"Having a drink round Alcester" by Richard Churchley (2017)
Richard's book on the history of pubs past and present in Alcester and surrounding villages (including Arrow, Great Alne, Haselor, Kinwarton, Oversley and Weethley) before 1940 (44 pages with black and white and colour photographs) is now available direct from the author for £9 including postage and packing. Please contact Richard for more information.
"Having a drink round Feckenham, Inkberrow and Astwood Bank" by Richard Churchley (2012)
Richard's book on the history of pubs in these and surrounding villages (including Kington, Radford, Abbots Morton, Elcocks Brook, Bradley Green, Stock Green and Hunt End) before 1940 (40 pages with black and white and colour photographs) is now available direct from the author for £7 including postage and packing. Please contact Richard for more information.
"Having a drink round Studley" by Richard Churchley (2012)
Richard's book on the history of pubs in Studley, Mappleborough Green, Sambourne, Coughton, Spernall and Morton Bagot before 1940 (28 pages with black and white and colour photographs) is now available direct from the author for £6 including postage and packing. Please contact Richard for more information.
"Having a drink round Bidford" by Richard Churchley (2011)
Richard's book on the history of pubs in Bidford, Binton, Exhall, the Graftons, Salford Priors and Wixford before 1940 (36 pages with black and white and colour photographs) is now available direct from the author for £5 including postage and packing. Please contact Richard for more information.
Local History Research and Published Work
Richard has researched many aspects of local history, and since 1978 he has written many articles for 'Local Past', the journal of the Alcester and District Local History Society, of which he is a member. (Back copies of this journal are available on the internet thanks to a project undertaken by students of Alcester Grammar School.) Over the years Richard has also published several occasional papers for the Alcester and District Local History Society including histories of the public houses of the Studley and Bidford areas and 'Strange Deaths'. With the late G. Edward Saville, Richard also published an account of the history of the fascinating rural parish of Spernall in West Warwickshire and also a book of old photographs - 'Around Alcester Before 1915'. A linguist by training and a professional folk-musician, Richard also contributed a chapter on dialect and folklore in the society's book 'Alcester, a History'. He also took part in many of the society's projects, such as studies of monumental inscriptions in local graveyards, a survey of field-names and the gazetteer of industrial archaeology in the Alcester, Studley and Bidford areas.
Richard has written two articles for 'Warwickshire History', the journal of the Warwickshire Local History Society: 'Population and growth in a rural
Warwickshire community - Sambourne 1675-1800',(Summer 1999), and 'The ancient corporation of Bidford-on-Avon: its place in the local economy, c.1550-c.1850',(
Winter 2010/11).
With Professor Chris Dyer, Richard also investigated the lost manor house and mill in Sambourne, West Warwickshire.
Richard is also a member of the Feckenham Forest History Society and has written various articles about the history of Astwood Bank and for the Feckenham Forest History Society's successful local history exhibitions covering the history of their area of East Worcestershire. For six years Richard edited the Astwood Bank News, also contributing articles of his own on local and natural history.
Richard also writes articles for other local history magazines such as the Bromsgrove Rousler and the Studley Historian. Over the years Richard has often been interviewed on local radio about topics such as folk music and the history of pubs and pub names.
2014 saw the publication by the Alcester and District Local History Society of Richard's "Needlemakers in Alcester, Sambourne and Studley" (price £3). This includes old and new photographs of needle workshops and needle packets, discusses the known needlemaking sites in those places and also investigates early needlemaking in the area.
Feckenham Forester
Copies of Issue 1 (2014), Issue 2 (2015), Issue 3 (2016), Issue 4 (2017), Issue 5 (2018), Issue 6 (2019) and Issue 7 (2020) are available from the editor (price £3.50 each plus £1.50 postage and packing).
For more information contact the editor: Richard Churchley.
Details of the Feckenham Forest History Society, its meetings and activities can be found on the society's website.