LONG RISTON
THE of Long Riston, lying on the edge
of the Hull valley 14 km. north of Hull and
9 km. ENE. of Beverley, has been favoured since
the Second World War as a commuter settlement for those towns. (fn. 15) The name, sometimes
recorded as 'Ruston' or 'Reston' and perhaps
meaning the 'farmstead near the brushwood'
or 'inclosure overgrown with brushwood', is
Anglian. The prefix, appropriate for such a
straggling village, was used from the early 17th
century, presumably to distinguish Riston from
Ruston Parva. (fn. 16) The township of Arnold, south
of the village, was divided between the ancient
parishes of Long Riston, Rise, and Swine, but
its history is dealt with here. The name, also
Anglian, may mean 'Arna's nook of land'. (fn. 17) The
settlements of 'Chenecol' or 'Chenuthesholm'
and 'Luvetotholm', recorded in 1086, may have
lain in Riston (fn. 18) but no more is known of them.
In 1851 Long Riston parish contained 2,837 a.
(1,148 ha.), comprising 1,834 a. (742 ha.) in
Riston township and 1,003 a. (406 ha.) in
Arnold; Arnold township also included 671 a.
(272 ha.) in Swine and 6 a. (2.4 ha.) in Rise. (fn. 19)
In 1885 the whole of Arnold was added to North
Skirlaugh, in Swine, to form the civil parish later
called North Skirlaugh, Rowton, and Arnold. (fn. 20)
In 1935 that civil parish and Long Riston were
united as Riston civil parish, with a total area of
4,047 a. (1,638 ha.), but in 1952 the new civil
parish was reduced to 3,420 a. (1,384 ha.) and
was made roughly coextensive with the old
townships of Riston and Arnold. (fn. 21) In 1984 some
10 ha. (25 a.) were transferred to Rise civil
parish. In 1991 the area was 1,374 ha. (3,395
a.). (fn. 22) Henceforth, to avoid ambiguity, the name
Long Riston is used in this article for the village
and Riston for the ancient parish.
There were 96 poll-tax payers at Riston in
1377, (fn. 23) and Long Riston had 39 houses assessed
for hearth tax in 1672. (fn. 24) In both years Arnold
was recorded with North Skirlaugh, in Swine. (fn. 25)
In 1743 there were 49 families in the parish. (fn. 26)
The population of Long Riston and Riston's
part of Arnold township together was 269 in
1801; it rose to 403 in 1841 and 417 in 1871.
Separate figures were not always given for the
two settlements, but the Riston part of Arnold
contributed 59 to the total in 1811, 58 in 1841,
and 84 in 1851, and that part of Arnold had c.
80 inhabitants at the boundary change of 1885.
Swine parish's part of Arnold had a population
of 76 in 1811, 96 in 1841, and 108 in 1851. The
population of Long Riston alone was 271 in
1881, rising to 299 in 1911 but falling to 266 in
1931. The population of Long Riston and
Arnold, in the civil parish as reconstituted in
1952, was 415 in 1951, rising to 467 in 1961,
and again in the 1980s to 527 in 1991, when
those usually resident numbered 535. (fn. 27)
The eastern half of the parish is on boulder
clay, the ground lying at 7-12 m. above sea level
around the settlements and rising to over 15 m.
near Farnton hill, which is capped with sand and
gravel. In the west much of the low-lying
ground in the Hull valley is alluvial, with some
sand and gravel. (fn. 28) The open fields of Long
Riston and Arnold occupied the higher ground,
with common meadows and carrs further west;
the commonable lands were inclosed in 1778.
The natural drainage of the low grounds was
southwards, but from the early 13th century
water from Riston was carried westwards by
Monk dike, which had been constructed by
Meaux abbey, and discharged into the river
Hull by Eschedike, between Weel and Wawne.
