Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for SETTLE

SETTLE, a town, a township-chapelry, a sub-district, and a district, in W. R. Yorkshire. The town stands on the river Ribble, 1¼ mile N N E of the North Midland railway, and 15 N W of Skipton; is overhung by a lime-stone cliff, called Castleberg, about 300 feet high, commanding a picturesque view; had, for a native, Dr. Birkbeck, founder of the London mechanics' institution; is a seat of petty sessions and county courts; serves as a tourists' centre, for exploring the romantic mountain scenery of Upper Airedale; and has a head post-office, ‡ a r. station with telegraph, two banking offices, two chief inns, a bridge, a town hall in the Tudor style built in 1832, amusic hall built in 1855, a church in the early English style built in 1838, four dissenting chapels, a mechanics' institute, a literary society, a news-room, and national and infant schools. A weekly market is held on Tuesday; fairs are held on the Tuesday before Palm Sunday, the Thursday before Good Friday, every alternate Friday till Whit-Sunday, 26 April, 1821 Aug., and the Tuesday after 27 Oct.; and cotton manufacture and tanning are carried on. The chapelry comprises 4, 483 acres, and is in Giggleswick parish. Real property, £9, 479; of which £40 are in fisheries. Pop. in 1851, 1, 976; in 1861, 1, 586. Houses, 340. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of Ripon. Value, 150.* Patrons, five Trustees.—The sub-district contains all Giggleswick and Horton-in-Ribblesdale parishes, and two townships of Clapham. Acres, 47,009. Pop., 4, 503. Houses, 932. The district comprehends also the sub-districts of Long Preston, Kirkby-Malham, Arncliffe, and Bentham; and comprises 154, 591 acres. Poor-rates in 1863, £6, 718. Pop. in 1851, 13, 762; in 1861, 12, 528. Houses, 2, 605. Marriages in 1863, 84; births, 375, of which 28 were illegitimate; deaths, 254, of which 87 were at ages under 5 years, and 7 at ages above 85. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60, 855; births, 4,007; deaths, 2, 598. The places of worship, in 1851, were 19 of the Church of England, with 7, 320 sittings; 1 of Independents, with400 s.; 2 of Baptists, with 250 s.; 3 of Quakers, with440 s.; 16 of Wesleyans, with 1, 700 s.; 3 of Primitive Methodists, with 280 s.; and 1 of Roman Catholics, with 60 s. The schools were 30 public day schools, with1, 572 scholars; 35 private day schools, with 596 s.; 40 Sunday schools, with 2, 415 s.; and 6 evening schools foradults, with 38 s. The workhouse is in Giggleswick township.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a town, a township-chapelry, a sub-district, and a district"   (ADL Feature Type: "cities")
Administrative units: Settle CP/Tn       Yorkshire AncC
Place: Settle

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