KIRK LANGLEY
INFORMATION
Where is it? – Kirk Langley is approximately five miles northwest of Derby on the A52 to Ashbourne (SK288388).
What to do? – Enjoy the open countryside views along Church Lane – Explore the village – Visit Meynell Langley Nurseries and Garden Centre where there is also a tearoom.
Where to eat? – The Bluebell, a recently renovated public house on Adam’s Road, Kirk Langley. For further information visit www.bluebellkirklangley.com or telephone 01332 824423 – Meynell Langley Garden Centre and Tea room contact number is 01332 824084 or visit www.meynellgardens.com-tearoom.
Other places to visit – Kedleston Hall is one of the best surviving examples anywhere of the work of Robert Adam. A National Trust property it is lavishly decorated with fine collections of paintings, furniture and sculptures – Carsington Water was officially opened by HM the Queen in 1992 and instantly became one of Derbyshire’s most important tourist attractions – The historic market town of Ashbourne, lies in an attractive valley divided by the Henmore Brook and is frequently referred to as the ‘Gateway to Dovedale’. But it is much more than that with its many fine buildings, good shopping facilities and attractive layout. Most of which has been protected since 1968, by Conservation Area status.
PROFILE
Kirk Langley is set within gently rolling countryside made up of arable and grazing farmland. It consists of two parts, Kirk Langley with the parish church, and Meynell Langley. The Meynell family has held land here since the reign of Henry I.
In the 19th century, Kirk Langley saw the construction of cottages along the Ashbourne to Derby Road and some larger houses along Church Lane. The majority of the historic settlement is found along the latter, which runs off the Derby Road to the west. Until 1952, when mains water reached the village, the ancient Maple Well provided the water supply.
EARLIER SETTLEMENT
The fields immediately to each side of Church Lane, particularly on the south side, are pitted with bumps and platforms, indicating that the land has previously been occupied by ancient Britons.
ST MICHAEL’S CHURCH
The earliest visible parts of the church date from the 13th century but there is no church mentioned in Domesday. It was built in the early 14th century on the site of a much older one, for which traces of a Saxon wall near the west door provide some evidence. The screen under the tower is one of the oldest timber screens in Derbyshire. There are monuments to the Meynell and Pole families.
VILLAGE HALL
Leeke Memorial Hall was the village school until 1879 and is now the centre of many village activities. It is named after the Rev. W. M. Leeke. The village primary school is now in Moor Lane, which is attended by about ninety pupils.
MEYNELL HOUSE
Kirk Langley was one of the first settlements along the route from Derby to Ashbourne when it was turnpiked in 1738. The road presented a very good opportunity to develop coaching inns. A substantial investment was made in Meynell House at that time known as the Old Nags Head. To the north stabling and coach storage facilities were provided with a central carriage arch. Those to the south are a late 20th-century replica. Later the house became known as Copestake House before changing its name again to the Meynell Arms. Today, the Grade II listed property is in private ownership.
C. B. BARRINGTON(20 April 1857 – 29 March 1942)
He was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Derbyshire between 1880 and 1887. Born in Pimlico, London in 1857, he was educated at Repton School and made several appearances for the Derbyshire Friars cricket club, before making his debut for the county side in 1880. His final game for the county was in 1887. In 1942, Barrington died at the age of 84 in Kirk Langley. In 1952, G. B. Barrington’s daughter gave the village a playing field in memory of her father. This includes a cricket ground, a children’s play area and an open space for recreational activities.
MEYNELL LANGLEY
Meynell Langley is a small rural settlement between Kirk Langley and Kedleston with a hall that is the ancestral home of the Meynell family. The Meynell Langley Garden Centre and Tea Rooms on Lodge Lane are popular with visitors.
