Pelsall

Pelsall is an area of Walsall in the West Midlands, England. The suburban area of Pelsall is covered by Bloxwich, also in Walsall.

History

Pelsall was first mentioned in a charter of 994, when it was amongst various lands given to the monastery at Heantune (Wolverhampton) by Wulfrun, a Mercian noblewoman. At this time it was called Peolshalh, meaning 'a nook' or 'land between two streams belonging to Peol'. The Domesday entry of 1086 describes it as being waste, still belonging to the Church. This part of Staffordshire had probably been devastated in 1069 by King William's forces when dealing with the uprising following the Norman Conquest.

Very little is known about the village during the ensuing centuries, but as a chapel of ease was built in c.1311, it must be assumed that a settlement had been established there by then. The population was small and a return of 1563 lists only 14 householders. The economy at that time would have been agrarian and evidence of the medieval strip farming system can still be seen on the tithe map of c.1840. The original centre of the village was the area now known as Old Town. In 1760, the remaining open fields were enclosed, but some holdings survived into the next century in Hall Field, High Ley, The Riddings Field and Final Field.

By the second quarter of the 19th century, Pelsall had a more scattered appearance, with clusters of houses developing on the fringes of the extensive commonland and at the Newlands. The greatest concentration were in what is now the village centre. This area gradually developed; a Methodist Chapel and school were opened in c.1836, in the modern day Station Road and a new St. Michael's Church was built in 1844 - the former in Paradise Lane had been considered too small for the growing population. Towards the end of the 19th century shops became established in Norton Road and High Street. The population in 1801 was 477 and by 1901 had grown to 3,626.

Pelsall had become a mining village; in places deposits of coal were found only a few yards from the surface and c.1800 the shallow and deep seams were 'much worked'. The cutting of the canal in c.1794 had opened up the area for industrialisation, with entrepreneurs and landowners quickly exploiting the mineral wealth. Nailmaking, traditionally a cottage industry, was also carried out locally; in the census of 1841 thirty men gave this as their occupation.

On November 14, 1872, 22 miners died when the Pelsall Hall Colliery collapsed. [ [http://www.ccmhs.co.uk/pelsall_hall_1872.htm Pelsall Hall 1872 ] ] 21 of the 22 miners were buried underneath a polished granite obelisk in the churchyard of St Michael and All Angels Church.cite book|author=George Thomas Noszlopy|coauthors=Fiona Waterhouse|title=Public Sculpture of Staffordshire and the Black Country|year=2005|publisher=Liverpool University Press|isbn=0853239991]

An ironworks was established on the North Common which grew into a sizeable concern under the ownership of Messrs. Davis and Bloomer. This, together with Yorks Foundry and that of Ernest Wilkes and Co. at Mouse Hill, gave Pelsall a share of the heavy iron trade during the 19th century. Ernest Wilkes and Co. survived until 1977, but the others ceased trading in the 1890's and the pits became unworkable, mainly due to continual flooding problems.

The village managed to keep its rural atmosphere well into the 20th century, with several working farms surviving until after the Second World War. Since then much land has been utilised for housing development but the ancient common remains.

Politics

Pelsall is part of the Aldridge-Brownhills constituency. At the 2005 general election, the seat was held by Richard Shepherd (Conservative) with a majority of 5,507 over Labour's John Phillips. The seat has been held by the Conservative Party since the 1979 general election. [ [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/hoc/constituency/history/0,,-670,00.html Aldridge-Brownhills | Aristotle | Guardian Unlimited Politics ] ]

In the 2008 local elections, the Pelsall ward was won by Garry Perry (Conservative) with a majority of more than 2,000 over the Liberal Democrat candidate. Labour were third. [ [http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/council_and_democracy/elections/election_results_2008.htm Election results 2008 ] ]

Landmarks

The main landmark in Pelsall is the The Fingerpost, at the junction of Norton Road and Lichfield Road. Since the late 1990s, Pelsall has also had a Millennium Stone, marking the 994-1994 millennium of the village.

Pelsall is well known for its carnival, with decorated floats and bric-a-brac stalls. It has run continuously since 1972. [ [http://www.pelsall-history.co.uk/events.htm Pelsall Carnival 2007 ] ]

Pelsall is quite 'green' with a large turf central common around which there are several public houses, including The Old House at Home, The Railway and The Queens, plus the newly refurbished Fingerpost pub - and two fish and chip shops, as well as the village's high street, which includes a post office.

Donna Cooper Memorial Garden

In 1997, a memorial garden was erected in the village in memory of Donna Cooper, a local girl who died after being knocked over by a stolen car on January 6, 1993, at the age of 13. The tragedy caused revulsion across the country, and the local community started a petition to ensure that killer drivers were sent to prison for longer.

Joyrider Carl Sherwood (17), from Goscote, was found guilty of manslaughter at Stafford Crown Court on October 7 1993 and sentenced to seven years in prison. Sherwood had only been released on bail for another car theft the previous day; he had run over and injured two pedestrians in Aldridge during December 1992. Front seat passenger Nigel Button (26), from Blakenall Heath, received a four-and-a-half-year jail term for helping Sherwood steal the cars involved in both of the incidents, although his sentence was later reduced by one year on appeal. Rear seat passengers Stuart Rollinson (15), David Teale (14) and Shaun Brockhouse (13) received two-year supervision orders for helping Sherwood and Button steal the Ford Escort which ran over Donna Cooper.cite web |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19980816/ai_n14179797 |title=Today's killers put behind bars by former CID boss |publisher=Find Articles (orig. The Independent) |date=1998-08-16 |accessdate=2008-03-30]

Carl Sherwood was freed from prison in September 1997 after serving four-and-a-half years.

The garden was designed between 1997 and 1999, and was commissioned by Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council, who also maintain it. It was designed by Anuradha Patel, and the metal installations were manufactured by West Midlands Gates & Trailers. The entrance consists of an arched gateway of galvanised steel, painted green. It is convert|2.5|m|ft|0 tall and convert|2.07|m|ft|0 wide. At the centre of the archway is an owl motif, taken from a design drawn by Donna Cooper shortly before her death. Another feature is a galvanised steel tree, also painted green with a height of convert|2.34|m|ft|0. Located throughout the garden are various pine tree stumps, varying in width up to convert|25|cm|in|0 in diameter. The garden itself is convert|200|m|ft|0 long and convert|25|m|ft|0 wide. The garden was created by Groundwork Black Country and Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council.

Blind Date Wedding

The first ever Blind Date wedding (a popular TV show hosted by Cilla Black) took place at St. Michael's Church in 1991 whenSue Middleton of Pelsall married Alex Tatham. They had met on the show three years previously.

The event received national media coverage.

Education

Pelsall is currently home to three primary schools: St Michael’s C of E Primary, Pelsall Village School and Ryders Hayes School.

Pelsall was previously home to Pelsall Comprehensive School, which opened in autumn 1963 as Pelsall Secondary Modern and closed in 1995. The buildings are now home to Rushall JMI School, Education Walsall offices and a teacher training centre.

Places of worship

The parish church of Pelsall is St Michael and All Angels Church. Besides this, Pelsall is also home to Pelsall Evangelical Church and Pelsall Methodist Church.

References

External links

* [http://www.crutchleyhistory.co.uk/pelsall/ Webpage about Pelsall]
* [http://www.ccmhs.co.uk/pelsall_hall_1872.htm Information relating to the Pelsall Hall Colliery disaster of 1872]
* [http://www.staffshomeguard.co.uk The story of the 32nd (Aldridge) Battalion, South Staffordshire Home Guard, 1940-1944]
* [http://www.pelsall-history.co.uk Pelsall History Centre's site]