Handsworth, South Yorkshire
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Handsworth is a suburb of south eastern Sheffield, in South Yorkshire, England.
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[edit] Handsworth Today
Today, Handsworth is a small, diverse, and busy suburb in the South East part of the City of Sheffield. Although some of the older citizens of Handsworth still refer to it as "the village", some of the village atmosphere has inevitably disappeared as it enters the 21st century. Politically, Handsworth is part of the Woodhouse ward in the Sheffield Attercliffe parliamentary constituency.
Handsworth (Sheffield) has a population of approximately 15,000. It covers an overall area of approximately 5 square miles. It has five schools, four churches, a variety of small shops, a large supermarket (whose former incarnation on a different site was featured in The Full Monty!) and a range of commercial and light industrial businesses.
At St. Mary's Parish Centre, there are displays artefacts, documents, records, photographs and maps relating to Handsworth and its history.
[edit] History
There is little recorded detail about Handsworth prior to the Norman Conquest. No doubt a small number of people would have lived or hunted in the region and, much earlier, Roman soldiers would have marched through it since they had a settlement and fort nearby at Templeborough. Although no evidence of actual Roman remains in Handsworth have yet been unearthed, names such as Ballifield ("Bale Enclosure")certainly indicate later Scandinavian settlements at the same site.
Under Norman rule, the parish of Handsworth prospered and grew to include Darnall, Gleadless, Richmond and Woodhouse.
[edit] Handsworth and the Domesday Book
In the Domesday Book account, Handsworth is spelt "Handeswrde" and is joined to Whiston ("Witestan") to form a single manor. Before the Conquest, Torchil (or Turchil) is reported as being the Lord, but some time after the Conquest, it was handed over to Robert, Count of Mortain, who was the half-brother of William the Conqueror. Richard de Sourdeval held it for Count Robert. The Manor then passed, through marriage, to the Paynel and Lovetot families. It was a member of the Lovetot family who built the parish Church in Handsworth.
It is known that the lord of the manor was Torchil, a man of Danish descent, because his name is mentioned, under the entry for Handsworth, in the Domesday Book.
In a survey in 1379, there were reported to be 9 smiths and perhaps one cutler in Sheffield, but by that time, Handsworth had 13 smiths and 3 cutlers. Clearly, the ancient parish of Handsworth had its own identity and history, almost as extensive as that of the City into which it became absorbed.
[edit] The History of St. Mary's Church
The Norman's were very enthusiastic church builders and St. Mary's Church was constructed in order to satisfy the growing need of the local community for a permanent priest. It has remained the focal point enhancement for over eight centuries. [1]. This church is not to be confused with St. Mary's Church, Handsworth in Birmingham UK.
St. Mary's was built in about 1170. It was founded by the Norman lord, William de Lovetot, or his father Richard, and the foundations were planned by William Paynel. In the 1220s, St Katherine's Chapel was added, probably by Maud de Lovetot, so that prayers vcould be offered for the soul of her husband, Gerard de Furnival, and perhaps her son, Thomas de Furnival who died on a crusade to Jerusalem and the Holy Land. By 1472, Fabric Rolls of York reported that the Church was in a ruinous state, although in the process of being rebuilt. It was successive Earls of Shrewsbury who repaired much of the damage in the Tudor period.
In 1698, the Church spire was destroyed by lightning. A new steeple was built which was so small and squat it was nicknamed "the Handsworth stump". This was replaced in the 1820's by another new tower, which is also struck by lightning in January 1978.
[edit] St. Mary's Church House (now the Cross Keys Inn)
Standing in the shadow of St. Mary's Church is the Cross Keys Inn. This too is the very old building, but it has not always been a public house. When it was originally built in the mid-13th century, it was used as a Church House for the chaplains and lay clerks attached to St. Mary's Church.
The Rector of the Church lived at the Rectory and his assistants lived in this Church House — the Church was very wealthy and powerful institution in the Middle Ages. The clergy were usually well educated (by the standards of the time) and were held in great respect — and often fear — by the ordinary people of the community.
Simon Foliot, the first Rector, had two assistants and by 1535 there were five. During the reign of Henry VIII they lost their livings when the King broke away from the Church of Rome, its customs and traditions. After the Reformation, the old medieval Church House was converted into a school. In about 1823, it became licensed as a public house and has remained one ever since.
The Tudor Rectory and the Parish Centre The old Tudor Rectory was situated on the site now occupied by the Parish Centre. It was originally a timber framed building — both a section of the straw and daub wall (in the present day Museum) and an oak tree post (in the present Day reception hall) can still be seen as remnants of the Tudor Rectory.
