Section 15 of the Trans-Pennine 100 finds the route through Pilley and Tankersley.

Passing Tankersley church and the old (Kes) hall along Black Lane. The route goes under the M1 and enters Harley.

Finding the charming village of Wentworth via Spittal Houses the checkpoint can be found at the Wentworth Cricket Pavillion .

• Tankeresleia was an 1000 acre Lordship and was held prior to the Norman Conquest by Ledwin; a Saxon Lord.  William the Conqueror deprived Ledwin of his Lands, and gave the land to Earl Meriton (or Moreton) and it passed down several generations and passed to a family who assumed the name “de Tankersley”.

• The Wentworth Estate was re-modelled in the early 18th century to suit contemporary taste, with artificial lakes and follies, and the Old Hall fell into disuse and was gradually dismantled in the 1720’s and 1730’s, Its stone and timber were re-used in a number of buildings including the present farmhouse which stands to the west of the single block of the Old Hall which was allowed to survive, and the ruins of you can see today.
  • In 1727  Daniel Defoe, the author “Robinson Crusoe” passed through the area on a tour of England he wrote :

“From Rotherham we turned north west to Wentworth, on purpose to see the old seat of Tankersley, and the park, where I saw the largest red deer that, I believe, are in this part of Europe: One of the hinds, I think, was larger than my horse, and he was not a very small pad of fourteen hands and half high. This was anciently the dwelling of the great Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, beheaded in King Charles the First’s time, by a law, ex post facto, voted afterward not to be drawn into a precedent. The body lies interred in Wentworth Church.”

• The ruins of the Tankersley Old Hall are about ¾ mile South West of St Peters Church in Tankersley, the ruins are almost in the center of the former Tankersley Park, they featured in the 1969 film,  Kes, based on Barry Hines book a “Kestrel for a Knave”.

Next Section