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Mother Ludlam's Cave

British legendsBuildings and structures in FarnhamCaves of SurreyFarnhamMedieval legends
Surrey folklore
Mother Ludlam's Cave 2005
Mother Ludlam's Cave 2005

Mother Ludlam's Cave, also known as Mother Ludlum's Cave or Mother Ludlum's Hole, is a small cave in the sandstone cliff of the Wey Valley at Moor Park, near Farnham, Surrey, in England. The cave is the subject of a number of local legends. A spring rising in the cave is recorded in the 13th century "Annals of Waverley Abbey" as "Ludewell"; other spellings through history include "Ludwell" and "Luddwelle". A monk named Symon is credited with identifying the spring as a suitable water supply for Waverley Abbey in 1218, after the original source had dried up. The brothers of the abbey dedicated the spring to St Mary, so it also became known as St Mary's Well. The cave has been naturally formed by the spring but may have been enlarged by the monks and was made into a grotto (possibly during the eighteenth century) and further enhanced by addition of an ironstone arched entrance, possibly during the reign of Queen Victoria. The cave was explored and surveyed at around 200 feet long in 1945 and as 192 feet to a recent roof collapse in 1961.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Mother Ludlam's Cave (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Mother Ludlam's Cave
Moor Park House Way, Waverley

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Latitude Longitude
N 51.2043 ° E -0.7549 °
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Moor Park House Way

Moor Park House Way
GU10 1RJ Waverley
England, United Kingdom
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Mother Ludlam's Cave 2005
Mother Ludlam's Cave 2005
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Runfold
Runfold

Runfold is a village in Surrey, U.K., about 2 mi (3.2 km) ENE of Farnham. Runfold lies on the ancient trackway known as the Pilgrims' Way and on the former route of the A31 road, which has by-passed the village since the early 1990s. Loss of through traffic has made the village safer and quieter but has affected the village economy, with the loss of the service station, post office and "Alf's Café", a notable transport café. One pub remains; the Princess Royal, which has recently expanded and now offers hotel accommodation; the former Jolly Farmer has now become a Chinese restaurant.The village has been seriously affected by mineral extraction, subsequent infilling of the resultant sand and gravel pits, and the heavy vehicle movements associated with that industry. Runfold Manor is a large house in the east of the village, at the foot of the Hog's Back. Much of the contents were auctioned in 2005 when the owners decided to move away.John Henry Knight, a former resident of Barfield House in the village, built "The first petroleum carriage for two people made in England". Barfield School, an independent mixed gender Primary School, is now located there; Mike Hawthorn, Britain's first Formula One motor racing World Champion was educated here. Runfold, along with a number of other villages in the Surrey and Sussex Weald (such as Alfold, Dunsfold, Durfold, Kingsfold and Chiddingfold) comprise the "Fold Villages", the suffix probably relating to the clearance of forest and its use as pasturage for sheep or cattle in Saxon times.