Monument record MDR12962 - Butterley Park, Ripley

Butterley Park has been in existence since the late 13th century and is well documented. In the Hundred Rolls of 1285 it is stated that the Abbot of Darley had two newly made parks, one of which was at Butterley. A record in the early 16th century relates to a house in Glapwell which was to be maintained in good repair 'with timber assigned at Butterley', while a later document, post-dating the dissolution of the monasteries, records the sale by the Crown of Butterley Park 'with the hunting therein' to John Zouch. In 1621 there was a sale of 'impaled and inclosed ground commonly called Butterley Park and of the messuages cottages buildings land tenements heriditaments etc lying within the pale of the park. The park was later exploited for its minerals, namely coal and iron. On the ground today it is possible to walk from Codnor Gate along the line of the park pale towards Butterley Park Farm as far as Knowts Hall Farm. The pale follows the parish boundary here but the footpath goes round the back of the farm to the minor road. (1)