Farnham Tower, Hepple

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; High Farnham; Fairnham; Thurnham; Thernham; Thernam; Tharnam

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

Site of a tower mentioned in 1415, 1513,1541, and in 1546 when it was destroyed in a Scots raid. A number of earthworks can be seen in the area, they may have surrounded an area of parkland around the tower. Traces of a foundation can be seen, though there are no surviving stones. The stone from the tower was probably built into nearby houses. Thernham is the orignal placename speeling which has become Farnham

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 NT96850242

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; 1817

County Sites and Monuments Record number; N1224

• Web site links
  • http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=N1224
• Books
  • Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Keepdate Publishing)
    Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern) p114 [slight]
    Rowland, T.H., 1987 [reprint1994], Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles and Bastles of Northumberland (Sandhill Press) p41
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p348
    Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p158
    Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p103
    Dodds, Madeleine Hope (ed), 1940, Northumberland County History (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Vol15 p267-8
    Dixon, D.D. 1903. Upper Coquetdale (Rothbury) p267-8
    Bates, C.J., 1891, Border Holds of Northumberland (London and Newcastle: Andrew Reid) p18, 24, 44
• Journal Articles
  • Hadcock, R.N., 1939, 'Map of Mediaeval Northum and Durham' Archaeologia Aeliana [ser4] Vol16 p173
    Miller, E., 1956, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle [ser5] Vol1, 396-7
    Hall, K.G. 1933-4. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle [ser4] Vol6, 156
• 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]
    1509 Survey of Tevedale [Click here]
    1415 list of Northumberland Castles [Click here]