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Cromford is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, England, in the valley of the River Derwent between Wirksworth and Matlock. It is north of Derby, south of Matlock and south of Matlock Bath. It is first mentioned in the 11th-century Domesday Book as ''Crumforde'', a berewick (supporting farm) of Wirksworth, and this remained the case throughout the Middle Ages. The population at the 2011 Census was 1,433. It is principally known for its historical connection with
Richard Arkwright Sir Richard Arkwright (23 December 1732 – 3 August 1792) was an English inventor and a leading entrepreneur during the early Industrial Revolution. He is credited as the driving force behind the development of the spinning frame, known as t ...
and the nearby
Cromford Mill Cromford Mill is the world's first water-powered cotton spinning mill, developed by Richard Arkwright in 1771 in Cromford, Derbyshire, England. The mill structure is classified as a Grade I listed building. It is now the centrepiece of the De ...
, which he built outside the village in 1771. Cromford is in the
Derwent Valley Mills Derwent Valley Mills is a World Heritage Site along the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England, designated in December 2001. It is administered by the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership. The modern factory, or 'mill', system was born here in the 18 ...
World Heritage Site. The Cromford mill complex, owned and being restored by the
Arkwright Society The Arkwright Society is a registered charity engaged in the conservation of industrial monuments in Derbyshire, focusing on the water mills of Lumsdale Valley, Ashford, Cromford and Slinter Wood. It is named after Richard Arkwright who founded ...
, was declared by Historic England as "one of the country’s 100 irreplaceable sites".The Cromford Mills Creative Cluster and World Heritage Site Gateway Project, Derbyshire
/ref> It is also the centrepiece of the
Derwent Valley Mills Derwent Valley Mills is a World Heritage Site along the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England, designated in December 2001. It is administered by the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership. The modern factory, or 'mill', system was born here in the 18 ...
UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2018, the ''Cromford Mills Creative Cluster and World Heritage Site Gateway Project'' was listed as a finalist for the ''Best Major Regeneration of a Historic Building or Place'' in the Historic England Angel Awards.


Geography

The River Derwent, with its sources on
Bleaklow Bleaklow is a high, largely peat-covered, gritstone moorland in the Derbyshire High Peak near the town of Glossop. It is north of Kinder Scout, across the Snake Pass ( A57), and south of the A628 Woodhead Pass. Much of it is nearly 2,000 ...
in the Dark Peak, flows southward to Derby and then into the River Trent. The geology of this section in the Derbyshire Dales is that of limestone. The fast flowing river has cut a deep valley. The A6 trunk road, which was the main road between London and Manchester in former times, the Cromford Canal and the Derwent Valley Line, linking Derby and Matlock, were all built in the river valley. The
Via Gellia The A5012 road is a main road in the south of the English county of Derbyshire. Route Around in length, it connects two primary north–south routes; the A6 at Cromford and the A515 between Buxton and Ashbourne. It passes through Pikehall ...
valley joins the Derwent at Cromford; however, the stream which runs through that valley is actually the Ivonbrook and historically the valley was called the Ivonbrook Valley. The Via Gellia is simply the name of the road which runs along it, named after the Gell family who owned many mines in the area.


History

It is one of the significant sites in the development of the Industrial Revolution. Here,
Richard Arkwright Sir Richard Arkwright (23 December 1732 – 3 August 1792) was an English inventor and a leading entrepreneur during the early Industrial Revolution. He is credited as the driving force behind the development of the spinning frame, known as t ...
built his cotton mill to make use of the water frame. More specifically, according to ''Peak District Online'', "Cromford is also known as the 'cradle' or `birthplace` of the Industrial Revolution for this was where Richard Arkwright (1732-1792), perhaps Britain's first ever `industrial tycoon` and known as `The Father of the Factory System` chose to build the world's first water-powered cotton mill in 1771." The Gell family, who were local Hopton landowners heavily involved in the nearby Wirksworth
lead mining Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, l ...
district, had the
Via Gellia The A5012 road is a main road in the south of the English county of Derbyshire. Route Around in length, it connects two primary north–south routes; the A6 at Cromford and the A515 between Buxton and Ashbourne. It passes through Pikehall ...
built to connect Cromford and Grangemill in the late 18th century. Various cottages and farm buildings pre-date Arkwright's time, but a large part of the village was built to house the mill workers. One source states that these are now considered to be "the first factory housing development in the world". Employees were provided with shops, pubs, chapels and a school. Willersley Castle, now a Grade II* listed building, was also built by Richard Arkwright in 1791; after a fire in 1792, it was rebuilt and occupied by his son Richard Arkwright junior starting in 1796. In the early 1800s, Scarthin Nick was "blasted through with dynamite to make way for what later became the A6, thus annexing the Arkwright industrial mill complex on the east side of the main Derby road and the Market Place and village at the bottom of the hill which climbs steeply westward towards Wirksworth, on the other". The 20th century saw the development of council and private housing. Dene quarry, currently operated by Tarmac Ltd for the production of aggregates and roadstone, was excavated to the south west of the village from 1942 onwards. In December 2001 a corridor from
Masson Mill Sir Richard Arkwright's Masson Mill is a water-powered cotton spinning mill situated on the west bank of the River Derwent in Matlock Bath, Derbyshire in England. This mill was built in 1783. It forms part of the Derwent Valley Mills, a World H ...
in Matlock Bath to the Silk Mill in Derby and including the mills in Cromford, Milford, Belper and Darley Abbey was declared the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. Masson Mill was described by the ''Peak District Online'' in 2006 as "perhaps the most prominent of Arkwright’s constructions ... and still in use today as a heritage site museum and retailer outlet".


