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<< Text Pages >> Bransdale Moor Stone Circle - Stone Circle in England in Yorkshire (North)

Submitted by Anonymous on Monday, 08 July 2002  Page Views: 16028

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Bransdale Moor Stone Circle
Country: England County: Yorkshire (North) Type: Stone Circle
Nearest Town: Great Ayton
Map Ref: SE604998  Landranger Map Number: 94
Latitude: 54.390109N  Longitude: 1.071362W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
 Destroyed Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
 no data Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
 no data Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
 3

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Alleged site of a stone circle, possibly destroyed by forestry work, although the siting is uncertain.

Have you visited this site? Can you confirm if this stone circle has been destroyed or if there are still signs of it in the plantation? Please contribute a description or any thoughts by adding a comment.
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Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
SE6099 : Badger Gill from Black Hill by Mick Garratt
by Mick Garratt
©2019(licence)
NZ6000 : Moorland View by Matthew Hatton
by Matthew Hatton
©2009(licence)
NZ6000 : Badger Gill by T Eyre
by T Eyre
©2015(licence)
SE6099 : The Edge Of Bransdale Moor Above Badger Gill by David Robinson
by David Robinson
©2022(licence)
SE5999 : Shooting Butts, Crook Staff Hill by Mick Garratt
by Mick Garratt
©2005(licence)

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 511m WSW 246° Crook Staff Hill* Round Barrow(s) (SE5993599584)
 624m N 5° Badger Stone (Todd Intake Moor)* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (NZ6044500423)
 1.2km SSW 199° Slape Wath Moor Waymarkers* Marker Stone (SE6002998645)
 1.3km ESE 112° High Plantation (Bransdale Moor)* Round Cairn (SE6165499324)
 1.6km WNW 295° High Cable Stone (Tripsdale)* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (NZ5896400446)
 1.6km WNW 289° Upper Tripsdale Earthwork* Misc. Earthwork (NZ5887500296)
 1.6km WNW 283° Low Cable Stone (Tripsdale)* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (NZ5878400147)
 1.7km S 171° Stump Cross (Bransdale Ridge)* Ancient Cross (SE6068698172)
 1.8km NNW 337° Face Stone (Urra Moor)* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NZ5968701442)
 1.8km WNW 291° Collar Ridge Marker Stone* Marker Stone (NZ5868400435)
 1.9km WNW 298° Collar Ridge Pillar Cairn* Cairn (NZ5866800700)
 2.0km NNW 331° Hand Stone (Urra Moor)* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NZ5942701513)
 2.0km NE 37° Rudland Rigg Guide Stone GS2* Marker Stone (NZ6161301430)
 2.0km NNW 332° Round Hill East* Round Barrow(s) (NZ59430159)
 2.0km NW 311° North Gill Head (Urra Moor)* Rock Art (NZ5884101119)
 2.1km S 173° Round Barrow 400m south of Stump Cross* Round Barrow(s) (SE6067997744)
 2.2km NW 326° Round Hill West* Cairn (NZ5913101602)
 2.2km E 86° Cammon Stone* Standing Stone (Menhir) (SE6263199980)
 2.4km S 174° Round Barrow 900m west of Colt House Farm* Round Barrow(s) (SE6069997426)
 2.5km WSW 243° Ship Stone (Tripsdale)* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (SE5822698640)
 2.6km NNE 17° Jenny Bradley Cross* Ancient Cross (NZ6112502309)
 2.8km S 175° Bransdale Ridge (Low Cornfield House)* Round Barrow(s) (SE6068997032)
 2.8km ESE 106° Cockan Cross* Ancient Cross (SE6311599071)
 2.8km WSW 257° Black Intake Stone (Nab End Moor)* Marker Stone (SE5766099122)
 3.0km S 174° Bransdale Ridge (Cowl House)* Round Barrow(s) (SE6073496810)
View more nearby sites and additional images

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"Bransdale Moor Stone Circle" | Login/Create an Account | 11 News and Comments
  
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Thursday, 10 December 2020
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I note with interest that this circle is listed on the North Yorkshire Moors National Park HER records as Monument No.2353. On their map they show the site of the circle at about SE 60449 99799 (SE 604 998). Their evidence for this stone circle is DOCUMENTRY only and probably relates to the documentation mentioned in my previous comments.
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Sunday, 30 August 2020
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Some information on Alfred P Wilson whose 1910 book ‘Yorkshire Moors and Dales’ is the original source information regarding this stone circle or possibly old sheep fold as he says in the book. He was born in Great Ayton in 1884 and wrote the book in 1910 whilst headmaster of the small school in Farndale and best as I can make out he and his family were living in Bransdale with his wife's mother at that time, so he would have known Bransdale quite well. He lost money on the book and ended up in the bankruptcy court in 1912.

