MenuPenshaw Monument, Durham
Penshaw Monument (aka Earl of Durham's monument) is a memorial in the style of an ancient Greek temple on Penshaw Hill in County Durham. It is a replica monument of the Greek Temple of Hephaestus situated between the towns of Washington and Houghton-le-Spring. It stands on the south-western edge of the summit of Penshaw Hill, an isolated 446 feet high knoll, and measures 100 feet long, 52 feet wide and 65 feet high. It was built between 1844 and 1845 to commemorate John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham. The monument was designed by John and Benjamin Green and built by Thomas Pratt of Bishopwearmouth using local gritstone at a cost of around £6,000. It is within the council area of Sunderland.More...
Historic England Grade I Listed 1354965.
Place Type: Victorian Monument
Historic County: Durham
Lat, Long: 54.883033,-1.480957
Grid Reference: NZ333543
Police Area: Northumbria
Council Area: Sunderland
Country: England
GBPNID: 303774
Entry Type: Main listing (P)
URL: https://gazetteer.org.uk/place/Penshaw_Monument,_Durham_303774
Peruse Durham on Wikishire
On 28 August 1844, while it was partially complete, its foundation stone was laid by Thomas Dundas in a Masonic ceremony which drew tens of thousands of spectators. It has eighteen columns, in which one contains a spiral staircase leading to a parapeted walkway along the entablature. This staircase was closed to the public in 1926 after a 15-year-old boy fell to his death from the top of the monument.
The structure fell into disrepair in the 1930s and was fenced off, then repaired in 1939. It has since undergone further restoration, including extensive work in 1979. Floodlit at night since 1988, it is often illuminated in different colours to mark special occasions. It is a local landmark which is visible from up to 50 miles away on a clear day and viewed nationally as a symbol of the North East. It has been owned by the National Trust since 1939 and is a Grade I listed structure.
Historic England Grade I Listed 1354965.
Place Type: Victorian Monument
Historic County: Durham
Lat, Long: 54.883033,-1.480957
Grid Reference: NZ333543
Police Area: Northumbria
Council Area: Sunderland
Country: England
GBPNID: 303774
Entry Type: Main listing (P)
URL: https://gazetteer.org.uk/place/Penshaw_Monument,_Durham_303774
Peruse Durham on WikishireOn 28 August 1844, while it was partially complete, its foundation stone was laid by Thomas Dundas in a Masonic ceremony which drew tens of thousands of spectators. It has eighteen columns, in which one contains a spiral staircase leading to a parapeted walkway along the entablature. This staircase was closed to the public in 1926 after a 15-year-old boy fell to his death from the top of the monument.
The structure fell into disrepair in the 1930s and was fenced off, then repaired in 1939. It has since undergone further restoration, including extensive work in 1979. Floodlit at night since 1988, it is often illuminated in different colours to mark special occasions. It is a local landmark which is visible from up to 50 miles away on a clear day and viewed nationally as a symbol of the North East. It has been owned by the National Trust since 1939 and is a Grade I listed structure.