Westerdale

Coordinates: 54°26′27″N 0°58′25″W / 54.440857°N 0.973748°W / 54.440857; -0.973748
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the Scottish village with the same name, see Westerdale, Highland.

Westerdale
North Yorkshire
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UK
England
Yorkshire
54°26′27″N 0°58′25″W / 54.440857°N 0.973748°W / 54.440857; -0.973748

Westerdale is a village, civil parish and valley in North Yorkshire, England. The Esk Valley Walk runs through part of the village. The village is at the confluence of three streams (Esklets) which combine as the head of the River Esk.[2]

According to the

2001 UK census figure of 175.[3]

Geography

The village

Westerdale village is a single street of around 25 houses, to the north east of a small stream which joins the Esk near Hunters Sty bridge. There is a church – Christ Church,[4] and a small, disused Methodist chapel.[5] Close to the church can be found the Village Hall (formerly a small schoolhouse), a postbox and a telephone box. Ironstone was formerly mined in the village and the church sits on a plateau where the ironstone is just over 1 foot (0.3 m) thick.[6] The village is 10 miles (16 km) south of Guisborough, 10 miles (16 km) south east of Stokesley and 20 miles (32 km) west of Whitby.[7]

Westerdale Side

Westerdale Side is part of Westerdale, but is best approached from near the neighbouring village of Castleton. It is accessed by a narrow road running along the southwest of Castleton Rigg.

Westerdale Moor

Westerdale Moor is an extensive upland area surrounding the farmland in Westerdale.[8] At its highest, Westerdale Moor rises to 429 metres in the vicinity of Ralphs Cross, and Baysdale Moor to the south-west reaches 433 metres at Stony Ridge[9] – the second highest point of the North York Moors.

Much of the moor is covered by

Soft rush and sphagnum in boggy areas. Bracken is no longer widespread on Westerdale Moor, since an eradication programme by a previous landowner. There are some trees by the streams which are tributaries of the Esk – mainly Alder, Mountain Ash, Birch, Oak and Holly. Near Stockdale beck are fragments of ancient woodland on steep slopes and, as in nearby Baysdale, a few junipers can be found.[10] During the 19th century, the moor was the site of several collieries.[11]

The farmed dale

Despite its rather remote upland location, Westerdale has been farmed for thousands of years. Soil types vary across the dale (and often in the same field), through strong clays to free-draining shale. Historically some of the more fertile lower fields grew a range of arable crops particularly

turnips and potatoes, but more recently most farms concentrate on grass for grazing and the production of hay and silage as winter feed.[12]

Dividing and stock-proofing the fields, there are many miles of dry stone walls in several styles – and built over a very long timespan. There are also some good hedges and in recent years much work has been done to safeguard and improve both walls and hedges through a National Park sponsored programme.

Westerdale Hall

Westerdale Hall

Westerdale Hall is a substantial stone and slate-roofed building, located close to the west side of the village. It was designed by

Second World War it became a popular youth hostel, but is now a private residence with many of its original external features remaining intact.[13]

Hunters Sty Bridge

An ancient stone arch over the River Esk near the village. By the road towards Kildale, but the modern road crosses the Esk by a ford nearby. This route would have been well travelled in the past, as the way to Baysdale Abbey and Gisborough Priory. The bridge was restored by the Duncombe family in the late 19th century (a date stone on the downstream side states 1874), but the underside of the arch retains interesting Medieval ribbed stonework. It is thought the Knights Templar may have been involved in the construction; it is of that period.[14][15]

The Esklets

The River Esk rises as numerous small streams in the upper part of Westerdale, known as "The Esklets" – which is close to neighbouring Farndale.[16] Until recently, water was extracted from these streams for public supply but this is no longer the case and the old pumping station stands empty.

Agricultural land and a hall, situated in the Westerdale area, were given to the Order of Knights Templar at an early period in the 12th century.[17] The property was donated by Guido de Bovingcourt who owned the land, together with other holdings in nearby Baysdale (a.k.a. Basedale/Handale/ Grendale). Bovingcourt was a supporter of the Cistercians and donated other lands in the area to them including Battersby, Stokesley, Newby, and Baysdale itself.[18]

References

  1. ^
    Office for National Statistics
    . Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  2. ISBN 978-1-84162-323-8
    .
  3. ^ UK Census (2001). "Local Area Report – Westerdale Parish (1543510643)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  4. ^ "The Benefice of the Moorland Parishes of Castleton, Commondale, Danby, Moorsholm and Westerdale". www.whitbydeanery.org. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  5. ^ "Genuki: The Wesleyan Chapel, Westerdale, Yorkshire (North Riding)". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  6. ^ The geology of Eskdale, Rosedale, &c. (Explanation of quarter-sheet 96 N. E.) New series, sheet 43) at the Internet Archive
  7. OCLC 650374667
    .
  8. ^ "North Yorks Moors National Park Landscape Character Assessment" (PDF). northyorkmoors.org.uk. White Young Green. December 2004. p. 43. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  9. ^ "North Yorks Moors National Park Landscape Character Assessment" (PDF). northyorkmoors.org.uk. White Young Green. December 2004. p. 27. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  10. ^ "Moorland Research Review 2000–2005" (PDF). northyorkmoors.org.uk. 2007. p. 34. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  11. ^ "The Moorland Collieries of North Yorkshire" (PDF). nymcc.org.uk. p. 31. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  12. ^ "Genuki: WESTERDALE: Geographical and Historical information from the year 1890., Yorkshire (North Riding)". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  13. ^ Historic England. "Westerdale Hall (Grade II) (1179138)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  14. ^ "Country walk from Castleton to Westerdale". York Press. 1 May 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  15. ^ Historic England. "Hunter's Sty Bridge (1021021)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  16. ^ "About the River - Yorkshire Esk Rivers Trust". www.yorkshireeskriverstrust.org. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  17. ^ "Parishes: Westerdale | British History Online". www.british-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  18. OCLC 1048899800
    .
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