Stoodley Pike
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Stoodley Pike is a 121 foot monument that stands on the moors above Todmorden in West Yorkshire, Northern England. The current structure was designed by local architect James Green in 1854 and the building was completed in 1856 when peace was declared at the end of the Crimean War.
An earlier pike had existed on the site, started in 1814 to commemorate the defeat of Napoleon and the surrender of Paris then completed in 1815 after the Battle of Waterloo (Napoleonic Wars). This structure collapsed in 1854 following an earlier lightning strike and ongoing wear and tear from the elements. The replacement was therefore (rather wisely) built slightly further from the edge of the hill. During repair work in 1889 a lightning conductor was added. The Pike has since been struck by lightning on numerous occasions without any notable structural damage. There is evidence to suggest that some sort of structure existed on the site before even this earlier pike was built.
The inscription above the entrance is worn and covered with lichen but it is legible and reads:
STOODLEY PIKE A BEACON MONUMENT ERECTED BY PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION COMMENCED IN 1814 TO COMMEMORATE THE SURRENDER OF PARIS TO THE ALLIES AND FINISHED AFTER THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO WHEN PEACE WAS ESTABLIS HED IN 1815. BY A STRANGE COINCIDENCE THE PIKE FELL ON THE DAY THE RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR LEFT LONDON BEFORE THE DECLARATION OF WAR WITH RUSSIA IN 1854. WAS REBUILT WHEN PEACE WAS RESTORED IN 1856 RESTORED AND LIGHTNING CONDUCTOR FIXED 1889
The site is inaccessible due to terrain to all vehicles except Land Rovers and Quad bikes, who must ask permission of the appropriate authority first (the Pike stands on Langfield Common, so is supposed to be owned by Calderdale Council). Push bikes are not supposed to go to the Pike, but many do. Langfield Common is a true moor and an SSSI.
The entrance to the spiral staircase of 39 steps is on the north side of the monument. In 1889 during repairs, a grill was added to the top step to allow light to pass into the gloomy steps beneath, so only 6 or 7 steps are actually in total darkness. There are no windows. The exit from the staircase onto the balcony is on the West face. The balcony is some 40 feet above ground level, so it is ill advised to jump from it, as hard cold Millstone Grit awaits you at the bottom. There is no easy way to ascend above the balcony level without either a long ladder, scaffolding, a helicopter, paraglider or hot air balloon.
Now it serves primarily as an interesting destination for hikers, being handily close to the Mankinholes Youth Hostel and the Top Brink pub. Just below it on the roughly 200 metres contour shelf lies the Harvelin Park housing estate. Residents of this area enjoy an easy 30 minute walk to the Pike where most would have to ascend from the bottom of the valley.
The Pennine Way (Britains first National Trail, opened in 1965) passes Stoodley Pike.
Throughout its life the Pike has been subject to countless folk bringing hammers and chisels and carving their names into the stones. This practice has caused the majority of the erosion to the stonework (the remainder caused by walking boots and the weather). More recently, Stoodley Pike has suffered from more modern and unsightly forms of graffiti, resulting in 'Man City' being scrawled all over the monument for over a month, and various other random messages in varying colours of paint. Perhaps the most enduring of all is a 1960's 'Peace' symbol on the North face high on the obelisk. This is still clearly visible today if you step back when the Sun is not too bright.
In the last couple of years the entrance to the Pike has been re-paved and a seat has been provided just in front of the rock face to the southwest of the monument.
