Place:Bloxwich, Staffordshire, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

the following text is based on an article in Wikipedia

Bloxwich is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the county of West Midlands, England, and is situated in the extreme north on the West Midlands border with Staffordshire, forming part of the Staffordshire/West Midlands border. It is one of the rare rural areas of the West Midlands, along with neighbouring villages Pelsall and Brownhills.

History

Early history

Bloxwich has its origins at least as early as the Anglo-Saxon period, when the place name evidence suggests it was a small Mercian settlement named after the family of Bloc (Bloxwich, earlier Blochescwic, meaning "Bloc's village").

Some 19th-century works suggest that at one time Bloxwich was a settlement in the ancient manor of Wednesbury. There is no conclusive evidence for this and Bloxwich has since at least medieval times been associated with the manor and town of Walsall (which for reasons unknown does not appear in the Domesday Book of 1086). Bloxwich itself is however mentioned in this book under the name 'Blockeswich'.

Traditionally there has been a strong rivalry between Bloxwich and Walsall with origins as early as the English Civil War, when Walsall was Parliamentarian in sympathy and Bloxwich, centre of the Foreign of Walsall (Walsall Foreign Parish), was Royalist. This situation was exacerbated by disputes over local taxation for the poor rate in the 17th and 18th centuries.

18th and 19th centuries

Being part of the Black Country, Bloxwich grew rapidly in the 18th century around coal mining, iron smelting and various manufacturing industries, as part of the Industrial Revolution. Manufacturing in the area consisted of bridle bits, stirrups, keys, cabinet locks, plane irons, buckle tongues, chains and saddles. Its most famous product of manufacture were awl blades, which it is reputed to have surpassed all other places in the United Kingdom in manufacturing. In the early 19th century, Bloxwich was still a village. Most of its inhabitants were employed in the newly founded mining and forging industries, as well as light metalworking. It is also known for its canals.

20th and 21st centuries

Bloxwich was heavily developed between the wars for council housing. Most were constructed around Blakenall Heath, as well as Harden and Goscote. In the 20 years which followed the Second World War, the Lower Farm, Beechdale and Mossley estates were also erected as council housing developments, while the southern side of Harden was developed along with the Rivers Estate at Blakenall Heath. Many privately owned houses, mostly in the Little Bloxwich area, were also constructed. In the 1990s and 2000s, many new housing developments have sprung up both in Bloxwich and at Blakenall Heath.

Neighbourhoods in Bloxwich

The following places are now all considered to be in the same ward as Bloxley within the Walsall Metropolitan Borough. Those marked in blue have their own place-page in WeRelate; those in italics have been redirected to the place-page which was a civil parish before 1974. Places which appear to be 20th-century housing estates have been omitted.

• Great Wyrley
• Houghville
• Blakenhall Heath
• Beechdale
• Harden
• Little Bloxwich
• Wallington Heath
• Mossley
• Goscote
• Leamore

A 19th century description

A Vision of Britain through Time provides the following description of Bloxwich from John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales of 1870-72:

"BLOXWICH, a village, a chapelry, and a [registration] subdistrict in Walsall [registration] district, Stafford[shire]. The village stands on the Wirley and Essington canal, adjacent to the Walsall and Stafford railway, 2½ miles NNW of Walsall; and has a station on the railway, and a post office under Walsall. The chapelry is in Walsall parish; and was constituted in 1842. Rated property: £17,509. Population in 1841: 3,801; in 1861: 7,345. Houses: 1,424. The property is much subdivided. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Lichfield. Value: £300. Patron: the Inhabitants. The church is very good; and there are chapels for Wesleyans and Roman Catholics.

"The subdistrict includes also Pelsall township in Wolverhampton parish. Population: 9,237. Houses: 1,800."

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