Ridgeway

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

John SLATER has a photograph of St. John's churchyard on Geo-graph, taken in February, 2014.

Micheal SPENCER started an extract of Parish Register burials in a file for your review. Your additions and corrections are welcomed.

• The Chapelry was in the Eckington sub-district of the Chesterfield Registration District.
   
• The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
   

• The Anglican chaple is dedicated to Saint John the Evangelist.
   
• The church was built in 1840.
   
• The church was restored in 1868 and 1883.
   
• The church seats 650.
   
• Andrew LOUGHRAN has a photograph of Ridgeway Church on Geo-graph, taken in February, 2006.

• The Anglican register dates from 1843.
   
• The church was in the rural deanery of Staveley.
   
• A Wesleyan Methodist chapel was built here in 1848.
   
• Neil THEASBY has a photograph of the Methodist church on Geo-graph, taken in February, 2019.

• Civil Registration began in July, 1837.
   
• The Chapelry was in the Eckington sub-district of the Chesterfield Registration District.

"RIDGEWAY is a hamlet, in the parish of Eckington, about two miles and a half N.N.W. therefrom. It partakes, with Mosborough, in the manufacture of scythes and sickles. Population included with the parish of Eckington."

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

Sheffield county lies to the east of the village. The village of Highlane lies just to the north and is mostly in Sheffield county.

• Geograph
• Flickr

• Rosemary LOCKIE provides a transcription of the Ridgeway entry under Eckington from Pigot & Co's Commercial Directory for Derbyshire (1835).
   
• Ann ANDREWS provides a transcription of the Ridgeway entry from Kelly's Directory of the Counties of Derby, Notts, Leicester and Rutland (1891).

• The transcription of the section for Ridgeway from the National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin HINSON.

• Ask for a calculation of the distance from Ridgeway to another place.

J. THOMAS has a photograph of The Bridge Inn at Ford on Geo-graph, taken in August, 2014.

Neil THEASBY has a photograph of "The Swan" on Geo-graph, taken in September, 2011.

J. THOMAS Also has a photograph of The Queens Head pub. on Geo-graph, taken in August, 2014.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SK402815 (Lat/Lon: 53.328896, -1.397867), Ridgeway which are provided by:

• OpenStreetMap
• Google Maps
• StreetMap (Current Ordnance Survey maps)
• Bing (was Multimap)
• Old Maps Online
• National Library of Scotland (Old Ordnance Survey maps)
• Vision of Britain (Click "Historical units & statistics" for administrative areas.)
• English Jurisdictions in 1851 (Unfortunately the LDS have removed the facility to enable us to specify a starting location, you will need to search yourself on their map.)
• Magic (Geographic information) (Click + on map if it doesn't show)
• GeoHack (Links to on-line maps and location specific services.)

• All places within the same township/parish shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby townships/parishes shown on an Openstreetmap map.
• Nearby places shown on an Openstreetmap map.

On the western side of the main road at the Ridgeway Sports and Social Club is a Standing plaque. My understanding is that the entire centre is a War Memorial dedicated in 1919 or 1920.

In front of Kent House in Ridgeway, there is a sundial on a four-step base that is a War Memorial. The sundail has been stolen, but the pedestal and base remain. There are 23 names on the plaques for the two World Wars. This memorial was unveiled in May, 1920.

There is also a Peace Memorial Garden in Ridgeway on the Main Road. It has a stone front wall with metal gates bearing inscriptions in decorative lettering. Dedicated in 1920, there are no names listed on this memorial.

There are two graves holding war dead in the churchyard. These are family graves, not Commonwealth War Graves. They are both from World War One:

• This place was a Chapelry in Eckington parish in Derby county. It was never a separate ancient parish or modern Civil Parish.
   
• This place was partly in the ancient Scarsdale Hundred (or Wapentake).
   
• District governance is provided by the North East Derbyshire District Council.
   

• Bastardy cases would be heard in the Eckington petty session hearings every other Monday.
   
• As a result of the 1834 Poorlaw Amendment Act reforms, this Chapelry became a member of the Chesterfield Poorlaw Union.

A Board School (mixed) was built here in 1873, for 200 boys and girls and 160 infants.