Hide

Baslow

hide
Hide

BASLOW, a chapelry in the parish and union of Bakewell, and hundred of High Peak, in the county of Derby, 3 miles to the N.E. of Bakewell, and 10 W. from Chesterfield railway-station. The chapelry includes the townships of Calver, Curbar, Froggatt, and Bubnell, which form the north-east part of the parish of Bakewell. The village of Baslow, which is of considerable size, is pleasantly seated on the banks of the river Derwent, over which is an ancient stone bridge of three arches.

It is about 1½ mile to the north of Chatsworth, and on the N.E. and W. are a range of lofty hills, with extensive moors abounding in grouse. Many of the inhabitants are employed in the mills of the Calver Cotton-Spinning Company, which are situated a little lower down the river, at the village of Calver, where there is another bridge across the Derwent of modern construction.

The living is a perpetual curacy* in the diocese of Lichfield, value £115, in the patronage of the Duke of Devonshire. The church, dedicated to St. James, is in the perpendicular style, with a tower surmounted by a spire. The Wesleyan Methodists have a chapel in the village. There is a National school, established in 1839 by the Duke of Rutland, who is lord of the manor. Baslow belongs to the honour of Tutbury, in the Duchy of Lancaster. The charities amount to 110 a year. In the vicinity is Bubnell Hall, a large mansion of the early part of the 17th century."

"BUBNELL, a township in the parish of Bakewell, hundred of High Peak, in the county of Derby, 3 miles to the N.E. of Bakewell. It is situated on the river Derwent. Near the village is Bubnell Hall.”

from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

Hide
topup

Archives & Libraries

Baslow is served by the Mobile Library on route N, which makes two stops in the village (Church View Drive and the Village Hall) every fourth Wednesday in the late morning.

The nearby Bakewell Library is an excellent resource with a Local History section and a Family History section.

topup

Bibliography

  • SHELDON, John - A Short History of Baslow and Bubnell. Published by S.M. Evans, 1986. ISBN:0 9511311 0 9
    Probably out of print, but may be available on Inter-Library Loan (ILL).
     
  • TAYLOR, Keith - Baslow, Rowsley, Edensor, Pilsley, Beeley. Ashridge Press/Country Books, 2008. ISBN 978-1-906789-06-0.
topup

Cemeteries

  • Tony BACON has a photograph of a Coffin Tombstone on Geo-graph, taken in May, 2018. This is in the churchyard.
     
  • David LALLY has a photograph of the Lychgate at St. Anne's churchyard on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2011.
topup

Census

  • The parish was in the Bakewell sub-district of the Bakewell Registration District.
     
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
     
Census
Year
Piece No.
1851H.O. 107 / 2149
1861R.G. 9 / 2538
1891R.G. 12 / 2773
topup

Church History

  • The Anglican parish church is dedicated to Saint Anne.
     
  • The church was built near the end of the 13th century.
     
  • The church seats 350.
     
  • Bill HENDERSON has a photograph of the Parish Church on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2008.
     
  • David LALLY has a photograph of the Church Lychgate on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2011.
topup

Church Records

  • Mike SPENCER has provided a partial extract of burials found in the parish register. Your additions are welcomed.
     
  • There is a handwritten transcription of the early Baslow parish register covering the period 1569 to 1582 made in 1905-6 by a Mr Cockerton held at the Derbyshire Record Office - DRO Ref: D2031/1-2. Thanks to Lynn BURNET for this information.
     
  • The church was in the rural deanery of Eyam.
     
  • There was a Wesleyan Methodist chapel here in 1912. They eventually moved into their Sunday School building.
     
  • Tim HEATON has a photograph of the Methodist Church on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2011.
topup

Civil Registration

  • Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
     
  • The parish was in the Bakewell sub-district of the Bakewell Registration District.
topup

Description & Travel

"BASLOW is a small neat village, and chapelry to Bakewell, 4 N. E. miles from that town, situate on the banks of the Derwent. The coaches passing through here infuse a degree of liveliness into it; but it possesses nothing otherwise interesting. The chapel, which is dedicated to St. James [Ed: other ancient sources may give St James, or St Anne; it is now quite definitely, St. Anne's] is a neat building, standing on the bank of the river; the living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Duke of Devonshire; the Rev. Anthony Auriol Barker is the present minister. Population of the chapelry, at the last census 863."

[Description from Pigot and Co's Commercial Directory for Derbyshire, 1835]

The parish covers 5,634 acres and includes the hamlet of Bubnell (across the river).

David LALLY provides a photograph of the Village Sign on Geo-graph, taken in April, 2011. It is clear that the village could use your artistic talent and marketing skills to enhance their signage.

You can see pictures of Baslow which are provided by:

topup

Directories

topup

Gazetteers

topup

History

  • Transcription of section of Lysons' Topographical and Historical Account of Derbyshire, 1817, for Baslow by Barbarann AYARS.
     
  • The GARD(O)(U)Ms were a prominent local family, over the years living at Bubnell Hall, Bawkes (a lost place name in the parish of Edensor) and Cliffe House (Curbar - now the site of Cliff College, a training centre for Methodist ministers). There is a baptism in the IGI of Johannes GURDON, son of Christopheri GURDON, at Baslow on 27 Apr 1634, which appears to fit the entry in the Alumni list.

    Another John GARDOM of Bubnell, a yarn merchant, and probably a descendant of the same family, has been noted as the founder of a cotton mill at Calver, in about 1785. The mill was water-powered, and produced cotton until about 1923. More recently, the exterior was used for the filming of Colditz, a 1970s television series, about prisoners-of-war in Colditz Castle in Germany. Today the building has been converted into luxury flats.
     
