Castle Gresley is a village situated in rural countryside on the A444 in South Derbyshire. It's history originated with the Gresley family. A parcel of land was handed down to two sons, one parcel of land contained the church and so became Church Gresley, the other contained a wooden castle that was built on a well known local landmark, Castle Knob. Nothing remains of the castle today apart from the mound. This plot was named Castle Gresley.
Every village has its ghosts and Castle Gresley is no exception. When fog or mist hangs in the air a lady dressed in white is sometimes seen in a wooded area known as the Nursery.
White Lady Springs, also known as The Nursery, is an area of land which has many spring water sources emerging from it constantly. Sometime in the late 1800's / early 1900's, a wall was built to create a deep reservoir to hold some of the water. It was then pumped across to a brewery sited on ground the other side of the railway (currently Toons). Following the closure of the brewery, the Coal Board purchased the land, a pumping station was installed and the water was pumped to Gresley Colliery for use in the pit baths and boilers. The brewery later became a fertilizer factory, a pickle factory, a mill, a tape-factory and is now Toons Carpets (this is where a second apparition appears as an old lady who visits the upper rooms).
When the pump to the pit was no longer in use, a breach was made in the side of the reservoir to allow some of the water to drain out into the brook, this can be seen a little further along the footpath. In recent years the reservoir, which was home to many water birds, was filled with hardcore. Water continues to flow and some of the ground around the springs is very boggy.
It is thought the name White Lady Springs came about due to the drowning of a local woman in 1925 and is reputed to be haunted by a lady dressed in white. However White Lady Springs is shown on ordinance survey maps dated in the late 1800's and possibly has a connection with what was Gresley Abbey.
Please have a wander around the Nature Reserve and look at the fantastic new wood sculptures.