All Saints, West Bromwich
Image: Monthly meeting of West Bromwich Local History Society at the church.
All Saints Church sits on the northern end of All Saints Way, at the junction with Newton Road, where the roads lead to Great Barr and Walsall. The tower dates back to the the 14th-15th century. By 1786 the church is described as being dilapidated and in want of repair, and renovations took place. The church we see today dates from 1871, when it was rebuilt in rock-faced sandstone with tiled roofs, with the exception of the tower and the former Whorwood Chapel.
A number of well known people are buried in the church yard here, including James Keir, a member of the Lunar Society, and James Eaton, a signal midshipman on The Temeraire who was responsible for being the first to repeat Nelson’s famous signal at the Battle of Trafalgar, “England expects that every man will do his duty.”
Postcard of All Saints Church, late 19th century.
The interior of the church has a remarkable mosaic along the length of the west wall, depicting ‘Christ Blessing the Little Children’. The mosaic is dedicated to the men and women who gave their lives in the First World War and dates from the early 1920s. While on either side of the memorial is a framed list of these individuals, the artist of the mosaic is not named.
West Bromwich Local History Society hold monthly meetings here, with a variety of speakers. Recently, these have included the Black Country poet Billy Spakemon with “A Tanklement of Banter and Song”, “A Virtual Tour of 17th century West Bromwich” with Frank Caldwell, Head of Sandwell Museums, and “The Gruesome Black Country” by local historian Ian Bott.
Detail of mosaic.
Detail of mosaic.
Detail of mosaic.
Members of West Bromwich Local History Society.
