You should be standing on Shallcross Road - from here you can see where the road narrows into a single-lane track. This used to lead to the Shallcross Hall, the ancestral home of the Shallcross family who owned coal mines in this area. Between 1644 and 1674 the government failed to provide enough small coinage. Local businesses and towns produced small denomination coins, halfpennies and farthings, which could be used locally. Richard Shallcross produced his own series of tokens in 1665. One side features the Shallcross arms and crest and the words 'HIGH PEAKE COLE MINES'; the other side features ... (read more)
High Peak Halfpenny
DERSB : 1979.SH.145
Halfpenny token issued by Richard Shallcross, in the Parish of Hope, 1665. These tokens are also known as Shallcross halfpennies.
One side features the Shallcross arms and crest and the words 'HIGH PEAKE COLE MINES'; the other side features a bird called a martlet in heraldry, holding a cross, and reads 'IN DARBY SHEIRE'.
Shallcross is a small and ancient community first recorded in a document in 1108, between Whaley Bridge and Fairnilee. Fernilee??
Between 1644 and 1674 the government failed to provide enough small coinage. Local businesses and towns produced small denomination coins, halfpennies and farthings, which could be used locally, although traders could also refuse them.
Additional information
- How old is it? 17th C.
- Rights: Creative Commons CC BY-NC 4.0 Buxton Museum and Art Gallery (part of Derbyshire County Council)