Heritage
The Rural Scene
The village had an ancient rural charm,in spite of the pit and the railway. The activities of corn-milling, market-gardening, small farms, pig-keeping, the wheelwright, blacksmith, shoemaker, tailor, stonemason and the filesmith all had their place.
The roads were narrow and rough. Violets and primroses thrived on the banks and in the hedgrows. Traffic consisted of the horse and cart, the farm wagon, the wagonette, the dogcart, and the carriage and pair.
There still remains unspoilt land beyond Spa Farm and around Treeton Wood.
Farming
In 1792 there were 18 persons who cultivated or farmed more than 5 acres of land, the chief crops being wheat, barley, oats and turnips. Most of the farmhouses of the eighteenth century were private dwellings. Jackson's farm was the home of the Foers for over one hundred years.
Robert Rodgers lived at Manor Farm in 1753.
Glebe Farm had a connection with the church.
Woodlands Farm could until recently still be seen from Front Street. At one time it belonged to the Altons. During the current conversions at Woodlands Farm
, the workmen found a two-foot iron tool in a cavity which baffled everyone, until a farming cousin suggested it was a COULTER. The Rotherham Plough revolutionised farming all over the then known world because of the coulter
Old Flatts Farm was occupied in 1792 by a John Potter and in 1871 by William Cooper. William Moody took over the farm in 1889.
Kelly's Directory of West Riding of Yorkshire, 1881 lists as Farmers in Treeton : Mrs. Elizabeth Taylor, Francis and George Moody.
Spa Farm, situated to the east of Bole Hill, was, in 1650 in the possession of George Westby, who lived at Guilthwaite Hall.
It was Westby who discovered a spring on the Spa farm estate, which became well known, people came from miles around for its medicinal treatment. After the death of George Westby, the farm fell into disuse In 1767 the Ibbotsons farmed here. There are floor memorials inside the church. Later tenants were : Stentons - who moved on to farm at Ulley, Boomers, Naylors, Howards, Foers, Twiggs and Hirsts. In 1881 Samuel Brown farmed here.
Hunting
Until the early twentieth century, the streets were often the scene of huntsmen and foxhounds. Before 1860 the Fitzwilliams used to come from Milton in Northamptonshire for the cub hunting, in that year the Earl formed a pack in the neighbourhood.
Landscape
Many of the woodlands date back to the Ice Age 10,000 years ago. The trees were used for building and for fuel. Charcoal was a major product of coppicing, providing fuel for the iron and steel industry. The wood would also have been used in the making of furniture.
Oak was one of the most common trees along with hazel and holly.
Wolves were found, pigs and sheep grazed in the woodlands.
This aerial photograph shows the surrounding countryside, taken before the new housing developments began
Treeton is within the South Yorkshire Forest plan
Hail Mary Wood
- Access is from West Lane at Aughton or Rother Crescent at Treeton where paths run downhill to enter the wood at two points.
- The Treeton Marsh area supports the grass snake as well as sticklebacks, newts and frogs.
- On the foothills of which Hail Mary Hill was a part, there was a hamlet called Canonthorpe, where in 1231 there was a chapel belonging to Nostel Priory.
- On a map dating from 1828,the name is referred to as Hail Mother Hill Wood
- Hard stones such as flint, used for tools and a variety of other purposes, has been found in an archaeological site dating from the Middle Stone Age. A pottery fragment of Roman age has also been found on the highest point of the hill.
- Hail Mary Wood and Falconer Woods were acquired by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council from the British Coal Corporation in 1989.
' ... Near Treeton and Woodhouse Mill, in South Yorkshire, is a wooded hill now described on the Ordnance maps at Hail Mary Wood. A year or two ago a friend showed me a survey made in 1745 which included this property, and in which it was described as Hell Mother Hill. Here is an interesting example of popular interpretation, for it is evident that somebody during the last few years has said that hel was a " corruption " of hail, and that mother stood for the Virgin Mary. But there are people who still know the place as Ellmother Hill, and the meaning of the name is to be found in the Old Frisian elvulha, elltmode, elmode, community, common pasture...' Source:Notes & Queries
Falconer Wood
- Access it from West Lane at Aughton or Rother Crescent at Treeton where paths run downhill to enter the wood at two points.
- A number of springs run from the top of Falconer Wood down the slope towards Treeton Dyke.
- Falconer Wood most probably derived its name from Robert de Faulkener, a fourteenth century Norman lord and landowner in the parish of Aston-cum-Aughton.
- Various mammals have been recorded including the fox, pigmy shrew, voles, hares and the weasel.
- The site is used as a feeding area by bats although no bat roosts have ever been found.
- Hail Mary Hill and Falconer Woods were acquired by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council from the British Coal Corporation in 1989.
Treeton Wood
- Access it from Wood Lane/Treeton Lane. There is a lay-by for car parking.
- Treeton Brook, defines the south-eastern edge of the wood
- Covering 50 acres,it is the largest semi-natural woodland in the local area and a prominent feature in the local landscape
- A semi-natural woodland of ancient origin, documents from the early 1600's mention Treeton Wood as a coppice woodland belonging to the 7th Earl of Shrewsbury ( 1552-1616 ).
- There have been a range of finds, from prehistoric flint fragments and tools through to a lead weight from the Medieval age.
- It was a source of oak bark, which was used in the leather tanning industry, and probably used in the building of the Manorial Barn at Whiston
- It was owned by the Dukes of Norfolk until 1993, when it was bought by Rotheham Borough Council
Treeton Dyke
- Treeton Dyke is artificial, resulting from the diversion of the River Rother around 1840 to stabilise land for the building of the Midland Railway
- The lake was then used to provide water for Orgreave Colliery. Now that this use has ceased, the water is used for variety of uses including fishing, water skiing, and as a nature reserve.
- Treeton Brook flows through the wetland area of Treeton Marsh before entering the open water of Treeton Dyke.
The former Orgreave Colliery Tip on the far side of the dyke is now being restored as an area of open space.