NEW MILLS: High Peak Parish #19 of 22

NEW MILLS – New Mills We’ve got four parishes left in High Peak, and this weekend we’re going to knock off two which occupy a slice of land at Derbyshire’s western edge. Today we’re in New Mills, where the River Goyt and the River Sett meet in a deep sandstone gorge. New Mills lies about eight miles south‑east of Stockport and thirteen miles from Manchester, with hills, railways and canals weaving tightly around the town. The name “New Mills” is literally what the town was founded around It comes from a manorial corn mill recorded before 1391, first called Berde Mill and soon known as “New Mill” or “Newmylne”. It stood beside the River Sett near what we know today Salem Mill. Since those times, New Mills has gained far, far more For centuries this area formed part of Bowden Middlecale, a group of ten hamlets under the wider parish of Glossop. In 1844, New Mills was created, bringing together Beard, Ollersett, Thornsett and Whitle, after St George’s church had opened as a commissioners’ church in 1831. Human activity here reaches back long before any mills. On the moorland above are the twin stone shafts known as Robin Hood’s Picking Rods, which we covered in Chisworth. You’ll recall they may have formed part of an old boundary line across the high ground. The Domesday Book placed this district on the southern edge of the king’s estate of Longdendale. It recorded land at “Tornesete”, held formerly by a thane called Ligulf, giving us the earliest written local place‑name and a glimpse of the scattered farmsteads in what is now New Mills ---- By the thirteenth century the land lay within the royal forest of the Peak. In 1372 the manor and the forest passed to John of Gaunt and later became part of the Duchy of Lancaster. That left a strong paper trail of manorial maps and records, including a detailed map of Bowden Middlecale. If one feature captures New Mills today, it would be the Torrs Millennium Walkway. Completed in 1999, it’s a steel “spider’s web” which clings to the railway wall and stands on stilts above the River Goyt. It carries you through the incredible Torrs gorge A gentle walk around New Mills will also take you to Torrs Riverside Park, the ruins and weirs of former cotton mills, the Peak Forest Canal with its marina at Newtown, and the solid tower of St George’s Church on a hillside New Mills has had lots of businesses. The sweet‑makers Swizzels Matlow moved their factory here in 1940 and remain a major employer today. So come with me through a town defined by cotton mills, canals, confectionary and a modern steel walkway on stilts **** #NewMills, #Derbyshire, #Glossop, #Stockport, #Mills, #HighPeak, #Manchester, #Canals, #Rivers, #Gorges, #Churches, #Chapels, #Schools, #Shops, #Railways, #Stations, #Football, **** Some of the following music tracks may appear in this video: Brendan Perkins - “Foxsnow” (B. Perkins)    • Foxsnow   Brendan Perkins - “Mickey's House” (B. Perkins)    • Mickey's House   The Keyhouse - "Voices" (H. Flunder)    • Voices   The Keyhouse - "Circles" (H. Flunder)    • The Keyhouse - Circles (official audio)   Helen Flunder - "Sun" (H. Flunder)    • Helen Flunder - 'Sun' (Official Audio)   Helen Flunder - “Angels” (H. Flunder)    • Helen Flunder - Angels (Official Audio)   Helen Flunder - “C Song” (H. Flunder)    • Caistor and the Lincolnshire Wolds   Ending Song made by Suno AI I have me a Facebook page too!   / the-village-idiot-226069228730989   And now an INSTAGRAM - @andythevillageidiot Come and join The Village People! (Subscribers only!)   / 1037756120085304   Please consider buying me a coffee to support the channel! The more I get the faster I'll get to your parish! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/thevilla... Join this channel to get access to perks:    / @thevillageidiot