North Gosforth Chapel

Another spot we've recently discovered, North Gosforth Chapel is a curious little find in the middle of a Gosforth housing estate. There is obviously not a huge amount there, but there is an information board telling you all about it, to bring the site to life.

The chapel was possibly built in the late Norman or early Medieval period (around 1060s-1070s), though the earliest reference to it was in 1256. It was used as a place of worship until 1690, when it was destroyed by a fire.

You can still see perfectly the outline of the chapel and the three rooms that it was comprised of. There are also the remains of an altar stone and a font in the nave, and gravestones which date back as far as the 1600s. A roman altar was also found on the site during excavations, which is now on display at the Great North Museum.

It is possible the chapel was built entirely from recycled Roman stone, potentially from Hadrian's Wall which ran just four miles away from the site.

The Friends of North Gosforth Chapel formed in 2005 to protect and enhance the site and received help from Awards for All, English Heritage and Newcastle Council to ensure that it could be enjoyed by everyone.