 Wooden scenery from 'The Wayward Turnip' puppet show created by Waldo Lanchester, 1940s (Staffordshire Museum Collection 2007.022.0306)
"A little turnip of my own"
Fans of the comedy 'Blackadder' may remember the character of Baldrick dreaming of owning a 'great big turnip in the country'. If Baldrick had been reading the Lichfield Mercury on Friday 6 October 1815 he may have spotted an advert placed by local brewer Mr Whatton for 'Turnips - to be Let, Five Acres of Capital TURNIPS, on dry, sound land.'
The Lichfield Mercury and Midland Chronicle was first published in July 1815 by James Amphlett from his offices on Boar Street. In it, Amphlett promised the residents of Lichfield, which had been “deprived of any medium of publicity of its own”, that his newspaper would be “a valuable and permanent acquisition to the venerable City of Lichfield, and its most respectable neighbourhood”. For the price of sixpence halfpenny (which quickly rose to seven), subscribers could read articles and announcements about important goings on in the area and further afield. . . and turnips.
Read more about the Lichfield Mercury in our blog.
 Discovering the lives of Staffordshire’s poor
Between 2018 and 2021 Keele University worked with Staffordshire Archives and Heritage Service on the ‘Small Bills and Petty Finance’ project. Volunteers worked with academic staff from Keele to undertake in-depth research on the poor laws in Staffordshire before 1834.
Archival volunteers worked on the surviving records of the poor law, and particularly the paper ‘vouchers’ collected in parish accounts. These were typically the receipts for goods and services supplied to poor people but paid for by the parish. They included lists of clothes and deliveries of fuel for people living in their own homes, and also the food bought for inmates of early workhouses. The project was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and included research in East Sussex and Cumbria.
This exhibition tells the story of those effected by the poor laws. It will tour some of Staffordshire’s libraries over the next few months, showcasing examples of this research, covering life for poor people from childbirth under the hands of a parish midwife to burial in a parish coffin.
The exhibition is visiting Staffordshire Libraries during 2024 and will be at Burton Library until 31 March 2024.
Beneath our Feet: How agriculture and industry shaped a county
Ancient High House Stafford
Until Sunday 24 March 2024
Our County, Our Climate
Lichfield Library
Thursday 29 February 2024 until Saturday 6 April
Staffordshire County Council are developing an important Communities Strategy, to set out the long-term ambitions and actions for empowering our communities. It is essential that this reflects the community’s views, so we have been engaging with residents and partners since November.
We have extended the deadline for this engagement work, meaning that the resident and partner surveys remain open until the end of February. Please take a few minutes to complete the Residents Survey.
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