Coordinates: 52°47′58″N 1°38′17″W / 52.7995, -1.638
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a large town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, England. Its associated adjective is "Burtonian".
Burton is best known for its brewing heritage.[1] It originally grew up around Burton-on-Trent Abbey, the monastery of Saint Modwen, and had grown into a busy market town by the early modern period. While Burton's great bridge over the Trent was in poor repair by the early 1500s, it served as "a comen passage to and fro many countries to the grett releff and comfort of travellyng people", according to the abbot. The town, which has a population of 60,500 (2001 estimate), lies within the National Forest.
There is some confusion as to whether Burton is based in the West Midlands or the East Midlands, even though all of the urban centre is southwest of the River Dove, which forms the Derbyshire/Staffordshire boundary. This is probably because it was formerly within the East Midlands Utility (electricity/gas) areas, and has a Derbyshire postcode (DE14).
The town is served by Burton-on-Trent railway station.
Brewing
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Main article: English beer
For centuries, Burton has been associated with the brewing industry. This is due to the quality of the local water, which contains a high proportion of dissolved salts, predominantly caused by the gypsum in the surrounding hills. This allowed a greater proportion of hops, a natural preservative, to be included in the beer, thereby allowing the beer to be shipped further afield. Much of the open land within and around the town is protected from chemical treatment to help preserve this water quality.
The town is currently home to five brewers:
It is also the corporate headquarters of the pub operator Punch Taverns plc, which was spun out of Bass in 1997.
In addition, the Coors Visitor Centre (formerly the Bass Museum of Brewing) also continues to brew its own beer, separate from Coors.
A by-product of the brewing industry, figuratively and literally, is the presence of the famous British icon Marmite factory in the town. This in turn generated the production of Bovril. Both owned by multinational Unilever
The opening of the River Trent Navigation at the beginning of the 18th century allowed Burton beer to be shipped to Hull, and on to the Baltic Sea and Prussia, as well as to London where it was being sold in 1712. A number of breweries opened in the second half of the 18th century to take advantage of this trade. The Napoleonic blockade brought this to a halt, leading to some consolidation and a redirection of the trade to London and Lancashire via canals. When Burton brewers succeeded in replicating the Pale ale produced in London, the advantage of the water’s qualities allowed the development of the trade of Burton India Pale Ale (an ale specially brewed to keep during the long sea voyage to India). The building of rail links to Liverpool enabled brewers to export their beer throughout the British Empire.
Burton came to dominate this trade, and at its height one quarter of all beer sold in Britain was produced here. In the second half of the 19th century there was a growth in native breweries, supplemented by outside brewing companies moving into the town so that over 30 breweries were recorded in 1880. However at the beginning of the 20th century there was a slump in beer sales causing many breweries to fail, unhelped by the Liberal government’s anti-drinking attitudes. This time no new markets were found and so the breweries shrunk by closure and consolidation from 20 in 1900 to 8 in 1928. A further process of mergers and buy-outs resulted in three main breweries remaining by 1980: Bass, Ind Coopes and Marstons. Today, only Burton Bridge brewery remains as an independent brewer.
The town's connection with the brewing industry is celebrated by a sculpture of the Burton Cooper, which is now housed in the Cooper Square shopping centre.
Politics and local government
Burton is the administrative centre for the borough of East Staffordshire and forms part of Burton (UK Parliament constituency).
Burton was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1878. The incorporated area was split between the counties of Staffordshire and Derbyshire - the Local Government Act 1888 incorporated the entirety of the borough in Staffordshire, including the Derbyshire parishes of Stapenhill and Winshill. It became a county borough in 1901, having reached the 50,000 population required.
It never substantially exceeded the population of 50,000, and at a population of 50,201 in the 1971 census was the smallest county borough in England after Canterbury. The Local Government Commission for England recommended in the 1960s that it be demoted to a non-county borough within Staffordshire, but this was not implemented. Under the Local Government Act 1972, the town became on April 1, 1974, an unparished area in the new district of East Staffordshire.
The town became entirely parished on April 1, 2003, when the following parishes were created:
Burton parish itself only covers the town centre, with the other parishes covering various suburbs.[2]
The local Member of Parliament is Janet Dean MP, and has been the Member of Parliament for the Burton (and Uttoxeter) constituency since May 1997 when Labour swept to power under Tony Blair's Government.
The results breakdown from the last General election (2005) are as follows:
- Janet Dean, Labour, 17,701 votes (41.1%)
- Adrian Pepper, Conservative, 16,280 votes (38.2%)
- Sandra Johnson, Liberal Democrats, 6,236 votes (13.0%)
- Julie Russell, British National Party, 1,840 votes (3.8%)
- Philip Lancaster, UK Independence Party, 913 votes (1.9%)
- Brian Buxton, Veritas, 912 votes (1.9%)
The local Member of Youth Parliament is James Greenhalgh MYP. James has won 3 consecutive election victories and has held office since February 2005. James has been actively involved in many issues, including his major campaign against University tuition fees, however he has worked on other key issues such as campaigning for votes at 16 and a young persons concessionary transport card, amongst other things.
Arts
The town is popular for its Arts with the main theatre being The Brewhouse. There is also The William Allitt School based at nearby Newhall which has an Arts Mark and is a Specialist Arts College. The school is holding its annual Arts Festival in June and July where a new stage school Theatre Cats Theatre School Burton on Trent will be holding its first showcase to show the talents of over 50 young people from the Burton area and a drama and dance summer school later in the year.
Sport
The town is home to an association football club, Burton Albion, who play in the Blue Square Premier formerly the Football Conference. Burton will also be the location of the planned English National Football Centre, due to be opened in 2010[3].
The Burton & District Cricket League has many notable clubs, including Lichfield Cricket Club And Burton cricket club.
Burton, one of the oldest Rugby clubs in the Country was Established in 1870.
The Town is also home to the Burton Canoe Club on the banks of the River Trent. It has recently expanded and built its own clubhouse.
In addition, Burton upon Trent is the home of The Powerhouse Gym, International All Round Weightlifting Club, formed in 1985 and run by Coach and former World All Round Weightlifting Champion and Strongman: Steve Gardner. The club boasts several British Champions at Junior, Senior and Masters age categories, male and female. Winner of the European Heavyweight title for Drug Free weightlifting in 1990, Steve was first coached as a weight lifter in 1980 by local Champion and record holder John Humble, and as a Highland Games Athlete and Strongman competitor by Geoff Capes - former Worlds Strongest man.
Culture
The Burton Operatic Society has existed since 1951 and is still flourishing.
Claymills Pumping Station on the north side of Burton is a restored Victorian sewage pumping station, adjacent to the modern sewage works.
Until 2006, one of Burton's most distinguishable landmarks was theDrakelow Power Station, just south of Burton on the opposite side of the River Trent.The cooling towers have since been demolished.
Burton was home to the Peel Family, who played a significant role in the industrial revolution and founded the Peelers, which became the modern day police force. The family home is still visible in town as Peel House on Lichfield Street.
Burton upon Trent has one of the oldest Amateur Radio Clubs in the UK it was formed in 1919. Although there were enthusiasts of wireless telegraphy in Burton well before the 1st World War. One of the founder members of the club was Mr FVA Smith, call sign XSR, (X = experimental station). Mr Smith was licensed on 3rd July 1914. One month later he received a message from the Marconi spark transmitter at Poldhu in Cornwall, being sent to London, on the eve of the outbreak of World War One. The message, which has survived and is in the present club archives, was announcing the mobilisation of Russian French and Belgium troops.
HM Queen Elizabeth II visited the town on July 3rd 2002 to celebrate her Golden Jubilee.
The Statutes Fair takes place in the town every year on the first Monday and Tuesday in October, the fair occupies the Market Place and parts of High Street, New Street and Lichfield Street for two days.
You will also find many Mosques of architectural interest.
Business
The Cooper Square shopping centre is the principal shopping area originally opened in 1970 by HRH The Princess Alexandra but since considerably upgraded with a roof being added in the mid 1990s. The older Riverside Shopping Centre (formerly known as Bargates) is currently derelict,sealed off and demolition is pending. A new shopping area has been added off Guild Street including a multiplex cinema,Brantano and Aldi etc. An additional shopping centre is The Octagon Centre on New Street constructed in the mid 1980s.
In addition to the brewery industry, [[tyre manufacturer Pirelli is a major employer in the town, and they are a major sponsor of the Burton Albion football club.
The Burton suburb of Branston is where the well-known Branston Pickle was invented.
The town had its own municipal buses known as Burton Corporation and later East Staffordshire District Council after 1974.This was taken over by Stevensons of Spath in the mid 1980s in turn absorbed by Arriva.Arriva Midlands and independents now operate locally.The former Burton Corporation depot has been replaced by the Magistrates Courts.
The local Sea Cadet unit is TS (Training Ship) Modwena alongside the River Trent and road bridge.The town's Air Training Corps unit is No 351 (Burton on Trent) Squadron.
One local industry of mention for achieving some UK firsts was Eatoughs (sometimes Etoughs). In 1920 this new Leicestershire shoemaking company began a factory in Burton Road, Branston. This innovative firm was the first UK shoe factory to introduce music while you work (1936), and washable children’s sandals (‘Plastisha’ 1957). It was killed off in 1989 by cheap imports.
Geography
| Destinations from BURTON UPON TRENT |
| Uttoxeter, Tutbury, Hanbury, Horninglow |
Rolleston, Hilton, Hatton, Stretton
|
Derby, Newton Solney, Repton, Willington |
| Stafford, Hoar Cross, Abbots Bromley, Rangemore, Rugeley |
|
Winshill, Loughborough, Hartshorne, Ticknall |
| Tatenhill, Barton-under-Needwood, Branston, Alrewas, Lichfield, Birmingham |
Tamworth
|
Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Swadlincote, Castle Gresley, Church Gresley |
Town twinning
Notable residents
HISTORICAL:
CONTEMPORARY:
- Alastair Yates, presenter of BBC News and BBC World News, was born in Burton and went to Burton Grammar School. He joined BBC Radio Derby in the 1970s.
- Olivia Murphy, England netball captain since 2000, was born in Burton, and went to De Ferrers High School, where her father, now a driving instructor, taught P.E.
- Neville Brown, Former middleweight British, and Commonwealth boxing champion.
- Paddy Considine, actor, director and musician, was born in Burton upon Trent and grew up on a large council estate in the suburb of Winshill.
- Andrew Birch, Guardian and Private Eye cartoonist, is a Burtonian.
- Burton born Jordan Tams won the local YMCA contest.
- Paul Burke, Artist and Co-founder of Porlzilla Designer Toys, lives in Burton and attended Paulet High School and Burton Technical College.
- Tracey Hallam, badminton player and winner of the Commonwealth Games gold medal; she was part of Team GB at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.She was knocked out in the third round.
References
Notes
Bibliography
- Letter from the abbot of Burton describing Burton Bridge in C.H. Underhill, A History of Burton on Trent (Burton, 1941), p. 168.
- Joseph Addison in The Spectator in 1712 recorded visiting Vauxhall Gardens where he drank a glass of Burton ale.
- In the poem "Terence, this is stupid stuff" from A.E. Housman's A Shropshire Lad, the speaker asks the question, "Say, for what were hop-yards meant, / Or why was Burton built on Trent?" referring to the town's history of beer brewing.
External links
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