Polesworth

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Map sources for Polesworth at grid reference SK2602

Polesworth is a large village and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. In the 2001 census it had a population of 8,439.

Polesworth is located at the northern tip of Warwickshire, close to the border with Staffordshire, it is only three miles from Tamworth.

The River Anker and the Coventry Canal run through Polesworth, and the A5 road runs nearby. Polesworth railway station is on the West Coast Main Line. In 2005, Polesworth received no train services due to the modernisation of the West Coast Mainline. Train services were replaced by a replacement bus service. The footbridge to the up platform was removed and has not been replaced. The station in 2006 only receives one North bound service per day, all other services being operated by a replacement bus service.

[edit] History

The name Polesworth is derived from "Pol" meaning a "depth of water" and "Worth" meaning "a dwelling".

Polesworth was once the site of an Abbey. Polesworth Abbey was founded in 827 by King Egbert, but was disbanded as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

In 1544 the lands of the Abbey were granted by the Crown to Francis Goodere, who used the stones of the Abbey to build a manor house -- Polesworth Hall.

Henry Goodere son of Francis was a patron of the arts and Polesworth Hall was a centre of culture during Elizabethan times. The poet Michael Drayton received some of his education here and it is rumored that William Shakespeare also spent some time here. Polesworth Hall no longer exists, as it was demolished in the 1860s.

In around 1509 Thomas Cockayne constructed Pooley Hall, which today includes some of the oldest brickwork in the country. The hall still exists and overlooks Pooley View

During the Civil War, Polesworth and Wilnecote are listed among the towns paying arrears to the parliamentary garrison at Tamworth. In an account drawn up by Captain Thomas Layfield for the period from November 1st, 1645 to May 1st, 1646, Polesworth being rated at £8 a week, was assessed at and paid £196.16 while Wilncote at £2 a week paid £50.7.0. (SP 28/136/31)

When the Coventry Canal was built through Polesworth in the 1770s, the village developed a coal mining and clay industry and the population underwent rapid growth.

During the Second World War, opencast coal mining devastated the surrounding countryside, which caused the River Anker to be diverted. The former opencast site is now a public park and the river now flows on its original course. Industry is now gone and Polesworth is mainly a commuter vllage.