River Erewash

River Erewash
The River Erewash, Derbyshire
Etymology	wandering, marshy river
Location
Country	England
Counties	Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	south east of Kirkby-in-Ashfield
Mouth
• location	confluence with River Trent at Attenborough Nature Reserve

v t e River Erewash
Legend
Kirkby in Ashfield station Robin Hood line Source of the Erewash Portland Park source site of Fryers Mill Mill Lane bridge B6018 Park Lane bridge  M1  motorway Railway bridge Erewash Valley line (Pye Br Jn) Pye Bridge railway bridge  B600  bridge site of Ironville Mill Midland Railway – Butterley Erewash Valley railway line Erewash Meadows nature reserve Cromford Canal aqueduct Aldercarr Flash nature reserve  A610  road bridge Nether Green Brook Bailey Brook site of Langley Mill  A608  road bridge Erewash Canal aqueduct site of Newmanleys Mill Gilt Brook Bennerley Viaduct (former railway) Erewash Valley line bridge  A6096  road bridge Railway bridge Railway bridge  A609  road bridge Railway bridge site of Trowell Mill Nut Brook  M1  motorway bridge Stapleford Mill, now The Club Railway bridge  B5010  road bridge  A52  road bridge Railway bridge Relief channel  A6005  road bridge Midland Main Line bridge Attenborough Nature Reserve River Trent

The River Erewash /ˈɛrɪˌwɒʃ/ is a river in England, a tributary of the River Trent that flows roughly southwards through Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, forming the boundary between the two counties for much of its length. It rises near Kirkby-in-Ashfield, and passes close to Pinxton, Ironville, Langley Mill, Eastwood, Ilkeston, Trowell, Stapleford, Sandiacre, Toton and Long Eaton to reach the River Trent near Beeston.

It shares its valley with a railway line from Kirkby-in-Ashfield to Pye Bridge Junction, and the Erewash Valley line below the junction. The Pinxton Branch of the Cromford Canal runs parallel to the upper reaches, and below Ironville the main line of the abandoned Cromford Canal enters the valley. At Langley Mill, both the Erewash Canal and the abandoned Nottingham Canal fit into the valley, with the Nottingham Canal turning to the east at Trowell, and the Erewash Canal continuing through Long Eaton when the river turns to the east to reach its mouth.

The river passes through three nature reserves, at Erewash Meadows and Aldercar Flash to the north of Langley Mill, and the Attenborough Nature Reserve on the banks of the River Trent. They are managed by the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust and the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust. Historically, the river has supplied power to several water mills, none of which remain standing, apart from some of Stapleford Mill, which forms part of a social club established in 1922. The river is mentioned several times in the works of the writer D. H. Lawrence.