Forton Staffordshire Family History Guide
Forton is an Ancient Parish in the county of Staffordshire.
Alternative names: Forton and Mere
Other places in the parish include: Sutton and Meertown.
Parish church: All Saints
Parish registers begin:
- Parish registers: 1755
- Bishop’s Transcripts: 1660
Nonconformists include: Baptist and Protestant Dissenters.
Table of Contents
Adjacent Parishes
- Norbury
- Woodcote Shropshire
- Chetwynd Shropshire
- Newport Shropshire
- Moreton
- Edgmond Shropshire
- Adbaston
Parish History
The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales 1870
FORTON, or Forton and Mere, a parish in the district of Newport and county of Stafford; on a branch of the Birmingham and Liverpool canal, contiguous to Salop, and adjacent to the Shrewsbury and Stafford railway, 1½ mile NNE of Newport, Salop. It includes the township of Sutton and the tything of Meertown; and its post town is Newport, Salop. Acres, 3,718. Real property, £5,432. Pop., 729. Houses, 137. The property is divided among a few. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Lichfield. Value, £474. Patron, Sir T. F. Boughey, Bart. The church is good; and there are an endowed school with £12, and other charities with £61.
Source: The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales [Wilson, John M]. A. Fullarton & Co. N. d. c. [1870-72].
A Topographical Dictionary of England 1848
FORTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Newport, W. division of the hundred of Cuttlestone, S. division of the county of Stafford, 1¼ mile (N. E. by N.) from Newport; containing 762 inhabitants.
It is divided into the four hamlets of Forton, Meer, Sutton, and Warton; and comprises 3656a. 3r. 19p., whereof the meadow-land is peaty, and the arable partly clay, and partly light and sandy. The road from Newport to Eccleshall intersects the parish, the scenery of which is beautifully picturesque.
Aqualate Hall is a magnificent mansion, on the south side of a fine lake more than a mile in length, and half a mile in breadth, called Aqualate Meer; the house is surrounded by a spacious park and pleasure-grounds, adorned with plantations and some of the finest oak-trees in the county. This is the seat of Sir Thomas Fletcher Fenton Boughey, Bart., who is lord of the manor, and owner of nearly the whole parish.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king’s books at £20. 19. 2.; patron, the Baronet: the tithes have been commuted for £450, and the glebe comprises 46 acres, valued at £68 per annum. The church is an ancient stone edifice, with a nave, north aisle, and a square tower; it was repaired and modernised about 1700, and re-roofed in 1842. A school, built in 1843, has a small endowment. Anc’s Hill, in the parish, an eminence planted with firs, is supposed to have had its name from the Romans.
Source: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis 1848
Parish Records
Online School Records
The National School Admission Registers & Log-Books 1870–1914 collection offers a rare glimpse into the educational journeys of children across England and Wales during a transformative era. These records often capture names, dates of birth, parental occupations, and school attendance patterns – making them invaluable for family historians, local researchers, and anyone tracing Victorian or Edwardian ancestry. You can view them free with a Findmypast Trial.
Forton Parochial School 1895 to 1914 Admissions
FamilySearch
Use for:
England, Staffordshire, Forton and Mere
Maps
Vision of Britain historical maps
Administration
- County: Staffordshire
- Civil Registration District: Newport
- Probate Court: Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
- Diocese: Lichfield
- Rural Deanery: Eccleshall
- Poor Law Union: Newport
- Hundred: West Cuttlestone
- Province: Canterbury