur  Young,  Tour  through  the  North  of  England,  iii,  253.  "  L.  Jewitt,  The  Wedgwoods,  163. 

29I 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

under  Lyme,  where  colliery  owners  paid  as  much  as  £500  per  annum  for 
leave  to  draw  coal  over  the  estates  of  landowners,  and  it  is  probable  that  in 
1750  every  important  mine  had  its  accompanying  railroad,  with  wooden  tram- 
lines at  first,  followed  by  iron  ones  after  I738.100  Apart  from  these  mineral 
lines  no  railroad  passed  through  Staffordshire  till  the  opening  of  the  Grand 
Junction  Railway  in  1837,  which  connected  London  with  Liverpool  and 
Manchester  by  way  of  Birmingham,  Wolverhampton,  Stafford,  and  Chester. 
Others  quickly  followed,  and  to-day  the  chief  lines  running  through  the 
county  are  the  London  and  North  Western  with  its  various  branches,  and 
the  North  Staffordshire  Railway,  incorporated  1846,  which  connects  the 
Potteries  with  every  part  of  the  country,  and  which  took  over  in  that  year 
the  Trent  and  Mersey  Navigation.  The  Great  Western  passes  through  only 
a  part  of  South  Staffordshire,  whilst  the  Midland  Railway  skirts  Staffordshire 
pretty  closely  from  Tamworth  to  Burton. 

By  1 80 1  the  industrial  development  of  the  county  had  produced  a  con- 
siderable effect  upon  the  population.  Burslem  contained  6,578  persons, 
whilst  Stoke  on  Trent,  with  Bucknall-cum-Bagnall  chapelry,  had  a  population 
of  no  less  than  16,414. 

In  South  Staffordshire  the  face  of  the  county  was  being  rapidly  changed, 
and  contemporary  writers101  bear  witness  to  the  rapid  rise  in  population 
in  many  parishes  in  recent  years.  The  parish  of  Handsworth  is  a  good 
example  of  this.  By  1801  its  population  had  risen  to  2,719,  owing  to  its 
nearness  to  Birmingham  and  the  establishment  of  various  manufactures  in 
its  neighbourhood,  notably  the  great  manufactory  of  Watt  and  Boulton  at 
Soho,  already  mentioned.  A  few  years  before  Soho  had  been  a  barren  heath 
upon  the  bleak  summit  of  which,  says  Shaw,  stood  a  lonely  warrener's  hut.102 

The  scattered  parish  of  Sedgeley  with  its  nine  villages  numbered  9,87410* 
inhabitants,  chiefly  workers  in  coal  and  iron.104  Wolverhampton,  which  in 
1750  is  estimated  to  have  contained  only  7,454  persons,105  had  now  a  popu- 
lation of  I2,565,106  and  Walsall  (Borough  and  Foreign)  was  not  far  behind 
with  io,399.107  The  borough  of  Stafford  contained  only  3,898  persons,108 
and  Lichfield,  including  the  Close,  4,842.109  In  the  purely  agricultural 
districts  the  changes  in  population  were  not  very  important. 

The  same  period  that  saw  the  industrial  changes  in  Staffordshire  wit- 
nessed here  as  elsewhere  the  progress  of  a  considerable  agrarian  revolution. 
Agriculture  had  changed  very  little  since  mediaeval  times,  and  even  the  sub- 
stitution of  pasture  for  tillage  which  marked  the  sixteenth  century  appears  to 
have  been  less  considerable  in  Staffordshire  than  in  many  counties.  Some 
improvements  were  made  in  the  seventeenth  century,  such  as  the  use  of 
winter  roots,  learnt  from  the  Dutch,  and  a  greater  interest  was  shown  in 
artificial  grasses.  Still  even  these  improved  methods  were  not  universally 
adopted,  and  it  was  not  until  the  next  century  that  any  general  and  marked 
change  took  place. 

The  chief  features  of  the  agrarian  revolution  were  the  inclosure  of  the 
common  fields,  the  consolidation  of  farms  by  capitalist  landlords,  the  intro- 

"*  J.  Langford,  Staff,  and  ffarttt.  Past  and  Present,  59-60. 
01  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  ii,  117,  134  ;  Pitt,  Agric.  Sun>.  174. 
"  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  ii,  117.  1M  Pop.  Returns. 

M  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  222.  los  J.  P.  Brown,  The  Offic.  Guide  to  Wolverhampton. 

m  Pop.  Returns.  lw  Ibid.  1M  Ibid.  '»  Ibid. 

292 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

duction  of  a  system  of  rotation  of  crops,  and  the  extension  of  what  is  known 
as  artificial  pasture  by  the  more  extended  use  of  rye  grass,  clover,  and  sainfoin. 
The  Staffordshire  agriculturists  had  moved  but  slowly  in  the  way  of  supple- 
menting their  natural  resources,  judging  by  the  evidence  of  Pitt,  who 
made  an  agricultural  survey  for  the  newly-formed  Board  of  Agriculture,  and 
reported  on  it  in  1796.  'Upon  the  whole,'  he  says,  'to  the  eye  of  the 
intelligent  agricultural  stranger  it  would  convey  the  idea  of  a  county  just 
emerging  from  a  state  of  barbarism.'  A  want  of  initiative  seems  to  have 
been  general,  and  the  farmers  are  said  to  suffer  from  '  want  of  education  and 
reading,  though  they  are  not  wanting  in  readiness  to  adopt  established  im- 
provements.' no 

A  similar  want  of  intelligence  and  adaptability  in  the  agricultural 
labourer  seems  to  be  shown  by  the  evidence  of  a  farmer  who  had  been 
successfully  ploughing  with  Leicestershire  ploughs,  worked  by  ploughmen 
from  that  county.  But  when  these  men  returned  to  their  homes  the  ploughs 
were  useless,  '  for,'  said  he,  '  they  might  as  well  have  taken  the  ploughs  with 
them,  for  Staffordshire  men  could  not  plough  with  them.' m 

Pitt  reported  that  the  most  considerable  portion  of  the  cultivated  land 
was  by  that  time  inclosed,  only  about  one  hundred  acres  remaining  in  common 
fields,  viz.  at  Stafford,  Stone,  Cheddleton,  and  Bloxwich.113  Most  of  the 
inclosures  date  only  from  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century,  though 
there  is  evidence  of  a  certain  number  of  small  inclosures  made  in  the  early 
part  of  the  seventeenth  century  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Dove  and  near 
Needwood  Forest,  viz.  at  Rolleston,  Uttoxeter,  and  Marchington.113 

Shaw  refers  to  the  inclosure  of  the  land  round  Wolverhampton,  mostly 
effected  at  the  opening  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  describes  the  great 
productiveness  of  a  certain  tract  of  meadow  which  was  nothing  but  a  morass 
in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  was  known  as  the  '  Hungry  Leas.' 1U 

The  case  of  Elford  parish,  too,  described  by  Mr.  Bourne,  and  quoted  by 
Pitt,  is  a  good  example  of  the  beneficial  results  generally  accruing  from 
inclosure.  'The  greater  part  of  the  parish  of  Elford,' says  Mr.  Bourne,  'was 
common  field  till  1765,  when  an  Act  was  obtained  for  an  inclosure.  By 
inclosure  rents  have  been  trebled  and  the  tenants  are  better  enabled  to  dis- 
charge them.  About  five  hundred  acres  out  of  nineteen  hundred  are  in 
tillage,  which  we  suppose  bring  as  much  grass  to  market  as  the  whole  parish 
did  in  its  open  state.  The  quantity  of  cheese  made  now  in  proportion  to 
that  made  prior  to  the  inclosure  is  more  than  three  to  one ;  the  proportion  of 
beef  and  mutton  produced  on  the  land  is  still  greater,  as  much  as  ten  to  one, 
for  though  there  were  sometimes  many  sheep  kept  in  the  common  fields, 
they  were  so  subject  to  the  rot  that  little  or  no  profit  arose  to  the  farmer,  or 
produce  to  the  community.  Respecting  population  there  were,  prior  to  the 
inclosure,  fifty-seven  houses;  there  are  now  seventy-six,  and  360  inhabitants; 
the  increase  is  not  due  to  manufactures,  merely  to  improved  cultivation, 
which  demanded  more  labour.' lu 

"•  Pitt,  Agric.  Surv.  (1796),  26.  '"  Ibid.  389. 

"*  The  period  from  1760  to  1830  was  remarkable  for  the  great  number  of  Inclosure  Acts  for  this  county 
passed  by  Parliament. 

"*  Rentals  and  Surv.  Duchy  of  Lane.  (Rec.  Com.),  930,  991. 
114  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  ii,  165. 
"•  Pitt,  Agric.  Surv.  41. 

293 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  consolidation  of  small  farms  was  not  so  extensive  in  this  county  as 
in  some  districts,  farms  being  found  of  all  sizes  from  20  to  500  acres.116  The 
value  of  estates  varied  greatly  from  that  of  the  great  nobleman  or  rich 
commoner  worth  £10,000  per  annum  to  the  holding  of  the  forty  shilling 
freeholder  of  historic  fame. 

The  improvements  in  agriculture  were,  however,  chiefly  due  to  the 
moderate  proprietors  of  200  to  300  acres,  or  to  the  high-class  tenant  farmers, 
who  had  been  the  first  to  introduce  new  methods  of  cultivation  and  stock- 
breeding.117 

The  rental  of  farms  at  this  time  ranged  from  IQJ.  to  30^.  per  acre,  but 
as  a  large  part  of  the  land  was  in  a  backward  state  of  cultivation  the  average 
price  would  fall  below  2OJ.118 

'  Few  fortunes,'  says  Pitt,  '  are  made  by  farming,  unless  the  farmer  is 
connected  with  some  other  employment,'  and  he  sums  up  the  farmer's  troubles 
as  high  rents  and  taxes,  especially  the  poor  rate  and  the  malt  tax,  and  the 
rise  in  the  price  of  labourers'  wages,  and  of  the  price  of  agricultural  imple- 
ments and  other  materials.119 

This  was,  of  course,  the  time  of  the  French  War,  of  Corn  Laws,  of 
great  fluctuations  in  the  price  of  wheat,  and  of  a  serious  rise  in  the  poor  rate 
due  largely  to  a  short-sighted  and  demoralizing  system  of  administration. 
These  great  fluctuations  in  price  were  welcomed  by  the  capitalist  farmers 
who  could  withhold  their  stock  till  prices  rose,  but  the  small  farmer  was 
often  ruined  by  the  low  prices ;  yet  rents  went  up  steadily.120  The  average 
price  of  wheat  per  quarter  rose  from  43^.  in  1792  to  75^.  zd.  in  1795,  and 
78.1-.  jd.  in  1796.  In  1798  it  had  fallen  to  5U.  iod.,  but  rose  next  year  to 
69^.,  and  in  1800  was  as  high  as  103-1-.  Io^-m 

In  1796  a  considerable  part  of  the  county  was  waste  and  unimproved 
land.  Cannock  Chase  was  still  a  wild  heathery  moorland  tract,  unsullied  by 
the  smoke  of  coke  ovens.  Part  of  the  east  side  of  Dilhorne  Heath  had  been 
recently  planted  with  potatoes  which  had  produced  excellent  crops.  '  In 
fine,'  says  Pitt,  '  in  this  part  of  the  moorlands  the  potato  harvest  is  of  great 
consideration,  and  the  thirty  thousand  artificers  and  "  yeomanry  "  there  eat 
very  little  wheaten  bread.' l2'2 

The  wages  of  agricultural  labour  varied  considerably  in  different  parts  of 
the  county,  being  highest  always  in  the  neighbourhood  of  manufactures,  but 
having  increased  within  the  last  two  years,  according  to  Pitt,  about  10  per 
cent.,  this  being  due  to  the  cutting  of  canals,  in  which  work  a  labourer  could 
earn  2J.  £>d.  or  3^.  per  day  without  beer,  compared  with  the  is.  or  is.  6d. 
per  day  with  beer,  which  is  given  as  the  average  rate  of  an  agricultural 
labourer's  daily  wages  in  ijq6.™ 

Similarly,  the  recent  erection  of  cotton-mills  in  various  places  had  made 
it  extremely  difficult  to  get  female  farm  servants  without  paying  excessive 
wages.  A  dairymaid  earned  £3  ioj.  to  £5  per  annum  at  this  time,  and  an 
under-dairymaid  from  £2  IQJ.  to  £3  ioj.ls* 

Admittedly  the  wages  of  the  day  labourer  were  inadequate  to  provide 
him  with  the  necessary  provisions  at  current  prices.  Beef  and  mutton  could, 

16  Pitt,  op.  cit.  25,  26.  >»  Ibid.  16-17.  "'  Ibid.  26. 

"  Ibid.  32.  lw  Cunningham,  Hist,  of  Industry  and  Commerce,  ii,  477-9. 

"  WHtaktft  Almanack,  1906.  »  Pitt,  op.  cit.  129.  m  Ibid.  155-6.  "'  Ibid.  156. 

294 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 


however,  be  obtained  at  from  ^\d.  to  \\d.  per  lb.,  and  butter  at  lod.  to  is. 
Fuel  was,  of  course,  plentiful  and  cheap,  and  it  was  usual  for  the  ordinary  farm 
labourer  to  get  a  load  of  coal  weighing  nearly  three  tons  as  part  of  his  harvest 
pay.  In  the  moorlands  a  good  deal  of  peat  was  dug  for  fuel,  and  wood  was 
still  used  to  some  extent  for  smelting  purposes.125 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  state  of  things  in  1796  with  that 
recorded  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  century  later  in  i869.126  In  1796  the 
amount  of  cultivated  land  was  600,000  acres,  in  1869  it  had  fallen  to 
570,000.  During  the  same  period  the  meadow  and  pasture  land  had  been 
more  than  trebled,  rising  from  100,000  acres  to  340,000  acres,  an  increase 
which  has  continued,  as  the  Agricultural  Returns  for  1904  show  an  extent  of 
438,  220  acres  to  be  under  permanent  pasture.  An  immense  and  unparalleled 
rise  in  manufacturing  industries  is  recorded  in  1869,  accompanied  by  a  rise 
in  agricultural  wages,  and  an  occasional  scarcity  of  labour,  which  might  have 
been  very  serious  but  for  the  increase  in  pasturage.127  A  point  worth  notice 
is  the  greater  equality  of  wages  in  various  parts  of  the  county  at  the  later 
date,  due  to  improved  means  of  communication  by  railways  and  the  develop- 
ment of  manufactures.  For  instance,  the  local  industries  competing  with 
agricultural  labour  in  the  Uttoxeter  district,  which  is  not  a  manufacturing 
area,  included  in  1893  all  the  following  —  winter  work  at  the  Burton 
breweries  ;  an  iron-foundry  at  Uttoxeter  employing  400  hands  ;  cotton 
mills  in  the  Dove  valley  ;  brass  and  copper  works  at  Oakamoor  ;  collieries 
and  a  tape  factory  at  Cheadle  ;  and,  finally,  alabaster  and  gypsum  works 
at  Draycott  in  the  Clay,  employing  100  men,  at  an  average  wage  of 
1  8j.  per  week.128 

At  Uttoxeter  itself  the  cottage  accommodation  is  said  to  have  been 
much  improved  since  the  growth  of  the  ironworks,  the  increased  population 
having  led  to  a  new  demand  for  well-built  cottages  in  place  of  the  old 
insanitary  ones,  many  of  which  were  pulled  down.129  At  Rocester,  too,  the 
cottages  were  found  to  be  of  good  quality,  many  of  them  having  been  recently 
built  by  the  owners  of  the  large  cotton-mills  in  the  place.130  The  average 
weekly  wages  of  an  agricultural  labourer  in  1796,  at  the  rate  of  15^.  for 
thirteen  weeks  and  ioj.  6d,  for  the  other  thirty-nine,  works  out  at  i  is.  q\d. 
per  week,  whilst  in  1869  a  married  ploughman  obtained  1  2s.  per  week,  a 
house  and  garden,  an  annual  load  of  coal,  and  often  a  potato  patch  in  his 
employer's  field,  making,  as  Evershed  computes,  an  average  of  151.  per  week. 

Midway  between  these  two  dates,  in  1834,  the  average  wages  of  an 
agricultural  labourer  amounted  to  los.  in  winter  and  1  2s.  in  summer,131 
whilst  in  1892  the  wages  of  the  typical  agricultural  district  of  Uttoxeter  are 
given  as  15^.  to  17^.,  compared  with  14.*.  in  the  same  district  in  i867-7o.13' 
'  Compared  with  twenty-five  years  ago,'  says  Mr.  Little,  Senior  Agricultural 
Commissioner,  in  1893,  'wages  are  higher,  food  cheaper,  hours  of  work 
fewer,  and  educational  advantages  greater.'133  At  the  present  time  (1906)  the 

115  Pitt,  op.  cit.  163.  1K  'The  Agric.  of  Staff.'  Journ.  Royal  Agric.  Soc.  (Ser.  2),  v,  (1869). 

'"  H.  Evershed,  op.  cit.  269. 

1W  '  Rep.  of  Mr.  Edward  Wilkinson,  Assistant  Commissioner,'  Rep.  of  Poor  Law  Commissioners  (1893-4), 
vol.  xxxv.  [c.  6894,  vi,  93].  m  Ibid.  94.  "°  Ibid.  95. 

131  Rep.  of  Poor  Law  Commissioners,  1834.     App.  B.  I,  pt.  i,  pp.  439(7-464. 
131  Rep.  of  Labour  Com.  iii,  vol.  xxxvii,  pt.  ii  [c.  6894,  xxv,  59]. 
131  Ibid.  1893-4,  Rep.  iii,  159. 

295 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

wages  of  an  agricultural  labourer  in  this  district  vary  from  1  6s.  to  1  8j.  with 
the  4  Ib.  loaf  at  \\d.  to  $d. 

A  good  deal  of  light  is  thrown  on  the  social  condition  of  the  people  in 
Staffordshire  by  studying  its  Poor  Law  administration  in  various  periods.  We 
do  not  know  much  of  its  early  history  after  the  passing  of  the  great  Consoli- 
dating Act  of  1  60  1,  but  here  and  there  are  indications  of  the  difficulties 
experienced  by  the  local  authorities  dealing  with  the  care  of  the  poor,  and 
the  need  for  special  measures  not  laid  down  by  the  Act  during  times  of 
special  distress.  For  instance,  in  April,  1631,  the  justices  of  the  peace  for 
Stafford  say  they  have  adopted  the  measures  directed  by  the  '  Book  of  Orders  ' 
for  relief  of  the  poor  during  times  of  scarcity  of  corn,  viz.  the  enforcement 
of  penalties  in  cases  in  which  the  fine  was  given  to  the  poor,  the  sale  of  corn 
to  the  poor  below  market  price,  a  compulsory  reduction  of  the  quantity  of 
corn  converted  into  malt,  and  the  billeting  of  poor  children  on  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  parish  as  apprentices.134  The  justices  add,  however,  that  there 
are  great  abuses  in  Lichfield,  Stafford,  and  Tamworth,  corporate  towns,  into 
which  they  have  no  authority  to  enter.  A  little  later  on  in  the  same  year 
they  say  they  have  procured  the  maltsters  and  ale-sellers  of  Lichfield,  Burton, 
and  Tamworth  to  contribute  certain  sums  to  the  relief  of  the  poor. 

The  building  of  workhouses  was  slow  in  this  county.  The  one  estab- 
lished at  Bilston  in  1700  was  the  first  in  the  district,  being  a  two-roomed 
building  belonging  to  one  John  Wooley  of  '  Ye  Bull  in  Bilston  '  :  '  Ye  in- 
habitants to  have  free  liberty  to  place  what  poore  persons  they  shall  think  fitt 
in  yt  part  of  my  house  wherein  ye  Widdo  Bennett  now  is  placed.'136 

No  workhouse  was  built  in  Walsall  till  ijiy™  and  Shaw  writing  in 
i  80  1  gives  an  unfavourable  account  of  the  Wolverhampton  workhouse.  He 
describes  it  as  dark,  dirty,  and  ill-ventilated,  surrounded  by  a  high  wall  which 
prevents  the  circulation  of  air,  adding  that  whenever  small-pox,  measles,  or 
malignant  fevers  make  their  appearance,  the  mortality  is  very  great.  In  1801 
there  were  131  inmates,  of  whom  about  sixty  were  children  and  the  rest 
soldiers'  wives  with  families,  and  others,  either  infirm,  old,  or  insane. 
Those  able  to  work  made  hop-sacks  in  a  workshop  provided  by  the  parish, 
under  a  manufacturer  who  paid  is.  zd.  per  head  for  every  pauper  above  eight 
years  old  who  could  work,  for  which  he  was  entitled  to  their  earnings,  which 
generally  amounted  to  £80  per  annum.137 

In  the  year  ending  1793  the  average  number  of  poor  in  the  house  was 
sixty-nine,  and  the  expenditure  on  food  2s.  ^\d.  per  week  for  each  person.138 

In  Stafford  there  were  other  devices  for  dealing  with  the  poor.  In 
1700  — 

one  John  Higginson  did  offer  to  take  upon  himself  the  general  care  of  the  poor  of  the 
corporation  and  to  pay  the  several  sums  allowed  for  their  support,  he  being  remunerated  for 
his  trouble  to  the  extent  of  £5,  and  the  money  disbursed  coming  chiefly  from  the  rent  of  a 
certain  malt-mill.139 

1°  l73S->  however,  a  vestry  meeting  decided  to  set  the  poor  to  work  in  a 
house  in  St.  Mary's  churchyard  and  drew  up  a  list  of  rules,  which  are 


134  Cal.  S.P.  Dom.  1631-3,  p.  16. 

1Ji  Old  document  quoted  in  Hut.  ofBiliton  by  G.  T.  Lawley  (1893). 

" 


E.  L.  Glew,  Hiit.  of  Walsall  (1856),  59.  '"  Stebbing  Shaw,  op.  cit.  ii,  164.. 

Ibid.  165  ;  Eden,  Rep.  of  State  of  Poor  (1795),  i,  655-78.  "•  J.  L.  Cherry,  op.  cit.  183. 

296 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

interesting  as  a  sample  of  eighteenth-century  methods  of  poor  law  administra- 
tion, and  as  a  contrast  to  those  of  to-day.  Among  other  rules  was  one  which 
laid  down  that  any  pauper  working  for  the  whole  day  was  to  have  half  his 
daily  wages  for  himself,  and  that  others — 

subsisted  in  the  House  were  to  have  two-pence  out  of  every  Shilling  they  gained.  And  that 
they  who  assist  in  the  kitchen  or  wash-house  shall  be  paid  a  penny,  two-pence,  or  three- 
pence a  week  according  to  the  nature  of  the  business,  and  as  their  service  shall  deserve. 
But  whosoever  shall  make  an  ill  use  of  this  money  shall  be  denied  the  encouragement. 

The  inmates  are  to  go  twice  to  church  on  Sunday,  but  if  found  begging, 
loitering,  or  taking  the  opportunity  to  get  drunk,  or  not  returning  in  time, 
shall  be  expelled  from  the  house,  sent  to  the  house  of  correction,  or  other- 
wise severely  punished. 

The  pauper  children  were  set  to  work  at  a  very  tender  age  in  the  school 
within  the  workhouse — 

where  all  children  above  three  shall  be  kept  until  five,  and  then  be  set  to  spinning,  knitting, 
or  other  such  work  as  shall  be  thought  most  proper  for  the  benefit  of  the  parish.  And  the 
master  or  mistress  who  shall  teach  them  to  work  shall  likewise  instruct  such  of  them  in 
reading  twice  a  day,  half-an-hour  each  time  until  they  are  nine  years  of  age. 

The  children  above  three  are  to  be  up  and  at  school  by  seven  o'clock,  or 
eight  in  winter,  the  rest  to  rise  at  five  or  seven  o'clock,  all  going  to  bed  at 
nine  p.m.  '  with  the  rest  of  the  family.'140 

In  1806  the  borough  workhouse  is  said  to  have  been  in  a  deplorable 
state,  the  poor,  seventeen  in  number,  being  farmed  out  at  3-f.  3^.  per  week 
per  head,  washing,  soap,  and  firing  included.  The  building  was  damp,  dirty, 
and  nearly  tumbling  down,  with  no  special  room  for  the  sick,  and  four  years 
before,  when  a  fire  broke  out,  twenty-two  persons  died  out  of  forty-eight.141 

The  last  years  of  the  eighteenth  century  and  the  first  decades  of  the 
nineteenth  form  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  Poor  Law  administration  in  this 
country.  They  were  unfortunately  marked  by  an  incredibly  rapid  rise  in 
the  poor-rate,  a  great  increase  in  the  number  of  paupers,  and  a  general 
demoralization  of  the  working  classes  due  to  methods  intended  to  be 
philanthropic  but  really  disastrous  to  everyone  concerned. 

An  Act  of  1796  practically  rescinded  the  workhouse  test  and  enabled  the 
poor  to  receive  relief  at  their  own  houses 143  if  they  had  an  income  which  the 
justices  deemed  insufficient.  The  result  in  most  counties  was  that  the  justices 
made  a  sort  of  by-law  by  which  they  pledged  themselves  to  make  up 
deficiencies  in  wages  out  of  the  rates,  according  to  the  price  of  bread  and  the 
number  of  children  in  the  pauper's  family.  Naturally  wages  fell  and  the  poor- 
rate  continued  to  rise  till  in  some  districts  it  swallowed  up  the  value  of  the 
land,  and  drove  it  out  of  cultivation. 

From  the  report  published  in  1834  by  the  commissioners  appointed  to 
inquire  into  the  working  of  the  Poor  Laws  in  England,  a  great  deal  may  be 
learnt  as  to  the  state  of  affairs  in  Staffordshire,  not  only  at  that  date,  but  in 
the  period  which  preceded  it.  In  this  county  the  worst  evils  of  the  old 
unreformed  parochial  system  were  not  so  widespread  as  in  the  purely  agricultural 
counties  of  the  south  and  east.  The  assistant  commissioner  for  Staffordshire 

140  J.  L.  Cherry,  op.  cit.  81,82.  ul  Article  in  Gent.  Mag.  1806,  quoted  by  J.  L.  Cherry,  op.  cit.  83. 

141  Fowle,  Hist,  of  Poor  Law,  70-1. 

I  297  38 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

reported  a  decrease  in  the  total  expenditure  of  the  county  since  the  appoint- 
ment of  ninety-seven  assistant  overseers  and  sixty  select  vestries  in  accord- 
ance with  an  Act  of  1819. 

The  population  during  that  time  had  risen  steadily,  but  the  rates,  which 
amounted  in  that  year  to  £155,309,  fel1  to  fl33>7°1  m  l8a2>  and  to 
£107,634  in  1825,  though  they  again  rose  in  1829  to  £119,977,  and 
amounted  to  £133,971  in  i832.143 

The  workhouses  showed  no  trace  of  anything  like  a  plan  to  prevent 
residence  being  an  object  of  desire,  and  an  entire  absence  of  uniformity  in 
management  led  the  discriminating  pauper  to  choose  that  which  provided 
him  with  the  best  bill  of  fare,  the  kindliest  governor,  and  the  largest  amount 
of  freedom,  added  to  the  smallest  modicum  of  work  exacted.144  Most  of 
the  workhouses  suffered  from  inadequate  classification  of  inmates,  so  that  one 
might  find  able-bodied  men,  women  and  children,  invalids  and  idiots,  all 
herded  together  in  a  horrible  community,  in  a  sort  of  frowsy  comfort  of 
the  most  repulsive  kind.145 

At  Tamworth  the  master  of  the  workhouse  was  also  the  assistant  over- 
seer, vestry  clerk,  and  police  constable  of  the  borough,  and  as  there  was  no 
select  vestry  the  parishioners  of  Tamworth  seem  to  have  troubled  themselves 
very  little  as  to  the  examination  or  audit  of  the  accounts,  one  of  them  com- 
placently remarking  that  '  they  had  always  given  satisfaction.' 146 

But  some  of  the  establishments  were  very  well  conducted,  as  at  Walsall, 
where  there  were  in  1833  fifty-three  old  men  and  women,  and  twenty 
children  under  ten  who  went  to  the  national  school  under  the  charge  of  one 
of  the  aged  paupers.147 

In  Lichfield  there  were  three  parishes  besides  the  cathedral  close,  and  a 
workhouse  in  each.148  The  governor  of  the  workhouse  in  the  '  Foreign '  of 
Walsall  was  also  the  assistant  overseer  and  farmed  the  poor  under  his  charge 
at  3-r.  6d.  per  head.  He  admitted  with  engaging  frankness  that  the  contract 
found  him  in  wine  and  spirits  for  his  table,  and  perhaps  £20  or  £30  besides. 
His  salary  as  assistant  overseer  and  collector  of  rates  amounted  to  £120. 
'  Incidental  expenses  '  came  to  £33  14.1.  g\d.,  and  overseers'  journeys  on  parish 
business,  such  as  removing  paupers  and  litigation,  amounted  to  about  £40. 
In  this  workhouse  idiots  were  allowed  to  wander  freely  among  the  rest  of  the 
inmates  with  dreadful  results.149 

The  case  of  Lichfield  Close  was  interesting  and  is  quoted  by  the  assistant 
commissioners  as  an  illustration  of  the  evils  of  the  current  system  under  the 
most  unexceptionable  management. 

The  close  was  extra-parochial,  had  its  own  authorities,  maintained  its 
own  poor,  was  exempt  from  the  county  rates,  and  possessed  its  own  work- 
house. The  rates  were  levied  on  the  occupiers,  two  hundred  inhabitants 
living  in  sixty  houses.  The  poor-rate,  which  in  1816  amounted  to  £92,  had 
risen  in  1832  to  £265. 

In  1833  there  were  in  receipt  of  weekly  pay  nine  women  and  five  men, 
formerly  domestic  servants,  and  ten  children.  One  was  an  able-bodied  man 

141  Rep.  on  the  State  of  the  Poor  Laws  in  Engl.  and  Waki  (1834/1,  App.  A,  pt.  i  ;  Rep.  on  the  Counties  of 
S 'afford  and  Chester,  vol.  x,  A.  265. 

144  Ibid.  265.  '«  Ibid.  266.  '«  Ibid.  271. 

"  Ibid.  266.  "•  Ibid.  149  Ibid. 

298 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

between  forty  and  fifty,  formerly  coachman  to  the  dean  of  Lichfield.  He 
had  a  wife  and  three  children  and  received  Ss.  per  week  and  his  house  rent. 
The  chapter  clerk  and  the  senior  verger  were  the  two  overseers,  being 
appointed  to  their  office  by  the  dean  and  chapter,  who  audited  the  accounts.150 

Wolverhampton  was  another  town  which  illustrated  the  evils  of  the 
existing  system,  under  the  best  conditions.  The  parish  was  divided  for  the 
maintenance  and  support  of  the  poor  into  the  townships  of  Wolverhampton, 
Willenhall,  Bilston,  and  Wednesfield,  the  chief  of  these  being  Wolver- 
hampton with  24,732  inhabitants. 

Since  1824,  when  the  poor-rate  was  £3,637,  it  had  gradually  increased 
till  it  reached  £5,477  m  ^32,  and  was  still  increasing.  Yet  it  had  its  good 
points,  having  a  select  vestry  regularly  and  efficiently  attended,  a  workhouse 
"well  and  economically  conducted,  active  and  upright  overseers,  intelligent 
salaried  assistant  overseers,  and,  finally,  a  perfect  system  of  keeping  the  parish 
books.151 

As  to  the  various  forms  of  poor  relief,  the  assistant  commissioner  reported 
that  the  system  of  relieving  able-bodied  labourers  at  their  own  homes  had 
been  extensively  practised  in  Staffordshire ;  had  received  a  considerable  check 
since  the  order  of  sessions  in  1818,  which  strongly  discouraged  the  practice  ; 
but  unfortunately  was  gaining  ground  once  again.151* 

Out  of  fourteen  parishes  and  boroughs  questioned,  however,  seven 
definitely  said  that  the  system  was  not  now  in  use,  Wolverhampton  and 
Rowley  Regis  being  honourably  distinguished  by  the  fact  that  the  authorities 
there  had  never  given  allowances  to  the  able-bodied  in  aid  of  wages.1'2 

The  Roundsman  system  (a  system  by  which  the  parish  sold  the  pauper's 
labour  to  the  farmer  and  made  up  the  deficit  in  his  wages  out  of  the  rates) 
had  gained  but  little  ground  in  this  county,  but  there  were  some  examples 
of  it.  In  the  parish  of  Longdon,  e.g.,  after  great  struggles  the  system  was 
abandoned,  in  defiance  of  strong  opposition  from  the  farmers,  who  profited  at 
the  expense  of  the  community.  The  road  surveyors  co-operated  with  the 
magistrates,  and  set  to  work  the  unemployed,  with  the  result  that  the  farmers 
were  obliged  to  hire  regular  labourers  at  decent  wages,  and  the  surveyors 
soon  had  no  more  labour  to  deal  with  than  was  needed  for  the  repair  of  the 
roads.153  In  some  townships  the  system,  under  the  name  of '  house-row,'  was 
said  to  be  in  use,  and  in  a  few  the  remuneration  of  labour  was  determined 
not  by  the  value  of  the  work  done  but  by  the  size  of  the  family.154 

The  question  of  the  '  settlement '  of  paupers  was  one  which  had  given 
rise  to  much  trouble,  injustice,  and  expense  here  as  in  other  counties.  For 
instance,  in  one  township  an  item  of  £40  occurred  as  the  cost  of  appeal  to 
the  last  quarter  sessions,  and  this  when  the  whole  amount  of  poor  rate  was 
rather  less  than  £200.  Servants  were  hired  for  fifty-one  weeks  instead  of  a 
year  to  prevent  them  from  being  chargeable  to  the  parish.155  Darlaston  and 
Tamworth  were  cited  as  examples  of  the  evils  that  might  result  from  granting 
a  '  settlement '  by  apprenticeship.  The  manufacturers  of  Tamworth  had 
been  in  the  habit  of  taking  many  apprentices  for  seven  years,  thus  securing 


150 


Ref>.  on  Staff  of  Poor  Laws  (1834),  as  above,  A,  269.  15'  Ibid.  269-70.                    la  Ibid.  267. 

151  Rep.  on  Poor  Laws,  1834  ;  App.  B  i,  pt.  iv,  39  d.\  App.  B  2,  pts.  iv,  v,  213  ;',  213  k. 
'"  Ibid.  App.  A,  267. 

154  Ibid.  '•''"  Ibid.  App.  A,  268. 

299 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

to  them  a  settlement  in  the  parish,  and  these  children  had  come  from  London 
and  various  other  parts  of  the  country. 

