Autobiography of Captain John Hodgson

Frontispiece and title page of autobiography of Captain John Hodgson of Coley Hall, near Halifax.

2 pages from "Autobiography of Captain John Hodgson, of Coley Hall, near Halifax ..."

p1:    Frontispiece - engraving of Coley Hall.

p2: Title page - "Autobiography of Captain John Hodgson, of Coley Hall, near Halifax; His Conduct in the Civil Wars, and his troubles after the Restoration. First edited in 1806 by Joseph Ritson, Esq., or Sir Walter Scott. With Additional Notes by J. Horsfall Turner. Brighouse: A.B. Bayes, Printer. MDCCCLXXXII."

Captain John Hodgson was in Coley Church on a Sunday in 1642, when he heard that the Royalists were besieging Bradford, and he raised a unit to march to Bradford to defend democracy. He then went on to fight in several Roundhead campaigns and returned from the wars to live at Coley Hall, where he befriended the Rev Oliver Heywood. After acting as a magistrate under the Commonwealth, he lived at Marsh Hall, Northowram, and later at Cromwellbottom from 1672 to 1680. He was arrested by supporters of the monarchy for his military activities as a Roundhead, and was imprisoned at Ripon, where he died in 1680.

The earliest recorded mention of property at Coley is in 1277. The site was a Priory in mediaeval times, and part of the present structure was built in 1572. Extensive alterations were made in 1681, and again in the 18th century. The rear of the house preserves a typical Stuart appearance. In the 1960s the house was restored.

The building is a Grade II* listed building. The following description is from Calderdale Council's Listed Buildings information:

House late C17 refronted 2nd quarter C18. Hammer-dressed stone, stone slate roof. 2 storeys. 9-bay symmetrical facade with rolled plinth; band and coved cornice with ashlar blocking course, hipped roof. Chamfered rusticated quoins to ground floor surmounted by panelled pilaster strips. The windows all sashed with glazing bars have architraves with small keystones and moulded lintels, to ground floor above aprons of dressed stone. Doorway has shouldered architrave and simple pediment formed by the band raking over it. Modern glazed door. Right hand return wall has string and 3 bays of cross windows with double chamfered surrounds, possibly contemporary with facades. All other bays beyond this are altered (mid C20) forming at present 2-storey porch with re-used doorway from the demolished Langley House, Hipperholme dated 1692, with double chamfered mullioned window over. The rear now appears to be single aisled but was double gabled and contains mullioned and transomed windows of 14 lights. Rear to courtyard is tall stair window of 12 lights and 3 transoms, and fixed light windows of C18 proportions in double chamfered surrounds to rear of front range. 3 stacks, one to each range. Now attached is 2-storey building, possibly former kitchen which has double chamfered mullioned window of 6 lights to each bay with hoodmould with finely modelled stop. Small round headed light to centre of each floor. Rear has straight joint to middle and C18 fabric with 2 bays of 5-light flat faced mullioned windows. Coped gable to one end with stack, and stack to other gable is extruded with offsets. Interior: Has fine joinery to central room of south facade, with opposed pedimented doorcases and another with round head and moulded imposts: this leads to staircase of fine workmanship columnar newels, ramped handrail and tread ends treated as imposts. D. Nortcliffe, Buildings of Brighouse (Brighouse 1978) p.6; N. Pevsner, Yorkshire West Riding (London 1967) p.165; G. Hepworth, Brighouse, Its Scenery and Antiquities, (Halifax 1885) p.14.

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