Smalley, Derbyshire
| Smalley | |
| Derbyshire | |
|---|---|
 Church Hall, Smalley. | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SK407446 |
| Location: | 52°59’53"N, 1°23’38"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 2,784 (2011) |
| Post town: | Ilkeston |
| Postcode: | DE7 |
| Dialling code: | 01332; 01773 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Amber Valley |
Smalley is a village on the main A608 Heanor to Derby road in Derbyshire. The population of the civil parish as of the 2011 census was 2,784.
The name 'Smalley' is from Old English Smæl leah, menanig 'narrow meadow'.
History
Smalley is mentioned in a Charter of 1009 by King Ethelred II (Ethelred the Unready) relating to a manor known as Westune (modern-day Weston-on-Trent) which land included the areas now known as Shardlow, Great Wilne, Church Wilne, Crich, Smalley, Morley, Weston and Aston-on-Trent. Under this charter Ethelred gave his minister, Morcar, some exemptions from tax.[1]
Smalley's Parish Church of St John the Baptist was built in the late 18th century on the site of a much earlier church. The transepts were added in 1844 and the unusual and almost detached tower was added some years later. A 7th-century Saxon cross is part of the porch. The bell tower was built to house five bells donated by Rev. Charles Kerry and the chime of five bells is said to be the heaviest in England, the largest bell weighing over 2 tons. The parish church hosts occasional street parties for the residents of Smalley.
Sport and leisure
- Cricket: Stainsby Hall Cricket Club have their ground at the end of St John's Road in Smalley. The club's name comes from the fact that they used to play their matches on a pitch in front of the now-demolished Stainsby House, just over the parish border in Horsley Woodhouse, but just a few hundred yards from their current ground.
Outside links
References
- ↑ Charter of Æthelred, The Great Council, 1009, accessible at Derbyshire Records Office