In  course  of  time  the  numbers  of  those  who  had  once  been  appren- 
,  tices  had  become  very  great,  and  it  was  said  that  these  people  were  constantly 
streaming  in  from  Nottinghamshire  and  Lancashire  to  Tamworth,  their 
place  of  legal  settlement,  to  the  great  annoyance  of  that  town  and  the 
burdening  of  the  ratepayers.  Tamworth  had  unfortunately  been  in  the 
habit  of  giving  relief  in  aid  of  wages,  but  was  now  discontinuing  this 
practice.  In  Darlaston  the  distress  had  been  so  great  that  but  for  private 
charity  the  gross  rental  of  the  parish  (£4,213  in  1815)  would  have  been 
insufficient  for  the  support  of  the  poor.166 

With  the  Poor  Law  Amendment  Act  of  1834  the  evils  of  the  old 
system  were  largely  remedied.  Rigorous  control  of  parochial  affairs  by  a 
central  board,  a  uniform  system  of  account-keeping  and  general  adminis- 
tration, the  grouping  of  parishes  in  unions  with  a  common  workhouse,  and 
the  establishment  of  the  workhouse  test  for  the  able-bodied — these  were  some 
of  the  chief  means  by  which  reform  was  effected,  and  both  expenditure  and 
pauperism  declined  in  Staffordshire  as  in  all  other  parts  of  the  country. 

When  the  commissioners  issued  their  fifth  annual  report  in  1839  they 
recorded  a  great  improvement  in  the  state  of  things.  New  workhouses  were 
completed  and  in  operation  at  Burton  on  Trent,  Stafford,  and  Walsall. 

Others  were  being  built  at  Leek,  Newcastle  under  Lyme,  Uttoxeter,  and 
Wolverhampton,  whilst  old  ones  were  in  operation  at  Penkridge,  Madeley, 
Seisdon,  Stoke  upon  Trent,  Tamworth,  and  Stone.167 

The  treatment  of  pauper  children  is  now  much  improved,  and  very  few 
are  being  educated  in  the  workhouse  itself.  The  only  instance  of  this  at 
present  is  the  case  of  Newcastle  under  Lyme.  Wolverhampton  is  an  example 
of  a  town  where  the  children  are  educated  in  poor-law  schools,  but  under  a 
separate  administration  from  that  of  the  workhouse.  At  Walsall,  West 
Bromwich,  and  Lichfield  they  are  taught  in  poor-law  district  schools,  and  in 
the  other  parts  of  the  county  they  attend  the  ordinary  elementary  schools.168 

By  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  Staffordshire  had  become 
thoroughly  established  as  an  industrial  county,  with  an  ever-increasing 
population  and  growing  riches,  and  with  the  special  social  and  industrial 
problems  presented  by  such  a  densely-populated  community. 

The  towns  grew  rapidly,  especially  in  South  Staffordshire — too  rapidly 
for  the  provision  of  adequate  machinery  to  cope  with  the  new  conditions  as 
regards  sanitation  and  decent  living. 

In  the  report  of  the  Midland  Mining  Commission  of  1843  U9  there  is  a 
vivid  description  of  the  southern  coalfield  district  and  its  inhabitants  as  it 
appeared  at  that  time,  a  description  which  with  some  changes  might  hold 
good  at  the  present  day  : 

In  traversing  much  of  the  country  included  within  the  above-mentioned  boundary  of 
red  sandstone  [says  the  writer]  the  traveller  appears  never  to  get  out  of  an  interminable 
village,  composed  of  cottages  and  very  ordinary  houses.  In  some  directions  he  may  travel 
for  miles  and  never  be  out  of  sight  of  two-storied  houses,  so  that  the  area  covered  by  bricks 
and  mortar  must  be  immense.  These  houses  for  the  most  part  are  not  arranged  in 


"*  Rep.  on  Poor  Laws,  as  above,  App.  A,  271. 

147  fifth  Ann.  Rep.  of  Poor  Law  Commissioners  (1839),  pp.  1 16-17. 


Thirty-fourth  Ann.  Rep.  of  Local  Govt.  Board  (1904-5),  p.  487.  1M  Rep.  i,  vol.  xiii. 

300 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

continuous  streets,  but  interspersed  with  blazing  rurnaces,  heaps  of  burning  coal  in  process 
of  coking,  piles  of  iron-stone,  calcining  forges,  pit-banks  and  engine  chimneys,  the  country 
being  besides  intersected  with  canals,  crossing  each  other  at  various  levels,  and  the  small 
remaining  patches  of  surface  soil  are  occupied  with  irregular  fields  of  grass  or  corn  inter- 
mingled with  heaps  of  refuse  of  mines,  or  from  the  slag  of  blast  furnaces.  Sometimes  the 
road  passes  between  mounds  of  refuse  from  the  pits,  like  a  causeway  raised  some  feet  above 
the  fields  on  either  side,  which  have  subsided  by  the  excavation  of  the  minerals  beneath. 
These  circumstances  in  the  state  of  the  surface  and  the  substrata,  united  to  the  clouds  of 
smoke  from  the  furnaces,  coke  hearths,  and  heaps  of  calcined  iron-stone,  which  drift  across 
the  country  according  to  the  direction  of  the  wind,  have  effectually  excluded  from  it  all 
classes  except  those  whose  daily  bread  depends  upon  their  residence  within  these  districts. 

This  separation  of  rich  and  poor,  employer  and  employed,  was  one  of 
the  worst  features  of  the  district.  Ijn  the  parish  of  Sedgeley,  e.g.,  which 
comprised  a  number  of  scattered  but  densely- populated  villages,  there  were 
reported  to  be  not  more  than  four  of  the  gentry  in  the  whole  district,  nor  a 
single  resident  independent  proprietor.160 

At  Rowley  Regis  there  was  neither  resident  clergyman  nor  magistrate 
among  12,000  inhabitants;  8,000  were  employed  in  mining  or  in  some 
branch  of  the  iron  industry.161 

At  Kingswinford,  again,  the  report  says  that 

before  the  rapid  advance  of  the  miner  the  ancient  gentry  are  being  driven  back  and 
the  sites  of  their  mansions  are  only  known  by  the  names  of  the  collieries  and  ironworks 
erected  on  them.162 

The  scarcity  of  clergy  and  churches  throughout  the  district  at  this  time 
is  reflected  in  an  expression  of  the  day,  '  as  few  as  parish  churches.'  The 
people  who  seemed  to  be  most  wretched  were  the  nailers,  men,  women  and 
children  working  together  in  the  little  domestic  workshops  adjoining  their 
miserable  homes.  Suffering  from  the  evils  of  the  middleman  and  the  sweater, 
as  they  do  in  a  minor  degree  to-day,  they  were  also  largely  at  the  mercy  of 
the  truck  system,  now  happily  stamped  out  among  them. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  how  the  geological  structure  of  the  district 
affects  the  occupation  of  the  people  and,  indirectly,  their  social  condition. 
The  nailers,  as  the  report  points  out,  are  usually  to  be  found  everywhere 
along  the  line  of  junction  between  the  Coal  Measures  and  the  Red  Sandstone, 
and  with  any  other  formation,  such  as  the  limestone  hills  near  Sedgeley. 

The  following  description  of  a  village  of  nailers  in  1843  is  given  by 
Mr.  James  Boydell,  managing  partner  of  the  Oak  Farm  Company  Works 
in  Lower  Gornal  : — 

Lower  Gornal  is  the  dirtiest  and  most  uncivilised  village  in  the  world,  yet  the  people 
have  the  best  hearts.  The  people  are  mostly  nailers,  and  are  a  very  rough  set.  Men, 
women  and  children  work  together,  there  is  no  comfort  at  home,  and  both  men  and 
women  go  to  the  public  houses  and  drink  and  sing  together. 

As  yet  the  machine-made  nails  were  not  competing  with  the  hand-wrought 
article,  but  such  competition  was  drawing  near  : 

I  fear  great  injury  (says  Mr.  Boydell)  will  be  done  to  our  nailing  population  by  an 
invention  I  saw  yesterday  in  London,  by  which  nails  of  excellent  quality  are  made  by 
pressure.  This  seems  likely  to  reduce  the  cost  of  hand  made  nails  considerably. 

160  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  i  (1843),  vol.  xiii,  p.  cli. 

161  Ibid.  clii.  162  Ibid.  cli. 

301 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  writer  then  goes  on  to  describe  the  sweating  middle  man  : 

I  will  show  you  a  man  in  Gornal  who  will  offer  to  do  work  for  me  for  nothing  — 
a  middleman  of  the  worst  description.  He  takes  all  trouble  off  the  nailmaster's  hands  by 
taking  the  iron,  giving  it  out  to  the  nailers,  and  collecting  the  nails  when  made  and  he 
pays  the  money  for  them  for  the  nailmaster.  For  this  trouble  he  repays  himself  by  co- 
ercing those  he  employs  to  buy  his  goods,  for  he  sells  beer,  clothing,  bread,  butter,  flour 
and  meal.163 

The  year  1842  is  remembered  in  Staffordshire  as  a  period  of  great 
distress,  owing  to  a  great  strike  among  the  colliers.  The  immediate  cause 
of  the  strike  was  notice  of  reduction  in  wages  given  throughout  a  considerable 
part  of  the  district  and  the  fear  of  such  a  reduction  becoming  general.164  But 
there  were  deeper  seated  evils  under  which  the  miners  of  South  Staffordshire 
were  suffering,  chief  among  these  being  the  tyranny  of  the  '  butties  '  or  con- 
tractors who  controlled  the  conditions  of  the  workers,  arranged  their  hours 
and  methods  of  work  and  of  payment,  and  generally  came  between  the  miners 
and  mine-owners. 

One  of  the  grievances  was  the  payment  of  wages  in  public  houses, 
sometimes  the  property  of  the  '  butty." 

Another  great  evil  was  the  truck  system,  by  which  the  miners  were 
compelled  to  accept  a  large  proportion  of  their  wages  in  food  at  the  shop  of 
the  mine-owner  or  the  contractor,  at  prices  much  above  the  market  rate. 
One  woman  who  gave  evidence  before  the  commissioners  described  how  she 
went  for  her  husband's  wages  every  Saturday,  first  going  to  the  bailiff's 
office  to  see  what  was  due,  and  then  to  the  shop  to  buy  the  sixteen  shillings- 
worth  of  food  which  must  be  procured  for  every  twenty  shillings  received. 

The  differences  in  price  of  the  various  goods  as  sold  at  the  mine-owner's 
shop  and  the  Wolverhampton  market  respectively  were  given  as  follows  :  — 

Price  at  the  Shop.  Price  at  Wolverhampton  Market. 

t.     d.  ,.     d. 

Cheese      ...  .          o      8   per  Ib.  05      per  Ib. 

08,,  °     5i  and  bd.  per  Ib. 

i      o     „  o     9  per  Ib. 


Bacon 
Salt  Butter 
Sugar 
Tea 
Flour 


0 


o     5  per  oz.  o     3^  per  oz. 

2     2  per  peck  2     o     per  peck. 


The  butties  were  accused  of  deliberate  recklessness  of  the  lives  of  the 
workers,  and  the  number  of  accidents  and  violent  deaths  was  enormous, 
especially  in  the  thick-coal  districts  of  Dudley  and  West  Bromwich.  Yet  there 
was  in  1843  nothing  in  the  shape  of  a  hospital  in  the  whole  mining 
district,  with  the  exception  of  the  Wolverhampton  Dispensary,  which 
received  a  few  indoor  patients.165  Lord  Ashley's  Act  of  1842  did  much  to 
remedy  these  abuses,  and  the  commissioners  appointed  to  inquire  into  its 
working  reported  a  great  improvement  in  i  844.  1M 

63  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  i  (1883),  vol.  xiii,  pp.  v,  vi. 

64  Wages  had  been  steadily  falling  since  1837.       For  some  years  before  1837  the  wages  of  men  working 
in  the  thick  coal  seams  were  5*.  for  bandsmen,  4,.   6J.  for  pikemen.     In  1837  they  stood  at  4;   6d  and  A.t 
respectively.     In  May,  1842,  4,.  and  3/.  6d.  ;   1843,  y.  6J.  and  3/.        In  the  thin  coal  and  ironstone  mines, 
2/.  bd.  and  n.     Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  \,  vol.  xiii,  p.  cxiv. 

*  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  i  (1843),  vol.  xiii,  pp.  Ix-lxii. 

"  Rep.  of  Seymour  Tremenheere,  Rep.  on  Mines  and  ColRerui,  1844  [592],  54. 


302 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

During  the  period  of  the  strike  the  Chartists  had  their  head  quarters  in 
Bilston,  and  it  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  some  of  their  more  irresponsible 
orators  worked  on  the  credulity  and  ignorance  of  the  miners  and  led  them  to 
hope  for  many  material  benefits  as  a  result  of  gaining  the  '  Six  Points  '  of 
the  Charter.  But  all  the  evidence  points  to  the  fact  that  the  Staffordshire 
miners  were  not,  at  this  time,  in  the  least  interested  in  politics,  the  con- 
ditions of  their  lives  were  too  narrow  and  restricted  for  that,  and  indeed  to 
some  persons  this  absorption  in  purely  material  and  physical  needs  seems  to 
have  been  regarded  as  a  virtue.  One  employer  of  labour  remarked,  '  In 
general  colliers  are  very  peaceable  men  and  do  not  trouble  themselves  about 
government  ;  so  that  they  can  get  bread  and  cheese  to  eat  I  should  never  be 
afraid  of  colliers.' 167  From  personal  observation  Dr.  Tancred  gives  a  like 
opinion  as  to  the  'non-political  character'  of  the  South  Staffordshire  miners. 

No  class  of  people,  said  he,  are  more  totally  devoid  of  any  sort  of  political  feeling 
than  the  South  Staffordshire  miners.  Not  one  of  the  Six  Points  of  the  Charter  could 
be  made  intelligible  to  them,  and  no  orator  could  persuade  them  to  listen  for  ten  minutes 
on  such  a  theme.168 

The  special  grievances  of  the  South  Staffordshire  miners  hardly  existed  in 
North  Staffordshire. 

The  truck  system  was  practically  non-existent,  and  the  relations  of  the 
employers  and  their  work-people  appear  to  have  been,  on  the  whole,  excellent, 
some  having,  in  the  late  depression  in  the  iron  trade,  continued  to  raise  coal 
and  ironstone  at  a  loss,  to  keep  their  workmen  employed.  Moreover,  the 
printed  statement  of  reasons  for  the  strike,  delivered  by  the  trade-unionists  to 
the  masters,  related  only  to  hours  of  work  and  wages.169 

The  North  Staffordshire  miners  were  largely  piece-workers,  and  by 
means  of  their  good  wages  and  thrift,  many  of  them  had  been  enabled  to 
build  their  own  houses  with  gardens  attached.  Acting  under  the  advice  of 
the  unionist  leaders  they  had  made  a  demand  for  an  eight-hours'  day  at  3-r., 
and  ultimately  4.?.  per  day,  and  nearly  the  whole  of  the  4,500  miners  of 
North  Staffordshire  had  struck  work  simultaneously,  remaining  idle  for  five 
or  six  weeks,  after  which  time  they  returned  to  work  at  the  masters'  terms.170 
The  wages  of  boys  in  the  North  Staffordshire  mines  in  1842  ranged  from  q.s. 
to  IOJ.  weekly  for  boys  from  ten  to  eighteen.171 

In  some  respects  the  conditions  of  work  in  the  Staffordshire  mines  were 
much  better  than  those  in  other  parts  of  the  country.  For  instance,  women 
have  never  worked  underground  in  this  county,  though  girls  and  women  were 
employed  to  a  considerable  extent  at  this  time  on  the  pit  banks,  and  in 
helping  to  load  and  unload  coal  boats  on  the  canal  banks. 

The  evidence  obtained  by  the  commissioners  showed  further  that  through- 
out the  whole  of  the  collieries  within  the  Potteries  no  young  children  were 
employed  in  mines,  as  they  found  plenty  of  work  above  ground  in  the  pottery 
industry.172 

167  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  i  (1843),  vol.  xiii.  p.  ex.  168  Ibid.  ;  T.  Tancred's  Rep.  vol.  xiii,  p.  ex. 

169  Rep.  of  Seymour  Tremenheere,  Rep.  on  Mines  and  ColRcries  (1844),  vol.  xvi,  58. 

170  Rep.  on  Mines  and  Collieries  (1844),  vol.  xvi,  59-60. 

171  Children's  Employment  Com.  Rep.  i  (1842)  [380],  vol.  xv,  154. 

171  S.  Scriven,  Children's  Employment  Com.  Rep.  i  (1842),  vol.  xvii,  App.  128.  'No  young  children  were 
employed  below.  This  I  found  to  be  the  case  throughout  the  whole  of  the  potteries,  they  being  occupied  in 
the  earthenware  manufactures.' 

303 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  effect  of  the  coal  strike  was,  of  course,  widely  felt  among  all  the 
trades  dependent  on  the  coal  supply,  that  is  to  say  throughout  the  whole  of 
Staffordshire.  The  distress  was  widespread,  being  increased  by  the  fact  that 
it  occurred  at  the  time  when  the  hardware  trade  was  suffering  a  severe  check 
as  the  result  of  a  money  crisis  in  America.  Rents  remained  unpaid,  the  homes 
of  the  workers  were  stripped  of  nearly  all  their  possessions,  riots  occurred, 
and  an  enormous  amount  of  outdoor  relief  had  to  be  given.  The  poor  rates 
went  up  rapidly,  and  the  small  shopkeepers  suffered  severely.173 

The  clerk  to  the  Dudley  Board  of  Guardians  said  that  in  his  district  the 
chief  applicants  for  relief  were  whitesmiths,  and  chain  and  trace-makers  ;  also 
glass-makers,  who  used  to  get  £3  or  £4  per  week,  and  were  now  reduced  to 
breaking  stones  and  scraping  the  streets.174 

The  moral  and  intellectual  condition  of  the  children  of  the  industrial 
classes  in  Staffordshire  was  deplorable.  This  is  abundantly  proved  by  the 
evidence  given  before  the  Commissioners  in  1842-3.  The  provision  of 
schools  was  wholly  inadequate,  and  the  attendance  at  such  as  existed  was  very 
bad,  the  children  being  taken  away  as  early  as  possible  to  work  in  the  iron, 
coal,  and  pottery  industries.176 

In  South  Staffordshire  the  evidence  of  many  resident  clergymen  went  to 
show  that  there  was  not  provision  for  a  quarter  of  the  uneducated  youth  of 
the  neighbourhood,  and  that  a  great  number  of  children  never  attended  school 
at  all  nor  any  place  of  worship.176  At  Bilston,  for  instance,  with  a  population 
ot  twenty  thousand,  there  were  the  following  schools  for  the  working 
classes  : — Four  ordinary  day  schools,  two  infant  schools,  two  or  three  night 
schools,  and  two  schools  for  girls  where  reading  and  sewing  were  taught.  A 
British  School  was  attempted  but  did  not  succeed,  and  the  only  other  means 
of  instruction  consisted  in  a  few  Sunday  schools.177  Yet  Bilston  was  admit- 
tedly better  in  many  respects  than  the  neighbouring  town  of  Wolverhampton. 
'  Among  all  the  children  and  young  persons  I  examined,'  says  Mr.  Home, 
speaking  of  the  Wolverhampton  district,  '  I  found,  with  a  few  exceptions, 
that  their  minds  were  as  stunted  as  their  bodies,  their  moral  feelings  stagnant 
as  the  nutritive  process  whereby  they  should  have  been  built  up  towards 
maturity.'178 

These  remarks  refer  specially  to  the  children  working  in  the  various  branches 
of  the  iron  trade,  where  the  physical  condition  was  as  bad  as  the  moral  and 
intellectual  state  of  the  young  workers.  In  his  report  on  the  mining  popu- 
lation of  South  Staffordshire  Dr.  Mitchell  testifies  to  the  excellent  physique 
of  the  miners  young  and  old,  which  compares  favourably  with  that  of  the 
workers  in  the  pottery  industry  in  North  Staffordshire.  But  he  adds,  'whilst 
the  physical  condition  and  treatment  of  the  boys  are  so  satisfactory,  it  is  to  be 
lamented  that  as  to  the  moral  condition  it  is  in  some  respects  quite  the 
reverse.'179  The  health  and  physique  of  the  children  and  young  persons 
working  in  the  pottery  industry  was  not  invariably  bad,  but  in  some  branches 
of  the  work  the  bad  effect  was  very  marked.180 

'"  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  i,  1843.  vol.  xiii,  p.  xxix.  '"  Ibid.  App.  101. 

74  Children's  Employment  Com.  1842,  Rep.  i,  App.  vol.  xvi,  23. 

"  Ibid,  xvi,  26  and  xiii,  142.  '"  Ibid.  vol.  xvi,  24,  Dr.  Mitchell's  Rep.  on  S.  Staffs. 

79  Ibid.  App.  Rep.  ii,  1843,  vol.  xiv,  574,  Mr.  Home's  Rep. 

"  Dr.  Mitchell's  Rep.  1842,  vol.  xvi,  Rep.  i,  App.  23. 

110  Children's  Employment  Com.  Rep.  ii,  vol.  xiii,  107-8. 

304 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

The  moral  and  intellectual  condition  of  the  Potteries  district  appears,  un- 
fortunately, to  have  been  but  little  better  than  that  existing  in  South  Stafford- 
shire. Three-fourths  of  the  persons  who  gave  evidence  before  the  Commis- 
sioner could  neither  read  nor  write,  and  on  all  hands  were  signs  of  moral 
degradation.  '  I  almost  tremble,'  says  Mr.  Scriven,  '  when  I  contemplate  the 
fearful  deficiency  of  knowledge  existing  throughout  the  district,  and  the 
consequences  likely  to  result  to  this  increased  and  increasing  population.'  m 
The  brightest  spot  in  the  county  seems  to  have  been  that  part  of  North 
Staffordshire  which  comprised  the  lead  and  copper  mines  of  Ecton,  and 
Deepdale,  the  brass  and  copper  mines  of  Cheadle,  and  the  coal  mines  of 
Cheadle  and  Rugeley.  Here  the  workers,  young  and  old,  are  described  as 
being  sober,  industrious,  and  intelligent,  the  children  well  taught,  healthy, 
clean,  and  tidy.183  The  conditions  in  the  town  of  Leek,  among  the  silk 
workers,  seem  also  to  have  been  exceptional.188 

The  system  of  employing  pauper  apprentices  in  the  South  Staffordshire 
mines  was  not  extensive,  though,  in  so  far  as  it  existed,  it  was  undoubtedly 
bad,  and  the  unfortunate  children  were  often  harshly  treated. 

In  the  years  1840,  1841,  and  1842,  forty-one  pauper  children  were  sent 
from  seven  unions  to  be  apprenticed  in  mines.  Twelve  of  these  came 
from  Dudley,  and  eleven  from  Wolverhampton  ;  of  these,  fourteen  were  only 
nine  years  old,  six  were  aged  ten,  and  the  rest  were  between  eleven  and 
fifteen  years  of  age.  Their  apprenticeship  ended  at  twenty-one  ;  the  premium 
was  usually  nothing,  otherwise  one  or  two  suits  of  clothes.18* 

The  condition  of  the  numerous  apprentices  in  the  different  branches  of 
the  hardware  trade  in  South  Staffordshire  was  a  scandal.  Some  were  bound 
by  legal  indentures,  but  the  greater  number  were  not,  and  were  at  the  mercy 
of  their  employers  till  the  age  of  twenty-one.185 

At  Willenhall,  Sedgeley,  and  Wolverhampton  the  conditions  of  these 
children  were  found  to  be  specially  bad.  The  children  were  frequently 
shockingly  deformed,  stunted,  and  dirty,  besides  being  badly  nourished,  and 
in  rags.  Wednesbury  had  the  best  record  in  the  district  as  regards  these 
pauper  children,  Darlaston  and  Bilston  were  fair.  At  Wolverhampton  bad 
fish  and  diseased  meat  were  specially  bought  for  the  consumption  of  the 
children,186  and  it  was  high  time  that  the  law  interfered  to  protect  them,  as  it 
subsequently  did. 

They  began  to  work  at  the  age  of  seven  or  eight,  sometimes  as  early  as 
six,  and  their  hours  of  work  were  without  limit  save  that  ultimately  set  by 
human  endurance. 

Children,  other  than  pauper  apprentices,  were,  of  course,  largely 
employed  in  these  domestic  workshops,  especially  among  nailers,  where  they 
worked  with  the  rest  of  the  family  at  the  trade,  earning  from  2s.  to  %s.  per 
week,  or,  if  young  persons,  from  4-f.  to  ioj.187 

181  Children'}  Employment  Com.  Rep.  ii,  App.  1843,  vol.  xv,  c.  10  ;  S.  Scriven's  Rep.  on  the  Staff.  Potteries. 
181  S.  Scriven's  Rep.  on  North  Staff.  Mines,  1842,  xvii,  134,  137. 

183  Children' i  Employment  Com.  ii,  App.   1843,  vol.  xv,  c.  18  ;  see  S.  Scriven's  remarks  :  'On  the  whole, 
whether  in  the  large  establishments  or  small  ones,  in  the  private  dwellings  or  public  schools,  I  believe  the 
children  to  be  better  clothed,  fed,  educated,  and  protected  than  any  others  in  the  same  sphere  of  life  that  I  have 
ever  met  with.' 

184  Midland  Mining  Com.  Rep.  \  (1843),  vol.  xiii,  pp.  xl,  xli  (Dr.  Tancred). 
1>s  Children's  Employment  Com.  1843,  Rep.  ii,  vol.  xiii  [430],  26. 

186  Ibid.  80,  93,  94,  101,  104.  187  Ibid.  Rep.  ii,  vol.  xiii,  93. 

I  305  39 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

There  is  a  description  of  Wolverhampton  and  its  workshops  at  this 
time  (1843)  which  gives  some  idea  of  the  dreadful  conditions  of  life  which 
prevailed  in  this  rapidly-developing  industrial  district,  where  population  had 
increased  with  great  rapidity  with  little  or  no  attempt  at  control  or  regulation 
by  the  civic  authorities  in  the  interests  of  sanitation  or  morals. 

There  are  few  manufactories  of  large  size,  the  work  being  carried  on  in  small  work- 
shops, usually  at  the  back  of  the  houses,  so  that  the  places  where  children  and  great  bodies 
of  operatives  are  employed  are  completely  out  of  sight,  in  its  narrow  courts,  unpaved  yards, 
and  blind  alleys.  In  the  smaller  dirtier  streets,  in  which  the  poorest  live,  there  are  narrow 
passages  at  intervals  of  every  eight  or  ten  houses,  and  sometimes  every  third  or  fourth  house  -r 
these  are  under  three  yards  wide  and  about  nine  feet  high,  and  they  form  the  general  gutter. 
Having  made  your  way  through  the  passage  you  find  yourself  in  a  space  varying  in  size  with 
the  number  of  houses,  hutches,  or  hovels  it  contains,  all  proportionately  crowded.  Out  of  this 
space  other  narrow  passages  lead  to  similar  hovels,  the  workshops  and  houses  being  mostly 
built  on  a  little  elevation  sloping  towards  the  passage.  The  great  majority  of  yards  contain 
two  to  four  houses,  one  or  two  of  which  are  workshops,  or  have  room  in  them  for  a  work- 
shop. In  process  of  time,  as  the  inhabitants  increased,  small  rooms  were  raised  over  the 
workshops,  and  hovels  were  also  built  wherever  space  could  be  found,  and  tenanted,  first 
perhaps  as  workshops,  then  by  families  also.  By  these  means  the  increasing  population  were 
lodged  from  year  to  year,  while  the  circumference  of  the  town  remained  the  same  for  a  long 
time,  owing  to  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  land  to  build  upon,  as  it  was  all  the  property  of 
private  individuals  or  of  the  church.  As  soon  as  land  was  obtained,  Stafford  Street  and 
Walsall  Street  were  built  for  the  working  classes,  two  of  the  largest  and  most  disgraceful 
streets  in  the  town. 

None  of  these  houses  have  any  underground  drainage  ;  there  is  often  a  common  dunghill  at 
one  end,  where  everything  is  cast,  more  generally  there  is  nothing  but  the  gutter  and  passage 
into  the  street.  The  interiors  of  the  dwellings  are  extremely  squalid,  containing  little 
furniture,  and  are  for  the  most  part  exceedingly  dirty  in  every  respect.188 

On  the  other  hand,  while  workshops  of  the  small  masters  (locksmiths,  &c.) 
were  all  of  this  kind,  the  large  factories  were  usually  placed  in  healthy  situa- 
tions and  were  fairly  well  ventilated. 

The  growth  of  the  factory  system,  and  the  operation  of  the  Factory 
Acts,  accompanied  by  a  regular  system  of  inspection,  has  fortunately  changed 
the  old  industrial  conditions  very  much  for  the  better,  except  in  the  lingering 
survival  of  the  hand-wrought  nail  makers,  whose  little  workshops  round  about 
Sedgley  and  Upper  and  Lower  Gornal  recall  some  part  of  the  above  descrip- 
tion even  yet. 

In  1869  an  Act  was  obtained  by  the  Wolverhampton  Corporation  to 
enable  them  to  deal  effectually  with  such  things  as  street  management, 
sewerage,  and  police.  Also,  since  1875,  an  area  of  16  acres  in  the  heart  of 
the  town  has  been  swept  away,  and  its  old  dirty  streets  and  noisome  courts 
have  been  replaced  by  broad,  well-paved,  well-lighted  roadways,  with  hand- 
some buildings. 

But  it  was  small  wonder  that  when  a  visitation  of  cholera  came,  as  it  did 
in  1832,  and  again  in  1848-9,  such  towns  as  this  fell  an  easy  prey,  and  that 
the  people  were  swept  off  in  hundreds.  In  Bilston,  e.g.,  the  state  of  sanitation 
was,  if  possible,  worse  than  at  Wolverhampton.  Here,  as  there,  the  people 
were  herded  together  in  narrow  courts  and  alleys,  while  stagnant  pools  and 
heaps  of  filth  were  found  on  every  hand,  menacing  the  health  and  the  very 
life  of  the  inhabitants. 

Yet  in  March,  1832,  a  public  meeting  decided  that  the  health  of 
the  township  was  so  good  that  nothing  further  need  be  done  in  the  way 

188  Children's  Employment  Com.  Rep.  ii,  1843  [430]  ;  Rep.  of  Mr.  Home,  vol.  xiii,  App.  33. 

306 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

of  improving  the  conditions,  nor  of  forming  any  sort  of  board  to  regulate 
sanitation. 

In  July  the  cholera  attacked  Tipton,  and  early  in  August  appeared  at 
Bilston.  There  were  sixty  cases  in  the  first  week,  and  many  deaths.  One 
hundred  and  forty-one  died  in  the  second  week,  and  309  in  the  third,  out  of 
a  population  of  14,500.  Panic  seized  the  community,  factories  were  closed, 
business  was  at  a  standstill,  and  the  pestilence  swept  everything  before  it. 

So  great  was  the  misery  and  destitution  caused  that  a  subscription  of 
more  than  £8,000  was  raised  from  various  parts  of  the  country  to  alleviate 
the  distress.18' 

Again,  in  1848-9,  cholera  returned,  and  the  whole  county  suffered 
severely,  2,683  persons  dying  out  of  a  population  of  608,716.  Bilston  headed 
the  death-roll  with  605  victims,  and  Willenhall  came  second,  but  a  long  way 
after,  with  281.  The  other  towns  to  suffer  most  were  Newcastle  under 
Lyme,  Wednesbury,  and  Sedgeley,  in  each  of  which  more  than  200  persons 
died.  Even  yet  Bilston  remains  a  town  of  too  many  courts  and  alleys,  needing 
to  follow  the  example  of  its  neighbour  Wolverhampton  in  the  sweeping 
away  of  some  of  its  unsanitary  areas. 

The  death-rate  in  the  pottery  towns  was  not  nearly  so  high  as  in  South 
Staffordshire  ;  this  may  be  accounted  for  partially  by  the  fact  that  the 
pottery  industry  was  by  this  time  organized  on  a  factory  system,  and  the 
standard  of  life  and  health  was  higher  than  in  the  densely-populated  area 
of  the  iron  district,  with  its  domestic  industries  still  flourishing.  Not  that 
the  conditions  of  work  in  the  Potteries  at  this  time  were  by  any  means 
wholly  satisfactory.  Some  of  the  more  recent  buildings,  it  is  true,  were 
large,  well-ventilated,  and  light,  but  the  majority  of  them  were  old  buildings, 
gradually  enlarged  by  adding  room  to  room,  and  still  remaining  low,  damp, 
dark,  and  unhealthy.190 

There  were  at  this  time  some  thousands  of  apprentices  employed  in 
various  branches  of  the  pottery  industry  between  the  ages  of  thirteen  and 
twenty-one,  bound  for  seven  years,  but  not  usually  by  legal  indenture,  so  that 
the  masters  had  little  control  over  them.  The  apprentice  was  usually  paid 
one-fourth  of  a  journeyman's  wage  in  the  first  years  of  his  apprenticeship, 
and  in  the  later  part  two-thirds.191 

From  an  indenture  of  apprenticeship  of  a  certain  Aaron  Wood,  appren- 
ticed to  Dr.  Thomas  Wedgwood  in  1731,  we  learn  something  of  the 
•eighteenth-century  conditions  in  this  matter.193  The  said  Aaron,  having 
promised  faithful  and  obedient  service,  is  to  be  taught  certain  specified  pro- 
cesses, to  wit,  the  art  of  turning  the  lathe,  handling,  and  trimming.  His 
father  is  to  provide  him  with  food,  lodging,  and  clothing,  with  the  exception 
of  an  annual  pair  of  boots  bestowed  by  his  master.  Aaron  is  to  receive  is.  per 
week  for  the  first  three  years  of  his  apprenticeship,  is.  6d.  for  the  next  three, 
and  4_r.  in  the  seventh  year,  '  lawful  money  of  Great  Brittaine.'  We  also 
learn  that  at  the  conclusion  of  his  apprenticeship  he  is  engaged  as  a 
journeyman  at  the  rate  of  5^.  per  week  for  five  years,  and  after  that  at 
the  rate  of  js. 

189  G.  T.  Lawley,  A  Hist,  of  Bilston  (1893),  172-93. 

190  Children1!  Employment  Com.  Rep.  ii,  1843,  Rep.  of  Sub-Commissioners,  xiii,  35. 

191  Harold  Owen,  The  Staff.  Potter  (1899),  46.  I91  L.  Jewitt,  The  Wedgwoods,  66-7. 

3°7 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Arthur  Young  gives  the  wages  of  an  apprentice  as  2s.  weekly  for  the 
first  year,  and  a  rise  of  3^.  weekly  in  each  succeeding  year.  He  also  gives 
the  current  average  wages  of  various  classes  of  pottery  workers,  which  vary 
exceedingly,  from  the  wage  of  the  grinder  at  js.  to  that  of  the  painters, 
throwers,  and  handlers,  who  earned  from  9^.  to  1 2s.  per  week.198  The  general 
average  for  men  in  1771  may  be  taken  as  js.  to  I2J.,  and  for  women  from 
5-r.  to  8j.  per  week. 

