Place:Swinton (near Rotherham), West Riding of Yorkshire, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

NOTE: Swinton near Rotherham should not be confused with Swinton near Malton in the North Riding of Yorkshire (now North Yorkshire).

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Swinton is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham, in South Yorkshire, England on the west bank of the River Don. It has a population of 15,559 (2011). The town is five miles north-northeast of the larger town of Rotherham and directly west-southwest of Mexborough. The original junior and infant school building built 1852 on Church Street formerly Fitzwilliam School still exists being converted into residential apartments called 'Fitzwilliam Lodge'

The civil parishes represented by the numbers on the map will be found on the pages for Rotherham Rural District and Kiveton Park Rural District.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

The town was once a centre for the manufacture of pottery of international importance, and deep coal mining, glassmaking, canal barge-building and engineering.

It is known for the Rockingham Pottery, a world-renowned manufacturer of porcelain. Although the factory closed in 1842, its name defines a style of rococo porcelain. There were several other potteries in the area during the 19th century. One of the original kilns, a small part of the factory, a gatehouse (both now private residences) and the pottery flint millpond remain today in Pottery Ponds, a small park off Blackamoor Road near the Woodman public house. Swinton was also the site of the important but lesser known Don Pottery.

The village lies between the Roman Ridge (extending approximately from Wincobank to the north east of Sheffield, to Mexborough) and the south west Roman road from Doncaster (the Roman fort and minor settlement of Danum). A coin hoard dating to the early 3rd century was excavated during the construction of a house cellar in the village in 1853.

In June 2014, Andrew Allen uncovered a number of pottery sherds whilst gardening at home. Preliminary observations found that it comprised approximately 90 pottery sherds, including high status Samian ware, traditional cooking wares and rusticated pottery, as well as possible metal and glass working waste products.

In October 2014, South Yorkshire's first crowd-funded archaeological project [1] commenced with an archaeological excavation in the area of the pottery finds. It found evidence of a Roman ditch and a possible Roman field system and numerous pieces of pottery from the late 1st to mid 3rd centuries. Further archaeological excavation was undertaken in spring 2015 and a comprehensive geophysical survey of Swinton Fitzwilliam school playing fields. Further work is planned with Elmet Archaeology and the local community.

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