rel 14 St. Peter’s Church Stoke marriages 1703-1752.
£3.00The church of St. Peter-ad-Vincula the church of Stoke-upon-Trent
1703- 1752 marriage register set in Excel
rel 13 St. Thomas, Penkhull list and date of all Burials.
£4.00A full record of all burials in the churchyard of St. Thomas, Penkhull from 1843 to 1943
A great help for people researching their family tree
Elzel format on a spreadsheet
rel 12 St. Thomas, Penkhull list of Baptisms 1843 – 1962
£4.00This is the full list of baptisms listed in the registers now held at Stafford archives from 1842 – 1962 of St Thomas Church, Penkhull.
A great help for anyone researchibng their family tree of Penkhull.
rel 11 St. Thomas WW 1 list of all those who 1914-1918 war.
£5.00I must have spent hours in researching this material of all those who are listed on the church WW 1 memorial, plus others from Penkhull for whatever reason were not listed.
The list of seventeen pages long is compiled in alphabetical order and under each name is given the age, under which body ther served under with full military details of their record and well as family details where possable and home address.
For those searching family histories this is a welcome addition to assist in your research.
rel 10 Rood Screen in Penkhull Church 1st WW Memorial
£2.00Following the end of the First World War every village, town and city in the land discussed a memorial to those who had given their life in the Great War. Some created civic memorials in front of town halls some were erected in Parks and Churchyards and others took other forms of remembrance. At Penkhull it was agreed that this should be in the form of a Rood Screen.
It waas this national movement to remenber those who died that prompted Penkhull Church to consider which was an appropriate memorial and worthy of the sacrifice of so many lives and the desire to express thankfulness to Almighty God for allowing Britain to achieve victory.
Plans were drawn of the proposed designed and distributed to every household within the parish. The scheme costing £950 well over £275,000 in today’s money. A Mural Tablet, it was said would be situated near to the Rood listing the names of those who had made the ultimate sacrifice. The plan also included new choir stalls. It was thought that if every household promised to contribute just one guinea that the scheme would become a reality. The project was ‘to the Glory of God, in memory of the brave fallen and as a thank-offering’. As a result volunteers would visit each home to collect their weekly donation of just 3d a week for twenty weeks, such was the poverty in the 1920s.
rel 9 Religious Worship in Penkhull – Methodists then Anglican.
£4.00If you are interested in the background of religions in particular the Anglican and Methodists and their origins this 5,000 ples words is a good start in understanding the growth of two quite opposing religions of the time. The early nineteenth century, an age of mechanism, seemed to muster that unimproved concern at the death of the spirit that was the parent of romanticism. The Anglican Church, conscious of decline, made stringent efforts to reverse the situation by the provision of new churches. The urban working classes, largely alienated, became increasingly apathetic to churchgoing. In many cases people who had been uprooted from their country parishes, by coming into new urban centres in search of employment, became indifferent to religion. Social mobility and demographical increase often left them outside the scope of the established church, a situation made worse by the emergence of the dissenting sects.
After the war with France and the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the British people of all classes expected a period of prosperity. Times were hard however as there was no improvement in conditions of employment for the next seven years. K.S. Inglis attempts to put churchgoing into perspective. During the nineteenth century, the habit of attending religious worship was not normal among the working classes. From the beginning of the century, the spiritual destitution of the lower orders was a commonplace of discussion.
This is a brief outline of the essay but sets the picture of what follows. A great read for all keen to learn of the issues seperating two churches in the village of Penkhull.
Ten pages with 5,000 plus word content.
rel 8 Religious Census 1851of all churches in Stoke-upon-Trent.
£2.00A pie chart and list of three different denominations withinStoke-upon-Trent as recorded in the religious census of 1851
rel 6 Penkhull Methodist Pantomimes.
£3.00The first production entitled Snow White, and the Seven Dwarfs was staged in 1958, and was presented almost in a makeshift theatre in the upper schoolroom of the Sunday School. Because of its huge success and public praise, it was decided to present the panto in what was then called Penkhull Senior School the following year. The new venue had a large stage and many schoolrooms that could be used for dressing and props. The next production, Cinderella, surpassed all expectations and the mould was set for an annual pantomime to be presented the week after Christmas. Mrs Buxton continued to produce for three years and was followed in that important role in 1962 by Mrs Betty Powell, by which time the organisation drew in many helpers to build the props, install the lighting, and paint the scenery from both chapel members and the local community. My mother-in-law, Meg Palmer, took charge of the costumes; Dennis Cotterill the lighting and electrics. Other helpers in those early days were Mrs Marjorie Prophett; Mr and Mrs Tom Rowley; Frank Adams; and Jim Powell who helped to produce the props. A story that will bring back so many wonderful memories both of the pantomimes but the people involved.
