18 September 2006

This overview of the village's history originally appeared on the http://www.c-in-lindrick.freeserve.co.uk/ website, but that site has since disappeared. This information is reproduced with the kind permission of Yvonne Jones.

There have been settlements in Carlton- in- Lindrick from Saxon times and possibly even earlier since the village lies on what is believed to be an Iron-age track which runs from Whitwell Common in Derbyshire through Steetley, Shireoaks and on to Carlton, Wigthorpe, Retford and Treswell.

Oldcotes, a few miles north of Carlton, has the remains of a Roman villa and various artefacts have been found in the area including coins and a plough from Roman times.

The name ‘Carlton -in- Lindrick` is thought to derive from ‘tun’ (enclosure or farm) of the ‘carls’, (freemen) in the ‘lind ric’, (limewood).

The Domesday book of 1086 lists the Mill and Church and mentions that six Saxon thanes lived in Carlton at that time. A thane held the rank between that of ordinary freeman and hereditary noble.

Originally there were two settlements, one on either side of what is now the A60:- South Carlton, near the Parish church, was called Carlton Barron and North Carlton was known as Kingston -in- Carlton ‘from it being the King’s manor’ although no record remains as to which king had a manor there.

It was an attractive place, with an abundant water supply and formed part of the large area of land given by William the Conqueror to his knight and tenant- in -chief, Roger de Builli (sometimes spelt Busli). Turald de Chevrelcourt was the first Norman sub-tenant..

The Parish church in Carlton is believed to date back to 705 A.D. The lower part of its tower is Anglo- Saxon and the main doorway is Norman. The Mill nearby was powered by water and was also the villagers’ bakery. It continued working until after the Second World War when it became a small museum for a time. It is open to the public on the last weekend in June each year, when the current owners make it available to Carlton’s Flower Club and both floors are filled with beautiful floral displays, usually based around a single theme. All proceeds are donated to charity.

Carlton was originally a stone village, its cottages being built from the limestone lying readily available in the fields or from local quarries. Until 1760, the main road from Worksop turned down Church Lane past the threepenny bit shaped house which was the original Grey Horses, an old coaching inn. The road then passed in front of the Old Rectory and on into North Carlton before turning towards Hodsock and Blyth.

The population in the mid 18th century was about 450, living mainly in farms and cottages. The turnpike road, which we now know as the A60 to Langold and Doncaster, was not built until 1767, a significant year for village life since it was also the year of the Enclosure Act which was to fundamentally change the face of the countryside, and the whole approach to farming. In Carlton this meant 35 miles of fencing had to be erected, 11 miles of new roads laid, two miles of drains dug and four new bridges built over dykes and watercourses.

Until this time, the land had been owned by notable families.In the twelfth century, Ralph de Chevrelcourt, descendant of Turald, established a nunnery and granted ‘to Almighty God and the Virgin St. Mary, a place in his park of Carleton by the wells and streams of the wells, whose name should be called St. Mary of the Park, to make and build there an habitation for holy religion, so free that this place should not belong to any other place.’ The Benedictine Nunnery which he set up came to be known as St. Mary of Wallingwells because of its position ‘amongst wells, fountains and streams.’

Although Jerusalem Farm on Tinker’s Hill in Carlton was once the grange to Wallingwells, providing food for the nuns, Wallingwells itself became an extra-parochial area. After the dissolution of the monasteries in Henry the Eighth’s reign, it was turned into a private residence, and was eventually owned by the White family who lived there for several hundred years. The Hall is now divided into separate, private apartments and the estate has been broken up

When the Chevrelcourt family no longer had heirs, the land in Carlton was divided between the Latimers and Fitzhughs, from whom it passed to the Dacres, Molyneux, Talors and finally, Cliftons. For centuries, the Clifton family who actually lived in South Nottinghamshire, were the principal landowners. In the early 17th century they had Carlton Hall built as a hunting lodge just beyond the Mill and the lake. In 1765 the family estates were sold to Mr. William Mellish, M.P. for Retford and Receiver General for the Customs and Excise. He subsequently sold the majority of the land to the Ramsden family who came to live at Carlton Hall in 1778, but retained his own home at nearby Hodsock Priory.

Because neither the Clifton nor Mellish families had actually lived in the village, Carlton remained an ‘open village’, that is, no landowner exercised his right to dictate who could live in ‘his’ village or what their trades could be. One of Carlton’s characteristics throughout the centuries is that it has always been open to ‘incomers’, maintaining a constant but also mobile population , coming and going according to the economics of the day, a trait which is typical of the village even now.

The Ramsden’s were the first landowning family to be resident in Carlton and Mr. Ramsden took the title of ‘Squire’. The family was extremely influential, particularly in South Carlton, and took a great interest in village life. The whole village benefited from the Ramsden’s generosity when, in 1831, the family provided for an infant school on the east side of the High Road and for a larger junior school on the west side in 1894. Most of the Ramsden family worshipped in the Church of England, but one of the Squires used to attend non- denominational meetings held at the home of the Bradford family in Water Lane on Thursdays and Sundays.

The first Squire, R.J. Ramsden, was a member of the Plymouth Brethren whose small burial ground lies behind the present Ramsden School. The last Squire, R.C.P.Ramsden, who died in 1964, is still remembered with much affection and respect. In 1871, Wigthorpe Hall, was bought for Robert Ramsden’s newly married eldest son but the old Squire continued to live at Carlton Hall until his death in 1892 when the Hall was sold and then eventually let to a Mr. Harrison Smith, owner of the Don Brewery in Sheffield. Carlton Hall saw many changes including being the home of the Army Tank Corps during the Second World War and providing accommodation for German and Italian prisoners. It was eventually demolished in 1959.

