Site of the deserted medieval village of Horden, Peterlee

Image: © Andrew Curtis Taken: 12 Nov 2009

The site was previously associated with historical records of an early Saxon settlement called Yoden but this is now considered to be elsewhere. A survey of the remains here recorded traces of the village’s final form around the year 1400. Its basic structure, confined by the areas of stonework, was two rows of houses, one each side of an open space or green, each house with a toft (allotment-type garden area) behind it, marked off by earth banks. Documents suggest Horden was completely abandoned by 1435. Quarrying after the village was abandoned has obliterated remains to the north. Coarse grasses and weeds make it difficult to observe anything of the village on the ground although satellite photos still give a hint of its structure. The 2004 survey concluded, pessimistically, that damage to the site might make it difficult to justify its protected status as an Ancient Monument or, at least, that the scheduled area might justifiably be reduced.

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