This page is based on the notes of Robert Hamnett, originally published as an article in the Glossop Advertiser in 1913.
Gamesley was part of the Hamlet of Charlesworth – a full history of the Hamlet of Charlesworth by Robert Hamnett
The Hamlet of Charlesworth contains many small ancient settlements. Gamesley is one of them, the oldest houses being at Gamesley Fold. The Harrisons, Thornleys and Coopers have been here for generations. Samuel Cooper, who died May 19th, 1883, aged 82, was father, grandfather and great grandfather to 147 persons. Ann, his wife, died March 8th 1839(?) aged 80.
In 1795 John Loton built three houses at Gamesley Bridge. One of them was afterwards Robert Marsden’s beerhouse. Where Gamesley House is, there once stood an old white cottage, kept by Roger Dumphy. At the rear were his pleasure gardens, which were well patronised by Glossop courters, because they could sit in the garden, quench their thirst with something stronger than pop, watch the bees, admire the flowers, and whisper those sweet things to each other which, I believe, are customary on these occasions. Cottage Lane was so named in remembrance of the Cottage.
In 1660 the modern portion of Gamesley was a moor, and let to several of the local farmers at a nominal rental for pasturage.
The Magnet Inn was built by Hugh Ollerenshaw, and was very handy for railway travellers when the present goods station was the old Dinting passenger station. The first train from Manchester to this station was run on the 24th December, 1842. The station was discontinued as a passenger station when the line was opened to Woodhead. Many attempts have been made to get it again as a passenger station, without success.
Nursery Brow was once the scene of a highway robbery. On the 24th December, 1859, Ellen Atkinson, a travelling hawker from Marple Bridge, was waylaid by four men, robbed, and severely treated.
Between Gamesley Fold and Bankwood Gate is a hollow named Glory Hole. When it was unlawful for Nonconformists to worship in public, the Glory Hole was one of the local places where they secretly met for worship. Of course scouts were placed out to give warning of the approach of anyone not friendly to the worshippers. It is rather singular, but only a short distance from the Glory Hole, in Long Lane was formerly a chapel, built in 1836, by reason of the persecution of the Wesleyan Methodists in Broadbottom, by one of the mill owners. In time however, death removed the opposition; the Broadbottom Wesleyan Chapel was built, and the Long Lane Chapel sold and converted into cottages.
Melandra Castle
Undoubtedly the Britons would offer fight to the Romans, but would not leave their fort at Mouselow, and the finding of British querns at Melandra Castle is evidence that such was the case. The querns would be in the fort and taken and used by the Romans until they were worn out, when they were used for filling up the wall, where we found them, and they are now amongst other Roman relics in the Glossop Museum at the Victoria Hall.
The exact date when Melandra Castle became a Roman fort is not known; it has generally been assumed that it was built during the period A.D. 78-84, when Julius Agricola was the Roman Governor of Britain, but I am strongly of the opinion that it is earlier. My reasons are that the Romans discovered and worked the Blue John Mine at Castleton. Mr. Royce, the proprietor, has shown me where the Romans first worked the mine, and it is a peculiar feature of the mine that each vein of the fluorspar differs in the diversity of its colours. Now Pompeii was destroyed in the year A.D. 79, and in the course of the excavations of the buried city, two vases have been found made of fluorspar that has evidently come from the Blue John Mine. The Romans must therefore have settled down at Melandra and Brough before the year 79.
The Romans must have been at Brough for some time before the mine was discovered, and after the vases were made it would take quite a time to find their way to Pompeii, and there is no telling how long the owner might have had them in his possession, before the fatal eruption.
Again we know that Ostorious Scapula, the Roman Governor of Britain, in A.D. 50 defeated the united forces of the Brigantes, Cangii and Silures, when Caractacus the King of the Silures was captured and sent as a prisoner to Rome. The Brigantes were the tribe of Britons who occupied Mouselow Castle and other British forts on the Pennine Range. The Roman Fort was placed at Melandra Castle to keep them in check in this part of the country.
