Nether Edge (ward)

History

Before the 19th century the area that is now Nether Edge was largely rural, the only clusters of cottages being the small medieval hamlet of Cherry Tree Hill and a small hamlet at Machon Bank. Much of the development of the area was undertaken by George Wostenholm, a local cutler who from 1836 onward purchased a large area of land east of Brincliffe Edge. Wostenholm modelled the estate on the town of Boston, Massachusetts and lined all of the roads with trees.

Wostenholm's home, Kenwood House, and the surrounding park (now the Kenwood Hall Hotel) took up a large portion of the land, the garden designer, Robert Marnock laid out the surrounding roads as a series of curving avenues and the remaining land sold off for development. As a result, many of the homes in the area are spacious Victorian houses that were owned by local cutlers and business men.

The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 (PLAA) allowed parishes to form unions, jointly responsible for the administration and funding of Poor Law in their area. By 1831 the population of the area had increased considerably and in 1837 the ‘Ecclesall Bierlow Poor Law Union’ (PLD or Poor Law District) was founded and Ecclesall Bierlow Union Workhouse, Cherry Tree Hill, Nether Edge was built. In 1929 the workhouse was renamed ‘Nether Edge Hospital’ housing a Gynaecology Unit established to serve the whole of Sheffield.

Many well-to-do people bought individual plots and had houses specially built but a great deal of the building in Nether Edge was speculative. Such men as John Firth, Thomas Steade and John Law were not builders by trade but made a significant contribution to the character of the area. Local builders James Sivil, Henry and Robert Brumby and John Thomas Johnson also helped turn this area from open fields to a very desirable locality for middle-class and self-made men. Improved transport, particularly the trams, made it possible for the better off to move their home out of the town centre and, for the first time for many, away from their place of business.

Much of tree-lined Nether Edge became designated a conservation area in September 2002.

Nether Edge

Nether Edge (grid reference SK342847) is an established residential suburb in the southwest of the City of Sheffield, England.

Local facilities include a small shopping area at the junction of Nether Edge Road and Machon Bank Road, featuring a cafe, Post Office, arts & crafts shops, a dentist, organic fruit & vegetable shop, "Zed on the Edge", a local baker, delicatessen / cafes, including "Cafe #9", barber and hairdresser shops, a local mini-market, Bannerdale Osteopaths and a Sainsburys Local supermarket and a separate garage situated on the site of a former tram terminus. Two small theatres (the Merlin and the Lantern) also exist in the area. A farmers market selling local food produce and craft goods is held 4 times a year in the central area on dates roughly coinciding with the equinoxes and solstice dates.

Banner Cross

Banner Cross is a district of Sheffield centred on the intersection of Ecclesall Road and Psalter Lane. This district is split evenly between Nether Edge and Ecclesall Wards. Banner Cross Hall, an ancient esquire seat, was virtually rebuilt in 1820. The main place of worship is Banner Cross Methodist Church. The nearby Banner Cross pub gained infamy when the notorious criminal Charles Peace shot and killed Arthur Dyson in the passageway beside the pub on 29 November 1876. The base of an old stone cross still remained at Banner Cross in 1819. Addy (1888) suggested that the name derives from bæna kross, meaning the cross of prayers.

Brincliffe

grid reference SK333849

Carter Knowle

Carter Knowle or Carterknowle (grid reference SK335843) lies south of Brincliffe Edge, between Ecclesall Road and Abbeydale. A residential area, it is home to Sheffield College's Bannerdale campus.

Sharrow Vale

Sharrow Vale (grid reference SK336858) is a district in the southwestern portion of Sheffield. It straddles the Porter Brook and Ecclesall Road (A625). Hunter's Bar, at the junction of Ecclesall Road, Brocco Bank, Sharrow Vale Road and Junction Road, was formerly a toll bar on the 18th century Sheffield to Hathersage Turnpike — the toll house is long gone but the toll gate can still be seen. To the north of this neighbourhood is the Sheffield Botanical Gardens, and the historic Sheffield General Cemetery lies to the east. To the west is Endcliffe Park, the first in a series of parks that follow the Porter Brook out of Sheffield.