Introduction

This blog celebrates the special scenic beauty of the Longshaw Estate, and the contribution which Sorby Natural History Society, Sheffield, has made to the study of its wildlife. This contribution is part of a deep attachment of Sheffield to Longshaw – as evidenced by Longshaw’s very existence today, which was largely due to the fight to save it from urban development in the 1920’s and 1930’s by the people of Sheffield.
The woods and pastures of Longshaw are complemented by traditional homesteads and the relics of Longshaw’s fascinating industrial past as a route for salters from Cheshire, the manufacture of millstones by hand, and the hewing of gritstone to build the dams at Howden and Derwent. It’s a mecca for walkers and nature-lovers alike, with the best Waxcap fungi in Europe.
The Longshaw Estate in the Peak District, lying adjacent to the Sheffield city boundary, is one of the most beautiful and unspoilt areas of the Peak District, and under the care of the National Trust, is a place we hope will remain like this for ever. Things were very different in 1927. In 1994, Bill McGuinness, writing in The Ramblers, reminded readers about the fight for Longshaw. “Did you know that over sixty years ago this popular area, which includes Padley Gorge and Burbage Brook was under threat as a potential site for housing development.”
Gerald Haythornethwaite was one of the Sheffield citizens who helped save Longshaw, describing the public appeal for the money to buy the Estate as “the first territorial defence of the countryside to the west of the Sheffield. “ Longshaw is an icon, not just because of its scenic beauty and wealth of wildlife, but because it showed that such a place could be protected from speculators eager to exploit the countryside by selling off building plots. “It set the pattern for the ultimate defence of the Sheffield Green Belt and the Peak District National Park”.
It was in 1927 when the Duke of Rutland decided to sell off the “shooting box” of Longshaw Lodge and 11,353 acres of rugged countryside around it. In the sumptuous catalogue, which you can view in the Local Studies section of Sheffield City Library, it is also described as being suitable for turning into a golf course.
In 1924 the Sheffield Association for the Protection of Local Scenery was formed – it was this body of Sheffield citizens who launched the appeal to save Longshaw, together with the Sheffield Council for Social Service. The council, then known as Sheffield Corporation, made sure of the purchase with a loan of £13,000. All but £1,339 was raised by the appeal. A committee of Sheffield citizens managed Longshaw Estate until 1931 when it was handed over to the care of the National Trust, who paid the outstanding £1,339.
In 1935 there was another threat – a speculator wanted to build a road along the present bridleway from the Millstone pub to Padley, and build houses all down the Surprise Road, the new road, and pepper the whole area with houses and bungalows. The sewage facility would be by the ancient Padley Chapel. Another Sheffield-based appeal was started – this time by the National Trust: “AN APPEAL FOR THE EXTENSION OF THE LONGSHAW ESTATE AND TO SAVE THE SURPRISE VIEW”. Money was donated to an account held at Williams Deacons Bank in Church Street, Sheffield. All the land below Surprise View to Padley, then along Rough Wood by the edge of the railway to Kettle House was included. The Sheffield Telegraph of June 21 1935 described it as a “A Magnificent Addition”.
Since then other additions have been made, including White Edge.
In November 2013 news of a new threat to Longshaw leaked out. Network Rail had advanced plans in place to build the very road that Sheffield people had prevented from spoiling the heart of the Surprise slopes in 1935. Not only that, but a large works compound was to be built in the very middle of the famous Surprise View – just opposite the quaint house at the junction of the road to Ringinglow. In addition, there are plans to destroy one of Longshaw’s most precious ancient woodlands. On the very edge of the Estate, between Kettle House and Padley, Rough Wood has been a reserve for nature for hundreds of years, a haven for birds, insects, bats and above all fungi. The Longshaw Estate is the most important place for fungi in the Peak District – with over 700 species already named. Rough Wood has recently produced several rare species – including the Netted Fieldcap.