Barton-under-Needwood

Barton-under-Needwood

Main Street, looking east
Barton-under-Needwood
Barton-under-Needwood shown within Staffordshire
Population 4,225 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference SK185185
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town BURTON-ON-TRENT
Postcode district DE13
Dialling code 01283
Police Staffordshire
Fire Staffordshire
Ambulance West Midlands
EU Parliament West Midlands
UK Parliament

Barton-under-Needwood is a large village in Staffordshire, England, a mile from the A38 between Burton upon Trent and Lichfield. It has a population of approximately 5,000 and serves as a commuter centre for many residents working in Lichfield, Tamworth and Burton or further afield in Derby and Birmingham.

Overview

The Tudor church of St James is a Grade II* listed building. It dates from 1517 and was built by Dr John Taylor, a native of the village, noted ecclesiastic, and chaplain to Henry VIII. It is built of stone with embattled parapets. The aisles were widened in the 19th century. It also has a clerestory and a polygonal apse. Both nave and chancel retain their original low pitched roofs. The church contains several monuments, notably including an 1691 alabaster mural monumentto Joseph Sanders and a marble tablet to Edmund Antrobus (1732) and his wife (1728).[2]

The village also has several shops and a village hall. Local infant/junior schools, and a larger secondary school are also located within the village: John Taylor High School, which serves Barton and the surrounding villages.It has seven pubs, six of which are owned by Marstons. Barton also has a large marina complex on the Trent and Mersey Canal, home to some 300 narrow boats, with shops, a pub, a cinema and restaurants.

Thomas Gisbourne was curate of the village from 1783 to 1820, and was succeeded by his fourth son.

The village sports teams are based at the Holland Sports Club, which has facilities for cricket, football, rugby, tennis, netball and tug of war. The club is named after the Holland family who were resident in Barton for 600 years from the 14th century to the mid 1900s. The earliest recorded member of the family was Richard de Holland who was involved in the Battle of Burton Bridge in 1322 (see 'Records of the Holland Family' published by William Holland).

The tug of war team have won many national and international honours since forming in 1970 - including the title 'Guinness World Record Holders' for a record in Tug of War Endurance which was created in 2000, being selected to represent England at the 2008 World Tug of War Championships in Sweden, and winning a World Open Silver Medal at the 2010 Championships in Pretoria, South Africa, see TWIF records (World Governing Body) 'Tug of War International Federation'.

Barton has four churches: St James C of E, Methodist, Roman Catholic and Christadelphian.[3]

St James' Church, Barton

History

The name of the village had "under Needwood" added in 1327 {see a History of Barton under Needwood - Under the Needwood Tree 1995} to distinguish it from the other Bartons in England. In 1995 a written history of Barton under Needwood was produced, named "Under the Needwood Tree", by Steve Gardner, with the assistance of a book committee. In 2001 Steve published a sequel, "Life and Times in Barton", and in 2007 a further volume: "Memories of Old Barton".

Dunstall Hall is a stately home about a mile outside Barton in the hamlet of Dunstall. It is used as a conference centre and a venue for weddings.

Barton-under-Needwood Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1892. The club and course closed in the mid 1920s.[4]

The UK's first Travelodge was opened in 1985 on the A38 just outside the village.

Between the 2005 and 2010 General Elections, the Needwood ward of East Staffordshire Borough Council(in which Barton-under-Needwood is the main settlement) was transferred from the Burton Parliamentary constituency to Lichfield.

In recent years the village has been dubbed the "Esperanto capital of Britain" due to the thriving Esperanto community language programme.

Notable residents

References

  1. ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ "Barton-under-Needwood Christadelphians". Retrieved 2007-05-29.
  4. ↑ "Barton-under-Needwood Golf Club", "Golf’s Missing Links".
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