High Bradfield, which was formerly known as
kirkton, is not mentioned in the
Domesday Book, but it may have been one of the 16 hamlets recorded in the manor of
Hallam. On the north-west edge of the village, close to the church, is Bailey Hill, an approximately high man-made conical mound that is a
Scheduled Ancient Monument. The date and purpose of its construction are unknown, though it has been interpreted as a Saxon fort, or a place of public village assembly. The late
David Hey said there was no doubt that Bailey Hill is a motte-and-bailey castle calling it "One of the best preserved and most dramatic motte-and-baileys in Yorkshire." Excavations from 1720 revealed squared stones that had been produced by using tools. The eastern and southern flanks of the bailey are enclosed by a 95 metre long curving earthwork while to the west it is protected by steep slopes. About to the southeast of the village is Castle Hill, a site marked on old maps as a “supposed Saxon encampment” The site occupies a rocky ridge at the head of a high escarpment partially enclosed by ring work. The date or purpose of construction of this site are also unknown although it has been speculated that it was used a look-out post. The Enclosure Act of the early 19th century altered the appearance of the countryside around High Bradfield as the profusion of stones in the soil resulted in many small fields in the area. Around the same time many people in the Bradfield area were influenced by the
Industrial Revolution and moved to nearby Sheffield to improve their standard of living. The Bradfield Parish workhouse was based in High Bradfield between 1759 and 1847; the building is still there today, standing across the road from the Old Horns pub on Towngate. The building was converted into private houses in the 1870s. Thousands of documents relating to the workhouse were found in a hidden cupboard in one of the houses in the 1950s; these are now in the Bradfield Parish Archives.
Present day The present-day village is still dominated by farming. Church Farm is a large dairy farm which supplies a large amount of milk for the surrounding area. Watt House Farm is also a dairy farm but is unique in that it is the home of the Bradfield Brewery, which is based in a converted barn on the farm. It brews several beers including Farmers Blonde and Pale Ale as well as some seasonal specials. There is one
public house in the village, the Old Horns Inn. The
Monastery of The Holy Spirit, known locally as Kirk Edge Convent, stands 1.5 km to the east of the village, it is a monastery of the
Carmelite order of
nuns. The
Peak District Boundary Walk runs through the village. ==References and footnotes==