Skidbrook (St. Botolph)

SKIDBROOK (St. Botolph), a parish, in the union of Louth, Marsh division of the hundred of LouthEske, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 9 miles (N. E. by E.) from Louth; containing 351 inhabitants. This parish is situated on the sea-coast, and comprises 2165a. 2r. 10p., of which 189 acres are arable, 1270 pasture, 226 meadow, and 400 salt-marsh and common. The surface is flat, but well drained, and abundant crops are produced, the soil being generally a rich clay, with a substratum of black earth, in which marine shells are thickly imbedded. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £11. 3. 6.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. J. M. Phillips. The impropriate tithes, belonging to Lot Ward, Esq., have been commuted for £116, and the vicarial tithes for £377; the glebe comprises 4 acres, and a good parsonage-house has been erected. The church, standing in the fields to the west of Saltfleet-Haven, is an ancient and fine structure, with a square tower; it is well pewed, and has a pulpit of solid oak bearing the date 1628. There is a strong chalybeate spring.—See Saltfleet-Haven.

Skidby

SKIDBY, a parish, in the union of Beverley, Hunsley-Beacon division of the wapentake of Harthill, E. riding of York, 3 miles (S. by W.) from Beverley; containing 361 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1497a. 1r. 22p., of which by far the greater portion is arable: the village is long and scattered, lying on the eastern edge of the Wolds. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the vicarage of Cottingham: the church is dedicated to St. Michael. There are places of worship for Wesleyans and Baptists.

Skilgate (St. John the Baptist)

SKILGATE (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in the union of Dulverton, hundred of Williton and Freemanners, W. division of Somerset, 5 miles (E.) from Dulverton; containing 271 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £9. 9. 4½.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. Richard Bere: the tithes have been commuted for £205, and the glebe consists of 63 acres.

Skillington (St. James)

SKILLINGTON (St. James), a parish, in the union of Grantham, wapentake of Winnibriggs and Threo, parts of Kesteven, county of Lincoln, 3 miles (N. W. by W.) from Colsterworth; containing 432 inhabitants, and consisting of 1214 acres. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £4. 19. 4½.; net income, £126; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln. The tithes were commuted for land and corn-rents in 1794; the glebe comprises 28 acres. The church is an ancient structure, partly in the early and decorated English styles. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.

Skinburness

SKINBURNESS, a village, in the parish of HolmeCultram, union of Wigton, Allerdale ward below Derwent, W. division of Cumberland, 11½ miles (N. W. by W.) from Wigton. This place had anciently a market and a fair, granted to the abbot of Holme-Cult ram; and was of considerable importance as a depôt from which the army employed against the Scots was supplied with stores. About 1303, the town was washed away by an irruption of the sea; and the abbot having obtained licence to erect a church at Arlosh, a new town was built there, called Newton-Arlosh. Skinburness is now a pleasant village and respectable bathing-place, commanding a view over the Solway Firth and of the Scottish mountains beyond. A very productive herringfishery is carried on.

Skinnand

SKINNAND, a parish, in the Higher division of the wapentake of Boothby-Graffo, parts of Kesteven, union and county of Lincoln, 11½ miles (N. W.) from Sleaford; containing 26 inhabitants. It is bounded on the west by the river Brant, and comprises 636 acres, of which 40 are arable, and the remainder old pasture and meadow; the soil is generally clay. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 13. 11½.; net income, £85; patron, S. Nicholls, Esq. The church is in ruins.

Skinningrove

SKINNINGROVE, a township, in the parochial chapelry of Brotton, union of Guisborough, E. division of the liberty of Langbaurgh, N. riding of York, 8 miles (N. E.) from Guisborough; containing 63 inhabitants. This ancient manor belonged to the Bruces, lords of Skelton, and came by marriage to the Thwengs, of Kilton. The principal families that have since been connected with the spot in respect of property, are those of Fanacourt, Routh, Everingham, and Dundas. The township is in the district of Cleveland, and comprises about 250 acres of land; it has a small fishing-village, situated on a creek of the sea, and almost secluded from view by the lofty heights that closely environ it on every side. Anciently here was a fishing-town of some importance, "which throve," says Camden, "by the great variety of fish it took."

Skiplam

SKIPLAM, a township, in the parish of Kirkdale, union of Helmsley, wapentake of Ryedale, N. riding of York, 5 miles (N. E. by E.) from Helmsley; containing 84 inhabitants. It is situated on the west side of Kirkdale, and comprises about 1740 acres of land, chiefly the property of Lord Faversham.

