Description:CHECKLEY is situated five miles north west of Uttoxeter on the east side of the River Tean. The name appears to be of Anglo-Saxon origin and to mean ‘Cecce’s lea’ or ‘Cecca’s clearing’. At the time of the Domesday Survey in 1086 it was called Cedla and consisted of half a hide, about 60 acres, with woodland of about a square mile. Its annual value was then 5 shillings.
In 1666, 59 households were assessed for the payment of the hearth tax and a further 29 were considered to be too poor to pay the tax. The largest property at that time belonged to Nathaniel Tayler, the rector of Checkley. By 1851 the parish of Checkley contained 5,800 acres of land. The parish was divided then into three divisions: Tean, Madeley Holme and Foxt. When the parish council was first formed in 1894, the civil parish included the villages of Checkley, Upper Tean, Lower Tean and Hollington and the area had expanded to 6,073 acres.
The church of St Mary and All Saints is rated as one of England’s 1000 best churches. It dates from the Norman period, with a Norman tower, 13th and 14th century additions and some later work. The chancel is raised with 16th century choir stalls. There is very good 14th century stained glass and a splendid example of a parish chest. The churchyard contains fragments of three Saxon crosses. It has been suggested that these crosses commemorate the three bishops killed in a battle between the Saxons and the Danes at Deadman’s Green. Christ Church at Upper Tean was designed by Thomas Johnson of Lichfield, who also designed the Heath House. There were early 19th century nonconformist chapels at Fole and at Tean.
The notable industry in the area was at Upper Tean where one of the oldest and largest tape manufacturing companies in Staffordshire was to be found. J & N Philips & Co founded their factory in 1747 and it was later known as Tean Hall Mills. The mill buildings, including the 18th century manager’s house, still dominate the main street of Upper Tean. Tradition has it that Dutchmen were brought over by J&N Philips to teach local carpenters how to build looms. A number of weavers’ cottages survive in the village. The extensive archives of the factory are kept at the Staffordshire Record Office.
Heath House at Lower Tean was built in 1836 for the Philips family in the Tudor revival style to the design of Thomas Johnson. The orangery was designed by Thomas Trubshawe, one of the Little Haywood dynasty of master builders and architects.
The school at Upper Tean was opened originally in 1811 and rebuilt in 1855, largely supported financially by J & N Phillips & Co. There was also a Catholic school at Tean. The school at Checkley was rebuilt in 1878 as a memorial to the rector, the Rev’d William Hutchinson.