Hudswell is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

on the border of the

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales is an upland area of the Pennines in the Historic counties of England, historic county of Yorkshire, England, most of it in the Yorkshire Dales National Park created in 1954. The Dales comprise river valleys and the hills ri ...

, in the

Richmondshire {{Infobox settlement , name = Richmondshire District , type = District , image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_caption = , image_blank_emblem= Richmondshire arms.png , blank_emblem_type = Coat ...

district of

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, England. The population at the ONS Census 2011 was 353. It lies approximately 2 miles west of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

, its nearest town, 3 miles north-west of

Catterick Garrison Catterick Garrison is a major garrison and military town south of Richmond, North Yorkshire, England. It is the largest British Army garrison in the world, with a population of around 13,000 in 2017 and covering over 2,400 acres (about 10& ...

and 12½ miles south-west of

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

. The village

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, George & Dragon, closed in 2008 and re-opened in 2010 as a "community-owned" public house. The premises now also house a small shop and a library. Hudswell lies just south of the

River Swale The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the River Ouse, that empties into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. The river gives its name to Swaledale, the valley through which it flows. Th ...

and the A6108, which runs through nearby Richmond. It takes the form of a 'Roadside Village', described as "...merely a string of buildings – houses, shops, inns and others – standing more or less indiscriminately." in ''The Anatomy of the village'' by

Thomas Wilfred Sharp Thomas Wilfred Sharp (12 April 1901 – 27 January 1978) was an English town planner and writer on the built environment. Biography Sharp was born in Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England. He attended the local grammar school and, between 19 ...

. According to the 2011 census, Hudswell has a population of 353 and 152 households. The civil parish of Hudswell contains the hamlet of Brokes, to the south.

History

The name ''Hudswell'' probably means ''Hudel's spring'' from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

name of ''Hudel'' and the Old English word of ''Wella'' meaning spring or stream. Hudswell is mentioned in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

, completed in 1086 for

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

. The land was valued at £0.8 in 1066 and taxed at 6 Geld units (quite a large tax compared to other Domesday settlements). In 1086 the

Tenant-in-chief In medieval and early modern Europe, the term ''tenant-in-chief'' (or ''vassal-in-chief'') denoted a person who held his lands under various forms of feudal land tenure directly from the king or territorial prince to whom he did homage, as op ...

for the village, and for the wider administrational district was Count Alan of Brittany, and the Lord; Enisant Musard. In 1881 the population of Hudswell was 181. By 1891, the population had increased to 223. Between 1891 and 1911, the population decreased, to 209 in 1901 and finally 185 in 1911. By 1931, the population had rapidly increased to 294, where the population remained steady (barring the years of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

where no official 1941 census was produced), and by 1961, the population had grown to 303. Population of Hudswell, North Yorkshire (1881-2011)

:In the 1870s, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Hudswell like this: "Hudswell, a township and chapelry in Catterick parish, N. R. Yorkshire; on the river Swale, 2½ miles WSW of Richmond r. station. It includes the hamlet of Thorpe-under-Stone; and its post town is Richmond, Yorkshire. Acres, 2, 831. Real property, £2, 400. Pop., 249. Houses, 56. The property is divided among a few. Coal and lead ore are worked. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of Ripon. Value, £90.* Patron, the Vicar of Catterick. The church is good; and there are a national school with £18 from endowment, and charities with £22."

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, the population of Hudswell is 353; divided between 169 males and 184 females. 17.3% of the population was aged 0 to 17; 24.3% aged 18 to 44; 24.1% aged 45 to 59; The largest age group was between 60 and 74 with 26.3% and 7.9% aged 75 and over. Similarly to many rural parts of England, the largest ethnic group in Hudswell is White, with 350 (99.2%) of the population; the other ethnic groups in the village are 0.3% mixed White/Asian and 0.6% Black. The large majority of the population were born in the United Kingdom; 93.3%, 2% born in Scotland, 0.6% in Northern Ireland and 0.3% in Wales. 1.7% of the population were born in other

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

countries and 0.8% born outside the EU.

Health and education

There are three primary schools within 2 miles of Hudswell, these include Richmond Church of England Primary School, Catterick Garrison, Carnagill Community Primary School and Wavell Community Junior School, also in Catterick Garrison. The local secondary schools are Richmond School, Risedale Sports and Community College and St Francis Xavier School. The nearest hospital to Hudswell is the Duchess of Kent Hospital, 3 miles (5 km) away in Catterick Garrison.

Transport

Hudswell is served by two bus routes, the number 32; circulating between Hudswell, Richmond, Catterick Garrison and nearby villages of Scotton, Harrogate, Tunstall and

Brompton-on-Swale Brompton-on-Swale is a village and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. The village is located three miles east of Richmond and north-west of the county town of Northallerton on the northern bank of the River ...

, and the 478R school bus service. Until the late 1960s the nearest railway station was the Richmond railway station, the terminus of the now closed Eryholme-Richmond branch line. However, in March 1969 the station closed. Today the nearest railway station to Hudswell is 16 miles (26 km) away in Darlington.

Places of interest

The George & Dragon Pub

The George & Dragon is the only public house in Hudswell and the first community owned public house in North Yorkshire. After the closure of the original George & Dragon in August 2008, the Hudswell Community Pub Limited (HCP Ltd) successfully led a campaign to purchase the property and reopen it as a community owned public house. In February 2010, the community lead organisation purchased the property and land for £209,950. Investment from locals of almost £240,000 and a grant of £65,000 allowed for full renovations to be undertaken. On 12 June 2010, after nearly two years of closure and three months of renovations, the George & Dragon was officially reopened by foreign secretary and Richmond MP

William Hague William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

who is also a member of the HCP Ltd. The George & Dragon has approximately an acre of gardens, with views of the Swale valley, serving ales from local suppliers. The pub has been designated as a hub of the village, prior to its reopening, the village hall was the only other community space in Hudswell. As well as acting as a meeting place and venue for village events, the George & Dragon hosts the village library, with books provided by the county council library service, free internet and allotments for the community. The George & Dragon is also the venue for 'The Little Shop', the first shop in Hudswell for 30 years, offering local produce and basic amenities and is run by volunteers. In May 2012, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

s Northern Editor, Martin Wainwright voted The George & Dragon in the Top 10 pubs in North Yorkshire and in March 2017,

CAMRA The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 155,000 members, it is the ...

announced that The George & Dragon had won its 2016 National Pub of the Year competition.

St Michael and All Angels

St Michael and All Angels, situated to the west of the village, was built in 1883, and serves Hudswell and the outlying farms. It is the sister church of St Mary's, Richmond. It serves as a venue for various community events.

References

External links

Hudswell
listing i
UpperDales.com
{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire