IN THE LAST PHASE OF BUILDING THE GOTIHIC CASTLE..THE STONEMASON LIVING IN THE CASTLE WAS WILLIAM BRIGGS AND HIS WIFE AGNES WITH THEIR FAMILY. IN THE 1851 CENSUS 35 PEOPLE LIVED AT THE CASTLE.
the first child to be born to william briggs was called rachael who married james jeffrey and they had a daughter called martha.
The people who lived at twisell castle had thier own pews in the north transept of norham church near the river tweed. the pew number was 28. .The year was 1856.
the son of wiiliam briggs b.1802 was called thomas who moved from the castle to the scotswood area of newcastle,denton road, number 25 ridley terrace not far from the river tyne. he married ann and they had family.
qn a picture of the north side of twisell castle above the entrance ,near the crenelations is a stone scull face with a black top hat on. the gothic mansion of 1851.
1n 1851 jane brggs , the daughter of william briggs the stone mason and agnes his wife,was a dressmaker and later lived in the village of norham near the river tweed.
three of the children belonging to william briggs the stonemason died in childhood, margaret aged 7 ,agnes aged 6, and matthew aged 20 months.
The ruins of the castle that are on the top of the hill now were buried inside the new build gothic mansion like putting a tea cosy over and around the old castle. the mansion was pulled down in 1862.
Walked up the river tweed from norham to rhe castle, april 2011. .found the notbook in the room near window .record of visits.
the wooded slope underneath the castle was known as ST. HELENS BANK all along the river till to the bridge. On an old map of 1860 /65 there are three wells here, St. helens well,near the nursrey for plants,THE CAT WELL to the east of the castle,and the bridge end well near the entrance from the main road.
In the photograph c, 1910 ,twisel castle and bridge,the rock outcrop seen through the arc of the bridge at twisell near the river till is where the spring water from the CAT WELL drips down to the ground.
the mansion of twisel castle had carriage tracks leading up to the main door at the north side of the castle and from the east turret on the north end. these carriage ways led across the field to the twizel smithy on the main road to berwick on tweed and down to the entrance near the old twisel bridge .
the people in norham village call the castle that belonged to the baronets blake TWYSEL CASTLE.
agnes briggs ,daughter of jane briggs the dressmaker who lived in the gothic mansion at TWYSEL CASTLE had a house of apartments in the village of norham.
NEW INFORMATION, In the 1861 census, only the brggs family lived in the gothic mansion on the twisel estate. agnes briggs the head of the house, a widow. william briggs the master mason had died in 1859. his son thomas ,,a mason was in the castle.
agnes briggs was in a house on the main street of norham village.in 1901 and 1906 the house schedule number in 1901 was 137, AND IT HAD 2 ROOMS.
the castle mansion at twisel had two members of the briggs family working as servants for the household......
all the rooms in the large gothic mansion called twizel castle had stone vaulted roofs to guard against fire ..
in the old ruined castle at twisel all the rooms right up to the roof had stone vaulted ceilings, very expensive to build. the later stone gothic mansion also would have been built in the same way.
for the history of the briggs family at twisell castle and at norham in northumberland see the website on ancestry library by WILLIAM ARMSTRONG 41. A FREE WEBSITE.
mr. bernard j bond of camberley, surrey has 2 and 3 x great ,great ,great grandrarents called margaret, agnes and willam who lived at twisell castle.