One invention that is thought to have originated out of Nottinghamshire is the Stocking Frame. The stocking frame, invented in 1589, was a revolutionary knitting machine used within the textile industry. The use of this machine helped bring about the Industrial Revolution and the principles of machine knitting laid out by this machine are still used in the textile industry today.

Its invention is attributed to an Englishman named William Lee. Sadly, nothing much concrete is known about William. Most reports theorise he was a clergyman from Calverton, Nottinghamshire. There has been some argument that he lived in Sussex instead, but scholars predominantly believe he was a Nottinghamshire man. We are inclined to agree!

The stocking frame worked by imitating hand-knitting movements. It was unlike anything available at the time. Lee sought out a patent for the machine from Queen Elizabeth I. Upon demonstration of the machine, Elizabeth declined his patent request on the fear that his machine would be highly detrimental to those working in the hand-knitting industry. Elizabeth promised William that if he could improve his machine to be able to make silk stockings then his patent would be approved (Rowlett 1886).

His machine wasn’t a perfect invention from conception. The frame originally could only produce coarse fabrics as it contained eight needles in an inch. So, William worked on improving the machine, by increasing the needles per inch, until, in 1598, it was capable of knitting silk stockings.

Photograph of the stocking frame

Above: Stocking Frame at Framework Knitters Museum, Ruddington, Nottinghamshire. By John Beniston (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0).

Unfortunately for William, despite his improvements, his patent was declined again by Elizabeth’s successor James I. Upon this rejection, he decided to take the stocking frame and his workers to France under the protection of King Henry IV.

In 1610, however, Henry IV was assassinated. At a time where religion was a very divisive aspect of society, the death of the Protestant King Henry and the succession of the Catholic Louis XIII had consequences for the Protestants in France. As one of those Protestants, William’s stocking frame business badly suffered. William died in Paris a few years later (many report that he died in 1614) with his business that he had worked at for decades in disrepair.

Some of his stocking frames made their way back to England with his workers. Many workers sold their frames in London while his brother James is reported to have helped to establish the use of the stocking frame into the textile industry in England.

In the seventeenth and eighteen centuries, the stocking frame ‘was probably the most sophisticated textile machine in common use in western civilisation’ (Lewis, 1986). The frame could hold around 38 needles per inch by 1750 (Lewis, 1986), a stark difference from the number of needles on the initial conceptions of the machine. By the mid-seventeenth century , attempts were made by framework knitters to ‘regulate the exportation of machinery and skilled labour…as a reflection of the workers’ new-found estimation of his machinery and skills’ (Lewis, 1986).

Further adaptions of Lee’s machine continued even up to the 19th century as the stocking frame was adapted for different textiles and knitting styles. By the start of the 19th century, the machine had notably been adapted as a lace making machine, which also has special connections to Nottingham in the form of the lace market.

Lee most likely had no idea how much of an importance his machine would have on the textile industry centuries down the line. His influence ‘laid the foundation for an industry that now gives employment to millions. There can be but few people in the world who do not make daily use of its products’ (Pasold, 1975).

If it weren’t for the dedication and determination of Lee and his loyal workers to continually improve the stocking frame, the history of textile production would look wildly different.

If you would like to learn more about the stocking frame or about the textile industry, we suggest you visit the Framework Knitters’ Museum in Ruddington.

Bibliography:

Lewis, P. 1986. ‘William Lee’s Stocking Frame: Technical Evolution and Economic Viability 1589-1750’, Textile History, Volume 17. Pp. 129-147

Pasold, E.W. 1975. ‘In Search of William Lee’, Textile History, Volume 6. Pp.7-17

Rowlett, W.T. 1887. ‘Framework Knitting’, Journal of the Society of Arts, Volume 36. Page 445

There are some exciting heritage events happening in Nottinghamshire. Check out some of them below:

Monday 2nd Feb: ‘Join Professor Matthew Tocheri online to discover the fascinating story of 'the hobbits of human evolution': Homo floresiensis’. The talk, in association with Creswell Crags, will explore the past, present and future research and representations of this extinct group. This event is free (donations welcome) but booking is required. Book your place here.

Tuesday 3rd Feb: At Hucknall Library, ‘join local historian Denis Hill, for an insight into the fascinating history and heritage of the townships of Ashfield district. For this – the first of two talks – he will focus on Hucknall, Annesley and Selston, each of which has much to shout about and celebrate, but which may be generally unknown’. This event is free but booking is required. Book your place here.

