Moor Lane cut-through


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On the subject of early pits and railways and canals and paths, a big map might help. This is the 1830s.

bilbraborn, that address you gave doesn't work, but this one does, Found that photo, many thanks, http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/frontend.php?keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;NTGM004737&pos=1

My best friend lived 1 ranmore close

That's a very good map for its time. I think it's from a series called Sanderson's 20 miles around Mansfield? Or something of that ilk. It shows all the coal mines that I mentioned and also a railway from Trowell Moor across to Strelley. I have tried to find traces of this railway recently but farmers are very quick to reclaim land. The map also shows the Bilborough Cut and what is on more recent OS maps called the Machine House (situated near what is now shops at top of Aspley Lane), but on that map is called Engine House.

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As an 1830s map it pre-dates the main railway lines, the first from Nottingham to Derby (just off the map) being opened in 1839. I did notice however that "railway" is marked just to the south west of Strelley village. Interesting to see how much is still recognisable.

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I have a copy of Chapman's of the whole of Notts . It is late 18th century but the only canal shown is the Chesterfield canal which is the earliest canal built in Notts. I think the map is more concerned with which big family name owned what land.

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No wonder I couldn't see it! just leaned forward for a better view and elbow touched keyboard, suddenly other half of map came up! as suspected some colliery trackway? how long do you estimate that was? and where did it come from/go to? As regards bell pits no sure if the following were such? but the area to the rear of the industrial units, crossland filters etc on glaisdale drive was littered with "craters" As a 20 year old who worked near there in 1960's and spent his dinner hour "scrambling" on various motorbikes on that land with no interest in local history I assumed such was first "bomb craters" later subsidence from underground pit workings? now believe they were said bell pits (some filled in more than others)

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A lot of that land between the railway and Glaisdale Drive all the way down to Wigman Road was just overgrown spare land when I was a child. Some of the humps and hollows were part of the Bilborough Cut which was abandoned in the early 18th century. The remnants that I remember went from Old Coach Road train bridge in a huge curve and disappeared when it got to the SPD (as it was then) warehouse on Glaisdale Drive. Of course as kids we didn't know its history then. It was just a huge natural adventure playground to us.

I remember some of the land having a black surface and now know that outcrop coal was common in that area. Some of the other holes were probably the remnants of old Bell Pits but older youths used to join them up underground making tunnels in the sand. How dangerous was that?

What activities were happening right across the area from Aspley to Bramcote 200 years ago is anybody's guess.

The area where Radford Bridge Road joins Beechdale Road had a row of cottages before the area became built over. It was called (locally) Engine Town. I wonder why.

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Hi folks, this is all very interesting. I think the waggonway on Moor Lane may be wishful thinking, although I would love there to have been one.

The "railway station" near Coventry Lane sounds like one of the Midland Railway's ploys to get coal traffic from nearby collieries. After all the Midland and the Great Northern were in constant punch-ups to get coal, and hence money, on to their own lines. Look at the MR's London Extension to St Pancras, and all the GNR lines in Notts/Derbys which went in the 1960s. I'm sure there were some sidings on the Radford-Trowell line near Coventry Lane - or is it old age?

We used to live in Bramcote - my sister went to Bramcote Grammar in the 60s and I remember Alan Dance from Nottingham High School. Did Alan say whether the new book would be generally available (eg on the web) or just in Beeston W H Smith etc? I don't get over to Bramcote/Beeston much since me mum passed on a few years ago, although I have occasionally been seen in the Vic in Beeston (and the Brunswick in Derby, and the Alexandra, etc etc :rolleyes: ).

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Ed.

There's a road called 'Sidings Lane' off Coventry Lane which would seem to indicate that there were a load of sidings there.

(For coal traffic I would imagine).

I'm not sure whether the book is a commercial release. It might just be only available from Bramcote History Group.

Alan and Graham Crisp did a really thorough job of digging up so many documents on the area.

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I've seen this road Sidings Lane. Isn't it that little stub for parking near the canal? There are new(ish) houses across the road and this is the site of what used to be Izzards Roses. I wonder what that place was built upon.

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No. I'm talking about the other side of Coventry Lane. In the Apex of Moor Lane and Coventry Lane. I used to deliver their milk, and then went on to the cottage across the road from BIS and then those houses on the corner of Ilkeston Road. That was when we also did Ballon Wood Flats.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Bouncing this thread as I came across this article on Nottingham Hidden Histories site...

