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Towns and Villages in
North Derbyshire |
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You may view the information for ALL the locations in this area
by clicking HERE (the page may be very large) or you can view your
preferred location from the list on the left.
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Nestling among rolling hills,
Ashover’s homes are brown and cosy. This was once
a centre for lead mining but its name refers to
the ash trees which help to guard the slopes
leading to the local moors. All Saints’ Church has
an unusual lead font, dating from around 1200,
which is decorated with pictures of the Apostles.
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Ashover Village - Photo:
George Mahoney
CCL |
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Bakewell - Photo:
Derbyshire Dales District Council |
This pretty ‘olde worlde’
market town crosses the River Wye and lies at the
very heart of the Peak District. It has achieved
fame thanks to the Bakewell Tart which was
invented accidentally by a cook who should have
made strawberry tart but put jam on the top
instead. At one time there were plans to turn this
merry place into a spa town but most of the
springs have since run dry. The oldest house is
the Old House Museum dating from the 16th century. |
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Baslow is situated on the
north edge of Chatsworth Park. Spanning the River
Derwent is a splendid 17th century bridge that
still has the small toll shelter in place.
Around Baslow you can expect
to find some great walks and views overlooking the
Derwent valley, including the striking and highly
popular Baslow Edge.
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Derwent Gardens - Photo:
Derbyshire Dales District Council |
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Bolsover Castle - Photo:
Chris Shaw
CCL |
Bolsover is dominated by a
17th century castle which peers down as if it were
created for a fairy tale. Built by Sir Charles
Cavendish on the site of a previous, medieval
castle, it was badly damaged during the Civil War.
The town borders both the Peak District and
Sherwood Forest and nearby you will find Hardwick
Hall and Stainsby Mill. |
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The Romans knew all about the
healing properties of Buxton’s mineral spas but it
wasn’t until the Duke of Devonshire came to town
in the 19th century that the place attracted
thousands of tourists in search of simple cures.
He turned the place into a second Bath and built
one of Britain’s finest Georgian crescents, since
complemented by an Edwardian opera house and a
magnificent Victorian hospital which is famous for
its huge dome. |
Buxton Opera House - Photo:
Janine Forbes
CCL |
Buxton is invigorating in
other ways and is an ideal base from which to
explore the Peak District, whether by car, cycle
or on foot. Mary Queen of Scots may not have
agreed. She was held prisoner at the Old Hall
Hotel for a while.
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Peveril Castle, Castleton - Photo:
George Griffin
CCL |
The home of the so-called
‘blue john’ stone, Castleton has steep narrow
streets and pretty stone cottages. But beneath
them lies the reason why this Peak district wonder
is famous the world over - an extensive system of
subterranean caves and caverns that continue to
attract thousands of tourists each year. Most are
accessed on foot but one, the Speedwell Mine,
takes visitors into the bowels of the earth by
boat. Only Peak Cave is a true cave because the
others are man-made mines. Blue John itself is a
type of fluorspar from which the Victorians made
numerous items, from vases to clocks. |
Rope has been made in
Castleton for centuries and to mark this, brides
used to be given a washing line made in the town.
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A typical Peak District
habitation, this pleasant town lies just a few
miles from Kinder Scout, the highest point in The
Peak, and derives its name from a local word
meaning ‘sparse woodland’. Memorably, its market
square is cobbled and still has a cross and
stocks. |
Cobbled terrace street that was once the main
street through Chapel-en-le-Frith - Photo:
Dave Dunford
CCL |
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Chesterfield - Photo by Edward Rokita |
Scene of one of the biggest
outdoor markets in the country, bustling
Chesterfield was first granted a charter in 1204
by King John. An important attraction is its
famous crooked spire on St Mary and All Saints
Church. Legend has it that this crookedness was
either the work of the Devil or possibly
lightning. The truth is far more mundane - the
228ft wooden spire, which leans by more than nine
feet, is covered in no less than 32 tons of lead.
The great railway pioneer George Stephenson spent
his final years in Chesterfield and is
commemorated in the Stephenson Memorial Hall.
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Clay Cross is in close
proximity to Chesterfield. The discovery of a vast
underground deposit of coal and iron by George
Stephenson, developed the town from a rural,
mainly farming based community, into a busy
industrial area.
The Ironworks are still
running today, The Clay Cross Company was formed
in 1837 and still exists as part of the Biwater
group.
Clay Cross has many modern
amenities with the usual shops and pubs and there
is also an open-air market that takes place on
Saturdays. Also worth a visit is St Bartholomew’s
church, built in the 19th century, with its 70ft
spire!
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St Bartholomew's Church Clay Cross - Photo:
Roger May
CCL |
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Situated in the north-east of
Derbyshire halfway between the city of Sheffield
and Chesterfield, the Peak District National Park
is a mere 3 miles away. The name Dronfield is
thought to mean the open land where there are
drones (male bees). The town has grown rapidly in
the last 30 years, and is now a mixture of modern
housing and fine old buildings and the largest
township in North East Derbyshire.
The majority of
the old and listed buildings are in the High
Street and Church Street area. Situated near the
top of the High Street, is the Peel Monument -
Built of gritstone in 1854, the Monument is a
tribute to Sir Robert Peel, and celebrates the
repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846. The town library
is situated in an attractive 18th-century manor
house.
Town centre shopping is well served by car
parking, the main shops, civic amenities and
sports centre with swimming pool. Notable events
are the annual Dronfield gala and the Dronfield
Woodhouse and Coal Aston well dressings, which are
held in July.
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Situated 7 miles north of
Chesterfield, the name Eckington is of Saxon
origin, meaning the township of Ecca. A long
sprawling village, with typical postcard scenes of
its manor houses and cottages built of the local
Derbyshire stone.