Neglect by Thornton abbey (Lincs.) of the part
of Monk dike from Woodhouse to Rowton in
1368 caused Meaux abbey's land to be flooded,
and neglect by Meaux was found in 1377 to have
caused flooding on Peter Hildyard's land. (fn. 29) In
the late 16th century the commissioners of
sewers evidently restored drainage southwards
along a channel which later formed the western
boundary of Riston parish and bore the name
Monk dike; water reached the river by Forthdike, between Wawne and Sutton on Hull.
Under an Act of 1764 all the low grounds east
of the river Hull were removed from the jurisdiction of the Court of Sewers for the East Parts
of the East Riding and a new Holderness
Drainage Board was formed. By the consequent
award made in 1775 c. 152 a. of low grounds in
Long Riston and others in Arnold were rated to
the drainage. (fn. 30) Within the parish a new drain
across the carrs, later called the Arnold and
Riston drain, was made at inclosure in 1778, and
an overseer was ordered to be chosen to raise an
assessment and maintain the drain and certain
banks and bridges. (fn. 31) Under an Act of 1832 a
new main drain west of Riston, the Holderness
lowland drain, was made to carry water from the
Hull valley to the river Humber; the old drain,
of which Monk dike formed part, became the
upland drain and continued to carry water from
Holderness to the river Hull. By the award made
in 1838 under the 1832 Act, the low grounds in
Riston rated to the drainage amounted to 157 a.
and those in Arnold, Rowton, and North Skirlaugh to 516 a., most of them in Arnold. (fn. 32) The
work of the Holderness Drainage Board was
taken over in 1941 by the River Hull Catchment
Board, the responsibility of which had passed
by 1989 to the Yorkshire Water Authority and
in 2000 belonged to the Environment Agency. (fn. 33)
Roads leading from Long Riston north to
Leven and south to South Skirlaugh, in Swine,
became part of the main road from Hull to
Bridlington in the 20th century, and a bypass
west of the village was opened in 1986. (fn. 34) Minor
roads lead northwards to Catwick, eastwards to
Rise and Sigglesthorne, and southwards through
Arnold to Swine. Before inclosure one of the
roads from Rise evidently ran north of Long
Riston village and joined the Leven road; it was
presumably diverted into the village in 1778. (fn. 35)
LONG RISTON VILLAGE AND ARNOLD HAMLET. Most of the older houses in Long
Riston are strung out for c. 1 km. along Main
Street, with a few in a short cul-de-sac on the
west side of the street named after the Lauty
family. The church stands isolated in the fields
near the north end of the village, approached by
footpaths and by a carriage road set out at inclosure in 1778 and overgrown by 1989. (fn. 36) The hamlet of Arnold lies a short distance west of the main
road and close to Long Riston village, to which
it is linked by a pedestrian roadway under the
bypass. Few of the houses in either settlement
are noteworthy. Those in Long Riston include
the single-storeyed Whinns Cottage, formerly
called Overseer's Cottage, (fn. 37) a terrace of small,
19th-century cottages, another terrace of four
Gothic-style houses dated 1871, and 24 council
houses built on a site acquired in 1945. (fn. 38) Infilling
with new houses was continuing in 1989.
In both Long Riston and Arnold there were
one or two licensed houses in the later 18th century, and the Traveller's Rest in the former and
the Bay Horse in the latter have existed at least
since the 1820s. (fn. 39) A beerhouse in Long Riston
was also mentioned from 1840 and known as
the Board by 1909; it was closed in 1913. (fn. 40) An
Oddfellows' lodge was founded at Long Riston
in 1836 and still existed in 1981. (fn. 41) A reading
room was established in the village in 1881. (fn. 42) A
4-a. playing field was laid out on land bought in
1954-5, (fn. 43) and a village hall was built there in
1976 on the site of a Women's Institute hall. (fn. 44)
OUTLYING HOUSES in Long Riston include
Riston Grange (fn. 45) and half a dozen other farmhouses, all built after inclosure in 1778; (fn. 46) that
called Criftins, north of the village, takes its
name from ground recorded from the mid 12th
century. Several of the farmhouses in Arnold
were also built after inclosure, but Woodhouse
Farm existed earlier and was presumably near
the site of the monastic grange recorded from c.
