BUILDINGS & PUBS
WOODSIDE
THE RISING SUN

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THE WARRENERS ARMS

THE ANCHOR INN

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ST JAMES' CHURCH

MEMORIAL HALL

HISTORY
COAL MINING
BROWNHILLS COMMON
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FAMOUS PEOPLE
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Clayhanger brickworks history

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 FOR A LIST OF ALL THE COAL MINERS ON THE 1881 CENSUS IN BROWNHILLS AREA CLICK HERE:CENSUS 1881

INDEX PAGE A complete list of all the pages on this site.

1881 CENSUS. HEAD OF HOUSEHOLDS FOR BROWNHILLS AREA
bhills_census.htm
CLICK HERE.

The name of Brownhills appeared as early as 1686 on a map in Robert Plot's 'Natural History of Staffordshire' One hundred years after that date there were only a scattering of houses in the area called Clayhanger and it was not until the 19th century that any serious development took place. The railways were being built and the line from Bescot in Walsall to Wychnor was opened by the South Staffs Railway in April 1849. Around this time the population started to grow from 305 in 1841 to 13,703 by the time of the 1891 census. The main occupation of the residents of Brownhills was coalmining as many privately owned mines had opened in the area. Brownhills amalgamated for a short period between 1966 and 1974 with Aldridge u.d.c then Brownhills became part of Walsall Borough Council.

Brownhills High Street around 1908. Notice the boy playing with a hoop and whip.

Brownhills has been the crossroads of commercial traffic since prehistoric times but very little is known of its early history. Brownhills was a Hamlet in the Manor of Little Wyrley and the modern town of Brownhills was not created until 1877 when portions of 5 local areas, The Manor of Ogley Hay, The Parish of Norton Canes, The Township of Walsall Foreign, The Chapelry of Hammerwich and The Parish of Shenstone were formed into a local government district called Brownhills. Before this each area had it's own History, Laws and Administration.

The early life of Brownhills started in  area of Birch Coppice, Brownhills Common and Wyrley Common and a few cottages at the north of Clayhanger lane. Brownhills would never have developed if it had not been for it's Coal deposits on and around Birch Coppice and the Common, in the late 19th century there were over 10 Collieries in this small area and before this time there had been numerous Bell Pits around the Coppice Lane area taking Coal from close to the surface. In 1841   80% of the population of Brownhills lived and worked at Coppice Side and Engine Lane area's .( SEE COAL MINING).

In 1846 The South Staffordshire Railway Co started to build the Railway line between Walsall and Lichfield, this was opened in 1849. The Norton branch of the railway, (which was built to get the trains into the heart of the coal fields and so transport the coal out to a larger customer base)  was cut through the the area of housing in the Coppice area which decimated the population of mine workers who were dispersed to live in Ogley Hay in the new housing at Ogley Square, St James' Square and Howdles Lane area's ( SEE. OGLEY HAY ).

ROADS IN THE AREA

THE ROADS AND STREET NAMES OF BROWNHILLS.

. The Ordnance Survey map of 1883 shows this as Church Street probably because it linked the High Street to St James' Church (Built in 1851). The street was also known as Brick Hill Road at one time.It was renamed in 1902 to its present name. I am not sure where the name came from but there was a Brick Kiln on the site of the Junior School playing fields on Gt Charles St in the late 1800's

The first part of this road from the Watling Street to the Corner by the School has been there a very long time, it is well over 100 years old. Many years ago it led to a group of houses known as Craddock's Buildings. The Buildings and surrounding land were purchased by Jonah Deakin ( Senior) where he built Watling Street Farm. The Farm was eventually demolished and Brownhills Comprehensive School was built on the site.
Jonah Deakin (Senior) and his son Jonah Deakin (Junior) were both Brownhills Councillors and Jonah Junior went on to be awarded the OBE for his services to the community.
You can read the Biographies of these two Brownhills men at: deakinfam.htm. The Biographies were written by Jonah Juniors daughter Gillian, who is now a resident in British Columbia.

