EVENTS  Speakers night last Thursday 26th July – unfortunately due to a fire at Firmin’s factory on Thursday, Tony Kelly had to cancel but our intrepid pair Peter Cadman and Bob Brevitt stepped in with only one hours notice to provide us with an entertaining talk ” Beside The Seaside” which brought back lovely memories for all our members. We have received news that the fire damage is not as extensive as first thought and thankfully no historical artefacts were ruined

Due to the success of our recent Family History Beginners Courses at Cheslyn Hay Lbrary we are hoping to run a  another session on Thursday 9th August 2pm until 5pm more information will be posted next week

OUR SALEM BASE is open from  9am – 2pm every Tuesday

REQUESTS  No requests received this week

RESPONSES  More research on the recent Dukes/Jukes enquiry has revealed that the family are included in our Overseers Record for the Poor on ten separate occasions from 1810 – 1831.  All available on request.

Continuing with Ann and Alicia’s interest with their ancestors John Stokes and Rebecca Hodgkins our own research reveals a  fascinating story behind the recorded facts.  Firstly we have to eliminate any connection with the James Hodgkins in Massachusetts from our John Stokes and Rebecca Hodgkins in Cheslyn Hay.  Despite the fact that when James and Rebecca  married in Wolverhampton in 1832 and they were recorded as ‘Widower’ and ‘Widow’ neither of them had ever been married before having their children baptised locally prior in 1932.  Alicia has been provided with their full story with copies of their marriage, four baptisms and the 1841 Census listing their nine children.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50/100 YEARS AGO…by Mike Belcher

Cannock Advertiser  no reports for this week in 1968

27th July 1918 Cannock Chase Courier  A meeting of the Cheslyn Hay Parish Council Council the subject of the New Allotments at the back of the New Inns, Station Street was discussed concerning rents involving Mr. Pearson and Mr. J. Simmsand a promise of a piece of land from Mr. Isaac Stokes.

27th July 1918   The Rev. R. T. Rowley is leaving the township and being replaced by the Rev. J. Naylor.  Full details given.

27th July 1918  Mr R H Brough and Mrs Waltho reported at the Local Relief Committee meeting  details of Prisoners of WarPrivate T. A. Bosworth, of Station Street, and Private J. Waltho.

27th July 1918   Information on the “flu” epidemic.

WWI COMMEMORATION  This August we commemorate the death of William Askey who was killed on 2nd September 1918, husband of Sarah Ellen Askey of  108 Station Street Cheslyn Hay.  Full details given.

GENERAL NEWS

Two of our long standing members have recently passed away.

Christine Wilcox (nee Webb) formerly Sutherland Road, Cheslyn Hay who worked at the Bridgtown Primary School for many years as a Welfare Assistant.  Passed away June 29th at New Cross Hospital. Age 86.  Funeral, August 1st at Stafford Crematorium 2pm.

Norman Rowe, passed away on Saturday 21st July aged 84.  Norman will be remembered as a talented artist, particularly on his favourite Cheslyn Hay scenes, and his generous donations of these paintings to be displayed at our Base as well as being sold for our Society’s funds will always be appreciated.   Born and bred in Great Wyrley, he met his wife, Mary, at Great Wyrley Secondary School and they have lived locally throughout their married lives and our thoughts go out to Mary and the family. Funeral is on Monday, 30th July at 11.30am at the Salem and all friends and colleagues will be welcomed at a gathering at the Cheslyn Hay WMC afterwards

suewashington.cheslynhayhistory@btinternet.com

EVENTS  Speakers night July 26th.  Back by popular demand we have Tony Kelly, the Sales Director of Firmins of Birmingham. They are the second oldest manufacturer in the UK having been established in 1672 and having strong links to Royalty. Their products were present at the Battles of The Nile, Trafalgar, Waterloo and Gettysburg, and they still continue to supply uniforms, swords and insignia to the Guards regiments that are so popular with visitors to the Royal Palace & Trooping the Colour. Items made by their skilled craftsmen will be on show. The title of Tony’s talk is ‘The Finishing Touch of the Button’ part 2 and is on Thursday at the Salem starting at 7.30pm.  Admittance £1 including refreshments.

