The Peak Hotel History
Key numbers
The Peak Hotel established as an inn during 1809
Landlords of the Peak Hotel
The Peak Hotel has always been at the heart of the community, and has played host to many a local and traveller alike.
Peak Hotel first opened as an inn in 1809, with innkeeper Robert Schofield Watson, who was a butcher by trade, and kept a shop down a little alley across the road from the inn. He also owned the field opposite. The property was leased from the How family, from which the lane outside takes its name. Back then, the inn was known as the "Board". In the same year, their son Benjamin was Christened at the village church on Christmas Eve. At this period, there were only 7 alehouses in Castleton. Robert Schofield Watson died here September 16th 1828 aged 46. A fortnight later the youngest son, Richard also died, aged only 11. Robert's widow Deborah then kept the inn, while her sons William and Benjamin took over at the butchers. The name of the inn then changed to "The Heart", where it became popular with visitors. In 1839, Deborah relinquished the running of the pub to her son Benjamin and his new wife Harriet. They had two children; Francis and Robert. Alas, Harriet died May 6th 1844, aged only 23. Benjamin remained at the inn with his children and changed the name to the "Butcher's Arms" following the death of Deborah, his mother in December of 1846, where he then purchased the inn from Elizabeth How, who still owned the inn at that time.
On the title map, Peak Hotel is described as a house, barn and garden, a cottage and croft (across the road) and butchers shop. In 1847, his brother William died and Benjamin never remarried, so his sister in law, Martha became the housekeeper. By the time 1861 rolled around, both of Benjamin's children worked as butchers in the shop. Fast forward ten years, and Benjamin Watson was a butcher, innkeeper and farmer of 16 acres! He eventually sold the property to Greaves & Co, Norfolk Brewery, Sheffield in 1887 for £650 and two years later saw rebuilding and alterations take place, costing £2000, with stabling for 50 horses and a butchers shop, complete with a outside balcony to give it a Swiss style effect. While all this was taking place, a 5ft sword of the Cromwell period was found in a stream nearby.
It was officially renamed the Peak Hotel on 23rd October 1890 with a grand reopening on May 13th 1891, where the brewery held a dinner for 50 of their workers.
Benjamin Watson died April 5th 1896 aged 82; he lived to see the railway come through the district two years earlier, and the influx of visitors the trains brought to the Hope Valley.
By the 1930's Duncan Gilmour's Brewery of Sheffield had brought the inn and later sold it to Tetley's.
Castleton's Ancient Garland Ceremony
Originally derived from an Oak Apple Day festival, to celebrate the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. Up until 1859, May 29th was a public holiday in England so a Garland was always held on this date - unless it fell on a Sunday!
The Oak leaf became a Royalist symbol after Charles II hid in an Oak Tree to escape the Roundheads after the Battle of Worcester in 1651.
Waving an Oak branch was seen to be as proud as waving the Nation's Flag, and to this day during the Garland Ceremony, you could be flogged for not wearing your sprig of oak!!
Double Murder At Winnats Pass
Some other interesting news from the past:
The double murder in Winnyates Pass as it was then known, of absconding lovers nearly 300 years ago. There are a few versions of this folklore, but the details which all agree on are this: Allen and Clara (as they have been dubbed overtime), were travelling from Scotland to Peak Forest Chapel where they had decided to elope. Allen was allegedly from a poor family and Clara, a wealthy one, which is why her parents objected to the match.
They made their way to Stoney Middleton and stayed overnight at The Royal Oak. The following day they went to Castleton and stopped for a rest at another inn. A group of raucous and drunken miners was also there. Seeing the couple dressed in fine clothes, the men decided to follow them up the Winnats where they robbed them of £200, brutally murdered them, and threw their bodies down a mine shaft, where they went undiscovered for ten years by miners after they sunk an engine pit.
The four men who murdered this unfortunate couple are then said to have been punished by the divine.
When James Ashton of Castleton was on his deathbed in 1778, he ‘was most miserably afflicted and tormented in his conscience’ and confessed his murderous act to a vicar, Rev Hanby. He described how he and his four companions, whom he named as Nicholas Cook, John Bradshaw, Thomas Hall and Francis Butler, had slit the man’s throat and then killed the woman with a pick axe, ignoring her desperate pleas for mercy.
After the terrible event, the miners divided the money between them. Ashton was a coal carrier and he bought some horses with his share, which turned out to be a poor investment and left him in hardship. The others all met a violent end; Nicholas Cock fell from a precipice near to the spot where the lovers were slain, and John Bradshaw was killed by a falling stone, also near the scene of the crime. Thomas Hall hanged himself, and Francis Butler ‘went mad, and died in a most miserable manner’ after several unsuccessful suicide attempts. The final one, James Ashton, died shortly after his shocking confession.
The remains of ‘Alan and Clara’ were buried in St Edmund’s Church, Castleton. Their spirits are said to haunt Winnats Pass and can be heard begging for their lives on dark, windy nights.
In July 1896, Miss Elizabeth Cooper who was a member of a choir picnic party, went to retrieve her hat which had blown off nearby to the castle, and fell 60ft resulting in her death. A makeshift stretcher was conveyed from the Peak Hotel to carry her body. On Tuesday evening 1st February 1910, the Peak Hotel was in danger of being destroyed by fire. One of the bedrooms was on fire causing sparks to catch onto a ladies dress and other clothes, resulting in the destruction of of a silver tea service, all of which belonged to the daughter of the innkeeper at the time, Mr Johnstone. Damage was estimated to be £30 (which was a lot back then!), but thankfully he had insurance!
In May 1914, Mr Johnstone of the Peak Hotel died age 70, he was also the proprietor of the Millstone Quarries, Hathersage. In October 1917, Thomas Hall died aged 65; he had attained wide celebrity as the "King of the Garland". For nearly 40 years he represented the character of King Charles in the picturesque cavalcade on Royal Oak Day held May 29 in the village, where the Garland was held at various inns including The Peak Hotel, which had been a posting house.
Famous Faces
There have been many distinguished visitors to Castleton from all over the world, such as Grand Duke Michael of Russia & his Suite who arrived in July 1818 to Castleton from Chatsworth and stayed overnight to view the Caverns and village. In the early 1970's Hollywood Film Legend Paul Newman and his family stayed in the village for a week.