Ilkeston - Gallows Inn
w/e 14 April 2002

Stephen and Heather Flinders' excellent book "A Picture History of Ilkeston" contains a wealth of information about the town and its development through the ages. In a piece concerning the legal system in the 17th century, the narrative recalls how a gallows once stood at the bottom of Nottingham Road where criminals found guilty of serious misdemeanours would be taken to be hanged. The gallows have long gone but the name has remained.

Playing Fields

Visitors approaching Ilkeston from Nottinghamshire enter Derbyshire as soon as they cross the River Erewash and one of the first sights to greet them is the Gallows Inn Playing Fields on the left. Notice also the skyline of the former Stanton Ironworks site to the left of the rugby goal posts - a reminder of the industrial past of the area.
Gallows Inn

The inn itself stands on the opposite side of the road. For many years it was called the "Horse and Groom" and more recently the "Lock, Stock and Barrel" but for as long as I can remember, everyone called it "The Gallows". The owners eventually bowed to public opinion and changed the name again. One other point of interest about the inn is that for a time the name above the door was Ilkeston born John Tudor. That name will be familiar to football supporters and especially those of Newcastle United Football Club where John played in the professional game for the "Magpies" at the height of his career between 1971 and 1976.
Gallows Inn Lock

The inn stands alongside the Erewash Canal and the Sunday morning sunshine casts its shadow towards the lock that bears the same name.
Who's Watching Who?

A little way along the canal someone has tended the far bank and made an attractive landscaped area. These two swans found it agreeable despite the attention of a cat near the garden bench against the fence. The question is of course, "Just who was watching who?"
Bridge

Plaque
From the other side of Nottingham Road the lock gates can be seen under the bridge whilst a sloping path on the right is a recent construction allowing wheelchair access to the towpath. A plaque in the centre of the bridge on the lock side commemorates the bi-centennial of the opening of the Erewash Canal in 1779.
Post Office

Playing fields, a public house and a lock all bear the name "Gallows Inn" and a little further up the road, even the sub Post Office sandwiched between Johnny's Fish Bar and the gents hairdresser sports the same name on the red sign above the entrance. The bridge over the canal is just visible at the far left of the picture.

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