On Thursday July 26th  we are having the second of our beginners course on Family History at the Cheslyn Hay library from 2.00 pm until 5.00pm.  For further information telephone Malcolm on 01922 410021 or 07794418295, or just turn up on the day

OUR SALEM BASE is open from 9am – 2pm every Tuesday and this week Trevor is appealing for help in the scrutiny and naming of the photographs he has received and as outlined below.

REQUESTS  No requests received this week.

RESPONSES  Further to the enquiry from Ann Molloy in Australia who wants to discover how her Stokes’ ancestors managed to own property when only miners we have made further study into the family history and discovered Joseph Stokes owned a house and a plot of land (ref 331 & 328 on our  Tithe Maps) in Queen Street as well as John Stokes in Little Wood in the early 1800s but also the Stokeses were involved having properties that were sold at auctions in 1827 and 1839.  John Stokes was also involved with a John  Smith when they obtained the lease of a Cheslyn Hay mine for 99 years in 1832 which they were forced to sue the Sayers for an alleged breach of contract.

Another connection with Ann’s family came from Alicia Woolaston, a visitor to our Base, who was interested in the information on James Hodgkins and Rebecca Stokes emailing ‘I think James may have been born 1792 in Penn and possibly died 1823. Sorry I have not got the full package on ancestry so unable to access the record again to send the full information.  Attached is his military record of 1812 in Massachusetts as well as his application for a war pension.   His roll number and pension number are on it.  I could be completely barking up the wrong tree but maybe your researchers may like to take a look and see if there is any value in it.’

After John’s request from last week we have looked into the New Connexion baptisms in Cheslyn Hay (1790-1835) and there are seven baptisms registered for the Locketts including  the full details of two baptisms that he was enquiring about – Moses and Elanor.  For further enquiries we have now recorded the family names of these baptisms and are listed below in ‘What’s in our Archives’.

NEW PHOTOGRAPHS  Two photographs of the Holly Bank No 2 Colliery at Essington (ES-PLC-26 & 27) and two Carnival photographs from the 1950s (RE-CAR-355 & 356).  £1 per 6×4 Photographic Print.

WHAT’S IN OUR ARCHIVES  These are the family names of the 152 baptisms listed at the New Connexion Chapel (prior to the Salem) collated by James Lawson from 1790 – 1835. Addams, Ashton, Baker, Belcher, Blewitt, Brough, Bullivant, Churm, Clegg, Cole, Cooper, Crutchley, Dace, Davies, Day, Eccleshaw, Goswell, Hayward, Hemingsley, Hinton, Hodgkins, Horton, Jones, Lawson, Leyland, Lockett, Moore, Morgan, Newman, Parker, Parkinson, Peace, Pearson, Perry, Pinnock, Poyner, Read, Shorter, Simkin, Smith, Stanley, Street, Taylor, Tonks, Walker, Webb, Whitehouse, Wollaston, Wood.

ARCHIVE ADDITIONS/ARTEFACTS/DONATIONS  We have just received a package of 150 wonderful photographs from Diana Green, the possession of her late mother Mrs Phyllis Hallchurch.  They are mainly connected to her Stokes and Woottonfamilies but also contain many photographs of the following – Ridgway, Hawkins, Walton, Dakin, Martin, Hackett, Harrold, Perks, Smith, Pearson and Barratt as well as 94 unknown ones.  There are also some fascinating ones including Arthur ‘killed in action 15 Oct 1917’, ‘Barry Richards left for Australia July 1949’, several weddings with one of Meg & John Dixie (27 Jul 1940), WWI soldiers, WWII RAF personnel, a lad in a wicker wheelchair and ones just named ‘Edie’, ‘Clifford’ and ‘Marjorie’.  The local connection is also confirmed with some photographers named as Eric Pee of 25 Hatherton Street and Lockley & Poxon from Bridgtown & Cheslyn  Hay.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50/100 YEARS AGO by Mike Belcher 

18th July 1968 Cannock Advertiser  Story of Cheslyn Hay garage owners, Raymond and John Dickin rebuilding a 1921 Morgan.

18th July 1968  Fears that the Talbot S.C. football clubs number one fan were being treated unfairly by the Cannock Chase Football League by Miss Lynne Yates, who demanded an explanation.

