Monument record MDR6045 - Park Hall (site of?), Pilsley

The Deincourt family had a mansion here which remained in their possession till the extinction of the male line in 1422. (1) In 1867, the Clay Cross Coal & Iron Co., began to sink shafts at what is now known as Park House Colliery. The site is the summit of a small "bluff" with an abrupt western exposure, on the east bank of the Rother. Thick foundations and a roughly flagged floor were met with near the edge of the escarpment, and further foundations were seen on the west face of the hill. Bones and pottery fragments were unearthed when a trench was excavated. On two occasions axe heads were found, also a large number of oyster shells. Excavations for the foundations of an electrical plant, c. 1906, throughout the whole of a soft sub-soil to a depth of 12" - 15", yielded portions of antlers, jaw bones and teeth of deer, tusks of boar, and numerous unidentified bones, probably a midden at the back of the house. The field is Hall Field and the lane leading from the main road to Hall Gate Farm has been known from time immemorial as Hall Gate Lane. This is suggested to be the site of the home of the Deincourts, known as Park Hall or House. The manor of North Wingfield was one of several bestowed on Walter Deincourt, or de Ayncurt, by William the Conqueror. (2) The former existence of a large house in the area of Park House Colliery is well known in local tradition. It is said to have never been completed and to lack windows. Hence it was often called Blind Hall. When it was demolished the materials are said to have been used to build a range of houses in Parkhouse Road. [Identified as Nos. 59-77, Parkhouse Road, from Authy's description.] Two gate-pillars on this farm formed the gateway to the entrance drive. (3) There are no extant remains of Park House or Hall in the area of the colliery. A search of the colliery plans and records contemporary with the 1867 and 1906 finds revealed no reference to them. The gate-pillars - at SK 4121 6364 - are a pair of worked and moulded stone columns of probable 17/18th century date. They have capitals with a carving of a dog's head and fore-paws protruding from between the mouldings. A farm gate is placed between the pillars. The houses - a 19th century terrace at SK 4140 6393 - allegedly built from the stone of the house contain no obvious reused material. The pillars have been marked on the 25" AM survey. (4)