Colwich, Staffordshire Genealogy

England Staffordshire



Parish History
Colwich St Michael and All Angels is an Ancient Parish in the county of Staffordshire. Other places in the parish include: Bromley, Pershall, Three Farms, Sugnall Parva, Sugnall Magna, Slindon, Podmore, Wootton, Aspley, Charnes, Chatcull, Chorlton with Stableford, Cold Meece, Coldmeece, Croxton, Great Sugnall, Hill Chorlton, Horseley, Horseley with Garmelo, Cotmere and Offley Hay, Little Sugnall, Mill Meece, Millmeece, and Walton.

COLWICH (St. Michael), a parish, in the S. division of the hundred of Pirehill, union, and N. division of the county, of Stafford, 3 miles (N. W. by N.) from Rugeley; containing, with Fradswell chapelry, the townships of Bishton, Moreton, Shugborough, and Wolseley, and part of those of Drointon, Great and Little Haywood, and Hixon, 2015 inhabitants, of whom 205 are in the township of Colwich. This parish, which is situated on the banks of the Trent, and intersected by the road from London to Liverpool, comprises by measurement 6492 acres. The scenery is very delightful, the river flowing through a vale of the richest verdure, adorned with a variety of elegant villas, among which are the charming seats of Shugborough and Wolseley. There are two quarries from which a durable stone is obtained for building. The Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal forms a junction with the Grand Trunk canal near Great Haywood: the Trent-Valley railway passes through the parish; and in 1846 an act was obtained for a railway from this place, through the Potteries, to Macclesfield. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 0. 5.; patron, the Bishop of Lichfield: the great tithes have been commuted for £700, and the vicarial for £500; the glebe consists of about 6 acres, 4½ of which are in the parish of Stowe. The church is of some antiquity, and contains a monument to the memory of the celebrated navigator, George, Lord Anson, who was interred in the family cemetery at this place, June 14th, 1762. At Great Haywood is a parochial chapel, and there is an endowed chapel at Fradswell. The Independents have a place of worship. In 1837 was established here the Mount Pavilion convent of Benedictine nuns; attached to it is a private chapel. The remains of Haywood Abbey, situated in the parish, have been converted into a gentleman's seat.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 668-672. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50891 Date accessed: 09 April 2011.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

See Staffordshire BMD

Church records
Colwich St Michael and All Angels Ancient Parish

Deposited parish registers at Staffordshire Record Office Bap 1590-1978 Mar 1590-1958 Bur 1590-2007 Lichfield Record Office holdings of Bishop's Transcripts Bap 1659-1868

Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection

Census records
Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Poor Law Unions
Stafford Poor Law Union

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Staffordshire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.