Rossington
Encyclopedia
Rossington is a civil parish and former mining village
in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster
in South Yorkshire
, England
and is surrounded by countryside and the market towns of Bawtry
and Tickhill
.
is around two miles to the east. The village is demarcated to the north and west by a line of 400kV pylons, as seen from the M18, to the north. The Finningley and Rossington Relief Road Scheme is proposed to allow access to the airport.
To the north-west, the village borders Loversall
, with the boundary following the River Torne
, passing directly next to the western edge of the former Rossington Main Colliery. It briefly crosses the M18 at the point where the motorway crosses the East Coast Main Line. At this point it meets the Borough of Doncaster and follows Mother Drain, then the River Torne, north of Torne Valley Farm. It passes by a Roman fort and crosses the A638 at Rossington Bridge, north of Rossington Bridge Farm. At Wheatcroft Farm it meets Finningley
. Nearby at the junction of the A638 and B6463, there is a park and ride
car park. The boundary passes along the west of Hurst Plantation, and meets the A638, a former Roman road, at Warren House Farm. Following the A638 at Mount Pleasant Hotel, it meets Austerfield
. In the south-east of the parish is the Northern Racing College (for horse racing), next to Rossington Hall School. At Bawtry Forest, it meets Bawtry
. Crossing the B6463 at New England Cottages, it meets Tickhill
. At Stancil Bridge, it meets the River Torne and Wadworth
.
(Lindvm) to York
(Ebvrscvm) via Doncaster
(Danvm) it was once the site of a major Roman fort (the largest between Lincoln and York). Rossington Bridge was also an important staging post on the Great North Road.
(3,198) and making up 4.6% of the total population of the Doncaster Metropolitan Borough The expansion of the Old Village actually makes it newer than the New Village.
at the point where West End Lane becomes Station Road. As the road name suggests Rossington once had its own station, however, this was closed for regular services in 1958 but a few special trains stopped there until the late 1960s. The station buildings and platforms remained in place until the early 1980s, when the platforms, which were to the south of the level crossing were dug up and the old signal box that stood on the north east side of the crossing was demolished. The signalling having been automated and control of the crossing moved to Doncaster PSB
a few years before. When the old signal box was in operation the crossing was controlled by a large set of wooden gates, which were operated by the signalman who had to leave the signal box and open and close the gates by hand. By the mid 1950s these gates were opened and closed by a large wheel in the signal box. These gates were replaced by automated barriers controlled from Doncaster PSB
at the same time as the signal box was closed; however, some older residents of Rossington still refer to the crossing gates. The only surviving building is the old Station cottages, which stand on the north west side of the crossing and are now private dwellings.
Dick Turpin
once watered his horse Black Bess
at the nearby pump on Station Road while on his legendary ride to York
. The second Rossington pub with a story behind its name is The Poacher
on Radburn Road, this pub was built in the early 1980s and at the time the pub was being built along with the surrounding housing estate, the village was rocked by the murder of a local girl by her uncle. When the murder case was brought to trial the key prosecution witness was a local man who had seen the murder take place while out poaching
, it was therefore decided that the pub should be named in his honour.
Correction - in addition there was a coaching inn at Rossington Bridge [known locally as Parrot's Corner] which operated until the late 19th century, after which it became a private house. Within the last 20 years it was again licenced and is now a pub called The Hare & Tortoise.
currently play in the Northern Counties East League.
Rossington is the home to the 'RASCALS' swimming team based at Rossington Sports Centre. Rossington Swimming Club was founded in June 1966.
Rossington has a long history of local junior and senior cricket. Rossington Main Cricket Club. The Cricket Club has 3 Senior teams that mixes youth and experience and these teams play on a Saturday and Sunday. The Cricket Club also has junior teams from the age ranges under 11's, under 13's, under 15's and under 17's.
Pit village
A pit village is a term used in the UK for the village serving a deep coal mine.Many of the workers lived in houses that were provided by the colliery. Many villages have experienced depopulation after colliery closures forced people to move to other towns and cities where there are jobs for them...
in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster
Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster
The Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster is a metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire in Yorkshire and the Humber Region of England.In addition to the town of Doncaster, the borough covers Mexborough, Conisbrough, Thorne and Finningley....
in South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
, 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...
and is surrounded by countryside and the market towns of Bawtry
Bawtry
Bawtry is a small market town and civil parish which lies at the point where the Great North Road crosses the River Idle in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Nearby towns include Gainsborough to the east, Retford south southeast, Worksop to the southwest and...
and Tickhill
Tickhill
Tickhill is a small, wealthy town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England, on the border with Nottinghamshire. It has a population of 5,301.-Geography:...
.
