I love a walk around any churchyard and finding the different headstones depicting the names of people who have been buried there over the previous centuries. Perched high at the top of a ridge, St Peter’s can be seen for miles around. It’s tall tower is made of grey ashlar was built in the fourteenth […]
Author: peopledetectiveuk
The Execution of the Earl of Derby
One of the first books to be published in Bolton was ‘A Description of Sieges and Battles of the Civil War’. Printed J Drake in 1785 it includes a picture of the execution of the earl of Derby in Churchgate, Bolton, in 1651. This appears to be a line drawing showing the earl making his […]
Ghostly Encounters in Bolton
As Halloween draws near and the veil between the worlds thins here are some spooky but true stories of ghostly encounters in Bolton. Perhaps you live in a house on Blackburn Road in Bolton and have heard strange or unexplained noises coming from upstairs. There is an old house on Blackburn Road in Bolton which […]
A Curious Headstone
I’ve long had a fascination with gravestones. It’s the stories of those who lie there which fascinate me. I always wondered who they were, what were their lives like, what happened to them. It is no wonder then that I became a historian though I view it as a collector of people’s stories. I came […]
A Curious Indenture of Apprenticeship
From Historical Gleanings of Bolton and District: A second batch of odd papers (written and printed) in one form or other identified with the township of Breightmet, which have been loaned to (the) present correspondent by an old Breightmetite, contains some particulars which may not generally be known. The first about is an old indenture […]
Photos of People from Bolton 2
Most of our old family photos were lost. My mum remembers a large leather bag with loads of photos in, especially the old Victorian card ones, as well as many of her and her sisters when they were young. The bag was lost when my grandfather’s possessions were put into storage as his council house […]
Photos of People from Bolton
Over the last few years, I’ve bought many old photos of people from Bolton. I know very little about them so I’ll post them here and if you recognise anyone, let me know! These two groups are unrelated and were bought separately. This is a family photograph and I believe the family is from Bolton, […]
Selim Rothwell, Artist
I have a print of a painting of Churchgate in Bolton circa 1840. I love looking at this picture because it looks so different to the Churchgate of today. It is full of people; some strolling along, others selling from the numerous stalls lining the road. St Peter’s is in the background, looking more like […]
The Cursed Shoes of Papillon Hall
Market Harborough, like many places, has its share of ghosts and haunted buildings. However, this post concerns a haunted building just outside Market Harborough. Papillon Hall used to stand on the way to Lubenham and was built around 1624 by David Papillon. The Papillon family originated from France. David along with his mother and two […]
Market Harborough
Market Harborough was a ‘new’ town created in the 12th century and lies about halfway between Leicester and Northampton. According to Nicholls, Market Harborough was first mentioned in 1170; it was mentioned again in a Pipe Roll of 1199 relating to a payment from the manors of “Buggeden and haug”. The town had a main road running […]