View source for Brownhills

{{short description|Town in West Midlands, England}}
{{for|the hills in Antarctica|Brown Hills}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{featured article}}
{{infobox UK place
| country                  = England
| map_type                 = West Midlands
| coordinates              = {{coord|52.647|-1.933|display=inline,title}}
| static_image_name = {{multiple images
| image1 = Brownhills Sign.jpg
<!--please crop me at the top and bottom-->
| image2 = St James, Brownhills - geograph.org.uk - 880310.jpg
| image3 = High Street, Brownhills - geograph.org.uk - 2514422.jpg
| image4 = 'Jigger' the Brownhills Miner - geograph.org.uk - 6126257.jpg
| image5 = Clayhanger Common - geograph.org.uk - 3132264.jpg
|align = center |total_width = 280|perrow=1 2
}}
| static_image_caption = Clockwise from top: Brownhills Sign, High Street, [[Clayhanger]] Common with High Rise Flat, Jigger Miner Statue & [[St James' Church, Brownhills|St James Church]]  
| population               = 13,441
| parts_type               = Areas of the town
 | p1                       = [[Brownhills West]]
 | p2                       = Catshill
 | p3                       = [[Clayhanger, West Midlands|Clayhanger]]
 | p4                       = Newtown
 | p5                       = [[Ogley Hay]]
 | p6                      = Sandhills
 | p7                      = [[Shire Oak, Walsall|Shire Oak]]
 | p8                       = Springhill
 | p9                       = [[Stonnall]] (part)
 | p10                       = [[Walsall Wood]] (part)
| population_ref           = ([[United Kingdom Census 2021|2021 Census.Ward]])<ref>{{cite web |title=Brownhills (Ward, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/westmidlands/wards/walsall/E05001308__brownhills/ |website=www.citypopulation.de |access-date=20 September 2024}}</ref>
| official_name            = Brownhills
| metropolitan_borough     = [[Metropolitan Borough of Walsall|Walsall]]
| region                   = West Midlands
| shire_county             = [[Staffordshire]]
| metropolitan_county      = [[West Midlands (county)|West Midlands]]
| constituency_westminster = [[Aldridge-Brownhills (UK Parliament constituency)|Aldridge-Brownhills]]
| london_distance          = {{convert|128|mi|km|abbr=on}} [[Boxing the compass|SE]]
| post_town                = WALSALL
| postcode_district        = WS8
| postcode_area            = WS
| dial_code                = 01543
| os_grid_reference        = SK045055
}}
'''Brownhills''' is a historic [[market town|market]] and [[industrial town]] in the [[Metropolitan Borough of Walsall]] of the [[West Midlands (county)|West Midlands county]], England. The town is located south of [[Cannock Chase]] and close to the large [[Chasewater]] reservoir, it is {{convert|6|mi|km|1}} northeast of [[Walsall]], a similar distance southwest of [[Lichfield]] and {{convert|13|mi|km|1}} miles north-northwest of [[Birmingham]]. It is part of the [[Aldridge-Brownhills (UK Parliament constituency)|Aldridge-Brownhills]] parliamentary constituency and neighbours the villages of [[Pelsall]] and [[Walsall Wood]]. It lies within the boundaries of the [[Historic counties of England|historic county]] of [[Staffordshire]].

The town lies close to the route of the ancient [[Watling Street]], and although there is no record of its existence before the 17th century, Ogley Hay – a district of the town today – is recorded as a settlement in the [[Domesday Book]]. Brownhills quickly grew around the [[Coal mining in the United Kingdom|coal-mining]] industry, especially after the town became linked to the [[Canals of the United Kingdom|canal]] and [[Rail transport in Great Britain|railway networks]] in the mid-19th century. By the end of the century, Brownhills had grown from a hamlet of only 300 inhabitants to a town of more than {{formatnum:13000}}, of whom the vast majority were employed in the coal industry. Mining remained the town's principal industry until the 1950s; the subsequent closure of the pits led to a severe economic decline that has continued until now. The local authority instituted a regeneration programme in 2007, which was hoped would revive the town's fortunes, but there has been little subsequent development.

==History==
Brownhills is on the ancient [[Watling Street]] and there is evidence of early settlement in the area, including an ancient burial mound and a guard post believed to date from [[Roman Britain|Roman times]] and later dubbed Knaves Castle.<ref name="Walsall" /><ref name="W2" /> The name Brownhills, however, is not recorded before the 17th century. The most popular suggestion for the origin of the name is that it refers to the early mining [[Slag heap|spoil heaps]] which dotted the area.<ref name="Reece10" />

[[Image:PlotStaffs.jpg|thumb|left|Robert Plot's 1680 map of Staffordshire shows "Brownhill".]]
The settlement is first recorded (as "Brownhill") on [[Robert Plot]]'s 1680 map of [[Staffordshire]], at which time it was a hamlet within the [[Manorialism|manor]] of Ogley Hay, which in turn was part of the parish of [[Norton Canes]].<ref name="Reece10">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=10}}</ref> Ogley Hay itself had existed since at least the 11th century and is mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]],<ref name="Walsall" /> although the [[Census Act 1800#Administration of the 1801 census|1801 census]] lists it as having a population of only 8 people.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/STS/OgleyHay/index.html|title=Ogley Hay|publisher=GENUKI: UK & Ireland Genealogy|access-date=6 February 2021|date=3 June 2000|author=Mike Harbach|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303173056/http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/STS/OgleyHay/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Beyond Ogley Hay lay Catshill, another hamlet which pre-dated Brownhills and which lay within the parish of [[Shenstone, Staffordshire|Shenstone]].

During the 17th century, shallow mine workings began to develop in the area, and in 1759 a [[Turnpike trust|turnpike]] was erected in the Catshill area.<ref name="Walsall" /> A local legend claims that [[Dick Turpin]] once vaulted the barricade on his horse to avoid paying the toll,<ref>{{cite book | first=Jan|last= Farrow | title=Yesterday's Staffordshire Volume 3: Brownhills and Walsall Wood| publisher=Reflections of a Bygone Age | year=1992| isbn=0-946245-60-6|pages=3}}</ref> although this is demonstrably false as Turpin was executed in 1739, twenty years before the turnpike's construction. In 1794 Brownhills (now in the plural) was included in a list of local settlements mentioned in an [[Act of Parliament]] concerning canals in Staffordshire,<ref name="Reece19">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=19}}</ref> and three years later the [[Wyrley & Essington Canal]], nicknamed the "Curly Wyrley" by the locals due to its winding course, was opened.<ref name="Walsall" /><ref name="Reece17">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=17}}</ref> In 1799 Norton Pool, later to be renamed [[Chasewater]], was created to serve as a reservoir for the canals.<ref name="W2" />

