No. 103 Autumn 2025
NEWSLETTER
Number
21Blank Line
103
Editor: Mark Benjamin
Tel: 07879 263848
newsletter@hexhamhistorian.org
Autumn
Blank Line
2025
Thoughts from a Chair
Recently my Chair of most usage has been the very comfortable, heated one behind the steering wheel of my car. Journeys for duty, health, recreation and simply for pleasure have taken me from Roker to the South Solway shore, North to Kielder and down to Wensleydale. The Autumn colours are just magnificent at present & when the sun burns through the morning mist and foliage looks aflame, I constantly remind myself how lucky I am to have chosen to live in this most beautiful part of the world.
When I said as much to a couple of friends we started to speculate as to how many of the people we encounter volunteering with Clubs and Societies, making a difference to our quality of life are also in fact, ‘incomers’. It must be large majority, even in the Local History Society and yet we’ve all become devoted locals.
We have had a steady stream of talented devoted locals who have given generously of their time to ensure the smooth running of HLHS until quite recently and now we really need a few more willing souls to step forward and join the Team. Maybe 2 or 3 friends could operate as a sub group to plan a couple of outings for next Summer There’s no shortage of Ideas for destinations – we just need one ‘driver’ to plan the journey and set us on the way. That could be you. Please do think about it.
Dr Stan Beckensall MBE (1932 – 2025)
We were very sad to learn of the recent death of Stan Beckensall or, as my children used to call him, “Stan, the history man” A member of HLHS for many years, Stan played a vital part in establishing the reputation of the Society and in particular that of our journal, the Hexham Historian, writing many articles on various aspects of local archaeology, as well as reviews for this Newsletter. A keen photographer, Stan contributed many images now viewable in our Photographic Archive and took great delight in finding unusual viewpoints, including some from the air.
Stanley Beckensall, MBE was an international expert on rock art. An early graduate of Keele University, he undertook National Service as a Station Education Officer in the Royal Air Force. He became Head of English at Ifield Grammar School, Crawley New Town before moving to a similar role in a comprehensive school in Malta for two years. Returning to the UK, he settled in Northumberland where he first taught teachers at Alnwick College of Education before becoming Head Teacher of Morpeth’s King Edward VI Grammar School. Stan wrote and produced several plays for young people and adults, two of which were broadcast on BBC Radio Newcastle, though he remains most famous for his writings on prehistoric rock art. He appeared on British television and in other British media many times.
In 2004, Stan was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne for his contribution to the study of British rock art and he represented Great Britain in the 2003 UNESCO colloquium on world rock art. The following year, his website was awarded the Channel Four ICT British Archaeological Award. He was appointed a MBE in the 2019 New Year Honours for services to Prehistoric Rock Art and History in Britain.
Stan was a committed and active member of the Abbey congregation and community. His activities included producing dramatic performances, recording events as well as archaeological details, encouraging research and well into later life delivering illustrated lectures in aid of the Abbey. A founding member of the Abbey’s Conservation Advisory Committee, he presented to the archive his many Abbey photographs including those of one of his passions, the flower festivals.
An indefatigable author, Stan wrote over 40 books, many after his repeated claim that “this will be the last one”! He is a loss to both the local history community, and the town.
AGM 2025
The full reports are included with this Newsletter
Nominations for HLHS Committee 2025/26 (Statutory offices in bold)
| Chair | Jane Harrison | Vice Chair | |
| Secretary | Julia Grint | Treasurer | Mark Hatton |
| Webmaster | Steve Tinkler | Publications Officer | Terry Eccles |
| Visits Organiser | Vacant | Talks Organiser | Vacant |
Notes from the Secretary – Julia Draper
The committee has continued to meet to take us confidently from year to year. The membership remains encouragingly high.
This year has been straightforward in many respects, but with particular emphasis on our website, which is undergoing a much-needed update in the capable hands of Steve Tinkler, our new webmaster.
