Sproxton 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 ...

in the

Ryedale Ryedale is a non-metropolitan district in North Yorkshire, England. It is in the Vale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by the River Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages and towns. It has been inha ...

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. It is south of

Helmsley Helmsley is a market town and civil parish in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town is located at the point where Ryedale leaves the moorland and joins the flat Vale of Pi ...

and on the junction between the

A170 road The A170 is an A road in North Yorkshire, England that links Thirsk with Scarborough through Hambleton, Helmsley, Kirkbysmoorside, Pickering. The road is ; a single carriageway for almost its totality. The route has been in existence since pr ...

and the

B1257 road B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads. See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering scheme used to classify and identify all roads in G ...

on the edge of the

North York Moors National Park North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

. The village was founded by the Banks family who originated from the Barlow family who designed the original wooden Nelson Gates. The 1806 stone version serves as the southern entrance/exit to

Duncombe Park Duncombe Park is the seat of the Duncombe family who previously held the Earldom of Feversham. The title became extinct on the death of the 3rd Earl in 1963, since when the family have continued to hold the title Baron Feversham. The park is si ...

. The Grade II listed structure is inscribed with "''To the memory of Lord Viscount Nelson and the unparalleled gallant achievements of the British Navy''" on the front and on the rear side is inscribed with "''Lamented Hero! O price his conquering country grieved to pays o dear brought glories of Trafalgar Day!''" In the time of

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æth ...

, Sproxton (Sprostune) was in the hands of three local noblemen, but by 1086 the land belonged to the crown. The name Sproxton itself derives from Sprok's farm or settlement with Sprok being a given name to who owned the farm. The grade II listed church of St. Chad in the village is unusual in that it was originally built in the 17th century as the chapel of West Newton Grange and moved to the village brick by brick in 1879. It is also reputedly the smallest in North Yorkshire (in terms of attendance) as it has only nine pews. The wood at the eastern edge of the village was bought by the

Woodland Trust The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the United Kingdom and is concerned with the creation, protection, and restoration of native woodland Natural heritage, heritage. It has planted over 50 million trees since 1972 ...

in 2008, having previously been part of the Duncombe Park estate. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the wood was part of the deer park in the Helmsley area. The Woodland Trust refers to the site as Robson's Spring, but is it actually three woods named Ness Great Wood, Green Sykes and Robson's Spring. Sproxton lies within the Helmsley ward of Ryedale District Council and the Kirkbymoorside electoral division of North Yorkshire County Council. For Westminster elections Sproxton comes under the

Thirsk and Malton Thirsk and Malton is a constituency in North Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Kevin Hollinrake, a Conservative. History 2010-date Anne McIntosh, a Conservative, elected for Vale of York in ...

constituency, currently represented by

Kevin Hollinrake Kevin Paul Hollinrake (born 28 September 1963) is a British Conservative politician and businessman. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Thirsk and Malton since May 2015 and has been serving as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State ...

, a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

who has been incumbent since May 2015.

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire