BRACKENHOLME WITH WOODHALL
Most of the land lying eastwards of Hemingbrough
township and bounded by the river Derwent was
occupied by the townships of Babthorpe, Brackenholme, Hagthorpe, and Woodhall; all four were
comprised in the 19th-century civil parish of
Brackenholme with Woodhall. Not included in the
townships were 130 a. of land, lying between
Babthorpe and the river, which were in Barmby on
the Marsh until 1935. (fn. 12) Brackenholme was an
Anglian settlement, but Babthorpe and Hagthorpe
were Scandinavian, as presumably was Woodhall
despite the late occurrence of its name: it was first
recorded as Grimsthorpe in the 1130s but had
acquired its alternative name by c. 1190 and thereafter was always known as Woodhall. (fn. 13) The area of
Brackenholme, including Babthorpe and Hagthorpe,
was 1,029 a. and of Woodhall 312 a. (fn. 14)
The whole of the civil parish lies at less than 25 ft.
above sea-level. The four hamlets stood on the edge
of the outwash deposits, close to the alluvium
bordering the Derwent. The river now forms the
eastern boundary of the townships, but it has
changed its course in historic times, having previously flowed eastwards from the neighbourhood of
Brackenholme to join the Ouse 4 miles away near
Howden. (fn. 15) The 'old' Derwent was already mentioned
in 959. (fn. 16) The new course broadly coincided with the
boundary between the parishes of Hemingbrough
and Barmby, but it isolated on the west bank an area
of meadow and pasture belonging to the bishop of
Durham's manor of Barmby. The ground is still
known as Barmby pasture and Bishop's meadows. In
the early 14th century Robert of Babthorpe and the
bishop were in dispute about a watercourse near
'Bysshopcauce' (i.e. Bishop's causey), which lay
between their demesne lands 'towards Babthorpe
beyond Derwent'; (fn. 17) the new course of the river was
clearly well-established by that time.
The Hemingbrough-Howden road crosses the
civil parish, and Brackenholme and Hagthorpe
hamlets both lie beside it; Babthorpe stood just
south of the road. From Brackenholme a minor road
leads northwards towards North Duffield, passing
through the hamlet of Woodhall. The Howden road
led to a ferry over the Derwent, belonging to the
bishop of Durham, which was mentioned in 1339. (fn. 18)
It may have taken the place of a bridge, for timber
for 'Barmby bridge' was taken from Brackenholme
wood before 1228. (fn. 19) Loftsome ferry, as it was later
called from the hamlet on the opposite bank, (fn. 20) was
replaced by a bridge in 1804, administered by a
private company and having a toll-house at the
Loftsome end. (fn. 21) The wooden bridge remained in
use, still subject to tolls, until soon after 1930, when
a new Loftsome bridge was built near by as part of
the improvements to the Selby-Hull trunk road
which were made about that time. (fn. 22) Parts of the old
bridge still stand. There was a landing-place near
by. (fn. 23) The Selby-Hull railway line, opened in 1840, (fn. 24)
crosses Woodhall with a bridge over the Derwent
about ½ mile north of Loftsome bridge.
The hamlet of Babthorpe was greatly shrunken
long before 1850, when only a single house remained
on the moated site of the manor-house. Later in the
19th century a lodge and two cottages were built on
the main road, and after the estate was bought for
smallholdings by the county council in 1920 a second
house was built near the moated site and two others
on the main road. Brackenholme had been reduced
to two farm-houses by 1850. Five houses and
cottages were later built at the end of the Woodhall
road and a bungalow was added in the 20th century.
On the opposite side of the main road stands the
moated hall that was all that remained of Hagthorpe
in 1850. One other house has been built in the
present century. Woodhall consisted in 1850 of the
mansion known as Wood Hall, the remains of its
predecessor, and possibly two other houses. (fn. 25) Two
or three more houses had been demolished since
1835 during improvements made to the surrounds
of the hall by Robert Menzies, and at the same time
the road was diverted away from the house. (fn. 26) The
hall became derelict in the 20th century, but one
new house has been built in the hamlet. Farm
buildings at Babthorpe, Brackenholme, and Woodhall all include dovecots, and there is a wheelhouse
at Woodhall.
