The Building Stones of Baslow

A view of Baslow Bridge from St. Anne's churchyard

The village of Baslow is set on the River Derwent below Baslow Edge, one of the Millstone Grit edges composed of the generally coarse grained Chatsworth Grit that runs down the eastern side of the Peak District National Park and which has been extensively quarried in the past for general building stone and grindstones. 

The geology around Baslow

The medium grained Ashover Grit underlies the village and the area to the west, and this formation has produced very good building stone and is still extensively quarried in the area around Stanton Moor and Darley Dale, a little further to the south. Although I don’t know the locations of any quarries in the area, it is very likely the source of building stone for the historic vernacular architecture in the village. 

A view of St. Anne's church from Baslow Bridge

On this occasion, the principal reason for my visit to Baslow was to look at St. Anne’s church, with its broach spire, and due to the timing of the bus to Stoney Middleton, I only had time to take a few general photographs of the area around Bridge End, which is the original settlement. 

The watchman's hut on Baslow Bridge

The most impressive structure here is the Grade I Listed Baslow Bridge, built in 1608, which has the distinction of being the only bridge over the River Derwent never to be destroyed by flooding, as well as having a watchman’s hut at its north end. 

Vernacular architecture on Church Street

Along Church Street, there are short terraces of gritstone cottages of varying heights, with roofs of either Welsh slate or stone tiles, and at the edge of St. Anne’s churchyard, there is a war memorial, made from medium grained sandstone in the form of a Celtic cross. 

The Baslow and Bubnell war memorial on Church Street

Further examples of vernacular architecture displaying a similar grey/brown gritstone can be seen on Bubnell Lane and Calver Road and, as on Church Street, there is no great difference - in colour, shape and size - between the stones used for the quoins and the general walling, and it is only the surrounds to the windows and doors that are different. 

Vernacular architecture in Baslow

On Calver Road, however, the terrace known as Derwent View – constructed along with its twin a little further down the road during the inter-war years – is built of rubble walling that has quite a different character, with a high proportion of rusty brown blocks.

Derwent View