Mansfield Woodhouse
| Mansfield Woodhouse | |
 Saint Edmund's Parish Church |
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  Mansfield Woodhouse |
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| OS grid reference | SK540632 |
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| District | Mansfield |
| Shire county | Nottinghamshire |
| Region | East Midlands |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MANSFIELD |
| Postcode district | NG19 |
| Dialling code | 01623 |
| Police | Nottinghamshire |
| Fire | Nottinghamshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| EU Parliament | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | Mansfield |
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Coordinates: 53°10′N 1°11′W / 53.16°N 1.19°W
Mansfield Woodhouse is a large village about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) north of Mansfield itself, in Nottinghamshire, England, stretching alongside the main A60 road in a wide, low valley between the Rivers Maun and Meden.[1] With a history dating back before the Romans, it is still noteworthy for its stone-built town centre.
Mansfield Woodhouse was a separate entity with its own UDC but after continuous development is now a large section within the larger Mansfield development area. Following a change in local government structure, in 1973 Mansfield Woodhouse and Warsop UDCs merged with the municipal borough of Mansfield to form a new council administration known as Mansfield District Council.
Mansfield Woodhouse's wealth was traditionally based on quarrying, mining, farming and textile industries.
History
The Romans had a fortress and a civilian settlement in the area (remains of a Roman villa were famously found here by Hayman Rooke in the 1780s). The area declined after the Romans left but by the 13th century there was a growing settlement of smallholders.
On 12 September 1304, fire completely destroyed Mansfield Woodhouse, including its timber-framed church. The town was rebuilt using local materials and the new stone-built church, dedicated to St. Edmund, still stands today.
The town recovered, and by Tudor times was home to a number of wealthy families. Farming and quarrying were the main livelihoods, and Mansfield Woodhouse also prospered with the growth of the textile and hosiery trades into the 19th century. One thing not commonly known about Mansfield Woodhouse is that locally quarried stone was used to build the Houses of Parliament. On the road to Edwinstowe stands the Parliament Oak, which, according to legend, was once the location of a session of Parliament held by the king. There is a plaque commemorating this.
During the UK miners' strike (1984-1985), Mansfield Woodhouse coal miners at nearby Sherwood Colliery broke the strike. This decision was made as part of the Nottinghamshire Union of Miners. The pit closed in 1992.[2][3] The Colliery's football and cricket teams still carry on today through Sherwood Colliery Football Club and Sherwood Colliery Cricket Club.
Natives of Mansfield Woodhouse include D'Ewes Coke (1747–1811), an unusual combination of clergyman and colliery master. Mansfield Woodhouse is actually a village and known to be one of the biggest in the United Kingdom and is still growing by expanding into former farmland.
Mansfield Woodhouse today
The Village now has a population of over 18,000.
It has a number of schools; the larger primary schools are St. Edmund's Church of England Primary School, Northfield Primary and Nursery School, Peafield Lane Primary and Nursery School, Leas Park Junior School and Nettleworth Primary and Nursery School. The largest school is The Manor Academy, originally a grammar school (opened in 1959) it merged with Forest View Sec Mod opened 1956) both at Park Hall Road and Yorke Street Sec Mod to form a comprehensive school opened in September 1973. The Yorke Street building was approx a mile away to the south. After a major fire in 1996, the Park Hall Road buildings were enlarged during rebuilding to incorporate the former Yorke Street facility, which was sold for housing land. Near to the school is The Manor Sport and Recreation Centre, a public amenity which forms part of the school’s facilities.
The Co-op in Mansfield Woodhouse closed on 10 January 2009 and was replaced by a Morrisons store on 29 June 2009. The town is being redeveloped in other areas, including replacement of the older terraced housing around Thoresby Road, near the train station and from Sherwood Street–Blake Street with new housing estates. A new police station has served the town since 2007 but in late 2013 it was earmarked for possible closure by Nottinghamshire Police Commissioner, Paddy Tipping.[4][5]
The town is served by Mansfield Woodhouse railway station, on the Robin Hood Line.
The town also has a volunteer-run newsletter called The Woodhouse Warbler, produced quarterly since late 2000, with a circulation in the thousands. They also produced a magazine collating locals' World War II memories. It was funded by the Big Lottery Fund.[6]
Sport
The Manor Sport and Recreation Centre is a £1.9 million indoor and outdoor sports facility opened on 11 May 2002, largely funded by a £1.4 million Sport England Sports Lottery grant, with the remainder from a variety of organisations and sponsors.[7]
From 29 September 2012 the Manor Park, adjacent to the Sports complex and accessed from Kingsley Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, has regularly hosted a Park Run, an informal, timed 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) fun-run for any class of participant.[8][9]
Mansfield Woodhouse is known around Nottinghamshire for its junior football clubs: Woodhouse Colts JFC and Manor 4th FC, both of which offer football to youngsters from the age of 6–18.
Speedway racing, then known as Dirt Track racing took place at Mansfield Woodhouse in the pioneer days of 1928.
References
- ↑ OS Explorer Map 270: Sherwood Forest: (1:25 000):ISBN 0 319 24040 1
- ↑ Independent Sherwood Colliery closed January 1992 Retrieved 2014-05-26
- ↑ 'Our Mansfield and Area' website administered by Mansfield District Council Museum ANNALS OF MANSFIELD - 'Timeline' "1992, 31 January. Sherwood Colliery was closed." Retrieved 2013-12-31
- ↑ Chad, local newspaper 02 October 2007 New Woodhouse police station opens soon Retrieved 2013-12-29
- ↑ Chad, local newspaper, front page, 4 December 2013. 'Appalling' "Controversial plans to close down Mansfield Woodhouse Police Station have been branded as 'appalling' by Mansfield MP Sir Alan Meale" . Accessed 2013-12-29
- ↑ Woodhouse Warbler. Retrieved 2013-12-29
- ↑ Manor Sports Centre homepage. Retrieved 2013-12-30
- ↑ Park Run support website and info. Retrieved 2013-12-30
- ↑ Mansfield Parkrun website.Retrieved 2013-12-30
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mansfield Woodhouse. |
- Mansfield Woodhouse Genealogy & Census Information
- Mansfield Woodhouse Community Website
- The Woodhouse Warbler Website
- Chesterton Humberts, History of The Priory and Debdale, Mansfield Woodhouse
- The Manor Academy, formerly known as Manor Comprehensive School
- The Manor Sport and Recreation Centre
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