Visit Willenhall Places

Welcome to Visit Willenhall Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Willenhall

  

Willenhall Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Willenhall

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Willenhall history

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Willenhall has been described as “undoubtedly a place of great antiquity, on the evidence of its name it manifestly had its origins in an early Saxon settlement. The Anglo-Saxon form of its name Willanhale may be interpreted as ‘the meadow land of Willa’ – Willa being a personal name.” Alternatively, the name may mean willow halh, the first element of it being the Old English wilgen ‘of willows’. The Old English word halh meaning “a nook or corner of land, often used of land in a hollow or river bend.” The first record of the settlement of Willenhall is from the eighth century when a treaty was signed there by King Ethelbald of Mercia, in which Willenhall was referred to as Willenhalch. In 996 the town was referred to as Willenhale, and as Winenhale it was mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086) as a very small settlement, and it remained so until the growth of industry in the 18th century. During the 10th century, Willenhall was in the Shire of Stafford and The Hundred of Offlow (unit of a 100 villages), consisting of 30 households and a population of around 120. In the Middle Ages, Willenhall was included in the parish of St. Peter’s Collegiate Church, Wolverhampton. Although there was a church in the village, people would have to travel to Wolverhampton for weddings and funerals. It was not until 1840 that Willenhall had a parish church. St. Giles was the first church to be built. The present church is the third on the site, dating from 1867. The River Tame flows through the churchyard and was until recent years one of the few places where the water surfaced. Willenhall was a small agricultural village throughout the Middle Ages. From Tudor times, the natural mineral wealth began to be exploited with ore being sent out to charcoal furnaces in nearby Cannock Chase. The iron product was then returned to be turned into small metal goods. Nails were a common product and by the end of 17th century Willenhall had a healthy hand trade, making grid irons, curry combs, bolts, latches and coffin handles. According to the Hearth Tax Returns in 1665, Willenhall comprised 136 households and 894 persons. The population did not increase dramatically until the 18th century when iron and coal began to be fully exploited. The town grew up around the Market Place and Stafford Street with many tiny streets crammed with houses, workshops and pubs. Evidence of the town’s growing prosperity is still visible today in the Dale House, once the home of the Hincks family, and 33 Market Place, the home of the Clemsons, both maltsters. Willenhall suffered its very own great fire in 1659, when most of the town centre was devastated. Most common homes at this time were still made of wattle and daub with glassless wind-eyes (windows), properties easily razed by fire. Rebuilding where money allowed was in brick; The Bell Inn Public House being a good surviving example from 1660, although now closed for business and in the ownership of a local heritage trust (the Willenhall Townscape Heritage Initiative). Willenhall’s first workhouse opened in 1741 adjacent to what is now Upper Lichfield St; it was in operation for 100 years before merging with Wolverhampton. By 1801, the population was 3,143. Poor housing and lack of any proper sanitation led to a cholera epidemic in 1849 when 292 people died. Many of those who died were buried in the Cholera Burial Ground “on land at the bottom of Doctors Piece.” A commemorative plaque at the site reads:THE PARISH OF WILLENHALL WAS VISITED BY CHOLERA IN 1849.THE FIRST DEATH BY THAT DISEASE TOOK PLACE ON THE 17TH AUGUST, THE LAST ON 4TH OCTOBER. IN 49 DAYS 292 PERSONS DIED, THE CHURCHYARD OF ST GILES BEING TOO CROWDED FOR FURTHER INTERMENT, THIS GROUND, A PORTION OF THE CHURCH ESTATE WAS (WHILE YET UNCONSECRATED) FIRST USED FOR BURIALS ON THE FIRST OF SEPTEMBER. ON THREE DAYS THE BURIALS WERE 15 DAILY THE WHOLE NUMBER INTERRED HERE AND IN THE CHURCHYARD BEING 211. The epidemic shocked the town into improving conditions, and in 1854 the Willenhall Local Board of Health was founded: to reflect a growth in civic pride, it established a library building in Clemson Street in 1866. The board was a forerunner of Willenhall Urban District Council which took over in 1894. The clock in the Market Place was erected in 1892 by public subscription to the memory of Joseph Tonks, who was a doctor working in the town post-cholera. About the clock, Hackwood writes: This was erected, as an inscription upon it testifies, as a memorial to the late Joseph Tonks, surgeon. “whose generous and unsparing devotion in the cause of alleviating human suffering” was “deemed worthy of public record.” Tonks brought both health and sanitation to Willenhall, but died at the age of 35.