Skipsea (All Saints)

SKIPSEA (All Saints), a parish, chiefly in the union of Bridlington, but partly in that of Skirlaugh, N. division of the wapentake of Holderness, E. riding of York; containing, with the township of Bonwick, that of Dringhoe with Upton and Brough, and the chapelry of Ulrome, 797 inhabitants, of whom 358 are in Skipsea township, 5 miles (N. N. W.) from Hornsea. The manor is one of those which have continued members of the seigniory of Holderness to the present day. In the 12th of Edward III., the king granted a market to the place, to be held on Thursday in every week, and two fairs to be held annually, one on All Saints' day, and the other on the day of the translation of St. Thomas the Martyr. The parish is bounded on the east by the sea, and comprises by measurement 5050 acres, of which about one-third is pasture, and the remainder arable: the village is agreeably situated on slightly rising ground, and is neatly built. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £9. 16.; patron and appropriator, the Archbishop of York; net income, £90. 16., with a glebe of 5½ acres. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1764. The church is principally in the later English style, and is a neat edifice with a tower; the chancel was rebuilt in 1824, and the nave new-roofed in 1827. The Independents and Wesleyans have places of worship.

Skipton

SKIPTON, a township, in the parish of Topcliffe, union of Thirsk, wapentake of Birdforth, N. riding of York, 5 miles (S. W. by W.) from Thirsk; containing 128 inhabitants. It comprises about 820 acres of land, and is situated on the road between Thirsk and Ripon, which here crosses the Swale by a neat bridge of eight arches. A church was consecrated in Nov. 1842; the living is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the Misses Elsley, with a net income of £91. The vicarial tithes have been commuted for £27. 17. 6.; and the appropriate for £175, payable to the Dean and Chapter of York.

Skipton (Holy Trinity)

SKIPTON (Holy Trinity), a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, chiefly in the E. division of the wapentake of Staincliffe and Ewcross, but partly in the Upper division of the wapentake of Claro, W. riding of York, 44 miles (W.) from York, and 211 miles (N. N. W.) from London; containing, with the townships of Barden, Bolton-Abbey, Draughton, Embsay with Eastby, East Halton, Hazlewood with Storiths, and part of Beamsley, 6870 inhabitants, of whom 4842 are in the town. This place is the head of the richlyfertile grazing district of Craven, and of the honour of Skipton and liberty of Clifford's Fee. It derives its name, in the Domesday survey Scepton and Sceptune, and signifying "the town of sheep," from the numerous sheep-walks with which it was anciently surrounded, and which afterwards, being stocked with deer, formed the spacious forest of Skipton, extending from the river Wharfe on the east, to the river Aire on the west, and including an area of 15,360 acres. This forest was under the superintendence of several keepers, who resided in strongly-built lodges, one of which, at Barden, was subsequently enlarged and fitted up as an occasional residence of the Clifford family, and is still remaining. At the time of the Conquest, the manor of Bolton, which included Skipton, belonged to the Saxon earl Edwin, brother of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and was one of the last estates of which the Saxon lords were deprived. On its being at length wrested from Edwin, it was granted by the Conqueror to Robert de Romille, who, abandoning the seat of the ancient lords, fixed his residence at Skipton, where he built a strong castle on the summit of a lofty rock rising precipitously on the north side, and accessible only on the south, by a somewhat less arduous ascent. The district, however, again became the property of its original Saxon lords, by the marriage of William de Meschines, the descendant of Edwin, with Cecilia, daughter and heiress of Robert de Romille; and after passing by marriage into the Albemarle family, it reverted to the crown, and was bestowed by Edward II. on his favourite, Piers de Gaveston.