20th July1918 Cannock Chase Courier  Official news was received  by Mr. and Mrs. W. Bowen, of Hatherton Street, that their son Sergeant George W. Bowen, of the Royal Scots had been killed in action with full details of his life and army career.   Also it appears that Private W. Westwood, also of Hatherton Street, son of Mr. and Mrs. W. Westwood, who is in the Northumberland Fusiliers, is missing.  He has not been heard of since May 27th.

20th July1918  Results of a Flag Day arranged by Mrs. S. Poxon and Miss Ruby Brearley for the British Red Cross Society.

20th July1918   A  meeting of the Local Relief Committee and Red Cross Society with a report from Mr. Brough who had sent two parcels for Private J. Waltho and Private G. Kingston who are Prisoners of War.

suewashington.cheslynhayhistory@btinternet.com

Having stood down as Chairman last year I am now pleased to announce that my good old friend Sue Washington will be taking over my role as Editor of the Weekly Newsletter as from next week.  I would like to thank all members for your support over the past 8½ years (first newsletter 17th January 2010) with the absolute confidence in knowing that Sue will equally enjoy the same association with you all in the years ahead.  For future ‘Requests’ and contributions please email Sue      suewashington.cheslynhayhistory@btinternet.com

EVENTS  On Thursday July 19th we are starting our beginners course on Family History at the Cheslyn Hay library from 2.00 pm until 5.00pm.  We have already received a very encouraging response and Malcolm Podmore will be running them together with other experienced researchers on hand.  For further information telephone Malcolm on 01922 410021 or 07794418295.

OUR SALEM BASE is open as usual for everyone from 9am – 2pm every Tuesday.

REQUESTS  Further to the recent resurrected interest in the Stokes/Hodgekins/Bate families, Ann Molloy (nee Stokes) from Australia passes on her ‘grateful thanks to our team for all the documents just received’ and emails ‘It is so wonderful to have this information as we now think we are some way to getting to the bottom of the mystery of how John Stokes came into possession of the two properties but land transfers seem to have become organised in the late 1860s.  So it is early days yet and we still have some digging to do!  John Stokes was a miner all his life and so were his sons, my grandfather and his brothers probably being the last of a dying breed.  My ancestor was Charles Stokes, the son of John and Rebecca born 1832, who went to Longton in the 1850s to find work.  He lived with his brothers, Enoch, Sylvanus (Venus) and James.  Some time later Venus went back to Cheslyn Hay to live and he died there in the 1860/70s possibly from a coal related illness.  As far as we know, Moses did not leave Cheslyn Hay but stayed on with his mother and father until his marriage.  Both John and Rebecca were widowed when they  married in 1832 but they had lived together for many years before that.  We cannot be sure who their spouses were but we think Rebecca was previously married to James Hodgkins.’  And Ann would be grateful for any further information to add to her researches.

There has been some interest raised of the copy we have in our archives of the first baptisms at the New Connexion (prior to the Salem) collated from 1790 – 1835.  Unfortunately not all of our members are able to visit our Base so we will be only too pleased to help wherever possible.  John Russell Davison emails from Reigate ‘I am still looking for clues about Joseph Russell born somewhere in Staffordshire circa 1806 and his wife Ann Locket(t) born in Cheslyn Hay circa 1816. There was another Ann Lockett daughter of Job Lockett & Jane Westwood born in Cheslyn Hay in 1817 but she died young.  Could some kind person in the Society take a look at this new set of records for any mention of Joseph, Ann or any Russell children such as their daughter Eleanor Russell born in 1835 following their marriage on 28th October 1833?’

RESPONSES  Vi, Jean and Malcolm have all chipped in with all the information that Norma required on her Onions family including births, marriages and deaths as well as addresses and occupation of all the family.

And Vi has now successfully responded to Jeanette Jones’s quest from Virginia in April to trace the part of her husband’s Cheslyn Hay family who remained here whilst the others emigrated in 1910 and has now been able to supply Jeanette with the name, address and telephone number of one of her husband’s Arrowsmith’s g-granddaughters.

Finally the only lead our Jean has for Lindsay on her Thomas Whitehouse (b1827 in Wyrley Bank) who married Martha Charlesseems that they emigrated to Iowa in America.

ARCHIVE ADDITIONS/ARTEFACTS/DONATIONS  Family history of four generations of the Peach family donated by Mick Clarkgoing back to Thomas (b1838) and linking with others including the Leech, Frank, Wollaston and Middleton families.

