Whilst this looks a quiet scene it would have been very different, and even chaotic, in late November/early December 1745 when Charles James Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) and his Army passed through and stayed overnight in Ashbourne. They were on their way to Derby but came through the town again on their homeward journey after they inexplicably turned round, having decided to retreat^[1].

The cobbled Market Place is a large open space in the north east of the town, roughly triangular in shape, and is bordered by slightly raised pavements on its west and north east sides. The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner seems to have run out of steam when he reached this part of the town in the mid-twentieth century as he thought that there was "not much" in the Market Place although numbers 12-14 were early eighteenth century and the Market Fish Restaurant was timber framed, though its exterior was not original^[2].

This view looks north towards what is today the Buxton Road although the first section, extending from the Union Street junction up the hill, used to be known as Pig Market^[3]. The George and Dragon is the white rendered three storey building on the corner of Union Street. It holds a very dominant position at the top of the Market Place and is Grade 2 listed today. The inn's sign, between the two windows on the top floor, is a flamboyant gilded and painted depiction of St George and the Dragon.

The first newspaper references to the George were in the 1780s when John Buxton was the inn's landlord^[4]. Nineteenth century trade directories, from 1828 onwards, provide the names of later landlords^[5]. John C Prince from Ilam was at "The George" in 1901 with his brother Francis T Prince, an 18 year old veterinary student. By 1911 John Thomas Colwell from Lyddington in Rutland had taken over^[6].

The double fronted brick built shop just behind the George and Dragon used to be on the corner of Union Street although it looks as if it is part of the Market Place. It was a family run grocery and bakery run by Edward Slater at this time; his name is on the board above the shop's entrance^[7]. Slater's was eventually demolished, along with the premises next door (coloured white above).

Henry Hadfield Cubley's painting, circa 1900, shows the buildings above the Union Street junction, so just past Slater's shop, with the properties on the right above the King Street (previously Mutton Lane) turning. Cubley was probably standing close to where the donkey's head was in the top image. The number of steps up to the various premises emphasise the steepness of the slope. Whilst the square tower on the skyline must belong to St. John's church it seems to be slightly out of position. Buxton Road was shown as Low Top on the 1 : 2500 Ordnance Survey maps for 1880-81 and 1900.

Taking pride of place on the hill in the centre of the first two images, above, is the newly built Cottage Hospital. Although a hospital for the town had been discussed in the 1880s, as part of the Royal Jubilee commemoration, the scheme was abandoned through lack of interest^[8]. It was eventually built and opened in October 1903 by the Princess Christian^[9].

The square western tower of St. John's Church, to the right of the hospital, almost seems to be part of the houses lower down the hill. St. John's was formerly Ashbourne Free Church and opened on 28th May 1871. It had been endowed with an annual income and a vicarage by Francis Wright esq. of Osmaston Manor^[10].

Before 1909. On the cobbles was Barnes' Implements Stand, displaying his farming machinery.
William Barnes (1848-10 June 1935) was the only ironmonger in Ashbourne at one time^[11].

On the left of the George and Dragon inn is The Coffee House, managed in 1881 by Thomas Etherington and then by his father George, who was its proprietor in both 1891 and 1901. George subsequently handed over the business to William Dugmore Shorthose^[6].

To the left of The Coffee House were a number of shops. On its immediate left was Elkes' Dining Rooms. Charles Henry Elkes, who began trading in Ashbourne in 1887, was to move to Uttoxeter in 1908. He went on to found Elkes' biscuits^[12]. John Spencer, said to be an old and highly respected tradesman and whose first shop had been slightly lower down in the Market Place, moved into Elkes' premises with his own confectionery and bakery^12] having made a number of alterations before moving in^[14]. For a time he had two shops in the Market Place.

William Walker's General Hardware store was next door; However, he announced that from 25 March 1909 he was removing his business to Harvey Cottage of Green Road, assuring customers that "he will always have on hand a full stock of new goods of the best prices, lamp oils &c"^[15]. He continued to trade on Green Road until 1917^[16]. A little further down on the left, but not included in the picture, were the shops run by the Adin family who were in business in the Market Place for well over a hundred years^[17].

On the east side of the Market place, in one of the three red brick buildings, was the ironmongers and agricultural merchants Messrs. Wooddisse and Desborough (founded in 1891), who produced a "fine display of implements and machinery" at Ashbourne Show in 1909^[18]. Messrs. W. Barnes also displayed their wares at the show.

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Market Place, eastern side. About 1908.

Almost in the centre of the eastern side of the market place is Ashbourne's Town Hall, built in 1861. The architect was Benjamin Wilson of Derby and the builder was Mr. Brinsley of Ashbourne. The building was opened on 17 September and incorporated a Market Hall on the ground floor and an Assembly Room on the first floor^[19]. Its arched portico, open on three sides, juts out over the pavement; at first floor level there is a balcony over the porch. The best dressed Hollington stone was used for the front.

