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Did you know ... ?
A collection of random Matlock facts that aren't FAQs
  About Matlock | Abou Matlock Bath
More References:
Libraries, Archives & Other Genealogy & Local History Resources
Books & Other Publications | FAQ		  
 

Short questions
Q1. Did you know that Matlock isn't just one place, but is made up of several Matlocks? Or that in many old books the reference to Matlock is really describing Matlock Bath?
A1. There's Bank, Bath, Bridge, Cliff, Dale, Green, Moor and Town - as well as Starkholmes and Riber
See About Matlock
See About Matlock Bath
Q2. The town of Matlock was a famous hydropathic centre in the nineteenth century, but do you know how many hydros there actually were?
A2. See Water Cures
Q3. Does either Matlock or Matlock Bath have a Coat of Arms?
A3. Yes, they both did/do. See a photo of the Matlock's "arms" on a small enamelled brass badge. Go to Miscellany
Matlock Bath had a different coat of arms
Q4. Did you know there's a mineral called Matlockite?
A4. Found apparently in Cromford
See http://webmineral.com/data/Matlockite.shtml
Q5. What the link is between Quebec and Matlock Bath?
A5. The Heights of Abraham - where General Wolfe died in a battle that lasted just 20 minutes. It was Wolfe who called the battlefield the Heights of Abraham. In Quebec they are known as the Plains of Abraham, named after Abraham Martin who owned the land where the battle was fought.
Q6. How did the Heights of Jacob get its name?
A6. This was a late nineteenth century creation, and the name didn't appear on maps until around 1900. It was all to do with Jacob Raynes ....
See: Matlock Bath: Fluor Spar Cavern, Heights of Jacob | Matlock Bath from the Heights of Jacob, 1908-1914
Q7. What is a 'gennel' or 'jennel'?
A7. It is a narrow passageway between buildings.
Q8. Matlock folk talk about 'launder' or 'launders' but what are they talking about?
A8. These are gutters on the house to catch rainwater and the usage is peculiar to the Matlock District. The use of the word is derived from:
"Launder. A trough or a channel, or gutter, usually of wood, by which water is conveyed ; specifically in mining, a chute or a trough for conveying powdered ore, or for carrying water to and from the crushing apparatus" (Quotation from Funk and Wagnell's New "Standard" Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1 (1946 edn.), The Waverley Book Company Ltd., London).
Q9. That nearby Two Dales used to be called Toad Holes?
A9. It was Two Dales by 1903, but was still Toad Holes on a map dating from an OS map of the mid 1880's.
Q10. What did John Smedley originally intend to build on Riber hilltop?
A10. Smedley did much for Matlock, but in Riber's case he had to change his plans.
There Was Red Tape at Smedley's Hydro Then
Q11. The River Derwent overflowed its banks and flooded Matlock in the 1960's but were they the only floods to hit the town?
A11. They weren't the only floods and were certainly not the worst. See Flooding
Q12. Where was the Rifle Range and when was it there?
A12. Old nineteenth century maps of Matlock show a Rifle Range occupying land between Dale Road and the river Derwent where many shops now are. At the time Matlock's Market Hall was built in 1869 there weren't any buildings on that side of Dale Road and very few along the other side either. There was later a Rifle Range on Cuckoostone Moor.
Q13. About a local surname?
A13. The surname of STATHAM seems to be very localised to Starkholmes and this is illustrated in the published census returns. There were 55 people with the surname in the 1901 census listed as having been born in Matlock, eleven of whom were no longer in the town. One was given as born Matlock Bath.
See On site transcripts of census returns | Strays
Q14. How much did Matlock's population change in the past?
What proportion of people stayed?
And what about John and Mary?
A14. Matlock and Matlock Bath expanded enormously during the nineteenth century. See 19thc Population Figures
I thought it may be an interesting exercise to find out how many had moved away from their birthplace in the 1901 census and to begin I chose to look at the Christian names John and Mary, two popular names at the time. The number of Johns alive who were born in Matlock totalled 375 but a large proportion were found to have left Matlock - some 192! There were 355 females called Mary alive in 1901 but 229 weren't living in Matlock. This is both a fairly random and a very small selection, of course, but it is still of interest as it illustrates just how mobile the population was. Many who came to Matlock did not necessarily stay for the rest of their lives. Many of those who left over the years up until around 1900 are listed in the Strays
 
Mills
Arkwright's Masson
Bailey's
Day's
Drabble's
Farnsworth's
Garton's
Matlock Bath Paper Mill
Paton and Baldwin's

Can you name any more?
 
Matlock roads and streets, etc., named after people

Some are named after saints and the rest after ordinary mortals
(though the saints are more likely to be because of nearby churches)

Allen Hill
Alma Terrace, Smedley Street
Cavendish Cottages
Cavendish Road
Churchill Avenue
Clarence Terrace
Clarence Villas
Collingwood Crescent
Columbell Way - Two Dales
Dakeyne Close - edge of Matlock
Daysmill Close
Devonshire Avenue		 Drabbles Road
George Road
Greenaway Lane
Hawleys Close
Henry Avenue
Jackson Road
Jackson Tor Road
Lonsdale Grove
Paxton Close
Porteous Close - Two Dales
Rutland Street
Rutland Avenue
Sir Joseph's Lane - Two Dales		 Smedley Street
Smedley Street East
Smedley Street West
Smith Road
St. Giles Walk
St. John's Road
St. Joseph's Street
Victor Terrace, Smedley Street
Wellington Close
Wellington Street
Wheatley Gardens - Two Dales
Will Shores Lane
Wilmot Street
Woolley Road

Can you name any more?
 
Derbyshire towns known to have a crescent, road, gardens, place, street or Way called Matlock
Matlock Gardens: Glossop
Matlock Place: Glossop
Matlock Road: Ambergate
Ashover
Belper
Brackenfield
Chaddesden
Chesterfield
Crich
Rowsley
Walton (Chesterfield)
Wessington
Matlock Street: Bakewell
 
British towns known to have a crescent, road, gardens, place, street or Way called Matlock
Matlock Avenue: Ashton-under-Lyne
Dawley (Telford)
Denton (Greater Manchester)
Liverpool
Manchester (M 20)
Mansfield
Marton (nr Middlesborough)
Salford
Southport
Urmston (Greater Manchester)
Wigston
Matlock Close: Atherton (Greater Manchester)
Barnet
Dudley
Farnworth
Great Sankey
Ipswich
Lambeth - Denmark Hill Estate (Given as both London SE5 & SE24)
Rugby
Sale
Southport
Walsall
Matlock Court: Scunthorpe
Matlock Crescent: Luton
Southport
Sutton
Watford
Matlock Gardens: Billingham
Hornchurch
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
Sutton
Matlock Grove: Burnley
Matlock Road: Aylesbury
Barnsley
Birmingham
Brighton and Hove
Canvey Island
Caterham
Caversham
Coventry
Eastbourne
Ferndown
Heald Green
Norwich
Sheffield
Southport
Stockport
Stretford (Greater Manchester)
Walsall
Walthamstow (London E10)
Matlock Place: Preston (Ingol)
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Sutton
Matlock Street: Darwin
Eccles (Greater Manchester)
Halifax
Huddersfield
Leicester
Netherfield (Notts)
Ratcliff (London E14)
Stoke-on-Trent
Matlock Way: Desborough
New Malden
 
Matlock's of the World - Towns, villages or hamlets called Matlock in other countries
  1. Matlock Iowa, USA
  2. Matlock, Washington, USA
  3. Matlock, Victoria, Australia
  4. Matlock, Manitoba, Canada
 
Roads in other countries

Matlock Road - Arlington, Texas
 
Oddities
  1. There is only house in Matlock Bath which is in St Giles Parish, allowing the occupants to marry at St. Giles. It is the old station house as it is on the other side of the river from the rest of Matlock Bath.

  2. Willersley Castle isn't in Cromford; it the wrong side of the River Derwent. Nor is Cromford Station.
 
Buildings that have changed their use
  1. Churches into furniture stores and public rooms. See Churches and Chapels.
  2. Masson Mill to shops and museum. See Arkwright's Cotton Mill.
  3. Ritz Cinema to shops, restaurant and computer suite.
  4. Palace Cinema to auction house.
  5. Royal Pavilion / Palais Royal / Old Pavilion grounds to Gulliver's Kingdom.
  6. Smedley's Hydro to Derbyshire's County Hall See Water Cures, especially the section What happened to the hydros.
  7. Rockside Hydro to Residential Accomodation (having been a hospital for sick airmen and a teacher's training college in between). See Water Cures, especially the section What happened to the hydros. AlsoRockside, the Former Matlock Hydro
  8. Schools to private houses - Matlock Town and Holy Trinity See Schools
  9. Tram shelter to park shelter See Bank Road & the Steep-Gradient Tramway

    And finally, although the building itself hasn't changed its use:
  10. Royal Hotel - a first class hotel in Matlock Bath - to public car park. See various pages about the Royal Hotel, the two fires that destroyed the hotel building and its grounds beginning with Matlock Bath: The Royal Hotel

If you have something to add to what is already here, please email me.