OLD NEWSPAPERS researched by Dave Washington  An appeal for donations to build a new church (St Marks) to accommodate the townships of Great Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay.  Family names aleady contributed include Walhouse, Gilpin, Hordern, Messenger, Smith, Greensill, Massen, Lycett, Forrester, Yates, Rathbone, Bettson, Charnley, Hatton, Sayer, Bowdler, Poyner, Jones, Green, Marshall, James, Edgerton, Lewis, Benton, Bate, Farnell, Evans, Stringitharm & Cooper. (Wolverhampton Chronicle 29 April 1840)

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50/100 YEARS AGO by Mike Belcher

11th July 1968 Cannock Advertiser     Glancing Backwards 25 Years to 10 July 1943    The second of a series of product shows in aid of the Red Cross and Village Comforts Funds was held at Cheslyn Hay Working Men’s Club on Sunday with names of judges and competitors.

11th July 1968  The Cheslyn Hay Women’s Own held their traditional garden party with an added attraction of a children’s dancing display with all od the stallholders named.

13th July 1918  Cannock Chase Courier  A Garden Party was held on Saturday afternoon, at ‘Glenthorne’, the grounds being kindly lent by Mr and Mrs T A Hawkins.  Full coverage of the event including the Pierriot Troupe and the appearance of Private Butterworth.

13th July 1918  On Sunday evening a sacred concert was well given in the grounds of ‘The Park’ with full details given of the performers.

13th July 1918  An government award given to Sapper William Brian of 40, Low Street.  Details of his army service given.

GENERAL NEWS  An interesting email comes from Phil Jones ‘Just noticed a Hawkins/Coppice/ Cheslyn Hay wagon just on sale (Hornby 00).  Not sure if it’s a re-issue, but ideal if any locals want their own ‘coal-train’.  The contact is Hattons, telephone  0151 733 3655.  Ref : Hornby R6875 (coal wagon Hawkins £13).  They have also had more batches in of the Warstones Bedford bus …. must be really popular!

trevor.cheslynhayhistory@talktalk.net

EVENTS  No Chat ‘n’ Char at the Salem this Thursday, 12th July as it has been replaced by our coach trip to the Liverpool World Museum to see the Terracotta Army.  Please note the coaches will be leaving the Salem at 8am.

OUR SALEM BASE is open from 9am – 2pm every Tuesday and open to everyone.

REQUESTS  A request from Lindsay on our website stating ‘I’m trying to find information on Thomas Whitehouse, born about 1827 to John Whitehouse and Sarah Auld.  The 1861 Census shows Thomas was born in Wyrley Bank. He was married to Martha Charles and living in Tipton at the time. Thank you in advance for any information anyone might have!’

An unusual request from Norma Barta in Michigan who we have helped in the past to research her Bowen family from Cheslyn Hay but she appeals for help on her mother’s side who have no connection locally.  Norma emails ‘I am going in circles trying to find information about my uncle, my mother’s brother.  He was John T Onions, born in 1896/97 in Walsall, to my grandparents, Thomas Onions and Fanny Elizabeth (Brown) Onions I have him in the 1901 and 1911 censuses. In both,  he was living with his parents at Croft Street in Walsall but I can’t find a record of his death.  Can you help me please?  I have only recently discovered his existence as as no-one in my family has ever mentioned him, so I really would appreciate some help if possible.’

RESPONSES  Further to Steve Evans and Alison’s recent visit, our researcher Vi has confirmed that the evacuee was Barbara Joyce Gill and she remained in Cheslyn Hay after the war had ended and she married a Robert Marriner from Stafford.  Also Steve has been given several memories from the friends that Barbara had.

We are also able to help William Thomason in his quest for information  on his Peach and Wollaston family.  Vi gives a full report on the family’s history and whereabouts and Mick Clark emails ‘Francis Peach and Ethel Wollaston were my grandparents and Francis was the ninth child of Thomas and Betsy Leech’.  Mick then forwarded four generations of his family going back to 1838 together with dates of births and deaths and where they lived as well as photographs.

