Slide 4 – In 1291 Robert de Vavasour supplied the stone from his quarries near Tadcaster for building the nave of the Minster, the memory of this is preserved in a statue of a Vavasour as a mailed Knight bearing a block of wrought stone, which was…
Slide 6 - In the grounds surrounding the house are many fine 'ancestral trees' copper beeches, variegated sycamores, light coloured elms and weeping beeches.
Our attention is drawn particularly to a magnificent wych elm, the branches of which, it…
Slide 16 - Emerging from the courtyard, we view the mansion from the back, noticing the buttressed chimney-stacks and diagonally formed summits, peculiar to the period.
In taking our leave of Woodsome, the lines from Tennyson can truly be applied…
Slide 13 - On the west side is the Minstrels gallery where in olden times the musicians discoursed music and song, to the assembled guests below, and on the north side are two internal and ancient looking windows, from which it is said, the fair…
Slide 8 - To the right of the fireplace is a fine old clock in oak case, bearing the date1652, and surrounded with the plume and coronet forming the crest of the Legge family.
But the greatest curiosities are the ancient picture boards hung on…
Slide 2 - A flight of steps of ample width leads to a flagged terrace, flanked with an ornamental balustrade of rare beauty, black with age, and covered with pretty creeping plants.
As Canon Hulbert says in his 'Annals of the Church in…
Slide 1 - Well might Woodsome be described as 'one of the most charming old places in Yorkshire'
A carriage drive through an avenue of trees brings us to the front of the ancient mansion. Taking our stand on the graveled path on the east side of the…
Slide 10 - On the other side, are the armorial bearings of the families of Yorkshire related to the Kayes, divided down the middle into two columns of twenty eight each.
Slide 9 - The two following slides show the same board, in detail. One shows a portrait of John Kaye, surmounted by the coat of arms, and surrounded by various devices.
Slide 12 - We now ascend an oak staircase and enter the principal bedrooms, likewise wainscoted in oak. One of these rooms contains a fine old oak four posted bedstead elaborately carved, purchased by Lord Dartmouth at accost of £250.
Slide 4 - On the south side facing the orchard are the kitchens and other offices. This is probably the oldest portion and dates from the Tudor period.
Slide 5 - Entering through the porch, we are ushered into the Great Hall, the most interesting room in the mansion, not only on account of the many relics of antiquity which it contains, but because it gives us a vivid picture of the baronial life of…
Slide 11 - Through an open door on the north side of the Great Hall we obtain a peep into the Drawing room, wainscoted throughout in oak and filled with antique furniture.
Slide 15 - A long, low roofed building with projecting windows, and supported on stone pillars, stands at the west side of the courtyard. This is probably the most ancient part of the building, of the Tudor or Plantagenet era.
Slide 14 - There is a fine courtyard at the rear, paved with flags and in the centre is a stone fountain and basin, erected in 1857 to commemorate the visit of Lord Lewisham.
Slide 1 - This is one of the most picturesque old Houses in the parish of Halifax, and seems to have escaped external alterations evident in all others, according to the varying tastes of the owners. It is situated in the Calder Valley on a steep…
Slide 2 - The Deardens by their trade as clothiers became very wealthy. It was the custom in the 17th Century to bid very large numbers of friends and acquaintances to funerals. At the death of Michael, son of John Dearden, in 1672, 279 were bidden,…
Slide 3 - In 1706 John Dearden, grandson of the John who is supposed to have built the house, having by marriage come into the Hollins Estate, sold Wood Lane, to Jeremy Crossley of Lighthazles for £1100, described as a 'white Kerseyman.'The view of…
Slide 10 - Close to the Hall is the interesting old Domesday Church which dates form the Eleventh Century (1086). There is no tower, only a bell turret at the west end. In the interior are numerous tablets of members of the families of Carters,…