Whaley Bridge Local History Goyt Valley Roads Tracks and Trails directions often indicated by a pointing hand and onsider how difficult travel was before the roads we C travellers found their way by turning to the right of take so much for granted today, no lights, sign – the inscription which usually pointed to the nearest posts and a confusion of muddy straggling tracks over Market town. These routes have left clues in place the bleak high moorland. In the lowlands huge thickly names like Saltersford, Jaggers Clough at Edale, wooded areas stretching through The Macclesfield Saltergate at Chesterfield, The Pack Horse at Hayfield Forest and The Peak Forest, woods still teeming with all owe their names to these routes, there was a piece wild boar, deer and prior to 1486 wolf, not to mention of ground in Buxton known as Salters field. robbers and highwaymen looking for easy pickings. Legend has it that Pym Chair gets its name from the The Jaggers leading these trains had to know their highwayman Pym leader of a gang of scoundrels who routes they were responsible for the safe arrival of the sat on a stone chair watching for his next traveller to goods carried and would stick to what they were ambush, approaching Oldgate Nick, you can see familiar with. Tudor governments made the first Oldgate Nick from both Saltersford and Errwood sides efforts to deal with road problems passing acts in of Cats Tor and this feature of the skyline was a 1555 to use local labour under the parish overseers to marker used by travelers as a point to walk to. repair and maintain highways, ruling "no man has the right to sow peas, stack manure or dig his Marl on the A highwayman by the name of Black Harry plagued highway". If the highway was blocked The Kings liege the packhorse trains further along one of the routes had the right to make way over adjoining land even by between Tideswell & Bakewell crossing the moors taking down hedges. So if a section of highway around Wardlow, that is until he was arrested hung, became too deep in mud, they just moved sideways drawn and quartered – and duly gibbeted - on the and started a new track the land owner having no Gallows Tree at Wardlow Mires, the death penalty was choice, although before the enclosure acts walls and introduced in 1772 for being armed and disguised hedges on roads were few. (face blackened) on high roads and open moors. Pack horse trains could be as small as six but as many When Mary Queen of Scots was captive in Buxton as forty, the horse breed in the early days were called these routes that passed through Goyt Valley into Chapman which was crossed with the imported Barb Buxton were watched by government spies by order of and developed into the breed Cleveland Bay, other Lord Walsingham and whilst the Queen was in Buxton breeds later used for pack were Galloway and Welsh no strangers were allowed to enter the town for fear Ponies. of Catholic conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth 1. Definition - Chapman – Horse used as Pack horse Buxton was very well known throughout Elizabethan Chapmen – Merchant travelling with Pack horse England and received visits from many famous and infamous members of Elizabeth’s court. Certainly The average horse carried 240lbs either in panniers or nothing wheeled could pass over the high moorland, saddles or a rough pad known as a Panel secured with even large horses found the going very difficult on the cord or ropes known as Wantys or Wantows, over soft peat, as an example the first wheeled transport good terrain they expected to cover 30 miles a day. between Liverpool and Manchester didn’t happen until Incidentally it is recorded that a trotting Pack Horse 1760, so crossing this Derbyshire moorland terrain team sounded like a troop of Cavalry, this sound was was tough. probably made by the jingling of the load securing points called Wanty Hooks where the cords were It wasn’t until a 1697 act made local Justice of the fastened. As well as Pack horse some more accessible peace erect Stoops ( Inscribed Waymarkers ), that parts of these routes would later be used by Drovers, any sort of signage on large moors or commons Wains and Badgers (A dealer in meal, dairy, malt, existed. They were the size of a Farm gatepost, eggs etc) Macclesfield had one of the largest concentration of Packhorse operators outside London, the majority travelling north with salt up into Yorkshire and returning with cloth, coal, lead etc. Pickfords Removals started its carrier business at Goyts Clough, quarrying and supplying paving stone to some of the major cities, these they carried by Packhorse and returned back with various goods, the Pickford family lived for many years at King Sterndale and were major benefactors in the area helping greatly with the finance for the building of King Sterndale Church. We had four main routes through The Goyt Valley with three crossing points across what was a major hazard, the river. You could loose a whole load in a swollen river so it is not by accident that much money was spent on the construction of The Pack horse bridges, these bridges seem a little remote now but they have over the years attracted people to either settle or work near to them, Errwood with farms and the Hall, Hill Bridge had the old 1 Teazle Mill close by and Taxal with the Church and village. The four crossing points through the upper Goyt being Goyts Moss, Goyts Bridge at Errwood, Hill Bridge and Taxal. We know that there was a stone Packhorse bridge at Errwood and at Taxal and I strongly suspect looking at the stone pillars at Hill bridge there was one there too but I have seen no documented evidence of this. The main Salt routes are usually identified as Goyts Bridge and Taxal but I would say as all these routes developed, that salt would be carried on them all, all four routes across these points were later developed to take wheeled transport and the road system grew from this. Taking Goyts Moss first the route ran past the Cat & Fiddle following what can now be seen as the old Macclesfield Road past Goyts Moss. I have seen part of this route at Burbage referred to as Jaggers Gate although not on a map, at Errwood the Packhorse bridge in a way misleadingly known as Goyts Bridge actually didn’t span the Goyt but was across Wildmerstone brook. The Goyt was crossed by a ford and stepping stones, looking at the old postcards produced, they nearly always show a view looking straight at the Pack horse bridge but the River Goyt is actually to the right of the picture where the rivers meet. The bridge that spans the Goyt was slightly further down river, wider and built primarily for carriage access for Coal, Barytes and Stone and to Errwood Hall and still sits quietly under the waters. The lower two photographs were taken in 1994 when the reservoir was low showing the drive coming down from Errwood Hall and Goyts road bridge sitting in the mud. Errwood Reservoir, 1994 The Drive from Errwood Hall, 1994 2 So what can still be seen of these ancient routes? Well probably more than you would think, one of the legacies that the thousands of feet and hooves have left are the Holloways. Holloways are formed by countless travellers wearing down the soft peat causing deep hollows, when they became to difficult to pass they just moved sideways on a new pathway. You may have driven past many times and never noticed one of the best examples, next time you cross the top of long hill stop where you turn to Errwood and look both sides of the road those deep furrows are not naturally accuring. You can trace them all the way down toward The Goyt to Cromford High Peak railway / Sandy Lane, likewise they can be seen heading for Buxton in the fields top side of Long Hill until you get to ground that has been ploughed. Holloways can also be seen coming out of Saltersford heading up Cats Tor to Old Gate Nick, also if you get the chance follow the road through Saltersford turn right for Rainow / Bollington the road drops down past some cottages with a Red telephone box, look to the right and you can see another good example of Holloways heading down the field. Whilst there Holloways, Long Hill carry on turn to your right stop in the small layby and look back at the skyline and Old Gate Nick in the distance you can see why it was important for guiding travellers. There are also good examples of Holloways coming over from Goyts Moss, as you leave Buxton via Cat & Fiddle on your right hand side where the Waterboard have a small stone building near the road and the old road goes off to the left. If you want to look from your armchair its pretty good what you can see from Google Earth, zoom in at the top of Long Hill you can see things that you can’t from ground level. I have written this assuming the persons reading has no knowledge of Holloways forgive me if you are already familiar with these fascinating pieces of History. I quite often walk through them stand and wonder who passed this way and what a relief it must have been reaching the top of such a long climb, seeing Buxton in Taxal Pack Horse Bridge the distance below, if nothing else it gives some indication of how many persons travelled these routes and for how long.