Thorpe
Traditional stone-built houses and barns in Thorpe hamlet
Thorpe is located in North Yorkshire
Thorpe
Thorpe
Location within North Yorkshire
Population50 (NYCC)[1]
OS grid referenceSE013618
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townSkipton
Postcode districtBD23
PoliceNorth Yorkshire
FireNorth Yorkshire
AmbulanceYorkshire
List of places
UK
England
Yorkshire
54°03′09″N 1°58′50″W / 54.05241°N 1.9806°W / 54.05241; -1.9806

Thorpe is a hamlet and civil parish in the Wharfedale valley, in North Yorkshire, England. It is 2 miles (3 km) south of Grassington and 6 miles (10 km) north of Skipton. At the 2011 census the population remained less than 100, so the details were included in the civil parish of Burnsall.[2] However in 2015, North Yorkshire County Council estimated the population to be 50.[1]

History

Thorpe is mentioned in the Domesday Book as belonging to Osborn of Arques.[3] The name derives from the Old Norse of þorp, which means outlying farmstead.[4][5] It was sometimes referred to as Thorpe Subtus Montem.[6] The hamlet is secluded and surrounded by reef knolls, especially Elbolton Hill to the west, and Kail Hill to the east. All of these form part of the Cracoe Reef Knolls SSSI.[7][8] These areas also have an extensive field systems of lynchets, a terraced hillside notable within the Yorkshire Dales.[9] This seclusion apparently meant that Thorpe remained unaffected by Scottish raiders, and was the place that local people went to in the area to escape troops engaged in the English Civil War.[10][11]

The hamlet is at an elevation of 725 feet (221 m), and faces northwards with the hill of Burnsall and Thorpe Fell directly behind it, which rises to a height of 1,660 feet (506 m).[12][13] The only road out of the village runs northwards towards Linton, and this road is part of the National Cycle Route 688.[14] Whilst there are many farmhouses and barns in the hamlet, which are indicative of agriculture, (of the 21 listed buildings in the parish, at least half are associated with farming), it also historically had a large community of cobblers.[15][16] Just to the south of the village is the remains of Elbolton Lead Mine, which was producing lead and fluorspar in the 19th century, closing down in 1888.[17]

Governance

Historically, the hamlet was in the parish of Burnsall, within Skipton Rural District, the wapentake of Staincliffe, in the West Riding of Yorkshire.[18] In 1974, the area was moved from the West Riding into North Yorkshire, and Thorpe was made into its own civil parish as part of Craven District.[19] The parish is rural and extends southwards over the summit of Burnsall and Thorpe Fell, covering 2,959.5 acres (1,197.68 hectares).[20] The parish is represented at Westminster as part of the Skipton & Ripon Constituency.[21]

Population of Thorpe 1871–2015
1871 1881 1891 1901 1911 1921 1931 1951 1961 1971 2015
58[22] 67[22] 46[22] 46[22] 54[22] 57[22] 54[22] 53[22] 41[22] 31[22] 50[1]

Thorpe has always been in the ecclesiastical parish of Burnsall, and remains so in the 21st century, being part of the benefice of Linton, Burnsall and Rylstone.[23] In the 19th century, the Wesleyan Methodists had a mission room in the hamlet.[24]

References

  1. ^ a b c "2015 Population Estimates: Parishes" (PDF). northyorks.gov.uk. December 2016. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 June 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  2. ^ UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Burnsall Parish (E04007067)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  3. ^ "Thorpe | Domesday Book". opendomesday.org. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  4. ^ Ekwall, Eilert (1960). The concise Oxford dictionary of English place-names (4 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 468. ISBN 0-19-869103-3.
  5. ^ Chrystal, Paul (2017). The Place Names of Yorkshire; Cities, Towns, Villages, Rivers and Dales, some Pubs too, in Praise of Yorkshire Ales (1 ed.). Catrine: Stenlake. p. 83. ISBN 9781840337532.
  6. ^ Whitaker, Thomas Dunham (1812). The history and antiquities of the Deanery of Craven, in the County of York. Halifax: Edwards & Son. p. 514. OCLC 939430653.
  7. ^ "Cracoe Reef Knolls SSSI" (PDF). designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  8. ^ "LCA 16 Wharfedale" (PDF). yorkshiredales.org.uk. p. 7. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Steps and Terraces in the Landscape : Yorkshire Dales National Park". yorkshiredales.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  10. ^ Ellwood, Ken (2011). Skipton & the Dales through time. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-84868-562-8.
  11. ^ Speight, Harry (1892). The Craven and north-west Yorkshire highlands. Being a complete account of the history, scenery, and antiquities of that romantic district. London: E Stock. p. 293. OCLC 7219082.
  12. ^ "Thorpe, Craven - area information, map, walks and more". getoutside.ordnancesurvey.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  13. ^ "OL2" (Map). Yorkshire Dales - Southern & Western Area. 1:25,000. Explorer. Ordnance Survey. 2016. ISBN 978-0-319-26331-0.
  14. ^ "Detailed maps & routes to explore across the UK | OS Maps". explore.osmaps.com. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Listed Buildings in Thorpe, Craven, North Yorkshire". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  16. ^ Speight, Harry (1892). The Craven and north-west Yorkshire highlands. Being a complete account of the history, scenery, and antiquities of that romantic district. London: E Stock. p. 294. OCLC 7219082.
  17. ^ "Metaliferrous Mines of the Yorkshire Dales". nmrs.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Genuki: Burnsall Supplementary, Yorkshire (West Riding)". genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  19. ^ Guide No. 6: North Yorkshire Gazetteer of Townships and Parishes. Northallerton: North Yorkshire County Council. 2021 [1986]. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-906035-29-0.
  20. ^ "E00 Output Area E00140265". statistics.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  21. ^ "Election Maps". ordnancesurvey.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024. On the left of the screen is the "Boundary" tab; click this and activate either civil parishes or Westminster Constituencies (or both), however, only two functions can be active at any one time.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Thorpe Tn/CP through time | Statistics |". visionofbritain.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  23. ^ "St Wilfrid's Church Burnsall". linton-burnsall-rylstone.com. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  24. ^ Kelly, E. R., ed. (1881). Kelly's Directory of West Riding of Yorkshire, 1881. [Part 1: County Information & Places A-K]. London: Kelly & Co. p. 252. OCLC 1131686820.

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