Newton Solney

The Swadlincote Library is an excellent resource with a Local History section and a Family History section.

• The parish was in the Repton sub-district of the Burton on Trent Registration District.
   
• Brett PAYNE has census and other transcripts at his South Derbyshire website.
   
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
   

• The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Mary the Virgin.
   
• The church was founded in the 12th century.
   
• The church was restored in 1880 and again in 1884.
   
• The church is a Grade II listed building with British Heritage.
   
• The church seats 400.
   
• M. J. RICHARDSON has a photograph of St Mary's Church on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2012.

• The Anglican parish register dates from 1589.
   
• Mike SPENCER has provided a partial extract of burials found in the parish register. Your additions and corrections are welcomed.
   
• You might look for your relatives in the Parish register on Brett PAYNE's Freepages site.
   
• The Family History Library has the Bishop's Transcripts covering 1810 to 1872.
   
• The church was in the rural deanery of Repton.

• Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
   
• The parish was in the Repton sub-district of the Burton on Trent Registration District.

"NEWTON-SOLNEY, a parish in the hundred of Repton, county Derby, 2 miles N.E. of Burton-on-Trent, its post town and railway station, and 9 S.W. of Derby. The village, which is of small extent, is situated on the E. bank of the river Trent, near its confluence with the river Dove, which here divides this county from Staffordshire."

[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin HINSON ©2003]

The village sits astride the B5008 secondary road just north of Burton upon Trent.

Phil MYOTT has a photograph of the Village Hall on Geo-graph, taken in November, 2006. You should stop in when they are open and ask for a schedule of forth-coming events.

Malcolm NEAL has a photograph of the Village Sign on Geo-graph, taken in February, 2018. Perhaps your artistic and marketing skills could help them with a more attractive sign.

There is a pocket history of Newton SOlney on the Derbyshire Villages website.

• Geograph
• Flickr

• Ann ANDREWS provides a transcription of the Newton Solney entry from Kelly's Directory of the Counties of Derby, Notts, Leicester and Rutland (1891).
   
• Here is a report on Newton Solney from 'The Derbyshire Village Book', publ. by the Derbyshire Federation of Women's Institutes & Countryside Books, 1991. ISBN 1 85306 133 6:

"Niwantune, the New Farm, was a small agricultural settlement in the year AD874 when the Danes sailed along the Trent and captured it along with its neighbour, Repton. Since then it has seen a succession of ruling families, possibly the most famous being the de Solneys and latterly the Ratcliffs. Recorded in the Domesday Book as being the property of Henry de Ferrers, Earl of Derby, it was, under the feudal system, passed down until in the reign of Henry III it became the possession of Sir Norman de Solney. Solney being a corruption of Sulney, the village is now known as Newton Solney - the New Town of the Sulneys.

Standing on the southern bank of the beautiful river Dove at its confluence with the river Trent, this small and picturesque village nestling in the Trent valley may give visitors the impression of being a quiet, sleepy village which time passes by. Not so!

Today, with so few villagers being employed in agriculture, it has become a commuter village, with many residents being employed in the nearby town of Burton-on-Trent and having easy access to Derby, Birmingham and the Ml. Of course Burton-on-Trent is famous for its breweries and Newton Solney was once the estate of the Ratcliffs, a notable brewery family, for whom most of the villagers worked either on the estate itself or by cycling three miles to Burton-on-Trent to the brewery of Bass, Ratcliff and Gretton. The Newton Park Hotel, once the Ratcliff home, was built around 1800 for a local solicitor. His son built Bladon Castle - a large red brick folly. Built on a high wooded ridge at the western end of the village it presents a majestic sight when viewed against the sunset. During the early 1940s it was occupied by allied soldiers and later by prisoners of war. It is now owned by a local farming family. During the war an incendiary bomb hit the vicarage, sadly destroying all the village records. In this same era the Home Guard, using the ancient ford, crossed the river Trent on foot to reach the pillboxes, which are still in existence, on the opposite bank.

The octagonal Beehive Cottage, built from bricks made locally, stands at the entrance of a tree-lined lane leading to the l2th century church of St Mary. Two of the three church bells were cast just before the Civil War and have the inscriptions: God Save Our Church, 1615, and God Save The Church, 1638. Village friendliness and well kept cellars attract clientele from far afield to the two village pubs built in the mid l9th century. The Brickmakers Arms, recently renovated, was once the village bakery and takes its name from the brickyards, the remains of which can still be seen at the rear of the pub. The Unicorn inn gives its name to the local football team who can be heard replaying the latest game on a Sunday lunchtime over a pint. Every Bank Holiday Monday teams from each pub compete for a cricket trophy, playing on the recreation field overlooking the river where the many fishermen enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the river bank.

The village hall, built by Colonel Robert Frederick Ratcliff, one time High Sheriff for Derbyshire, has a rifle range used by several rifle clubs. Christmas sees villagers of all ages joining in the village shoot when everyone is supposed to bring a prize to win a prize!

A strong community spirit runs through the village and this is shown through the many events which take place during the year. During the Ratcliff era every child who visited Newton Park on Shrove Tuesday was given one pint of milk towards the making of pancakes (needless to say there was usually a queue). Although this custom died out many years ago we now celebrate with a Pancake Race through the main street.

