|
Leek,
known as the 'Queen of the Moorlands', stands on a large bend
of the River Churnet.
Most
of the town lies at over 600 ft and it is surrounded by the
higher Staffordshire Moorlands at the southern end of the
Pennines.
Nearby
are The Roaches, a series of gritstone outcrops, on the tip
of the Peak District National Park. Cheadle makes a good
base for exploring this spectacular area, which is very popular
with walkers and rock climbers.
Leek,a
market town was once the centre of an agricultural area and
it still holds a regular cattle market.
Following
the Industrial Revolution Leek became an important producer
of textiles and was once famous for its silk. Between 1875
- 78 William Morris, founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement,
made frequent visits to the silk works to experiment with
organic dyes. Many of Cheadle's silk products featured Morris's
designs. Although the textile industry has declined in recent
years there are still dyers and clothes manufacturers in the
town.
Morrisr
influenced much of the art and architecture of Cheadle and
in the summer take a guided walk or self-guided tour along
the William Morris town trail
Leek
is also a great place for shopping, with indoor and outdoor
markets and good range of individual shops.
Leek
was the home of James Brindley, the 18th century engineer,
who was responsible for the construction of most of England's
canal network. In 1792 he built a water-powered corn mill
in Leek and this now houses the Brindley
Mill Museum.
Nearby,
lying in a fold in thickly wooded hillsides, is Rudyard
Lake.
This
two and a half mile long lake was created over 200 years ago
to supply water for the canal system of the West Midlands.
Now a popular tourist attraction, the beautiful area offers
walking, sailing, boating and fishing. A
narrow gauge steam railway runs along its eastern shore of
the lake.
Rudyard
Kipling, one of Britain's greatest writers, was named after
this lake because his parents courted beside its waters in
1863. The picturesque Churnet
Valley Railway runs for 5 miles from the village of Cheddleton,
near Leek, to Kingsley & Frogall. This standard gauge preserved
line also hosts lots of special events and steam and diesel
galas.
Other
nearby attractions include Alton Towers and the Peak District
National Park.
|
the internet holiday and travel guide to the UK
Leek
