ELLERBY
THE hamlet of Ellerby lies 4 km. north-east of
Swine village. Since the Middle Ages there have
been subsidiary settlements at Dowthorpe and
Oubrough, both c. 1 km. west of the hamlet, at
Woodhall, the same distance south, and at Langthorpe, 2 km. to the north. Woodhall was the
site of the chief manor and Oubrough and Langthorpe the locations of granges of Swine priory. (fn. 73)
The opening near Langthorpe of Ellerby station
in the 1860s (fn. 74) led to the building along the
Marton road there of the group of houses now
called New Ellerby. The name Ellerby, meaning
'Elfweard's farm', is an Anglo-Scandinavian
hybrid; Dowthorpe, 'Dufa's hamlet', and probably also Langthorpe, or 'Lambi's village', are
Scandinavian names, and Oubrough, 'the owlhaunted stronghold', is Anglian. (fn. 75)
Ellerby contained 2,248 a. (910 ha.) until 1952
when the civil parish was slightly enlarged at the
expense of Burton Constable. (fn. 76) In 1984 part of
New Ellerby lying in Burton Constable civil
parish, comprising some 10 ha. (25 a.), was
transferred to Ellerby, which in 1991 had 925 ha.
(2,286 a.). (fn. 77) In 1377 there were 110 poll-tax
payers at Ellerby, Dowthorpe, Langthorpe, and
Thirtleby. (fn. 78) In 1672 Ellerby, evidently including Langthorpe and presumably also Dowthorpe, Oubrough, and Woodhall, had 26 houses
assessed for hearth tax. (fn. 79) Numbers at Ellerby
rose almost uninterruptedly from 151 in 1801 to
358 in 1901, before declining to 323 in 1931.
About 40 people were gained from Burton Constable in 1952, and Ellerby's population was 405
in 1961. It fell to 349 in 1971 but had recovered
by 1991, when those normally resident numbered 396 and 384 were present. (fn. 80)
ELLERBY hamlet mostly straggles down a
street running along some of the highest land in
the parish, but at its southern end a more coherent group of buildings stands in or near a
short side lane, the survivor of a pair of western
spurs off the street. There was formerly a green
at the south end; it was built on in the 18th
century (fn. 81) and may also have included later closes
to the east of the street, one called Intack in 1820
and the Green in 1852 and the adjoining close
used for allotment gardens by the mid 19th century. (fn. 82) Most of the c. 40 houses were built in the
mid and late 20th century, and they include
seven council houses. (fn. 83) The pantiled Manor
Farm (fn. 84) dates from the early 18th century. In
the later 18th century one or two houses were
licensed at Ellerby, and the Blue Bell, named in
the 1820s, (fn. 85) still existed in 1994.
At NEW ELLERBY, the Railway inn was trading
by 1872 (fn. 86) and remained in 1994. The c. 25
houses there in 1889, most of them in Gladstone and Granville Terraces, were joined by
eight council houses (fn. 87) and many others in the
mid 20th century, and in 1995 there were nearly
100 houses at New Ellerby. Marton Grange
Farm there, of one storey with dormers, probably dates from the 18th century. (fn. 88) A childrens'
playing field was provided at New Ellerby in
the 1970s. (fn. 89)
Away from the hamlets, a field west of the
main Hull-Bridlington road was used for sports
in the mid 20th century. (fn. 90) A barn at a garden
centre nearby was used c. 1990 for a restaurant,
before being re-converted into the Gardeners'
Arms. (fn. 91)
MANORS AND OTHER ESTATES
A
manor of ELLERBY, comprising 4 carucates,
was said to have been held in 1066 by Fran, Elaf,
Mann, Thorbiorn, and Ramkel, but later only
Fran son of Thor was named as the tenant. It
passed to William Malet and, after his deprivation c. 1070, to Drew de Bevrère, whose
undertenant Tibbald occupied it in 1086. (fn. 92) It
was later part of the Aumale fee, which passed
with Burstwick manor to the Crown and its
grantees. (fn. 93)
Herbert de St. Quintin (d. by 1223) almost
certainly had an estate in Ellerby by 1201, (fn. 94) and
in 1223 and 1224 his widow Agnes claimed
dower in c. 10 carucates at Ellerby, Dowthorpe,
and Thirtleby from Herbert's son William de
St. Quintin. (fn. 95) The St. Quintins' holding in those