Early in the 19th century, a horse-drawn tram system connected the mines to the wharves on the canal. In response to the growing population of the area open land in Ogley Hay, up until then merely heathland was enclosed and converted to farmland in 1838, the same year in which the area was first declared a parish, although no church was built for another 13 years.<ref name="W2" /> Charles Foster Cotterill, a former mayor of [[Walsall]] who had purchased the manor of Ogley Hay in 1836 upon the death of former lord Phineas Hussey, saw the potential of the area and sold off large tracts of his land for private farming and the construction of a [[gristmill|flour mill]] and a [[foundry]].<ref name="Reece6768">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=67–68}}</ref> The remaining land of the former manor was progressively sold off through a series of [[indenture]]s of questionable legality until 1846 when Cotterill sold the last {{convert|135|acre|km2}} and moved to London.<ref name="Reece75">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=75–76}}</ref>

The [[South Staffordshire Railway]] reached Brownhills in 1850 and led to a huge expansion of the local mining operation and with it a population explosion in the area,<ref name="Reece102">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=102}}</ref> with the population increasing from 305 in 1801 to over 13,000 in 1891.<ref name="Walsall" /> In 1858 a branch line was constructed through the heart of what was then the hamlet of Brownhills, which led to a migration of the population eastwards, leading to the formation of mining slums in the Ogley Hay area. Eventually, a new town centre developed, complete with library and theatre.<ref name="W2">{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_in_history.htm|title=Brownhills in History|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=9 February 2021|date=19 June 2007|author=Gerald Reece|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044701/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_in_history.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> This led to the gradual amalgamation of Brownhills, Ogley Hay, and Catshill into one town.<ref name="Reece11" />

[[Image:BrownhillsMiners.jpg|right|thumb|Brownhills miners depicted on a picture postcard from 1904]]
Mining was to remain the principal industry of Brownhills until the last pit closed in the 1950s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/news/former_mine_owner_to_declare_landmark_open.htm|title=Former mine owner to declare landmark open|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=9 February 2021|date=18 May 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044211/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/news/former_mine_owner_to_declare_landmark_open.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> During the 18th and 19th centuries the area known as Coppice Side was the hub of the mining industry, and the [[1841 United Kingdom census|census of 1841]] showed that over 80% of the population of the area which makes up modern Brownhills lived and worked there,<ref name="Reece11">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=11}}</ref> with up to ten pits active in the area at any one time.<ref name="Reece89">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=89}}</ref> As in other mining areas, several men lost their lives in the Brownhills pits. Seven miners, including a boy aged 11, died in an accident in 1861, and in October 1930 an [[Grove Colliery mining accident|explosion at the Grove Colliery]] killed fourteen miners, ten of them from Brownhills.<ref>{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=109}}</ref><ref name="Reece111"/>

In 1877 the town of Brownhills was officially recognised for the first time after a new Act authorised the amalgamation of rural districts into larger local government areas. An order was issued on 29 September stating:<ref name="Reece32">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=32}}</ref>

{{cquote|The Local Government Board have proposed to declare the Parish of Norton under Cannock, the Chapelry of Hammerwich, the Parish of Ogley Hay, and parts of the Parish of Shenstone and of the Township of Walsall Foreign to be a Local Government District under the name of the Brownhills District.}}

After the [[History of the United Kingdom during the First World War|First World War]], the Urban District Council, which was based at the [[Council House, Brownhills|Council House]] and had replaced the District Board in 1894, began a programme of urban improvement. Large areas of open farmland were purchased for the building of [[council house]]s, and a notorious slum area, Ogley Square, which had been declared unfit for human habitation, was demolished after a long legal dispute and the tenants rehoused. The final farmland within the boundaries of Brownhills was sold for redevelopment in 1952.<ref name="Reece7980">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=79–80}}</ref>

By the time of the [[United Kingdom home front during World War II|Second World War]] the mines of Brownhills, being amongst the oldest in the area, were largely exhausted,<ref name="J1">{{cite book | first=Patricia|last= Reece | title=Jennie Lee: A Life| publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1998| isbn=0-19-288105-1|pages=134}}</ref> and following the [[Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946|nationalisation of the mining industry]] the final pit on the Common was closed in the 1950s. Following the demise of the coalfield the town experienced a severe economic slump, with many [[High Street|high street]] shops closing down. A wave of new development in the 1960s and 1970s saw a new shopping precinct planned, which it was claimed would incorporate a cinema, bowling alley, hotel, and bus station and would completely revitalise the town. Despite the developers' grandiose claims, the project was not a success and ultimately consisted solely of shopping units, many of which stood empty for up to five years.<ref name = "Gerald_Reece">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|page=49}}</ref> There was little further development in the 1980s and 1990s, and the feeling of the local council is that the town centre needs improvement. In 2007, the council created a "Townscape Masterplan" for the redevelopment of the town,<ref name="regen">{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/ch15_inset_brownhills.pdf|title=Walsall Unitary Development Plan: Brownhills District Centre|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=9 February 2021|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928042807/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/ch15_inset_brownhills.pdf|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> but more than a decade later the most problematic areas had seen little redevelopment.<ref name=raven />

==Governance==
[[Image:BrownhillsCouncilHouse.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Council House, Brownhills|Council House]] was originally the seat of Brownhills Urban District Council. Currently, it houses the town's health centre and library.]]
Brownhills is represented by two tiers of government, [[Metropolitan Borough of Walsall|Walsall Borough Council]] ("local") and UK Parliament ("national").

The Brownhills District established in 1877 remained in existence until 1894 when it was superseded by Brownhills Urban District. In 1966 the Urban District merged with that of [[Aldridge]] to form the [[Aldridge-Brownhills Urban District]], in accordance with a recommendation of the [[Local Government Commission for England (1958 - 1967)|Local Government Commission for England]]. The district was amalgamated in 1974, under the [[Local Government Act 1972]], into the newly formed [[Metropolitan Borough of Walsall]], under whose jurisdiction the area remains to this day. As a result of this amalgamation Brownhills also became part of the [[West Midlands (county)|West Midlands county]], having previously been part of [[Staffordshire]].<ref name="Reece33">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=33}}</ref> Today Brownhills constitutes a [[Ward (country subdivision)|ward]] within the Borough of Walsall and has three seats on the Borough Council. As at the [[2019 United Kingdom local elections|2019 local elections]] two of these seats were held by the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] and one by [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cmispublic.walsall.gov.uk/cmis/Councillors/tabid/63/ScreenMode/Ward/Default.aspx|publisher=Walsall Council|title=Councillors|access-date=25 June 2019|archive-date=4 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504122655/https://cmispublic.walsall.gov.uk/cmis/Councillors/tabid/63/ScreenMode/Ward/Default.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Wendy Morton]], representing the Conservative Party, has been the Member of Parliament for the constituency of [[Aldridge-Brownhills (UK Parliament constituency)|Aldridge-Brownhills]] since 2015. Before the creation of the Aldridge-Brownhills seat in 1974, the town had been part of the [[Walsall North (UK Parliament constituency)|Walsall North]] constituency since 1955, when it had been transferred from the now-defunct Cannock constituency.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=36196|publisher=Victoria County History|editor-last=Greenslade|editor-first=M.W.|author1=A P Baggs|author2=G C Baugh|author3=D A Johnston|chapter=Walsall: Parliamentary history|title=A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 17: Offlow hundred (part)|year=1976|pages=225–226|access-date=31 October 2007|archive-date=25 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525081927/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=36196|url-status=live}}</ref>

