Tapton is a suburb of Chesterfield, in the county 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 ...

, England. It is located along the Brimington Road B6543, between Chesterfield town centre, and Brimington (where the population is included in the Brimington South Ward). It became a suburb of Chesterfield in the 1920s. The buildings along Brimington road, which runs through the centre of Tapton, are testament to this fact. Consisting of semi-detached houses in a style typical of the 20s and 30s. The district is also home to

Tapton House Tapton House, in Tapton, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, was once the home of engineer George Stephenson, who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives. In its time Tapton has been a gentleman's residence, a l ...

, in Tapton Woods, the woods being the former grounds of the house, now a Municipal park. Tapton Lock Visitor Centre is located on the

Chesterfield Canal The Chesterfield Canal is a narrow canal in the East Midlands of England and it is known locally as 'Cuckoo Dyke'. It was one of the last of the canals designed by James Brindley, who died while it was being constructed. It was opened in 1777 a ...

to the north of Tapton Park.

History Of Tapton

Located in the grounds of the House, is a large mound or hill, once the

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

, of Chesterfield Castle or Tapton Castle as it was sometimes also known. The castle at least dates as far back as the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...

and later fell into the hands of the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

, becoming a Crown Fortress. During the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I (" Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of r ...

, the castle was razed to the ground, by Parliamentarian forces.

Tapton Hall, Chesterfield

Tapton Hall, Derbyshire (not to be confused with Tapton Hall, Sheffield). In 1638 the

lordship A lordship is a territory held by a lord. It was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas. It originated as a unit under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. In a lordship, the functions of econ ...

of Tapton with a capital messuage known as Tapton Hall was sold by Durant Allsopp and Thomas Allsopp, gentlemen, also of Durant Hall, Holy Well Street, Chesterfield, to George Taylor (d.1668) of London, Vintner, with closes (fields) at Brimington with several other properties including Durant Hall. Taylor left instructions in his will for the founding of alms houses, and 6 alms houses were duly erected in 1678 in Salter Gate, by his son-in-law Charles Scrimshire, as the inscription in the centre of the buildings attests. It was inherited by Taylor's daughter and sole-heiress Esther Taylor, who married Sir Charles Scrimshire of Norbury in Staffordshire, Sheriff of Derbyshire in 1698. It was then acquired in 1701, with Durant Hall, by Thomas Gladwin, a member of the Gladwin family of

Tupton Hall Tupton Hall was a former mansion, in Tupton, near Wingerworth in North East Derbyshire, south of Chesterfield. Since its demolition following a fire in 1938 it has been the site of Tupton Hall School, a secondary comprehensive school. History ...

and descended via his co-heiress to the Clarke family and thence to the Cox family, and in 1746 was sold, with Durant Hall, and with the manor and lordship of Tapton, by William Coxe to Adam Slater of Chesterfield, apothecary.

Tapton House and Castle

Tapton House is a large gentleman's residence, built in the Georgian Style of Red brick, located in the woods on Tapton Hill looking down on the Town of Chesterfield. Tapton House was once the home of English

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations of ...

George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians In the history of the United Kingdom and the ...

who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives. In 1837 he arrived in Chesterfield, to undertake the construction of the

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

railway (North Midland Line). As work continued

, took up residence there. The House was bequeathed to the borough of Chesterfield on his death. It was then converted into a school. In 1931, the first pupils passed through its doors as Tapton House Central Selective School. The school continued until 1993. Tapton House grounds are now used as the Tapton Park Innovation Centre which is open for free use to the general public. The House itself is currently the Higher Education Campus for Chesterfield College.

References

External links

Tapton Park Innovation CentreRemembering Tapton School
{{authority control Villages in Derbyshire Chesterfield, Derbyshire