Sling, Gloucestershire

Last updated

Sling
Sling crossroads - geograph.org.uk - 1044922.jpg
Gloucestershire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Sling
Location within Gloucestershire
OS grid reference SO583079
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Police Gloucestershire
Fire Gloucestershire
Ambulance South Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Gloucestershire
51°46′08″N2°36′14″W / 51.769°N 2.604°W / 51.769; -2.604

Sling is a village in Gloucestershire, England. The village is located between Clearwell and Bream. It is just south of the village of Milkwall.

Contents

History

The hamlet of Sling derives its name from a local iron ore mine. [1] In 1838 G. E. Jackson, a Birmingham ironmaster, sank "Old Sling" ore mine below old workings at Clearwell Meend. It was one of the larger iron ore mines in the Forest of Dean, and in the mid-1860s it employed nearly 100 people. The mine had closed by 1921. [2]

A factory for repairing boilers, F. E. Watkins Limited, was founded at Sling in 1942, and was still operating in the late 1960s when it also made machine tools and employed around 150 people. [2] The factory used to announce shift starts and ends using a World War 2 air raid siren until the late 1970s.

In the 18th and 19th century there were just a few scattered cottages in the area. Two of the cottages, in the fork of a road to Parkend, were later occupied by a beerhouse called the Miners' Arms. [1] Another building nearby adopted that name by the late 1870s and remains an inn today. [3] Several more cottages were built before the 1920s when the growth of Sling began around the crossroads formed by routes from St Briavels to Parkend and from Bream to Coleford. [1] A memorial hall built at Sling around 1921 was superseded by a new Miners' Welfare institute in 1931. It later became a social club. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest of Dean</span> Geographical, historical and cultural region in England

The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and northwest, Herefordshire to the north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinderford</span> Human settlement in England

Cinderford is a town and civil parish on the eastern fringe of the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. The population was 8,777 at the 2021 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parkend</span> Human settlement in England

Parkend is a village, located at the foot of the Cannop Valley, in the Royal Forest of Dean, West Gloucestershire, England, and has a history dating back to the early 17th century. During the 19th century it was a busy industrial village with several coal mines, an ironworks, stoneworks, timber-yard and a tinplate works, but by the early 20th century most had succumbed to a loss of markets and the general industrial decline. In more recent times, the village has become a tourist destination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coleford, Gloucestershire</span> Market town in Gloucestershire, England

Coleford is a market town in the west of the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, two miles (3 km) east of the Welsh border and close to the Wye Valley. It is the administrative centre of the Forest of Dean district. The combined population of the town's two electoral wards at the 2011 census was 8,359. The population of the town's parish was 9,273 in the 2021 Census. The parish includes the village of Baker's Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearwell Caves</span> Cave system in Clearwell, England

Clearwell Caves, at Clearwell in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, is a natural cave system which has been extensively mined for iron ore. It now operates primarily as a mining museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bream, Gloucestershire</span> Human settlement in England

Bream is a village in the Forest of Dean, west Gloucestershire, England. The population was around 3,170 in the 2011 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freeminer</span> Ancient title of coal and iron miners in England

Freeminer is an ancient title given to coal or iron miners in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, who have earned the right to mine personal plots, known as gales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newland, Gloucestershire</span> Human settlement in England

Newland is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. situated on the east side of the River Wye, 3 miles (5 km) south-east of Monmouth. It is notable for its parish church of All Saints, known as the 'Cathedral of the Forest'. It was the centre of a large parish with complex boundaries and scattered settlements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearwell</span> Village in Gloucestershire, England

Clearwell is a village and former ancient manor in the Forest of Dean, West Gloucestershire, England. A recent survey indicated that the population of Clearwell is approximately 350.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brockhollands</span> Human settlement in England

Brockhollands is a hamlet located in the Forest of Dean. It lies between the village of Bream and the town of Lydney in Gloucestershire. It is an obscure and small area with around 30 houses and is relatively unknown even in the local area. With its only attributes being the local sheep farm, it rarely sees any tourism but is frequently driven through by those going up to Bream.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milkwall</span> Human settlement in England

Milkwall is a village in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. It lies between the village of Sling to the south, and the town of Coleford to the north. Milkwall, strictly speaking, lies South of Station Rd in the parish of West Dean, whereas Tufthorn is North of Station Rd in the parish of Coleford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yorkley</span> Human settlement in England

Yorkley is a village in west Gloucestershire, England. The village includes the settlement of Yorkley Slade to the east. Yorkley is situated between the villages of Pillowell and Oldcroft.

West Dean is a civil parish, situated in the Forest of Dean district of Gloucestershire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broadwell, Forest of Dean</span> Human settlement in England

Broadwell is a village about 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Coleford, Gloucestershire, England. It is at the western edge of the Forest of Dean, in the civil parish of Coleford, which is also its post town. The village of Mile End is to the north and Coalway is to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitecroft</span> Human settlement in England

Whitecroft is a village in the Forest of Dean in west Gloucestershire, England. It is located in-between Bream and Yorkley. Whitecroft comes under the postal district of Lydney.

Warren James (1792–1841) was a rebel leader in the Forest of Dean, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Fancy</span>

New Fancy was a colliery on the Forest of Dean Coalfield near Parkend in Gloucestershire, England. After the colliery closed its spoil heap was landscaped. The site has a picnic area, and viewing site from where goshawks can be seen. It is linked to the Forest of Dean Family Cycle Trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parkend Ironworks</span> Historic site in England, UK

Parkend Ironworks, also known as Parkend Furnace, in the village of Parkend, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, was a coke-fired furnace built in 1799. Most of the works were demolished between 1890 and 1908, but the engine house survived and is arguably the best preserved example of its kind to be found in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinderford Ironworks</span> Historic site in England, UK

Cinderford Ironworks, also known as Cinderford Furnace, was a coke-fired blast furnace, built in 1795, just west of Cinderford, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest of Dean Coalfield</span>

The Forest of Dean Coalfield, underlying the Forest of Dean, in west Gloucestershire, is one of the smaller coalfields in the British Isles, although intensive mining during the 19th and 20th centuries has had enormous influence on the landscape, history, culture, and economy of the area.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Forest of Dean: Settlement, Victoria County History
  2. 1 2 Forest of Dean: Industry, Victoria County History
  3. 1 2 Forest of Dean: Social life, Victoria County History