Geography
It has a population of 13,255. Robin Hood Airport Doncaster SheffieldRobin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield is an international airport located at the former RAF Finningley airbase at Finningley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster within South Yorkshire, England. The airport lies southeast of Doncaster and east of Sheffield.The airport is operated by Peel...
is around two miles to the east. The village is demarcated to the north and west by a line of 400kV pylons, as seen from the M18, to the north. The Finningley and Rossington Relief Road Scheme is proposed to allow access to the airport.
To the north-west, the village borders Loversall
Loversall
Loversall is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 128.-References:...
, with the boundary following the River Torne
River Torne
The River Torne is a river in the north of England, which flows through the counties of South Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. It rises at the Upper Lake at Sandbeck Hall, near Maltby in South Yorkshire, and empties into the River Trent at Keadby pumping station...
, passing directly next to the western edge of the former Rossington Main Colliery. It briefly crosses the M18 at the point where the motorway crosses the East Coast Main Line. At this point it meets the Borough of Doncaster and follows Mother Drain, then the River Torne, north of Torne Valley Farm. It passes by a Roman fort and crosses the A638 at Rossington Bridge, north of Rossington Bridge Farm. At Wheatcroft Farm it meets Finningley
Finningley
Finningley is a village and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. Historically part of Nottinghamshire, Finningley lies along the A614 road, about six miles from the centre of Doncaster, at , and at an elevation of around seven metres above sea...
. Nearby at the junction of the A638 and B6463, there is a park and ride
Park and ride
Park and ride facilities are car parks with connections to public transport that allow commuters and other people wishing to travel into city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, rail system , or carpool for the rest of their trip...
car park. The boundary passes along the west of Hurst Plantation, and meets the A638, a former Roman road, at Warren House Farm. Following the A638 at Mount Pleasant Hotel, it meets Austerfield
Austerfield
Austerfield is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster , on the border with Nottinghamshire. It lies to the north-east of Bawtry on the A614 road to Finningley, and is located at 53° 26' 30" North, 1° 0' West, at an elevation of around 7 metres above sea level...
. In the south-east of the parish is the Northern Racing College (for horse racing), next to Rossington Hall School. At Bawtry Forest, it meets Bawtry
Bawtry
Bawtry is a small market town and civil parish which lies at the point where the Great North Road crosses the River Idle in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Nearby towns include Gainsborough to the east, Retford south southeast, Worksop to the southwest and...
. Crossing the B6463 at New England Cottages, it meets Tickhill
Tickhill
Tickhill is a small, wealthy town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England, on the border with Nottinghamshire. It has a population of 5,301.-Geography:...
. At Stancil Bridge, it meets the River Torne and Wadworth
Wadworth
Wadworth is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 1,229. Notable buildings in the village include Wadworth Hall.-References:...
.
History
There are remains of both a Roman fort and Roman pottery kilns in the area. The name Rossington translates from the old Anglo-Saxon name of 'Farm on the Moor'. In later times, Rossington housed a small village and both Rossington Hall and Shooters Hill Hall.Four villages in one
The area known as "Rossington" is actually made up of a number of villages and hamlets, namely "Hesley", "Littleworth", "Old Rossington", "New Rossington", Rossington Bridge and Shooters Hill. The New Village began to be built around the time of the sinking of the Colliery. Rossington Bridge, although now only consisting of a few buildings is the oldest of the four settlements; situated on the crossing of the Roman road from LincolnLincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
(Lindvm) to York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
(Ebvrscvm) via Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
(Danvm) it was once the site of a major Roman fort (the largest between Lincoln and York). Rossington Bridge was also an important staging post on the Great North Road.
Colliery
It was, however in the mid-twentieth century that saw the largest expansion of the area. The need for workers in and around the Rossington Main Colliery led to the building of large numbers of housing near to the pit in what was called New Rossington. After the end of British Coal in the early 1990s, the mine was able to keep operating and became one of the last in the area to keep producing coal albeit at a greatly reduced scale. However, with the decline of the mine, the village suffered high levels of unemployment and poverty throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. The Colliery finally closed in 2007.- See List of Yorkshire Pits for other local Yorkshire collieries.
Old village expansion
In more recent years, Old Rossington has seen the building of large levels of new, private housing raising the village's affluence. It is claimed that Rossington is the largest village in Britain with a population of 13,248 (9,089 New Rossington, 4,159 Old Rossington) over four times larger than the nearby town of BawtryBawtry
Bawtry is a small market town and civil parish which lies at the point where the Great North Road crosses the River Idle in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Nearby towns include Gainsborough to the east, Retford south southeast, Worksop to the southwest and...
(3,198) and making up 4.6% of the total population of the Doncaster Metropolitan Borough The expansion of the Old Village actually makes it newer than the New Village.
