Possibly an ancient track...

Look to the left - when driving from Silkstone Common to Dodworth - shortly after leaving the Silkstone Common boundary - and clearly visible is the remains of an old footpath [which is still usable] - but one which appears to be missing sections at either end.

Examination of such things as old maps may allow one to fill in the missing sections - close by the start of the path is a very old former farm - and at the other end in a good alignment is the 'old mill' [which is on the Huskar Dyke / River Dove] and which for many years was the main place to grind the corn produced by local farms.

It does not require much imagination to see the possible route of the path - which may have been used by 'pack horses'. A more difficult thought to accommodate is that the mill ceased to be used by about 1730 when Stainborough Lake was created - so why is the track still visible? The answer may be that the mill was first used about 1180 [from memory and not checked] - so the track may have been used for a long time - so perhaps the farm or its predecessors may also be very old - or the path may have run past the farmhouse and down towards Silkstone.

Clearly the path pre-dates the Ben Bank road now running between Dodworth and Silkstone Common.

Do you have anything to add to the above?

The Editor