Silverdale, Staffordshire
Coordinates: 53°00′57″N 2°16′03″W / 53.0159°N 2.2675°W
Silverdale is a suburban town and civil parish in Staffordshire, west of Newcastle-under-Lyme. In 1932 it became part of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme and is now, with the exception of the north-eastern end, part of the Silverdale and Parksite ward.
Historically the village has been dominated by the coal industry and records indicate coal was mined in the area as long ago as the 13th century.[2] The last colliery, Silverdale, closed in 1998.
Silverdale Colliery
The main employer in Silverdale for well over 100 years was Silverdale Colliery, also known locally as Kent's Lane. The first shafts were sunk in the 1830s and the colliery initially mined ironstone as well as coal. The main user of both the minerals was the nearby Silverdale Forge.
The colliery was completely rebuilt during the 1970s when three new drifts were sunk to exploit new reserves in the Keele area. Production increased and the pit mined over one million tonnes annually but was closed in 1998, the last deep mine in North Staffordshire to close.
Notable residents
Sir Joseph Cook GCMG (1860-1947), Australian politician and sixth Prime Minister of Australia, was born in the village as Joseph Cooke.
Fanny Deakin (1883-1968) was born in Silverdale, as were footballers Keith Broomhall, Ian Moores & Adrian Heath.
Transport
Silverdale was served by a railway station which was opened by the North Staffordshire Railway in May 1863. The station was on the NSR Newcastle to Market Drayton line and was closed in the 1960s. The station buildings remained for a number of years as train crew accommodation for British Rail staff who worked the coal trains to Silverdale Colliery. The Rapid Loader was located adjacent to the old station.
The track was recently removed (2009) from the station to the Silverdale tunnel, however the two short station platforms still exist, although continued redevelopment of the site may result in the remaining brickwork being demolished.
See also
References
- ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 12 December 2015.
- ↑ Deakin, Paul (2004). Collieries in the North Staffordshire Coalfield. Landmark Publications. ISBN 1-84306-138-4.
External links
Media related to Silverdale, Staffordshire at Wikimedia Commons
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