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Woodville is a suburban village and
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
that crosses two districts -
South Derbyshire South Derbyshire is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. The population of the local authority at the 2011 Census was 94,611. It contains a third of the National Forest, and the council offices are in Swadlincote. The district a ...
district of
Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
and
North West Leicestershire North West Leicestershire is a local government district in Leicestershire, England. The population of the Local Authority at the 2011 census was 93,348. Its main towns are Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Castle Donington, Coalville and Ibstock. The dist ...
district of
Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
, England, east of
Swadlincote Swadlincote is a former mining town in the district of South Derbyshire, England, lying within The National Forest area. It borders the counties of Leicestershire and Staffordshire, south-east of Burton upon Trent and north-west of Ashby-de ...
, of which it is now effectively a suburb. At the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 5,161, an increase from 3,420 at the 2001 Census. The centre of the village, known as the Tollgate, is a busy traffic island on the A511. Woodville forms part of the border with
Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
.


History

Woodville was formerly known as Wooden Box, named after the wooden toll booth on the toll road between
Ashby de la Zouch Ashby-de-la-Zouch, sometimes spelt Ashby de la Zouch () and shortened locally to Ashby, is a market town and civil parish in the North West Leicestershire district of Leicestershire, England. The town is near to the Derbyshire and Staffordshire ...
and
Burton-upon-Trent Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In 2011, it had a population of 72,299. The d ...
. The area around the roundabout, which is the modern equivalent of the toll booth, is still known as 'Tollgate'. The name Woodville first appeared in a leaflet issued when the foundation stone of the
Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...
of
St Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...
was laid on 7 November 1845. St Stephen's is a
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...
revival building designed by
Henry Isaac Stevens Henry Isaac Stevens FRIBA was an architect based in Derby. He was born in London, in 1806, and died in 1873. In the late 1850s he changed his name to Isaac Henry Stevens. Family His parents were Isaac Stevens and Elizabeth Young. He married Ann ...
and completed in 1846. The Woodville area is rich in industrial heritage with a wide variety of industries such as potteries, crate-making, pipe works, breweries, rope-making and railways all having had a presence in the area which is now either totally gone or extremely diminished. One of the most famous Woodville potteries was Bretby Art Pottery, founded in 1882 by Henry Tooth and
William Ault William Ault (1842 – 12 March 1929) was an English potter, involved with a number of companies in the Staffordshire potteries and South Derbyshire making art pottery and more utilitarian wares. In 1883 he established the Bretby Art Pottery ( ...
.


Local geography

On some approaches it is difficult to tell where the village starts and ends as it is increasingly contiguous with neighbouring Swadlincote and
Albert Village Albert Village is a small post-industrial village in Leicestershire, England and is located approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the town of Swadlincote. The area's heritage is in coal-mining and pottery manufacture, both locally defunct ...
. On the northern edge of Woodville is the Goseley district which was constructed during the 1950s. There has been much development of the surrounding area with large private estates of new homes having been constructed, including the ‘Bird’ district. To the south of Woodville, along the county border with
Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
, a large community of new houses is being developed (unofficially referred to as Woodville Woodlands) by the developers
Bloor Homes Bloor Homes is an English housebuilder based in Measham, Leicestershire. History The company was founded by John Bloor John Stuart Bloor (born 16 June 1943) is a British billionaire businessman. His business, Bloor Holdings, owns both Bloo ...
and
Bryant Homes Bryant Homes was one of the larger UK housebuilders when it was acquired by Taylor Woodrow in 2001; Bryant then became the principal housebuilding operation of the enlarged group. Taylor Woodrow merged with Wimpey in 2007 and during 2010 the Bryan ...
. This development is built on the land of the former Woodville Pipe Works and incorporates the planting of new trees on the former
fire clay Fire clay is a range of refractory clays used in the manufacture of ceramics, especially fire brick. The United States Environmental Protection Agency defines fire clay very generally as a "mineral aggregate composed of hydrous silicates of alumin ...
pit as part of the National Forest scheme. The Mount Pleasant works operated by John Knowles & Company, demolished in 1993, produced pottery and has been replaced by a housing development. A discovery by archaeologists led to the preservation of some of its records. Off Hartshorne Road is the site of the former Woodville railway station which opened in 1851 and connected the village with Swadlincote, Ashby and Burton-Upon-Trent but the station closed in 1947 and the line in 1964. The site is now an industrial estate.


