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Wetton
The picturesque hilltop village of Wetton is situated in the Peak District National Park in an area known as the Staffordshire Moorlands. Wetton is on the fringe of the White Peak, and surrounded by a landscape of stunning geological features including limestone tors, rocky crags, reef knoll hills and impressive caves.
Wetton is a perfect base to explore the National Park as there are numerous footpaths, old tracks and quiet country lanes leading from it, as well as the nearby Tissington Trail and Manifold Way which are perfect for walkers, cyclists and horse riders.
For a time Wetton was an estate village belonging to the Duke of Devonshire at Chatsworth who also owned the mineral rights to the nearby Ecton Copper Mine. The 5th Duke was made fabulously rich on the mines profits with which he built the Crescent at Buxton. There are still a handful of properties in Wetton that are owned by the Chatsworth Estate and they can be identified by their distinctive ‘dolphin blue’ paintwork, a colour which is used on most Chatsworth properties and external woodwork.
As well as pretty stone cottages, houses and farmsteads, Wetton contains a 14th century church dedicated to St Margaret which has an unusual external staircase to its belfry. The Royal Oak at Wetton is steeped in history and packed with horse brasses and oak beams. This traditional country inn which dates back to 1760 has roaring log fires in winter and a beer garden to the rear for the summer along with a small campsite in a field to the rear. For a few years during the 1990’s the pub hosted toe-wrestling competitions which originated in Wetton!
There have been many archaeological excavations in the region around Wetton which have unearthed some fascinating and notable remains, many of which can be seen on display in museums at Buxton and Sheffield. Burial mounds on Wetton Low were found to contain human skeletons dating back to around 1600 BC. Elderbush Cave was only discovered in 1935 by Rev. G H Wilson, a local historian and archaeologist. It contains a complicated system of passages and during excavations between 1935 and 1952 revealed the bones of lion, hyena, wolf, hippopotamus and other animal bones of inter-glacial times. A fragment of reindeer bone shaped to a point by Palaeolithic man was also found, along with flints and charcoal. It is said that Elderbush Cave is one of the most important archaeological sites in this part of England.
Across the fields from Wetton, overlooking the fabulous Manifold Valley is Thor’s Cave which has a huge gaping entrance that for centuries has encouraged visitors to make the steep climb of some three hundred and fifty feet from the river below. It is known that over the years the cave has provided shelter and a home for shepherds and travellers but archaeologists have found far more interesting artefacts from early settlers who are thought to have lived there including arrowheads, bone combs, bronze brooches and bracelets, iron adzes along with Roman pottery and coins.
A miner’s path from Wetton leads to Ecton Hill which in its heyday was one of the richest copper mines in the world, although it also produced lead ore and other minerals until its closure at the end of the 19th century. Bincliff lead mine to the south of Wetton was still operating until 1885. Following closure of the mines, the predominant industry around Wetton became agriculture, mainly sheep farming. Beef cattle are also reared on these Staffordshire hills as well as dairy herds but there is very little contemporary arable farming as few fields are flat or large enough to cultivate with modern machinery. However, evidence of medieval arable farming can be found in the form of long strip fields known as lynchets. Some farms diversified in the latter part of the 20th century to tap into the expanding tourism market, converting their outbuildings into holiday accommodation, as this is an area popular with visitors.
Down the hill from Wetton is Wetton Mill which sits beside the tranquil River Manifold. Now owned by the National Trust, the present buildings at Wetton Mill date from the 18th century, however a water-powered mill was originally established on this site in 1577 by William Cavendish who was the second son of Bess of Hardwick. The corn mill belonged to the Earls of Devonshire until at least 1617, becoming redundant in 1857 when they reverted to agricultural use. A tearoom has been operating at Wetton Mill for almost a hundred years, serving pots of tea and home-made cakes from spring through to late autumn.
The River Manifold is a ‘disappearing’ river. In summer months or during spells of drought much of the water passes underground through a series of swallet holes located just downstream of Wetton Mill. The water follows a subterranean course for some four miles before bubbling back to the surface from boil holes beside Ilam Hall.
A narrow zig-zag lane leads from Wetton down to Weags Bridge where there is a small car park and access to the Manifold Way which is a former narrow-gauge railway line which closed in 1934. It is now a trail known as the Manifold Way which provides access through the Manifold Valley beside the rivers Manifold and Hamps leading from Hulme End to Waterhouses. Close to Weags Bridge is Beeston Tor which is a huge bastion of limestone with rocky crags popular with nesting birds.
There are some fabulous walks around Wetton, which can incorporate views of ancient country houses including the remains of Throwley Hall, the estate being acquired by the Meverell family in 1203 and Casterne which has a fascinating history associated with a powerful Saxon warlord and the Hurt family who have lived there for more almost five hundred years.
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