Hallikeld[note 1] was a wapentake, an administrative division (or ancient district) analogous to a hundred,[2] in the historic county of the North Riding of Yorkshire. It was one of the smaller wapentakes by area and consisted of seven parishes.

Hallikeld
Wapentake
Wapentakes of Yorkshire. Hallikeld is a light green colour just above Ripon.
Area
 • Coordinates54°15′07″N 1°32′46″W / 54.252°N 1.546°W / 54.252; -1.546
StatusDefunct
Subdivisions
 • Type7 parishes (1914)

History

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The name Hallikeld derives from the Old English Halig, and the Old Norse Kelda.[3][4] Keld appears in various places in Northern England and means Spring, with the Halli prefix meaning holy.[5] This is thought to be taken from some fresh water springs in the Melmerby area, which were located within the wapentake.[6] Fields to the south of Melmerby are labelled as Hallikelds on Ordnance Survey mapping from 1909.[7] As the wapentakes were ancient divisions, the spelling of them has evolved and changed over time. Latterly it was spelt as Hallikeld, but has been historically recorded as Hallikell and Halikeld.[8] Another possible derivation of the name is from a holy spring in the churchyard of St Lamberts in Burneston, though the spring and drain from it have been covered over.[9]

Portions of the wapentake were interchanged with Hang East and Birdforth wapentakes. At times, the wapentake was considered to be in the West Riding of Yorkshire,[10] despite being on the north bank of the River Ure, which was the historical dividing line between the West and North Ridings of Yorkshire.[11] In 1914, the wapentake had seven parishes; Burneston, Cundall, Kirkby Hill (or Kirkby on the Moor), Kirklington, Pickhill, Wath and West Tanfield.[12] Hallikeld was bordered on the north by Gilling East, on the east by Birdforth, the south by Claro and the west by Hang East.[13] The River Ure formed its southern border and the River Swale formed its eastern and Northern border. The wapentake was some 16 miles (26 km) long (from north to south) and at its widest, only 7 miles (11 km) across.[14]

The boundaries of the wapentakes were being constantly redrawn; in the early part of the 19th century, Hutton Conyers was in Hallikeld,[15] and Exelby, Leeming and Newton was transferred into the district at the same time.[16]

In 1831, the number of houses in the wapentake was listed as 1,419 spread across 1,395 families. The population at that time was 6,424, which by 1885, had dropped to 5, 441.[17][18]

Settlements

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  • Key to parishes: BE = Bedale, BR = Brafferton, BU = Burneston, CU = Cundall, KB = Kirby-on-the-Moor, KK = Kirklington, PK = Pickhill, TO = Topcliffe, TW = Tanfield West, WA = Wath
  • Key to Poor Law Unions (PLU): Bedale = B, Great Ouseburn = G, Thirsk = T
List of townships in Hallikeld Wapentake[19]
Name Parish Population PLU Name Parish Population PLU Name Parish Population PLU
Ainderby Quernhow PK 107 T Howe PK 33 T Norton-le-Clay CU 146 G
Asenby TW 238 G Howgrave KK 25 G Pickhill with Roxby PK 388 T
Baldersby TW 267 G Humburton with Milby KB 139 G Rainton with Newby TO 411 G
Burneston BU 342 B Kirby-on-the-Moor KB 189 G Sinderby PK 93 T
Carthorpe BU 304 T Kirklington KK 305 B Swainby with Allerthorpe PK 27 B
Cundall and Leckby CU 200 G Langthorne BE 136 B Sutton KK 121 G
Dishforth TW 332 G Langthorpe KB 196 G Theakstone[note 2] BU 82 B
East Tanfield[note 3] KK 35 G Marton-le-Moor TW 209 G Thornton Bridge BR 47 G
Exelby, Leeming and Newton[note 4] BU 633 B Melmerby WA 338 G Wath WA 196 G
Gatenby BU 69 B Middleton Quernhow WA 123 G West Tanfield TW 693 G

The populations given are for the year of 1831. In 1821, the parishes of Bedale, Brafferton, Pickhill, Topcliffe and Wath crossed the borders into the adjacent wapentakes (Hang East, Bulmer, Allertonshire, Birdforth and Allertonshire respectively.[20]

Notes

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  1. ^ Sometimes spelt as Hallikell, or Halikeld. The wapentake did not include the hamlet of Hallikeld which is north east of Northallerton; this hamlet was in Allertonshire.[1]
  2. ^ Ancient spelling of Theakston
  3. ^ Sometimes written as Tanfield (East).
  4. ^ Later transferred back to Hang East

References

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  1. ^ "County: North Riding of Yorkshire, Halikeld wapentake. Grant description and date". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk (in Latin). Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  2. ^ "Hallikeld Wap through time | Census tables with data for the Ancient District". www.visionofbritain.org.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  3. ^ "The times they were a-changin'". infoweb.newsbank.com. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  4. ^ Edwards, Heather (2004). "The Saint of Middleham and Giggleswick". Yorkshire Archaeological Journal. 76. Leeds: Yorkshire Archaeological Society: 135. ISSN 0084-4276.
  5. ^ Ekwall, Eilert (1947). The concise Oxford dictionary of English place-names (3 ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 202. OCLC 12542596.
  6. ^ "Sacred Landmarks and Landscapes in North Craven:St Alkelda re-visited, holy wells and south-side side crosses". www.northcravenheritage.org.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  7. ^ "Explore georeferenced maps - Map images - National Library of Scotland". maps.nls.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  8. ^ Trotter 1919, p. 229.
  9. ^ McCall, H. B. (1910). Richmondshire Churches. London: Elliot Stock. p. 2. OCLC 6723172.
  10. ^ Walker, Peter (24 June 2015). "Well, well, well. Not just a hole in t'ground". Gazette & Herald. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  11. ^ Jones-Barker, William Gideon Michael (1854). The Three Days of Wensleydale: The Valley of the Yore. London: Dolma. p. 285. OCLC 02590543.
  12. ^ "The wapentake of Hallikeld | British History Online". www.british-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  13. ^ Moule, Thomas (1837). The English Counties delineated: or, a topographical description of England. London: Virtue. p. 442. OCLC 562641982.
  14. ^ White 1840, p. 561.
  15. ^ White 1840, p. 566.
  16. ^ White 1840, p. 574.
  17. ^ White 1840, p. 562.
  18. ^ Bell, Hugh (5 January 1885). "The Division of the North Riding". The Northern Echo. No. 4, 640. p. 4. OCLC 1015528053.
  19. ^ White 1840, pp. 561–562.
  20. ^ "Genuki: NORTH RIDING: Abstract of Population Census 1821, North Riding of Yorkshire, including York., Yorkshire". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2020.

Source

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