Skellingthorpe (St. Lawrence)
SKELLINGTHORPE (St. Lawrence), a parish,
in the Lower division of the wapentake of BoothbyGraffo, parts of Kesteven, union and county of Lincoln, 5½ miles (W.) from Lincoln; containing 533 inhabitants. The parish comprises 5462a. 1r. 8p. of land,
chiefly the property of Christ's Hospital, Loudon. The
Fosse Dyke navigation, connecting the rivers Trent and
Witham, passes within a quarter of a mile of the village.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £6. 18. 9.; net income, £31; patron and impropriator, the Master of Spital Hospital: the tithes
were commuted for land and corn-rents in 1804. The
church is an ancient structure. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
Skellow
SKELLOW, a township, in the parish of Owston,
union of Doncaster, Upper division of the wapentake
of Osgoldcross, W. riding of York, 5½ miles (N. N. W.)
from Doncaster; containing 206 inhabitants, and comprising by computation 1000 acres. The tithes were
commuted for land in 1801.
Skelmanthorpe
SKELMANTHORPE, a hamlet, in the township of
Cumberworth, parishes of High Hoyland and Emley, union of Huddersfield, wapentake of Staincross and Agbrigg, W. riding of York, 7 miles (S. E.
by E.) from Huddersfield; containing 1420 inhabitants.
It comprises about 1430 acres of profitable land; the
substratum contains freestone of excellent quality, and
some coal. The inhabitants are partly employed in the
manufacture of worsted and silk goods, for which there
are several mills, and in the weaving of fancy waistcoatings. A fair for cattle and pigs is held at Michaelmas. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. On
the inclosure of Cumberworth common, seven acres were
allotted to this hamlet, now producing £10. 10. per annum, of which £6 are paid to a schoolmaster, and the
remainder distributed among the poor.
Skelmersdale
SKELMERSDALE, a chapelry, in the parish and
union of Ormskirk, hundred of West Derby, S. division of Lancashire, 4 miles (E. S. E.) from Ormskirk,
on the road to Wigan; containing 691 inhabitants. At
the time of the Domesday survey, this place was held by
Uctred; and William Dacre subsequently held the manor
under Thomas, Earl of Lancaster. In the reign of
Henry VIII., Skelmersdale had become the property of
the Gerards of Brynne. Sir Thomas Bootle, in 1751,
purchased the estate and manor of Henry Ashurst, Esq.;
and the place now gives the title of Baron to the family
of Bootle-Wilbraham. The chapelry comprises 1774
acres, whereof 108 are common. Coal is abundant,
and there is a quarry of stone. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar of Ormskirk; net income, £142. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £220. The chapel, dedicated
to St. Paul, was built in 1776, and enlarged in 1822,
and is a neat structure with a campanile tower. A
parochial school has an income of £45, arising partly
from an endowment by Evan Swift, Esq., in 1720.
Skelsmergh
SKELSMERGH, a township, in the parish, union,
and ward of Kendal, county of Westmorland, 2½
miles (N. by E.) from Kendal; containing 293 inhabitants. It is bounded by the small rivers Kent, Mint, and
Sprint, upon which are some corn, worsted, bobbin, and
dye-wood mills. Here are the remains of a chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist; and at Doddington-Green
is a chapel for Roman Catholics.
Skelton (St. Mary)
SKELTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Penrith, Leath ward, E. division of Cumberland;
containing, with the townships of Lamonby and Unthank, 788 inhabitants, of whom 314 are in Skelton
township, 6¾ miles (N. W. by W.) from Penrith. Freestone and limestone are obtained here. The living is a
rectory, valued in the king's books at £43. 3. 6½.; net
income, £294; patrons, the President and Fellows of
Corpus Christi College, Oxford. The tithes of Skelton
township have been commuted for £110, and the glebe
consists of 33 acres. The church is an ancient structure,
thoroughly repaired in 1794: it formerly contained a
richly-endowed chantry. A free school, erected in 1750
by Isaac Milner, was endowed in 1817 by the Rev.
Joseph Nelson with £1000, now producing upwards of
£32 a year.