A third influential family were the Gally Knights, of French Protestant origin, who lived at Langold Hall (now destroyed) and subsequently at Firbeck. They were responsible for the construction of Langold Lake.

When the Turnpike road of 1767 was constructed , it cut directly northwards, by-passing both South and North Carlton , thus allowing them to survive relatively unscathed from increased traffic. It also resulted in the establishment of the Johnson and Green Charity. The Green had been common pastureland with a few squatters’ cottages around it and the local ‘pinfold’ for stray animals. After the Enclosure Act, some of this land was set aside for allotments and cottages for the poor. The Johnson and Green charity still maintains certain conditions for residents of the bungalows there and makes annual payments to local senior citizens for purchases in the village.

Carlton remained a predominantly agricultural community until after the First World War but because of its ‘open village’ status it also attracted other trades and cratsmen. It is recorded that in 1832 there were six bootmakers involved in the different processes of the boot and shoe trade, supplying both locally and further afield, two blacksmiths, a wheelwright, grocers, drapers and butchers. At about the same period the two Drabble brothers moved from nearby Letwell, a closed village, to establish what would become a thriving joinery and furniture making business in North Carlton. So both parts of Carlton grew steadily, surviving lean times of rural depression, attracting agricultural labourers from the surrounding villages to the east, maintaining a constant population and acting as a kind of long term staging post for those wishing to better themselves by moving on to the opportunities offered by industrial Sheffield.

In 1923 a new era began for Carlton. Exploratory bore holes had been sunk at Firbeck on the northern edge of Carlton by 1914 and only the outbreak of the First World War prevented the actual establishment of a colliery. When it was finally opened in1923, a whole new village, Langold, was created for the miners who worked at the pit. Until that time Langold had consisted simply of one farm and a manor house belonging to the Gally Knight family. Over a period of less than five years, a complete village of 850 houses plus six shops and a school was built. At the height of construction more than 100 houses were being completed each week. Many of the miners originated in the North- East of England and were brought specifically to work at the pit. Not only did this sudden increase in population and diversity of work affect Carlton but it also introduced a richness of dialect and accent that is very much alive today.

Carlton’s little school was overwhelmed by the first influx of young children until Langold’s own school was completed in 1926. As the children grew and required housing of their own, a large housing estate, part coal-board, part council, was built on the northern edge of Long Lane. In time, further housing estates were developed on the western edge of the A 60 to accommodate the increasing population of Worksop and neighbouring villages as well as providing homes for the children of the second generation of Langold’s miners. In 1958 a second school, Kingston Junior, was built in Long Lane. Opportunities for employment were now not just on the land or in the pit but also in various service industries, the railway, coal haulage, a timber yard, the hosiery factory, trades and shops.

In the 1960’s Wimpey built houses at the northern edge of the council estate, extending the housing further. A clinic and library were built off Long Lane. Unfortunately, Firbeck Colliery was plagued from the start by geological problems and in1968 it was closed. Miners were bussed to other pits at Manton, Treeton or Shireoaks. The hosiery factory also closed and an industrial estate, (Lawn Road), was developed throughout the 1970’s, providing work for local people. It has since attracted companies such as Wilkinson, Racal, Ericsson, Chartran Aldred and others.

In the early 1970’s, Carlton Park, a nursery and infant school was built to accommodate the growing population which by 1972 had reached 5,273. A chemist, bank, doctor’s surgery and an old people’s home were provided as Carlton continued to grow..

In the last twenty years Carlton has developed as a ‘dormitory village,` many of its residents working long distances away but enjoying the beauty of rural surroundings at home. So Carlton has maintained its trait of being a welcoming place where a fixed population co-exists in a friendly way with a more mobile population of incomers and outgoers. Building still continues. There is now another large estate to the east of the A60. In effect, the two original villages have developed into at least four centres having different characteristics but bound by a common name. Yet, despite this and the fact that the population has now reached nearly 7000, Carlton still retains a village atmosphere.

It also has some interesting claims to fame. Carlton Cycles was founded in South Carlton by Fred Hanstock . The business thrived and moved to larger premises in Worksop. It was eventually taken over by Raleigh. Carlton has also given its name to a daffodil. The Carlton daffodil bulb was developed at Hodsock Priory by A. Ford who gave it to John Padley , a local grocer who also had a keen interest in plants. Having won many prizes with the bulb Mr. Padley sold it to a bulb company to market it.

At one time Carlton was known as the Rose Village, possibly because roses thrived on its soil. It also had an active Rose and Flower society begun in 1886. Many years ago, before the introduction of sugar in the latter part of the 18th century, liquorice was grown for the naturally sweet taste of its roots. The plant originated in Southern Europe but was grown in England and certainly in Carlton, from the 16th Century onwards until its propagation diminished because of imports of cane sugar. The only reminder now of this crop is in the name Liquorice Lane.

Hops were also grown here and there were many small maltsters and brewhouses until the mid 18th century.

Although Carlton, like the rest of the country, has its share of social problems, it is a friendly and picturesque place to live. Travelling down the ‘sand hills’ of the A60 from Worksop and glimpsing the red roofs of South Carlton and the square tower of St. John’s Church, it is still possible to visualise what the original Saxon hamlet must have been like and to understand the attraction the area has exerted over the centuries.

Acknowledgements and Further Reading:

Mrs Yvonne Jones Carlton of YesterYear

Captain R. Peters Ancient Bassetlaw (The North Trent Local History Series)

Local History Study Group Carlton in Lindrick 1760 - 1914

Mrs Pam Lake and Mrs Yvonne Jones