There were 65 poll-tax payers in Brackenholme in
1379, (fn. 27) though the other hamlets may also have
been included in that figure. Only 13 men were
mustered at Brackenholme and Woodhall in 1539. (fn. 28)
For the two places again 13 households were included in the hearth-tax return in 1672, two of them
exempt. Of those chargeable 4 had only one hearth
each, 5 had 2-3, and 2 had six. (fn. 29) The population
fluctuated in the 19th century between 65 in 1801
and 115 in 1901. (fn. 30) It was 92 in 1931, before the
civil parish was united with Hemingbrough. (fn. 31)
MANORS AND OTHER ESTATES.
In 1086
2 bovates in Babthorpe formed a berewick of
the bishop of Durham's manor of Howden, and 3
carucates and 2 bovates were soke of Howden. (fn. 32)
The overlordship descended with Howden. (fn. 33) The
demesne lords of BABTHORPE manor were a
family taking their name from the township. The
first member is thought to have been Ralph of Babthorpe (fl. c. 1190), who had earlier been known as
Ralph of Hunsley. (fn. 34) The Babthorpes enjoyed unbroken ownership until the death of Sir Ralph
Babthorpe in 1490; his daughter Isabel had married
Sir John Hastings, who was in possession of the
manor in 1492. Hastings died in 1504 and the
estate passed to Isabel's cousin, another Isabel, wife
of William Plumpton. At Isabel and William's
marriage in 1496, however, it had been agreed that
the manor should be assigned to William Babthorpe
of Osgodby. Disputes over its ownership were not
finally settled, in the Babthorpes' favour, until
1565. (fn. 35)
In 1621 the manor was conveyed by Sir William
Babthorpe (d. 1635) to Richard Bowes, (fn. 36) whose
family sold it c. 1665 to James Strangeways (d.
1670). (fn. 37) Babthorpe apparently passed like Hagthorpe from Thomas Strangeways (d. 1702) to his
son Thomas (later Thomas Robinson), and in 1710
it was sold to Boynton Boynton. (fn. 38) At his death in
1725 Boynton's heirs were his daughters Elizabeth,
who married Richard Langley, and Judith, who
married John Twisleton (d. 1757). (fn. 39) Babthorpe
evidently passed to the Twisletons and from them
to John Twisleton's nephew Thomas Cockshutt,
who took the surname Twisleton and died in 1764.
From Josias Cockshutt Twisleton (d. 1823) Babthorpe passed to his nephew Bache Heathcote, and
in 1843 C. T. Heathcote sold it to John Banks. (fn. 40) The
Banks family retained it until 1920, when William
Banks sold it, then comprising 276 a., to the East
Riding county council, together with 17 a. in
Hemingbrough and 13 a. in South Duffield. (fn. 41)
The medieval manor-house had a chapel in 1436-
7 and licences to maintain it were granted later in
the century; (fn. 42) there are still the remains of moats
around the modern farm-house. A Gothic lodge
stands on the main road at the entrance to the
estate.
In 1086 a carucate and 6 bovates in Brackenholme, out of the 2 carucates and 5 bovates recorded in the township, were said to belong to the
bishop of Durham's manor of Howden. (fn. 43) The
overlordship descended with Howden. (fn. 44) By 1284 11
bovates in the township were held in demesne
under the bishop by Ralph of Babthorpe. (fn. 45) This
estate, comprising BRACKENHOLME manor,
descended in the Babthorpe family until 1620, when
it was sold by Sir William Babthorpe to George
Wentworth. (fn. 46) At the death of Sir George Wentworth in 1660 the manor passed to his daughter
Anne, wife of William Osbaldeston, (fn. 47) and it subsequently descended like Hunmanby manor in the
Osbaldeston and Osbaldeston-Mitford families. (fn. 48)
In 1856 it was sold, comprising 356 a., to John
Banks (d. 1881), (fn. 49) and in 1882 William Banks sold
it to Thomas Brearley. (fn. 50) It was acquired from Henry
Brearley by C. E. Clark in 1899, and in 1907 he sold
it to J. M. Jackson. (fn. 51) In 1911 Jackson bought
another 92 a. from the devisees of Richard Jewitt,
and in 1921 he sold the whole estate to Victor
Greaves. (fn. 52) Most of it was conveyed to N. E. Hare in
1929, (fn. 53) and the Hares still owned it in 1973. The
house known as Brackenholme is an ornate building
of c. 1900, built of white brick and stone with redbrick dressings, and it has extensive earlier farm
buildings.
