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Peak District Towns and Villages: Ashbourne

An index to Peak District towns and villages including Ashbourne, Ashbourne, Bakewell, Buxton, Chapel-en-le-Frith, Leek, Matlock, Macclesfield and Wirksworth in Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire, England, UK.
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Ashbourne

Local Services:

B & B

Self Catering

Food and Drink

Local Geography:
Area Map

Nearby Villages

Local Attractions

Ashbourne - view of the church
Ashbourne - view of the church
Ashbourne is the southern gateway to the Peak and lies on the boundary of the Old Red Sandstone of southern Derbyshire and the Limestone which surrounds Dovedale and the White Peak. Although the town lies a short distance away from the River Dove, it commands the approach to Dovedale.

Old Grammar School building
Old Grammar School building
It is a colourful and historic town, already a Royal Borough by the time of the Domesday survey. Church Street, which leads out west from the town centre, has many fine buildings, including of course St Oswald's church, the former Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School (founded 1585), Owfield's Almshouses (1614-30), and The Mansion, which was the home of the Rev John Taylor from 1740 to 1787. A colourful character, Taylor was one of Dr Johnson's closest friends, and Johnson was a frequent visitor here. The town can also boast of visits by Charles I and Bonny Prince Charlie, who stayed here on his march south to Derby in 1745.

The streets in the centre of the town are quite narrow and the are overhung by the inn sign of the Green Man and Black's Head - a famous Georgian coaching inn once frequented by Dr Johnson and Boswell. To the left are the former Shambles (now called Victoria Square), which lead up to the Market Square, the hub of the modern town. (There is a market every Thursday). The town has a fairly wide range of shops and of course numerous pubs.

Blacks Head sign
Blacks Head sign
Ashbourne - The Shambles
Ashbourne - The Shambles
Probably the most famous feature of Ashbourne is its Shrove-Tide football match - an annual game of 'traditional' football, played between the 'Uppards' and 'Downards' with a leather ball stuffed with sawdust. The only rule is that the ball has to be grounded at either of the two goals, which are 3 miles apart along the valley where Ashbourne lies. Play starts at 2pm and continues until 10pm unless a goal is scored after 5pm. There are hundreds of participants and to describe it as rough would be an understatement - it is a moving brawl which continues through the roads of the town, across fields and even along the bed of the local stream. The violence involved has led to intermittent attempts to ban it, but the game has been played here for hundreds of years and fortunately it still continues.

The Tourist Information Centre is in the market square - telephone 01335 343666

Nearby Places of Interest

Carsington WaterCarsington Water is a Severn Trent Water reservoir in Derbyshire, between Ashbourne and Wirksworth. It has a visitor centre, sailing club, fishing, and cycling and walking trails.
Dovedale and Thorpe CloudDovedale is the name given to the section of the Dove valley between Milldale and Thorpe Cloud on the bounday between Derbyshire and Staffordshire. Famous for its scenery and fishing.
Ilam Church and HallIlam Church, Staffordshire, is the burial place of St Bertram and a place of pilgrimage. A lovely church with some Saxon parts. Close to Ilam Hall, once home of the Watts Russell and Port families.
Ilam Hall and ParkIlam Hall is the remains of the hall built by the Watts Russell family in the 1820s, close to Ashbourne. The Hall and Park now belong to the National Trust
Tissington HallTissington Hall is the 17th century home of the FitzHerbert family in Tissington Village near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. Wonderful furniture, paintings and porcelain collection.
Tissington TrailThe Tissington Trail, a Derbyshire Peak District cycling trail follows the former railway line between Buxton and Ashbourne.
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