places and Langthorpe was later put at 11 carucates. (fn. 96) In 1287 William's son (Sir) Herbert
held 5 carucates and 5 bovates in Ellerby and
Thirtleby in demesne, and his undertenants held
c. 4½ carucates at Thirtleby and Dowthorpe. (fn. 97)
The demesne estate then and later formed
WOODHALL manor, which was held of the
Crown as successor to the counts of Aumale as
1/7 knight's fee. (fn. 98) Sir Herbert (d. 1302) was succeeded by his grandson (Sir) Herbert, named
as lord of Ellerby in 1316. (fn. 99) The last Herbert's
widow Laura held Woodhall manor in dower in
1350. (fn. 1) The St. Quintins' estate later descended
with Mappleton to the FitzHughs (fn. 2) and their
successors, the Fienneses. (fn. 3) Anne (d. 1595),
widow of Gregory Fiennes, Lord Dacre, made
George Goring her executor, (fn. 4) and he sold the
estate, of just over 1,000 a., in lots. (fn. 5) Thomas
Darrell bought Woodhall manor and c. 700 a.
in 1598 and sold the manor with c. 380 a. to
Marmaduke Langdale in 1599. (fn. 6) Langdale died
in 1611 holding a large estate in the parish, composed of former monastic and other land;
besides Woodhall, it included land at Coniston,
Dowthorpe, and Langthorpe. (fn. 7) He was succeeded by his great-nephew William Langdale
(d. 1645) and then by William's son Philip (d.
1648) (fn. 8) and grandson (Sir) William Langdale (fn. 9) (d.
by 1685). Sir William's son Philip inherited
Woodhall (fn. 10) and sold the manor with c. 320 a.
there and at Ellerby to Joseph Fernley, a Hull
merchant, in 1700. (fn. 11) Fernley (d. 1724) was succeeded in turn by his widow Sarah (d. 1745) and
daughter Jane Lazenby (d. c. 1775). The manor
then passed to Sarah Fernley's great-nephew
Henry Maister (d. 1812). Maister bought more
land in Ellerby in 1808 and left the Woodhall
estate to his nephew H. W. Maister (d. 1846),
whose nephew and others sold it, then comprising 455 a., to Sir Thomas Constable, Bt., in
1849. (fn. 12) Constable already had 270 a. in Ellerby. (fn. 13)
In 1963 the Chichester-Constables' estate in
Ellerby included c. 190 a. in Manor and Woodhouse farms; (fn. 14) both farms and other properties
had been sold by 1995, Manor farm to Foxton
Farmers Ltd., but Wood Hall, Wood Hall farm,
and parkland there then remained with Mr.
John Chichester-Constable's daughter, Rodrica
Straker. (fn. 15)
The chief house at Woodhall, recorded from
1303, (fn. 16) stood on an extensive, moated site; much
of the moat, now largely dry, remained in 1995. (fn. 17)
In 1814-15 H. W. Maister built a new house
300 m. to the south. That house, which is of
grey brick and in the Italianate villa style, has
an asymmetrical plan with a round tower at one
corner and a service wing, now partly demolished, which joins the main block at 45 degrees
and formerly terminated in the stable court. An
unnamed London architect was said to have
built the house or to have superintended its design, (fn. 18) and it has been attributed to John Nash (fn. 19)
and Robert Lugar, (fn. 20) as well as to Charles Mountain of Hull. (fn. 21) A 58-a. park, later the Lawn, had
been made by 1820. (fn. 22) The old house, which was
rebuilt in the late 18th century, has been used
since at least the 19th as a farmhouse. (fn. 23)

Ellerby 1852
In 1066 Thorfridh held the 2-carucate
OUBROUGH manor. It had passed to Drew de
Bevrère by 1086, when it was occupied by his
undertenant Frumold, (fn. 24) and it later formed part
of the Aumale fee. Oubrough, with other land
in Holderness, was evidently granted by a count
of Aumale to his butler. (fn. 25) In 1252 the butler's
fee was held by Amand the butler's daughter
Beatrice de Friboys and John de Surdeval, presumably the heir of Amand's daughter Hawise
de Surdeval. (fn. 26) As at Benningholme, the butler's
fee at Oubrough was evidently bought from
Geoffrey Vernon by Simon Constable, who was
recorded as the Aumale tenant there in 1284-5. (fn. 27)
John of Routh (d. by 1311) held an estate at
Oubrough under Simon's son Robert. (fn. 28)
Swine priory was the demesne tenant of all 2
carucates at Oubrough by 1276, (fn. 29) and the 297-a.