1300. (fn. 47) A group of houses called New Rise stands
on a minor road forming the eastern boundary
of Riston but most of them are in Rise parish.
At Farnton hill nearby there has been a training
course for horses since the 19th century. (fn. 48)
Long Riston and Arnold townships before inclosure in 1778
MANORS AND OTHER ESTATES
In 1066
Morkar had 2 carucates and 6 bovates at Riston
as soke of the manor of Hornsea; by 1086 they
belonged to Drew de Bevrère. (fn. 49) The manor of
RISTON thereafter formed part of the Aumale
fee and was held by the Scures family as undertenant. From Ansketil de Scures it had passed
by 1130 to his son Alan, who was succeeded in
turn by his son Robert, by another son William
by 1166, and later by William's sister Maud.
She was succeeded by her cousin Walter and he
by his son Sir Robert de Scures. (fn. 50) In 1278 Sir
Robert sold Riston to his daughter Joan and her
husband Sir Robert Hildyard. (fn. 51) Robert held 1½
carucate of the Aumale fee in Riston in 1287. (fn. 52)
After Joan's death c. 1295, the manor descended
successively to her son Robert Hildyard and that
Robert's son Thomas, who was named as lord
of Riston in 1316 and had died by 1322. Thomas
was succeeded by his daughter Catherine, who
married Sir Peter Nuthill. (fn. 53) It was perhaps the
same Catherine who settled Riston manor on
herself and her then husband, Sir John
Chaumon, in 1370. (fn. 54)
Arnold township 1852
The manor had descended by the late 14th
century to the Nuthills' son Peter, and it was
perhaps that Peter's son Thomas who was
described as lord of Riston in 1427 and, as
Thomas Nuthill of Riston, was named on royal
commissions between 1428 and 1446. (fn. 55) Thomas
was succeeded by his son Sir Anthony Nuthill
who was attained in 1461. (fn. 56) The manor was
granted by the Crown to George Plantagenet,
duke of Clarence, in 1465, (fn. 57) but in 1477 it was
restored to Sir Anthony's sister Elizabeth, wife
of Henry Suthill. (fn. 58) Peter Hildyard of Winestead
(d. 1502) held 4 tofts and 60 a. in Riston of
Elizabeth Suthill. (fn. 59) The reversion of the manor
was settled in 1478 on Elizabeth's daughters
Agnes, wife of John Barnby, and Isabel, wife of
John Frechwell (Frechvyll). (fn. 60)
The Frechwell share belonged to Peter Frech
well by 1572. (fn. 61) In 1602 he or another Peter
Frechwell conveyed his share of the manor to
Thomas Barnby, who was probably the greatgreat-grandson of John and Agnes Barnby and
who the same year sold both shares to William
Gee of Hull and William Gee of Beverley. (fn. 62)
Riston descended in the Gee family (fn. 63) until 1712,
when William and Thomas Gee sold it to Hugh
Bethell; it then included a dozen bovates and c.
15 closes. (fn. 64) The Bethells bought several other
holdings, including 1 carucate and 2 bovates, in
the 17th and 18th centuries, (fn. 65) and the enlarged
estate descended in that family. (fn. 66) At inclosure
in 1778 William Bethell was allotted 905 a. in
Riston. (fn. 67) The estate in Long Riston and Arnold
together comprised 1,996 a. in 1782 and 1,924 a.
in 1852; in Long Riston alone the Bethells had
1,023 a. in 1930. (fn. 68) Many small plots in Long
Riston were later sold, together with a farm of
131 a. in 1972, but the Bethells still owned c.
