John Rushworth's Excellent Adventures
Bradford’s Coat of Arms
A piece of medieval folklore concerning an ancestor (John Rushworth) which survives to this day is the Legend of
the Bradford Boar:
‘Legend has it that there was a ferocious boar that
lived in a wood on the outskirts of Bradford, and
frequently drank from a well in the wood. The boar
terrorised the populace and caused much damage
to land and property; so much so that the Lord of
the Manor offered a reward for anyone brave
enough to take up the his offer.
A hunter did and lay in wait near the well; ready to catch his
quarry and thereby claim his reward. The boar duly
arrived, and was shot by the hunter, who cut out the
boar's tongue as proof of his victory and set off for
the Manor House.
A little time later, another hunter who had heard of
the Lord's offer, was passing through the woods
and saw the slain boar lying near the well. Thinking
of the reward he would receive, he cut off the boar's
head and he too set off for the Manor House.
Arriving there before the true victor, he claimed his
reward for having disposed of the ferocious
creature, but was unable to account for the boar's
absent tongue.
The first hunter (John Rushworth) then arrived, explained the true
circumstances of the defeat—showing the boar's
tongue as evidence of his veracity—and received
his rightful reward; a plot of land called Hunt Yard
just outside the town.’ (City of Bradford MDC)
Hunt Yard survives as a street name in its original
location to this day, although the site has been
redeveloped at least twice, most recently in the late
1970s.
The head of the tongueless boar is the
emblem of the City of Bradford and was also
incorporated into the Horton coat-of-arms which
depicts a boar’s head on the shoulder of a lion
rampant. The site granted to John Rushworth would have
been quite valuable as it lay alongside the ancient
route between Bradford and Halifax, which ran out
of Bradford along Silsbridge Lane (the modern day
Grattan Road), Leagrams Lane (via Listerhills
Road), Green Lane (on the edge of Lidget Green),
and Toby Lane, which continued via Town End onto
a short stretch of what is now Great Horton Road
and passing in font of Hunt Yard before heading to
Halifax via Wibsey and Shelf along Southfield Lane.
The situation of Hunt Yard on this main
thoroughfare explains why a hostelry named The
Robin Hood and Little John was built on the site in
1622.
Contact - John Rushworth
