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Folklore

The Nine Ladies of Stanton Moor

15th November 2017 by

One Saturday evening in May, a young woman chose to celebrate her betrothal by taking eight of her friends from Stanton to dance in a clearing on the moor. A fiddler arrived and agreed to play for them. Their merrymaking continued after sunset and into the hours of darkness, and the nine ladies and the fiddler paid no heed when the church clock chimed midnight. But dancing on Sunday was a sin, so as the nine ladies danced around in a circle they were turned to stone, and there they stand today. Ninety feet away from the circle is another stone, which people call The Fiddler.

For more about this story (and other traditional Peak District folktales) see:

Mark P. Henderson, Folktales of the Peak District, Amberley Publishing, 2011.

Stone Sisters

13th November 2017 by

On Stanton Moor is a circle of small stones, which according to legend are petrified dancers. The women had been celebrating a wedding in the village one Saturday, and after the ceremony a mysterious fiddler offered to play for them on the edge of the moor while they continued to dance. The fiddler was so hypnotically gifted that the ladies were carried away in their enjoyment – to the extent that they failed to notice when midnight arrived. They were duly punished for dancing on the Sabbath.

Some distance from the circle is another stone, called the king stone or the fiddler – the petrified ghost of the musician.

Dovedale Family Trail: Lover’s Leap

23rd August 2016 by

This area is known as Lover’s Leap. Read out loud to your group and tell them how this spot got its name.

Lover’s Leap is said to named after an accident that happened here nearly 300 years ago during the Napoleonic Wars. A young woman heard that her boyfriend had been killed. She was so upset that she climbed to the top of Lover’s Leap and threw herself off. Luckily, she survived the fall.

What do you think saved her? Ask your group.

a) Her billowing skirt got caught in the branches

b) Her long hair got caught on a rock

c) She landed at the bottom on her feet

If you’re using a mobile device, press ‘Tell Me More’ to see the answer.

[Read more…] about Dovedale Family Trail: Lover’s Leap

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