800 a. in 1990. (fn. 69)
The Hildyards had a chief house in Riston in
1296 and 1322; it was called Hall Garth in 1602
and 1712. (fn. 70) The house may have stood southeast of the church, where earthworks survived
in 1989. By the 19th century a house nearby in
Catwick Lane was known as Manor House. (fn. 71)
Apart from the manor, the largest modern
estate in Long Riston was that based on Riston
Grange. At inclosure in 1778 Peter Nevill was
allotted 228 a., together with old inclosures
called Coney garths given in exchange for certain houses and garths. (fn. 72) He devised the estate in
1807 to Peter Jackson, (fn. 73) who left it in 1831 to
John Jackson and he in 1865 to his brother Hugh
W. Jackson. (fn. 74) Hugh (d. 1874) was succeeded by
his sons Bryan B. (d. 1892) and Thomas B.
Jackson (d. 1918). (fn. 75) In 1921 the Jackson's trustees sold the 251-a. estate to Henry King; it was
bought from King in 1939 by Francis L. C.
Plummer and from him in 1952 by his son-inlaw Robert W. Brown. Most of the land was sold
to T. H. Caley and Sons in 1977 and later
farmed from Routh. (fn. 76)
The large brick house known as Riston
Grange was built by Peter Nevill in 1773. (fn. 77) By
1952 part of it was converted to a separate dwelling called East House. (fn. 78) Riston Grange was
separated from the farm by a sale of c. 1985. (fn. 79)
The Jacksons also owned the c. 130-a. Criftins
farm. At inclosure in 1778 it had been allotted
to Joseph Williamson (d. 1785), whose devisee
William Williamson sold it in 1809 to Peter
Jackson. (fn. 80) It was conveyed in 1824 to Jackson's
son the Revd. Peter Jackson, who in 1852 conveyed it to Hugh W. Jackson. It descended with
Riston Grange, and in 1918 was sold by Thomas
B. Jackson to Walter Kirkwood (d. 1929). (fn. 81) The
estate was later held by Kirkwood's executor
before being sold in 1962 to Kirkwood's grandson, Walter T. Kirkwood, the owner in 1998. (fn. 82)
Besides the Scures, other undertenants of the
Aumale fee in the parish included the Ros and
Fauconberg families. Robert de Ros confirmed
gifts at Arnold to Meaux abbey in the early 13th
century, and another Robert de Ros held an
estate there in 1284-5. Walter de Fauconberg
was a benefactor of Meaux abbey in Riston c.
1200. Another Walter de Fauconberg held in
demesne 1 bovate in Riston and 4 bovates in
Arnold of William de Forz, count of Aumale (d.
1260); he was perhaps Walter de Fauconberg,
later Lord Fauconberg, who held land in Arnold
as an appurtenance of his manor of Rise in
1284-5, and had a grant of free warren in Long
Riston and Arnold in 1292. Fauconberg (d.
1304) was succeeded by his son, also Walter de
Fauconberg, Lord Fauconberg, who was named
as a lord of Arnold in 1316, along with Nicholas
of Reddings, Richard of Thorpe, and Thornton
abbey (Lincs.). (fn. 83)
An estate in Arnold was held in demesne by
a branch of the Hildyard family, which acquired
numerous small holdings in the 13th and 14th
centuries and lived at Arnold. The first known
representative was Peter Hildyard, brother of
Sir Robert Hildyard who acquired the manor of
Riston in 1278. After Peter's death, his widow
married Nicholas of Reddings, who was named
as one of the lords of Arnold in 1316. The estate
later belonged to Peter Hildyard's son Robert,
Robert's son John, and John's son Peter. It was
described as the manor of ARNOLD in 1457
and descended with Winestead manor, which
Sir Robert Hildyard of Arnold acquired in the
earlier 15th century. (fn. 84) Peter Hildyard (d. 1502)
held 2 houses, 4 tofts, and 110 a. in Arnold of
the Fauconberg fee and 3a. there of Thornton
abbey. (fn. 85)
Peter Hildyard had a chief house at Arnold in
1341. It presumably occupied the moated site at
the north end of the hamlet which was destroyed
when the bypass was built. (fn. 86)
Meaux abbey had confirmation between 1210
and 1226 of the gifts of 5 a. in Arnold by Robert
son of Osmund and the site of its grange there
by Richard of Arnold; both were held of the Ros
fee. Other small gifts in Arnold were made to
the abbey, which had a grant of free warren there
in 1293 (fn. 87) and whose manor of ARNOLD was
mentioned from the 14th century. In Long
Riston the abbey was given 4 bovates, a toft, and
2s. rent by Walter de Fauconberg c. 1200. A
bovate given by Henry de Scures between 1210
and 1220 was later exchanged for a holding in
Arnold. Other parcels of land were given to the
abbey by Stephen Ward and Simon the clerk c.
