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Great Ayton
Historical and geographical information
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Dates are in red.
Hyperlinks to other pages are in dark blue.
Headlines are in brown.
References and citations are in turquoise.
Context and local history are in purple.
This
webpage is divided into the following sections:
- The
Farndales of Great Ayton
- Great
Ayton
- Great
Ayton Timeline
- Great
Ayton People
- The
twelfth century All Saints Church
- Christ
Church, Great Ayton
- Education
in Great Ayton
- Great
Ayton Industry
- James
Cook and Great Ayton
- Links,
texts and books
The Farndales of Great Ayton
Great Ayton is one of the places with a
very significant concentration of Farndales who lived there is the seventeenth
and eighteenth century and in Victorian times. The Farndales have a close
association with the village of Great Ayton. There are four Farndale Lines of
Great Ayton. The Great Ayton
1 Line are the descendants of Geogs Farndale (FAR00077)(1624
to 1677) who is himself descended from the Skelton 1 Line. He had a family of
eight who were born in Great Ayton between 1650 and 1660.. The Great Ayton 2 Line is a very
large line of descendants of Joseph Farndale (FAR00228)(1795
to 1877) who is himself descended from the Kilton 1 Line and from whom sprang
a very large family group including many cartwrights, joiners, agricultural
labourers, millwright apprentice, shoemaker, dressmakers of Great Ayton and
some who moved to other places. The gravestone of Joseph Farndale and some of
his immediate descendants can be found still in 2019 in the far corner at the
twelfth century All Saints Church at Great Ayton. The Great Ayton 3 Line is
another family descended from the Kilton
1 Line, being the descendants of Joseph’s twin, Henry Farndale (FAR00229)(1979 to
1857). The Great Ayton 4 Line
is a small family of Mary Farndale (FAR00431)
(born 1858) and her son William.
Other Farndales associated with Great
Ayton include William Farndal (FAR000078);
William Farndale (FAR00200);
Hannah Farndale (FAR00211);
Martin Farndale (FAR00264);
Ann Farndale (FAR00273);
George Farndale (FAR00271);
Elizabeth Farndale (FAR00294);
Elizabeth Farndale (FAR00306);
John Farndale (FAR00311);
Jane Farndale (FAR00322);
John Farndale (FAR00328);
Mary Ann Farndale (FAR00424);
Hannah Farndale (FAR00628);
George W Farndale (FAR00678);
and Rubina Farndale (FAR00873)
Great Ayton
The Victoria
County History – Yorkshire, A History of the County of York North Riding:
Volume 2 Parishes: Great Ayton, 1923: By 1923, This parish covers
6,394 acres on the western slopes of the Cleveland Hills and to the south-west
of the most notable hill in Cleveland, the coneshaped
Roseberry Topping. It included in 1831 the townships of Great Ayton, Little
Ayton and Nunthorpe. In 1880 Easby was added. The soil is loamy on a subsoil of
Lower Lias; 1,935 acres are under cultivation, and
wheat, oats, barley and beans are grown. Woods and plantations occupy 461
acres, and 3,035 acres are laid down to permanent grass. The population is now
for the most part agricultural, though there are several quarries and iron ore
mines in the parish. At the beginning of the 19th century Great Ayton was a
manufacturing village containing three tanyards, a
comb and horn manufactory, a common brewery, an oil-mill, a water corn-mill, a
tallow chandlery and a brick and tile kiln. The tanneries were still in
existence in 1849.
The village is of considerable size and
consists of one long street, with an open place at the east end called the High
Green. Here, no doubt, was held the market granted to Robert de Stuteville and
his heirs in 1253. There are no records of this market, and probably the near
neighbourhood of Stokesley soon made it unprofitable. One of the small streams
which go to form the Leven flows down the middle of the street. Here in 1265
William de Stuteville granted to the monks of Whitby the privilege of watering their
flocks and herds. In the 18th century the bridges and roads were found
insufficient and inconvenient for the traffic, and the townspeople subscribed
to build the present good stone bridge of two arches. There are also two
foot-bridges of wood.
