Brackenhall Circle

Also known as:
Soldier's Trench
Nearest town:
Bingley (2km WSW)
OS reference:
SE131391
OS sheet:
104
Latitude:
53° 50' 51.61 N
Longitude:
1° 48' 3.09 W
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Brackenhall Circle

Kozmik_Ken
Kozmik_Ken Apr 23, 2004

Situated above Shipley Glen and overlooked by rock art on Baildon Moor to the north and east, this sad little circle lies near the road which destroyed a section of its northern end. It’s hard to distinguish amongst the rock scatter and fallen stones, but a couple of (largely reconstructed) double arc settings give it away.

Miscellaneous

Brackenhall Circle
Stone Circle
Rhiannon
Rhiannon Dec 22, 2024

For many years what remained of the stone circle called the Soldiers Trench on Brackenhall Green, Shipley Glen, had been difficult to find with the result that the tens of thousands of visitors who annually pass that way were ignorant of this interesting prehistoric relic. When the Bradford Corporation Parks Department demolished a large rockery nearby in the autumn of 1952 it was suggested that the boulders from it be placed around the circle in such a way that it would become apparent to anyone. A full report on the project would be published in due course, so that no one could be in any doubt as to which boulders formed part of the original circle and which were the subsequent additions.

The late Mr W.P. Winter had told Mr Sidney Jackson in the 1930s that the rockery in question had been made from boulders taken from the circle, but as it was not known from which particular spot each one was taken it was obvious that to replace them on the line of the actual circle would only lead to confusion, and it was therefore decided to construct a false circle around what remained of the original at a distance of three to four feet.

The local archaeology group moved the stones into position (juniors dug the holes, men moved the stones, and the ladies backfilled the earth and replaced the turf, division of labour you see).

Info found in the ‘Shipley Times and Express’ for 15th September 1954.

Sites within 20km of Brackenhall Circle

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