Place name in Staffordshire

[Brie]

Hello,

We are stumped with this place-name in Staffordshire.

Looking at the name we think it is Rob Cluse and therefore the place-name starts with an R. Couldn't find anywhere that fitted the bill though. Also looked through place-names beginning with B to no avail. Any ideas?

I hope this works but I have taken a snippet (thankyou Kiltpin for your snippet lesson) and I shall now try and post it!

Brie

[mckha489]

my first thought was Badesly.   There is Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire...was that ever in Staffordshire?

[Brie]

Thanks for your reply. I'm not sure but I don't think so. I thought from memory that Baddesley was just over the Leicestershire border into Warwickshire - on the other side of Watling Street - but I'll see if I can find it on an old map.

Brie

[horselydown86]

Looking at the name we think it is Rob Cluse and therefore the place-name starts with an R.

The forename is:  Rob(er)^t 

There's a superscript t near the initial of the surname.

I agree that the place name starts with R.

It looks like Rudsley to me.  Possibly Rudeley.

My best reading of the surname is the same as yours.

[purlin]

Could it be Rugeley?

[Brie]

Thank you. The surname is definitely Cluse - it is clear elsewhere in the document and it is the Cluse family I'm workng on.

Like you we went for Robert because of the small t (I don't know how to type superscript), but as the only place-names we could find that began with Ru were Rudyard, Rugeley & Rushton we thought we would look at B as well. Again no luck. I had plumped for Rudsley too but we haven't found it in our old gazetteer. We wondered if it was perhaps a very local name. We do know that our London Cluses did have a connection with Blithfield so it may possibly be near there.

Brie

[Brie]

Hello Purlin and thank you

I did consider that as the bottom of the g may have been smudged, but even if that was allowed there are 2 clear upstrokes so I don't think it is. If nothing else comes up though I may see if I can find a Robert Cluse on the Rugeley PRs, wherever they can be found.

Brie

[horselydown86]

Could it be Rugeley?

The third letter is definitely a d.  Compare to Staffordshire.

[arthurk]

It looks to me like Burdsley - could it be an attempt at Burslem?

Where is the document from? If it originated in Staffordshire you'd expect them to have got it right, but if it was from miles away and relying on good pronunciation and good hearing, it might have got a bit mangled.