Stoneferry (archaic Stone-Ferry, or Stone ferry) is a suburb ofKingston upon Hull,East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was formerly a small hamlet on the east bank of theRiver Hull, the site of a ferry, and, after 1905, a bridge. The area is primarily industrial, and is situated on the east bank of the river, as well as close by areas on the west bank.
Stoneferry Road (A1033 section) travels south through Stoneferry and Wilmington towards the centre of Hull. Ferry Lane (eastern end of the A1165) runs east for a short distance from Stoneferry bridge to meet Stoneferry Road.
The boundaries of the Stoneferry area are approximately formed by theRiver Hull to the west beyond which are the areas ofSculcoates (south-west) and Clough Road/Newland (west); to the north is the post 1970s Sutton Fields Industrial, withBransholme housing estate beyond. To the north-east and east are the housing estates ofSutton Ings andGarden Village; whilst to the south is the industrial area ofWilmington, of similar character to Stoneferry.[1]
TheA1033 Stoneferry Road runs north–south through the area, connected with the east end of theA1165 Clough Road/Ferry Lane via the bridges over the River Hull. Chamberlain Road, running east to the Garden Village is the areas other main road. TheHull Docks Branch runs south-east through the southern part of the area, and also has a crossing of the river.[1]
The Stoneferry area contains a large amount of industrial development, generally focused along the banks of theRiver Hull, which includes manufacturing, warehousing and retail sites. The eastern part has some housing, including lateVictoria era/earlyEdwardian era, pre- and post-Second World War, and late 20th century houses. Also in the eastern part are some managed natural spaces.[1]
There is an outcropping bed of harder rock or other agglomerate in the river bed (which is usually clay, silt and till on the River Hull) near Stoneferry.[2][3]
A river crossing at Stoneferry is recorded as early as 1269, being referred to as 'Stanfordrak',[note 1] the name Stoneferry began to be used in the 14th century.[5]
The hamlet originally formed part of the parish ofWawne;[6] it later became part of the parish ofSutton on Hull.[7]
In 1845 a water works was constructed at Stoneferry on the west bank of the river to meet the demands of the town of Hull;[8] a public baths was also built on the site.[note 2] Previously supplies had come from chalk springs nearAnlaby. the advice had been sought ofThomas Wicksteed, the engineer, who thought they could not provide sufficient volume, and suggested that water should be taken from the River Hull,[10] at ebb,[note 3] when it was thought the flow of the river would be sufficient to render the water fresh.[11] Initial analyses suggested that the water quality would be very good,[12] but this was found not to be the case, with complaints of poor quality water, with the water being muddy and brackish.[10][note 4]
Acholera outbreak occurred in Hull in 1849,[11] and sources of a better supply were sought; Thomas Wickstead and others had maintained further water could not be got from the springs near Anlaby. It was William Warden, a local resident ofHessle who claimed that anartesian well in the area would give sufficient supply;[note 5] in the 1860s boreholes were sunk, and theSpringhead Pumping Station established; the water from the boreholes was used to supply the Stoneferry water works and water no longer taken from the river; the water supply problem was solved.[10] The initial cost of the Stoneferry waterworks was £58,000 (with two 60 hp steam engines), this eventually rose to £92,808 with two further engines of 170 and 220 hp, and additional water treatment facilities.[9] Around 1891 the pumping station at Stoneferry ceased to be used to pump water to Hull;[10] by 1910 the works was in disuse.[14]
During the latter part of the 19th century the area between Hull and Stoneferry began to be developed industrially, and in 1882 Stoneferry became part of the municipal borough of Kingston upon Hull; the industrialisation continued leading to a completely industrial landscape along the River Hull banks and in Stoneferry itself by the 20th century.[7] TheHull and Hornsea Railway was opened passing roughly north through the eastern extreme of the Stoneferry area in the 1860s and theHull and Barnsley Railway was constructed across the southern part of the area in the 1880s, curving south-east from a crossing of the River Hull.[15]
Urban development beyond the original hamlet took place during the decades at the beginning of the 20th century (1890–1910) around the south-western end of Leads Road, and on Lorraine Street.[16] Further housing development took place starting in the late 1930s between Stoneferry Road and the Foredyke Stream (Woodhall Street area), and between the Fordyke and the Hull and Hornsea railway line (Rockford Avenue area); as well as around previously developed housing; and later along Sutton Road to the north of Stoneferry.[17] The development along Sutton Road was demolished in the 1970s, and replaced by the Sutton Fields industrial estate. In the 1990s a small housing estate was built between Stoneferry Road and the former Foredyke Drain, north of the Stoneferry railway branch. As of 2012 the area is a mixture of mostly industrial usage, as well as housing, and green spaces.[18] In 2011 the area 'Rockford Fields', remnant of the pastureland of Sutton Ings was designated as a local nature reserve.[19]
