Description

The monument itself is a relatively simple sandstone ashlar slab that stands approximately 1 meter in height and 300 millimeters in width. It features a plain, rounded top and is set against a dry stone wall on the roadside verge.  Carved into its front face is a date and a stern biblical commandment: "MAY 19, 1826 DO NO MURDER". According to local legend and historical records, the stone marks the site (or at least commemorates the event) of a gruesome, profit-driven killing.  A local farmer reportedly watched a cattle dealer driving his beasts to the nearby Leyburn Market. Knowing the dealer would be traveling back with the cash from his livestock sales, the farmer waylaid him on his journey home and murdered him to steal the money.  The murderer was caught, tried, and executed. Local lore claims he was the "last man to be hanged at York," though executions at York Castle actually continued well into the late 19th century. Following his execution, he was denied a Christian burial and was buried in an unconsecrated grave immediately outside the boundary wall of the churchyard at nearby Finghall Church.