The church of All Saints at the west end
of the village is no longer in use, but has been superseded by the new Christ
Church. The village has also Wesleyan, Primitive Methodist and Congregational
chapels. The Society of Friends, whose meetinghouse is on the High Green, has a
considerable number of members in this neighbourhood. The Quaker family of
Richardson was settled at Great Ayton, and Thomas Richardson with others
founded in 1841 the school for the children of Friends which stands at the east
end of the village street.
The old schoolroom of Great Ayton, now
the parish council room, bears above its doorway the inscription, 'Michael
Postgate built this school house in the year 1704. Rebuilt 1785.' It was here
that Captain Cook was educated.
One of the manorial corn-mills is still
in existence. In 1281–2 Baldwin Wake, then lord of the manor, possessed a
water-mill called 'Westmulne,' and a fourth part of
another called 'Estmulne,' which has disappeared. In
1696 the mill of Great Ayton, which was described as very ancient, was in the
possession of Ralph Lowther. A poorly built capital messuage here is mentioned
in 1281–2, and the Earls of Westmorland had a dwelling-house here called Ayton
Hall, which in 1570 was held, with a garden and orchard, by Thomas Tedcastle. The hall was granted with the manor to David
Foulis. A 'common bakehouse' was also included in this grant.
The small village of Little Ayton lies a
short distance to the east of Great Ayton, higher up the same stream. On the
moors to the east pasture was granted in the early 13th century to Guisborough
Priory by John Malebiche and Robert de Stuteville,
lords respectively of the two manors. John Malebiche
gave the following boundaries: 'As the edge of the moor leads from Little Otheneberg and divides the moor and the grove of Ayton, and
so as the descent of the same edge leads through the middle of the grove to the
common way, which is in the bottom of the valley, to the head of Golstaindale as far as Etunes carth, and thence to the boundaries between Kildale and
Aton, and then as the stream flows through the middle of the valley to the
boundaries of the . . . canons of Guisborough, with the whole moiety of the
grove of Golstaindale which belongs to me, according
to the bounds formerly made between Sir Richard Malebisse
my father and Sir Robert de Stuteville.'
A farm called Airy Holme, close under
Roseberry Topping, is identified with the 'Ergun' of the Domesday Survey, where
the king had 2 carucates of land and a 'manor.' A 'plot called Ergum, which is sometimes ploughed and worth 6d.,' appears
in the extent of Baldwin Wake's manor of Great Ayton in 1281–2.
The small hamlet of Langbaurgh, a
quarter of a mile to the north of Great Ayton, is apparently the place from
which the wapentake took its name. It is not mentioned in the Domesday Survey,
however, and there has never been a manor here. The wapentake courts were
formerly held on the high ridge of moorland to the east of the hamlet and then
adjourned to an inn at Ayton, where constables were sworn in.
Nunthorpe, north-west of Langbaurgh, is
separated from Ayton by the little stream called the Tame. In 1461 John
Headlam, then lord of the manor, left 6s. 8d. to the bridge between Nunthorpe
and Ayton. The only important buildings in Nunthorpe are the church of St. Mary
and the Hall. The latter is generally said to have been built by the Constables
and bears their arms. But there was certainly a 'capital messuage' here in the
time of the last Headlam. In 1623 Marmaduke Constable was accused by the rector
of Ayton of pulling down the chapel and terrorizing the villagers into
attending services in Nunthorpe Hall, his own residence. Various witnesses
testified, however, that he had only pulled down part of the chapel to repair
it 'better than it was before.' In 1717 part of the hall was let to a farmer,
as there was no other house for him to live in. It is now the residence of Mr.
G. F. S. Edwards. Grey Towers, a large modern mansion to the north-west of the
village, is the seat of Mr. A. J. Dorman.
