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A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF THE MAIN ARTICLES
Issues 1, 2,
3 & 6 have now sold out and are now available only online.
We have copies of all the remaining issues. A brief synopsis of what each of these issues contains is included below. Our charge for these is the cover price (which ranges from 70p to £1.00) plus the cost of postage and packing. Anyone wishing to obtain any back copies should click
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Issue No.1 October
1988
This
Issue Is Only Available Online
Issue No.2 May
1989
This
Issue Is Only Available Online
The Story
Of The Nottingham Canal
Given the focus of this Issue, we
provide the reader with a brief account of the history of the
Nottingham canal.
Letter To The
Editor - 1835
"I was yesterday passing by the river Leen and the canal, on my way to Lenton,
when I observed numerous groups of youths in and out of the water in a state of
complete nudity, amounting to at least a hundred in number, and varying
in age from seven to seventeen years. For want of a suitable PRIVATE place of bathing, some of our public walks are to
the respectable female population worse than useless, and too frequently subject
them to the most indecent and degrading insults"
Lenton And
The Canal
Casting his mind back to the inter-war years, Les Berry recalls how the
canals in and around Lenton looked, during his childhood and early working life.
Recollections
Of The Hillside Area
After talking to Jack Hill, now aged 86, Keith Taylor wrote down some of
Jack's recollections of his childhood here in Lenton before the First World War.
The
Nottingham And Beeston Canal In Recent Years
The odd bit of commercial traffic that continued to use the canal between
Nottingham and Beeston finally ceased in the 1960s leaving the waterway clear
for leisure craft. At that time the canal must have been viewed simply
as a relic from the past that didn't have much of a future. As most readers
will be aware the situation is now much improved and in fact the Nottingham and
Beeston Canal was recently included in a Department of the Environment case
study of good practice in urban regeneration.
The
Nottingham Canal As It Is Today—Beyond The City Boundary
To conclude our story of the Nottingham canal we provide readers with a brief
armchair tour of those sections of the canal that can still be found beyond the
City boundary.
The Friary
Housing Development
Back in January 1988 when A.F. Hunt (Builders) Ltd. began work on 'The Friary',
no one ever envisaged that this housing development off Gregory Street in Old
Lenton was likely to attract national media attention and the probable presence
at its official opening of a government minister. This interest all came about
because the houses were subsequently purchased by a Nottingham company and
became some of the first in the country to be offered for rent under 'assured
tenancy' terms.
Society
Snips
News from the
Lenton Local History Society.
Issue No.3 November
1989
This
Issue Is Only Available Online The Story Of
The Rose And Crown
The
history of The Rose and Crown - Derby Road, Lenton.
Back To The
Rose
What of the Rose and Crown prior to 1885 when John Mills took over the tenancy?
From the local directories we have assembled a list of those who had been
innkeeper there for the previous fifty-seven years.
The Hillside
Malting
In issue No.2. we
told the story of where Jack Hill spent his childhood. Now as a result of
Frank Barnes' researches there is much more we can tell you regarding Hillside.
Growing Up In
New Lenton In The 1930’s
Len Taylor recalls the Willoughby Street area of his childhood.
Rules Of The
Game
Rum Stick A Bum,
Tin Lurkey, Hop Charge & Cigarette Card Flicking - Len Taylor explain the
games of his childhood.
Cut Off! -
James Green And Francis Evan’s Involvement With The Nottingham
Canal
In Issue 2 we included a brief history of the Nottingham canal.
Here Frank
Barnes has more to relate about two of the men who were intimately involved in
its planning and construction and who both bought land and built mansions in the
Lenton area. These gentlemen were Francis Evans of Lenton Grove and James Green
of Lenton Abbey.
Family
History
Iris M. Keeble
explains her family's connection to Lenton.
Society
Snips
News from the
Lenton Local History Society.
