Fishing has long been a favourite pastime for Matlock residents and there were several good places to fish along the length of the River Derwent at the beginning of the twentieth century, when this picture was taken. The local papers carried stories of the fishermen's successes. For example, in 1906, whilst fishing near the Boat House, a Mr. J. Taylor "landed a splendid well-fed trout scaling between two and three pound, the fish being taken with the dock grub employed on Stewart tackle"^[1]. Another report, this time from 1917, tells us that the Boat House Hotel had private waters and in that year trout weighing from 1 - 2 lb had been creeled^[2]. Not as good as Mr. Taylor's catch, but a good meal for the angler's family if the fish were taken home rather than returned to the river.

It is unlikely anyone would have been fishing when this picture was taken. The river was swollen as several trees on the left a underwater.

Enlargement of the buildings.
The two pairs of semi-detached houses houses on the left are Dale Terrace (also known as Dale Bridge Terrace). Two sisters, Mrs. Ellen Goodall (d.1901) and Miss Emily Newbold (d.1914), lived here from a little before 1881 until their respective deaths^[3].
The four properties are the only buildings shown on the card that remain today.
Next to them is what appears to have been a stable block that was demolished around the time that Greatorex's quarry expanded.
The Boat House hotel's stable is next to it - the orange-ish building on the far right of the row. It was also demolished eventually.

There is a list of all the Boat House hotel's known licensees, listed alphabetically, 1775 - 1950s.
See Matlock: Dale Road, Boat House Hotel & River, about 1908. With Licensees.

References:

^[1] "Derby Daily Telegraph", 17 May 1906. Angling in Derbyshire.

^[2] "Derby Daily Telegraph", 5 July 1917. Angling in Derbyshire. For those who aren't expert anglers, along with the web mistress, a creel is a large wicker basket for fish.

^[3] Mrs. Goodall, of Dale Bridge Terrace, advertised in the following trade directories:
Kelly's 1881 | Kelly's 1887 | Kelly's 1891, Matlock Bridge (Emily ran a day school here) | Kelly's 1895, Matlock Bridge | Kelly's 1899, Matlock Bridge |
Emily was still at the property in: Kelly's Directory, 1908, Private Residents | the 1911 census |
The sisters were also together in the census returns, but of Dale Terrace : the 1881 cesus | the 1891 census | the 1901 census