Gamelands Stone Circle

Gamelands stone Circle.
Nr Orton
Eden,
Cumbria.

Sandwiched between the villages of Orton and Raisbeck in Cumbria, Gamelands Stone Circle lays in a field hidden behind a dry stone wall on the public footpath\bridleway, Knott lane, leading to Beacon Hill.

The stone circle is collapsed now, but the stones that make up the circle would have stood around four feet tall when originally constructed.

The site is a Neolithic embanked stone circle consisting of around 30 stones, of the local ‘pink’ sandstone. The circle is pretty intact, only one side seems to be missing any stones.

The embankment is very feint now, and can only be seen on the top edge. The circle was excavated in the late 19th century, and there is documentation to suggest that a burial cist was unearthed. (A cist is usually a rectangular burial chamber sometimes buried beneath the earth)

The circle is in a beautiful setting, with Kirkby Stephen to the East, and Orton to the West, and the spectacular Cumbrian fells surrounding it. On the day I visited it, there was a slight covering of snow on the higher fells.

Twistleton Iron age\Roman hut circles

Twistleton Roman\Iron Age stone hut circles.
Twistleton,
Ingleton
North Yorkshire

This is a ‘scooped’ hut circle, dating from the Roman\Iron age period. The remains consist of the a pit that was dug from the earth, lined with rubble and clay, and then built up above the level of the earth around it. This would have afforded a degree of insulation against the often harsh weather up in the Yorkshire dales.

The first two photos show a hut circle just of the B road from Ingleton to Chapel le Dale, next to the river Doe. The remains are filled with rubble and a dead tree, but never the less, very well defined.

The next two photos show the remains of hut circles and enclosures, dating from around the same period. They are however, not so clearly marked as the first site.

There are a number of additional sites, including hut circles, enclosures and eathworks of both Roman and Iron age origin around this area near Ingleton. I'll be visiting some of these additional sites shortly and will post the photos here.

Cappelside Hall

Cappelside Hall
Beethom
South Lakeland
Cumbria

Cappelside Hall, or the remains, are situated about 400 yards West off Beethom garden centre, just off the A6. The site sits in the middle of a field looking south across the valley towards the paper mill.

The remains consist of substantial masonry and earthwork remains. The earliest documentary reference to Cappelside, is in 1336, whilst it was not until much later, 1691, before the hall was documented.

The buildings may have already have been abandoned by this time. Records from around 1760 describe the site as a large lordly residence, consisting of a central hall with two service wings to a height of three storeys. The buildings were largely destroyed during the 18th century but one of the wings was converted to a barn, but was in ruins by the 19th century.

It is a fragment of this structure that survives today, nearly 2 metres high and up to a metre thick.

There is documentary evidence to suggest that the Hilton family owned and lived at the hall at the height of its local power. And it was this hall, owned at that time by Andrew Hilton, that King James I ordered his troops to search whilst looking for Guy Fawkes sympathisers and co-conspirators!!

It is obvious from the photos that the site is now much ruined, although the remains are certainly solid enough to suggest its defensive qualities, and the surrounding earthworks lay testament to the original size of the site. The remains are difficult to get to. From the road running alongside the garden centre at Beethom, Pool Darkin Lane, it is apparently possible to see them in the field to your left, though I parked up on Paradise Lane, and then walked across the fields to get a first hand view of the ruins.

Nether Hall, Witherslack

Nether Hall
Nr Witherslack
South Lakeland
Cumbria

Nether Hall lays just off the A590 as you travel from Kendal to Grange. It is a grade II listed building and is situated just outside the village of Witherslack.

The house was built in around 1400 as possibly a two or three storey pele tower. Just to show the defensive nature of the house, the original walls are around five foot thick. The house that you see today, was built from the 1600's onwards, and was originally the home to the Harrington family.

Medieval moated site nr Farelton

Farelton Medieval moated site
Farelton
Nr Hornby
Lancashire

Just outside the village of Hornby on the A683 to Lancaster, lies a medieval moated site. The remains lay in the field between the road and the river Lune.

The site consists of a complex of a moated outworks, with interconnecting channels surviving as well defined earthworks.

The only documentation that I can find relating to the possible history of this site, is that it could be the remains of the fortified manor house and park built in 1479 by Sir James Harrington.

Licence to crenellate the buildings was granted and the site was strengthened and a park created. Both the fortified site and the park had reputedly fallen into disrepair by the 16th century.

There are the remains of unidentified masonry on the highest end of the earthworks. The earthworks are just and so visible from the main road, but are not accessible.

Yarlsber camp Ingleton

Yarlsber camp
Yarlsber
Ingleton
North Yorkshire

Yarlsber camp sits at the foot of Ingleborough, sandwiched between Easegill force and the B6480 to Clapham.

The site is thought to be an Iron Age defended enclosure. It covers about an acre and a half, and is surrounded by earthworks. At the lower end of the site, the earthworks are worn and low, whilst at the top, they are very well defined and up to a foot high. The defences at the top of the site are also double ditched with shallow ramparts…possibly the remains of entrances.

The site has been excavated and investigated, but no signs of habitation were found within the earthworks.

The site is very near to various medieval field systems surviving as earthworks and iron age\roman hut circles and enclosures.

Wharton Hall

Wharton Hall,
Nr Kirkby Stephen,
Cumbria

Wharton Hall sits on the East side of Mallerstang valley, about 2 miles outside of Kirkby Stephen. Built by the Warcops, the forerunners of the Wharton family, as a direct replacement of Lammerside Tower, it over looks the River Eden before it descends into the valley of Mallerstang.

The hall is a lightly fortified dwelling, built around a courtyard, and dates from around 1405 when a Hall house was erected. At the same time, as a defensive structure, a tower house was built at the opposite end of the site. This now stands in ruins.

In around 1520, a banqueting hall, the great hall and the kitchens were added. These three additions were extended in around 1540. In 1569, a domestic chapel and a cross wing house were built, and the gate house was put in place, thus creating the almost ‘curtain wall’ like structure that now dominates the farm.

The site is a grade 1 listed building, and despite its 600 year history, is in remarkably good condition.

The house is beautifully restored, with many of the original mullioned windows in situ, and the gate house, although derelict inside, is solid and remains in good condition.

The Wharton coat of arms survives above the doorway in the gatehouse.