One of the more unusual features of Rushton Hall is a priest hole which was built for Catholic clergy escaping persecution during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I. Sir Thomas Tresham also created the Oratory which houses the precious plaster representation of Passion, dated 1577. It was removed from St Peters Church, which once stood in the grounds of the Hall.

Alan Burman, a local historian, said: “Jesuit priests… were sought after and imprisoned, so most of these houses had priest holes.” The priest holes are believed to have run from Rushton Hall to the Triangular Lodge and the Church in the village. Unfortunately due to modern road building the tunnels have since collapsed.