Park Road has a history of brick making and…love. Howard Campion looks back at the street's past.
THE road is accessed via a slope from Welham Road at the end of Brook Terrace.
It is mainly a residential area, although there are some industrial and recreational facilities and one remembers there being a mobile shop.
Originally known as Love Lane, this identifies it in the same sort of category as when it was developed into its present state but the origin of the word ‘park’ is not certain.
Love Lane led originally to Norton Grange which remained quite isolated for some years whilst residential development was taking place further back down the road.
Its houses can be seen from Malton because they lie on a ridge overlooking Malton station and the river as well as the rear of Castlegate.
It is possible that this ridge was created by mining for clay to support the local brick making industry.
Presumably when the clay supplies eventually became depleted and mining ceased at the edge of Park Road it left behind a sharp drop towards a flat area towards the river and railway line and known locally as Corney’s Field.
As a result, the road is one sided, regarding housing which is of 1900s vintage.
Read more articles by Howard Campion:
- A look back at Norton’s old mill area dating back to the 11th century
- A look back at Welham Road in Norton
- Looking back at the original road out of Norton to York
One can imagine that without the previous clay mining, Brook Terrace would have continued round into Park Road.
Maps show the whole of the area to have been linked to brick manufacturing for some time with Thomas Brand being the proprietor and tenant of Norton Grange in 1905.
His bricks were stamped with the initials TBN (Thomas Brand Norton).
Brand’s had its own railway sliding and there were two sets of Brickyard Cottages by the side of the railway line.
Local coal merchant George Jones delivered Brand’s bricks during the construction of Norton Cinema (The Majestic) and neighbouring Majestic House in the 1920s.
At the other side of town, river clay from the Derwent and Priorpot Beck was used to feed Henry Oldfield’s brickworks at Westfield House, and those bricks were stamped with Oldfield Norton.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here