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St James End, also known as St James, and colloquially as Jimmy's End, is a district west of the town centre in
Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...
, in the
West Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, and was created in 2021. It contains the county town of Northampton, as wel ...
district, in the ceremonial county of
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...
, England. The area developed from the mid to late 19th century particularly with the expansion of the shoe manufacturing and engineering industries, and also the extension of the railway from London in June 1882.


History


Northampton Abbey

The area is named after St James' Abbey which was founded in the town 1104–05 by
William Peverel William Peverel (died 28 January 1114), Latinised to Gulielmus Piperellus), was a Norman knight granted lands in England following the Norman Conquest. Origins Little is known of the origin of the William Peverel the Elder. Of his immediat ...
as an Augustinian monastery dedicated to St James and which was built in the area of the modern development. The abbey was located in the Abbots Way area, off the south side of Weedon Road in the town (see map). The former Express Lift factory, which included the lift-testing tower, was redeveloped for housing in 1999–2000. The site was known to occupy part of the precinct of the abbey. Excavations were carried out to determine the location and remains of any parts of the abbey. The abbey and a cemetery were located. The main buildings were preserved beneath the new housing development. The cemetery of c.300 burials was excavated during winter 2000–2001. The bones were analysed to determine the health and burial practices in the late medieval population of Northampton. 294 burials were uncovered in well ordered rows, with many wooden coffins, graves lined with old ceramic roof-tiles, stone-lined graves and a single stone coffin suggesting the occupants of relatively high status. Use of the cemetery later was less orderly. Burials were in simple, shallow graves with just a shroud. On the south side was a stone-built building with two mortuary chapels. One had a stone-lined tomb, and a fragment of life-sized sculptured leg, with chain mail and a stirrup strap from a broken effigy. This may have happened at the dissolution of the abbey in 1538. A highly decorated grave slab and the remains of two skeletons had been unearthed in 1970. Analysis of the burials shows a large number of elderly people many having suffered from trauma such as leg fractures, fused and/or deformed leg joints and advanced spine degeneration. Many of these may have died in the abbey infirmary and further analysis is being undertaken.


First World War

On 19 October 1917 at 10.45 pm German
Zeppelins A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...
dropped bombs near Burghley Park then passed over Northampton dropping nine incendiary bombs over Kingsthorpe, Dallington and Far Cotton. Another fell on the roof of 46 Parkwood Street on St James, probably aiming for Northampton railway station. The house was occupied by Henry Gammons, a railway bricklayer, who was away at the time. His wife, Eliza Gammons, and twin daughters Gladys and Lily, aged 13, were in bed. The bomb passed through the house to the bedroom, killing the mother instantly and set fire to the room. Both mother and daughters were killed.


Governance

The St James area today forms part of the
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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
of Northampton in
West Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, and was created in 2021. It contains the county town of Northampton, as wel ...
. When significant development in the area began in the nineteenth century, it was outside the borough boundaries of Northampton, in the neighbouring parishes of Dallington and Duston. An
ecclesiastical parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
called "St James, Dallington" was created in 1872 covering parts of the two older parishes. The neighbouring
local government district Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
of
Hardingstone Hardingstone is a village in Northamptonshire, England. It is on the southern edge of Northampton, and now forms a suburb of the town. It is about from the town centre. The Newport Pagnell road (the B526, formerly part of the A50) separates ...
(which had been created in 1871 covering the
Far Cotton Far Cotton is a village and neighbourhood of Northampton and former civil parish, now in the parish of Far Cotton and Delapre, in the West Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England. Location Far Cotton is due south of the town ce ...
area) was enlarged in 1874 to also include the new ecclesiastical parish of St James. Local government districts were reconstituted as urban districts under the
Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...
, which also said that parishes could no longer straddle district boundaries. The parts of the civil parishes of Dallington and Duston within the urban district of Hardingstone therefore became separate parishes called "Dallington St James" and "Duston St James". The urban district was divided into two urban districts called Far Cotton and St James in 1896, with the St James Urban District comprising the two civil parishes of Dallington St James and Duston St James. The St James Urban District was short-lived; it was abolished four years later in 1900 and absorbed into the county borough of Northampton. The two civil parishes continued to exist until 1913, but as
urban 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
es they never had parish councils, always being directly governed by the urban district or borough councils above them.


