Tansley is recorded in the Domesday Book as Taneslege, and its name comes from the combination of the Old English elements tān and lēah.

Bentley Brook and three of its feeder streams have been dammed in the past to make artificial lakes which provided water to power mills.

Tansley is now more famous for its many garden centres and plant nurseries, its many small businesses and its large Sunday car-boot market.

The two communities have occasional exchange visits, and more frequent postal and email contact, arranged through an organisation named TABALINK (the Tansley Babadag Association).

[3] In February 2010 Tansley featured in the Sunday Times Property Section as a village that was "alive and kicking", one where community spirit still thrives.

At that time it is recorded in a petition by the churchwardens and other parishioners of the parish of Crich that "the hamlet of Tansley contains a population of upwards of 500 souls and is distant from the Parish Church (of Crich) of four miles and that it is extremely inconvenient for the inhabitants of the said hamlet to attend divine service in the said parish of Crich, and in order to provide some church accommodation and aid for spiritual wants of the people residing therein considerable funds have been raised by voluntary contributions together with other grants to build a chapel".

The church was started in 1839, built of stone quarried locally, and opened 1 year later dedicated to the Holy Trinity.

It has had a new entrance, with oak door and disabled access, new toilet facilities, a new ground floor roof with a skylight, a new upper floor roof, new windows, internal renovation and redecoration of the main hall, bar area and small meeting room (with kitchen) and new curtains and blinds.

[6] The Community Hall, at the lower end of Church Street, was built in 1887 as the Liberal Club when stones in the front wall were inscribed with the names of eminent men from the parish.