Whilst the building was being erected an appeal was launched for the public to subscribe to furnishing the Assembly Room with a Grand Concert Piano, Gas Fittings and other requisites^[20] and a Broadwood grand concert piano was amongst the purchases^[20]. The celebratory dinner that evening, provided by Mr. Walllis of the Green Man, was attended by many of the local gentry. Not long afterwards it was announced that the first grand concert would take place here in mid November^[21]. Next door, at 18 Market Place, was another ironmongers. The first business here was Cantrell and Buxton (from 1846). They were followed by William Barnes; in 1905 Thomas Kennedy bought the shop from him ("Kennedy's" is over the door)^[22]. There is some of Kennedy's ironmongery on the edge of the pavement.

Charles Gregory's grocery store was next door until the summer of 1908 when the shop was advertised for sale^[23]. Mrs. Julia Florence Lee was the next proprietor, selling Art Needlework, Wools, Canvases, etc, though by 1911 she was a ladies and children's outfitter. Her husband, a watch and clockmaker, also worked from here^[24].

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Early 20th century. There were farming implements on display outside Desboroughs and Kennedys premises.

In all but one of these images is a large Victorian monument and drinking fountain on the edge of the market "square"; it commemorates the life of Francis Wright who died at Osmaston Manor in February 1873 and was made using Hopton Stone. The money to erect it was raised through a public subscription, at the behest of the inhabitants^[25] and it was placed opposite the Town Hall he had helped to build. Wright was an extremely wealthy man. He owned four fifths of the Butterley Company - said to be "vast" and was a member of the banking company Messrs. Wright and Co., in Nottingham^[26]. In addition to rebuilding Osmaston village he erected a number of schools in the county and was involved with many good works.

In the early 1860s Wright, along with other members of the local bench, tried to stop Shrovetide football which took place in the Market Place. There had been earlier efforts to stop the game and a few years before, in 1858, Rev. Errington had attempted to change the days it was played. Inspector Lytle was at Ashbourne as an early recruit into the police force in 1862 when Mr. Wright and other Magistrates gave instructions to stop football being played and several tradesmen were summoned/fined. There had been an appeal made to the Queen's Bench, but the judges confirmed the Magistrates' decision. The following year the ball was "turned up" in the Green Man" croft^[27].

Princess Margaret Rose visited Ashbourne in late November 1963 and pupils of Queen Elizabeth's were part of the very large crowd she waved to a from the Town Hall's balcony. Her sister, Queen Elizabeth II, did the same on the day she also visited QEGS for his 400th anniversary. Both were given Shrovetide footballs for children or grandchildren.

Although there are no market stalls on any of these images, Ashbourne still has a thriving market on Thursdays and Saturdays.

Ashbourne is mentioned in the following on-site transcripts:—

	Derbyshire's Parishes, 1811, Parishes A, which has more about the town. The Gentleman's Magazine Library, 1731-1868 Kelly's Directory 1891: Ashbourne (part 1) - history, churches, schools, councils, etc. Kelly's Directory 1891: Ashbourne (part 2) - private residents and commercial
	The Wolley Manuscripts, Derbyshire - Pedigrees, Documents & Deeds:— Surnames A - B | C - F | G - L | R - S | T - Z The Wolley Manuscripts, Derbyshire - Charters, Documents & Deeds:—Places A - B, includes Ashbourne

More about the artist, Henry Hadfield Cubley (under Matlock)

References:

^[1] This was known as the Jacobite Rising or the Forty-Five Rebellion and he and his troops reached Derby on 4th December that year. Bonnie Prince Charlie was also known as The Young Pretender. His grandfather was James II and his father's half sisters were Queen Mary and Queen Anne.
Derbyshire's Parishes, 1811, Derby (3): Remarkable Occurrences-Entry of the Pretender-Eminent Men, the Pretender in Derbyshire.

^[2] Pevsner, Nikolaus (1953), "The Buildings of England, Derbyshire", Penguin Books.

^[3] Ashbourne Local History Group (ed. and © Ashbourne Local History Group & Adrian Henstock, 1978). "Early Victorian Country Town", a Portrait of Ashbourne in the Mid Nineteenth Century. ISBN 0 9506080 0 9. Both the Pig Market and Mutton Lane, where sheep were sold, are shown on a number of maps from the 1850s.

^[4] "Derby Mercury", 23 Feb 1781. Sale at the House of John Buxton, being the George Inn. Other advertisements have been found in 1785 and 1788.