The site is typical of most other Roman forts. It is situated on slightly elevated ground, and at the junction of the River Etherow and the Glossop Brook. By this means the garrison was always assured of a plentiful supply of fresh water, fish, and salmon when in season. The rivers were also near at hand for the soldiers to practice swimming, which was part of their military training. The river also formed a natural defence on two sides of the fort, aided also by the steep ascent from the river to the fosse of the fort. The rounded corners of the fort and the absence of barbicans at the gates and intermediate towers are a feature of all early Roman forts. In the first century the Romans depended for defence mainly on the strength of their garrisons and not on the strength of their forts. In later times, intermediate towers were erected between each gateway and the corner observation towers, also a barbican on each side of each gateway. When the Roman officer decided that a fort must be established at Melandra, the fort was staked out, according to the general plan adopted by all detachments of troops. One portion was set to dig out the fosse to the usual depth and width, whilst others cut down the timber required for the soldiers huts, residences of the officers, and other necessary buildings, also for the gates and sharp pointed stakes for the inner slope of the fosse. In the Praetorium, and at the northern gate, still remain the oak posts and a fragment of the gate.
The Romans must have been a considerable time at Melandra Castle before they rebuilt it of stone because when I found the old gate stumps I found that the tops had evidently been cut off to the level of the original road, and another road constructed over them, thus preserving these interesting relics. One of the praetorium posts was dug up, and is on top of one of the cases at the Glossop Museum. The earth excavated from the fosse was cast inwards and formed the rampart. When the stone wall was built the rampart was cut down perpendicularly, and the space to the outer face of the wall was filled with unhewn stones, British Querns etc.
A Roman soldier’s iron signet ring, intaglio of glass, was found among the debris of the wall. The owner had evidently met with an accident during the building of the wall. The design of the seal is a ram. I found on one of the roads an intaglio that had been lost out of a ring, it was also of glass, the design being the Sphinx-a design that was first used by the Emperor Augustus.
The foundation of the wall are gritstone flags, resting on boulders embedded in the clay, the first course of pick dressed stones being set back a few inches. The height of the walls can only be conjectured, but would be at least shoulders high above the rampart, and no doubt castellated to protect the soldiers. The rampart at the top would be sufficiently wide to allow the sentries to pass. At each of the four corners was a tower with the outer face rounded, the entrance probably being from the rampart, as we found no trace of an entrance from the level of the interior of the fort. This would enable the lower room to be used to be used as prisons or store rooms, the sentries being responsible for the safe custody of their contents.
The gateways were double, a portcullis in front. In the recesses between the entrances stood the sentries, a small guard room being in one of the lower rooms. Over the centre of the outer arch was an inscribed stone. Fortunately we have one in the museum, which was found by old “Sammy Cooper,” of Lower Gamesley, when he was digging out stone to build himself a house. It is a centurial stone, and transcribed, informs us that a centurion named Valerius Vitalis was in command of a detachment of Frisians, auxiliary troops to the 20th Legion, who were one of the Legions to invade Britain, and whose headquarters were at Chester, the Roman Deva. One inscribed stone was found and built in the river wall near to the Hague Bridge. A portion of another one was in the possession of Capt. Hollingworth of Hollingworth Hall, but all trace of it is lost. I am in hopes that we shall yet find the remainder, which will tell us who the Emperor was when the wall, towers and entrances were built.
Between the Porta Principalis Dextra and the Porta Principalis Sinistra was a gravelled road called the Via Principalis. Some of the boulder curb stones are still in situ. This road divided the fort into two unequal parts, the southerly part, and the smallest, being the part containing the Praetorium, granary, and Altars. The other portion contained the soldiers huts, streets, and workshops.
The residence of the officers contained three lower rooms, how many above, no one knows. The centre one we found had a floor of broken tiles, the other two of hard beaten clay. Just outside the North wall of the centre room I found the foundation of a platform where the officer could stand and orate to the soldiers, or the Governor of the district could address the chiefs of the district.