In 2012 property developerBarratt obtained planning permission to build around 100 homes on playing fields on land bequeathed byJames Reckitt for recreational use by employees ofReckitts of Hull; the scheme had strong local opposition, and was rejected in 2011 by Hull councillors, but was allowed on appeal to thePlanning Inspectorate.[20][21]
By the 1850s there was a whiting and oil mill in Stoneferry,[7] by 1910 development was continuous along the River Hull banks, consisting of mills for seed oils, whiting, and associated industries such as paint and pigment works, as well as a cement works immediately south of Ferry Lane.[22]
In 1884 the Hull-based companyReckitt & Sons established a factory at Morley Street to manufacture syntheticUltramarine.[23] This later became part of Reckitt & Colman, and was later sold toYule Catto becomingHolliday Pigments.[24][25] In 2003 it had a capacity of about 9,000 t.p.a.[23] The factory's 463-foot (141 m) chimney, the tallest structure in Hull, known asReckitt's chimney was used to dischargeSulphur dioxide into the atmosphere,[23] aFlue gas desulphurisation plant was installed at the beginning of the 21st century, making the chimney practically obsolete.[26] The plant closed in 2007 due to restructuring.[27]
A cement works was established by Martin Brown & Co. in 1878, the works was acquired, and became Skelsey & Co. (1885), laterSkelsey's Adamant Cement Co. Ltd. (1890); the works was replaced by thePort Barton plant in the 1890s, and the site was incorporated into Reckitt's Ultramarine works.[28] Another cement works was established in 1889 asHull Portland Cement Co., withrotary kilns first installed in 1903, after several changes of ownership it became part ofEarles cement in 1911. Production ended in 1927 due to restructuring at Earles,[29] and the site was used for aggregate storage with wharfside rail mounted cranes, until being redeveloped into a retail trade parkMedina Park at the turn of the 21st century.
In 1912 the largeIsis Oil Mills was built for Wray, Sanderson & Co.[note 6] (now alisted building).[33] Other oil seed mills and works in Stoneferry no longer extant include the 'King's Mill' (est.c. 1885);[note 7]HOMCO (Hull Oil Manufacturing Co., Ltd.);[note 8] and thePremier Oil Extracting Mill.[note 9] The latter two had developed into large oil seed mills by the 1920s, and both were early users of solvent extraction.[39][34] To the north-west of HOMCO was a paint works, the Stoneferry works of Hangers paints.[note 10]
A short branch off theHull-Hornsea railway line was built (c. 1913) which connected toStoneferry goods station(53°46′08″N0°19′33″W / 53.7688°N 0.3259°W /53.7688; -0.3259 (Stoneferry Goods Station)), as well as thePremier Oil and Cake Mills north of Ferry Lane.[40] The line had completely closed by the 1970s.[41]
To the north of the traditionally industrialised area the 243 acres (98 ha)Sutton Fields Industrial Estate was established by the City Council in the 1970s.[42]
A bridge at Stoneferry was proposed in the 18th century, but was opposed in Parliament by interested parties in Beverley due to concerns of it blocking the navigable river.[43] In 1905 a swing bridge was built, constructed by the Motherwell Bridge Company.[44][45] The total length was 198 feet 8 inches (60.55 m) in two spans, with the moveable span giving an opening of 60 feet 8 inches (18.49 m), built at a cost of £10,261 for the ironwork and machinery, and £7,450 for stonework. Additionally a subway was built 38 feet (12 m) below the river bed, carrying water, gas and electricity utilities.[46]
The 1905 bridge included fittings for a tram tracks – a tramway from Hull to Stoneferry had been partially built but never completed.[47][note 11]
The 1905 swing bridge was replaced by a pair of 'Shadoof' type bascule lifting bridges, authorised in 1987 and built about 15 yards (14 m) north of the earlier bridge between 1988 and 1991.[48][49][50]
53°45′43″N0°19′21″W / 53.76196°N 0.32261°W /53.76196; -0.32261 (Thistleton)
Thistleton was a small place approximately ½ mile south-east of Stoneferry, adjacent to the Foredyke Drain.[51][52] In the first half of the 20th century the urban growth of Hull surrounded it, to the extent that by 1950 the place was no longer recorded.[53]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)In 1947 Premier Oil Extracting Mills Ltd., amalgamated with Wray, Sanderson & Co. Ltd., to form the Premier Oil and Cake Mills Ltd
The City Corporation has embarked upon the development of 243 aces at the Sutton Fields Industrial Estate for which Edward Erdman and Co. are the agents
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) Pre 1850 image of the River Hull at Stoneferry53°46′05″N0°19′19″W / 53.768°N 0.322°W /53.768; -0.322