"Huntingdon chose the start of his waggonway route to coincide with the point where the Parishes of Strelley, Bilborough and Wollaton join together; it actually sits astride two of the boundarys (Strelley and Bilborough) the rails cross the boundary into Wollaton. From this point it is a gentle downhill route, making it easier for the horses when loaded. The other end of the route was at a coal collection point for Tumbills and Waynes on the Wollaton Road."

http://nottinghamhiddenhistoryteam.wordpress.com/2013/07/30/huntingdon-beaumonts-wollaton-to-strelley-waggonway/

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Thanks for that very interesting piece of info. Given that I used to spend lots of time on Old Coach Road as a youngster, it is mindboggling that this may have been where the first recorded railway passed.

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  • 1 year later...

I would like to return to the topic of the cutting through the sandstone on Moor Lane Bramcote and why was it made?

Often I have heard it said that it was

1) a tramway

2) a cutting to enable a "direct " walkway

3) a connection to coal mining

Perhaps, looking at old maps of the area I think it is safe to assume that Moor Lane cutting was there before the Nottingham Canal and therefore before the railway.

The cutting must have been made by paid labour or but by enforced labour by which I can only assume would be connected to the Napoleonic Wars. However if so this would have been after the Canal so I have to assume that it was made by "paid" labour and can conclude that it must have had an industrial reason for its being.

Could it have been a form of "tramway" (horse drawn). Could it have been cut out about the time of the horse drawn railway on Old Coach Road Wollaton , reputed to be the oldest in the world.

Without a doubt there are connections to the Willoughby Family and coal mining. An old map shows a "Tramway" at Balloon Plantation crossing Coventry Lane and going up to Spring Farm more than likely on the line of the road which goes up to Spring Farm now.

This could have extended through to Moor Lane, through the cutting , over to Bridle Road and in a direct line through to the navigable River Trent. Being before the canals the River would have been the only way to transport coal other than by horse drawn overland routes often impassable.

My belief is that it could well have been related way back to the time of the origin of coal mining i.e bell pits.

The earliest bell pits were near Cossall on the soon to be Opencast Mine. There were also numerous pits of the same nature opening up around Trowell Moor and the Wollaton area. Transportation of any coal had to be overland horse drawn (and difficult). Wooden rails would have been an option.

If you look at a gradient map then if you go south from Balloon Plantation , encompassing Trowel mining , then if a cutting was made on Moor Lane then there is an almost continual downhill route to the River Trent. Later, when canals were built to carry the coal, there was a Engine House Colliery at the junction of the Nottingham Canal and Moor Lane . Why was it there? Could it have been to take advantage of Moor Lane before the Canal was built?

My belief is that the Moor Lane Cutting was created because of the need to haul coal to the Trent. Possible it was created in the early 18th century.

Has anyone any further thoughts?

BTW the attached photo is from the Moor Lane Canal junction not as headed.

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Hi Graham,

I don't know if you've seen some of the earlier posts, but Bramcote History Group did some research into Bramcote Moor and the Moor Lane cut-through.

I believe they intended to collate all the information into a book.

Their belief was that Sempringham Priory (who owned the estate - including the moor from the 12th. Century) cut the road through for 2 reasons. One was to provide easier access to the moor because of the coal deposits and the fact that it was valuable grazing land, the other was that they needed a large amount of sandstone for building work elsewhere.

When it was done is hard to say, but it's obviously hundreds of years ago.

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Thanks Barclaycon

The sandstone theory is a possibility but why a cutting that is of the width of a " tramway"?

Surely if sandstone was required it would have been hewn in a random fashion? It would also have been more easily available in many other locations.

I still feel that coal is the catalyst and coal transport is the reason for the cutting, either in the early 18th or 17th century.

Graham

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  • 2 years later...

I found your forum through searches for info on Bramcote Moor Lane cut-through (posted 2011) and 6 years later I don't think we are any the wiser. The con- census then was that the roadway had to be cut through to level the gradient for horse and cart transport of coal and such to the turnpike road (A52) at Bramcote . It was said that the mineral rights belonged to the Willoughbys of Wollaton Hall and so supposedly they claimed the excavated stone. Perhaps they needed a local source for building stone and this cut-through solved two aims ???

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  • 2 years later...
On 12/13/2011 at 11:54 PM, barclaycon said:

There were just starting Moor Farm Inn at the time and I saw them add to it with the Gun Deck.

 

 

Crikey Gun Deck Disco wonder what happened to them? Moor Farm went downhill when it changed it's name to "Bramcote Manor" plus there was already that big house Bramcote Manor :crazy:

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  • 2 years later...

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