We have also been much involved, on the society’s behalf, with the inception and start-up funding of HACHAP (Hexham Community Archaeology Project) which has held two hugely successful test pit weekends so far. Members will be receiving updates on HACHAP over the year, and Dr Jane Harrison will be talking to us about the results in 2026.
Our journal, the Hexham Historian, was published in September. Editor Helen Rutherford is very keen to invite any members who would like to write an article for next year’s journal, brief or long, to get in touch.
We continue to field requests for information from near and far, through the Notes & Queries page of our website, our Facebook page, email and even, occasionally, through the post. We have participated in the programmes of other groups, giving talks on Hexham as far afield as Morpeth!
Hexham Historian 35
Our annual journal, the Hexham Historian, was published in September. In the last newsletter, local members were asked to collect their copy at the monthly talk in September or October, or to arrange for someone else to collect it. Members who live at a distance have had theirs posted, as usual.
If you have not yet received or collected your copy of HH35, please get in touch with the secretary, Julia Grint, so that we can arrange either delivery or collection: julia.grint@yahoo.com
Dates for your diary
| Day | Date | Title | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday | November 11th | AGM & Vikings in North Northumberland – Dr Jane Harrison | Trinity Methodist Church Hall, Beaumont Street. Hexham NE46 3LS 7.30pm |
| Mon-Wed | December 15th - 18th | Village Green Public Enquiry | Wentworth Leisure Centre, Hexham - 10am |
| Tuesday | January 13th | Cresswell Pele Tower and the Enigma machine – Steve Lowe | Trinity Methodist Church Hall, Beaumont Street. Hexham NE46 3LS 7.30pm |
| Tuesday | February 10th | Lead mining stories – Mark Hatton | Trinity Methodist Church Hall, Beaumont Street. Hexham NE46 3LS 7.30pm |
| Tuesday | March 10th | Newcastle Prison: Newcastle Prison: A History 1828-1925 – Helen Rutherford et al | Trinity Church Hall, Beaumont Street, Hexham NE46 3LS. 7.30pm |
| Tuesday | April 14th | Northumberland’s Archives – Sue Shaw | Trinity Church Hall, Beaumont Street, Hexham NE46 3LS. 7.30pm |
Community of Hexham Archaeology Project (CHAP) – Sarah Miles & Jane Harrison
This summer, Community Archaeology North CIC (CAN CIC), supported by Hexham Local History Society, organised two weekends of test-pit digging in gardens around Hexham. Despite sometimes unseasonal weather, these taster sessions for a longer-term archaeology project researching the origins of the town attracted enthusiastic volunteers and visitors of all ages. A total of 13 test pits have been completed and reports are being prepared for each The information gathered from test pits across the town will be combined to provide a picture of Hexham’s development during different periods of history. Test pits are often the only way to investigate what was happening and when in the built-up areas where people now live.
Following an open meeting attended by more than 150 people, more than 35 volunteers including several families and test pit hosts joined the CAN CIC team each day to dig test pits and to sort and clean the finds. The pottery and other items recovered from these initial excavations are beginning to reveal stories about the early development of settlement and industry in the town. Other volunteers are conducting archival research for each of the test pit locations to provide supporting documentary evidence.
The great enthusiasm and support for the project means that a National Lottery Heritage Fund bid will be prepared over the winter. This additional funding will permit the expansion of the project across the town, providing volunteering and training opportunities for individuals, families, schools and community groups. There will be a range of opportunities to contribute to the project, for instance, in July, members of Hexham Photographic Society joined the volunteers to create a photographic record of the weekend.