^[5] The following people advertised the George and Dragon in various nineteenth trade directories: Thos Oakden, victualler (Pigot 1828-9, Glover 1827-9); Mary Stubs (Pigot 1835); Mary Frith (Slater's 1850); Thomas Waterfall (Harrison 1860); Jno Bramwell (Wright's 1874).
Next was Richard Peake (Kelly's 1881 - Richard Peake, George & Dragon commercial hotel, horses and carriages on hire, refreshments for tourists & others, Market place, Kelly's 1891 and 1895 - Richard Peake - entry the same as 1881).

^[6] Extracted from census returns. Thomas Etherington's son, Neville, was born at the coffee house in 1886 (this from his g granddaughter, Jeannie, with grateful thanks).

^[7] Edward Slater, who was born in Hulland (1901 census), lived above the shop and his son Charles worked for him. In 1912 (Kelly's Directory) his advertisement described his firm as grocer & provision dealer, brewer of hop. Their Market Place business was still advertising in 1928 (Kelly's Directory).

^[8] Information from various newspaper articles, including the "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal" 24 December 1886 and the "Derbyshire Courier" of 30 April 1887 and 3 May 1887.

^[9] "Derbyshire Times", 17 October 1903. Notes by the Way. The Princess Christian was Helena, third daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She had married Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein but remained in the United Kingdom. She was a founder member of the Red Cross and President of the Royal British Nurses' Association.

^[10] "Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire", 1891 and 1928.

^[11] "Ashbourne Telegraph", 20 October 1933. "A few doors below being the Tiger Inn, opposite which was a little greengrocer's shop". Barnes built a large workshop at the rear (though not when he first started the business).

^[12] "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 27 November 1908:
Ashbourn. Presentation to Mr. C. H. Elkes. At the Lodge room. Marketplace. Ashbourn, Thursday evening. There was a presentation by Bro. C. H. Hikes, Chief Templar of the Dove, to mark his retirement from the neighbourhood as he had begun a new business in Uttoxeter.

^[13] John Spencer had taken over on 1st October and the two men co-ordinated their announcements, with Spencer advertising his new premises on 9 Oct ("Ashbourne News Telegraph") and Elkes in the on 7 Oct ("Uttoxeter New Era").

^[14]"Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 18 December 1908. Mr. John Spencer's Tempting List.

^[15] "Ashbourne News Telegraph", 26 March 1909.

^[16] "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 21 September 1917.

^[17] In 1911 John C Adin was a glass, earthenware and hosiery dealer in the Market Place. The property was large - 14 rooms with a yard (Adin's Yard) at the back, according to the census. The Adins had been trading for around 50 years by this time and were there for more than another 50 years.

^[18] "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 1 October 1909. Tradesmen's Stands. The former Wooddisse and Desborough premises is one of a group of three two and three storey buildings, built of red brick, at the top of the Market Place and is Grade II listed today.

^[19] "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 25 October, 1861. The New Market Hall and Assembly Room, Ashbourne. Also, "Derby Mercury", 23 October 1861. Inauguration of Ashborne Town Hall.

^[20] "Derby Mercury", 27 February 1861. Market Hall, Ashbourne. The list already contained the names of 104 donors.

^[21] "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 15 November 1861.

^[22] "Kelly's Directory, 1928 shows "Kennedy and Co. ironmongers & cycle agents, Market place (T.N. 21) ; workshops, Town Hall yard. [next to Town Hall]. The "Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal" (16 January 1986) reported that Mr. Kennedy eventually sold the business to Frank Parry, who had worked for him.

^[23] "Ashbourne News Telegraph", 26 June 1908.

^[24] They continued to trade in the Market Place, next door to the Tudor Cafe, though they had moved to Buxton Road, and John died at Ashbourne in 1959.

^[25] "Ashbourne News Telegraph", 10 May 1873. been expressed by many of the inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood of Ashbourne that a memorial should be erected to the memory the late Francis Wright, Esq., of Osmaston who has been so many years intimately connected with this town ... and has ever been ready to assist in any good work ... to promote the prosperity and well being of the inhabitants". The public meeting to decide what form the memorial should take was convened by Mr. E. Bradley.

^[26] "Alfreton Journal", 28 February 1873. Death of Francis Wright, Esq., of Osmaston Manor. He was a Magistrate and a Deputy Lieutenant of the County, Chairman of the Ashbourne Bench of Magistrates, President of the Home for Penitent Females and the Nursing Association, Chairman of Trent College and Chairman of Ashbourne Local Board. He also undertook similar voluntary roles in Nottinghamshire. He was also Patron of Derby Royal Infirmary. The amount of his holding in the Butterley Company was revealed in his Will.
"Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal", 23 Aug 1867. In 1867, after he became Lord of the Manor, he had secured land for a new cattle market instead of cattle being sold in the Market Place. It opened in 1869.

^[27] The information has been taken from a number of reports in the 1860s, plus "Ashbourne News Telegraph", 14 February 1891 and "Derbyshire Times", 27 September 1899.