Brownhills was part of the Walsall council counting area of the [[West Midlands (European Parliament constituency)|West Midlands European Parliament constituency]], which elected seven [[Member of the European Parliament|MEPs]] to the [[European Parliament]]. In the [[2019 European Parliament election in the United Kingdom|2019 election]] the [[Brexit Party]] gained 42.7% of the vote in this counting area, followed by Labour with 21.5%.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/how-walsall-voted-european-elections-16336010|title=This is how Walsall voted in the European Elections 2019|first1=Graeme|last1=Brown|first2=Oprah|last2=Flash|work=[[Birmingham Mail]]|date=27 May 2019|access-date=25 June 2019|archive-date=25 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125080747/https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/how-walsall-voted-european-elections-16336010|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Geography==
Brownhills is located at {{coord|52|38|49.20|N|1|55|58.80|W|type:city|display=inline}} on the edge of [[Cannock Chase]] and lies mostly at a height of approximately 150&nbsp;metres&nbsp;(492&nbsp;ft) above sea level, although there is a sharp incline to nearly 180&nbsp;metres&nbsp;(590&nbsp;ft) at the eastern end of the town.<ref name="OS">{{cite map|publisher=Ordnance Survey|title=Landranger Map Sheet 139: Birmingham and Wolverhampton |edition=C4}}</ref> The highest point of Cannock Chase, standing at 244&nbsp;metres&nbsp;(801&nbsp;ft) above sea level,<ref name="ring">{{cite book|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53397|publisher=Victoria County History|editor-last=Midgley|editor-first=L. Margaret|chapter=Cannock: Manors and economic history|title=A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 5: East Cuttlestone hundred|year=1959|pages=49–63|access-date=18 October 2007|archive-date=25 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525075754/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53397|url-status=live}}</ref> lies approximately {{convert|4|mi|km|0}} from the town.<ref name="OS" /> Although a small river called Crane Brook flows slightly to the east of Brownhills,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hammerwicheg.co.uk/chasewater.aspx|title=Walk 5: Chasewater|publisher=Hammerwich Environment Group|access-date=19 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808165933/http://www.hammerwicheg.co.uk/chasewater.aspx|archive-date=8 August 2007}}</ref> the only significant bodies of water in the area are human-made, namely the canal and the {{convert|3|km2|sqmi|1|abbr=on}} reservoir [[Chasewater]], which lies to the north, between Brownhills and Cannock Chase.<ref name="OS" /> The reservoir was constructed in the 18th century and reshaped by reclamation schemes as recently as the 1970s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lichfielddc.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=1039&documentID=332|title=About Chasewater Country Park|publisher=Lichfield District Council|access-date=18 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930161004/http://www.lichfielddc.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=1039&amp;documentID=332 <!-- Added by H3llBot -->|archive-date=30 September 2007}}</ref>

[[Image:BrownhillsParade.jpg|thumb|right|The road known as The Parade cuts across the easternmost part of Brownhills Common.]]
Immediately to the west of the town is Brownhills Common, a {{convert|100|acre|km2|adj=on}} heathland which once formed part of Cannock Forest (also known as "Canke Wood").<ref name="CW" /> Although the forest was felled in the 15th and 16th centuries, the spread of [[Calluna|heather]] and the grazing of [[Domestic sheep|sheep]] led to the creation of a huge area of heathland. The area was affected by mine workings but has now returned to a more natural state, and lizards and [[dragonfly|dragonflies]] may be observed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_common_nature_reserve.htm|title=Brownhills Common Nature Reserve|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=17 October 2007|date=19 June 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044330/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_common_nature_reserve.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> The area now supports various habitat types, with the heathland mixing with marshy grassland, with scattered scrub and pools.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/environment/conservation_and_regeneration/sites_of_important_nature_conservation/brownhills_and_the_slough_.htm|publisher=Walsall Council|title=Brownhills and the Slough|access-date=11 October 2007|date=28 September 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044508/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/environment/conservation_and_regeneration/sites_of_important_nature_conservation/brownhills_and_the_slough_.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> In 1926, when ownership of the Common was transferred to the local Council, a large area of barren land at the eastern end, closest to the town, was landscaped, with new trees planted.<ref name="Reece50">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=50}}</ref> Lying south of the Common, Birch Coppice is a large area of predominantly [[oak]] and [[birch]] woodland, which, although crossed by a now-dismantled railway line, mostly escaped the destruction caused to other wooded areas by mining and other industry.<ref name="Reece111">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=111}}</ref>

[[Image:BrownhillsBridge.jpg|thumb|right|The new Brownhills bridge crosses the Wyrley and Essington Canal.]]
To the south, Brownhills is separated from the nearby village of [[Clayhanger, West Midlands|Clayhanger]] by Clayhanger Common, which is designated a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] and considered "one of the best wetland sites in the county".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/environment/conservation_and_regeneration/sites_of_special_scientific_interest/clayhanger.htm|publisher=Walsall Council|title=Clayhanger|access-date=11 October 2007|date=19 June 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511144311/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/environment/conservation_and_regeneration/sites_of_special_scientific_interest/clayhanger.htm|archive-date=11 May 2008}}</ref> In 2007, a new £445,000 bridge was erected across the canal at Brownhills, providing pedestrian, disabled and cycling access to the Common and to the village of Clayhanger beyond.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cms.walsall.gov.uk/index/news/brownhills_gets_stunning_new_canal_bridge.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307215708/http://cms.walsall.gov.uk/index/news/brownhills_gets_stunning_new_canal_bridge.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 March 2016|publisher=Walsall Council|title=Brownhills gets stunning new canal bridge|access-date=11 October 2007|date=17 November 2006}}</ref> To the east lies the village of [[Stonnall]] and a large area of [[green belt]] land.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-143291358.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516205253/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-143291358.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 May 2011|title=North City News: STONNALL – Anger at green belt bypass plan.(News)|publisher=Birmingham Mail|access-date=19 October 2007|date=16 March 2006}}</ref>

