No. 104 Spring 2026
NEWSLETTER
Number
21Blank Line
104
Editor: Mark Benjamin
Tel: 07879 263848
newsletter@hexhamhistorian.org
Spring
Blank Line
2026
Thoughts from a Chair – Jane Harrison
I am honoured and a bit surprised to be writing from the Chair. We returned to the North-East, where I grew up, seven years ago. Intending to settle in Newcastle near my Dad, we were renting in Hexham while casting around for somewhere to live. And never left. This feels like home now and I am delighted to be adding another root through working with the History Society.
I am an archaeologist. Now the Director, with committee member Sarah Miles of an archaeology Community Interest Company dedicated to training and teaching local people about archaeology through well-founded research projects. I’ve worked with communities, students and universities from Orkney to Oxfordshire on archaeology projects – always with local people at the heart of our work – and I’m an Early Medieval specialist. Especially Vikings, Scandinavians on the move, in the UK.
Northumberland is an extraordinary county and there is so much potential for exciting community projects. We’ve begun one in Hexham – with the Society’s support to launch it – and were delighted with the degree and diversity of support, and have others on the go in Wall country and the Coquet valley. And you the members have been very welcoming: your enthusiasm for such a wide range of subjects has been obvious. We would really like to ensure that the talks reflect the breadth of your interests so please do email me with ideas. Otherwise you might get rather a lot of archaeologists! We are looking forward to the late spring trip to Ad Gefrin and our Early Anglo-Saxon excavation and to welcoming lots of you to the site. Please do feel free to contact me with thoughts and ideas, or catch up over a cup of tea or coffee after one of the talks.
We’re also in need of help on the Committee; both Julia Grint and Mark Hatton (our Secretary & Treasurer respectively) will be stepping down at the end of this year. If you feel that you could be interested in filling either of these important roles, please have a word with either of them, or myself, and we’ll be delighted to hear from you!
Dates for your diary
| Day | Date | Title | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | March 4th | Memories of Hexham’s legal history | Old Gaol, 11am |
| Tuesday | March 10th | Newcastle Prison: Newcastle Prison: A History 1828-1925 – Helen Rutherford et al | Trinity Church Hall, Beaumont Street, Hexham 7.30pm |
| Tuesday | April 14th | Northumberland’s Archives – Sue Shaw | Trinity Methodist Church Hall, Beaumont Street. Hexham NE46 3LS 7.30pm |
| Saturday | April 18th | 3 Acres & a Cow: a history of land rights + protest in folk song and story | Tynedale Mart Function Suite 7pm http://threeacresandacow.co.uk £16.50/£12.50 |
| Monday | May 4th | Centenary: celebrating the 100th anniversary of the General Strike (and other working class struggles) | The Glasshouse, Gateshead, 4pm & 8pm £25.10 https://theglasshouseicm.org/centenary |
| Tuesday | May 12th | The Roman lead industry in the Northern Frontier Zone – Damian Rudge | Trinity Church Hall, Beaumont Street, Hexham NE46 3LS. 7.30pm |
| Thursday | May 21st | Ad Gefrin & Felton Summer Visit | See booking form |
3 Acres + A Cow
Three Acres And A Cow connects the Norman Conquest and Peasants’ Revolt to contemporary issues via the Enclosures and Industrial Revolution, drawing a compelling narrative through the people’s history of England in folk song, story and poem.
If you missed this show when it came to Hexham a few years ago, now’s your chance. If you did see it, it’s definitely worth seeing again! If you can’t make the Hexham date, they’re playing at Jesmond United Reform Church at 6.30pm on Sunday 19th April
Hexham’s role in administering justice – Susan Priestley
We’re looking for volunteers to work with us between March and May to research the people, places, stories and landmarks with connections to the three buildings. For example, the Market Place as the site of the Hexham Riot; Hexham Workhouse and the crime of vagrancy; and the site of Hexham’s first Police Station in Goose Market. We are holding an informal meeting with tea/coffee and cake for anyone interested in hearing more about the project and the volunteer role/s on Wednesday 4 March at 11am at Hexham Old Gaol. Everyone welcome.
