Todmorden Hall

The sketch and description were originally published in The Halifax Courier in 1912-1913. Once in a secluded situation and surrounded by woods, but now hedged in by buildings and the railway. The hall itself has been scheduled in the 1913 L & Y Bill, and the site will sooner or later be utilised. It is a striking example of Elizabethan architecture, with its great spreading front, five vari-sized, pinnacle-capped gables, clusters of finely mullioned windows, overhanging sills and outside upright chimney. The earliest mention of the hall is probably 1503 and from then it was held by the Radcliffes until 1717. The present edifice is largely built round a very ancient home. The drawing room is remarkable for its fine oak panelling, and for a beautifully carved oak mantelpiece, undoubtedly of the time of Savile Radcliffe. The date 1603 is cut out in wood along the top of the mantelpiece. PH/28.