Bell pits in Horsforth.

[BarFly]

Apologies if this has been covered before but I've searched and can't find any information. In a thread about something else I saw mention of bell pits in Horsforth. Does anyone know where these were located and whether there are any signs of them still around?I grew up in West Leeds so I've explored a little of Horsforth but never come across anything I can think of that could be the remains of a bell pit so I'm intrigued to find out whether I've missed them, they're somewhere I've not been or the signs of them have all been covered.

[uncle mick]

between Springfield Farm and Westbrook Farm. These paths form part of the Leeds Country Way and woodland along Red Beck is part ofGreen Gateways (West Leeds Country Park).There are a lot of springs in the area, hence the names of the farms. Many of the ‘bell pits’ were in these fields.Taken from here on page 29http://www.leeds.gov.uk/docs/horsforth%20desig ... nt.pdfMore info http://www.hungerhillswoods.org/about-t ... the-woods/    

[BarFly]

Thanks for that -- I'll have to take a look though by the sounds of it all evidence will have been removed by farmers.

[uncle mick]

Probably nothing to do with pits, but what's this?http://goo.gl/maps/l1Z0i

[BarFly]

At a guess it's the site of a few bonfires? I might have to take a look though.Google maps is playing up for me at the moment so I can't post a link but I've always been intrigued by what I take to be a well in the field next to Leeds Road near Layton Close. It's clearly visible on Google Maps as a fenced-off round hole.

[The Parksider]

BarFly wrote: Apologies if this has been covered before but I've searched and can't find any information. In a thread about something else I saw mention of bell pits in Horsforth. Does anyone know where these were located and whether there are any signs of them still around?I grew up in West Leeds so I've explored a little of Horsforth but never come across anything I can think of that could be the remains of a bell pit so I'm intrigued to find out whether I've missed them, they're somewhere I've not been or the signs of them have all been covered. The leases on the pits usually required the lesees to fill them in once they had finished digging out the coal so you won't see most of them.You can trace two though. If you walk the old grass lane over the hill from the St.Margarets streets passing the east side of Trinity college the lane comes out at is it west end lane?Facing you is a field with a large hump 100 yards in by the fence, that is a bell pit where a miner died when the pit collapsed.Up the road in Rawdon is a field. In the field is a slight hump of rough unploughed ground you can pick specks of coal off and that's another.If you go on old-maps you can pick out the sites of maybe 30 bell pits in Horsforth, Calverley, Rodley, Rawdon etc. as I say I can only find actual traces of two.

[The Parksider]

BarFly wrote: I've always been intrigued by what I take to be a well in the field next to Leeds Road near Layton Close. It's clearly visible on Google Maps as a fenced-off round hole. The 1893 map marks an old coal pit at the point, however it also marks an old sand pit too.Which your hole is I dunno but I sure am going to have a good look see.Check the map. In the field opposite the crossroads two more coal pits are marked.Nice work Mr Barfly

[Jogon]

Sorry} 'bell pit' rather than H'sfth, but land around Calls/Kirkgate/Briggate had loads of medieval bell pits for extraction of ironstone and some coal.Read it in one of my books.

[BarFly]

The Parksider wrote: The 1893 map marks an old coal pit at the point, however it also marks an old sand pit too.Which your hole is I dunno but I sure am going to have a good look see.Check the map. In the field opposite the crossroads two more coal pits are marked.Nice work Mr Barfly I used to pass the spot on the bus to college every day and wondered what the hole was. It'll probably turn out to be only 6" deep and nothing special. I've managed to get Google Maps to work today so the hole can be seen here: http://goo.gl/maps/Cws3FThanks for the tip-off about the location of the Bell Pit remains -- I'll have to go up there in the next few days and check it out.Edit: Do you meant the field bordered by Knott Lane and Kirton Lane has two pits marked? If so then I think they are still visible in the aerial photographs on Google Maps: http://goo.gl/maps/KUSgt

[The Parksider]

BarFly wrote: The Parksider wrote: The 1893 map marks an old coal pit at the point, however it also marks an old sand pit too.Which your hole is I dunno but I sure am going to have a good look see.Check the map. In the field opposite the crossroads two more coal pits are marked.Nice work Mr Barfly I used to pass the spot on the bus to college every day and wondered what the hole was. It'll probably turn out to be only 6" deep and nothing special. I've managed to get Google Maps to work today so the hole can be seen here: http://goo.gl/maps/Cws3FThanks for the tip-off about the location of the Bell Pit remains -- I'll have to go up there in the next few days and check it out.Edit: Do you meant the field bordered by Knott Lane and Kirton Lane has two pits marked? If so then I think they are still visible in the aerial photographs on Google Maps: http://goo.gl/maps/KUSgt Your a genius Barfly - yes that's them!!!!That's how some look - the refilled pit is backfilled with rubble and so they appear as rough ground in an otherwise fertile field.Ar sturton they appear as round discolourations in the field, when ploughed the ground is black where the pits were and brown whre they weren't.The horsfirth one - go to the junction of lee land west and west end lane.Do you see the dog leg fence in the field opposite?The pit is along that fence in the second field under that clump of trees.