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Matlock, Derbyshire

Matlock is the county town of Derbyshire, England. It is situated at the south eastern edge of the Peak District, and is twinned with the French town Eaubonne. The former spa resort Matlock Bath lies immediately south of the town on the A6. Matlock, as a town, has a population of 10,689. The wider population of the Matlock urban area is approximately 20,000 (including Darley Dale and Matlock Bath). Often, the Matlock area is considered to include Wirksworth, due to the close proximity of the two towns. This would bring the area's population closer to 30,000.

Matlock is nine miles (14 km) south west of Chesterfield, surrounded by the cities of Derby (19 miles), Sheffield (20 miles), Nottingham (29 Miles) and the Greater Manchester conurbation (30 miles). Although officially occupying a central England position geographically, Matlock is in the west of Derbyshire in what is known as the Derbyshire Dales which includes the towns of Wirksworth, Bakewell and Ashbourne. In 2005, the Government paper The Northern Way suggested to include Matlock into a newly formed Sheffield City Region which would ultimately mean the redesign of regional and county councils. However to date there is no set time agenda for this to happen.

History

A former spa town, Matlock lies on the River Derwent, and has prospered from both the hydrotherapy industry and the mills constructed on the river and it tributary Bentley Brook. It was an unimportant collection of small villages — Matlock Town, Matlock Green, Matlock Bridge, Matlock Bank — until thermal springs were discovered in 1698^{[citation needed]} The population increased rapidly in the 1800s, largely due to hugely popular hydros being built^{[citation needed]} At one stage there were around twenty hydros, most on Matlock Bank. The largest was built in 1853 by John Smedley. This closed in the 1950s, when it became home to Derbyshire County Council. Matlock is also home to the Derbyshire Dales District Council as well as Matlock Town Council.

Bank Road Tram

In 1893, Matlock Cable Tramway, a cable tramway was built up Bank Road from Crown Square at Matlock Bridge to Wellington Street (at the top of Bank Road) with a stop half way up at Smedley Street where Smedley's Hydro (built by John Smedley) was situated. Conceived by Job Smith, the tram was inspired by San Francisco's famous cable cars, and cost £20,000. When it was built it was the steepest tramway in the world at a gradient of 1 in 5½, and it rose 300 feet (91 m). The fare was tuppence up, penny down. It closed in 1927 after losing business to cars and buses.

Railways

Matlock railway station was opened on the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway, later the Midland, line between London and Manchester, until the section between Matlock and Buxton was closed in 1968 during the Beeching Axe. Network Rail considered re-opening the line, with a study carried out by the county council. Although it proved to be unfeasible in the short term, the track bed will be kept free of development as the study showed that the line could be economically viable from around 2025^[1]. The section from Wye Dale (about 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Buxton) to Coombs viaduct, a point about a mile south-east of Bakewell, has now become the Monsal Trail, an 8.5-mile (13.7 km) walk and cycle trail.

Trains still run between Matlock and Derby on the Derwent Valley Line. Peak Rail, a preserved railway, runs steam trains on a section of the closed line between Matlock, Darley Dale and Rowsley. It is hoped that in the future Peak Rail will be able to share the mainline station – it currently has its own station, Matlock Riverside, a short distance to the north.

Hall Leys Park

The tram shelter from Crown Square is now in Hall Leys Park, a large Victorian park next to the River Derwent which opened in 1898. The park boasts a miniature railway, bandstand and a boating pond, with the oldest running powered boats in Britain, for many years, as well as tennis courts and a war memorial. There is an ongoing project to update and upgrade all the parks in the Matlock area - Hall Leys Park was the first to benefit from this and the children's play area has been greatly modernised. There has also been a skateboard park added replacing grass tennis courts. The park hosts an arts festival, Matlock Live, every June and the Matlock Victorian Christmas Weekend on the first weekend of December.

Bank Road

The Crown Hotel - the original site of the hotel which gave its name to Crown Square is now a building society office. The Crown is now a Wetherspoon's pub just along Bakewell Road. [2]

Post Office and Sorting Office

Derbyshire Dales District Council Offices - the home of Derbyshire Dales District Council. [3]

Our Lady & St. Joseph's Catholic Church

Youth Hostel - a YHA youth hostel - closed on 30 September 2007.

Matlock Methodist & United Reformed Church [4]

Old Sunday School which is now a B&B.

Old Methodist Church which, until recently, housed the Matlock Wurlitzer[5].

County Hall - the home of Derbyshire County Council [6] since the 1950s, formerly Smedley's Hydro[7]. Part of the County Hall complex is seen in Women in Love, Ken Russell's Oscar winning 1969 film. As the Brangwen sisters walk out of their house (in reality No. 80, New Street) near the beginning of the film they are seen walking towards Bank Road.

Smedley Street which traverses Matlock Bank and has its own parade of shops and a post office (now closed).

The Gate public house

NB. Beyond Smedley Street Bank Road is actually Rutland Street.

The Old Tram Depot which is now a garage and car repair centre.

Rockside Hydro an imposing building with views across Matlock, now converted into flats.

Sport

Matlock is home to Matlock Town Football Club. They are currently in the Unibond Premier League and play home matches at their Causeway Lane ground.

Matlock is also home to Matlock Cricket Club who play their games next to the football ground, and Matlock and District Swimming Club (also known as MAD Swimming) who train and compete in the nearby Matlock Lido.