1230. The abbey exchanged its 4 bovates in
Long Riston for land in Rowton, in Swine, in
1269 or 1270. (fn. 88) In 1535 the land at Arnold and
Rowton was worth nearly £13 a year, and 8s.
4d. rent was owed in 1539 for a house, a close,
and c. 5 a. in Long Riston. The abbey also had
land at Benningholme, in Swine, worth £1 in
1535, (fn. 89) and that and the land at Rowton were
later recorded as appurtenances of Arnold
manor. In 1544 after the Dissolution the manor
was granted to Morgan Wolff, Robert Trappes,
and others. (fn. 90) Francis Trappes had the estate in
1572, (fn. 91) Francis Trappes Byrnand and Sir John
Egerton and their wives were dealing with it in
the 1600s, (fn. 92) and in 1634 Robert Trappes and
Ursula Proud sold it to Joseph Micklethwaite
and his son John. The manor was conveyed to
Christopher Hildyard of Ottringham and his son
Christopher in 1639, and it was probably the
son who, as Christopher Hildyard of Routh, reconveyed it to Joseph Micklethwaite in 1647. (fn. 93) It
was evidently the same estate which John Blount
and his sons Samuel and William sold to Hugh
Bethell in 1695; it then included c. 275 a. and
4½ bovates in Arnold. (fn. 94)
Besides their possible acquisition of the Hildyard estate and Meaux abbey's former estate, (fn. 95)
in the later 17th and 18th century the Bethells
bought several other holdings in Arnold. (fn. 96) At
inclosure in 1778 William Bethell was allotted
852 a. in Arnold, besides land and a rent for
tithes. (fn. 97) The family had 1,653 a. in Arnold,
Rowton, and North Skirlaugh in 1930, much of
it in Arnold; many small plots were later sold
but the Bethells still had c. 1,100 a. in 1990. (fn. 98)
The rectorial tithes of the part of Arnold in
Swine parish were granted in 1546 with Swine
rectory to Sir Richard Gresham, (fn. 99) and descended with that rectory to William Thornton,
who sold them to Hugh Bethell in 1737. (fn. 1) At
inclosure in 1778 William Bethell was allotted
48 a. and £30 11s. 6d. a year for tithes there. (fn. 2)
By the early 14th century Thornton abbey
(Lincs.) had a grange at WOODHOUSE, in
Arnold. (fn. 3) William de Ros, Lord Ros, enlarged
the abbey's estate with a house and 3 bovates in
Arnold, given c. 1310, (fn. 4) and in the 1540s the
grange, or manor, including land in Withernwick and Skirlaugh, was leased for £21 a year. (fn. 5)
As Woodhouse manor, the abbey's former estate
was granted to the short-lived Thornton college
in 1542. (fn. 6) In 1553 the Crown granted Woodhouse
grange, including a house, to Ralph Constable, (fn. 7)
and it later descended in the Constables of St.
Sepulchre's Garth to Michael Constable (fl. c.
