Ryecroft Hall Ghost Hunt Saturday 9th November 2024

Ryecroft Hall, constructed in 1849 by James Buckley, a prosperous family man who owned the Cotton Mills at Ryecroft, showcases the opulent lifestyle the Buckley family enjoyed. The construction of the hall spanned several years, ensuring that it provided all the necessary comforts for a Victorian gentleman, including a library, a spacious dining room, a study, a billiard room, a ballroom, and various sitting rooms and bedrooms. The outbuildings boasted stables and coach houses. Remarkably, many of the rooms still retain their original wood paneling and intricately designed ceilings. Unfortunately, James Buckley passed away in 1851, leaving the hall unfinished. It was then inherited by his son, also named James, who subsequently sold it to his brother, William Smith Buckley. William resided in the luxurious hall until his demise in 1877. In 1885, the hall came into the possession of Abel Buckley, William's cousin. Abel, a man of immense wealth with interests in collieries, hotels, banks, and cotton mills, resided at Ryecroft Hall for 22 years. Notably, he generously contributed substantial sums of money towards the construction of the Albion Chapel in Ashton, as he was a devout Congregationalist. Following Abel's death in 1908, his sons became the owners of the hall until February 1913, when it was sold to Austin Hopkinson, another affluent individual who amassed his fortune through engineering. During the tumultuous period of the Great War from 1914 to 1918, Ryecroft Hall served as a Red Cross Hospital. In 1922, the house and its grounds were gifted to Audenshaw, serving as the administrative and social center for the Urban District until the establishment of Tameside MBC in 1974.