Biggin is a small village serving a farming community, situated 9 miles north of Ashbourne, 2 miles south east of Hartington, in Derbyshire and the Peak District National Park. It can easily be reached from the A515 Ashbourne to Buxton road.
Biggin, sitting at an altitude of around 1000ft, was first mentioned in the 13th century when it was called Newbeggin. It consisted of a grange with several small farms, owned by Garendon Abbey and farmed by monks of the Cistercian order. All that is left of those early years is a small part of the original buildings at Biggin Grange.
Biggin has a hall, a church and a pub and was once particularly noted for it's sheep and cattle markets, of which there were several throughout the year. There used to be as many as 14,000 sheep sold there a day, which made a lot of trade for the local pub and part time employment for anyone who wanted some extra cash. Now they're sold at Bakewell in the new market.
The hall dates from the 17th century, the church younger having been built to a design by E. H. Shellard between 1844 and 1848 and dedicated to St Thomas. It hosts an annual flower festival each July.
Biggin church |
The Waterloo pub |
Biggin school |
The pub is called the Waterloo Inn and has a caravan site behind it. There are several caravan sites in the area as during the summer months this is a popular tourist centre, with Biggin being well situated for walks around Wolfscote Dale, Beresford Dale and with the Tissington Trail passing close by. Biggin Dale itself runs down to the Dove at Wolfscote Dale and is a National Nature Reserve. Most of the time it is a pleasant limestone dale but during periods of heavy rain, underground waterways emerge from springs, producing a lively water course.
King George IV once stayed at the nearby Newhaven House Hotel on his journey north. He was so impressed with the friendly hospitality that the gave the hotel a perpetual license. It closed down a decade or so ago.
