City in South Yorkshire, England
Doncaster
The world's fastest steam train was born here, and so was the oldest of Britain's Classic horse races. Doncaster has been setting speed records for centuries.
Key information
- County
- South Yorkshire
- Nation
- England
- Known for
- The St Leger horse race, the Plant Works that built Flying Scotsman and Mallard, Doncaster butterscotch
- What locals are called
- Doncastrians
- Famous people
- Jeremy Clarkson, Diana Rigg, Louis Tomlinson, Kevin Keegan
- Football clubs
- Doncaster Rovers (founded 1879)
About Doncaster
The town that built the fastest steam train on Earth
On 3 July 1938, the streamlined locomotive Mallard hit 126 mph on a slope near Grantham, a world record for steam that has never been beaten. Mallard was built in Doncaster. The Great Northern Railway opened its locomotive works here in 1853, and the site became known simply as the Plant. It turned out thousands of engines over the decades. Among them was Flying Scotsman, completed in 1923 to a design by Nigel Gresley, the engineer who also drew up Mallard. For over a century Doncaster was a railway town in the fullest sense. The Plant fed families, shaped streets and gave the town an engineering pride that outlasted the steam era. Today the East Coast Main Line still runs through the middle of it.
A horse race older than the name suggests
The St Leger is the oldest of Britain's five Classic horse races. It was first run in 1776, on Cantley Common, and was given its name in 1778 in honour of Anthony St Leger, a local sportsman. That same year it moved to Doncaster's Town Moor, which remains its usual home. It has occasionally been staged elsewhere, including at Ayr in 1989 and York in 2006. The race closes the Classic season each September. For the town, it has long meant a big week of hats, crowds and packed hotels. Racing at Doncaster has drawn visitors for centuries, and the Great North Road, which brought coaches through the town, helped to make that possible.
From Roman fort to Georgian showpiece
The Romans put a fort here on the River Don and called it Danum. The name survives in 'Doncaster', which comes from the Old English for 'Roman fort on the Don'. The town's later fortunes came with the road. Doncaster sat on the main route between London and the north, which kept inns and coach traders busy. That prosperity paid for the Mansion House, designed by James Paine and built between 1745 and 1749 for civic entertaining. A fire in 1853 destroyed the old parish church, and it was replaced by the huge Gothic Doncaster Minster, designed by George Gilbert Scott. It still dominates the town centre.
Butterscotch and market stalls
Doncaster has a sweet claim to fame: butterscotch. Samuel Parkinson began selling his Royal Doncaster Butterscotch in the early 19th century, and the brittle golden sweet became a local trademark, once sold in distinctive tins and sent far beyond Yorkshire. The town is also a classic market town. Its markets have been a big part of life for generations, and a trip to the stalls is still a Doncaster habit. A plate of Yorkshire pudding with gravy will not be far away.
Footballers, presenters and a pop star
Doncaster has produced an unusually varied cast. Jeremy Clarkson was born here in 1960, and the actress Diana Rigg, famous as Emma Peel in The Avengers and as Olenna Tyrell in Game of Thrones, was born in the town in 1938. Louis Tomlinson of One Direction is a Doncaster lad too. Football fans will point to Kevin Keegan, who grew up in the area and went on to captain England and win the European Footballer of the Year award twice. Doncaster Rovers, founded in 1879, are the town's club, and supporters call the place 'Donny'. The Rovers play at the Eco-Power Stadium, and Doncaster Knights are the local rugby union side.
Coal, change and a new title
For much of the 20th century, Doncaster was also a coal town. Pits such as Brodsworth and Hatfield employed thousands, and the miners' strike of 1984 to 1985 left a lasting mark on local communities. As the pits closed, the town reinvented itself, with logistics, rail engineering and retail taking the place of coal. Its airport opened in 2005 as Robin Hood Airport, and the Frenchgate Centre became a shopping landmark. In 2022, as part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations, Doncaster was granted city status, a long-awaited moment for a place that has been quietly fast for a very long time.