Above: Goyt’s Bridge and the Goyt Valley were very popular spots for both artists and photographers. And picturesque postcards were sold in their thousands to the many visitors who came here.

There are some wonderful views in the collection, many of which have been hand-coloured, as well as some fine paintings. The earliest date back to the 1900s, and possibly before.

They provide a unique glimpse into a landscape that has now changed for ever. 

Corrie recently got in touch to ask whether I’d be interested in seeing her collection of old Goyt Valley postcards. It’s not often I receive such an offer, so I jumped at the chance. They duly arrived in yesterday’s post; 51 views of the Goyt Valley, and 41 of The Cat & Fiddle pub.

I’ve just posted the Goyt Valley cards. Click here to view them. And I’ll add another page with The Cat & Fiddle cards sometime next week.

They include photographs and illustrations showing the drowned hamlet of Goyt’s Bridge, many of which I hadn’t seen before. As well as views of the Goyt, all the way from Derbyshire Bridge in the south to Taxal in the north.

I asked Corrie about her collection. She explained; “I started collecting postcards when my mother-in-law gave me an old postcard album with local cards written by a lady from Combs to her friend, who was my mother-in-law’s aunt, about 30 years ago.

“The cards were all from around 1900. I have added cards ever since, when I find them, from the whole High Peak area. The Goyt Valley and Cat & Fiddle are just a small part of the collection, but a lot of postcards of that area were published.”

Above: Many of these postcards date back to the early 1900s, and they’re photographs rather than prints. Which means they haven’t been reduced to a series of small dots during the printing process. So they retain a lot of their original detail (click photo to enlarge).

All contributions gratefully received!

These photos are very popular with people who enjoy the Goyt Valley. So please do get in touch if you have any that you would like to add to the collection. This website is a completely non-profit project, and I wouldn’t sell, reproduce in print, or pass on any photos without the owner’s permission.

Also, because they appear on a website, they’re not high enough quality for anyone to copy and use them commercially. I’m happy to pay signed-for delivery costs, and would always return them this way after they’ve been scanned. So please don’t be nervous about sharing your images with fellow lovers of the Goyt Valley!

Topic tags (click for similar posts): Photos | Postcards