This is the fourth in a series of events to bring us to some of the sites of correction used during the past in Derbyshire, with this one taking us to the stocks in Little Longstone.
The pillory & stocks are often confused. Stocks were designed to hold the feet, whilst a pillory would restrain the hands & the head of the criminal. Both were used throughout Medieval times to publicly humiliate wrongdoers & positioned in prominent places for maximum effect, although the punishment usually only lasted for a few hours. The person would be mocked & jeered by passers by & the criminal could also expect to be pelted with rotten vegetables & fruit or even worse. In 1351, the Statute of Labourers Act decreed that every town & village should maintain a set of stocks to punish "unruly artisans"! By 1494, The Vagabonds and Beggars Act stated that “Vagabonds, idle and suspected persons shall be set in the stocks for three days and three nights and have none other sustenance but bread and water and then shall be put out of Town.”
The stocks in Little Longstone are Grade II Listed & date back to at least the 17th Century. The end stones are made from local limestone & have curved tops, with a groove for the wooden boards, which were replaced before 2016. They stand around 70cm high & are positioned in a small stone recess on Butts Road. Interestingly, the adjacent cottage is called The Stocks. It is also a Grade II Listed building, with a date of 1578 on the gable end.
This short event will give us an opportunity to meet up safely outside for some geochat & to swap trackables in hopefully peaceful & beautiful surroundings. Although the road is quiet, the stocks are close to it, so children should be supervised at all times & it is not really suitable for dogs. I have provided a parking waypoint for street parking further along Butts Road. Please park considerately. There are a few caches dotted around the area, although if you haven't done it, the excellent Monsal Trail series, is highly recommended, although the trail will be busy on a Sunday. There may even be a new cache published for the occasion...