Place:Haughton, Northumberland, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

A Vision of Britain through Time provides the following description of Haughton from John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales of 1870-72:

"HAUGHTON, a township in Simonburn parish, Northumberland; on the North Tyne river and on the Border Counties railway, 7 miles NW of Hexham. Population: 105. Houses: 21. Haughton Castle here was the seat of the Swinburnes; passed to the Widdringtons; and is now the seat of George Crawshay, Esq. It occupies a picturesque site; is itself an edifice of the time of Edward I., in the form of an oblong square, 100 feet by 44; has, all round the external walls, a row of arches, which probably were inserted to give strength to the masonry; and contains a large upper room, which probably was the baron's hall, but has been modernized. Ruins of an ancient chapel, 60 feet by 24, are in the grounds. A paper mill, now a ruin, is on the bank of the river, and was the place where Pitt's assignats were forged."

Haughton was a township in the ancient parish of Simonburn and became a separate civil parish in 1866. From 1894 it was part of Hexham Rural District. In 1955 the civil parish was abolished and the area was split between the parishes of Humshaugh and Simonburn.

The Wikipedia article on Humshaugh explains "Pitt's assignats" referred to in Wilson's Gazetteer.

Research Tips

• Northumberland Archives previously known as Northumberland Collections Service and Northumberland County Record Office. Now based within Woodhorn Museum in Ashington and providing free access to numerous records for local and family historians alike.

Full postal address: Museum and Northumberland Archives, Queen Elizabeth II Country Park, Ashington, Northumberland, NE63 9YF; Phone: 01670 624455

There is a branch office in Berwick upon Tweed.

• Northumberland and Durham FHS covers both Northumberland and County Durham. The Family History Society have a research centre in Percy House in central Newcastle upon Tyne (full address on website), open Monday to Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. Browse the website to see what else the society can provide.
• Further information from GENUKI
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 1832 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time. This map includes the boundaries of the various Wards (or "hundreds") in existence at that time.
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 1900 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Ordnance Survey map of Northumberland 1944 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• English Jurisdictions 1851, a parish finding aid provided by FamilySearch, particularly helpful in large towns and cities.
• Unfortunately, there is no Victoria County History for Northumberland.