Amenities

Woodville High Street (which is part of the A511 road) has a small shopping area incorporating a convenience store, a pharmacy and a
fish and chip shop A fish and chip shop, sometimes referred to as a chip shop, is a (often fast food) restaurant that specialises in selling fish and chips. Usually, fish and chip shops provide takeaway service, although some have seating facilities. Fish and c ...
. Also located on the High Street side of the road are additional food outlets, including a Chinese takeaway, a further fish and chip shop, and Indian and Chinese restaurants. There is a village
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
together with further shops and light industrial and commercial units. Woodville has a 24-hour petrol station, incorporating a convenience store, and a tyre and exhaust centre which is located on the Tollgate roundabout. Woodville has a Scout Group. Woodville has an infant school and a Church of England Junior School. Both schools are off the High Street.


Sport

Woodville Rangers Football Club was founded in 2005 and caters for all age groups from four to adult. Their nickname is The Tollers after the famous toll gate which was situated in Woodville for many years. The club badge shows the toll house. Woodville Rangers gained FA Charter Standard status early in 2008. A short lived
greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tra ...
track called the Victory Greyhound and Whippet Racing Track was opened during October 1929 at the Woodville Cricket Ground on the Burton Road. The racing was independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body the
National Greyhound Racing Club The National Greyhound Racing Club was an organisation that governed Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom. History The National Greyhound Racing Club (NGRC) was formed in 1928 and this body would be responsible for regulation, licensing and the r ...
) and was known as a flapping track, which was the nickname given to independent tracks. The venue usually raced on Saturdays and regularly attracted over 1,000 people despite being so close to Swandlicote Greyhound Stadium. A second season of racing was held in 1930 but there is no evidence of anything beyond 2 May 1930.


Industrial heritage

John Knowle's Mount Pleasant Pipe-works at Woodville was once a major employer in the area. It has now been demolished but before redevelopment the bases of a tunnel kiln and beehive kiln were excavated. Together with detailed records going back to the 19th century and photos preserved by ex-employees it has been possible to create detailed 3-D reconstructions of the plant. The beehive kilns were down-draft kilns. In this case they had a double skin with fire holes around the external circumference and a main loading door. Counter-weighted covers were used to open and close these openings. The heat would initially rise to the top of the kiln and then be forced down through the centre around the product, finally being vented below ground in tunnels to a chimney at the end of the group of kilns. The kilns were specifically designed for the production of salt-glazed sewerage pipes. Their construction reflects this as the salt could be added to the fires and then distributed evenly across the product as vapour at a certain stage of firing. The tunnel kiln produced 70% of the country's gas fire radiants (white ceramic grills that sit in the front of many domestic gas fires) in the mid-20th century and was difficult to visualise from the archaeological evidence alone. The digital reconstruction has assisted in understanding how the technology worked. The later design of the tunnel kiln enabled continuous firing thereby minimising delays while waiting for it to cool before loading and unloading. The product was slowly passed through a central chamber using gas to fire it.


Notable residents

*
John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in t ...
, the actor, lived in Woodville for seven years (1945–1952) from the ages of five to twelve. His father was the vicar of St Stephen's parish church. * Dr Selwyn Goodacre (b.1940), South Derbyshire GP, writer on
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...
, medical practice and book collecting has been resident in Woodville since 1970. *
Jane Plant Jane Anne Plant CBE, FREng, FRSE, FRSA (1945–2016) was a leading geochemist, scientist, and author. Plant was a pioneer in the field of geochemical surveys and environmental surveys. She was Chief Scientist at the British Geological Survey a ...
(1943-2016), pioneer in the field of geochemical surveys and environmental surveys, was born in Woodville and lived there until she attended university. Her parents were the village shopkeepers.


See also

*
Listed buildings in Woodville, Derbyshire Woodville is a civil parish in the South Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England. The parish contains four listed buildings In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four s ...
*
Listed buildings in Swadlincote Swadlincote is a town in the South Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England. It contains 24 Listed building#England and Wales, listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, two are at Grade II*, ...


References


External links

{{authority control Villages in Derbyshire Civil parishes in Derbyshire South Derbyshire District