As  in  the  mining  industry,  so  also  in  the  'potting  trade,'  the  year  1843 
marks  something  of  an  epoch.  In  that  year  trade-unionism,  started  first  in 
1824,  revived  again  after  its  collapse  of  seven  years  previous,  and  its  central 
committee  began  a  campaign  of  reform  directed  against  the  special  grievances 
of  the  trade.  Foremost  among  these  were  the  truck  system  and  the  allow- 
ance system  ;  but  the  union  was  successful  in  putting  an  end  to  the  former  by 
taking  proceedings  against  offending  masters  in  the  police  courts.194 

The  allowance  system,  which  had  been  going  on  unchecked  for  seven 
years,  was  an  ingenious  method  of  lowering  wages  by  exacting  from  the 
journeyman  an  allowance  of  zd.  or  even  4^.  in  the  shilling.195  Against  this 
custom  the  union  waged  steady  war,  and  finally  put  an  end  to  it,  having 
obtained  the  opinion  of  an  eminent  lawyer  that  the  deductions  thus  made 
were  absolutely  illegal,  and  could  be  recovered  in  a  court  of  law.  Another 
grievance  was  the  system  of  annual  hiring  at  Martinmas,  at  which  time  the 
prices  of  labour  were  fixed  for  the  coming  twelve  months,  and  the  workman 
was  bound  to  his  employer  for  the  same  period,  though  he  could  be  dismissed 
at  the  will  of  the  master.  This  was  not  finally  given  up  until  1865,  how- 
ever, when  a  month's  notice  on  either  side  could  terminate  the  engagement.19* 

A  fourth  cause  of  complaint  only  affected  certain  classes  of  workers,  who 
complained  that  deductions  were  made  from  their  wages  for  injury  done  to 
their  work  after  it  had  left  their  hands.  This  grievance  was  a  constant 
source  of  irritation  for  forty  years,  and  it  was  not  till  1871  that  redress  was 
obtained  by  the  making  of  a  special  'trade  rule,'  which  laid  down  the  general 
principle  that  deductions  should  only  be  made  for  injury  or  bad  work  proved 
to  be  the  fault  of  the  workman.197 

Up  to  1844  machinery  had  entered  but  little  into  the  various  processes 
of  pottery  manufacture. 

When  in  that  year  it  was  rumoured  that  a  machine  had  been  invented 
to  make  a  certain  article,  the  potters  began  to  fear  the  worst,  and  when  one 
machine  after  another  followed,  something  like  a  panic  prevailed  amongst 
them.  Money  was  raised  by  the  union  to  fight  the  evil,  and  a  great  emigration 
scheme  was  planned,  whereby  the  surplus  labour  of  the  Potteries  was  to  be 
transferred  to  the  United  States,  and  a  certain  number  of  men  were  sent  out 
in  advance  to  prepare  the  way  and  buy  land.  The  whole  thing  was  a  fiasco  ; 
the  funds  of  the  union  were  drained  to  support  the  emigration  society,  and 
the  union  itself  collapsed,  only  to  be  revived  again  in  i863.198 

The  effects  of  the  introduction  of  machinery  have  been  largely  to  in- 
crease production,  and,  especially  in  some  departments,  to  displace  the  labour 
of  men  by  that  of  women  paid  at  lower  rates.  The  number  of  women 

M  Arthur  Young,  Tour  through  the  North  of  England,  iii,  254-5. 

194  Harold  Owen,  op.  cit.  54-5.  195  Ibid.  56-8.  J96  Ibid.  61,  113. 

»'  Ibid.  60,  131,  141.  "•  Ibid.  78-105. 

308 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

employed  before  the  use  of  machinery  was  comparatively  small,  but  it  subse- 
quently rose  to  one-half  the  total  labour  employed.199 

In  the  arbitration  of  1891,  the  manufacturers  asserted  that  though  the 
prices  paid  for  different  articles  had  been  lowered  since  the  introduction  of 
machinery,  the  wages  of  the  men  need  not  sink  if  they  would  but  work  a 
little  harder.  To  this  the  operatives  replied,  with  some  justice,  that  though 
a  man  might  be  able  to  '  put  on  a  spurt '  occasionally,  he  could  not  be  '  on 
the  spurt '  always.200 

It  is  admittedly  very  difficult  to  arrive  at  any  satisfactory  estimate  of  the 
average  wages  in  the  pottery  industry.  Not  only  do  the  wages  differ  greatly 
according  to  the  branch  of  industry,  but 


almost  every  reference  to  wages  deals  with  the  rate  of  pay  for  various  articles,  and  any 
comparison  made  is  that  between  prices  paid  for  such  an  article,  at  different  times,  the 
question  being  further  complicated  by  reference  to  shapes  and  sizes.201 

It  is  possible,  however,  to  quote  the  return  of  wages  issued  by  the 
Potteries  Chamber  of  Commerce  in  i  836  as  paid  at  the  principal  manufactories. 
This  return  showed  that  in  1833-4  an  average  workman  earned  between  ijs. 
and  21  s.  per  week,  a  woman  6s.  to  i  is.,  and  a  child  of  fourteen  from  3.?.  to 
3J.  6</.203  In  1836  the  man's  average  wage  had  risen  to  from  2is.  to  a8j., 
the  woman's  to  from  los.  to  15^.,  and  the  child's  to  from  3^.  6</.  to  4^.  6</.203 

In  the  various  arbitrations  before  the  joint  board  of  masters  and  men 
established  in  1868,  the  evidence  of  the  two  sides  differed  in  their  estimate  of 
wages,  and  here  again  it  is  difficult  to  arrive  at  any  general  conclusion.  In 
1877  and  1879  the  evidence  indicated  that  the  average  rate  of  wages  of  a 
good  workman  fell  below  30^.,  though  the  manufacturers  quoted  instances 
of  a  much  higher  rate.  In  1891  wages  were  at  about  the  same  level,  and  a 
manufacturer  supplied  the  following  figures  for  1900,  as  the  minimum  earn- 
ings of  workmen  working  full  time  : — 

Dish-maker   ........ 


Plate-maker  . 
Jiggerer  of  pails,  &c. 
Basin-maker  . 


£l    IOJ- 

£*    "- 

£l     125. 


Saucer-maker          ....... 

Women's  wages  quoted  by  the  same  employer  were  as  follows  : — 

Cup-maker    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          £i      os. 

Saucer-maker          ........          J~o   141. 

All  these  prices  are  calculated  on  the  basis  of  a  five  per  cent,  advance 
obtained  in  igoo.204 

As  everyone  now  knows,  the  pottery  industry  is  one  of  the  trades 
specially  dangerous  to  health,  and  has  been  carried  on  since  1891  under  special 
conditions  enforced  by  the  Home  Office. 

Dust  is  the  great  enemy  of  the  potter  ;  dust  given  off  from  the  flint  and 
lead  used  in  the  manufacture  of  the  pottery.  The  flint  dust  being  absorbed 
into  the  lungs  produces  bronchitis  and  phthisis,  and  the  workers  specially 

199  Harold  Owen,  op.  cit.  322-3,  quoting  evidence  before  Arbitrations  of  1877,  1879,  1891. 

m  Ibid.  314-1 5.  Kl  Ibid.  3 1 7,  3 1 8. 

*»  Ibid.  37-8.  "»  Ibid.  318.  M  Ibid.  333. 

3°9 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

liable  to  these  are  the  makers  of  plates  and  cups,  ware-cleaners,  '  scourers  '  and 
*  turners.'  The  lead  dust  produces  lead  poisoning  in  various  forms,  and  attacks 
specially  the  persons  who  mix  the  lead-glaze  or  dip  the  articles  in  the  glaze, 
also  colour  mixers  and  majolica  paintresses.  The  lead  is  also  absorbed  through 
the  pores  of  the  skin,  and  its  fumes  through  the  mouth  and  nostrils. 

In  the  Factory  and  Workshop  Act  of  1891  special  rules  were  laid  down 
for  the  conduct  of  pottery  workshops  and  for  the  safeguarding  of  the  health 
of  the  workers.  These  regulations  concerned  the  provision  of  special  washing 
appliances,  of  effectual  means,  such  as  fans,  for  the  removal  of  dust  where 
necessary,  and  for  the  wearing  of  overalls  and  head  coverings  in  certain  pro- 
cesses ;  meals  were  forbidden  in  workshops,  and  more  stringent  rules  were 
laid  down  for  the  sweeping  and  cleansing  of  the  work  places.  Something 
was  effected  by  these  special  rules,  but  the  result  of  an  investigation  made  by 
Professor  Thorpe  and  Dr.  Oliver  in  1898  revealed  a  very  serious  state  of 
affairs.  The  returns  of  Mr.  J.  H.  Walmsley,  H.M.  Inspector  for  the 
Potteries  district,  showed  that  in  the  three  years  1896—8,  1,085  Persons  were 
certified  as  suffering  from  lead  poisoning,  and  of  these  607  were  women  and 
girls.  It  was  quite  clear  that  much  of  the  evil  could  be  prevented  if  the  use 
of  raw  lead,  then  universal,  were  discontinued,  and  replaced  by  'fritted'  lead, 
admittedly  far  less  injurious  to  the  worker. 

Since  the  Home  Office  rules  of  1900  the  use  of  raw  lead  has  been 
abolished,  except  in  a  few  special  cases,  and  the  Annual  Report  of  the 
Factory  and  Workshops  Inspectors  for  1905  shows  a  considerable  reduction 
in  the  number  of  reported  cases  of  lead  poisoning  in  North  Staffordshire. 
In  1899  there  were  204  ;  next  year  the  number  fell  to  165,  and  in  1901  to 
eighty-four. 

In  1902  the  lowest  figure  was  reached,  viz.  sixty-six  ;  the  next  year  the 
cases  numbered  seventy-five,  and  rose  to  eighty-four  the  next  year,  and  in 
1905  fell  again  to  seventy-five. 

Of  the  seventy-five,  forty-six  were  cases  of  '  dippers,'  and  of  these  twenty- 
nine  were  women  and  girls. 

The  present  figures  for  lead  poisoning  show  a  percentage  of  1-5  of  the 
total  number  of  persons  employed  in  the  pottery  industry  compared  with  9-4 
in  iSgS.205 

The  lady  inspectors,  however,  are  of  opinion  that  with  a  more  in- 
telligent and  scrupulous  observance  of  the  special  rules  on  the  part  of 
employers  and  workers  alike,  a  still  greater  measure  of  improvement  ought  to 
be  seen.206 

In  a  minor  degree,  the  workers  in  enamelling  and  tin-plate  works  also 
suffer  from  lead  poisoning,  and  women  are  in  this  case  also  the  greatest 
sufferers. 

In  the  Returns  for  lead  poisoning  issued  by  the  Board  of  Trade  *07  for 
the  eight  months  ending  August,  1906,  the  china  and  earthenware  manu- 
facture was  responsible  for  seventy-six  cases,  tinning  and  enamelling  for 
eighteen  only,  and  litho-transfer  work  for  three. 

Women  play  a  very  important  part  in  the  industrial  economy  of  Staf- 
fordshire, especially,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the  Potteries.  No  one  passing 

u  Ann.  Rep.  of  Factory  and  Workshops  Inspectors,   1905,  pp.  352-7. 
"  Ibid.  292.  *>'  Labour  Gaz.  Sept.  1906,  p.  283. 

3IO 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

through  one  of  the  great  pottery  works  can  fail  to  be  struck  by  the  large 
number  of  women  and  girls  employed. 

Much  of  the  work  is  done  in  groups,  and  both  the  work  and  the 
wages  are  interdependent.  For  instance,  in  a  printing  group  two  or  three 
women  and  girls  work  with  each  printer.  There  is  first  the  journeywoman 
transferrer  who  transfers  the  printed  paper  to  the  ware.  An  apprentice  will 
then  rub  the  pattern  into  the  '  biscuit,'  and  finally  wash  the  paper  from  the 
ware,  leaving  the  pattern  behind.  The  'cutter*  is  the  youngest  of  the  party,  her 
work  being  to  fetch  the  print  from  the  press  and  cut  away  all  the  superfluous 
paper,  leaving  the  pattern  on  a  long  narrow  strip  ready  for  the  transferrer.208 

In  a  printing  group  described  by  Miss  Collett  in  1893—4,  the  printer 
received  2$s.  3^.,  out  of  which  he  had  to  pay  for  gas;  the  journeywoman 
transferrer  earned  i  is.  3^.,  the  apprentice  js.  6d.,  and  the  cutter  $s.m 

In  many  other  processes  girls  are  employed  as  assistants  to  men  working 
the  lathe  for  the  cup-maker  or  the  maker  of  plates.  Other  processes  in 
which  women  and  girls  are  specially  employed  are  those  of  sponging, 
scouring,  '  towing,'  dipping,  and  painting.  As  their  work  varies,  so  does 
their  rate  of  pay,  which  ranges  from  5/.  to  1 8j.  and  upwards  per  week.  The 
paintresses,  who  have  to  serve  a  seven  years'  apprenticeship,  are  the  best 
paid;  they  get  about  2s.  per  week  in  the  first  year  of  their  apprenticeship 
and  afterwards  one-third  of  their  full  ultimate  rate  of  pay. 

From  statistics  gathered  by  Miss  Collett  in  1893—4  it  appears  that  the 
earnings  of  the  greatest  number  of  women  and  girls  averaged  from  los.  to 
1 2s.  per  week,  some  earning  more,  some  less  than  that  amount.210  At  that 
time  about  four  hundred  women  were  said  to  be  members  of  one  or  other 
of  the  men's  unions.  At  the  end  of  1904  this  number  had  fallen  to  325, 
consisting  chiefly  of  women  in  the  printing  group.  In  1893  the  Women's 
Trade  Union  League  succeeded  in  forming  a  potteries'  branch  among  women 
in  that  industry,  but  it  did  not  flourish,  and  having  in  1902  reached  the 
low  level  of  thirty  members  it  was  dissolved  next  year.211 

The  employment  of  so  many  married  women  in  the  pottery  industry 
is  an  important  factor  in  the  social  problem  of  a  district  where  the  atmosphere 
and  surroundings  are  so  grimy  that  the  difficulty  of  keeping  decent  homes 
must  be  very  great  when  the  mother  is  at  home  all  the  day,  but  when  she 
is  at  work,  the  effect  on  the  homes  of  the  people  and  the  inevitable  con- 
sequences in  the  health,  feeding,  and  general  up-bringing  of  the  children 
are  bound  to  be  more  or  less  serious,  and  when  to  these  considerations  is 
added  the  fact  that  this  industry  is  one  of  the  occupations  dangerous  to 
health,  the  outlook  for  the  rising  generation  is  somewhat  disquieting. 

In  South  Staffordshire  women  and  girls  work  in  enamelling  and 
japanning  works,  especially  at  Wolverhampton  and  Bilston  ;  at  saddlery  and 
harness-making  in  Walsall,  and  in  clothing  factories  here  and  elsewhere. 

The  enamelling  and  japanning  trade  is  one  which  seriously  affects  the 
health  of  women,  especially  those  engaged  in  the  processes  in  which  lead  is 
used,  notably  that  of  brushing  the  lead  powder  from  the  tin  plate.2 


212 


108  C.  F.  Binns,  The  Story  of  the  Potter  (1898),  p.  227. 

109  Rep.  of  Labour  Com.  1893-4  [c.  6894,  xxiii,  p.  61].  "°  Ibid.  63. 
*"  Rep.  on  Trade  Unions,  1902-4,  Board  of  Trade  (Labour  Dept.),  76-8. 

'"  Rep.  of  Labour  Com.  1893-4,  xxiii,  83. 

3" 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Since  1893  detailed  rules  have  been  issued  by  the  Home  Office 
similar  to  those  in  use  in  the  pottery  workshops,  and  these  have  done  much 
to  reduce  the  dangers  to  health.813 

In  Sedgeley,  Upper  Gornal  and  Lower  Gornal  many  women  and 
girls  are  engaged  in  the  fast-declining  hand-wrought  nail  trade,  but  every 
year  fewer  children  are  being  brought  up  to  the  work.  The  hours  are  long 
and  the  wages  poor — 6s.  or  js.  being  an  average  weekly  wage  for  an  indus- 
trious woman.  Some  time  ago  the  women  in  the  Sedgeley  district  were 
formed  into  a  union,  but  it  has  since  died  out,  experience  having  proved 
once  again  how  difficult  it  is  to  get  overworked,  ill-nourished,  isolated 
home-workers  to  combine  for  a  common  object,  even  if  that  object  is  to 
improve  the  conditions  of  their  own  work,  since  they  are  lacking  in  both 
the  physical  and  mental  vitality  necessary  for  successful  union. 

The  only  holiday  or  change  these  women  allow  themselves,  apart  from 
seasons  of  slackness,  seems  to  be  the  yearly  visit  to  the  hop-districts,  which 
many  of  them  make  in  the  hopping  season,  and  which  provides  them  with 
a  change  of  scene  and  of  occupation,  if  not  a  rest. 

The  wages  of  women  in  the  harness  trade  averaged  in  1893—4  from  gj. 
to  ioj.  per  week,  rising  to  i2s.  in  busy  times,  and  this  is  a  common  weekly 
wage  for  industrial  women.  During  the  South  African  war  the  trade  was 
good  and  wages  better,  but  the  present  rate  of  wages  seems  to  be  about 
what  it  was  in  1893.  The  motor-car  industry  has  damaged  this  trade  as  it 
has  also  affected  the  saddlery  trade,  owing  to  the  lessened  demand  for  horses 
and  horse  equipments.  The  trade  of  Wolverhampton  may  thus  be  said  to 
have  gained  at  the  expense  of  the  women  workers  of  Walsall.214 

The  work  done  by  women  in  the  saddlery  industry  largely  consists  in 
making  suits  for  horses,  either  of  kersey  or  blanketing,  at  the  rate  of  about 
4-r.  per  suit.  Working  ten  to  twelve  hours  per  day  a  woman  can  earn  an 
average  weekly  wage  of  13-1-.  iod.,  though  she  may  get  as  much  as  i8j.  some 
weeks.  The  chief  drawback  to  this  trade  is  its  irregularity,  and  it  has 
declined  within  the  last  fifteen  years  for  reasons  given  above.215 

In  Leek,  where  the  silk  industry  has  been  established  since  the  seventeenth 
century,  women  work  in  the  silk  factories,  earning  in  1893— 4  an  average 
weekly  wage  of  i  is.  6</.218 

Compared  with  other  industrial  counties,  Staffordshire  does  not  show  a 
large  proportion  of  trade-unionists  compared  with  its  total  population,  despite 
the  fact  that  one  of  its  principal  industries  is  mining,  which  is  the  most 
highly  organized  of  all  the  industries.  In  1892  it  only  stood  twelfth  on  the 
list  of  English  counties,  with  4-49  per  cent,  of  unionists  to  its  whole  popu- 
lation, and  since  1900  there  has  been  almost  without  exception  a  decrease 
in  the  membership  of  every  trade  union  in  the  county.  The  North  Staf- 
fordshire Miners'  Federation  is  a  striking  example  of  this,  having  fallen 

1J  From  a  widespread  investigation  in  the  Birmingham  district,  the  average  wages  of  japanners  of  eighteen 
years  and  over  is  estimated  at  izs.  4</.,  with  a  maximum  wage  of  l8/.  and  a  minimum  of^j.  among  all 
workers.  Probably  the  same  rate  may  be  taken  to  hold  good  for  the  South  Staffordshire  district,  which 
closely  adjoins  the  area  investigated.  E.  Cadbury,  M.  Matheson,  and  G.  Shann,  Women's  Work  and  Wages 
(1906),  315. 

114  Women 't  Work  and  Wages  (1906),  83  ;  Rep.  of  Labour  Com.  1893-4,  xxiii,  58. 

115  Handbook  of  the  Daily  News  Sweated  Industries  Exhibition,  1906,  pp.  84,  121. 
"'  Rep.  of  Labour  Com.  1893-4,  xxiii,  135. 

3I2 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

from  a  membership  of  more  than  eleven  thousand  in  1900  to  rather  less  than 
half  that  number  at  the  end  of  1904.  Within  the  same  period  at  least  five 
unions  have  been  dissolved,  including  two  associated  with  the  Wolver- 
hampton  hollow-ware  trade.817 

Among  the  potters,  unionism  has  never  been  very  strong,  the  member- 
ship having  never  reached  more  than  10  per  cent,  of  the  total  number  of 
working  potters.  In  the  400  earthenware  manufactories  of  North  Stafford- 
shire 50,000  operatives  were  employed  in  1901,  of  whom  about  27,000 
were  males,  but  only  5,000  were  enrolled  members  of  the  various  branch 
unions,  and  these  were  chiefly  males."8 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  fact  that  the  potters  are  concentrated  in 
one  district  has  made  them  feel  that  a  trade  union  is  not  so  necessary  as  in 
other  industries  and  with  different  circumstances.  Doubtless,  too,  the  old 
custom  of  fixing  wages  for  the  whole  year  at  Martinmas  has  made  it  difficult 
to  keep  up  interest  in  the  union  during  the  other  parts  of  the  year  when  the 
question  of  wages  was  no  longer  open  to  discussion. 

Between  the  years  1868  and  1891  questions  in  dispute  between  the 
masters  and  the  men  were  settled  by  the  '  Potteries  Board  of  Arbitration  and 
Conciliation,'  a  body  composed  of  representatives  of  employers  and  employed, 
which  did  excellent  work  in  its  time — calling  in  an  outside  arbitrator  or 
umpire  to  give  a  final  verdict  on  special  occasions,  notably  in  1877,  1879, 
1880,  and  1 89 1.219 

With  regard  to  methods  of  fixing  wages,  that  of  a  sliding  scale, 
according  to  which  wages  vary  with  the  selling  price  of  coal,  has  now 
fallen  into  disfavour,  and  wages  are  now  arranged  by  means  of  conciliation 
boards  composed  of  representatives  of  the  masters  and  the  men. 

In  the  South-east  Staffordshire  and  East  Worcestershire  district,  after  the 
great  strike  of  1874  which  ended  in  the  masters'  favour,  the  system  of  a 
sliding  scale  was  introduced.  This  was,  however,  abandoned  in  1899  when 
a  Wages  and  Conciliation  Board  was  formed,  which  still  decides  on  any 
changes  made  in  rates  of  wages  in  the  district.  Similarly  in  that  part  of 
Staffordshire  which  belongs  to  the  '  Federated  Districts,'  changes  in  rates  of 
wages  are  arranged  by  a  joint  Conciliation  Board,  of  which  Lord  James  of 
Hereford  is  chairman.220 

In  North  Staffordshire  a  sliding  scale  for  colliers'  wages  has  never  been 
in  use.  A  sliding  scale  was  established  in  1899  for  blast-furnacemen,  but 
the  wages  of  those  in  South  Staffordshire  are  regulated  by  the  Midland  Iron 
and  Steel  Wages  Board. 

With  regard  to  the  rates  of  wages  in  various  industries  in  Staffordshire 
certain  general  tendencies  may  be  indicated.  The  years  between  1900  and 
1904  were  characterized  by  a  general  decline  in  wages  in  coal-mining,  iron- 
mining,  iron  and  steel  manufacture,  and  building  trades,  and  the  wages  in 
Staffordshire  in  these  industries  shared  the  general  downward  movement. 

In  the  mining  industry  the  period  between  1894  and  1896  was  one  of 
declining  wages;  then  came  a  rise  between  1897  and  1900,  and  another 

"' S.  and  B.  Webb,  Hist,  of  Trade  Unionism,  413;    Rep.  of  Trade   Unions,    1902-4,   Board  of  Trade 
Labour  Dept.  6-27. 

"3  Harold  Owen,  op.  cit.  334.  "9  Ibid.  150,  160,  180,  23461  seq. 

"°  Rep.  on  Changes  in  Rates  of  Wages  and  Hours  of  Labour,  1904,  Board  of  Trade  Labour  Dept.  I  5. 

i  3'3  40 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

fall,  as  described  above,  between  1900  and  1904.  At  the  same  time  a  com- 
parison of  miners'  wages  in  the  years  1888  and  1906  reveals  an  increase  of 
40  per  cent,  on  the  standard  rates  of  that  year.231 

However,  it  must  be  remembered  that  wages  and  conditions  of  work 
vary  considerably  in  different  parts  of  the  county.  In  the  returns  of 
the  census  of  wages  made  by  the  Board  of  Trade  in  1886,  e.g.,  the  weekly 
wages  of  a  coal-hewer  in  the  Potteries  district  were  2$s.  $d.  (piece-work)  .22S 
But  in  the  South  Staffordshire  district,  excluding  Cannock  Chase,  the  weekly 
wages  of  a  coal-hewer  paid  by  the  piece  were  as  much  as  2%s.  5</.223  At  the 
present  time  it  is  admittedly  difficult  to  give  an  approximate  idea  of  the  aver- 
age earnings  of  a  coal-hewer  in  the  whole  county.  It  has  been  computed  at 
6s.  6d.  per  day,  with  an  average  working  week  of  four  days,  which  makes 
the  average  weekly  wage  for  the  county  26s.,  which  is  of  course  sometimes 
exceeded.224  But  with  Cannock  Chase  district  the  rates  would  be  lower, 
as  it  is  largely  a  house-coal  district  working  badly  in  the  summer. 

Again,  in  the  South  Staffordshire  and  East  Worcestershire  district  the 
.  wages  of  a  coal-hewer  are  estimated  at  $s.  yd.  per  day  in  the  thick  coal  seams, 
the  wages  in  the  thin  coal  being  slightly  lower.225  With  a  four  days'  working 
week  this  makes  a  weekly  wage  of  only  235. 

Wages  of  course  vary  very  much  among  different  classes  of  workers  in 
and  about  the  mines,  but  the  wages  of  the  hewer  have  been  taken  as  the  most 
representative.  The  returns  of  the  Census  of  1886  give  some  other  valuable 
wages  statistics  which  may  be  compared  with  those  of  the  miners. 

Thus  a  '  general  labourer '  working  underground  in  the  Potteries  district 
earned  i  8j.  ^d.  per  week,226  whilst  in  South  Staffordshire  he  obtained  19^.  5</.227 
On  the  other  hand,  a  horsekeeper  in  North  Staffordshire  could  earn  22s.  9</.,228 
but  in  South  Staffordshire  he  obtained  only  19^.  id.™ 

The  wages  of  carpenters  and  bricklayers  for  the  same  date  may  be 
gathered  from  this  return.  A  North  Staffordshire  bricklayer  earned  an 
average  of  26s.  6d.  per  week;'30  a  South  Staffordshire  man  2js.  5^/.231  The 
wages  of  carpenters  show  less  variation  in  the  two  districts,  for  whilst  a 
carpenter  working  about  the  mine  earned  on  an  average  2$s.  i  id.  per  week 
in  1886,  the  southern  workman's  weekly  average  amounted  to  2$s.  iod?™ 

The  more  highly  skilled  workman  would  of  course  obtain  more  than  this. 
At  the  present  time  (Oct.  1906)  a  skilled  carpenter  is  paid  at  the  rate  of  8^.  per 
hour,  which  at  the  rate  of  ten  hours  per  day  for  five-and-a-half  days  amounts 
to  38^.  n^d.,  but  this  would  be  a  maximum  wage  and  could  not  be  counted 
on  throughout  the  year.  Rather  more  allowance  for  periods  of  slackness  must 
be  made  in  calculating  the  average  wage  of  the  skilled  bricklayer,  whose 
present  rate  of  pay  is  %%d.  per  hour,  which  gives  a  maximum  weekly  wage 
of  £2  os.  \\d.,  supposing  him  to  work  the  same  hours  as  the  carpenter. 

In  1886  boys  working  in  or  about  the  mines  earned  in  North  Stafford- 
shire from  js.  2d.  to  i4j.  6d.  per  week  and  in  the  south  from  js.  2d.  to  I4J.233 

71  Rep.  ea  Changes  in  Rates  of  Wages  ana1  Hours  of  Labour,  1904,  p.  104  ;  and  information  obtained  from 
Labour  Department,  Board  of  Trade. 

™  Return  of  Rates  of  Wages  in  Mines  and  Quarries,  1891,  p.  19.  *"  Ibid.  21. 

"*  Evidence  from  Secretary  of  Midland  Miner?  Federation,Ocl.  1906. 

°*  Evidence  of  South  Staff,  and  East  Wore.  Amalgamated  Miners'  Association,  Oct.  1 906. 

"*  Return  of  Rates  of  Wages  in  Mines  and  Quarries,  1891,  p.  19. 

"Ibid.  21.  *»  Ibid.  20.  "» Ibid.  22.  *»  Ibid    20. 

"  Ibid.  22.  ™  Ibid.  20,  22.  »  Ibid. 

3H 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

The  return  of  1886  shows  that  compared  with  the  coal-hewers,  engine- 
wrights,  fitters,  and  boiler-makers  earn  a  considerably  greater  weekly  sum. 
In  North  Staffordshire  the  average  weekly  wage  was  estimated  at  zSs.  qd., 
whilst  in  the  south  it  was  given  as  varying  from  2 p.  yd.  to  5u.  8</.,  but 
as  comparatively  few  men  received  the  higher  pay,  the  average  wage  would 
probably  work  out  at  much  the  same  rate  as  in  the  north.83* 

An  analysis  of  the  census  returns  in  the  period  between  1801  and  igoi836 
shows  an  enormous  aggregate  increase  in  the  population  of  Staffordshire, 
which  in  the  latter  year  stood  fourth  on  the  list  of  English  counties.  The 
greatest  increase  has  of  course  been  in  the  great  industrial  regions  of  North 
and  South  Staffordshire,  the  Potteries  and  the  Black  Country,  and  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  small  Cheadle  coalfield  in  the  north. 

But  even  in  the  agricultural  districts  there  has  been  a  rise  in  population 

in  a  considerable  number  of  cases  in  the   first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century, 

.  though  this  has   often   failed   to   maintain    itself.      Bromley  Regis  is  a  case  in 

point  ;  it  had  a  population  of  454  in  1801  which  increased  in  the  next  forty 

years  to  718,  but  has  now  fallen  to  500. 

The  township  of  Salt  and  Enson,  in  the  hundred  of  Pirehill,  shows 
exactly  the  same  number  of  inhabitants  in  1901  as  it  did  a  hundred  years 
ago,  viz.  370,  but  in  the  year  1841  its  numbers  had  reached  580.  These 
are  only  two  instances  out  of  a  good  many  similar  ones  which  might 
be  cited. 

The  growth  of  population  both  in  the  industrial  and  agricultural  districts 
is  due  directly  or  indirectly  to  the  industrial  development  of  the  county,  and 
to  the  growth  of  railways  during  the  last  century. 

Of  the  four  most  densely  populated  towns  in  the  county  three  are  in 
South  Staffordshire,  and  one  only,  the  smallest,  in  the  north.  During  the 
century  Wolverhampton,  the  most  populous,  has  increased  from  12,565  to 
94,187  ;  Walsall,  the  centre  of  the  leather,  saddlery,  and  harness  trade,  has 
risen  from  10,399  in  1801  to  87,464  in  1901.  The  largest  part  of  this  rise 
in  population  is  due  to  the  growth  of  Walsall  Foreign  as  it  is  called,  as  the 
township  proper  has  only  risen  from  5,177  to  5,729  in  the  hundred  years, 
though  in  1851  it  contained  more  inhabitants,  viz.  8,761.  West  Bromwich 
contained,  in  1801,  5,687  persons,  compared  with  65,114  in  1901.  The 
population  of  Hanley  county  borough  in  1901  was  61,599.  Its  growth  cannot 
be  tabulated  so  clearly  as  the  other  towns,  as  the  town  of  Hanley  is  part  of 
the  ancient  parish  of  Stoke  upon  Trent,  and  was  not  separately  rated  to  the 
relief  of  the  poor  until  1894,  and  its  population  is  not  separately  shown  in 
the  table  given  below. 

The  sum  of  the  populations  of  the  two  townships  of  Hanley  and 
:Shelton  in  181 1,  however,  is  estimated  at  about  9,968,  but  this  is  admittedly 
only  approximately  correct.  During  the  nineteenth  century  many  industrial 
villages  have  become  towns,  e.g.  Burslem,  which  has  risen  rom  6,578  to 
40,234,  and  Darlaston,  which  had  a  population  of  only  3,812  in  1801,  and 
at  the  last  census  contained  15,386  inhabitants.  The  parish  of  Sedgeley  is 
still  made  up  of  a  number  of  scattered  villages,  but  its  numbers  have  gone 

"'  Return  of  Rates  of  Wages  in  Mines  and  Quarries,  1891,  p.  19.     The  weekly  wages  of  a  '  puddler  '  are 
jjiven  as  30^.  in  1893.     See  Ref>.  of  Lab.  Com.  1893-4.,  xxxii  (c — 6894. — x),  18. 
195  See  Table  of  Pop.  appended  to  this  article. 

315 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

up  from  9,874  to  38,179  in  the  century.  Willenhall,  the  home  of  lock  and 
key  makers,  contained,  in  1901,  21,438  persons,  compared  with  3,143  a 
hundred  years  ago.  Bilston,  with  a  population  of  24,034,  has  more  than 
trebled  itself,  and  the  population  of  Tipton  has  risen  during  the  same  period 
from  4,280  to  30,543. 

The  increase  of  the  population  of  Tettenhall  is  only  indirectly  due  to 
industrial  development,  as  it  is  now  the  great  residential  suburb  of  Wolver- 
hampton.  The  growth  of  Bushbury,  however,  another  suburb,  is  accounted 
for  largely  by  the  engineering  and  electrical  works  established  there.  It  is 
worth  notice  that  the  district  round  Wolverhampton  has  maintained  its  up- 
ward movement  in  population  despite  the  fact  that  many  of  the  ironworks 
which  formerly  employed  so  many  workmen  have  latterly  either  been  closed, 
or  have  migrated  to  the  coast,  e.g.  to  Newport,  on  account  of  the  heavy 
cost  of  freight,  a  serious  item  of  commercial  expenditure  at  a  time  when 
foreign  competition  in  the  iron  trade  becomes  increasingly  acute. 

Between  Bilston  and  Sedgeley,  and  again  between  Walsall  and  Wolver- 
hampton, considerable  tracts  of  unsightly  mounds  and  pits  mark  the  sites  of 
mines  no  longer  worked,  either  because  the  coal  has  already  been  exhausted, 
or  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  mines  have  become  water-logged,  and  the  cost 
of  drainage  is  too  great  to  allow  them  to  be  worked  at  a  profit.  The  town 
of  Wolverhampton  is,  however,  still  famous  for  the  manufacture  of  tin, 
japanned,  and  galvanized  goods,  whilst  other  trades — such  as  the  manufacture  of 
bicycles  and  motor  cars — have  grown  up  during  the  last  thirty  years,  and  given 
employment  to  those  who  have  been  displaced  by  the  extinction  of  other 
industries. 

The  case  of  Cannock  is  interesting  as  that  of  a  town  which  began  the 
nineteenth  century  with  a  tiny  population  of  1,359,  which  however  reached 
23,974  at  the  opening  of  the  twentieth,  having  gained  most  of  its  increase 
since  1851,  when  coal  was  first  dug  on  Cannock  Chase. 

In  the  agricultural  parts  of  the  county  the  population  has  in  the  main 
remained  stationary  or  slightly  decreased,  this  decrease  being  due  partly  to 
the  inevitable  drift  of  the  countryman  to  industrial  centres,  and  partly  to  the 
increase  of  pasturage  and  consequent  diminution  of  the  demand  for  agricul- 
tural labour.  In  the  hundred  of  Seisdon,  with  the  exception  of  two  or  three 
places,  no  decrease  has  taken  place  at  all.  In  the  north  division  of  the 
hundred  of  Pirehill  there  has  been  none,  and  the  slight  decrease  in  the  south 
division  chiefly  occurs  in  villages  away  from  the  track  of  the  railways.  The 
same  remark  applies  also  to  the  hundred  of  Cuttlestone. 

