The Hitching Stone Explained

The Hitching Stone
Coordinates:53.8715°N -2.0218°W
Gbgridref:SD9841
Location:Earl Crag, Yorkshire
Nearest City:Bradford

The Hitching Stone is a gritstone erratic block on Keighley Moor, North Yorkshire, near Earl Crag and the village of Cowling.[1] [2] [3] [4] It is very close to the border between North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire and the border between Yorkshire and Lancashire.[5]

It is said to be the largest boulder in Yorkshire at 29abbr=offNaNabbr=off long, 25abbr=offNaNabbr=off wide and 21abbr=offNaNabbr=off high.[6] It is also said to weigh a lot more than 1000 tonnes.

Geography

The Hitching Stone is 5miles from the town of Keighley and is at an elevation of 1200feet.[7]

History

The Hitching Stone and all the other erratic boulders on Keighley Moor were put in place thousands to possibly millions of years ago during the Pleistocene Epoch.[8] The Hitching Stone most likely originally came from Earl Crag during this time. As a result of the fact that The Hitching Stone lies at the borders of historic counties, ancient councils and parliaments met at the stone and markets, fairs, and other gatherings were also held at the stone, with the last fair being held in 1870.[9]

See also

References

  1. Web site: The Hitching Stone. www.ukclimbing.com. en. 2018-06-02.
  2. Web site: Hitching Stone. Map. The Megalithic Portal and Megalith. The Megalithic Portal. 2018-06-02.
  3. News: Hitching Stone, Near Cowling, West Yorkshire. 2016-06-07. The Journal Of Antiquities. 2018-06-03. en-US.
  4. Web site: The Earl Crag Monuments. Jarratt. Jim. Ivory Towers and Dressed Stones.
  5. News: Winter Hill Stone, Keighley Moor, West Yorkshire. 2014-09-14. The Journal Of Antiquities. 2018-06-03. en-US.
  6. Web site: On the Bradford District's Western Boundary. www.bradfordhistorical.org.uk. 2018-06-02.
  7. Book: Keighley, past and present: or, An historical, topographical and statistical sketch of the town, parish and environs of Keighley, including Riddlesden, Marley, Hainworth, and some other places in the contiguous parish of Bingley; likewise an account of the ancient families which have flourished therein, with a brief memoir of the Rev. Theodore Dury, M.A., late rector of Keighley.. Keighley. William. Holmes. Robert. Arthur Hall, Virtue & Company. 1858. Keighley (England). 127. at an elevation of 1,200 feet, and upwards of five miles from the town, stands an isolated and ponderous mass of coarse grit, called the ‘Hitching Stone,’.
  8. Web site: Pleistocene - History of Earth's climate. Hansen. Bent. www.dandebat.dk. 2018-06-03.
  9. Book: Paul., Bennett. The old stones of Elmet. 2003. Capall Bann Publishing. 9781861631343. Somerset. 961022287.

Further reading

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