Dawley
Encyclopedia
Dawley is a small town
in the borough of Telford and Wrekin
and ceremonial county
of Shropshire
, England
. Today it forms part of the new town
of Telford
(which was originally, in 1963, going to be named Dawley New Town before it was decided in 1968 to name the town Telford instead after the engineer and road builder Thomas Telford
). Dawley is however one of the older settlements in Shropshire, being mentioned in the Domesday Book
. It is divided into Dawley Magna ("Great Dawley") and Little Dawley (also shown as Dawley Parva ("Little Dawley") on older maps). The town's main parish
is officially called Great Dawley - Dawley Hamlets
is a separate parish, which covers Little Dawley and other neighbouring villages/suburbs.
The nearest railway station is Telford Central
. Historically, the Great Western Railway
maintained a line that passed through the parish, going through the tunnel at Heath Hill. This is currently part of Telford Steam Railway
's expansion project
and is therefore one of the older settlements in Shropshire. It was, for over three centuries, a mining
town, both for coal
and ironstone
. Clay extraction for local industrial-pipe factories, brickyards and the pottery industry has been a major influence on the landscape.
Prior to large scale levelling as part of the development of Telford New Town, the area was covered by clay mounts and large clay pits that dominated the landscape to the extent that they formed points of reference for the locals. There is still a local clay pipe factory in the adjacent Doseley village; grey clay predominates on the immediate outskirts of Dawley.
The mining had an important impact on the culture. The Springwell Pit Disaster
in 1872 cost eight men and boys their life.
There was a castle in Dawley, but it was demolished around 1648. The site is unknown, although the Castle Pools (on the old quarry site) and Castle Ironworks (built by the Darby family
, one of whom commissioned the world-famous Iron Bridge
) possibly indicate the general area where it may have stood. Prior to the landscaping, following the creation of Telford New Town, extensive ruins were detectable next to the Castle Pools and are shown on old maps as being the location of the castle. In the 1980s, the whole area was buried under thick topsoil and planted with trees. Ironbridge is a short distance away.
The adjacent village of Horsehay
was the site of a bridge and later a crane fabrication factory that exported around the world. The bridge over Victoria Falls
is said to have been built there. Telford Steam Railway
trust is located across the road from the former factory site.
On Monday, June 7, 2010, Dawley had become subject to plenty of media attention. This is because some locals had recreated the 'Hollywood' sign on a noticeable Dawley bank. but with Dawley instead of Hollywood. The Shropshire Star had a full page spread article on that day's evening edition to honour the effort made by locals. As of midday on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 over 1000 Telfordians had joined a Facebook group showing support for the sign and acknowledging the efforts by its creators.
Dawley is famed for its dialect which includes some quite unique words, including "bist", presumably from the German meaning "are". The dialect is largely lost. Along with the dialect were various conventions and traditions, notably the "pig on the wall". Traditionally, Dawley residents would show their support for The Dawley Priz Band or other civic marches by placing their pigs on their wall. The pig also features in the dialect, with a romantic phrase apparently being "I wudna swop thee for a big black pig!"
Dawley has a street market every Friday. Dawley town centre consists of a single pedestrianised street that was previously the main route from Bridgnorth in the south to Wellington in the north. The area around Dawley, not covered by Telford New Town, is rural and provides extensive opportunities for walking. The Ironbridge Gorge
and The Wrekin
are both pleasant walks from Dawley.
On the northern edge of Dawley is Malinslee where St. Leonards church stands.
The design of St. Leonards, a slightly irregular octagon, is said to have been influenced by Thomas Telford.
Other churches supposedly influenced by Thomas Telford
, during his work in Shropshire, are at nearby Madeley
and Bridgnorth
.
, The Phoenix School
. There are two special schools in Dawley: the Mount Gilbert and Southall schools.
who was the first man to swim the English Channel
- his monument stands on the High Street. Legend suggests that a pig stood up against a wall to watch the parade in Webb's honour that was held on his return.
Edith Pargeter, who under her pen name of Ellis Peters wrote the Brother Cadfael novels, went to school in Dawley. Numerous roads in Aqueduct, such as Cadfael Drive and Ellis Peters Drive, are 'themed' after her.
Danielle Jones
, a character in EastEnders
, came from Dawley.
