CAN any of our readers throw any light on what has happened to a historical monument which graced Worsbrough for more than 1,000 years and ‘went missing’ in the 1950s.

The stone cross, or pillar, which was situated in Worsbrough Park was featured on Ordnance Survey maps until the mid-50s and then, somehow, got ‘lost’.

Now, members of Worsbrough History Society are anxious to find out what happened to this monument. It’s believed the monument, probably Saxon, was erected by Ethelfled, the daughter of King Alfred (also known as the ‘Lady of the Mercians’) near the end of the ninth century.

She ordered the strengthening of a series of northern hill forts, including Worsbrough, Stainborough and Kexborough and it’s believed the work went ahead, hence the Worsbrough cross.

The society would particularly appreciate a photograph of the monument or, if there are none in existence, a sketch drawn from memory. The cross was registered by the Royal Commission for Historic Monuments.

It is known that it once stood near Fletcher’s Pond and it is feared it could have been placed there before the pond was filled in during restoration work.

Many people have been able to describe the cross which also served as a milestone, but none have been able to pinpoint its resting place.

Earlier hopes had rested on the possibility that clearing up work at the former Barrow Colliery coal-stocking grounds might have unearthed the cross, but there is no evidence of this.

In the mid-1980s Alfred O Elmhirst, a Worsbrough farmer and local historian, appealed for information about the cross in the Chronicle, but it is not known how many replies he received, if any. Don Harrison, of Worsbrough History Society, said: “If anyone can give us any information which would help to locate and preserve the cross, we would be delighted.

“It’s very much a part of our history and it is a tragedy that we are unable to locate it.” Stumped on Edmunds and Birdwell players

TWO photographs of local cricket teams have been submitted to Memories.

One of them is of the Worsbrough Edmunds team, but it is not known when it was taken or the names of the players and committee members.

The other picture is in the Chronicle, Friday, September 24.