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Trentham

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"Trentham is a small but handsome village, on the east bank of the River Trent, from which it has its name, and on the turnpike road, three miles SSE of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and six miles NNW of Stone. It has a station on the North Staffordshire Railway, and derives most of its beauties from its close proximity to the elegant and picturesque seat of the Duke of Sutherland, the lord of the manor and owner of nearly all of the parish, which contains 2567 souls and 7236 acres, divided into six townships, Trentham, Blurton Chapelry, Butterton, Clayton Griffith, Hanchurch, and Hanford.
The village of Trentham has a large family hotel and posting-house, and most of its houses and cottages have been rebuilt during the last few years, in a neat and uniform manner, in blocks of two or three together, with tasteful gardens. It was anciently called Trichingham, and had, at an early period of the Saxon era, a small nunnery, of which St Werburga, sister of Ethelred, King of Mercia, was abbess. This lady died in 683, and the nunnery seems to have subsequently gone to decay, but early in the 12th century, it was refounded as a priory, for canons of the order of St Augustine, by the second Earl of Chester.
Trentham Hall is the principal residence of the Most Noble George Granville Leveson Gower, Duke of Sutherland, Marquis of Stafford, Earl Gower, Viscount Trentham, and Hereditary Sheriff of Sutherland. It is an elegant mansion, situated near the village in a park of 500 acres. It has been entirely rebuilt during the last 14 years, and now has an elegant stone front and a lofty square tower. The late hall was erected about 120 years ago, after the model of Buckingham House, in St James's Park, but it was considerably altered and improved by the first Marquis of Stafford, from designs by Holland, who gave a new and imposing feature to the whole. The present mansion is on a larger and more magnificent plan and the gardens rank amongst the finest in England.
Butterton is a small township of about 355 acres and 56 inhabitants, two and a half miles W by N of Trentham. The manor and estate passed from the late Thomas Swinnerton, Esq, to Lady Pilkington, relict of the late Sir William Pilkington, Bart, who died in 1850, shortly after he and his lady had completed the erection of Butterton Hall, which is a large and handsome structure of mixed architecture, standing near the old hall, which will shortly be taken down. Lady Pilkington resides at the new hall, and her eldest son, Sir Thomas Edward Pilkington, Bart, at Chevet Hall, Yorkshire.
Clayton-Griffith adjoins the south-western suburbs of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and has a few scattered houses near the canal.
Hanchurch township has a small village, one mile SW of Trentham, on the side of an abrupt declivity, upon the summit of which is a square plot of ground, surrounded by venerable yew trees, and supposed to be the site of some ancient church or religious house.
Hanford is a village and township, with 733 inhabitants, on the Newcastle road, one mile N of Trentham.
Blurton formed a chapelry to Trentham parish and details can be found on the Blurton parish page."
[From History, Gazetteer and Directory of Staffordshire, William White, Sheffield, 1851]

 

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Bibliography

'The Early History of Trentham'
by William Molyneux
Published 1878, by Staffordshire Newspaper Printing Co, Newcastle.

'Trentham and Tittensor. A Portrait in Old Picture Postcards'
by Dennis Morris
Published 1987, by Brampton, Loggerheads.

'The Beauty of Trentham: an account of the topography & history of Trentham Gardens, with an intimate tour of Trentham Hall & its art; 1887. Followed by a new modern appendix, giving a history from 1890 to 2004. And also with extracts from literature: Trentham as described in Victorian novels.'
Burslem Books
Published 2004.

'The Last Waltz : farewell to the ballroom at Trentham Gardens : August 3rd 2002'
by Johnson Ray
(VHS video recording).

'Trentham at War: the story of a country estate during World War II.'
by G. Bebbington
Published 1998.

'Trentham: A church through history.'
by June Stead
Published 1994.

'Trentham Golf Club: a centenary history, 1894-1994.'

' Trentham: The Hall, Gardens and Branch Railway.'
by C. T. Goode
Published 1985.

'The leviathan of wealth: the Sutherland fortune in the Industrial Revolution.'
by Eric Richards
Published 1973.

'Trentham, Staffordshire - formerly a seat of the Dukes of Sutherland.'
by John Cornforth
Published 1968.

 

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Census

The population of Trentham parish (including Blurton chapelry) was as follows:
1831 -- 2344
1841 -- 2567

 

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Churches

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Church History

"Trentham Church, St Mary, which was originally part of the monastery, is situated close to the hall, and was rebuilt a few years ago. It is now a handsome edifice. The pulpit cushion and cloth are said to have been once the saddle cloth of the Emperor of Morocco.
The perpetual curacy is in the patronage of the Duke of Sutherland, and incumbency of the Rev. EJ Edwards, MA.
Butterton Church, St Thomas, is a small neat Gothic structure, erected in 1845. It is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Lady Pilkington, and incumbency of the Rev William Stone, MA.
A small but neat church (St Matthias) was built at Hanford in 1827. The perpetual curacy is in the patronage of the Duke of Sutherland, and incumbency of the Rev William PH Hutchinson."

[From History, Gazetteer and Directory of Staffordshire, William White, Sheffield, 1851)

 

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Church Records

Church of England Registers
The parish register of the parish church of St Mary & All Saints commences in 1558. The original registers for the period 1558-1950 (Bapts), 1558-1956 (Mar) & 1558-1947 (Bur) (with gap 1640-1656) are deposited at Staffordshire Record Office.
Bishops Transcripts, 1670-1852 (with many gaps) are deposited at Lichfield Record Office.
A transcript of the registers for the period 1558-1812 was published in two parts by the Staffordshire Parish Register Society in 1906 and has been reprinted by the Birmingham & Midland SGH.

The register of Hanford, St Matthias, commences in 1828. The original registers for the period 1828-1972 (Bapts), 1843-1975 (Mar) & 1828-1909 (Bur) are deposited at Staffordshire Record Office.
Bishops Transcripts of Hanford, St Matthias, for the period 1828-1868 (with gaps 1840-50) are deposited at Lichfield Record Office.

 

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Description & Travel

A transcription of the section on Trentham from A Topographical History of Staffordshire by William Pitt (1817)

Conservation Area Appraisals for Trentham  - interesting accounts of the area, with excellent historical detail, numerous photographs and map

Conservation Area Appraisals for Hanchurch  - interesting accounts of the area, with excellent historical detail, numerous photographs and map

You can see pictures of Trentham which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The transcription of the section for Trentham from the Topographical Dictionary of England (1859)

The transcription of the section for Trentham from the National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin Hinson.

The transcription of the section for Trentham from the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72)

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History

The transcription of the section for the history of Trentham from the National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin Hinson.

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Maps

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SJ874412 (Lat/Lon: 52.968009, -2.189054), Trentham which are provided by:

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Military Records

A transcription of the Muster Roll of 1539 for Trentham

A transcription of the Muster Roll of 1539 for Hanchurch & Whitmore

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Poor Houses, Poor Law

The parish became part of Stone Union following the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834.

 

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Taxation

A transcription of the Hearth Tax Returns 1666 for Trentham (with Blurton) Constablewick

A transcription of the Hearth Tax Returns 1666 for Hanchurch (with Whitmore) Constablewick