UNDER THE EDGE INCORPORATING THE PARISH MAGAZINE GREAT LONGSTONE, LITTLE LONGSTONE, ROWLAND, HASSOP, MONSAL HEAD, WARDLOW www.undertheedge.net No. 252 January 2020 ISSN 1466-8211 Walking on The Edge I love walking on Longstone Edge, it’s a good bit of exercise and the views are wonderful. There is a sense of getting away from it all. To the north there is Mam Tor with Kinder Scout in the background. To the south you can see the wind turbines above Carsington Reservoir and beyond. To the west Tunstead Quarry stands out with Axe Edge Moor and Wild Moor above Buxton on the horizon. To the East you can see the Hunting Tower at Chatsworth with East Moor and Bunker’s Hill wood above. And of course you get great views of Under The Edge villages. I always take my camera and try and capture the moment, the two photos shown are taken from the same spot but illustrate the differing seasons. The trees shown are directly above Moor Lane in Great Longstone. The Edge is riddled with footpaths so I can walk a different route every time I go up there. In this busy world of ours it is quite therapeutic to be able to walk for a couple of hours and not see another soul. At this time of year we get the starlings coming in to roost overnight in the reed beds on Middleton Moor. Thousands fly in from all directions at sunset and leave again at sunrise. Sometimes they will murmurate (fly in formation, creating patterns in the sky) before they fly down to the reed beds. We have a variety of animals up there in the form of sheep, cows, donkeys but anymy favouritemonth of arethe theyear, highland and did cattleyou know which that are it so is adocile member and offriendly. the pea There family? are Another also numerous event I look wild forward flowers, to the is rarestthe heather one I have seen is the Bee Orchid. Another fairly common sight is the gorse which is the only shrub I know that can be in flower in a local villager on one of my walks. comingAndy intoHanna flower in August, a sight worth beholding. Perhaps this article might encourage you to go up there and I might meet A Local Mystery The funeral of Sergeant R.S.C. Plowright, 30th September 1942 Last month UTE was contacted by the mother met up frequently: records keepers of this cemetery, appealing for show that in 1940, Nina tried to cross a picture of Sergeant Robert Stuart into Canada but her application was Crichton Plowright. They know that he rejected. Lotte is recorded crossing the has some small connection to Longstone, US-Canada border multiple times as a journalist, a widow, and, on different occasions as Hebrew, White, British The body of Sergeant R.S.C. Plowright Bungalow,as a small obituary Moor Lane, identifies Great Longstone” him as the and Canadian. washed ashore on a sandbank near andson ofhis “Mrs name Elizabeth can be found Plowright on the of Great The These small fragments of detail Schiermonnikoog island in the Longstone War Memorial. which Frank painfully eked out, raise Netherlands in 1942 and was buried For further information I contacted some interesting questions. Why did by the German forces occupying the Lotte leave England so soon after her island at De Vredenhof cemetery. correspondence with the keepers of marriage? What happened to her? Why De Vredenhof cemetery was originally DeFrank Vredenhof. Parker, who Frank was had quoted previously in our did Robert, a self-proclaimed journalist, founded in 1906 for the burial of bodies done some investigation into Sergeant sign-up to be an air gunner? Frank washed up by the sea but during tentatively speculates a possible desire WWII German, British, Commonwealth, chain of detail regarding his in-laws. for a suicide mission. Plowright, uncovering an interesting It must be noted that this is not the side-by-side by the occupying German his life in Buenos Aires but he moved French, and Polish men were buried forces in a humanising act of dignity in to SergeantEngland inPlowright 1930 and spent married much Lotte of Frank has already pursued that line of barbaric times. Hahn in England in September 1938. enquiry!Robert Plowright of Longstone Hall - Since 1960, voluntary keepers of There were two witnesses to the Do you know anything about or even the cemetary have tried to identify have a photo of Robert Stuart Crichton unknown soldiers and family members who became a British Diplomat in to properly remember those who Centralwedding: America, P Barker-Benfield, and Eugene a journalist Lenhoff, gave their lives for our freedom. The a prominent anti-Nazi writer. On thePlowright Editors ofor UTE. his mother Elizabeth objective of the keepers is to ensure that Plowright?Michael BealeIf so, please get in touch with every grave is accompanied by a portrait