Tucked away on Route 66 of the national cycle network, a quiet path winds through the small village of Brearley, between Luddendenfoot and Mytholmroyd. Here, a weathered stone stands as a stark and fascinating memorial, a silent witness to a dark chapter in local history. Inscribed with the chilling words, "A Full and True Account of a Barbarous, Bloody and Inhuman Murder," the monument immediately begs a question: what brutal event is it commemorating?
The story behind this stone is a tale of greed, betrayal, and a notorious gang of criminals known as the Cragg Vale Coiners.
The victim was William Deighton, the Supervisor of Taxes and Excise for the Halifax area. A southerner who had moved to Halifax in 1759, Deighton's job involved collecting taxes on cloth and beer. It was in this role that he ran afoul of the powerful Coiners, who were masters of a lucrative and illegal trade: clipping and debasing coinage. Their leader, a formidable figure named "King" David Hartley, saw Deighton as a significant threat to their operation.
By November 1769, several of the Coiners had been arrested, and the remaining gang members decided to eliminate the man who had been a thorn in their side. On the night of November 9th, as William Deighton returned home from a business meeting, he was ambushed. He was shot, trampled, and robbed by two men, Mathew Normington and Robert Thomas, while a third, Thomas Clayton, acted as a lookout. Deighton's life was tragically cut short, and he was buried just two days later at Halifax Parish Church. His grave, a poignant detail in this grim story, lists his name as William Dighton.
The Coiners' plan to escape justice was short-lived. Thomas Clayton, the lookout, later provided crucial evidence that led to the conviction of Normington and Thomas for highway robbery. The two men met a brutal fate. Robert Thomas was executed at Tyburn, York, on August 6, 1774, followed by Matthew Normington on April 15, 1775. Both of their bodies were gruesomely displayed at Beacon Hill in Halifax, with an arm pointing toward the scene of the murder—a grim warning to anyone else considering a life of crime.
I've passed this stone many times, always curious about its meaning. What I've been unable to uncover is who placed the stone here and why. The murder took place in Halifax, and the Coiners were most active in Cragg Vale. Yet, this lonely monument stands in Brearley, its presence a stark, enduring mystery.
These photos, taken with a Samsung Galaxy Tablet in November 2013, show the weathered face of the stone, its inscriptions worn but still legible, a silent guardian of a dark and fascinating piece of local history.
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