For anyone wanting to keep up with the project’s progress, Jonny writes a blog at https://talesfromthegaol.com/
Hospital Volunteers
Did you volunteer in an NHS hospital in Cumbria, Northumberland or County Durham between 1979 and 1997? I am a PhD student at Newcastle University doing an oral history research project about volunteering in hospitals in Cumbria, Northumberland, and County Durham, 1979-1997. I am interested in interviewing people who volunteered for Leagues of Friends, hospital radio stations, or other voluntary organisations, during these years.
If you would be prepared to give one or two interviews, at a time that works for you, please get in touch: Lily Tidman L.Tidman2@newcastle.ac.uk or phone 07977326960
Hexham in the Northumberland Community Tapestry – Jennifer Baker
The Rotary Clubs of Northumberland are leading the project which was inspired by the Great Tapestry of Scotland based in Galashiels. I wonder whether you…would be willing to collaborate with Hexham Rotary Club about the research and design for a unique panel representing the history and heritage of this area?
As a member of the Rotary Club of Hexham, I have become involved with the Northumberland Community Tapestry project. This is an initiative that celebrates the county’s history, culture and identity through a large-scale community stitched tapestry. The aim is to preserve and promote local history and heritage by enabling people to explore, depict and pass down regional stories through visual and narrative art.
You don’t need to be an expert on local history, but if you would like to contribute to this project, please contact me at nevherb1975@gmail.com
Featherstone Park Camp 18: an appeal – Louise Mayer
As part of a wider European museum project on German captivity after the Second World War, the W J Kennedy Foundation is launching a documentation and collection campaign in the UK. We are seeking archival documents, diaries, letters, photographs, and (personal) objects related to Camp 18, as well as testimonies from those connected to the camp. This may include former prisoners who remained in Britain, their descendants, or local residents and families who lived or worked alongside them.
Three generations after the end of the war, this project aims to preserve the history of captivity as a transformative experience—one that not only shaped the lives of individuals but also contributed to reconciliation and lasting peace in Europe. Further information on the project can be found at www.museum-dascamp.eu
If you have relevant materials or memories to share, please contact us. Every contribution will help us shed new light on this unique chapter of British and European history. The project team will respond with discretion and gratitude.
Contact: Dr Fabien Théofilakis, Sorbonne University, Paris / Centre Marc Bloch, Berlin contact@museum-dascamp.eu.com
The Lowgate Ghost
Ailsa Macmillan asks: I was recently staying there at my friend’s house (in Lowgate) and had a scary apparition come to me who was not a nice spirit. I am thinking a murder or death occurred there as it was a very aged old man with a stern face looking very angry at me who I saw. The room also went icy cold and I heard footsteps running down the stairs in the morning. Bear in mind I have never had such an experience as vivid as this and felt very uneasy and it is definitely an evil spirit that is there. Also the spirit looked very angry at me was an aged man grey hair pointy nose little angry eyes. It caused me to sit upright when I saw it when I was sleeping twice due to the shock of it. Any help please with the history of (Ivy) Cottage please and if my friend needs it cleansing? I have never had such a vivid experience before, it has shaken me. I did mention it to my friend but she said she never usually sleeps in that spare room and stays downstairs mostly.
If anyone has heard of this, or knows anything about it, Ailsa can be contacted via the Editor
Do you speak local? – Scarlett Hart
Participants needed for PhD study on the language of older people in the North-East:
I am a PhD student at Newcastle University currently recruiting people aged 65+ from Northumberland for my research study. Participation involves a half-day trip to the Newcastle University Linguistics Laboratory for an interview and a range of tasks designed to look at diversity in ageing. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided! If you are interested in taking part or would like further details, please email me at S.L.Hart2@newcastle.ac.uk
Where was this?
In amongst the late Stan Beckensall’s photos, shortly to be added to our photo archive, we have come across a sequence taken during some renovation in the town – but we don’t know where! If you can identify the location, please let Mark Benjamin know (contact details above)
Memories of Eric Jordan of QEGS – Mike Smith
Eric D Jordan [1913-1992] known simply to the Queen Elizabeth Grammar School staff as ‘Jordan’, retired from teaching as Head of Classics there in the summer of 1977, having started there in 1955 at the Boy’s Grammar School. He is best known as the translator of the QEGS Charter.
He lived with his wife, a potter, in the Vicarage at Sparty Lea. I once asked him how he got to school from Sparty Lea if the weather was bad. He told me he simply walked through the snow if the bus didn’t come. On more than one occasion, he actually slept in the school overnight if he wasn’t going to get home! A tale goes that, in a winter storm, Mr Jordan went out of his house to find the local phone box to ring in to school. He couldn’t find it and eventually discovered he was standing on top of it, the snow was so deep!
He was educated at Oxford but was rather bored there as he had read so much classical literature before he got there, including the whole of Virgil’s Aeneid. He served in WW2, certainly in Africa. He used to tell classes about his experiences, especially when he was teaching Caesar’s War, and, I’m told, they were spellbound by his stories of the Desert Campaign and the Arab language.
He was an ornithologist and photographer, but his main enthusiasm was printing. He had a large printing press and he used to print books and lots of material for the Grammar School. He certainly printed all the Latin and Greek exams. I was told that doing all this for the School gave him a lever over the Headmaster to ensure that Classics was maintained in the curriculum.
In 1976/7, despite the move to comprehensive provision, the children who had taken the 11+ had to follow the ‘grammar school’ curriculum for the equivalent of Year 8. So Jordan and I went down to Fellside Middle to teach 3 times a week. We were taken by taxi. We taught 2 classes each, I think. This meant 2 full mornings, going back to the high school at lunchtime, and one half morning, dashing back in a taxi during break.
He was a very private man. On his last day in 1977, he just left the school with no fuss. There was no formal ‘goodbye’. I had to chase after him in the car as he walked to the Hexham bus station and stop in the road to give him a thank you present.
A couple of testimonies from former students:
“Mr Jordan was my Latin teacher and I remember him very fondly as a lovely gentle gentleman. He seemed like an old man then but then everyone seems old when you are 16! I did A Level Latin and he was a very patient and supportive teacher. When he heard I had won a scholarship to study in Canada, he invited me to his house so he could give me some of his own books that might help me at University. I remember a large stone house with a very impressive library”.
“My memories of Mr Jordan are of a teacher who respected his students. His love of his subject and his desire to share this with an audience, that was by and large indifferent, was amazing. I think because of his sincerity, politeness and gentlemanly attitude he kept us all on track and reasonably attentive. He rarely raised his voice and when he resorted to sarcasm it was of the gentlest kind. I still remember a remark on the lines of ‘a good translation Margery. Now can you close the crib on your knee and perhaps try again on your own?’ I think that sums him up.”
“Mr Jordan taught me Latin at QEGS from 1972-1975. He was definitely ‘old school’ and respected by the pupils. I’m afraid I wasn’t a natural at Latin but Mr Jordan’s efforts and my ability to cram pre-exam resulted in a B at ‘O’ Level. In those days, this was deemed respectable.
I remember his stories about serving in the army in the desert, frying eggs on the bonnet of a Land Rover, and his paraphrasing of a point in Caesar’s campaign as “Never fear, Caesar’s here!”
Book Review – Greg Finch
Adams, Max & O’Brien, Colm Northumbria AD 367-867; Earth-Hall, Ring-Gift and Heaven’s Field (John Donald, 2025), 395pp, 21 plates, 23 figures, 21 maps and plans, ISBN 9780859767422 £25
This is far from the first history of the Kingdom of Northumbria, one of the dominant forces in the early medieval Engand, the time of the Angles and Saxons. The surviving documentary material on which many previous works have traditionally been based is scarce, often unclear and usually problematic, although increasingly supplemented by the work of archaeologists. However, an exciting feature of this whole field of study has been the recent application of scientific and technical advances. They include landscape survey, particularly the use of LiDaR imagery which goes well beyond the scope of aerial photography, laboratory analysis of archaeological finds new and old, including carbon-dating, DNA and isotopic analysis of human and animal remains, coin studies, and painstakingly thorough reconstruction of past historical geography. Furthermore, useful excavation reports appear all the time.
This new survey of the emergence and flowering of the Kingdom of Northumbria makes full use of these recent discoveries. The authors are both accomplished archaeologists. Colm O’Brien has also traced the emergence and pattern of ‘small shires’ in Northumbria, now recognised as vitally important and widespread units of political and economic administration in this period. Max Adam’s several thorough and stylish recent books on early medieval Britain will be well-known to many of our members. The book has therefore been entrusted to the safest of hands.
