Bebside Old Hall

Bebside Old Hall is the name given to an almost entirely vanished manor which was part of the liberty of Tynemouth. It was therefore a working estate which owed its dues to the priory. The site is now occupied by Bebside North Farm, formerly known as Bebside Hall, and traces of features interpreted as earthworks associated with the grange are to be found to the south of the farm – principally this is a rectangular depression about 10 metres by 30 which is considered to represent the moat. The Northumberland HER notes that there were depressions to the east and west of the farm as well, but they are not clearly visible on LIDAR imagery.

The hall itself was mentioned in 1264/65, but as a monastic grange it may not have been provided with a tower or a moat, although this would have been standard practice, and over time the grange was tenanted by laymen from the nobility, who may have chosen to erect something of the sort. By 1551 Ralph Fenwick was the tenant, and at the Reformation they were granted to the Ogle family, who were later to occupy the property into the 18th century, although they also founded Bebside Hall, which survives on the north side of the road. The first Ordnance Survey mislabelled the two properties.

Within the grounds of the farmhouse are two substantial wall fragments, and it is not known whether they represent remnants of the Old Hall, which was demolished in 1853, or other buildings which could include a folly-type structure. However another survivor which is more likely to represent old masonry is a length of walling to the south-east of the farm with an earthen bank inside and a shallow ditch outside. It is probable this was the boundary wall of the property – but could well be post Reformation. The description of the Old Hall from 1853 states that it was a large building, perhaps 30 metres by 13, with an earlier building measuring about 10 metres by 8, with notably thicker masonry, incorporated in the south-west range. Part if this wall may have been built into one of the farm buildings, as shown in the photograph. It is this description which drives the identification of the property as a hall-house, most likely a modest hall with solar tower. The surviving remnants (whatever their age) are in a private garden and cannot be accessed by the public

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