Description:A postcard view of the Hanging Bridge and weir on the River Dove at Mayfield, on the border between Staffordshire (left) and Derbyshire. The narrow 14th century packhorse bridge can be seen under later structures. It was widened in the 19th century and the current road bridge was constructed in 1937. On the left is the Queen's Arms public house, with a cheese factory facing it on the opposite side of the road.
The origin of the name Hanging Bridge has attracted a number of theories. It has been suggested that it was a place where convicted criminals were hanged, or where Scottish rebels were executed following the Jacobite Rebellion in 1745. However, there is no historical or etymological basis for it being a place of execution. The earliest known documentary reference, written as Hongyndebrigge, dates from 1296. It most likely means 'overhanging' and it may originally have described a simple timber and rope suspension bridge. Another possibility is that the name is linked to the hill on the Staffordshire side which overlooks the River Dove at this point.
Photographer and publisher: H.P. Hansen, Ashbourne.