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Crookhill was a grange of Welbeck Abbey |
During the 13th century AD,
Welbeck Abbey, Nottinghamshire, began to acquire land in the form of grants
from landowners hoping to ease their passage to Heaven after death.
By the end of the 13th century the estate probably included most of the
Upper Derwent.
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This area of Derwent Reservoir was once the location of Abbey Farm |
They had a grange at Crookhill
which included a horse stud, vegetable garden and pastures. By the
confluence of the River Derwent and Abbey Brook there was an enclosed
meadow which became One Man’s House then Abbey Farm. Pottery
and documentary evidence also suggests that the earliest Medieval farmsteads
in the two valleys were founded during the 13th century and were probably
created under the Abbey’s ownership. This was when the landscape
of scattered farms and small, irregular fields we know today began to
be made. Some of these farms are still occupied today. Lead
and iron smelting was also carried out on the Abbey’s estate.
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A 15th century lead hearth on the Abbey’s estate is excavated in 2001 |
When King Henry VIII dissolved
the Monasteries in the 16th century, the monastic lands were taken into
Crown ownership. After a short time they were granted to private
individuals close to the King who became wealthy landowners.
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