What's New

Have you ever wondered what Historic Environment Records (HERs) are or what they are used for? Alongside Historic England, HER offices across England have collaborated together to produce two wonderful introductory short films showcasing how HERs work and why they are such a valuable resource.

There are over 80 HER offices across England, each bringing together all sorts of information about archaeology, historic buildings and landscapes within its designated area. Together, they provide national coverage - helping people access trusted local knowledge and supporting the understanding, management and conservation of historic places.

Every single HER record brings together written information and geographic data about the historic environment in a particular area. They help planners, researchers, communities and visitors understand what exists, what matters, and how places have evolved over time.

This first short introductory film explains what exactly the Historic Environment Records are in more detail: What are Historic Environment Records?

Why are Historic Environment Records important?

Most of us walk across layers of history every day without realising it. Not just famous landmarks, but ordinary places. Fields. Streets. Buildings. Coastlines. Places we pass without a second thought. What stories do these places hold? Who or what was here before us? The answer is out there, sometimes all it takes is knowing where to look.

This second short collaboration film aims to show why HERs matter: Why Historic Environment Records Matter

Behind every historic record is a person making sense of it.

HER teams work with information, maps and evidence as well as with judgement, context and care. Their role is to help translate layers of the past into something useful for the present. It’s quiet work, but it shapes real decisions about places and landscapes.

Across England, these teams are dedicated to the ongoing effort of keeping track of change, recording what matters, and helping places evolve without losing what makes them special.

Have you ever really looked at where you live? Everything around you has a story that ties the people who use it today to the people who used it in the past, be it a large site like manor house or a small site like a phone box. Explore where you live on our Nottinghamshire County Council HER website, with map and search functions, or get in touch with us at heritage@nottscc.gov.uk.

For more information on Historic Environment Records across England, visit the Historic England website here

The Battle of Bosworth in Leicestershire in 1485 altered the course of English history and ushered in the reign of the Tudor dynasty. It was regarded as a significant win for the House of Lancaster during the War of the Roses, a war that had seen the House of York and the House of Lancaster fighting for the English throne since 1455. In this battle, Henry Tudor’s (subsequently known as Henry VII) army managed to kill the current king Richard III on the battlefield, allowing Henry and the House of Lancaster to take the throne.

Today, this battle is largely considered to have ended to the War of the Roses as the Tudor dynasty managed to consolidate and maintain power until Elizabeth I’s death in 1603. But at the time, the Yorkists weren’t ready to give up and were making moves to secure the English throne once again.

The Yorkist side found hope in Lambert Simnel, a 10-year-old boy pretending to be the Earl of Warwick, supposedly the son of Edward IV’s brother. The leaders of the Yorkist side used Simnel to re-group support after the devasting Battle of Bosworth.

To gather an army, the Yorkist leaders travelled to Dublin in May 1487 and managed to recruit over 4000 men. Simnel was even crowned ‘King Edward VI’ in Dublin by the Yorkist leaders and Irish nobility.

Above: 19th century illustration depicting Irish supporters carrying Simnel (By Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Ed. Vol XXV. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1910. 124. - Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Ed. Vol XXV. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1910. 124., Public Domain)

Returning to England at the start of June 1487, the army numbers increased to around 8,000 soldiers and the men began travelling south from Lancaster. Along the way, the rebel Yorkist army encountered Lancastrian cavalry which started three days of skirmishes at Sherwood Forest. The Lancastrian cavalry was forced back to Nottingham by the rebel Yorkists, and there the cavalry waited for Henry’s main army to come and assist.

King Henry’s army of some 15,000 men arrived in Nottingham on 14th June, including reinforcements from Wales. The poorly-equipped Yorkist army were dangerously outnumbered.

Both sides clashed in battle on 16th June 1487 in East Stoke, a battle to be known as the Battle of Stoke Field. It remains Nottinghamshire’s only registered battlefield.

Only parts of Henry’s army had formed up properly when the battle started but even so, the Yorkist army, with their fewer numbers, poorly-equipped soldiers and weaker leadership, suffered a devasting loss with heavy casualties. By the end, almost all of the Yorkist leaders had been killed and many of the soldiers tried to ‘flee towards the River Trent but were captured or killed. The River Trent is said to have “run red with blood”’.

The number of men killed in the battle is estimated to be between 4000-7000 men and unfortunately the hope of putting a Yorkist on the throne died with them.

Burial pits containing some of the fallen have been recorded near East Stoke (M1680 and M17856). A small number of 8-11 individuals recovered from this pit were analysed as recently as the mid 2010’s. The results suggested all the remains belonged to robust males aged between 17 and 46. Sharp force trauma was encountered on many bones including skulls and tibia. Some of the skulls recovered from one of the burial pits, illustrating battlefield trauma, are on display currently at the National Civil War Centre in Newark.

Dr Samantha Tipper at Anglia Ruskin University is also currently undertaking osteoarchaeological analysis on a set of skeletons recovered from the battlefield and it is hoped that from this project we can find out more about a bit about who these soldiers were, what they experienced during their lives, and where they spent most of their lives.

The Battle of Stoke Field is not only important for Nottinghamshire’s heritage but also in English history as the true end of the War of the Roses.

