Kimberley is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Broxtowe in Nottinghamshire, England, lying northwest of Nottingham along the A610.

History

The name Kimberley derives from the Old English Cynemǣrlēah meaning 'Cynemǣr's wood or clearing'.

Kimberley is referred to as Chinemarelie in William the Conqueror's Domesday Book. With the accession of William to the throne Kimberley came into the possession of William de Peveril. The Peverils lost control when they supported the losing side in the civil war which preceded the accession of Henry II of England in 1154. The King became the owner of the land. King John of England granted land in the area to Ralph de Greasley in 1212 who took up residence at Greasley Castle and also at around this time to Henry de Grey whose son re-built Codnor Castle on the site of an earlier castle established by William Peveril.

Ralph de Greasley's land passed by inheritance and marriage to Nicholas de Cantelupe who took part in Edward III of England's Scottish campaigns and also the Battle of Crécy. Nicholas founded Beauvale Priory using part of his Kimberley holding in 1343. That part of Kimberley which had become the property of Beauvale Priory was claimed by King Henry VIII during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century.

The former Kimberley Brewery site has within its boundaries a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), listed under the title of "Kimberley Railway Cutting" as an important location for Permian Gymnosperm fossils. The Permian/Carboniferous unconformity is exposed in the cutting.

Demographics

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+ Census population of Kimberley, Nottinghamshire parish

|-

! scope=col width=18%| Census

! scope=col width=18% class="unsortable"| Population <nowiki />

! scope=col width=18% class="unsortable"| Female

! scope=col width=18% class="unsortable"| Male <nowiki />

! scope=col width=18% class="unsortable"| Households

! scope=col width=10% class="unsortable"| Source

|-

!scope=row| 2001

|| 6,237 <nowiki />

|| 3,205

|| 3,032 <nowiki />

|| 2,613

||

|-

!scope=row| 2011

|| 6,053 <nowiki />

|| 3,067

|| 2,986 <nowiki />

|| 2,658

||

|-

!scope=row| 2021

|| 6,033 <nowiki />

|| 3,095

|| 2,938 <nowiki />

|| 2,773

||

|}

Notable residents

  • William Bryan (1856–1933), first-class cricketer
  • John Reynolds was British Superbike Champion, 1992, 2001 and 2004
  • Sergeant Richard Bolitho was the rear gunner on a Lancaster bomber which crashed with the loss of the whole crew during the Dambuster raid in World War II.
  • Elizabeth Arnold competed in the 1992 Olympic Games and the Common wealth games in 1990. Member of the Great British swimming team for over 5 years

Sport

thumb|upright|Kimberley's distinctive [[water tower at Swingate]]

  • Kimberley Miners Welfare F.C. who play in the .
  • Kimberley Town F.C. were the main local football team until they folded in 2012.
  • Kimberley Institute Cricket Club is the town's cricket team.
  • Awsworth - Kimberley & District Rifle Club
  • Kimberley & District Striders Running Club

Media

Local news and television programmes are BBC East Midlands and ITV Central. Television signals are received from the [[Waltham transmitting station|Waltham TV

transmitter]], and the Nottingham relay transmitter.

Local radio stations are BBC Radio Nottingham, Capital East Midlands, Smooth East Midlands, Hits Radio East Midlands and Greatest Hits Radio Midlands.

The town is served by local newspaper, Mansfield and Ashfield Chad (formerly Eastwood & Kimberley Advertiser).

See also

  • Listed buildings in Kimberley, Nottinghamshire
  • Murder of Barbara Mayo, infamous unsolved killing of a woman who was apparently abducted from Kimberley in 1970
  • Kimberley West railway station
  • Kimberley East railway station
  • Watnall railway station

References

Further reading

  • YouTube video - parish visit journal