At some point in the late 17th or early 18th centuries, the Rector of the day decided to build a larger and more modern house at the East End in the Georgian style. Shortly afterwards a wing complementary to the East wing was constructed. The old fashioned Tudor timber framed buildings were demolish although parts of the Tudor Rectory became incorporated into the new building. In addition, all the pre-Georgian outhouses, except the coach house and stable block, were removed.
The coach house and stable block were modernised in Victorian times. Improvements and renovation work on these buildings, now all part of the parish centre, continues today.
[edit] Handsworth Parish Registers
Not much of the Tudor Rectory remains today, but Handsworth Parish Registers, dating back as far as the reign of Queen Elizabeth I still exist.
From 1558, the year that Elizabeth I ascended the throne, there are written documents recording all the baptisms, marriages, and burials which have taken place in the Parish of St. Mary's. Parish Registers were first ordered in England during the turbulent early years are of Henry VIII's reign, probably to compensate for the dissolution of the monasteries, which had previously kept some deaths registers. Parish Registers were continued until 1836, when a new system of registration began.
The Parish Registers are an extremely valuable source of historical research. For over 400 years they have recorded the cycle of human existence — birth, marriage and death — for successive generations of Handsworth inhabitants. Anyone wishing to trace the history of an old Handsworth family should start by looking through the Registers. Copies have been made with this in mind, as the originals are so very old and fragile.
[edit] Notable people associated with Handsworth
[edit] The Stayce Family in Handsworth
The Handsworth Parish Registers reveal that on 1 July 1638, Mahlon Stayce was baptised in St. Mary's Church. The Stayce family had lived at Ballifield Hall in Handsworth for centuries but it was in Trenton, New Jersey, in America, that Mahlon made his name and his fortune.
The Stayce family were Quakers, one of the new religious sects which surfaced in England after the English Civil War. They dissented from traditional views and to "respectable" society, the Quakers appeared extreme and even revolutionary. Their leader, George Fox, preached on Cinder Hill Green in Handsworth to thousands of people in the 1650s.
Under the parliamentary rule of Oliver Cromwell, Quakers were treated with suspicion and hostility. During the restoration monarchy of Charles II, persecution of the Quakers was severe, especially in the early years, as they still refused to conform, even outwardly, to the Church of England. Their refusal to take off their hats or speak respectfully when in the presence of "nobles" made them a particular object of hatred.
Some members of the Stayce are buried in their own special Quaker graveyard at Cinder Hill in Handsworth. In total, there are eight grave stones with plain inscriptions. This private family cemetery still exists, but it is now in the back garden of a house.
[edit] Mahlon Stayce in Trenton, New Jersey
In his youth, Mahlon Stayce, in common with a great many other Quakers, decided to leave England. He and his family emigrated to America in the 1670s to begin a new life away from hatred and persecution.
At this time the North American land mass was still being explored, colonised and fought over by a rival Europeans. It provided the perfect opportunity for a person such as Mahlon to make a fresh start in a land where he could practise his Quaker religion in freedom.
He was given permission to build a new settlement on his new home by the River Delaware. Gradually, this settlement grew into Trenton, the capital of what is now called New Jersey. The first Church in Trenton was founded by Mahlon Stayce who lived out the rest of his life in America.
Mahlon died a wealthy and respected citizen. Some present day citizens of Trenton can trace their family histories back to one or another of the daughters of Mahlon Stayce.
A link between the Stayce families times in England and America still exists in the form of "Ballifield" — the name of the State House in New Jersey and the district adjacent to Handsworth.
[edit] Benjamin Huntsman
Another, more famous, Quaker buried near Handsworth is Benjamin Huntsman. Although he was born in Lincolnshire, he lived for some years at Handsworth in the 1740s. Huntsman made a highly significant scientific discovery which enabled Sheffield to develop from small township into one of the leading northern industrial cities that shaped the destiny of Victorian Britain.
Huntsman revolutionised the technology of steel making through his invention was "cast" or "crucible steel". Whilst in Handsworth, he developed the process whereby it became possible to melt down raw or "blister steel" and produce cast ingots of steel. This required an extremely high temperature of 1600 degrees Celsius, something which had never been achieved before in the steel industry. In order to produce and sustain such a high temperature in his furnace, Huntsman used coke instead of charcoal. To contain the steel he designed a clay crucible which could withstand the severe temperature and possible attack of the metal.
It seems probable that Hunstman moved to Handsworth because he was aware of the nearby glassworks in Catcliffe where vessels were used in which the materials were melted at very high temperatures. Huntsman found that he could benefit in Handsworth not only from the experience of the glass makers but also from the ready access to refractory materials and fireclays in the Sheffield district.
