THE GHOST OF THE FERRY AT NUN MONKTON

 Extract from Burdekins Criminal Chronology of York Castle :- 

“William Vasey was executed on August 18th, 1870, at the Tyburn without
Micklegate Bar for the wilful and deliberate murder of Marion, the
housekeeper of Mr. Earle of Beningbrough Hall and for the attempted.
murder of Martin Giles, Mr. Earle‘s head gamekeeper.”

— 22 —   Marion (her surname is not mentioned) was housekeeper to Squire
Earle at Beningbrough Hall and had for her sweetheart a young man
(Richard) from this village. Their favourite meeting place was on the
river bank by the ferry, Richard crossing the river by boat.  Sometimes
they both crossed to this side of the river, and wandered round the
Avenue and the surrounding woods. They were planning to be married when
one day while on the Staith at York Richard was seized by the Press Gang
and carried off to serve as a sailor in the King’s Navy.  Marion was
broken hearted at the loss of her sweetheart.  Squire Earle was away for home most of the time and the estate was
left in the hands of a man named Laurie. This steward was jealous of
Marion and, after the departure of Richard (Marion blamed Laurie for
Richard’s seizure by the Press Gang) he pestered her with his attentions
until she was nearly crazy. She used to walk along the river bank calling
to her sweetheart to come to her assistance and to free her from Laurie’s
unwelcome attentions. Finding that she would not listen to him, Laurie
hired a notorious character — a thief and highwayman named William Vasey
to murder Marion. 
Vasey followed her on to the river bank where she was walking from
the ferry towards where the pump house now stands. He seized her and,
screaming and struggling, she was dragged down the bank and thrown into
the River Ouse. Her body was later found and she was buried in Newton-on—
Ouse churchyard. Later Vasey attempted to kill Martin Giles, Squire
Earle’s gamekeeper, but he was apprehended by the police and taken to
York Castle.  While there he confessed to many crimes, among them being the being
the murder of Marion for which he was hanged.  Laurie was dismissed by Squire Earl and later shot himself.  Marion’s ghost is supposed to haunt the river bank near the ferry
where she spent so many happy hours with her sweetheart. She wrings her
hands and moans, and sometimes screams and calls for Richard.  Rumour says that one dark night a woman’s voice was heard calling
“Boat.”  The old ferryman took his lamp, went down to his boat and
crossed to the Newton Landing. The muffled figure of a woman stood on the
bank.  She stepped into the boat but never spoke a word.  On reaching the Nun Monkton landing, the old ferryman turned to help
her out of the boat but there was no one there.  The woman had vanished,
but far away on the opposite bank he heard an eerie voice crying
“Richard, Richard.  Help me.”  When Richard finally returned from the Navy and found Marion had
been murdered it is said that he drowned himself in the Ouse.
 

NUN MONKTON MAYPOLE

  NUN MONKTON MAYPOLE.  During the middle ages and the succeeding periods in history, all

village activities centred round the village green and the maypole.
Almost every village possessed one, and it was a cherished possession.
Tradition says that a new oak maypole was erected in 1793. An old
painting in the possession of my brother dated about 1848 shows a maypole
on it. This was possibly the one erected in 1793. In 1878 a new maypole
was erected the other evidently having been blown down.  The Vicar, the Rev. Septimus Crawhall, was the originator of the
scheme and he gave most of the money for the purchase of the pole. The
rest was raised by public subscription. A meeting of the villagers was
called and Mr. John Poulter, senr, was given the sum of £1 to cover his
expenses and was instructed to go to Hull to make enquiries as to price,
size, etc., of a suitable pole. The £1 was for lodging for the night,
etc., Mr. Poulter was met by an old friend Mr. Seth Lupton who lived in
Hull and who gave his visitor free lodging. They made the necessary
enquiries and also spent the £1 on liquid refreshment. On his return Mr.
Poulter reported to the Vicar and a pole was purchased for £25. It was a
Norwegian pine tree. It was despatched to Marston Moor station and it was
an unshaped block. A wood wagon left Nun Monkton at 3-30a.m. to collect
it but did not arrive back until 6—30 a.m. the next morning. The greatest
difficulties were experienced in turning corners at Marston Moor and at
Poole Lane End.  The pole was shaped and painted by Mr. Poulter and his sons and men
and it was raised by a hand winch and ropes borrowed from Beningbrough
Hall. At the meeting to audit the accounts, the Rev. Septimus asked Mr.
Poulter to present a statement showing exactly how the £1 given to him
was spent. The statement was handed in later, but needless to say the
exact method of expenditure was not accurately given as Mr. Lupton had
provided accommodation free and the £1 had been spent on liquid
refreshment. This account was given to me verbally by Mr. John Poulter
son of the above who followed his father as village joiner.