The geology of Brownhills comprises mainly red clay [[marl]] overlying [[Triassic]] [[sandstone]] and deposits of coal.<ref name="CW">{{cite web|url=http://www.chasewater.org.uk/pdffiles/History%20of%20Chasewater%20-%20vol%201.pdf |title=A Chronology of the History of Chasewater Volume 1 (pre-history – 1850) |publisher=Chasewater Wildlife Group |access-date=18 October 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204070734/http://www.chasewater.org.uk/pdffiles/History%20of%20Chasewater%20-%20vol%201.pdf |archive-date=4 February 2012 }}</ref> The town is on several [[geologic fault|fault lines]], the main one being the Vigo Fault, a branch of the larger Eastern Boundary Fault, which runs from [[Birmingham]] to [[Rugeley]]. On the western side of the fault, in the area of Brownhills Common, the marl is over {{convert|1000|ft|m|0}} thinner than on the eastern side, bringing the coal seams significantly closer to the surface.<ref name="Reece7">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=7}}</ref> The presence of the faults and the effects of mining mean that subsidence has been a major problem in the area for many years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://egsp.lyellcollection.org/cgi/content/abstract/4/1/87|title=Geological factors in land-use planning at Aldridge—Brownhills, West Midlands|publisher=The Geological Society|author=A.A.Wilson|access-date=9 February 2021|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174234/https://egsp.lyellcollection.org/content/4/1/87.abstract|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="J2">{{cite book | first=Patricia|last= Reece | title=Jennie Lee: A Life| publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1998| isbn=0-19-288105-1|pages=136}}</ref>

Since the 19th century, trade in Brownhills has been centred on the High Street. As the canal and Clayhanger Common lie immediately to the south of the High Street, the town's housing areas are mainly to the north and at the eastern and western ends of the town.<ref name="Reece39">{{cite book | first=Gerald|last= Reece | title=Brownhills: A Walk Into History| publisher=Walsall Local History Centre | year=1996| isbn=0-946652-42-2|pages=39}}</ref> In 2011, Brownhills had 5,173 residential dwellings, of which 49.4% were [[semi-detached]] houses.<ref name="key">{{NOMIS2011|id=E05001308|title=Brownhills Ward (as of 2011)|access-date=26 June 2019}}</ref> In late 2020 the average selling price of a domestic property in the town was £182,700, compared to £112,000 ten years earlier, a rise of 63%.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.home.co.uk/guides/house_prices_report.htm?location=brownhills&startmonth=11&startyear=2010&endmonth=11&endyear=2020|title=House Prices Report for Brownhills – November 2010 to November 2020|publisher=home.co.uk|access-date=5 February 2021|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174236/https://www.home.co.uk/guides/house_prices_report.htm?location=brownhills&startmonth=11&startyear=2010&endmonth=11&endyear=2020|url-status=live}}</ref> Two housing associations, Walsall Housing Group (whg) and WATMOS Housing Co-operative (WATMOS), manage those properties formerly owned as [[council house]]s by Walsall Council.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://go.walsall.gov.uk/housing_associations2|title=Housing Associations|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=5 February 2021|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213051156/https://go.walsall.gov.uk/housing_associations2|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the West Midlands, the warmest time of the year is July and August, when maximum temperatures average around 21&nbsp;°C&nbsp;(70&nbsp;°F); the coolest months are January and February, when minimum temperatures average around 1&nbsp;°C&nbsp;(39&nbsp;°F).<ref name="metpenk">{{cite web | title = Penkridge 1971–2000 averages | publisher = Met Office |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/sites/penkridge.html | access-date = 7 June 2007 | url-status = dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070602172012/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/sites/penkridge.html | archive-date = 2 June 2007 | df = dmy-all }}</ref> The area's average maximum and minimum temperatures are almost exactly in line with the [[Climate of the United Kingdom#Temperature|national average]].<ref name="metengland">{{cite web|title=England 1971–2000 averages |publisher=Met Office |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/areal/england.html |access-date=29 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605024000/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/areal/england.html |archive-date=5 June 2011 }}</ref> The average annual rainfall is about {{convert|676|mm|in|0}}, the wettest months being September to January.<ref name="metpenk"/> This is lower than the national average annual rainfall of 838&nbsp;mm&nbsp;(33&nbsp;inches).<ref name="metengland"/>

==Demography==
At the 2021 census, the Brownhills ward profile population was 13,441. Of the findings, the ethnicity and religious composition of the ward was:

{| class="wikitable"
| colspan="14" style="text-align:right;"|'''Brownhills: Ethnicity''': 2021 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=Brownhills (Ward, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/westmidlands/wards/walsall/E05001308__brownhills/ |website=www.citypopulation.de |access-date=20 September 2024}}</ref>
|-
! Ethnic group
! Population
! %
|-
||White
|style="text-align:right;"|12,517
|style="text-align:right;"|93.1%
|-
|Asian or Asian British
|style="text-align:right;"|337
|style="text-align:right;"|2.5%
|-
|Mixed
|style="text-align:right;"|276
|style="text-align:right;"|2.1%
|-
|Black or Black British
|style="text-align:right;"|225
|style="text-align:right;"|1.7%
|-
|Other Ethnic Group
|style="text-align:right;"|79
|style="text-align:right;"|0.6%
|-
|Arab
|style="text-align:right;"|4
|style="text-align:right;"|0.1%
|-
|Total
|style="text-align:right;"|13,441
|style="text-align:right;"|100%
|}

The religious composition of Brownhills ward at the 2021 Census was recorded as:

{| class="wikitable"
| colspan="14" style="text-align:right;"|'''Brownhills: Religion''': 2021 Census
|-
! Religious
! Population
! %
|-
||Christian
|style="text-align:right;"|6,788
|style="text-align:right;"|53.4%
|-
|Irreligious
|style="text-align:right;"|5,516
|style="text-align:right;"|43.4%
|-
|Muslim
|style="text-align:right;"|156
|style="text-align:right;"|1.2%
|-
|Sikh
|style="text-align:right;"|127
|style="text-align:right;"|1%
|-
|Other religion
|style="text-align:right;"|61
|style="text-align:right;"|0.5%
|-
|Hindu
|style="text-align:right;"|47
|style="text-align:right;"|0.4%
|-
|Buddhist
|style="text-align:right;"|25
|style="text-align:right;"|0.2%
|-
|Jewish
|style="text-align:right;"|3
|style="text-align:right;"|0.1%
|-
|Total
|style="text-align:right;"|13,441
|style="text-align:right;"|100%
|}