To complete the village there is a real country shop-cum-post office, attractively styled almshouses left by benefactors from the past, several farms border the village and lovely country walks for the energetic. Pride in the village was rewarded in 1990 when Newton Solney became the winner of the past winners award for the Best Kept Village in Derbyshire. Who said Newton Solney was a quiet sleepy village? "

• The transcription of the section for Newton Solney from the National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin HINSON.
   
• We have this transcription of the entry for Newton Solney from John Marius WILSON's "Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72)":

"BRAILSFORD, a parish and a subdistrict in Ashborne district, Derby. The parish lies on an affluent of the river Dove, 6 miles W of Duffield r. station, and 6¼ SE of Ashborne; and it includes the hamlet of Ednaston, and has a post office under Derby. Acres. 4,296 Real property, £7,334. Pop., 773. Houses, 156. The property is subdivided. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Lichfield. Value, £673. Patron, Earl Ferrers. The church is good; and there are two Methodist chapels and a national school.-The subdistrict contains three parishes, and parts of three others. Pop., 3,168."

• Ask for a calculation of the distance from Newton Solney to another place.

Sources report that the Trent River used to be navigable past Newton Solney in ancient times.

Anglian invaders settled in Netwon SOlney in the sixth century A.D.

Parts of the village are in a Conservation Area.

There are two Public Houses in Newton Solney, each with some history:

• The Brickmakers' Arms on Main Street. David ROGERS has a photograph of The Brickmakers' Arms on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2009.
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST also has a photograph of The Brickmakers' Arms on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2018.
   
• These are the names associated with the place in various directories:
   

• The Unicorn on the corner of Blacksmith Lane and the Repton Road. J. THOMAS has a photograph of The Unicorn on Geo-graph, taken in October, 2012. These are the names associated with the place in various directories:
   

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK297254 (Lat/Lon: 52.825316, -1.560676), Newton Solney which are provided by:

• OpenStreetMap
• Google Maps
• StreetMap (Current Ordnance Survey maps)
• Bing (was Multimap)
• Old Maps Online
• National Library of Scotland (Old Ordnance Survey maps)
• Vision of Britain (Click "Historical units & statistics" for administrative areas.)
• English Jurisdictions in 1851 (Unfortunately the LDS have removed the facility to enable us to specify a starting location, you will need to search yourself on their map.)
• Magic (Geographic information) (Click + on map if it doesn't show)
• GeoHack (Links to on-line maps and location specific services.)

• All places within the same township/parish shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby townships/parishes shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby places shown on an Openstreetmap map.

• Phil MYOTT has a photograph of a World War II FW3/22 Pillbox by the River Dove on Geo-graph, taken in November, 2006.
   
• Ian COLDERWOOD also has a photograph of the World War II Pillbox by the River Dove on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2011.

There are two Commonwealth War Graves in the parish churchyard from World War I:

1. John Robert MEAD, captain, 335th Road Constr. Co. Royal Engineers, died 15 Dec 1917.
2. William Henry TAYLOR, corporal, Supply Co. Royal Army Service Corps, age 25, died 9 Nov. 1919. Son of the late Tom and Maria TAYLOR.

• Cameron (The Place Names of Derbyshire, 1959) quotes "Newetun" (and numerous other variations) from the Domesday Book (1086) and earlier, back to c. 956. "The manor of Newton was conveyed from Ralph de Argosis to his brother Alfred de Solenneio in 1205. It is from Solenneio that we get "Sulney".
   
• "Sulney" more often appears as "Solney".

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar shares this notice from the Derby Mercury of 31 December, 1801: "MARRIED: On Friday last, at Newton Solney, in this county, Mr. Peter PAYNE, to Mrs. OLDACRES."

Jane TAYLOR in Redcar provides this announcement from the Derby Mercury of 27 January, 1803: "DIED: Suddenly, on the 12th instant, aged 75, Mrs HOLMES, of Newton Solney, in this county."

• This place was an ancient parish in Derby county and became a modern Civil Parish when those were established.
   
• This parish was in the ancient Repton and Gresle Hundred (or Wapentake).
   
• In 1894, part of the parish of Winshill was added to Newton Solney.
   
• You may contact the local Newton Solney Parish Council regarding civic and political mattters, but they are NOT funded to help you with family history searches.
   
• District governance is provided by the South Derbyshire District Council.

• Bastardy cases would be heard in the Repton petty session hearings.
   
• As a result of the 1834 Poorlaw Amendment Act reforms, this parish became a member of the Burton upon Trent Poorlaw Union..
   
• The John HIGGOTT Almshouses were a gift from a bachelor farmer John HIGGOTT to the parish in 1876. There were four dwellings built in a row.
   
• David ROGERS has a photograph of the Higgott Almshouses on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2009.
   
• Alan MURRAY-RUST also has a photograph of the Higgott Almshouses on Geo-graph, taken in June, 2018.

A National School (mixed) was built here prior to 1891 to hold 100 children. Average attendance in 1890 was 71.

John M. has a photograph of Newton Solney Primary School on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2010.