Esh Winning
Encyclopedia
Esh Winning is a village, and location of a former colliery, in County Durham
, England
. It is situated in the Deerness Valley 5 miles (8 km) to the west of Durham
. The village was founded by the Pease family in the 1850s to service a new mine on the Esh Estate.
The name of the village comes from two elements, first the older nearby village of Esh
, a Saxon term for Ash, and second Winning, which was a Victorian term used when coal was found.
In March 2006 the National Lottery granted £25,200 towards the restoration of the Esh Winning Colliery banner. The banner group planned to use the money to restore the banner, which was on display at Beamish Museum
, and to produce a replica for display at the Durham Miners' Gala
.
Opencast mining
was performed in the hills around the village from the late 1970s to 1990s, after which the land was reclaimed and restored.
. The station opened on 1 November 1877, and closed to passengers on 29 October 1951 and to freight on 28 December 1964. The route of the line is now part of the eight-mile Deerness Valley Railway Path.
. Initially it was used as a meeting hall and community centre, before being converted in the 1920s to a cinema and ballroom and renamed The Majestic by the locals.
Built in Edwardian style with several rooms, it was perhaps a little too grand for a small community and experienced financial difficulties in the late 1920s. Nevertheless, it continued to operate a cinema and ballroom for many decades afterwards.
The building had been disused since the 1970s despite several attempts in recent times to restore and redevelop the building, none of which got beyond the planning stage. In 2009, however, work began to redevelop the building as residences. This project stalled, but has recommenced with windows being installed in October 2011 for the first time in years. Expected completion by summer 2012
In 1996 the 31-hectare Ragpath Wood was purchased by the Woodland Trust; the wood is to the south-east of the village bordering the Deerness Valley Walkway. The wood is on the site of an Ancient Woodland site, although it was felled during World War II
and replanted in 1967.
The Esh Winning Eco-Learning Centre (EWE), based in the local primary school, is a training centre for the north-east area. It specialises in the provision of training around sustainable development and outdoor learning. It is funded by a number of key partners including Durham County Council, Surestart and is part of North East Strategic Partnership for Sustainable Schools. A number of environmental courses and initiatives are being run from the centre.
, Esh Winning F.C.
, who currently play in the Northern League Division One, although their ground is in West Terrace in nearby Waterhouses
.
Sir Bobby Robson
, former manager of the England national football team
, grew up in the neighbouring village of Langley Park
and was educated for a time in Esh Winning. A local park has been named in his honour.
The village has a cricket
team playing within the Durham County League.
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, 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...
. It is situated in the Deerness Valley 5 miles (8 km) to the west of Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
. The village was founded by the Pease family in the 1850s to service a new mine on the Esh Estate.
The name of the village comes from two elements, first the older nearby village of Esh
Esh, County Durham
Esh is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England. It is situated about five miles to the west of Durham.Esh Village or Old Esh as it is sometimes known dates from Anglo-Saxon times. Esh is an Anglo-Saxon name meaning Ash Tree and the spelling reflects the old Northumbrian dialect.In the...
, a Saxon term for Ash, and second Winning, which was a Victorian term used when coal was found.
Mining history
The Esh mine opened in 1866, closing for economic reasons between 1930 and 1942; it then reopened in 1942 before finally closing in June 1968.In March 2006 the National Lottery granted £25,200 towards the restoration of the Esh Winning Colliery banner. The banner group planned to use the money to restore the banner, which was on display at Beamish Museum
Beamish Museum
Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum is an open-air museum located at Beamish, near the town of Stanley, County Durham, England. The museum's guiding principle is to preserve an example of everyday life in urban and rural North East England at the climax of industrialisation in the early...
, and to produce a replica for display at the Durham Miners' Gala
Durham Miners' Gala
The Durham Miners' Gala is a large annual gathering held on the second Saturday in July in the city of Durham, England. It is associated with the coal mining heritage of the Durham Coalfield, which stretched throughout the traditional County of Durham. It is also locally called "The Big Meeting"...
.
Opencast mining
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
was performed in the hills around the village from the late 1970s to 1990s, after which the land was reclaimed and restored.
Railway history
The village was served by the stone- and timber-built Waterhouses railway station on the Deerness Valley RailwayDeerness Valley Railway
The Deerness Valley Railway was an 8-mile long single track branch railway line that ran along the valley of the River Deerness in County Durham, England...
. The station opened on 1 November 1877, and closed to passengers on 29 October 1951 and to freight on 28 December 1964. The route of the line is now part of the eight-mile Deerness Valley Railway Path.
Memorial Hall
The Grade II-listed Memorial Hall is one of the village's largest buildings; it was built in 1923 as a memorial to the miners killed in World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Initially it was used as a meeting hall and community centre, before being converted in the 1920s to a cinema and ballroom and renamed The Majestic by the locals.
Built in Edwardian style with several rooms, it was perhaps a little too grand for a small community and experienced financial difficulties in the late 1920s. Nevertheless, it continued to operate a cinema and ballroom for many decades afterwards.
The building had been disused since the 1970s despite several attempts in recent times to restore and redevelop the building, none of which got beyond the planning stage. In 2009, however, work began to redevelop the building as residences. This project stalled, but has recommenced with windows being installed in October 2011 for the first time in years. Expected completion by summer 2012
Environment
There are two environmental projects ongoing in the village.In 1996 the 31-hectare Ragpath Wood was purchased by the Woodland Trust; the wood is to the south-east of the village bordering the Deerness Valley Walkway. The wood is on the site of an Ancient Woodland site, although it was felled during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and replanted in 1967.
The Esh Winning Eco-Learning Centre (EWE), based in the local primary school, is a training centre for the north-east area. It specialises in the provision of training around sustainable development and outdoor learning. It is funded by a number of key partners including Durham County Council, Surestart and is part of North East Strategic Partnership for Sustainable Schools. A number of environmental courses and initiatives are being run from the centre.
Sport
The village has a football teamFootball team
A football team is the collective name given to a group of players selected together in the various team sports known as football.Such teams could be selected to play in an against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-star team or even selected as a...
, Esh Winning F.C.
Esh Winning F.C.
Esh Winning F.C. are a football club based in Esh Winning, near Durham, in County Durham, England. They joined the Northern League Division Two in 1982...
, who currently play in the Northern League Division One, although their ground is in West Terrace in nearby Waterhouses
Waterhouses, County Durham
Waterhouses is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated to the west of Durham, near Esh Winning.-Religion:Waterhouses has a public church St. Paul's. The Vicar is Fr. Michael Peers and the assistant vicar is Fr...
.
Sir Bobby Robson
Bobby Robson
Sir Robert William "Bobby" Robson, CBE was an English footballer and manager, who coached seven European clubs and the England national team during his career....
, former manager of the England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
, grew up in the neighbouring village of Langley Park
Langley Park
Langley Park can refer to as:LANGLEY* Langley Park, County Durham, England* Langley Park, Maryland, United States** Langley Park , an estate listed on the National Register of Historic Places...
and was educated for a time in Esh Winning. A local park has been named in his honour.
The village has a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
team playing within the Durham County League.
External links
- Durham Mining Museum information on Esh Colliery
- Subterranea Britannica information on Waterhouses Railway Station, Esh Winning
- Northern Echo Durham Memories article on Esh Winning and Waterhouses, 30/01/2004
- Esh Winning Eco-Learning Centre
- Durham Council Deerness Valley Walk Guide
- Keith Murray article on the history of the Memorial Hall
- Woodland Trust Ragpath Wood