Barrow Peel

In the civil parish of Alwinton.
In the historic county of Northumberland (Modern Authority of Northumberland, 1974 county of Northumberland).

The remains of a medieval tower house lie near the farmhouse at Barrow. It was described as ruins in a survey of 1541 and called a 'little fortress' that had been destroyed by the Scots. Some of the stones were used to build C19 farmhouse but the foundations were still visible as earthworks at the beginning of C20. By the middle of C20 the remains were described as irregular hummocks and difficult to make out the shape of a building. Several coins of Charles II's reign have been found in the ruins.

This site has been described as a;
Pele Tower.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Cropmarks/slight earthworks remains.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NT91160610

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 1595

County Sites and Monuments Record number; N1051

• Web site links
  • http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=N1051
• Books
  • Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Keepdate Publishing) p185
    Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern) p22
    Rowland, T.H., 1987 [reprint1994], Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles and Bastles of Northumberland (Sandhill Press) p36
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p345
    Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p54
    Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p59
    Dodds, Madeleine Hope (ed), 1940, Northumberland County History (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Vol15 p488-9
    Dixon, D.D., 1903. Upper Coquetdale (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p36
    Bates, C.J., 1891, Border Holds of Northumberland (London and Newcastle: Andrew Reid) p45
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • 1541 Survey of the East and Middle Marches [Click here]