Wednesday 4th Feb: As part of the celebration of LGBT+ month, ‘bestselling author Gareth Russell [is presenting] a special talk centred on his new book 'Queen James’. ‘This event explores LGBTQ+ narratives woven through royal history’ in association with the National Civil War Centre. Tickets for this event at the Palace Theatre, Newark, cost up to £10 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Tuesday 10th Feb: ‘In the second part of Denis Hill’s celebration of Ashfield’s heritage he will focus on Kirkby, Skegby, Sutton and Teversall. Throughout the district Denis identifies numerous historical ‘firsts’ or ‘oldest’ inventions connected to our industrial heritage of which local residents may be justly proud.’ This talk at Hucknall Library is also free but booking is required. Book your place here.

Wednesday 11th Feb: At Lakeside Arts, join Alan Micklethwaite, ‘a sculptor, stone carver and conservator, who has worked on the conservation of historic buildings for more than 30 years’ for talk on his insights into traditional and modern ‘techniques and processes involved’ in restoring and repairing ‘sculpture[s] on historic monuments and buildings’. Tickets for his talk ‘Restoration Stone Carving’ cost up to £3.50 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Friday 13th Feb: ‘In 1642, when Charles I raised his standard in Nottingham, he ruled not just England, Ireland, and Scotland, but also “the dominions thereunto belonging”. These distant settlement, most small and new, were drawn into events at home, and the English Atlantic was shaped by the civil wars, regicide, and experiments in new forms of government over the next two decades. Join distinguished Professor and Joyce Appleby Endowed Chair of the America in the World, Carla Pestana, for this insightful talk’: ‘The British Civil War and the Wider World’ at the Palace Theatre, Newark in association with the National Civil War Centre. Tickets cost up to £10 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Tuesday 17th Feb: Head to Mansfield Central Library ‘for a talk by Roger West, author of Red Blood for Black Gold to hear the story of how this local mining history was written’. Tickets cost £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Friday 20th Feb: ‘Get acquainted with the world famous ancient oaks of Sherwood Forest with our tree expert, Rob Pedley. Sherwood has one of the highest densities of ancient oaks in the world. These impressive trees provide vital habitat for an abundance of species and play a crucial role in supporting the health of the forest. The walk leader will introduce you to a handful of these giants, giving you an insight into the life of a veteran oak’. Tickets cost up to £13 per adult. Book your place here.

Photograph of Sherwood Forest

Above: Sherwood Forest

A new year brings a new set of exciting heritage events happening in Nottinghamshire! Check out just a few of them below:

Starting Saturday 17th January: Inspire will be hosting a six-session course teaching you all about how to research your family history. ‘Over six sessions, you will be introduced to the main types of records available for your research. You will discover where to locate family history documents and online information, as well as developing your research skills to help you make sense of what you find’.  ’The course is suitable for complete beginners in family history but may also be useful for those with some family history experience who would like to update their knowledge, particularly in terms of online records’. Held at Worksop library, the course runs from the 17th January to 21st February costs up to £48 (although the course can be received for free for some receiving certain benefits) and booking is required. To book your place and for more information, visit the event page here.

Saturday 17th January: Head to the D. H. Lawrence Museum for a behind-the-scenes tour during their annual deep-clean. ‘These hour long sessions will show you the importance of conservation in preserving the museum and collection and you will learn techniques to look after your own treasures at home. These select tours are a unique opportunity to gain experience with historic objects’. Tickets cost £10 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Wednesday 21st January: ‘Come along to [Worksop Library] to discover the history of the Worksop and Retford Brewery Company (from its nineteenth century origins to its 1959 takeover by Sheffield Brewers, Tennants) and its effects on cultural and sporting life in Bassetlaw’. ‘This illustrated talk, by local authors and researchers Dave Pickersgill and John Stocks, tells the half-forgotten story of what was once one of Worksop’s foremost industries’. Tickets cost £3 and booking is required. Book your place here.

Opening Friday 30th January: The University of Nottingham Museum will opening their new temporary exhibition ‘The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Broughton Lodge, Willough-on-the-Wolds’. ‘The cemetery discovered at Broughton Lodge, Willoughby-on-the-Wolds, in Nottinghamshire was a pioneering community archaeology excavation of the 1960s. Since that time the remains, held in partnership between Nottingham City Museums and the University of Nottingham Museum, have never been displayed together until now. This exhibition reinterprets the evidence from the cemetery creating a picture of a Nottinghamshire community with pan-European connections in the sixth century AD’. The exhibition is open until early July 2026 so don’t worry if you can’t see it straight away! The event is free and booking is not required. For more information, visit the event page here.

Saturday 31st January: Head to Newark’s Palace Theatre for a wonderful new evening talk: ‘For Whom The Bell Tolls’. ‘Visible for miles around, the spire of St Mary’s church was a beacon, vantage point and source of local pride. Learn more about the central role played by St Mary’s Church in local life during the British Civil Wars with renowned local historian Stuart Jennings’. Tickets cost up to £10 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Photograph of the Church of St Mary Magdalene

Above: Church of St Mary Magdalene, Newark

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  • HER

We are delighted to reflect on another successful year in the Nottinghamshire HER! We've spent the year dedicated to improving our current heritage records, liaising with the public, volunteers and private clients, creating fascinating blog content, creating new heritage records and much much more!