The main street through the
village is just over a mile long. The parish
church of St Peter and St Paul is of exceptional
architectural interest, dating back from the year
1100 and still retains the original Norman
doorway. A market is held each Friday on pedestrianised Market Street, The Civic Centre is
widely used for many different functions and
activities and stands beside the swimming pool and
library.
Many pathways for visitors to enjoy lead
to the surrounding villages and through the wooded
valley of the river Moss (a tributary of the Pother). Eckington now rich in wildlife, was once
a centre of industry, evidence of which can still
be seen today.
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All Saints Church, Elton - Photo:
Mike Fowkes
CCL |
The village of Elton stands on
the hillside of the White Peak plateau, and has
views of Youlgreave and Stanton-in-the-Peak.
Remains of the lead mining industry in and around
the surrounding area still feature in the village.
There are also the remains of a prehistoric fort,
Castle Ring, on the nearby Harthill Moor. A
popular village with walkers due to its location.
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It’s hard to believe that this
beautiful, tranquil village with its lovely
Jacobean hall is known as the ‘plague village’. It
was here in 1665 that a local tailor received some
clothes from London unaware that they contained
spores of the bubonic plague. Instead of fleeing,
local people were persuaded by the local rector to
remain in case they infected others. But the
following summer the plague returned with a
vengeance, killing 257 villagers including the
wife of the courageous rector. Her grave is in the
local churchyard. The full story of this
remarkable moment in history is told in a local
museum. Cottages inhabited by some of the plague
victims survive on the outskirts of the village
which also has the original stocks and a 9th
century cross. |
Eyam Church - Photo:
Alan Fleming
CCL |
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Norfolk Square and Town Hall, Glossop - Photo:
Alan Fleming
CCL |
It was the boom in the cotton
industry that led to the expansion of Glossop in
the 19th century. In just 100 years its
population multiplied sixfold. Set amidst
picturesque moorland, the town lies at the west
end of the famous Snake Pass which winds its way
to Sheffield. Close by is the Longdendale Valley
which formed part of the Royal Forest of the Peak
in the 12th century. Close by, a series
of man-made reservoirs still supply than 100
million litres of water a day to the city of
Manchester. Not far from here is Hadfield,
otherwise known as Royston Vasey in the TV comedy
‘League of Gentlemen’.
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Small is often beautiful and,
despite its size, Hartington is an important
tourist centre and was a key centre for lead
mining from medieval times until the 19th
century. It is also one of the few places where
Stilton, the ‘king of cheeses’, is made. A local
cheese dairy, opened in 1976 by the Duke of
Devonshire, made little headway but it was bought
some years later by one Thomas Nuttall whose
creamery now produces a host of different cheeses,
including Dovedale Blue and Buxton Blue. Pilsbury
Castle, which sits on a promontory guarding the
Dove Valley, is arguably the finest motte and
bailey earthwork in Derbyshire. |
The Duck Pond at Hartington - Photo:
Stephen Elwyn Roddick
CCL |
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Stanage Edge near Hathersage - Photo:
Val Vannet
CCL |
Hathersage is situated in the
Hope Valley area of the Peak District National
Park. A popular tourist destination that has both
character and history, close to Stanage Edge which
is highly popular with walkers and climbers.
Hathersage was an agricultural village for
centuries before the arrival of the mills spread
across the region in the 18th century. The mills
in Hathersage were used to make needles and pins,
the very items which have made the village famous.
The mills were all closed with the arrival of the
twentieth century, although they still stand at
various points around the village.
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A famous
visitor to the village was Charlotte Bronte in
1845. Basing the village ‘Norton’ on Hathersage
itself, she also gave the tile character her
surname from a local family. The village now has
the expected modern amenities and tourist specific
facilities and remains a popular destination.
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Matlock is the County town of
Derbyshire, sitting on the edge of the Peak
District National Park. It wasn’t until the 19th
century that Matlock ever really began to develop
as a spa town; Matlock was previously a collection
of surrounding villages that converged upon the
church in the town whose main interest was
agriculture. Now the town is vibrant and is home
to the Council Offices for the surrounding areas.
John Smedley was the man responsible for the turn
around of Matlock history, Smedley built the
'Hydro' that served as a spa in 1853. There were
over 20 spas in use at its height and the town was
served by trams used to transport the residents up
the steep hills. Smedley also built Riber Castle,
which stands high up on Mam Tor and overlooks the
surrounding area.
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Peak District Mining Museum as seen from the
Heights of Abraham Cable Car - Photo:
Janine Forbes
CCL |
Just three miles away is the
village of Cromford where a cotton-spinning mill
was established by Sir Richard Arkwright in 1771.
He enlarged the village to house his burgeoning
workforce. The mill and its machinery have
survived in working order and form part of the
Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
There are a variety of shops
in the town alongside places to wine & dine. The
surrounding area also gives easy access to Matlock
Bath, the Heights of Abraham, Gulliver’s Kingdom
and much more.
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Boats at Matlock Bath -
Photo: Derbyshire Dales District Council |
Matlock Bath became an instant
tourist resort for the wealthy and influential,
when warm springs, at a constant temperature of 68
degrees Fahrenheit, were discovered back in 1698.
Matlock Bath has undergone
major changes in the last three decades; roads
have been widened and now there are more souvenir
shops, amusement arcades, cafes, and car & coach
parks. The main road that runs through the town is
split in two parts known as South Parade and North
Parade.
Every year from late August
onwards, illuminations are held in Matlock Bath.
The river banks are adorned with illuminated
displays on various themes and the cliffs around
are flood lit. At weekends during this period a
spectacular pageant is held, called `Venetian
Nights`, where decorated boats sail up and down
the river. Regular firework displays are also
given.
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