In the north of the township is
Nunthorpe Grange, a farm-house. Here was the old 'Nunhouse'
of the Basedale nuns. Their mill was probably on the
Tame. A tithe suit between the Prioress of Basedale
and the Abbot of Whitby in 1231 ended in an agreement that the nuns should pay
tithe for this mill and 'Gugle flat,' while the abbot renounced his right to
tithe from 'Plumtre flat' and their meadow-land.
The hamlet of Tunstall, to the south of
Nunthorpe, is a detached part of the township of Little Ayton.
The parish has stations at Great Ayton
and Nunthorpe on the Middlesbrough and Battersby branch of the North Eastern
railway.
Great Ayton Timeline
1086
There were three 'manors' in Great Ayton
at the time of the Domesday Survey. One was extended at 2 carucates and
belonged to the king, having previously been held by Hawart.
A second manor of 6 carucates, which had been held before the Conquest by
Norman, was in 1086 among the lands of the Count of Mortain. It was held of him
by Niel Fossard. A further 'manor' of 2 carucates was
held under Robert Malet by his man Robert (The Victoria County History – Yorkshire, A History of the
County of York North Riding: Volume 2 Parishes: Great Ayton, 1923).
1123
Robert de Meinell
gave the Church of All Saints at Ayton to the Abbot and Convent of Whitby.
Niel Fossard's
land in Ayton passed ultimately with the rest of his estates to the family of
Mauley, who had the overlordship here during the 13th and 14th centuries. Great
Broughton, Tunstall and Ayton were held of the Mauleys for one knight's fee by
the Meynells of Whorlton
and their heirs
The tenants of the manor under the Meynells were the family of Stuteville, who in all
probability had a grant of that part of the vill
which did not form part of the Mauley fee. This would be in the king's hands in
1106, when Robert Malet forfeited his estates.
In 1361 part of the manor was said to be held in chief and part of the
heirs of the Meynells.
The Stutevills
probably held lands in Ayton from the early part of the 12th century, but the
first member of the family mentioned in connexion with the place is William de
Stuteville. He confirmed the grant of the church of Ayton to Whitby Abbey in
the reign of Henry II, and died in 1203, when his lands in Ayton, Hemlington
and 'Levinton' were worth £10 2s. 3½d
(The Victoria
County History – Yorkshire, A History of the County of York North Riding:
Volume 2 Parishes: Great Ayton, 1923).
1281
Baldwin de Wake, lord of the manor at
Ayton, died.
1658
Three open fields and common land olf the parish were enclosed and privatised. A few farmers
now had their own farms, but most were tenants of larger landowners. Thomas Skottowe of Ayton Hall owned about half a dozen farms
including Aireyholme, which was the largest farm in
the village.
The River Lever was a significant
feature for the inhabitants. From time to time it flooded and burst its banks,
or was difficult to ford and at other times it was reduced to a trickle and
most of the water went into the mill race which served the two village mills.
Ayton Mill was on the edge of Low Green and Low or Grange Mill was half a mile
to the west. Both mills were powered from water from the same mill race. The
river provided water for everyone in the village and was also needed for the
linen and tanning industries.
1666
The Parish Register began.
1678
A charity was left by William Young
consisting of a rent charge of £6 per annum out of ‘Buckbank’.
Half of this was for clothing the poor and half for engaging poor children as
apprentices.
1704
Michael Postgate hired the school room
where James Cook was educated. It was rebuilt in
1785.
The population of Great Ayton in the
early eighteenth century was about 500 people. The houses were almost all
single storey and mostly at what is now the west end of the village. There was
a smaller cluster around High Green.
All Saints Church, which was larger than
it is today, with a tower, was the focal point of the village, and most people
attended services regularly. There were however small groups of Presbyterians
and Quakers who had their own meeting places. New line the village then as now
was surrounded by farmland.
1728
James Cook
was born at Marton on 27 October 1728.
1764
John Coulson, the Lord of the Manor
died.