The  most  sparsely  populated,  as  it  is  also  the  most  picturesque,  region  of 
Staffordshire  is  that  elevated  part  of  the  county  which  comprehends  the 
limestone  regions  extending  for  about  forty  square  miles  east  of  the  Dove, 
and  the  adjoining  tract  of  moorland  with  its  sharp  escarpments  of  millstone 
grit  and  its  narrow  valleys  lying  between  the  limestone  and  the  coal  measures. 
It  is  a  district  in  which  railways  play  little  part,  and  is  given  up  mainly 
to  pastoral  farming,  carried  on  with  difficulty  in  the  more  barren  moor- 
land region,  but  with  greater  success  in  the  valleys  and  on  the  uplands  of  the 
limestone  hills,  which  produce  a  short  sweet  grass  good  for  pasturage.  There 
has  been  some  difficulty  as  to  a  market  in  this  limestone  district,  but  this 
should  disappear  now  that  the  North  Staffordshire  Railway  Company  has 

316 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

opened  up  the  beautiful  valley  of  the  Manifold  by  means  of  its  light  railway 
from  Waterhouses  to  Hulme  End.236 

It  is  probable  also  that  work  may  be  renewed  in  the  now  disused  copper 
and  lead  mines  of  Ecton,  which  have  been  worked  since  the  seventeenth 
century,  and  were  at  one  time  exceedingly  productive. 

In  that  case  the  little  hamlet  of  Ecton,  which  now  contains  about 
seventy  persons,  will  become  a  much  more  important  and  populous  place  than 
it  is  at  present. 

The  extensive  copper  mines  at  Oakamoor  in  the  Churnet  Valley  account 
for  the  considerable  population  at  Alton,  which  has  risen  from  818  in  1801 
to  1,227  m  I9OI>  a°d  consists  chiefly  of  the  families  of  men  concerned  in 
some  way  in  the  mining  industry  there.  Biddulph,  again,  in  the  moorland 
region  of  Pirehill  Hundred,  shows  an  increase  of  population  from  1,180  to 
6,247  in  the  century,  a  fact  accounted  for  by  the  presence  of  coal  in  its 
neighbourhood. 

In  examining  the  census  returns  certain  sudden  rises  in  population  are 
noticeable  which  demand  some  explanation.  For  instance  the  sudden  rise  of 
population  in  the  country  villages  of  High  Offley,  Church  Eaton,  Lapley, 
and  Gnosall  in  1831  is  due  to  the  presence  of  a  number  of  workmen  who 
were  excavating  the  Birmingham  and  Liverpool  Canal  and  settled  here  for 
a  time. 

At  Leigh  in  1851  the  population  was  increased  in  a  similar  way,  railway 
workers  being  in  this  case  substituted  for  canal  labourers.  The  increase  at 
Whittington  in  1881  is  due  to  the  establishment  of  a  new  military  depot, 
whilst  the  rise  noticed  in  1861  in  Hopton  and  Coton  township  is  traceable 
to  the  enlargement  of  the  county  lunatic  asylum  and  the  building  of  a  new  one 
at  Coton  Hill.  The  sudden  rise  of  population  at  Cheddleton  in  1901  is  due  to 
the  recent  establishment  of  the  county  asylum  in  that  parish.  When  the  next 
census  is  taken  the  returns  will  probably  show  a  large  permanent  increase  of 
population  in  the  parish  of  Cheddleton  and  the  surrounding  villages,  as  during 
the  last  few  years  a  rich  coalfield  has  been  discovered  within  half  a  mile  of 
this  village,  and  the  new  colliery  will  probably  be  working  shortly.  The 
site  of  the  main  shaft  is  well  placed  for  purposes  of  transport,  being  near 
a  valley  which  runs  direct  to  Wall  Grange  station  and  the  canal.  As 
valuable  deposits  of  clay  and  ironstone  have  been  found  near  the  coal  it  is 
probable  that  at  least  three  new  industries  may  be  established  in  the  district, 
and  the  inevitable  result  of  that  will  be  the  growth  of  an  industrial  com- 
munity round  about  the  colliery. 

As  there  has  been  considerable  poverty  and  lack  of  employment  in  the 
district  recently,  this  new  development  is  to  be  welcomed  from  an  economic 
point  of  view,  though  from  a  different  standpoint  it  is  melancholy  to  see 
another  beautiful  bit  of  country  given  up  to  the  sway  of  the  blast  furnace, 
the  brick  kiln,  and  the  coke  oven. 

The  traveller  in  Staffordshire,  passing  through  this  district,  will  find 
himself  once  again  inverting  a  well-known  motto  of  the  Potteries  :  '  Out  of 
dirt  we  make  beauty '  ;  and  will  reflect  with  a  certain  sadness  how  much 
beauty  has  in  this  county  given  place  to  dirt. 

136  This  railway  was  opened  in  the  summer  of  1904,  and  worked  for  that  year  only  by  motor  'buses  from 
Leek  till  the  completion  of  the  heavy  railway  from  Leek  to  Waterhouses  in  1905. 

3'7 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

TABLE   OF  POPULATION,  1801    TO    1901 
Introductory  Notes 

AREA 

The  county  taken  in  this  table  is  that  existing  subsequently  to  7  &  8  Viet.,  chap.  61  (1844). 
By  this  Act  detached  parts  of  counties,  which  had  already  for  parliamentary  purposes  been  amalga- 
mated with  the  county  by  which  they  were  surrounded  or  with  which  the  detached  part  had  the 
longest  common  boundary  (2  &  3  Wm.  IV,  chap.  64 — 1832),  were  annexed  to  the  same  county  for 
all  purposes  ;  some  exceptions  were,  however,  permitted. 

By  the  same  Act  (7  &  8  Viet.,  chap.  61)  the  detached  parts  of  counties,  transferred  to  other 
counties,  were  also  annexed  to  the  hundred,  ward,  wapentake,  &c.  by  which  they  were  wholly  or 
mostly  surrounded,  or  to  which  they  next  adjoined,  in  the  counties  to  which  they  were  transferred. 
The  hundreds,  &c.  in  this  table  are  also  given  as  existing  subsequently  to  this  Act. 

As  is  well  known,  the  famous  statute  of  Queen  Elizabeth  for  the  relief  of  the  poor  took  the  then- 
existing  ecclesiastical  parish  as  the  unit  for  Poor  Law  relief.  This  continued  for  some  centuries 
with  but  few  modifications ;  notably  by  an  Act  passed  in  the  thirteenth  year  of  Charles  II 's  reign 
which  permitted  townships  and  villages  to  maintain  their  own  poor.  This  permission  was  necessary 
owing  to  the  large  size  of  some  of  the  parishes,  especially  in  the  north  of  England. 

In  1 80 1  the  parish  for  rating  purposes  (now  known  as  the  civil  parish,  i.e.  'an  area  for 
which  a  separate  poor  rate  is  or  can  be  made,  or  for  which  a  separate  overseer  is  or  can  be 
appointed ')  was  in  most  cases  co-extensive  with  the  ecclesiastical  parish  of  the  same  name  ;  but 
already  there  were  numerous  townships  and  villages  rated  separately  for  the  relief  of  the  poor, 
and  also  there  were  many  places  scattered  up  and  down  the  country,  known  as  extra-parochial 
places,  which  paid  no  rates  at  all.  Further,  many  parishes  had  detached  parts  entirely  surrounded 
by  another  parish  or  parishes. 

Parliament  first  turned  its  attention  to  extra-parochial  places,  and  by  an  Act  (20  Viet., 
chap.  19 — 1857)  it  was  laid  down  (a)  that  all  extra-parochial  places  entered  separately  in  the 
1851  census  returns  are  to  be  deemed  civil  parishes,  (b)  that  in  any  other  place  being,  or  being 
reputed  to  be,  extra-parochial,  overseers  of  the  poor  may  be  appointed,  and  (c)  that  where,  how- 
ever, owners  and  occupiers  of  two-thirds  in  value  of  the  land  of  any  such  place  desire  its 
annexation  to  an  adjoining  civil  parish,  it  may  be  so  added  with  the  consent  of  the  said  parish. 
This  Act  was  not  found  entirely  to  fulfil  its  object,  so  by  a  further  Act  (31  &  32  Viet.,  chap.  122 — 
1868)  it  was  enacted  that  every  such  place  remaining  on  25  December,  1868,  should  be  added 
to  the  parish  with  which  it  had  the  longest  common  boundary. 

The  next  thing  to  be  dealt  with  was  the  question  of  detached  parts  of  civil  parishes,  which  was 
done  by  the  Divided  Parishes  Acts  of  1876,  1879,  and  1882.  The  last,  which  amended  the  one  of 
1876,  provides  that  every  detached  part  of  an  entirely  extra-metropolitan  parish  which  is  entirely 
surrounded  by  another  parish  becomes  transferred  to  this  latter  for  civil  purposes,  or  if  the  population 
exceeds  300  persons  it  may  be  made  a  separate  parish.  These  Acts  also  gave  power  to  add  detached 
parts  surrounded  by  more  than  one  parish  to  one  or  more  of  the  surrounding  parishes,  and  also  to 
amalgamate  entire  parishes  with  one  or  more  parishes.  Under  the  1879  Act  it  was  not  necessary 
for  the  area  dealt  with  to  be  entirely  detached.  These  Acts  also  declared  that  every  part  added  to 
a  parish  in  another  county  becomes  part  of  that  county. 

Then  came  the  Local  Government  Act,  1888,  which  permits  the  alteration  of  civil  parish  boun- 
daries and  the  amalgamation  of  civil  parishes  by  Local  Government  Board  orders.  It  also  created  the 
administrative  counties.  The  Local  Government  Act  of  1894  enacts  that  where  a  civil  parish  is  partly 
in  a  rural  district  and  partly  in  an  urban  district  each  part  shall  become  a  separate  civil  parish  ;  and 
also  that  where  a  civil  parish  is  situated  in  more  than  one  urban  district  each  part  shall  become  a 
separate  civil  parish,  unless  the  county  council  otherwise  direct.  Meanwhile,  the  ecclesiastical  parishes 
had  been  altered  and  new  ones  created  under  entirely  different  Acts,  which  cannot  be  entered  into 
here,  as  the  table  treats  of  the  ancient  parishes  in  their  civil  aspect. 

POPULATION 

The  first  census  of  England  was  taken  in  1801,  and  was  very  little  more  than  a  counting 
of  the  population  in  each  parish  (or  place),  excluding  all  persons,  such  as  soldiers,  sailors,  &c.,  who 
formed  no  part  of  its  ordinary  population.  It  was  the  dt  facto  population  (i.e.  the  population 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

actually  resident  at  a  particular  time)  and  not  the  de  jure  (i.e.  the  population  really  belonging 
to  any  particular  place  at  a  particular  time).  This  principle  has  been  sustained  throughout 
the  censuses. 

The  Army  at  home  (including  militia),  the  men  of  the  Royal  Navy  ashore,  and  the  registered 
seamen  ashore  were  not  included  in  the  population  of  the  places  where  they  happened  to  be, 
at  the  time  of  the  census,  until  1841.  The  men  of  the  Royal  Navy  and  other  persons  on  board 
vessels  (naval  or  mercantile)  in  horns  ports  were  first  included  in  the  population  of  those  places 
in  1851.  Others  temporarily  present,  such  as  gipsies,  persons  in  barges,  &c.  were  included  in 
1841  and  perhaps  earlier. 

GENERAL 

Up  to  and  including  1831  the  returns  were  mainly  made  by  the  overseers  of  the  poor, 
and  more  than  one  day  was  allowed  for  the  enumeration,  but  the  1841-1901  returns  were 
made  under  the  superintendence  of  the  registration  officers  and  the  enumeration  was  to  be 
completed  in  one  day.  The  Householder's  Schedule  was  first  used  in  1841.  The  exact  dates 
of  the  censuses  are  as  follows  : — 

10  March,  1801  30  May,  1831  8  April,  1861  6  April,  1891 

27  May,  1811  7  June,  1841  3  April,  1871  i  April,  1901 

28  May,  1821  31  March,  1851  4  April,  1881 


NOTES  EXPLANATORY  OF  THE  TABLE 

This  table  gives  the  population  of  the  ancient  county  and  arranges  the  parishes,  &c.  under  the 
hundred  or  other  sub-division  to  which  they  belong,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  constitution  of 
hundreds,  &c.  was  in  some  cases  doubtful. 

In  the  main  the  table  follows  the  arrangement  in  the  1841  census  volume. 

The  table  gives  the  population  and  area  of  each  parish,  &c.  as  it  existed  in  1801,  as  far 
as  possible. 

The  areas  are  those  supplied  by  the  Ordnance  Survey  Department,  except  in  the  case  of  those 
marked  *e,'  which  are  only  estimates.  The  area  includes  inland  water  (if  any),  but  not  tidal  water 
or  foreshore. 

t  after  the  name  of  a  civil  parish  indicates  that  the  parish  was  affected  by  the  operation 
of  the  Divided  Parishes  Acts,  but  the  Registrar-General  failed  to  obtain  particulars  of  every 
such  change.  The  changes  which  escaped  notification  were,  however,  probably  small  in  area 
and  with  little,  if  any,  population.  Considerable  difficulty  was  experienced  both  in  1891  and 
1901  in  tracing  the  results  of  changes  effected  in  civil  parishes  under  the  provisions  of  these 
Acts  ;  by  the  Registrar-General's  courtesy,  however,  reference  has  been  permitted  to  certain 
records  of  formerly  detached  parts  of  parishes,  which  has  made  it  possible  approximately  to 
ascertain  the  population  in  1901  of  parishes  as  constituted  prior  to  such  alterations,  though  the 
figures  in  many  instances  must  be  regarded  as  partly  estimates. 

*  after  the  name  of  a  parish  (or  place)  indicates  that  such  parish  (or  place)  contains  a  union 
workhouse  which  was  in  use  in  (or  before)  1851  and  was  still  in  use  in  1901. 

I  after  the  name  of  a  parish  (or  place)  indicates  that  the  ecclesiastical  parish  of  the  same  name 
at  the  1901  census  is  co-extensive  with  such  parish  (or  place). 

O  in  the  table  indicates  that  there  is  no  population  on  the  area  in  question. 

—  in  the  table  indicates  that  no  population  can  be  ascertained. 

The  word  'chapelry  '  seems  often  to  have  been  used  as  an  equivalent  for  'township'  in  1841, 
which  census  volume  has  been  adopted  as  the  standard  for  names  and  descriptions  of  areas. 

The  figures  in  italics  in  the  table  relate  to  the  area  and  population  of  such  sub-divisions  of 
ancient  parishes  as  chapelries,  townships,  and  hamlets. 


3T9 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


TABLE    OF     POPULATION,     1801—1901 


— 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841       1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Ancient  or    Geogra- 
phical County  * 

749,602 

242,693 

290.595 

344.838 

409,480 

II 
309,472608,716 

746,943 

858,326 

981,013 

1,083,454 

L234.533 

PARISH 

Acre- 

1801 

iSti 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

age 

Cntllestone  Hun- 

dred —  East 

Division 

Baswich,  or  Berks- 

6,971 

1,096 

I,  in      1,376 

1,329 

i,438 

1,623 

',555 

1,335 

1,378 

1.327 

1,457 

wich  :  — 

Acton  Trussell, 

2,594 

436 

460 

562 

551 

574 

673 

617 

569 

548 

490 

538 

with  Bednall 

Chap.  I 

Baswich,  Mil- 

2,013 

443 

416 

559 

546 

626 

704 

660 

549 

606 

625 

704 

ford,  and 

Walton 

Township  f 

Brocton 

2,364 

217 

235 

255 

232 

238 

246 

27S 

217 

224 

212 

215 

Township  f 

firewood*      .     .     . 

2,152 

2,867   '   2.86o 

2,762 

3,799 

3,641 

3,565 

3,399 

3,237 

2,948 

2,667 

2,535 

Bushbury        (part 

of)8:— 

Kssington 

3,054 

369  '      540 

605 

598 

623 

644 

976 

1,065 

1,295 

1,368 

1,670 

Township 

Cannock  :  — 

0,961 

1,700      1,639 

2,232 

2,468 

2,852 

3.081 

3,964 

7,749 

'8,377 

21,959 

26,012 

Cannock 

8,010 

1,339  ;   1,143 

1,563 

1,771 

1,932 

2,099 

2,913 

6,650 

17,125 

20,613 

23,974 

Township 

Huntington 

1,303 

114          135         138 

106 

121 

158 

161 

142 

177 

195 

351 

Township 

\Vyrley,  Great 

1,648 

227         361 

531 

591 

799 

824 

890 

957 

1,075 

1,151 

1,687 

Township 

Castle  Church  . 

3.933 

563 

566 

1,118 

1,374 

1,484 

2,315 

3,362 

4,746 

5,923 

6,384 

6,455 

Cheslyn  Hay 

819 

443 

486 

548 

648 

774 

876 

1,177 

i,43' 

',799 

2,066 

2,560 

Extra  Par. 

Penkridge  (part 

'3.138 

2,018 

2,243 

2,641 

2,723 

2,857 

3-013 

2,873 

2,798 

2,901 

2,749 

2,699 

of)':— 

Coppenhall 

907 

83 

92 

IDS 

100 

119 

97 

88 

95 

86 

109 

90 

Chap. 

Dunston  Chap. 

1,448 

208 

214 

234 

272 

250 

259 

275 

268 

279 

257 

262 

Penkridge 

10,783 

1,727 

1,937 

2,299 

2,351 

2,488 

2,663 

2,510 

2,435 

2,536 

2,383 

2J47 

Township 

Kugeley        .     . 

8,449 

2,030 

2,213 

2,677 

3.I6S 

3,774 

4,  1  88 

4,362 

4,630 

7,048 

6,942 

7,327 

Shareshill  J  :  — 

2,827 

441 

493 

583 

520 

594 

540 

53' 

5" 

612 

619 

667 

Shareshill 

889 

200 

228 

286 

274 

305 

278 

295 

297 

342 

J50 

354 

Saredon 

1,938 

241 

265 

297 

246 

289 

262 

236 

214 

270 

269 

313 

Township 

Teddesley  Hay 

2,625 

— 

59 

43 

5° 

61 

109 

117 

128 

I30 

"5 

125 

Extra  Par 

1  Ancient  County.— The  County  as  defined  by  the  Act  7  &  8  Viet.  cap.  61,  which  affected  Staffordshire  to  the 
following  extent: — (i)  addid  to  Staffordshire,  the  part  of  Scropton  and  Foston  shown  in  this  Table  (from  Derbyshire) ; 
(2)  sevtrtdfrom  Staffordshire,  the  Parishes  of  Broom  and  Clent  (to  Worcestershire). 

The  area  is  taken  from  the  1901  Census  volume.  The  population  is  exclusive  of  3,045  militia  in  1811,  and  1,134 
militia  in  1821,  who  could  not  be  assigned  to  their  respective  parishes.  Dudley  Castle  Hill  is  said  to  be  in  Stafford- 
shire ;  it  is  not  included  in  this  Table.  (See  also  notes  to  Sheriff  Hales,  Scropton  and  Foston,  and  Bobbington.) 

*  Brtwood  and  Forton. — The  populations  in  1831  include  278  men  in  Brewood  and  106  in  Forton  employed  in 
excavating  the  Birmingham  and  Liverpool  Canal. 

1  Bushbury  Ancient  Parish  is  situated  partly  in  Cuttlestone  Hundred — East  Division,  and  partly  in  Seisdon 
Hundred — North  Division. 

«  Penkridge  Ancient  garish  is  situated  in  Cuttlestone  Hundred— East  and  West  Divisions. 

320 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901   (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Cuttlestone  Hun- 

dred —  East 

Division  cont.) 

Wolverhampton 

3.632 

349 

422 

443 

422 

490 

474 

56l 

546 

564 

608 

653 

(part  of)  s  :  — 

Featherstone 

504 

48 

52 

49 

34 

34 

37 

54 

61 

76 

57 

57 

Township 

Hatherton 

2,015 

248 

299 

320 

320 

378 

368 

415 

420 

426 

468 

507 

Township 

Hilton  Township 

810 

34 

56 

'55 

45 

57 

54 

82 

58 

50 

64 

77 

Kinvaston 

303 

19 

15 

19 

23 

21 

15 

10 

7 

72 

25 

18 

Township 

Cuttlestone  Hun- 

dred— We  >t 

Division 

Blymhill  \.        .     . 

3,024 

475 

513 

604 

566 

633 

622 

59' 

608 

503 

532 

522 

Bradley  t  t  •     •     • 

5,594 

593 

627 

723 

731 

649 

628 

597 

614 

496 

474 

399 

Church  Eaton  r>  J  . 

4,283 

784 

804 

829 

922 

743 

654 

643 

638 

655 

616 

587 

Forton  6a  t    .     .     . 

3,746 

566 

607 

702 

904 

764 

741 

729 

649 

54' 

576 

520 

Gnosall7!    .     .     . 

io,577 

2,246 

2,372 

2,671 

3,353 

2,424 

2,673 

2,400 

2,431 

2,379 

2,099 

2,085 

Haughton  t  +    •     • 

i,9°3 

437 

455 

473 

490 

480 

510 

516 

459 

501 

439 

410 

Lapley8:      .     .     . 

3,542 

759 

746 

916 

1,042 

952 

962 

828 

779 

744 

767 

742 

Norbury  J  :  — 

3,36i 

37i 

357 

349 

438 

353 

358 

364 

344 

3<8 

368  i      383 

Norbury 

2,702 

275 

224 

220 

257 

270 

218 

277 

205 

272 

236         258 

Township 

Weston  Jones 

7,259 

756 

133 

129 

181 

143 

140 

147 

139 

706 

132         125 

with   Loynton 

Township 

Penkridge  (part 

of)8a  :— 

Stretton 

1,615 

257 

243 

255 

268 

272 

3°3 

273 

260 

233 

224 

245 

Chap.  9  1 

Sheriff  Hales  (part 

2,907 

616 

809 

876 

914 

688 

698 

650 

656 

621 

522 

485 

of)10 

Weston-under- 

2,433 

IOI 

275 

296 

257 

297 

248 

275 

325 

284 

316 

301 

Lizard  J 

Offlo-w  Hundred  — 

North  Division. 

Alrewas  :  — 

4,329 

i,312 

1,665 

1,492 

1,607 

1,658 

1,649 

1,633 

l,54i 

1,448 

1,410 

1,401 

Alrewas  f  .     .     . 

940  i   7,727 

979 

7,702 

1,173 

1,144 

1,125 

926 

955 

939 

938 

Fradley 

— 

268 

395 

426 

382 

362 

367 

333 

409 

380 

300 

347 

Township  f 

Orgreave 

— 

104 

149 

87 

123 

123 

138 

175 

206 

113 

111 

116 

Township  t 

Alrewas-Hays 

1,  680 

12 

49 

74 

77 

92 

107 

48 

72 

115            IO2 

119 

Extra  Par.f 

Bromley  Regis  "  J 

3,987 

454 

527 

612 

629 

718 

704 

646 

582 

580       568 

500 

Burton  upon  Trent 

7,501 

5,278 

5,891 

6,151 

6,455 

7,759 

9,364 

15,365 

22,286  i34,336    40,112 

43,o6o 

(part  of)":— 

Branston 

2,482 

281 

373 

412 

382 

441 

473 

542 

577 

991 

1,422 

1,448 

Township 

5  Wolverhamptnn  Ancient  Parish  is  situated  in  (i)  Cuttlestone  Hundred — East  Division,  (2)  Offlow  Hundred — South 
Division,  and  (3)  Seisdon  Hundred — North  Division. 

6  Church  Eaton.— The  increase  in  population  in  1831  is  attributed  to  the  presence  of  a  number  of  labourers 
employed  in  excavating  the  Birmingham  and  Liverpool  Canal. 

6a  See  note  2,  ante. 

^  Gnosall. — The  population  in  1831  includes  197  men  employed  in  excavating  the  Birmingham  and  Liverpool 
Canal. 

8  Lapley. — The  population  in  1831  includes  130  men  employed  in  excavating  the  Birmingham  and  Liverpool  Canal. 
to  See  note  4,  ante. 

9  Stretton. — The  1821  population  is  an  estimate. 

10  Sheriff  Hales.— The  remainder  is  in  Salop  (South  Bradford  Hundred— Newport  division).     The  population  of 
the  entire  Ancient  Parish  (except  that  of  Woodcote  Chapelry)  1811-31  is  shown  iu  Staffordshire. 

11  Bromley  Regis  includes  the  area  and  the  population  (i84i-rooi)  of  King's  Bromley  Hays,  which  was  formerly 
Extra  Parochial  and  became  a  Civil  Parish  under  the  Act  20  Viet.  cap.  19. 

1J  Burton  uf-on  Trent.  Clifton  Campvillc,  and  Croxall  Ancient  Parishes. — The  remainder  of  these  Parishes  is  in  Derby- 
shire (Repton  and  Gresley  Hundred). 

I  321  41 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

TABLE   OF  POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued} 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

i8n 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Offlow  Hundred- 

North  Division 

(cont) 

Burton  upon  Trent 

—(cont.} 

Burton,  Extra   "i 

(•  716 

S72 

910 

910 

1,193 

1,289 

2,849 

7,025 

12,582 

15,140 

16,455 

Township  f 

Burton  upon 

3,679 

3,979 

4,114 

4J99 

4,863 

6J74 

9,534 

9,450 

9J48 

8,212 

7J70 

Trent  Town- 

3,772 

( 

ship  f 

Horninglow 

272 

297 

341 

391 

852 

SIS 

1,968 

4,750 

10,717 

14,513 

16,930 

Township  *f  , 

!_ 

Stretton 

1,247 

330 

370 

374 

373 

410 

413 

472 

484 

698 

825 

857 

Township 

Clifton  Campville 

4,871 

75' 

741 

838 

80  1 

759 

784 

752 

756 

773 

703 

63I 

(part  of)  Ito  :— 

Clifton  Camp- 

3,347 

362 

362 

627 

369 

341 

337 

328 

329 

494 

462 

402 

ville  Town- 

ship 13 

Harlaston 

1,524 

160 

150 

211 

218 

221 

248 

239 

265 

279 

241 

229 

Chap,  t 

Haunton 

— 

229 

229 

— 

214 

197 

199 

185 

162 

— 

— 

— 

Township13 

Croxall     (part 

of)  ">  :  — 

Oakley 

739 

27 

27 

31 

29 

31 

20 

28 

37 

38 

34 

22 

Township  14 

Edingale  f    .     .     . 

900* 

158 

162 

224 

177 

197 

190 

208 

217 

181 

165 

I56 

Hamstall 

3,1  24 

349 

428 

455 

443 

39' 

471 

440 

382 

383 

316 

305 

Ridware  f 

Hanbury  :  — 

13,108 

1,622 

2,130 

2,516 

2,448 

2,483 

2,535 

2,638 

2,605 

2,411 

2,541 

2,462 

Draycott  in  the 

1,930 

288 

384 

498 

461 

431 

411 

484 

492 

451 

491 

525 

Clay   Town- 

ship 

Hanbury  Town- 

3,288 

424 

493 

493 

546 

553 

566 

543 

514 

537 

631 

521 

ship 

Marchington 

2,493 

210 

324 

463 

491 

471 

480 

484 

479 

453 

526 

526 

Chap. 

Marchington 

2,525 

260 

306 

318 

193 

286 

311 

339 

350 

319 

319 

324 

Woodlands 

Township 

Newborough 

2,872 

440 

623 

744 

757 

742 

767 

788 

770 

651 

574 

566 

Chap. 

Lichfield  St.  Chad 

(part  of)  "  :— 

Curborough  with 

2,o8o' 

174 

229 

250 

249 

227 

239 

225 

257 

241 

237 

'95 

Elmhurst 

Township  f 

Lichfield  St. 

2,303' 

198 

201 

I8l 

208 

196 

225 

238 

228 

331 

424 

425 

Michael  (part 

of)  "  :— 

Fisherwick 

1,313 

83 

73 

91 

96 

86 

90 

101 

93 

95 

124 

129 

Township 

Streethay 

990" 

115 

128 

90 

112 

110 

135 

137 

135 

236 

300 

296 

Township  f 

Freeford 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

27 

23 

9 

41 

— 

— 

— 

Extra  Par.  " 

Fulfen 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

15 

m 

10 

9 

'9 

II 

8 

Extra  Par.  f 

Haselour 

586 

33 

42 

49 

36 

29             22 

27 

21 

29 

42 

49 

Extra  Par. 

Mavesyn  Ridware  J 

2,486 

486 

548 

598 

576 

53'        523 

462 

467 

473 

39' 

438 

"»  See  note  12,  ante. 

"  Clifton  Campville  and  Haunton  Townships.— The  1801  populations  are  estimated.  Clifton  Campville  Township 
includes  the  area  and  the  population  (1821,  attf  j.Tf"  ,  f  Haunton  Township. 

14  Oakliy. — The  1811  population  is  ai  estimate. 

14  Lichfeld  St.  Chad  Ancient  Pans'- it  situated  partly  in  Omqw  Hundred— North  Division,  and  partly  in  the  City  of 
Lichfield.  \ 

"  Lichfield  £t  Jf,v.hnsf  Jn'cient  Parish  is  situated  in  (i)  Offlow  Mundred— North  Division,  (2)  Offlow  Hundred— South 
R'sSSS;  and  (3)  the  City  of  Lichfield. 

17  Freeford  Hamlit  includes  the  area  and  the  population  (1881-5-1901,  and  probably  in  1801)  of  the  formerly  Extra 
Parochial  Place  of  Free/ord. 


322 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued') 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

IQOI 

Offlow  Hundred- 

North  Division 

(cont.) 

Pipe  Ridware  J 

823 

107 

101 

114 

in 

IOO 

90 

93 

90 

74 

84 

63 

Rolleston  :  — 

3>647' 

646 

700 

869 

866 

797 

918 

956 

1,079 

1,140 

1,196 

1,3°3 

Anslow,  or  An- 

— 

200 

225 

270 

302 

278 

297 

348 

393 

383 

398 

370 

nesley  Town- 

ship t 

Rolleston 

— 

446 

475 

599 

564 

519 

621 

608 

686 

757 

798 

933 

Township  t 

Scropton  and  Fos- 

142 

— 

— 

— 

— 

IS 

'5 

17 

47 

98 

85 

IOO 

ton  (part  of)  :  18 

Tamhorn 

793 

10 

9 

16 

7 

5 

10 

23 

31 

33 

21 

20 

Extra  Par. 

Tamworth  (part 

of)  I9  :— 

Syerscote 

483 

23 

— 

4i 

34 

46 

48 

37 

42 

43 

40 

36 

Township  " 

Tatenhill  :—          \ 

0,100 

1,430 

i,754 

2,059 

2,180 

2,229 

2,329 

2,500 

2,593 

2,722 

2,722 

2,552 

Barton  under 

834 

1,066 

1,287 

1,344 

1,459 

1,561 

1,589 

7,677 

1,789 

1,775 

7,650 

Need  wood 

Chap,  f  > 

Dunstall 

8,458 

777 

157 

184 

204 

180 

187 

240 

249 

267 

246 

279 

Township  f 

Tatenhill 

286 

372 

426 

475 

435 

450 

519 

517 

493 

506 

472 

Township  f 

WichnorChap.J 

1,642 

133 

159 

162 

157 

155 

131 

152 

150 

173 

195 

151 

Thorpe  Constan- 

961 

62 

54 

40 

49 

42 

58 

54 

49 

57 

87 

84 

tinet 

Tutburyf     .     .     . 

4,001' 

1,004 

1,235 

1,444 

1,553 

1,835 

1,798 

1,982 

2,149 

2,306 

2,057 

1,974 

Whittington  »  J    . 

2,921 

611 

602 

707 

766 

799 

809 

819 

869 

2,009 

2,033 

2,392 

Yoxall  »  f 

4,961 

1,300 

1,345 

1,463 

1,582 

',535 

1,496 

1,443 

1,419 

i,3°i 

1,283 

1,160 

Offlow  Hundred  — 

South  Division 

Aldridge  :  — 

8,191 

1,492 

1,643 

1,583 

1,700 

2,094 

2,174 

2,254 

2,480 

3,oi7 

3,594 

3,822 

Aldridge 

2,939 

736 

847 

820 

841 

1,007 

1,173 

7,779      1,418      1,890 

2,206 

2,478 

Township  J 

Great  Ban- 

5,252 

756 

796 

763 

859 

1,087 

1,001 

1,075 

7,062      7,727 

1,388 

1,344 

Chap.  I 

Armitage  with 

1,948 

464 

483 

793 

977 

987 

1,014 

937 

992      1,283 

1,290 

1,318 

Handsacre  J 

Canwell 

347 

36 

28 

24           24 

27 

27 

43 

47           38 

78 

52 

Extra  Par. 

| 

Darlaston  f       •     • 

800 

3,8i2 

4,881 

5,585 

6,647 

8,244 

10,590 

12,884 

14,416    13,563 

14,422 

15,386 

Urayton  Bassett  J 

3,368 

395 

455 

468 

459 

404 

408 

441        439 

442 

461 

476 

Elford  t  .     .     .     . 

2,024 

383 

397 

424 

483 

434 

468 

461         453 

426 

373 

363 

Farewell  f    •     •     • 

1,049' 

165 

165 

202 

200 

203 

189 

209  j      200 

218 

182 

224 

Handsworth     .     . 

7,752 

2,719 

3,027 

3,859 

4,944 

6,138 

7,879 

11,459    16,042   24,251 

35,066  155,269 

Harborne 

3,420 

2,275 

2,612 

3,35° 

4,227 

6,657 

10,729 

16,996   22,263    3i,5'7 

44,105 

64,713 

Hints  t     .     .     .     . 

1,889 

245 

271 

250 

225 

213 

218 

200 

193         214 

238 

212 

Hopwas  Hays 

354 

— 

3 

2 

4 

6 

2 

6 

5 

6 

5 

Extra  Par. 

Lichfield  St. 

6,836 

888 

965 

977 

1,042 

1,079 

1,149 

2,712 

5,95°     7,733 

8,787 

9,884 

Michael  (part 

of)  »•  :— 

Burnt  wood 

4,417 

582 

659 

675 

731 

749 

781 

1,634 

4,525 

6,241 

7,773 

8,195 

Township  f 

Hammerwich 

1,779 

209 

215 

218 

218 

239 

270 

991 

7,325 

1J91 

7,573 

1,546 

Chap 

Wall  Township-] 

64ff 

97 

91 

84 

93 

91 

98 

87 

700 

101 

707 

143 

Longdon  .     .     .     . 

4,545 

909 

1,017 

1,115 

I,'47 

1,183 

1,148 

1,220 

1,359 

1,366 

1,338 

1,342 

18  Scropton  and  Foston. — The  remainder  is  in  Derbyshire  (Appletree  Hundred).     It  is  entirely  entered  in  Derbyshire 
1801-1831. 