This year the team has added over 170 new sources and reports onto the HER this year, which has added over 180 new event records and over 320 new monument records.

Check out some of our new monument records:

On top of this, over 1,100 previous monument records have been improved and over 220 event records have also been improved.

Check out some of the updated records here:

Early in 2025, we received an amazing result from our routine audit which analyses how effectively our team is maintaining and improving the our HER. Across all four areas, we consistently received top marks, with very minimal suggestions for improvement. It signifies that the Nottinghamshire HER is currently amongst the highest rated in the country! This is a great achievement for us and one we are all very proud of. If you would like to read more about our results, click here.

This year the HER team has also embarked on Project K, a project hosted by Forestry England to help improve the quality of our current SHINE records. SHINE (Selected Heritage Inventory for Natural England) records are a national dataset of heritage assets, managed by local HERs, which have influence on agricultural and environmental schemes and funding. These records also help to protect the heritage assets against the damage that could potentially occur as a result of agricultural practices.

The HER team also worked alongside a small number of volunteers from Nottingham Trent University to record some significant sites in Nottinghamshire, including Laxton Castle and Old Ox, using LiDAR and photogrammetry. The results are currently in the process of being accessioned onto the HER, but you can view raw results through the 3D model of Laxton castle here and the image of Old Ox below.

Image of Old Ox Iron Age hillfort

Above: Iron Age multivallate hillfort at Old Ox, Oxton, taken by NTU volunteers.

The wider heritage team at NCC has been very busy as well! The Archaeological Planning team have been occupied with a large quantity of development applications and subsequent site visits. There has been a lot of amazing archaeology uncovered in Nottinghamshire this year which we are excited to soon accession onto the HER. Watch this space!

The team have amazingly still had time to conduct a few public talks along the way as well. Our planning archaeologist Emily has presented talks focusing on the archaeological works at Rufford Abbey and another on the recent archaeological discoveries in Nottinghamshire. Did you manage to catch one?

Our Historic Buildings team have also had a jam-packed year!

Following the publishing of her two books last year, 'Country House Stables of Nottinghamshire' and 'Colliery Stables and the Nottinghamshire Pit Pony'  (in association with the project Major2Miner), our historic environment officer Janine has continued presenting her talk on ‘Colliery Stables and the Nottinghamshire Pit Pony’ across the county.

The Historic Buildings team has also had a lot of interaction with volunteers, work experience students, and interns, all of which did a great job! Some of these wonderful volunteers have joined in on one of the many training schemes run by our Senior Practitioner for Historic Buildings, Jason, around Nottinghamshire.

Here are some of the training schemes the Historic Buildings team has helped conduct:

  • Gedling Station received National Lottery Heritage Funding for their restoration project phase 1. The team helped to deliver some of the ‘hands-on-training’ as part of this. The funding will go towards a new Welsh slate roof, Notts ogee cast iron gutters, and timber sash window restoration.
  • Tuxford Walks of Life Museum are undertaking the restoration of 33 Lincoln Road (a timber frame and later brick farmhouse), where the Historic Buildings team are helping to host task and training days. Hemp lime render and plaster ‘retrofit’ has been a focus for this year, along with some Bassetlaw DC funded Yorkshire sash window restoration which was also carried out. A traditional craft skills boot-camp is planned to help restore the rear elevation in the new year.
  • The team also helped to undertake this season’s work with Kirkby and District Archaeology Group at Kirkby Hardwick Medieval manor site which focused on higher level masonry repairs and repointing, and some further ivy removal and capping of the east gate range (which was the focus in 2024).
  • At Saint Mary & All Saints Church in Bingham, the team was involved in running ‘task and training’ events focussed on historic C18th brick wall repairs. They worked with the Town Council to repair and reinstated the saddle-back copings along the western wall and repairing the footpath wall around the London Plain Tree root damage.
  • At Saint Giles Church in Balderton, working with the parish council, the team oversaw groups of church volunteers and work experience students to clear ivy and prepare a section of collapsed wall for repairs.
  • Working with IHBC East Midlands, the team delivered two lime training events for homeowners as part of the Mansfield Townscape Heritage Initiative at the St Peter’s Centre and a CPD ‘hot lime’ event for estate managers and architects at Leicester City.
  • At Bramcote's Old Church Tower our council ecologist, nature conservation intern, and historic building conservation officers worked with the charity’s volunteers to successfully renew the bird mesh on the bell tower louvres, being extremely careful not to disturb the Brow long-eared bats!