It is structured, helpfully, in chronological order, covering the centuries between the conspiracy of northern British tribes and elements of the Roman army to undermine the province of Britannia, and the devastation of York by the Vikings 500 years later. Royal genealogies are provided, alongside assessments of characters and relationships where these can be teased out from limited -and biased- written biographical sketches. Incidentally, it is clear that among the key influencers and fixers beside and behind the thrones were women, such as the 7th century abbesses of Whitby Hild and Aelfflaed. But the book frequently broadens out from the politics of power to the wider perspective of keen landscape observation, the evolution of economic and social structure, and thoughtful synthesis of a mass of specialist detailed work, all aided by many excellent maps. Durham historical geographer Brian Roberts has contributed greatly in recent decades by using place-names, field systems, landscape terrain and soil variation to identify what he named ‘cultural cores’ – land in the major river valleys and plains which was probably continually farmed and settled from (at least) the Roman period onwards. This helps, for example, to identify the approximate boundary (in today’s northern County Durham), between the two main political sub-divisions of the Northumbrian kingdom: Deira – very simplistically Yorkshire north of the Humber, and Bernicia, centred on Northumberland. The authors have used Roberts’ techniques to extend the cultural core analysis to take in southern Scotland, which also became part of the kingdom.
Northumbria’s great heyday was in the 7th century, when it came to exercise great influence southwards into Lincolnshire (Lindsey) and the Midlands (Mercia) before Mercia essentially turned the tables in the 8th century. This period saw the development of more advanced tools of state administration and control as the English kingdoms rose from small warbands to positions of regional power. Northumbria certainly made its own contribution to this long process, but Adams and O’Brien argue persuasively that the fault lines between Deira and Bernicia were persistent, tensions remaining between the elites of both cultures, and never completely straddled by the single royal dynasty just above them. Mercia proved much more cohesive in its turn a century later.
Why then is Northumbria’s legacy generally seen as so spectacular? The answer surely lies in the fostering of religious ‘soft power’ by the Northumbrian monarchs. Land granted in perpetuity to monastic foundations -rather than simply for the lifetime of a single king- created the incentives for its economic development. Enduring churches and their bishops conferred legitimacy on its patrons in the ruling dynasty, and their growing wealth supported the permanence of architecture, art and the power of the written word. The best-known names from the heyday of Northumbria are Cuthbert, Bede, Aidan and Wilfrid -churchmen- rather than monarchs such as Oswald, Edwin and Oswiu.
There is much else of great substance in this work that cannot be covered in a short review. As an authoritative work of synthesis it covers a wide range of specialist work, as well as the authors’ own new contributions and overall insights. Such summaries often result in very dense and stodgy text. Instead, however, this is history written as literature, in an accessible flowing style. It is highly recommended both to those seeking a first overview of the kingdom of Northumbria and to those wishing to keep abreast of the accumulation of recent scholarship.
Book Review – Greg Finch
Penn, David A history of Quakers and the lead mining industry of the North Pennines (Independent Publishers Network, 2025) ISBN 9781836884859 £8.00
This short book has been written with community grant support from the North Pennines National Landscape’s ‘Land of Lead and Silver’ project. It contains 11 sections on different aspects of the Quakers, and of North Pennine lead mining, mostly in the 18th and 19th centuries. It includes brief biographies of a few of the Quaker personalities in both the district and those in London and elsewhere who had senior and management roles in the London Lead Company (LLC). These are summarised from other sources, but a separate notice of one of the lead ore carriers, Isaac Hall (1741-1823) of East Allendale, is derived from unpublished reminiscences of his son – a volume which might be well worth making available in print or online.
The book does not claim that Quakers exercised any dominance over the North Pennines lead trade. It helpfully includes Dave McAnelly’s view that, despite its label as the ‘Quaker company’, the LLC was rarely controlled by the religion’s adherents, and that it was not noticeably any more benevolent towards its workers than the Blacketts or their Beaumont successors.
