Blaby: Difference between revisions
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==Parks== |
==Parks== |
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To the south of the Bakers Arms stands Bouskell Park, with a 19th-century ice house |
To the south of the Bakers Arms stands Bouskell Park, with a 19th-century ice house. There are also Northfield Park, used for football, cricket, fetes and fairs, and Oakfield Park, located off Hospital Lane.<ref>https://www.blabyparishcouncil.org/parks-and-gardens.html</ref> |
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==Shops== |
==Shops== |
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Revision as of 15:12, 2 November 2021
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2011) |
| Blaby | |
|---|---|
 Blaby Post Office and The George pub (now named the Fox and Tiger) | |
  Blaby Location within Leicestershire | |
| Population | 6,194 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LEICESTER |
| Postcode district | LE8 |
| Police | Leicestershire |
| Fire | Leicestershire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Blaby (/ˈbleɪbi/)[1] is a village in the Blaby District in central Leicestershire, England, some five miles south of Leicester city centre. It has population of around 6,240 (2001 figures), falling slightly to 6,194 at the 2011 census, and its proximity to the city causes it to form part of the Leicester Urban Area.
Its name probably came Old Norse Blábýr = "farmstead or village belonging to a man named Blár" (where the -r is a case ending).[2] There seems to have been a dense patch of Viking settlement in Leicestershire, although some records in the Blaby Library indicate the origin of the village's name was from the first vicar. Twinned with the village of Villers-sous-Saint-Leu in France.
Buildings
While there are few buildings of outstanding historical or architectural interest, old Blaby is a conservation area. It contains some ancient and picturesque dwellings and has a charming 'olde worlde' feel. Old Blaby also contains The Baker's Arms, a thatched public house that dates back to 1484. The other public houses to be found in Blaby are The Fox & Tiger, The Bulls Head and The Black Horse. The Tom Thumb has been sold from Everards brewery and had planning permission granted to build 10 dwellings in its place. The Egyptian Queen has now been demolished. One of the two old schools in Blaby is Park (Parkwood) House; the other is in the surrounding area near the parish church.
Parks
To the south of the Bakers Arms stands Bouskell Park, with a 19th-century ice house. There are also Northfield Park, used for football, cricket, fetes and fairs, and Oakfield Park, located off Hospital Lane.[3]
Shops
Most shops and amenities stand on the old A426 road between Leicester to the north and Lutterworth to the south. Fosse Park shopping centre and the M1 motorway and M69 motorway are just a few miles away.
Surrounding area
Blaby gives its name to the Blaby district and previously to the Parliamentary constituency that was held by former Chancellor of the Exchequer Nigel Lawson between 1974 and 1992. Between 1992 and 2015 its Member of Parliament was Andrew Robathan. In 2010 the constituency was renamed South Leicestershire.
There was a railway station on the Birmingham to Peterborough Line, but it closed in 1968.
The "Blaby Special" heirloom tomato variety originates from the Shoults' Tomato Farm, which was located in Blaby from circa 1908 until 1948: the variety was thought to be extinct but was revived from a seed bank in 2005.[4]
'The Tomato Farm' remained derelict during the 1950's until it was developed for a mix of council houses and flats and traditional semi-detached private dwellings.
The farm was located between Grove Road and Auburn Road, principally comprising new through roads (The Fairway and Dovedale Avenue), together with Queens Road coming off the existing Auburn Road, becoming parallel with Dovedale Avenue.
Evidence of the many greenhouses was rendered to their foundations, probably with the glass plundered. It became a sanctuary for wildlife, with newts featuring in the mix of flora and fauna and in the summer the grass grew long and dry, leading to occasional fires and the fire engine travelling at speed along Grove Road to extinguish the blaze, a regular occurrence.
A new school was incorporated (Blaby Stokes C of E) to absorb the influx of children from families new to the village taking up residence in the new development.
Horticulture
The following is an overview of features dating back to 1950s Blaby:
- Shoults' Tomato Farm was among the main horticultural businesses (outside of local farmers), but by 1950 had become a wasteland, later to be developed for residential housing.
- Farmer Rest (whose Farm was situated at the top end of Church Street before its junction with Wigston Road and Mill Lane) and Farmer Bert Attfield (whose land was mainly within Whetstone and Whetstone Gorse, bordering with Hillview Nurseries on the Lutterworth Road, Blaby) were two of the main conventional farmers.
- Blaby Rose Gardens was a celebrated rose grower and developer, owned and run by a Dutch specialist. Outside of the small industries of hosiery and boots and shoes, with factories (e.g. Griffin & Gamble) in Blaby Village, the rose gardens were an important employer, but also relied on seasonal workers in the form of university students.
- Hillview Nurseries was another employer of casual workers. Kenneth Morey founded this market garden, located opposite Blaby Rose Gardens on the Lutterworth Road. A smallholding by any standards, it also relied on university students for pea-picking and other seasonal crops.
Sport
Blaby is home to rugby union side, Leicester Lions, who play at the 2,000 capacity Westleigh Park.
People associated with Blaby
- Richard Duke clergyman of the Church of England
- Lord Lawson of Blaby (former MP for Blaby, and also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer, under Margaret Thatcher)
- Tom Meighan
References
- ^ G.M. Miller, BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names (Oxford UP, 1971), p. 15.
- ^ "Key to English Place-names". kepn.nottingham.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 10 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
- ^ https://www.blabyparishcouncil.org/parks-and-gardens.html
- ^ Leicester Mercury 16 August 2010, Scientist puts Blaby Special tomatoes back on the menu.
External links
Towns and villages of Blaby District | ||
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| Towns |  | |
| Large villages | ||
| Small villages | ||
| Hamlets | ||