He was enlisted (date not known) at Stokesley into the 4th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment during WWI and attained the rank of Colour Sergeant. He died of influenza during the pandemic of 1918 aged 34. He is buried in St Nicholas churchyard, Cockayne in Bransdale which is only about 1¼ miles to the south east of the alleged circle.

Now that I know he actually had lived in Bransdale and his wife was from there he will have known the area quite well, so when I read once again in the book where he says “A circle of stones quite close to the waterfall should also be noticed. It is termed by the dalesfolk a “Druid Circle” but it may be nothing more than an old sheepfold”. I get the distinct impression that he himself is actually the one who is sceptical that it’s a stone circle and thinks its an old sheepfold.

Source of information and more details about Alfred P Wilson can be found HERE.
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    Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Wednesday, 28 October 2020
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    As of October 2020 the link I provided above no longer works it goes to the 4th battalion Yorkshire Regiment website and says page not found. Further checking on the website gives the following information “The website is currently being updated and transferred to a new host, some features such as searching may be temporarily unavailable, please bear with us.” So whether the link is now lost for good, at the moment I do not know, nor can I at the moment find the original page.
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Tuesday, 28 August 2018
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Had a walk over to Bransdale Moor August Bank Holiday Saturday to have a closer look at the terrain this alleged stone circle is supposed to be in. I know from walking in the general area around and above it, that it is a steep side narrow gully/ ravine or gill as they are called in Yorkshire (its of Viking origin), which is the reason that I have always been sceptical about a stone circle been at the grid reference given. However to set my mind at rest I decided to go and see how accessible it was. So I approached from the north along the shooters track that according to the map splits at NZ 60586 00141, with one part going down to the plantation and the other part continuing around the west side of Bransdale Moor . Well it doesn’t any more and though you can make out the line in the heather where it used to go down to the plantation it is now knee deep. To all intents and purpose this part of the track no longer exists. Anyway working my way down I arrived at SE 60426 99900, the top of the plantation and about 100 yards from the top waterfall. The plantation has been cut down for several years now and the top end is now fenced off though not high and not with barbed wire, so it would have been easy enough to get over. The map shows a trail continuing from the track (which no longer exists) as it enters the plantation. Well the trail no longer exists either at least not at this point and as with all cut down plantations working ones way through would have been difficult to say the least. The original plan had been to go the short distance down the trail and see if I could work my way down to the top waterfall and asses the situation from there. However by North Yorkshire Moor standards this is a remote area and even though I was only about 100 yards from my objective I decided as I was on my own it was not sensible to proceed with the chance of stumbling and falling into the gill or whatever so I returned from whence I came. The waterfalls may be accessible if you approach from the south, I don’t know. The reason that I was heading for the top waterfall was to use it as a starting point. However on reflection, after seeing the terrain close up there would be no need to , the alleged stone circle is not going to be down in the gill. Wilson (1912) says the stone circle (or as he says possibly just an old sheepfold) is quite close to the waterfall not next to, so how close is quite close. Well I don’t think its going to be on the western side of the gill between where the waterfalls are because even when you are out of the gill the land still rises steeply. However on the eastern side where I was, once out of the gill the land is initially shallow rising, both within the plantation and the lower part of the moor so this would be a feasible area . This would be roughly between SE 60459 99809 and SE 60483 99715 from a point west to where the gill starts to a point east to how ever far you think quite close is. Personally though I still think its a wild goose chase and always have
I have uploaded a photo to the site page for the Crook Staff Hill Round Barrow taken from Bransdale Moor. This is a long distance shot which includes that part of the Gill where the waterfalls are located . It gives a good idea of the type of terrain in this area
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Saturday, 25 August 2018
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Further research indicates that the probable source for this site information by Anonymous is the 1976 book “The Stone Circles of the British Isles” by Aubrey Burl where it is listed on page 349 in the Gazetteer of Yorkshire Stone Circles as follows:
Bransdale Moor / (5) / SE 604998 / ? / ? / Wilson Yorkshire Moors and Dales (1912) 17.
(5) Means Uncertain Status, including misidentified sites and hybrid rings such as complex ring cairns. The first question mark means the size is not known, the second question mark means the architectural details are not known. Burl then quotes Wilson's book as his source.
Alfred P Wilson writes in 1910 on page 17 of his book talking about Bransdale “That part of the dale near the church goes by the name Cockan, which is also applied to the ridge above, and to one of the neighbouring gills. This gill is chiefly famous for a waterfall, which though small, is rather picturesque. A circle of stones quite close to the waterfall should also be noticed. It is termed by the dalesfolk a “Druid Circle” but it may be nothing more than an old sheepfold”. This then is the original source for the alleged stone circle. None of the gills in this area are actually called Cockan Gill either on old or modern OS maps and it may have been the local name for Badger Gill which has two waterfalls. The upper one at SE 60411 99804 and the lower one at SE 60432 99709 (grid references taken from map) Burl’s six figure reference given in the gazetteer puts it at the upper waterfall when in fact it could be at either of them if indeed this is Wilson’s Cockan Gill
This alleged stone circle is then, though listed as fragmentary or uncertain shown on Figure 32: Distribution of Beaker Pottery and Stone Circles page 80 in the volume “Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire' Vol. BAR 104, 1993” edited by D.A. Spratt. On page 90 of this volume the source is quoted as follows “Other possible circles listed by Burl (1976) are at Blakey Topping (SE 873934), Bransdale Moor (SE 604 998),Danby Rigg (NZ 708065) and Nab Ridge (SE 575979), the last being the “Bridestones”, fairly certainly a robbed out kerb as is the circle at Bransdale Moor”. Anyone reading this and nothing else about the alleged stone circle would be forgiven for accepting this as fact and that there is a stone circle on Bransdale Moor which is actually a robbed out barrow kerb. This is not the case as this is an uncertain site nobody has ever described it or measured it. The editor of the article D.A Spratt would have known that R.H.Hayes went looking for it in 1949 and found nothing and this looking at old maps was before the forest was planted. I can only surmise that the author / editor made this as a general observation because most of what were thought to be stone circles on the North Yorkshire Moors have turned out to be robbed out barrow kerbs. Actual stone circle are rare on the North Yorkshire Moors.
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Thursday, 02 August 2018
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Information for this alleged site of a stone circle is listed under Pastscape Monument No. 58916 Here Under the sub heading More Information and Sources it says that the alleged site of the stone circle is in area SE 604 998 near a waterfall. There are two waterfalls on this stretch of Badger Gill. The grid reference given puts the site near the upper waterfall. Intriguingly Pastscape Monument No. 1437331 Here also lists this site as a crash site for No.L1449 Blenheim Bomber on the 18th July 1941 it gives a ten figure grid reference SE 60399 99811 which equates to the six figure reference of the alleged stone circle SE 604 998. Much more information about this crash site can be found Here with photos of bits and pieces of wreckage , the waterfall and a description of the crash site

