Hi Tim

This is a great site, I will be back again I love the historical accounts.  I like your idea of putting answers to questions up for everyone to read.  I was especially interested in your extensive answer about High Ercall.

My WEBB family were associated with the Seven Stars in Cold Hatton from around 1786 to possibly 1918ish or later.  I know nothing of what their daily lives may have been like, the area or its history.  I do understand one of them may have been a JP.  They variously crop up in parish registers for High Ercall, Waters Upton and I think some may be buried in Rowton.  Do you have any information on any of these other places or are you able to point me towards a site that may contain such info.   Many thanks for such an interesting site.

Regards
Glennis Austin
New Zealand

Do you know, I had to look up to find out exactly where Cold Hatton was! I thought I knew most places in Shropshire.

I get the impression you know more about your family than I can tell you, but here is a little I have gleaned from my 'Bible'. It is a copy of the 1871 Casseys Directory of Shropshire which I found on a rubbish tip over forty years ago.

Cold Hatton is a hamlet in the parish of High Ercall, some 8 miles from Shrewsbury and 6 from Wellington. As a matter of fact, this area was mentioned by Llywarc Hen, the ancient British poet, so the area's history must go back almost to Roman times, if not further.

With the area of High Ercall, including, I presume, Cold Hatton, are associated some of the greatest names in Shropshire's history. The Peverel family, for example, who are mentioned in our 'Shropshire Secrets'. Burnell who is more often associated with Acton Burnell, and of course the Newport family.

In 1871, the principle landowners were the Dukes of Cleveland and Sutherland, J. Tayleur (The Tayleur family's name lives on in the name of a pub in the area, and Patrick Hunter. The area of the parish was then 11,799 acres with a population in 1861 of 1,969

To give you a tiny idea as to what the hamlet of Cold Hatton would have been like around 1871, here are the people listed in the Directory of that year;-

John Ball, tailor
Richard Clay, butcher
Edward Colley, tailor
Robert Icke, farmer
Samuel Nicklin, boot & shoe maker
William Pitchford, farmer at Potford
George Ridgeway, blacksmith
John Shakeshaft, farmer
William Tudor, wheelwright
John Vaughan, relieving officer
AND FINALLY
John Webb, Seven Stars inn, farmer, brewer & malster.

There are no WEBBS mentioned in the other parts of the parish in my directory, nor under Waters Upton, but that doesn't mean there weren't any as one had to pay to be in the directory so it does not give a complete picture of that era. However, I did glean that Cold Hatton, Ellerdne and Rowton formed a distinct district for ecclesiastical purposes with a chapel of ease.

Tim Carrington