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Norton Hammer near Sheffield


RichardB

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Guest beauchief

The photo of Norton Hammer must have been taken about the time it was demolished as it looks derelict. Can anyone identify the terrace houses in the background ?

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The photo of Norton Hammer must have been taken about the time it was demolished as it looks derelict. Can anyone identify the terrace houses in the background ?

Just a possibility, the houses could be on Woodseats Road.

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A slight aside:

What's the etymology of the name Norton. One would expect it to be derived from "North", but neither Norton Hammer, Norton Lees, or Norton itself could vaguely be described as North in relation to Sheffield.

Also, many Google results for Crookes and Walkley addresses return a road name, then Norton. Here are some for instance:

Crookes Valley Road Post Office, Norton, Sheffield
Crookes Valley Road
Norton
Sheffield
United Kingdom
S10 1BA

=================

Admiral (202 Crookes), Norton, Sheffield

=================

Check our website for the Street view 13 Walkley Road, Norton, Sheffield.

------------------------------

Broomhill Supermarket, 253 Fulwood Road, Norton, Sheffield

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A slight aside:

What's the etymology of the name Norton. One would expect it to be derived from "North", but neither Norton Hammer, Norton Lees, or Norton itself could vaguely be described as North in relation to Sheffield.

Also, many Google results for Crookes and Walkley addresses return a road name, then Norton. Here are some for instance:

Crookes Valley Road Post Office, Norton, Sheffield

Crookes Valley Road

Norton

Sheffield

United Kingdom

S10 1BA

=================

Admiral (202 Crookes), Norton, Sheffield

=================

Check our website for the Street view 13 Walkley Road, Norton, Sheffield.

------------------------------

Broomhill Supermarket, 253 Fulwood Road, Norton, Sheffield

You will find that the majority of Sheffield areas are in Norton, if you take any notice of Google map searches.

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I was given to understand that the name Norton was Saxon and derived from North Ton which meant North field. This dates back to the days when a village had common fields with the villagers having their own strips of land in the common fields. There were often 2 fields the North Field and the South field. The south field gave rise to the name Sutton as in Sutton in Ashfield. Over time these medieval fields got built over but the names Norton, Sutton, Aston and Weston survived into the modern era.

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And according to Peter Harvey's book, the 'hammer' bit is from the Anglo Saxon 'hamm' meaning a settlement or enclosure next to a river. Apparently Norton is one of the most common place names in England, occurring in every county. Here's three photos from around 1900 courtesy of Philip Sneath

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Is this the Norton just beyond Gleadless, where there was an RAF station (known when I lived in Gleadless as "the balloon barrage" even though I don't think it had seen a barrage balloon since the end of WW2)?

Your etymology of the "Hammer" part of the name is quite plausible; but the only other place with that name which I know, Abinger Hammer in Sussex, gained that suffix because there was a watermill-driven hammer which was used in iron working.

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Guest holmesfield-boy

Does this image with a wider wheel pre-date SteveHB's photo above ?

The building on the left seems to be partially demolished in Steve's picture so I would suggest so.

10374858_10153035400713210_1213360812844

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Does this image with a wider wheel pre-date SteveHB's photo above ?

The building on the left seems to be partially demolished in Steve's picture so I would suggest so.

Definitely taken before the one I posted, thank you holmesfield-boy.

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I came across this 1939 Star newspaper article about Norton Hammer "Mystery Picture" on find my past.

This Picture Sheffield photograph shows roughly the location he`s talking about. The 1851 census calls it the Little London Works, the two houses at the top of the photo are on Chesterfield Road, to the left you can make out the levels of the railway lines, could the hill in the background with three poles be the brick yard he talks about?  

Norton Hammer 4.jpg

Smithy Wood Tilt 2.jpg

Smithy Wood Tilt 3.jpg

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On 28/12/2014 at 17:07, Old rider said:

I was given to understand that the name Norton was Saxon and derived from North Ton which meant North field. This dates back to the days when a village had common fields with the villagers having their own strips of land in the common fields. There were often 2 fields the North Field and the South field. The south field gave rise to the name Sutton as in Sutton in Ashfield. Over time these medieval fields got built over but the names Norton, Sutton, Aston and Weston survived into the modern era.

A Ton was not a field, but a farm or some kind settlement. Whereas a "field" meant the exact opposite of what it does today. It was an open area. So Sheffield was the open area by the Sheaf. The north and south are correct and the language would be Old English.

It was thought for many years that after the Roman's left their was lot of conflicts and invasion by loads of different people. But archaeology has shown this to a big myth. And areas that were thought to have seen lots of fighting reveal quite peaceful settlements. And there's no evidence of mass casualties from battles that Monks write about in the so called histories of the time. DNA tests also show the populations merged together. Indeed it wasn't till 1066 that any great slaughters happened, especially in Yorkshire. So you have to be careful of the word "Saxon" implying a culture that wasn't really there, or something very English, when the people were a mix breed of races.      

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There's a major difference between an invasion and a migration.  In an invasion there is typically just a replacement of the higher caste: rulers, administrators, clergy, soldiers; whereas the lower castes remain: labourers, petty farmers, shopkeepers, tradesmen.  In a migration a whole population is moving and displacing any existing population.  The trouble is that the historic record concentrates on the upper castes and ignores the peasantry.  An incomming invader who is given land will still need the manpower to work it, and the retainers he brings expect to be appointed to supervisory positions, not to manual labour.  In 1066 probably less than 1,000 came over with William and became the lords, abbots and bishops.  The workers just took their orders from, and paid their taxes to, a different overlord.

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However after the 1066 invasion, rebellion in the north forced the King to go north and crush it, in the process laying waste to the Yorkshire area and especially Sheffield. This shows up in the Doomsday Survey of Sheffield, where things are not good. And since it was a survey of the land, really an estimate of what the King could tax, doesn't fall into it was all the "rich" thing.    

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Quite, the Harrying of the North was pretty horrendous, but a lot of the land lay waste for a long time.  There was not an influx of Norman invaders who eagerly started hoeing, tilling, ploughing and reaping.  I've just had a quick look at the Williams & Martin edition of the Alecto translation of Domesday.  Sheffield only occurs twice, first for the lands of Roger de Bully (folio 320: Yorkshire) "In Attercliffe and Sheffield, Swein had 5 carucates of land to the geld where there could be 3 ploughs" and second  on folio 379V: "In Sheffield, the same countess [Judith] 3 carucates".  Now both a carucate and a plough refer to the land that could notionally be plooughed by an 8-ox team.  It would appear then that Sheffield itself (which was a tiny area) hadn't been hit too badly by the Harrying.  However, many of the surrounding areas have entries along the lines of  "Roger has it now, and it is waste.  TRE* worth 20s" or less dramatically for Bentley "TRE worth 40s; now 20s".

 

*TRE: "Tempore Rex Edwardi" = "in the time of King Edward [the Confessor]"

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I did read in one translation that in Sheffield they had 3 ploughs and half of one. Which sounded a bit strange to me. But it could just mean that it was in need of repair. The "carucate" measurement was how much land could be ploughed in one year. Which was clearly variable and if you had three ploughs, slower than if you had four. And each carucate was taxable! So an early form of tax evasion or fiddling could be achieved there!!  

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