Uttoxeter Online Magazine

The rustic routine in the more remote villages of North Staffordshire was seldom disturbed, but it was shattered in 1866, when William Collier, a farmer from Moneystone, was found guilty of murder and became the last man to be publicly hanged outside Stafford gaol.

Moneystone now lies on a country lane between the villages of Whiston and Oakamoor in the Churnet Valley.

In more recent years the road has become the access to the quarries of British Industrial Sand (now Hepworths), but in 1866 the lane was little more than a cart track which, en-route to Oakamoor, led to Whiston Eaves, and Park and Crowtrees farms. Branching off to the north was the original Blakeley Lane which has long since disappeared beneath the earth movers of BIS. A couple of hundred yards further on toward Oakamoor, and now classed as the new Blakeley Lane was the narrow, grassy track that led to the hamlet of Moneystone. Here a few stone cottages and farmhouses straddle the road and overlook an open cast quarry long used to produce the fine silica sand much sought after by the glaze-makers of Stoke-on-Trent.

The track to Moneystone petered out near to Rock Cottage where a convenient footpath directed the traveller to the old Blakeley Lane. Almost immediately the lane passed Oldfields farm on the left before continuing towards Blakeley farm where it joined with the Garston road.

Oldfield farm was the home of William Collier and although not large, its thirty six acres supported his family, with seven cows and a few chickens. It must have been a meagre existence, and to supplement his income Collier resorted to the activities of countrymen from time immemorial. He poached the game of the local gentry.

The Smiths of Whiston Eaves Hall, along with the Bolton family from Oakamoor (Moorside Hall, Farley Lane), were by far the most prosperous landowners in this part of the Churnet Valley. Collier had been at odds with the Smiths for a while and recent altercations over a water course had done nothing to heal the rift. The Smiths were not used to insubordination and they found Collier an unacceptable hindrance. The difference between the two could not have been greater. One a small time farmer with a disregard for authority and a penchant for poaching, the other wealthy, yeoman farming 'gentry'.

The Smiths' land covered most of Whiston and Moneystone and included many of the tenanted farms. Whether Collier's farm was owned by the Smiths is unknown. If so they would surely have evicted him. The laws of 1866 were very much in favour of the landowner and at a time when villains could be transported to the colonies or even hung for what would now be considered a minor offence, the Smiths would have had little difficulty in getting rid of William Collier from a tenancy.

As it was, the Smiths decided to concentrate on catching Collier in the act of poaching. The job fell to Thomas Smith, the twenty three year old eldest son, and heir to the family fortunes. Tom's plans to confront Collier at the scene of his crime involved the assistance of Bamford, one of the farm hands. On the night of July 5th 1866, Bamford and Smith retired to their beds with the intention of rising early to watch the game covers in nearby plantations.

Bamford rose at 4.00 am and went to rouse Thomas only to discover an empty bed. From the lack of warmth in the sheets Bamford reached the conclusion that Thomas had left his bed at least an hour earlier. Bamford now left the house and, with no specific instructions to help him, wandered aimlessly around the estate. Tom, it appeared, had risen shortly after 3 am and, with the aid of a full moon, had headed towards the covers in the Barn plantation.

Collier must have risen about the same time and with his new gun cocked over his arm, he too headed towards the plantation. The two men must have reached Barn plantation at about the same time and a surprised Collier found himself confronted by Smith. A row followed and Collier, in an uncontrollable rage, went for Smith. As Smith turned to run, Collier raised his gun and fired.

Recollections later referred to two shots in quick succession and Collier himself spoke of shooting at a rabbit. Regardless of the detail, the fact remains that the blast from Collier's gun caught the fleeing Smith on the back of the head, tearing away his hat and leaving him seriously wounded. Still in a fury Collier then set about his victim, striking him about the head with the gun until Smith lay prostrate on the ground.

It should be realised that the consequences of being caught poaching at that time were dire. Collier's future was very much at stake from the moment of the confrontation. Whether he thought in rational terms or whether he acted in panic the result was the same. He had murdered Thomas Smith in a brutal manner. His only hope lay in the fact that no one had witnessed the event.

Collier quickly left the scene and hurried away to his own adjacent land ....................

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An extract from "Staffordshire Legends" written by Alan Gibson, the well known local author, first published in 2002. £8.95 from our online bookshop.

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