Maer, Staffordshire

Berth Hill is an Iron Age hillfort in Staffordshire, England, about 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and near the village of Maer. It is a scheduled monument. Other forms of its name have been Bryth, Bruff and Burgh Hill.

Maer Hall is a large Grade II listed 17th-century country house in Maer, Staffordshire, set in a park which is listed Grade II in Historic England's Register of Parks and GardensThe large stone-built country house and estate of Maer Hall dominate the village of Maer. Its location in the district of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England, is attractively rural, but fairly close to the pottery manufacturing area around Stoke-on-Trent which attracted its most famous owner Josiah Wedgwood II. His nephew Charles Darwin often visited Maer, and married Josiah's daughter Emma. A manor house at Maer dates back to 1282, the owner then being William de Mere. The present stone house was built around 1680 on a slope above a small lake, or "mere", which gave the house its name. In the 18th century the landscape designer Capability Brown altered the lake in a scheme of pleasure grounds. The house could be approached from either the north entrance with its grade II listed lodge, or from the village of Maer to the south with its grade II* listed gatehouse. It lay only 7 miles (11 km) from the Etruria Works of the pottery manufacturer Josiah Wedgwood II, and in 1802 he bought the estate, borrowing money his brother-in-law Robert to fund the purchase before the sale of his Dorset estates. He had the house prepared, with the park being laid out by the landscape designer John Webb, and in 1807 the family moved in. There was a pleasant freedom of speech in the family, with everyone speaking their mind without restraint. They frequently exchanged visits to and from their Darwin relatives only 20 miles (30 km) away, and the young Charles Darwin found it a welcome contrast to the stricter approach of his father. Charles gained much useful information from his relatives during the inception of Darwin's theory, and it was at Maer Hall that he first became interested in the effects of the burrowing of earthworms, which were the subject of an early paper presented to the Geological Society as well as of his last book. He proposed to Emma Wedgwood at Maer Hall, and they were married at St Peter’s Church, which stands close by on the hillside overlooking the Hall. After the death of Josiah Wedgwood II in 1843 the property was sold to William Davenport of the Davenport Pottery, who added a huge clock tower and more stables, but these were knocked down in the 1960s, restoring the appearance of the original 17th-century Hall. For most of the 20th century it was the home of the Harrison family, owners of the Harrison Shipping Line.

Baldwin's Gate is a village in the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire. The population details for the 2011 census can be found under Whitmore. There is a pub in the centre of the village called The Sheet Anchor, along with a Post Office & General Store, a primary school (Baldwin's Gate CE Primary School) and another small shop with a petrol station. There is also a Methodist church and just outside the village is Slater's Country Inn.

Whitmore was a station serving the village of Whitmore, Staffordshire.

Newcastle-under-Lyme Rural District was a rural district in the county of Staffordshire. It was formed in 1894 with the civil parishes of Ashley, Audley Rural, Balterley, Betley, Chapel and Hill Chorlton, Clayton, Keele, Madeley, Maer, Mucklestone, Tyrley and Whitmore. It was abolished in 1974, by virtue of the Local Government Act 1972, when it was absorbed into the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme.

Coombesdale is a small settlement in Staffordshire, England. It is near the A51 road and is 6 kilometres (4 mi) southwest of the city of Stoke-on-Trent.

Madeley Road railway station is a disused railway station in Staffordshire, England. The Stoke to Market Drayton Line was opened by the North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) in 1870. A station called simply Madeley was opened on the line in the same year. Within a few months; possibly to avoid confusion with the LNWR station that was, at least, on the edge of Madeley; the station was renamed Madeley Manor after the nearby, abandoned house of that name. By August 1871 the name had been changed yet again to Madeley Road.The station had no goods facilities and due to its rural location passenger use was low and in 1931 the London, Midland and Scottish Railway closed the station. An indication of how little usage the station received is shown by the LMS estimate that only £92 per year was saved by closure of the station.The line through the station remained in use until the closure of Silverdale Colliery in 1998.

Ashley is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Loggerheads, in the Newcastle-under-Lyme district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 508. The village is close to the border of Shropshire, adjacent to Loggerheads, and is 4 miles (6 km) North East of Market Drayton.

Whitmore is a village and small curacy in the county of Staffordshire, England, near Newcastle-under-Lyme. The name Whitmore can be found in the Domesday book (as Witemore) and also when King John signed Magna Carta at Runnymede. Whitmore Hall, designated a house of outstanding architectural and historical interest and a fine example of a small Carolean-style manor house, is the home of the Cavenagh-Mainwaring family.

Whitmore Hall is the home of the Cavenagh-Mainwaring family at Whitmore, Staffordshire. A Grade I listed building, the hall was designated a house of outstanding architectural and historical interest and is a fine example of a small Carolean style manor house.

Standon is a village and civil parish in the Stafford district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. Standon has a church called Church of All Saints and one school called All Saints C of E First School. In 2001 the population of the civil parish of Standon was 823, and in the 2011 census it had a population of 879.

Bowers is a village in Staffordshire, England. For population details as taken in the 2011 census see Standon.