In 1086 a carucate of land in Hagthorpe belonged
to the bishop of Durham's manor of Howden, (fn. 54)
with which the overlordship subsequently descended. (fn. 55) The demesne lords of HAGTHORPE
manor were a family taking their name from the
township: they held 6 bovates in 1284-5. (fn. 56) The
first known member of the family is Robert of Hagthorpe (fl. c. 1190). (fn. 57) His successors held the manor
until the death of Thomas Hagthorpe c. 1500, when
it evidently passed to his daughter Joan, who married first Robert Proctor and secondly Thomas
Newark. Joan was seised of Hagthorpe at her death
in 1535. Land in Hagthorpe apparently passed to
her son Geoffrey Proctor, for in 1536 he granted
property there to William Babthorpe and others and
in 1550 his remaining interest was acquired by Sir
William Babthorpe. (fn. 58) The manor, however, went to
the Newarks, and in 1584 John Newark's successors
Thomas and Catherine Savile and Thomas and
Catherine Hardwick sold it to Matthew Hutton,
dean of York. (fn. 59)
In 1612 Matthew Hutton's son Sir Timothy sold
the manor to Richard Bowes, the son of Matthew's
wife Frances by a previous marriage. (fn. 60) The Bowes
family (fn. 61) retained it until 1665, when Charles Bowes
the younger sold it to James Strangeways. The profits of the manor were, however, enjoyed from 1668
to 1692 by Edward Kirlew and later by his son-inlaw John Fenton, in satisfaction of the debts of
Charles Bowes the elder (d. 1648). (fn. 62) When Thomas
Strangeways died in 1702, Hagthorpe passed to his
son Thomas, who later took the surname Robinson, (fn. 63) and in 1711 it was sold to Boynton Boynton. (fn. 64)
At Boynton's death in 1725 the manor passed to his
daughter Elizabeth, who married Richard Langley, (fn. 65) and in 1784 another Richard Langley sold it to
John Watson. (fn. 66) In 1811 Watson's son John sold
Hagthorpe to Jonathan Briggs the elder (d. 1840),
the estate then comprising about 150 a. (fn. 67)
The manor was acquired from Briggs's son
Jonathan in 1840 by J. F. Carr and his wife Mary, (fn. 68)
who died in 1863 and 1871 respectively. (fn. 69) The
estate was then held by trustees until 1946, when
it was sold, comprising 167 a., to Annie Smith. In
1956 it was sold to Mary Parkin, in 1966 to J. H.
Bacon, and in 1972 to M. A. Petit. (fn. 70) Hagthorpe Hall
is a long later-18th-century farm-house, but parts of
the moat of an earlier manor-house may still be
seen. The house had a chapel in the early 16th century. (fn. 71) The outbuildings include several large
brick barns and stables, contemporary with the
present house.
Between 1133 and 1140 3 bovates in Grimsthorpe
(later Woodhall) were given by the bishop of
Durham to Durham priory, (fn. 72) and in 1158 the king
confirmed a grant of a carucate of land there to the
priory. (fn. 73) The carucate holding was given by the
priory to Richard of Coldingham between 1186 and
c. 1191, (fn. 74) and Thomas of Coldingham held it in
1284-5. (fn. 75) The manor of WOODHALL descended
to Margery of Coldingham, and in 1313 her husband Walter de Paxton had it; by 1339, however, it
apparently belonged to Richard Browne. (fn. 76) The
estate seems subsequently to have been much
divided.
In the 17th century a large holding was built up
by the Kirlew family and sold c. 1674 by Thomas
Kirlew to Joshua Colston. In 1700 Colston's heirs,
three daughters, sold the manor of Woodhall to
William Mason. (fn. 77) In 1717 Mason's daughter
Frances Barker and her husband conveyed the
manor to Mary Henson the elder, (fn. 78) whose trustees
sold it in 1743 to John Burton, husband of her
daughter Mary. (fn. 79) John Graham bought it from the
Burtons in 1747 (fn. 80) and his family held it until Maria
Graham devized it in 1801 to John Reeves, the son
of her servant Charles Reeves. (fn. 81) In 1835 another
Charles Reeves sold the manor and 239 a. to Robert
Menzies. (fn. 82) It was retained by the family until 1921,
when Charlotte Menzies sold it to Richard Bramley. (fn. 83) The Bramleys still owned it in 1973.
