Trowell
Encyclopedia
Trowell is a village
and civil parish
in Nottinghamshire
, England
. It lies a few miles west of Nottingham
, in the borough of Broxtowe
on the border with Derbyshire
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,568.
The village is believe to have Saxon origins. The parish had a population of around 50, with four manors and a church, by 1066. Coal was extracted nearby from the 13th century until 1928.
The main road through the village is the A609 between Nottingham and Ilkeston
and A6007 from nearby Stapleford
. The M1 motorway
also passes through the village, and the Trowell Motorway Services
lie just to the north. Most of the village lies between the River Erewash
(Derbyshire
boundary) and Nottingham Canal
.
Herbert Morrison
selected Trowell as the "Festival Village" for the 1951 Festival of Britain
, as a typical example of British rural life. Conveniently close to the geographical centre of England
, the village was found to be far from the a chocolate box
idyll: there was no village green
, and its three public house
s had closed. The belching chimneys and slag heaps of an ironworks to the west dominated the village. Morrison responded to hostile questions in the House of Commons that Trowell was "the type of English village where the old rural life is passing away and where an industrial community has been superimposed", "[i]t was chosen merely as an example of modern social problems in a village", and its selection would "encourage places which are not conventionally beautiful ... to have a go at improving their amenities". Trowell celebrated its selection with several events: a cricket match played in Victorian dress, awards for the best back and front gardens, a performance of Sir Edward German
's comic opera
Merrie England
, and cleaning the church clock.
The parish church is St Helen. The village pub is The Festival Inn on Ilkeston Road (A609).
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It lies a few miles west of Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, in the borough of Broxtowe
Broxtowe
Broxtowe is a local government district with borough status in Nottinghamshire, England, west of the City of Nottingham. It is part of the Greater Nottingham metropolitan area...
on the border with Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,568.
The village is believe to have Saxon origins. The parish had a population of around 50, with four manors and a church, by 1066. Coal was extracted nearby from the 13th century until 1928.
The main road through the village is the A609 between Nottingham and Ilkeston
Ilkeston
Ilkeston is a town within the Borough of Erewash, in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the River Erewash, from which the local borough takes its name. Its population at the 2001 census was 37,550...
and A6007 from nearby Stapleford
Stapleford, Nottinghamshire
-External links:***...
. The M1 motorway
M1 motorway
The M1 is a north–south motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford. While the M1 is considered to be the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the United Kingdom, the first road to be built to motorway standard in the country was the...
also passes through the village, and the Trowell Motorway Services
Trowell Motorway Services
Trowell services is a motorway service station off the M1 motorway in Nottinghamshire, England, situated north of Junction 25. Opened in 1967 by Mecca Leisure, it is currently owned by Moto....
lie just to the north. Most of the village lies between the River Erewash
River Erewash
The River Erewash is a river in England that flows roughly southwards through Derbyshire, close to its eastern border with Nottinghamshire.-Etymology:...
(Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
boundary) and Nottingham Canal
Nottingham Canal
The Nottingham Canal was a long canal between Langley Mill in Derbyshire and Nottingham, England. It opened in 1796, and most of it was closed in 1937. The southern section is now part of the River Trent Navigation, and the northern section is a nature reserve.-Origins:The idea for the canal first...
.
Herbert Morrison
Herbert Morrison
Herbert Stanley Morrison, Baron Morrison of Lambeth, CH, PC was a British Labour politician; he held a various number of senior positions in the Cabinet, including Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister.-Early life:Morrison was the son of a police constable and was born in...
selected Trowell as the "Festival Village" for the 1951 Festival of Britain
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition in Britain in the summer of 1951. It was organised by the government to give Britons a feeling of recovery in the aftermath of war and to promote good quality design in the rebuilding of British towns and cities. The Festival's centrepiece was in...
, as a typical example of British rural life. Conveniently close to the geographical centre of England
Centre points of the United Kingdom
There has long been debate over the exact location of the geographical centre of the United Kingdom, and its constituent countries, due to the complexity and method of the calculation, such as whether to include offshore islands, and the fact that erosion will cause the position to change over time...
, the village was found to be far from the a chocolate box
Chocolate box art
Chocolate box art originally referred literally to decorations on chocolate boxes. Over the years the terminology has developed and is now applied broadly as a descriptive, but often pejorative, term to describe paintings and designs that are warm, idealistic and sentimental.Using his own paintings...
idyll: there was no village green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
, and its three public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s had closed. The belching chimneys and slag heaps of an ironworks to the west dominated the village. Morrison responded to hostile questions in the House of Commons that Trowell was "the type of English village where the old rural life is passing away and where an industrial community has been superimposed", "[i]t was chosen merely as an example of modern social problems in a village", and its selection would "encourage places which are not conventionally beautiful ... to have a go at improving their amenities". Trowell celebrated its selection with several events: a cricket match played in Victorian dress, awards for the best back and front gardens, a performance of Sir Edward German
Edward German
Sir Edward German was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of English comic opera.As a youth, German played the violin and led the town orchestra, also...
's comic opera
Comic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
Merrie England
Merrie England (opera)
Merrie England is an English comic opera in two acts by Edward German to a libretto by Basil Hood. The patriotic story concerns love and rivalries at the court of Queen Elizabeth I, who is portrayed as jealous of the affection of Sir Walter Raleigh for Bessie Throckmorton. Its sunny depiction of...
, and cleaning the church clock.
The parish church is St Helen. The village pub is The Festival Inn on Ilkeston Road (A609).