| Title | Nicholas Cresswell (1750-1804) of Edale: letters, 1780-1783, to him from William Bray (1736-1832), antiquarian, author of 'A tour into Yorkshire and Derbyshire', and John Wilson (1719-1783) of Broomhead Hall, near Sheffield, antiquarian |
| Administrative History | Nicholas Cresswell was born at Crowden Booth in Edale, the son of a farmer, Thomas Cresswell and his wife Elizabeth, née Oliver. Nicholas Cresswell is best known for the journal he wrote while he was in America from 1774 to 1777. A strong Royalist, after the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, Cresswell returned penniless to his family home and estate in Edale. This correspondence with two contemporary antiquarians reflects Cresswell's interests in the antiquities and archaeology of the High Peak, and there is also a passing reference to his respect for native Americans and their culture. From the letter it appears that in the early 1780s, Cresswell was eager to obtain a commission in the marines [from the 4th Earl of Dunmore, former governor of Virginia]. In 1781 he married Mary Mellor of Idridgehay and eventually died there in 1804, leaving six children. He was buried in the Mellor vault at Wirksworth. |