19  Tamworth  Ancient  Parish  is  situated  in  Offlow  Hundred— North  and  South  Divisions,  and  in  Warwickshire 
(Hemlingford  Hundred — Tamworth  Division).     Syerscote  Township  is  included  with  the  part  of  Tamworth  Township  in 
Staffordshire  in  1811. 

*>  Whittington. — The  increase  in   population  in   1881  is  attributed  to  the  erection  and   occupation   of    a  new 
military  depot. 

111  Yoxall. — The  1801  population  is  an  estimate. 
«»  See  note  16,  ante. 

323 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

age 

Offlow  Hundred- 
South  Division 

(cent) 

Norton  under 

4,068 

547 

S'9 

669 

678 

755 

968 

1,628 

2,776 

3,546 

4,047 

5,214 

Cannock 

Ogley  Hay 

1,063 

— 

8 

23 

24 

222 

518 

1,357 

1,824 

2,040 

2,478 

2,677 

Extra  Par. 

Rushall  1      .     .     . 

1,950 

485 

613 

670 

693 

1,609 

1,946 

2,842 

3,702 

5,809 

6,980 

7,943 

Shenstone    .     .     . 

8,543 

1,309 

i,378 

1,699 

1,827 

1,962 

2,043 

2,131 

2,224 

2,488 

2,68  1 

3,043 

Statfold    .... 

455 

27 

25 

29 

4' 

45 

38 

26 

55 

61 

<    " 

21 

Tamworth  (part 

5,901 

2,699 

3,156 

3,860 

3,881 

4,156 

4,454 

4,656 

5,005 

5,529 

6,154 

6,781 

of)  »b  :— 
Fazeley  Town- 

2,084 

905 

1,165 

1,477 

1,433 

7,570 

1,690 

1,720 

1,698 

7,793 

1,867 

1,887 

ship 
Tamworth 

150 

1,123 

1,327 

1,636 

1,711 

7,797 

1,915 

1,989 

2,351 

2J89 

3,208 

3,806 

Township 

(part  of)  llb 
Wigginton 

3,667 

671 

664 

747 

737 

849 

849 

947 

956 

1,147 

1,079 

1,088 

Township 

Tipton,  or  Tib- 

2,171 

4,280 

8,407  '11,546 

'4,95' 

18,891 

24,872 

28,870 

29,445 

30,013 

29,3>4 

30,543 

bington 

Walsall  :— 
Walsall 

8,3  '4 
95 

io,399 
5,177 

11,189    ii,9'4 
J,54/      5,504 

15,066 
6,407 

20,852 
7,395 

26,822 
8,761 

39-690 
8,166 

48,524 
8,279 

58,453 
7,652 

71,397 
7,286 

87,464 
5,729 

Borough 

Township 

Walsall  Foreign 

8,219 

5,222 

5,648      6,470 

8,665 

13,457 

18,061 

31,524 

40,245 

50,801 

64,111 

81,735 

Township  * 

Wednesbury      .     . 

2,287 

4,160 

5,372  ,  6,471 

8,437 

11,625 

14,281 

21,968 

25,030 

24,566 

25,347 

26,554 

Wecford  J  :— 

4,626 

393 

377 

440 

470 

426 

425 

399 

395 

405 

4'7 

385 

\Vceford   .     .     . 

2,545 

200 

790 

278 

306 

276 

289 

290 

254 

244 

213 

223 

Packington   and 

2,081 

193 

187 

162 

164 

150 

136 

109 

141 

161 

204 

162 

Swinfen 

Township 

West  Bromwich  * 

5,851 

5,687 

7,485 

9,505 

15,327 

26,121 

34,59' 

41,795 

47,918 

56,295 

59,474 

65,114 

Wolverhampton 

8,466 

4,804 

5,345 

6,1,1 

8,538 

13,317 

18,301 

28,047 

29,856 

32,527 

35,  >°9 

40,353 

(part  of)  llc  :— 

Bentley 

1,448 

96 

705 

99 

704 

428 

380 

346 

323 

337 

355 

357 

Township 

Pelsall  Chap.  \  . 

1,263 

477 

477 

579 

721 

1,026 

1,132 

1,892 

2,389 

2,928 

3,364 

3,626 

Wednesfield 

3,688 

1,088 

1,248 

1,468 

1,879 

3,168 

4,858 

8,553 

8,998 

10,801 

12,024 

14,932 

Chap. 

WillenhallChap. 

2,067 

3,143 

3,523 

3,965 

5,834 

8,695 

11,931 

17,256 

18,146 

18,461 

79,366 

21,438 

Pirehill 

Hundrrd  — 

North  Division 

Adbaston  J   .     .     . 

4,638 

407 

536 

596 

60  1 

610 

59' 

593 

562 

539 

568 

533 

Ashley  J.     .     .     . 

2,821 

605 

616 

729 

825 

853 

896 

870 

903 

806 

797 

725 

Audley     .... 

8,727 

2,246 

2,618 

2,940 

3,617 

4,474 

5,180 

6,494 

8,955 

11,505 

12,936 

I3,9i8 

Barthomley  (part 

of)":- 

Balterley 

1,235 

237 

249 

242 

3°5 

316 

299 

281 

273 

253 

273 

253 

Township 

Betley  J    .     .     . 

1,463 

670 

761 

932 

870 

884 

882 

850 

826 

821 

827 

837 

Biddulph  .     .     . 

5,67I 

1,180 

1,460 

1,666 

1,987 

2,314 

2,683 

3,468 

4,769 

5,557 

5,290 

6,247 

Burslem    . 

3,122 

6,578     8,625 

10,176 

12,714 

16,091 

19,725 

22,327 

27,108 

28,249 

32,767 

40,234 

Drayton-in-Hales, 

or  Market 

Drayton    (part 

of)"3:— 

Tyrley 

6,589 

581        607 

726 

737 

750 

784 

814 

800 

766 

721 

689 

Township 

Eccleshall  :— 

21,738 

3,734  1  3>8oi 

4,227 

4,47' 

4,73° 

4,696 

4,882 

4,827 

4,455 

4,251 

4,186 

Chapel  Chorlton 

1,983 

247        268 

331 

386 

365 

384 

484 

475 

380 

373 

387 

Township  \ 

Eccleshall 

19,755 

3,487 

3,533 

3,896 

4,085 

4,365 

4,312 

4,395 

4,352 

4,075 

3,878 

3,799 

Township 

nb  See  note  19,  ante.  'fc  See  note  5,  ante. 

M  Barthomley  Ancient  Parish. — The  remainder  is  in  Cheshire  (Nantwich  Hundred). 

0  Drayton  in  Hales,  and  Muchlestont  Ancient  Parishes.— The  remainder  of  both  these  Parishes  is  in  Salop  (North 
Bradford  Hundred — Drayton  Division). 

324 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Pirehill 

Hundred  — 

North  Division 

(cont.) 

Keele       .... 

2,613 

904 

944 

1,061 

1,13° 

1,194 

1,232 

1,062 

1,052 

1,048 

1,090 

1,  080 

Madeley  J     .     .     . 

5,864 

945 

1,018 

1,166 

1,190 

1,492 

1,655 

1,940 

2,387 

2,457 

2,904 

2,909 

MaerJ      .... 

2,750 

382 

454 

451 

505 

559 

S'S 

473 

387 

393 

389 

436 

Mucklestone  (part 

4,252 

683 

772 

924 

964 

879 

876 

827 

755 

763 

709 

727 

of)  ^  : 

Norton  in  the 

4,141 

1,480 

1,761 

1,983 

2,407 

2,891 

3,327 

4,393 

6,902 

8,870 

9,9  '9 

I  2,  1  80 

Moors 

Offley,  HighMJ     . 

2,761 

523 

548 

569 

759 

658 

786 

883 

865 

811 

787 

627 

Standon  \     .    .     . 

2,620 

332 

420 

415 

420 

3»2 

373 

347 

329 

359 

404 

418 

Stoke  upon 

12,406 

16,414 

22,495 

29,223 

37,220 

47,95  > 

57,942  ,71,308 

89,262 

104,968 

122,101 

140,335 

Trent  :— 

Stoke  upon 

s,  on 

— 

21,631 

— 

36,059 

46J42 

56,047 

69,138 

86,320 

101,297 

117,588135,767 

Trent  *f 

Bucknall-cum- 

4,389 

— 

864 

— 

1,161 

1,609 

1,895 

2,170 

2,942 

3,671 

4,513      4,568 

Bagnall 

Chapelry  J 

Swynnerton  . 

6,481 

648 

893 

832 

791 

961 

946 

880 

876 

778 

880         811 

Trentham  f  .     .     . 

7,445 

1,857 

2,120 

2,203 

2,344 

2,567 

2,747 

4,611 

6,371 

8,383 

10,219    12,516 

Whitmore  j  .     .     . 

2.015 

234 

291 

302 

281 

367 

377 

345 

332 

3" 

318         308 

Wolstanton  *     .     . 

10,816 

4,679 

6,990 

8,572 

10,853 

'6,575 

22,191 

32,029 

41,824 

47,216 

50,885 

57,994 

Pirehill 

Hundred  — 

South  Division 

Barlaston  J  .     .     . 

2,184 

349 

396 

462 

514 

59i 

617 

637 

733 

821 

782 

744 

BlithfieldJ    .     .     . 

3,219 

439 

434 

470 

468 

390 

382 

338 

380 

299 

292         289 

Bromley,  Abbot's  . 

9.476 

1,318 

1,539 

1,533 

1,621 

1,508 

1,563 

i,538 

1,456 

1,460      1,411      1,318 

Chartley  Holme 

1,707 

9 

9 

9 

7i 

29 

36 

4i 

39!          37          34 

Extra  Parochial25 

Chebsey  J  :  — 

4,172 

441 

406 

421 

4'4 

442 

466 

5'4 

487 

503        536        566 

Chebsey    .     .     . 

2,853 

379 

358 

377 

377 

401 

448 

472 

436 

467 

462         503 

Cold  Norton 

1,319 

62 

48 

44 

37 

41 

18 

42 

51 

36 

74 

63 

Township 

Coltonft      .     .     . 

3,692 

545 

484 

569 

675 

672 

652 

629 

657 

678 

645:         677 

Colwich  :  — 

9,217 

886 

1,688 

1,86; 

1,918 

2,024 

2,072 

1,828 

1,834 

1,740 

1,5/5 

1,615 

Colwich 

7,775 

723 

1,442 

1,646 

1,719 

1,787 

1,S28 

1,608 

1,625 

1,541 

1,395 

1,449 

Township  f 

Fradswell 

1,442 

163 

246 

219 

199 

237 

244 

220 

209 

199 

180 

166 

Chapelry  t 

Creswell 

828 

'7 

19 

12 

II 

16 

7 

12 

26 

29 

56 

46 

Extra  Parochial  J 

Ellenhallf    .     .     . 

1,801 

256 

251 

287 

286 

280 

320 

300 

261 

231 

238 

207 

Gayton  J  .     .     .     . 

1,515 

273 

261 

284 

296 

291 

264 

249 

237 

236 

221 

1  80 

Ingestre  J      .     .     . 

879 

i'5 

122 

125 

116 

118 

i/4 

]5! 

163 

138 

192'           1  2O 

Milwich  J     .     .     . 

3,042 

497 

563 

567 

55' 

563 

59' 

567 

575 

547 

515            436 

Ranton  J  .     .     .     . 

1,843 

285 

278 

334 

273 

292 

312 

283 

267 

265 

249 

265 

Ranton  Abbey, 

748 

14 

14 

ii 

17 

28 

18 

'3 

2 

12 

6 

'3 

Extra  Par.  f 

Sandon  J      ... 

3,574 

516 

480 

5'3 

558 

586 

556 

590 

576 

5'3 

472 

458 

Seighford  J  .     .     . 

4,741 

841 

866 

851 

898 

903 

851 

808 

78l 

756 

793 

947 

Stafford  St.  Mary 

8,076 

1,022 

1,063 

1,256 

1,489 

1,407 

1,399 

2,210 

2,328 

2,633 

2,925 

3,514 

and  St.  Chad 

(part  of)  M  :  — 

Hopton  and 

5,777 

336 

332 

577 

642 

464 

468 

1,174 

1,216 

1,392 

1,707 

2,225 

Coton 

Township  v  t 

Marston 

1,487 

99 

100 

96 

119 

178 

206 

345 

490 

664 

623 

779 

Chapelry  ft 

8311  See  note  23,  ante. 

**  Offlty,  High. — A  number  of  men  employed  in  constructing  a  canal  present  in  1831. 

*' Chartley  Holmi.—The  boundaries  were  defined  between  1841  and  1851;  they  were  previously  in  dispute. 
Certainly  too  large  an  area  taken  in  1841. 

M  Stafford  St.  Mary  and  St.  Chad  is  situated  partly  in  Pirehill  Hundred — South  Division,  and  partly  in  the  Borough 
of  Stafford. 

»  Hopton  and  Coton  Township. — The  increase  in  population  in  1861  is  attributed  to  the  enlarging  of  a  County 
Lunatic  Asylum  and  to  the  building  of  Coton  Hill  Lunatic  Asylum. 

325 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

age 

Pirekill 

Hundred  — 

South  Division 

(cont.) 

Stafford  St.  Mary 

and  St.  Chad 

(cont.) 

Salt  and  Enson 

7,677 

370 

391 

439 

533 

580 

534 

509 

470 

427 

435 

370 

Township  f 

Whitgreave 

1,201 

217 

240 

204 

195 

185 

191 

182 

152 

150 

160 

140 

Township  % 
Stone"*.     .     .     . 

0,509 

5,373 

6,270 

7,251 

7,808 

8,349 

8,736 

9,382 

10,387 

I3.I5S 

14,066 

14,233 

StoweMt      •     •     • 

5,120 

696 

853 

1,185 

1,283 

1,267 

1,269 

1,267 

1,167 

1,168 

1,043 

934 

Tillington 

977 

29 

20 

39 

42 

55 

62 

79 

97 

271 

490 

536 

Extra  Par.  f 

Tixall  t 

2,369 

198 

206 

198 

176 

209 

221 

289 

256 

226 

212 

187 

Weston  upon 

S3' 

306 

394 

442 

587 

562 

570 

502 

495 

528 

453 

401 

Trent  t 

Worston 

172 

— 

— 

23 

25 

23 

17 

17 

5 

7 

15 

23 

Extra  Par. 

Yarlett   Extra  Par. 

400 

— 

— 

33 

21 

24 

22 

21 

ii 

117 

59 

82 

Seisdon 

Hundred  — 

North  Division 

Bushbury  (part 

3,520 

488 

603 

624 

677 

886 

988 

1,075 

i,  218 

i,77o 

2,252 

3,389 

of)  29a 

Himley  \  . 

1,221 

267 

34i 

379 

421 

409 

4OO 

367 

389 

346 

304 

291 

Kingswinford  *  . 

7,372 

6,464 

8,267 

11,022 

15,156    22,221 

27,301 

34,257 

35,o4i 

35,767 

36,411 

38,490 

Penn  :— 

4,003 

700 

780 

769 

863 

942 

1,  1  60 

1,765 

2,184 

2,804 

2,941 

3,449 

Penn,  Lower 

2,005 

— 

253 

230 

233 

226 

305 

306 

307 

335 

274 

316 

Township 

Penn,  Upper 

1,998 

— 

527 

539 

630 

716 

855 

1,459 

1,877 

2,469 

2,667 

3,133 

Township 

Rowley  Regis    .     . 

3.828 

5,027 

4,974 

6,062 

7,438 

II,  III  '14,249 

19,785 

23,534 

27,385 

30,791 

34,670 

Sedgeleyt    •    •    • 

7,743 

9,874 

13,937 

17,195 

20,577 

24,819   29,447 

36,637 

37,355 

36,574 

36,860 

38,179 

Tettenhall30.     .     . 

8,306 

i,57o 

1,814 

2,234 

2,618 

3,H3 

3,396 

3,7i6 

4,416 

5,474 

5,982 

6,459 

Wolverhampton 

5,392 

19,479 

24,482 

30,383 

39,224 

56,563 

73,512 

85,224 

92,479 

98,496 

106,115 

118,221 

(part  of;  3ta  :  — 

Wolverhampton 

3,525 

12,565 

14,836 

18,380 

24,732  \36,382 

49,985 

60,860 

68,291 

75,766 

82,662 

94,187 

Township  * 

Bilston      Town- 

1,867 

6,914 

9,646 

12,003 

14,492 

20,181 

23,527 

24,364 

24,188 

22,730 

23,453 

24,034 

ship 

Seisdon    Hundred 

-  South 

Division 

Arley,  Upper  J  .     . 

3,969 

693 

691 

7'5 

735 

667 

678 

886 

793 

731 

647 

670 

Bobbington     (part 

2,189 

381 

366 

393 

426 

396 

385 

401 

396 

373 

345 

303 

of)31 

Codsall  t  .     .     . 

2,994 

589 

739 

903 

1,115 

1,096 

1,195 

1,204 

1,313 

1,398 

1,436 

1,452 

Enville 

4,986 

799 

746 

842 

766 

814 

807 

850 

793 

773 

7'5 

645 

Kinver  J  .     .     . 

9,011 

1,655 

1,668 

i,735 

l,83t 

2,207 

2,872 

3,55' 

3,194 

2,842 

2,  1  60 

2,176 

Patshull  t      .     . 

1,824 

1  60 

142 

144 

132 

117 

112 

194 

208 

193 

234 

222 

Pattingham     (par 

2,529 

750 

798 

866 

817 

802 

939 

959 

924 

955 

8S9 

779 

of)82 

Swinford,  Old  (part 

of)  33  :— 

Amblecote 

665 

1,002 

1,079 

i,'57 

1,236 

1,623 

2,053 

2,613 

2,771 

2,808 

2,876 

3,128 

Hamlet  J 

"  Stone  Ancient  Parish. — The  populations  for  1801  and  1811  are  estimated. 
9  Stowt. — The  1801  population  is  an  estimate.  **>  See  note  3,  ante 

M  Tettenhall  is  partly  in  Seisdon  Hundred— South  Division.     None  shown  there. 

»°»  See  note  5,  ante. 

41  Bobbington  Ancient  Parish.— The  remainder  is  in  Salop  (Brimstree  Hundred).     It  is  entirely  shown  in  Stafford 
shire  1801-1831. 

41  Pattineham  Ancient  Parish. — The  remainder  is  in  Salop  (Stottesdon  Hundred). 

43  Swinford.  Old.  Ancient  Parish.— The  remainder  is  in  Worcestershire  (Halfshire  Hundred— Lower  Division).     The 
1811  population  for  Amblecote  Hamlet  is  an  estimate. 

326 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued] 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Seisdon  Hundred 

—  South  Division 

(conk) 

Trysull34!    .     .     . 

2,951 

529 

491 

539 

562 

541 

559 

610 

583 

567 

554 

553 

Wombourn  .     .     . 

4,36o 

1,170 

1,136 

i,478 

1,647 

1,  808 

2,007 

2,236 

2,080 

1,986 

1,910 

1,856 

Woodford   Grange 

199 

J4 

18 

14 

8 

13 

II 

8 

8 

'5 

Extra  Par.34 

Totmonslow 

Hundred  — 

North  Division 

Alstonfield  :  — 

23,249 

4,302 

4,870 

5,169 

4,827 

4,701 

4,523 

4,"7 

3,902 

3,414 

3,070  ;  2,853 

Alstonfield 

2,938 

573 

654 

677 

649 

654 

681 

651 

562 

471 

476         438 

Township 

Fawfieldhead 

5J83 

788 

1,003 

1,135 

1,017 

991 

923 

817 

750 

633 

570         490 

Township 

Heathylee 

5J35 

520 

706 

788 

689 

633 

578 

504 

440 

418 

361         353 

Township 

Hollingsclough 

1,842 

562 

513 

560 

564 

457 

400 

393 

425 

348 

308         259 

Township 

Longnor  Chap.  . 

813 

391 

467 

460 

429 

485 

561 

514 

520 

534 

509         480 

Quarnford  Chap. 

3,141 

737 

699 

695 

783 

709 

665 

549 

485 

436 

343         339 

Warslow  and 

3,597 

731 

828 

854 

696 

772 

715 

689 

720 

574 

503         494 

Elkstones 

Township 

Blore  :— 

2,257 

239 

164 

35' 

354 

333 

299 

320 

302         279 

235         250 

Blore  with 

1,885 

203 

164 

288 

299 

273 

241 

248 

224         217 

178         176 

Swinscoe 

Township  \ 

Calton-in-Blore 

372 

36 

— 

63 

55 

60 

58 

72 

78 

62 

57           74 

Township35  f 

Cauldon  J     .     .     . 

1,494 

256 

317 

350 

347 

326 

350 

400 

365 

322 

295 

273 

Caverswall  f      .     . 

5,262 

756 

900 

1,082 

1,207 

1,505 

1,581 

3,046 

4,082 

5,109 

6,125 

6,880 

Cheddleton  36  :— 

9,176 

1,174 

1,392 

1,525 

1,664 

1,824 

1,877 

2,050 

2,098 

2,056 

1,973 

2,766 

Basford     Town- 

~1 

f 

ship 

209 

243 

282 

300 

349 

367 

428 

370 

Cheddleton    and 

\7fl17 

\ 

1,832 

1,772 

2,562 

Rownall 

}     773 

952 

1,061 

1,167 

1,285 

1,294 

1,374 

1,502  , 

Township 

{ 

} 

Consall     Town- 

2,159 

190 

197 

182 

197 

190 

216 

248 

226 

224 

201 

204 

ship 

Dilhorne  :  — 

3,776 

1,083 

1,184 

1,409 

1,510 

1,579 

1,615 

1,573 

1,536 

1,637 

1,770 

2,160 

Dilhorne  \     .     . 

— 

520 

— 

744 

756 

736 

823 

849 

734 

740 

734 

787 

Forsbrook 

— 

563 

— 

665 

754 

843 

792 

724 

802 

897 

1,036 

1,373 

Township 

Grindon  J     .     .     . 

3,274 

388 

403 

455 

431 

404 

381 

371 

38l 

364 

350 

355 

Horton     .... 

4,975 

752 

794 

942 

970 

942 

967 

1,046 

1,159 

1,201 

1,  216 

i,295 

Damn    .     .     .     . 

3,006 

177 

177 

253 

2IO 

244 

233 

243 

206 

207 

228 

171 

Ipstones  .... 

5,697 

1,204 

',235 

1,425 

1,384 

1,370 

1,292 

1,904 

1,673 

1,417 

>,35[ 

i,34o 

Kingsley         (part 

of)  3'  :— 

Whiston   Town- 

— 

300 

35' 

403 

549 

681 

675 

708 

689 

— 

— 

— 

ship 

Leek  (part  of)38:— 

31,819 

6,710 

7,368 

9,035 

10,663 

11,648 

13,207 

14,232 

15,474 

17,138 

18,641 

20,001 

Bradnop   Town- 

3,568 

— 

420 

489 

467 

442 

447 

454 

445 

445 

450 

405 

ship89 

Stanley     Town- 

1 

(  113 

118 

122 

108 

ship 

Endon  Chap  .     . 

^5,453 

734 

766 

{  445 

487 

571 

658 

1,241 

1,370 

1,560 

1,759 

1,884 

Longsdon  Town- 

ship 

(350 

398 

405 

428 

Heaton     Town- 

2,689 

343 

346 

39  1 

402 

430 

405 

396 

361 

328 

371 

359 

ship 

' 

34  Trysull  includes  Woodford  Grange  in  1811. 

34  Calton-in  Blore,  and  Calton-in-Wattr/all.  The  population  of  these  two  places  included  in  that  of  Calton-in- 
Afayfieldin  1811. 

36  Cheddleton  Ancient  Parish. — The  increase  in  population  in  1901  is  due  to  the  erection  and  occupation  of  a  County 
Lunatic  Asylum. 

3'  Kingsley  Ancient  Parish  is  situated  in  Totmonslow  Hundred — North  and  South  Divisions.  The  entire  area  and 
population  1881-1901  are  shown  in  the  Southern  Division. 

M  Leek  Ancient  Parish  is  situated  in  Totmonslow  Hundred — North  and  South  Divisions. 

"  Bradnop  was  probably  included  with  Ontcote  in  1801. 

327 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Totmonslow 

Hundred—  North 

Division  (cont.) 

Leek  (cont.) 

Leekfrith 

7,542 

697 

710 

806 

873 

926 

877 

763 

771 

821 

792 

7/6 

Township  f 

Leek  and   Lowe 

2,722 

3,489 

3,703 

4,855 

6,374 

7,233 

8,602 

9,057 

10,127 

11,486 

12,783 

14J24 

Township  *t 

Onecote  Chap.39a 

4,936 

615 

464 

585 

456 

427 

438 

463 

392 

373 

401 

389 

Rushton    James 

1,390 

264 

324 

354 

304 

304 

283 

273 

281 

267 

242 

229 

Township 

Rushton  Spencer 

1,860 

294 

362 

359 

337 

350 

355 

358 

330, 

341 

339 

315 

Township 

Tittesworth 

1,659 

274 

273 

288 

447 

438 

606 

1,227 

1,397 

1,517 

1,504 

1,480 

Township  f 

Okeoverft   .     .     . 

874 

42 

60 

69 

62 

67 

61 

61 

65 

81 

8l 

67 

Totmonslow  Hun- 

dred —  South 

Division 

Alton,     or     Alve- 

7,6l9 

1,633 

1,898 

2,170 

2,391 

2,390 

2,326 

2,250 

2,235 

2,621 

2,757 

2,889 

ton  :  — 

Alton 

2,243 

818         934 

1,103 

1,220 

1,168 

1,162 

1,173 

1,074 

1,054 

1,C89 

1,227 

Township  f 

Cotton,      Upper 

2,263 

302         408 

439 

471 

519 

502 

446 

477 

648 

641 

681 

and    Lower 

I 

Township  f 

Denstone 

771 

792 

2/7 

230 

250 

231 

232 

241 

263        441 

537 

550 

Township 

Farley 

2,342 

321         330 

398 

450 

472 

430 

390 

421  i      478 

490 

431 

Township  f 

Bradley  in  the 

677 

75         83 

84 

75 

72 

64 

43 

50           51 

65 

69 

Moors  J 

Bramshall  J  .     .     . 

1,328 

193      155 

189 

170 

170 

205 

'99 

161        142 

146 

142 

Cheadle*t  •     •     • 
Checklist    • 

6,793 
6,073 

2,75°     3,'9' 
1,374      1,698 

3,862 
2,070 

4,119 
2,247 

4-399 
2,322 

4,681 
2,271 

4,803 
2,428 

4,492  '  4,724 
2,353     2,549 

4,884 
2,659 

5,5'2 
2,521 

Croxden  f     .     .     - 

2,644 

293        263 

258 

272 

29-, 

260 

224 

191 

181 

209 

209 

Draycott  in  the 

Moors  J 

3,9°7 

491 

536 

579 

539 

518 

520 

45' 

43° 

406 

367 

35' 

Ellastone  :  — 

7,4i6 

1,109     1,126 

1,328 

1,344 

1,308 

1,312 

1,230 

1.142 

1,051 

1,032 

966 

Calwich 

763 

94         105 

120 

136 

131 

121 

85 

114 

125 

142 

126 

Township  f 

Ellastone 

795 

294  i      285 

350 

361 

351 

384 

384 

327 

280 

274 

268 

Township  f 

Prestwood 

450 

80           SO 

88 

77 

68 

74 

55 

63 

47 

46 

39 

Township40  f 

Ramshorn 

1,509 

)           (       130 

152 

130 

142 

118 

118 

112 

101 

82 

85 

Township40 

>    402  < 

Stanton 

2,027 

}           (       298 

373 

371 

393 

397 

403 

342 

315 

286 

207 

Township 

Wootton 

1,872 

239         228 

245 

269 

223 

218 

185 

184   I       183 

202 

151 

Township 

Gratwich  J 
Kingsley 

865 
4,769 

107 
673 

no 

787 

"5 

9'7 

116 
867 

119 
873 

102 
890 

IOI 

1,332 

92 
1,196 

72 
1,832 

67 
1,935 

57 
2,283 

(part  of)  40a  f 

Kingston  J 
Leek  (part  of)  40b  :— 

2,037 

276 

335 

355 

368 

339 

326 

312 

278 

280 

252 

223 

Rudyard   Town- 

i,43S 

109 

"5 

112 

117 

90 

94 

94 

70 

72 

75 

81 

ship  and 

Manor 

Leigh  4I  J  :— 

7,205 

905 

937 

1,019 

1,038 

I,OI2 

1,074 

986 

954 

937 

960 

9'5 

Leigh 

6,223 

842 

868 

947 

956 

926 

965 

902 

866 

866 

883 

853 

Field   Township 

982 

63 

69 

72 

82 

86 

109 

84 

88 

71 

77 

62 

Mayfield  :— 
Butterton 

3,987 
1,499 

I,0l8      1,156 
297        355 

i,435 
432 

1,366 
346 

1,348 
388 

l,3'3 
352 

1,426 
325 

1,446 
309 

1,529 
231 

1,580 
246 

1,627 
263 

Chap.  J 

"•'  See  note  39,  ante. 

40  Prestwood  and  Ramshorn.— The  1811  populations  for  these  places  are  estimates. 
°»  See  note  37,  ante. 

40b  See  note  38,  ante. 

41  Leigh  Ancient  Parish. -There  were  some  labourers  on  railway  works  present  in  1851. 

328 


SOCIAL    AND    ECONOMIC    HISTORY 


TABLE   OF   POPULATION,    1801—1901    (continued) 


PARISH 

Acre- 
age 

1801 

1811 

1821 

1831 

1841 

1851 

1861 

1871 

1881 

1891 

1901 

Totmonslow 

Hundred—  South 

Division  (cont.) 

Mayfield  (cont.) 

Calton-in-May- 

376 

67 

220 

87 

79 

88 

88 

70 

54 

64 

65 

58 

field       Town- 

ship 41a  f 

Mayfield 

1,859 

626 

581 

890 

913 

847 

844 

7,005 

1,061 

1,215 

1,252 

1,291 

Township  f 

Woodhouses 

253 

28 

— 

26 

28 

25 

29 

26 

22 

19 

17 

15 

Township 

Musden  Grange 

565 

— 

— 

'  '5 

15 

21 

25 

14 

'9 

22 

18 

8 

Extra  Par.  f 

Rocester 

2,537 

899 

873 

1,037 

1,040 

1,146 

1,185 

1,175 

1,341 

1,220 

1,288 

1,413 

Sheen  J 

2,893 

362 

414 

429 

366 

402 

395 

427 

458 

419 

364 

347 

Uttoxeter  *  f 

8,973" 

3,650 

4,114 

4,658 

4,864 

4,735 

4,990 

4,847 

4,692 

4,98l 

5,477 

6,204 

Waterfall  :— 
Calton-in-  Water- 

2,221 
596 

467 

455 

534 
73 

S3' 
81 

5'7 
77 

521 
76 

533 
65 

504 
73 

489 
74 

429 
75 

481 

75 

fall         Town- 

ship 41a  f 

Waterfall 

1,625 



455 

461 

450 

446 

445 

468 

431 

415 

354 

406 

Township  J 

Wetton  J 

2,630 

540 

593 

609 

497 

485 

466 

452 

397 

327 

308 

290 

Lichfield  City  and 

Borough 

StChad  (part  of)41b 

I,IO2 

1,183 

1,405 

1,816 

i,944 

2,036 

2,112 

1,920 

2,013 

2,205 

1,934 

2,057 

St.  Mary 
St.    Michael    (part 

58e 

2,422 
1,037 

2,382 
1,123 

2,721 
1,424 

2,780 
1,636 

2,634 
1,977 

2,659 
2,076 

2,683   '   2,784 
2,162      2,412 

2,832 
3,242 

2,555 
3,2/6 

2,281 
3,546 

of)  41c  :— 

St.  Michael  * 

2,7.26 

907 

994 

1,318 

1,508 

1,817 

1,925 

1,986      2,255 

3,012 

3,086 

3,265 

Pipehill 

580" 

95 

110 

92 

111 

110 

126 

156         137 

177 

144 

181 

Township  4a  t 

Freeford 

378 

35 

19 

14 

17 

50 

25 

20 

20 

53 

46 

100 

Hamlet  42a 

The  Close 

16 

200 

241 

2  2O 

247 

190 

246 

235 

251 

232 

212 

249 

Extra  Par.  J 

The  Friary 

II 

— 

— 

— 

20 

14 

9 

8 

12 

9 

9 

7 

Extra  Par. 

Newcastle  under 

Lyme  Borough 

Newcastle  under 

554e 

4,604 

6,175 

7,031 

8,192 

9,838 

10,290 

12,638 

15,538 

16,838 

17,805 

19,147 

Lyme  * 

Stafford  Borough 

St.Mary&St.Chad 

365 

3,898 

4,868 

5,736 

6,956 

9,245 

10,777 

10,996     12,212 

'4,399 

13,946 

14,060 

(part  of)  4ab  *  f 

The  following  Municipal  Boroughs  and  Urban  Districts  were  coextensive  at  the  Census  of  1901 
with  one  or  more  places  mentioned  in  the  Table  : — 

Municipal  Borough  or  Urban  District 
Amblecote  U.D. 
BiddulphU.D. 

Bilston  U.D 

Cannock  U.D. 
Rowley  Regis  U.D.    . 

Tipton  U.D 

Wednesbury  M.B.       . 
Wolverhampton  M.B. 


Place 

Amblecote  Hamlet  (Seisdon  Hundred — South  Division). 
Biddulph  Parish  (Pirehill  Hundred — North  Division). 
Bilston  Township  (Seisdon  Hundred — North  Division). 
Cannock  Township  (Cuttlestone  Hundred — East  Division). 
Rowley  Regis  Parish  (Seisdon  Hundred — North  Division). 
Tipton  Parish  (Offlow  Hundred — South  Division). 
Wednesbury  Parish  (Offlow  Hundred — South  Division). 
Wolverhampton  Township  (Seisdon  Hundred — North  Division). 


«»  See  note  35,  ante.  41b  See  note  15,  ante. 

4*  npehill  is  partly  in  Offlow  Hundred — South  Division.     None  shown  there. 

4il  See  note  17,  ante.  tib  See  note  26,  ante. 

I  329 


<lc  See  note  16,  ante. 


MAP 

showing 


STAFFORDSHIRE 

Scale   of  Miles 


x     /  >_V- 

Xinver      \ 
,.*.J    J^.JL.%       \ 


C  E  S  T 


A  Promontory  fortresses. 

B  #///  /o/-te  eic: 

C  Simple  Defensive  £nclosures  etc: 

D  Mounds. 

E  Mounds  with  attached  Courts. 

f  Momestead  Moats 

C  Moated  Enclosures  with  stronger  works 

H  Ancient   Village  Sites.     ' 

T  Tumuli  etc: 

X  Unclassified  Earthworks. 


ANCIENT   EARTHWORKS 

The  county  of  Stafford  comprises  an  extent  of  some  fifty-two  miles  in 
length  and  thirty-four  miles  in  extreme  width,  containing  in  the  whole  about 
one  thousand  one  hundred  and  seventy-one  superficial  miles.  The  surface 
varies  in  altitude  from  150  ft.  to  i,8ioft.  above  sea  level.  Rivers  flow  in  its 
many  valleys,  measuring  altogether  an  enormous  length  through  lands  of  the 
richest  character  ;  and  its  hills  shape  into  the  bossy  forms  which  come  of  the 
gravels  and  new  red  sandstone,  varied  by  the  bare  crags  of  the  limestone 
rocks  and  the  heathery  moors  and  woods  of  its  grit-stones. 

