A fine house built through small change

By the side of the road at Swanbach, between Cox Bank and Audlem, stands a Victorian brick house bearing a plaque on the front which says: "Built with Tisbuts, 1865."

But what does it mean?

Frank, who is 88, says: "That plaque says this house was built with tisbuts. I inquired into this, but I never did the story because I retired.

"Apparently the chap who built it or owned it first of all was a man for saving money. He saved it at home. He would chuck coins in a pot and would say 'tis but a sixpence, 'tis but a shilling, 'tis but a penny'. And that's how he saved his money. He was known for saving his tisbuts."

We've done a little digging about this story that Frank never did, and it seems the explanation he heard is the accepted one, although Geraint Davies of Audlem was given a different explanation when he inquired.

"This May marks our ninth year in Audlem having moved here from Snowdonia in May 2009," said Geraint.

"As new arrivals we wandered around taking in our new surroundings. At the house with the plaque marked 'This house was built with tisbuts', we stopped and puzzled over the word. Then we got into conversation with one of the neighbours.

"This man had been the policeman of Audlem for number of years and was now retired and living in the white house across the road. He told us he thought the word referred to bricks that were a little sub-standard (seconds?) that cost a penny each, and so were known as 'tis but a penny bricks', or 'tisbuts' for short.

"I know the white house has since been sold and what became of the retired policeman I do not know. Would someone in the brick industry have any ideas as to the bricks having once been called by this name, I wonder?"

Next stop in researching the matter was local historian Celia Bloor, who sent us some information which was in a booklet produced by the Women's Institute.

It said: "Tisbut House was built by a blacksmith, who put by coppers saying 'tis but a half-penny, tis but a penny, but I will save it and it will grow.' Eventually he had enough to build Tisbut House in 1865."

As it happens, there is also an explanation from estate agents given when a nearby property went on the market: "The origins of the name 'Tisbuts', are as follows: The name refers to the builder of the house facing Green Lane itself, who decided to save his money instead of spending it on drink, he was heard to say ''Tis but a ha'penny towards my house'', hence the name of the properties and plaque on the road facing property - the house was built of 'Tisbuts'."

That original owner from Victorian times would no doubt have been astonished to discover that according to the Zoopla website the property built with "tisbuts"is now worth around £168,000.