==Economy==
{{Multiple image|direction=vertical|align=right|image1=BrownhillsHighStreet1907.jpg|image2=BrownhillsHighStreet2007.jpg|width=250|caption1=Brownhills High Street pictured in 1907|caption2=Brownhills High Street pictured in 2007}}
At the 2011 census, 5,769 people in Brownhills were employed, with the largest percentages in retail (19.8%) and manufacturing (15.8%).<ref name=key /> This represented a shift from a decade earlier, when manufacturing had been the largest sector, employing 28.5% of the workforce.<ref name=C2001>{{cite web|url=http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=5941034&c=WS8+7DJ&d=14&e=15&g=377306&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1192451535012&enc=1&dsFamilyId=27|publisher=Office for National Statistics|access-date=15 October 2007|title=Industry of Employment – All People (KS11A)|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525203416/http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=5941034&c=WS8+7DJ&d=14&e=15&g=377306&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1192451535012&enc=1&dsFamilyId=27|archive-date=25 May 2011}}</ref> In 2011, 2.7% of usual residents aged 16 to 74 were classified as long-term unemployed.<ref name=key />

The decline of the mining industry in the 1950s caused a severe economic slump in Brownhills.<ref name = "Gerald_Reece" />  In 2007, the local authority created a "Townscape Masterplan" for the regeneration of Brownhills, which involved increased leisure provision, the improvement of the town centre's shopping facilities, a new transport interchange incorporating Park and Ride facilities and cycle links to the town centre and the [[National Cycle Route]], and the refurbishment of run-down properties.<ref name="regen" /> The plan involved the potential construction of a bypass to relieve the heavily congested High Street.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_transport_package_.htm|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=15 October 2007|title=Brownhills Transport Package|date=12 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928043944/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/index/brownhills_transport_package_.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> Among the areas highlighted for redevelopment was the Ravens Court shopping precinct.  After many years of legal wranglings, including the collapse of a plan to build a supermarket on the site, a planning application was submitted in 2017,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/walsall/brownhills/2017/10/24/shopping-centre-could-be-transformed-under-new-plans/|title=Brownhills shopping centre could be transformed under new plans|first=Carl|last=Jackson|work=[[Express & Star]]|date=24 October 2017|access-date=4 February 2021|archive-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209055343/https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/walsall/brownhills/2017/10/24/shopping-centre-could-be-transformed-under-new-plans/|url-status=live}}</ref> but by late 2018 the precinct was still disused and a frequent target for anti-social behaviour.<ref name=raven>{{cite web|url=https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/brownhills-ravens-court-plan-approved-15489889|title=Plans for 'dangerous' derelict shopping centre in Brownhills approved|work=[[Birmingham Mail]]|first=Gurdip|last=Thandi|date=14 December 2018|access-date=1 July 2019|archive-date=1 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190701073032/https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/brownhills-ravens-court-plan-approved-15489889|url-status=live}}</ref>

The headquarters of the [[Tesco#One Stop|One Stop]] convenience store chain, a subsidiary of [[Tesco plc]], is located in the town.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1598794Z:LN|title=One Stop Stores Ltd|publisher=[[Bloomberg L.P.]]|access-date=9 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.retailtimes.co.uk/one-stop-recruits-75th-franchise-store-celebrates-landmark-opening-brownhills-heartland/|title=One Stop recruits 75th franchise store and celebrates landmark opening in Brownhills heartland|work=Retail Times|first=Fiona|last=Briggs|date=11 December 2014|access-date=9 February 2021|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213004516/https://www.retailtimes.co.uk/one-stop-recruits-75th-franchise-store-celebrates-landmark-opening-brownhills-heartland/|url-status=live}}</ref> Brownhills was formerly home to the wirings manufacturer Electrium's last UK-based factory, but this has closed, with manufacturing shifted overseas and commercial staff moved to a new site in [[Cannock]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newsco.com/productsandservices/archive/mbi/2005-07/cover|title=Turning the lights back on|publisher=Insider Media Limited|access-date=9 February 2021|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061119200029/http://www.newsco.com/productsandservices/archive/mbi/2005-07/cover/|archive-date=19 November 2006}}</ref> 

==Transport==

{{Multiple image
|direction=vertical|align=right|width=250
|image1=BrownhillsTrain.jpg
|caption1=A train passes through Brownhills in 1909.
|image2=The site of Brownhills station in 2018.jpg
|caption2=The site of Brownhills station in 2018
}}

===Roads and bus===
Brownhills is served by the [[A5 road (Great Britain)|A5]] and lies close to a junction of the [[M6 Toll]] motorway.<ref name="OS" /> [[National Express West Midlands]] bus services 936, 937, 937A connect the town with [[Kingstanding]], [[Perry Barr]] and [[Birmingham]]. They also operate service 8 linking Brownhills with [[Walsall]], [[Burntwood]] and [[Lichfield]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/services-timetables?|title=Services & timetables|publisher=[[National Express West Midlands]]|access-date=10 February 2021|format=Enter Brownhills in "Find a timetable" field|archive-date=28 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128113813/https://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/services-timetables|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Chaserider]] operates service 3 to [[Norton Canes]] and [[Cannock]]. Previously this was operated by Arriva and extended to Walsall vis the current service 8 route.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chaserider.co.uk/|title=Chaserider|publisher=[[D&G Bus]]|access-date=10 February 2021|archive-date=25 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125083348/http://www.chaserider.co.uk/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Railway===
Brownhills formerly had two railway stations. [[Brownhills railway station|The first]], on the [[South Staffordshire Line]] (later part of the [[London, Midland and Scottish Railway]]), opened in 1849 but was closed as part of the [[Beeching Axe]] in 1965. The line remained open for freight until 1983, but the track was lifted in 1987.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/Stations/brownhills.php|publisher=Rail Around Birmingham & the West Midlands|title=Brownhills Station (LNWR) 1849–1965|access-date=10 February 2021|archive-date=10 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510082513/http://railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/Stations/brownhills.php|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Brownhills Watling Street railway station|The other]], on the [[Midland Railway]], was open for passengers between 1884 and 1930 and for freight until 1960, when the track was lifted.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/Stations/brownhills_mr.php|publisher=Rail Around Birmingham & the West Midlands|title=Brownhills Station (Midland) 1884–1930|access-date=10 February 2021|archive-date=10 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510083905/http://railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/Stations/brownhills_mr.php|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Andy Street]], the [[Mayor of the West Midlands]], put forward a 20-year plan for the improvement of the region's transport infrastructure in 2020 which included the re-opening of a station in Brownhills.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.itv.com/news/central/2020-02-04/billion-pound-transport-plans-proposed-for-west-midlands-include-underground-lines-and-21-new-rail-stations|title=Billion pound transport plans for West Midlands include underground lines and 21 new rail stations|publisher=[[ITV News]]|date=4 February 2020|access-date=10 February 2021|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213004632/https://www.itv.com/news/central/2020-02-04/billion-pound-transport-plans-proposed-for-west-midlands-include-underground-lines-and-21-new-rail-stations|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Canals===
The [[Birmingham Canal Navigations]]' [[Wyrley and Essington Canal]] passes through Brownhills and meets the [[Daw End Branch Canal]] at [[Catshill Junction]].<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=36204|publisher=Victoria County History|editor-last=Greenslade|editor-first=M.W.|author1=A P Baggs|author2=G C Baugh|author3=D A Johnston|chapter=Walsall Wood: Introduction|title=A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 17: Offlow hundred (part)|year=1976|pages=275–279|access-date=19 October 2007|archive-date=25 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525075739/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=36204|url-status=live}}</ref> The Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust has been involved in restoring the [[Lichfield Canal]] since its formation in 1988 and, in 2003, created an [[aqueduct (bridge)|aqueduct]] over the M6 Toll road near Brownhills.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/nostalgia/lichfield-hatherton-canals-trust-restoration-9705668|title=Lichfield and Hatherton Canals' Trust restoration project's a success|work=[[Birmingham Mail]]|first=Justine|last=Halifax|date=22 July 2015|access-date=6 February 2021|archive-date=24 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424161457/http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/nostalgia/lichfield-hatherton-canals-trust-restoration-9705668|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Education==
The town's main [[Education in England|secondary school]] is [[Brownhills Ormiston Academy]] (formerly Brownhills Sports College, Brownhills Community Technology College, Brownhills Community School and Brownhills Comprehensive), a mixed-gender school with approximately {{formatnum:1000}} pupils,<ref name="Ofsted">{{cite web |url=https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/23/147796 |title=Brownhills Ormiston Academy |access-date=9 February 2021 |publisher=[[Ofsted]] |archive-date=16 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416134520/https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/23/147796 |url-status=live }}</ref> which is part of the [[Ormiston Academies Trust]].<ref name="Ofsted" /> In 2019, the school's [[progress 8 benchmark]] score was ranked "below average".<ref>{{cite web | title = All schools and colleges in Walsall | website = [[gov.uk]] |url=https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/schools-by-type?step=default&table=schools&region=335&la-name=walsall&geographic=la&for=secondary | date = 2019 | access-date = 9 February 2021 | archive-date = 3 March 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174235/https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/schools-by-type?step=default&table=schools&region=335&la-name=walsall&geographic=la&for=secondary | url-status = live }}</ref>