Dawley received some unwanted media attention in July and August 2011, when the Shropshire Star
newspaper revealed that Nicola Holmes, a local councillor currently suspended by the local Labour
party, was working as a prostitute - a story which was then picked up by the Sun
. Ms. Holmes has since resigned as a councillor.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in the borough of Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin is a unitary district with borough status in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. The district was created in 1974 as The...
and ceremonial county
Ceremonial counties of England
The ceremonial counties are areas of England to which are appointed a Lord Lieutenant, and are defined by the government as counties and areas for the purposes of the Lieutenancies Act 1997 with reference to the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England and Lieutenancies Act 1997...
of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Today it forms part of the new town
New town
A new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
of Telford
Telford
Telford is a large new town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, approximately east of Shrewsbury, and west of Birmingham...
(which was originally, in 1963, going to be named Dawley New Town before it was decided in 1968 to name the town Telford instead after the engineer and road builder Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
). Dawley is however one of the older settlements in Shropshire, being mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
. It is divided into Dawley Magna ("Great Dawley") and Little Dawley (also shown as Dawley Parva ("Little Dawley") on older maps). The town's main parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
is officially called Great Dawley - Dawley Hamlets
Dawley Hamlets
Dawley Hamlets is a civil parish in Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire.The parish covers Horsehay, Doseley, Little Dawley and Aqueduct....
is a separate parish, which covers Little Dawley and other neighbouring villages/suburbs.
The nearest railway station is Telford Central
Telford Central railway station
Telford Central railway station serves the new town of Telford, England. It is situated close to the town centre, the main commercial district of the town...
. Historically, the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
maintained a line that passed through the parish, going through the tunnel at Heath Hill. This is currently part of Telford Steam Railway
Telford Steam Railway
The Telford Steam Railway is a heritage railway located at Horsehay, Telford in Shropshire, England, formed in 1976.The railway is operated by volunteers on Sundays and Bank Holidays from Easter to the end of September, and at Christmas...
's expansion project
History
Dawley is mentioned in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
and is therefore one of the older settlements in Shropshire. It was, for over three centuries, a mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
town, both for coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and ironstone
Ironstone
Ironstone is a sedimentary rock, either deposited directly as a ferruginous sediment or created by chemical repacement, that contains a substantial proportion of an iron compound from which iron either can be or once was smelted commercially. This term is customarily restricted to hard coarsely...
. Clay extraction for local industrial-pipe factories, brickyards and the pottery industry has been a major influence on the landscape.
Prior to large scale levelling as part of the development of Telford New Town, the area was covered by clay mounts and large clay pits that dominated the landscape to the extent that they formed points of reference for the locals. There is still a local clay pipe factory in the adjacent Doseley village; grey clay predominates on the immediate outskirts of Dawley.
The mining had an important impact on the culture. The Springwell Pit Disaster
Springwell Pit Disaster
The Springwell Pit Disaster occurred on 6 December, 1872 at Springwell coal mining pit near Dawley, Shropshire .Miners at the pit would grab hold of a chain running the depth of the mine shaft and be hoisted 150ft to the surface. On this day, eight miners clung to the chain...
in 1872 cost eight men and boys their life.
There was a castle in Dawley, but it was demolished around 1648. The site is unknown, although the Castle Pools (on the old quarry site) and Castle Ironworks (built by the Darby family
Abraham Darby
Abraham Darby may refer to:*Abraham Darby I *Abraham Darby II *Abraham Darby III *Abraham Darby IV , High Sheriff of BuckinghamshireAbraham Darby may also refer to:...
, one of whom commissioned the world-famous Iron Bridge
Ironbridge
Ironbridge is a settlement on the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, in Shropshire, England. It lies in the civil parish of The Gorge, in the borough of Telford and Wrekin...
) possibly indicate the general area where it may have stood. Prior to the landscaping, following the creation of Telford New Town, extensive ruins were detectable next to the Castle Pools and are shown on old maps as being the location of the castle. In the 1980s, the whole area was buried under thick topsoil and planted with trees. Ironbridge is a short distance away.