The railway
The 'Old Village' and 'New Village' are separated by the East Coast Mainline; there are only two crossing points over the railway between the old and new villages. These are the road bridge on Stripe Road and the level crossingLevel crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
at the point where West End Lane becomes Station Road. As the road name suggests Rossington once had its own station, however, this was closed for regular services in 1958 but a few special trains stopped there until the late 1960s. The station buildings and platforms remained in place until the early 1980s, when the platforms, which were to the south of the level crossing were dug up and the old signal box that stood on the north east side of the crossing was demolished. The signalling having been automated and control of the crossing moved to Doncaster PSB
Doncaster PSB
Doncaster PSB is a signalling centre on the East Coast Main Line railway in the United Kingdom, principally covering the line from London to Edinburgh but also encompassing other lines diverging and converging to the ECML...
a few years before. When the old signal box was in operation the crossing was controlled by a large set of wooden gates, which were operated by the signalman who had to leave the signal box and open and close the gates by hand. By the mid 1950s these gates were opened and closed by a large wheel in the signal box. These gates were replaced by automated barriers controlled from Doncaster PSB
Doncaster PSB
Doncaster PSB is a signalling centre on the East Coast Main Line railway in the United Kingdom, principally covering the line from London to Edinburgh but also encompassing other lines diverging and converging to the ECML...
at the same time as the signal box was closed; however, some older residents of Rossington still refer to the crossing gates. The only surviving building is the old Station cottages, which stand on the north west side of the crossing and are now private dwellings.
Public houses
Although there are no really old or historic pubs in Rossington, there two pubs in the village with names that relate to local history, both of which are relatively new buildings (post Second World War). Firstly there is The Styrrup, which is located on the junction of Station Road and Stripe Road, this pub reputedly acquired its name because the infamous HighwaymanHighwayman
A highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
Dick Turpin
Dick Turpin
Richard "Dick" Turpin was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's profession as a butcher early in life, but by the early 1730s he had joined a gang of deer thieves, and later became a poacher,...
once watered his horse Black Bess
Dick Turpin
Richard "Dick" Turpin was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's profession as a butcher early in life, but by the early 1730s he had joined a gang of deer thieves, and later became a poacher,...
at the nearby pump on Station Road while on his legendary ride to York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
. The second Rossington pub with a story behind its name is The Poacher
Poaching
Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...
on Radburn Road, this pub was built in the early 1980s and at the time the pub was being built along with the surrounding housing estate, the village was rocked by the murder of a local girl by her uncle. When the murder case was brought to trial the key prosecution witness was a local man who had seen the murder take place while out poaching
Poaching
Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...
, it was therefore decided that the pub should be named in his honour.
Correction - in addition there was a coaching inn at Rossington Bridge [known locally as Parrot's Corner] which operated until the late 19th century, after which it became a private house. Within the last 20 years it was again licenced and is now a pub called The Hare & Tortoise.
Places of worship
The village currently supports a number of churches.- St. Michael's Church (Old Rossington Parish Church)
- St. Lukes's Church (New Rossington Parish Church)
- Rossington Methodist Church
- Christ The King Roman Catholic Church
- New Life Christian Centre
- Rossington Community Baptist Church, Holmes Carr Centre
Education
The village has many successful schools, including:- St. Michael's CE Primary School
- St. Joseph's RC Primary School
- Tornedale Infant School
- Pheasant Bank Junior School
- Grange Lane Infant School
- Rossington All Saint's Academy (Aided) CE Sports College. The school is voluntary aided, has a sixth form, and continues to increase its results each year.
- Rossington Hall
Sport
Rossington Main Football Club was formed in 1919 as Rossington Colliery, originally playing behind the Colliery offices in New Rossington, before moving to their current home at the end of Oxford Street in 1921. In 1998 the club merged with the latterly formed Rossington FC (formerly Station FC), and the new Rossington Main F.C.Rossington Main F.C.
Rossington Main F.C. are a football club based in Rossington, near Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. They were established in 1919 under the name Rossington Colliery F.C. and in their early days played on what later became a pony field behind the colliery offices, before moving to its present...
currently play in the Northern Counties East League.
Rossington is the home to the 'RASCALS' swimming team based at Rossington Sports Centre. Rossington Swimming Club was founded in June 1966.
Rossington has a long history of local junior and senior cricket. Rossington Main Cricket Club. The Cricket Club has 3 Senior teams that mixes youth and experience and these teams play on a Saturday and Sunday. The Cricket Club also has junior teams from the age ranges under 11's, under 13's, under 15's and under 17's.
People from Rossington
- Don ConcannonDon ConcannonJohn Dennis Concannon, known as Don Concannon, , was a British Labour Party politician.Born in Doncaster, Concannon was educated at Rossington secondary school and through the extramural department of the University of Nottingham...
, Labour MP from 1966-87 for MansfieldMansfield (UK Parliament constituency)Mansfield is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundary review:...
(another area with coal mining heritage) - Ernest Jones CBE, President from 1954-60 of the NUM, worked at Rossington Main Colliery from 1918–21