Cultural references

The 1931 novel ''Saturday Night at the Greyhound'' by John Hampson takes place over the course of one evening in the bar at the Greyhound Hotel, Cromford. In late 2006,
Anand Tucker Anand Tucker (born 24 June 1963) is a film director and producer based in London. He began his career directing factual television programming and adverts. He co-owns the production company Seven Stories. Personal life Tucker was born in Thailan ...
used certain parts of Cromford, including its historic bookshop, for his film ''
And When Did You Last See Your Father? ''And When Did You Last See Your Father?'' is a 2007 British drama film directed by Anand Tucker. The screenplay by David Nicholls is based on the 1993 memoir of the same title by Blake Morrison. Plot While Blake Morrison, his mother, and ...
'', based on the autobiographical memoir by poet
Blake Morrison Philip Blake Morrison FRSL (born 8 October 1950) is an English poet and author who has published in a wide range of fiction and non-fiction genres. His greatest success came with the publication of his memoirs ''And When Did You Last See Your Fat ...
.
Colin Firth Colin Andrew Firth (born 10 September 1960) is an English actor and producer. He was identified in the mid-1980s with the " Brit Pack" of rising young British actors, undertaking a challenging series of roles, including leading roles in '' A M ...
plays the adult Blake, with
Jim Broadbent James Broadbent (born 24 May 1949) is an English actor. He won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his supporting role as John Bayley in the feature film ''Iris'' (2001), as well as winning a BAFTA TV Award and a Golden Globe for hi ...
cast as his dying father. An industrial site in the German town of
Ratingen Ratingen ( li, Rotinge) is a town in the district of Mettmann in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It lies in the northwestern part of Berg about 12 km northeast of Düsseldorf. Administration With a communal reform of 1975 the independent mu ...
is named Textilfabrik Cromford after Cromford, as this is where the industrial pioneer Johann Gottfried Brügelmann in 1783 erected the first factory outside England, using Arkwright's factory as an archetype. The factory today forms part of the Rheinisches Industriemuseum.
Cromford railway station Cromford railway station is a Grade II listed railway station owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Railway. It is located in the village of Cromford in Derbyshire, England. The station is on the Derwent Valley Line north of Der ...
is located on the MatlockDerby Derwent Valley Line and can be seen on the cover of the 1995
Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...
single "
Some Might Say "Some Might Say" is a song by English rock band Oasis. It was released as the first single on 24 April 1995 from their second studio album, ''(What's the Story) Morning Glory?'' (1995). The song was written by the band's lead guitarist Noel Gal ...
".


Governance

Historically, Cromford was part of the ''Wirksworth Wapentake'' or ''Hundred''; this administrative area, also known as the Soke of Wirksworth (the "small county of Wirksworth"), soon became West Derbyshire Council and is now called Derbyshire Dales District Council. The village is run locally by the Cromford Parish Council.


Transport

The A6, which links
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...
with Luton, passes just to the north of the village; it provides easy access to Manchester,
Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...
,
Bakewell Bakewell is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, known also for its local Bakewell pudding. It lies on the River Wye, about 13 miles (21 km) south-west of Sheffield. In the 2011 census, ...
, Matlock and Derby.
Cromford railway station Cromford railway station is a Grade II listed railway station owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Railway. It is located in the village of Cromford in Derbyshire, England. The station is on the Derwent Valley Line north of Der ...
is served by trains along the Derwent Valley line between Derby and Matlock. The route is operated by
East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...
, with services stopping generally hourly in both directions.


