At the end of the Sheffield U3A Geology Group visit to Eyam, in October 2017, we finished off our exploration of the Lower Carboniferous Eyam Limestone Formation by dropping down into Stoney Middleton, where we studied some of the cliffs on the north side of the limestone gorge at the west end of the village.
Here, the vertical rock faces in the Monsal Dale Limestone Formation contains bands of Orionastrea corals and Gigantoproductus brachiopods and possesses extensive cave systems, and the area has traditionally attracted rock climbers and speleologists.
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| A general view of the limestone crags in Stoney Middleton |
This limestone has been extensively quarried for building stone, for burning in lime kilns and for road aggregate, as well as being mined for lead since Roman times. The waste tips from the lead mines have subsequently being reworked for the fluorite it contains and other industries, including the manufacture of work boots, have left their mark on the village.
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| A former industrial building on The Avenue |
On my last visit, I arrived on the bus from Baslow, where I had been exploring St. Anne’s church, and decided to have a further look at its geology before having a wander around the village to look at its vernacular architecture and St. Martin’s church.
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| The old Toll House |
In the centre of the village, the old Toll House, now a fish and chip shop, was built in 1840 to collect charges for the use of the road that was blasted through the rock in 1830, and which replaced the only previous road through the village – the very steep High Street.
Although the Toll House and various other better quality buildings are constructed in Millstone Grit, the majority of cottages and larger houses utilise the Carboniferous limestone – generally as course and squared rubble walling or random rubble walling – with Millstone Grit reserved for the quoins and dressings.
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| Bands of chert in a roadside exposure of the Monsal Dale Formation |
At the west end of the village, the high cliffs are set far back from the road, but various differences in the lithology of the limestones can be distinguished from afar and, further towards its centre, the dipping strata are exposed at the roadside, where its characteristics can be closely observed.
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| Fossil crinoids and brachiopods in limestone building blocks |
In the rock exposures that are easily accessible, I didn’t notice any coral or brachiopod rich beds that I had previously be seen, although there were layers that were composed of chert nodules; however, looking closely at the masonry in some of the houses, I found blocks of limestone that are full of broken crinoid stems and brachiopod shells with their ribs clearly visible.
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| The Eyam Limestone Formation, the Bowland Shale and the Shale Grit |
While taking a very short walk to explore the village to the north of the Toll House, I encountered a view that clearly showed the junction between the Lower and Upper Carboniferous rocks. The hard and durable flat reefs of the Eyam Limestone Formation, which form uneven, knobbly landforms, are separated from an escarpment of Shale Grit by a vale that is formed by the erosion of the much softer Bowland Shale.
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| Dale Brook at The Nook |
Returning to the centre of Stoney Middleton and walking down to The Nook, which is the oldest part of the village, Dale Brook emerges from a culvert that has diverted it from its original course – as seen on Google Map, where it runs parallel to the A623 road.
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| A distant view of Froggatt Edge from High Street |
Finishing off my very brief exploration of Stoney Middleton by walking 100 metres up High Street, to survey the landscape from here and then taking a couple of snaps of the Village Cross that commemorates the repeal of the Corn Laws – as also celebrated in Dronfield – before relaxing with a pint of bitter at the Moon Inn, when deciding how best to get back home to Treeton on the bus from here.
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| The Village Cross |
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