  • Russell WILLS has a photograph of an ash house on Geo-graph, taken in March, 2014. His caption provides more information.
     
  • Peter LEE tells us (in 2013) that he was told that "during the Napoleonic Wars prisoners of war were sent to Derbyshire to work on Farms far away from the coast and many of them were set to work gathering stones from the fields and building field walls to keep stock in and allow ploughing, etc. All the walls on the farm I worked on near Baslow in 1968/9 were supposed to have been built by the French prisoners."
topup

Maps

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK271720 (Lat/Lon: 53.244344, -1.595937), Baslow which are provided by:

topup

Military History

Captain John Francis HODGKINSON resided here in 1912. he was born in Baslow, DBY, in 1883 and was a Captain in the 3rd Dragoon Guards. He will die in France in November, 1914.

David SMITH has a photograph of the War Memorial in the churchyard on Geo-graph, taken in August, 2017.

Basher EYRE has a photograph of the Memorial photographs in the church on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2015.

topup

Military Records

  • For a photograph of the Baslow War Memorial in the churchyard is on Flickr, but we cannot see the names on the memorial.

Basher EYRE has a photograph of the Jeffrey Eric BURDEKIN Memorial in the church on Geo-graph, taken in July, 2015.

There are the names on the War Memorial in the churchyard:

  1. Thomas R. ATKIN. Pte 1st. K.O.Y.L.I.
  2. Robert B. BATES. Pte. Northum. Fus.
  3. Herbert E. BRIGHTMORE. Pte. D. of Well. Rt.
  4. Geoffrey E. BURDEKIN. Lieut. 3. Sher. Forst.
  5. Joseph E. EADES. Lc. Corpl. 9. Sher. Forst.
  6. Basil Z. de FERRANTI. M.C. Major. R.G.A.
  7. Arnold J. FROGGATT. Gnr. R.G.A.
  8. William F. HEATHCOTE. Pte. Hertfords. Rt.
  9. John F. HODGKINSON. Cpt. 3. Dgn. Gds.
  10. Samuel C. L. HODGKINSON. Lieut. R.A.N.
  11. Joseph A. HODGKISS. M.M. Sergt. R.F.A.
  12. Ralph W. HOLLIS. Corpl. 1. Worc. Regt.
  13. Arthur SHELDON. Pte. 15. D.L.I.
  14. Thomas F. SHELDON. Pte. R.A.S.C. M.T.
  15. Samuel SHELDON. Pte. 12. York. & Lc. Rgt.
  16. George E. SIDDALL. M.M. Pte. 10. Sher. For.
  17. Hugh G. STROYAN. Pte. Seaforth Hds.
  18. Frank THORPE. Pte. 16. Lancs. Fus.
  19. Charles TOMLINSON. L. Corpl. R.E.
  20. Frank H. VICK. Pte. 9, Sher. Fors.
  21. William WHITE. Pte. 1/7. Sher. Fors.
  22. John J. WOOTTON. Rflmn. K.R.R.C.

WW II

  1. Basil W. DREW. Lt. S.F. 12th. Airborne.
  2. George FLETCHER. Sapper. R.E.
  3. Geoffrey GILBERT. Tel. R.N.
  4. Edmund GREGORY. O/Tel. R.N.
  5. Charles R. HOBBS. Cpl. 2/4th. K.O.Y.L.I.
  6. George A. HOWARD. Pte. 5th Northants. Regt.
  7. John C. D. LANGLEY. Flt/Lieut. R.A.F.
  8. Walter OLLIVANT. Gunner. R.A.
  9. Ronald W. PLOWRIGHT. Capt. Q.O.Y.D., R. A. C.
  10. Douglas M. ROBERTS. Sgt. R.A.F.V.R.
  11. Roy ROWARTH. Pte. Green Howards
  12. Albert E. TROTT. L/Cpl. 1st. Royal Berks.
  13. Anthony N. WILSON. Flt/Lieut. R.A.F.
topup

Newspapers

Jane TAYLOR of Redcar offers this snippet from the Derby Mercury of 17 February 1803: "MARRIED: On Saturday last at Chesterfield, in this county, Mr. Thomas ODDY, of Bubnell Hall, near Baslow, to Miss FERNELL, daughter of the late John Burgoine FERNELL, Esq. of Spring House, near Chesterfield."

topup

Politics & Government

  • This place was incorporated as a Civil Parish on 13 July, 1869, from a portion of Bakewell Civil Parish.
     
  • This parish was in the ancient High Peak Hundred (or Wapentake).
     
  • You may contact the Baslow Parish Council regarding civic or political matters, but they are NOT funded to help you with family history questions.
     
  • District governance is provided by the Derbyshire Dales District Council.
topup

Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard in the Bakewell petty session hearings.
     
  • There is an index of over 80 Baslow Bastardy Papers held at the DRO on the Yesterdays Journey website. Select "Bastardy Papers" on the left side, then "Baslow" from the list of parishes displayed.
     
  • As a result of the Poorlaw Amendment Act reforms of 1834, this parish became a member of the Bakewell Poorlaw Union.
topup

Schools

  • It is known that there was a school at Baslow in 1651, as one John GARDUM was "Adm. sizar. (aged 18) at Peterhouse Oct 10 1651 of Derbyshire. School, Baslow (Barslovencis) Derbs" (Ref: Alumni Cantabriensis, 1500-1751) Note that this was during the Commonwealth period - Oliver Cromwell's rule (1644-1660).
     
  • A Public Elementary School (mixed) was built here in 1876 for 150 boys, girls and infants.