Tettenhall
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(December 2016) |
| Tettenhall | |
|---|---|
 St Michael and All Angels' Church | |
  Tettenhall Location within theWest Midlands | |
| Population | 5,225 (2001 Census) |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Wolverhampton |
| Postcode district | WV6 |
| Dialling code | 01902 |
| Police | West Midlands |
| Fire | West Midlands |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Tettenhallis a historic village within theCity of Wolverhampton,in the county of theWest Midlands,England. Tettenhall became part of Wolverhampton district in 1966, along withBilston,Wednesfieldand parts ofWillenhall,CoseleyandSedgley.
History
[edit]Tettenhall's name derives from theOld EnglishTeottanhalh,meaning "nook of land belonging to a man named Teotta".[1]The originalhalhwas likely situated in the sheltered area below the ridge where the church stands. This area, around Lower Green, was the original inhabited area of Tettenhall.[2]In early English (Anglo-Saxon) times, as the place name evidence tells us, there were many cleared woodland areas – areas where field and settlement would have been commonplace. These can be seen today by the place name ending "ley", from early English "lēah", meaning woodland clearing;Wrottesleybeing one such example in the local area. Where most of the land was wooded, below the ridge ran, as it does today, the riverSmestow- though at this time, it was a larger stream than it is today, running through extensive marshy ground.[2]
TheBattle of Tettenhallin 910 was the turning point in the battle against the Danish Viking invaders by the united forces ofEdward the Elderof Wessex and EaldormanÆthelredof Mercia.[3]It saw the crushing defeat of the last of the large Danish Viking armies to ravage England, including the deaths of the Danish Kings,Eowils and Healfdan.In more recent times, the north part of the village became known as "Danescourt".
Tettenhall has an old parish church,St Michael and All Angels,located at the base of the ridge, leading off Lower Green. An exact founding date for it is not known, though records of a fourteenth-century dispute over village land tell us that the church had been founded during the reign ofKing Edgar,at some point between 959 and 975 AD.[4]: 9 TheDomesday Bookof 1086 informs us that before theNorman conquest,Tettenhall was held by three Englishmen – Hunta, Wulfstan, and Godwin. Of course, as with the majority ofEngland,post-conquest,William the Conquerorgave the land to his followers.
There is a variety of pear known as 'Tettenhall Dick', named after Tettenhall, originally found in the hamlet ofPertonand dating to earlier than the 18th century.[5]These small, dry pears are traditionally used for the making ofperry.The Bees & Trees charity began a scheme to plant 2,000 Tettenhall Dick trees acrossthe Midlandsin a bid to save them, as very few of them existed any more. These trees were grafted from existing Tettenhall Dick trees, and the scheme has proven to be a success, with trees being planted in a variety of different locations. The variety is now part of theNational Fruit CollectionatBrogdaleinKent.[6]
The original route of the London toHolyheadroad ran through Tettenhall, though on a different course from the currentA41 Tettenhall Road.The road, when heading north east fromWolverhampton,ran behind the shops atNewbridge,on bridges over theStaffordshire and Worcestershire Canal(when built in 1772) and theriver Smestow,then across to Old Hill, where a steep climb was had for any carriages on route. The road then cut across Upper Green, swayed left into Wrottesley Road as far as Woodthorne Road, and then continuing on as the present Wergs Road.[7][4]: 39 This route, because of the problems associated with carriages traversing the steep Old Hill, was looked at in the early 19th century by the Wolverhampton Trust andThomas Telford,with a view to engineering a new route – either around, under, or through the ridge. Due to a dispute, Thomas Telford dropped out of the plans, leaving the Wolverhampton Trust to go it alone. The preferred method was a cutting through the ridge, with the course of the road sloping up on a gradual gradient from near the Newbridge area, cutting through and rising above Lower Green, before the direct cutting through the ridge to come out next to Upper Green. The spoil from the cutting through the ridge is what was used to create the incline of the road. Work was completed in 1823.[4]: 41
Tettenhall became anurban districtin 1894, the district only contained thecivil parishof Tettenhall. On 1 April 1966 the district was abolished and merged with the County Borough of Wolverhampton andSeisdon Rural District.[8]The parish was also abolished on 1 April 1966 and merged with Wolverhampton,Codsall,Lower PennandWrottesley.[9]In 1961 the parish had a population of 14,867.[10]
Tettenhall today
[edit]
Tettenhall is one of the few places in England to have twovillage greens.Tettenhall Upper Green is situated on high ground near the edge of a ridge that runs in a broadly east–west direction, fromAldersleytoPerton.The Upper Green has a large paddling pool, an extensive open grass area, a cricket pitch, practice nets and theWolverhampton Cricket Club Ground,whereW. G. Gracevisited and played. The area iscommon landthat was donated by the Swindley family to the people of the parish.[citation needed]A clock tower, built in 1912 by the local Swindley family and donated to the parish to celebrate the coronation ofKing George V,is a key landmark in Upper Green.