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    Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Saturday, 25 August 2018
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    The link for the crash site in the above comment box no longer shows photos of the waterfall etc within a week or so of me posting the link the author of the link has discovered that it was not No.L1449 Blenheim Bomber that crashed at the waterfall and is in the process of rewriting the information. Apparently something called the AIR81 casualty file became publicly available in August 2018 and this gives the location where the aircraft crashed and its nowhere near the waterfall
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Wednesday, 01 August 2018
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Error - For one reason or another the photos for the round cairn at High Plantation ( Bransdale Moor ) are showing up on this site. A site I don't believe even exists . It confuses the issue.
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    Re: Bransdale Moor by Anne T on Wednesday, 01 August 2018
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    Hi, John, Thanks for pointing this out. I've renamed this page to avoid any confusion with the High Plantation site. I've also changed its classification to a 'destroyed' site. Someone may have some information on this, although clicking on the Pastscape entry below, the circle hasn't been located since before 1949! As davidmorgan points out below, it might be worth deleting the page, although I think it's useful to still record these now obsolete locations - feel free to disagree.
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Re: Bransdale Moor by johndhunter on Friday, 08 June 2018
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I believe this entry posted by Anonymous in 2002 with no description or source references to be erroneous . The six figure reference given by Anonymous puts the circle on the side of a steep sided gully, not an obvious place for a stone circle . There is no other reference that I can find anywhere regarding this stone circle except this post by Anonymous . Nor do old OS maps show anything in this area .
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    Re: Bransdale Moor by davidmorgan on Saturday, 09 June 2018
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    "Alleged stone circle" and "Nothing resembling a stone circle could be located here" - Pastscape.

    So, yes, a fairly redundant site page.
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