Haddon Tunnel, Bakewell
The Duke of Rutland insisted that the Midland Railway’s Rowsley-Buxton line should not be visible from his estate at Haddon Hall. To meet this demand, a nearly 960-metre tunnel was built, featuring a central segment bored into the rock. The work began in September 1860 with the sinking of a shaft in the middle. Seven months later, the tunnel's heading was complete, and four working faces started excavation. This section includes vertical side walls made from local sandstone and an arch built with five or six rings of bricks.
The side walls of the covered ways are similar but are reinforced by buttresses at the south end, where the ground is weak and cannot hold back the thrust of the arch. Two types of arches were used—one rising 2 metres above the springing line, the other a semicircular arch used where the cut was deepest. Both were built from stone and measured 600mm thick. Near the tunnel, a brick arch was constructed. The layer of earth drilled through was shale overlying limestone, with variable clay on the surface. These conditions caused issues, and landslips happened multiple times. On 2 July 1861, four workers were killed when a section of the arch collapsed. Another worker lost his life in September that year when he fell and was run over by wagons.
Work on the tunnel finished early in 1862. By April, only the track needed to be laid. Hassop Station became the temporary end of the line when the tunnel section opened on 1 August 1862. The full branch to Buxton officially opened in May 1863. Built into the side walls are tall, narrow recesses about 25 metres apart. These may have been used by local track workers to stand during train arrivals. Later, in 1914, more standard-sized refuges made from brick were added every 20 metres along alternate sides. High brackets for signalling cables remain fixed on the west wall.
The last train went through the tunnel on June 29, 1968, heading towards Matlock. Since then, the entrances were blocked off, and nature took over. The tunnel remains mostly in good shape, apart from some spalled brickwork.
In 2011, plans emerged to turn the tunnel into part of an extension of the Monsal Trail. This followed an agreement with the Haddon Estate. The plan calls for a 3-metre wide path along the west side of the tunnel. LED lighting will be installed, and repairs to the brickwork will be carried out. Plastic domes will be added to the two northern shafts to help keep temperatures stable. All of this depends on getting planning permission and sufficient funding.
