Market Drayton is a market town in North Shropshire. The town is situated on the Shropshire Union Canal and the A53 bypasses the town.
The Market Drayton weekly market has been held every Wednesday for 759 years and is said to be so good that the town was named after it. It sells a variety of wares plus fresh produce.
The town is pedestrianised and is a nice area to shop in. Shops to be found in Market Drayton include Ethel Austin, Seconds Ahead, Astona Fashions, Legs Clothing, Apparel, Outdoor and Country Store and John Morris with larger stores such as Woolworths and QS.
Industry in Market Drayton comes in many forms such as retail, new to town are both Wilkinson and Argos, Tern Press, the respected poetry publishers, Palethorpes, Producers of pork pies, sausage rolls and chilled pastry items have a site in town and also in town is the Muller Dairies, the yoghurt makers.
But Market Drayton is probably best known for its gingerbread. Gingerbread has been made in the town for several hundreds of years. It is made to a secret recipe and an original ingredient was rum, though no one is sure if this is still added but the locals dunk it in port before eating. The largest maker of gingerbread is now Image on Food and they produce novelty gingerbread figures for leading retailers in Britain.
The town is also known for its damson jam, lamb and damson pie and damson gin. Many years ago people would travel miles to buy damsons, at the Damson Fair, which were used to dye cloth. Damson trees grow in abundance around and even in the town.
St. Mary’s, a restored Norman Church, is one of many 17th and 18th half-timbered buildings in the town centre. The Great Fire of Drayton burnt around seventy per cent of the town in the l600’s. It began in the bakers and quickly spread through the timber buildings. A bell was erected at the Buttercross for residents to ring should there ever be another fire, it is still there today.
Nearby Blore Heath is the site of the major War of the Roses battle and annually there is a reconstruction, something definitely worth seeing.
Many streets in town are named after castles like Windsor and Balmoral Drives, and Warwick and Caernavon Close.
Property for rent in town costs around £600 for a 3 bed house.
There are plenty of lovely walks around Market Drayton, one of which is along the towpath of the Shropshire Union Canal. Pleasure craft can be seen on the canal and also the amazing forty-step aquaduct.
Near the town and worth visiting are the gardens of Wollerton Old Hall, Dorothy Clive Gardens and Bridgemere Garden World.
Another place not to be missed is the Hawkestone Park with its cliffs, caves and grottos.
Market Drayton is also a good base for visiting Stoke, Shrewsbury and Chester.
Styche Hall, close to the town was the birthplace of Robert Clive, known as Clive of India. Clive paid for the Georgian house, which replaced the original, for his father from the first ‘profits’ of his Indian career.
A more recent famous or rather infamous resident was Derek ‘Poddy’ Podmore who, in the late 1970’s was a renowned poacher. He did a series of stunts including having his ear nailed to a tree, appearing in court dressed as a frogman that subsequently led him in l974 to swallow a live frog in a local pub followed by a pint of black and tan.
There is a skate park situated near the modern swimming pool, there is also an outdoor pool here, which is open during the summer months.
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