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The History Of Ladybower

Against a magnificent backdrop composed from some of the most stunning scenery in the Peak District National Park, the Upper Derwent reservoir area is considered by many to be the jewel in the Peak District's crown.

Ladybower Apartments are located in the former pump house for Ladybower Reservoir. The building was restored in 2004 and sits in a truly unique position amidst wonderful walking country, woodlands and a profusion of wildlife. Our award winning residential inn, The Yorkshire Bridge Inn, is just across the road; it offers a wide variety of high quality dining, as well as an ideal place in which to unwind and relax after a hard days sightseeing!

Ladybower Apartments and The Yorkshire Bridge Inn are situated north of the village of Bamford, just a short stroll from the Ladybower Reservoir, the largest of the three Derwent Valley Dams which are famed for the Dambuster training runs.

Dating back to at least the 1826, The Yorkshire Bridge Inn takes its' name from an old packhorse bridge which was the last crossing point on the River Derwent before the Yorkshire border.

Named in the Domesday Book, the village of Bamford is derived from the early English 'Beam-ford', which literally means 'wooden footbridge'. The 'ford with a beam' lay on an ancient trade route which led northwards from the Hope Valley and across the moors into Yorkshire and was documented in 1599 as no more than a wooden footbridge.

A new stone built bridge replaced the wooden one in 1695, and was far better suited to bear the weight of pack-horse teams led by the jaggers, to whom it became a familiar landmark, and who named it 'the Yorkshire Bridge'.

Today the Yorkshire Bridge is a tiny hamlet within the parish of Bamford consisting of three rows of gritstone cottages built on the sloping east bank of the Derwent between the Inn and the bridge itself. These cottages were originally built to house the residents of the lost villages of Ashopton and Derwent.

Whilst Bamford is officially categorised as being part of the Hope Valley, it is strictly the sole survivor of three original villages in the Upper Derwent Valley, the other two, Ashopton and Derwent, having been sacrificed to make way for the waters of the Ladybower Reservoir.

Information pages :

• Booking Information
• Guest Comments
• Ladybower Reservoir
• The Yorkshire Bridge Inn
• Holidaying In The Peak District
• The Dambusters
• Well Dressing
• Environmental Policy
• Public Transport
• Cycle Hire
• Local Food Shopping
• Ordering Food for your Arrival
• Ladybower Apartments Brochure (PDF)