Reeth is a village 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, Californi ...

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 county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four co ...

, England, in the

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 authorit ...

of Reeth, Fremington and Healaugh.

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

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres). From the Restoration it was used ...

, it is the principal settlement of upper

Swaledale Swaledale is one of the northernmost dales (valleys) in Yorkshire Dales National Park, located in northern England. It is the dale of the River Swale on the east side of the Pennines in North Yorkshire. Geographical overview Swaledale runs ...

Etymology

The origin of the name ''Reeth'' is unclear. It is possibly derived from the Germanic for 'place by the stream', although this claim can neither be confirmed nor refuted. Reeth could also have been derived from the

Cumbric Cumbric was a variety of the Common Brittonic language spoken during the Early Middle Ages in the '' Hen Ogledd'' or "Old North" in what is now the counties of Westmorland, Cumberland and northern Lancashire in Northern England and the south ...

''rith'' (cf. ''ryd'' in

Modern Welsh The history of the Welsh language (Welsh: ''Hanes yr iaith Gymraeg'') spans over 1400 years, encompassing the stages of the language known as Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh. Origins Welsh evolved from British, the C ...

, ''rys'' in Cornish ), meaning ' Ford'. Either would make sense as Reeth is located near two shallow rivers.

History

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

times, Reeth was only a settlement on the forest edge, but by the time of the

Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...

it had grown sufficiently in importance to be noted 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 ...

''. Later it became a centre for hand-

knitting Knitting is a method by which yarn is manipulated to create a textile, or fabric. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row, either flat or i ...

and the local lead industry was controlled from here, but it was always a market centre for the local farming community. Built in 1783
The Burgoyne
(named after Mrs Burgoyne Johnson) stands majestically on Reeth's idyllic green, the late Georgian county house hotel is full of history and elegant charm with many of its original features. The hotel previously known as Hill House, was made into guest accommodation and then a hotel after WW2. May Sinclair features Hill House in her novel, ''The Three Sisters'', as the home of Miss Kendal. The "Swaledale Walk 5 May Sinclair's Reeth", is a short walk that takes you around and above Reeth to discover pivotal places featured in two of her novels. On 5 July 2014, the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

Stage 1 from Leeds to Harrogate passed through the village.

Governance

The village lies within the

Richmond (Yorks) Richmond (Yorks) is a constituency in North Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since May 2015 by Rishi Sunak, the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and leader of the Conservative Party. Constituency ...

parliamentary constituency, which has been represented since 2015 by

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 in ...

Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (; born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party since October 2022. He previously held two cabinet positions under Boris Johnson, lastly as ...

, who took over from retiring fellow

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 ...

. It also lies within the Upper Dales electoral division of North Yorkshire County Council and the Reeth and Arkengarthdale ward of

District Council.

Geography

Reeth is located on the B6270 road that crosses the entirety of Swaledale, linking

with Kirkby Stephen in Cumbria. Nearby settlements to Reeth include the fellow parish villages of Fremington east and Healaugh to the west, as well as

Grinton Grinton is a small village and civil parish in the Yorkshire Dales, in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. Close to Reeth and Fremington, it lies west of Richmond on the B6270 road. On 5 July 2014, the Tour de France S ...

, to the east. Reeth is situated at the meeting point of the two most northerly of the Yorkshire Dales: Swaledale and

Arkengarthdale Arkengarthdale is a dale, or valley, on the east side of the Pennines in North Yorkshire, England. Running roughly north-west to south-east, it is the valley of the Arkle Beck, and is the northernmost of the Yorkshire Dales. It is a subsidiar ...

. It is also near to Reeth that

Arkle Beck Arkle Beck is the stream running through the valley of Arkengarthdale in the Yorkshire Dales, England. It is a tributary of the River Swale The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the ...

from the north joins 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. ...

. The village is overlooked by the surrounding

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, pa ...

s of Harkerside Moor, Fremington Edge and Calver Hill.