The poor houses were erected.
1771
From Thomas Jeffrey’s Map of 1771, 1 – Airyholme Farm; 2 – Postgate school; 3 – Langbaurgh Hall
and Tannery; 4 – Cottages around the High Green; 5 – All Saint’s Church; 6 –
Ayton Hall; 7 – Manor House; 8 – Cottage of James Cook’s father; 9 – Ayton
House; 10 – Ayton Mill; 11 – Low Mill
1785
The schoolhouse was replaced in 1785 by
the poor houses. The Postgate school then ran from an upstairs room in the poor
houses.
The area to the north east of High Green
is known as California. Houses were built there for hundreds of men who came to
the village to work as whinstone and ironstone miners. This large scale
immigration was likened to the American gold rush, hence it became known as
California. There was no street planning and anyone in the village who owned
land put up terraces of houses wherever they could, hence the irregular street
plan. Bricks for these houses were made in the brick and tile works of Newton
road, using local clay.
1827
The foundation stone of the Captain Cook
monument was laid on 12 July 1827.
1842
The Friends’ School was erected to
combine teaching with agriculture.
1847
Land tenure, 1847 Tithe Map – note
Joseph Farndale
1857
Great Ayton in 1857
1859
Thomas Richardson endowed four alms
houses for Poor Friends at Ayton.
1862
The Wesleyan Methodist Church was
erected.
1882
The cemetery was opened, at a cost of
£1,800.
1887
Four tubular bells were installed in the
church to mark Queen Victoria’s Jubilee.
1889
See the North Yorkshire History Dark
nights in Great Ayton, 1889.
1894
The Mill Race
at Grange Mill
The roads around Great Ayton in the late nineteenth century
The High
Street and the Royal Oak
1915
1923
West end of
Ayton in about 1923
2019
Ayton People
See also James
Cook.
Commodore
William Wilson was a celebrated member of the town in
the eighteenth century. He retired to Ayton Hall in 1762 after a successful
career in the East India Company. During the Seven Years War, the three ships
he command engaged two French Frigates and his memorial in All Saints Church
depicts a relief of the encounter.
Betsy
Martin (1781 to 1867) ran a large business at
a time when this was a male preserve. When she was in her 60s, she inherited
the Cleveland tannery beside the high green, together with offices in
Manchester. She tried to let the tannery but eventually decided to run it
herself, and employed 8 men and survived a fire caused by a little boy with a
Lucifer match.
Rev John
Ibbetson was the vicar of Ayton for over 50
years from 1827 to 1878. He was a forceful character. One of his achievements
was the building of Christchurch, the new church, when All Saints became too
small for the growing village. Joseph and his wife Elizabeth are buried
together in the northeast corner of All Saints graveyard.
Thomas
Richardson (1771 to 1853) was a wealthy London
banker and a partner with George Stephenson in the Darlington works where the
early locomotives were made. When he retired he built he built himself
Cleveland lodge. In 1841 he bought a large estate fronting the High Green to
set up a Quaker boarding school. Two years later along with others he endowed
the village with the British school for the children at the village.
George
Dixon (1812 to 1904) was the first
Superintendent of the Friends’ School. He also published books on nature study
and campaigned on Quaker issues such as teetotalism. After he retired he spent
18 years in America teaching newly emancipated slaves before he returned to the
village where he remained until he died at the age of 92.
John
Wright was a self-taught poet. He moved to
Great Ayton in 1855 and promoted his works throughout the country and gave
himself the title, the Bard of Cleveland. He received a grant from the Prime
Minister, Lord Palmerston and used the money to design his dream cottage,
basing the design on an open book. The house was called the Bard's Recess, and
it still survives today.
Jeremiah
Thistlethwaite (1826 to 1910) came to great Ayton in
1857 to start a grocery and drapery business in Eagle Street which is now
Station Road. He was a property developer and bought farmland in the village on
which he built houses to accommodate the growing population. His son William
Henry Thistlethwaite was a keen photographer who left early records of the
village.