ARCHIVE ADDITIONS/ARTEFACTS/DONATIONS  Copies of the deeds to Bowyers Farm (2 Littlewood Road) with information of the purchasers and other interested parties including the Stokes family (Moses, Charles, Harriet, Thomas, John, Rebecca, Enoch Stokes), Hawkins (John & Sophia Hawkins), Sophia Bate, Walker (Robert, Maria, George, Hannah Walker), Hatton (John Thomas, Frank, Christopher Hatton), Rogers (Emma & Arnold), John Wesley Thomas, John Baker, William Crutchley, Isaiah Bowen, Sarah Jane & Reuben Dunn,  Harry Jones, Frederick John Ridgway, Albert George Bowyer.

A copy of the first baptisms at the New Connexion (prior to the Salem) collated by James Lawson in 1835.  Total of 152 baptisms from 1790 – 1835 together with some research notes available at our Base on Tuesdays.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50/100 YEARS AGO by Mike Belcher

4th July 1968 Cannock Advertiser  Details of Cheslyn Hay Salem Wesley Women’s  barbeque at the home of Mrs B Hackett of 5 High Street, Cheslyn Hay, to raise funds to subsidise their autumn fair last week.  Nearly 70 people attended the event and all the names of stallholders and helpers given.

4th July 1968  Representatives from Great Wyrley Secondary Modern School entertained the members of Cheslyn Hay Over 60s Club at their meeting last week.  The headmaster of the school, Mr A E Sweet, was the guest speaker.  Also involved were Mr D Smith, Mr Poxon, Mrs G Plant, Mrs Waltho, Mrs Knott, Mrs L Baker, Mr Poxon, Mrs Grant, Mrs Bray and Mrs Collins.

6th July 1918 Cannock Chase Courier  Full details of one of the most interesting bowling matches that has taken place on the Senior Bowling Green, was witnessed on Saturday, when Wood Green, Wednesbury, were the visitors.

6th July 1918  Activities given of the children attending the Council School for the local Soldiers benefit.

6th July 1918   At the meeting of Cannock Rural District Council, on Friday, Mr and Mrs S Mellor, of Station Street, Cheslyn Hay, were elected caretakers at the Isolation Hospital.

APPEAL  Roger is appealing to anyone who may have use of any Childrens or Adults Dressmaker dummies to lend to ourselves over the weekend 5th & 6th October for our Exhibition.  Please contact Roger on 01785 212412 or 07928070061.

FOR FAMILY HISTORIANS  With the interest in family history research through DNA databases, below is a theoretical number of ancestors you could have in 18 generation … without any cross linking.  Assuming each generation averages out at 25 years you are looking at over a quarter of a million ancestors taking you back to just the mid 17th century.  An interesting thought…..

                                    15th Great Grandparents        131,072

14th Great Grandparents          65,536

13th Great Grandparents          32,768

12th Great Grandparents          16,384

11th Great Grandparents            8,192

10th Great Grandparents            4,096

9th Great Grandparents              2,048

8th Great Grandparents              1,024

7th Great Grandparents                 512

6th  Great Grandparents                256

5th Great Grandparents                 128

4th Great Grandparents                   64

3rd Great Grandparents                   32

2nd Great Grandparents                  16

Great Grandparents                           8

Grandparents                                      4

Parents                                                 2

Self                                                        0

Total Number of Ancestors in 18 Generations           262,142

trevor.cheslynhayhistory@talktalk.net

EVENTS  In conjunction with the Cheslyn Hay Library, we are offering free sessions in family history for beginners this month at the library on Thursday July 19th from 2.00 pm until 5.00pm.  Malcolm Podmore has organised them and can be contacted for further information on 01922 410021 or 07794418295.  There will also be experienced researchers to assist anyone and we will have access to almost 40 billion online records on hand.

OUR SALEM BASE is open from 9am – 2pm every Tuesday.  Everyone welcome to view our photographs and archives with plenty of advice on hand.

REQUESTS  William Thomason emails ‘I`m trying to find information, such as where and when born etc, on Thomas Peach(1838-1920) and his wife Elizabeth Leech (1838-1902).  Their son Francis (1880-1973) married Ethel Wollaston (1886-1942) which suggests that Thomas and Elizabeth were in their forties when Francis was born, which is a possibility of course.  Ethel Wollaston is my grandfather’s cousin.

