Blidworth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Blidworth | |
  Blidworth shown within Nottinghamshire |
|
| Population | 4,355 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| District | Newark and Sherwood & Mansfield |
| Shire county | Nottinghamshire |
| Region | East Midlands |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Mansfield |
| Postcode district | NG21 |
| Dialling code | 01623 |
| Police | Nottinghamshire |
| Fire | Nottinghamshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| European Parliament | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | Mansfield |
| List of places: UK • England • Nottinghamshire | |
Blidworth is a small village approximately five miles east of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. Its history can be traced back to the 14th century, although many of the current houses were built in the first half of the 20th century to provide housing for workers at Blidworth Colliery (1926-1989).
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[edit] Robin Hood Links
According to legend, Will Scarlet is buried in the churchyard of the Church of St. Mary of the Purification. An unmarked grave stands near the iron gates of the churchyard, formed from the original apex of the church tower and other assorted stones, and is generally attributed to the outlaw. As outlaws were not generally buried in churchyards, though, it is more likely that, if he existed, Will Scarlet was buried in one of the much older graves to be found on the same hillside within the boundaries of Sherwood Forest.
Other local legends suggest that Blidworth was the birthplace of Maid Marian, although there is little or no evidence to support these claims.
[edit] The Druid Stone
On the outskirts of the village of Blidworth lies a stone known locally as the Druid Stone (Grid Reference: SK5787-558), a pillar of cemented glacial gravel standing on a base of the Nottingham Castle rock formation (Bunter Pebble Beds). This monumental object is 14ft high, 84ft around the base and has a hollow centre large enough for a man to pass through.
Though known as the Druid Stone there is no evidence to suggest that it has ever been used by Druids, it is a naturally forming outcrop.
[edit] Church of St. Mary of the Purification
The Church of St. Mary of the Purification is the only church that is known to continue to hold an annual Rockings Ceremony during which the baby boy, born to parents living in Blidworth, nearest to Christmas Day is “rocked” in an ancient cradle on the Feast of the Purification of Mary, which is on the Sunday nearest to Candlemas.
All of the babies who have taken part in the Rocking Ceremonies have their names recorded upon a plaque at the rear of St Mary's Church with their full name and the year in which they were 'Rocked'. In 1980 the rocking ceremony was performed by the Rt Hon Bishop of Southwell. The child concerned was Edward William Tristram who received a commemorative bible to mark the occasion, which was inscribed by the Bishop of Southwell.
[edit] Incumbents of St. Mary of the Purification, Blidworth
The list of incumbents goes back to the 14th century:
- Hugh (1337)
- Thomas Clerke (1470)
- William Talbot (1485–1498)
- William Aldworth (–1530 d)
- James Alsebrook (1530–)
- William Helmsley (–1566 d)
- John Sye (1567–1575)
- Mr. Creasie (1575–1584)
- Robert Grace (1584–1587)
- Henry Elwe (1588–1598)
- John Collinson (1599–1602)
- Henry Ellyott (1602–1603)
- John Hains (1603–1636)
- James Reade (1636–1643 d)
- John Newton (1643–1649)
- Thomas Rose (1649–1663), evicted at the English Restoration
- Michael Buxton (1663–1741 d) (see memorial: perhaps 1890)
- William Thorpe (1716–1721 d)
- Thomas Allen (1722–1739 d)
- Robert Stanley (1740–1783)
- Seth Stevenson (1783–1794) (also Vicar of Oxton)
- John T. Beecher (1794–1801) (also Vicar of Oxton)
- John Hall Clay (1801–1822)
- C. F. Fenwick (1824–1830) (also Vicar of Oxton)
- John Downall (1830–1842)
- Martin Roe (1842–1849 d)
- John Porter (1850–1864 d)
- Richard Whitworth (1865–1908)
- Charles Littleholes (1908–1914)
- John Paddison (1914–1921)
- John Lowndes (1921–1933)
- Henry Carline Swingler (1933–1938 d)
- Robert Rogerson (1938–1939 d)
- Walter Warr (1940–1956)
- Jack Busby (1956–1967)
- Charles Sawyer (1967–30 November 1983)
- Raymond Beardall (4 May 1984–1999)
- Beryl Allsop (2000–) (technically Associate Priest since the amalgamation of the parishes of Blidworth and Rainworth)
[edit] Blidworth Welfare Football Club
Blidworth Welfare were formed in 1926. They have played in the Central Midlands Football League and the Northern Counties East Football League.
In 1982, they changed their name from Folk House Old Boys F.C. to their present name.
Also see, Wikipedia Page on Blidworth Welfare F.C.
[edit] Blidworth Mill
This Subscription Mill was built c. 1816 as a three-storey brick tower windmill. With 3 pairs of millstones, it was working in 1892 but was dismantled some time during the First World War. It had 4 double patent sails, an ogee cap and an 8-bladed fantail. Millers listed as working the mill include Foster (1842), Edmund Clark (1864[1] and Thomas Penford (1904).The tower still stands to a height of 26 feet on the west of the village (grid reference SK585557)[2].
One of the post windmills from Nottingham Forest was moved to Blidworth in the 1850s, and was later moved to Hemsworth. A post windmill at Windmill Close, between Mount Pleasant and Belle Vue Lane was recorded in 1842; the owner was John Need and the tenant miller Thomas Blatherwick. A post windmill in Mill Croft, behind the Wesleyan Chapel, was worked by miller William Holloway in 1864. It was demolished c. 1878.
[edit] References
- ^ Kelly's Directory, 1864.
- ^ Shaw, T. (1995). Windmills of Nottinghamshire. Page 8.Nottingham: Nottinghamshire County Council. ISBN 0-900986-12-3
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