Waynman
Dixon (1844 to 1930) was a civil and engineer
from Newcastle. When he was in Egypt he became famous for working out how to
transport Cleopatra's Needle from Alexandria to London. He founded the
Conservative Club in great Ayton and organised the War Memorial and planted
cherry trees on the High Green.
Dennis
Blake was the flight engineer in a Halifax
bomber. On the night of 15 March 1944, the aircraft was badly damaged by
gunfire over Stuttgart, injuring all the crew to such an extent that the pilot
asked Dennis Blake, who had never piloted an aircraft before, to take over
flying and land when they reached home. For this act, which saved the lives of
his seven colleagues, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
The Twelfth Century All Saints Church
Christ Church, Great Ayton
Education in Great Ayton
See Education.
Great Ayton Industry
See also the Farndales and Mining.
Ironstone
Sewage and drainage
In the areas of Wapping (now Bridge Street and its vicinity)
and the newly built California which houses recently arrived whinstone and
ironstone miners, sewage facilities were very primitive. Groups of houses
perhaps had an earth closet in the backyard which were empted at night via a
trap door opening to a back passage. The effluent or night soil was taken in a
large metal drum by horse and cart to a tip from where it dried out and was
later used as fertiliser for the fields.
Cotton
Linen
Tanning
Alum
The Jurassic
shales and sandstone of Cliff Ridge and Gribdale
contain bands of ironstone, jet and alum, as well as whinstone. The oldest of
these industries was alum. This mineral had been used since ancient times for
many purposes including medicinal (as cure for haemorrhages, nits and dandruff,
and other ailments). Its main uses since the middle gages were to increase the
suppleness and durability of leather and in the textile industry as a mordant
to make vegetable dyes fast. Alum mining has been a North Yorkshire industry
since alum was first discovered in the hills around Guisborough by Sir Thomas
Chaloner the younger in the 1590s. From the early seventeenth century until the
1860s it was extensively mined at Guisborough and along the East Cleveland coast.
The actual extraction of alum from shale was a long and expensive process and
it took an average of 50 tons of shale to produce one ton of alum.
In
the mid eighteenth century the price of alum was particularly high and reached
a peak of £24 per ton in 1765. It therefore became commercially viable to mine
in places where this had not been the case previously. Several new mines were
therefore opened including one east of Ayton at Ayton Bank, just north of
Hunter’s Scar.
Jet
Whinstone
James Cook and Great Ayton
James Cook’s Great Ayton years were from 1736 to
1745.
James
Cook was born in Marton in Cleveland on 27 October 1728. He
was born in a crowded and damp cottage with clay walls and a thatched roof. His
father was an agricultural labourer who had moved to Cleveland from Scotland in
search of work. His mother came from the nearby village of Thornaby. When he
was 5, James was sent to Dame Walker, a widow, to learn his alphabet and how to
read.
Just after his 8th birthday the family
moved to Great Ayton. James Cook Senior, his father was employed by Thomas Skottowe
on
Aireyholme Farm about a mile out of the village. By
this time there were four children and four more were to follow, although out
of the 8, 4 died young.
After the Cook family moved to Great
Ayton, James was sent to the Postgate school. This was a one storey cottage with
just one school room, above which was a garret for the master to live in. At
this small village school the local children learnt their letters and their
sums. James 's school fees were paid by Thomas Skottowe.
James Cook's teacher was called William Rowland. We know this because he was
licenced to teach at great eight and by the Archbishop of York. Because William
Rowland was also employed to write the annual churchwardens accounts, we know
he had a stylish handwriting. James Cook stayed at school until he was 12. This
was the only formal schooling that he ever received and even this was probably
interrupted because throughout his childhood he would have been expected to
help his father with farm work. When he finally left school he went to work
with his father full time for a few years before leaving home at the age of 16,
when he set out for Staithes.
Links, texts and books
Parish Records
