Intake Farm must have enjoyed wonderful views over the Goyt Valley. The area was covered in fir trees by the Forestry Commission following the construction of the reservoir in the 1930s (the blue shaded area on the map above). Which has both obscured the view and left little space or light for the natural habitat. But all this is about to change as the firs are currently being felled. Which is wonderful to see.

Intake Farm

Unfortunately I haven’t managed to discover any photos of Intake Farm*. The earliest census records show it was inhabited by the Wilson family in the 1840s – and possibly earlier.

Joseph Hewitt, his wife and five children were living at Intake by the following census in 1851. I’m not sure how long they were there. But by 1881, the census show it was then occupied by just one person – Peter Wain – a farmer of 48 acres.

From then on until the last published census of 1911, Intake was occupied by the Critchlow family. Their three sons, James (19), Abraham (17) and Daniel (14), are all listed as working as labourers at the nearby Gunpowder Mill.

*Page update: August 2019

Gail has managed to identify Intake Farm on one of the 1930 photos (click to enlarge). It’s impossible to make out any detail, but it’s the only photo of the farm we’ve managed to find.