Dimple Mine

Overview

Dimple Mine, under Matlock Bank, worked the Seven Rakes Vein and in 1809 ran the only mine steam-engine then working in Derbyshire; it is remembered today in the name of Dimple Road.

History

Dimple Mine is listed among the lead mines of the Matlocks working in the early 19th century, in Benjamin Bryan's extracts from Farey's survey of Derbyshire: according to Farey, the mine at 'Dimple, Matlock Bank' ran the only mine steam-engine then working anywhere in the county, as of 1809. A fuller account by the mineralogist Roy Starkey, writing in Great British Life, adds that the mine worked the Seven Rakes Vein under Matlock Bank, and that it is commemorated today in the name of Dimple Road, which runs north-west from the River Derwent opposite Matlock railway station; the mine produced calcite crystals good enough to be collected as mineral specimens. Water was a persistent problem at Derbyshire lead mines, and Dimple was no exception: the Derbyshire Historic Environment Record separately notes that the 'Dimple Sough' drains the former mine, emerging through a restored Georgian-style portal known as Allen Hill Spa (or Allenhill Spa Well), a Grade II listed structure at the junction of Dimple Road and Bakewell Road, inscribed '1821, Allenhill Spaw Restored'.

Geology

Worked lead on the Seven Rakes Vein under Matlock Bank; produced calcite crystals of mineralogical interest.

Workings

A lead mine that in 1809 ran the only mine steam-engine then working in Derbyshire; drained by the Dimple Sough.

Closure

No closure date was found.

What remains

Not established; its former drainage sough survives and emerges at the Grade II listed Allen Hill Spa Well, restored in 1821, at the Dimple Road/Bakewell Road junction.

The mine's own surface remains are not established; its drainage outlet, the restored Allen Hill Spa Well, survives as a listed structure.

Nearby mines

• Cawdor Quarry — 0.5 km W
• Gentlewoman's Pipe — 1.0 km S
• Longtor Mines — 1.8 km S
• Masson Hill Mine — 1.8 km S
• Bonsall Leys Mines — 2.1 km S

Straight-line distance, within 15 km. Show on the map.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• Dimple, Matlock Bank, is listed among the Matlocks' lead mines working in the early 19th century; according to Farey, the only mine steam-engine then working in the county was going here in 1809. ¹
• Dimple Mine, commemorated in the name of Dimple Road, worked the Seven Rakes Vein under Matlock Bank, was the only mine to operate a steam engine in the county in 1809, and produced calcite crystals of collectable quality. ²
• The 'Dimple Sough' drains the former Dimple Lead Mine, emerging through a restored Georgian-style portal, Allen Hill Spa Well, inscribed '1821, Allenhill Spaw Restored' and now a Grade II listed structure. ³

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Matlock and Matlock Bath : Lead Mining in Matlock and Matlock Bath — Andrews Genealogy (Matlock & Matlock Bath history)
2. (secondary) Exploring the mines and minerals of Derbyshire — Great British Life (Roy Starkey)
3. (primary) Derbyshire HER: Allenhill Spa Well, Dimple Road, Matlock Town (MDR10142) — Derbyshire Historic Environment Record

Record created: 16 September 2026 · Last researched: 16 September 2026