| More information : NZ 1855 5992. Old Hollinside (NR) (remains of) (NAT). (1)
Remains of Old Hollinside, possibly a 14th century building. There are traces of further building foundations to the north (east). Grade 1. (2)
The remains of Old Hollinside consist of a large rectangular building 16.0m east to west by 10.5m north to south with a tower at the west end of the north side. A similar tower, much fallen, appears at the
east end of the south wall. To the north east of the building is a partly submerged wall. (3)
NZ 185 599. Rectangular platforms (shown by hachuring) appear immediately east and south east of Old Hollinside and probably represent old foundations (4a). Air photographs show much disturbed ground in this area (4b). (4)
`Old Hollinside' is basically as described and photographed by authority 3. Attached to the north-east side are the turf-covered foundations of a stone-walled building and adjoining these at right angles the ruins of a sub-divided building about 11.0m north-west/south-east by 4.5m. These are most probably the `traces of further building foundations' referred to by authority 2 and are almost certainly later. Apart from these there are no other traces of buildings.
East and south-east of `Old Hollinside' are areas of disturbed ground, now much infilled by debris in an attempt at levelling and reclamation, but no traces of foundations etc mentioned by authority 4 are evident.
Published survey (1:2500) revised. (5)
10/121 Old Hollinside
1.2.50 I
Fortified Manor House. Possibly C13. Sandstone rubble; coursed square sandstone lower part. Quoins, larger in lower sections. Plan: hall with small chamber at south-west, larger chambers at south-east and north-east flanking entrance. Evidence of 2 storeys; 3 bays. East elevation: flat lintel and alternate block jambs to empty entrance under lintel, with rectangular window at first floor, recessed behind tall 2-centred arch under turret. Passage behind entrance may have contained stair. Small rectangular window at right of south-east chamber. South elevation shows 2 windows at ground floor and 1 at right with chamfered stone lintels and sills with irregular jambs. 2-light 2-centred-arched window at first floor west has plate tracery with vesica between light heads. North elevation has small rectangular window at ground floor and larger rectangular window at first floor; stone drain at right. Interior shows corbels in south wall above window level. North-east chamber has barrel vault running north south. Empty and roofless at time of survey. (6)
NZ 185 599. Old Hollinside Manor House. Scheduled No TW/35. (7)
NZ 1855 5992. Old Hollinside, a medieval fortified manor house, is situated on the crest of a steep slope overlooking the River Derwent. The remains comprise the shell of a fortified hall house with an attached L-shaped wing to the north-east, the latter being in a far more ruinous state than the main structure.
The hall house is oriented north-east to south-west along its long axis and measures 16m by 10.5m externally, with an additional 3.5m generated by a garderobe turret in its western corner. The majority of the external walls stand to a height of 6m, although on the south-eastern side they survive to a height of approximately 9-10m. All four elevations are constructed of roughly coursed sandstone blocks, with squared sandstone blocks above 1st floor level on the south-west and north-west sides. Abutting the eastern end of the south-west side is a buttress measuring 2.5m by 3.5m which is constructed of ashlar blocks with a rubble core. There are a number of window openings on each side including two corbels at 2nd floor level thought to have suppported an oriel window.
The main doorway into the basement level of the hall is on the south-east side, where it is set into a recess between two shallow projecting wings. The recess was later sub-divided by a screen wall to form a lobby in front of the original entrance. Above the main doorway is a hollow which is believed to have carried a coat of arms in stone, while the original doorway, inside the lobby, has a slightly pointed external arch and is square headed internally. A spring vault, which carried a tower, forms a porch between the two wings; the roofline of the tower can be seen on its south-west side.
In plan the hall can be divided into five parts: the lobby, a hall, a south wing, an east wing and the western turret. The hall is at 1st floor level and was reached by a flight of stairs which rose alongside the basement doorway and which were enclosed by the later screen wall of the lobby. The walls have some plaster on them. The first floor of the hall was carried on a set back running the entire length of the north-west wall and beam sockets, one in the north-west wall, four in the north-east wall and one in the south-west wall. The east wing has an incomplete vault basement, carrying the flags of the first floor.
Earthworks can be seen to the north-east, south-east and south-west of the hall house, and additional earthworks have been identified from the 1st edition 1:2500 OS map and from tithe maps. Those to the north-east include a remnant field boundary extending from the northern corner of the wing along the crest of the natural scarp and a length of bank extending from the northern corner of the upstanding remains of the wing and heading south-east. The latter is partially covered by building debris. There is a second bank to the south-east of the southern corner of the hall, which extends as far as the post and wire boundary fence which surrounds the ruins. The two banks correspond with earthworks shown on the 1st edition OS 1:2500 map, which shows a square enclosure of c.35m. On the south-east side of this enclosure was a gatehouse of c.20m by c.10m, which was the main access to the hall. The gatehouse is depicted as a roofed structure on Stephenson's 1767 tithe map and Fryer's 1803 tithe map. The 1767 map also shows an undefined structure to the north-east of the hall which is interpreted as a courtyard. The 1st edition OS map is annotated with 'foundations' in the area between Old Hollinside and Hollinside Farm. (8)
Little is known of the history of Old Hollinside. The site is first mentioned in 1317 when Thomas de Holiside granted the manor to William de Boineton of Newcastle. It soon passed into the possession of the Redheughs. In the 15th century it passed to the Hardings who were to hold it until around the beginning of the 18th century when the estate was united with the Bowes property of Gibside. The house then began a decline from manor house to tenanted farm to farm buildings to abandoned ruin. Lord Strathmore gave orders that the ruins were to be preserved c.1880. The monument was consolidated in the late 1970s and 1980s.
Antiquarian accounts do not clarify the date of the main building but local parallels suggest a mid to late 13th century date for the start of building works with additional work during the 14th century. (9)
NZ 1855 5992. The remains of Old Hollinside were visited by English Heritage field investigators in June 1999 as part of the National SAMs Survey Pilot Project. The hall house is as described by earlier authorities. The eastern arm of the L-shaped wing to the north-east of the main building survives to a height of about 2m and is built of sandstone blocks. Externally it measures 13m by 5m overall, but is divided into two rooms, both with entrances to the south. Re-used masonry can be seen in the walls of the structure, indicating that it has been partly rebuilt; how much of the rebuilding is historical and how much relates to the recent consolidation of the walls is unclear. To the north-east of the hall tower are fragmented earthworks which are probably the remains of the rest of the wing. Although these earthworks were evisible as turf-covered foundations at the time of authority 5's visit (and which are shown on the existing 1:2500 survey defining the angle of the wing) the earthworks no longer form such a coherent pattern. The installation of a public bench on the north-western side of this area, and the presence of a footpath seem to have destroyed some of the earthworks although it is possible that any slight features are obscured by the vegetation which grows freely on the ungrazed site. The vegetation may also obscure the earthworks described by authority 8 which were not located, with the possible exception of a broad scarp approximately 10m to the south-west of the hall. No other earthworks were observed outside the enclosure containing the hall and its seems that the earthworks previously noted to the south-east of the hall (authority 4) have been removed during agricultural improvement of the adjacent pasture field. The owner of Hollinside Farm, Mr Ford, says that potatoes were grown in the field about 30 years ago (c.1969) and that after that date the ground was levelled, partly using rubble.
1:2500 survey revised. (10)
Listed as a strong house by Cathcart King. (11)
The low structural remains of the Old Hollinsonside are visible on historical and more recent air photos. (12-13)
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