Archaeologists are aiming to uncover secrets about the history of a 17th century hall that inspired hit ITV period drama Downton Abbey.
A team from Salford University are leading the dig at Bolton's Hulton Park Estate but volunteers of all ages have also been invited to come along and help, as the first event in a summer programme of family activities planned at Hulton Park by current landowners and developers Peel L&P.
The site and Hulton Hall itself has a storied history as the home of the town's Hulton family, including William Hulton, who in 1819 signed the order that led to the Peterloo Massacre. In more recent years, it served as the inspiration for Downton Abbey after creator Julian Fellowes - who is related to the Hulton family - searched through archives relating to the site.
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Graham Mottershead, project manager at Salford Archaeology, said: “Hulton Park and the Hulton family played an instrumental role over 700-years in shaping the history not only of Bolton, and indeed the society we know today. For those living and working around Bolton over the last 700 years, the Hultons were influential in their everyday lives. Excavations like this will help us learn a great deal about some of the most important periods of human history and provide the people of Bolton with an in-depth understanding of the heritage of their town.”
One of the archaeologists on site, Ashley Brogan, told the Manchester Evening News that some fascinating finds have already been uncovered. She said: "We found these clay pipes and with the time period these were used, it ties in really nicely with the construction of the hall in 1660.
"You can imagine a guy would have been smoking this while he was digging the foundations and it broke so he just threw it in the hole he was digging. It's great to have such a close connection with history like that.
"Then over there by the treeline is where the driveway used to be and it's quite an interesting area because we've uncovered what appear to be drainage systems. We're wondering if they were early heating systems because we know the Hultons were experimenting with that kind of thing.
"In the second trench, which is where the interior of the hall would have been, we've uncovered these semi-circles which would have been big bay windows on the side of the house."
I an Trumble, chair of Bolton Archaeology and Egyptian Society, also joined the dig. He added : "Untouched estates like these, especially in the North West, are really rare to come by and function as a time capsule into Bolton's pre-historic past. Hulton Park has always played a prominent role in Bolton's history. The community dig is a great opportunity to give the next generation the opportunity to get on site and physically dig, explore and find artefacts, as well as learn more about their town's heritage - hopefully to inspire the next generation of archaeologists within the region."
The public portion of the dig will come to a close at the end of this week. Archaeologists will remain on site next week to complete the project and record their findings.
As part of Peel L&P's £200 million vision for Hulton Park, which is set to go to public inquiry in October, a luxury hotel would be built on the site of where Hulton Hall once stood. The plans, which also include a championship golf, have attracted the ire of some members of the local community but Richard Knight, Peel L&P's director of planning and strategy, said that the developers want to 'respect the heritage' of the estate.
"We'd be building a new Hulton Hall on the footprint of the old one," he said. "A hotel, conference centre and spa to sit at the heart of our sport, wellbeing and community destination.
"It's really important that we respect the heritage and that's one of the concerns we've had from the local community as well. We've worked very hard to make sure that the designs are very respectful of the past and this really is the way to secure a long-term restoration of the park.
"What you can see here is only a little bit of it. We have walled gardens, pleasure grounds, lakes that have been silted up. The proposals will give it new life for the future."
Peel's group archivist Charlotte McCarthy who researched the history of the Hulton family and the Estate, ahead of the dig. She added: “Although Hulton Park was a private family estate, in its heyday the Hulton family would host specific events and activities including its Primrose Garden parties, charity open days, group outings and scout camps.
“Our long-term vision for Hulton Park includes restoring parts of estate back to their former glory like the pleasure grounds, walled kitchen garden and serpentine lake, and opening up new walking and cycling routes through the Park, for people to use and enjoy. We are living in a really exciting period of modern history for Hulton Park that we hope local people will engage with and this event is just the start of many more we wish to bring to the Park over the next few months.”
Throughout the second half of this year, there will be more family activities based around culture and arts, history and heritage, sports and wellbeing, as part of a programme called Hulton Park Happenings. The full list of events are set to be released.
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