Three pages with loads of Panto photographs.
rel 5 Penkhull Methodists Baptism/Birth Register 1878-1937.
£3.00This is in the form of a Spredsheet set in Excel listing the Baptism registers for Penkhull Primative Church from 1878 – 1937.
Great help for those researching their family tree.
rel 4 Hopes of Stoke becoming a Cathedral City in 1930s.
£2.00Shortly after Stoke was conveyed with the title of City in 1925, there was a move to create a Potteries Cathedral. It was Rector Crick of St. Peters in Stoke (1924) who expired such enthusiasm for a new parish church in Stoke, to become the Cathedral of the Potteries. It was his wish to lay the foundation stone on October 6th 1930, the centenary of the present parish church dedicated in 1830. The pictures here of the proposed new cathedral were published in the Sentinel in March 1928. Rector Crick was convinced that if our city could catch a vision of the possi¬bilities of our great church, the dream could be realised.
The plans for the cathedral were prepared by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, R.A. The estimated cost was £150,000 (less than the cost of two old, terraced houses in Penkhull today) £50,000 was needed in five years. The Free Churches of the Potteries also offered their support in the campaign.
However, the war followed on following the depression which finally ended any hope of a Potteries Cathedral. The 1834 parish church of Gothic architecture still stands but sadly creates a huge financial burden to every subsequent generation that comes along.
Two pages with pictures of the original design by Sir Giles
rel 3 Church or Chapel – how two denominations developed together in Penkhull.
£6.00It was in 1832, when the first move was made to provide an Anglican Church in Penkhull, a village ion the top of a hill. The parish church of St Peter-ad-Vincula was situated around one mile away in the valley below. It was used weekdays as a school and Sundays for worship and situated in what is now the north side of the present churchyard. In 1842 the present church of St. Thomas was built to accommodate and expanding congregation.
Probably as a direct result and with the predominant number of working people in the village, the first Primitive Chapel was erected within a stone’s throw from the one in the churchyard although many were worshiping in houses by that time. The new chapel was opened in 1836 (still standing) but there were serious financial issues almost from day one to finance the building.
Following the establishment of the church in 1842, by 1844 the church established a National School just across the road. Then in the 1850’s because of the high number of children wishing to attend the Primitive church, an additional separate but attached Sunday School was built.
The story continues to include the parish registers and many different views between the two denominations which went on for years. This twenty-seven-page essay places both church/chapel within the national framework and far much more. This is an important essay for students of religious worship and community relationships of the time.
twenty-seven pages with photos
reg 6 The Struggle for a Live Theatre in the Potteries Begins
£2.00The Struggle for a Live Theatre in the Potteries begins by attempting to save the old Gaumont cinema in Hanley against all the odds in a working-class economy. Yet it is from a background of despair and difficulty regarding the future of live theatre in Stoke-on-Trent with the almost daily issues of finance and management at the Theatre Royal that a new assessment had to be made with a fresh vision and a line drawn under the past– that of saving the then closed old Gaumont Cinema in Piccadilly, Hanley, and re-opening it as a refurbished working live touring theatre. It became clear to me and others “that live theatre should be seen in a wider context, encompassing a focus for re-generation and an elevation of the city’s profile to encourage much needed inward investment”. Yet there was a further dimension, it was to do with the appreciation and the involvement in the arts “unless there is a focus of top professional shows presented in a well-equipped, suitable and comfortable environment there would be no future for live theatre in North Staffordshire and little to which our young could aspire”. It is these two fundamental principles that became my driving force to save the Regent and to bring it into use as a live well-equipped theatre.
two pages
reg 5 Rock around the Clock – that changed the world. Just two minutes and eleven seconds
£2.00In April 1954, Bill Haley and the Comets recorded Rock around the Clock and created nothing less than a cultural revolution in the USA and Europe. It was even more remarkable that the words were penned by a sixty-year-old Max C. Friedman – one, two, three a ’clock four a ‘clock rock – that became the biggest selling single in the UK and world-wide selling around forty million copies. Its impact, recalled Tom Jones years later was spontaneous and liberating,
Because of its phenomenal success, Rock around the Clock, released in 1954 was chosen for the film Rock around the Clock of 1956, and was shown at the Gaumont in Hanley and Stoke with phenomenal success, packed houses and dancing is the isles creating mayhem for the management wherever it was shown. This article explores the local reaction at the time which has never been repeated.