The adjacent village of Horsehay
Horsehay
Horsehay is a village on the western outskirts of Dawley, which, along with several other towns and villages, now forms part of the new town of Telford in Shropshire, England. Horsehay lies in the Dawley Hamlets parish, and on the northern edge of the Ironbridge Gorge area.Its name is Anglo Saxon...
was the site of a bridge and later a crane fabrication factory that exported around the world. The bridge over Victoria Falls
Victoria Falls
The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe.-Introduction:...
is said to have been built there. Telford Steam Railway
Telford Steam Railway
The Telford Steam Railway is a heritage railway located at Horsehay, Telford in Shropshire, England, formed in 1976.The railway is operated by volunteers on Sundays and Bank Holidays from Easter to the end of September, and at Christmas...
trust is located across the road from the former factory site.
On Monday, June 7, 2010, Dawley had become subject to plenty of media attention. This is because some locals had recreated the 'Hollywood' sign on a noticeable Dawley bank. but with Dawley instead of Hollywood. The Shropshire Star had a full page spread article on that day's evening edition to honour the effort made by locals. As of midday on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 over 1000 Telfordians had joined a Facebook group showing support for the sign and acknowledging the efforts by its creators.
Dawley is famed for its dialect which includes some quite unique words, including "bist", presumably from the German meaning "are". The dialect is largely lost. Along with the dialect were various conventions and traditions, notably the "pig on the wall". Traditionally, Dawley residents would show their support for The Dawley Priz Band or other civic marches by placing their pigs on their wall. The pig also features in the dialect, with a romantic phrase apparently being "I wudna swop thee for a big black pig!"
Geography
Ironbridge Gorge
The Ironbridge Gorge is a deep gorge formed by the River Severn in Shropshire, England.Originally called the Severn Gorge, the gorge now takes its name from its famous Iron Bridge, the first iron bridge of its kind in the world, and a monument to the industry that began there...
and The Wrekin
The Wrekin
The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising to a height of above the Shropshire Plain, it is a prominent and well-known landmark, marking the entrance to Shropshire...
are both pleasant walks from Dawley.
On the northern edge of Dawley is Malinslee where St. Leonards church stands.
The design of St. Leonards, a slightly irregular octagon, is said to have been influenced by Thomas Telford.
Other churches supposedly influenced by Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
, during his work in Shropshire, are at nearby Madeley
Madeley, Shropshire
Madeley is a town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, now part of the new town of Telford. The parish had a population of 17,935 at the 2001 census.Madeley is recorded in the Domesday Book, having been founded before the 8th century...
and Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley. It is split into Low Town and High Town, named on account of their elevations relative to the River Severn, which separates the upper town on the right bank from the lower on the left...
.
Education
There are seven primary schools in the Dawley area, and a comprehensive secondary schoolSecondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
, The Phoenix School
Phoenix School
Phoenix School is a comprehensive secondary school in Dawley, Telford, UK with approximately 850 students on roll. Its predecessor Dawley Modern School was opened at Pool Hill in 1956 to take children over 11 from four contributory primary schools; there were c. 500 pupils on the roll. However,...
. There are two special schools in Dawley: the Mount Gilbert and Southall schools.
Notable people
Dawley was the birthplace of Captain Matthew WebbMatthew Webb
Captain Matthew Webb was the first recorded person to swim the English Channel without the use of artificial aids. On 25 August 1875 he swam from Dover to Calais in less than 22 hours.-Early life and career:...
who was the first man to swim the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
- his monument stands on the High Street. Legend suggests that a pig stood up against a wall to watch the parade in Webb's honour that was held on his return.
Edith Pargeter, who under her pen name of Ellis Peters wrote the Brother Cadfael novels, went to school in Dawley. Numerous roads in Aqueduct, such as Cadfael Drive and Ellis Peters Drive, are 'themed' after her.
Danielle Jones
Danielle Jones (EastEnders)
Danielle Jones is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lauren Crace. The character appeared between 18 August 2008 and 3 April 2009. Crace's casting in the role was announced in July 2008, when she was described as a love interest for fellow new character Callum Monks...
, a character in EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
, came from Dawley.
Dawley received some unwanted media attention in July and August 2011, when the Shropshire Star
Shropshire Star
The Shropshire Star is a regional newspaper covering the whole of Shropshire, plus parts of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Cheshire, the Llangollen area and northern Powys in the United Kingdom.-About:The editor is Keith Harrison....
newspaper revealed that Nicola Holmes, a local councillor currently suspended by the local Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
party, was working as a prostitute - a story which was then picked up by the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
. Ms. Holmes has since resigned as a councillor.