We’re all proud of the work the NCC heritage team has undertaken this year to protect and restore our local heritage, and to improve the knowledge and understanding of our local environment. We will continue to do the same in 2026 and can't wait to see what we will get up to in the new year!

If you have any questions for us or would like to get involved, we’d love to hear from you! Email us at heritage@nottscc.gov.uk.

The festive season and the end of 2025 is upon us! Whether you are looking to learn or spend time with family and friends, there are plenty of heritage events in Nottinghamshire to keep you occupied this December! Here's a list of just a few of the events happening in December:

Sunday 7th (and 14th and 20th) December: ‘Join the Creswell Crags Stone Age guides this Christmas and venture into their deepest, darkest cave to hear tales of winters long ago [before Santa!]. Take part in an interactive cave experience and meet their mysterious (but friendly!) Abominable Snowman - he may even have a magical gift for each child!’ Tickets cost £10 per adult and £8 per child (not suitable for children under 5), and booking is required. This event is set to occur on multiple occasions so if you can't make one date, don't worry! Book your place here.

Sunday 7th December: Head to the National Holocaust Museum ‘for a virtual tour available both in person and online, of our newly re-created exhibition ‘The Journey’. Through a series of immersive period rooms, you’ll step into the world of a German-Jewish family in 1930s Berlin, witness the aftermath of Kristallnacht, and follow young Leo’s escape to Britain. You will then meet Kindertransport survivor John Fieldsend, who will share his memories of making this journey, and whose testimony has shaped "The Journey" exhibition. You will also hear from Dr Amy Williams about her spectacular re-discovery of archival documents, which have cast new light on individual stories of the Kindertransport.’ Ticket prices vary but booking is required. Book your place here.

Wednesday 10th December: A talk at Beeston Library will delve into the history of the Christmas Radio Times. ‘In this talk, local historian Robert Mee will look at the changing nature of the magazine, from the first edition in 1923 until 1999. He will also look at the programmes offered by the BBC on Christmas Day - there will no doubt be an element of nostalgia for days-past, but broadcasting trends and improvements in technology will also be covered’. Tickets cost £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Historic image of the Christmas Radio Times

Above: Christmas Radio Times,18th December 1931, Southern Edition (By Rex Whistler, Public Domain)

Thursday 11th December: 'Join David Marsh and Nottinghamshire Gardens Trust for a Christmassy journey through plant history and imagery' in this online talk. 'Once you start exploring the history of mistletoe it becomes more and more complex and lost in a web of legends. But how did it became to be associated with Druids? This talk tells the story of the plant and the man who almost singlehandedly invented most of what we think we know about the Druids…and that includes mistletoe too!' This talk event costs £5 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Thursday 11th December: 'Zig Zag’s Christmas City Quiz Crawl to save The People’s Hall!' 'Join Zig Zag Tours for a classic Zig Zag pub crawl with the added twist of quizzing your way around several historic pubs...You’ll be guided to various pubs, where you’ll meet a Zig Zag quizmaster who will test your knowledge while you wet your whistle. The evening will conclude with the winners being announced, trophies awarded, and possibly the best raffle ever to take place on the banks of the canal.' 'All profits will be going towards the new roof at the Peoples Hall'. Tickets cost £13 (this includes 5 raffle tickets and a chip cob), you may come solo or as a team, and booking is required. Book your place here.

Friday 12th December: ‘Back by popular demand, A Merry Noyse will be regaling us with a feast of music from Christmas past [at the Palace Theatre, Newark]. A joyful mix of history, poetry and musical performance, the perfect cosy historical start to your Christmas season!’ Tickets cost up to £10 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.

Saturday 13th December: Head to the Framework Knitters Museum in Ruddington for a magical step back in time at their Victorian Christmas — a festive day packed with music, traditional crafts, food heritage, and family-friendly activities in their beautiful historic setting’. ‘Try your hand at their historic circular knitting machines’, ‘discover how the Victorians made mince pies and what festive food looked like in times gone by’, browse ‘unique gifts and local goodies’ and much more! This event is free and booking is not required. For more information, visit the event page here.

Monday 15th December: In association with Creswell Crags, join Dr Helen Fewlass online to discover how new fieldwork & science are developing understanding of Homo sapiens and Neanderthal encounters’. This event is free but booking is required. Book your place here.

Saturday 20th December - Sunday 4th January: ‘Step into the heart of Sherwood Forest this Christmas and join Robin Hood and his Merry Band for a seasonal adventure! Follow the trail through the winter woods, completing merry tasks and solving clever Christmas dingbats along the way. Collect hidden letters from the Yule Log Challenge to crack the final festive code for a Christmas surprise!’ It’s £4.50 to enter but booking is not required. For more information, visit the event page here.