Skelton
SKELTON, a township, in the parish and union of
Howden, wapentake of Howdenshire, E. riding of
York, 2 miles (S. E. by S.) from Howden; containing
212 inhabitants. The township is situated on the left
bank of the river Ouse, which almost surrounds it, and
sometimes overflows the lower parts. It consists of
about 1560 acres of land, nearly flat, and a large portion
growing wheat and potatoes; the soil is various. The
tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in
1809. There is a Wesleyan meeting-house.
Skelton (All Saints)
SKELTON (All Saints), a parish, in the wapentake of Bulmer, N. riding of York, 3¾ miles (N. W.
by N.) from York, on the road to Easingwould; containing 89 inhabitants. The parish is bounded by the
river Ouse on the south and west, on which sides it is
also skirted by the York and Newcastle railway. It
comprises 2406 acres; the surface is level, the soil a
strong clay, and the lands well wooded. The township
of Skelton is partly in this parish, but chiefly in that of
Overton; and contains 367 inhabitants: it is celebrated
for its rural beauty, and is the residence of many genteel
families. Skelton Hall was the site of a monastery
attached to St. Mary's Abbey at York; it has a park of
100 acres. The living is a rectory; net income, £116;
patron, Joshua Hepworth, Esq. The church is a small
but very handsome edifice, a curious model of the early
English style, with decorated portions; it is sometimes
called Little St. Peter, having been built with the stone
that remained after the erection of the south transept of
York Minster. Two gold coins of Edward I. were lately
found near the surface of the land; and a Roman urn,
containing ashes, was discovered in 1841.
Skelton (All Saints)
SKELTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union of
Guisborough, E. division of the liberty of Langbaurgh, N. riding of York; containing, with the
township of Moorsholm with Girrick, and that of Stanghoe, 1053 inhabitants, of whom 628 are in Skelton
township, 4 miles (N. E. by N.) from Guisborough.
This place was given at the Conquest to Robert de Brus,
a Norman baron who came over with William, and who
erected a castle here, of which scarcely any vestiges remain, the whole having been modernised in 1794. From
this baron descended some of the kings of Scotland, and
the present family of Bruce, marquesses of Ailesbury.
A market, originally held on Sunday, but subsequently
altered to Saturday, and a fair at Whitsuntide, have
been both discontinued. The parish forms part of the
district of Cleveland, and comprises by measurement
11,460 acres, of which about two-thirds are arable, and
one-third pasture; the soil on the high lands is light,
and in the low grounds a strong clay. The loftier parts
command a fine view of the ocean, by which the parish
is bounded on the north. The living is a perpetual
curacy, with that of Brotton annexed; net income,
£137; patron and appropriator, the Archbishop of York,
whose tithes in Skelton have been commuted for £505:
the incumbent has a glebe of 32 acres. The church is
an ancient structure. There is a place of worship for
Wesleyans.
Skelton
SKELTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Marsk, union
of Richmond, wapentake of Gilling-West, N. riding
of York; containing 70 inhabitants. This village
stands about a mile west of that of Marsk, a little to
the north of the road between Richmond and Reeth,
and upon the south-western bank of a tributary of the
Swale. It has a mansion of considerable antiquity,
formerly owned successively by the families of Williams,
Bathurst, Turner, and Stapleton.
Skelton
SKELTON, a chapelry, in the parish and liberty of
Ripon, W. riding of York, 4 miles (S. E. by E.) from
Ripon; containing 403 inhabitants. The chapelry comprises by computation 1200 acres of land, a large portion of which is the property of Earl de Grey: the village
is seated on the river Ure, about two miles and a half
west-north-west of Boroughbridge. The chapel, a handsome building in the early English style, was erected in
1811 by Earl de Grey and the inhabitants, jointly: the
living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Dean
and Chapter of Ripon, and has a net income of £87.
The tithes have been commuted for £135 per annum.
Skelwith.—See Coniston, Monk.
SKELWITH.—See Coniston, Monk.
Skendleby (St. Peter)
SKENDLEBY (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of
Spilsby, Wold division of the wapentake of Candleshoe, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 4 miles
(N. E. by N.) from Spilsby; containing 289 inhabitants.
The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £4. 0. 5.; net income, £155; patron and impropriator, Lord Willoughby de Eresby. There is a
place of worship for Wesleyans.
Skenfreth, or Skenfrith (St. Bridget)
SKENFRETH, or Skenfrith (St. Bridget), in the
division and hundred of Skenfreth, union and county
of Monmouth, 7½ miles (N. N. W.) from Monmouth;
containing 610 inhabitants. The parish comprises by
measurement 4650 acres; the soil in the low grounds
is a stiff loam, but on the elevated lands is light. The
views are beautiful, especially from the Graig Hill,
whence ten counties may be seen. The river Monnow
intersects a small portion of the parish opposite the
village, and is crossed by a bridge erected in 1824, at
the expense of £1000, defrayed by the county: by the
construction of this bridge, the road from Ross to Abergavenny was shortened six miles. There are quarries of
good flagstone, and of stone for making roads. The
living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £5. 16. 10½., in the patronage of Mrs. S. Pugh,
and endowed with a portion of the impropriate tithes:
the incumbent's tithes have been commuted for £115,
and the glebe consists of 17 acres. The church consists
of a nave, chancel, and aisles, with a low square tower;
the pulpit is of stone, and in the north aisle is an altartomb to John Morgan and Anne his wife, with the date
1564. Of the ancient castle here, standing on the west
bank of the Monnow, and apparently of a date anterior
to the Conquest, nothing remains but the keep and outer
wall; it was defended by six towers, and by a moat supplied from the river.
Skerne
SKERNE, a parish, in the union of Driffield,
Bainton-Beacon division of the wapentake of Harthill,
E. riding of York, 2¼ miles (S. E. by S.) from Great
Driffield; containing 213 inhabitants. It comprises
about 2600 acres: the village is pleasantly situated, and
the Driffield canal bounds the parish on the east. There
is a large mill for grinding bones for manure. The living
is a perpetual curacy; net income, £71; patrons and
impropriators, the family of Arkwright. The church
has been completely restored at the expense of the
patrons; the roof is entirely new, and the fittings up
now present an exceedingly chaste appearance. The
Wesleyans have a meeting-house.
Skerton
SKERTON, a township, in the parish of Lancaster,
hundred of Lonsdale south of the Sands, N. division of
Lancashire, ¾ of a mile (N.) from Lancaster; containing 1665 inhabitants. This place, in the Domesday
survey "Schertune," was held by the Saxon Earl Tosti;
and is named among the possessions of the crown in the
6th of Henry III., when it gave name to a family who
held it by reeveship. Skerton was accounted a manor
among the estates of John of Gaunt in 1361, and in
the 16th of Henry VII. was held as a manor by Sir
James Laurence; but in subsequent inquisitions, it is not
styled a manor. The township, which is separated from
Lancaster by the river Lune, comprises 1177 acres, and
commands a beautiful view of the castle and town of
Lancaster. The village is large, and chiefly occupied
by persons out of trade, and by farmers and their
labourers. On the Lune is a considerable salmonfishery; and there are some marble-works in the township. The railway from Lancaster to Carlisle, after
crossing the river, passes through Skerton. Among
the mansions and seats are Ryelands, the property of
Jonathan Dunn, Esq., and Richmond House, that of
John Walmsley, Esq. A church, dedicated to St. Luke,
was built in 1833, at a cost of £1200: the living is a
perpetual curacy, in the patronage of Five Trustees;
net income, £100. A free school was built by Jane
Jephson, and endowed with £10 a year by Henry
Williamson in 1767. The impropriate tithes have been
commuted for £74.
Sketchley
SKETCHLEY, a hamlet, in the parish of AstonFramville, union of Hinckley, hundred of Sparkenhoe, S. division of the county of Leicester, 1¼ mile
(S. by W.) from Hinckley; containing 47 inhabitants.
Here was formerly a chapel.
Skewsby
SKEWSBY, a hamlet, in the parish of Dalby, union
of Easingwould, wapentake of Bulmer, N. riding
of York, 8¾ miles (E. by N.) from Easingwould; containing 105 inhabitants. It is situated on a tributary of
the Derwent, and about a mile west of Dalby.
Skeyton (All Saints)
SKEYTON (All Saints), a parish; in the union of
Aylsham, hundred of South Erpingham, E. division
of Norfolk, 3½ miles (E. by S.) from Aylsham; containing 351 inhabitants. It comprises 1264a. 1r. 8p., of
which about 1000 acres are arable, 197 pasture, and 57
woodland; the surface is varied, and one of the tributary streams of the river Bure runs on the south-west.
The living is a discharged rectory, with that of Oxnead
and the vicarage of Buxton annexed, valued in the
king's books at £9. 10.; net income, £646; patron, S.
Bignold, Esq. The tithes of the parish have been commuted for £343. The church is a small structure in the
later English style, with a square embattled tower, and
is situated on an eminence.