Place:Skipton, West Riding of Yorkshire, England

Watchers
NameSkipton
Alt namesSkipton-in-Cravensource: wikipedia, hyphenated
TypeTownship, Ancient parish, Civil parish
Coordinates53.967°N 2.017°W
Located inWest Riding of Yorkshire, England     ( - 1974)
Also located inNorth Yorkshire, England     (1974 - )
Yorkshire, England    
See alsoStaincliffe and Ewcross Wapentake, West Riding of Yorkshire, Englandwapentake in which it was located
Claro Wapentake, West Riding of Yorkshire, Englandearly county division in which it was located
Craven District, North Yorkshire, Englandadministrative district in which Skipton is now located
source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names
source: Family History Library Catalog
the text in this article is based on one in Wikipedia

Since 1974 Skipton (also known as Skipton in Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven District of North Yorkshire, England. Prior to 1974 it was located in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It is on the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal to the south of the Yorkshire Dales, 16 miles (26 km) northwest of Bradford and 38 miles (61 km) west of York. At the 2011 Census, the population was 14,623.

History

One of the oldest mills in North Yorkshire, High Corn Mill is powered by the waters of Eller Beck, and dates to 1310 when it was owned by Robert de Clifford, 1st Baron de Clifford (1274-1314); at that point it was transferred to the powerful Clifford family by the then King Edward II. The mill as it appears today is only half of what used to exist when two mills were in operation to produce corn for the whole of Skipton. The mill has been completely redesigned, from the mill grounds to the buildings themselves. The outside walls of the mill have been sandblasted and the two main buildings of the old mill have been turned into flats from 2007 onwards, with one stand-alone building yet to be redesigned, touched or sandblasted.

Skipton Castle was built in 1090 as a wooden motte-and-bailey by Robert de Romille, a Norman baron. In the 12th century William le Gros strengthened it with a stone keep to repel attacks from the Kingdom of Scotland to the north. The castle elevated Skipton from a poor dependent village to a burgh or borough administered by a reeve. The protection offered by Skipton Castle during the Middle Ages encouraged the urbanisation of the surrounding area, and during times of war and disorder the town attracted an influx of families. It is now one of the most complete and best preserved medieval castles in England and is open to the public.

Skipton became a prosperous market town, trading sheep and woollen goods: its name derives from the Old English sceap (sheep) and tun (town or village). A market stemming from its formative years still survives. In the 19th century, Skipton emerged as a small mill town connected to the major cities by the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and its branch Thanet Canal, (known locally as 'Springs branch canal'), but during the 20th century Skipton's economy shifted to tourism, aided by its historic architecture and proximity to the Yorkshire Dales. Since 1974, Skipton has been the seat of Craven District Council. The Skipton Building Society was founded in the town.

end of Wikipedia contribution

Originally Skipton was an ecclesiastical or "ancient" parish in the Staincliffe and Ewcross Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. As an ancient parish it included the townships of Barden (near Skipton), Beamsley, Bolton Abbey, Draughton, Embsay with Eastby, Halton East, Hazlewood with Storiths. From 1894 until 1974 it was an urban district. Since the nationwide reorganization of municipalities in 1974 it has been in the Craven District of North Yorkshire.

Research Tips

  • British History Online (Victoria County Histories) do not cover the West Riding of Yorkshire
  • GENUKI has a page on all three ridings of Yorkshire and pages for each of the ecclesiastical parishes in the county. Under each parish there is a list of the settlements within it and brief description of each. The list is based on a gazetteer dated 1835 and there may have been a number of alterations to the parish setup since then. However, it is worthwhile information for the pre civil registration era. GENUKI provides references to other organizations who hold genealogical information for the local area. There is no guarantee that the website has been kept up to date and the submitter is very firm about his copyright. This should not stop anyone from reading the material.
  • The FamilyTree Wiki has a series of pages similar to those provided by GENUKI which may have been prepared at a later date from more recent data. The wiki has a link to English Jurisdictions 1851 which gives the registration district and wapentake for each parish, together with statistics from the 1851 census for the area.
  • A Vision of Britain through Time, Yorkshire West Riding, section "Units and Statistics" leads to analyses of population and organization of the county from about 1800 through 1974. There are pages available for all civil parishes, municipal boroughs and other administrative divisions. Descriptions provided are usually based on a gazetteer of 1870-72.
  • The above three maps indicate the boundaries between parishes, etc., but for a more detailed view of a specific area try a map from this selection. The oldest series are very clear at the third magnification offered. Comparing the map details with the GENUKI details for the same area is well worthwhile.
  • Yorkshire has a large number of family history and genealogical societies. A list of the societies will be found on the Yorkshire, England page.
  • In March 2018 Ancestry announced that its file entitled "Yorkshire, England: Church of England Parish Records, 1538-1873" has been expanded to include another 94 parishes (across the three ridings) and expected it to be expanded further during the year. The entries are taken from previously printed parish registers.
This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Skipton. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with WeRelate, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.