Watling Street Primary School, situated on the [[A5 road (Great Britain)|A5]] at the western end of town, has approximately 200 students between the ages of 3 and 11 as of 2021.<ref>{{cite web | title = Watling Street Primary School | date = 6 October 2020 | publisher = [[Ofsted]] |url=https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/21/104202 | access-date = 10 February 2021 | archive-date = 12 May 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512090445/https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/21/104202 | url-status = live }}</ref> In 2019, 77% of its [[Key Stage 2]] pupils were deemed to have met the expected standard.<ref name="Primary">{{cite web| title = All schools and colleges in Walsall| website = [[gov.uk]]|url=https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/schools-by-type?step=default&table=schools&region=335&la-name=walsall&geographic=la&for=primary| access-date = 4 February 2021| archive-date = 9 February 2021| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209044923/https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/schools-by-type?step=default&table=schools&region=335&la-name=walsall&geographic=la&for=primary| url-status = live}}</ref> There are four other primary schools in the town: St James' Primary School, St Bernadette's Catholic Primary School, Brownhills West Primary School, Millfield Primary School and one in Clayhanger, Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School.<ref name="Primary" />

==Religious sites==
{{Multiple image
| direction = horizontal
| align = right
| image1 = St James, Brownhills - geograph.org.uk - 880310.jpg
| image2 = Bmethch.jpg
| width = 150
| caption1 = St James
| caption2 = The Methodist Church
}}
Brownhills has a [[Church of England]] church (St James),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lichfield.anglican.org/acny/lichfield/620039-brownhills-w-ogley-hay-st-james|title=Brownhills w Ogley Hay: St James|publisher=Diocese of Lichfield|access-date=9 February 2021|archive-date=15 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210215005730/https://www.lichfield.anglican.org/acny/lichfield/620039-brownhills-w-ogley-hay-st-james|url-status=live}}</ref> a [[Catholic Church in the United Kingdom|Roman Catholic]] church (St Bernadette),<ref name="churchlinks">{{cite web |url=https://www.birminghamdiocese.org.uk/st-bernadette-brownhills |publisher=Archdiocese of Birmingham |access-date=9 February 2021 |title=St Bernadette, Brownhills |date=28 March 2018 |archive-date=28 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228121534/https://www.birminghamdiocese.org.uk/st-bernadette-brownhills |url-status=live }}</ref> two [[Methodism|Methodist]] churches (including one in Clayhanger), two [[Spiritualist Church]]es,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thepsychictimes.com/spchurches/westmidlands.htm|publisher=The Psychic Times|access-date=15 October 2007|title=West Midlands Spiritualist Churches|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011222306/http://thepsychictimes.com/spchurches/westmidlands.htm <!-- Added by H3llBot -->|archive-date=11 October 2007}}</ref> and a [[Pentacostalism|Pentecostal]] church. Brownhills has had strong links with the Methodist faith since the 19th century.<ref name="V4"/>  The current Silver Street Methodist church was built in the 1960s when two other churches were compulsorily purchased and demolished due to their sites being identified as prime locations for additional town-centre car parking under a council redevelopment scheme.<ref name="V4">{{cite book | first=David F.|last= Vodden | title=Britain in Old Photographs: Around Pelsall & Brownhills| publisher=Sutton Publishing Ltd | year=1998| isbn=0-7509-1898-5|pages=70}}</ref>

==Culture==

===Attractions and landmarks===
[[Image:BrownhillsMiner.jpg|thumb|right|The Brownhills Miner statue by sculptor John McKenna ARBS]]
One of Brownhills' most prominent landmarks is a {{convert|46|ft|m|0}} stainless steel sculpture of a [[coal mining|coal miner]], erected in May 2006 on a roundabout at one end of the High Street, where the A4124 Pelsall Road and High Street A452 cross. The colossal sculpture, by [[John McKenna (sculptor)|John McKenna]] ARBS, commemorates the town's mining tradition.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/4761283.stm|publisher=BBC|access-date=15 October 2007|title=Giant sculpture for mining town|date=11 May 2006|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174242/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/4761283.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walsall.gov.uk/news/giant_miner_sculpture_to_rise_over_brownhills.htm|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=15 October 2007|date=11 May 2006|title=Giant miner sculpture to rise over Brownhills|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044547/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/news/giant_miner_sculpture_to_rise_over_brownhills.htm|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> A competition was organised to choose an official nickname for the statue. The winning name was Jigger after Jack "Jigger" Taylor who died when the roof of Walsall Wood pit collapsed in 1951.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/7178525.stm|publisher=BBC|access-date=9 May 2008|date=9 January 2008|title=Name chosen for Brownhills Miner|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174243/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/7178525.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> The town is also home to what is reputed to be the oldest [[fingerpost]] in the United Kingdom.<ref name="Walsall">{{cite web|url=http://www2.walsall.gov.uk/CMISWebPublic/Binary.ashx?document=1875|publisher=Walsall Council|title=Walsall Beacon Gateways: 2nd Phase of Consultation with the LNP's|access-date=8 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044410/http://www2.walsall.gov.uk/CMISWebPublic/Binary.ashx?Document=1875|archive-date=28 September 2007}} (PDF document)</ref>

