Fast Facts
The parish council have been thanked by the Motor Neurone Disease Association for its donation of £140 raised by the Cheese and Wine event held by the council on October 7, 2017. The event was held at the Burnside Hall at Plumtree.
On October 28th 2001 at 4.25pm, Normanton was shaken by an earthquake. The British Geological Survey in Keyworth reported that it had a magnitude of 4.1, making it the largest onshore earthquake in the country that year[1]. The quake had an epicentre some 4km east of Long Clawson and 7km north of Melton Mowbray. No damage was reported in Normanton, though the BGS logged several instances of books falling from shelves, pictures from walls and house alarms being set off.
[1] www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/publications/annual_reports/2002_13th_annual_report.pdf
The village has seen some charitable residents over the years. In 1683, Bartholomew Hicking requested in his will that a Bible given annually to a poor inhabitant of the village. In 1786 P Kirkby requested that six pounds (around £840 today) be left to the poor of the parish. Two years later Samuel Seawell made a similar gift of nine pounds (around £1,260 today) for poor residents not receiving parish relief.
In 1960 the Parish Council hired a room in Plumtree School for their meetings, at a rate of 4 shillings (20p) per night. They also had to pay another 4s to obtain the Council’s chequebook. Total expenditure for the financial year 1960-61 was just over £30 (around £624 today).
The first official Parish Council newsletter was published in October 2001, as a regular means of keeping residents informed of happenings in the village. One article asked if residents wished to form a Neighbourhood Watch following a series of break-ins in the village, as well as appealing for residents to trim boundary hedges in front of their homes, and clean up after their pets. The Council at that time comprised Couns. Michael Adlington, Colin Cawthorne, Ray Jones, Paul Knight (chairman), David Page, Kay Veal and Michael Westwood.
Fifty-five of the oak trees growing in the Hoe Hill plantation had their girths measured in 2011 at the standard height of 1.5 metres from the ground and the measurements records indicated that the suggested date for planting of them was between the years 1780 and 1800.
A post card picture owned by Brian Lund of Keyworth shows the South Notts Hussars, Nottingham Imperial Yeomanry formed in line outside the Griffin at Plumtree in 1914.
Lt Bertram Abel Smith who lived at The Grange in Normanton was a member of the Hussars and it has been suggested the picture might be showing him ready to lead a charge up Church Hill.
The total resurfacing work on Clipston Lane in 1997 at Normanton was said to be the first time such work had been carried out there for 30 years.
The parish council, under the chairmanship of Sidney Jordan complained to Notts County Council that the grass verges had been badly damaged by the contractors for the road works and left in a poor condition. The parish council said they were unhappy with the overall standard of work by the contractors.
In the year 1891 the oldest resident in Normanton, according to the National Census of that year, was 90 year old Ann Dabell of Normanton Lane.
The Census also showed that the occupation of residents was very varied, and included a 12-year old 'Ploughboy', a coal merchant, a hosiery hand, a shoemaker, a harness maker and a horse driver.
Mr Edward Harvey, the 36-year-old Station Master at Plumtree Station - then in Normanton parish - and his wife Lucy had six children aged 1, 3, 8, 9, 11 and 13.
Police were contacted by the parish council in November 1997 when someone called door to door in the village selling Remembrance Day poppies. Investigation resulted in the person concerned being found to be a genuine seller from Keyworth. But someone in Tollerton selling poppies was bogus.
The village has had several variations in its name over the years. The Domesday Survey of 1086 showed it as 'Normantun' and 'Normantone'. In 1303 it was called 'Normanton juxta Plumtree' and in 1330 there is a reference to 'Normanton supra le Woulds'. By the year 1862 it was being referred to as 'Normanton juxta Plumtree' and as 'Normanton super le Woulds'
The 'Wolds' means a high tract of open land of a rolling nature.