Clipstone

Coordinates: 53°10′12″N 1°06′26″W / 53.1700°N 1.1073°W / 53.1700; -1.1073

Clipstone
Clipstone - Colliery Headstocks
Clipstone  Clipstone shown within Nottinghamshire
Population	3,469 (2001 census[1])
OS grid reference	SK585635
District	Newark and Sherwood
Shire county	Nottinghamshire
Region	East Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	MANSFIELD
Postcode district	NG21
Dialling code	01623
Police	Nottinghamshire
Fire	Nottinghamshire
Ambulance	East Midlands
EU Parliament	East Midlands
UK Parliament	Sherwood
List of places UK England Nottinghamshire

Clipstone in north Nottinghamshire is a small ex-coal mining village built on an old army base.

History

King's Clipstone is a small village in north-west Nottinghamshire. The earliest historical reference to the settlement is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where the village is mentioned as "Clipestune".^[2] Subsequent written sources use the forms "Clipestone", "Clippeston", "Clipiston". The name "Clipstone" means "Klyppr's Farm," with the derivation of the first element being from the old Scandinavian personal name Klyppr, and the second element from Anglo-Saxon word for farm or hamlet "tun".^[3]

Pre-historic period

The earliest date-able material from Clipstone is from the Bronze Age. These pieces of material were a spearhead^[4] and an arrowhead.^[5] There is also a suspected ring ditch in the vicinity of New Clipstone which is assumed to be a ploughed out round barrow.^[6]

The National Mapping Project data as provided by English Heritage shows a number of cropmarks recorded from aerial photography in the northern quarter of Clipstone parish, representing rectilinear field systems associated with smaller stock enclosures and perhaps domestic sites. Typologically, and from their orientation, it is assumed that these are part of the brickwork plan field system from the late Iron Age, which stretches across the Sherwood Sandstones.^[7]

Roman period

Pottery of the period is known from Clipstone due to Philip Rahtz's excavation in 1956^[8] and Trent and Peak Archaeology's watching brief and fieldwalking in 1991,^[9] however the context of the finds has never been understood. There have also been metal detector finds within the parish of two Roman brooches and a small coin hoard^[4] and arrowhead.^[10] The adjacent parish of Mansield Woodhouse contains a suspected Roman road (Leeming Lane), with an associated marching camp at Roman Bank. Further to the north-west a small villa site was exposed in 1780 by the antiquarian Major Hayman Rooke.^[11]

Early Medieval period

Four pieces of late Saxon shelly ware pottery were recorded in 1991^[9] during fieldwalking of Castlefield, although it is unlikely that these represent anything more than a background scatter associated with the manuring of the open fields. Prior to Domesday, the two manors of Clipstone were held by Osbern and Ulsi and the value was set at 60 shillings.^[2] Ulsi in particular was a reasonably wealthy landowner and held manors at Greasley, Strelley, Sutton and Hodsock.^{[citation needed]}

Domesday

The landowner in 1086 was Roger de Busli,^[2] one of the great Norman landowners who held 163 estates in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and south Yorkshire.^[12]

George Sitwell, Ironmaster mined iron locally and built a furnace here in the seventeenth century.^[13]

Clipstone Riot 1767

In 1767 much of the local forest was managed by the Duke of Portland for the production of timber. In the 1760s there were a number of prosecutions of local people for entering the forest park and causing disorders. In 1767 labourers from Warsop and Worksop were involved in the Clipstone Riot. As the Duke of Portland was at the time involved in making the place more profitable for himself, and so impacting on the timber rights of the commoners, this may have been the cause of the riots.^[14]

General description

Clipstone is split into Kings Clipstone (formerly known as Old Clipstone) and New Clipstone. New Clipstone has a few shops and is home to Vicar Water Country Park. Kings Clipstone is split into two parts one being home to old stone buildings, and the new Cavendish estate that is still being built. The village is built alongside the B6030 road.

Most of the village is in the Newark and Sherwood district council, with a small section in the west near Forest Town in the Mansfield council area. The Garibaldi College is just inside the Mansfield district. The local football team is Clipstone Welfare. The village is adjacent to Sherwood Forest.

Nearby is the medium-wave transmitter for Radio Nottingham.

South in the village is Vicars Water Country Park, developed out of Vicar Water and the former spoil tips from the colliery, forming a landscape of hills and ponds and contains the controversial "Golden Hand", said to represent the village's mining heritage.

New Clipstone (commonly known as just Clipstone) is the village's most diverse area with both old and new homes, a library, primary school, village hall as well as a few shops and pubs, including Clipstone Welfare, which was used for scenes in the 2007 film Control. Clipstone colliery also lies within the New Clipstone area, home to Europe's largest headstocks.

Kings Clipstone (previously known as Old Clipstone) is the older part of the joined villages and can be criticised for its virtually "undeveloped" area with only the local Dog and Duck pub as a social place to meet. There is also a slaughterhouse.

Both villages lie in the heart of Sherwood Forest, approximately four miles from Mansfield town.

Clipstone Camp

Located on what was to become Clipstone Colliery, Clipstone Camp was established when work on developing the mine, started in 1912, was abandoned following the outbreak of the First World War. The Duke of Portland offered the land for use as a military training camp, which was eventually opened in 1915.^[15] The first troops stationed there were the Royal Fusiliers. At its height the camp could accommodate 30,000 soldiers.^[16]

Following the armistice troops from the Queens Royal West Surrey 4th/5th reserve Battalion and the York’s and Lanc’s Reg were involved in a mutinous riot at the camp, following disquiet at the slow rate of being demobilised.^[17]

Plans were started in 2013 to provide a memorial to those who trained in Clipstone.^[18]

Clipstone colliery

The pit closed in April 2003. Since 1993 it had been owned by RJB Mining (now UK Coal). The headframes, grade two listed structures, are known to be the tallest in Europe and more recently the third tallest in the world. They can be seen from miles around. Despite this, there has been a number of appeals to demolish them due to the expense of the upkeep.

King John's Palace

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clipstone.

• Vicar Water Country Park
• photograph of Clipstone colliery
• Local Community website.
• Local website with photos of village.

v t e Ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire Unitary authorities Nottingham Boroughs or districts Ashfield Bassetlaw Broxtowe Gedling Mansfield Newark and Sherwood Rushcliffe Major settlements Arnold Beeston Bingham Carlton Cotgrave Eastwood Harworth Hucknall Kimberley Kirkby-in-Ashfield Mansfield Newark Nottingham Ollerton Rainworth Retford Ruddington Stapleford Southwell Sutton-in-Ashfield West Bridgford Worksop See also: List of civil parishes in Nottinghamshire Topics Flag Parliamentary constituencies Places SSSIs Country houses Grade I listed buildings Grade II* listed buildings History Museums Lord Lieutenants High Sheriffs