Introducing the village of Croxton
Croxton is a small rural village on the Staffordshire / Shropshire border, and was mentioned in the Staffordshire Domesday Book of 1086. It is a very social village with lots of community groups. It has a church (St Paul's), an independent chapel, the Vernon Yonge Arms, (formerly the local pub and now an 'Indian restaurant) and a petrol station into which is incorporated a small shop and post office. It is surrounded by mixed and dairy farming, interspersed with swathes of woodland of ancient origin - which gives the locality the name of 'The Woodland Quarter'.
We are very proud of our village which is set midst beautiful countryside spread across rolling sandstone hills with rocky outcrops and ravines. There are several Staffordshire Wildlife Trust Reserves in the locality, hundreds of wells and 'pools' and some lakes known locally as 'meres'. The village is situated on the historic London to Chester route, (now the B5026), with a cross roads at the heart of the village. The name Croxton means 'settlement at the cross' , and each of the four roads branching off from the Villa Cross Roads leads to nearby important manors, houses or castles of the 'feudal lords'. (Eccleshall castle to the East; Standon Old Hall to the North; Broughton Hall, Gerrards Bromley Hall and Wetwood Manor to the West, and finally to the South, - Woodwall Green Manor, - which sadly no longer exists). Croxton is just 3 miles outside the smallest town in England - Eccleshall. Most of the villagers of Croxton will travel to Eccleshall for the Doctors / Dentist, and a range of shops and supermarkets located around an attractive High Street . Eccleshall is a thriving town and holds regular farmer's markets, the local annual Agricultural Show, and biennial street festival amongst other community events. The village hall is known as Broughton Parish Room which serves several villages in the locality and is situated 2 miles West of Croxton. There is no regular bus service to / from our village, so most people rely on transport by private car. There are many societies that are very well supported in Croxton and the surrounding Parish: The Local Garden Guild, Historical Society, Quiz, Community Choir and Women's Institute to name but a a few. Croxton's Wells
Croxton has many roadside wells and natural springs. The most interesting of which is located on a farm at the bottom of the Whittingtons. This farm is called 'Penny-Quart'. The tradition is that about 150 years ago, there was a great drought and every well dried up except the one on this farm, so the farmer sold the water from his well at one penny a quart.
There is also a spring alongside the B5026 at Butters bank and there is always drinking water in the old stone trough at the roadside. This has never been known to go dry. Also about 60 years ago, there existed a roadside well in the bank beneath Broughton Church. It was known as 'The Baby's Well', as water for christenings used to be taken from it. 'It was said that in the past, you could be out walking and roaming the the Woodland Quarter countryside for whole days and never be without a drink of water,... if you knew where to find it!!' Boughey's Well: where did the name come from?
In the centre of Croxton, opposite what we now call Boughey's well is a long low half timbered building (now Glendale B & B) It was formerly a Coaching inn called the Swan with Two Necks. As Croxton was on the main coaching road from Stafford to Chester, and in the 18th and 19th centuries, relays of horses and refreshments for the passengers would have been obtained here. The wells in the village would have a vital part to play in this. The Coaching Inn later became a Tailor's shop where apprentices used to sit cross-legged on tables in the old style, making the livery for the footmen at Charnes Hall. It was owned by one Samuel Boughey who eventually set up a bakery on the premises, using an old fashioned stick-fired oven. Water from the well was used by the bakery and eventually the well became known as 'Boughey's well'. A 1893 receipt for 1/2 bag of flour / meal costing seven shillings and threepence is shown below. Descibed as a 'Bakers, Grocer and provision Dealer' the business was later inherited (through marriage) to the Meadows family, and gradually steam ovens were introduced.
CROXTON WINDMILL
Croxton windmill was built over 200 years ago. Standing on the highest ground above the village, it is also the site of one of the chain of beacon fires which heralded the approach of the Armada in 1588. In 1840 there was a severe storm which carried off the whole top of the mill. The mill was chosen for the site of the first Queen Victoria bonfire in Staffordshire. It is now a residence and no longer possesses any sails.
Links:
broughtoncroxtonlocalhistory.weebly.com broughtonwomensinstitute.weebly.com |
Around and about the 'Woodland Quarter'
Falling into the well!
Isaac Richardson was born in Croxton in 1842 and wrote about his experiences. His accounts are probably the most extensive available for the period of the 1850’s and 1860’s and provide an insight into village life, school and the customs of the day and the local area.
"The following 'narrow escape' I well remember ....... The west side of our garden was bounded by the lane that leads to the Woodwall Green. On the lowest side of the road which is nearest the garden hedge was a small ditch and at the bottom of the ditch was a small stream which was fed principally from the village well on the opposite side of the road. Now this stream ran south to the southern limit of our garden, near to Rebekah Poole’s former residence, (the old house was taken down some years afterwards and replaced by new one). At this corner was a little well into which emptied the stream, and from thence its course went eastward through a deeper ditch south of our garden, and adjoining the same, and finally emptied into Mr Lean's meadow. Now a day or two previous to this event, my father cleaned out this little well, and sad to think, curiosity led me to try and ascertain its depth, so I picked up a little twig a few inches long and walked up to the well, stooped down, and tried to find the bottom by this frail and in adequate means, and while in the attempt, lost my equilibrium, and as a matter of course fell in head first. I got there all right (that is at the bottom), but how I got out is a mystery I have never been able to solve and I suppose it will always remain a mystery. Shortly after I gained dry land I discovered that my precious ginger cap was spoiled, for that it was its name. Now my cap was somewhat peculiar shaped. It resembled a pancake from that point of view with a large button on the centre. My poor old brown ginger cap - it was spoiled and that with out remedy" . This short excerpt is taken from: Chapter 4: 'Some Early Experiences and Narrow Escapes' , of a book published by the Broughton & Croxton Local History Group entitled: Isaac Richardson 'My experiences of Croxton (1845 -1860)' (shown below). For more information contact Ian C Symington, (Broughton & Croxton Local History Group) on 01630 620472 Link: broughtoncroxtonlocalhistory.weebly.com An invoice for provisions received in 1916 by Mr Oldbury from Meadow's Shop.
A loaf cost 8 old pence (about 4p in today's currency!).
A 2lb bag of rice cost 4d, - the equivalent of 2p today |
- 2023 Croxton Well Dressing
- 2019 Croxton Well Dressing
- 2017 Croxton Well Dressing
- 2015 Well Dressing
- 2013 Croxton Well Dressing.
- The inaugural 2012 Croxton Well Dressing
- 2012 Well Dressing in the Making
- 2013 Planning and Design
- 2012 well dressing planning
- Restoration of the historic wells 2012
- Heritage Cycling / Walking Trail
- A Community Project
- Well Dressing Frame
- Local History & the 'Woodland Quarter'
- Materials
- Design 2012
- The Well Dressing Process
- 1901 Map of wells in Croxton and surrounding villages
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