Owston is a small 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 ...

in the

Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster The City of Doncaster is a metropolitan borough with city status in South Yorkshire, England. It is named after its principal settlement, Doncaster, and includes the surrounding suburbs of Doncaster as well as numerous towns and villages. The di ...

in rural

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. In N ...

, England.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

part of the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, the village is situated amongst mixed farmland and woodland north northwest of

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

, just west of the A19. It had a population of 170 in 2001, which fell to 145 according to the 2011 Census. The name 'Owston' is of Old Scandinavian and Old English origin. It means 'East farmstead', being composed of the Old Scandinavian word ''austr'' ('east') and the Old English word ''tun'' ('farmstead'). In the Domesday Book, the village was recorded as ''Austhun''.

John de St Paul John de St Paul ( 1295 – 1362), also known as John de St. Pol, John de Owston and John de Ouston, was an English-born cleric and judge of the fourteenth century. He was Archbishop of Dublin 1349–62 and Lord Chancellor of Ireland 1350–56. H ...

Archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin is an archepiscopal title which takes its name after Dublin, Ireland. Since the Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: one in the Catholic Church and the other in the Church of Irelan ...

, was born in Owston in about 1295. He was sometimes referred to as John de Owston. Close to the village is a site of special scientific interest called Owston Hay Meadows which is the second best example of neutral

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

hay meadow A Hay meadow is an area of land set aside for the production of hay. In Britain hay meadows are typically meadows with high botanical diversity supporting a diverse assemblage of organisms ranging from soil microbes, fungi, arthropods including man ...

in South Yorkshire. The site consists of three small fields which together cover 13½ acres (5½ hectares) and were notified in 1979. The parish church of All Saints is Grade I listed, dating back to 1180. Nearby Owston Hall was declared a Grade II listed building in 1967, its grounds are used by the Robin Hood Golf Club of Doncaster.

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Villages in Doncaster Civil parishes in South Yorkshire {{SouthYorkshire-geo-stub

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