Cotton End is a small district of the town of

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

, England, about half a mile south of the town centre, north of the area known as

Far Cotton Far Cotton is a district in the civil parish of Far Cotton and Delapre, in the town of Northampton, in the county of Northamptonshire, England and many years ago a village in its own right. The population is included in the Delapre and Briar Hil ...

and west of the road from South Bridge to Ransome Road known as Cotton End. The district population is included in the Delapre and Briar Hill Ward of Northampton Council.

History

The area was established as a small industrial site in the late 19th century. On the 1899 1:2500

Ordnance Survey , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = Ordnance Survey 2015 Logo.svg , logo_width = 240px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = , di ...

map the site is located to the west and south of South Bridge over the

River Nene The River Nene ( or : see below) is a river in the east of England that rises from three sources in Northamptonshire.OS Explorer Map sheet 223, Northampton & Market Harborough, Brixworth & Pitsford Water. The river is about long, about of w ...

between the river and the former Bedford to Northampton railway line and north of the Old Towcester Road and the former Bridge Street railway station (opened 1845). The area appears to have been entirely industrial in contrast to the area south of the railway line which is the residential area of

. In the 1990s the area was cleared and used for housing with the name of Old Towcester Road changed to West Cotton Close. The area to the east of the original Cotton End is shown on the old Ordnance Survey map as having some industrial units close to the south bank of the river with a goods shed, other railway works and a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and offices fronting the main road. This area was also referred to as Cotton End and became entirely industrial with removal of the railway sidings. During the 1990s part of this site fronting the river was also developed as housing off a new road called New South Bridge Road as the Old Towcester Road industrial development was out of date. Part of the site next to the river was occupied by a large iron foundry, Rice & Co, which was on the site from 1928-1997.Rice's Foundry History on Far Cotton History site, Accessed 6 January 2014
/ref> The Northampton Branch of the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter st ...

from

Blisworth Blisworth is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire, England. The West Coast Main Line, from London Euston to Manchester and Scotland, runs alongside the village partly hidden and partly on an embankment. The Grand Union Canal ...

runs adjacent to the north of the site, just south of the River Nene, joining with the river via a

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

1998 floods

In April 1998, many residents of both Far Cotton and Cotton End had to leave their homes and seek temporary accommodation elsewhere, after part of the whole area, along with another part of Northampton, St. James, suffered flooding, when the River Nene broke its banks. Flooding occurred on

Good Friday Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Hol ...

, 10 April 1998, a day which became known locally as "the long Good Friday". Since then river banks have been raised and flood mitigation lakes created west of the town.

Area maps and views

File:Cotton End OS 1899.jpg, Extract of Old Ordnance Survey map of Northamton 1899 showing Cotton End, The long building south of the goods shed is still in use by

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

File:Map of Cotton End Northampton, England, January 2014.jpg, Open map extract for Cotton End dated 2014 showing the current day area shown on the 1899 map File:Old Towcester Road name plate, Northampton.jpg, All that remains of the original road and name, 6 January 2014 File:Southbridge_Development,_Northampton,_England.jpg, The east housing development of Cotton End on the south bank of the River Nene after several days of heavy rain File:View south from South Bridge, Northampton England.jpg, Looking south of the main road through Cotton End south from South Bridge. The road here is known as 'Cotton End' from the bridge as far as the furthest traffic lights and most visitor's first view of the town centre from the south

References

External links

Far Cotton History Group
* {{Northampton, state=collapsed Areas of Northampton