Issue
No. 4 June 1990
This
Issue Is Only Available Online
Issue No.5 February 1991 (price 70p.) The Fleet's in Town
At the age of 48 Henry Robinson decided he had made enough money to retire. A life of self-imposed idleness did not suit and when he successfully backed 'Grand Parade' to win the 1919 Derby he decided to invest his winnings in a new  char-a-banc and hire it out for day trips. He bought Clayton's Wharf and the accompanying property in Old Lenton, resumed a former career of coal merchant and combined this with his new interest in char-a-banc hire. The combination worked very well. When the demand for fuel slackened off in the summer the workforce could switch to the char-a-bancs - come the winter it was back to the coal deliveries. In the next few years he built up the char-a-banc trade and at one point was running twelve vehicles. The story of his 'Grand Fleet' Char-a-bancs was recalled by 'Bert' Robinson, Henry Robinson's son. At the time of the article Bert was eighty eight but his memory of those early days of the char-a-bancs was as sharp as ever. (5 pages) Lenton Gregory F.C.
This is the story of one of Lenton's local football teams. Founded in 1924 the Club started playing in the Boys Realm League and by 1932 had graduated to the 2nd Division of the Notts Alliance. In 1934 for reasons not entirely clear the Club decided to disband. Twelve years later a group of local men decided to re-establish the Lenton 'Gregs' and entered two teams in the Notts Amateur League. The Club continued for some fifteen years until the members called it a day in the early 1960s. Albert Ellis who was Club Secretary from 1946 to 1958 provided information about the Club and its footballing exploits, plus all the photographs used in this article. (3 pages) A further article on Lenton Gregs in the 1920's in Issue No.6. Advertising the Past & Church News 1942
An assemblage of some eighteen adverts for local businesses that first appeared in the Lenton Parish Magazine for July 1942 set alongside some of the Church news from that war-time period. (2 pages) Local Profile: Iva Keen
Born in Manchester, Jamaica, Iva Keen came to England in the mid 1950s. At the time of writing her hairdressing business had been part of the Lenton scene for some twenty odd years. Iva's corner-shop business was the one permanent fixture in a part of Lenton that has seen no end of changes. (2 pages) Hillside Recollections Part 2
The first half of Jack Hill's Hillside recollections (in Issue No.2) focussed on the stretch of canal that ran alongside Hillside. In this second helping his recollections take us to various other locations in the Lenton area. (3 pages) Our Sponsor's Story
This recounts the history of G.B. Willbond, a plumbers' merchants, who until recently were based on Faraday Road, Lenton. (1 page)
Issue No.6 October 1991 (price 70p.)
This
Issue Is Only Available Online
Down Your Way
Sherwin Road Sherwin Road is a comparatively recent name for a thoroughfare that may well be very old. Until the 1880s it was known as Birch Lane and a number of substantial properties, including Flora Cottage, could be found alongside it. Following the death of its occupant, Flora Cottage and all the associated land were sold on to developers in the 1890s, who had the property demolished and used all the land for building purposes. The story of this and other housing developments elsewhere on the street is told in this article. (7 pages) Mirberry Mews and Birch House
 One of the other imposing properties on Sherwin road was Birch House which came down in 1970 to make way for a housing development known as Mirberry Mews. This article looks at what we know about the various occupants of Birch House including a certain John Tucker, who once attempted to patent an anti-snoring device. (2 pages) At Home with the Bennet-Clarks
The Bennet-Clarks lived at Birch House from 1937 to 1945. Thomas Archibald Bennet-Clark had been appointed Professor of Botany at University College, Nottingham in 1936 and brought his family to live at Birch House in 1937. His son, Henry Bennett-Clark, who went on to become a Zoology lecturer at Oxford University, relates something of his family history and recalls his childhood spent in Lenton during the Second World War. (3 pages) Lenton's Chocolate Factory
After the Bennet-Clarks moved to London Birch House was bought by Leonard Mitson who decided to move his chocolate making business there from premises in Mansfield Road. For the next twenty years or so Leonard Mitson proudly declared that his chocolates were 'made in the shadow of an Old World Garden Lenton Nottingham'. This article looks at both Mr.  Mitson's business activities and his political career. For a number of years Leonard Mitson served as a City Councillor, to begin with as a Conservative Party nominee but later under the auspices the Labour Party. (3 pages) A Little Horse Play
In 1935 the Nottingham & Notts Historical Pageant and Industrial Exhibition was held in the city. The Pageant involved a large cast of local people in twice-daily performances given outside at Wollaton Park over a period of six days in June. Ken Bamford was selected to be one of Robin Hood's 'Merrie Men' and he amusingly recounts the trials and tribulations involved in mounting this event. (2 pages) Lenton Gregory F.C.
