Grassmoor
| Grassmoor | |
| Derbyshire | |
|---|---|
 Barnes Park, Grassmoor | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SK403672 |
| Location: | 53°12’4"N, 1°23’49"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 3,360 (2011) |
| Post town: | Chesterfield |
| Postcode: | S42 |
| Dialling code: | 01246 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | North East Derbyshire |
Grassmoor is a village in north-eastern Derbyshire, a former mining village found approximately three miles to the south of Chesterfield. Its original name, according to 16th-century parish records, was Gresmore.[1] The civil parish, including Hasland and Winswick, has a recorded population of 3,360 in 2011. Grassmoor formerly housed many miners, though all of the local mines in the area have been closed since the mid-eighties.
Opposite Grassmoor Primary School is Barnes Park and cricket pitch. Many local cricket matches are played on the park and it is also host to an annual Summer Fete.
Five Pits Trail
The Five Pits Trail is a five and half mile off-road surfaced route from Grassmoor Country Park to Tibshelf Ponds.
The Five Pits Trail is so named as it runs between the sites of five local coal mines. The former collieries had a long death, with deep mines gradually being replaced by huge opencast workings, which had a lifespan of less than 20 years. Reclamation and conservation over the past 30 years have seen spoil tips and wasteland replaced by hay meadows and woodland.
Areas of water have attracted upwards of 200 species of birds. The bird reserves at Williamthorpe Ponds are partially filled by water pumped at a constant 10 °C which attracts many birds, particularly in winter.[2]
Lagoons
Grassmoor lagoons were formed in spoil tips at the former Grassmoor Colliery, which operated on the site from the 1840s until its closure in 1967. When British Coal opened the Avenue Coking Works nearby, it used the lagoon area to treat waste liquid from the coking works. During this time, large amounts of coal tar sludge from the works settled in the lagoons. The Avenue Coking Works closed in 1993: the council took over the lagoons site later the same year[3] and still owns the Grassmoor Lagoons site. The council has begun to incorporate the area back into the Grassmoor Country Park.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Grassmoor) |
