Pear Tree, Derby

Pear Tree is an inner city suburb of Derby, England. It is situated next to the areas of Normanton, Rose Hill and Osmaston. Pear Tree (sometimes spelled as Peartree) could be described as a suburb within a suburb; because the people of Derby would identify it as an area in its own right, but it could easily be described as forming part of the larger area of Normanton.

History

Consisting mainly of workers' terraced housing, and some 1950’s local authority housing, Pear Tree is typical of an Edwardian/Victorian inner city suburb, which when built at the end of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries would have been regarded as bordering the edge of the then Town of Derby. The area was formerly the land of Pear Tree Farm, which existed locally well into the twentieth century, and from which the name of the district was derived.

thumb|left|Terraced houses in Crewe Street, DerbyThe scene is typical of the many streets of terraced houses in the Pear Tree area of DerbyThe housing stock would almost certainly have been built to house workers in Derby’s then growing manufacturing industries including Rolls-Royce, the railways and the chemical industries. Until relatively recently the housing stock in the Pear Tree, Normanton and Rose Hill areas was looking rather shabby and neglected, however thanks to a rather forward thinking programme endorsed and part financed by the local authority, investment has been going into the area and the majority of the mainly terraced housing has been renovated to a modern standard providing useful accommodation for Derby’s younger owners and first time buyers.

Like neighbouring Normanton, Pear Tree boasts a thriving multicultural community, with a particularly high number of residents of Asian origin. It has a small railway station situated on the main line to Birmingham, although very few services stop there.

Landmarks

Until recently, Pear Tree's most famous landmark was the Baseball Ground, home of Derby's professional football club, Derby County F.C., for most of the twentieth century. However, the stadium was demolished in 2004 having been largely unused since the club's departure to Pride Park some seven years earlier. The site is now being developed to provide private housing and some social with landscaped grounds and a memorial to the site's historic past.

Famous residents

Steve Bloomer, Forward for Derby County F.C.

Steve Bloomer was one of Derby County's most outstanding footballers. He was an English footballer and manager who played for Derby County F.C., Middlesbrough F.C. and England before the First World War. Bloomer remains a legend at Derby County and the club anthem, Steve Bloomer's Watchin', is played before every home game. Bloomer signed for Derby County in April 1892, scoring 4 goals in his first game. He became Derby's leading scorer for 14 seasons and won the first of his 23 England caps (28 goals) in 1895. Steve Bloomer was married and had 4 daughters, two of whom died young. The family lived at 35 Portland Street [http://www.youandyesterday.co.uk/articles/Derby_County:Steve_Bloomer_-_First_World_War_memories] in the Pear Tree area of the city towards the end of his playing days.

Note on spelling

The name of the district as recorded on Ordnance Survey maps is Pear Tree, although the alternative spelling Peartree is also common locally. Examples of the "official" spelling in use include Pear Tree Post Office and the Pear Tree inn pub. The Peartree variant is used by the railway station, the police station and the NHS clinic; this is also the more commonly used name by local businesses. With regard to local street names, the two word version is officially in use (Pear Tree Road, Crescent, Street), but whereas this is usually reflected in older (pre-Second World War) street signs, more modern signs usually use Peartree. In some instances these have been placed directly opposite older Pear Tree signage.