A second attempt at folly

You may recall a few weeks ago I reported a miserable, failed attempt to locate a folly that I'd heard of in Ruin Bank Wood. (See HERE) Well, having been stuck inside for several days with a heavy cold, I wanted a local walk. It was a lovely sunny day, so I decided I'd make a second attempt to find it. This time I was armed with better instructions, thanks to my friend Mr T, and the track was a lot less muddy. The folly is actually well camouflaged amongst the larch trees, so you come across it rather suddenly but it is quite a romantic old ruin (despite some graffiti), and worth seeking out. 

It's proper name is St David's Ruin. It was actually built as a ruin. In fact, originally it was more of a ruin than it is now. Older drawings show the tower with a jagged 'ruined' top, which has since been rebuilt and smoothed for safety reasons. The folly was built for Benjamin Ferrand in 1796, as the inscription above the door shows. The Ferrands owned two mansions (St Ives and Harden Grange) on land in Harden valley and the folly was built on an outcrop of rock, to be viewed as a point of interest from across the valley. Nowadays it is hemmed in by woodland but originally it would have been an 'eye-catcher' in the landscape and, I imagine, there would also have been a sweeping view from it, framed in the huge gothic arch. 

The 'ruin' has, I gather, inspired poets and writers. It was said to have inspired the Bradford-born author John Braine's 'St Clair Folly' in 'Room at the Top'.  A florid Victorian poem by Robert Carrick Wildon has recently been discovered, believed to have been written after a visit to the folly:

'The huge grey rocks, the tall trees waving green; 

The old arch'd window in the antique style 

Like the lone relic of some holy pile; 

The fast lock'd tower where Ivy loves to creep, 

Seems like remains of some old Castle Keep.'