Forest Town

The village of Forest Town was developed when Mansfield (Crown Farm) Colliery was sunk. The photos on this postcard were possibly taken around 1911, revealing some of the major building at that time.

Institute

This was built by the Bolsover Colliery Company, and opened in 1908. The picture shows the tennis courts and some of the well laid out gardens. The buildings in the background are St David’s Mission Church, and the Parsonage. This Institute building was demolished and replaced in the 1970’s with a flat roof building. It is now known as Forest Town Welfare.

Drill Hall

This is another of the Bolsover Colliery Company’s establishments which was opened in 1909. It was built to provide accommodation for the youth groups of the day – the Boys Brigade, and Girls Brigade. It also provided a meeting place for other groups and village events. The building, which has undergone minor alterations, is now known as Kingsway Hall.

Mansfield Colliery

The colliery was sunk in 1904. It is often referred to as ‘Crownie’ or Crown Farm Colliery due to its close proximity to a farm of that name. After providing coal for the nation for over 80 years the colliery closed in 1988. The site now houses various types of industry.

Main Street

This street is today known as Clipstone Road West. In the past it was referred to as Clipstone Road, High Street, and Main Street. While the buildings still stand today, they have over the years undergone various changes. The people in the photo are outside what was then the post office, it is now a chemists. The postmaster at that time was Shadrach Osler and he is responsible for producing this postcard.

Saint Alban’s Church

This Anglican Church was built to replace St David’s Mission, Forest Town’s first Anglican Church. A stone laying ceremony took place on 5th November 1910 and the church was dedicated in July 1911. Various alterations both inside and outside the church have taken place over the years. It remains a key place of worship in the village today[1909].

S. Osler

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