The court yard of the Praetorium was, I take it, the first market place in Glossop. The Romans before leaving generally buried their Altars; I was fortunate to discover the crown of one. Canon E.L. Hicks, M.A., was of an opinion that the Altar related to the worship of Mithras.
The floor of the granary was paved with square tiles, and had been repaired with roofing tiles. One had been broken in two, but we found both parts, so we have a complete Roman roof tile, showing the square hole for the nail to fasten it, and the flanges, showing how the ends overlapped each other. The tiles were heavy, cool in summer, and warm in winter. The tiles were evidently made from local clay. We have floor tiles, wall tiles, and fragments of hypocaust tiles. Some of them have the letter R on them, some VV, which is an abbreviation of Valiant and Victorious, the motto of the 20th Legion. Some of the tiles show the footprints of animals, who have trodden on them before the tiles were baked.
The corn mill is an interesting feature of the fort. We found several of the lower portions of the Roman Querns just as the Romans left them. They were embedded in clay with small boulders placed round them. It was one of the duties of the Mess Orderly to grind the corn issued for mess. Of course the corn mill would be roofed over, if it was only to keep the grain from getting wet. We have a nice collection of these Roman corn mills. One of them is interesting; it is made of lava stone from the quarries at Audenach in Germany, where they are still making them. These querns were light in weight, and could be carried on the march without unduly inconveniencing the carrier. The soldiers’ huts had floors of baked clay. The floors must have been made first, and then the corner oak posts driven into position. We have found some of them. Layers of charcoal were laid down, the clay put on the top and levelled, and then the charcoal was lit and baked the clay hard.
The floors are almost like tiles. Near one of these huts was found a lead dice, another one was found in the wall of a building outside the northern gateway. The Roman soldiers were evidently gamblers.
The ovens are plentiful, and were very simply made. Stones were placed in a circle, leaving an opening for the door, fire clay was then placed on the bottom, willows or some other suitable material were then stuck in the ground; and a beehive shaped construction was plaited; this was plastered over with clay, a charcoal fire was then made inside, and by the time the willows were burned through the clay was sufficiently hardened to retain its shape.
We frequently find near these ovens two whet stones, one coarse, and the other fine grained. They are very interesting, as they show the marks made when knives or weapons were sharpened on them. The coins found were, as may be naturally expected, found all over the fort. The coins found and identified with certainty are: Silver Denarius, Emperor Galba, A.D. 69; Silver Denarius, Emperor Domitian, A.D. 95-6; Silver Denarius, Emperor Trajan, A.D. 100; another one A.D. 109; Bronze Denarius, Carausius, A.D. 286-293; Bronze Magnus Maximus, A.D. 383-388 (bronze coin of a Jewish ruler of Jerusalem, Simon Bar-Cohab, A.D. 132-135. This is one of the most interesting in the collection, as Bar-Cohab revolted against the Romans); six Bronze ……….dius of uncertain date, but supposed to be of the time of Emperors Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Constantine. All these are in the Museum, as well as a Bronze Denarius, Emperor Posthumus, A.D. 259, found in the Hague, and a copy of a Silver Denarius, Emperor Alexander Severus, A.D. 231-235, found in Bank Street Hadfield. Many coins of this Emperor and the Empress Julia were found in 1838 at Hooley Wood Quarry, Padfield, but are now lost sight of. Copies of some of them are in the Warrington Museum. The dates of the coins are evidence of a lengthened Roman occupation of this district. A valuable collection of Keltic and Roman weights of bronze and lead have been found in the fort, and have proved to be very interesting and important, as they have enabled antiquarians to clear up some doubtful points.
The weights are mostly of lead, and consist of trade and coin weights. They are most curiously marked, and no one should visit the Museum without noticing them. The lead found is very pure, and must have been very plentiful, for we find scraps that have evidently been thrown away before the Romans would be at the trouble of remelting, though I did find one lump, weighing over 16 lbs., at the bottom of a furnace. The sheet lead shows the nail holes where it had been nailed to the roof. The iron nails are mostly much corroded with rust. We have a few iron spear heads, a hatchet, and other objects of unknown use. The soil at Melandra preserves the glass. We find it in the same condition as when fresh from the maker. The window glass is very hard and evidently cast in moulds, probably to standard sizes. The fragments of square glass bottles have the common reeded pattern of handles. In some of the larger ones it was customary to preserve the ashes of the cremated dead. A fragment of a purple glass bowl is identical in every respect to one found at Silchester, and now in the Reading Museum.
Another interesting fragment of glass has two lines engraved round it showing that the art of engraving on glass was well known to the Romans. In the ash pits are found most of the fragments of pottery. The Terra Sigillata ware, commonly called Samian ware, is found generally in poor condition, the glaze having been injured or destroyed by the Melandra soil. The Samian bowls are much like those found at Pompeii, and are believed to have been made in France. Many of the fragments are ornamented, and some bear the maker’s name. There are also a few fragments of Castor ware, made in Northamptonshire. A large quantity of black ware known as Upchurch ware, has been found; it can be easily identified, as it is mostly ornamented with diagonal lines forming a kind of net pattern. They were mostly cooking pots. Grey ware is also plentiful. In the red ware we have tops of bottles with double spouts, strainers for wine straining, and a mortaria for triterating vegetables or herbs.
A model of a clay horse, with a loose saddle, is the only one known in existence. I thought when I found part of it that it was only a fragment of a tile, until I cleaned it. I sought for hours until I found the remaining portions, and am glad that I did so. There are also some button shaped discs of glass that I think were used as counters in some game. There is a lamp holder made of lead, which is worth noticing. Beads made of a vitreous paste were worn by the Roman soldiers.
The Roman remains in the Museum were found by myself. Messrs John Joseph Booth, Sydney Mellor, and the late William Russell, and lately by the Rev Henry Lawrance, who is now the most active amongst the honorary workers. The site can be seen any day by appointment, and the Museum, free during the time the Library is open.
It has not yet been discovered what the Roman name for Melandra Castle really was. Mr W Thompson Watkin is of opinion that it is Zedrotalia, but his suggestion has not been accepted by recognised authorities on Romano-British history.
There is evidence that the fort was destroyed by fire, many of the stones bear signs of having been subjected to intense heat, and we have found charcoal close to the inner walls of the three rooms in the Praetorium and other places. It is a well known historical fact that the Picts and Scots came over the Roman Wall in the north, burning and looting, and slaying on their victorious way, and even got as far as and looted London. Melandra would be on one of their routes, and could scarcely escape the fate of other forts. It was probably at that period, A.D. 367, that the Romano-British inhabitants took shelter in such places as Poole’s Cavern, Burbage, for there has been found many undoubted remains of these people. The stone used in the building of the fort came from Hargate Hill Quarry, and a very good specimen of the Roman road from Melandra to the Quarry can be traversed by going along the foot road from just beyond Gamesley Bridge to Hargate Hill. Mr John Ward F.S.A., and I went over it, and Mr Ward at once recognised it as a Roman road.
The Rev Mr Watson, Rector of Stockport, was the first person to recognise Melandra Castle as a Roman Fort. When he visited the site in July, 1771, Mr Watson states that the country people called the interior the ‘Castleyard’, and eleven fields adjoining the ‘Castle Carrs.’
The Glossop Antiquarian Society are sadly in want of funds to complete the excavations, which have revealed many important points in reference to such places. The book, ‘Melandra Castle?’ published in 1906, by the Manchester Classical Association, should be in every local library, both public and private. Professor w Boyd Dawkins D. Sc., F.R.S.; Professor F Haverfield, M.A., L.L.D.; Professor Ridgeway, and many other eminent authorities consider that it is a pity that the County gentry of Derbyshire do not give sufficient financial aid for the completion of the excavations.