Sheffield RAF Greenhill airfield features in history project

There was a misunderstanding about the Norton history project featured in last week's Retro.
A Sopwith One-and-a-half-Strutter in the foreground and an Avro 504 at No 2 Northern Aircraft Repair Depot, RAF Coal Aston in 1919. This area is now part of the new St James Retail ParkA Sopwith One-and-a-half-Strutter in the foreground and an Avro 504 at No 2 Northern Aircraft Repair Depot, RAF Coal Aston in 1919. This area is now part of the new St James Retail Park
A Sopwith One-and-a-half-Strutter in the foreground and an Avro 504 at No 2 Northern Aircraft Repair Depot, RAF Coal Aston in 1919. This area is now part of the new St James Retail Park

The National Lottery-funded project set to launch in the Norton and Meadowhead area, organised by the Landscape Heritage Research Foundation, will be looking at the former RFC Coal Aston/RAF Greenhill, which is now the location of the new St James retail development and areas surrounding the Meadowhead roundabout.

Therefore, the pictures we used in Retro last week of RAF Norton aren’t relevant to the project.

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As reported last week, the project, called From RFC Airfield to City Suburb – 100 Years of History at Meadowhead and Norton, Sheffield, is set to follow on from the successful Norton’s Flying Legacy project of 2016/17.

The project will be wide-ranging and develops some of the themes begun in the first project.

It also extends the timeline to cover the period from the outbreak of World War Two into the 21st century.

This project is running over the next 15 months and will delve further into the history of the suburb from the formation of the World War One Aeroplane Repair Depot, proposed development of civil aviation and then explore how the former airfield site affected the area’s development into a thriving suburb of Sheffield.

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It will follow the military theme from two world wars and into the Cold War, with specialist speakers and field visits across the area.

A series of workshops will be held throughout the project, each covering a specific theme which will help volunteers along their way, piecing together a fascinating local history.

At the same time, the development and growth of the area will be explored by visits to the local archives, local field visits and visits to other collections.

The project will also undertake a series of oral history interviews.

For more information, email [email protected] or look at www.ukeconet.org