Turn Right at Mottram Roundabout - Episode 25
Tue 17th January 2017 | General | By Stewart Taylor
Our destination in the last episode was Eccleshall.
The photo showed a plate of Staffordshire Oat Cakes fresh from the oven. These tasty treats are a local delicacy and are highly recommended.
No quick link as such with this one but a cryptic question which was - Might an aristocratic member of The Goon Show have lived here?
Eccles was a Spike Milligan character in the radio classic The Goon Show so, if he was aristocratic, he might well have lived at Eccles Hall.
For those amongst us who have what could be described as a geeky type interest in local government and industry, our destination this week is an absolute delight.
Many, well a few perhaps, will recall the Local Government Act of 1972 – enacted, perhaps appropriately, on April 1st 1974 – which radically changed local government areas across the whole of the UK. This was the Act which, effectively, brought into being counties such as Avon, Cleveland and others which failed to stand the test of time. In addition, many towns were “relocated” as a result of this Act but if we thought that was the first time such manipulation in the name of improved governance had occurred we would be misleading ourselves.
The town in question this week is such an example having been at various times throughout a long and distinguished history part of the manor of a nearby town, part of the hundred of a nearby city, part of the Poor Law Union of another nearby town, having its own Urban District Council within the County - at which time it was the second most populous urban district in the UK - to being today what is somewhat disparagingly called “an unparished area” within a Metropolitan Borough which was formed in 1974.
Equally, the town has been shuffled around in terms of Parliamentary representation having been in four different constituencies since the Reform Act of 1832. Amongst many famous MPs to represent this town the name of Winston Churchill stands out but the great Radicals William Cobbett and John Fielden were also MPs here.
In terms of industry we are in the great cotton belt of which we have spoken before and, as with many of our towns, when cotton declined it was necessary to attract other forms of employment for former textile workers and, in that quest, this town was spectacularly successful. Evidence for this comes from population statistics.
Whereas many of industrial towns saw a decline in population after the demise of the textile industry, this one did not with the data showing a gradual growth in population throughout the whole of the 20th century.
So what specifically allowed this town to buck the trend of decline in the post textile period? As already intimated the answer to this lies in attracting alternative industries and this town attracted the best in that high employment levels were needed in an industry which was cutting edge in terms of science and technology and, incidentally, benefited from conflicts around the world which dominated the century. If we were to mention famous engineers and designers such as Roy Chadwick and Stuart Davies then the answer to the implied question of which industry was it is revealed – aerospace.
In an analogy to changes in local governance in the town, the name of this specific part of the aerospace industry changed a number of times before closure in 2012. Part of what was a large site is now occupied by a multi-national manufacturer and supplier of pumps.
What we have today is described as a relatively prosperous, largely residential town with an attractive, to some, shopping mall. Excellent transport links to larger centres means that there is a significant element of commuter travel. This is necessary these days as the employment opportunities directly in the town are somewhat limited since the closure of the aerospace factory.
In football we find a club which traces its roots back to just after the Second World War. Picking up the theme of change again, the club changed both name and ground a couple of times before settling on the current identity and location in the late 1950s. This club is yet another founding member of the NWCFL back in 1982 who are still with us having played most of their time in the second tier of the League.
Much is said, quite rightly, about players who progress from non-league up to the highest levels of the professional game. In this context reference is often made to England and Leicester City forward Jaime Vardy but this club can at the very least equal that having been instrumental in the footballing development of a local lad who went on to become captain of the English National side.
We have talked before about the influence of our region on the music of the day and there is a direct reference relating to this club. There is little which is more personal than musical preferences and those who have a liking for the music of boy bands will find a direct link between the most successful boy band ever and this club.
And if you thought that the paragraph above had replaced the quick link this week, sorry to disappoint you.
Quick link - What links this club to the ZenOffice Stand at the SportsDirect.com Park?
Turn Right at Mottram Roundabout - Episode 25
Tue 17th January 2017 | General
By Stewart Taylor
Our destination in the last episode was Eccleshall.
The photo showed a plate of Staffordshire Oat Cakes fresh from the oven. These tasty treats are a local delicacy and are highly recommended.
No quick link as such with this one but a cryptic question which was - Might an aristocratic member of The Goon Show have lived here?
Eccles was a Spike Milligan character in the radio classic The Goon Show so, if he was aristocratic, he might well have lived at Eccles Hall.
For those amongst us who have what could be described as a geeky type interest in local government and industry, our destination this week is an absolute delight.
Many, well a few perhaps, will recall the Local Government Act of 1972 – enacted, perhaps appropriately, on April 1st 1974 – which radically changed local government areas across the whole of the UK. This was the Act which, effectively, brought into being counties such as Avon, Cleveland and others which failed to stand the test of time. In addition, many towns were “relocated” as a result of this Act but if we thought that was the first time such manipulation in the name of improved governance had occurred we would be misleading ourselves.
The town in question this week is such an example having been at various times throughout a long and distinguished history part of the manor of a nearby town, part of the hundred of a nearby city, part of the Poor Law Union of another nearby town, having its own Urban District Council within the County - at which time it was the second most populous urban district in the UK - to being today what is somewhat disparagingly called “an unparished area” within a Metropolitan Borough which was formed in 1974.
Equally, the town has been shuffled around in terms of Parliamentary representation having been in four different constituencies since the Reform Act of 1832. Amongst many famous MPs to represent this town the name of Winston Churchill stands out but the great Radicals William Cobbett and John Fielden were also MPs here.
In terms of industry we are in the great cotton belt of which we have spoken before and, as with many of our towns, when cotton declined it was necessary to attract other forms of employment for former textile workers and, in that quest, this town was spectacularly successful. Evidence for this comes from population statistics.
Whereas many of industrial towns saw a decline in population after the demise of the textile industry, this one did not with the data showing a gradual growth in population throughout the whole of the 20th century.
So what specifically allowed this town to buck the trend of decline in the post textile period? As already intimated the answer to this lies in attracting alternative industries and this town attracted the best in that high employment levels were needed in an industry which was cutting edge in terms of science and technology and, incidentally, benefited from conflicts around the world which dominated the century. If we were to mention famous engineers and designers such as Roy Chadwick and Stuart Davies then the answer to the implied question of which industry was it is revealed – aerospace.
In an analogy to changes in local governance in the town, the name of this specific part of the aerospace industry changed a number of times before closure in 2012. Part of what was a large site is now occupied by a multi-national manufacturer and supplier of pumps.
What we have today is described as a relatively prosperous, largely residential town with an attractive, to some, shopping mall. Excellent transport links to larger centres means that there is a significant element of commuter travel. This is necessary these days as the employment opportunities directly in the town are somewhat limited since the closure of the aerospace factory.
In football we find a club which traces its roots back to just after the Second World War. Picking up the theme of change again, the club changed both name and ground a couple of times before settling on the current identity and location in the late 1950s. This club is yet another founding member of the NWCFL back in 1982 who are still with us having played most of their time in the second tier of the League.
Much is said, quite rightly, about players who progress from non-league up to the highest levels of the professional game. In this context reference is often made to England and Leicester City forward Jaime Vardy but this club can at the very least equal that having been instrumental in the footballing development of a local lad who went on to become captain of the English National side.
We have talked before about the influence of our region on the music of the day and there is a direct reference relating to this club. There is little which is more personal than musical preferences and those who have a liking for the music of boy bands will find a direct link between the most successful boy band ever and this club.
And if you thought that the paragraph above had replaced the quick link this week, sorry to disappoint you.
Quick link - What links this club to the ZenOffice Stand at the SportsDirect.com Park?
