Sadlergate

This street, which takes its name from the leather workers who would have lived and traded here in times gone by, is one of the oldest streets in the city. It is likely that it would have been known to the Vikings who settled here, hence the word gate in its title. It was first recorded in English in 1368, however a Latin recording of it goes back to the middle of the 13th century when it was home to a Lawrence the Saddler and was recorded as vicum sellariorum.

Although today much of the street appears to be Georgian or Victorian a glance at the rear of many of the buildings shows a very different picture. Rather than rebuild whole properties it was often just the façades that were altered leaving the pitched roofs and gables of much older buildings intact. As a result a number of the properties date from the early part of the 17th century. This can be clearly seen in the views from the cathedral tower elsewhere on this site.
Although narrow the width of the street represents the dimensions of a major thoroughfare in the medieval period and remained open to traffic until 1963 when it became the first street in the town to be pedestrianised. today the Street forms part of the Cathedral Quarter and is home to a specialist and boutique shops and cafes.

The Old Bell Hotel, listed Grade II, is one of Derby's very old pubs, it being built in about 1680 century as a coaching inn by the Meynell family. It was later extended by landlord John Campion with the addition of a grand ballroom in 1776 and it also contains one of the finest 17th century staircases surviving in the city.

The picture above shows The Shakespeare public house. A pub has stood on this site since the end of the 17th century, originally called the Ostrich the name was changed to the Shakespeare about a century later. The current building is listed Grade II and is thought to date from the first half of the 18th century. It has been closed for the past few years but has recently undergone a major refit and reopened a few weeks ago

The Strand Arcade was built in 1880 to join Sadlergate to the Strand which had been created following the culverting of the Markeaton Brook two years earlier. Designed by the architect John Somes Story it took as its inspiration the Burlington Arcade in London.

The building above is of interest for two reasons. The first is a sign for Sadlergate Bridge. Prior to the culverting of Markeaton Brook it used to flow along the end of Sadlergate and this was the site of one of the numerous bridges which used to cross it. the second point of interest is the archway to the left of the picture. This is the entrance to George Yard, a detailed description of which can be found on the City Centre Streets E-H

Sitwell Street

With the development of the land around Babington House a number of streets were pitched and Sitwell Street is one of those. It can be seen originally on a map of 1826 it was once a much more substantial street than it is today, lined with terraced houses along its length. These were all swept away and today only the Sitwell tavern remains. The land opposite the images in the pictures below is now a large car park and of little interest. The street is now just the pub and the apartments seen in the other pictures - this, however, is the rear of them, the front façades are much less interesting. A history of the pub can be found in the pubs and inns section of the website

St James's Street

Originally a narrow thoroughfare known as St James’s Lane the street reached its current width when it was completely rebuilt in the 1870s. It takes its name from St James’s Priory, a religious house that had been established since the Saxon era. It had a chapel that was donated by King Stephen in about 1140 and a century later a hospital was added where the monks cared for the poor and unwell. At the West end of the lane was a bridge over the Markeaton Brook. This was controlled by the monks and probably provided them with an income.Following the dissolution in the 16th century the land was given to the Corporation of the town. Nothing now survives of the religious institution. Between 1869 and 1878 the Derby Hotel and Improvement Company funded the complete rebuilding of the street which included a substantial hotel – the St James’s. Today the street is mainly home to estate and letting agents

Through an often overlooked archway on St James Street can be find a fascinating collection of buildings. Currently much of the site is used as a carpark which means that the rear of the surviving streets are visible. The site also contains a beautiful building known today as the tram sheds. This is actually a misnomer as the building was in fact used as stabling for the old St James' Hotel and never housed trams. The building was later taken over by Newton and Co before finally being abandoned for many years. It has recently been given an extensive restoration project with the aim of creating a bar and restaurant although a company to run it has not yet been found

St John's Terrace

This small, but very beautiful private road can be found just off Bridge Street. It takes it's name from the church which it faces across the Markeaton Brook

St Mary's Gate

St Mary's Gate is today arguably one of the finest streets in the city, lined with a great many historic and beautiful buildings. According to Maxwell Craven the street was first recorded in the early 12th century as 'vico qui dicitur Sancte Marie' which translates as 'the street which is called St Mary's'.Although it has not existed for many centuries there was originally a church of St Mary's which stood at the top of the street opposite the current cathedralA walk down the street leads past a number of solicitors offices and a building that was once the Court of Probate. Further down is the luxurious Cathedral Quarter Hotel. Built at the end of the 19th century by John Somes Story, this Grade 2 listed building was originally County Offices before being taken over by the police in 1996 as a Police Museum. Following its closure it was beautifully restored to become the hotel that it is today. On the opposite side of the road is a similar looking building which was built about 10 years later and was, until quite recently, home to Council offices. It is now being converted into high-end apartments

At the end of the street can be found one of the most important buildings in the city – the Shire Hall. Erected in 1660 and listed as Grade 1 it is in the classical style with arched windows, parapets and pediment's. It has served a number of uses over the centuries but today is the Crown Court, A huge extension was constructed to the rear. It is believed to be the setting of Hetty Sorrel's trial in George Elliot's novel "Adam Bede".

The final building of interest is on the corner of the street and features a large coat of arms on the side. This today forms a part of the Crown Court and was once the Judges lodgings for when the Assizes would come to town. Many believe that this is the reason for the coat of arms however this is not correct. The building, was in fact originally a public House known as the Kings Arms & County Hotel and the arms are those of William III after who the pub was named

St Peter's Street

This short but interesting road joins St Peter's street with the adjacent Green Lane. Originally a narrow alley way surrounding the ancient Church from which it gets its name, it now only incorporates the single street. Prior to the 1880s the side opposite the church was lined with half timbered Alms House, part of the Liversage bequest, however in 1880 these were demolished in order to widen the road

Vernon Street

This rather beautiful street was laid out between 1826 and 1828 as part of the development that eventually included the new county gaol. This was in use between 1843 and 1919 and then for next decade it was used a military prison. The early years of the prison saw a large number of public executions outside the walls at the top of the street. Popular affairs that could attract crowds of up to 40000 people, 'The executions outside the gaol at the bottom of Vernon Street attracted sideshows, pedlars, acrobats and other entertainers. People even came by train for what some regarded as a good ‘day out’. Local traders selling souvenirs did a roaring trade; there were even gingerbread effigies of the prisoner to be executed. The viler the crime and notorious the prisoner, the larger the crowds.' (Derby Trail)According to Maxwell Craven he street is allegedly named after Lord Vernon of Kinderton, resident of Sudbury Hall although it is unclear why.Today the street is mostly home to doctors surgeries, chemists and offices but some of it's former grandeur can still be seen

Victoria Street

The red brick building in the photo above is the Wardwick tavern. Originally built as a private townhouse for the Alsop family in about 1708 it was later acquired by local Alton’s Brewery who used it as a boardroom for their directors. Alton’s was later taken over by Ind Coope who used the building as their headquarters before converting it into a pub in 1969. Fortunately Ind Coope saw fit to preserve much of the interior including a wonderful stone fireplace.
In 1842 the Markeaton Brook which used to flow through the centre of town, burst its banks in what has become known as the Great Flood. On the outside of the Tavern, to the left of the door, is a metal plate which indicates the height that the water reached – 4’6". A more detailed history can be found in the Pubs, Inns and Taverns section of this website.