1630). (fn. 8)
A house called Woodhouse Grange, together
with both closes and open-field land, was devised by Charles Robinson (d. 1695) to his wife
Elizabeth, who conveyed it to Mark Kirkby. (fn. 9)
Extending into Benningholme, in Swine, the
estate was devised by Kirkby (d. 1718) to his
son Richard, (fn. 10) who was succeeded in turn by his
brother Mark (d. 1748) and sister Isabel
Collings. Mrs. Collings by will proved in 1764
left it to Mann Horsfield. (fn. 11) At inclosure in 1778
Horsfield was allotted 125 a.; his devisees sold
90 a. to Robert C. Broadley in 1797, including
old-inclosed land at Woodhouse, and the same
year they sold Woodhouse Grange, with old
inclosures and the rest of Horsfield's allotment,
to William Taylor. (fn. 12) Broadley had already
acquired, in 1792, the farmhouse and land of
James Moore, who was allotted 75 a. at inclosure
in 1778. (fn. 13) Broadley (d. 1812) left his estate in
Arnold to his nephew John Broadley (d. 1833),
whose devisees sold it in 1835 to Jane Williamson and Thomas Whitaker; it later passed to
Thomas's son the Revd. Robert Whitaker. (fn. 14)
William Taylor (d. by 1799) was succeeded by
his son John (d. c. 1829), whose devisees conveyed Woodhouse Grange and 176 a. to John's
brothers Robert and William in 1830. The
Taylors sold the estate to Jane Williamson and
Thomas Whitaker in 1837. (fn. 15)
The Broadley and Taylor estates were added
to other land in Arnold already belonging to the
Whitakers. In 1778 an allotment of 141 a. had
been made to the representatives of Daniel
Whitaker (d. by 1774), (fn. 16) and it evidently passed
to his son Thomas and then, by 1813, to
Thomas's sons Charles and Thomas: Charles
conveyed his half to his brother Thomas in
1838. (fn. 17) Thomas Whitaker sold 154 a. to Robert
and William Billaney in 1857, and Woodhouse
Grange and 176 a. to William Wright in 1858;
the Revd. Robert Whitaker's trustees sold 175 a.
to Wright in 1859. (fn. 18) William, later Sir William,
Wright died in 1884, and the estate was held by
trustees until 1918, when Woodhouse Grange,
another farmhouse, and 369 a. were sold to
Thomas Jackson. (fn. 19) In 1937 Jackson sold the
estate, then reckoned at 374 a., to Hilda, wife
of Arthur Walgate, and in 1944 the Walgates
conveyed it to Ann Watson's charity trustees,
who still owned it in 1994. (fn. 20)
Several other religious houses owned small
estates in Long Riston and Arnold. Swine priory
had property in Long Riston by the late 13th
century, and its right to 3 bovates in Arnold
was acknowledged in 1240. (fn. 21) Its estate in Long
Riston and Arnold was worth c. £5 a year in
1535. In 1553 the Crown granted John Green
and Ralph Hall a house and a close called North
grange and 1 bovate in Riston, formerly belonging to Swine, and in 1609 it granted another part
of the priory's former estate there, including c.
7 bovates, to Edward Bates and Henry Elwes. (fn. 22)
Nunkeeling priory was given 1 bovate in Long
Riston and other land there and in Arnold by Sir
Andrew Fauconberg in the 13th century, and its
estate in both places may have been enlarged
by gift of Robert Franks in 1386. In 1535 the
priory's land in Long Riston and Arnold was
worth c. £2 a year. (fn. 23) A toft and croft in Arnold,
formerly belonging to Nunkeeling, were granted
by the Crown in 1553 to John Green and Ralph
Hall. (fn. 24) Bridlington priory was given 4 bovates in
Long Riston by Ansketil de Scures. (fn. 25) Fountains
abbey (Yorks. W.R.) evidently also had property
in Long Riston. (fn. 26) A croft in Arnold, held of the
chapter of Beverley, was given to Meaux abbey
in 1308, and part of Long Riston lay within the
liberties of the chapter and the provost of
Beverley in 1334. Two houses and c. 50 a. were
held of the provost by Peter Hildyard (d. 1502). (fn. 27)
By 1191 the Knights Hospitaller had 2 bovates
in Long Riston, (fn. 28) and Peter Hildyard (d. 1502)
held 50 a. of them. The estate included 7 houses
and cottages and 2 bovates, worth 5s. 6d. a year,
in 1539. It was briefly regranted to the refounded
order in 1558. (fn. 29) St. Leonard's hospital, York, was
given 1 a. and common of pasture in Long Riston
by Robert de Scures c. 1150. In 1609 the Crown
granted Edward Bates and Henry Elwes a cottage
there formerly belonging to the hospital. (fn. 30)
Anne Routh, by will proved in 1722, devised
26 a. in Arnold as part of the endowment of her
hospital in Beverley; the charity was administered by Beverley corporation, which was allotted 24 a. at inclosure in 1778, (fn. 31) and later by
Beverley Consolidated Charities, which sold
12 a. in 1966 and 14 a. in 1968. (fn. 32)
A manor of CHENECOL, comprising 1 carucate and held in 1066 by Gamel, was presumably
the same as that of CHENUTHESHOLM, also
of 1 carucate. The latter had passed from Knut
to William Malet, who was deprived c. 1070,
and in 1086 both belonged to Drew de Bevrère.