Before,  however,  entering  upon  any  description  of  the  ancient  earth- 
works of  this  county  as  they  at  present  exist,  reference  to  the  writings  of  the 
early  historians  who  dealt  with  the  subject  in  their  day  should  be  alluded  to. 
Camden,  Gibson,  Erdeswick,  Harwood,  Plot,  Shaw,  and  others  each  recorded 
these  works  ;  some  of  which  have  now  disappeared.  Many  of  the  views  of 
these  early  writers  are  by  no  means  to  be  ignored,  and  their  statements  of 
facts  are  worthy  of  consideration. 

One  at  least  of  the  earthworks  mentioned  by  Dr.  Plot  has  now  dis- 
appeared. At  Wrottesley  he  says  : — '  There  remained  (in  his  day)  either 
the  foundation  of  some  ancient  British  City  or  other  fortification  of  great 
extent  the  whole  containing  in  circuit  about  three  or  four  miles  lying  part  in 
Staffordshire  and  part  in  Shropshire.'  So  far  as  diligent  and  repeated  search 
can  now  disclose  there  is  nothing  of  this  vast  inclosure  at  present  to  be  seen, 
nor  has  minute  inquiry  ended  in  information  being  obtained  beyond  the  bare 
tradition  of  its  existence.  Placing  the  positions  of  the  earthworks  upon 
the  map,  it  will  be  found  that  there  is  scarcely  a  parish  within  our  borders 
which  does  not  contain  one  or  more  of  these  features  of  remote  or  later 
date. 

In  the  classification  of  these  various  works  we  follow  the  scheme  formu- 
lated by  the  Congress  of  Archaeological  Societies  : — 

CLASS  A. — Fortresses  partly  inaccessible,  by  reason  of  precipices,  cliffs,  or  water,  additionally 

defended  by  artificial  works,  usually  known  as  promontory  fortresses. 
CLASS  B. — Fortresses  on  hill-tops  with  artificial  defences,  following  the  natural  line  of  the  hill; 

or,  though  usually  en  high  ground,  less  dependent  on  natural  slopes  for  protection. 
CLASS  C. — Rectangular    or    other   simple    inclosures,    including    forts    and    towns   of   the 

Romano-British  period. 

CLASS  D. — Forts  consisting  only  of  a  mound  with  encircling  ditch  or  fosse. 
CLASS  E. — Fortified  mounds,  either  artificial   or  partly   natural,  with   traces  of  an  attached 

court  or  bailey,  or  of  two  or  more  such  courts. 
CLASS  F. — Homestead  moats,  such  as  abound  in  some  lowland  districts,  consisting  of  simple 

inclosures  formed  into  artificial  islands  by  water  moats. 
CLASS  G. — Inclosures,   mostly  rectangular,  partaking  of  the  form  of  p,  but  protected  by 

stronger  defensive  works,  ramparted  and  fossed,  and  in  some  instances  provided  with 

outworks. 

CLASS  H. — Ancient  village  sites  protected  by  walls,  ramparts  or  fosses. 
CLASS  X. — Defensive  works  which  fall  under  none  of  these  headings. 

331 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

It  is  difficult  in  the  county  of  Stafford  to  follow  strictly  the  above 
classification  owing  to  certain  peculiarities  of  types.  For  this  reason  all  the 
camps  on  hill-tops  have  been  placed  under  class  B,  and  all  the  fortified 
mounds  in  the  above  classification  divided  into  classes  D  and  E  have  been 
grouped  together. 

Most  of  the  plans  have  been  taken  from  the  Ordnance  maps,  which  have 
been  checked  and  measured  approximately  on  the  spot ;  and  some  of  the 
plans  and  all  the  sections  have  been  produced  from  approximate  measure- 
ments, and  levelling  taken  on  the  sites.  In  every  instance  personal  inspec- 
tion has  been  made  either  by  the  writer  or  by  surveyors  in  his  employ- 
ment. 

The  general  position  of  the  hill  forts  in  relation  to  this  county  may 
be  stated  as  follows : — In  the  extreme  south-western  corner  of  the  shire  is  the 
fort  on  Kinver  Edge  ;  at  about  forty  miles  in  a  direct  line  northward  there  is 
'  Berth  Hill '  in  the  parish  of  Maer ;  at  nearly  a  right  angle  to  this,  eastwards, 
is  '  Bunbury '  in  the  parish  of  Alton,  about  eighteen  miles  distant  ;  at  about 
twenty-four  miles  nearly  due  south  from  this,  in  the  parish  of  Shenstone,  is 
'  Castle  Old  Fort,'  which  is  fourteen  miles  north-east  from  Kinver  Edge. 
These  four  examples  lie  near  to  the  boundaries  of  the  shire.  The  remaining 
three,  follow  a  winding  diagonal  line  between  '  Castle  Old  Fort  '  and  '  Berth 
Hill  ;  the  first  of  these,  '  Castle  Ring,'  being  7  miles  from  Castle  Old 
Fort  ;  'Bury  Ring'  being  10  miles  from  'Castle  Ring'  :  '  Bury  Bank,'  in 
a  direct  line  northwards,  about  10  miles  from  Castle  Ring,  and  about  5 
miles  from  Berth  Hill. 

It  will  be  noticed  from  this  that  for  the  whole  width  east  and  west  of 
the  county,  and  for  17  miles  from  north  to  south,  the  extreme  north  part 
has  no  example  of  the  description  termed  the  hill  fort. 

It  would  not  be  of  any  profit  to  speculate  on  the  reasons  which  led  to 
the  placing  of  these  forts  in  their  actual  positions,  but  it  may  be  emphasized 
that  those  near  the  east  and  west  boundaries  lie  in  lines  very  nearly  north 
and  south,  and  that  the  two  to  the  north  run  in  line  nearly  due  east  and  west, 
and  also  that  the  central  area  between  the  others  is  well  covered  by  the 
intermediate  forts.  That  this  class  of  earthworks  was  for  the  purposes  of 
succour  and  defence  there  can  be  no  question.  That  collectively  they  form 
the  means  of  safety  over  a  given  area  is  tolerably  clear.  They  would  seem 
to  bear  internal  evidence  that  they  all  were  constructed  by  the  same  people, 
for  their  main  characteristics  are  strikingly  alike.  In  every  case  their  situa- 
tion is  on  high  ground  from  which  full  command  is  obtained,  both  of  their 
immediate  surroundings  and  of  very  extensive  distant  prospects.  In  fact, 
from  each  of  them  a  panoramic  view  of  vast  extent  is  obtainable.  In  each  a 
certain  length  of  boundary  abuts  upon  the  upper  edge  of  the  steep  slope  of 
natural  hills,  the  remaining  boundaries  are  more  or  less  circular  in  form, 
with  the  exception  of  that  at  Kinver  Edge,  which  is  distinguished  as  being 
rectangular  ;  thus,  speaking  generally,  they  are  irregular  in  shape.  The 
mode  of  their  construction  seems  to  have  been  as  follows  : — The  site  having 
been  carefully  selected  with  command  and  defence  in  view,  and  the  size 
determined  upon,  the  ground  within  the  prescribed  area  was  used  for  pro- 
curing by  excavation  the  necessary  materials  for  the  inner  vallum,  in  some 
cases  mixed  with  rubble  stone.  The  material  so  procured,  with  that  from 

332 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

the  fosses,  was  thrown  up  into  screen  banks  along  the  lines  of  the  adjacent 
steep  slopes  for  about  6  ft.  in  height.  On  the  other  boundaries  from  one  to  three 
banks  were  thrown  up  with  corresponding  fosses  of  varying  widths  and 
depths.  The  magnitude  of  these  walls  and  intrenchments  was  determined 
by  the  nature  of  the  adjacent  lands.  Where  they  were  flat  and  afforded  easy 
approach  to  the  fort,  there  the  works  of  defence  were  multiplied ;  but  where 
natural  obstacles  to  approach  existed  in  the  shape  of  slopes  or  otherwise  the 
works  of  defence  were  reduced  to  a  minimum.  But  what  these  forts  always 
afforded  was  an  internal  area  of  some  acres  in  extent,  but  varying  in  size, 
inclosed  within  a  well-raised  vallum,  effecting  the  exclusion  from  without  of 
the  inclosed  area.  On  the  outside  of  the  inclosing  wall  were  either  the 
natural  cliff-like  slopes  or  the  raised  banks  and  sunk  ditches,  giving  to  those 
within  the  inclosure  security  from  surprise  and  a  very  formidable  defence 
against  any  invading  foe.  The  tops  of  the  walls  it  is  considered  had  possibly 
the  further  defence  of  a  stockade  sloping  outwards  from  the  foot  and  making 
a  solid  barrier  in  addition  to  the  walls  and  intrenchments.  None  of  the 
intrenchments  in  this  class  of  work  were  served  with  water  as  an  aid  to 
defence  in  the  examples  within  the  county. 

Since  the  accounts  given  by  the  early  writers  on  these  earthworks  very 
little  has  been  added  with  regard  to  them,  but  the  present  writer  did,  in 
1892,  read  a  paper  on  the  subject  before  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club, 
and  also  another  at  the  congress  of  the  British  Archaeological  Association 
held  in  York  in  1891  ;  and  in  the  Court  Guide  for  1902  the  subject  was 
further  referred  to,  when  the  main  characteristics  of  the  early  forts  were 
described  as  follows  : — 

1.  Their  situation  is  at  a  high  level. 

2.  They  command  panoramic  views,  so  that  the  surrounding  country  is  everywhere  within 

direct  sight. 

3.  They  are  near  to  a  water  supply  of  stream  or  spring. 

4.  They  make  use  of  natural  means  of  security  to  a  full  practicable  extent  by  hugging  the 

upper  edge  of  a  precipitous  slope  or  cliff,  and  when  this  terminates  fosses  are  dug  and 
ramparts  raised. 

5.  Their  entrances  are  secluded  and  flanked  by  commanding  mounds. 

6.  The  surface  of   the  inclosed  area  has  been   shaped   by  the   removal  of   earth   for  the 

ramparts,  and  it  forms  a  shelter  and   fortified   space  ;  the  outlines  are   irregular   and 
unsymmetrical. 

7.  The  approaches  are  circuitous,  secluded,  and  under  view  from  the  ramparts. 

Their  general  aspect  is  that  of  a  defended  retreat  safe  in  any  direction 
from  surprises  of  any  kind  and  offering  secure  protection  to  a  whole  com- 
munity, with  its  herds,  flocks,  and  other  belongings.  These  defensive  forts 
in  some  cases  have  command  of  rivers,  and  in  others  lie  upon  their  tribu- 
taries. The  courses  of  rivers  were,  it  must  be  remembered,  commonly 
resorted  to  by  the  invader. 

There  still  remains  in  this  county  strong  evidence  of  Roman  earthworks 
(class  C),  as  may  be  seen  in  the  remains  of  camps  at  Chesterton  near  to 
Newcastle  under  Lyme,  at  Barrow  Hill  near  Rocester,  at  Longdon  near  Lich- 
field,  and  at  Green's  Forge  west  of  Dudley. 

The  mound  and  mound  and  bailey  type  (classes  D  and  E)  of  defensive 
earthwork  is  conspicuously  present  in  this  county,  and  exists  at  the  county 
town  of  Stafford,  and  at  Heighley,  Newcastle  under  Lyme,  Alton,  Tutbury, 

333 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

Chartley,  Tamworth,  and  Dudley,  and  in  a  modified  form  at  Caverswall, 
Eccleshall,  and  Lichfield. 

Of  the  homestead  moats  (class  F),  which  are  numerous,  it  has  been 
thought  necessary  only  to  give  a  tabulated  list. 

A  tabulated  list  has  also  been  given  of  the  lows  and  other  burial 
mounds. 

In  conclusion  the  writer  has  to  tender  his  thanks  to  all  those  who 
have  assisted  him  in  his  task,  more  especially  to  his  son,  the  late  Mr.  Thomas 
Rickman  Lynam,  who  worked  for  months  in  measuring  and  levelling, 
and  who  stood  the  trials  of  three  years  in  the  Royal  Engineers  in  the 
South  African  war,  but  succumbed  to  the  dread  cold  and  wet  of  England's 
last  spring. 


HILL    FORTS 

(CLASS  B) 
ALTON  :   BUNBURY.  —  Of  this  fort  Dr.  Stebbing  Shaw  relates  :  — 

Near  Alveton,  or  Alton,  in  the  north-west  borders  of  this  county,  upon  a  lofty 
situation  in  the  lands  of  the  Earl  of  Shrewsbury,  there  still  remains  near  the  lodge  another 
fortress  like  that  at  Mere,  only  very  much  larger,  which  they  call  Bunbury.  The  form  of 
it  is  irregular,  being  encompassed  with  a  double,  and  sometimes  treble  trench,  according  to 
the  situation  required  on  the  north-west  and  north-east  sides,  all  the  rest  being  naturally 
inaccessible,  the  whole  including  about  an  hundred  acres  .  .  .  This  work  still  remains  very 
visible,  and  I  was  informed  that  an  ancient  sword  was  found  very  lately  and  sent  to  Sir 
Joseph  Banks. 


N 


SCALC  OF  FtET 

o  100       20O      3OO 


Alton  Towers 


SECTION  A.B. 
SCALE  4-0 '» I? 


B 


BUNBURY  HILL,  ALTON 

Since  the  time  of  Stebbing  Shaw  the  visibility  of  this  fort  has  almost 
vanished,  for  part  of  it  became  the  site  of  the  far-famed  Alton  Towers  and 
its  sumptuous  gardens.  Happily  a  fragment  of  the  hundred  acres  of  the 
fort  still  remains  ;  its  point  of  commencement  starting  immediately  at  the 

334 


\ 


*~i- 

*"-  '*-  . 


CofTa 


SECTION  C-  D  * 
LooK'ing    South 


,'/  *"      -" 

5CALE/OF    FtET 

IOO/     -200        300 
1 1 '       i 


SECTIONS    A.B.C  D-E.F.C.H_  I.J. 
8O  =  1  " 


BURY  RING,  BRADLEY 


335 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

back  of  '  The  Towers,'  with  a  termination  at  the  Flag  Tower,  and  its  banks 
and  intrenchments  may  still  be  traced  amidst  the  thickly  studded  and  rugged 
woods  and  grounds.  The  foot  of  Bunbury  Hill  reached  to  the  River 
Churnet,  and  barely  outside  its  borders  Alton  railway  station  exists  at  the 
present  time.  This  spot  has  had  its  marked  features  through  long  ages  past 
and  the  valley  here  is  unsurpassed  for  its  natural  beauty,  and  '  The  Towers  ' 
on  one  side  and  the  castle  and  monastery  on  the  other  render  the  landscape 
specially  charming.  The  original  hundred  acres  was  chosen  as  the  site  of  the 
fort  when  the  hill  was  a  barren  waste. 

BRADLEY. — BURY  RING  is  in  this  parish  at  Billington,  less  than  five 
miles  to  the  west  of  the  county  town  of  Stafford,  and  only  a  few  yards  to  the 
north  of  the  main  road  between  Stafford  and  Newport,  Salop.  It  has  been 
thought  that  this  was  the  site  of  one  of  the  three  castles  said  to  have  been 
erected  at  Stafford,  and  it  must  be  noted  that  there  is  one  point  in  its  con- 
struction which  differs  in  an  important  particular  from  the  usual  type  of  these 
forts,  namely  that  there  is  no  inner  vallum  remaining  except  one  short  length 
next  the  inclosure  which  here  bounds  the  edge  of  the  intrenchment.  Also 
it  must  be  noticed  that  its  general  form  is  less  irregular  in  shape ;  but  having 
regard  to  its  situation  and  general  details  of  construction  it  may  perhaps  be 
concluded  that  it  belongs  to  the  period,  and  was  the  work  of  the  same 
people  that  formed  the  class  of  forts  of  which  we  are  now  treating.  It  is 
placed  on  the  top  and  side  of  a. hill,  roughly  elliptical  in  form,  surrounded  by 
ramparts  and  intrenchments  after  the  manner  of  the  examples  previously 
noticed  (except  as  above  pointed  out),  with  a  bastion  of  earth  strictly 
guarding  its  simple  entrance  at  its  southern  end,  features  all  corresponding  in 
character  with  this  class.  The  intrenchments  are  deeper  and  broader  than  is 
usual.  It  would  seem  also  that  the  present  roadway  on  the  west  was 
originally  another  intrenchment.  The  inner  extreme  length  is  250  yds., 
and  width  158  yds.,  with  an  area  of  7  acres.  At  the  present  time  there 
is  water  within  and  outside  the  fort  and  Butterbank  Brook  is  about  half  a  mile 
away.  The  difference  in  this  example,  as  pointed  out  above,  may  indicate  a  later 
date  of  construction.  The  nearest  level  on  the  main  road  between  Stafford 
and  Newport  is  449  ft. 

CANNOCK  and  LONGDON. — CASTLE  RING,  the  next  example  to  be  noticed, 
is  about  3!  miles  from  Rugeley,  and  is  situated  in  Beaudesert  Old  Park,  within 
the  area  of  the  Cannock  Chase  Coal  Field,  one  of  the  lodges  of  the  present  park 
being  at  its  north-east  corner.  It  lies  less  than  half  a  mile  north  of  Gentle- 
shaw.  The  fort  is  five-sided  :  the  two  sides  to  the  south-east  and  south-west 
are  of  equal  length,  the  three  other  sides  are  of  unequal  length,  that  to  the 
north  being  the  longest,  and  that  to  the  east  the  shortest.  Each  of  the  sides 
is  practically  straight  in  line,  and  they  have  rounded  angles  at  their  junctions 
both  external  and  internal  of  the  intrenchments.  There  are  double  ramparts 
and  intrenchments  on  all  sides,  and  to  the  east  an  additional  set.  The  north 
side  abuts  upon  the  edge  of  a  steep  slope,  the  others  face  to  open  lands.  The 
extreme  length  within  the  ramparts  is  267  yds.,  the  width  203  yds.,  and  the  area 
consists  of  8j  acres.  There  are  indications  of  entrances  in  the  north-east  corner 
and  on  the  south-west  side,  and  a  pathway  now  runs  between  these  two  points. 
The  nearest  level  to  the  fort  is  given  at  67 1  '2  ft.  The  situation  affords  magnifi- 
cent prospects,  quite  panoramic,  and  it  is  affirmed  that  no  less  than  seven 

336 


fW/F*     •l««wmi»sS6.  - 

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SECTIONS. 
SCALE 


CASTLE  RING,  CANNOCK 


337 


43 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

counties  can  be  seen  from  its  summit.  The  geometrical  form  of  the  fort  and 
its  rounded  angles  seem  to  indicate  that  Roman  hands  have  been  concerned 
in  its  origin,  but  again  the  general  character  of  the  work  is  in  accordance 
with  the  attributes  of  this  class.  The  configuration  of  its  outline  tends  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  claims  of  due  fortification  have  been  skilfully  met. 

KINVER  EDGE. — In  its  situation  this  fort  closely  corresponds  with  the 
majority  of  its  class.  It  is  on  a  high  level  and  commands  most  extensive  views, 
the  Malvern  and  other  hills  and  intermediate  country  being  clearly  seen  from 
it,  and  the  usual  protecting  slopes  largely  prevail  here  ;  but  in  the  shape  of 


*»v. 

•  x^  »">. 


'^X->x 

KINVER  EDGE  CAMP 


its  outline  it  is  out  of  all  conformity  with  the  other  examples.  This  may 
have  arisen  from  the  fact  that  its  longest  side,  chosen  for  its  usefulness,  is  a 
straight  line  following  that  of  the  natural  '  edge  '  of  the  sloping  hill  to  the 
north-west.  The  north-east  side  also  is  similar,  thus  causing  a  great  irregu- 
larity in  the  general  form  of  the  fort.  The  south-west  and  south-east  sides 
are  also  practically  straight  with  a  rounded  corner  at  their  junction,  and 
apparently  there  was  an  entrance  at  the  extremity  of  each  of  these  lines.  The 
south-west  and  south-east  sides  have  a  single  line  of  vallum  and  fosse  with 
shght  indications  of  a  former  double  line.  The  north-west  line  against  the 

338 


''//MO,  N          *•' 

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SCALE    OF    FEET. 
O  IOO         200 


SE.CTIOr4S->-N   SCALE      8O  '=  I  •; 

^   % 


BERTH  HILL,  MAER 
339 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

slope  of  hill  has  a  scarped  inside  vallum.  The  north-east  side  is  edged  by 
precipitous  slopes.  This  side  of  the  ramparts  may  have  been  scarped,  and  its 
irregularity  of  form  exaggerated  thereby. 

The  non-conformity  of  the  general  shape  here  would  seem  to 
suggest  that  the  following  of  a  hard  and  fast  rule  as  to  form  is  not  always  to 
be  looked  for,  and  that  the  advantages  of  site  govern  the  shape  to  some 
extent. 

The  extreme  internal  length  is  300  yds.,  and  width  180  yds.,  with  an 
internal  area  of  7^  acres.  Its  most  striking  feature  is  perhaps  its  apparent 
cornered  safety  of  position,  more  than  half  its  boundary  being  defended  by 
natural  means.  The  nearest  given  level  is  463*2  ft.,  and  it  lies  within  about 
half  a  mile  of  the  parish  church. 

LONGDON,  see  CANNOCK. 

MAER. — BERTH  HILL,  formerly  called  BrufF  or  Burgh  Hill,  is  situated 
less  than  two  miles  from  Whitmore  railway  station  on  the  London  and  North 
Western  line  between  Stafford  and  Crewe.  The  nearest  contour  level  on  the 
6-in.  Ordnance  map  is  394  ft.  To  the  south-west  runs  a  road  between  Hill 
Chorlton  and  Blackbrook.  Within  a  short  distance  to  the  north-east  is  the 
road  between  Whitmore  and  Market  Drayton,  and  within  this  and  the  fort  is 
'  Warhill,'  and  to  the  east  '  Berry  Hill '  and  '  Sandy  Low.'  There  is  an  au- 
spicious sound  about  these  names,  as  also  in  '  Camp  Hill,'  about  three-quarters 
of  a  mile  to  the  north-west,  about  which  the  early  histories  indulge  in 
pleasant  theories. 

The  form  of  the  fort  is  very  irregular,  being  governed  largely  by  the 
outline  of  the  hill-top.  It  may  be  described  as  an  irregular  triangle  with  its 
base  northward  and  apex  southward.  The  north-west  angle  runs  out  to  a 
sharp  projecting  promontory.  The  main  entrance  has  been  on  the  north- 
west side,  with  another  entrance  on  the  north-east  side,  the  former  at  a  high 
and  the  latter  at  a  low  level,  both  secluded  and  specially  defended.  The 
present  site  is  wooded.  The  extreme  length  within  the  inner  vallum  is  355 
yds.,  and  the  extreme  width  225  yds.,  the  area  being  9  acres.  The 
inner  banks  are  all  formed  of  a  mixture  of  earth  and  rubble  stone,  and 
there  is  nothing  in  the  nature  of  building  stone  now  to  be  seen  here. 
The  acute-angled  promontory  on  the  north-west  side,  which  is  mounded, 
suggests  a  special  military  provision,  commanding  as  it  does  long  lengths 
of  rampart,  the  two  entrances,  and  a  clear  view  of  the  immediate  surround- 
ings. Dr.  Stebbing  Shaw,  quoting  Plot,  has  this  quaint  description  of  the 
fort  : — 

An  old  fortification  in  the  Parish  of  Mere,  commonly  called  the  BrufF,  probably  a  corruption 
of  Burgh,  fenced  in  some  places  with  a  double  trench  and  rampire,  the  agger  above  the 
trench  being  partly  made  of  stone  and  the  whole  of  a  very  irregular  form  according  as  the 
figure  of  the  hill  would  admit. 

The  water  supply  is  from  a  spring  within  the  boundaries  of  the  fort, 
and  its  waters  serve  the  present  hall  and  village  of  Maer  in  bountiful  measure. 
The  little  stream  known  by  the  name  of  '  Blackbrook '  has  its  rise  within 
about  a  mile  of  the  fort,  near  the  '  Wellings,'  and  with  the  River  Tern  delivers 
its  waters  into  the  River  Severn,  reversing  the  general  flow  of  the  rivers  of 
this  county,  which  is  into  the  River  Trent. 

340 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

SHENSTONE. — CASTLE  OLD  FORT  is  within  aj  miles  of  the  Warwickshire 
border  to  the  south-east,  and  2J  miles  from  Watling  Street  on  the  north,  and 
3  miles  from  the  Roman  city  of  Etocetum  or  Wall,  which  is  within  2  miles 
of  the  city  of  Lichfield.  To  the  south  of  the  fort  is  the  Upper  Stonnal  road, 
the  nearest  level  being  500  ft.  The  form  of  the  plan  of  this  fort  follows 
others  of  its  class,  and  may  be  likened  to  that  of  the  longitudinal  section  01 


CASTLE  OLD  FORT,  SHENSTONE 

an  egg,  the  broader  end  being  to  the  north.  The  trace  of  symmetry  in  its 
outline  follows  that  of  '  Castle  Ring.'  Its  extreme  inner  length  is  about 
171  yds.,  and  width  138  yds.  The  inner  vallum  is  fairly  complete  except  at 
the  north-west  end,  and  it  would  appear  that  there  has  been  a  second 
intrenchment  throughout  except  perhaps  on  the  west.  The  north-west 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

intrenchment  has  partly  been  removed.  Here  probably  was  the  entrance 
with  the  usual  bastion  of  earth  on  one  or  both  sides  of  it,  and  the  length  of 
vallum  possibly  belonging  to  another  branch  of  the  fort,  but  this  is  only 
conjecture.  There  is  a  large  and  a  small  pool  of  water  to  the  north  of  the 
fort.  The  fencing  of  the  area  somewhat  encroaches  upon  the  ancient  work. 
The  situation  conforms  only  in  a  measure  to  that  of  the  class  in  which  it  is 
placed,  its  altitude  not  being  a  very  high  one,  and  there  is  some  absence  of 
abutting  steeply  sloping  ground.  It  may  be  that  the  duplicate  defence,  of 
which  there  is  some  indication,  took  the  place  of  these  characteristics,  and 
of  course  the  necessities  of  a  particular  site  must  always  have  been  to  the 
fore  in  the  adoption  thereof.  The  site  is  now  woody,  and  cannot  be 
recognized  without  close  inspection. 

STONE. — BURY  BANK  lies   in   the  valley  of  the  Trent  at  a  point  some 

1  2  miles  from  its  northern  sources,  and  5  miles  south  of  Stoke-on-Trent,  and 

2  miles  north  of  the  ancient  town  of  Stone,  and  here  at  Darlaston  the  valley 
and  the  swelling  wooded  hills  present  great  natural  charms,  and  amidst  them 
'  Bury  Bank  '  is  planted.     The  road  level  to  the  east  of  it  is  given  as  321-4, 
and   that   immediately  to   the  south   of  it  as  356-4.      Its  form  may  be  called 
that  of  an  irregular  ellipse  with   the  longer  axis  north-west  and  south-east, 
having  an  extreme  length  within  the  inner  vallum  of  239  yds,  and  an  extreme 
width  of  1 15  yds.     The  area  within  the   inner  rampart  contains  3$  acres. 

With  the  exception  of  a  length  to  the  north-west,  steep  slopes  surround 
the  works.  The  exact  lines  of  the  defences  would  seem  to  be  not  only 
governed  by  the  contours  of  the  ground,  but  also  shaped  after  the  rules  of 
fortification.  The  ramparts  and  intrenchments  are  regulated  by  the  necessi- 
ties of  defence.  There  is  a  well-defined  entrance  to  the  north-west  shaped 
as  it  were  into  a  specially  defended  barbican.  In  the  opposite  quarter  to  this 
entrance  are  indications  of  another  entrance.  In  the  midst  of  the  inclosure 
there  is  in  the  southern  part  a  raised  mound  which  is  remarkable  as  not 
occurring  in  any  of  the  other  Staffordshire  cases  of  this  class  of  fort. 
Whether  its  purpose  was  for  military  tactics,  or  as  a  place  of  sepulture  it  is 
hard  to  say  ;  for  this  was  the  '  Royal  Mansion  '  of  King  Wlferus  who 
governed  Mercia  from  657  to  676,  and  according  to  the  suggestion  of  Dr. 
Plot  it  may  have  been  the  place  of  his  burial,  or  it  is  not  beyond  probability 
that  this  mound  carried  a  wooden  structure  as  a  last  resort  for  safety  within 
the  fort,  and  was  in  fact  a  prototype  of  the  Norman  keep.  What  however  its 
special  purpose  was  could  only  be  determined  by  the  work  of  the  pick  and 
spade,  but  this  is  hardly  possible  now  as  trees  have  been  thickly  planted  over 
the  fort  within  recent  years.  The  present  writer  in  1892  had  by  permission  a 
day's  digging  done,  but  without  any  satisfactory  result.  Robert  Garner,  F.L.S., 
in  the  supplement  to  his  Natural  History  of  the  County  of  Stafford,  writes  : — 

The  author  was  one  of  a  party  this  year  (1860)  to  open  the  large  mound  in  the  centre  of 
the  camp  at  Bury  Bank  ;  an  attempt  made  to  find  the  interments  was  unsuccessful,  for  at 
the  base,  in  the  centre,  nothing  was  seen  but  a  heap  of  stones,  some  bits  of  charcoal,  and 
small  fragments  of  bone. 

It  is  a  pity  that  these  disregarded  fragments  were  not  preserved,  for  they 
strongly  suggest  interment.  The  inner  vallum  of  the  area  was  cut  through 
at  the  time  of  the  day's  digging  above  mentioned,  and  its  section  showed  its 
construction  to  be  of  earth  and  rubble  stone.  To  the  west  of  the  mound 

342 


SCALE    OF  FEET 
\oo       too       ioO 


v          '  •  ••//ffttit.^  -  "-r_--_-_-_~-'.»Cv.' 


BURY  BANK,  STONE 


343 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

there  was  some  appearance  of  the  crown  of  a  well,  but  no  tangible  proof  of 
it  could  be  established.  Otherwise  the  nearest  water  supply  would  be  the 
River  Trent,  some  300  yds.  distant,  though  the  natural  conformation  of  the 
land  to  the  north-west  would  bring  water  to  the  site.  The  property  now 
belongs  to  the  duke  of  Sutherland. 


SIMPLE    DEFENSIVE    INCLOSURES 

(CLASS  C) 

CHESTERTON,  see  WOLSTANTON. 

KINGSWINFORD  :    GREEN'S    FORGE. — In   this    example   there   exists    the 
most  extensive  remains  of  this  class   of  camp  in  the  county.     It  is  more  or 


N 


CAMP  NEAR  GREEN'S  FORGE,  KINCSWINFORD 
344 


G— = 


FENCE. 


U 0 


:  rtitiif.tiiiffit{»ii)ii)inutff>> 


SCALE  OFFEET 

9  IQO  2OO       3OO 


u. 

I 


-H 


SECTION    A-B. 


SECTION    c-  o 


SECTION      E.F 


SCALE 

LONGDON   CAMP 


SECTION  C,.H 


SCALE,  OF  FEET 

0  IOO          ZOO  3OO 


SECTIONS  A.B.C.D.      SCALE  4-O'«l  '1 


B 


KNAVES  CASTLE,  OGLEY  HAY 


345 


44 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

less  indicated  throughout  its  full  extent,  and  is  quadrilateral  in  form 
with  rounded  angles,  being  206  yds.  in  length  and  160  yds.  in  width, 
containing  an  area  of  6|  acres.  A  stream  runs  within  a  short  distance. 
A  main  road  crosses  it  in  a  north-easterly  and  south-westerly  direction. 
Its  surrounding  vallum  has  been  disturbed  and  weathered  away  to  some 
extent,  and  the  general  construction  differs  from  its  fellows  in  that  the 
vallum  is  raised  above  the  inclosed  area,  and  its  situation  is  at  a  low  level, 
the  nearest  altitude  being  given  at  200  ft.  It  is  situated  about  seven  miles 
to  the  south-west  of  Wolverhampton.  There  is  no  known  Roman  road  to 
this  camp. 

LONGDON. — It  is  just  possible  to  say  that  at  Longdon  there  are  indica- 
tions of  a  Roman  camp.  They  occur  immediately  to  the  south-east  of  the 
church,  and  consist  at  present  of  several  short  lengths  of  slopes  from  the 
plateau  of  the  camp,  which  is  on  a  high  ground  but  without  discernible 
boundaries,  though  faint  traces  of  them  may  be  seen.  Like  the  other  cases 
of  this  class  the  camp  surfaces  occupy  the  highest  level — dimensions  cannot 
be  given,  nor  the  area;  the  nearest  level  is  stated  at  351  ft.  Longdon 
is  halfway  between  Lichfield  and  Rugeley  ;  there  is  a  stream  of  water  near 
to  the  site. 

OGLEY  HAY  :  KNAVES  CASTLE. — The  remains  of  this  work  are  situated 
on  Watling  Street  at  the  level  of  500  ft.,  but  they  are  very  slight  and  near 
to  the  line  of  a  roadway  leading  from  the  Watling  Street. 

ROCESTER. — BARROW  HILL  has  but  scanty  remains  consisting  for  the 
most  part  only  of  the  north-west  and  south-east  angles  of  the  camp,  but 
the  sides  are  to  some  extent  traceable  along  the  boundaries.  It  is  to  be 
noticed  here  that  contrary  to  the  case  in  the  hill  forts  the  area  of 
the  camp  itself  has  the  highest  ground,  and  the  slopes  run  from  its  edges. 
This  points  to  a  material  difference  in  the  methods  of  construction  and 
indeed  of  purpose.  Though  this  camp  is  on  an  elevated  site  on  the 
side  of  a  hill  its  area  is  conspicuously  open  and  not  protected  by  the  sur- 
rounding vallum  as  in  the  hill  forts,  indicating  that  the  display  of  the 
camp  was  designed,  rather  than  a  sheltered  obscurity,  which  suggests  a 
marked  difference  of  purpose.  The  situation  is  immediately  above  Barrow 
Hill  on  Dove  Cliff,  and  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  north  of  Rocester 
and  about  eighteen  miles  from  Chesterton.  Its  dimensions  may  be  given 
as  147  yds.  north  and  south  and  167  yds.  east  and  west,  and  its  form  rect- 
angular with  rounded  angles  and  containing  an  area  of  6|  acres  ;  the 
nearest  stated  altitude  being  459  ft.,  and  it  commands  very  exten- 
sive prospects. 

Immediately  to  the  north  of  the  camp  is  a  tumulus  or  barrow — which 
no  doubt  gives  name  to  the  locality — whilst  the  camp  is  unnamed.  The 
Ordnance  map  bears  record  that  in  1872  Roman  coins  and  pottery  were 
found  in  the  barrow,  and  in  1894  some  fragments  of  Roman  pottery  and 
glass  were  disclosed  on  slight  digging  being  made  at  the  camp  by  members 
of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Club  by  permission  of  Captain  Dawson,  the 
writer  hereof  being  present.  The  River  Churnet  falls  into  the  Dove  near  to 
Rocester. 