Matlock has a regular rugby team who play their home matches at nearby Cromford Meadows. They run 3 senior teams and the 1st XV compete at Level 6 in the RFU league structure. Matlock Rugby Club also has a thriving mini's and junior section with over 250 members all supported by fully qualified mini and junior coaches. In 2007 the club was awarded the Derbyshire Tigger Price Memorial trophy for the team of the year award

Education and the Arts

Matlock has a growing reputation for the creative and performing arts which was enhanced in 2004 when the annual arts festival Matlock Live! began^{[citation needed]}. It takes place in June or July each year featuring local musicians, dancers, artists, etc. The local secondary school, Highfields School, achieved status as a Performing Arts College due to its connections with Matlock Live!^{[citation needed]} As part of the summer event, Matlock Live invites Buskers / Street performers to form a busking trail around Matlock raising money for the charity Aquabox. More information on Matlock Live events can be found at the website. Matlock Music present a series of public concerts at Highfields School (Upper Lumsdale site). ^[2] Storytelling is also well represented with a monthly Storytelling Cafe and the storytelling performance school run by Graham Langley.

History of Education in Matlock

The first school in Matlock was founded in 1647 as a free school for local boys, originally funded by local George Spateman of Tansley and from 1668 by Anthony Wolley ^[3]. This school was rebuilt in 1829 and expanded in 1860 and 1889 and girls first attended in 1816 ^[3]. This school has since been demolished ^[3] (the date is unknown).

Another school, All Saints Primary School was founded in 1875 to provide for the population of the new developed Matlock Bank ^[3]. This school still operates and is the biggest primary school in Matlock. In 1897, a third school, the Council School, was constructed on Matlock Bank, at the junction of Smedley Street and Chesterfield Road ^[3]. It also still operates as Castle View Primary School.

Before Highfields School was founded in 1982, when the tripartite education system in Matlock ended, there were two secondary schools in Matlock; Charles White Secondary Modern (founded in 1956, and named after two local MPs, father and son, the latter of who died in 1956) and Ernest Bailey's Grammar School (founded in 1924 and named after its wealthy founder). ^[3]

As a Grammar school, Bailey's accepted students who's parents paid or who gained scholorships (by passing the Eleven plus exam) until fees were phased out, leaving scholorship as the only means of entry. ^[3] Everyone else attended Charles White, a Secondary modern school, hence it is estimated that Charles White students outnumbered Bailey's students 3:1. ^[3] White had been built especially by Derbyshire County Council to accomodate the children who couldn't attend Bailey's. ^[3]

The two schools were merged to create Highfields, a comprehensive. The site of Charles White became lower site of Highfields, Ernest Bailey was converted to the county council record offices and a new school was built to house the new Upper Lumsdale site. ^[3]

The town centre development

For over 10 years, the council had proposed to allow a Sainsbury's supermarket to be built in Cawdor Quarry, a disused quarry next to the railway station. In early 2007 building work started, and it was opened on Thursday 4 October 2007. The access road for the supermarket forms part of a new one way system, whereby the A6 bypasses the town centre. A footbridge from the railway station allows pedestrian access to the supermarket from the town centre. A newly built bus station next to the train station is intended to create an integrated transport terminal.^[4]. However, several bus routes will continue to serve only the old Bus Station on Bakewell Road, making Matlock one of the smallest towns in Britain to boast two bus stations.

There has recently been a negative image of Matlock Town centre due to the limited retail offer for a town of Matlock's size which was identified in the Matlock Masterplan - a document produced by the district council. There has been a worry that many locals now choose to shop in neighbouring towns due to this perceived problem. There has been a call from some locals and the authorities for some national "High Street" retailers to set up in the town^{[citation needed]}. The local council had a wider development planned for the future with key development sites on Bakewell Road, Firs Parade and Imperial Road which were identified in 2007 in the masterplan. However, as of December 2009 no movement on the development has been planned let alone started.

Matlock on film and television

Coming Down the Mountain, The BBC drama was set partly in Matlock although nothing was filmed there.

Women in Love, Ken Russell's Oscar winning 1969 film, uses a house at the top of New Street (No. 80) as the home of the Brangwen sisters, Gudrun and Ursula. The house is currently a B&B.

Peak Practice, the ITV series, used locations in Matlock, including Highfields School, Victoria Hall Gardens and Henry Avenue, although the main village location is Crich and nearby Fritchley.

Dead Man's Shoes, the 2004 film by Shane Meadows, was filmed in and around Matlock.

In Denial of Murder, 2005 BBC dramatisation of Matlock Mercury editor Don Hale's campaign to free Stephen Downing.

Jane Eyre, 2006 BBC Adaptation of the Charlotte Brontë novel was filmed at Haddon Hall and the countryside nearby.

Youth Hostels

The Youth Hostels Association (YHA) has its national headquarters in the former Severn Trent Water building on Dimple Road, Matlock. YHA has had two hostels in the town. The first (1933 - 1934) in Tor Dale and the second (1983 - 2007) in Bank Road. Despite the close proximity of the Head Office, Bank Road closed in 2007 as part of a restructuring exercise. It has subsequently been redeveloped.

Famous Residents

Simon Groom, the DJ and former Blue Peter presenter.

Philip Whitehead, MP,

Isy Suttie, comedian and actress.

Gallery

Matlock morning view from east, Lumsdale