Oubrough grange was among the dissolved
priory's lands granted in 1540 to Sir Richard
Gresham and returned to the Crown by
exchange in 1544. (fn. 30) Oubrough grange was sold
by the Crown to Sir John Constable and his son
Henry in 1557, (fn. 31) by Henry Constable to Thomas
Bamburgh in 1582, (fn. 32) and by Bamburgh's son
Humphrey (fn. 33) to John Legard in 1597. It then
descended in the Legards of Ganton (fn. 34) until
1726, when Sir Thomas Legard, Bt., sold the
estate, of c. 430 a. in three farms, to the Revd.
John Moorhouse. (fn. 35) Moorhouse (d. 1740) left a
son John (d. 1764), (fn. 36) whose heirs were his
daughters Mary Bramley and Sarah Brown. In
1791 the so-called manor of Oubrough, the
grange farms, and a house and land at Arnold
and North and South Skirlaugh, were partitioned: Mrs. Bramley was awarded a moiety of
the manor and two of the farms with 232 a. and
Mrs. Brown the other moiety, a farm of 216 a.,
and the house and land at North and South
Skirlaugh. Mrs. Brown's share has not been
traced further. Mary Bramley (d. 1801) was succeeded in her share of Oubrough by her son
Thomas Bramley (d. 1804), whose trustees sold
it to C. E. Broadley in 1805. Broadley (d. 1809)
already owned 377 a. at Dowthorpe, (fn. 37) and in
1836 his son C. B. Broadley sold both estates to
John Beadle (d. 1869). They were bought by the
Crown in 1870, and later descended with Swine
manor. (fn. 38) In 1962 the Crown bought the 214-a.
Oubrough House farm, evidently the farm
awarded earlier to Mrs. Brown. (fn. 39) In 1995 the
Crown's estate of Dowthorpe Hall comprised
325 ha. (803 a.). (fn. 40)
In 1066 Ulf held 3 carucates at DOWTHORPE as soke of his manor of Aldbrough;
they had passed to Drew de Bevrère by 1086, (fn. 41)
and were later part of the Aumale fee. Land at
Dowthorpe was held of the counts of Aumale
by the St. Quintins and of them by the Doles.
In 1223 Roger Dole was the tenant of 1½ carucate there, and in 1348 his namesake was said to
hold 2 carucates. (fn. 42) It may have been the same
estate which Sir Robert Tyrwhit held there in
1575 and which his son William sold in 1588 to
Marmaduke Langdale. (fn. 43) It later descended like
Woodhall to William Langdale, who had 364 a.
there in 1634, and his successor (Sir) William
Langdale. (fn. 44) No more is heard of it until 1744,
when Dorothy Colston devised a third share in
the Dowthorpe estate to her sisters Elizabeth
and Ann, who presumably held the other shares.
Elizabeth (d. by 1758) evidently succeeded to
the whole, which she devised to her neice
Elizabeth, wife of Isaac Webster. (fn. 45) Webster (d.
c. 1795) was succeeded by his son Isaac, who
sold the 377-a. estate to C. E. Broadley in 1798. (fn. 46)
Dowthorpe later descended with Broadley's
estate at Oubrough. (fn. 47) Dowthorpe Hall, named
in 1760, (fn. 48) was used as a farmhouse c. 1840. (fn. 49) The
present house dates from the 18th century but
the main front was remodelled in the later 19th.
