The History of the Co-op in the Black Country (and B'ham)

The seventh Andrew Barnett & Trevor Genge Memorial Lecture takes place on Thursday 13th October at 7:30 pm in St. Andrew's Church, Bilston Street, Sedgley. The speaker is Ned Williams the popular Black Country historian and author of over fifty books.

Ned delves into his own book on the subject to present archive images and tell stories about the rich heritage of these shops in our towns and villages.

This year the Dudley Co-op celebrates 150 years of retailing suggesting an evening of pure nostalgia from Ned and the audience.

Everyone is asked to pay £2 – exact amount appreciated. Wearing a mask is a personal choice.

[Schoolteachers, Andrew Barnett and Trevor Genge were co-founders of the Society in 1984. Andrew launched the Sedgley Local History Museum (closed 2004) and Trevor published five books on the Sedgley Manor villages. Both were avid researchers and staunch supporters of conservation projects.]

Queen Elizabeth II (1926 - 2022)

Alongside many Black Country folk we would like to send our condolences to the Royal Family at their and the country's loss.

As detailed in this Birmingham Mail article, Her Majesty made three visits to Dudley. In 1957 during a tour of Staffordshire and Worcestershire she visited a number of local industries including the Stevens & Williams glassworks in Brierley Hill. In 1977 the Silver Jubilee tour visited many local towns. More recently, in 1994, the Queen opened the new visitor centre at Dudley Zoo.

The image below shows the Queen travelling down Sedgley High Street towards the Bull Ring on the morning of Wednesday 27th July 1977. In Dudley she saw a selection of cut glass and was presented with table glass made by five local glass companies. The Queen then left for lunch in Walsall.

The picture was taken by local resident, Darrall Slater (now a US-based photographer of ocean yacht racing).