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Burnley Express and News

September 4 1954

He saw troop of goblins - carrying HIS OWN COFFIN

Within easy reach of Burnley and a place to spend an interesting afternoon is the hamlet of Roggerham, halfway between Worsthorne and Haggate. It's a secluded spot, nestling in Swinden Valley and rich in history and folklore. Upon the surrounding hills are prehistoric stone circles, Roman camps, ancient crosses, packhorse tracks - all this within a mile or so of the hamlet. It is little wonder that Tattersall Wilkinson, one of the characters of Old burnley, chose to live here and study the district. He was known as the "Sage of Roggerham" or "Owd Tat," and even if his archaeological work left much to be desired it is to him we must be thankful for collecting many a legend which would otherwise nowbe forgotten.
The lofty building of Extwistle Hall, perched up on the hillside overlooking Swinden Water, is the most interesting building here abouts and though in somewhat abandoned state at the present is still a place of considerable character and beauty. This was the former home of the Parker family, who built the hall in the 16th century.

A LOCAL BALLAD
They were typical gentlemen of the time, and the Extwistle Hunting Song describes a notable hunt, starting from Roggerham and ranging far and wide over the surrounding moors. You can read this song in "The Memories of hurstwood" by Tattersall Wilkinson, and a splendid local ballad it is too.
"There were Squire Parker
and Holden o' th' Clough,
T'one mounted on Nudger
and t' other on Rough."
As with most of the old buildings in the area there are several legends concerning the hall.

The most eerie of these tales is that of the Goblin Funeral. One of the Parkers was returning home late at night from a local Jacobite meeting, when, while crossing a stile, he came across a procession of goblins bearing a coffin upon which was inscribed his own name! This supernatural warning is reputed to have deterred him from participating in the unfortunate 1715 rebellion.

But there is much to see in the district apart from Extwistle Hall, and situated above the large quarry is Twist Camp, considered by many to be of Roman origin. It has a rectangular shape and consists of a rampart and encircling ditch. It is situated beside the track to, and just before, the prominent stone-walled water tank, and one requires care in finding it, for the remains are almost levelled. The Romans chose a good spot, for there is a commanding view of the local countryside from here. I often think that in school a child's history lesson about the Romans could be made much more interesting if I related to these remains in our own district.

Ancient Burials
Long before the Romans there were people living around Roggerham, as the large number of stone circles show, for these were the burying places of the prehistoric peoples of the Bronze Age, people who cremated their dead some 2,500 years B.C. and buried the cremation urns in the centre of these stone circles. You can see some of these cinerary urns in Towneley Hall, and lest it be thought that archaeologists are glorified "body-snatchers," let it be stated that by a study of these burial circles a great deal of information can be gained about life in those remote times.

Roggerham is entered from Worsthorne by road, and if this is followed out of the hamlet, past the "Gate Inn," a cross-roads is soon reached, from which the road upon the left goes to Monk Hall. At the roadside is the base of the Noggarth Cross, underneath which a boggart is said to have ben "laid." The cross is to be seen built into a wall at Monk Hall Farm, and is well worth seeing. As for the old hall itself it is now empty and an ill-looking building, though the name and certain other evidence seems to show that this building was at one time a place of rest for the itinerant monks who journeyed from the abbeys.
From here Haggate is soon reached, being some two miles away, and the whole area can be covered in an afternoon, though I have no doubt that many a reader will not be content with only visiting this interesting district but once.
I.A.WILLIAMSON

_________________
Mel

Searching for lost relatives? Win the Lottery!

That's crazy talk!

That sounds rough, It was hard life indeed.