RESPONSES  Following the visit to the Base last week of Steve Evans and his daughter Alison from Carlisle we have received two most appreciative emails from them both.  Alison says ‘Thank you so much for everything you did yesterday to make my Dad’s visit to Cheslyn Hay so successful. Everyone was so welcoming and you all went to such a lot of trouble to help Dad find out the things he wanted to, and to see again some of the places from his childhood.  Dad still has lots of memories from his childhood growing up in the village and it was lovely to be able to spend time with so many people reminiscing about the past and sharing stories from their childhoods.  It was fascinating for me too!  Special thanks to Mike Belcher for being so helpful and escorting us down to The Lot and to everyone who came especially to say hello to Dad.  You have an amazing set up there – not just in terms of all the well catalogued records you so carefully preserve, but also the wonderful social support and friendship you facilitate. You clearly provide a lifeline for lots of local people and volunteers.  We went away with lots to talk about and it was lovely to have things to reflect on with Dad on the way home.’  Such visits always add to our own enjoyments at the Base and thanks to his incisive memory Steve was able to provide much insight of how life was during and after the war.  However one casual comment by Steve deserves a little more research as he mentioned an evacuee he used to be friends with at the Mount Zion Chapel.  Her name was Barbara Gill and she stayed with Mr Fred Smith and their family in Station Street Cheslyn Hay.  In our archives we have nine photographs of her in both the Mount Zion and Salem choirs as well as at Great Wyrley School, so does anyone else remember Barbara?

And on the same line of thought another email arrived this week from Neil Anstee from New Zealand ‘On behalf of myself and my elderly parents can I please thank you for enduring my enquiring emails both from the UK and NZ over the past several months.  As you may be aware, we all met Vi Leach a few weeks ago and to say that we were all so very impressed it would be a tremendous understatement.  The detailed work that she has carried out for us is amazing and we are extremely grateful to her and to you for your kind patience.  Thank you seems so inappropriate when we have such a lot to be grateful to you both for.’

After Sylvia’s request from last week we have been able to provide her with full information on all the burials of the Jukes family in the Cheslyn Hay cemetery and we are now researching all references we have to this family in our archives.  An added bonus however was a contact a direct relative of Sylvia’s g-g-g-g-grandparents Job Dukes who was born in 1771.  They are now in contact with each other and exchanging information.

And Donald Parbrook comments on his Whitehouse family including one who emigrated in the late 1700s after being sentenced to death but commuted to life in colonies.  He has now got a ‘prime suspect’ family group in 1881 who have definite DNA links to him and also linking in with the Parbrook, Brevitt and Weetman families.

ARCHIVE ADDITIONS/ARTEFACTS/DONATIONS  A set of Pastry Cutters from the Cheslyn Hay Infants School at Pinfold Lane and a Bean Slicer all added to the Don McCulloch Collection and a mincing machine from the early 1900s from Kath Walmsley.  Plus two recent  Memorial Service cards commemorating the lives of Patricia Margaret Potts (b 5 Aug 1924) and Reginald Thomas George Whittingham (b 18 April 1938).

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50 YEARS AGO by Mike Belcher

27th June 1968  Cannock Advertiser  Details of a full sports programme at the Cheslyn Hay Primary School naming Paul Fowler, Lesley Ryan, Graham Sambrook, Keith Rogers and Nulia Bylic.

27th June 1968  Cheslyn Hay Parish Council discussing the existing football pitch on the recreation ground currently being used by both Landywood and the Talbot.

FOR FAMILY HISTORIANS

A poignant poem from Judy Desha in Australia entitled ‘Dear Ancestor’

Your tombstone stands among the rest, neglected and alone,

The name and date are chiselled out on polished, marbled stone.

It reaches out to all who care, it is too late to mourn,

You did not know that I exist, you died and I was born.

Yet each of us are cells of you, in flesh, in blood, in bone,

Our blood contracts and beats a pulse, entirely not our own.

Dear Ancestor, the place you filled one hundred years ago,

Spreads out among the ones you left, who would have loved you so.

I wonder if you lived and loved, I wonder if you knew,

That someday I would find this spot, and come to visit you.

