Recent articles

  • Blind Peter Barker

    Remembering Hampsthwaite’s Blind Joiner - an article by Shaun WilsonLike the market town of Knaresborough, who had ‘Blind Jack’ – John Metcalf, the road builder of Yorkshire in the eighteenth century, the small rural village of Hampsthwaite had it’s blind hero also, almost a century later – Peter Barker who became known as ‘The Blind Joiner of Hampsthwaite.’ Though there are some similarities between John Metcalf and Peter Barker’s lives, these are purely co-incidental and each fulfilled a life, character and career in their own right.
  • Jane Ridsdale

    JANE RIDSDALEAged 33 years, born at Hampsthwaite, near Harrogate, Yorkshire, her height is 31 ½ inches.She is remarkably chearfull & enjoys very good health.Published July 1st 1807 by Jane Ridstale, at Harrogate where purchasers of this Print will have the opportunity of seeing and conversing with her
  • Joshua Tetley

    Joshua Tetley was the founder of Tetley’s Brewery in Leeds, and he retired with his wife Hannah to Hollins Hall on the outskirts of Hampsthwaite (Hollins Hall Retirement Village).
  • The Execution of Hannah Whitley

    Arsenic Poisoning in Hampsthwaite - The Execution of Hannah Whitley In 1789, Hannah Whitley of Hampsthwaite used a pie as the delivery medium for a fatal dose of arsenic, with the poison concentrated in the crust. She claimed She had been coerced into the act of poisoning by her employer, a local linen weaver named Horseman, who was involved in an on-going feud with the intended victim.
  • Scrubbers and Stones

    SCRUBBERS & STONES - Sat 29th June 10.30am - 2.30pm - Entry FREE! Explore the Memorials at St Thomas a'Becket Memorials Treasure Trail - for children if all ages Self-Service / Self-Checkout BBQ from 12 noon (inc. veg option) Food £2, Drink £1, Donations? - yes please! Hot & Cold Drinks Laptop & Screen to show Mapping Hampsthwaite’s Past Use a Bucket & Brush to help reveal Inscriptions on the older memorials . . . or just Sit & Enjoy CORPUS CHRISTI BRASS BAND . . . from 11.30am . . . followed by Afternoon Tea & Cakes at the Memorial Hall!
  • Hampsthwaite Open Gardens

     Hampsthwaite Open Gardens - Sat 29th June 12.30am - 5.00pm - Entry £5.00 (accompanied under 15's FREE) Tickets on the day from Hampsthwaite Memorial Hall Plant sales - many named varieties of plants Delicious homemade refreshments Afternoon tea and cakes served from 12.30pm at the Memorial Hall
  • Genealogy Websites

    Free genealogy websites will help you start your family history research at no cost as listed by the 'Who Do You Think You Are' magazine.
  • Kitchen Refurbishment

    Memorial Hall kitchen is now completely, and expertly, refurbished by Neil,Batty Builders Ltd as a result of a grant awarded by the National Lottery's 'Reaching Communities' fund.See also the equivalent
  • Amy Woodforde-Finden

    A highly successful composer of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, Amy Woodforde-Finden, together with her husband and step-son, is laid to rest in the churchyard of St Thomas à Becket Parish Church. Inside the church there is an impressive marble monument of her, created by the renowned sculptor George Edward  Wade. It was unveiled in 1923 and a few years later, Finden Gardens in Hampsthwaite was named in her honour.[Click on title or image to link to articles]
  • Amy Woodforde-Finden Centenary Events (2)

    Amy Woodforde-Finden : 'An Evening with Amy'A centenary concert to celebrate the life and works of Amy was held in Hampsthwaite Memorial Hall on April 21st 2023 Click on images to open full-size in new window and use the Browser back arrow to return to here.  
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In Memoriam - H Parker



William Henry ('Harry') Parker



Harry Parker


William Henry (known as 'Harry') was born at Clint on the 17th December 1887, the son of William Parker (a farmer and postman) and Ann Parker.

