| Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th Edition | Public Domain via Project Gutenberg |
an urban district in the Lichfield parliamentary division of Staffordshire, England, 6 m. W. of Lichfield, on branch lines of the London & North-Western and Midland railways, and near the Essington Canal. Pop. (1891) 11,820; (1901) 15,252. There are extensive coal-mines in the district, [v.04 p.0668]forming part of the Cannock Chase deposit. The town lies on the Roman Watling Street, and remains of earthworks are seen at Knave's Castle, on the Street, and at Castle Old Fort, 2 m. S.E. Ogley Hay, the parish of which partly covers Brownhills, is a large adjoining village; there are also Great Wyrley and Norton-under-Cannock or Norton Canes to the N.W. and N., with collieries, and at Church Bridge are brick, tile, and edge-tool works. Wyrley Grove is a picturesque mansion of the 17th century.