Following the publication of Issue No.5 we received a letter from John Attenborough in Ringwood, Hampshire. He was the person who actually started the Lenton Gregory Football Club back in 1925. He corrected a number of errors that had crept into our article and was able to tell us more about those early years including the reasons behind the initial demise of the club. (1 page) A further article on Lenton football in the 1920's in Issue No.9 Our Sponsor's Story & More about The Boat
Our sponsors were the proprietors of The Boat Inn in Old Lenton. After a page long feature on the pub as it was in 1991, we added a further two pages which recounted something of the history of this particular hostelry. (3 pages)
Issue No.7 September 1992 (price 80p.) This
Issue Is Only Available Online
Issue No.8 May 1993 (price 80p.) Trams and Lenton
This is a history of trams in Nottingham with particular reference to Lenton. Two tram services served Lenton. The route of the first, opened in 1902, ran along the Boulevards. The second arrived in 1914 and came along Derby Road as far as Gregory Street. There were periodic suggestions as to how the tram network might be extended but the only proposal to come to fruition in Lenton was a short extension to the Derby Road route to serve the needs of the Wollaton Park housing estate. (6 pages) Assisting Family Historians with their Enquiries
The burial plans for Holy Trinity churchyard have failed to survive which makes it very difficult for anyone trying to locate a particular gravestone. The Family History Society surveyed the surviving headstones in 1981 and published a list of the monumental inscriptions found there. They didn't however, indicate where to find each grave. Members of Lenton Local History Society resurveyed the graveyard in 1992 and as a result we can now provide a specific location for most of those headstones listed in the 1981survey. They also found another ninety inscriptions not listed in the 1981 survey and the relevant details are given in this issue. (4 pages) Dunkirk Cricket Club Remembered
In 1948 at a meeting held in the Dunkirk Hotel six local lads agreed to form a cricket team. Among them was John Watkins who remained an active participant in the Club for the next thirty years. It is his memories which form the basis of this article. (3 pages) Eric's Store
The Church Square shopping precinct opened in 1968 as a replacement for all the shops that had been lost when the Willoughby street area was demolished in the early 1960s. Eric Denham & Dennis Boden had run a grocers/greengrocers in the old Willoughby Street. They managed to find alternative premises when they had to leave Willoughby Street. They kept the business going while they waited for their shop unit in the new shopping precinct to be made ready. In autumn 1968 they moved in. It was not the immediate success the two men had hoped for and Dennis Boden decided to quit and take a job with the G.P.O. Eric and his wife Jean resolved to carry on and the story of what happened in subsequent years can be read in this article. (3 pages) Our Sponsor's Story: Genristo
Based on Prospect Place in New Lenton, Genristo make electric heating components which are incorporated into a wide range of industrial equipment. (1 page)
Issue No.9 November 1995 (price £1) On the Trail of Clifton Boulevard: Part 1
In 1925 the City Council unveiled its plans for a major new road system which would run round the western side of  Nottingham and link into Valley Road at Basford. The first portion of this outer ringroad appeared with the building of Middleton Boulevard which was opened in 1927/28. This was followed by Western Boulevard which was formally opened by the Minister of Transport in November 1932. The next section, opened in late 1938, was the modest stretch of road running from Middleton Boulevard down to Beeston Road which enabled vehicles to travel on into Nottingham via Abbey Street and Abbey Bridge or out to Beeston via University Boulevard. The story of the road's construction and what had to go to make way for it form the subject of this article. (5 pages) Lenton: Passing Memories
Although Peter d'Auvergne spent his entire childhood in Beeston he had good reason to pass through Lenton on a regular basis. His mother ran a boot and shoe shop on Ilkeston Road and during the school holidays he would often accompany her as she walked to and from work. His memories of those regular perambulations take in Lenton Firs and of Sir Thomas Shipstone; the Raleigh cycle works; relatives who lived in Chippendale Street; Wollaton Park; University Park and Highfields Lido - he recalls in a very engaging manner. (3 pages) Archives and Lenton
Chris Weir's article on Nottinghamshire Archives explores the development of the Archive Service and gives readers some indication of what Lenton material can be found there. (4 pages) Making the News: Snippets from the Past
One of the on-going projects carried out by the Society is a scrutiny of old Nottingham newspapers looking for items with a Lenton connection. This piece is an assemblage of news items from the years 1832-1835. (3 pages) Football: The Local Scene 70 years ago
Drawing on information contained within an old copy of the Nottingham Journal Football Guide Brian Howes describes what it reveals about the local football scene in the early 1920s. (1 page) Midland Avenue Fire Watchers
When the first German bombing raids commenced in 1940 people in Nottingham began to organise themselves into neighbourhood groups. The intention was to mount night-time patrols to keep a look-out for incendiary bombs being dropped and help minimise the damage they might cause. Marshall Atkin, who provides us with this account, was one of a number of volunteers who shared this task in the Midland Avenue area of Lenton. (2 pages) What's Going On?