JANET RANKINE (nee GUNN)   Janet, a long standing member from Littlewood Lane, sadly passed away last Tuesday 19th June, aged 78, after a long illness.  Lived in Bridgtown until 1952 before her family moved to Mount Pleasant when she attended Great Wyrley High School and Cannock Mining College studying shorthand and typing which provided her with a career in the offices of Stella Tileries, Rosemary Tileries, Schrader’s and in later life for the DSS in Cannock.  Described by everyone who knew her as ‘a kind, pleasant and lovely person who loved her home and family’.  Our thoughts are with her husband John and the family.  Funeral is on Friday 6th July at Bushbury Crematorium at 3pm.  Family flowers only.  Donations to Cancer Research.

trevor.cheslynhayhistory@talktalk.net

EVENTS This month’s speaker is Sue Bray, the curator of Samuel Johnson House in Lichfield who will be giving a talk about Samuel Johnson’s life entitled ‘A Delve into the Dictionary’ and will include a light hearted quiz. Thursday 28th February at 7.30pm at the Salem. £1 including refreshments.

OUR SALEM BASE is open from 9am – 2pm every Tuesday and this week we welcome Steve Evans and his family who are travelling down from Carlisle on Monday to spend Tuesday with us researching their Evans and Lawson families. Steve is interested in what records we hold on the Mount Zion Methodist Chapel, the Pinfold Lane log books throughout the war years and the Cheslyn Hay Working Mens Club. We will also have on hand members with local knowledge going back to these times and we look forward to escorting the family around the village. Anyone who are connected to these families will all be most welcome. Steve’s father, also Steve, was a keen bowls player and his mother Eva Lawson was originally born in Bridgtown.

REQUESTS Roger Winfer emails a request to view the range of local maps we have now installed ‘on the cloud’ with his particular interest being of Shareshill showing roads and properties around the 1880s. This will be dealt with by our archivists Graham and Daz at our Base on Tuesday.

RESPONSES Sylvia Parsons visited Cheslyn Hay during the week but unfortunately called when our Base wasn’t open, so we were unable to show her round the Cheslyn Hay cemetery where her family ancestors were buried. However since our last contact with us in January Sylvia has had more success in her research of her Jukes family and confirms that Thomas & Susanna Jukes (Dukes) are her ancestors and although she does not have a birth certificate for Job, Sylvia has wills of his brothers who name him and his wife Maria. Also Sylvia has Birth, Death and Marriage Certificates as well as Wills relating to her family ancestry and has kindly offered to donate copies of these to our archives for the benefit of other members researching her family.

APPEAL Although our coach trip to Liverpool’s World Museum to see the Terracotta Army was sold out immediately, we’ve have just received three cancellations. The date is Thursday, 12th July leaving the Salem at 8am and is £25 a seat inclusive of entrance to the museum. Please phone Roger on 01785 212412 or 07928070061 if interested.

ARCHIVE ADDITIONS/ARTEFACTS/DONATIONS Certificates and records all relating to the Perks & Rhodes families plus a nightdress case and spectacles from the 1870s. Also letters from John H Garratt and James Henry Cadman and newspaper cuttings on a dispute with farmer Edgar Hackett concerning the public footpath that ran along the disused railroad in New Horse Road and Great Wyrley.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK 50/100 YEARS AGO by Mike Belcher

20th June 1968 Cannock Advertiser The Cheslyn Hay Wednesday afternoon Art and Needlework class to disband.

20th June 1968 Accident concerning Graham Barry Ralph Pearce of Five Bars, Woodman Lane, Cheslyn Hay.

20th June 1968 Success of the Gingham Girls, the Katrinas and the Honeytots at the National Championship Competition in Oswestry with names of the individuals.

22nd June 1918 Cannock Chase Courier Details of the newly formed Prisoner of War Fund.

WWI COMMEMORATION researched by Bob Brevitt This July we commemorate the death of 12162 Joseph Thomas Holland of the 184thTunnelling Company of the Royal Engineers who was killed on 21st August 1918 aged 31, son of Joseph and Mary Holland, and husband of Beatrice of 148 Station Street, Cheslyn Hay, and buried with honour at the Lijssenhoek Military Cemetery.

JOSEPH THOMAS HOLLAND researched by Bob Brevitt Bob adds details of the final days of this soldier as from this extract from ‘The True and Faithful Men’ by Ken Wayman.

trevor.cheslynhayhistory@talktalk.net