Beacon Hill, Sedgley
Beacon Hill in Sedgley, England, is the one of the highest points in the West Midlands, at 777 feet or 237 metres above sea level.
From the summit, Wolverhampton, Walsall and Birmingham are all visible, as is the Staffordshire and Shropshire countryside to the west. The hill is so named as historically it was one in a series of prominent locations with beacons on top, where a fire would be lit as a signal during times of war or turmoil. The Sedgley beacon sat between beacons at Barr Beacon and Cannock Chase. At the highest point, a tower erected in 1846 stands on the site of an earlier tower, which sits on the spot of the original beacon.
Beacon Hill is the highest point of land between Sedgley and the Ural Mountains in Russia. When the tower was climbable (today a fence restricts access as the steps inside have crumbled away), the Bristol Channel was visible on a clear day.[1]
Approximately half of Beacon Hill was situated in the urban district of Coseley, which was created in 1897 from the eastern half of the old Sedgley manor. This section included the Beacon Tower.[2]
However, the local government reorganisation of 1966 (which saw the bulk of Sedgley and approximately half of Coseley incorporated into Dudley) resulted in the creation of post code districts, with all of Beacon Hill being included in the new Sedgley DY3 post code district.[3]
Today
The Beacon housing estate sits near the tower monument on Beacon Hill. The Beacon Hill Tenants & Residents Association look after and clean up the hill, and have been responsible for the erection of gates and fences in an effort to prevent vandalism and fly tipping in the area.[4]
Further reading
- http://www.dudley.gov.uk/housing/council-housing/tenant-participation/tenants-and-residents-associations/north-dudley-area-tras/beacon-hill-tra Beacon Hill, Sedgley - Tenants & Residents Association
- http://www.viewfinderpanoramas.org/panoramas/ENG/SEDGLEY.gif Sedgley Beacon Hill computer generated panorama
