Kirk Hammerton

Kirk Hammerton
240px Saint John the Baptist parish church
Kirk Hammerton  Kirk Hammerton shown within North Yorkshire
Population	538 (2011 Census)
OS grid reference	SE466556
Civil parish	Kirk Hammerton
District	Harrogate
Shire county	North Yorkshire
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	YORK
Postcode district	YO26
Police	North Yorkshire
Fire	North Yorkshire
Ambulance	Yorkshire
EU Parliament	Yorkshire and the Humber
UK Parliament	Selby
List of places UK England Yorkshire

Kirk Hammerton is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is near the River Nidd and the A59 road, 10 miles (16 km) west of York. The village suffix refers to the Hamerton family who owned the land until the 16th century.

History

(H)ambretone, a place-name reflected now in both Kirk Hammerton ("Hammerton with the church", from the Old Norse kirkja = "church") and Green Hammerton ("Hammerton with the green", from Middle English grene), is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name seems to derive from the Old English plant-name hamor (whose meaning is not certain but might include hammer-sedge or pellitory of the wall) + tūn 'settlement, farm, estate'. The course of Rudgate, a Roman road, passes the village.

The lands of the parish used to be held by the Hamerton family of Hellifield Peel Castle, part of their estate stretching from Slaidburn to York. The family name died with Sir Stephen Hamerton when he was hanged for treason at Tyburn in 1536 for participating in the Pilgrimage of Grace and his family died soon after. The village and nearby Green Hammerton still bear their name.

On 6 July 2014, Stage 2 of the 2014 Tour de France from York to Sheffield, passed through the village.

Geography

The 2001 Census recorded a parish population of 517 people in 195 households. The village is mostly south of the A59 York – Liverpool road between York and Knaresborough. The River Nidd meanders to the south and east of the village. The parish also includes the small hamlet of Wilstrop.

The parish is served by Hammerton railway station on the Harrogate Line which links York and Leeds. Cattal railway station is also within the parish boundary. Kirk Hammerton is 10 miles (16 km) west of York, 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Green Hammerton and 7 miles (11 km) east of Knaresborough. The parish has an area of 2,008 acres (813 ha).

Governance

The parish is in the Selby and Ainsty parliamentary constituency. It is in the Ainsty ward of the North Yorkshire County Council and the Ribston Ward of Harrogate Borough Council.

The village Parish Council has six members.

Education

The village has one primary school, Kirk Hammerton Church of England Primary School. Most pupils go on to get their secondary education at Boroughbridge High School.

Religion

The Church of England parish church of St John the Baptist, was originally dedicated to Saint Quentin. The original Anglo-Saxon church is on the south side of the church and now forms the Lady Chapel following a major enlargement of the building in 1892. The interior of the church is richly decorated in a pre-Raphaelite style; the decorations were added at the time of the Victorian extension to the building.

There is also a Wesleyan chapel that was established in 1821, and moved to a larger building in 1899.