From the 18th century, Kidsgrove grew around coal mining, although the pits have now closed. Clough Hall mansion in the town is now demolished.
The engineer James Brindley cut the first Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal near the town; Thomas Telford cut the second. Kidsgrove also marks the southern extremity of the Macclesfield Canal. There is a legend regarding a headless ghost that is said to haunt the Harecastle Tunnel. The ghost is said to be that of a young woman who was murdered inside the tunnel. She is referred to as the "Kidsgrove Boggart".
In 1975, kidnapping victim Lesley Whittle was kept in Bathpool Park, south of Kidsgrove, in an air ventilation shaft from a disused coal mine. She was kept in the shaft for several weeks, with a noose around her neck, and was hanged. Donald Neilson, the killer known as the "Black Panther," was later convicted of murdering her after repeated delays in getting the ransom.
The town used to house the English Electric site on West Avenue, Nelson Industrial Estate. Over the years, it went through various name changes: GEC, CEGELEC, Alstom and Converteam, before finally General Electric.[1] GE closed the Kidsgrove site in 2016[2] and the last remaining original building has since been demolished, leaving only the recently erected warehouse which is now under use of another company.
Governance
The town is situated in north-west Staffordshire and is part of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme.
Kidsgrove has a town council of twenty members, separated into four wards: Talke and Butt Lane, Kidsgrove Central & Ravenscliffe, Hardings Wood, and Newchapel & Mow Cop. Kidsgrove Town Council was created in 1974, when Kidsgrove Urban District Council was abolished when the area was absorbed by Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council under the Local Government Act 1972.
A mayor is elected by the town council annually; this position is mainly a civic role and acts as an ambassador for Kidsgrove. The town council is based at Kidsgrove Town Hall.[3]
The A50 bisects the town from north-west to south-east; the A34 and A500 run close by.
Media
Since the town is close to the Cheshire-Staffordshire border, local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North West and ITV Granada that broadcast from Salford taking television signals being received from the Winter Hill TV transmitter.[9]
Kidsgrove Rotary with their second trophy of the year for winning the Rotary 1210 District darts competition in 2011
Founded on 15 January 1969 and presented with its charter on 2 July of the same year, the Rotary Club of Kidsgrove (RCK) has been active within the community whether fundraising, volunteering or helping out local projects for over 50 years. The club is also part of District 1210 within Rotary International in Britain and Ireland.[12]
Originally meeting in the Masonic Hall and Institute in the town, the group now meets at the Red Bull, in Church Lawton. Every November, RCK hold a bonfire night and fireworks at Clough Hall Park; during December, they can be seen on the streets of Kidsgrove with their Santa float, collecting for local good causes.
In April 2012, RCK were also announced as the Rotary International in Britain and Ireland winners of the Club Online Presence Award. This was the first time the award has been presented; it recognises the achievements the group have made through their website and a variety of social media avenues in the year.[12]
Scouts
The town is home to the 1st Kidsgrove Scout Group, in the district of Potteries North, and were established in 1910. The group has undertaken regular tours to the DCA World Championships in the US.[13]
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