Part of the Langdales' estate at Dowthorpe
was used to endow the charity of Marmaduke
Langdale (d. 1611), and the 33 a. remained with
the trustees in 1995. (fn. 50) Swine priory was given
land at Dowthorpe which was probably included
in its grange of Oubrough. (fn. 51) The Constables also
held a little land at Dowthorpe. (fn. 52)
LANGTHORPE manor, of 1 carucate, belonged in 1066 to Thor and, possibly in succession to him, to Egfrid. It passed to William
Malet and, after his deprivation c. 1070, to Drew
de Bevrère, the tenant in 1086. (fn. 53) It was later part
of the Aumale fee. In the mid 13th century the
St. Quintins were the tenants at Langthorpe. (fn. 54)
Swine priory had land at Langthorpe by the
1240s, and its grange there was recorded from
1294. (fn. 55) After the Dissolution, Langthorpe
grange was granted to Sir Richard Gresham and
then returned to the Crown, which sold it to
Thomas Reeve and George Cotton in 1553; it
then comprised two farms, each with 3 bovates. (fn. 56)
All or much of Langthorpe passed to Marmaduke Langdale (d. 1611), (fn. 57) and then descended
with Woodhall manor to Sir William Langdale
(d. by 1685). (fn. 58) He was succeeded in Langthorpe,
then called a manor, and lands at North and
South Skirlaugh by his son Marmaduke and he
(d. 1712 or 1713) (fn. 59) by his brother William. (fn. 60)
From William Langdale (d. 1721), (fn. 61) the estate
descended to his son William and then to that
William's daughter Jane, who married Sir
Walter Vavasour, Bt. He (d. 1802) was succeeded by his brother Sir Thomas Vavasour, Bt.
(d. 1826). (fn. 62) In 1828 Sir Thomas's trustees sold
Langthorpe manor with c. 335 a. there and at
South Skirlaugh to Thomas Ward (fn. 63) (d. by 1830),
who was succeeded by his son (the Revd.) Henry
Ward. (fn. 64) In 1857 the estate was sold to W. V.
Norman (fn. 65) (d. 1861), who was succeeded in turn
by George Norman (d. by 1883) and T. A.
Norman (d. 1890). (fn. 66) The estate then evidently
descended to Marmaduke Rees-Webbe, whose
trustees (fn. 67) sold Langthorpe Hall farm, with 333 a.
in South Skirlaugh and Ellerby, to William
England in 1919. (fn. 68) It was bought in 1920 by
Abraham Leonard (d. 1947) and in 1948 by
George Lockwood (d. 1957), whose administrator, Westminster Bank Ltd., later held it. (fn. 69)
In 1988 the 323-a. farm was bought by Foxton
Farmers Ltd., which later transferred it to B. P.
Foxton, the owner in 1995. (fn. 70)
The Langdales' seat in the parish was the 'mansion house' at Langthorpe, which had 11 hearths
in 1672. (fn. 71) William Langdale lived in Hedon by
1764, and Langthorpe Hall was used as a farmhouse by the mid 19th century; (fn. 72) it was rebuilt
c. 1830 on a large scale, mostly in grey brick. (fn. 73)
A Tuscan portico was added in 1990-1. (fn. 74)
Sir William Gee bought an estate in Ellerby
in 1604. (fn. 75) It descended to Roger Gee, (fn. 76) who sold
it to William Bethell in 1766. (fn. 77) Comprising a
farm of 218 a., it later descended with Rise. (fn. 78)
W. F. Bethell devised the farm to his son A. J.
Bethell, who sold it to Christopher Pickering in
1891. (fn. 79) In 1918 it was bought by James Welford
(d. 1919), and in 1920 Welford's brother Ralph
sold it to John Smith. (fn. 80) As Ellerby Grange farm,
it passed to the mortgagee, Allison Rodmell (d.
