Ford Moss facts for kids

Ford Moss is a very special place in Northumberland, England. It's called a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because it has important plants, animals, and natural features. It also contains a Scheduled Ancient Monument, which means an old historical site is protected there.

Ford Moss is looked after by the Northumberland Wildlife Trust. It became an SSSI in 1968. Later, in 2005, it was also named a Special Area of Conservation. This means it's recognized as important for nature across Europe.

Exploring Ford Moss's Nature

Ford Moss is surrounded by hills like Goatscrag Hill and Blackchester Hill. These hills are made of sandstone. The site is part of the Ford & Etal estate. This estate was originally two separate areas that were joined together in 1908.

You can visit Ford Moss by heading south from the B6353 road. You'll need to leave your car at the gate. There are some good footpaths for everyone to use. However, you might need a special permit to enter certain parts of the area.

The Raised Bog

Ford Moss is about 110 meters above sea level. A big part of it, about 46 hectares, is a raised bog. A bog is a type of wetland. This bog is made of peat, which is old, partly decayed plant material. In some places, the peat is up to 12 meters deep!

Underneath the peat, there's Carboniferous Limestone. This rock formed a very long time ago, between 363 and 325 million years ago. The bog used to be a lake. Over time, plants grew and died faster than they could rot away. This caused the bog to build up and become "raised."

Even though some parts of the bog have been drained, many areas are still very wet. The water level is usually close to the surface, and the water quality is good.

Plants and Animals of Ford Moss

Ford Moss is home to many different kinds of plants and animals.

Plants You Might See

You can find plants like heather, cotton grass, hares tail, and cross-leaved heath. These plants are well-suited to living in wet, boggy conditions.

Animals You Might Spot

Many animals live at Ford Moss. Keep an eye out for red squirrels and roe deer. You might also see birds like curlew and red grouse. Adders, which are a type of snake, also live here.

In 2007, a special type of solitary bee called "Colletes succinctus" was seen around the bog. It was the first time this bee had been spotted in Northumberland!

South of the bog, there's an ancient woodland. This forest has old trees like Scots pine, birch, and willow trees.

Human History at Ford Moss

Ford Moss also has signs of human activity from long ago.

A Medieval Village

There's some evidence that a deserted village from the medieval period once existed here. However, it's hard to find much information about it today.

The Old Coal Mine

On the western side of Ford Moss, you can find the remains of an old colliery, which is a coal mine. This mine was used from at least the late 1600s until the start of World War I.

The colliery provided coal to local businesses. These included a brick and tileworks at Flodden and the Ford Forge. A small group of houses once stood around the colliery for the miners. There was even a plan for a railway in 1852, but it was never built.

Even though the mine stopped being used fairly recently, not much of it is left. You can still see some walls from the engine house, the bases of some miners' cottages, and an engine house chimney. This chimney is a Grade II listed building, which means it's an important historical structure. It was listed in 1988 and is described as being made of stone and brick, with a tall, round brick chimney on a square stone base.