Another carucate formed LUVETOTHOLM
manor; it had belonged to Luvetote before passing in turn to Malet and Bevrère. (fn. 33) No more is
known of them.
ECONOMIC HISTORY
COMMON LANDS AND INCLOSURE. Long Riston and Arnold each
had its own open fields. Those at Long Riston,
called East and West fields, together with Little
fen, the marsh, meadow in North carr, and a
pasture right in the Frith, were mentioned in
the 13th century, (fn. 34) when a rabbit warren there
belonging to the Hildyards was also recorded. (fn. 35)
Criftins was mentioned in the mid 12th century. (fn. 36) In 1771 East field at Long Riston included
ground called Ox pasture and West field had
parts called North carr and Criftins; the openfield land at Arnold was also divided into East
and West fields, and there was common meadow
land called the ings, Arnold ings, or Benningholme ings. Each of the townships had a carr
or common. Common rights in Arnold were
attached to 44 houses there and in North Skirlaugh and Rowton. (fn. 37)
Old inclosures in Long Riston included pastures called Angram and Thurkelholm, which
were evidently inclosed by Robert Hildyard
after eight freeholders had granted him their
rights there in 1278. (fn. 38) A close there called North
grange, formerly belonging to Swine priory, was
mentioned in 1553. (fn. 39) Both Meaux and Thornton
abbeys had inclosed land at their granges in
Arnold. (fn. 40) In the mid 13th century Swine priory
was granted rights in a meadow in Arnold, with
freedom to inclose, sow, and improve it, provided that the donors retained commonage there
after harvest and before sowing or the next
inclosure. (fn. 41)
The remaining commonable lands in Long
Riston and Arnold were inclosed in 1778 under
an Act of 1771; the award also dealt with some
adjoining grounds in Benningholme (in Swine). (fn. 42)
Allotments were made totalling 1,634 a. in Long
Riston, 1,412 a. in Arnold, and 95 a. in Benningholme. In Long Riston they comprised more
than 714 a. from East field, over 579 a. from
West field, and 211 a. from the carr; in Arnold
327 a. came from East field, 424 a. from West
field, 131 a. from Arnold ings, and 528 a. from
the carr, together with 4 a. in an outgang. In
Long Riston William Bethell was allotted 905 a.,
Peter Nevill 228 a., Joseph Williamson 137 a.,
and the rector 129 a., there were four allotments
of 30-80 a. and five of up to 10 a. In Arnold,
Bethell was allotted 900 a., representatives of the
late Daniel Whitaker 141 a., Mann Horsfield
125 a., and the rector 51 a.; there were three
other allotments of 20-80 a. and seven of up
to 12 a.
LATER AGRICULTURE In 1801 there was
said to be 486 a. under crops in Riston, and
1,128 a. of arable, 620 a. of grassland, and 18 a.
of woodland were recorded in 1905. (fn. 43) There was
still much meadow and pasture in the 1930s,
especially around the villages, although most of
the parish was then arable. (fn. 44) In the 19th and
earlier 20th century there were usually c. 8
farmers in Long Riston, of whom 2 in 1851 and
4-5 in the 1930s had 150 a. or more, and c. 6 in
Arnold, 2 in 1851 and 3 in the 1930s with larger
holdings. The number of cowkeepers in the
parish rose from 1 in the 1850s to 9 in 1909, and
there were still 5 in the 1930s. (fn. 45) In 1987 the area
returned under Riston civil parish, 1,979 ha.
