Friday Bliss # 57

On the way home from Bamford Village we passed Ladybower Reservoir then stopped in a layby on the Manchester/Sheffield Road overlooking Hallam Moors.  Looking back Win Hill by Ladybower Reservoir and the Dark Peaks can be seen in the distance.

Above are the rocks that form the Bamford and Stanage Edge escarpment.  Ancient standing stones can also be seen by those who walk on these moors.

Opposite, on the other side of the road the bracken has been flattened and sheep are grazing on the Strines Moor.

On that day there were rare glimpses of blue sky.

I gathered a few bronze-coloured ferns and burgundy red wild sorrel seed heads to arrange in a copper jug.

The hydrangea heads are changing colour as they become drier. Some are now pale green/blue and others are mauve turning darker each day

Joining Riitta's Friday Bliss # 57 linkup

Bamford Village

Here's a photo when driving us through Bamford one day late in the year when the leaves had gone from the trees just to show you the location of St. John the Baptist parish church. There are usually more cars parked on the left outside the cottages and the road is quite narrow with no pavement on the right by the church wall.  Last Saturday there was a parking space so it was easier to walk over to the church entrance to see if the church was open. Thankfully it was as one of the parishioners was setting up a display of produce and other items for the Harvest Festival the following day.  He took time to talk and gave me a leaflet about the church from which I've taken some notes about the history with some details of what a visitor can see inside and around about. 

Apparently before the church was built local people had to walk to the nearest village of Hathersage to attend church services so the vicar of Hathersage talked to the cotton mill owner about the provision of a church in Bamford.  The mill owner, William Moore, engaged a famous Gothic Revival architect, William Butterfield, to design the church and it was partly funded by Moore together with subscriptions and grants. Butterfield designed most of the internal fixtures in the church and also the stained glass for the windows.  Local Derbyshire fossil grey marble, limestone and terracotta was used as Butterfield favoured subdued colour schemes in his designs.  The church spire  The narrow tower with its stone spire rises to 108 feet topped by a cap and weather vane. 

Inside the porch is a small door that leads to the bell tower.  The six steel bells made in Sheffield were replaced in the late 1990s as the originals were too big for the narrow tower.  The new bells now hang in two levels on a new frame with the largest above the others. They're rung every Sunday before the church service. 

The stained glass of the porch window had the coat of arms of William C. Moore and is inscribed "For the glory of God and his people, this church was provided by William Cameron Moore AD MDCCCLX" (1860).

Before entering the church by the door on the left you walk from the porch of the tower into a covered area called a narthex.  At the end is the choir vestry and this and the narthex was added in the 1920s.

One of the old steel bells is displayed in the narthex.

the chancel, choir stalls and sanctuary

The 1860 east window above the altar 

depicts the Ascension of Jesus, apostles,

disciples and angels.

The parishioner told me more about the layout of the church. Apparently the small altar is wheeled across as the steps up to the main altar can be a challenge for elderly people.

To the left of the nave is the Lady Chapel, organ and a children's corner (not shown). The vase of twigs with birds is for hanging prayer offerings and requests.

one of the tapestry prayer kneelers

Looking back towards the entrance door is a rose window. It's one of three rose windows designed by Butterfield. It's difficult to see because of the light shining through but the emblems depict the four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

The font near the entrance door with a display of produce

and dried food gifts ready for the Sunday harvest festival service.

The churchyard has views of the hills of the Hope Valley in the distance.  In 1940 graves from St. Henry's Church, Derwent, were moved to Bamford during the construction of Ladybower Reservoir. 

the garden of remembrance

The Angler's Rest Community Hub/Pub/Café/Post Office

tempting home made cakes

the exhibition of the artist James Green's art work

a view of the village school, the Methodist Church and Hope Valley hills

from the outdoor seating area of The Angler's Rest

The spire of the church can be seen over the roof tops of the village houses.

Our weekend

It's raining today so I'm thankful that we had a sunny day yesterday and reasonably dry weather on Saturday. I made a chocolate cake for the weekend family visits.

On Saturday we had a drive out down to Bamford village near Ladybower Reservoir as there was exhibition of a local artist's work in the community hub/pub that I wanted to see. This community hub displays art on its café walls and there are events when local artists talk about their work.  I usually get news of what's going on in the local art scene from our DiL, whose an artist, although this time I'd seen this particular artist, James Green, at work on a television programme where he was a competitor in an art challenge. He specialises in linocut prints. There are always leaflets left in our local libraries too. 

Before we went to the café we explored the lanes of Bamford as I wanted to find the village mill and weir by the River Derwent which runs through the valley.  Usually we drive straight through the village to get to Hathersage or Castleton in the Hope Valley and it's more difficult to find the weir unless you have a map.  I had a rough idea where to go, but still had to ask villagers where we could  park and where we could find the footpath down to the weir.  One villager kindly allowed us to park on her residential parking space. It's a rural location along the back lanes of the village where there are beautifully restored stone houses and well-kept trimmed hedges along the footpath to the mill, which I imagine is a local beauty spot.  

Above the village is the rocky cliff-like gritstone escarpment of Bamford Edge and moorland.

In the mid 19th century the village of Bamford which means in Anglo Saxon 'tree trunk ford' - a ford being a stream across a footpath that you had to walk through to continue your journey or maybe in this case use a tree trunk like a bridge -  grew because of the cotton mill, owned by William Cameron Moore. Stone from Bamford Edge quarry was used in its construction.   Many local people were employed there.  Before that a local miller had built a corn mill on the site, but it was destroyed by fire.  At first the cotton mill was powered by water and then by steam power using a large beam engine. In 1907 a more modern mill engine called 'Edna' was installed.  Water power also generated the electricity and there was also a gas works.  The mill closed in the 1990s and the buildings were converted into apartments.  The chimney was demolished, the boiler plant and turbines were removed, but the mill engine was preserved and retained on site.  

The public footpath goes down to the weir.

There are steps down and a weir path by the mill that goes across the river to the other side, but they  were much too wet and slippery for me to go any further once I got to the water's edge.

the mill

  River Derwent

The garden of the house (below) has a seating area  by the water- you can just see the green seat amongst the plants by my orange initials on the right.

a one-eyed owl

Separate from the mill buildings is another construction that has been converted into a private dwelling. Perhaps it was the mill owner's family house?

At the top of this bank - I didn't try to climb it - is a mill stone.

I couldn't resist collecting a few conkers lying on the ground that had fallen from the horse chestnut trees.

The parish church of St. John the Baptist in Bamford.  Next time we'll go inside and then we'll have a warm drink at The Angler's Rest community hub/café and pub.