Barlaston
| Barlaston | |
 Barlaston Hall |
|
  Barlaston |
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| Population | 2,659 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SJ894387 |
| District | Stafford |
| Shire county | Staffordshire |
| Region | West Midlands |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Stoke-on-Trent |
| Postcode district | ST12 |
| Dialling code | 01782 |
| Police | Staffordshire |
| Fire | Staffordshire |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| EU Parliament | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | Stone |
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Coordinates: 52°56′45″N 2°09′30″W / 52.9457°N 2.1583°W
Barlaston is a village and civil parish in the borough of Stafford in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is roughly halfway between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the small town of Stone. According to the 2001 census the population of the parish was 2,659.
History
The old parish church of Saint John is sited on the edge of the Wedgwood estate. It was built to the design of C. Lynam in 1886-8, retaining the west tower from the original medieval building, with the subsequent addition of a vestry in 1969. In 1981 the building had to be closed owing to mining subsidence and a temporary building next to the church took its place until the new church was built on Green Lane.
Wedgwood moved their pottery manufacturing business from Etruria, Staffordshire to a large modern factory in a new village in the north of the parish. The factory was planned in 1936 and built in 1938-40 to the designs of Keith Murray who was also a designer of Wedgwood pottery. The factory has a tourist visitor centre and has its own car-parks and a bus station. Wedgwood railway station was opened for the factory in 1940 and is currently served by Rail Repalcement Bus First Potteries No 23 on which all valid railway tickets and passes are accepted [1] Nearby is Barlaston Hall c1756 by Sir Robert Taylor (architect) and at one time a Wedgwood family home. The Upper House, another Wedgwood residence, is also in Barlaston.
Education
- Barlaston First School *140 years of Barlaston First school
- The Wedgwood Memorial College in Barlaston is a Worker's Educational Association residential college, and also serves as the headquarters of the Esperanto Association of Britain.
Transport
Close by the village are: the A34 road; the River Trent; the Trent and Mersey Canal; a route of National Cycle Network; and the railway - which all pass west of the village.
Barlaston railway station, opened by the North Staffordshire Railway on 17 April 1848, is now on the Manchester branch of the West Coast Main Line - but inter-city trains do not stop and the local passenger service was taken over by Rail Replacement Bus First Potteries No 23 in 2014, on which all valid railway tickets and passes are accepted.[2] The campaign for the local train service to be restored is continuing.[3]
Environment
Barlaston and Rough Close Common covers some 50 acres (20 ha) between Barlaston and Blythe Bridge and is a designated local nature reserve.[4][5]
Nearest places
- Blythe Bridge
- Downs Banks
- Meir
- Oulton Grange
- Tittensor
- Trentham
References
- ↑ londonmidland.com
- ↑ londonmidland.com
- ↑ North Staffs Rail Promotion Group
- ↑ "Barlaston and Rough Close Common". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
- ↑ "Map of Barlaston and Rough Close Common". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
Further reading
- Nikolaus Pevsner The Buildings of England - Staffordshire. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1974; p. 65
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Barlaston. |
- Barlaston CE (VC) First School
- Barlaston Village Hall
- Barlaston Village Show
- Wedgwood Website
- www.barlaston.org
- Barlaston in the Domesday Book
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