1932), and was held by his trustees until 1955,
when they sold it to G. E. Coates. He conveyed
the farm in 1966 to G. B. Coates, who still
occupied it in 1994. (fn. 81)
The rectorial tithes of Woodhall and part of
Ellerby were bought by Ann Thompson in
1681 (fn. 82) and sold that year to Richard Frank (d.
by 1693), who left them to his nephew Francis
Loveday. In 1707 Loveday sold them to Mark
Kirkby, from whom they descended to James
Torre, (fn. 83) who sold most of them c. 1800. Henry
Maister bought the tithes from c. 360 a. at
Woodhall and Ellerby in 1799, (fn. 84) and his successor H. W. Maister merged tithes from 437 a.
there in 1843. (fn. 85)
Other tithes in Ellerby township were included in the part of Swine rectory bought by
Arthur Thornton in 1681. (fn. 86) Those of Oubrough
were sold by William Thornton in 1765 to John
Moorhouse's widow Ann. (fn. 87) She (d. 1790) left
them to her grandchildren Mary and Ann
Brown. Ann (d. 1819) married John Williams, (fn. 88)
and he, Mary Brown, and James Brown were
awarded rent charges amounting to £111 for the
tithes at commutation in 1841. (fn. 89) The tithes of
Langthorpe were bought from William Thornton in 1764-5 by William Langdale and were
later merged. (fn. 90)
Tithes from a further 381 a., at Dowthorpe,
were merged by John Beadle in 1843, (fn. 91) and by
1849 only 63 a. of Ellerby township remained
titheable; the three impropriators were then
awarded rent charges totalling £9 2s. for their
tithes. (fn. 92)
ECONOMIC HISTORY
COMMON LANDS AND INCLOSURE. Ellerby. Woodhall and Ellerby
evidently shared commonable lands, which were
inclosed, at least in part, at the division and sale
of Woodhall manor in the 1590s. (fn. 93) The tillage
then lay in East and West fields, and a 'fallow
field . . . east of Oubrough' was perhaps a third
field, rather than an alternative description of
West field. East field extended as far north as
Langthorpe and east and south to Marton and
Burton Constable. Ridge and furrow survived in
grassland to the west of Woodhall Farm in 1994. (fn. 94)
The common meadows were dispersed throughout the fields. (fn. 95) Some of the meadow land probably lay immediately east of Woodhall manor
house, where Ing field closes were recorded
later, (fn. 96) and the new closes staked out in East field
in the 1590s included land probably used as
meadow called Wandales. Cow pasture, presumably the common pasture, was also mentioned
then and was perhaps among the land inclosed.
Some common pasture nevertheless remained at
'Green maile', possibly the 'common field' shared
by cottagers c. 1840. (fn. 97)
Oubrough. Swine priory may have inclosed all
or much of Oubrough before the 16th century,
when its grange there included 100 a. of pasture
in West field. (fn. 98)
Dowthorpe. Dowthorpe's open fields lay east and
west of the hamlet until Sir Robert Tyrwhit
inclosed them shortly before 1575, thereby
depriving farmers at South Skirlaugh of intercommonage in the fields in winter. (fn. 99) By 1634
Dowthorpe lay in a dozen closes, of which East
field contained 87 a., Great West field 59 a.,
Middle field 54 a., and White Hill close 53 a.
William Langdale then had 364 a.; the remaining 22 a. of Dowthorpe, comprising 'lands' in
most of the closes, belonged to the other two proprietors. (fn. 1) By an exchange of 1656, Langdale's
successor, (Sir) William Langdale, obtained
20 a. of 'lands', all then laid down to grass, from
John Constable, Lord Dunbar. (fn. 2) The closes were
re-ordered and divided c. 1850. (fn. 3)
Langthorpe. Langthorpe had one ploughland in
1086, (fn. 4) but its early agricultural arrangements are
unknown. Ridge and furrow remaining around
Langthorpe Hall in the 1940s marked the former
tillage of the hamlet. (fn. 5)
WOODLAND. Woodland was presumably
established by assarting. The woodland there
may have extended into Thirtleby, where
Herbert de St Quintin's wood was mentioned in
1202. (fn. 6) In the 1290s Sir Herbert de St. Quintin
evidently added 7 a. in Sproatley, obtained by
exchange, to his woodland. (fn. 7) The wood was recorded as part of the demesne of Woodhall
manor in 1303, when some of it was being coppiced, (fn. 8) and a forester was employed there in
1364. (fn. 9) There was still a large wood called
Ellerby wood and c. 20 a. of coppiced woodland
in 1598. (fn. 10) Most of the old woodland had been
felled by the early 19th century, when c. 35 a.
