A Hucknall History

Census Population Figures

Historian G.G. Bonser accessed a remarkable 1295 Mansfield Manor rental survey from which he extracted Sutton tenants to claim a total population would probably be about 400. Including Hucknall Huthwaite also among Sutton-in-Ashfield parish registers, Dr. S. T. Hall suggested, beginning the 18th century there were but ninety five families in Sutton, while noting parish clerk Thomas Dove conducted a 1770 door to door census still ambiguously recording families, 270 of whom lived in Sutton plus 80 in Huthwaite. A census taken 1793 by Sir Richard Sutton again included Huthwaite with a slovenly count totalling 3,492..

Collating all available Hucknall Huthwaite census numbers can graphically illustrate periods of general industrialised significance.

Year   Sutton  %  Huthwaite
1801    2,801  18.2     510
1811    3,386  18.0     608
1821    3,943  18.0     712
1831    4,805  19.3     929
1841    5,670  15.6     887
1851    6,554  17.6   1,154
1861    6,483  17.9   1,162 
1871    7,574  20.4   1,547 
1881    8,523  23.8   2,028 
1891   10,562  28.6   3,022 
1901   14,867  27.4   4,076 
1911   21,708  24.1   5,235 
1921   23,852  23.0   5,478 
1931   25,151  23.2   5,836 
1934   25,750  19.9   5,135  
1939
1951
1961   27,618  17     4,571 
1971   26,850  17     4,570 

Taking census every ten years might have shown initial concern about monitoring and feeding the nations recent population boom. Farms populating smaller rural hamlets and villages struggled to support growing numbers of agricultural labourers. Manorial concern encouraged introduction of Frame Work Knitting machines, and that home cottage industry eventually established district renown for hosiery manufacturing.

Parliamentary or UK national census began 1801. After simple head counts, detailed records from 1841 provide useful genealogy reference. Most numbers are extracted from dated gazetteers detailing Hucknall Huthwaite entries. Additional listing of Sutton figures simply compares relative size of Hucknall Huthwaite by calculated percentage.

Digging coal from and around Hucknall Huthwaite can date way before Mellor's larger colliery sees first major jump in numbers populating its Pit Row housing. A steeper rise does nonetheless follow its closure, clearly indicating greater employment by the FWK trade among the communal yards filling out west side the Main Street.

Sharpest 30 year rise from 1880 must of course result from opening the modern New Hucknall Colliery. Management generously contributed in the building of a prospering Huthwaite mining community. Having invited a massive workforce quickly demanding broadest village construction, housing never did manage fully meeting demand. When needing to reduce full time employees, many existing Huthwaite resident families were able to find work in walking distance among other neighbouring collieries.

This long proud mining community should also acknowledge the hosiery industry for adding a final increase reaching 1931 peak. Opening a vast CWS factory transferred only a few key staff from Leicester while certainly enticing other tradesmen. But even if boundary changes and tramway commuters didn't up numbers, this larger factory expanded the hosiery trade, securing family life by also employing young females.

Any hopes towards asserting individual town status would be ultimately dashed by forced abolition of the Huthwaite Urban District Council in 1935. Amalgamation into an enlarged Sutton U.D. plus outbreak of a second world war adds difficulty confirming data for a vaguely defined Huthwaite Ward. Further amalgamation lost some village pride being collectively represented in largest part an electoral Sutton West Ward under an Ashfield District Council. Despite recent loss of all major employment, 2011 suggested the Huthwaite population stood at about 7,500, before recognising the local mining heritage in a renamed Huthwaite and Brierley Ward.