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Allchurch/Hallchurch and related families

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Part of the House Inventory of William Alchurch dated 1683

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NEW The Book A History of a Worcestershire Family – The Allchurch/Hallchurch family

The Diary of Edward Allchurch now available.

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Produced by - Oxford Consultants. Copies of the family in GEDCOM available on CD-ROM with 200 pages of family history, more than 3000 Allchurch and Hallchurch births, marriages and deaths and over 50 Illustrations, maps, wills, old documents. The history includes:

The family in Tudor times in North Worcestershire

The London Shipbuilders and Carpenters

The Midlands Miners and Ironworkers

The South Worcestershire Stonemasons and Market Gardeners

The emigration to the colonies. Census details 1841-1851-1861-1871-1881-1891

The Diary of Edward Allchurch 1866 written on his voyage from Plymouth Devon to Glenelg South Australia

Pioneering days in Australia, New Zealand and North America

The history of the related Pipes of Bilston including Sir Richard Pype, Lord Mayor of London and descent from Plantagenet Kings

The history of the related Roberts of Wrexham and The Masons of Wigan.

The family originally came from Alvechurch in North Worcestershire. As they moved away were known as de Alvechurch. As Alvechurch is pronounced locally as "Allchurch" (and spelled Allchurch in some 17^th Century documents) the spelling of the family name quickly became Alchurch or Allchurch. There are early records in Rowley Regis where a person's name is spelled Alvechurch and a year later Allchurch. The first recorded member of the family was Ralph de Alvethechurch in 1250 at Wolverley near Kidderminster and the first Alchurch spelling in Rowley Regis in 1448 with Roger Alchurch. By 1515 the spelling was Allchurch at Rowley and 1520 first recorded the name in Kingswinford. By 1630 a family had moved to London and for two hundred years was shipwrights and caulkers and built ships for Nelson's Navy. They were still in Greenwich area until the early 20^th century building barges, but the end of wooden ships and the closure of the Deptford dockyard ended this prosperous period in the history of the family. Some moved north while another family emigrated to Australia.

The stronghold of the family remained in North Worcestershire and South Staffordshire and some prospered from coal mining and the iron industry, while many others suffered and died in the pits.

By early 18^th century families had moved to the Evesham area of south Worcestershire and became stonemasons, publicans, butchers and market gardeners.

Another family moved to Bewdley at about the same time and worked on the Severn river boats.

The prosperity of the "port" of Bewdley was ended with the opening of the canal to the river Severn at Stourport, and at least four families moved to South Staffordshire to work in the mining, haulage and iron industry. The first Hallchurch spelling came in about 1826 some registered as Hallchurch later reverted to Allchurch, but one family moved to Cannock and all but the USA Hallchurch family are descended from Eli the Saddler.

Various families moved from the area after the coming of the railways in the 19^th century and settled in Manchester, Yorkshire, and the West Country. One northern family moved to Canada in the 1930s and the Hallchurch family from Newcastle on Tyne moved to USA.

The established Australian family are all descendants of Edward who sailed from Plymouth in January 1866 and kept a diary of the voyage his family have prospered in Australia and New Zealand. There have been some more recent families settling from England.

The Hallchurch family spread to South Wales and Canada and there is one family in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

There are many members of the family who have served in the Army from the Muster Rolls in early times. Benjamin Allchurch fought at Waterloo with the Coldstream Guards and two other members of the family were also in the army at the time at least one with the Coldstream Guards who may have not survived the battle. Thomas Hallchurch served in South Africa and Elisha Allchurch in India. Many served in the Great War and 13 did not return.

Col Hallchurch was a military doctor in WW1 and WW2 and Rex Hallchurch flew with the Royal Flying Corps in WW1.

There are 54 living Hallchurch members and about 200 Allchurch. There has been one Allchurch knighted. Sir Thomas was a church official in Worcestershire in the 15^th century.

Many of the early parts of the family tree is "best guess" and there will be errors that are being corrected as more information is discovered. There will be links that can never be proven, but due to the close proximity of families in the same area, it is likely that they are related. If you are particularly interested in a part of the family please e-mail us and we will confirm the sources of information. We would particularly like to hear of any errors.

One of the first documents to mention the family name Richard de Alvechurche in 1332

Click here to go to the (H)Allchurch family surname list

Click here for related Pipe family of Bilston

Click here for the related Roberts/Mason family

Click here for related Charlton family

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This data was updated on 28 October 2002

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