The Lady O’th’ Dale well on the outskirts of the town of Leek is an ancient spring well which has possibly been used for thousands of years and is the site of an early shrine.
It is recorded as Lady Wall Dale 1587. The well grade II listed.
The water has been used for centuries for healing purposes and a May Day procession used to take place by the children of nearby St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church.
It has been suggested that at one time a Christian chapel existed which was dedicated to the Virgin Mary at Ladydale which is where the well gets it name.
An archeological excavation of well and its surroundings took place in July 2000 and established this is the most probable site of an original well, the St. Mary Chapel and ‘Viam Comitis’ of C. 1200 (the ‘High Earl’s Way medieval highway) where Ranulf de Blunderville, the founder of Dieulacres Abbey would’ve travelled
