Peter Jourdain writes: I found your lovely website and youtube videos on the Goyt Valley after having searched on the web. I am an American, and have never been to the Goyt, but am a cyclist and cycling historian, with a primary emphasis on the golden era of British cycling clubs and cycletouring in the 1920s and ’30s.

As an ‘armchair traveller’, and in possession of many vintage British cycling magazines, I recently stumbled upon an account in CYCLING, from 18 March, 1932, entitled, ‘ON THE CHESHIRE BORDERS: The Story of a Round Trip from Manchester.’

This story gives an account of a cycling day trip in and around the Goyt Valley and shows a couple of photographs, including one of Goyt Bridge. As fate would have it, the very next magazine which I randomly opened out of the hundreds which I own, THE CYCLISTS’ TOURING CLUB GAZETTE, from May, 1933, had yet another account of travels awheel through the Goyt, and a pen-and-ink drawing by the noted cycling artist Frank Patterson. This magical valley as portrayed in the above accounts led me to search out more information, hence my finding your website.

By the way, while I am currently living in Wisconsin, I am originally from western Massachusetts, in the Pioneer Valley, near Quabbin Reservoir, which, albeit on a larger scale, has a similar story to that of the Goyt in that four communities were wiped out by the creation of the reservoir in the 1930s. If you search ‘Creation of the Quabbin Reservoir’ you will find many accounts of this parallel story.

Many thanks for getting in touch, Peter. I’m really grateful. Click below to view the articles;

• Cycling the Goyt Valley in 1932 (published 18th March 1932).
• Over the hills with a tandem (published May 1933).