An older house at Woodhall, mentioned in
1570, (fn. 84) was replaced by a new one in 1802, built by
John Reeves. (fn. 85) That in turn was enlarged by Robert
Menzies (d. 1839). (fn. 86) The square two-storeyed addition of the 1830s is in white brick, with a large
Venetian staircase window; its doorway probably
remains from the house of 1802. (fn. 87) Wood Hall was
derelict in 1973.
Among the lesser estates was that belonging in
1086 to Gilbert Tison, comprising 5 bovates in
Brackenholme and 4 in Hagthorpe. (fn. 88) By 1228 it had
passed to Eustace de Vescy, (fn. 89) and John de Vescy
had it in 1284, when Robert of Menthorpe was the
under-tenant. (fn. 90) The overlordship is said to have
passed later to the Percy family and the estate to
have been split up. (fn. 91) A further 2 bovates in Brackenholme belonged in 1086 to Ernuin (fn. 92) and had passed
to Hugh de Collum by 1284. (fn. 93) Drax priory also had
a smallholding in Brackenholme. (fn. 94)
Part of the rectorial tithes of Brackenholme and
Babthorpe descended, like those of Hemingbrough
township, with Hemingbrough manor. (fn. 95) The tithes
of 73 a. were still held with that manor in 1842, when
they were commuted for rent-charges of £10 payable to Wilson's devisees, Tweedy, and Smith. (fn. 96)
Other tithes were separated from the manor in 1802,
when Lady Amherst and Sir John Russell sold them
to John Watson, (fn. 97) and most of them then descended
with Hagthorpe manor to J. F. Carr in 1840. (fn. 98) Those
on 106 a., however, were sold by Jonathan Briggs
the elder to Robert Menzies and others, (fn. 99) and in
1842 they were commuted for £20 16s., of which
£13 10s. was payable to Menzies. (fn. 1)
Another part of the tithes of Brackenholme and
Babthorpe, as well as all of those of Woodhall, were
granted separately by the Crown after the Dissolution. Those of Woodhall were sold to the Haddleseys and passed in 1637-8 to Edward Kirlew. (fn. 2) In
1650 the tithes of Woodhall and of 40 a. in Brackenholme were worth £12 to Kirlew, and others in
Brackenholme, worth £15, were held by Charles
Fenwick during the life of his wife, formerly the
wife of the lord of Hagthorpe manor, Charles
Bowes. (fn. 3) These various tithes later descended with
Hagthorpe manor to J. F. Carr in 1840. (fn. 4) Thus Carr
had the greater part of the tithes in these townships
at commutation in 1842, and he was awarded rentcharges totalling £147 10s. (fn. 5)
ECONOMIC HISTORY.
It is not clear whether
the several hamlets were separate agricultural communities in the Middle Ages. There was certainly
some open-field land at an early date, for eleven
selions at Brackenholme, together with three tofts
and meadow land, were mentioned in the 13th
century; (fn. 6) and 8 copyholders had 7 houses and 10½
bovates in 1291-2. (fn. 7) Land in Bush field, Cow close,
Wrang lands, Mowres, and Stainsby were mentioned at Brackenholme in 1529, (fn. 8) and in 1699 there
were four closes known as Spring field and three as
Stonesby. (fn. 9)
Land in 'the fields' of Woodhall was recorded in
1553, (fn. 10) but at least part of the open-field land there
had been inclosed by 1616. At the latter date Woodhall pasture consisted of two adjoining parts, North
field which lay in ridge-and-furrow and the Marsh
running down to the Derwent; North field was
stinted and the Marsh mown for hay. It was said in
1616 that a division between the two parts had been
made with the help of a surveyor a few years earlier. (fn. 11)
Middle field and Hither field closes at Woodhall, as
well as the ings, were mentioned in 1667. (fn. 12)
Extensive woodland in Brackenholme belonged in
1228 to the bishop of Durham and was commoned
by the tenants of the bishop, the prior of Durham,
and the Vescys. (fn. 13) Part of the woodland area is
occupied by modern closes called the Haggs. (fn. 14)
In the 19th and 20th centuries there have usually
been only 4 or 5 large farms in the whole civil
parish. (fn. 15)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
No manorial records
are known. Brackenholme with Woodhall joined
Howden poor-law union in 1837; (fn. 16) it became part of
Howden rural district in 1894, Derwent rural district in 1935, (fn. 17) and the Selby district of North
Yorkshire in 1974.