Place:Skellow, West Riding of Yorkshire, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Skellow is a village in rural South Yorkshire part of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the village is roughly north-west of Doncaster. The village falls in the Askern Spa Ward of Doncaster MBC. To the north and south is mixed farmland, the A1 runs immediately along the western edge of the village, and to the east Skellow merges with the adjacent village of Carcroft along the B1220 road.

Historically, Skellow was in the ecclesiastical parish of Owston in the wapentake of Osgoldcross. From 1894 until 1915, Skellow was located in Doncaster Rural District. In 1915, Skellow was absorbed into the newly formed Adwick le Street Urban District. In 1974 the whole of the urban district became part of Doncaster metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Skellow is mentioned in the Domesday Book as belonging to Ilbert of Lacy, and having villagers, ploughlands, meadows and woodland. The name derives from the nearby River Skell, and various derivations could be behind the name, which Smith suggests is [the] Nook of land or hollow near the Skell (brook). Historically, Skellow was in the Parish of Owston, in the wapentake of Osgoldcross. During the English Civil War, Cromwell placed a cannon battery at the village to protect the Great North Road. The mounds for the cannon still remain and the surrounding area of cottages remain to this day.

On the east bank of the Skell lies old Skellow, a cluster of older houses facing Skellow Hall. The hall was originally built in 1642 and is now in use as a residential care home for the elderly.

Godfrey Higgins was the son of the owner of much of the land, known as Skellow Grange, of what is now Skellow village.

The church of Saint Michael located in the village is a sister church to the nearby Grade I listed Church of All Saints, Owston.

Coal mining

Further east is a sizeable former council housing estate which is in a generally good state of repair, and a good example of the coal mining related social housing developments typical of southern part of the West Riding in the early to mid-20th century. This area is the heart of the village, containing most of the local amenities including various shops and the local primary school. Several local clubs exist on the sites of former working men's clubs, and the area has an active local nightlife including live music events.

Coal mining in the area ceased in the 1980s but some remnants from the industry are visible in the area, including winding wheel relics at Bullcroft. Demographic evidence of the former mining community is also evident in both higher than average levels of unemployment, and a strong sense of community with residents knowing their neighbours and those that live around them.

In 2009, the population was estimated to be 4,103 by Doncaster Metropolitan Council.^[1] The national censuses record the population of the village within the Askern Spa Ward.

Research Tips

• GENUKI on Skellow. The GENUKI page gives numerous references to local bodies providing genealogical assistance.
• The FamilySearch wiki on the ecclesiastical parish of Owston provides a list of useful resources for the local area.
• A Vision of Britain through Time on Skellow.
• A Vision of Britain through Time also provides links to three maps for what is now South Yorkshire, produced by the United Kingdom Ordnance Survey, illustrating the boundaries between the civil parishes and the rural districts at various dates. These maps all blow up to a scale that will illustrate small villages and large farms or estates.

• Ordnance Survey West Riding 1888. The "Sanitary Districts (which preceded the rural districts) for the whole of the West Riding.
• Ordnance Survey West Riding South 1900. The rural and urban districts, not long after their introduction. (the southern part of Bradford, the southern part of Leeds, the southern part of Tadcaster Rural District, the southern part of Selby, Goole Rural District, and all the divisions of Halifax, Huddersfield, Wakefield, Doncaster, Barnsley, Rotherham and Sheffield)
• Ordnance Survey West Riding 1944. The urban and rural districts of the whole of the West Riding after the revisions of 1935.