| Matlock
& Matlock Bath Guides |
During the eighteenth and nineteenth century
tour guides writers described,
in the most glowing terms, the many splendours of Matlock
and the surrounding countryside. By Matlock they really meant
Matlock Bath.
Included here are extracts from eleven of their books |
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Although Matlock is considerably larger than
Matlock Bath today, this wasn't the case when the majority of
the books transcribed on this website were published. So what
we now think of as Matlock was only mentioned in passing, as
either the village of Matlock or as Matlock Bank. It was only
in the latter half of the nineteenth century that more information
about Matlock was included in such books. The Napoleonic Wars
in the early part of the century had meant that people could
not travel to the Continent, so tourism flourished at home.
These books supplied a need to satisfy discerning British travellers
and were highly regarded. To quote the "Edinburgh Reporter"
(1840) on reviewing Adam's "Gem of the Peak": 'This work
is much superior to the generality of Guide-books'.
In this section of the Matlock and Matlock Bath website you'll
find complete transcripts and selected extracts, covering everything
from cotton manufacture, black marble, Blue John, hydropathy
to the spectacular scenery. Many guides contained beautiful
engravings and, where possible, these have been included with
the text. |
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| Smaller Matlock Guides, some with Illustrations
(shorter, interlinked, extracts) |
 Advertisements in Tourist Guides |
"A
Tour through the Whole Island of Great Britain by Daniel Defoe,
1724-6."
Matlock [Bath] extract |
"The
Beauties of England and Wales" by John Britton and
Edward Wedlake Brayley
Vol III (1802) Part 1. Matlock, Matlock Bath and Matlock Dale
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"The
Beauties of England and Wales" by John Britton and
Edward Wedlake Brayley
Vol III (1802) Part 2. Cotton Manufacture, Willersley &
Sir Richard Arkwright |
| "The Gem
of the Peak" by William Adam (Matlock Bath in 1840) |
| "The
Matlock Tourist; and Guide through the Peak, embracing Matlock
Bath, Haddon, Chatsworth and C", Henricus (1843) -
The Museums |
| "Holmes
Hand Book to Matlock Bath & Neighbourhood, including Chatsworth,
Haddon Hall, Dovedale" (1866) |
| "The Forty Shires"
(1882) by Charlotte M Mason - A Short Quotation about Matlock
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Books
and other publications