Disley
|
|
Disley is a village in the county of Cheshire, in the north west of England, in the Goyt Valley, very close to the county boundary with Derbyshire at New Mills, and south of Stockport, Greater Manchester. It is in the borough of Macclesfield. Today it is a dormitory village retaining a semi-rural character.
Properly "Disley, Newtown and Lyme Handley", Disley is in NE Cheshire, on the very edge of the Peak District.
The River Goyt and Peak Forest Canal, which opened in 1800, pass through the village.
| Contents |
History
Its Anglo-Saxon name was Dystiglegh meaning "windy settlement". In the 13th Century, in the time of Edward I, there are references to confirmatory grants of land made to Jordan de Dystelegh of Disley Hall and Roger de Stanley-de-Dystelegh of Stanley Hall in the district, pointing to even older local settlements. It later had the name Dystelegh.
Sir Piers Legh of Lyme founded St. Mary-the-Virgin Church in Disley (completed 1524 and consecrated as parish church in 1558. The earliest parish register is from 1591.
The village had at least one cotton mill by the mid-19th century. As the cotton industry declined, more varied employment became the norm. In 2005, there is a paper mill and some light engineering works, but most people travel out to work.
People
Past
Disley is the birthplace of the Anglo-American novelist Christopher Isherwood. A. J. P. Taylor lived here, and Dylan Thomas visited him there. Lord John Hunt who led the first successful Mount Everest expedition in 1953 also lived in Disley.
Present
Disley is also the home of (UK) Big Brother loser Anouska Golbieski, the BBC's Bargain Hunt programme presenter David Dickinson, who had his first antique shop here, and paralympic swimmer Sarah Bailey
Points of Interest
The "Rams Head" inn c.1650 at the centre of the village was formerly a lodge belonging to the Lyme Park estate. It became a main coaching stop on the Manchester to London route.
Lyme Park is located in Disley and was used by the BBC as a setting in the Pride and Prejudice series.
References
- Disley parish Council; The Parish of Disley (Official Guide). (1994).