I was kindly met at Huddersfield for the next stage of my trip down memory lane, which was to be based in Penistone.  I was now to spend three nights with my good friend from my New Zealand days (1979).  In the evening I went for a walk round Cannon Hall.  

The Domesday Book shows there was a house on this site in 1086. However none of the current structure is thought to date back to that time.  The Hall itself gets its name from Gilbert Canun who lived there in the 13^th century.  By the late 14th Century the house was in the hands of the Bosville family.  Cannon Hall was purchased by a wealthy local family, the Spencers, in 1660.  They rebuilt the house and created an extensive park and gardens at the start of the 18th Century.

The Hall and Estate were sold to Barnsley Council in 1951 by the last member of the Spencer family, Elizabeth.  Since then the Estate has been run by the council as a tourist attraction.

Cannon Hall also houses a museum.

See http://www.cannon-hall.co.uk/