If you would like to be kept up-to-date with the Hexham project and CAN CIC’s other community archaeology projects, or to register your interest as a volunteer or a test-pit host, please visit www.cancic.com
Book Review – Greg Finch
Garnett, Emmeline and Rose, Sarah – with Christopher Donaldson, Fiona Edmonds, Angus J L Winchester, Victoria County History of Westmorland I: Lonsdale Ward (Institute of Historical Research, 2025), xvii+412pp, 17 maps, 89 images, ISBN 978-1-904356-58-5 £95 (Special 25% Discount Offer to HLHS members between 15th October and 30th November. www.boydellandbrewer.com quote code BB139)
Many local historians digging through the shelves of reference libraries will be familiar with the ‘large red books’ of the Victoria County History (VCH). This venerable body was founded in 1899 with the ambitious intention of publishing new histories of each English county – and each of their parishes. Many of their volumes were issued within the first 15 years, very much in the antiquarian tradition emphasising the descent of manors and local gentry. Work continues today under the auspices of the Institute of Historical Research, with a great deal more professional rigour. More than 3,000 parish histories have been completed and published within the large red books.
This first VCH volume for the historic county of Westmorland is, remarkably, the 250th volume in the series. It owes its publication to the work of the Cumbria County History Trust, a charity set up 15 years ago to coordinate work for the VCH within the ancient counties of Cumbria, and to the financial support of its founder members. Occupying both banks of the River Lune from which it takes its name, Westmorland’s Lonsdale Ward is one of the four ancient divisions of the county, comprising 13 townships within the old ecclesiastical parishes of Burton-in-Kendal and Kirkby Lonsdale. This is a largely rural upland landscape to the south-east of Lakeland, containing the spectacular Lune gorge through which the west coast main railway line and M6 motorway carve graceful lines. Agriculture was the main occupation in the area for centuries, and a lack of industry has helped to preserve the historic character of Kirkby Lonsdale and Burton, where many Georgian buildings survive.
VCH parish histories are a very particular form of Local History. Although interpretative, they are works of reference, and encyclopaedic in character for they aim to treat all places in England in a systematic fashion. As such they all follow the same standard pattern, as is the case with the 13 separate township histories here, which follow a survey of Lonsdale as a whole. Each includes sections of overall description, then the boundaries, landscape, communications, population, settlement, built character, landownership, economic, social, religious history and local government. Because earlier generations of county and parish histories were beset by the repetition of even earlier mistakes, the constant guiding principle of VCH work is to substantiate each statement with cited primary sources, published or unpublished, rather than relying upon existing secondary sources. This has the added intention of providing the basis for further work in greater depth by future researchers.
This means, in common with the VCH approach, that the contents of this large volume are descriptive rather than analytical. It will become the cornerstone work of reference for this corner of northern England for many years to come and reflects a huge amount of meticulous scholarly work by the editors and authors to bring it successfully to publication.
Where the abbey got (some of) its money from
Earlier this year, we received an enquiry from Yorkshire relating to the hitherto-unknown (to us at least) “connection between your history group and ours -we are Kirby,Great Broughton and Ingleby Greenhow Local History Group. Adjacent to Great Broughton is a DMV Deserted Medieval Village known as Little Broughton or Broctun Parva. Almost all of the DMV belonged at one time to Hexham Abbey and some 7 or so years ago I bought your publication The Black Book of Hexham. We have been carrying out geophys on the DMV site which we believe has laid unploughed for at least two centuries.” The results of the archaeological and other research have now been completed and the resulting report can be obtained through the KGBIG website http://www.kgbighistory.org.uk/
A fascinating example of how supposedly-local history of one locality can affect that of another – one of the reasons why it was felt to be a good idea for HLHS to commission the first translation into English of the 1379 account of Hexham Abbey’s holdings, popularly known as The Black Book of Hexham; copies of which can be obtained either from Terry at our monthly meetings or through www.hexhamhistorian.org/product/the-black-book-of-hexham
Visit to Old Jesmond Cemetery – Mark Benjamin
A group of around 20 members visited the impressive cemetery in July on a trip organised by Wendy Dale. We split into two groups and were guided around the site by members of the Friends of Old Jesmond Cemetery; our group leader being John North who gave the talk on Richard Grainger and Grainger Town to us in March.
