Gargrave
Coordinates: 53°59′02″N 2°06′18″W / 53.984°N 2.105°W
Gargrave is a large village and civil parish in the Craven district located along the A65, 4 miles (6 km) north-west of Skipton in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the very edge of the Yorkshire Dales. The River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal pass through the village. It has a population of 1,764.[1]
History and Information
Around half a mile south of the village on a fertile plain, there are remains of a Roman Villa, called Kirk Sink. The stones used to construct the villa were gradually removed and most likely used to make the present church which replaces it.
Inequalities upon the surface, prove the villa to have been a parallelogram; 300 feet (91 m) long and 180 feet (55 m) wide. 70 years ago it was dug into and the frame of a tessellated pavement was discovered at that time, of which a man named Dr. Whitaker had seen some of the remains, influenced him to apply for permission to open the ground again.
Unfortunately the remains could not be ascertained as the church bled into the foundations, all that could be found was fragments of the pavement and remains of the mortar used to construct the villa.
The church is located just across from the Masons Arms pub in the southern half of the village. Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Iain Macleod is buried in the south-east corner of the churchyard.
Gargrave House was built in 1917 by the distinguished Scottish architect, James Dunn.
Government
Gargrave is in the Gargrave and Malhamdale ward of the non-unitary authority, Craven District Council, and is also served by the North Yorkshire County Council for local services. For parliamentary elections Gargrave is in the Skipton and Ripon constituency.
Transportation
As well as sitting on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, the main road through Gargrave is the very busy A65 which goes from Leeds to Kendal in the Lake District. There has been a long-running campaign to have a by-pass built around the village. Gargrave railway station is served by rail services to Leeds to the east and Morecambe and Carlisle to the west. Gargrave also has bus links to Skipton, Settle, Malham, Barnoldswick and Preston.
Leisure
Being on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park and having the Pennine Way National Trail going through the village, Gargrave is a popular destination for hikers and cyclists. Gargrave has a busy village hall hosting art exhibitions, tea dances, snooker, lectures, indoor bowls and pantomimes.
Sport
Gargrave's football club currently has an A and a B team playing in the Premier Division and Division 1 of the Craven League.
The cricket club has first and second team playing in the Craven and District Cricket League.
There is also a snooker club and a bowling club in the village as well as the Craven Lawn Tennis Club being sited there.
Since the turn of the century there is a golf society run from the Masons Arms public house in the village.
Notable people
- St Robert of Newminster (c.1100–1159), priest and abbot, was born in Gargrave.
- Adam Osgodby (died 1316), English lawyer and parson of Gargrave.
- Robert Shute (died April 1590), English judge and politician, was born in Gargrave.
- Robert Story (1795–1860), known as "the Craven Poet", lived in Gargrave.
- The Rt Hon Iain Macleod (1913–1970), British politician and government minister, is buried in Gargrave churchyard.
- The Rt Rev'd Ian Harland (1932-2008), former Bishop of Lancaster and Carlisle, retired to Gargrave in 2000.
References
- ↑ Office for National Statistics : Census 2001 : Parish Headcounts : Craven Retrieved 2009-09-18
External links
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