Stockeld Park is a Grade-I listed

country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

and estate situated between the towns of

Wetherby Wetherby () is a market town and civil parish in the City of Leeds district, West Yorkshire, England, close to West Yorkshire county's border with North Yorkshire, and lies approximately from Leeds City Centre, from York and from Harrogat ...

and

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

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, which is now the home of Peter (a great-grandchild of Robert John Foster) and Susie Grant. The estate spans some 2,000 acres and broadly covers the area between Wetherby and the villages of Spofforth and

Sicklinghall Sicklinghall is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England that is situated between the town of Wetherby ( to the east) and the village of Kirkby Overblow. In 2007 the population was recorded as 300, increasing to 336 at the 2011 ...

. In addition to traditional activities including farming and properties, Stockeld Park is also home to Yorkshire's largest Christmas tree plantation, with some 500,000 Christmas trees in the ground. It is perhaps best known for its Adventure Park, a seasonal attraction with a range of indoor and outdoor activities that vary by season. In winter for example there is:

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

, an

Enchanted Forest In folklore and fantasy, an enchanted forest is a forest under, or containing, enchantments. Such forests are described in the oldest folklore from regions where forests are common, and occur throughout the centuries to modern works of fantasy. ...

Santa's Grotto Santa's Workshop is the legendary workshop where Santa Claus and his elves are said to live and make the toys and presents given out at Christmas. The exact "location" of Santa's workshop varies depending upon local culture. There are at least e ...

and a giant, snowflake-shaped yew tree maze. Other seasons offer adventure playgrounds,

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether Motorboat, powerboats, Sailing, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sp ...

, pedal go-karts, motorised scooters and a range of themed events. The mansion house itself is constructed of stone in the style of a Palladian villa and features a cantilevered staircase, 18th and 19th century furniture and works of art. Features of the grounds include a dovecote, lodges, a

ha-ha A ha-ha (french: hâ-hâ or ), also known as a sunk fence, blind fence, ditch and fence, deer wall, or foss, is a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier (particularly on one side) while preserving an uninterrupted view ...

, a walled garden and thatched timber loggia.

History

The Stockeld (also earlier known as Stokeld) estate has its name from the half knight's fee of land held by Nigel de Stokeld (also Stockeld) in 1166, formerly part of the estates of

William de Percy William I (Willame) de Percy (d.1096/9), 1st English feudal barony, feudal baron of Topcliffe, North Yorkshire, Topcliffe in North Yorkshire,Sanders, I.J., English Baronies, Oxford, 1960, p.148 known as ''Willame als gernons'' (meaning "with whiske ...

. Around 1315, the Stockeld estate passed to William de Middleton of Ilkley. In 1757, William de Middleton commissioned architect James Paine to build the present house, which was completed by 1763. William Middelton died before it was completed and the house and estate passed to his infant great-nephew, William Constable. Constable adopted the name and arms of Middelton and eventually took up residence, but his wife, the mother of his 10 children, had a high-profile affair with a groom. William, after divorcing his wife, left Stockeld to live in his other property in Ilkley, leaving the house empty for some two decades. Succeeding generations of Middeltons continued to live at Ilkley, leasing out Stockeld until it was eventually sold in 1893 to Robert John Foster, owner of Black Dyke Mills in

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

. Foster commissioned architect

Detmar Blow Detmar Jellings Blow (24 November 1867 – 7 February 1939) was a British architect of the early 20th century, who designed principally in the arts and crafts style. His clients belonged chiefly to the British aristocracy, and later he became es ...

to make several improvements, including converting the orangery to a chapel, and was appointed

High Sheriff of Yorkshire The Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere ...

for 1898–99. During the Second World War, the house was requisitioned for use as a maternity hospital. The chapel dates from 1895 and is a grade II listed building. Stockeld is also known to many people as Oakwell Hall from the

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

soap ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, '' ...

''. In 2006 the Grants opened a Christmas Tree shop in Stockeld Park where they sell trees grown on the estate to the community.

References

External links

*

Official Facebook page
The Mansion House at Stockeld ParkThe Lords of Ilkley Manor – The Road to Ruin. The Middelton Family of Stockeld Park (1763–1947) By David Carpenter Evelyn Wallace -The Castle Lady
{{coord, 53.9365, -1.4348, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in North Yorkshire Grade I listed buildings in North Yorkshire Grade I listed houses

History

See also

References

External links