General

On 7 June 1897, Annie Mable Spencer of Greenhaugh Hall, Bellingham was brutally murdered by her husband John Cuthbert Spencer. The body of the 26 year old was found in the wood near the hall covered over with grass and branches from a fir tree. She died from wounds inflicted upon her with an adze [tool with an arched blade used for cutting or shaping large pieces of wood].

 On the day of the murder, Mr Spencer had been working in a plantation about 400 yards from the hall. He had been cutting down trees for the purpose of making a new drive. Mr Spencer had asked Mr Foreman, his gamekeeper, to meet him in the woods at 6pm to discuss the renovations and help with felling the trees. Mrs Spencer was with her husband and after a short while they left the gamekeeper and went to look at a new pond before returning and informing him that they were going home for dinner.

When Mrs Spencer failed to appear for dinner at 7.30pm this alarmed the servants and by 9pm Sergeant Dobson from Bellingham police station received a telegram asking him to go to Greenhaugh Hall immediately. He was accompanied by P.C. Potts and P.C. Musgrove. When they arrived, Mrs Spencer was missing and Mr Spencer was plunging an adze up and down in a bucket of water.

Mr Foreman – Gamekeeper

Mr Foreman told police that when he spoke to Mr Spencer he was in an excited state and was talking wildly. He believed that his father was St. Michael and that he was St. John and said that his father had sent him a message instructing him to kill his wife.

John Peter Elliot – Doctor

Doctor Elliot visited the Spencer house on Monday 7 June about 7pm. He had attended Mr Spencer a few days earlier for insomnia. As neither Mr or Mrs Spencer were at home, the doctor waited about a quarter of an hour and was about to leave when he saw Mr Spencer coming towards the house from the direction of the wood. Dr Elliot waited for him in the smoking room and when he entered he could see that his hands, face and shirt front were wet. After a general conversation regarding his health, the doctor advised him to go away for a change of scene. Mr Spencer claimed that he was going to Newcastle with his wife the next morning and then on to Edinburgh where they intended to stay for two or three weeks. Dr Elliot noticed a large spot of blood on Spencer’s shirt cuff but when mentioned, he was told that it was from a scratch from his finger. The doctor was aware that Mr Spencer’s mental health had been a concern in the past and judging from his current behaviour, there was a fear that this could be a return of the insanity.

Arthur Patrick Brown – Doctor

Doctor Brown stated that he received a message on the night of 7 June to go to the Spencer house at Greenhaugh. A few minutes after his arrival at 10pm, Mrs Spencer’s dead body was brought to the house. The body was fully clothed and covered in blood. The doctor made an examination of the body and identified five wounds. The first wound was on the head above the left ear, wounding the cerebellum. The skull was fractured and all the blood vessels on that side of the neck had been severed. The next wound penetrated the brain and another damaged the frontal bone. There was also a fracture of the frontal bone. Two wounds were also discovered on the back both running longitudinally on the left of the spine, each about 4.5 inches long. Both these wounds penetrated the ribs.

The coroner claimed that this case was one of the most painful and extraordinary ones that he had seen for many years. John Cuthbert Spencer was later committed to trial. He was found to be insane and sent to Broadmoor.

A good weather Sunday had us eager to get out of our town and explore. As we were still a little wary of going very far, we chose Mitford as our destination. A place so near yet we forget that some of our local villages can hold treasures that we still have to discover.

We took an indirect route to the village of Mitford, near Morpeth, Northumberland walking through the sun filtered woods and along the river, stopping at a few accessible places to throw smooth pebbles in to the water, trying to get them to ‘skip’ but failing as the dog wanted to splash about chasing after them. This is a great walk for dogs with lots for them to sniff at and explore.

The route eventually took us under a low bridge beneath the A1 and then it was a short climb up some wooden steps to reach the fields on the other side. The well worn path was easy to find, once more, leading us over a couple stiles and a small foot bridge. Finally we arrived at the rugged farmland area surrounding the Grade 1 listed historic monument. Mitford Castle is currently on the English heritage ‘At Risk’ Register’. Some works towards repairs and restoration have already been done. Its remains stand open to the elements, watching majestically over Mitford village. 

The first impression we got of the existing ruins of the stone castle was that it must at one time have been a large and imposing building. Today it was standing there slowly crumbling away on a rocky ridge. The first thing that our dog (now back on the lead) noticed was ‘there are some lovely sheep smells here for me!’ This is a great site for nature and wildlife. Bees, insects and butterflies were in abundance. We found a safe place to sit amongst the decaying structure to have our little picnic. Sitting and reflecting in the tranquil atmosphere, taking our place in its layers of history. 

Between walking around, exploring and taking photographs we tried to visualise where the doors, windows, towers etc. might have been. What went on here? Who were the important players in the unsettled years of Mitford Castle?

The Castle is said to date as far back as before 1072 when it would have only have been an earthwork fortress. Held by the De Mitford family, it was passed on through marriage into the ancient Bertram family. Earliest records of 1138 state that it was William Bertram’s ‘oppidum’.  By 1215, the residing Bertrams strengthened it and it became a finished stone castle only to be seized by Scottish troops. Through time this castle experienced some desolate times as it became the target of continual Scottish raids and invasions. During the rebellion in Northumberland in the 1310s, poor Mitford Castle witnessed more unrest.  In 1316 it was even used for kidnappings and as a prisoner hold.

After roaming around the grounds we then crossed the field at the base of the castle, keeping a watchful eye on where we put our feet so as not to step on nettles or wild flowers. But more importantly we tried not to disturb the local herd of sheep which acted indifferently to us anyway.  We then made our way out of the castle grounds to check out the picturesque Saint Mary Magdalene Church. What turbulent scenes this parish church must have experienced over time being situated opposite to Mitford Castle!

In 1934, Bedlington Urban District Council began to lay out a site for a new council housing estate at area known as Millfeld to the south of the town, on land above Attlee Country Park.

During the start of the works council workers were levelling a ridge and revealed five sunken cist burials. The cists were constructed with sandstone side slabs and cover stones. One contained the remains of a female burial and an earthenware pot. The skeleton was complete and its position indicated that it had been buried in a crouching position. It was also in a good state of preservation. Another was a burial with a ‘beaker’. There was what was described as a large chamber with a side opening, containing only a few human bone fragments and a flint knife. Next to this chamber was a small cist which contained the remains of a cremation and an earthenware pot later described as a ‘vase’. The final cist contained a burial only.

There was no controlled excavation done at that time and the cists and contents were apparently damaged by on lookers.  

The bones were taken away for forensic examination by the South Northumberland Coroner and then given to the vicar, Reverend J. B. Purvis to be buried in the grounds of Saint Cuthbert’s Parish Church, Bedlington.

The beaker was once housed at the Museum of Antiquities which was an archaeological museum at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne; its collections were merged into the Hancock Museum which is now what is known as, The Great North Museum.

 A photograph in the Newcastle City Library Local Studies Collection shows one of the burials in situ, while another in the collection shows an enclosure with a round barrow found near the Millfield area, Bedlington and dated 1920.