Hundreds of people joined an archaeological dig at the Two Lads stone monuments on Crooked Edge Hill, an outlying summit on Winter Hill, days before the Bronze Age cairns are rebuilt. The iconic moorland landmarks, which have stood on the West Pennine moors north of Bolton for centuries, were dismantled in July and are now being reconstructed.
Restoration Plans
The cairns are on the Smithills estate, managed by the Woodland Trust. Following a public consultation, the trust is rebuilding them into beehive shapes, with a new dry stone wall surrounding them. The restored monuments are expected to remain a popular destination, offering views of Bolton, the Manchester and Salford skyline, Liverpool docks, North Wales, and even Barrow.
The stones, which overlook Horwich, have been a beloved destination for walkers and ramblers for centuries, with some believing they are an ancient burial ground. The landmark has been recorded on maps since 1787, shown as two cairns.
History and Excavation
The Woodland Trust said many people will be familiar with just one large cairn that existed until 1970, when the second cairn was rebuilt. The informal piles of stones have been knocked down and rebuilt many times since, often becoming unsafe and having to be fenced off.
A spokesperson for the trust said: "Following public consultations, several changes have been made to the Two Lads cairns. The restored monument will not be returned to one point in history, instead it will contain elements from several evolutions." He added that the artistic interpretations of the Two Lads final monument may 'differ in size and shape'.
The Smithills estate is England's largest Woodland Trust site and has been owned and managed by it since 2015. Over the weekend of August 8 and 9, the trust invited groups and conducted free tours of the site, with dozens donning gloves, picking up trowels, and assisting with the digging underneath the dismantled cairns.
Community Involvement and Rebuild
A trust spokesman said: "Alongside the archaeologists at Team Civic, we have been carrying out excavations with local groups at Two Lads Cairns. A range of local youth and community groups and organisations have joined the dig, including Bolton Lads and Girls Club, The Wanderlust Women, and staff from the Lancashire Wildlife Trust - Peatlands partnership. Of course, many of our volunteer groups have got involved too."
Many people believe the site could be a Bronze Age burial ground, but the team conducting the dig reported 'no significant finds' over the weekend. On Monday, August 10, the Two Lads site was handed back to a dry stone wall team, with the rebuild officially beginning. The restoration is due to be complete by the early autumn.
The trust gave a justification for the changes: "The current cairn structures are unstable and unsafe, they have been vandalised and rebuilt numerous times, with a third mound recently appearing. The large cairn has been deemed unsafe and does not currently meet health and safety standards, having a temporary wooden fence around it. Action must be taken to permanently deter further vandalism and make the area safer for visitors."
Tony Greenwood, from the Woodland Trust, gave an insight into myths surrounding the 'Two Lads'. He said: "We believe that in medieval times these monuments were seen as really strange and the local ministers would say 'don't go up there'. They believed it was where the Druids used to worship and the site was related to sacrifices. After the Enlightenment when people started asking questions people would actually start wandering the moors and exploring. This would be around about the 18th century and the Two Lads started to appear on maps. One of the earliest records was from a guy called Wraysbottom who went up and described it in the local newspaper. That description and what was on maps led to illustrations of the site being made."
The new iteration of Two Lads will create solid beehive shaped cairns. The trust said 'traditional Lancashire cairns are built in a beehive shape and this is how Two Lads was originally'. It said a second cairn was originally built next to the current large one and is marked by a pile of rubble so 'we will be rebuilding the second cairn in its last known position'.