of formerly-wooded land lay in adjoining closes
called Rashell Wood, Great Hagg, and Near and
Far Little Haggs. Remnants of old woods and
new plantations then covered c. 40 a. (fn. 11) Woodland returned under Ellerby civil parish totalled
3 ha. (7.4 a.) in 1987. (fn. 12)
TENURES AND HOLDINGS TO THE 16TH CENTUREY. Ellerby. In 1086 there were two villeins and three bordars at Ellerby, where only
one plough was then being worked on the four
ploughlands. The tenants' holdings presumably
included shares in the 20 a. of meadow then
recorded there. (fn. 13) In 1303 the bond tenants of
Woodhall manor owed ploughing, carting, and
reaping works, and three cottars rendered
poultry rents. (fn. 14)
Oubrough. The two ploughlands at Oubrough in
1086 were being worked by two ploughs, one on
the demesne and the other by five villeins and
three bordars. The tenants presumably also held
parts of the 10 a. of meadow then recorded
there. (fn. 15) Much of the land of the hamlet was later
occupied by Swine priory. In the early 1250s
the house was disputing William de St. Quintin's claim to enjoy common rights on its estate
at Oubrough as an appurtenance of his land in
Ellerby. (fn. 16) Oubrough grange was still farmed
directly by the priory in 1536, when it comprised
24 a. of arable land in Little field, 100 a. of pasture in West field, East leys, probably also grassland, of 140 a., and several grassland closes. (fn. 17)
About that date, however, a dairyman there
leased 20 cows, and presumably pasture, from
the priory in return for supplying butter and
cheese, and in the 1550s he or another rented a
herd of c. 40 cows there. (fn. 18)
LATER AGRICULTURE. In 1834 there were
253 a. of arable land and 157 a. of grassland on
the Woodhall estate, and c. 1840 Oubrough had
400 a. of arable and 50 a. of grassland. (fn. 19) In 1987
of 673 ha. (1,663 a.) returned under Ellerby civil
parish, 611 ha. (1,510 a.) were arable land, 50 ha.
(124 a.) grassland, and 5.6 ha. (14 a.) orchards;
livestock kept then included over 800 pigs. (fn. 20)
In the 19th and earlier 20th century Ellerby
usually had about 12 farms; in 1851 four were
of 200-360 a. each and the largest had 618 a.,
and three farms of 150 a. or more were recorded
in the 1920s and 1930s. By 1937 there were
also several smallholdings, at least one of which
remained in 1994. One or two cowkeepers or
dairymen have worked at Ellerby, (fn. 21) and in 1994
a market garden was operated in the hamlet,
and a garden centre beside the main road. Six
holdings were returned for the civil parish in
1987, of which two were of 100-499 ha.
(247-1,233 a.), one of 50-99 ha. (124-245 a.),
one of 10-49 ha. (25-121 a.), and two of under
10 ha. (fn. 22)
MILLS. A windmill was recorded on the St.
Quintins' estate at Ellerby from 1223, (fn. 23) and
there may have been two mills there in the 16th
century. (fn. 24) A windmill stood in Ellerby West field
in 1596, and it was probably its site, adjoining Dowthorpe, which was commemorated by
Mill close, named in 1782. (fn. 25) By the 19th century
Ellerby windmill stood in the north of the township, close to Marton. (fn. 26) It was assisted by steam
by 1889 but ceased to grind c. 1930; (fn. 27) by 1993
the former mill had been converted into a house.
