Dog Hole Cave Explained

Dog Hole
Other Name:Haverbrack Bank Pot
Photo Width:240
Map:Cumbria
Location:Storth, Cumbria, England
Coords:54.2149°N -2.7943°W
Grid Ref Uk:SD 4826 8019
Depth:12m (39feet)[1]
Length:6m (20feet)
Elevation:60m (200feet)
Geology:Carboniferous limestone[2]
Entrance Count:1
Difficulty:II

Dog Hole Cave is an archaeologically significant cave near Storth, Cumbria, England.[3] Other names for the cave include Haverbrack Bank Pot,[4] Haverbrack Dog Hole,[5] Fairy Cave, The Dog Hole, and Doghole Cave.[6] It consists of a largely excavated 12m (39feet) shaft formed in Carboniferous limestone with 6m (20feet) of steeply dipping phreatic tube at the bottom.

It was originally excavated by J. W. ("Wilfred") Jackson in 1912. Further excavation was carried out by local scouts in the 1950s, and by researchers from Liverpool John Moores University in 2003, and in 2009 it was reported that "subsequent renewed caving activity has revealed more archaeology". Jackson found domestic animal bones (dogs, pigs) some of which are in the Natural History Museum, and the scouts also found human bones. The cave was gated in the 1980s to protect the archaeology, but inspection in 2003 showed that this had been destroyed.

Radio carbon dating of the deposits have provided dates ranging from Romano-British to Early Medieval.

Notes and References

  1. Book: Brook, Dave. Northern Caves Volume 3. The Three Counties System and the North West. 1994. Dalesman Publishing Company Ltd.. Skipton. 1855680831. 271.
  2. Web site: Morecambe Bay Natural Area profile. https://web.archive.org/web/20090206125217/http://www.naturalareas.naturalengland.org.uk/Science/natural/profiles/naProfile118.pdf. dead. 6 February 2009. Natural England. 30 December 2013.
  3. Web site: Wilkinson. David M.. A tale of two caves: the history of archaeological exploration at Haverbrack and Helsfell in southern Cumbria. https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20070824082147/http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/BIE/Cave_history.pdf. dead. 24 August 2007. 16 October 2011. Hannah J. O'Regan. Tom Clare. 2005.
  4. Web site: The Dog Hole. Geograph. 16 October 2011., quoting "Underground in Furness, Eric G. Holland 1967"
  5. Newton. Jim. Haverbrack Dog Hole. Red Rose Caving and Pothole Club Newsletter. November 2005. 42. 2. 16 October 2011.
  6. Web site: Doghole Cave, Haverbrack. O'Regan. Hannah. Liverpool John Moores University, Fossil Mammal Research Group. 16 October 2011. 2009. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20111028172238/http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/RCEAP/81121.htm. 28 October 2011.