Tales of the Dales: Buckden Bill
The abandoned lead mine of Buckden Pike, Upper Wharfedale (sky heavily edited to make it absolutely Halloween worthy!)
‘The bobbing headtorches, bounced and swayed, little pinpricks of light in the distance, moving ever closer. The rumble of chatter, and scrape of boots echoed about the shaft as the group scrambled upwards. The approaching beams of light caught the outline of something solid…. was it a hat?......’
Poor old Buckden Bill.
It’s unlikely that back in 1890 when this gentleman took a foray into the disused mine workings that he realised what a mystery he would become! But man…. WHAT A LEGEND!
In 1960, a group of students from Birmingham Uni were exploring the mine network, on the western slopes of Buckden Pike. An expansive labyrinth of mine shafts, the tunnels under Buckden Pike had not been used since the lead mining industry collapsed in the 1870s, and it was during their exploration that they stumbled upon the remains of Buckden Bill.
A murder investigation was originally launched, until it became apparent that Bill had been a resident there for quite some time. But despite scouring the scene of the possible crime, investigators could find very little to point to this man’s identity. The clues he left? A felt hat, a walking stick, some coins and a card from a funeral in Settle.
Investigating the clues he left, has lead to some coming to the conclusion that this poor soul was an ex-lead miner, who had returned for old time’s sake, but whilst there are theories, we shall never know for sure who he truly was, and the mystery endures...
Perhaps Old Bill was there on a ghost hunt? Not only was the lead mine home to Buckden Bill for nearly 100 years, it’s also home to a dark presence, thought to be the ghost of an old man, perhaps another lead miner.
Buckden Bill’s belongings can be seen on display at the Dales Countryside Museum in their mining exhibit in Hawes.
Walk Buckden Pike by the Lead Mines here!
Spooky Walks
Since originally writing this blog back in 2021, I have a collected a whole LOAD of ghost stories, folk tales, witch stories and horrible history about the Yorkshire Dales and they now all have their own dedicated pages!
To find links to them and the spooky Halloween walks, then tap the button below!
This is a classic tale full of mystery right? This blog is based a lot on the fantastic article written by Sebastian Oake in The Yorkshire Dalesman, which explains in loads of detail, the full investigation into the mysterious Buckden Bill.
Summer Strevens’, Haunted Yorkshire Dales also goes into detail about the old man who reputedly haunts the lead mine here.
We just write the walks!
Enjoy!