Swettenham
OS Grid ref:- SJ80086718
The small, quiet Cheshire village of Swettenham is situated in the highly attractive Dane Valley and is around 2 miles to the east of Holmes Chapel.
The brick built vilage church of St. Peter's (pictured left) occupies the site of a Norman church. This building was followed by a timber-framed structure which having deteriorated beyond repair, was encased in brick in 1720, the timber framework was lost partly at this time and partly during later restorations.
Restorations to the building have been carried out in 1846, 1865 and latterly in 1926. A fragment of a Saxon cross is set high up in the wall between the nave and the south aisle.To the south of the altar is a stained glass window which contains some medieval glass. The pulpit is believed to date from the reign of Queen Anne and was placed in the church around 1722. An old fiddle displayed in the vestry, which was played in the church until around 1811.
Swettenham Hall, a grade II listed building, is located to the southeast of the village and dates from the seventeenth century, it was was remodelled in the nineteenth century. The remains of a Bronze Age round barrow are situated in the grounds of the hall (at SJ814667).
Clonterbrook House, a former manor house was built in 1697 for Jeffery and Katherine Lockett. Around the house are three former farm buildings that have been converted into other uses.
Swettenham Mill on Midge Brook is a Grade II listed building and dates back to 1675. It was built as a corn mill, but more recently was used to power heavy timber cutting machinery. It is now used as a private residence.
The attractive village pub, the Swettenham Arms (pictured above right) dates back to the sixteenth century and stands behind St. Peter's Church. The characterful inn serves award winning home cooked meals and has a highly attractive Lavender and Sunflower Meadow (left) to the rear. The inn was once a nunnery and is said to be linked to St. Peter's church by an underground passage.
The Swettenham Meadows Nature Reserve, on the north bank of Swettenham Brook and about a third of a mile from the village, is managed by Cheshire Wildlife Trust and covers an area of 21.5 acres (8.6 ha) .The reserve is a haven for water loving plants and Swettenham Meadows above the brook are full of wildflowers all summer long. The grassland supports a wealth of invertebrates. Butterflies include both large and small skippers, common blues, small coppers and orange tips. Birdlife is varied, particularly warblers, tits and woodpeckers, and kingfishers by the brook.
The Quinta Arboretum has superb views across the Dane Valley. The 28 acre arboretum contains over 5,000 trees of some 2,000 species. The arboretum was created in the 1960's by Professor Sir Bernard Lovell, FRS, the originator of the Jodrell Bank Radio Telescope. Sir Bernard created the arboretum from open grassland after he purchased the property in 1948. In 1996 it passed into the hands of the Cheshire Wildlife Trust who transferred it to the Tatton Garden Society in the autumn of 2003.
The beautiful Dane Valley provides excellent walking country. The Dane Valley Way extends from the River Wye and Pavilion Gardens in Buxton to the confluence of the River Dane with the River Wheelock at Middlewich - a distance of 40.6 miles. After the first 3 miles of climbing the rest of the route is generally downhill.