. This is one of the oldest roads in Brownhills, in the context of Brownhills it runs from the Watling Street to the northern end of the High St, it then continues from the Anchor bridge at the southern end of the High St and continues out of the town towards leamington spa. It was a track even before the Romans came. In the first half of the 18th century it was one of the major coaching routes. The road came into its own in the mid 1800's when the town started to develop as the mineral wealth in the area started to be exploited. where the Chester road meets the Watling St at the West end of Brownhills stands one of the oldest inns in the area, 'The Rising Sun' which was clearly shown in 1769 on Yates' map.

Pier Street started of as a footpath which ran from Clayhanger to the middle of the High Street, (Chester Road).The canal was cut through in 1797 and split the path in two, so a wooden footbrodge was built to span  the canal . Also a pier was built on the canal side and a weighing scale was built next to the pier, this was used for unloading Coal and Corn, etc from the barges to shops and dwellings in the High Street. With this increased use Pier Street became used more and a Licenced House which was known as, 'The Fortunes of War' was built along with a row of cottages and the area became known as, 'Pike Helve' or 'PikeHill Row'. In 1870 the Pub and the row of houses were owned by 'Francis Baildon Oerton' of Walsall and the pub was ran by Widow Budge from Longton.
In 1881 the Landlord of the pub was, 'John Jones' from Whittington and in the row of Cottages, 'James Cain' from Montgomery in Wales had opened a Baker's and Crumpet making shop.
Later the wooden bridge was replaced with the current iron footbridge and the Public house became known as,'The Pier Inn' and the street as, 'Pier Street'. In 1920 Harry Smith became the landlord of the Pier Inn, he was also a Coalminer at The Gove Colliery. He was killed along with 13 other miners in the under ground explosion at the pit on 1st October 1930.
The Pier Inn and the row of Cottages were demolished in the 1960's as part of the local development and the open air market is situated in that area at the present time.

CLAYHANGER LANE.

The Western end of this Lane where it joins the Pelsall Road is shown on Yates' 1769 map, he called the few buildings there Brownhills although Brownhills is more to the north of this settlement and Clayhanger developed into a separate Village from the main Brownhills town. (See also CLAYHANGER)

PELSALL ROAD.

The Road to Pelsall. A very old road which was on yates's map of 1769. There were a few houses dotted along it at that time but the area between Highbridge and Chester Road did not develop until the Coal Mines were in operation on Coppice Side in the mid to late 1800's. This is where Brownhills started its life, around the Junctions of Coppice Lane, Clayhanger Lane and Pelsall Road. This road to Pelsall also goes on to Bloxwich and then to Wolverhampton. Before Pelsall had become a significant sized village the Pelsall Road was known as Wolverhampton Lane and is shown as such on the O.S. Maps of 1887.
In 1881 there were a few houses at the Chester Road end known as 'Tory Row' and a few cottages mostly occupied by Coal miners. There was also a 63 Acre farm, owned by Edward Arblaster as you came down the Lane towards 'The Swan Public House'. Next to the Swan was a lane that went under the railway and to Coopers Bridge which went over the canal to Swingbridge Farm.
The Pelsall Road then goes over the canal at Becks Bridge where in the late 1800's there was a row of 28 houses, 2 pubs and a shop. The first pub was,'The Jolly Collier' which was at the Junction with Coppice Side and at the other end of the row of houses near Highbridge was, 'The Yew Tree'.
Opposite The Yew Tree was a small  'Gin Pit' which was in a small coppice next to the railway line near Highbridge, this had been opened in the 1920's by two young local Coalminers called the 'Jones' brothers who had gained their Surveyors and Mining certificates at Cannock Mining Collage. They bored down to old mine workings to extract the coal which still lay in abundant quantities. The conditions in these small Gin Pits was very bad . The pit was drained of water by a big steam boiler and pump. One day the boiler exploded and flew through the air over the Railway line and came to rest in a field on the other side of Highbridge. A coalminer named Jim Arblaster was killed in the explosion and this was the end of the Gin Pit. The boiler remained in Bentons field for many years after.
The Pelsall road changed significantly in the mid 1900's, the area above Swan Bridge was the upper class end with very big houses being built and below the Swan bridge there were still Arblastors Row of Miners cottages and poor housing. These houses and the Yew Tree which became unsafe due to mining subsidence were demolished to make way for Industrial Units which were taken by, 'Wagon Plc' (Formally Rosses). The Jolly Collier also became a victim of all the coal workings under it and before it collapsed was demolished in 1982 and the land took up by 'The TSS Group' who built a warehouse there.
The Swan Inn is the only Pub remaining now on the Pelsall Road for how long who knows?.

