Treeton

Domesday

Before the Norman Conquest, the settlement at Treeton had consisted of two manors held by Ulfketill and Morcar. William I gave the village to the Earl of Mortain who gave it to his tenant Richard.

Treeton’s position on the River Rother is indicated by the recording of 2 mill sites and ½ a millin the Domesday Book. In 1086 there was already a church and priest to the 4 villeins and 13 small holders and their families. The total population was probably around 60.

14th and 15th century

The lordship of the manor passed from the Domesday tenant, Richard de Surdeval, to the Paynels and Lutterels as sub-tenants of the Lovetots and Furnivals. By the late 13th century, the Furnivals were sole lords of Treeton and from them the lordship descended to the Talbots and the Dukes of Norfolk.

In 1428 the freeholders of Treeton were called upon to contribute toward the ransom of their lord, John Talbot, Earl of Shrewbury, who had been captured by the French.

The most prosperous inhabitant in Treeton in 1379 would seem to have been John Helot the baker. He and his wife were assessed at 12d in the Poll Tax returns. There were 93 people in Treeton who were reckoned able to pay the tax, suggesting a population of some 160 altogether.

Manor House

There was a substantial manor house at Treeton, described in 1650 as “a good dwelling house and outhousing of 18 bays”. In 1460 it was the residence of Sir Christopher Talbot who was killed at the Battle of Northampton the same year. The remains of the Manor House were demolished in the 1920s.

Church

The ecclesiastical parish of Treeton included the township of Brampton-en-le-Morthen, part of the township of Ulley and a detached area at Waleswood. The present church contains some remains of the Norman structure that replaced the Saxon church c.1175-1200. A north aisle was added in the 13th century and a south aisle in the 14th century.The Reading Room, near the Church, was erected in 1888 as a parish room and Sunday School.

Treeton Colliery

The village underwent a major change with the sinking of Treeton Colliery by Rothervale Collieries Ltd in 1875. The population of Treeton had been grown steadily from 312 in 1801 to 419 in 1841 but had declined to 383 in 1871. The opening of the colliery more than doubled the population to 897 in 1881.

Before the colliery was in full production, a slump in the coal trade led to a short closure but by 1891 the pit was in full production and the population had grown to 1,820. Between 1881 and 1905 400 houses were erected at Treeton to house miners’ families. A peak population of 2,450 was reached in 1901. The numbers then fell to 1,859 in 1911 before rising to a new peak of 2,212 in 1971. In 1991 the figure stood at 2,053.

When Treeton Parish Council was formed in 1894, the first chairman was J.F. Jones, managing director of Rothervale Collieries. It was through his initiative that in 1897 Treeton became the first village in England to have electric street lighting, the power being provided by the colliery company. Treeton Grange, for many years the home of the Jones family, later became offices for the United Steel Companies Ltd and the British Steel Corporation.

The colliery underwent many modernisation schemes, the last coming in the 1970s when a 3,000 metre drift was driven from the surface to enable men and coal to be transported rapidly. An 816 metre tunnel was driven beneath the village to connect the pit with the coking plant at Orgreave. There was also an underground connection with Orgreave Colliery in the Swallow Wood Seam.

The colliery closed in 1990 and the site has been completely cleared. The site reverted to the Duke of Norfolk’s estate which announced plans to develop homes, shops and leisure facilities on the site. Outline planning permission for this was granted in 1994. The former colliery canteen was offered to the parish council for conversion into a community centre once the remainder of the development was complete.

Railway

The railway line along the valley of the River Rother, the North Midland Railway (later Midland Railway) from Derby to Leeds opened in 1840 but Treeton did not get a station of its own until the 1890s. The railway builders diverted the Rother into a new, straight course. Treeton Dyke originated as the severed section of the old course.

Education

A new National School was erected in 1851, replacing a school that had been held in a cottage near the Church. The school premises were leased to the Treeton School Board in 1876 and were replaced by a new Board School in 1880. This school was extended in 1901-2. A new school was erected at the south end of the village in 1983. In 1992 the old school buildings were converted into the Treeton Youth Enterprise Centre to provide workshops for young people starting their own businesses.

(Extracted from:- R.M.B.C, Patchwork of parishes, 1997)

Useful Links

 Map of Treeton
 Treeton Web
 Junction 31 Local History Website

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