Burton upon Trent
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Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a large town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, England. It originally grew up around the monastery of St. Modwen, and had grown into a busy market town by the early modern period. While Burton's great bridge over the Trent was in poor repair by the early 1500s, it served as "a comen passage to and fro many contrys to the grett releff and comfort of travellyng people", according to the abbot. The town has a population of 60,500 (2001 estimate). The town is the administrative centre for the borough of East Staffordshire, is part of Burton (UK Parliament constituency) and lies within the National Forest.
Brewing
For centuries, Burton has been associated with the brewing industry. This is due to the quality of the local water, which contains a high proportion of dissolved salts, predominantly caused by the gypsum in the surrounding hills. Much of the open land within and around the town is protected from chemical treatment to help preserve this water quality.
The town is currently home to five brewers:
- Coors Brewers Limited: formerly Bass Brewers Limited, and now the UK arm of Molson Coors Brewing Company – a brewery from the United States – which produces Carling and Stones Bitter
- Marston, Thompson and Evershed plc, now owned by Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries PLC. The Marston's Brewery also produces Bass under licence from InBev
- Burton Bridge Brewery, a local company
- Tower Brewery, a new microbrewery
- Cottage Brewery, based in the Old Cottage Inn
A by-product of the brewing industry, figuratively and literally, is the presence of the Marmite factory in the town. This in turn generated the production of Bovril. Together with the breweries this gives the area a distinctive smell.
The development of rail links to Liverpool enabled brewers to export their beer throughout the British Empire. The accidental shipwreck of a cargo boat carrying India Pale Ale (an ale specially brewed to keep during the long sea voyage to India) resulted in barrels being washed ashore. The popularity of these fortuitous samples resulted in the domestic marketing of such ale, and began the gradual transformation of English drinking tastes. Previously, Englishmen had drunk mainly stout and porter, dark beers flavoured with roasted barley and similar to Guinness, but bitter (a development of pale ale) came to predominate. This extensively hopped, lighter beer was easier to store and transport, and so favoured the growth of larger breweries.
Burton came to dominate this trade, and at its height one quarter of all beer sold in Britain was produced here. Although over 30 breweries were recorded in 1880, a process of mergers and buy-outs resulted in three main breweries remaining by 1980: Bass, Ind Coopes and Marstons. Today, only Burton Bridge brewery remains as an independent brewer.
The fame of Burton ales gave rise to the English euphemism "gone for a burton", meaning to die — a World War II humorous suggestion that a missing comrade had merely nipped out for a beer.
The town's connection with the brewing industry is celebrated by a sculpture of the Burton Cooper, which is now housed in the shopping centre.
Miscellaneous
The town has a non-league football club, Burton Albion, who play in the Football Conference. The Burton & District Cricket League has many notable clubs, including Lichfield Cricket Club.The Burton Operatic Society has existed since 1951 and is still flourishing.
The Burton suburb of Branston is where the well-known Branston Pickle was invented. Branston is also home to Branston Golf Club.
Claymills pumping station on the north side of Burton is a restored Victorian sewage pumping station, adjacent to the modern sewage works.
Parishes
Burton was a county borough before 1974, after which it became an unparished area in the new district of East Staffordshire. The town became entirely parished on April 1, 2003, when the following parishes were created:
- Anglesey
- Brizlincote
- Burton
- Horninglow & Eton
- Shobnall
- Stapenhill
- Winshill
Geography
Grid reference -->
| North-West: Uttoxeter | North: | North-East: Derby |
| West: Stafford | Burton upon Trent | East: Newton Solney, Repton, Loughborough |
| South-West: Tatenhill, Barton-under-Needwood, Lichfield, Birmingham | South: Tamworth | South-East: Swadlincote, Ashby-de-la-Zouch |
Town twinning
- Kurdjali, Bulgaria
- Rochefort-sur-Mer, France
- Lingen, Germany
- Blantyre, Malawi
- Niksic, Montenegro
- Walbrzych and Bielawa, Poland
- Cacak, Serbia
- Elkhart, Indiana
Local residents
- Alastair Yates, presenter of BBC News 24 and BBC World, was born in Burton and went to Burton Grammar School. He joined BBC Radio Derby in the 1970s.
- Olivia Murphy, England netball captain since 2000, was born in Burton, and went to De Ferrers High School.
- Paddy Considine, actor in films including In America, Cinderella Man and 24 Hour Party People, was born in Winshill and still resides in Burton.
External links
- [Branston Golf Club]
- [Burton2000]
- [East Staffordshire Borough Council]
- [Maps of Burton on Trent]
- [Burton College]
- [Burton Grammar School]
- [Burton Girls High School]
References
- Letter from the abbot of Burton describing Burton Bridge in C.H. Underhill, A History of Burton on Trent (Burton, 1941), p. 168.
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