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All the United Kingdom England Northumberland Winter's Gibbet
AO Edited

Winter's Gibbet

A lone pole once used to display a man's corpse now stands empty, but the memory remains.

Northumberland, England

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drawingofsound
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Winter’s Gibbet   drawingofsound / Atlas Obscura User
Nothing hangs from the reconstructed gibbet now.   drawingofsound / Atlas Obscura User
The plaque explaining the crime.   drawingofsound / Atlas Obscura User
Winter’s Gibbet   Springer / Atlas Obscura User
Winter’s Gibbet   Springer / Atlas Obscura User
Winter’s Gibbet on the B6341 road   Springer / Atlas Obscura User
  boodoggy66 / Atlas Obscura User
Part of stone cross   jooniur / Atlas Obscura User
  boodoggy66 / Atlas Obscura User
Gibbet in 2023   jooniur / Atlas Obscura User
Winters Gibbet- before the removal of the wooden head   lesleycobbs / Atlas Obscura User
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About

A lone gallows in the middle of the stunning Northumberland countryside refuses to stop reminding visitors of a grisly murder. 

On August 10th, 1792, William Winter, along with two female accomplices, killed Margaret Crozier of Raw Pele, a hamlet two miles south of Elsdon. Winter and his companions were hanged near the site of the crime, and while the women's bodies were given over to local physicians, Winter's body was left to hang from the gibbet until his clothes rotted off. Once his body was cut down, the gibbet remained until weather and local custom destroyed the wood. The gibbet has been remade a number of times since the original stood, but no matter how many times the executioner's pole has been stolen or destroyed, it is always rebuilt. It is also the local custom to hang a stone or fiberglass head from the noose, although this too tends to disappear regularly.

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Crime Roadside Attractions

Know Before You Go

The nearest large town is Rothbury, around 12 miles away. There are no signs or markers and the gibbet is easy to miss if you're not looking for it. The gibbet is nearly three miles (four kilometers) southeast of Elsdon, about midway between Elsdon and Harwood, at the edge of the forest. The gibbet stands 120 feet (36 meters) from the road on the south side.

From the A696 out of Otterburn, take the B6341 road about two or three miles, the Gibbet will be on your right. There will be a Northumberland National Park marker where you can park, the Gibbet is across the road.

The moors are very exposed, so take care. 

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Added By

drawingofsound

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Martin, Springer, jooniur, lesleycobbs...

  • Martin
  • Springer
  • jooniur
  • lesleycobbs
  • boodoggy66

Published

October 24, 2012

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Sources
  • http://www.rothbury.co.uk/around/winters_gibbet.htm
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsdon,_Northumberland
Winter's Gibbet
Northumberland, England, NE19 1BT
United Kingdom
55.211182, -2.06121

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