Retford Cemetery

Evidence of early human activity around Retford stretches back to the Mesolithic period, with archaeological evidence of human activity in the area including a Mesolithic flint tool found in Ordsall, an axe from the Neolithic era (New Stone Age) from Little Morton, and a Neolithic polished flint axe discovered near the River Idle at Tiln. A Bronze Age spearhead was found near Whinney Moor Lane, and Romano-British crop marks are visible around Babworth. The area Retford is situated in was on the border of the territories of the Brigantes and the Corieltauvi during the Iron Age period. It is likely that the existence of Retford is partly due to its water resources, in the form of both the…

Women have played an important role in the economy of Nottinghamshire particularly in certain industries (such as lace making and farming). In Retford women were always economically active and some businesses relied heavily on female labour (such as Clark's of Retford). Until the Black Death, most beer in the UK was produced by women brewers (called 'brewsters'). Brewing was an important industry in Nottinghamshire from hop growing, to brewing to selling beer. Nottinghamshire women have had considerable involvement in all aspects of the brewing trade, with many historic Retford pubs being recorded as having female managers. Women-owned businesses were also relatively common in Retford. For…