In a superb photograph from the late 1920s a crane can be seen lifting the superstructure of a railway carriage into or out of a barge moored beside the river Trent. But what exactly is going on? The accompanying text provides the explanation. (1 page) Our Sponsor's Story: La Grenouille Restaurant
In 1976 Yves Bouanchaud resolved to open a restaurant in Nottingham serving authentic French cuisine. He acquired premises in Lenton and twenty years later was still running his restaurant. La Grenouille remains part of the Lenton scene although Yves Bouanchaud has now sold the business. (1 page)
Issue No.10 October 1996 (price £1) On the Trail Of Clifton Boulevard: Part 2
The story behind the construction of second half of Clifton Boulevard which stretches from Abbey Street/Beeston Road, over the river Trent and on up to the junction with A60 is long and involved. It starts with the compulsory purchase in 1938 of the requisite land needed to take the road as far as the river Trent and only concludes in 1995 with the most recent road and bridge-widening scheme. (8 pages) The Lenton Heliport
In 1956 BEA began to operate a helicopter service between Nottingham and Birmingham. The story behind this venture and the reasons for its ephemeral existence are charted in the course of this article. (1 page) Mark Cockerill
- A Lenton Bobbie
During the latter part of the nineteenth century Police Constable Mark Cockerill was based in Lenton. Mary Pick, his granddaughter, recounts some of the family tales of life on the Lenton beat at that time. Her most sensational story involves the occasion when he was bitten by rabid dog in 1886. Only the year before Louis Pasteur had announced that he had finally developed a vaccine which would prevent the onset of rabies in humans. The members of the Watch Committee agreed that P.C. Cockerill should be sent to Paris to get the necessary treatment. Having set something of a precedent, the Watch Committee subsequently paid for several other Nottingham citizens to travel to France for the same treatment. (3 pages) Manslaughter at New Lenton?
In October 1836 the jury at an inquest held at the White Hart in Lenton returned a verdict of manslaughter on Henry Thomas Mortimer. They considered he had not done all that he should while attending the deceased, one Maria Castles, in his role as an accoucheur. For those unfamiliar with the term, an accoucher was a man who assisted women at childbirth. We recount the details of the subsequent trial held at the Shire Hall in March 1837 and go on to reveal a little of what we have discovered about the principle participants. As for the result of the court case
- seek out Issue No.10. (3 pages) Helen Kirkpatrick Watts: Portrait and Politics of A Nottingham Suffragette
Richard Whitmore offers a further instalment in the life of Helen Watts. Drawing on the papers held at Nottinghamshire and other source material he provides an analysis of her political beliefs and details other protests which led to a second prison sentence, this time at Leicester. (4 pages) Our Sponsor's Story: E.A.M.
In 1987 Edwin [Eddy] Alexander Maxwell moved his home and business premises to 45 Clifton Boulevard, Lenton. In 1998 the E.A.M. Building Group was declared 'Best Business with over 20 Employees' in that year's East Midlands Ethnic Business Awards organised by Nottingham First Enterprise. (1 page) |