Two pages plus photos
reg 4 Gaumont was stopped from burning down.
£2.00Since the advent of the battery-operated electric drills and considered a boon to both trades and DIY groups, but they are the also provide an asset to potential burglars as I found out which could have easily ended with the Regent being burnt down. It was quite a few years ago when I was campaigning to save the former Gaumont/Odeon cinema in Hanley from demolition to be replaced by a shopping arcade stretching from Piccadilly to Pall Mall. I used to visit the old closed up cinema several times a week to see if all was OK and no one had destroyed the interior. With luck, I came across three potential catastrophic incidents that could have lost this beautiful Grade II* theatre for ever.
On each visit when I entered the auditorium, I always switched on the four 2kw cleaners flood lights mounted In the ceiling, shining its high-powered light through a cut out. On one such occasion after switching on the lights I noticed that two were just re glowing and something was seriously wrong! I climbed the never-ending back stairs in double time, across the roof to gain access into the roof void and walked on planks to the offending lights. The lights had been lifted and placed directly onto the wooden supports. In fact, the whole void was constructed of timber and the huge dome of papier-mâché – once ignited it would go up like a tinder box. It was only a matter of probably a few minutes before the whole lot would have set fire.
Two pages x A4
reg. 3 1929 Cinema kept traditions of live pantomime alive ….
£2.00When the Theatre Royall in Hanley finally dropped the safety curtain on live in 1961 shows, it would have caused some considerable disappointment to families with young children as they would all lose out on the annual pantomime. Yet there was hope as the then Gaumont cinema practically across the road was built with full theatre facilities, dressing rooms, fly town, and a huge orchestra pit all standing empty. The thought I ponder over that for practically two generations of children would have only experienced for the twenty odd years last, Jonathan Wilkes playing the leading role at the old cinema, now greatly restored and back to its original name The Regent.
But it was the old cinema that came in and saved the annual Christmas Pantomime for the masses of children and families. With the silver screen raised high into the fly tower, productions once more commenced of the annual potteries pantomime.
Annual pantomimes at the Gaumont commenced the same year as the Theatre Royal closed to live shows.
So, with a re-decoration of dressing rooms and a general clean up, the first pantomime was staged in December 1961 with Robin Hood staring John Hanson known for his fine tenner voice and the character of the Red Shadow in the musical The Desert Song. All 2,334 seats were sold for each performance and the Sentinel report referred to it as a most colourful – well-dressed production and worth seeing if only for the singing, praising John Hanson as being on top form and engaging in fights and duels. Comedian Max Wall played the part of Martha, the children’s nurse was described as a likeable dame who showed himself as a versatile dancer.
This was just the beginning of the pantomime continues success for the potteries. The story contains stories of some of the top stars of the day, frequently playing the Dame.
Two pages x A4 Pictures
reg 2 The Singing Fool – the first Talkie shown in the Potteries.
£2.00The 1920s was a decade known in North America as the “Roaring Twenties” while in Europe the period is sometimes referred to as the “Golden Age” because of the economic boom following World War I, but all this came to an end in October 1929 with the devastating Wall Street Clash.
Provincial Cinematograph Theatres, the country’s largest cinema chain at the time with over one hundred cinemas in the UK had secured the Hanley site as early as 1925. However, with issues with other properties next door it was 1929 before the largest cinema in the Potteries was opened.
Amid all this it was the picture-house which thrived for just a few pence you could leave all the stresses behind as be transformed twice a week to a world of make-believe. This would be created not just by celluloid projected onto a silver screen, but by the sheer splendour of the ‘Picture Palace’ and the new Regent in Hanley was going to be the best in the Potteries The cinema was operating silent movies when it opened. At the same time, a debate was being held between film directors and actors if to proceed with ‘talkies’ because of the costs and wondered if they would oust the silent picture or even rival the appeal of the theatre.
It was not long after that the very first ‘Talkie’ in the Potteries was shown at the Regent in July 1929 when “The Singing Fool” starring Al Jolson took to the screen filling the 2134 seats at four performances a day. At the end of the week the demand was so great with constant queues around the block that the management decided to run the film for a further week. This meant that around 26,000 people came to see history in its making at The Regent and to witness actual words and music coming for the first time from actors. A simply magical story of our lost years. two x A4 pages