Digital Hearing Sutton-in-Ashfield – Nottinghamshire Digital Hearing Aids

Digital Hearing Sutton-in-Ashfield – Nottinghamshire Digital Hearing Aids 

First settled in Saxon times, Sutton-in-Ashfield has had several names over the centuries.  Its origin seems to be the place where Gerard the son of Walter de Sutton had a small piece of land.  The suffix of ‘ton’ on a place name shows the Saxon connection and means ‘an enclosure or a fenced in clearing’.  When mentioned in the Domesday Book Sutton appeared as Sutone.

It can be assumed from its origin that Sutton started life as an agricultural area, as after all, that was how most people survived in the early days.  Farming however small, provided food and/or currency.  In more recent times, coal mining and the textile industry, mainly hosiery were the mainstays of Sutton.

Coal mining
Sutton Colliery was just outside the town at Stanton Hill and was known as the Brierley Pit or the ‘Bread and Herring’ pit, because of its poor conditions.  The Stanton Iron and Coal Company sunk two small shafts here, 183 metres down, in 1874.  These were later widened and sunk further to 425 metres.  It remained a working mine until closure in 1989 when the coal seams were exhausted.

Like many mines, whilst they brought work to the area, they also brought hazards and disasters.  In 1957 there was an explosion at the pit when 25 men were injured and suffered burns.  Five men died because of their injuries.

Brierley Colliery today has been transformed into Brierley Forest Park.  This nature reserve opened 10 years after the colliery closed and holds a Green Flag Award, which is a benchmark for parks and green spaces.

Pretty Polly
The other main industry in Sutton-in-Ashfield was textiles and in particular hosiery.  Pretty Polly wasn’t the name of a favourite pet bird, but a hosiery firm which manufactured products in Sutton from the 1920s until 2005.  Though the company was originally named after a winning race horse of that name, the Pretty Polly logo was depicted with a parrot right up until the 1960s!

The name was a good bet for many years.  The brand was the second best-selling in the stockings and tights market in the UK by 1957, when it was added to the empire of Thomas Tilling.  He also owned the Ballerina Hosiery brand as part of the Walton Hosiery Company.  A few years later these companies merged as Pretty Polly Holdings Ltd.

The team at Pretty Polly were great innovators.  They introduced a number of things we take for granted today, such as seam-free stockings and tights and ‘hold-ups’, stockings which don’t need the help of suspender belts to stay up.  Their ‘holds-ups’ were even shown on the TV program Tomorrow’s World.

The company was bought out by Courtaulds and the factory closed and moved some 14 miles to Belper in 2005.  Pretty Polly has been advertised by some well known models, including Eva Herzigova (better known for her Wonder bra ads, also made by Courtaulds), Sara Cox and Rachel Stevens (bras).

Did you hear right?
Are you wondering if you heard that right?  Was it something about a parrot or a horse wearing tights in Sutton-in-Ashfield?!  If you have problems catching all of a conversation without requesting constant repeats, give Digital Hearing Aids a call.  We can help!  There are many causes for hearing problems too and we can test both ears for severity and then advise.  Give us a call today on 01782 698090.

Catching the sun
Nottinghamshire may not be the first place you think of for catching the sun, but they certainly have the means to see where the sun is.  Right in the middle of Portland Square is a huge sundial which claims to be the biggest in Europe.  A sundial tells the time of day by where the sun is positioned in the sky.  The earliest forms of sundials date back to 3500 BC.  Sutton’s sundial isn’t that old!

The Observatory
Sutton is home to the Mansfield and Sutton Observatory also known as the Sherwood Observatory.  It is owned and run by the Mansfield and Sutton Astronomical Society and is where they host meetings, lectures and more.  The dome houses a 0.61 Newtonian Reflecting telescope.

Famous faces of Sutton-in-Ashfield
·         Henry II spent a night at Kings Mill in Sutton

·         Actor Chris Gasgoyne was born here.  He is best known for playing Peter Barlow in Coronation Street

·         Former English cricketer Pascal Broadley comes from here too

·         Trevor Ashmore had a business in Sutton called Period Coins where he produced replica coins

·         Local solder Michael Willetts was one of the first soldiers to lose his life in ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland.  He was one of a number of soldiers and civilians injured by an IRA blast bomb.  Willetts died and was posthumously award the George Cross

·         Sutton is also linked to several football players including Jimmy Walker who is currently playing in goal for Walsall, Alex Baptiste, captain for Blackpool, Steve Origzovac and Wayne Bullimore, both now retired

·         Andrew Lewis is a composer of acousmatic music which is a form of electro-acoustic music.  He comes from Sutton and studied music at Birmingham University.  Acousmatic music is specifically composed to be played through loud speakers


Do you need a loudspeaker when you’re listening to music or the TV?  Take a look here to see how we can help and then get in contact, either by telephone on 01782 698090 or via our online form.  We are here to help you with your hearing needs.