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Weston 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
in the county of
North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...
, England. The village is north–west of
Otley Otley is a market town and civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the population was 13,668 at the 2011 c ...
and near the
River Wharfe The River Wharfe ( ) is a river in Yorkshire, England originating within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. For much of its middle course it is the county boundary between West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. Its valley is known as Wharfedale. ...
which forms the boundary between North and West Yorkshire. The name is from Old English and means western enclosure, farmstead or village. The village is less than a mile north-east of
Burley-in-Wharfedale Burley in Wharfedale is a village and civil parish within the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England, in the Wharfedale valley. In 2011, it had a population of 7,041. The village is on the A65 road, north-west from Leeds, north from Br ...
across the River Wharfe, but there is no direct access across the river. Access to Weston village is by an unclassified road (Weston Lane) from Otley and from Askwith and
Ilkley Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, in Northern England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within ...
to the west. The village of Weston should not be confused with the nearby Weston Estate, a
housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex, housing development, subdivision (land), subdivision or community) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to count ...
around Weston Lane between Weston and Newall, within Otley and
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...
. The civil parish extends some north of the village to the
River Washburn The River Washburn is a river in Yorkshire, England. It originates high in the Yorkshire Dales and ends where it meets the River Wharfe. It lies within the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Name The earliest recorded form of the ...
. Much of the northern part of the parish is an estate including commercial premises and farmland, also known as the Weston Estate. To the south of the village, Weston Hall is part of the Askwith Estate adjoining the north bank of the River Wharfe. Until 1974 it was part of the
West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...
. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the
Borough of Harrogate The Borough of Harrogate was a local government district with borough status in North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Harrogate, but it also included surrounding settlements, including the cathedral ...
, it is now administered by the unitary
North Yorkshire Council North Yorkshire Council, known between 1974 and 2023 as North Yorkshire County Council, is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire, England. Since 2023 the council has been a unitary authority, being a county coun ...
.


History

The church in the village is recorded 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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
, although there is evidence of
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
worship before this time (most notably that of a 9th-century cross that was found in the graveyard). The church is mostly Norman with some 17th and 19th century additions and was
Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...
listed in 1966. The church bells were stolen in March 1990 and when they were eventually retrieved, expert analysis revealed them to be amongst the oldest bells in Britain, with one dating from at least the year 1200. Heritage Lottery Funding was successfully applied for and after careful restoration, the bells were re-hung in the church in October 2016. Farming has been the main occupation of the inhabitants of Weston for many centuries and the appealing rural nature of the area has been noted as part of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which was signified in 1994. Land at the eastern end of the village (known as Gallows Hill) which adjoins the Weston housing estate, was used during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and beyond until 1948 to house German
Prisoners of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
. Most of the site was destroyed to make way for the new housing estate.


Lords of the manor

Before the Domesday book was collated, the area was originally part of Otley Manor, but was then separated off north of the river. After Domesday, the estate was granted to Berenger de Tosny. According to the national archives, the archived documents for Weston "relate chiefly to the Yorkshire estates of the Vavasours of Weston from whom they have descended to the present owner. The property was built-up by Sir Brian de Lisle (Latinized as de Insula), who died in 1234, and by his nephew Sir Robert de Stopham (died before 1275). The Stophams seem to have originated in Sussex and Dorset and the Yorkshire branch to have been established by the Lisle inheritance." "Sir Robert de Stopham's daughter Maud married John le Vavasour of Denton, to whose descendents the property passed on the failure of the Stopham line in the middle of the fourteenth century. It then comprised the manors of Weston and Newton (in the parish of Nidd) and other lands at Burley-in-Wharfedale and Baildon. The last of the Baildon property appears to have been sold and that at Newton in 1795." In 1833, William Vavasour died and the estate passed onto his nephew (William Elmsall Carter) who was an attorney from Lincoln. Carter died the following year in 1834 and his daughters (Emma Carter and Susan Carter) inherited the estate. Emma Carter married Christopher Holdsworth Dawson, whose grandfather was one of the founders of the Low Moor Ironworks, and Susan married William Millthorpe Spence M.D. Through these marriages, the estate was split and passed down through the Vavasour Dawson line to Herbrand Vavasour Dawson and the Carter Spence line to Malger Powis Vavasour as joint Lords of the Manor of Weston.


Weston Hall and Weston Manor

Weston Hall is a Tudor and Georgian
country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire 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 Townhou ...
containing several many grand rooms, including the Dragon Room, so-called for the plaster sculpting in the ceiling. There is a second building, formerly used by the men of the estate for playing snooker and telling tales. There is also a small church on the property, built in the 1200s and holding many old records. Weston Manor is a substantial Victorian country house built of stone with a Westmoreland slate roof. Dating from 1899 the present property replaced Deanfield House and was built to the design of Kilnwick Hall in the East Riding of Yorkshire with the addition of the Tower on the front elevation, which emulated one of the principal features of Deanfield house.


Dob Park

Dob Park was a medieval deer park in the north of the parish. The only visible remains of the park are the ruins of Deer Park Lodge, a
Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...
which is located in an isolated position on private land. It dates from the early 17th century and was commissioned by Sir Mauger Vavasour. It may have fallen into disuse fairly quickly, however, and was close to its current ruinous state when it was painted by J M W Turner (“Washburn under Folly Hall”) in around 1815. In January 2019 permission was granted for the conversion of the building into a residence for the owner of the Weston Estate. On the River Washburn below the lodge is a
packhorse bridge A packhorse bridge is a bridge intended to carry packhorses (horses loaded with sidebags or panniers) across a river or stream. Typically a packhorse bridge consists of one or more narrow (one horse wide) masonry arches, and has low Parapet#Bridg ...
, probably dating from the early 17th century, which carried an ancient routeway over the river to Norwood and Fewston. It is a
Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...
.


Gallery

File:Weston Hall - Otley England.jpg, This is the main Weston Hall estate as viewed from the lawn in front. File:Mens Building at Weston Hall.jpg, More or less a man cave, this is where the men of Weston Hall gathered to play snooker. File:Weston Church.jpg, Weston Church, dating to the early 1200s, kept local records for hundreds of years. File:The vicars of Weston Hall.jpg, The vicars of Weston Hall dating back to 1240. File:Weston Village Otley West Yorkshire - geograph.org.uk - 27187.jpg, Village green. File:Entrance to Weston Manor - geograph.org.uk - 879005.jpg, Entrance to Weston Manor, former residence of the Vavasour Family File:Greystone Plantation - geograph.org.uk - 881317.jpg, Woodland owned by the Weston Estate, including an award-winning Clay Pidgeon shooting ground. File:Dob Park Lodge.jpg, Dob Park Lodge (Remains) - 17th century hunting lodge built by the Vavasour family.


References


External links


National Archives Weston Hall Records
{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire Wharfedale