Category: Danby
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When Houlsyke Ruled the Eskdale Meat Market
Houlsyke has lingered in my thoughts as a subject worthy of a post for some time, a hamlet steeped in history. Yet, despite its tranquil demeanour, it lacks a photogenic charm. Devoid of a defined centre, bereft of an inn or shop, it comprises merely an assortment of cottages, both old and modern, clinging to…
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Clitherbecks — Coal, Cottages and Calamity
Clitherbecks, a very lonely and remote place on the moors near Danby, yet attaining a certain picturesque quality beneath the blanket of snow. The dale is renowned for its coal mining legacy. Modest, isolated shafts were operated using a ‘horse gin.’ Upon reaching the seam, horizontal headings were dug in various directions until deemed too…
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Standing Stone, Old Wife’s Stones Way
A leisurely saunter into the morning sunshine across the ancient expanse of Danby Rigg on the Old Wife’s Stones Way. A timely shower to the west served as a fitting backdrop to this squat yet impressive standing stone. The route, considered no older than medieval times, is lined with tall, slender standing stones, save for…
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The old Corpse Road to Danby Church
Old ‘corpse roads‘ or ‘coffin paths‘ were the routes country folk used to carry the dearly departed to their final resting place. They lie subliminally somewhere between myth and memory, and go by other names, like ‘bier roads,’ ‘lych ways,’ and ‘church-ways.‘ The memory of these old paths perhaps became more intangible because of how…
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The Coombs
The moors have been transformed into a vibrant green as bilberries blanket the landscape. From this vantage point in the Esk valley, overlooking a basin resembling an armchair at the northern edge of Danby Rigg, known as ‘The Coombs.’ A captivating scene which caught the attention of Rev. Canon Atkinson, who dedicated fifty years as…
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Nan Hardwicke — Witch or Hare? The Folklore of Cleveland
There are very few Cleveland villages which, at one time or another, one of the inhabitants had not been stigmatised as a witch. More often than not, it was some lonely old woman, past her childbearing age, probably widowed but more than likely without any degree of patriarchal protection. The most celebrated of these witches…
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Revd. J C Atkinson’s ‘Forty Years in a Moorland Parish’
I have often referred to the Reverend John Christopher Atkinson’s book, ‘Forty Years in a Moorland Parish,’ published in 1891. It offers a detailed account of life in and around the village of Danby, and is a much thumbed addition to my bookshelf. This morning I ventured into Danby Dale, Atkinson’s former parish. Atkinson was…
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Sandwith Slack
Or is it Ewe Crag Slack? Where the watershed lies between the two slacks is not obvious. For almost a kilometre the broad depression that crosses the North Cleveland watershed at 236m. asl. on Danby Low Moor, cuts no contour line. To the north it drains into Sandwith Slack then into Haw Beck and the…
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Danby Botton
Danby Dale’s middle section is termed ‘Danby Botton’, where Botton comes from an Old Scandinavian word ‘Botn’ for a hollow. The farm nearest is Stormy Hall which is the centre of a tradition dating from the time that Danby Castle was in the possession of the Latimers. Apparently, the hall takes its name from the fact…
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Clither Beck
Ruined cottages at Clither Beck. In the distance is Clitherbeck Farm or ‘Doubting Castle’ as it used to be called. Why, oh why was it renamed? This valley was once the scene of extensive coal mining activity. The coal comprised two seams overall 38cm thick with 10cm of shale in the middle at a depth…