Sutton Coldfield Local History Research Group

Sarah Holbeche (1803-1882) was a Victorian lady who lived in High Street, Sutton Coldfield. This is the record of a talk given in 2001 in Sutton Coldfield Library about her life, the facts of which were gathered together from the many interesting recollections contained in her diary, which itself was only discovered in 1999 at the home of one of her descendants. A copy of the diary can be found in the Library under Reference: BCOLQ942.496081HOL

This collection of Newsletters and Ancillary Papers were sent out to the members of the Sutton Coldfield Local History Research Group between the years of 1989 and 2020.  The accompanying Index is very useful in locating specific activities that were offered to the group in order to increase and enhance their knowledge of Sutton Coldfield’s fascinating history.

Does this article prove that the Old Rectory occupied the same space as the new Rectory built by Rev. John Riland in 1701?  Perhaps a more thorough search of this area of Rectory Park might reveal further evidence?

Research published in Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society Transactions for 2013, Volume 117.  Submitted by Mike Hodder.

This article is about the men listed on the War Memorial at St Peter’s Church, Little Aston.  Although it is just outside the Sutton border, some of the men lived within the boundary and for that reason they deserve to be included on this website.

The purpose of this research is to establish the extent of the mail and stagecoach services that travelled from Birmingham through Sutton Coldfield to Lichfield, Tamworth and destinations northwards during the late 18th and the first half of the 19th centuries so that an accurate picture can be built up of the effect that this form of transport had on the local population and how it helped to shape the pattern of their lives. Coach traffic has not been treated in isolation so to put the subject into its historical context I have attempted to ascertain the state of the local road systems and to define as far as possible the network of coaching inns that supported the deployment of coaches on the routes from Birmingham connecting Sutton Coldfield to Lichfield, Tamworth and Burton-upon-Trent and all points north.

The Birmingham historian Eliezer Edwards (1815-91) published his Sutton Coldfield A History and A Guide in 1880.  It is not as well-known as the other 19th century accounts of Sutton Coldfield, written by Agnes Bracken in 1860 and Rev W.K. Riland Bedford written in 1891, but it gives modern readers a lively picture of life in Sutton in 1880, with particular emphasis on Sutton Park, the Crystal Palace, the Royal Hotel and the Railway Stations.  This article contains the complete text of Edwards’ book together with Notes which amplify and in some places correct Edwards’ account.

A recently completed woodcarving of the coat-of-arms of the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield by Roy Billingham, a member of the Sutton Coldfield Local History Research Group. Roy studies woodcarving under Master Carver, Michael Painter, at his woodcarving studio in Austrey, North Warwickshire.

This article contains lists of all the members of the Warden and Society of Sutton Coldfield from 1723 (the earliest date for which there is a Corporation Minute Book) to 1886 (when the Warden and Society were replaced by an elected Town Council), in chronological and alphabetical order.  A list of the Wardens of Sutton Coldfield from 1528 to 1886 follows, correcting some errors in Rev W.K. Riland Bedford’s list, and a list of the Town’s Capital Burgesses (magistrates).  The article ends with biographical details of some of the Corporation members from 1723 to 1886 and of some of the Wardens prior to 1723.

Live Excel Spreadsheet for Sutton Coldfield Farms from 1900 to 1950. Not suitabe for viewing on small screens or phones.