Balderton
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Balderton is a village and civil parish in the Newark and Sherwood district of Nottinghamshire, England, which is a south-eastern suburb of Newark-on-Trent. The parish had a population of 10,298 according to the 2001 census.
Balderton is one of the largest villages in England, although it may be more properly considered a suburb of Newark on Trent. Balderton is split into Balderton ('Old Balderton') and New Balderton, both of a roughly equal size.
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[edit] Geography
The busy A1 trunk road ran through the village and the east coast main railway line between London and Edinburgh skirts the village. Recent improvements have created a bypass for the A1 improving the environment. The soil is mostly alluvial clays and large deposits of gravel and sand were excavated in New Balderton. The resulting pits are now turned into a park. Gypsum was mined nearby. The surrounding area is mostly agricultural, mixed arable and livestock.
[edit] History
The name Balderton has obscure roots but may have been derived from Balder or Baldur – the Norse god of innocence, beauty, joy, purity, and peace and Odin's second son. The village itself is probably of Saxon origin and is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The Saxon countess Godiva, the wife of Earl Leofric, had property in the Manor of Newark nearby.
Balderton's Lords, the Bussey's, lived in the area in William the Conqueror's era and held it until the reign of Elizabeth I. It subsequently descended to the Meers and Lascels. In the 1840s, when its population was a little over 1,000, large parts of the village were owned principally by the Duke of Newcastle, who was lord of the manor.
Two petitions of the fourteenth century show disputes with the nearby village of Claypole. In 1305 the bishop of Lincoln and the Bussys were hindering passage along the road to Newark market (National Archives S8/161/8038) and in 1324 the people of Claypole petitioned about Balderton people attacking jurors in relation to the Oldebrigg between Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire (National Archives S8/39/1930)
London Road was built in about 1790 as a turnpike (bypass) for the Great North Road (designated the A1 in 1934) which ran through Balderton and to the north of England. One of the former coachouses built to serve the turnpike is now a public house.
During World War II, Balderton Airfield, opened in 1941, became home to RAF bombers and Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of the jet engine, lived and worked on his engine designs at Balderton Hall.
[edit] Administration
Since 1894 Balderton has been governed at the village level by a [1] parish council.
[edit] Architecture
The Parish Church of St Giles (diocese of Southwell) was originally built in the 12th century and enlarged considerably in the 13th and 14th centuries. Two Romanesque-style porch doorways, dating from about 1140, face north and south. The more imposing north entrance is topped by a niche containing a figure, possibly St Giles, although this was likely added as late as the 19th century. The Rood Screen dates from about 1475. The church has a substantial spire at the west end of the building containing a peel of eight bells.
[edit] Schools
At the beginning of the twentieth century education in Balderton was organised in a senior school in Main Street and a primary school on London Road, the latter opening in 1903.
A few children from the village went from the primary school to the grammar schools in Newark, the numbers increasing after the 1944 education act. Some children at thirteen went to the technical college in Newark.
Education in Balderton is now organised in John Huntprimary school (including a nursery and infant part) in the 1903 building on London Road. For the school's history see here [2]. A second primary school was opened in 1964 in Main Street and opened in its present buildings in Wolfit Avenue in 1967. It is called Chuter Ede school.
There is a private preparatory school, Highfields, on the border with Newark.
Secondary education for those aged eleven to eighteen is at the Grove science college, a comprehensive school which now has the status of science college. The Grove School has recently appointed its first school Head Boy and school Head girl, Jonathan Poulter and Sianne Robinson.
[edit] Balderton Entertainment
Balderton has a leisure centre which contains two swimming pools, a large adult gym and a junior Shokk! gym, squash courts and several large halls used for fitness classes (e.g aerobics). Also in Balderton, is a large lake used for fishing, but mainly for dog-walking or other similar activities. There are many other entertaining things in Balderton.
[edit] Football Teams
Balderton Athletic are the main football team that play there, and Matt Parisse also holds residence there. Grove Rangers FC are also a large and very successful football club that resides in Balderton. Newark Town and RHP sports clubs also provide football teams for all ages.
[edit] Balderton New Hall
A large private house on the southern outskirts of the village built 1840 for Thomas Spragging GODFREY. It was bought in 1930 by Nottinghamshire county council for conversion to a mental hospital but work on this stopped during World War II. The hospital was opened for patients in 1957 and closed in 1993. There is now housing on the former hospital site and nearby is the Fernwood business park.
[edit] External Links
Balderton Hospital Balderton New Hall
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