[[Chasewater]] in Staffordshire lies on the edge of Brownhills, with the area surrounding it, which is designated as a country park, officially falling within the Brownhills postal area.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.visitlichfield.co.uk/attractions/chasewater-country-park|title=Chasewater Country Park|publisher=VisitLichfield.com|access-date=10 February 2021|archive-date=24 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124221201/https://visitlichfield.co.uk/attractions/chasewater-country-park|url-status=live}}</ref> The reservoir supports a variety of activities including water-skiing, sailing, angling and bird watching. The [[Chasewater Railway]] operates a [[Heritage railway|heritage rail]] service on the line of the former [[mineral railway]] around Chasewater between Brownhills and [[Chasetown]], north of the [[Brownhills Watling Street railway station|former Brownhills Watling Street]] station. The railway's main station is designated [[Brownhills West railway station|Brownhills West]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chasewaterrailway.co.uk/brownhills-west-station/|title=Our Stations|access-date=10 February 2021|publisher=Chasewater Railway|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213061851/https://chasewaterrailway.co.uk/brownhills-west-station/|url-status=live}}</ref>

On the opposite side of the A5, Brownhills Common, where a wide variety of birds can be observed, is a designated nature reserve,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://go.walsall.gov.uk/parks_and_green_spaces/visit_our_countryside_and_nature_reserves/brownhills_common_local_nature_reserve|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=23 February 2021|title=Brownhills Common Local Nature Reserve|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174325/https://go.walsall.gov.uk/parks_and_green_spaces/visit_our_countryside_and_nature_reserves/brownhills_common_local_nature_reserve|url-status=live}}</ref> as is Shire Oak Park, approximately {{convert|0.9|mi}} from the town centre.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://go.walsall.gov.uk/parks_and_green_spaces/visit_our_countryside_and_nature_reserves/shire_oak_park_local_nature_reserve|title=Shire Oak Park Local Nature Reserve|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303174244/https://go.walsall.gov.uk/parks_and_green_spaces/visit_our_countryside_and_nature_reserves/shire_oak_park_local_nature_reserve|url-status=live}}</ref> Holland Park, on the edge of the Common, has a skate park and multi-sports area, which were created as part of a £95,000 [[environmental remediation|environmental regeneration]] project and opened in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.walsall.gov.uk/newsdocs/NewsArticle.asp?NewsId=353|publisher=Walsall Council|access-date=15 October 2007|title=Holland Park Skate Park Opening|date=26 June 2002|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050113023349/http://www.walsall.gov.uk/NewsDocs/NewsArticle.asp?NewsId=353|archive-date=13 January 2005}}</ref>

===Cultural events and venues===
[[Image:Bhillsmkt2.jpg|thumb|right|Brownhills market, with the Silver Street Methodist church visible beyond]]
One of the major concerns of the local council in 2007 was that the town was "particularly lacking in leisure provision".<ref name="regen" /> At one time the town had two cinemas, but the last of these closed in the 1960s and a plan to build a new one never came to fruition.<ref name="V1">{{cite book | first=David F.|last= Vodden | title=Britain in Old Photographs: Around Pelsall & Brownhills| publisher=Sutton Publishing Ltd | year=1998| isbn=0-7509-1898-5|pages=95}}</ref> Although the town's theatre had closed down many years prior, the Brownhills Academy's theatre has staged productions by local groups such as the Aldridge Musical Comedy Society and the Walsall Gilbert and Sullivan Society.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aldridgemcs.com/page2.htm|title=Learn all about the AMCS|publisher=Aldridge Musical Comedy Society|access-date=12 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106130625/http://www.aldridgemcs.com/page2.htm|archive-date=6 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://aldridgemcs.co.uk/about-amcs/|title=About AMCS|date=6 April 2018 |publisher=Aldridge Musical Comedy Society|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=25 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125104226/https://aldridgemcs.co.uk/about-amcs/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/leisure_culture/entertainment/music/musicals_operatics/Walsall_Gilbert_and_Sullivan_Society.htm|publisher=Wolverhampton City Council|access-date=12 October 2007|title=Walsall Gilbert and Sullivan Society|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070718083210/http://www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/leisure_culture/entertainment/music/musicals_operatics/Walsall_Gilbert_and_Sullivan_Society.htm|archive-date=18 July 2007}}</ref>

Brownhills holds an annual canal festival in June with stalls, entertainment and boat trips,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2010/02/12/another-canal-festival-in-the-balance/|work=Express & Star|title=Another canal festival in the balance|date=12 February 2010|access-date=16 September 2010|archive-date=13 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113032428/http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2010/02/12/another-canal-festival-in-the-balance/|url-status=live}}</ref> and there is an active Community Association which organises a range of events and activities.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.brownhillsca.org.uk/about-us.html|publisher=Brownhills Community Association|title=Who are we|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=12 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512010257/http://brownhillsca.org.uk/about-us.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The town had a weekly market for many years, but it closed down in 2010 due to lack of traders and the site was subsequently redeveloped for housing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/walsall/brownhills/2018/06/22/1000-back-bid-to-bring-back-brownhills-market/|title=1,000 back bid to bring back Brownhills market|first=Richard|last=Guttridge|work=Express and Star|date=22 June 2018|access-date=8 July 2019|archive-date=8 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708153233/https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/walsall/brownhills/2018/06/22/1000-back-bid-to-bring-back-brownhills-market/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Brownhills has several [[public house]]s. Although some older ones, such as the Victorian-era Jolly Collier in Coppice Side, were demolished in the 1980s,<ref name="V2">{{cite book | first=David F.|last= Vodden | title=Britain in Old Photographs: Around Pelsall & Brownhills| publisher=Sutton Publishing Ltd | year=1998| isbn=0-7509-1898-5|pages=21}}</ref> several dating from the 19th century still stand comparatively unchanged, including the Shoulder of Mutton, which still bears windows etched with the emblem of the brewery which owned it in the 1850s.<ref name="V3">{{cite book | first=David F.|last= Vodden | title=Britain in Old Photographs: Around Pelsall & Brownhills| publisher=Sutton Publishing Ltd | year=1998| isbn=0-7509-1898-5|pages=27}}</ref> The Station Hotel in the High Street hosted concerts, including an appearance by [[Black Sabbath]] in 1968.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.black-sabbath.com/tourdates/1970.html|title=Tour Dates 1970 (sic)|access-date=15 February 2009|publisher=Black Sabbath|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090203114822/http://black-sabbath.com/tourdates/1970.html <!-- Added by H3llBot -->|archive-date=3 February 2009}}</ref>

