Please note the Lanton Hill Memorial is on private land and there is no access to or near it without express permission.
If you're ever out walking at the top of the Northumberland National Park, then your eye may have been drawn to an obelisk just a bit further north. This curious little obelisk is the Lanton Hill Memorial, also simply known as Lanton Memorial or the Lanton Monument.
Now I absolutely love a little monument or ruin up a hill. Something you can see from a distance and is also a bit of an effort to get to. However when I was looking into the Lanton Hill Memorial, I found out that it's actually on private land. I am way too shy to ask someone to visit it so I parked this one and just admired it from a distance.
But every time I was up near Wooler it was constantly teasing me from afar, so I decided to swallow my shyness and drop an email to the Lanton Estate to see if it was possible to visit it. The lovely people there said it was absolutely fine, even telling me where to park and the best route to get to it.
So I waited for a nice sunny day and then headed up. Boy I was not disappointed. This fabulous 8m high obelisk sits on the edge of Lanton Hill with amazing views over Yeavering Bell and Humbleton Hill.
There is a fence just in front of the obelisk so you can't get right up to it, fortunately I brought Red5 to get a closer look.
We found out that the obelisk was erected in 1827 by Alexander Davison in memory of his brother, John Davison of Lanton.
As you can see a plaque was added by Alexander's son, Sir William Davison, to commemorate Alexander himself.
The plaque is pretty worn, but we found out that it says:
"This tablet Dedicated by Sir Wm. Davison of Lanton, Knight of the Illustrious Guelphic Order of Hanover. To the memory of his much beloved and lamented father Alexander Davison Esquire of Swarland Park whose private virtues endeared him to his.....and whose Distinguished......in Public service..... Died sincerely lamented December 19th 1828 aged 80 years."
Source: Historic England
This addition transformed the monument into a dual commemoration, honouring both John and Alexander Davison.
We also read that the Lanton Memorial uses dressed whinstone for the main structure and sandstone ashlar for the plinth and quoins.
As you see from the images the obelisk sits in a circular surround with a little nearby furrow. We couldn't find much info about either of them.
It may have been that the circular surround was part of the monument's design, creating a decorative edge. This area is a hot bed for agriculture so the furrow could be related to that. However we also have a canny few settlements and hillforts up here, so it could have links to that too.
Alexander Davison was a government contractor and a close friend of Admiral Lord Nelson and we know he loves an obelisk as he erected another one at Swarland called the Nelson's Obelisk in honour of his pal.
Another big thank you to the lovely people at the Lanton Estate for giving us permission to head up and visit the Lanton Hill Memorial which was an absolute smasher.
If you fancy a visit to the obelisk then why not consider a stay in the holiday accommodation at Crookhouse. This gives you permission to wander around the Lanton Estate and also up to the memorial.
It's a perfect place to explore and walk around the Cheviots too. Head over to www.crookhouse.com for more information.