The Ashford Black Marble Industry

A detail of the inlaid table at Holy Trinity church in Ashford-in-the-Water

Walking round Ashford-in-the-Water, which could be considered to be a typical picture-postcard village, it is difficult to imagine that it once had a thriving industry which produced various products from Ashford Black Marble, a bituminous Carboniferous limestone that was firstly quarried and then extracted from two mines located just beyond the west end of the village. 

Reproduced from Derbyshire Black Marble by J.M. Tomlinson

This limestone, found in the Monsal Dale Limestone Formation, was first used in the middle of the 16th century with the first identifiable use being for fireplaces at Hardwick Hall c.1590 and it was later used for Chatsworth House when it was rebuilt in the latter part of the C17. 

The geology around Ashford-in-theWater

In 1748, Henry Watson of Bakewell created the Ashford Marble Works on the River Wye very near to the mines and the water power transformed an industry that previously relied on hand tools. In addition to its architectural use in the interiors of fine houses and churches, Ashford Black Marble was also used as the base material for inlaying with other Carboniferous limestones that were used for decorative effect, such as Rosewood and Duke's Red marbles, as well as malachite and other imported semi-precious stones. 

Inlay work at Buxton Museum & Art Gallery

The inlaying craft formed the basis of a substantial cottage industry in Ashford-in-the-Water and another marble works operated in the village during the 19th century but the mining and marble processing came to an end in around 1905, with the vast majority of the old buildings that formed the Ashford Marble Works being demolished to make way for the A6 bypass in the 1930’s. 

The memorial to Henry Watson

Nowadays, there is virtually nothing left in the village that relates to these former industries and one has to visit museums in Buxton and Derby to see a wide variety of inlaid ornaments - and places like St. Peter’s church in Edensor, Chatsworth House and Bolsover Castle - to see the Ashford Black Marble in an architectural context; however, in Holy Trinity church there are examples of both monumental and inlaid work.

The inlaid table by Abel Tomlinson

On the south wall of its interior, there is a large memorial to Henry Watson made of a slab of Ashford Black Marble and there is a fantastic example of inlaid work made by Abel Tomlinson. Although not actually containing any Ashford Black Marble, this magnificent table contains a wide variety of local decorative stones - which were used for inlaying - and it was awarded a prize medal at the London International Exhibition of 1862. 

A detail of the inlaid table by Abel Tomlinson

This post is only a very brief account of the industry that once dominated this wonderful village and is just designed to highlight its importance to potential visitors. A comprehensive account of the Derbyshire Black Marble industry was written by John Michael Tomlinson and produced as a special publication by the Peak District Mines Historical Society, which is still available for purchase today.

Derbyshire Black Marble by John Michael Tomlinson