===Sport===
[[Image:CanoeistsBrownhills.jpg|thumb|right|Canoeists on the canal near the bridge at Catshill Junction]]
Brownhills does not have a Saturday men's [[association football|football]] team; in the 1990s Brownhills Town F.C. competed in the [[Midland Football Combination]] but folded during the [[2003-04 in English football|2003–04]] season.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fchd.info/BROWNHIT.HTM|title=Brownhills Town|publisher=The Football Club History Database|access-date=6 February 2021|archive-date=8 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808134954/http://fchd.info/BROWNHIT.HTM|url-status=live}}</ref> During the 1950s Ogley Hay F.C. were a strong local team, reaching the final of the [[Walsall Senior Cup]] on three occasions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wmrl.non-league.org/Walsall_Senior_Cup.htm|publisher=West Midlands (Regional) League|title=Walsall Senior Cup|access-date=12 October 2007|url-status=usurped| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070207121816/http://www.wmrl.non-league.org/Walsall_Senior_Cup.htm| archive-date = 7 February 2007}}</ref> Brownhills Community Colts Football Club fields teams in various age groups up to under-17.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wjyl.co.uk/clubs/brownhills-community-colts/|title=Brownhills Community Colts Teams|publisher=Walsall Junior Youth Football League|access-date=6 February 2021|archive-date=26 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126054643/https://wjyl.co.uk/clubs/brownhills-community-colts/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Brownhills Canoe and Outdoor Centre opened in 2006, funded by [[British Waterways]] with the assistance of partners such as [[Sport England]], the [[European Regional Development Fund]] and [[Metropolitan Borough of Walsall|Walsall Council]], and offers [[canoeing]] and [[kayaking]] lessons on the canal, close to the centre of town.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishwaterways.co.uk/newsroom/stories/Paddling_their_way_to_success.html|publisher=British Waterways|title=Paddling their way to success|access-date=12 October 2007|date=25 August 2006| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928021606/http://www.britishwaterways.co.uk/newsroom/stories/Paddling_their_way_to_success.html| archive-date = 28 September 2007}}</ref> Nearby Chasewater is a prominent watersports site, with the Watersports Centre offering a variety of [[water skiing]] facilities,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chasewaterski.co.uk/activities/|publisher=Chase Watersports Centre|title=Activities|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=28 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128015137/https://www.chasewaterski.co.uk/activities/|url-status=live}}</ref> and the sailing club providing year-round [[windsurfing]] and [[dinghy sailing]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chasesc.org.uk/getonthewater.html|publisher=Chase Sailing Club|title=Get on the Water|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=12 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512020725/http://chasesc.org.uk/getonthewater.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Media===
Brownhills has no dedicated local newspaper, but is covered by newspapers published in [[Wolverhampton]] and [[Walsall]]. The most popular paid-for local newspaper is the ''[[Express & Star]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=389|title=West Midlands Express & Star|publisher=The Newspaper Society|access-date=23 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071121091314/http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=389|archive-date=21 November 2007}}</ref> Free newspapers with significant circulation in the town include the ''Walsall Chronicle'', ''Walsall Advertiser'', and ''Walsall Observer''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1093|title=Walsall Observer|publisher=The Newspaper Society|access-date=23 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117115623/http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1093|archive-date=17 November 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1089|title=Walsall Advertiser|publisher=The Newspaper Society|access-date=23 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117115613/http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1089|archive-date=17 November 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1091|title=Walsall Chronicle|publisher=The Newspaper Society|access-date=23 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117115618/http://www.nsdatabase.co.uk/newspaperdetail.cfm?paperid=1091|archive-date=17 November 2007}}</ref> Similarly, the town has no dedicated local radio station but receives the stations broadcast from the [[Sutton Coldfield transmitting station]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/radiolicensing/mcamaps/al288.pdf|title=Analogue Broadcast Radio Measured Coverage Area (MCA) Maps|publisher=Ofcom|access-date=24 October 2007|date=28 September 2004|archive-date=1 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071201204847/http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/radiolicensing/mcamaps/al288.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Image:ErinOConnor.jpg|thumb|right|120px|[[Erin O'Connor]], 2008]] 
==Notable people==
* [[Erin O'Connor]] (born 1978), fashion model, grew up in Brownhills.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/article1315713.ece|work=The Times|title=On the move: Erin O'Connor|access-date=11 October 2007|date=4 February 2007|author=Emma Smith|location=London|archive-date=4 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070404141325/http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/article1315713.ece|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Sport ===
* Brothers [[George Dorsett]] (1881–1942) and [[Joe Dorsett]] (1888–1951) played for [[West Bromwich Albion F.C.|West Bromwich Albion]] and [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]].<ref name="Roy">{{cite book | first=Michael|last=Joyce | title=Football League Players' Records 1888–1939| publisher=Tony Brown | year=2004| isbn=1-899468-67-6|pages=77}}</ref> 
* [[Cecil Poynton]] (1901–1983), footballer who played over 150 games, mainly for [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]]
* [[Dicky Dorsett]] (1919–1999) played over 250 times for [[Aston Villa F.C.|Aston Villa]] and also for [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] in the [[1939 FA Cup Final]].<ref>{{cite book | first=Barry J.|last= Hugman | title=Canon League Football Players' Records 1946–1984| publisher=Newnes Books | year=1984| isbn=0-600-37318-5|pages=125}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2013/11/07/rare-signed-wolves-football-cards-from-1939-fa-cup-final-fetch-450/ |title=Rare signed Wolves football cards from 1939 FA Cup final fetch £450 |work=[[Express & Star]] |date=7 November 2013 |access-date=10 February 2021 |archive-date=7 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131107175037/http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2013/11/07/rare-signed-wolves-football-cards-from-1939-fa-cup-final-fetch-450/ |url-status=live }}</ref> 
* [[Roy Horobin]] (1935–2012), footballer who played over 250 games, mainly for [[Notts County F.C.|Notts County]]
{{clear}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{EB1911 poster|Brownhills}}
* {{Commons category-inline}}

{{West Midlands County}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in the West Midlands (county)]]
[[Category:Brownhills]]
[[Category:Metropolitan Borough of Walsall]]