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Woodbatch
Woodbatch maps
Historic maps of Woodbatch and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Woodbatch maps
Woodbatch photos
We have no photos of Woodbatch, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Bishops Castle| Church Stoke| Lydbury North| Clun| Newcastle| Chirbury| Montgomery
Woodbatch area books
Displaying 1 of 4 books about Woodbatch and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Woodbatch
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Shropshire memories
My Childhood
The nicest thing about growing up in Clun in the 1940s was that it was one big happy family. We all knew each other, and cared. I loved standing in the blacksmiths in Bridge Street, watching Mr Griffiths shoe horses, and on a cold winter's day the heat was great. The highlight of my Saturday mornings was waiting at St George's Place for Mr Davies, the baker. He would take me and a couple of other kids with him as he delivered bread up the Llewyn, in his horse and cart, and drop us off on the way back. I still remember it as if it were yesterday.
Although there were about 14 shops in Clun, nobody sold ice-cream and there was great exitement every month or so, when Tom Hamer had ice-cream delivered to his shop at the top of Bridge Street .
Mum And Dad
My mum dad and two sisters and brother lived here, Mum used to walk a mile a day to fetch a pale of water. When I was born we had to move to Stiperstones because the house wasn't big enough, the house at the bog only had two bedrooms, so my brother slept on the landing, till we moved I slept in an open drawer. I would love to hear from anyone who knew my family then. My mum was Phyllis Hotchkiss, my dad was Lincoln Hotchkiss. Thank you, Mike Hotchkiss
Mary Ann Shuker
My great grandmother, Mary Ann Shuker came to Manchester from Chirbury in service as a maid. She married my great grandfather, Ernest Edward Chorlton and they must have returned to Chirbury to be married because the family bible states they married at Chirbury Church on 22nd December 1888. I always thought she came from Wem - but this is quite a way away (for those days). I would love to find out more about her - I will travel to Chirbury and search the graveyards for her mother and father. What a life change for her to travel to Manchester! The address she came to is Stanley House, Oxford Road, Manchester (I would imagine a cotton baron's home). She must have visited her family in Chirbury for her wedding (and Christmas I imagine) then travelled back to Manchester where she remained. How I wish I could find out more about her - she is often in my thoughts!
CHIRBURY ROAD WOOD RELATIVES
Some time in the 1980s, my mother Dorothy visited her gt-aunt Rhoda Wood (b1901), who had lived in the same cottage, 15 Chirbury Road, Montgomery, all her life, one of 10 children of Charles (b1849) and Ellen Wood (b1859). I have a photo of the cottage. My mother recalls that Ellen was a laundress, but had to get all her water from the village pump. On the 1911 census, she is still working, with her daughter Catherine. I would love to know if anyone has memories of Rhoda or her 9 siblings, Mary, Anna, Frances, Charles, Catherine (Kitty), Gladys, Alexander, Percy or Walter. I have old photos of some of them and of Charlotte Beamond, who was Rhoda's grandmother. I am having problems sorting out what Ellen Wood's maiden name was - on some docs she writes "Jones" and others "Bumford" or "Boundford". I THINK her mother was Mary Jones (daughter of Richard Jones) who died in 1862.
Summer Holidays
My early memories go back to the days spending our holidays at Grandma Davies in Broome. Grandma used to say it's only half a mile to Aston-on-Clun, we would walk there at least twice a week. The first time would be to Mr Naylor's shop. Also to exchange the accumulators to run the radio, you see there was no electricity, also no running water. The second time would be every Sunday evening going to the Baptist chapel, we would add another seven at least to the congregation. The organ was played by Mrs Howl, it was a treadle organ, and at times we would find it hard keeping up with her. My home town is Congleton, Cheshire, and my memories of Aston-on-Clun are still with me today as if I was only there yesterday. We have lived in Australia since 1968, and have returned to Congleton on occasions, but we never for-get to go to Aston-on-Clun.
Stiperstones Poem
THE STIPERSTONES
T’was long ago the Ludlow people vexed the Devil very sore
He vowed to stone their homes and steeples until they were no more
On Cranberries Hill he then collected his apron full of rocks and stones
With these missiles he expected he could break the peoples bones
Swiftly crossing roads and rivers past the peasant peoples homes
Through the land of peaceful livers till he reached the Stiperstones
O’er the mountain dark and dreare hurried satan on his way
Vowing war and strife and riot on the people miles away
Suddenly the strings were broken in a heap the stones all fell
And he left them as a token of his presence there to tell
Then cursed he Ludlow and it’s tower from the top of Stiperstones
In the fury of the hour built a chair of rocks and stones
And tis said at midnight hour when the moon is rising high
Satan sits in state and power while the ghosts of... Read more
Lost Boy
Would like to find the family and whereabouts of Elsie May Jones, local address 'Broadwoodbunge'.
If you can help, please contact mjroffey@yahoo.co.uk Subjet EMJ.
February 2010
