Tosside is a small village on the border 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 ...

and

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

in Northern England. It lies within the

Forest of Bowland The Forest of Bowland, also known as the Bowland Fells and formerly the Chase of Bowland, is an area of gritstone fells, deep valleys and peat moorland, mostly in north-east Lancashire, England, with a small part in North Yorkshire (however ro ...

, and is between the villages of

Slaidburn Slaidburn () is a village and civil parish within the Ribble Valley district of Lancashire, England. The parish covers just over 5,000 acres of the Forest of Bowland. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Slaidburn lies near the head of ...

and

Wigglesworth Wigglesworth is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. The population of the civil parish taken at the 2011 Census was 379. It is on the road between Long Preston to the east, Clitheroe to the south a ...

. It lies 11.5 miles north of

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists visiting the area. In 2018, the Cl ...

and 17 miles north-west of

Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...

. The village is above sea level and lies at 54.0001°N / 2.35436°W on the B6478 road. Most of the village is in Lancashire, but a few houses in the eastern part of the village are in North Yorkshire. Historically, the entire village lay within 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 western part of Tosside is the largest settlement in the civil parish of

Gisburn Forest Gisburn Forest is a civil parish in the Ribble Valley, in Lancashire, England. Mainly lying within the Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the parish includes the larger part of the village of Tosside and the hamlet of Grunsa ...

History

The name Tosside is believed to be derived from

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

. It can be traced back to two old Scandinavian words - 'Tod' meaning fox and 'Saetr' meaning a high summer pasture. The name gradually changed to Toddsett, then Tossett and ultimately to Tosside. This fact is recognised to this day with the symbol of the fox being present on the top of the small water fountain at the centre of the village. The western part of Tosside was historically in the

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

of Gisburn Forest in the large ancient parish of

Gisburn Gisburn (formerly Gisburne) is a village and civil parish within the Ribble Valley borough of Lancashire, England. Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies northeast of Clitheroe and west of Skipton. The civil parish had a pop ...

. Gisburn Forest became a separate

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 1866. In 1974 it was transferred from the West Riding of Yorkshire to Lancashire. The eastern part of Tosside was an

extra parochial area In England and Wales, an extra-parochial area, extra-parochial place or extra-parochial district was a geographically defined area considered to be outside any ecclesiastical or civil parish. Anomalies in the parochial system meant they had no chu ...

known as Tosside Row. It became the civil parish of Tosside in 1858. In 1931 the parish had a population of 62. In 1938 the civil parish was abolished and absorbed into the civil parish of Wigglesworth. In 1974 Wigglesworth was transferred from the West Riding of Yorkshire to North Yorkshire.

Village today

Tosside has a population of around 100 families scattered across a widespread area, living typically in upland farms and other remote dwellings. The village itself includes a number of

Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

s, including St Bartholomew's Church, Mount Sion Independent Chapel (1812, now closed), also known as Sandy Syke Chapel, and the Dog and Partridge public house. The Village Community Hall provides a focal point for this active local community. The hall may be hired for special events and functions. The village adjoins Gisburn Forest to the north and provides access to the forest via Bailey Lane. Gisburn Forest is the largest forest in

and is a location for mountain-biking, walking and horse-riding.

References

External links

White Moss SSSI (Gisburn Forest)
{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Forest of Bowland Geography of Ribble Valley Villages in Lancashire Former civil parishes in North Yorkshire Former civil parishes in Lancashire

History

Village today

See also

References

External links