Notable buildings

St James today is most notable for the presence of the
National Lift Tower The National Lift Tower (previously called the Express Lift Tower) is a lift-testing tower built by the Express Lift Company (a lifts division of the General Electric Company) off Weedon Road in Northampton, England. The structure was commis ...
in Weedon Road, formerly the Express Lift Tower and nicknamed the 'Northampton Lighthouse'. The building is a lift-testing tower built by the Express Lift Company which closed in 1990. The building was officially opened by
Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
on 12 November 1982. The Church of England Parish Church of St James in St James' Road was built in 1868–71 by R. Wheeler of
Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) (historic spelling ''Tunbridge'') is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Mall ...
, Kent, with additional work in 1900 and the tower in 1920. The brick is exposed inside and enriched with black bricks. The Doddridge Centre in St James Road was built in 1895 as the Doddridge Memorial Chapel in memory of Philip Doddridge (1702–1751), an English Nonconformist. It provides facilities and support to community and voluntary groups with 30 groups based in the building and another 40 using it as a meeting point for a variety of activities. The chapel where Doddridge served from 1729–51 is in Doddridge Street on the east side of the river. It dates from 1695 and is now a
United Reformed Church The United Reformed Church (URC) is a Protestant Christian church in the United Kingdom. As of 2024 it had approximately 44,000 members in around 1,250 congregations with 334 stipendiary ministers. The URC is a Trinitarian church whose theolog ...
. The interior has galleries, box pews and a memorial to Doddridge. St James is home to the Northampton Saints Rugby Football Club at
Franklin's Gardens Franklin's Gardens (currently known for sponsorship purposes as cinch Stadium at Franklin's Gardens) is a purpose-built rugby stadium in Northampton, England. It is the home stadium of Northampton Saints and Loughborough Lightning. The stadiu ...
stadium on the south-west side of lower Weedon Road. The club was established in 1880 under the original title of Northampton St James by Rev Samuel Wathen Wigg, a clergyman and curate of St James' Church. The
Sixfields Stadium Sixfields Stadium is an 8,203-capacity all-seater sports stadium in the Sixfields area on the west side of Northampton, England. It has been the home ground of Northampton Town F.C., Northampton Town Football Club following their move from the ...
used by Northampton Town Football Club (known as "The Cobblers") at the top end of Weedon road in the area known as Sixfields currently playing in League Division Two. The Sixfields area also has a large
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...
supermarket,
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...
, M&S Simply Food,
Wickes Wickes Group plc is a British home improvement retailer. It is the second largest home improvement retailer in the United Kingdom, behind B&Q. Whilst open to the general public, its sales of supplies and materials are predominantly orientate ...
,
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
, several restaurants, a multi-screen cinema, and several other retail outlets. The First Northampton bus service operated out of the former Northampton Transport depot on St James's Road but withdrew services on 14 September 2013. The depot remained in operation until 22 October 2013 to service the First Northampton operated
Luton Airport Parkway railway station Luton Airport Parkway station is on the Midland Main Line in England, serving south Luton and Luton Airport in Bedfordshire. The station is situated in Luton's Park Town, Luton, Park Town district, being from St Pancras railway station, London ...
Luton Airport London Luton Airport is an international airport located in Luton, England, situated east of the town centre, and is the fourth-busiest airport serving London. The airport is owned by London Luton Airport Limited, a company wholly owned by ...
service. It was then transferred to First Essex's
Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...
depot. This left the large depot empty. It had been opened in 1904 as the main depot for electric trams and then in the 1920s for motorbuses. Between then and 1939 it was extended considerably, but in 2013 the last service bus left and the depot was made redundant. In 2014 the site was acquired for expansion by Church's Shoes which has a factory next door. As of November 2022 the depot site remains unused and enclosed by Church's-branded hoarding.


Industry


Former works

The Express Lift factory closed in 1990 having been a major employer (see notable buildings). Mettoy had a large site, originally used as a boot factory, at the corner of Spencer Bridge Road and Harlestone Road, NN5 7AE, now occupied by
Aldi Aldi (German pronunciation: ), stylised as ALDI, is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 18 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and ...
and
Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
supermarkets.Ordnance Survey 1:2,500 map of Northampton South 1901


Current establishments

On St James Road between Sharman Road and Spencer Street is the factory of
Church's Church & Co Limited, branded Church's, is a luxury footwear manufacturer that was founded in 1873 by Thomas Church in Northampton, England. In 1999 the company was bought by Italian luxury fashion house Prada. Family Three brothers Alfred, ...
the up-market footwear manufacturer founded in 1873 by Thomas Church. The company is now owned by
Prada Prada S.p.A. (, ; ) is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1913 in Milan by Mario Prada. It specializes in leather handbags, travel accessories, shoes, ready-to-wear, and other fashion accessories. Prada licenses its name and branding ...
. As at November 2022 plans to expand the factory into a part of the redundant bus depot next door remain unrealised. (The depot site remains enclosed by Church's branded hoarding but untouched since 2014). The front entrance to the building has images of a Native American (see gallery). This reflects the previous ownership by the company Padmore and Barnes; they produced footwear using a
moccasin A moccasin is a shoe, made of deerskin or other soft leather, consisting of a sole (made with leather that has not been "worked") and sides made of one piece of leather, stitched together at the top, and sometimes with a vamp (additional pane ...
construction, and a Native American was their emblem; they produced some 6,000 pairs of moccasins in the first half of the 20th century. A statue stood at the top of the front of the building but was removed when the works closed. The large and thriving St James Industrial Estate along St James Mill Road near West Bridge is host to a large number of business and industrial establishments including the headquarters of Cosworth Engineering.


