Site record MDR23015 - Hollow Way, North of Woodthorpe Hall Farm, Holmesfield

Hollow Way, North of Woodthorpe Hall Farm, Holmesfield, possibly a medieval or early post medieval route. 'To the north, our holloway passed through what are currently the gardens of houses on Rowan Tree Dell, old oaks still mark the now filled ditch… A stone post is also visible in one garden. This route curved into Totley Hall Lane, within living memory a deep holloway at Totley Hall end, through old Totley village (whose ancient axis was north / south), thorugh the deep still used road of Old Hay Lane and ont Dore, Whirlow and Sheffield. To the south it forded the Totley Brook and a currently disused section joins the magical and deep old holloway up to Woodthorpe Hall where this paving can be seen very clearly Above it is a parallel path presumably constructed when the bottom path became too muddy and wet. It continued south along a very deep section - Hob Lane alongside Holmesfield Park Wood - and on south or making connections with routes west to the lead mines of the Peak District. This route can be clearly seen on old OS maps and even on one of the earliest maps – Burdett’s Map of Derbyshire of 1767. The route also joined with the route up to Bradway called Totley Lane which has no less than three parallel paths, the deepest one unused but still visible. This lead up to the high ridgeway at Bradway (itself meaning ‘broad way’). A route out of Gillfield Wood via the first, most easterly bridge climbs a field known locally as Shep’s Bank.' (1)