Smallthorne
Smallthorne (population: 4,161 - 2001 Census) is an area in the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is in the north-east of the city, near Burslem. Its geographical coordinates are 53°02′N 2°11′W / 53.04°N 02.18°W (British national grid reference system: SJ8850). Smallthorne borders Bradeley in the north, Norton-in-the-Moors in the east, Sneyd Green in the south, and Burslem in the west.
Although all of Smallthorne falls comfortably within Stoke-on-Trent North (UK Parliament constituency), for local government purposes it is currently split between two different electoral wards: Burslem North and East Valley. The part of Smallthorne that falls within East Valley is sometimes referred to as New Ford and has an active residents association.
Smallthorne was from 1894 to 1922 an urban district of Staffordshire, originally consisting of Smallthorne parish, which was joined in 1904 by the parishes of Milton and Chell from Wolstanton Rural District.
In 1922 the urban district was wound up, with the bulk of it becoming part of the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent.
The building that once served as the council HQ is still in existence and can be found near Smallthorne Cemetery. The HQ became a public library before that closed in the early 1990s. It now serves as an undertakers' premises.
One interesting side effect of the fact that the Potteries' six towns and Smallthorne were administratively separate was the duplication of many street names. This led to significant confusion after unification. Thus, in the early 1950's a large number of streets had to be renamed. In Smallthorne twenty streets were given new names, including Ford Green Road (formerly Leek Road), Coseley Street (formerly Edward Street) and Preston Street (formerly Wedgwood Street).
Community profile and facilities
Smallthorne has a large elderly population, twice the City's average. Nearly a third of its residents live in council housing and there is an even larger proportion in terraced housing (Source: 2001 Census). According to the Council’s Neighbourhood Area Profile (July 2006), Smallthorne “is typified by large areas of privately-owned terraced housing and significant areas of semi-detached council-housing”. The average gross household income of Smallthorne residents is lower than the City's average but there are ten other neighbourhoods in the City that are poorer (Source: CACI Ltd). Visitors often remark that Smallthorne is a friendly, down-to-earth place. Social housing in the area is usually very sort after and private house prices are buoyant.
The hub of the community is around the junction of New Ford Road (known locally as ‘Smallthorne Bank’ because of its gradient) and Community Drive. Here can be found: a busy community hall, a NHS health centre, a chemist, a sub-post office, a number of other shops, a restaurant, an Oatcake shop and take-aways.
Smallthorne’s community hall is one of only twelve council-owned, community-run halls in the city.
Smallthorne has two primary schools (Smallthorne and New Ford) and two churches (Saint Saviours Church of England Parish and Salem Methodist Chapel - part of the Stoke on Trent (Burslem) Circuit of the Methodist Church).
There are five public houses in Smallthorne (the Barrel, the Ford, the Green Star, the Kings Head, and the Swan Inn) and three Workingmen's Clubs (Norton Miners Institute, the Pioneer WMC and Institute on Chetwynd Street and the Victory WMC and Institute on Hanley Road - a member of the Working Men's Club and Institute Union).
Ford Green Hall
Ford Green Hall is a farmhouse, originally built in 1624 It stands on land adjacent to the B5051 minor road in the east of Smallthorne. It is the only timber-framed yeoman farmer's house still surviving in Stoke-on-Trent. Originally, it stood in 36 acres of farmland, but this has been gradually encroached upon over the years so that now it is surrounded by comparatively small grounds. Beyond its grounds there is now housing, a busy minor road, and a nature reserve.
In its grounds, there also stands an 18th century dovecote.
Both the hall and the dovecote have been restored to as close to their original condition as possible, and the hall itself functions as a museum, managed by Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
Various events are held at the hall, many focused around children and historical events that the Hall has lived through in its early life.
Coal, Iron and Rail
Today, there is virtually no sign of heavy industry in Smallthorne but this is a relatively recent development. The district used to be criss-crossed by a canal and numerous mineral lines servicing five collieries – Cornhill, Holden Lane, Intake, Norton and Pinfold; the Ford Green Ironworks; a forge; and a chain, cable and anchor works. These lines joined the main Biddulph Valley Line near Ford Green Hall. The Foxley, a branch of the Caldon Canal, itself a branch of the Trent and Mersey Canal, fell into complete disuse with the arrival of the railways and its remains have almost all been obliterated over time.
The Biddulph Valley Line, later part of the North Staffordshire Railway, was opened in 1859 and a passenger station called ‘Ford Green and Smallthorne’ began service in 1864. Passenger services between Stoke and Biddulph ceased in 1927 but some special excursion trains continued until 1962. With the decline of the heavy industries all alone the route, the line was gradually downgraded until the last section between Ford Green and Milton Junction closed in 1977 (when Norton Colliery closed).
Thus, until the late 1970s Smallthorne was very much a coal mining area. In the mid 1960s there were still three large collieries - Norton (Ford Green), Sneyd (Burslem) and Hanley Deep Pit - within a mile or less of 'Smallthorne Bank' (the main shopping area today) and a number of others where within an easy commuting distance. One of the many workingmen's clubs scattered throughout the surrounding district is still called the Norton Miners Welfare Institute and Cricket Club and can be located off Community Drive in Smallthorne. (The semi-pro football club Norton United F.C. are also based at the Institute, although, being only a mile and a half from Vale Park, home of League One Port Vale F.C., crowds are rarely large).
Smallthorne's Esperanto Connection
A former Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent (circa. 1950's) - Horace Barks - came to be known as "Mr. Esperanto" because of his advocacy of the international language. So when 'The Green Star', a Smallthorne pub, was being built Barks naturally requested that the brewery add the words 'la verda stelo' (the pub's name in Esperanto) onto the side of the building. The brewer agreed.
Esperanto is a language invented by Dr. Zamenhof, a Pole, in the 1880s. The ideal was that this international language would enable people from all over the globe to communicate better with one another. 'The Green Star' can still be found on the corner of Esperanto Way, a stones throw from Zamenhof Grove, though from some time in 2005 onwards, the sign saying 'la verda stelo' no longer appears.
Famous people of Smallthorne
- Arthur Berry English playwright, poet, teacher and artist.
- Mark Bright Professional footballer and BBC sports pundit.