SHARESHILL. — A  small  work  in  this  parish,  from  its  form  and  situation, 
has  something  of  the  appearance  of  a  Roman  origin.  It  is  a  square  with 

346 


e- 


\t  ^m^J^rr 

\      •//;  >ii>-<-— •— •*>««• 

\  ^^^1\V^>  N 


SCALE  OF    FEET 

100    50     o             100          400          300        4-00       500 
li  1 1 1 1  mi  I  I I I  I I 


B 


SECTION    C.D. 


4-'-  SECTION     C.F.  50 AUt  4-0=1  V 

BARROW  HILL,   NEAR  ROCESTER 


347 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


SCALE  OF  FEET 
o         too      zoo 


Church 

SECTION      C.  O 


SCALE  4o  =  r: 

C\MP    AT    S:iARESHILL 

rounded  angles,  191  ft.  by  163  ft.  over  all,  and  is  encompassed  by  vallum  and 
fosse.  The  altitude  is  418  ft. 

WALL. — Camden  and  Plot  both  agree  that  the  village  of  Wall  is  the 
Etocetum  of  the  Romans,  standing  as  it  does  at  the  crossing  of  Watling  and 
Icknield  Streets,  about  one  mile  and  a  half  south-south-west  of  the  city  of 
Lichtield  and  being  32  miles  from  Wroxeter  (Uriconium)  on  the  west  and 
1 2  miles  from  Mancetter  (Manduesedum)  on  the  east  with  Pennocrucium 
and  Uxacona  between  them.  A  plan  and  sections  are  shewn  indicating  the 
remains  in  relation  to  their  present  position.  A  further  description  will  be 
found  under  the  article  on  '  Roman  Remains.' 

WOLSTANTON. — CHESTERTON  is  within  two  miles  north-west  of  Newcastle- 
under-Lyme.  From  the  plan  given  of  this  camp  or  station  it  will  be  seen  that  it 
was  almost  a  true  square  containing  from  22  to  23  acres  of  area,  two  of  the 
sides  averaging  303  yds.  long  and  the  other  two  289  yds.  It  is  situated 
on  elevated  land  at  the  height  of  566ft.  above  sea  level,  and  its  site  commands 
the  surrounding  country  for  many  miles  distant.  The  surface  of  the  camp  is 
very  little  out  of  the  level,  but  the  present  remains  are  only  slight  and  are 
confined  mostly  to  a  part  of  its  north-west  side.  There  can  be  little  doubt 
that  the  roadway  to  the  north-east  was  originally  a  line  of  fosse.  On  the 
north-west  side  the  fosse  remains  for  some  length  in  a  very  impressive  form 
from  its  great  dimensions.  Its  present  south-west  termination  would  seem  to 
represent  the  position  of  the  central  entrance  on  this  side.  On  the  south- 
west and  south-east  sides  there  are  indications  on  the  site  of  the  positions  of 
the  last-named  boundaries,  following  the  line  of  an  old  lane  and  the  hedge  as 
shown  on  the  plan. 

348 


N 


SCALE     OF  FEET 

O  IOO  2OO         300 


SECTION      A-  B. 


SECTION    K.L. 

CAMP  AT  CHESTERTON,  WOLSTANTON 


349 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

MOUNDS   AND    MOUNDS    WITH    ONE    OR    MORE 
ATTACHED    COURTS 

(CLASSES  D  AND  E) 

ALTON  CASTLE  stood  upon  the  summit  of  a  precipitous  face  of  bare 
cliff  rising  from  the  valley  of  the  River  Churnet,  and  is  said  to  have  been 
built  by  Theobald  de  Verdun  in  the  reign  of  Edward  II.  Its  situation  on 
the  one  side  of  the  valley  here  with  'The  Towers'  on  the  opposite  with  their 
wooded  slopes  and  long  stretch  of  prospects  in  every  direction  give  to  this 
spot  a  truly  beautiful  aspect.  With  a  sheer  precipice  on  the  north-west  and 


SCALE   Or    FECT 

IOO        200       3OO 


ALTON  CASTLE 

south-west  sides  the  only  other  security  called  for  was  to  the  north-east  and 
south-east,  and  here  a  great  fosse  some  19  yds.  in  width  and  9  yds.  in 
depth  cut  clear  out  of  the  rock,  together  with  the  precipitous  face  of  rock  on 
the  valley  sides,  isolates  the  precincts  of  the  castle  from  the  neighbouring 
land.  The  approach  from  the  valley  was  by  a  slope  on  the  western  side,  well 
commanded  from  the  castle  walls,  and  the  entrance  was  from  the  fosse  near 
to  the  south-west  corner  of  the  great  retaining  wall  which  supported  the 
castle  area.  It  is  not  easy  to  define  the  form  of  the  castle  in  consequence  of 
the  many  alterations  which  have  taken  place  ;  but  it  would  appear  to  have 
strictly  met  military  exigencies,  having  generally  a  long  oval  outline. 

35o 


SECTIONS  A.B.  O-H. 

32.0  1 

".  E 


SCALE  60  = 


TION  C- 


HEICHLEY  CASTLE,  AODLEY 


351 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

The  castle  and  the  church  are  in  close  proximity  to  one  another.  The 
earthwork  in  this  case,  cut  as  it  was  through  the  solid  rock,  was  of  important 
character  though  not  very  extensive.  Altitude  469  ft. 

AUDLEY. — HEIGHLEY  CASTLE  is  situated  about  4J  miles  westward  of 
Newcastle  under  Lyme.  It  is  on  high  ground  at  about  the  altitude  of 
345  ft.  above  sea  level.  The  prospects  from  it  are  very  extensive  and 
embrace  the  view  of  the  Church  Stretton,  Welsh  and  other  hills.  The  site 
of  the  building  was  on  a  rocky  hill  which,  however,  was  not  formed  by  the 
raising  of  a  mound  but  by  the  isolation  of  a  peak  by  the  hewing  away  of  the 
surrounding  rock  and  then  forming  out  of  the  side  of  the  hill  a  clear  mound. 
At  the  same  time  there  was  constructed  a  fosse  of  great  dimensions  and  stern 
aspect,  being  in  places  upwards  of  30  ft.  deep  and  of  50  ft.  in  width.  It  is 
said  that  the  material  from  the  excavation  afforded  stone  for  the  masonry  of 
the  castle  which  was  built  by  Henry  de  Audley  in  1233.  A  stream  of  water 
passes  near  the  foot  of  the  castle.  Heighley  is  now  the  property  of  the  Lord 
Crewe.  The  plateau  is  of  a  pear  shape,  and  the  whole  work  contains  an  area 
of  about  3i  acres. 

CAVERSWALL  CASTLE  is  situated  in  the  parish  of  Caverswall  and  stands  to 
the  north-west  of  the  parish  church.  There  are  fragments  of  the  lower 
masonry  still  remaining  of  William  de  Caverswall's  work  in  the  time  of 


SECTIONS. 

SCALE  eo'»r. 


*  >vo/<r 


^ro^lfe^^^fe^^o 


CAVERSWALL  CASTLE 
352 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 


Edward  II.  It  is  not  possible  to  say  how  much  of  the  present  dry  moat 
belongs  to  the  original  castle.  The  situation  is  at  an  altitude  of  613  ft.,  but 
assimilates  to  that  of  the  church  and  village.  The  moat  was  entirely  sunk 
from  the  natural  surface  of  the  land,  and  its  sections  have  in  recent  years  been 
moulded  for  the  formation  of  the  pleasure  grounds.  The  River  Blythe  runs 
from  north  to  south  near  to  the  house. 

CHARTLEY  HOLME. — CHARTLEY  CASTLE  stands  on  a  wooded  hill.  Its 
earthworks  consist  of  a  mound  and  an  inner  and  outer  bailey  separated  by  a 
fosse,  the  whole  being  surrounded  by  a  double  fosse.  The  main  direction  of 
the  works  is  east  and  west,  the  mound  being  at  the  west  end,  which  is 
brought  to  a  slight  angle.  The  length  of  the  inner  bailey  is  83  yds.,  and 
the  width  43  yds.,  partly  inclosed  by  walls  and  bastions.  The  outer  bailey 
is  66  yds.  long  by  60  yds.  wide. 

To  the  west  of  the  castle  is  the  site  of  a  moated  manor  house  to  be 
noticed  hereafter  ;  and  to  the  north  of  this  is  a  very  perfect  quadrangular 
earthwork,  57  yds.  by  31  yds.  within  the  area,  having  fosse  and  vallum  on 
the  longer  sides,  and  fosse  only  on  the  shorter.  A  brook  skirts  the  work  on 
the  north.  The  altitude  is  3  i  3  ft. 

DUDLEY  :  CASTLE  HILL. — This  castle  has  in  some  respects  the  most  com- 
manding position  of  any  within  the  county.  It  is  situated  on  a  high  wooded 
hill  rising  from  a  valley  far  below  its  site,  and  encompassed  by  earthworks  of 
greater  magnitude  than  all  others,  and  facing  to  a  broad  open  country  with 
the  town  of  Dudley  at  its  back.  It  presents  a  great  promontory  stern  and 
predominant. 

Within  a  central  area  a  raised  mound  rises  to  a  considerable  height, 
affording  a  commanding  position  for  the  main  part  of  the  defensive  works. 
As  to  the  level  of  the  site,  section  A  B  shows  that  in  a  horizontal  length  of 
424^.  there  is  a  rise  of  140  ft.  At  G  H,  with  a  length  of  5  17  ft.,  the  rise 
is  1 30  ft.  ;  and  at  I  J,  with  a  length  of  376  ft.,  a  rise  of  119  ft.  These 
figures  show  the  precipitous 
character  of  the  works.  The 
intrenchments  measure  in  some 
places  from  50  ft.  to  60  ft. 
in  width,  and  some  15  ft.  in 
depth. 

The  natural  hill  must 
have  required  much  labour 
to  bring  it  into  its  present 
form.  There  are  caverns  be- 
neath the  hill,  such  as  are 
found  in  Derbyshire  and  else- 
where. Its  nearest  altitude 
on  the  Ordnance  maps  is  700  ft. 

NEWCASTLE  UNDER 
LYME. — All  that  remains  of 
this  castle  is  a  fragment  of  a 
mutilated  mound  of  earth 
much  lowered  from  its  origi- 
nal height  and  reduced  in  area,  SITE  OF  CASTLE,  NEWCASTLE  UNDER  LVME 

i  353  45 


SECTIONS    A.B.C.D. 


FEET 
200       3OO 


SCALE    80=  I  " 


Heooe 


SCALE  OF  FE.E.T  O 

IOO        200       30O         A 


r 

• 

^ 

70« 

X 


DUDLEY  CASTLF 
354 


SCALE      OF 
O  IOO        -ZOO 


"iOO 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

covering  now  a  space  of  only  about  150  ft.  by  90  ft.,  and  being  not  more 
than  20  ft.  in  height.  It  has  been  said  it  was  originally  built  in  a  pool.  Its 
situation  is  known  as  Pool  Dam  ;  though  in  the  midst  of  the  parish  of 
Newcastle,  Pool  Dam  was  until  recently  in  the  parish  of  Stoke  on  Trent. 
The  nearest  altitude  given  in  the  Ordnance  map  is  388  ft. 

STAFFORD. — Everyone  passing  this  prominent  feature  of  wooded  hill  and 
crowning  towers  rising  from  the  low  level  of  the  flat  meadows  beneath  it  at 
Stafford,  credits  the  building  with  hoary  age,  but  this  is  not  the  actual  case, 
for  whatever  may  have 
been  in  the  past  the  present 
building  is  of  recent  date  ; 
but  of  the  mound  on  which 
the  building  stands  more 
has  to  be  said. 

The  earthwork  con- 
sists of  an  oval  mound 
with  its  axis  north-east 
and  south-west,  measuring 
on  the  top  63  yds.  by 
50  yds.  On  its  summit 
is  a  raised  hillock  of  ellip- 
tical shape  whereon  the 
present  building  now 
stands.  The  height  of 
the  mound  above  the  fosse 
is  in  places  35  ft.  The 
entrance  has  been  at  the 
south-east,  and  duly  de- 
fended. The  slope  of  the 
mound  starts  from  the  pla- 
teau itself.  The  altitude  is 
476  ft.  From  the  Anglo- 


p   _f         ,    .  .      jlMflte^D 

Saxon  Chronicle  we  learn 
that  in  913  the  Lady 
Ethelrleda  built  a  fortress 
at  Stafford. 

TAMWORTH. — According  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle  Lady  Ethelfleda 
in  913  constructed  a  castle  here.  This  was  possibly  a  part  of  the  present 
castle  mound  carrying  some  remains  of  Norman  masonry,  together  with 
works  of  later  dates  which  stand  at  the  junction  of  the  Rivers  Tame  and 
Anker.  A  mound  here  was  essential  for  the  establishment  of  anything 
in  the  way  of  defence  of  the  place  whenever  and  by  whomsoever  that  might 
be  required. 

The  town  and  castle  were  defended  by  the  '  King's  Ditch,'  which  was  of 
great  extent,  and  inclosed  the  parish  church  in  the  line  parallel  with  the 
river,  its  ends  terminating  in  bastions,  whence  two  other  sides  ran  down  to 
the  river  which  itself  forms  the  remaining  defence.  At  the  present  time  the 
mound  is,  roughly  speaking,  circular  with  a  table  top  of  37  yds.  in  diameter, 
and  a  base  of  80  yds.  in  diameter,  which,  however,  has  in  some  places  been 

355 


SECTIONS. 
«>CALE    80=  \\ 
,6 


10  o 


STAFFORD  CASTLE 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


SCALE.  OF  FEET 
O  IOO       20O       309 


Cattle         SECTIONS. 


TAMWORTH   CASTLE 


much  encroached  upon.  There  is  also  a  certain  amount  of  proof  that  there 
were  further  works  between  the  mound  and  the  rivers. 

This  is  a  case  of  castle,  town,  and  church  within  one  protective  fence, 
and  with  gates  under  authoritative  control,  the  castle  itself  most  probably 
having  its  own  additional  outworks.  The  altitude  is  206  ft.  above  the 
Ordnance  datum. 

TUTBURY. — The  castle  owes  its  majestic  situation  to  the  hill  on  which  it 
stands.  Its  strength  of  position  is  due  first  to  its  main  boundary,  lining  with 
the  upper  edge  of  a  precipitous  cliff  of  about  1 80  yds.  length,  and  next,  to 
the  immense  sunken  fosse  circling  the  remainder  of  its  boundary  in  places 
95  ft.  wide  and  38  ft.  deep,  and  running  into  the  cliff  at  each  of  its  extremi- 
ties. Roughly  speaking,  the  castle  site  is  that  of  a  semicircle  with  cliff  across 
its  diameter  of  180  yds.,  and  an  extraordinary  fosse  skirting  its  circumference 
having  a  radius  of  looyds.  This  fosse  has  been  dug  through  the  hill  of  red 

356 


Stic  t.  4.  ef 
Kouno   TOW&H 


ffeoce- 


S>CALEI60'=|  INCH 


TUTBURY  CASTLE 
357 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

marl  associated  with  alabaster  rock.  At  the  south-west  angle  of  the  semi- 
circle a  mound  is  raised  as  a  site  for  a  shell  keep.  To  the  north  of  this 
castle  runs  the  River  Dove  flowing  from  west  to  east.  On  the  east  side  of 
the  fosse  there  is  at  present  a  fence,  and  to  the  east  of  this  fence  there  are 
two  plateaus  or  baileys  of  irregular  squares  of  looyds.,  with  slopes  from  their 
boundaries  where  not  against  the  moat.  Between  these  baileys  there  is  a 
hollow  formed  by  their  two  slopes,  and  it  would  seem  that  this  was  the  main 
entrance,  and  that  these  two  outlying  works  were  for  its  protection.  Its 
altitude  is  260  ft. 


HOMESTEAD   MOATS 

(CLASS  F) 


Ordnance                n    -  » 
Parish 
Number 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

XXXIX,  5 

Abbots' 
Bromley 

Bagot's 
Bromley 

Rectangular  ;  part- 
ly   destroyed  ;     two 
ponds,  a  hollow,  and 
a  monument  within 

5  80  ft.  by  340  ft. 

Ft. 
400 

On  west  side  of  road 
at  Bagot's  Bromley 

site  ;  part  wet 

XLIV,  1  1 

Acton                Manor  Farm 
Trussell  and 
Bednall 

Fragmentary  ;  part   6  1  5  ft.  by  1  1  o  ft. 
wet  ;    circular    seg-   (varyin  ;  in  width) 
ment 

262 

On  west  side  of  road 
at  Acton,  near  Church 

XLVI,  14   Armitage       .    Handsacre 
Hall 

Three    s'des    of  a    2  50  ft.  by  240  ft. 
square  ;   wet  ;  house 

265 

Handsacre 

on  site 

XLVI  I,      Barton  under   Blakenhall     . 
9  &  5         Needwood 

Square;  altered  in    320  ft.  by  3  20  ft. 
sundry  phves  ;   wet 

235 

On     road      between 
Barton  and  Yoxall 

XXXVIII,  Blithfield       . 

12 

Blithfield 
Hall 

Single  length    . 

I  50  ft.  long 

400 

South-east  of  hall 

XLIX,  7 

Blymhill 

Brockhurst    . 

One  side  of  square, 
and    parts    of    two 
others  ;  wet 

2  oo  ft.,  i  50  ft.,  & 
3  oft. 

421 

On  road  from  Stret- 
ton  to  Gnosall 

)t 

ji 

» 

Part  of  three  sides 

1  90  ft.,  1  30  ft.,  & 
1  40  ft. 

411 

On  road  from  Stret- 
ton  to  Gnosall 

XLIV,  5-6  Bradley 

Littywood     . 

Circular  jpartwet;   650  ft.  diameter. 

house  on  site 

400 

I  mile  north-east  of 
Bradley 

XL,  15 

Branston 

Sinai  Park     . 

Square  ;   two  sides 
disturbed  ;  partwet; 
house  on  site 

2  80  ft.  by  2  80  ft. 

30O 

ij    miles    north    of 
Branston 

LVI,  i 

Brewood 

Hyde  Farm  . 

Fragmentary  ;  part 
wet 

260  ft.  &  290  ft.; 
2  50  ft.  by  i  oo  ft. 

400 

•&  mile  south-west  of 
Brewood 

LII,  10 

Burntwood, 
Edial  and 
Woodhouses 

Ashmore 
Brook 

Fragment  ;    wet  ;    99  ft.  by  25  ft. 
fed  by  stream 

400 

North-west  of  Lich- 
field,     l^     miles     on 
Farewell  Road 

358 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS   (CLASS    F)—  continued 


Ordnance 
Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

LVI,  15 

Bushbuiy 

Moseley 

Rectangular  ;    one 
corner       enlarged  ; 

1  90  ft.  by  1  40  ft. 

Ft. 
459 

$  mile  south-west  of 
Moseley 

wet 

LX1I,  3 

,, 

Showell's 

Square  ;  wet 

z6oft.  by  260  ft. 

400 

I  mile  south  of  Bush- 

Farm 

\ 

bury 

LVI,  15 

>» 

Elston  Hall  . 

Rectangular  ;  vari- 
ed ;    west    side    ex- 

260 ft.  by  1  90  ft. 

4°3 

On     road     between 
Bushbury  and  Codsall 

tended  ;  wet 

/ 

LI,  8 

Cannock 

Ann's  Well  in 
Court  Bank's 

Rectangular  ;  dry  . 

410  ft.  by  250  ft. 

6OO 

About  J  mile  south- 
west   of    Gentleshaw 

Covert 

Church 

XLIV,  3 

Castle  Church 

Burton 

Rectangular  ;  with 

1  90  ft.  by  1  45  ft.; 

333 

l£  miles  from  Staf- 

Manor 

outlier  ;  dry 

90  ft.  by  50ft.; 

ford  South 

outlier 

SCALE   OF   FEE.T 
IOO 


LITTYWOOD,  BRADLEY 
359 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS    T)— continued 


Ordnance 
Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

XXXVII, 
•4 

Castle  Church 

South-west  of 
Stafford 
Castle 

Rectangular  ;  moat 
unusually  wide  ;  dry 

390  ft.  by  3  50  ft. 

Ft, 
2  99 

I  \  miles  from  Staf- 
ford on  Newport  road 

XVIII, 

7  &  8 

Caverswall    . 

Weston 
Coyney 

Rectangular  ;  part 
wet 

240  ft.  by  1  60  ft. 

67I 

South  of  road  be- 
tween Caverswall  and 
Hanley 

XXXI, 

i+&  15 

Chartley 
Holme 

Chartley 
Old  Hall 

Square  ;  on  east 
side  connected  with 
a  lake  600  ft.  by 
376  ft.  ;  wet 

400  ft.  by  400  ft. 

311 

North-east  of  Hall 

XIX,  6 

Cheadle 

ParkhallFarm 

Rectangular  ;  one 
side  and  parts  of  two 
others  wet  ;  also  a 
second  site 

2  30  ft.  by  1  90  ft.; 
second,    3  1  o  ft. 
by  1  80  ft.;  part 
wet 

549 

i  mile  north-west  of 
Cheadle 

XXV,  10 

Checkley       . 

Bly  the  Wood, 
near  Bit- 
tern's 

Rectangular  ;  dry  ; 
three  sets  of  in- 
trenchments  on  the 

3  80  ft.  by  440  ft. 

500 

i\  miles  south-east 
of  Draycott 

Dale 

east  side  and  two  sets 

on  the  others 

XLIX,  4 

ChurchEaton 

Shushions 
Manor 

Fragmentary  ;  part 
wet 

zSoft. 

325 

2  miles  south  of 
Church  Eaton 

Cham  y 
Armour  :?s 
found  here- i 


N 

A 


SCALE  Or   FEET 
O  loo        Zoo       30O 


SECTION 
A 


BLYTHE  WOOD  MOAT,  CHECKLEY 
360 


500 


46 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS    F)— continued 


Ordnance 

Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

XLIII,  15 

Church  Eaton 

High  Onn 
Manor 

Fragmentary  ;  three 
lengths  ;  part  wet 
and  dry 

260  ft.,     400  ft., 
420  ft. 

Ft. 
436 

l^  miles  south-west 
of  Church  Eaton 

»» 

» 

Little  Onn 
Hall 

Rectangular  ;  vari- 
ed ;  wet 

2  80  ft.  by  1  90  ft. 

378 

\\  miles  south  from 
Church  Eaton 

LV,  12 

Codsall 

Woodhall      . 

Rectangular  ;  three 
sides  ;  wet 

2ioft.  by  1  80  ft. 

458 

I  mile  from  Codsall 
on  Albrighton  Road 

XLIV,  2 

Coppenhall   . 

Coppenhall 
Gorse 

Oval,  with  various 
outlying  works  ;  dry 

450  ft.  by  400  ft. 

353 

2  miles  south-west 
of  Stafford 

» 

»> 

Hydes  Lea    . 

Fragmentary,  with 
various  outlying 
works  ;  dry 

Indefinite 

420 

2  miles  south-west 
of  Stafford 

SCALE    OF  FEET 
0  100       gop       3oo 


seCTION  G.  H. 


SECTION     A.B 
- 


SECTION    C.O. 


Hyde  Lea 


Inn 


MOAT  AT  COPPENHALL  GORSE 
362 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS    F)— continued 


Ordnance 

Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

Ft. 

XXXV,  6 

Draycott  in 

PaynsleyHall 

An     inner     ditch 

200  ft.  by  90  ft. 

500 

About  I  J  miles  from 

the  Moors 

with  banks,  shewing 

Draycott  (South) 

one    side    and    two 

returns  ;      also     to 

south-east,  two  sets 

of  ditches,    192    ft. 

long,    with    banks  ; 

also     two     circular 

mounds        between 

1 

the  outer  and  inner 

intrenchments,  each 

27  ft.  in  diameter  ; 

also        considerable 

fragments      of     in- 

trenchments to  the 

north  -  east    and 

north-west. 

XXIII,  13 

Eccleshall      . 

Charnes 

Irregular  ;    formed 

2  50  ft.  by  200  ft. 

400 

i    mile     east     of 

Old  Hall   out     of    rectangle  ; 

Charnes 

wet  ;  house  on  site 

XXXVI,  3 

» 

Wootton 

Fragment  of  irre- 

About 70  yds.  in 

400 

At     Wootton,     i  £ 

gular  form  ;  dry 

length 

miles    from    Eccles- 

hall 

XX,  ii 

Ellastone 

Bentley  Fold 

Two  sides  of  rect- 

1 90  ft.  by  1  90  ft. 

351 

Ellastone 

angle,   and    part   of 

another  ;  wet 

XXXVI,  3 

Ellenhall       .  '  Old  Hall       . 

Fragments     of     a 

2  20  ft.  by  1  80  ft. 

378 

Near     church     and 

square,      connected 

road,  between  Ranton 

with  a  pond  ;  dry 

and  Stone 

XXXVI, 

»> 

Ranton 

Part  of  two  sides  ; 

400  ft.  &  280  ft. 

393 

On     road     between 

7  &  1  1 

Abbey 

dry 

Great   BndgeforJ  and 

Littleworth 

LVII,   13 

Essington 

At  the 

Filled  up  in   1896 



567 

2  miles  east  of  Blox- 

Hollies 

wich 

LVI,  15 

99 

West  Croft 

Three    sides   of    a 

1  70  ft.  by  1  70  ft. 

491 

Off    road     between 

Farm 

square  ;  wet 

Wolverhampton     and 

Shareshill,      3      miles 

north-east  of  Wolver- 

hampton 

LVI,  1  6 

99 

Moat  House 

Filled  up  1  5  years 

55° 

ago 

XIV,  13 

Farley      .     . 

Moat  House 

Rectangular  ;    dry 

1  60  ft.  by  1  29  ft. 

1,005 

Near  Cotton  (north- 

east) 

LIII,  13 

Fisherwick    . 

Fisherwick     . 

Fragmentary  ;  cir- 

5 50  ft. 

200 

ij  miles    north-east 

(figured  in 

cular  segment  ;  dry 

of  Whittington,    near 

Plot) 

River  Tame 

XXXI,  13 

Gayton 

Moat  Farm  . 

Rectangular  ;  bro- 

260 ft.  by  1  80  ft. 

300 

South  of  churchyard 

ken  on  north  side  ; 

part  wet 

363 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS    ?)— continued 


Ordnance 

Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

XLIX,  i 

Gnosall         , 

Chatwcll 

Angle   of  square  ; 

1  60  ft.  by  130  ft. 

Ft. 
292 

At  Chatwell  between 

water     pit      west  ;  water  pit  1  60  ft. 

Newport  and  Blymhill 

wet 

by  80  ft. 

XLIII,  3 

»              • 

Gnosall 

Rectangular  line  of 

170  ft.  &  1  80  ft. 

376 

|  mile  from  Gnosall 

intrenchment         to 

on  Haughton  road 

north-east  ;  wet 

XLIII,  6 

»»              • 

Befcote 

Fragmentary;  rect- 

3  30  ft.  by  1  80  ft. 

400 

South  of   road    be- 

Manor  angular  ;  part  wet 

tween     Gnosall    and 

Morton,  2  miles  from 

former 

XXXIII,  9 

Hanbury 

Moat  Farm  . 

Fragmentary;  rect- 

240 ft.  by  2  10  ft. 

209 

2   miles  from  Han- 

angular  ;  dry 

bury  on  Sudbury  road 

XL,  i 

»»             • 

Woodend 

Rectangular  ;   part 

1  90  ft.  by  2  1  o  ft. 

437 

J  mile  south  of  Han- 

wet  ;  now  orchard 

bury 

LXVIII,  12 

Handsworth  . 

Perry  Hall    . 

Rectangular  ;  with 

420  ft.  by  240  ft. 

343 

£  mile  north-east  of 

and 

length      of      water 

Perry  Bar 

LXIX,  9 

80  ft.  wide  down  to 

River  Tame  ;    Hall 

ii  within  site  ;  wet 

XLVI,  7 

Hamstall 

Near     River   Rectangular  ;  dry 

230  ft.  by  2ioft. 

215 

At  Hamstall  Ridware 

Rid  ware 

Blythe       (fi-  . 

guredinShaw) 

LIII,  1  1 

Harlaston 

Harlaston      .     Fragmentary;  rect- 

28oft.east,28oft 

*33 

Adjoining  churchyard 

angular  ;    one    side 

west,38oft.  north 

missing  ;  wet 

XLIII,  4 

Haughton 

Moat  Farm  . 

Fragmentary  ;  wet 

270  ft.  &  130  ft. 

348 

West  of  churchyard 

XLIII,  4 

i»             • 

Booden  Farm 

Rectangular;  much 

470  ft.  by  340  ft. 

353 

f     mile     south     of 

altered  ;     house    on 

Haughton 

site;  part  wet 

XXIV,  1  6 

Hilderstone  . 

The  Hall      . 

Rectangular  ;     al- 

400 ft.  by  3  20  ft. 

600 

South-west  of  Hall 

tered  on  south  side, 

with  extra  bank  on 

north  side 

LVI,  8  & 

Hilton 

Hilton  Hall 

Angular;  fragment 

370  ft.  &  240  ft. 

500 

Park      Road     from 

12 

Moat 

hall  on  site;  wet 

Shareshill  to  Bloxwich 

XIII,  15 

Kingsley 

Glebe  Farm  . 

Fragment      of     a 

320  ft.  &  i  oo  ft. 

657 

At    back   of    house, 

square;  partly  dry 

which  was  vicarage 

L,5 

Lapley 

Old  Manor 

Irregular  remains  ; 

300  ft.  &  200  ft. 

374 

Lapley 

House 

part  wet 

&  320  ft. 

XXV,  1  1 

Leigh  . 

Park  Hall 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

270  ft.  by  260  ft. 

500 

\  mile  north-east  of 

Leigh     Church       on 

Tean  Road 

LII,  14 

Lichfield 
St.  Chad 

Maple  Hayes 

Rectangular,   with 
rounded  corners  ;  on 

1  93  ft.  by  1  70  ft. 

300 

ij-    miles    west     of 
Lichfield,  on    Burnt- 

south  side  is  an  an- 

wood road 

gular   intrenchment 

56  yds.  in  length 

364 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS   ^—continued 


Ordnance 
Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensiont  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &<:. 

Ft. 

XVII,  9 

Madely 

Manor   ruins 

Square,  with  moat 

3  40  ft.  by  340  ft. 

379 

North-east   of  ruins 

(figured  in 

and     four     shallow 

angle  moat 

and  within  J  mile  of 

Plot) 

trenches,  and  angle 

2  80  ft.  by  140  ft. 

Madeley    Road     sta- 

moat ;  part  wet 

tion,  on  North  Staf- 

fordshire Railway 

XXXII,  15 

Marchington 

Moat  Springs 

Square  ;  on  skew  ; 

240  ft.  by  240  ft. 

300 

^    mile     north-west 

Woodlands 

wet 

Marchington    Wood- 

lands,   £   mile  south- 

east of  Gorsty  Hill 

XX,  4,  & 

Mayfield 

Old  Hall       . 

Irregular  ;  dry 

Indefinite 

600 

North  of  Old  Hall  and 

XXI,  i 

and  road  adjoining 

XX,  8 

99                          • 

Harlow 

Oval 

100  ft.  by  85  ft. 

600 

West      of     Middle 

Mayfield 

XXXI,  i 

Milwich 

Garshall 

Square  ;      mound 

260  ft.  by  250  ft. 

500 

Near  Oulton  House, 

within  arc,  oval  in 

off  road  from  Stone  to 

form  ;    about    3    ft. 

Milwich 

high  ;  dry 

XXXI,  5 

99 

Milwich  Hall 

Fragment  ;  wet 

30  ft.  by  25  ft. 

424 

South-east    of    Mil- 

wich   Hall    on     road 

from  Sandon   to   Ut- 

toxeter 

XXXI,  5 

99 

Manor  Farm 

Fragment  ;  wet 

132  ft.  by  30  ft. 

424 

Off  Sandon  Road 

XVI,     12 

Mucklestone 

Lea  Head     . 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

1  90  ft.  by  139  ft. 

400 

ij    miles   north-east 

Pipe     Gate      station, 

North       Staffordshire 

Railway 

XXXIX,  8 

Newborough 

The  Hall      . 

Square,  varied    by 

340  ft.  by  340  ft. 

374 

At  Newborough 

alterations  ;  wet 

XXXIX,  1  2 

99 

Moat  Hall    . 

Rectangular,    with 

3  80  ft.  by  260  ft. 

400 

99                      99 

second     bank     and 

ditch  on  south  side  ; 

part  wet 

XXX  VI,  10 

Norbury 

Norbury 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

260  ft.  by  220  ft. 

326 

On  lane  to    Manor 

Manor 

House 

(figured  in 

Plot) 

LXI,  i 

Patshull 

Burnhill 

Three   sides   of  a 

115  ft.  by  141  ft. 

275 

i    mile  west  of  the 

Green 

square  ;  part  wet 

Hall 

LVII,  1  1 

Pelsall 

Moat  Farm  . 

Irregular  ;  wet 

1  68  ft.  by  80  ft. 

494 

At  Pelsall 

L,  7 

Penkridge 

Rodbaston 

Rectangular  ; 

340  ft.  by  290  ft. 

302 

East    of  road    from 

Old  Hall 

mound  within  site  ; 

Penkridge    to     Wol- 

wet 

verhampton,  ij  miles 

south  of  Penkridge 

XLIV,  10 

Hay  House  . 

Rectangular  ;    one 

2  30  ft.  by  200  ft. 

300 

On    road     between 

side  house  destroyed; 

Bradley    and     Penk- 

on site  ;  wet 

ridge,  two  miles  north 

west  of  latter 

365 


HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS    F)— continued 


Ordnance 

Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

L»4 

Penkridge 

Pillaton  Hall 

Part      oval,      part 
straight 

Oval  570  ft.  by 
380  ft.  ;  straight 
260  ft. 

Ft. 
366 

About  l\  miles 
south-east  of  Penk- 
ridge on  Cannock 
Road 

XLVI,  10 

Pipe  Ridware 

The  HaU     . 

Two  sides   fed  by 
streams  from    River 

2  40  ft.  by  1  40  ft. 

210 

Pipe  Ridware  Hall 

Trent 

XXXVI, 
1  1  &  15 

Ranton 

Broughhall 

Fragmentary;  rect- 
angular ;  part  wet 

480  ft.  by  300  ft. 

451 

On  road  between 
Gnosall  and  Ranton, 
midway 

XXXVI,  8 

Ranton    . 

Ranton  Hall 

Remains  rectangu- 
lar ;  wet 

340  ft.  by  280  ft. 

360 

J  mile  from  road  be- 
tween High  Offley 
and  Great  Bridgeford, 
l£  miles  south  of 

Ellenhall 

XXXVI,  8 

if 

Extall       .     . 

Three    sides    of   a 
square  ;    dry 

2  30  ft.  by  2loft. 