Other publications of interest
Harvey, Alex Little kingdoms: an A-Z of Early Medieval Britain (Pen & Sword, 2025) ISBN 9781036125813 £20
Can’t tell your Rhegeds from your Bernicias? The kingdoms that made up the British Isles were a squabbling, kaleidoscopic mosaic of realities. Some centred their livelihood around rivers, others dug deep to harvest resources from the ground beneath them. There were kingdoms that straddled the sea, others divided by marshes, and some that stuck to rugged mountainsides, or even caves. All these places, remembered now in place-names, artefacts, and obscure chronicles, have become obscured and forgotten, in many cases lost entirely. Little Kingdoms peels back the veil on sixty-two unique realms, listed alphabetically like a travelogue, showcasing the most diverse corners of Early Medieval England, sandwiched in that tantalising gap between the Roman and Viking periods.
Robertson, Alastair “Found on this day”: a diary of Roman discoveries in the North East from 1660 to 1856 (The Author, 2026) ISBN 9780954733988 £6.99 (available from bennorbooks@gmail.com)
When we read about the Roman Wall, unless it’s about the latest archaeological discoveries, we are receiving information that has passed through many hands before reaching the present day. But imagine reading in the newspapers about the latest discoveries, say in the 1750s or 1820s, for the first time, as they were happening.
That is the atmosphere that this little book aims to recreate. The following records of Roman finds in the north-east of England are to be found in the five volumes of The Local Historian’s Table Book of Remarkable Occurrences; Historical Division, for the counties of Northumberland and Durham, compiled by Moses Aaron Richardson, and Local Records; or Historical Register of Remarkable Events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed, from the Earliest Period of Authentic Record to the Present Time; with Biographical Notices of Deceased Persons of Talent Eccentricity and Longevity, compiled by John Sykes, Thomas Fordyce and John Latimer.
Most of the entries consist of a single paragraph, or even a single sentence, whereas a few, and only a few, others are lengthy, erudite for the time, evaluations of the treasures just found, for example the Mithraeum at
Housesteads and the fort of Whitley Castle, to name two. The recording process by the editors seems to be eclectic, of whatever caught their eye, or their own interest at that time, or whatever they thought might interest their readers.
The transcriptions of articles are recorded exactly as they appear in the originals. Ancient burials of all descriptions have been omitted unless directly associated with known Roman sites; similarly, most of the stray finds of coins occasionally recorded, e.g. “… was found in a field near Chester-le-Street, by a young woman
gathering potatoes,” have not been included. References appear in brackets at the end of each item. The compiler’s initial letters are followed by his volume number then the page number, e.g. (MA1 p.299/300) = Moses Aaron Richardson Volume 1; (JS1p.148) = John Sykes Volume 1; (JLp.34/35) = John Latimer. Note, ‘ud’ after a date = undated, day and month not known.
Many of the entries are illustrated, which led to the question – what happened to those relics? A search in the R.I.B. (Roman Inscriptions of Britain) online revealed the whereabouts for many of them, but many were unable to be found or else have been lost since. Reading these reports provokes mixed responses of fascination, curiosity, surprise and dismay at what has survived and what has been lost – and how it was lost – as well as a slight thrill of following the newsworthy events of 200 or 300 years ago. And who knows, their reappearance here might even lead to new research.
Bennor Books
Oh, and if anybody would like a companion volume, Bennor Books has for sale a copy of Contributions to Local History, by Thomas Dobson, printed by E Pruddah at the Herald Office in 1869. The essays had appeared in the Hexham Herald and, in Dobson’s words, may probably be useful when the time shall come for writing a complete history of Hexham. – we’re still waiting!