By devising this process of crucible steel making, Benjamin Huntsman transformed the nature of steel making in Sheffield and thereby made a most significant contribution to England's "industrial revolution".
Without crucible steel, Sheffield could not have emerged as the major steel producing town in Europe. In 1740, Sheffield produced only 200 tons of steel per year; by 1860, this total had risen, because of the application of Huntsman's techniques, to over 80,000 tons per year — almost half of Europe's total tonnage.
Initially, Huntsman's achievements were given scant recognition in Sheffield. The local cutlers thought the new steel was too hard and difficult to handle. But rival Europeans nations, especially France, quickly took advantage of the superior quality of crucible steel. Eventually, this competition from overseas encouraged the Sheffield cutlers to adopt Huntsman's methods, thereby laying the foundations of Sheffield's Industrial Heritage.
[edit] William Jeffcock — Sheffield's First Lord Mayor
William Jeffcock was born in April 1800 in Handsworth. His baptism is recorded in the Parish Registers and, although he died in Ireland, he is buried in a family vault in Handsworth. Both his ancestors and his descendants were prominent local figures — wealthy and respectable. But the historical importance of William Jeffcock lies in the fact that in 1843, he became the very first Mayor of Sheffield.
The Jeffcock family settled in Handsworth in the 17th century, having moved from Eckington, Derbyshire. The first record of the family name occurs in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Eckington in 1351. But they settled in the Handsworth parish and there are over 60 entries in the Parish Registers for members of the Jeffcock family between 1636 and a 1768.
John Jeffcock, the father of William, established the family name as coal Masters by becoming colliery engineer at Dore House Colliery in Handsworth. William was able to build upon his father's commercial success by entering the realm of the local government. He was keen to play an active role in the civic affairs and so became a candidate for Attercliffe ward in the town's first municipal elections on 1st November 1843.
Although he polled only 80 votes, William was elected. Meeting for the first time on 9th November 9 1843, the new town council unanimously chose William Jeffcock to be the first Mayor of Sheffield. He also became an Alderman and remained on the Council for 10 years. He was also nominated as a Justice of the Peace for the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1846 and he held a Commission in the West Yorkshire Yeomanry Cavalry for some time.
For many years, the Jeffcocks lived in nearby High Hazels John Jeffcock was the first to live there, but it was his son William who built a new mansion on the site in 1850. The closeness of the Jeffcock connection to Handsworth can be seen in St. Mary's churchyard. Two box tombs in memory of the family bear inscriptions to over a dozen Jeffcocks. There are tributes to members of the Jeffcock family in St. Mary's Church and there is a (disused) fountain and water trough bearing inscriptions to the family on a curve of Handsworth Road.
[edit] Thomas Dunn
In 1844, William Jeffcock was succeeded as Sheffield's Mayor by his first cousin, Thomas Dunn, who was also a Handsworth resident. Dunn was elected to the first town council in 1843 and served on it for 16 years. He was an Alderman and soon became a distinguished figure in mid-Victorian Sheffield.
Dunn had a considered Liberal point of view and he took an active and prominent role in Sheffield politics. His intellect and popularity made many national Liberals, as well as local ones, seek to persuade him to stand for parliament. His funeral in 1871 was attended by many local dignatories — an indication of the very high esteem in which he was held by his friends and colleagues.
[edit] Handsworth Sword Dancers
One aspect to the Handsworth history which we remains very much alive is the traditional sword dancing. The origins of this ancient ritual are unknown, and it is possible that they lie in pre-Christian magic.
Using long steel swords, a team of eight men perform a dance which lasts about nine minutes and ends with all the swords being interlocked and held aloft by one man. Traditional music is played and the dancers wear a military style uniform similar to the Dragoons.
Traditionally, there were two clowns who performed for the crowd and collected money. At Christmas time, the sword dancers would tour the local villages and public houses. The sword dancing continued until the First World War and there was a revival of interest during the late 1920s. It survived through the Second World War because the sword dancers had priority occupations in the coal mines and in the steel works so they were not conscripted.
The traditional dancing on Boxing Day in Handsworth and Woodhouse was revived in 1963, and in 1976 the clowns were reintroduced. The historic sight of Handsworth sword dancing can still be seen to this day on Boxing Day morning, in front of St. Mary's Church. The dancers, and their audience, then adjurn to the for well-earned refreshment and communal Carol singing.
[edit] External links
[edit] See also
- Handsworth, Birmingham