Tettenhall Lower Green is at the bottom of The Rock, near St. Michael and All Angels Church. It is a sloping grassy area that is popular forsledgingon snowy winter days.[citation needed]
TheA41 roadruns through the village green as a single-carriageway road. Despite the relatively close proximity to Wolverhampton's city centre, Tettenhall retains its rural village character and a strong sense of identity among its residents.[2]
The village has tried to gain independence from Wolverhampton Council and has made plans to return to a parish council but this has no longer been pursued.
Twoelectoral wardsof Wolverhampton City Council cover Tettenhall;Tettenhall Regis(the northern part) andTettenhall Wightwick(the southern part).[citation needed]
Notable people
[edit]- Francis Smith of Warwick(1672–1738), the architect, was son of Francis Smith of The Wergs near Tettenhall. (He became identified with Warwick through setting up business in that town, which he helped rebuild after theGreat Fire of Warwickin 1694.)[11]
- Button Gwinnett(1735–1777) who later emigrated to America where he became the second signer of theUnited States Declaration of Independencehad two daughters who were buried in St Michael's churchyard in 1759 and 1762.[12]
- Billy Harrison(1886–1948), professional footballer mainly forWolverhampton Wanderers,ran a pub in the village after retiring from playing.[13]
- Married former Olympic competitorsHugh Porter(1940–), professional track cyclist and commentator, and his wifeAnita Lonsbrough(1941–), swimmer, live in Tettenhall.[14]
- Children's television presenterMark Speight(1965–2008), was from Tettenhall. His ashes are interred in the parish churchyard.[15]
Education
[edit] | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification.(April 2022) |
Tettenhall Collegeis a private school based inTettenhall Towers,the former home of the Thorneycroft family.[2]
St Regis Church of England Academyis aChurch of Englandschool for 11- to 19-year-olds. As part of theBSF programme,the school was refurbished and now incorporates Tettenhall Wood Special School onto its site.
Christ Church Infants and Juniors are linked to the church of the same name, situated in Tettenhall Wood.
St Michael's CofE School and Woodthorne Primary School are also located here.
Transport
[edit]Tettenhall has strong connections to Wolverhampton andDudleywith bus service 1 running every 9 minutes in the week and a 20-minute frequency on evenings and Sundays. Service 1 is operated byNational Express West Midlandsand alsoLet's Go.There are also buses toCompton(10/10A) andTelford(891).
Tettenhall also was served by three railway stations which were on the formerWombourne Branch Line.The stations that served Tettenhall wereDunstall Park,TettenhallandCompton Halt.The nearest railway station to the village isWolverhamptonandBilbrook.
There have been talks[when?]about opening a new station on the edge of Tettenhall on theWolverhampton–Shrewsbury line.[citation needed]
The Tettenhall Transport Heritage Centre is the first transport museum in the City of Wolverhampton and is found in Tettenhall.[16]
References
[edit]
- ^Mills, David (2011).A Dictionary of British Place Names.Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-960908-6.
- ^abcd"A Short History of Tettenhall".Archived fromthe originalon 8 October 2006.Retrieved5 July2007.
- ^Encyclopædia Britannica,"United Kingdom: the reconquest of the Danelaw"
- ^abcHancock, Geoffrey,A Tettenhall History(1991)
- ^"Orchards, Trees & Orchard Produce - Staffordshire" atEngland in ParticularArchived28 September 2011 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Search NFC".Archived fromthe originalon 7 October 2011.Retrieved23 March2011.
- ^Yates's map of 1776
- ^"Relationships and changes Tettenhall UD through time".A Vision of Britain through Time.Retrieved5 October2024.
- ^"Bilston Registration District".UKBMD.Retrieved5 October2024.
- ^"Population statistics Tettenhall CP/AP through time".A Vision of Britain through Time.Retrieved5 October2024.
- ^Howard Colvin,A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600–1840,3rd ed. (Yale University Press) 1995,s.v."Smith, Francis".
- ^"Great Lives: Roguish ironmonger became a founding father of the States".Shropshire Star.20 December 2021. pp. 22–23.article by Mark Andrews, part of series on worthies associated with the West Midlands.
- ^"Search for family of Wolves hero ends in success".Black Country Bugle.25 February 2010. Archived fromthe originalon 19 April 2013.Retrieved4 August2012.
- ^"No medal for Hugh, but he got the girl instead!".Shropshire Star.2 August 2021. pp. 8–9.Report by Mark Andrews, on couple's memories of 1964 Summer Olympics and life since.
- ^"Funeral for hanged TV presenter".BBC News.28 April 2008.Retrieved30 April2008.
- ^"Wolverhampton | Tettenhall Transport Heritage Centre | England".tettenhalltransportheritagecentre.co.uk.Retrieved24 December2022.
Further reading
[edit]- Geoffrey Hancock.A Tettenhall History.Broadside, 1991.
- Simon Whild.The History of Tettenhall College.Matador, 2008.ISBN978-1-84876-124-7
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