Upon the death of Gaveston, the barony of Skipton was granted by Edward II. to Robert, Lord Clifford, whose descendant John de Clifford, taking part with the Lancastrians in the wars between the houses of York and Lancaster, suffered an attainder in the reign of Edward IV., who conferred the barony on Sir Wm. Stanley. This attainder, however, was reversed on the accession of Henry VII., when Henry de Clifford, who for nearly twenty-five years had lived in concealment among the fells in Cumberland, was reinstated in his possessions, and created Earl of Cumberland. He held a principal command in the English army at the battle of Flodden-Field; and was succeeded after his death by his son Henry, who, for his signal services in suppressing the rebellion called the Pilgrimage of Grace, received from Henry VIII. a grant of the extensive revenues of Bolton Abbey. The barony continued in the Clifford family till the death of George, the seventeenth baron of Clifford, and third earl of Cumberland, who died in 1605, and by marriage with whose daughter and heiress Anne, it passed to the ancestors of the Earl of Thanet, the present lord. The ancient castle, for many generations the residence of the Cliffords, is a spacious quadrangular structure, defended at the angles and on the sides by massive circular towers, with an octangular tower at the extremity of the eastern side, built by the first Earl of Cumberland. It sustained several sieges during the wars of the houses of York and Lancaster; and in the reign of Charles I., it was garrisoned for the king, and held out against the parliamentarians for three years, when it was ultimately surrendered on terms, and was partly demolished. The damage it sustained was repaired by Lady Clifford, Countess Dowager of Pembroke, and the building was again rendered habitable, in 1649; it still contains several stately apartments, with numerous family portraits, and is now occupied by the steward of the Earl of Thanet.

The town is situated in a valley of luxuriant fertility and picturesque beauty, near the river Aire, and consists of two spacious and long streets, one of which crosses the extremity of the other nearly at right angles. The houses are well built, chiefly of stone obtained in the neighbourhood. The streets are partially paved, and are lighted with gas from works erected in 1836 by a body of £10 shareholders; the inhabitants are supplied with water conveyed by pipes from a spring on Rumbles Moor. A subscription library is supported, and a newsroom has been opened in the town-hall. The environs abound with richly-diversified scenery, and from the higher parts are obtained fine views. The inhabitants are chiefly employed in the cotton manufacture, which is carried on extensively; there is also an ale and porter brewery. The Leeds and Liverpool canal, which skirts the town on the south-west, affords every facility of conveyance, and contributes greatly to the increase of trade. The Leeds and Bradford Extension railway, for which an act was procured in 1845, also runs by the town. An act was passed in 1846 for the construction of a line from near Skipton to Milnthorpe, with a branch to Lancaster; and another act was obtained in the same year for a railway from Skipton to the Leeds and Thirsk line at Arthington. The market, which is abundantly supplied with corn, is on Saturday; and a large market for cattle and sheep is held every alternate Monday. Fairs take place on the 25th of March, the Saturdays before Palm and Easter Sundays, the first and third Tuesdays after Easter, on Whitsun-Eve, Aug. 5th, and Nov. 23rd, chiefly for sheep and cattle, and on Sept. 23rd, for horses. The powers of the county debtcourt of Skipton, established in 1847, extend over the registration-district of Skipton. A constable is appointed at the court leet of the manor; and the general quartersessions for the riding are held here at Midsummer.

The parish comprises by computation 29,790 acres, including several manors, of which the Duke of Devonshire and the Earl of Thanet are lords. The surface was anciently well stocked with timber, which from neglect has become scarce, and is found only in plantations of comparatively recent growth. The lands are chiefly in pasture; the substrata in many parts abound with minerals, and there are numerous quarries of valuable freestone and limestone. In the township are 3748 acres, of which 566 are common or waste. A mineral spring near the town is strongly impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid gases, carbonate of iron, sulphate of magnesia, muriate of soda and lime, and also with iodine: a spa-room with convenient baths was built some time since by Dr. Dodgson, who allows the gratuitous use of them to the poor.

The living is a rectory and a discharged vicarage, the former valued in the king's books at £4. 0. 10., and the latter at £10. 12. 6.; net income of the vicar, £185, with a house; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Christ-Church, Oxford, whose tithes in the township of Skipton have been commuted for £34. The church, which is situated near the castle, is an ancient structure of various periods, but chiefly in the later English style, with a square embattled tower, which was repaired by the Countess Dowager of Pembroke, in 1655. Four sedilia of stone in the south wall of the nave are almost the only remains of the original edifice; the ancient screen is richly decorated, and the font curiously sculptured. In the church are numerous monuments to the Cliffords, whose place of interment it became after the dissolution of BoltonAbbey, and continued to be till the death of the last Earl of Cumberland. A church dedicated to Christ was erected in 1838, at an expense, including its endowment, of £5000, of which £3500 were given by Christopher Sidgwick, Esq., and £350 by the Incorporated Society; it is a handsome structure in the later English style, with a square embattled tower. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar, with a net income of £120. At Bolton-Abbey is another incumbency. There are places of worship for Friends, Independents, Primitive Methodists, and Wesleyans.

