MATLOCK TO LONDON

I booked a cab to get me to the train station in Matlock. I am so over walking for half an hour on uneven surfaces with two suitcases. That has lost its "adventure" status.

First part of the trip was to Derby. My next train was to leave from the same platform in ten minutes. We kept getting conflicting information. The sign said the next train was only going to Bedford. Not St Pancras where I was booked to. The station master said it was going to St Pancras. The driver said it wasn't. Eventually they got it sorted out and it was going to St Pancras. Evidently there had been a fatality on the line and they were not sure if that area was ready to travel through.

Travelling first class is fun. Fewer people in the carriage. Free drinks and snacks were offered several times through the couple of hours trip.

Train first class

Arrived at St Pancras and got a cab to my lodgings. Arran House Hotel on Gower Street. Great location.

The room was so tiny. I could stand in the middle of it with my arms out and my fingers could touch each wall.I needed to put my suitcase behind my bed so the pillows wouldn't fall off. If the bed was up against the wall, the door couldn't open. You can tell you are in London when you get tiny rooms.

Only a hand basin in the room. Bathrooms were in between each floor. I could choose to walk up stairs or down stairs. Bit of a trek in the middle of the night.

Their breakfast was buffet style.Yippee! I was able to have porridge while I stayed there.

Arran House Hotel

CHURCH IN DERBYSHIRE

I needed the rental car to get to church on Sunday. The closest ward met in Chesterfield a 25 minute drive away.I arrived just in time for a 10am service. Then I wondered why there were only a few cars in the car park. I wandered through the building and saw a notice on the board about the change of ward meeting times to 10.30 am because of the people who travel by bus. That was changed a year ago!. It has not been changed on the internet. Never mind – I had time to go outside and take photos and relax.

This a beautiful chapel, so modern and clean, about a year old. I took photos of the kitchen and some of their notices. The cleaning roster included the ward missionaries. They were having a photography competition. Also some interesting Relief Society activities.

I met a missionary sister from Tonga, Sister Fonua. That was so cool. She was the first Polynesian I had come across during my travels. Another of those “home” things you realise you miss. Made sure to get a photo with her. I posted it on Facebook hoping one of her relatives might see it.

I spent about a half hour after church talking to some of the sisters. A couple who had been to New Zealand and familyy history consultants. The Relief Society President, Linda Whittaker, was lovely

ANCESTRAL PLACES IN DERBYSHIRE

Now I had the car I was able to drive to the areas my Gee family came from. Once I got used to driving a manual car it was a lovely drive through the Peak District. The weather was nice. The views were magnificent but the roads were so narrow I needed to watch out for oncoming vehicles. So many stone walls between fields. They are made with two side layers of rock and small stones in between with a capstone on top.

First stop Chapel en le Frith. Frith is an old English word for forest.The first church was built here in 1225 by foresters from the Royal Forest of the Peak. The tower of the church was erected in 1733 and most of the rest was built in the 14th century. Parts of the old village still survive around the church.

I used the satnav to find the church. It led me up a very steep cobbled road then expected me to go down a narrow driveway that had a “Public Footpath” sign. No way was I attempting that. I found a place to park and walked back. The church was closed so I just walked around it. The only events I am aware of happening there was the baptisms of my third great grandfather John PARKER and his brother James PARKER in 1819.

Road to church

Public footpath to church

Church at Chapel en le Frith

Then off I went to Chinley. A few of the GEE children were baptised at this independent chapel. It was closed so I walked around the cemetery and peaked through the window.

Chinley Independent Chapel

Through the window at Chinley Chapel

Next stop Hayfield. Many of the GEE family were baptised, married and buried here. It was a chapelry of the parish of Glossop. They had a perpetual curate, not a vicar. Many of the memorial stones are now used as the pathways around the building. Another closed church so I could only photograph on the outside. It was hard to get a photo of the building as there were so many tall trees around it.

Hayfield Memorial stones

Hayfield Church

Hayfield Church

At Mellor there was a wedding when I arrived. I waited until they started leaving the church and got inside before the vicar left. She was delightful and very helpful. Opened up the cupboards for me where the parish registers were kept and showed me the burial registers. Someone has typed a transcript of all the registers. The baptism font in this church dates back to he 9th or 10th century according to the carvings which could be Saxon or Norman. That means before William the Conqueror.

Inside Mellor church

Mellor font

View from Mellor churchyard

The vicar showed me where there was a map on the wall of the church of the cemetery. From that map I was able to find a few Gee graves. Some of them needed a lot of cleaning up to take a photo.

Mellor tombstones

She also told me that the local archivist lived in the old vicarage house next door.

I went to visit Ann Hearley, formerly Ashworth. Another delightful lady. She invited me in and told me a little about the local history and gave me a couple of books she had written to do with the history of the area. The oldest part of this house was built in 1512. It never did belong to the church but the perpetual curates lived in it.The view from her kitchen window of the dales is incredible.