Traffic issues

Both St James Road and Spencer Bridge Road feed into Weedon Road and are the main exits to the
M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) motorway, A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the count ...
at junction 16. All these roads are busy
24/7 In commerce and industry, 24/7 or 24-7 service (usually pronounced "twenty-four seven") is service that is available at any time and usually, every day. An alternate orthography for the numerical part includes 24×7 (usually pronounced "twenty- ...
with heavy traffic, fumes and noise from vehicles. A recent report for Northampton Borough Council states: "Existing conditions within the study area show poor air quality, with concentrations of nitrogen dioxide exceeding the annual mean objective along Weedon Road and St James’ Road near to the development site. An AQMA ( Air quality management area) has been declared for this area".


1998 floods

The part of St James in St James Road and the lower parts of Harlestone Road and Weedon Road are low lying and in the flood plain of the
River Nene The River Nene ( or ) flows through the counties of Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk in Eastern England from its sources in Arbury Hill in Northamptonshire. Flowing Northeast through East England to its mouth at Lutt ...
and its tributaries. In April 1998, many residents of both St James had to leave their homes and seek temporary accommodation elsewhere, after part of the area, along with
Far Cotton Far Cotton is a village and neighbourhood of Northampton and former civil parish, now in the parish of Far Cotton and Delapre, in the West Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England. Location Far Cotton is due south of the town ce ...
and Cotton End, suffered flooding, when the Nene broke its banks after torrential rain. Flooding occurred on
Good Friday Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary (Golgotha). It is observed during ...
, 10 April 1998. Since then river banks have been raised and flood mitigation lakes created west of the town (see gallery).


Area maps and views


2014 map

There is no exact de-lineation of the St James area – the red outline on the modern map shown below gives the area generally regarded as St James. This differs from official designations of Borough Council Wards and County Council Divisions which often include additional areas used to even up the numbers of voters. The northern area comprises what are known as the 'Scottish streets' after their street names. On the west side, off Weedon Road, is the Lift Tower estate and several side roads up the hill to Sixfields. In the south is the large and thriving St James Industrial Estate along St James Mill Road. Part of the St James area extends east of the railway into St James retail park. The eastern part of St James lies just west of a tributary of the River Nene and the
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
and was the first part of the area to be developed for housing and industrial use in the mid and late 19th century as can be seen from the 1899 map. This area extends to Spencer Bridge Road in the north beyond which is the area of the town known as Spencer, after the Spencer family of Althorp, about 5 miles north, however the area includes the houses nearest to Harlestone Road including St James Church of England Primary School. This is the only school in the St James area and has nearly 500 pupils aged 3 to 11. The school was rated 'good' at the last
OFSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...
inspection. Part of the area south-west of St James Road appear on the 1899 map such as Abbey Street, Almad Street, Lincoln Road and Spencer Street. Other areas further up Weedon Road have terraced houses on the 1899 map but have been cleared for three blocks of council flats close to
Franklin's Gardens Franklin's Gardens (currently known for sponsorship purposes as cinch Stadium at Franklin's Gardens) is a purpose-built rugby stadium in Northampton, England. It is the home stadium of Northampton Saints and Loughborough Lightning. The stadiu ...
stadium.


1899 map

The eastern part of St James was the first area to be developed for housing and industrial use in the mid and late 19th century as this map shows. There are three shoe factories shown, a tannery, saw mills and a cycle works. The railway arrived from London, Euston in 1881 on a loop line from the main line north of the village of Roade, although a connection to
Market Harborough Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough District, Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, close to the border with Northamptonshire. The population was 24,779 at the United Kingdom census, 2021, 2021 census. It is the ad ...
and further north was in place earlier. The large goods area at the railway station reflects the main method of goods transit at the time. What is now Victoria Park is shown on the map as a recreation ground. The park was opened in 1898 on land donated by Earl Spencer of Althorp. At that time it was half the present size. Further land was acquired from the Earl in 1910 and 1911. As of August 2021 it has a children's play area, a changing rooms building used by visiting football teams, static outdoor exercise equipment and a multipurpose enclosed sports pitch (remodelled from previous tennis courts). The former bowling green was removed c.2000.


Gallery


See also

*
List of monastic houses in Northamptonshire The following is a list of the monastic houses in Northamptonshire, England. See also * List of monastic houses in England Notes References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monastic houses in Northamptonshire Medieval sites in England Houses ...
* 1998 Easter Floods


References


External links


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