William Morris spent the best part of two years in Leek in the late 1870s, working at Thomas Wardle’s dyeworks to revive natural vegetable dyes for his printed textiles. The silk trade left the town a legacy of Arts and Crafts buildings and a cobbled market place, and locals call it the Queen of the Moorlands. It’s a natural base for the Roaches and the surrounding moors, though the nearest station is a fair way off at Congleton.
