Duddon is a village and former
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
, now in the parish of
Duddon and Burton, in the unitary authority area of
Cheshire West and Chester
Cheshire West and Chester is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Cheshire, England. It was established on 1 April 2009 as part of the 2009 structural changes to l ...
and the ceremonial county of
Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...
, England. It is on the
A51 road and is east of the city of
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...
. 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
William Railton (1800–1877) 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.
Life
He was born in Clapham (then in Surrey) on 14 May 180 ...
. In 2011 the parish had a population of 655. The civil parish absorbed
Burton on 1 April 2015, and on 1 July 2017 the new parish was renamed to Duddon and Burton.
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 Hall, found hiding in a cellar there by
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...
'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" (three 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
Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...
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 other pieces of evidence that could reveal her actual presence. The pub was demolished in 2014.
See also
*
Listed buildings in Duddon
*
Duddon Old Hall
References
External links
Duddon and Burton Parish CouncilDuddon St. Peter's School Website
Villages in Cheshire
Former civil parishes in Cheshire
Cheshire West and Chester
{{Cheshire-geo-stub