Jesmond Old Cemetery was founded in 1834 as a private cemetery, to which one subscribed – guaranteeing a burial plot when required A subscription only paid for the first 50 years of “residence”, although it could be renewed if the family felt the need! The cemetery was designed by John Dobson, who was himself later buried in the cemetery, and contains two Grade II listed buildings, the chapels at the main entrance, and seven Grade II listed monuments as well as the graves of many notable people of Tyneside
Other notable burials are those of John Hancock (1808–1890), the noted ornithologist after whom the Hancock (now The Great North) Museum was named and Vice-Admiral Lord George Collingwood (1748-1810) who led the British naval fleet at Trafalgar after the death of Nelson. One now-forgotten sporting heroine buried in the cemetery is Muriel Evelyn Robb (1878-1907). Although born in Newcastle, she was the daughter of William Robb of the much-missed Hexham store’s family. Muriel (whose Celtic-cross gravestone is pictured) is best known for her ladies’ singles title at the 1902 Wimbledon Championships where she and her opponent, Charlotte Sterry, set a record for the longest women’s final. On the first day of play rain stopped play at 4–6, 13–11. It was replayed the next day when Robb won 7–5, 6–1.
Fittingly, rain stopped play just as our tours were coming to an end and, in any case, we did not have time to explore the other half of the cemetery. However, the Friends of Old Jesmond Cemetery are happy to arrange tours, even for individuals, and I for one may well return! FOJC can be contacted via their very informative website https://jesmondoldcemetery.co.uk/
Do you have any Ramsden connections? – John Lunn
When Jennnifer Britton saw my request on Rootschat about my great great grandfather Allan Ramsden, the itinerant photographer and his book ‘Life in a Caravan’ she was most helpful in filling some gaps into my search for living relatives other than the ones I know where I live in Sheffield/Barnsley area. She also drew my attention to her article in Hexham Historian issue 30 (2020). I found this most illuminating and currently extremely useful in knowing even more about him. If you haven’t read it through I urge you to, it’s both fascinating and humorous.
Meanwhile, you will realise how more difficult it is in accessing information these days. I have my site on Ancestry (John Clive Lunn) where I can view a number of linked trees but mostly hide details of ‘live’ people. Messaging has occasionally resulted in information but very little.
So I am asking – do you know of anyone connected with Allan Ramsden the photographer? It is highly likely that, if you have old family photographs taken professionally, they will very likely have his name stamp on the back. It may also say Hexham, Consett, Hamsterley, or any of a number of places across Durham/Northumberland where he travelled with his caravan. His family stayed in various places including Barnard Castle, Hunwick, Barrow, Consett, Lanchester, Middleton and maybe more. I believe there are number of Ramsdens in the areas mentioned so maybe you know one – I hope?
He had 5 daughters and 3 sons, his first born being my great grandfather Samuel, who I knew as a boy. So you see, with so many girls there can be many surnames attached to Allan’s family. Here are a few of them that might help in your recall: Williams, Parsons, Newton, Miler, Taylor, Robinson, Hall, Yorke, Liddle or Liddel, Jones and Gibson – and probably many others through the generations.
Allan was clearly a man with a thirst for knowledge and variety – although his main occupation was that of photographer for over 40 years, his other occupations/ interests numbered amongst them: quarryman, phrenologist, palmist, mesmerist (these latter three were more connected with the philosophy of religion) Methodist lay preacher, homeopathic doctor and picture framer.
If you have any information that might help in my research, please contact me jcl@clivelunn.co.uk
Book Review – Susan Ketelaar
Hammond, Wilfrid Catholic Nobles and the Elizabethan State, 1558-1588: Northern affinities and the politics of religion(Boydell & Brewer, 2025) ISBN hbk 9781914967030 £130 e-bk 9781805436096 £26
The book begins with a quotation from Hamlet:“I am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw.” This neatly introduces the place of the study and the underlying theme of the tension between men’s beliefs and convictions and public performance and behaviours. In a period of religious and political change and conflict, Hamlet’s indecision, existential self-questioning, playacting and dissimulation in the context of violence and political instability all point to the change and conflict in this Tudor period. Beliefs, traditions and attachments to ways of life are challenged and become dangerous.
