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Chronicle of the 20th Century
Key Events in Nuneaton
and district in the last one hundred years
compiled by Peter Lee

1960-1969

1960 
The Elms in Vicarage Street, and the school which George Eliot had attended between 1828-1832 and arguably one of Nuneaton's most historic buildings was demolished for road widening.

The coach house and stables at the Manor Court, former residence of Reginald Stanley and George Helps, converted into flats.

Kings Head pub, a beer house dating back to the 16th. century in Church Street demolished to make way for new shops and post office.

March 16th -  North East Warwickshire Water Board formed.

23rd June - Heavy flooding in town centre.

22nd July - Griff No.4 Colliery closed. (opened 1851) This brought to an end coal mining at Chilvers Coton which had gone on since the 16th. century.

1961
The Grand Cinema closed in Chapel End.

31st May - The Griff Branch closed serving Stanley Bros brickyards in the Stockingford areas, except for a short section used for storing electrification equipment being used on the main line at that time. At the same time the Griff canal arm was taken out of use. It was only used latterly to take coal to the Barbara and Caroline pumping shafts. These had been used in the 19th century for coal raising but steam submersible pumps were later employed to keep the water out of surrounding mine workings.

1962
Electrification starts on the Trent Valley main railway line through Nuneaton. This involved raising bridges erecting thousands of yards of cable, steel gantries and took two years to complete.

5th October - The Beatles appeared at the Co-Operative Dance Hall in Queens Road. Tickets 5 shillings. They were second on the bill to Buddy Brittain.

15th November -. A new library opened in Church Street, Nuneaton as part of the town centre reconstruction work. This was designed by Sir Frederick Gibberd architect of Liverpool Roman Catholic Cathedral, who was grandson of John Warden Clay founder of Nuneaton Institute and later the Library in Coton Road.

30th December - The White Swan public house sold for demolition. Last landlord was George & Winnie Handley.

1963
Lifting of the Ansley Hall Colliery branch railway (officially known as the Stockingford Branch -opened 1876)

The "Dugdale Arms" demolished in Dugdale Street, replaced by a new pub called the "Merevale".

The Wesleyan Methodist Church in Abbey Street demolished.

The old "Graziers Arms" pub demolished on the corner of Weddington Terrace and Hinckley Road(built in the 1850's). Replaced by a modern building.

Woolworths moved from the corner of the Market Place and Coventry Street into a new store in Queens Road built at a cost of £190,000.

Track lifting commenced on the Griff branch railway starting at Stanley Bros. sidings.

January - Daytime temperature in Nuneaton dropped to -28 deg. F

July/August - The Wheatsheaf Inn demolished in Abbey Street, replaced by a new building.

September - Taylor Bros. beer bottlers of Fife Street, Nuneaton closed. At one time they employed 40 people. The beer was brought in barrels from Burton on Trent and other brewery suppliers and bottled locally for distribution. Modern distribution methods using lorries killed off Taylor Bros. trade.

September - Lesters the Chemists shop closed in the Market Place. The business was sold to Boots the Chemists.

1964
New electric trains started running beyond Nuneaton as part of the West Coast main line electrification from Glasgow to London Euston.

December - The last "Fat Stock" market held by Hackney & Sons at the Cattle Market opposite to where Nuneaton bus market now stands.

1965
The Pingles swimming baths were opened in Avenue Road, and the old swimming baths which utilised one of the cleared out settling ponds of the old municipal sewage works was closed.

Weddington Road railway bridge entirely rebuilt.

16th January - The Coventry to Nuneaton passenger rail service discontinued. Chilvers Coton station closed.

August - The George & Dragon pub in Queens Road demolished. Remnants of its original thatched roof was found below the tiles.

11.30pm. 31st December - Four young people died in a New years Eve dance tragedy at the Co-operative dance Hall, Nuneaton. They were:
Pauline Swingler, aged 16 of 34 Fife Street, Nuneaton.
Joseph Brian Peare, aged 22 of Constance Close, Bedworth.
Keith Harding, aged 15 of Barton Road, Nuneaton.
David Greenway, aged 19 of Eastfield Road, Nuneaton.
6 were injured including one Colin Graham, aged 18 who had 64 stitches in his arm.
900 were at the dance and the tragedy happened when weight of numbers descending the stairs from the bar to the dance floor caused some revellers to fall. They were immediately crushed by people falling on top of them.