The free grammar school was founded in 1548, by the Rev. William Ermystead, who endowed it with lands now producing more than £600 per annum, in addition to which, the master, who is appointed by the vicar and churchwardens, has an annuity of £3. 15. 10. from the crown, with a house and garden. It is open to all boys without distinction of place. The scholars are eligible to the exhibitions founded by Lady Hastings, in Queen's College, Oxford; and there are two exhibitions belonging to the school, founded by William Petyt, Esq., who gave £200 for that purpose. Sylvester Petyt, Esq., principal of Barnard's Inn, London, and a native of this parish, bequeathed a library for the use of the parishioners, which is now preserved in the church. He also left £24,048. 11. South Sea annuities for various charitable purposes, of the proceeds of which, £20 per annum are paid to Christ's College, Cambridge, for the augmentation of the two exhibitions from the free school, with £2. 10. per annum to purchase books for the use of the exhibitioners; £5 to the keeper of the library above-mentioned; and £400 to the poor, without distinction of residence. There is likewise a poor's estate for the parish, amounting to £98. 10. per annum, bequeathed by Mr. Ermystead; and the poor of the township have £75 per annum from land left by the Earl of Cumberland in 1643, Lord Craven in 1647, and other benefactors. The union of Skipton comprises 42 parishes or places, and contains a population of 28,736. George Holmes, an eminent antiquary, who republished the first 17 vols, of Rymer's Fœdera, was a native of the place.

Skipwith (St. Helen)

SKIPWITH (St. Helen), a parish, in the union of Selby, wapentake of Ouse and Derwent, E. riding of YORK, 5½ miles (N. N. E.) from Selby; containing, with the township of North Duffield, 601 inhabitants, of whom 251 are in the township of Skip with. This parish is situated near the rivers Ouse and Derwent, and comprises about 5645 acres, whereof 2569 are in the township; nearly one-half of the land is open moor and common. Skipwith Hall is a handsome mansion. The village is on the York and Howden road, and consists chiefly of scattered houses, irregularly built. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 11. 3., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £300. The great tithes of Skipwith township have been commuted for £113, and the small for £150. The church is an ancient structure, with a massive square tower, and contains numerous mural tablets, of which many of the inscriptions are obliterated; also some fine open screen-work, and good monuments to the Parker and Toulson families. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. A bequest now producing £20 per annum, was left in 1714, by Mrs. Dorothy Wilson, of York, for the education of children of the parish; and the Rev. Joseph Nelson, in 1813, bequeathed £400, which sum, after deducting the legacy duty, was invested in the purchase of £451. 2. 8. consolidated three per cent. Bank annuities, producing £13. 10. towards the support of a parochial school.

Skirbeck (St. Nicholas)

SKIRBECK (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union of Boston, partly in the wapentake of Kirton, but chiefly in that of Skirbeck, parts of Holland, county of Lincoln, 1 mile (S. E. by S.) from Boston; containing 1931 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £34. 17. 8½.; income, £737; patron, the Rev. Dr. Roy. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment under acts of inclosure, in 1771 and 1818. An hospital for ten persons, founded here in honour of St. Leonard, was given in 1230 by Sir Thomas Multon, Knt., to the Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem, who dedicated it anew to St. John the Baptist. In the time of Edward II., its revenue was sufficient for the maintenance of four priests, of twenty people in the infirmary, and for the daily relief of forty more at the gate. At present, the buildings contain tenements for ten men with gardens attached.

Skirbeck-Quarter

SKIRBECK-QUARTER, a hamlet, in the parish of Skirbeck, poor-law union of Boston, wapentake of Kirton, parts of Holland, county of Lincoln; containing 416 inhabitants.

Skircoat

SKIRCOAT, a township, in the parish and union of Halifax, wapentake of Morley, W. riding of York, ¼ of a mile (S. S. W.) from Halifax; containing 5237 inhabitants. This township, which extends from the confines of Halifax to the junction of the rivers Calder and Hebble, comprises about 1340 acres. The surface is boldly undulated; Skircoat Moor, a verdant heath of 150 acres, occupies an elevated site commanding views of Halifax, and of the surrounding country, which is beautifully diversified. The township comprises the village of Salter-Hebble; part of King-Cross, consisting of detached houses; and various scattered hamlets. The inhabitants are chiefly employed in the woollen and worsted manufactures, which are carried on extensively; there are several dyeing establishments and flour-mills, and great quantities of building-stone are quarried. Facilities of conveyance are afforded by the Calder and Hebble navigation, on the banks of which are spacious wharfs and warehouses, and by the Manchester and Leeds railway, which passes by the township. At KingCross is a church, noticed under the head of Halifax. An episcopal proprietary chapel on the Moor, erected in 1326, a neat building with a spire, which was never consecrated, now belongs to the Wesleyans; who have another place of worship at Salter-Hebble. There is also a meeting-house for Independents.

