Duddon
Encyclopedia
Duddon is a small settlement in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester
and the ceremonial county of Cheshire
, England
. It is on the A51 road
and is 8 kilometres (5 mi) east of the town of Chester
. Local features include Duddon St. Peter's Church and St. Peter's Primary School. The church was erected in 1835 as a chapel of ease to the parish church at Tarvin
. It was built in the early English style at a cost of £603 to the designs of William Railton
.
, found hiding in a cellar there by Oliver Cromwell
's parliamentarian soldiers after the royalist owners had fled. They tortured her to force her to reveal where the family valuables were hidden and, when she would not tell them, beheaded her in the attic, dragged her body downstairs and dumped it off one of the "Roman Bridges" (a pair of medieval packhorse bridges on the River Gowy
, still standing today at the end of Platts Lane in Hockenhull
).
Legend has it that, 250 years following her beheading, the inn's owners, after researching the story, ascended to the attic to discover the bloodstains were still present where she had been killed. For nearly 300 years, her ghost has been reported to wander the roads about Duddon, visiting the local park and bridges, and has been seen returning to her place of execution at the Headless Woman pub. Local farmers have reported seeing her ghost walking through rows of maize. She reportedly carries her severed head beneath her arm. The most common sightings of her ghost have been at the Roman Bridges in Hockenhull. In 2009, a professional paranormal
investigation took place at the pub and bridges by local investigators to gather evidence of her ghost. With their instruments, they were able to detect unexplained sounds and many more mysterious pieces of evidence that could reveal her actual presence.
Cheshire West and Chester
Cheshire West and Chester is a unitary authority area with borough status, in the ceremonial county of Cheshire. It was established in April 2009 as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, by virtue of an order under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health...
and the ceremonial county of Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is on the A51 road
A51 road
The A51 is a road in England running from Kingsbury in Warwickshire to Chester. The road follows the following route:*Kingsbury*Tamworth*Lichfield*Rugeley *Little Haywood*Great Haywood*Weston*Sandon...
and is 8 kilometres (5 mi) east of the town of Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
. Local features include Duddon St. Peter's Church and St. Peter's Primary School. The church was erected in 1835 as a chapel of ease to the parish church at Tarvin
Tarvin
Tarvin is a village in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It had a population of 2,693 people at the 2001 UK census, and the ward covers about .-Location:...
. It was built in the early English style at a cost of £603 to the designs of William Railton
William Railton
William Railton was an English architect, best known as the designer of Nelson's Column. He was based in London with offices at 12 Regent Street for much of his career.He was a pupil of the London architect and surveyor William Inwood....
.
Legend of the "Headless Woman"
The name of the Headless Woman public house name recalls the local legend of Grace Trigg who died in about 1664. She was a servant at nearby Hockenhull HallHockenhull Hall
Hockenhull Hall is a mansion house to the southwest of the village of Tarvin, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. Hockenhull Hall dates from the 17th century but was completely remodelled about 1715 for Hugh Wishaw of Chester. ...
, found hiding in a cellar there by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
's parliamentarian soldiers after the royalist owners had fled. They tortured her to force her to reveal where the family valuables were hidden and, when she would not tell them, beheaded her in the attic, dragged her body downstairs and dumped it off one of the "Roman Bridges" (a pair of medieval packhorse bridges on the River Gowy
River Gowy
The River Gowy is a river in Cheshire, England and a tributary of the River Mersey.It rises in western Cheshire in the hills near Peckforton Castle, very close to the source of the River Weaver. While the Weaver flows south initially, the Gowy flows north and for several miles provides the valley...
, still standing today at the end of Platts Lane in Hockenhull
Hockenhull
Hockenhull is a civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire West and Chester and ceremonial county of Cheshire in England. It has a population of 19.-External links:...
).
Legend has it that, 250 years following her beheading, the inn's owners, after researching the story, ascended to the attic to discover the bloodstains were still present where she had been killed. For nearly 300 years, her ghost has been reported to wander the roads about Duddon, visiting the local park and bridges, and has been seen returning to her place of execution at the Headless Woman pub. Local farmers have reported seeing her ghost walking through rows of maize. She reportedly carries her severed head beneath her arm. The most common sightings of her ghost have been at the Roman Bridges in Hockenhull. In 2009, a professional paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
investigation took place at the pub and bridges by local investigators to gather evidence of her ghost. With their instruments, they were able to detect unexplained sounds and many more mysterious pieces of evidence that could reveal her actual presence.