NON-AGRICULTURAL EMPLOMENT seems
to have been scarce. A motor engineering concern was run in the earlier 20th century. (fn. 28)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Brief minutes of
proceedings in Woodhall manor court survive
for 1712, 1786, 1804, and 1823. The court,
which had leet jurisdiction, seems by the 18th
century to have been concerned mostly with
property transactions and minor drainage defects; its officers included two affeerors, a constable each for Ellerby, Thirtleby, and South
Skirlaugh, and a pinder at Ellerby. (fn. 29) The courts
were held at the 'manor house', possibly meaning Woodhall farmhouse, c. 1840. (fn. 30)
Poorhouses were maintained at Ellerby. (fn. 31) Ten
people there were relieved permanently and 4
occasionally in 1802-3, and 24-6 were on permanent and 5-8 on occasional relief between 1812
and 1815. (fn. 32) Ellerby joined Skirlaugh poor-law
union in 1837, (fn. 33) and the township, later civil
parish, remained in Skirlaugh rural district until
1935, then became part of the new Holderness
rural district, and at reorganization in 1974 was
taken into the Holderness district of Humberside. (fn. 34) In 1996 Ellerby parish became part of a
new East Riding unitary area. (fn. 35)
CHURCH
The vicar of Swine provided Sunday and weekday services in the schoolroom at
Ellerby from the late 1870s, (fn. 36) and in 1889 a mission room was built there to designs by Smith &
Brodrick of Hull, and licensed for all services. (fn. 37)
In 1900 there was a service each Sunday at
Ellerby and communion was celebrated there. (fn. 38)
The brick building is dedicated to ST. JAMES
and comprises undivided sanctuary and nave
with south vestry and south porch. A west
bellcot was removed c. 1940, (fn. 39) and its bell
remained unhung in 1995, when the church,
recently renovated under a Government Training Scheme, (fn. 40) was still used.
ROMAN CATHOLICISM
Prominent among
the Roman Catholics of Swine parish were the
Langdales of Langthorpe, who were frequently
presented for religious lapses in the later 16th
and 17th century and whose household and tenantry probably accounted for most of the 28
Roman Catholics recorded under Ellerby and
Langthorpe in the 1660s. In 1735 Ellerby was
said to have 14 Roman Catholics. (fn. 41) The congregation was presumably served at Langthorpe
and later at Marton. (fn. 42)
PROTESTANT NONCONFORMITY
At
Ellerby a protestant congregation which registered houses in 1808 and 1817 was probably
Wesleyan, (fn. 43) and in 1838 the Wesleyan Methodists built a chapel there. (fn. 44) It was closed in the
late 1940s and demolished. (fn. 45) In 1888 a Temperance lecture hall and schoolroom at New Ellerby
was bought by the Wesleyan Methodists, who
may already have been using it as a chapel.
Sometimes called Marton chapel, (fn. 46) it was replaced by a chapel built nearby in 1909. (fn. 47) The
new chapel, later the Methodist church, was still
used in 1994.
EDUCATION
A mixed school at Ellerby was
begun in 1828 and had 10 pupils in 1833, all
taught at their parents' expense, and two schoolmistresses there were recorded in 1851. (fn. 48) There
was probably no school there in 1871, when children from Ellerby attended Swine school. (fn. 49) In
1876 W. F. Bethell gave a site for a new school
with master's house, (fn. 50) and a National school for
boys and girls was opened in 1877. It was supported by subscriptions, school pence, rent
received for Church use of the schoolroom, (fn. 51) and
from 1879-80 by an annual, government grant. (fn. 52)
Later accommodating infants, (fn. 53) the school had
an average attendance of 24 in 1878, (fn. 54)
c. 30 in
the 1900s, but usually 20 or fewer between 1913
and 1938. (fn. 55) In 1944 the school was transferred
to the county council, which closed it in 1947
because of the inadequate building; most of the
children were transferred to Skirlaugh school,
the rest to Marton. (fn. 56) The former school was a
house in 1994.