Before its bypass was opened, among lorry drivers Wheelock was notorious for a vicious little hill running from the Trent and Mersey Canal bridge up to a bridge crossing over the North Staffordshire Railway near the junction with Zan Drive, particularly when winter weather made the road icy. Zan Drive leads to a small industrial area named Zan Industrial Park. Wheelock is currently serviced by a number of local business. The village currently has one public house, The Cheshire Cheese; along with the public house, the village also has two restaurants, a Chinese takeaway and a fish and chip shop. The Commercial Hotel the former largest public house of the village is now a dog centre; The Nags Head Hotel has reopened as the Shampaan Indian restaurant. A small shop from which basic groceries can be purchased; and a large pet food store where all manner of foods and treats can be bought for a variety of animals also service the community. A local farm has also converted their shop into a family day out. The business has been expanded to include an onsite café, and large children’s play area.
History
The village was named after the River Wheelock which runs through it, and in which Wheelock is derived from an Old Welsh source meaning "winding river". The first recorded name for the village is Hoileck/Hoiloch in the Domesday Book. By 1396 the name had evolved to Quelock then in 1382 to Whelock. Two years later, in 1384 it was Welock and by 1390 the name Wheelock was settled upon. In 1801 the population was 189, by 1851 it was 548 and by 1901 it was 685. The village was originally a township within the ancient parish of Sandbach, which formed part of Northwich Hundred. Later on it became part of Congleton Poor Law Union, Rural Sanitary District, and Rural District. Wheelock and surrounding land was made a separate civil parish in 1866, but in 1936 the civil parish was abolished, with the northern part being transferred to Sandbach Urban District and Sandbach civil parish, and the southern part being transferred to Haslington civil parish in Nantwich Rural District. Ecclesiastically, Wheelock lies in the Diocese of Chester, and a separate ecclesiastical parish was formed in 1840. It first formed part of Middlewich rural deanery, but since 1880 it has been part of Congleton rural deanery. Wheelock first lay in the general Cheshire county parliamentary constituency until 1832, when it became part of the Cheshire Southern Division constituency. From 1867 until 1885 it was in the Cheshire Middle Division constituency, and from 1885 until 1948 it lay in the parliamentary constituency of Crewe.
Governance
Local government
From 1974 to 2009 Wheelock had some services administered by Cheshire County Council, and others by Congleton Borough Council. On 1 April 2009 both these local authorities were succeeded by Cheshire East Council, who are based at the former Congleton Borough headquarters are at Westfields in Sandbach. At the lowest level of local government Wheelock is administered by Sandbach Town Council as it is now part of Sandbach civil parish. The village had previously been administered by Sandbach Urban District Council, until this was then merged with other urban and rural councils to form Congleton Borough Council in 1974.
Some of the churches in Wheelock have joined with the ecclesiastical parish of Sandbach and others to form the group Churches Together in Sandbach. This group helps bring the various denominational churches together. Wheelock has four churches:
