Church of St Michael and All Angels, Felton

The Church of St Michael and All Angels is a parish church located on Riverside in Felton, Northumberland, England. Built circa 1200, its many alterations and additions have caused it to be almost encased within another church. Some unusual features are that the nave and an aisle appear roofless, as well as a window with geometrical tracery that features an eight-petalled flower patterned central circle cut from a single stone. Dedicated to Saint Michael, it is a Grade I listed building.

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Thirston House

Thirston House sits in its own grounds, on a hill above the River Coquet, in the village of West Thirston in the old parish of Felton in Northumberland, United Kingdom. In 1904 it was recorded that Thirston House 'has recently been sold by Mr. T. W. Smith to Mr. Edward Newton of Newcastle'. The house, with its attached buildings and courtyard wall, is listed on the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II Listed Building. The listing dates from 1969. The website for Historic England records that the house was built around 1820 by John Dobson for the Newton family. It describes the front of the house as built of ashlar with two storeys, four bays, and with 12-pane sash windows. The front also has a central Tuscan porch, with panelled double doors, in front of which is a raised platform reached by three steps. The porch was glazed in 1902 when the interior of the house was altered and remodelled. The entrance hall and open stair well were panelled and decorative plaster ceilings added. The website also describes the rear wing and the outbuildings. The rear wing is built of squared stone, with a grey slate roof, and set back from the front of the house. It has four irregular bays. The first three bays had a first floor added in 1902. This with the outbuildings form an L shape and with the stable wing enclose three sides of the rear courtyard. A yard wall, with square gate piers, links to the end of the stable wing. At the back of the stable wing is a boarded loading door with a re-used stone lintel inscribed TD 1728. The house is also mentioned in several publications including the revised Pevsner's The Buildings of England: Northumberland in 1992, Henry Dobson's book on John Dobson in 2000, and Faulkner and Greg's book on John Dobson in 2001. Pevsner describes the house in three lines and states that it 'is said to be an early work of Dobson' and that it was remodelled in 1902. In Henry Dobson's book are three black and white photographs of the house, from different viewpoints, and a close-up photo of the Tuscan porch. Dobson also states that 'the sections of the east side of the house, to the right and left of the three bay (central) porch, are clearly of different periods'. He also repeats the information that the house was built about 1820 for the Newton family. There is no mention of the house in Faulkner and Greg's chapter on 'Country Houses, Greek and Gothic, 1820-1862'. It is merely listed in a 'Catalogue of Works by John Dobson', at the end of their book, and is described as 'classical house for Newton family, incorporating some earlier work, c.1820'. John Dobson was a 19th century architect with a distinctive style, well known in the north of England. He is probably best known for designing Central Station in Newcastle upon Tyne, and his work with Richard Grainger in redesigning Newcastle city centre in the Neo-classical style. He built, enlarged and altered hundreds of churches, public buildings and mansion houses during his career, and as Faulkner and Greg state, he built Thirston House in a classical style onto an earlier building. As it was recorded in 1904 that Thirston House had recently been sold by Mr. T. W. Smith to Mr. Edward Newton, it could not have been the Newton family who commissioned its building or enlargement in 1820.

Historic Site Landmark

Felton, Northumberland

Felton is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, North East England, 8.9 miles (14 km) south of Alnwick and 12 miles (19 km) north of Morpeth. The nearest city, Newcastle upon Tyne, is 24 miles (39 km) south of the village, and the Scottish border is 37 miles (60 km) north of it. At the 2011 census, the parish had a population of 1531. There are two bridges crossing the River Coquet. The older stone bridge dates to around the 15th century, while the newer concrete bridge was built in 1926. The older bridge is closed to traffic, and is often used for village events including wassailing at Christmas. St Michael and All Angels church to the west of the village is a Grade I listed building.

Bridge Church

1.9 km

Eshott Airfield

Eshott Airfield is a general aviation airfield in the civil parish of Thirston, in the county of Northumberland, England, 20 miles (32 km) north of Newcastle, and midway between Morpeth and Alnwick. It is a former Second World War Royal Air Force (RAF) station and is also known as Bockenfield Aerodrome.

Airport Landmark

Nelson Memorial, Swarland

The Nelson Memorial, Swarland is a white freestone obelisk at Swarland in north Northumberland, England. Erected in 1807, two years after the death of Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, victor of the Battle of Trafalgar, it was placed by his friend and sometime agent, Alexander Davison, who owned an estate centred on the now demolished Swarland Hall. It is a Grade II listed monument. This relatively obscure memorial stands by the old A1 (the great road between Morpeth and Alnwick, according to an 1868 gazetteer). Davison made his fortune in the late 18th century after travelling to Quebec, where he met and became a friend of the 24-year-old Nelson, who was commanding HMS Albemarle, which was docked at Quebec City during the War of American Independence. Later in life, Nelson engaged Davison as an agent to represent him at naval tribunals dealing with the distribution of the spoils of battle. The obelisk is not the only Nelson memorial at Swarland. A line of trees on the estate represents the Nile delta, whilst other groups of trees represent the positions of French and British ships engaged in the Battle of the Nile. There are three inscriptions on the monument; from top to bottom: England expects every man to do his duty Victory 21 October 1805 (the date referring to the Battle of Trafalgar) Not to Commemorate the Public Virtues and Heroic Achievements of Nelson, which is the duty of England; But to the Memory of Private Friendship, this erection is dedicated by Alexander Davison, Swarland Hall The erection of the memorial arguably represented the zenith of Davison's social standing; he was imprisoned for a year for fraud in 1808, and never recovered his position. In contemporary times, the memorial has become obscure since the course of the road changed when the A1 passing Swarland was converted to a dual carriageway. Davison's obelisk lies on the old A1, used only by local traffic, hidden from the main road by a stand of trees. Carved onto the face of the obelisk are two Ordnance Survey bench marks, and on the south side is Ordnance Survey flush bracket number 1973. Maps indicate the height of the flush bracket as 117 metres above sea level. The stonemason's name is carved on the top of the plinth on the north side. The monument and site was restored by the local authorities, and a plaque erected, in about 2003.

Historic Site Landmark