In 1995 Ann and her husband John noticed lush grass growing in a line after a drought. Archaeological digs followed and discovered evidence of people living at Mellor through all periods of time from the Mesolithic [10,000 to 5,000 years ago].

Replica iron age round house

My final stop was Glossop. Another closed church so I could only take photos outside. This was the parish church for Hayfield and Mellor. My 4th and 5th great grandparents were married there.

And there I finished my ancestral wanderings in Derbyshire.

MATLOCK

I stayed at The Cables at Matlock. It was close to the Heights of Abraham which had cable cars to get up to the top. Too bad I was too busy to go up there. 

Cable Cars

The Cables

Private bathroom

Bedroom

The room was okay. Twin beds joined together – TV and a little fridge.

I had a private bathroom but it was across the hall. A bit of a nuisance in the middle of the night. 

The other two rooms in the house had en-suites.

Breakfast served downstairs each morning. There was homemade muesli and berry compote. You needed to book in the night before for a cooked breakfast. Didn't bother with that. One morning the host, Roger made wholemeal bread. It was just like the one I used to make. I asked him if he made it in a Panasonic bread maker. He did! Best bread maker in New Zealand and England!

Across the road from The Cables was High Tor, a limestone crag about 400 foot high. One day I saw someone climbing it. There is a tiny yellow dot up there.

That looked so dangerous.

Most of my time in Matlock was spent at the archives. It is In the Dales so it was a steep uphill to get to them. About a half hour walk each way. I have had such poor wifi connections on my trip so I was not as prepared as I wanted to be. Too much material and not sure enough of what to concentrate on.

Just about at the archives - the hill is actually quite steep

When I bought the sim card for my phone, I had the girl put it in. Then we hit a snag. Evidently I have McAfee security and it wanted a six digit password. Problem – I don't have one. We thought we should put the NZ sim card back in and see if I had the password filed away there. New problem – I was still locked out by McAfee. This was taking up so much time I said I would try and figure it out later.

When I got back to my room I checked my laptop in case I had a password recorded for McAfee but I only had one with letters in it. I tried all the online help I could but it was very slow and difficult as the internet connection is so weak.

No phone – meant no photos, nothing to read. That would be extremely difficult for me. It also meant no emergency phone when I was driving around the country the next day. I was starting to get rather concerned so I emailed Joella to see if she could check it out at home for me. She did what she could but was about to go out so she asked Petteena to try.

Meanwhile I kept trying the McAfee website and eventually about midnight I found a page where I could un-check the locked box – hey presto! All working! Meanwhile Petteena had obtained a temporary password for me to use.

So grateful I had my phone functioning again. There were a lot I of documents to photograph at Matlock.

DERBYSHIRE TRAVEL UPS AND DOWNS

I was about to walk to the station at Warwick when Marko said he would drive me. He was so helpful. Treated me like his favourite Aunty. Helped me get my ticket at the station, carried my suitcases to the platform and gave me a big hug before leaving. That bit of the trip was great.

Marko

I arrived by train at Matlock station.

Matlock station

 My plan was to get a taxi to my b and b. Saw the taxi rank – no cabs. Evidently they don't stop there anyway as there is only one train each hour. Luckily there was a little shop and information centre at the station. Got a card with the taxi's number on it but I couldn't use my phone. No local sim! Following directions, I walked – and walked with my two suitcases. About half an hour later I found my lodgings.

I ordered a rental car for the weekend so I could visit some churches and cemeteries. Friday afternoon, after about ¾ hour wait, I was about to phone when my driver arrived. A delightful young man – Scott Gregory. Because he was so late picking me up he stopped at the Car Phone warehouse when we got to Chesterfield so I could get a sim card for my phone.

Carphone Warehouse

Off we went to get my rental car. It was upgraded from a B to a D which was a Vauxhall Astra. A nice size but of course it was manual. Not my favourite way to drive. Got a satnav and found my way back to Matlock

Vauxhall Astra

After the weekend I used the satnav to guide me back to the rental depot at Chesterfield. When I got close I entered a large roundabout that had 10 entry and exit points and also had lights. I was directed to go off the 5^th exit. I was in the wrong lane and went off another one and ended up at a large Sainsbury store. Decided I needed a wee break so I went in to get something to eat before attempting that roundabout again. This time I made sure I got off at the 5^th exit. Soon arrived at my destination according to the little voice. Only problem was – there was no Enterprise rental cars in sight.

The thought of going around that roundabout again was rather daunting. Luckily I now had my phone so I called up and my charming angel, Scott answered the phone. He kindly came to where I was and I followed him back. We could see the roof of the Enterprise building from where I was. By now it was now very late and the office was very busy. They cover a large area and have a pick up and delivery service for their customers. Eventually Scott drove myself and another lady home. She lived at Darley Dale so I got to see a bit more of the countryside. When I got back to Matlock, Scott opened the car door for me and gave me a big hug goodbye. Love this service these Brits have been giving me!