At the age of 16 Henry emigrated to Canada to work as a farm labourer. On the 7th September 1916 he enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force and, after initial training, was sent in about March 1917 to join 75th Battalion 11th Brigade of the 4th Canadian Division at Vimy Ridge in France. It was in the final battle for the Ridge that he was wounded on Easter Monday 9th April 1917.

He died from his wounds on the 20th April and is buried at Boulogne Eastern Cemetery (Plot4, Row C, Grave 13).

Click here to read a fuller account of his life and service

 No medal record has yet been seen but he would have qualified for the British War and Victory medals. His next of kin would have qualified for the Canadian Memorial Cross.



British War MedalVictory MedalCanadian Memorial Cross
British War
Medal
Victory
Medal
Memorial
Cross

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History of Hampsthwaite

The earliest written record of the settlement (circa 1180) is as “Hamethwayt” in the Early Yorkshire Charters.

The name 'Thwaite' comes from the Old Scandinavian word 'thveit', meaning 'clearing, meadow or paddock' and Hampsthwaite could mean the thwaite, or meadow, of Hamr or Hammall, or simply from Heim, meaning home, but it is almost certainly derived from the Old Norse Homp, 'land bordering on a river and liable to flooding' (an alternative possibility was put forward that the name 'Hamps' may derive from the Middle English, 'Hanespe', which means 'summer dry', or dry in summer but this would be an unlikely combination of Old Norse and Anglo Saxon).

Records show that flooding was indeed a feature of the River Nidd, which runs through here, although the Roman road from 'Olicana' (Ilkley) to 'Isurium' (Aldborough) crossed the Nidd at Hamps-thwaite and this led to the development of a market.

Hampsthwaite was situated within the Forest of Knaresborough, which was established as a royal hunting preserve in the time of the Conqueror. The church of Hampsthwaite was in existence soon after the Norman Conquest and was at one time in the possession of the monks of Knaresborough.

The family of the writer William Makepeace Thackeray lived in Hampsthwaite, as did the family of Amy Woodforde Finden (1860-1919) who was best known as the composer of “Kashmiri Song” from The Four Indian Love Lyrics by Laurence Hope. In the churchyard are the graves of Joshua Tetley, the founder of the Tetley's Brewery in Leeds, and his wife Hannah.


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The Nelson Inn

The Nelson Inn 2019
The Nelson Inn 2019
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Abattoir

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As a centre of agriculture, Hampsthwaite has had many slaughterhouses in or near the village area. According to plans drawn by the late Bernard Wilson (see Book One -"Villagers' Reminiscences") one was situated off Hollins Lane; another opposite the present Peckfield estate; another amongst farm buildings south of the Village Room; behind the site of the Joiners Arms; on farmland abutting the north bank of the river and east of the river bridge; on a site near South Royd and yet another to the east of the barns from which South Royd and adjacent houses were recently formed. The approximate positions of those slaughterhouses can be seen by clicking here to see illustrations produced for a village history exhibition by Bernard Wilson on which they are marked as 'SLT HOUSE'. It is the last of those slaughterhouses (marked 3RD SLT HOUSE) which we see in the aerial photograph above and that one which assumed the greatest importance. It stood on part of the farmland owned by the Addyman family (click here to read an account of ownership of land on the east side of Church Lane).

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Ownership of properties on the East side of Church Lane

Despite the existence of records at the West Riding Deeds Registry, it is difficult to trace the ownership of properties back beyond the 20th century. The use of plans was not common in earlier days and title deeds often describe properties by reference to their then occupants and the owners or occupants of adjacent plots. People living in the vicinity at the time such property was described in a deed may well have understood what was being described but later generations do not often have the necessary local knowledge to interpret the deeds.

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Corner Cottage

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Battle of Monte Scalari

The 4th British Infantry Division . . . fighting its way through Tuscany towards Florence, had reached the foothills of the Chianti Mountains where German Panzer Grenadiers were entrenched by late July 1944.

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Ashley House

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Ashville

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