The village of Froggatt is situated beneath the gritstone escarpment of Froggatt Edge, on the well wooded banks of the River Derwent, between the villages of Grindleford and Calver.
Froggatt village was originally owned by the Duke of Rutland who, 200 years ago, had 17 cottages built here by local stonemasons for local workers. There are still some of the original cottages standing, several of which are now listed buildings.
Froggatt has a quaint 17th century bridge over the River Derwent, unusual in that it has two different shaped and sized arches – round and pointed.
Across the bridge from Froggatt the road leads up to an old toll cottage by the side of Stoke Hall an imposing residence that was built using stone from its own quarry, which is still worked in the woods nearby. Stoke Hall has had many owners over the centuries; the first occupant of the estate was Gerbert de Stoke in 1204, although the present hall was built around 1757. It passed through the ownership of a succession of Sheffield businessmen during the last century before being turned into a hotel and restaurant for a while, although it has now reverted to being a private residence again.
In the 19th century Stoke Hall was allegedly the scene of a murder when a servant called Flora was brutally killed there. Her employers erected a statue to her memory which for a while was reputed to move positions in the woods whilst her ghost is said to haunt the hall. The ‘Fair Flora’ statue still stands in private woodland.
The village has a fine pub with restaurant and bedrooms. Originally four seventeenth-century cottages, the Chequers Inn is now an immaculately maintained hostelry and a favourite with walkers and tourists exploring the Peak District. There are still reminders of the pub’s past in the equine mounting block outside the pub and the Welsh dressers and settles in the bar; there’s even a ‘secret’ woodland garden at the back.
There are fabulous riverside paths beside the Derwent at Froggatt including a section of the Derwent Valley Heritage Way which follows Spooner Lane south to Derwent Farm and then over Froggatt Bridge before following the riverside path to Curbar Bridge.