Essays include: on John Martin, William Hewson, the Thorngrafton Find and Hexham stycas, William Tyndale, the Hexham Riot, and the Midfords of Tyne Mills. 78pp, red card covers are torn and stained; the text body is in reasonably good condition and would rebind well. Listed online at £20 but 50% discount to HLHS members
Also available from Bennor Books on HLHS members’ discount (prices shown are the discounted prices) Contact bennorbooks@gmail.com or call Mark on 07879263848
- Robb, William Hexham fifty years ago , 1882
103pp. Considerable wear to brown cloth boards, spine has separated and repaired with Sellotape, but both hinges are secure and all pages are clean and tight. Would rebind well. Very rare £40
- Hexham Through the Ages: a Selection from Historical Source Relating to Hexham Compiled By the Northumberland Record Office for Hexham Civic Society
Ziplock bag containing copies of a variety of original maps, directories and documents relating to the Northumberland town. Ex-library with minimal markings. £8
- Bateson, Edward A History of Northumberland, Vol 2: The Parishes of Embleton, Ellingham, Howick, Long Houghton and Lesbury 1895
571pp, indexed, b&w illus throughout. Sunning and minor wear to spine but the book itself is tight and in very good condition apart from minor bumping to boards. Dedication to former owner on front flyleaf. £20
- Hodgson, John A History of Northumberland, Vol.IV: Hexhamshire Pt 2 (Hexham, Whitley Chapel, Allendale, and St John Lee), The Parish of Chollerton, The Chapelry of Kirkheaton, The Parish of Thockrington 1897
479pp, frontis., illus throughout in b&w, indexed. Sunning and minor wear to spine but otherwise in good condition £30
- Hodgson, John A History of Northumberland, Vol.5: The Parish of Warkworth, with the Chapelry of Chevington, The Parish of Shilbottle, The Chapelry or Extra-parochial Place of Brainshaugh 1899
Sunning and markings to maroon and gilt covers with minor wear to spine but text tight and in good condition. 522pp, frontis., illus throughout in b&w, indexed. £30
- Hodgson, John A History of Northumberland, Vol.VI: The Parish of Bywell St Peter, The Parish of Bywell St Andrew with Blanchland, The Chapelry or Parish of Slaley 1902
Some sunning and minor wear to spine but text tight and in good condition. 479pp, frontis., illus throughout in b&w, indexed. £20
- Hodgson, John A history of Northumberland, Vol VII: the parish of Edlingham with the chapelry of Bolton, The parish of Felton with the chapelry of Framlington, the chapelry of parish of Brinkburn 1904
530pp, b&w illus, indexed. Some wear and sunning to spine of maroon cloth boards but the book is tight and bright and in very good condition overall. £15
- Craster, H E E A History of Northumberland, Vol.9: The Parochial Chapelries of Earsdon and Horton 1909
Sunning and minor wear to spine but otherwise in very good condition. 410pp, frontis., illus throughout in b&w, indexed. £20
- Vickers, Kenneth H A history of Northumberland, Vol XI: the parishes of Carham, Branxton, Kirknewton, Wooler and Ford 1922
509pp, colour frontis. b&w illus, indexed. Sunning to spine with minor markings and bumping to maroon boards but binding is tight and the text block clean and in very good condition. £40
- Dodds, Madeleine Hope A history of Northumberland, Vol XII: the parishes of Ovingham, Stamfordham and Ponteland 1926
611pp, b&w illus, indexed. Sunning and very minor wear to spine but gilt lettering remains clear. £50
- Storey, Tony QEGS in the Fifties: a snapshot of Queen Elizabeth Boys Grammar School…
71pp, b&w illus £5
AD GEFRIN AND FELTON EXCAVATION VISIT
Thursday 21st May, 9.30am
After lunch we shall set off for Felton.
The second part of the trip will be to a working excavation near Felton: a community-focused dig organised by Community Archaeology North CIC. This site is also Early-Mid Anglo-Saxon with dates from the late-sixth to the late-ninth centuries, so contemporary with some of the Yeavering periods. In previous seasons of digging buildings, pits, ditches, oven and hearths have been found demonstrating that people were living there, making cloth and smelting iron for trade and wider distribution. This was probably a major estate centre. In the later ninth century the people of this site had contact with a group with links to the Viking Great Army. Some of the discoveries were very exciting – of which more when you visit. You will be able to observe work underway on new areas of the site, see and handle finds, ask questions and catch up with the story of an unusual and important site
The coach will leave from Wentworth Car Park, Hexham at 9.30am, returning about 5.30pm A maximum of 25 people can be accommodated on this visit: in the event of over-subscription, we will keep a waiting list.
Payment will be taken on the day.
Please return this form to MARK BENJAMIN 9 HENCOTES, HEXHAM NE46 2EQ
Please reserve ……………places on the Ad Gefrin/Felton visit at £28.00 per person
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Address ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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