 

THE PRIORY

 THE PRIORY

 

After the Dissolution, the plate belonging to the Priory and. all
valuables were carried off to London. The Conventual buildings were
destroyed and the material sold. Two years later, in 1538, the estate with
all its appurtances was sold to John Neville on very reasonable terms ( a
yearly payment of £14—18—8 to King Henry VIII) Specially mentioned in this
transaction were the rights to the ferry. This seems to be the first mention
that has been made in any records of the ferry, but it must have been widely
used to have it specially mentioned in the deeds.  John Neville erected a house but we do not know if he lived here. His
second wife was Catherine Parr of Kendall, and on the death of her husband
John Neville (Lord Latimer) she married King Henry VIII and survived him. 
The Priory stayed in the Latimer family and Lord Latimer’s
granddaughter married Henry, 8th Earl of Northumberland who then lived at
Spofforth Castle. In 1585 this earl was accused of plotting with Mary Queen
of Scots against Queen Elizabeth 1. He was imprisioned in the Tower of
London but committed suicide. His widow then married Francis Fitton and the
Nun Monkton estate then passed to that family. After this the estate changed
hands many times — John Carvile - Marjoribanks (1644) Paylors (1650—1748)
Samual Jollyfe Tuffnell 1786.  In 1789 George IV, then Prince of Wales, lunched at the Priory after
York Races.  The Butler Family followed (brother of the Earl of Kilkenny whose
eldest son became Viscount Mountgarret). Then the Brown family (he was a
Proctor at York Minster) and in 1860 it was bought by Isaac Crawhall, Esq.,
who was succeeded by his son George and later by Walter - nephew of George.  The Priory was sold in 1928 to Captain C. Whitworth and again in 1946
to Lieut. Col. George Aykroyd.  The Paylors must have rebuilt the house. The present building was built
in the time of William and Mary and was designed by a Dutch architect. It
was built of hand made bricks. There was a maze in the garden and 90 acres
of pasture land attached to the estate. A special feature of the grounds was
the collection of lead statues which are unique and very valuable. They are
supposed to be the work of a Dutch sculptor named Andrew Carne in approx.
1688. There is a very peculiarly carved stone in the wilderness also
attributed to Dutch workmen.

— 5 —  On it are the arms of the Paylor family and many scenes depicting village
life. There is an old legend that there was a tunnel passing from the
priory under the River Nidd and to Red House which was used at the time
of the battle of Marston Moor, but this has never been found. The battle
of Marston Moor was fought in July 1644 between Cavaliers led by Prince
Rupert and Roundheads led by Oliver Cromwell. The Roundheads were
victorious and the Royalists fled, many of them over to Nun Monkton,
Thorpe and Ouseburn.  Nun Monkton was Royalist.  A pike man seriously wounded wandered to the priory and later died there.
His full equipment consisting of pot helmet, gorgel, breast and back
plates and tassets with sword and 15 ft pike is now in the Kirk Museum at
York. Strangely, this armour was presented to the museum by a London
gentleman but it had been in the possession of the Marjoriebank family
who owned the priory at the time of the civil war. 
Overlooking the church yard there is a ‘tithe barn’ which is in an
excellent state of preservation and a little further along there is the
site of the nuns fish pond now only a beck. Also there is the ‘Nuns Walk’
an avenue of trees which led from the priory grounds to the park, but which is not now used as such.
 

Taken from

http://www.nunmonktonparishcouncil.co.uk/_UserFiles/Files/Nun%20Monkton%20history.pdf