The Erewash Valley is the valley of the

River Erewash The River Erewash is a river in England, a tributary of the River Trent that flows roughly southwards through Derbyshire, close to its eastern border with Nottinghamshire. Etymology The approximate meaning of the name is not in doubt, but t ...

(pronounced ) on the border of

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

and

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

as far as the

River Trent The Trent is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, third-longest river in the United Kingdom. Its Source (river or stream), source is in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through and drains the North Midland ...

. It runs along the boundary of the southern end of the Derbyshire hills and the more rolling Nottinghamshire country. It is on the edge of an area of great mineral wealth, particularly coal, extending from Yorkshire to Leicestershire.

Industrial Importance

It has long been an important transport route, with the

Erewash Canal The Erewash Canal is a broad canal in Derbyshire, England. It runs just under and has 14 locks. The first lock at Langley Bridge is part of the Cromford Canal. Origins The canal obtained its act of parliament in 1777 with John Varley a ...

being built from the River Trent to

Langley Mill Langley Mill is a large village in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. History Originally named ''Long Lea'', the village of Langley Mill was a major employer throughout the mid 1900s with many companies including The Flour Mi ...

in 1779, extended by the

Cromford Canal The Cromford Canal ran from Cromford to the Erewash Canal in Derbyshire, England with a branch to Pinxton. Built by William Jessop with the assistance of Benjamin Outram, its alignment included four tunnels and 14 locks. From Cromford it ran ...

in 1794 with a branch to Pinxton, where it was later joined by the Mansfield and Pinxton Railway in 1819. Later the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It am ...

built a connection from its line at Trent Junction to the Mansfield and Pinxton, and onward to

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

, which has become known as the '' Erewash Valley Line.'' The valley contains the

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

disused

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag Inclusion (mineral), inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a ...

Bennerley Viaduct The Bennerley Viaduct is a disused railway viaduct spanning the Erewash Valley between Awsworth (Nottinghamshire) and Ilkeston (Derbyshire) in central England. It was built in 1877 but closed to rail traffic in 1968, as part of the Beeching cuts ...

which once carried the

GNR Derbyshire and Staffordshire Extension The Derbyshire and Staffordshire extension of the Great Northern Railway was an English railway network built by the GNR to get access to coal resources in the area to the north and west of Nottingham. The Midland Railway had obstructed the GNR in ...

over the line.

References

{{Coord, 53.0045, -1.3131, type:landmark_dim:30000_region:GB, display=title Landforms of Nottinghamshire Valleys of Derbyshire