3°O 

i  mile  north-east  of 
Ranton  Hall,  near 
junction  of  roads  be- 
tween High  Offley  and 
Ellenhall 

LXIII,  7 

Rushall    .     . 

The  Hall 

(figured  in 
Shaw) 

Fragmentary  ;  one 
side  and  angles  ;  dry 

3  oo  ft.  &  100  ft. 

&    2  I  O  ft. 

458 

ij  miles  north-east 
of  Walsall 

XXX,  i  2 

Sandon 

Old  Hall 
Moat 

Rectangular  ;  wet  ;    330  ft.  by  3  I  2  ft. 
to     north-east      are 

412 

East  of  church  on 
road  from  Sandon  to 

(figured  in 
Plot) 

three    fragments    of 
moat 

Fradswell 

LVII,  5 

Saredon    .     . 

Black  Lees     . 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

I  50  ft.  by  1  60  ft. 

'470 

Near  junction  of 
roads  from  Bloxwich  to 

Saredon  and  Great 

Wyrley 

LVII,  5 

j» 

»» 

Angle  of  bank 

370  ft.  &  3  20  ft. 

,470 

Ditto,  adjoining  last 

LVI,  3 

Shareshill 
(detached) 

Moat  house 
bridge 

Angular  fragment  ; 
wet 

1  40  ft.  &  1  60  ft. 

342 

Near  Staffordshire- 
Worcestershire  Canal 

LVIII,  15 

Shenstone 

Shenstone 
Park 

There  is  an  irregu- 
lar rectangular   area 
planted  and  bounded 
by  water   known  as 
the  Fish  Pond.  Also 

3  50  ft.  by  260  ft. 
&  200  ft.  &  50  ft. 

3OO 

i  mile  south-east  of 
Shenstone 

fragments  of  bank  of 
two  sides  with  water 

40  ft.  wide 

XII,  1  5,  & 
XVIII,  3 

Stoke  upon 
Trent 

Simfield    . 

Rectangular      .     . 

304ft.  by  1  78  ft. 

600 

South  of  Werrington 
Road     between     Ash 

Hall  and  Brookhouse 

XVIII,  3 

n 

Hall  Hill 
Farm 

Rectangular  ;      al- 
tered     by    mineral 
railway  ;  dry 

220  ft.  by  200  ft. 

543 

Near    Bentley    Col- 
liery on  Longton  and 
Adderley  Green  Rail- 

way 

366 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS  F)— -continued 


Ordnance 

Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

XXIV,  3 

Stone  .      .      . 

Moat  Farm, 
Hartwell 

Part  of  square  ;  wet 

300  ft.  by  260  ft. 

Ft. 
609 

On  road  from  Bar- 
laston,  near  junction 
with  Longton  and 
Stone  Road 

XXX,  2 

» 

Priory  Farm 

Rectangular  ;  frag- 
ments ;   wet 

1  80  ft.  by  looft. 

j  . 

294 

Near  road  between 
Eccleshall  and  Stone, 
and  near  junction  with 
Stafford  Road 

XXX,  7 

»» 

Aston  Hall  . 

Rectangular  ;  dry  ; 
hall     within      site  ; 
form    much  modi- 

Indefinite outline 
4loft.  by  360  ft. 

300 

At  Aston  Hall,  on 
road  between  Stone 
and  Stafford 

fied 

XXXVIII, 
6 

Stowe 

Hixon      .     . 

Fragmentary  ;  rect- 
angular ;  wet 

1  60  ft.  by  1  80  ft. 

328 

On  road  from  Staf- 
ford to  Uttoxeter,  at 
junction  of  road  to 
Weston 

XXXVIII, 

»i 

Drointon 

Rectangular  ;  dry 

330  ft.  by  280  ft. 

398 

At  Drointon 

3 

XXXVIII, 

3 

» 

» 

Square  ;  partly  wet 

1  20  ft.  by  125  ft. 

395 

ij  miles  on  road 
from  Stowe  to  Ut- 

toxeter 

XLVII,  i 

Tatenhill       . 

Sherholt 
Lodge 

Two    sides    of    a 
square  ;    wet 

1  80  ft.  &  170  ft. 

292 

South  of  road  from 
Yoxall  to  Burton-on- 
Trent 

SECTIONS   A.B.  C-D, 


THORNTREE  HOUSE,  UTTOXETER 
367 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

HOMESTEAD    MOATS    (CLASS   F)—  continued 


Ordnance 
Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions  (Outside 
Measurement) 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation,  Notes,  &c. 

LXVIII,  5 

Tipton 

Ocker  Hill 

Rectangular  ;    one 
side  and  parts  of  two 
others  ;    house    on 

210  ft.,   190  ft.  & 
I  I  0  ft. 

Ft. 
452 

I  mile  south-west  of 
Wednesbury 

site  ;  wet. 

LXVI,  3 

Trysull  & 
Scisdon 

Moat  rough  . 

Rectangular  ;  dry  ; 
planted 

1  77  ft-  ty  1  43ft- 

400 

ij    miles    west     of 
Seisdon 

XXXII,  5 

Uttoxeter 

Blount's 
Green 

About  square;  part- 
ly wet 

230  ft.  by  245  ft. 

368 

I  mile  south-west  of 
Uttoxeter,  off  Abbots' 
Bromley  Road 

XXXII,  10 

99 

Thorntree 
House 

Double  moat 

230  ft.  by  240  ft., 
&  2  80  ft.  by  240 
ft. 

406 

2  miles  south  of  Ut- 
toxeter, |  mile  from 
Abbots'  Bromley  Road 

LVII,  10 

Walsall 

Near  Fishlcy 
Farm 

Fragmentary  ;  short 
lengths  of  bank  and 
ditch  remaining,and 

190  ft.  by  120  ft. 

5OO 

I  mile  to  north-east 
of  Bloxwich 

some  water 

LXIII,  10 

» 

The  Moat     . 

Rectangular  ;  three 
sides  ;  wet 

330  ft.,  200  ft.  & 
190  ft. 

426 

i  mile  west  of  Wal- 
sall 

LXIII,  12 

l» 

Moat  Cottage 

Rectangular  ;  dry 

300  ft.  by  2  90  ft. 

588 

l£  miles  east  of  Wal- 
sall, on  road  to  Sutton 

LXIII,  12 

»» 

Near  Wood 
End  Farm 

Rectangular  ;  three 
sides  ;  in  part  wet 

I  80  ft.,   120  ft.  & 

Soft. 

469 

About  i  mile  east  of 
Walsall,     near    Moat 
Canal  Bridge 

LXIII,  14 

» 

Bescot     Hall 

Rectangular  ;  with 
one  length  of  double 
moat  ;  very  perfect  ; 
dry 

300  ft.  by  2  50  ft.  ; 
1  90  ft.  double 
length 

399 

ij  miles  south-west 
of  Walsall,  on  road  to 
Wednesbury 

LXIII,  7 

»> 

Near  Caldcr- 
fields  Farm 

Circular 

260  ft.  diameter. 

483 

i  mile  east  of  Wal- 
sall 

LXII,4 

Wednesfield  . 

Prestvvood 

(figured  in 
Shaw) 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

250  ft.  by  1  90  ft. 

500 

I  mile  north  of 
Wednesfield 

LX1I,  4 

»» 

Ashmore 
Park  Farm 

Rectangular  ;  wet 

270  ft.  by  2  10  ft. 

489 

I  J  miles  north-east 
of  Wednesfield 

LXII,  8 

J>                  • 

Merols   Hole 

Angle     fragment  ; 
wet 

130  ft.  &  50  ft. 

454 

J  mile  south-east  of 
Wednesfield 

XLIX,  14 

Weston 
under 
Lizard 

Weston   Park 

Rectangular;plant- 
ed  ;  wet 

1  1  8  ft.  by  145  ft. 

400 

£  mile  south  of  Wat- 
ling  Street 

XLVII,  13 

Wichnor 

Wichnor 

One  side  and  parts 
of  two  sides  ;   part 
wet 

3  20  ft.  by  1  80  ft. 

200 

To  south  -  west  of 
Wichnor  Church, 
south  of  canal 

LVII,  2 

Wyrley, 
Great 

Moat  Farm  . 

Rectangular  ;  frag- 
ment ;  wet 

2  I  O  ft.  &    I  I  O  ft. 

&  140  ft. 

426 

On  main  road  at 
Great  Wyrley 

XLVI,  8 

Yoxall  . 

Near  Mill 
Stream 

Quadrant  ;  dry     . 

300  ft.  by  1  10  ft. 

226 

Yoxall 

XLVI,  4 

»              • 

Longcroft 
Hall 

Fragmentary  ;  wet 

305  ft.  &  75  ft. 

274 

£  mile  north-east  of 
Yoxall 

368 


SCALE    OF     FtCT 
0  100         "ZOO      300 


SECTION      C.D 


SECTION       A.B 


\Waf  I 


STOURTON    CASTLE,    KINVER 


369 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


MISCELLANEOUS    EARTHWORKS 

(CLASS  X) 

ECCLESHALL. — The  defensive  earthworks  here  would  seem  to  have 
been  a  broad  and  deep  moat,  square  in  form,  inclosing  a  quadrangular 
area,  whereon  the  castle  stood  with  a  strong  stone  retaining  wall  sup- 
porting the  isolated  inclosure,  with  an  arched  bridge  across  the  moat 

for  the  approach  to  the 
castle.  Much  of  the 
retaining  wall  remains 
and  also  a  fine  angle 
tower  of  nine  sides. 
The  bridge  across  the 
moat  seems  to  have  been 
central  on  the  south  side, 
which  would  give  a 
length  of  280  ft.  east 
and  west  for  the  build- 
ing area,  and  170  ft. 
north  and  south.  The 
River  Sow  is  in  imme- 
diate connexion  with  the 
site.  Recent  dealing  with 
the  grounds  and  sur- 
rounding waters  has 
much  modified  the  char- 
acter of  the  earthwork. 
The  nearest  altitude  on 
the  Ordnance  map  is 
300  ft. 

LICHFIELD. — The  close  and  city  were  fortified  with  fosse  and  wall  and 
towers  as  at  Eccleshall.  The  lower  part  of  the  north-east  tower  still  remains, 
and  the  eastern  fosse  bounds  the  palace  grounds,  and  remains  of  the  northern 
wall  still  exist  in  the  palace  and  other  gardens. 

KINVER  :  STOURTON. — Here  there  are  two  lines  of  earthworks,  one  against 
the  road  to  the  south  of  the  castle  running  east  and  west  and  the  other  follow- 
ing the  line  of  the  River  Stour  running  north  and  south,  but  these  may  have 
been  occasioned  by  the  construction  of  the  road  and  as  flood-banks  against  the 
river.  There  are  also  slopes  and  banks  to  the  south-east  of  the  present  house, 
but  there  is  nothing  about  them  indicating  that  they  are  of  ancient  origin. 
Stourton  is  said  to  have  been  fortified  for  the  king  at  the  commencement  of 
the  Civil  Wars. 

TYRLEY. — This  is  at  present  the  site  of  a  farm-house,  and  there  are  no 
definite  remains  of  earthworks. 

Besides  the  foregoing  there  are  other  earthworks  enumerated  in  the 
following  table,  of  which  only  a  very  general  account  can  be  given  by  reason 
of  their  indefiniteness  both  as  to  their  extent  and  character. 

37° 


SCACE.    OF   FEE.T 
100       200       aoo 


SECTIONS  AB.C.D 


ECCLESHALL  CASTLE 


SECTIONS  A.B-  C.D. 

£ 


This  Ditch  laid  out-  in 
It-regular    parks  *  fer races. 


eo:=r: 


JlHIUt 


urn 


arft 


PLAN. 


LICHFIELD  DITCH,  EAST  AND  NORTH  OF  CATHEDRAL 


Casrte 

SCALE  OF   FEET 

IOO        2OO      3OO 


TYRLEY  CASTLE 

371 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

MISCELLANEOUS    EARTHWORKS    (CLASS   X)— continued 


Ordnance 
Number 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions 

Alti- 
tude 

Situation 

VI,  1  5 

Audley     . 

.  Bunker's 

Length  of  curvec 

1  20  yds.  & 

Ft 

488 

Linley  Wood 

Hill 

intrenchment 

306  yds. 

& 

441 

LXIVs 

Barr,  Great  . 

Round  Hill  . 

Roughly  circular 

400  ft.    N.  &  S 

500 

Bourne  Vala.     This 

3  70  ft.  E.  &  W. 

mound  has  been  plant- 

ed within  the  memory 

of  man.    It  has  no  in- 

dication   of    defence, 

has  not  been  tested  by 

excavation  and  appears 

to  be  wholly  of  sand 

and    is     possibly     of 

natural  formation 

XII,  10 

Bunlem    .     . 

Abbey  Farm 

A  length  of  ditch 

63  yds.  &  63yds. 

500 

Near  Biddulph  Val- 

and  bank 

ey  Railway  at  Abbey 

IV,  13 

Leekfrith 

Lower 

A  length  of  ditch 

2  1  7  yds. 

1,000 

143  yds.  from  road 

Haddon 

with  bank 

Between    R  u  s  h  t  o  n 

Spencer  &  Meerbrook 

LII,  1  1 

Lichfield, 

Prince  Ru- 

Rectangular 

34yds.  by  25  yds. 

319 

North-east  of  Beacon 

St.  Chad 

pert's  Mound 

Street 

LII,  15 

Lichfield, 

Barrow  Cop 

Circular 

3  10  ft.  diam. 

300 

About  i  mile  south- 

St. Michael  j                  Hill 

west  of  Lichfield 

XX,    4,    &    Mayfield        .   The  Cliffs      . 

Terraces 

406  yds.  varied 

600 

J    mile     north     of 

XXI,  i 

Upper  Mayfield 

XX,  8 

»» 

Hollow  Lane 

Series  of  terraces  . 

1  60  yds. 

600 

J  mile  west  of  Mid- 

dle Mayfield 

XXIV,  14 

Stone 

Mottiey  Pits 
Terraces  ' 

Various,     straight, 
and  curved 

Covering  a  large 
area 

459 

J  mile  north-east  of 
Stone  railway  station 

XLI, 
i  &S 

Stretton, 
(near  Burton 

Vicarage 

Irregular,         with 
right  angle  corners 

30  ft.  by  1  30  ft. 
and  varying 

178 

Adjoins  Vicarage 

upon  Trent) 

LXVI,  3 

Trysull 
and  Seisdon 

Abbot's 
Castle  Hill 

Running  length     . 

About  2  miles 

454 

i      mile      west      of 
eisdon 

XXVI 
10  &  14 

Uttoxeter      . 

Hill  House 
Terraces 

Rectangular      .     . 

420  ft. 

400 

West  of  Hill  House, 
Stramshall 

XXVI, 
10  &  14 

» 

Cottage 
holding 

>» 

1  20  ft.  by  90  ft. 

358 

North  -  east   of  St. 
Michael's  Church, 

Stramshall 

XX.3 

Wootton 

Raddle  pits   . 

Lines  of  trenches  . 

1  66  yds. 

900 

$     mile     north     of 

Wootton 

372 


t*V*5> 


25  %  X>,                    '0        10 
=t    \>SN.  .'I i 

4-53=^     s    r^c^~    •' 

— ^'.  ^  m^B^1-* 


V      scAte  or  FE.E.T  t' 

IOO          20O        3QO 


*i    SECTIONS.          , 
SCALE    80'=  I  '.' 


•\     ^  ,,.'""•, ,,',,, M          '"«««iu«     "~\        -  := 

,,,.•  v""«t«..,Y,,, 


" 


.„ 


MOTTLEY    PITS   TERRACES,    STONE 


373 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 


EARLY  BURIAL    MOUNDS,  OR  LOWS 

These  burial  mounds  occur  in  every  part  of  this  county,  but  more 
frequently  than  elsewhere  on  the  northern  moors,  and  generally,  but  not 
always,  at  high  levels.  Their  sizes  and  shapes  vary.  Excepting  the  explora- 
tion carried  out  by  Thomas  W.  Bateman  and  his  assistant  Samuel  Car- 
rington  very  little  has  been  done  in  that  direction.1 

The  prolific  results  of  the  diggings  of  the  above-named  explorers  have 
found  a  place  in  the  public  museum  of  the  town  of  Sheffield. 

The  deposits  in  the  Sheffield  Museum  represent  nearly  the  whole  of 
what  has  resulted  from  the  opening  out  of  the  ancient  burial  mounds  of  the 
county.  It  is  remarkable  that  the  northern  moorlands,  the  highest  parts  of 
the  county,  should  be  crowded  with  these  memorials  of  the  pre-historic  dead, 
emphasizing  their  doings  on  earth  and  signifying  their  faith  in  a  future. 
Looking  at  the  number  of  them,  localized  so  thickly  though  spread  over 
centuries,  it  would  almost  appear  that  the  heights  of  the  hills  were  specially 
chosen  as  places  of  sepulture  by  those  living  far  and  near. 


Ordnance 
Survey  Short 

I'.riih 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions 

Alti- 
tude 

Siiu.iiii.ir,  Findt,  Notct 

Ft. 

IX,  8 

Alstonficld     . 

Narrowdalc 
Hill 

Oval       .... 

Diam.  52  ft.  by 
43  ft.;   5ft.  6  in. 
high 

I,OOO 

^  mile  cast  of  cross 
roads  at  Gatcham 
Farm 

IX,  8 

it 

Gratton   Hill 

Kite-shaped 

42ft.  by  34ft.  ; 
4  ft.  9  in.  high 

'.'94 

I  mile  north  of  Al- 
stonficld 

XIV,  4 

•» 

ll.im  Tops 
Low 

Circular 

Diam.  Soft.; 
8  ft.  high 

>,'°3 

J  mile  from  Ham 
Tops  Farm 

IX,  16 

»» 

Stanshope 

p.isturc  Hall 
dale 

>» 

Diam.  47  ft.  6  in.; 
8  ft.  high 

900 

f  mile  south-east  of 
Stanshopc 

IX,  11 

i» 

Steep  Low     . 

Irregular 

93  ft.  by  39ft.; 
15  ft.  high 

1,000 

^  mile  north-west  of 
Alston  field 

IX,    12 

H 

Pea  Low 

Circular 

Diam.  140  ft.  ; 
6  ft.  high 

1,000 

$  mile  north  of  Al- 
stonfield 

XIV,    12 

Blore  with 
Swinscoe 

West  of  Blorc 

Oval       .     .     .      . 

Diam.  63    ft.   by 
27ft.  ;   4ft.  high 

1,000 

J  mile  west  of  Blore 

XIV,  ii 

'» 

Dun  Low 

Circular 

Diam.  89  ft.  ; 
6  ft.  6  in.  high 

1,000 

NearWaterings  Farm 
to  west 

XIV,    12 

ti 

Lady  Low     . 

Rectangular 

60  ft.  by  48  ft.  ; 
3  ft.  High 

700 

^  mile  north  of  Blore 
Hall 

1  Thomas  W.  Bateman  was  well  known  to  fame,  but  Samuel  Carrington,  the  village  schoolmaster  of 
Wctton,  a  moorland  parish  wherein  he  opened  very  many  burial  mounds,  has  scarcely  ever  been  heard  of,  but 
he  was  truly  a  man  of  science,  well  versed  in  botany,  geology  and  archaeology.  After  a  life  of  extraordinary 
usefulness  was  ended  he  was  buried  in  the  churchyard  of  Wetton,  and  under  the  auspices  of  Sir  Thomas 
Wardle,  the  members  of  the  North  Staffordshire  Field  Cub  erected  a  fitting  memorial  over  the  place  of  his 
burial  from  the  design  of  Mr.  G.  G.  Scott,  jun. 

374 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

EARLY    BURIAL    MOUNDS,    OR    LOWS—fo*ti**tJ 


Ordnance 
Survey  Sheet 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimension! 

Alti- 
tude 

Situations,  Findi,  Note* 

XIV,  9 

Caldon     .     . 

Crow  Low    . 

Circular       .     . 

Diam.  70  ft.  ; 
7  ft.  high 

Ft 

1,000 

Within  i  mile  from 
Caldon  Station 

XIV,  7 

Gallon     .     . 

Cart  Low     . 

>» 

Diam.  80  ft.  ; 
6  ft.  high 

900 

North-east  of  Water- 
fall and  Calton  Lane 

XIV,  1  1 

» 

Near    Lower 
Calton  Green 
House 

H 

Diam.  9  1  ft.  ; 
8  ft.  9  in.  high 

1,088 

South-east  of  cross 
roads.  Green  Lane, 
and  back  lane 

XIV,  1  1 

H 

» 

n 

Diam.  58  ft.  ; 
4  ft.  high 

900 

At  rear  of  Lower 
Calton  Green  House 

XX,    12 

Calwich 

Calwich  Low 

it 

Diam.  103  ft.  ; 
3  ft.  high 

5i8 

J-  mile  north  of  Cal- 
wich Abbey 

XVIII,    12 

Caverswall      . 

Swan  Bank 
Cookshill 

Circular      .     .     . 

Diam.  1  59  ft.  ; 
10  ft.  high 

600 

North-west  Cavers- 
w.ill  Excavation  made 

through  each  direc- 
tion and  at  foot  — 

nothing  found 

XVIII.  7 

»» 

Weston 
Coyney 

Irregular 

Diam.  100  ft.  by 
i  20  ft.;  ;o  ft.  high 

700 

North-west  of  cross- 
roads, Hildentone  to 
Leek  and  Caverswall 

to  1  lanlev 

XIV,    13 

Cotton     .     . 

Near  Ribden 
Clay  Works 

Circular 

Diam.  88  ft.  ; 
7  ft.  high 

1,075 

^  mile  north-west 
from  Moat  1  louse 
near  Cotton. 

LIII,  * 

Croxall    .      . 

»> 

Diam.  1  1  7  ft.  ; 
18  ft.  and  29  ft. 
high 

ZOO 

South-east  of  Church- 
yard against  River 
Tame 

LIU,  14 

Elford     .     . 

The  Low 

«» 

Diam.  69  ft.  ; 
49  It-  h'8h 

231 

Near  roadside  Tarn- 
worth  to  Burton 

XX,  6 

Ellastone  .     . 

Gid  Low 

t> 

Diam.  86  ft.  ; 
l  i  ft.  high 

600 

In  park  north  of 
Wootton  Lodge 

XX,  5 

Farley      .     . 

Beelow  Hill  . 

M 

Diam.  38  ft.  ; 
2  ft.  high 

852 

Near  ro.id  between 
Farley  and  Cotton 

XX,  i 

» 

Near  Three 
Lows  Cottage 

n 

Diam.  83  ft.  by 
71  ft.;  4ft. 
6  in.  high 

1,044 

South-west  of  Leek 
and  Ashbourne  Road 

XIV,  14 

» 

Wardlow      . 

M 

Diam.  78  ft.  ; 
8  ft.  high 

I,  XII 

200  yds.  south-west 
of  Wardlow 

V,   10 

Fawfieldhead 

North  of 
the  Low 

» 

Diam.  97  ft.  6  in.; 
8  ft.  6  in.  high 

900 

Off  Hulme  Lane 

V,   10 

H 

North-west 
of  the  Low 

»» 

Diam.  104  ft.  ; 
6  ft.  6  in.  high 

956 

>»         »» 

375 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

EARLY    BURIAL    MOUNDS,    OR    LOWS— continued 


Ordnance 
Surrey  Sheet 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions 

Alti- 
tude 

Situations,  Finds,  Notes 

Ft, 

LV1II,  16 

Hints       .     . 

Elford, 

Circular      .     .     . 

Diam.  175  ft.  ; 

400 

Elford   Low    Farm. 

Golds  Clump 

30  ft.  high 

j  Near  Watling    Street 

and 

Hints  between  Tarn- 

Diam.  180  ft  ; 

worth  and  Lichfield 

19  ft.  high 

XIV,  4 

Ham   .     .     . 

Beechenhill  . 

» 

Diam.  47  ft.  ; 

1,000 

J     mile     north     of 

4  ft.  high 

Beechenhill  Farm 

XIV,  1  1 

99 

Musden  Low 

Circle  disturbed    . 

Diam.  105  ft.  ; 

1,182 

£    mile    north-west 

4  ft.  high 

of  Waterings 

XIV,  1  1 

99 

Musden  Low 

Circle     . 

Diam.  74  ft.  ; 

1,182 

North-west  of  last 

north-west  ' 

6  ft.  high 

XIV,  1  1 

f| 

Musden  Low 

99 

Diam.  50  ft.  ; 

1,  180 

$  mile    north-west 

south 

4  ft.  high 

of  Waterings 

LXVII,  14 

Kingswinford 

Barrowhill    . 

Circular      .     .     . 

Diam.  99  ft.  ; 

500 

East     of     Pensnett 

30  ft.  high 

Churchyard 

XXIII,  i 

Maer  . 

Camphills 

>9 

Diam.  51  ft.  ; 

600 

600  yards  north   of 

5  ft.  high 

King's  Bank 

XXIII,  i 

99 

»9 

99 

Diam.  49  ft.  ; 

600 

230  yds.  north-west 

7  ft.  high 

of  King's  Bank 

XXIII,  i 

n 

King's  Bank  . 

99 

Diam.   130  ft.  ; 

600 

Camp  Hills  north  of 

20  ft.  high 

Whitmore  and   Mar- 

ket Drayton  Road 

XX,  8 

Mayfield       . 

Oval      .... 

Diam.  107  ft.  and 

600 

J  mile  north-west  of 

78  ft.;   3  ft.  high 

Middle  Mayfield 

XX,  8 

jt 

The  Rowleys 

» 

Diam.  145  ft.  by 

500 

North-west   of  Red 

1  2  5  ft.  ;  1  1  ft.  high 

House    on    Ellastone 

and  Mayfield  Road 

XLV,  7 

Rugeley    . 

Etchinghill    . 

Circular,  irregular 

Diam.  328  ft.  by 

454 

Natural  hill  scarped 

63ft. 

1 

V,  10-11 

Sheen 

Brund  Lane 

Circular    .     . 

74ft.diam.;  1  3ft. 

900 

£  of  a  mile  west  of 

high 

Sheen  Church 

XX,  3 

Stanton    . 

Over-low 

9) 

Diam.  90  ft.  ;  6  ft. 

800 

|  of  a  mile  west  of 

high 

Stanton 

» 

99 

Scrip  Low 

99 

Diam.  92  ft.  ; 

800 

About  J  mile  west 

I  oft.  high 

of  Stanton  village 

XXIV,  9 

Stone  . 

Saxon  Low 

Irregular  .... 

Diam.  241  ft.  by 

500 

Near  Hill  Top  Farm 

3156.;  38ft.high 

•J  mile  from  Trentham 

Road 

L,6 

Stretton  (near 

Rowley  Hill 

Circular  .... 

Diam.  65  ft.;  3  ft. 

3»7 

Planted      i  i    miles 

Penkridge) 

high 

east  of  village  ;  J  miles 

north      of      Watling 

Street 

376 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

EARLY    BURIAL    MOUNDS,    OR    LOWS—  continued 


Ordnance 
Surrey  Sheet 

Parish 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions 

Alti- 
tude 

Situations,  Finds,  Notei 

Ft, 

LVIII,  15 

Swinfen    and 

Offlow     .     . 

Indistinct  but  trace- 

Too indefinite  for 

367 

^    mile     north-east 

Packington 

able 

measurement 

of  Watling  Street  on 

Lane    to  Whitehouse 

Farm 

XXXVII, 

Tixall  .     .     . 

Blackheath 

Circular  .... 

Diam.  1  20  ft.  ; 

294 

North-west   of  road 

12 

Covert 

9  ft.  high 

from  Ingestre  to  Staf- 

ford 

XXXVIII, 

99 

Lower 

» 

Diam.  65  ft.  ; 

400 

South  of  road  from 

9 

Hanyards 

6  ft.  high 

Ingestre  to  Stafford  at 

Lower  Hanyard  Farm 

XXXII,  6 

Uttoxeter 

Toothill 

» 

Diam.  85  ft.  ; 

441 

Marchington      road 

6  ft.  high 

J  mile  from  junction 

of  Brookhouse   Lane, 

planted 

XXXII,  2 

>» 

1* 

j> 

Diam.  140  ft. 

300 

Off  Wood    Lane    £ 

14  ft.  high 

mile     from    junction 

with  Bridge  Street 

» 

»» 

»» 

ii 

Diam.  64  ft.  ; 

Woodlane  near  rail- 

5 ft.  high 

way  and  river. 

XIV,   2 

Waterfall      . 

Waterfall 

„ 

Diam.  60  ft.; 

I,OOO 

Within    an    inclosed 

Low 

8  ft.  high 

plantation    north-east 

of  Waterfall    330  yds. 

east  of  Slade  Lane 

» 

» 

South  of  Old- 

Oval    

Diam.  89  ft.  & 

1,141 

Off  Slade   Lane   be- 

field Farm 

69  ft.  ;   5  ft.  high 

tween    Grindon    and 

Waterfall 

SCALE:  OF  TEET 

O  IOO        2OO        3OO 


.5ECTIONS  A.B.C.D.    SCALE    8O-«. 


SAXON  Low,  STONE 

377 


A    HISTORY    OF    STAFFORDSHIRE 

EARLY    BURIAL    MOUNDS,    OR    VOWS— continued 


Ordnance 
Sunrejr  Sheet 

P»ri*h 

Name 

Form 

Dimensions 

Alti- 
tude 

Situations,  Finds,  Notes 

XXXV   8 

Wcston  Jones 

Gregory  . 

Oval    

Diam.  iSoft.  by 

Ft. 

3OO 

I  50  ft  ;  8ft.  high 

Weston  Jones 

IX,  n 

Wetton    .     . 

Gateham, 
south-west 

Kite-shaped  .     .     . 

Diam.  5  5  ft.  by 
60  ft.  ;  4  ft.  high 

1,121 

£  mile   from   Gate- 
ham 

» 

» 

Adjoining  last 

Circle      .     .     .     . 

Diam.  42  ft.  ; 
4  ft.  high 

1,221 

,»             11 

XIV,  15 
IX,  6 

»»          •     • 

Wetton  Low 
Ecton  Low  . 

Circular    .... 
Oval  

Diam.'  69  ft.  ; 
i  oft.  high 

Diam.  y6ft 

I,OIO 
I  OOO 

J  mile  south-east  of 
Wetton 

by  85  ft. 
6  ft.  high 

Bridge 

XX,  2 

Wootton  .     . 

Three 
Knowls    on 
Wecver 

Circular  .... 

Diam.  82  ft.  ; 
7  ft.  high 

1,185 

One     mile      north- 
west of  Wootton 

Hill 

» 

»> 

One 

undefined 

it 

Diam.  75  ft.  ; 
9  ft.  high 

1,183 

f    mile     north-west 
from  Wootton 

INDEX 

OF    THE 

PARISHES  IN  WHICH    EARTHWORKS   ARE    SITUATED  WITH  THE  LETTER  OF  THE  CLASS 

TO    WHICH    THEY    BELONG 


Pari«h 

Abbots'  Bromley  . 
Acton  Trussell  and  Bed- 
nail 

Alstonfield 

Alton 

Armitagc 

Audlev 

Barr,  Great      .... 

Barton  under  Need- 
wood 

Blithfield 

Blore  with  Swinscoe . 

Blymhill 

Bradley 

Branston 

Brewood 

Burntwood,  Edial,  and 
Woodhouses 

Burslcm 

Bushbury 

Caldon 

Calton   . 


Clan 

F 

Parish 

Calwicli       .... 

F 

Can  nock     

T,  T,  T,  T  T, 

Castle  Church  . 
T1        Caverswall  

B,E 
F 

Chartley  Holme    . 
Cheadle 

E,  X 

Clieckley     . 

X 

F 

Chesterton.      See    Wol- 
stanton 
Church  Eaton. 
Codsall  .... 

F 

Coppcnhall. 

T,  T,  T 

Cotton  

F.  F 

Croxall  

B,F 
F 
F 
F 

X 

Draycott  in  the  Moors  . 
Dudley  Castle  Hill    .     . 

Eccleshall   

F,  F,  F 

Elford    .... 

T 
T,  T,  T 

Ellastone    
Ellenhall     
Essington    . 

378 

Cltn 

T 
B,F 

F,F 

E,  F,  T,  T 
E,  F 

F 

F 


F,F,F 

F 

F,  F 
T 
T 

F 
E 

F,F,X 

T 

F,  T 
F,  F 

F,  F,  F 


ANCIENT    EARTHWORKS 

INDEX    (continued) 


Parish 

Class 

Parish 

Class 

Farley    

F,  T,  T,  T 

Penkridge  

F,  F,  F 

Fawfieldhead  .... 

T,  T 

Pipe  Ridware  .... 

F 

Fisherwick  

F 

Ranton  

F,  F,  F 

F 

Rocester     

C 

Gnosall  

F,  F,  F 

Rugeley      

T 

Rushall  

F 

F,  F 

\ 

Handsworth     .... 

F 

Sandon  

F 

Hamstall  Ridware 

F 

Saredon  

F,  F 

Harlaston    
Haughton  

F 
F,F 

Shareshill     
Sheen 

C,F 
T 

Heighley     Castle.       See 

Shenstone  

B,  F 

Audley 

Stafford 

E 

Hilderstone      .... 

F 

Stanton  

T,  T 

Hilton   
Hints     

F 
T 

Stoke  upon  Trent 
Stone     

F,  F 
B,  F,  F,  F,  X,  T 

Stourton.     See  Kinver 

Ham  

T,  T,  T,  T 

Stowe    

F,  F,  F 

Stretton  (near  Burton  up- 

X 

Kingsley     

F 

on  Trent) 

Kingswinford  .... 

C,  T 
B,X 

Stretton  (near  Penkridge) 
Swinfen  and  Packington 

T 
T 

Lapley  

F 

Tamworth  

E 

Leekfrith     

X 

Tatenhill    

F 

Leigh     

F 

Tipton  

F 

Lichfield     

X 

Tixall    

T,  T 

St.  Chad  .... 

F,X 

Trysull  and  Seisdon   . 

F,  X 

St.  Michael  . 

X 

Tutbury      

E 

Longdon     

C 

Tyrley  

X 

Madeley     

F 

Uttoxeter   

F,  F,  X,  X,  T,  T,  T 

Maer     

B,  T,  T,  T 

Marchington  Woodlands 
Mayfield     
Milwich      
Mucklestone    .... 

F 

F,  F,  X,  X,  T,  T 
F,  F,  F 
F 

Wall      
Walsall  
Waterfall    
Wednesfield     .... 

C 
F,  F,  F,  F,  F,  F 
T,T 

F   F   F 
i  ,  j.  ,  i 

Weston  Jones  .... 

T 

Newborough    .... 

F,  F 

Weston  under  Lizard 

F 

Newcastle  under  Lyme  . 

(D,E) 

Wetton       

T,  T,  T,  T 

Norbury      

F 

Wiclinor     

F 

Wolstanton      .... 

C 

Ogley  Hay      .... 

C 

Wootton     

X,  T,  T 

Wyrley,  Great     .     .     . 

F 

Patshull       

F 

Pelshall       

F 

Yoxall    . 

F,  F 

379 


DA 
670 
S7V6 
v.l 


The  Victoria  history  of  the 
county  of  Stafford 


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