For fantastic videos, including some wonderful interviews with some of the main characters of the battle, and a self-guided trail on public footpaths to visit the site, visit the Nottinghamshire County Council’s web page here.

As a registered battlefield, Historic England manages the record and research of this site, you can view their list entry here.

Above: Battle of Stoke Field at ground level (By Andrew Tatlow, CC BY-SA 2.0)

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.

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

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:

• World War II Tower in Wigsley
• Former Georgian Manor at the Manor Farm Recreation Ground in Toton
• Bronze Age ring ditches which held Bronze Age cremation and urned cremation burials in Sutton-in-Ashfield
• Victorian built Tuxford Primary School in Tuxford
• Former Edwardian Mineral Railway in Mansfield
• Roman to Post-Medieval activity, including a Saxon-Early Medieval cemetery, near Southwell Minster in Southwell

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:

• Forge Mill in Hucknall
• Church of St Helen in West Burton
• Medieval Fishponds at Attenborough
• Brookside House in Lamley
• Forest Town Workers Village in Mansfield Woodhouse
• Burials from the Battle of East Stoke in East Stoke

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.

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.

During a time with no maps or road signs, travellers feared getting lost, or even worse – coming across a highwayman.

The first record we have of the word ‘highwayman’ came from 1617 but evidence for highwaymen can be found earlier in the medieval period. The peak of highwayman activity spanned from roughly 1660 to 1714, but the threat of highwaymen continued into the 19th century to a lesser extent, with the last recorded mounted robbery was in 1831.

A large cause for this peak in robbery was the English Civil War. With the beheading of King Charles I in 1649, the civil war ended which left some of Charles’ Royalist soldiers, that had no other skills or trades, without means to support themselves and their families. In most cases, they had little choice but to rob to stay alive.

Some highwaymen chose to attack travellers and coaches to take their money and expensive items. In other circumstances, highwaymen forced travellers to pay a fee to go free and unscathed. It was not only rich travellers who got held up by highwaymen, postboys who carried the mail were often targeted.

The hot spots for highwaymen encounters in the East Midlands included the Peak District and the old Great North Road, which ran between Newark, East Retford and Tuxford.

At this time, parish policing was rather ineffective and making arrests was difficult. This did not mean that being a highwayman was an easy vocation. With an average life expectancy of a highwayman estimated to be only 28 years old, it was a very risky trade. Being caught, more often than not, lead to death by hanging, following which their bodies would be placed in gibbets near roads to warn other highwaymen and criminals.

Above: Asalto al coche (Attack on a Coach), by Francisco Goya (1786-1787), Public Domain

The most famous highwayman based in the East Midlands was John Nevison, sometimes nicknamed ‘Swift Nick’.

Born in 1639 in South Yorkshire, Nevison became a highwayman after death of his father. Before that, he was serving under the Duke of York in an English regiment, reportedly taking part in the Battle of Dunkirk in 1658 before leaving. Even during his time serving under the Duke of York in Flanders, he was reportedly arrested for stealing!

As a highwayman, Nevison based himself in Newark. He worked with a gang of, potentially, up to 20 other highwaymen who he met at safe houses in Tuxford and Newark to divide up their spoils. It is reported that the gang kept rooms at the Talbot Inn (possibly the now demolished Clinton Arms Hotel) in Newark all year round for this reason. They tallied up over £1,500 in one year which would have been around £150,000-£170,000 in today’s money, according to retellings of the housekeeper’s reports. Nevison and his gang focused their efforts on the old Great North Road and would travel as far York and Huntingdon on occasion for opportunities.

Nevison found some fame during his lifetime, with his actions being acknowledged, and perhaps even praised by King Charles II. Charles supposedly named him ‘Swift Nick’ and granted him free pardon upon hearing of his dastardly famous ride. This famous ride involved Nevison travelling from Kent to York in 1676 after robbing a traveller in Rochester. To escape capture, he rode all the way up to York (which is over 200 miles north!) and met with the Lord Mayor of York to create an alibi. When he was arrested for the Rochester robbing, the Lord Mayor provided him with this alibi and Nevison was amazingly acquitted.

He also had a reputation for being a gentlemanly highwayman. According to written sources, Nevison chose not to use violence against his victims and only robbed those who were rich. He was even reportedly polite to those he robbed! Unfortunately, this version of Nevison comes mainly from 18th and 19th century literary works and therefore may be more fiction than reality. This romanticised portrayal of his character during this period is similar to how the legend of Robin Hood has evolved over time to be more noble, and in some situations, Nevison is compared to Robin Hood.

Nevison was tried for theft multiple times between 1674 and 1681 but managed to avoid the hangman’s noose. After which, he restarted his robbing ways. In 1684, however, he was finally caught, tried, and later hung at York for the murder of a constable who was attempting to arrest him. He was buried in an unmarked grave in a church in York.

Cut to the modern day, ‘Swift Nick’ Nevison is the feature of multiple songs and even a novel. The 1913 novel ‘Swift Nick of the York Road’ by George Edgar portrays Nevison as a gentleman who can hold himself in many a dual.

A blue plaque is even placed on the Three Houses Inn public house where John Nevison was thought to have been arrested for the final time.

Above: Blue Plaque commemorating John Nevison, 2009 (by Mike Kirby, CC BY-SA 2.0)