Kidsgrove
Coordinates: 53°05′15″N 2°14′52″W / 53.0874°N 2.2478°W
| Kidsgrove | |
 Victoria Hall |
|
 Kidsgrove
Kidsgrove shown within Staffordshire |
|
| Population | 24,112 (2001 census) |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SJ835545 |
| District | Newcastle-under-Lyme |
| Shire county | Staffordshire |
| Region | West Midlands |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Stoke-on-Trent |
| Postcode district | ST7 |
| Dialling code | 01782 |
| Police | Staffordshire |
| Fire | Staffordshire |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| EU Parliament | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | Stoke-on-Trent North |
| List of places: UK • England • Staffordshire | |
Kidsgrove is a town in the borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England, near the border with Cheshire. It is part of The Potteries Urban Area in North Staffordshire, along with Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme. It has a population of 24,112 (2001 census). Most of the town is in the Kidgsrove ward, whilst the western part is in Ravenscliffe.
Contents |
[edit] History
From the 18th century, Kidsgrove grew around coal mining, although the pits have now closed. Clough Hall Mansion in the town, now demolished, was a local theme park. Modern Kidsgrove is a commuter town, which has seen house prices rise quite sharply in the first decade of the 21st century.[citation needed] Many people now work in the larger cities such as Manchester and Birmingham.
The engineer James Brindley cut the first Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal near the town; Thomas Telford cut the second. Kidsgrove also marks the southern extremity of the Macclesfield Canal. There is a legend regarding a headless ghost that is said to haunt the Harecastle Tunnel. The ghost is said to be that of a young woman who was murdered inside the tunnel. She is referred to as the "Kidsgrove Boggart".
Kidsgrove was made an urban district in 1904 with the abolition of the Wolstanton Rural District, including the parishes of Kidsgrove and Newchapel. Talke, previously part of the Audley Urban District, was added in 1932. [1]
Kidsgrove is served by Kidsgrove railway station which was opened by the North Staffordshire Railway on 9 October 1848 as Harecastle, later becoming Kidsgrove Central. This railway station is still open as a junction (now Kidsgrove). However, there were two other stations on the closed loop line namely Kidsgrove Liverpool Road, opened 15 November, 1875 and Market Street Halt, opened 1 July 1909.
Bathpool Park, south of the town is where Donald Neilson, the killer known as the Black Panther, took 17-year-old heiress Lesley Whittle after kidnapping her in 1975, and prior to murdering her.
The town has a library, post office, health centre, bank and supermarket. Market Street has smaller shops, restaurants and take-aways.
[edit] Transport
Kidsgrove is very well connected to the local area. It boasts a four-platform railway station, and three bus terminuses. The First Potteries Bus Route numbers 7/7C, 20 and 20A/34A buses each have terminuses in Kidsgrove, and the Railway connects to Crewe, Manchester and Stoke-On-Trent train stations. Kidsgrove is also home to a portion of the A50 road and is very close to the A50 and the A500.
[edit] Sport
Kidsgrove Athletic F.C. play in the Northern Premier League Division One South.
Kidsgrove also has a Rugby Club and a cricket Club
[edit] Notable people
R. J. Mitchell designer of the RAF's Battle of Britain fighter, the Spitfire was born in Butt Lane village, Kidsgrove.
Brewster Mason, RSC Actor; 1922-1987.
Mark Bright (born 6 June 1962) attended Maryhill High School, Kidsgrove.
[edit] Kidsgrove Scouts
Kidsgrove is home to the First Kidsgrove Scout Group. After having two fires at their original location, Kidgrove Scouts moved to their current location on The Avenue. Recently there has been another fire at this building but only the small back building was lost, along with some of their Archery and Air-Rifle shooting equipment. 1st Kidsgrove Scouts also has a multiple contest winning Show Band known as The Kidsgrove Scout Band, who have won multiple DCUK and BYBA competitions. Kidsgrove Scouts also has a Junior Band known as Kidsgrove Scouts Juniors. 1st Kidsgrove Scouts is one of the largest scout groups in the district of Potteries North.
[edit] The Rotary Club of Kidsgrove
Founded on January 15th 1969 and presented with their charter on 2nd July of the same year, the Rotary Club of Kidsgrove (RCK) have been active within the community whether fundraising, volunteering or helping out local projects for over 40 years. The club is also part of District 1210 within Rotary International in Britain and Ireland.
Originally meeting on Wednesdays at 1pm in the Masonic Hall and Institute in the town, the group now gets together at the Bleeding Wolf, Scholar Green on the same day but from 7pm (except after Bank Holidays). An active group within the Rotary district as well as the town, the club have recently been crowned winners of the darts and snooker competitions and are defending their titles in 2012.
During November RCK hold a bonfire night and fireworks at Clough Hall Park and during December they can be seen on the streets of Kidsgrove with their Santa float, collecting for local good causes who also help out on the routes. The Rotary Club of Kidsgrove can also be found on their own website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
[edit] Local Links
Local websites serve the residents of Kidsgrove and surrounding areas. Each website has a forum area where local issues can be discussed with local councillors and the local police.
Local Community Websites
- Kidsgrove.info Website
- Kidsgrove Community Websites
- The Rotary Club of Kidsgrove
- North Staffordshire Youth Project
- Whitehill Online
|
||||||||||||||||||||
