DISCOVER DERBYSHIRE

AND THE

PEAK DISTRICT

CARSINGTON CHURCH AND

FLOWER FESTIVAL

THE FEATURE

The picture postcard village of Carsington, lies in a wooded valley with Carsington Pasture rising steeply to one thousand feet to the west, behind a row of attractive little cottages that line the roadside.

The small Church of St Margaret’s fits into the scenery perfectly – pretty but not dominating. There is evidence that a church existed as far back as the 12th century and it is interesting to note that in 1971, a gravedigger dug up the skeletons of a man, woman and child, probably of Anglo-Saxon origin, giving rise to further speculation of the date of the first church. An unusual item in the church register records the life of Sarah Tissington who was born in the village in 1664 without arms, but despite this severe handicap learned to knit with her feet.

A flower festival takes place in second half of May every year (22nd to 27th May 2010), when home-made refreshments will be available daily. The theme for 2010 is "For All The Saints".

A considerable change to the landscape took place a few years ago with the construction of Carsington Water. The reservoir built at a cost of 107 million pounds and increased Severn Trent’s raw-water capacity by 10% to meet the growing demand for water in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire. Conservationists fought a long hard battle against the site chosen for the reservoir. Now a bypass takes much of the traffic away from the narrow winding pavement - less village road. Carsington Water has exceeded all expectations as a tourist centre. Thankfully all this has been achieved without life in Carsington and Hopton seeming to have changed all that much. 

The Gell family who lived at Hopton Hall for nearly 500 years were the dominating influence in the area, before it was sold in 1989. The Hall hides behind a red brick crinkle-crankle wall on the eastern side of Hopton. The wall traps the rays of the sun to assist fruit growing. The Gells built the school and had a considerable influence on the development of the church. Sir Philip Gell organised the building of the Almshouses in Hopton, above which a stone tablet declares that the buildings were for ‘2 poor men and 2 poor women of Hopton and Carson’, the latter being the old name for Carsington. 

Across the road close to the corner of the crinkle-crankle wall is an icehouse that has been listed for protection. This is where food was kept in pre-refrigerator days. Further along the road in Carsington is the popular Miners Arms and behind it a small village green on which stands part of a medieval cross.

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ST MARGARET'S CHURCH FLOWER FESTIVAL

Details: The Annual Flower Festival for 2010, will be held at the church, from Saturday 22 May to Thursday 27 May. Times  from 10.30am to 7.00pm each day. The theme is "For All The Saints". Home-made refreshments will be available daily. Details for 2011 will appear when available.

REFRESHMENTS

Miners Arms (Tel. 01629 540207) a popular pub for lead miners in the 1700s. This cosy little pub serves good homemade food daily throughout the summer and at lunchtime and in the evenings during the winter (except Sunday and Monday evenings). Outside there is a beer garden and mini-adventure playground.

Carsington Water Tea Rooms (Tel. 01629 540363) there is a restaurant and tea rooms on the first floor of the visitor centre and an outdoor food facility in the Courtyard. Open daily all year.

CARSINGTON AND HOPTON FEATURE

The picture postcard village of Carsington and its equally attractive neighbour, Hopton, are inseparably linked. They lie in a wooded valley with Carsington Pasture rising steeply to one thousand feet to the west, behind a row of attractive little cottages that line the roadside.  

Both villages share the same church and school. The houses in each village almost overlap on the shared narrow road, and they are both in the same parish.  

Carsington and Hopton Feature

CARSINGTON AND HOPTON WALK

Breathtaking views are to be found on this splendid walk which visits the ancient villages of Carsington and Brassington, once the homes of very active lead mining communities.

On the moorland route between the two villages there is plenty of evidence of the efforts of miners to extract lead from underneath the earth.

Carsington and Hopton Walk