20th century

By 1901, the population of “Willenhall, minus Short Heath” was 18,515 . Football came to Willenhall on 4 September 1905 when Spring Bank Stadium was opened in Temple Road . The entertainment industry boosted in 1914 by the opening of the town’s first cinema, the Coliseum . Two war memorials were erected in the town after World War I .

Willenhall landmarks

The main landmarks include: The Locksmith’s House museum in New Road; the cholera burial ground in Doctors Piece; St Giles Church; the bandstand in Willenhall Park; the Clock Tower, The Bell Inn, the malthouse (now Davey’s Locker shop), and the old Town Hall (now the library) in Walsall Street. Dale House (now a restaurant) and the Dale cinema are now a Wetherspoon’s pub.

You can visit Willenhall places with Walkfo Willenhall to hear history at Willenhall’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Willenhall has 76 places to visit in our interactive Willenhall map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Willenhall, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Willenhall places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Willenhall & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 76 audio facts unique to Willenhall places in an interactive Willenhall map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Willenhall Places Map
76 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Willenhall historic spots	Willenhall tourist destinations	Willenhall plaques	Willenhall geographic features
Walkfo Willenhall tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Willenhall

  

Best Willenhall places to visit

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Willenhall has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Willenhall’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Willenhall’s information audio spots:

Odeon Cinema, Bilston The Odeon Cinema (originally Wood’s Picture Palace) is a former cinema in Bilston, West Midlands England . Built in 1921, it was a cinema until 1964 .

The Greyhound and Punchbowl The Greyhound and Punchbowl Inn, formerly Stoke Heath Manor House, is a public house in Bilston, West Midlands . It was formerly a manor house before it was licensed around 1774-1820 .

St Matthew’s Church, Wolverhampton St Matthew’s Church, Wolverhampton is a parish church in the Church of England . It was built in the 1930s and is located in Wolverhamptonshire . It is located on the outskirts of the city and is situated on the south coast of Wolverampton .

St Martin’s Church, Parkfields St Martin of Tours’ Church, Wolverhampton is a Grade II listed parish church in the Church of England . The church was built in the 1930s .

Wolverhampton power station Wolverhampton power station was built in 1895 to meet growing demand for electricity . It was redeveloped in several stages to meet demand for power in the area . The station was decommissioned in 1976 .

Bradley, West Midlands Bradley is in Bilston East ward of the City of Wolverhampton . Originally part of the ancient manor of Sedgley, originally part of Coseley Urban District Council . Bradley sprang up during the 19th century with several factories and farms surrounded by mostly terraced houses .

Memorial Clock, Willenhall The Memorial Clock is a clock tower in the market place of Willenhall, West Midlands . It was erected in 1892, in memory of a local doctor .

Sporting Khalsa F.C. Sporting Khalsa Football Club are a football club, formed in 1991, playing in the Northern Premier League Division One Midlands . They are the first British Asian club to own their own ground, which they bought from Willenhall Town in 2010 .

Bentley, West Midlands Bentley is located around Junction 10 of the M6 Motorway. It is also a rural village of houses towards its eastern sides. It shares borders with Willenhall, Beechdale, Ashmore Park, Pleck, Darlaston and Alumwell.

Emmanuel Church, Bentley Emmanuel Church, Bentley is a parish church in the Church of England in Bentley, West Midlands. It is located in the West Midlands and is situated in the East Midlands.

Visit Willenhall plaques