Smith Hill Child Family of North Staffordshire

Deeds, icluding coal mines, chiefly Audley, Tunstall, Baddeley, Cheadle, Ipstones and out-county material, 14th-18th century Estate and personal papers, including diaries, 18th-19th century And antiquarian 19th century

The cataloguing of this fine collection of family and estate papers presented many problems as any form of original order had long been lost by the time the papers reached the Staffordshire Record Office. Some complex family and business links create further problems as do the antiquarian interests of Sir Smith Hill Child of Stallington Hall and possibly other members of the family. One result of this interest was the creation of a series of "Stallington Hall Deeds" - medieval deeds relating to many parts of the country, and it is very difficulty to decide which of them are genuine family muniments and which were acquired out of antiquarian interest. Some arbitrary decisions have had to be made.

The Childs had homes at Balterley and Boyles Hall (Audley) and their historic estates were in the Audley and Tunstall areas. The Hills lived at Stallington Hall, the Childs acquiring that estate in 1849.

Many of the papers nevertheless result from some less obvious ramifications. Richard Clarke Hill of Stallington married into the Birds family of Eyam, Derbyshire, and there is a substantial section of Birds papers. The Birds in turn, through the marriage of William Birds to Mary Cartledge, had close links with the Cartledge family of Coal Aston, Dronfield, Derbyshire. There is therefore also a substantial section of Cartledge papers.