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Undoubtedly, the settlement grew up around a spring or a series of wells which were very important to the early town, but these have now dried up.
The Domesday Book throws more light on the history of the town revealing that in Edward the Confessor's day, it was a royal manor and one of the only two settlements in the country to have two priests. After 1066, William the Conqueror granted the Manor of Bakewell to his illegitimate son, William Peveril, and it later passed from King John to a Ralp de Gernon. Finally in 1502, it was sold to Sir John Vernon.
Nearby Haddon Hall has exercised an important influence on the development of the town. From the Middle Ages until 1567 it was owned by the Vernon family, before the Hall and its lands passed by marriage to Sir John Manners, a relation of the Duke of Rutland, to whom it still belongs.
Bakewell has a beautiful setting and contains much of interest. This small market town is built almost entirely in warm, brownish stone and lies in a sheltered valley of the Derbyshire Wye with rolling wooded hills to the north, west and east, which makes for fine walking country. There are charming gabled buildings and old inns in the town, a 17th century market-house refashioned and keeping much of its old charm, and a delightful row of almshouses as old as Queen Elizabeth I.
Bakewell's most impressive building is the large Parish Church of All Saints, standing halfway up the hill on the west side of the town, its spire a landmark. Parts of the present building date from the 12th century, but there is evidence of a church here in Anglo-Saxon times. For example, in the churchyard stands an 8th century sculptured cross, much worn, but with many of the symbols on it still recognizable. Many other stone fragments dating from Anglo-Saxon times are on view in the church porch. Among the monuments in the church is an imposing table tomb to Sir George Vernon, the last of his line, known as 'The King of the Peak' because of the lavish hospitality he provided at nearby Haddon Hall.
The gardens of Haddon Hall, are, to say the least, romantically beautiful, with paving, steps, and balustrading over 300 years old, and consists of steep hillside terraces, individually designed and planted. The trees on the top terrace had to be felled and are now replaced by lawn, with flower beds and a rose garden. Indeed Haddon is famous for its roses which are not only formally planted but also scramble freely over house and terrace walls. Above the top terrace is Dorothy Vernon's Walk, named after the heiress who lived here and eloped with her lover in the 16th century. The gate through which she escaped and the pack-bridge where her lover awaited her can still be seen. The second and third terraces are linked by a broad flight of 76 stone steps between a rose-festooned balustrade. All the planting is of the present century and in summer, when the roses are in full flush, the garden is a place of enchantment.
The Bakewell Old House Museum is on many people's itinerary. The fine Tudor house dates from 1534 and was at one time owned by Sir Richard Arkwright, and later by his son Richard, and partitioned into dwellings for six families of workpeople from his mill in nearby Lumford. Saved from demolition in 1954 and restored by the Bakewell and District Historical Society, it is now the home of an absorbing folk museum. The exhibits here include a Victorian kitchen, Victorian and Edwardian costumes displayed on models, craftsman's tools, farm implements, bygone toys, samplers, and a fine display of lacework, although to many the house itself will prove to be the main attraction.
And for something completely different? Imagine floating gently above the beautiful Bakewell countryside in the basket of a balloon, drifting with the wind over hills and valley, villages, roads, rivers and even cities, while sounds drift up to the peaceful world of the balloon. This is certainly a new and invigorating way to see the area. The Dragon Balloon Company operates such a service and has much to recommend it.
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