• Located At: Staffordshire Record Office
• Document Reference Number: D6179
• Date: c.1771-1913
• Level: Series
• Description: The Kings Bromley Manor Estate was originally purchased by the Newton family in 1689 from James Agard. The later Manor House was built by Samuel Newton (1706-1771). On the death of John Newton in 1794, the estate was inherited by his cousins John and Thomas Lane from Bentley Hall in Walsall. In about 1820 they divided the estate between them into east and west halves, the western part with the Hall and Park being retained by John Lane.
  The lack of privacy for the Hall was always a concern to the owners. As early as 1760 the original proposals for the Trent and Mersey Canal had to be altered when the Newtons refused to allow it to pass too close to the Hall. Later, major plans were started to create a proper park in front of the Hall by purchasing and exchanging land nearby and further afield. These land exchanges continued throughout the arrangements for Enclosure, from the date of the first Act in 1799 until the final award of 1818. The Park boundary was gradually extended, and a boundary wall was built on the three sides not bounded by the river.
  In addition, the creation and expansion of the Park depended upon the diversion of two roads near the Hall. The first was the diversion of the road leading to the Hall from Lichfield in the south, which was moved slightly to the east, and then further east directly into the village. This second diversion necessitated the resiting of the old school from the Park into the village in 1815. The other diversion was of the road leading from Armitage that passed directly in front of the Hall, but this was not diverted until later, although it is optimistically drawn out in earlier proposals for the Park. The Hall itself was further altered by John Lane's son, John Newton Lane, by 1839,when the entrance was moved to the north side of the house facing the river, with a new porch and a sweeping carriageway around the side of the house, and the erection of the three lodges.
  This collection of maps has several key documents of interest. Several relate to the redistribution of fields and the road diversions around the time of the Enclosure and earlier. Some of these maps illustrate original common fields of strip farming. One of the earliest maps appears to be by the surveyor Thomas Wyatt [D6179/1/1]. It is not signed, but it is identical in style to a second map of land in Cheslyn Hay, which is both signed and dated (1773) [D6179/2/1]. There are also two very fine designs for the gardens and parkland, one by William Emes, 1778, the other by John Webb, 1810 [D6179/1/3 & 10]. There are two later plans of plantings in parts of the gardens by J Backhouse of York, 1904 [D6179/1/14-15]. Finally there is a printed plan of the "Barbadoes " Islands where the Lane family owned some plantations. The plan was surveyed by William Mayo and engraved by Thomas Jefferys, geographer to the King, 1794 [D6179/2/2] but is in very poor condition.
  It has not been possible to determine the exact sequence of these maps. Some are dated, but many are not. The Park designs were drawn to show proposals only. It seems clear that some of these proposals were not put onto effect until many years later, if at all. The diversions of the road certainly took time to complete, particularly the road that ran across the front of the Hall from Armitage in the village, which is still shown on later maps despite earlier designs showing it removed. The diversion of the road approaching the Hall from Lichfield was completed much earlier, but was certainly not done until well after the time of Emes plan, as again it still appears on later plans. Most large estate maps tend to be produced shortly after inheritance or before major plans to buy or exchange lands, or after a final purchase or exchange, and this has been used as a guide for dating around the 1794 succession.
  Most of the maps are orientated to the south-east, with the river at the bottom. This was probably thought to be the best way to present the land as if viewed from the Hall. One sketch plan is orientated to the west. The two designs for the Park are both orientated to the north.
  Most of the maps show all or parts of the Kings Bromley Manor Estate. Some other items relate to land outside the estate, or show plans for buildings. These have been grouped separately at the end, but all presumably relate in some way to the estate or to the Lane family.
  These maps should be used in conjunction with the main Kings Bromley estate collection, D357, which includes a few further plans, several estate surveys, and estate correspondence. There is also a collection of manorial court rolls.
  For a summary history of Kings Bromley, see "Kings Bromley: a Century of Photographs" (2000), and "Snippets from the History of Kings Bromley" (2001) by Ivy Butcher.
• Category:Maps and plans
• Ref No: K045/8/2

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