1966
6th June - Nuneaton railway loco depot closed for the last time. A single steam engine no. 78059 was retained for removing loco stores until 4th July but miraculously this old steamer which languished in Woodhams scrap yard for several years has been rescued and will be rebuilt on the Bluebell Railway in Sussex.

June - St. Johns Methodist church opened in Abbey Street.

July - Weddington Road straightened closer to the bank of the River Anker removing notorious accident black spot.

1967
The Nuneaton Tribune moved to Whitacre Road.

Nuneaton Borough Football Club reached the third round of the FA Cup after beating Swansea they went to Rotherham where they were watched by a gate of 40,000 fans.

Leslie Huckfield elected MP for Nuneaton.

A fire destroyed the Awson Carriage Works in Meadow Street, formerly Hall & Phillips hat factory. This produced wooden dash boards for motor car production.

25th March - Haunchwood Tunnel Colliery closed. (opened 20.7.1891)

June - Rail traffic ceased at Haunchwood Brick & Tile Co. Ltd. at the time of closure of Stockingford marshalling sidings and goods yard.

24th July - Work started on the new post office in Church Street.

September - Albert E. Jebbett died aged 58. He was the Editor of the Evening Tribune and wrote many articles on "Old Nuneaton".

September - Jack Whetstone died aged 74. Secretary of Nuneaton Amateur League he was Nuneaton's "Mr. Amateur Football".

September and October -  Stockingford loco shed demolished after standing derelict for 35 years. The shed water tank had been kept in constant use to service locos in Stockingford marshalling sidings until June 1967.

1968
 Work started on the Bedworth by-pass road.

2nd February - Princess Alexandra opened Sunnyside Court housing development, Croft Road, Stockingford.

10.25pm. 4th March - Last passenger train stopped at Stockingford railway station on the Birmingham to Leicester service.

10.29pm. 4th March - Last passenger train stopped at Nuneaton Abbey Street railway station on the Birmingham to Leicester service.

26th March - The railway sidings at Haunchwood tunnel pit taken out of use.

29th March - Arley Colliery closed.

April - Jack Lenton, the fruiterer died. He took part in many town activities being a magistrate and a director of Nuneaton Borough Football Club. He was a leading churchman in the Roman Catholic church and was awarded the Knighthood of St. Gregory by the Pope.

May - The upper silk weaving floor taken off the Albion buildings in Attleborough Road.

22nd June - The empty shell of the Hippodrome cinema and theatre destroyed by fire.

July - Haunchwood (Nowells) Colliery pumping shaft headgear demolished and shaft capped.

29th August - Thomas Kenneth Knox, director of Haunchwood Brick & Tile died aged 84.

18th November - Train crash at Abbey Street Station.

1969
Track lifted from Haunchwood sidings, Stockingford.

Haunchwood Brick & Tile No. 3 works closed in Bermuda Road.

January - The old former ribbon factory on corner of Oaston Road and Trent Road demolished. It had been sold by British Railways in June 1967 as a redundant asset and used as a furniture store but had been badly damaged by arsonists.

April - Bedworth by-pass came into use.

April - Harry Cleaver died aged 86. First played Rugby for Nuneaton in 1900. He was a director of the Warwickshire Canal Carrying Co., Nuneaton Timber Co., Griff Collieries Ltd., A.W.Phillips, tennis ball manufacturers, Yoxalls Ltd.

June - Leslie George Halstead, Manager of the Nuneaton Employment Exchange was given the M.B.E. to commemorate 41 years in the Civil Service.

July - Alderman Ted Daffern died aged 64. He was Chairman of Nuneaton Amateur Football League.

17th August - the Nuneaton-Ashby railway line closed to goods traffic.

2nd October - The derelict Chilvers Coton station destroyed by fire.

November - The new post office was opened in Church Street.

November - Frederick Harvey Pallett, founder of Fred Pallett Ltd, the well known local builders, died aged 63.