Place:Skipton on Swale, North Riding of Yorkshire, England

Skipton on Swale (#36 on map) was originally a township in the ancient parish of Topcliffe (near Thirsk) (#48) in the Birdforth Wapentake of the North Riding of Yorkshire. Skipton on Swale was made a civil parish in 1866 and in 1894 it became part of the Thirsk Rural District. Since 1974 it has been in North Yorkshire, specifically within the Hambleton District. The population at the 2011 Census was less than 100 and data has been combined with that of the neighbouring parish of Catton (#7). It lies on the A61 road, about 4 miles west of Thirsk on the east bank of the River Swale. The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Schipetun" in the "Yarlestre hundred" under the manor of "Topeclive" (now Topcliffe). At the time of the Norman invasion, the manor was owned by Bernwulf and afterwards by William of Percy. The overlordship remained with and followed that of Topcliffe, but there were grants as mesne lord to various families over the centuries. For example, in 1284, Baldwin, son of John de Skipton owned land. In the 14th century, John Minniott of nearby Carlton (#7) bought land in the village. From 1600, one of the main land owners were the Clough family who were recorded as still in possession in 1710. After then, manorial rights seem to cease. Skipton Bridge is the name of the hamlet that lies by the bridge that crosses the River Swale. The bridge is a Grade II listed structure designed by John Carr and built in 1781. To the north of the village is an abandoned airfield which was used by four squadrons from the Royal Canadian Air Force and one Polish Bomber Squadron between 1942 and 1947.

Research Tips

• Original historical documents relating to the North Riding of Yorkshire and North Yorkshire are held at the North Yorkshire County Record Office, Malpas Road, Northallerton, North Yorkshire DL7 8TB
• Family history societies covering the area include the Ryedale Family History Group, the Family History Section of the Yorkshire Archaeological Society (based in the City of York), and the Cleveland, North Yorkshire & South Durham Family History Society (for the Cleveland and Teesside area and the western part of North Yorkshire, commonly known as the "Yorkshire Downs"). A more complete list may be found under the Federation of Family History Societies.
• A History of the County of Yorkshire from British History Online (Victoria County Histories), published 1914 and 1923 (Volume 1: the western part of the North Riding including Richmond and Volume 2: the eastern part of the North Riding including Scarborough and Whitby). A History of the County of York: the City of York is also helpful for the many North Riding parishes that were absorbed into the city during the 19th and 20th centuries.

This is by far the most complete history of the parishes of the North Riding to be found online. The volumes are divided into sections by wapentake (early divisions of the county) and the parishes within each wapentake follow in alphabetical order. The links above open to the indexes covering all the wapentakes in the volume.

• GENUKI has a page on all three ridings of Yorkshire and pages for each of the ancient or ecclesiastical parishes in the county. Under each ancient parish there is a list of the settlements (townships and chapelries) within it and brief description of each. Many of these secondary settlements became civil parishes during the latter half of the 19th century.

These notes are 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, but 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. 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 North 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 which also include historical population and area statistics. Descriptions provided are usually based on a gazetteer of 1870-72.
• Map of the North Riding divisions in 1888 produced by UK Ordnance Survey and provided online by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Map of North Riding divisions in 1944 produced by UK Ordnance Survey and provided online by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Another provider of maps is the National Library of Scotland. In this index the Scottish provision precedes the English one, but the choice of maps for England is still quite vast.
• 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.