Stone Gappe is an 18th-century house in
Lothersdale
Lothersdale is a small village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, near Skipton and within the triangle formed by Skipton, Cross Hills and Colne. It is a small community of about 200 houses but local amenities i ...
,
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 a
Grade II* listed building.
Construction
The house was constructed for William Bawdwen and completed in 1725.
It is constructed of dressed stone with a
hipped slate roof. Three
storey
A storey (British English) or story (American English) is any level part of a building with a floor that could be used by people (for living, work, storage, recreation, etc.). Plurals for the word are ''storeys'' (UK) and ''stories'' (US).
T ...
s high and five
bays
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a narr ...
wide, the south elevation is symmetrical about a central
canted
Cant, CANT, canting, or canted may refer to:
Language
* Cant (language), a secret language
* Beurla Reagaird, a language of the Scottish Highland Travellers
* Scottish Cant, a language of the Scottish Lowland Travellers
* Shelta or the Cant, a lan ...
bay.
[
]
Literary and musical connections
By 1839 the house was owned by John Benson Sidgwick, a mill owner in nearby 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 ...
, and in May 1839 he engaged Charlotte Brontë to be governess for two of his children. Brontë's stay was short though and within weeks she left to return to Haworth. It is considered that Stone Gappe was the model for Gateshead Hall, the childhood home of the eponymous heroine of ''Jane Eyre
''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...
''.
The house became the property of Sir John Horsfall, baronet of Hayfield and his heirs. The family let the house and one of the tenants was Dr J Black and his family. Dr Black's wife was Clare Delius, sister of the composer Frederick Delius and in her book, ''Frederick Delius: Memories of my Brother'', there are several references to the composer's visits to the house.
Youth use
By the mid-1920s the property was let to the Reverend Aldous, the rector of Lothersdale, who sub-let the house to be used as a youth camp centre along the lines of those organised by the then Duke of York (later George VI
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...
). In 1931 the house became the first youth hostel opened in Yorkshire's West Riding by Youth Hostels Association (England & Wales). Despite initial popularity the use as a hostel only lasted until July 1935 due to the greater popularity of other locations.
Current use
The house remains in private hands and has reverted to use as a private residence.
References
{{reflist, 30em
Grade II* listed buildings in North Yorkshire
Brontë family
1725 establishments in Great Britain
Craven District
Youth hostels in England and Wales