Skirlaugh, North

SKIRLAUGH, NORTH, a township, in the parish of Swine, union of Skirlaugh, N. division of the wapentake of Holderness, E. riding of York, 9 miles (N. N. E.) from Hull; containing, with the hamlet of Rowton, 183 inhabitants. The township comprises, with Rowton and part of Arnold, about 1100 acres. The village, which is small, and adjoins that of South Skirlaugh, is situated on the north side of the Lamwith stream. Rowton, called Rugheton in Domesday book, is also situated on the north bank of the Lamwith: it anciently belonged to the abbey of Meaux, with which establishment it continued till the Dissolution. On an eminence in Rowton is the workhouse of the Skirlaugh union.

Skirlaugh, South

SKIRLAUGH, SOUTH, a chapelry, in the parish of Swine, union of Skirlaugh, Middle division of the wapentake of Holderness, E. riding of York, 8¾ miles (N. N. E.) from Hull; containing 286 inhabitants. It comprises by computation 1190 acres: the village is pleasantly situated on the southern declivity of the vale of the Lamwith stream, opposite to North Skirlaugh. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £4. 4. The chapel, dedicated to St. Augustine, was built on the site of a smaller edifice, by Bishop Skirlaw, and consists of a nave, a small north chapel, and a chancel, with an elegant tower at the west end, surmounted by a battlement and pinnacles: it was repaired in 1819. The Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists have places of worship.

Skirlington

SKIRLINGTON, a hamlet, in the parish of Atwick, union of Skirlaugh, N. division of the wapentake of Holderness, E. riding of York, 13½ miles (E. S. E.) from Driffield; containing 16 inhabitants. This place is returned in Domesday book as one of the five sokes belonging to the manor of Hornsea, and about a century afterwards was granted to the priory of Bridlington by the family of Skirlington, who took their name from the spot. The hospital of St. Leonard, York, the priories of Swine and Newburgh, and the abbey of Meaux, also had lands here. The hamlet is bounded on the east by the sea, and consists of High and Low Skirlington, both which estates are tithe-free when occupied by their respective owners. It is situated two miles north of the village of Atwick.

Skirpenbeck

SKIRPENBECK, a parish, in the union of Pocklington, wapentake of Buckrose, E. riding of York, 10½ miles (E. N. E.) from York; containing 222 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the west by the navigable river Derwent, and on the south by the road from York to Bridlington; and comprises by admeasurement 1615 acres, of which about one-third is meadow and pasture, and the remainder arable. The surface is undulated, and the hedge-rows are thickly set with ash and oak. The soil is chiefly strong clay, with a bed of rich loam along the course of the Beck, a stream which runs through the lands from east to west into the Derwent, and turns a corn-mill at the south-eastern extremity of the parish. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £14. 7. 8½., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £214. The tithes have been commuted for land and a money payment; the glebe altogether contains 135 acres. The church is an ancient edifice; the chancel has a monument with a curious inscription to a member of the Paget family.

Skirwith

SKIRWITH, a township, in the parish of Kirkland, union of Penrith, Leath ward, E. division of Cumberland, 7½ miles (E. N. E.) from Penrith; containing 293 inhabitants. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. A mansion here is supposed to occupy the site of a preceptory of Knights Templars.

Skutterskelfe

SKUTTERSKELFE, a township, in the parish of Rudby-in Cleveland, union of Stokesley, W. division of the liberty of Langbaurgh, N. riding of York, 2 miles (W. by S.) from Stokesley; containing 33 inhabitants. This place, called in Domesday book Godreschelf, is situated on the northern bank of the river Leven; and within the limits of the township is Thoraldby, anciently written Toroldesbi, which in the time of the Conqueror was demesne of the crown. Among the early proprietors of land, occur the families of Linley and Bathurst. Near the village is an excellent landmark called Folly Hill, which is sometimes discernible for 20 leagues at sea. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £144. 1.