Hartcliff Folly
| Hartcliff Folly | |
|
Yorkshire | |
|---|---|
 Hartcliffe Folly | |
| Type: | Folly |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SE22400187 |
| Location: | 53°30’47"N, 1°39’49"W |
| History | |
| Built 1856 | |
| For: | Henry Richardson |
| Folly | |
| Information | |
The Hartcliff Folly (or Hartcliff Tower) is a stone structure a mile and a half south-west of Penistone in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The tower was built in 1856 by a linen merchant called Henry Richardson and stands at 1,175 feet above sea level.[1] Richardson also built Hartcliffe Lodge before becoming the first Mayor of the borough of Barnsley.
The tower may be a folly, built for no reason other than fancy or to demonstrate the builder's social and economic status, but it has an internal spiral staircase and some believe that it was used as a viewing platform for game shooting. Another idea is that it was used as a look out for Mr Richardson returning from Manchester on business.[2]
The furthest landmark visible from the tower is Hawkstone Park in Shropshire (60 miles away).
The Folly had fallen into disrepair but was restored in 2002 by Mr. Jeff Pears, upon whose land it is sited. He rebuilt it at his own expense as a gift to the community of Penistone. It has since occasionally been open to the public, such as on 1 August 2006 when Penistone hosted the ‘Yorkshire Day’ celebrations.[3]
Outside links
References
- ↑ Dransfield, John (1906). A History of the Parish of Penistone. Barnsley: J H Wood. p. 85. OCLC 559712540.
- ↑ "Penistone Essentials - Penistone | Welcome to Yorkshire". https://www.yorkshire.com/places/south-yorkshire/penistone/penistone-essentials. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- ↑ Clarke, Dave (16 June 2004). "Restored folly set for day of fund-raising" (in en). The Yorkshire Post. http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/restored-folly-set-for-day-of-fund-raising-1-2545452. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
