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Peak District History
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5000 - 2000 BC Long before the Romans relaxed in the warm waters of Aquae Arnemetiae (Buxton), prehistoric man had made his impact on the landscape.
Tracks along the ridgeways formed trade routes and access to significant monuments such as Arbor Low, a henge monument on a smaller scale than Stonehenge, built in about 2,200 BC. The stones are now lying flat, but it is still an impressive and atmospheric place with views for miles. Many walking routes afford skyline views of nearby Minninglow burial mound.
150 AD - 410 AD
The Roman road from Derby through Ashbourne and Buxton to Manchester and the north follows these ancient ways. Buxton was a Roman town from about 150 AD to 400 AD, taking over the local Celtic goddess of the spring, whose name they wrote as Arnemetia. St Ann's Well today is probably a memory of that ancient name.
The long history of mining in the Peak District began with the Romans, who found it to be a good source of lead. All over the landscape today you can see the remains of shafts and spoil heaps from mines through the ages.
600 AD
There is a very sad story associated with the little church in Ilam. Its font is very old, perhaps 7th or 8th century, and the carvings on it tell the story of St Bertram, a local prince. He went to Ireland to bring home his wife and their new baby. As they came through the deep forests of Cheshire, she was too tired to continue so he went for help. By the time he returned they had both been killed and eaten by wolves. He was so devastated that he gave up his possessions and became a hermit and was said to perform many miracles. He may have been a Romano-British Christian, but in any case at this time the Anglo-Saxons were converting to Christianity and nearby Lichfield Cathedral dates from this period. Saxon stone crosses can be seen in the churchyard of St Edwards in Leek, and in the village church of Eyam.
1200 - 1600 AD
In the medieval period, many new packhorse trails criss-crossed the Pennines, carrying minerals and salt. Many of these can still be walked today, for example at Three Shires Head, where the old bridge still crosses the river at the meeting point of Derbyshire, Cheshire and Staffordshire. There are others at Mam Tor and Edale. Books show how to find all these.
1666 AD
During the Great Plague of 1666, the first case of illness in the north was at Eyam. It came with a bolt of cloth sent from London to a travelling tailor who was lodging in a cottage in the main street of Eyam. Plague spread through the village and many died. Their names are shown still above the doors of the cottages where they lived. The village people, led by the Rector, decided not to run away and so cause the spread the disease. They cut themselves off from the rest of the world. Most of the villagers died, including the Rector's wife.
1720 AD
By the early 18th century, copper mining was booming. From 1760 to 1790 the mines at Back of Ecton, just a few miles from our house, were the biggest in the world. They were owned by the Duke of Devonshire, and with the profits he built the Crescent in Buxton and, close by, the largest unsupported dome in Europe as an enormous indoor manege for his horses. This building was for many years the Devonshire Royal Hospital, which specialised in rheumatism and arthritis, using the hot springs as part of the treatment. It is now owned by the University of Derby as their Buxton campus.
1771 AD
On the River Derwent in Cromford James Arkwright revolutionised cotton spinning when he opened the first water-powered mill in 1771. He developed a model factory with good housing for the workers, and a school and hospital for them. In the last ten years, this has been turned into a heritage centre for visitors.
17th and 18th Centuries
At the same time in Macclesfield, the silk industry was taking off and it became the great centre of silk manufacture in the British Isles. In the 1860s, Bernard Wardle was the leading manufacturer. He lived in Leek with his wife Elizabeth, who ran an embroidery school there. This produced some of the finest English embroideries ever made, some of which can be seen on permanent display at St Edward's Church in Leek. William Morris often stayed with them there and played a part in the creative life of the area. You can follow an Arts and Crafts Heritage Trail in Leek and see stained glass, buildings, embroideries and silk-weavers' cottages. The Silk Museum in Macclesfield traces the history of the industry there.
19th Century
At the end of the 18th century, Buxton developed as a spa resort of great elegance, and it remained popular until the Second World War. Recently, the Crescent has been restored, and there are plans to re-open the Pump Rooms at St Ann's Well in 2008.
Continuing History
Unique to the Peak District is the tradition of Well Dressing. This goes back to pagan ceremonies celebrating the many springs and wells in the White Peak area, and was taken over by the churches. Every summer, villages in the area decorate their wells with pictures made from petals and seeds pressed into a frame of clay. There are processions and festivals most weekends between May and September, Tissington being the first each year.
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