Landmarks

The
Cromford Mill Cromford Mill is the world's first water-powered cotton spinning mill, developed by Richard Arkwright in 1771 in Cromford, Derbyshire, England. The mill structure is classified as a Grade I listed building. It is now the centrepiece of the De ...
(1771) buildings and accommodation for workers to staff the factories form part of the
Derwent Valley Mills Derwent Valley Mills is a World Heritage Site along the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England, designated in December 2001. It is administered by the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership. The modern factory, or 'mill', system was born here in the 18 ...
, which is recognised as a World Heritage Site for its importance. North Street, constructed by Arkwright, is important as a very early purpose-built industrial workers' housing, and was rescued from dereliction in the 1970s by the Ancient Monument Society who have since sold off the houses. One house in the street is now a Landmark Trust holiday cottage.
Masson Mill Sir Richard Arkwright's Masson Mill is a water-powered cotton spinning mill situated on the west bank of the River Derwent in Matlock Bath, Derbyshire in England. This mill was built in 1783. It forms part of the Derwent Valley Mills, a World H ...
(1783) is on the northern fringe of the village. Willersley Castle dominates the hill on the east side of the river, with commanding views of Masson Mill, the village, and the road from Derby. Commissioned by Richard Arkwright, building work began in 1790, but was delayed by a fire in 1791. Richard Arkwright died in 1792, and the building was occupied by his son Richard in 1796. The Arkwright family moved out in 1922, and the building was acquired by some Methodist businessmen, and opened to guests as a Methodist Guild hotel in 1928. During World War II, the building was used as a maternity hospital by the Salvation Army while evacuated from their hospital in the East End of London. St Mary's Church, built between 1792 and 1797 by Richard Arkwright. 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 ...
– built to service the mills – is now disused, but has been designated a
Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
(SSSI). The canal tow-path can be followed from
Cromford Wharf Cromford Wharf is at Cromford in Derbyshire, England. It is located at the northern terminus of the Cromford Canal, which opened in 1794 and ran 14.5 miles (23 km) from here to the Erewash Canal in Derbyshire. The wharf stands on ...
to
High Peak Junction High Peak Junction, near Cromford, Derbyshire, England, is the name now used to describe the site where the former Cromford and High Peak Railway (C&HPR), whose workshops were located here, meets the Cromford Canal. It lies within Derwent Valley ...
, and on to
Whatstandwell Whatstandwell is a village on the River Derwent in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. It is about five miles south of Matlock and about four miles north of Belper. Whatstandwell railway station is located on the Derby-Matlock ...
and Ambergate. The
Cromford and High Peak Railway The Cromford and High Peak Railway (C&HPR) was a standard-gauge line between the Cromford Canal wharf at High Peak Junction and the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge. The railway, which was completed in 1831, was built to carry minerals and goo ...
, completed in 1831, ran from High Peak Junction to the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge. Its trackbed now forms the
High Peak Trail The High Peak Trail is a trail for walkers, cyclists and horse riders in the Peak District of England. Running from Dowlow , near Buxton, to High Peak Junction, Cromford , it follows the trackbed of the former Cromford and High Peak Rai ...
, a walk and cycle route which is joined by the
Tissington Trail The Tissington Trail is a bridleway, footpath and cycleway in Derbyshire, England, along part of the trackbed of the former railway line connecting Ashbourne to Buxton. It takes its name from the village of Tissington, which it skirts. Open ...
at
Parsley Hay Parsley Hay railway station served Parsley Hay, a hamlet within Hartington Middle Quarter civil parish, about south east of Buxton, Derbyshire, on the LNWR line to Ashbourne. The nearest large settlement is the village of Hartington. Histor ...
.


Notable residents

*
Francis Hurt Francis Hurt (22 October 1803 at Cromford, Derbyshire – 1 April 1861 at Alderwasley, Derbyshire) was an English Tory politician who represented the constituency of South Derbyshire. Biography Hurt was born at Rock House Cromford, the son of Fr ...
(1803–1861), Tory politician and member of Parliament who represented a constituency in South Derbyshire * George Turner (1841–1910), landscape artist, was born here. *
Alison Uttley Alison Uttley (17 December 1884 – 7 May 1976), ''née'' Alice Jane Taylor, was an English writer of over 100 books. She is best known for a children's series about Little Grey Rabbit and Sam Pig. She is also remembered for a pioneering time s ...
, (1884–1976), writer, was born nearby at Castle Top Farm.


Gallery

File:Cromford greyhound.jpg, The Greyhound Hotel built for
Richard Arkwright Sir Richard Arkwright (23 December 1732 – 3 August 1792) was an English inventor and a leading entrepreneur during the early Industrial Revolution. He is credited as the driving force behind the development of the spinning frame, known as t ...
in 1778 for the use of businessmen and others visiting the mills.
File:Cromford Pond 1.jpg, Cromford Pond built in 1785 as the pound for
Cromford Mill Cromford Mill is the world's first water-powered cotton spinning mill, developed by Richard Arkwright in 1771 in Cromford, Derbyshire, England. The mill structure is classified as a Grade I listed building. It is now the centrepiece of the De ...
.
File:Cromford mill sluice2.jpg, This shuttle, locally known as "The Bear Pit" controlled the water from the sough into Cromford Pond. File:Cromford waterwheel.jpg, A mid-nineteenth century water wheel for a mill grinding locally mined barytes . It is no longer used for any purpose but can be seen turning on occasion.


See also

*
Listed buildings in Cromford Cromford is a civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. The parish contains 89 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, two are listed at Grade I, the highest of t ...


References


External links


Arkwright SocietyCromford home pageCromford Festival
{{Authority control Industrial Revolution Villages in Derbyshire Towns and villages of the Peak District History of the textile industry Derbyshire Dales Planned communities