Burton Mail Remembers

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Today marks exactly 60 years since the fondly remembered Tutbury Jinnie train made its final journey. The 1643 Battle of Burton Bridge was fought between Royalists and Parliamentarians during the first English Civil War. By the time of the battle the town was under Parliamentarian command. To most, Burton Bridge is simply a way of driving in and out of the town but to historians it is an incredible piece of of country's history that saw the town drawn in to a bloody battle, that almost saw it razed to the ground. Thorntons: Another victim of the covid pandemic was chocolate giant Thorntons shop after it announced it was shutting all of its stores including Burton. It was once the go-to place for Easter eggs, with the queue for names to be added to eggs stretching out of the door at this time of the year in the past. Thorntons, which had a branch in Coopers Square shopping centre revealed in March 2021 of its plans to shut all of its 61 stores with 603 jobs impacted. The chocolatier said the on-going impact of the covid pandemic and the changing shopping habits of its customers are the reason behind the decision. It's chocolate is still available at other retailers and online, of course.

Writing a comment piece for the Burton Mail in 1959, Alf Moss who wrote under the pseudonym “Burtonian”, said: “The arguments put forward by those in favour of retaining the service were strong but so were those broached by the transport commission which produced facts and figures that the average number of passengers on a week day was only 12. At a meeting in November 1959, George Dow, the British Transport Commission representative and division traffic manager at Birmingham said that British Railways were “under Government instruction” to pay their way and “sentiment cannot enter into it”.Or it may have come from the old English "cricc" or "cryce", meaning a crutch or staff, or the French word "criquet", meaning a wooden post.

Santa often pits in an appearance that makes the day even more special for children at such events. It is also a chance to socialise and meet new people or catch up with old friends you have perhaps not had time to meet up with as much as you would like over the year. When I came here in 1926, it was a bit rough and ready, but if you went their way, the people were friendly. The two foes met at Burton Bridge where Queen Henrietta Maria's convoy was heading from Yorkshire with supplies destined for her husband King Charles I in Oxford. Ann Summers: In February 2018 sex toys and lingerie retailer Ann Summers closed its Burton store as the high street chain's lease comes to an end. The lease on the shop came to an end and will not be renewed, said a spokesman for Coopers Square shopping centre which is where the store traded from. It is now occupied by Burton fashion retailer Start and Tremayne.BHS was given the green light and officially opening on April 7, 1998 and became a favourite among shoppers. But the company hit bad times was wound down in April 2016 resulting in the closure of all high street stores. The Burton store closed on November 9 that year. And not forgetting the big high street name who almost came to Burton in Debenhams. Following the closure of the Beatties store in The Octagon shopping centre, the national department store was at one time seriously considering moving to Burton as part of an extension to Coopers Square shopping centre but sadly the idea never materialised. The change was announced in 1966 and was the start of the move that saw the entire country convert to natural gas over the next 10 years.

RE Cords: If you fancied spinning some tunes one of the go-to places was R.E. Cords, in High Street. Many a happy hour - or three - would be spent trawling through the endless vinyl recirds and then it would be across the road for a frothy coffee at The Chef. The store is pictured here in 1975.] Lancaster escaped under the cover of darkness and the king eventually returned to London. The following year King Edward II rewarded Burton Abbey by giving it Tatenhill and Hanbury churches, which had previously belonged to the rebellious Earl of Lancaster. This, the king said, was, "in perpetual memory of the glorious victory which God gave to the king over his enemies and the rebels near Burton-on-Trent”. The Pit Bank Colliery which was once an eyesore has been removed and turned over for housing. Every building has been taken."Many of the changes often go unnoticed, that is until you take look at photographs from 10, 20, 30 or even 40 years ago and appreciate the progress and changes which have taken place. Many people have worked at Pirelli factories in Burton over the years and have fond memories of their time working there. The footwear division appeared to make the headlines a lot and once even had a visit from England and Liverpool football star Kevin Keegan, complete with his 'big hair' of the 1980s.

Who remembers shopping here - many with mums and grandmas - buying bobbins and buttons. And who could ever forget THAT lift. Scary or what? And that final journey saw more than 500 passengers eager to be part of local history crowd onto the train, which was in sharp contrast to the usual number of passengers - on most days of the year, the train served just 12 people. Not content with having the record for the biggest Christmas pudding, Burtonians decided they had to push the boat out again to bag themselves another festive record.

Unfortunately, progress is not always positive and in our desire to improve, we have witnessed the demolition of some beautiful buildings and the loss of many open spaces. I think it was a massively important day in the town's history and we should proudly promote our past. The line between Tutbury and Burton saw its first journey on September 11, 1848 when the Burton to Tutbury line of the North Staffordshire Railway Company was officially opened.