HIGH STREET.

. Most towns have a High St, Brownhills took an appropriate part of the Chester road and made it the principal street in the early 19th century. In the 1850's when the railway Station was built it started to attract custom from outlying districts and so the High St started to grow. The system of numbering was not introduced until 1905  when Odd numbers were on the left and even numbers on the right. The prestigious position of number 1 High St was given to William Brewe, Baker and Confectioner. This building has been sought after through the years by many who would have liked to knock it down, namely Charles Cotterill who wanted to build Gt Charles St straight onto the junction of Lichfield Rd and the High St, but in the end had to put a bend into Gt Charles St and terminate it on the Lichfield Rd several yards from Brewe's corner. Also many town planners more recently have tried to demolish it to enhance the Traffic Island, but have not found success. The building is now one of the few listed buildings in the area.

The Station Hotel on the opposite side of the High St  was the kingdom of William Roberts (SEE  THE STATION HOTEL )

COPPICE LANE.

This is a very old road and was shown in part on Yates' 1769 map and more clearly on the 1834 map.It edges Little Warley and passes through Clayhanger but did not quite reach the Chester road. In 1883 the northern end of the lane was known as Engine Lane, probable called that because of the water pumping engine installed at the Brownhills Colliery to pump water out of the mine which was opened sometime before 1834. There was a house or farm called The Coppice which backed onto Birch Coppice. There was also a large house in extensive grounds called Woodside, in the 1884 Kelly's Directory this was owned by John Thomas Williamson the Colliery Manager of William Harrison who was  the Owner of many of the Mines in the area. A school and the Independant Chapel were built near the junction with the Chester road in1868, it was intended to cater for 134 children but in 1884 had an average attendance of 90.

Built in 1868. The Independent Chapel in Coppice Side.

There is a lane that connects Coppice Lane to the Pelsall Road ( known as The Wolverhampton Road in 1881) which is called Coppice Side. At the southern end of Coppice Side there was a dwelling shown on the 1769 map this was Big House Farm which in 1881 was occupied by John Owen his wife and 6 children. At the Northern end of Coppice side there was also a Large house on the 1769 map. This house was called Fair View Cottage and was occupied in 1881 by a John Ward and his wife, Mr Ward from Wigtan on Tyne who was chief engineer and engine driver at Coppice Colliery.

SEE ALSO: WILLIAM MARKLEW who was the owner of the last,"Tommy Shop" in Staffordshire, Just off Coppice Lane.

COALMINING

THE MAIN SOURCE OF EMPLOYMENT IN THE LATE 1800'S AND EARLY 1900'S.

BROWNHILLS COMMON.

SITUATED BETWEEN THE A5 & A4124 JUST WEST OF BROWNHILLS TOWN..

Brownhills Common was once apart of the Cannock Chase Forest where herds of deer roamed freely. During the 15th and 16th centuries there was a huge demand for timber for fuel and building material and the forest was felled. Heather spread to the newly cleared land and encouraged by sheep nibbling its new shoots and the sandy soil the Heather flourished and created a vast lowland heath and hence Brownhills Common came about and covered over 100 acres.

The heathland went into decline as the industrial revolution took off, the population increased , hence the demand to farm the land and erect housing. Coal and Clay deposits were found all over the area and as the demand for a better fuel than the ever decreasing timber stocks it lead to extensive Coal Mining and brick making expanding in the area. The Heath was then carved as roads, Railways and Canals were cut to serve the new industries.

Today there is little evidence of Brownhills' industrial past, as the coal deposit's ran out, mines closed, Brickwork's closed and the railways were ripped up. In the course of time plants have returned and adapted and wild life amongst the heather slowly returns, there is also a small heard of deer living on there are the present time.

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