Alfred Wainwright Alfred Wainwright MBE (17 January 1907 – 20 January 1991), who preferred to be known as A. Wainwright or A.W., was a British fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator. His seven-volume '' Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'', publis ...

Coast to Coast Walk The Coast to Coast Walk is a long-distance footpath between the west and east coasts of Northern England, nominally long. Devised by Alfred Wainwright, it passes through three contrasting national parks: the Lake District National Park, the ...

, an unofficial but popular long-distance footpath from

Saint Bees St Bees is a coastal village, civil parish and electoral ward in the Copeland district of Cumbria, England, on the Irish Sea. Within the parish is St Bees Head which is the only Heritage Coast between Wales and Scotland and a Site of Spe ...

to Robin Hood's Bay, passes through Reeth.

Demography

For the parish of Reeth, Fremington and Healaugh:

Community and culture

Primary education is provided by ''Reeth Community Primary School'', which is engaged in a confederation with nearby ''

Gunnerside Gunnerside is a village in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the B6270 road, east of Muker and west of Grinton. The village lies between the River Swale and its tributary, Gunnerside Beck, in the Swal ...

Methodist Primary School''. Pupils then receive secondary education at Richmond School & Sixth Form College. In May and June every year Reeth becomes the hub of the

Swaledale Festival The Swaledale Festival takes place over two weeks in May and June each year, in churches, chapels, castles, ‘Literary Institutes’, pubs, fields and village halls scattered around Swaledale, Arkengarthdale and Wensleydale. The largest venues s ...

, a two-week celebration of music and guided walks. Unfortunately it had to be cancelled in 2020 owing to Coronavirus. Additionally on the final Wednesday of August the Reeth Show, an agricultural event, is held. In 2012 it celebrated its centenary. Reeth is also home to the Swaledale Museum, which covers

rural history In historiography, rural history is a field of study focusing on the history of societies in rural areas. At its inception, the field was based on the economic history of agriculture. Since the 1980s it has become increasingly influenced by social ...

including life and work in the local area of

and

within the

Yorkshire Dales National Park The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a national park in England covering most of the Yorkshire Dales. Most of the park is in North Yorkshire, with a sizeable area in Westmorland ( Cumbria) and a small part in Lancashire. The park was d ...

Amenities

Village amenities include three

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 wa ...

s (the ''Black Bull Hotel'', the ''Buck Hotel'' and the ''King's Arms''), a caravan and camp site, a village shop and post office, two bakeries, a cafe, eleven guest houses variously bed and breakfast or self-catering, two hotels
The Burgoyne Hotel
, a community centre, the Evangelical Congregational Church, Reeth Memorial Hall and the Swaledale Museum. One of five

National Park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

Centres for the

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales is an upland area of the Pennines in the 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 rising from the Vale of York w ...

is located in Reeth. The local health establishment is Reeth Medical Centre, which serves more than 200 square miles and more than 1,500 patients.

Religion

Reeth is home to two churches. The current ''Reeth Methodist Chapel'' has been in use since 1822, although Methodists have been worshipping in the village since at least 1766.http://www.nydalesmeth.org.uk/reeth.htm Reeth Methodists The larger ''Reeth Evangelical Congregational Church'' is located on the village green.

Notable people

* The nonconformist minister David Bradberry was born in Reeth. * Ruby Ferguson, a writer of popular fiction including children's books, romances and mysteries, was born and brought up in Reeth. *

Arthur Shepherd Arthur Shepherd (February 19, 1880 – January 12, 1958) was an American composer and conductor in the 20th century. Life and career Shepherd was born in Paris, Idaho, into a Mormon family. His family loved to sing and his father, William N. ...

, M.P. for Darlington 1926-1931, was Headmaster of Reeth School from 1922 until his election to the House of Commons.

References

External links

*
Reeth Information from Reeth.org

Swaledale Museum
{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Swaledale Richmondshire