Somercotes is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in the district of Amber Valley in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

county of

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, close to the border with

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...

. It is a former mining village and was once surrounded by more than five pits. The village has numerous shops, pubs, food outlets and other businesses. It has industrial areas at Cotes Park and Birchwood. Whilst increasingly urbanised, there is still some agricultural land in the northern and western parts of the parish, and a small nature reserve at Pennytown Ponds. It has primary and secondary schools, along with the Church of St. Thomas and a Methodist church. The population at the 2011 census was 6,255, up almost 9% from 5,745 in 2001 (figures for the 'ward', which may include Leabrooks).

History

The earliest known spelling of Somercotes was Sumcot, which was recorded in 1225. This derives from the original use of the area for seasonal grazing, when temporary huts or 'summer cottages' were used by herdsmen. The original settlement was in what is now known as Lower Somercotes, the upper village developing much later after a turnpike road was driven through to

Alfreton Alfreton ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. The town was formerly a Norman Manor and later an Urban District. The population of the Alfreton parish was 7,971 at the 2011 Census. The villages of ...

in the eighteenth century. The area was within the Norman Manor of Alfreton, and later within the Alfreton Urban District. The fortunes of the village were to be based on the coal mining industry, which rapidly expanded in the 19th century.

Pye Hill and Somercotes railway station Pye Hill and Somercotes railway station was a railway station on the Great Northern Railway (Great Britain) on its Derbyshire Extension on the branch between Kimberley and Pinxton.Higginson, M., (1989) ''The Friargate Line:Derby and the Great ...

used to serve the village until it was closed by Beeching in the 1960s. Clothing manufacture was a significant local employer until quite recently, with English Rose and

Aertex Aertex was a British clothing company based in Manchester, established in 1888, and also the name of the fabric manufactured by the company. It owned the trademark for Aertex fabric, a lightweight and loosely woven cotton material that is use ...

having factories in the area.BBC ''Where I Live''
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Cricketers

Several cricketers from Somercotes played for

. * George Beet, Sr. * George Beet, Jr. * Joseph Burton * William Prince *

William Rigley William Rigley (24 March 1852 – 15 April 1897) was an English cricketer who played for Derbyshire between 1873 and 1882. Rigley was born in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, the son of John Rigley and his wife Ann. His father was a blacksmith and m ...

* Fred Root * Denis Smith *

Albert Steeples Albert Steeples (28 July 1870 — 14 August 1945) was an English cricketer who played for Derbyshire in 1899. Steeples was born at Somercotes, Alfreton, Derbyshire, the son of John Steeples, a coal miner. He married Ellen Roughton, daught ...

Dick Steeples Richard Steeples (30 April 1873 – 2 August 1946), was an English cricketer who played for Derbyshire in 1897. Steeples was born at Somercotes, Alfreton, Derbyshire, the son of John Steeples, a coal miner. Steeples enjoyed a brief first-cl ...

References

External links

Somercotes War MemorialOur Somercotes Web Site - Local Information For SomercotesSomercotes Parish Council Web Site

Somercotes Local History Society
Geography of Amber Valley Villages in Derbyshire Civil parishes in Derbyshire {{Derbyshire-geo-stub