Towards the end of the book, there is an account of Shakespearean dimensions: betrayals and poisoning. Ferdinando Stanley became the 5th Earl of Derby in 1593 on the death of Henry the 4th earl. He was approached by the Catholic politicals’ agent, Richard Hesketh, to urge him to lead an overthrow and take the crown as the great-grandson of Henry VIII’s sister Mary. “Fernandido betrayed Hesketh who was tortured, and hanged, drawn, and quartered. Four months later, in April 1594, Fernandido died … from a particularly horrendous form of poisoning…in revenge… [for] breaking the Stanleys’ unwritten compact to protect the Lancashire Catholic gentry…”
This fascinating study is part of an interdisciplinary series on Catholicism in its period of world expansion c.1450-c.1800. Hammond’s volume focuses on the great magnates of the North West and their affiliates whose power, views and unpoliced practices remained Catholic for many years after Elizabeth I came to the throne as a Protestant monarch. Change was much more gradual than was thought and there has been much revisionist and post-revisionist scholarship over the years. “…the protestantisation of the English church proved a ‘longue duree’ incomplete even at Elizabeth’s death.” There was no quick retreat by Catholic nobles into quiet, country lives away from influencing power and politics. There was also true of northern nobles who were not cut off from events in some backwards hinterland. The Stanley earls of Derby are the focus of this study which also addresses the question why powerful and influential Catholic nobles failed to resurrect Catholic power in a country still largely Catholic in sentiment and loyalties.
This was reflected in the political sphere, in which no appointment of any importance was not on the recommendation and or approval of the Catholic Stanleys, Earls of Derby, the virtual monarchs in the Northwest, Lancashire. It’s main point is that although Elizabeth’s reign, at least for the first decade did not mean a clear change to a Protestant state across the board, despite the zealous work of Elizabeth’s chief minister, the clever and cunning Cecil and his party. In the North west, the leading nobles, Stanley in particular, had to be treated with huge respect and conciliation. Measures to enforce the new religious order, were not enforced, oaths were not sworn, and Catholic sympathisers continued to be selected through the Earl’s authority, which remained separate from state selected bodies. The crown’s administrators paid more attention to the effective collection and increase of revenues than religious conformity to the new version of godliness. It was period of much frustration for the political and religious ministers of the new regime who recognised they held little sway over the affairs of this area and plotting on both sides, with the involvement of diplomats, politicians, kings, the Popes across Europe. One of the most interesting features of the book are the great many quotations taken from the contemporary players, vivid and visceral commentaries, character and event assessments, political and religious thinking and testaments. The acuity and immediacy of these comments compliment the legal and political documents Some of it reads like colourful passages in Hilary Mantel’s books about Cromwell.
The book is both academic and scholarly and addresses the impact of lively research over many decades. There are many footnotes and over thirty pages of bibliography. Some readers may struggle with so many Stanley and related family members of the same name and several titles. There are some useful Figures, but a more comprehensive set of family trees [cast of characters] with dates and titles and an event timeline would be helpful.
To summarise a densely packed study of such complex events and ideas is a challenge. It was suggested to me, at one remove, by Generation X and Z representatives, that the reliable solution was consulting CHATgpt.com. I did. I never thought I would be reading an impressive, balanced review produced by AI, never mind recommending it in this instance. I am!
Book Review – Bruce Pimlott
Peers, Chris Border battles: Northumberland in the Anglo-Scottish Wars, 1018-1513 (Pen & Sword, 2025) ISBN 9781399039710 £25
If somebody wanted a detailed description of the border battles of this period, or to have a battlefield guide, they would be disappointed; thiswould not be the book for them. If however, they wanted to understand the general historical events of the time, or to understand the development of battlefield tactics, alongside some discussion of the battles then this book would be quite rewarding.
As for the battles themselves the coverage is somewhat variable, which is only to be expected given that doubt remains in several cases over where the fighting actually took place. Nevertheless, the author talks through the location or probable locations and then relates this to the contemporary records and how this would have impacted the tactics of both sides and how that ultimately impacted the final results.
