Rookery House still stands, but is in need of a great deal of restoration.
The building is a fine early Georgian country house which stands in Kingsbury Park in Erdington; it was built in around 1730 by Abraham Spooner, a wealthy Birmingham ironmonger, and was originally called Birches Green (it became Rookery House in about 1871). The name Birches Green possibly came from Abraham's wife, who was Elizabeth Birch. The Spooner family, with a small break, lived at Birches Green till 1789, till the house passed through a number of hands, including those of Abraham Dixon.
The Spooner family were very active in philanthropic pursuits, especially in the fight to abolish slavery. Barbara Spooner, who had been born at Birches Green in 1772, the granddaughter of Abraham Spooner, married William Wilberforce in 1797. Wilberforce was an MP who fought for social reform, the improvement of factory conditions, and the abolition of slavery, which he was integral in bringing about.
Barbara's younger brother Richard, who was also born at Birches Green in 1783,** fought to abolish slavery too, and was one of the founding members in the Birmingham Antislavery Society, established in 1826.* Richard was also connected with the Radical politics of the time, and with his business partner and friend Thomas Attwood, as well as others, worked to create a fairer voting system. He co-formed the Mechanics Institute in 1820, which helped to educate poorer workers, and was its first president. Later in life he turned to Tory politics, he became MP for the Tory's in Birmingham between 1844 and 1847, turning away from the policies that he had fought for in his youth.
Elmdon Hall was another Spooner property, bought by Abraham Spooner as a house for his retirement in 1760, and rebuilt in 1785.
NOTES
~ Barbara Ann Spooner, bap. 17 Feb 1772, Aston Juxta, of Isaac and Barbara.
~ Richard Spooner, bap. 28 Jul 1783, Aston Juxta, of Isaac and Barbara.
~ Richard Spooner, bap. 28 Jul 1783, Aston Juxta, of Isaac and Barbara.
~ Abraham Spooner on WikiTree.
~ The movie Amazing Grace was made in 2006 and tells the story of Wilberforce's fight to abolish slavery. Starring Ioan Gruffudd as Wilberforce, Romola Garai as Barbara Spooner, and Benedict Cumberbatch as William Pitt the Younger.