and Lotte gave their occupations as of the person buried beneath. ‘journalist’.the marriage certificate both Robert One month later, Lotte Hahn travelled WSouthern Joinery without Robert to Canada under the Bespoke Woodworking Specialist in sliding box sash windows Around the same time, in December Casement windows and doors name Charlotte Plowright. All joinery work undertaken 1939, Lotte Hahn’s mother, Nina (Hahn) Mobile: 07707 772561 emigrated to the US from Austria with papers only issued one month previously. Her immigration papers identify her as Hebrew and that her passage was paid for by her nephew American Tobacco Co. in New York. Web: www.wsouthernjoinery.co.uk Sergeant Plowright’s gravestone Email: [email protected] PaulIt is M likely Hahn, that who Lotte worked Hahn andfor theher 2 An ideal walk These were taken on a lovely local walk that starts just round the corner on Church Lane and passes along the perfect Stancil Dale tucked between Beggarway Lane and Longstone Edge. Taken at about 6.00am, when we ago, the walk is like a microcosm of Derbyshire - I love it. Everyhad the bit first of Derbyshireproper frost encapsulated of the winter ina couple a circular of weeks walk of about a mile and a half, just about 800 metres from Main Street in Longstone. A beautiful short stroll/walk of about 45 minutes to an hour, with clear paths, good under foot except at the large cattle gates, gentle slopes & interesting information boards showing the route and explaining the land use and history. drop down at the dew pond to then complete the walk orI turn find clockwiseleft and cross best a and meadow tend to to keep go up up onto higher the to edge. then Colby Burke J. W. & J. METTAM LIMITED Aisseford Tea Room Ashford-in-the-Water Independent Family Breakfast Lunch Funeral Directors since 1899 Afternoon Tea Ambrose House, Stop by for gifts and cards Granby Croft, The Packhorse Inn Dogs and Muddy Boots welcome Bakewell DE45 1ET Little Longstone Open 7 days a week Tel: (01629 812114) David and Lorraine welcome 01629 812 773 you to The Packhorse. Small parties catered for! Excellent hand-pulled ales and Computer Repairs & Services quality home cooked food are available from 12 – 3.00pm and spear financial ltd Hardware & Software Issues nurture grow & protect 6-9.00pm daily. Quiz night on IT Support & Advice Life’s about making the Thursday with ‘A Bingo Twist’ at 9.00pm with proceeds going to right choices Air Ambulance. PC, Apple, Some Phone & Tablet .Investments.Pensions.Protection Children, dogs and walkers are all welcome in the pub and beer Networking, Broadband & Wireless Problems Broome’s Barns, Pilsley Lane, Pilsley, Derbyshire, DE45 1PF David Cox Great Longstone 01629 640362 Tel. 01246 582242. Email: [email protected] garden. www.spearfinancial.co.uk Spear Financial Limited is authorised and regulated by the Telephone 01629 640471 PleaseHND CallComputer and discuss Studies your - Liverpool Issue 07768 University 608378 Financial Conduct Authority 3 Happy New Year 2020 A very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year 2020 from all of us at Under The Edge to all our readers! Looking back over the past year, we owe a very big Thank You to two old stalwarts who have left the team, for all their contributions that have helped make UTE what it is today. this job involves a lot of work behind the scenes, and you know you’re in good and professional hands when no one else is Sallyaware Kehr of this! started Richard as Treasurer Carter has in 2006joined and us ashas Sally’s kept the replacement administration - he has and had financial a lot of side experience in apple-pie with order. this sort As always, of role in other organisations. Ian Gilbert joined the Editorial team ten years ago in 2009, helping to propel UTE to a higher level in terms of graphics (particularly on adverts) and software. He was very passionate about UTE and things being done correctly, which raised the level of professionalism and helped make layout more consistent between the different Editors. The quality of production before and after Ian joining is very noticeable, as can be seen from looking back at old issues on the website (another innovation he was responsible for). Ian also obtained multiple software licences to avoid Editors having to share a laptop, which they used to hand round each month, rather like the old sisters in Greek mythology who only had one eye and one tooth between them! Ian also managed to bring costs down and improve quality by switching printing companies. And a warm welcome back to Michael Beale, who stepped down as an Editor last year on moving to London to a new job, where he actually uses the same layout software as he did for UTE.