Citylife in Rugeley and Cannock Chase September October 2021

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Military Wedding Cpt Davies Rugeley 1917 Wedding of Dr Peate and Miss Price at Cannock 1925 Wedding of Miss D Nicholls in Cannock 1939 26 Wedding Bells of Cannock & Rugeley By Jono Oates ............................ The church bells of Rugeley and Cannock are finally starting to ring out once more to celebrate the marriages of couples whose special day has been put on hold for 18 months. Similar situations have happened in the past though, most noticeably during World War One and Word War Two, when brides often had to wait for their fiancés to return from the front on leave before they were finally able to tie the knot. On Wednesday 27th October 1915 Lieutenant Robert Wilkes, of the 11th South Staffordshire Regiment, married Miss Dorothy Hunter, who was the daughter of local Cannock councillor Mr Jonathan Hunter, at the Cannock Parish Church. Jonathan Hunter lived at Leacroft House at Churchbridge and was the Managing Director of the Cannock and Leacroft Colliery Company as well as President of the South Staffordshire & Warwickshire Institute of Mining Engineers. The bride was very well known in the local area and, despite the war, a large congregation attended the ceremony. The service was carried out by the Revd Llewelyn J Price and the bride wore a regimental gold brooch on her dress, a gift from her brother Percy who was on active service in France. The bridesmaids wore dresses of pale lavender crepe de chine and ninon with waistbelts of mirror velvet and trimmings of skunk. After the ceremony the guests attended Leacroft House, and the happy couple departed for their honeymoon in Bournemouth. A few years later on Saturday 24th January 1925, the Cannock Parish Church was crowded once again, this time for the marriage of Dr Reginald Crichton Peake, son of the Revd Peate the vicar of Barlaston, to Miss Eileen Primrose Price, youngest daughter of Revd L J Price who had officiated at the military wedding in 1915. Eileen, perhaps unsurprisingly, had been heavily involved with church life and the parish and had been a Lieutenant in the 1st Cannock Girl Guides. The guide group attended the service providing an arch of flags as the newlyweds left the church. A military wedding held at St Augustine’s Parish Church in Rugeley attracted a lot of local interest on 4th December 1917. Miss Hilda Wilsone Broun, the only daughter of Mr and Mrs William Broun of Lanrick House, Wolseley Road, married Captain Clement Cotterill Davies of the Worcester Regiment. Captain Davies had spent many years on foreign service with the army having seen action in the South African Boer Wars, the Natal Rebellion and then in France during World War One. He had been wounded in action on three separate occasions in France and had returned home in March 1917 to take up war office duties. Hilda Broun was a relative of Colonel Michael Swinfen-Broun of Swinfen Hall, Lichfield, and amongst the many wedding gifts that the happy couple received was a cheque from Colonel Swinfen-Broun, a diamond bracelet from his wife and a clock from one of his daughters. Just a few months before the start of World War Two, on Saturday 3rd June 1939, the wedding took place of Miss Dorothy Eileen Nichols and Captain D’Arcy John Desmond Mander at the Cannock Parish Church. Dorothy was the elder daughter of Mr G B Nichols, the Custom and Excise Officer at Cannock, and Captain Mander was the son of the late Major D’Arcy Mander of the Durham Light Infantry. Mander, an officer in the Green Howard’s Regiment, later served in World War Two where he was captured and imprisoned in Italy. Escaping, he worked behind enemy lines as a spy and setting up his own spy network in Rome with his bravery earning him a Distinguished Service Order (DSO). Captured by the SS twice (and escaping twice!) he later saw service in the Malaya guerrilla war where he commanded the Green Howard’s. Towards the end of the Second World War the cost of wedding dresses had become too much for the bride’s family to bear and the time taken to create them was putting pressure on seamstresses working on uniforms and materials for the armed forces, therefore impacting adversely on the war effort. So, on Saturday 22nd July 1944, Corporal Florence Wooliscroft of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), set off the down the aisle at St Augustine’s Church in a dress lent by Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of Franklin D Roosevelt, the President of the United States of America, when she married Corporal John Davidson of the RAF. Mrs Roosevelt had set up a scheme where brides would donate their wedding dresses to her and they would then be distributed to service brides in America and Britain. Dressed in American silk lace, Florence, of 40 Park View Terrace, Rugeley, was given away by her father before setting off on honeymoon with her husband to sunny Carlisle. The hardships and restrictions of weddings during the two World Wars has been very much reflected in weddings of the last 18 months. However, as the Covid-19 restrictions continue to lift, hopefully the weddings in Rugeley and Cannock will be much brighter, more enjoyable and better attended as we head towards 2022. *Vintage photographs no copyright but courtesy of the British Newspaper Archive Sources: The British Newspaper Archive; www.ancestry.co.uk; www.britishempire.co.uk; www.dmm.org.uk
Kate Bliss Hopes to Uncover Sparkling Finds at Free Jewellery Valuation Event By Charles Hanson ............................ Jewellery finds, and auction results, have shone brightly throughout lockdown and the dark days of the pandemic. Hammer prices have remained consistently strong for both vintage and antique finds, gold prices are buoyant and silver has sparkled. In uncertain economic times, investors prefer tangible assets - and collectors never tire of buying beautiful objects. If you’re contemplating selling at auction, free jewellery valuation days are coming up in Staffordshire courtesy of TV’s Kate Bliss. The familiar face from TV’s Bargain Hunt will be at Bishton Hall, Wolseley Bridge, on September 6th and November 8th from 10am-4pm. Kate, a fellow of the Gemmological Association specialising in jewellery covering antique and vintage items to contemporary pieces, hopes to unearth some shimmering stars, perhaps a fine diamond or two. Diamonds consistently excel at auction. We’re privileged to see numerous examples in a wide variety of cuts, carats, clarity and colour – including cinnamon. Lot 95 in Hansons’ July Fine Art Auction was a cinnamon diamond 18ct gold cluster ring comprising a central, brilliantcut 4.11 carats cinnamon diamond. It was contested to £3,800. 95, £3,800, cinnamon diamond and 18ct gold cluster ring, with central brilliant-cut cinnamon diamond weighing 4.11 carats Diamond ring found at charity shop COST £5.50. ESTIMATE £7-8K Diamond ring sold for £95,000 Though the classic white diamond is the one we know best, coloured diamonds exist in many hues, tones and saturations. Colours include pink and yellow as well as cinnamon. Occasionally diamonds are mistaken for costume jewellery. One ring we assessed, purchased for £5.50 from a charity shop’s ‘junk jewellery’ box, turned out to be a gold 2.30 carat diamond ring worth £7,000-£8,000. One of our all-time top-selling lots was a diamond ring which achieved £95,000. Kate Bliss will be at Bishton Hall, Wolseley Bridge, Staffs, ST17 0XN, on September 6th and November 8th from 10am-4pm. No appointment necessary. Free general antique valuations are also available at Bishton. To book an appointment, email rhalliday@hansonsauctioneers.co.uk or call 01283 733988. Free general valuations are also available at The Hedgehog, Stafford Road, Lichfield, WS13 8JB. Upcoming dates include August 20th, September 3rd and 17th from 10am-1pm. To find out more, email cjones@hansonsauctioneers.co.uk. 27
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Page 5 and 6: Etching Hill WI By Kathy Baxter ...
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Page 19 and 20: VACANCY Lichfield City Council ADMI
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Citylife in Rugeley and Cannock Chase September October 2021

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