Nottinghamshire (pop. 824,822) is a county in central England. It is famous for the legend of Robin Hood, who is supposed to have lived in Sherwood Forest with his band of outlaws. People know the county today for important industries that manufacture bicycles, clothing, tobacco, and drugs; for its rich coal field; and for Nottingham lace. Nottinghamshire covers 805 square miles (2,085 square kilometers).
Nottinghamshire was only slightly affected by the reorganization of England’s local government in 1974. Two small parts of northern Nottinghamshire were taken into the new county of South Yorkshire. The city of Nottingham had been separately administered as a county borough. But in 1974 it became one of the local government districts in Nottinghamshire. In 1998, Nottingham became a unitary authority with all local government powers within its boundaries.
People and government
Local customs and legends.
Nottinghamshire’s most famous legendary hero is the outlaw Robin Hood. Nottingham’s Goose Fair, held in October, has been an annual event for hundreds of years. Each February, Blidworth has its cradle-rocking ceremony, on the Sunday nearest to the Purification of the Virgin Mary. The last baby boy baptized in the parish is rocked in a cradle in front of the church altar. This commemorates the Holy Family’s thanksgiving at the birth of Jesus Christ.
Recreation.
The county has three soccer teams that play in the Football League: Mansfield Town, Nottingham Forest, and Notts County. The Nottinghamshire county cricket team plays in first-class cricket, and its ground, Trent Bridge, is used for some test matches. The United Kingdom’s National Water Sports Centre at Holme Pierrepont, on the River Trent, hosts many international meetings. Other activities include fishing, horse racing, hunting, and pigeon fancying. Nottingham’s Playhouse Theatre is the scene of the first performance of many plays before they move to London.
Local government.
Nottinghamshire has seven local government districts: Ashfield; Bassetlaw, which includes all the northern part of the county; Broxtowe, which includes Eastwood; Gedling, which includes Arnold and Carlton; Mansfield; Newark and Sherwood, which includes all of eastern and central Nottinghamshire; and Rushcliffe, which covers the southeastern part of the county. The Nottinghamshire County Council, which has headquarters at Nottingham, provides some public services throughout the county.
The crown court sits at Nottingham. Nottinghamshire Constabulary, which polices the county, has its headquarters at Nottingham.
Manufacturing.
Nottinghamshire has a huge bicycle factory. It also has tobacco factories, founded by John Player in the 1870’s. Drug-producing factories supply a nationwide chain of pharmacies founded by Sir Jesse Boot in the 1800’s. The lace industry has been associated with Nottinghamshire since the 1500’s, but the manufacture of hosiery, knitwear, and other garments has now developed into a more important industry.
Mansfield is a commercial and retail center that also produces beverages, bricks, clothing, engineering goods, and footwear. Newark is a market town with heavy engineering and agricultural engineering industries. Retford, another market town, has wire-rope making and constructional engineering industries.
Worksop is a coal-mining center, but it also has a range of manufactures. These include food products and equipment for mining, quarrying, and railroads. Worksop also has electrical, engineering, malting, and milling industries. In the Arnold area, industries include brewing, brick making, clothing manufacture, light engineering, and milling.
Agriculture.
Farms cover nearly three-fourths of the county’s land. Farmers in the east grow mainly barley and wheat. Some Nottinghamshire farmers also grow sugar beets. There are dairy farms in all parts of the county, but particularly in the Trent valley. Stilton cheese is an important dairy product. The Soar valley, in the southwest part of the county, is an important area for fattening beef cattle. Farmers in this district also keep some sheep. The county has some hog and poultry farms. Smaller-scale farming activities in Nottinghamshire include fruit growing and rose breeding. The Bramley Seedling apple was first grown in the 1860’s near Southwell. Today, it is one of the most popular varieties of cooking apples.
Mining and quarrying.
The western part of the county has a rich coal field, and many coal mines once operated in the region. Most of the mines closed by the early 2000’s as the British coal industry declined. Nottinghamshire also produces gypsum.
Transportation and communication.
Nottinghamshire has a central position on the United Kingdom’s rail and road systems. The M1 motorway, which runs from London to northern England, passes through the southwest of the county. The A1, the Great North Road, from London to Edinburgh, passes through the northeastern part of Nottinghamshire. The A46, running from Bath to Lincoln, passes through Newark. Railroad lines link Nottingham with all parts of the country.
Nottingham has its own daily newspaper. It also has two local radio stations: one operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the other, Radio Trent, by an independent company under the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA). Many towns have local weekly newspapers.
Land and climate
Location and size.
Nottinghamshire lies in the heart of England. It is one of five counties comprising the East Midlands region, on the eastern side of the industrial Midlands. Nottinghamshire is bounded by South Yorkshire Metropolitan County and North Lincolnshire Unitary Authority to the north, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The county is roughly oval in shape. It extends 51 miles (82 kilometers) from north to south and 27 miles (43 kilometers) from east to west.
Land features.
Nottinghamshire is on the eastern slopes of the chain of hills known as the Pennines, but the county has no mountains. Two-fifths of the land is less than 100 feet (30 meters) above sea level. The land rises to about 660 feet (200 meters) near the town of Mansfield in the west. It drops to as low as 5 feet (1.5 meters) above sea level in the northeastern part of Nottinghamshire. The richest farmland lies in the southern, eastern, and northeastern parts of the county.
Near the Lincolnshire border in the east, the land forms a vast plain, which continues through Lincolnshire to the North Sea. Western Nottinghamshire is a rugged area, similar to the neighboring county of Derbyshire. This area is rich in coal.
A wide sandstone strip extends from Nottingham in the southwest to Bawtry in the north. Most of the county’s water supplies come from natural underground reservoirs in the sandstone.
The River Trent runs from north to south through the county. The River Soar borders the fertile farmland in the southwestern part of Nottinghamshire. The River Leen was once important to Nottingham as the city’s chief source of water.
Climate
is similar to that of many eastern counties. Easterly winds, which blow in across the North Sea, cause occasional cold spells. January is the coldest month, with an average temperature of about 37 °F (3 °C). The warmest month is July, when the average is about 63 °F (17 °C). Rainfall averages 24 inches (61 centimeters) a year.
History
People have lived in Nottinghamshire since Stone Age times. The county is named after an Anglian leader called Snot. His people invaded the area after the Romans left in the A.D. 400’s. William the Conqueror made Nottingham a city and built a castle there in the 1000’s. King Charles I signaled the start of the English Civil War from Nottinghamshire in 1642.
James Hargreaves and Richard Arkwright, important figures in the Industrial Revolution, both worked in Nottingham. Famous people born in the county include William Booth, who founded the Salvation Army, and the novelist D. H. Lawrence.
