Settrington Parish information from Bulmers' 1892.

SETTRINGTON:
Geographical and Historical information from the year 1892.

Wapentake and Petty Sessional Division of Buckrose - County Council Electoral Division of Settrington - Poor Law Union and County Court District of Malton - Rural Deanery of Settrington - Archdeaconry of the East Riding - Diocese of York.

This parish comprises the townships of Settrington and Scagglethorpe, lying on the south bank of the Derwent, between Rillington and Norton. The former township contains 4,986 acres; its rateable value is £5,829 ; and the population in 1891 was 488. The soil is various; towards the east, where the township stretches on the Wolds, it is chalk; in the west it is red oolitic stone, and clay in the valley between. Wheat, barley, and oats are the chief crops. Lord Middleton is lord of the manor and principal landowner.

Settrington was one of the Anglian clan stations - the ton or settlement of the Settrings. In the latter part of the Saxon period, it was the scene of a fearful tragedy, which affords a striking illustration of the barbarism of our Saxon ancestors. There was a deadly feud between the families of Waltheof and Ceorl, which had descended to them through five generations. Blood had been shed on both sides by the previous inheritors of the strife, but the desire of revenge was still unappeased. Thurebrand and a body of assassins had perfidiously murdered Uchtred and 40 of his retainers at the court of Canute. The murderer soon afterwards met his death by the sword of Aldred, son of the murdered man. The duty of revenge now devolved on Ceorl, the son of Thurebrand, who after years of plotting, at last effected, through treachery, the assassination of Aldred. Waltheof determined to avenge his grandfather's death, and with a strong body of his Northumbrians, he surprised the sons of Ceorl, whilst they were at a banquet at the house of their eldest brother at Settrington, and all, with the exception of one, were cruelly butchered.

The Bigods, Earls of Norfolk, were anciently lords of Settrington, and had a mansion here, but how, or when, it came into their possession is not known. It descended in a younger branch of this family, till Sir Francis raised the standard of rebellion in the second rising of the Pilgrimage of Grace, at his house in Settrington. He had held aloof from the first insurrection, although he wished it God-speed, because "the people looked upon him with jealousy on account of his learning." His rustic mob of Woldsmen was less successful than had been the Pilgrims under Aske; their enthusiasm soon evaporated, and the rising collapsed. Sir Francis was captured, and executed for treason at Tyburn. Several of the Bigods were buried in the chancel of the church, and in "the quire before the image of our Blessed Lady, at the south end of the high altar."

Settrington gave the title of Baron to Ludovic, eldest son of Esme Stuart, Duke of Lennox. He was a relative of James I., whom he accompanied to England, and received a shower of English dignities and state appointments. He was thrice married, but died without issue in 1624, when the title became extinct. It was revived by Charles II., who conferred it upon one of his illegitmate sons by his French mistress, whom he had created Duchess of Portsmouth. It is still held by his descendant, Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, Duke of Richmond.

The village is pleasantly situated at the foot of the Wolds, three miles southeast from Malton, 16 miles north-west from Driffield, and near the station of its own name, on the Malton and Driffield branch of the North-Eastern railway. The parish is also intersected by the York and Scarborough line, the nearest stations on which are at Malton and Rillington.

The church, which bears the Saxon dedication of All Saints', is an ancient edifice, of stone, consisting of chancel, nave, aisles, and a western tower with parapet adorned with trefoil panels, shields of arms, &c. The style of the building is chiefly Perpendicular Gothic, but the south doorway is a fine specimen of Transition Norman. There is a curious old font, square in shape, with a dwarf column at each angle. The benefice is a rectory, valued in the Liber Regis at £42 12s. 6d., and now worth about £1,100 net with residence, in the gift of Earl Brownlow, and held by the Rev. Isaac Taylor, M.A., Doctor in Letters and LL.D., Canon of York, and Rural Dean of Settrington. The tithes were commuted at the enclosure in 1797 for about 1,100 acres of land.

A chapel was erected in 1890 by the Wesleyan Methodists, at a cost of upwards of £400, which was raised by subscription. It is a neat, stone-fronted structure, capable of seating 150 persons.

The National School is a substantial building, erected in 1852, for the accommodation of 100 children. It consists of main-room and class-room, and has an average attendance of 66.

SETTRINGTON HOUSE is a handsome mansion, of white stone, situated in an extensive and well-wooded park. It formerly belonged to the family of Masterman; after the death of the late Henry Masterman, Esq., in 1826, it was purchased by Henry, 6th Baron Middleton, and is now in the occupation of Julia Lady Middleton.

CHARITIES - Christopher Topham, in 1758, left 32½ acres of land at Aysgarth and Canton, the rents to be employed in apprenticing poor children of Settrington, Long Marston, and Baildon. The poor receive, also, 15s. a year out of the manor of Settrington, called "The Lady's Dole," but the donor is unknown.

SCAGGLETHORPE township comprises 1,206 acres, lying on the south bank of the Derwent. The soil varies from a strong clay to a sandy loam. Lord Middleton, the Exors. of the late Rev. Y. G. Lloyd-Greme, and Mr. Robert Wise are the principal landowners, and there are numerous small freeholders. The rateable value is £2,419, and the population in 1891 was 197.

The village is situated three miles east of Malton, and one mile south of Settrington. There is a small school here belonging to the Parish church, in which Divine service is held every Sunday. The Wesleyans and Primitive Methodists have also chapels in the village, the former erected in 1816, and the latter in 1866, at a cost of £200. They are both in the Malton circuit.

[Description(s) from Bulmer's History and Directory of East Yorkshire (1892)]

Directories

• Transcript of the entry for the Post Office, professions and trades in Bulmer's Directory of 1892.

Scan, OCR and html by Colin Hinson. Checking and correction by Peter Nelson.