The Julbock – Yule Goat
Across Britain and much of Northern Europe, the last sheaf of grain to be harvested on a farm held a special significance. It was kept in the farmhouse, and given pride of place at the harvest supper, and was also brought out at Yule/Christmas. In Scandinavian countries this last sheaf was called the Skördebock […]
Return to the Burial Cave – Elbolton Hill
A previous post described the Neolithic burials found in Knave Knoll Cave on the upper slopes of Elbolton Hill, near Burnsall in the Yorkshire Dales. An excavation of this cave in the 1890’s found a group of three skeletons, which rather unusually had been buried in a sitting position. Two of the skeletons […]
The Conjuring Stone – Aldwark
The village of Aldwark is located alongside the river Ure, 10 miles north-west of York. The old OS map shows a narrow lane leading from the south side of the village down towards the Aldwark bridge river crossing. A little way along this lane there is a dip in the road known as […]
Arrow Stones – St. Mary’s Church – Thirsk
Thirsk is an old market town in North Yorkshire, 20 miles to the north of York. A visit to the ancient crypt beneath Lastingham church in 2023, also noted some curious scrape marks in the stonework of the church tower. These vertical scrape marks are found on some old churches, and are usually […]
Jenny Gallows – Flamborough
Jenny Gallows is the name of a ghost who once haunted the village of Flamborough on the East Yorkshire coast. The first reference to Jenny seems to be in John Nicholson’s ‘Folklore of East Yorkshire’ (1890) where he noted … ” Near Flambrough is a circular hole, resembling a dry pond, in which […]
Willey Howe (Willy Howe) – Wold Newton
Willey Howe is a large round barrow located near the village of Wold Newton, 7 miles to the north west of Bridlington in East Yorkshire. In folklore this mound has become connected with a story written down in the 12th century by William Parvus (William of Newburgh) who was Born in Bridlington, and […]
The Spiral Stone and the Abbot’s Hand – Braithwaite Moor
Braithwaite Moor is located to the north of Thruscross Reservoir, 10 miles north west of Harrogate. The Spiral Stone is mentioned as a point on the Hampsthwaite parish boundary in the early 1800’s. The Revd. Joseph Wilson (vicar of Hampsthwaite) noted the stone in his diary, after taking part in the 1801 boundary […]
The Trolls Aws and Devils Elbow – Saltergate
Saltergate is located to the north of the Hole of Horcum on the North York Moors, 7 miles to the north of Pickering. While recently sorting through some old photocopied articles, i came across a reference to a placename called the ‘Trolls Aws’, near Saltergate on the North York Moors. The article dated […]
Gormire Lake – Abigail’s Leap
A previous post looked into some of the folklore and beliefs connected with Gormire Lake, located four miles to the east of Thirsk. One legend has it that a small town once stood where the lake is now, but on one fateful night an earthquake struck the town, and it sank into the […]
The Needles Eye and Wishing Stone – Brimham Rocks
The crags and strangely shaped rock formations known as Brimham Rocks are spread across a moorland hilltop 8 miles to the north-west of Harrogate. The rocks at Brimham have attracted tourists since at least the mid 1700’s, when the Romantic Movement inspired the ‘gentry’ to seek out natures wonders. Before this time the […]