The author starts with a long introduction covering the early history of Northumberland from the early kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia, through the Kingdom of Northumbria to the time of Athelstan and the Kingdom of England. There are references to King Alfred and the Battle of Brunanburgh and of course to the time of the Vikings.
The chapters that cover the battles start with Carham (1018) and run through to Flodden (1513), with the fullest descriptions of the battles covering those of Otterburn (1388) and Flodden (1513). Also covered are the two Battles of Alnwick (1093 and 1174) and Halidon Hill (1402). The most confusing description is the Battle of Homildon Hill (1402), where the author has relied on the research of others to describe three possible scenarios.
Underlying the above is an ongoing narrative of British history for the period. If the reader does not have a detailed understanding of the timeline from 1015 to 1513, then this book facilitates a rough chronology of English / Scottish Kings, against local characters and in turn of the battles covered. The author also discusses the development of armour and weapons and changes in tactics over the course of each battle chapter which helps enliven the actual battle narrative. Details are also provided for where the battles were probably fought and what you can expect to see should you pay a visit.
As well as the seven battles covered the author also devotes a chapter to Berwick – “the most fought-over town in Britain”, the Border Castles which are scattered over the area and the Border Reivers. The book ends with a conclusion which gives a brief summary of Anglo-Scottish relations after 1513 ending with the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
Recently published books of interest
Sharpe, Nicholas A Guide to Hillforts of Britain: an aerial view (Pen & Sword, 2025) ISBN 9781036115531 £23.99
Hillforts in modern day Britain occupy often, but not always, isolated, windswept locations on the edge of modern day society. For the Iron Age tribes of that turbulent period 2-3000 years ago, hillforts or defended settlements were built for a number of reasons, they were seen as a statement of wealth and power by local chiefs and warlords, places of refuge for the local population in times of need as well as meeting points for trade, markets and religious festivals. With the advent of aerial drone photography these obscure locations are brought to life spectacularly from above to provide an unparalleled view of the subject matter. The Iron Age Dobunni Tribe occupied the modern day counties of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire in the centuries leading up to the Roman invasion. The different types, classifications and construction of hillforts are explained with aerial photographs illustrating these differences. Questions are answered on who were the Dobunni tribe and where did they come from, what social structure existed and what were their religious beliefs.
This new, fully illustrated study puts forward a thesis to establish the frontiers of the tribal area using local topography and the location of hillforts. A chapter is given over to each county with individual hillforts discussed as to their location, structure, type and classification, myths and excavated finds
Grint, Alan From picks to rifles: Miners from Northumberland and Durham who served in the Infantry Brigades of the Royal Naval Division (Ergo Press, 2025) ISBN 9780993433047 £20
This book throws new light on a largely forgotten body of men who formed a substantial proportion of the rifle strength of the Royal Naval Division. At first sight it might seem odd that a naval formation would recruit from the mining communities of Northumberland and Durham. This is their story.
CHRISTMAS IS COMING!
Remember that HLHS has a range of books that would make lovely presents for anyone interested in history of the area! All available through our website www.hexhamhistorian.org/new-bookshop/ or from Cogito’s
MEMBERSHIP SPECIAL OFFER!
If you’ve ever wanted to own the magnificent volume on the architecture of the abbey Ecclesia Hagulstadensis: the Abbey of St Andrew, Hexham, published by Charles Clement Hodges in 1888, now’s your chance! Bennor Books has a copy listed online at £200 but for HLHS members only at £125 until 24th December. Free delivery within Hexham area. Contact Mark at bennorbooks@gmail.com or on 07879263848 if you are interested.
And finally – “Not again!”
The new book on Newcastle Prison (featured in our last issue) was officially launched in Newcastle Central Library on 21st August. Attendees enjoyed specially-commissioned music from Phoenix Folk, a poem from Harry Gallagher and a short talk from each of the four authors: our own Helen Rutherford, Shane McCorristine, Patrick Low and Clare Sandford-Couch. Copies of the book are now available from your local bookshop or Newcastle City Libraries for only £14