(4,889 a.), may have included holdings that
extended into Rise; 1,686.7 ha. (4,168 a.) were
arable and 225.3 ha. (557 a.) grassland. Of the
holdings returned, five were of under 10 ha. (25
a.), two of 100-199 ha. (247-492 a.), and one of
over 700 ha. (1,729 a.); there were then 3,776
pigs and 1,904 sheep. (fn. 46)
MILLS Peter the miller was recorded at
Long Riston in the 13th century, (fn. 47) the Hildyards
had a windmill in 1322, (fn. 48) and in the 1540s
the former Fountains abbey estate included a
derelict windmill. (fn. 49) There was a windmill in
1602, but in 1670 the mill hill was let with
licence to remove the mill. (fn. 50) A windmill in
Arnold was recorded in 1588. (fn. 51)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
In the early 19th
century permanent poor relief was given to 4-5
people and occasional relief to 2-8 others. There
were then four cottages for the poor. (fn. 52) Long
Riston and Arnold joined Skirlaugh poor-law
union in 1837 (fn. 53) and remained in Skirlaugh rural
district until 1935. They were then taken into
Holderness rural district as part of the new civil
parish of Riston, which in 1974 was included in
the Holderness district of Humberside. (fn. 54) In
1996 Riston parish became part of a new East
Riding unitary area. (fn. 55)
CHURCH
A church was built at Long Riston
by Alan de Scures, and c. 1170 his son William
acknowledged it to be subordinate to the church
at Hornsea. (fn. 56) Thereafter Riston rectory and
Hornsea vicarage were held as united livings.
Riston was separated from Hornsea in 1907 and
made a perpetual curacy, though it was later
usually called a vicarage. (fn. 57) It was united with
Catwick in 1922 (fn. 58) and with Skirlaugh instead in
1956. (fn. 59) That part of Arnold which was anciently
in Swine parish was transferred for ecclesiastical
purposes to Skirlaugh parish at its creation in
1867 and to Riston parish in 1989. (fn. 60)
The advowson belonged like that of Hornsea
to St. Mary's abbey, York, and later to the
Crown, for whom it was exercised by the Lord
Chancellor. (fn. 61) After 1922 the Lord Chancellor
presented alternately with the Strickland-Constable family and from 1956 with the archbishop
of York, (fn. 62) who obtained the Crown's share by
an exchange of patronages in 1961. (fn. 63)
The vicar of Hornsea alleged that Riston was
worth £8 a year in 1493. (fn. 64) It contributed £12
9s. a year gross to the value of the united livings
in 1535, (fn. 65) and in 1650 the annual, improved
value of Riston was £75 net. (fn. 66) At the ordination
of Hornsea vicarage in 1423, it was provided
that there should be 2 bovates of glebe at Long
Riston. (fn. 67) By 1650 there was only 1 bovate, along
with two closes; together with the parsonage
house, the glebe there was then worth £6 a year.
From 1685 the glebe also included ½ bovate in
Arnold and common rights in both Long Riston
and Arnold. Tithes from Long Riston were
worth £54 and from Arnold £20 a year in 1650. (fn. 68)
At inclosure in 1778, the incumbent was allotted
28 a. for glebe and 101 a. for tithes in Long
Riston and 10 a. and 42 a. respectively in
Arnold, besides rents in lieu of tithes totalling
£118 12s. (fn. 69) Nine acres in Arnold was sold in
1972, but there was still 172 a. of glebe in 1978. (fn. 70)
By the ordination of 1423, a parsonage house at
Long Riston was to be provided by St. Mary's
abbey. A house was recorded from 1535; by 1781
a new one, later called Rectory Farm, had been
built on land allotted at inclosure and the old
house demolished. (fn. 71) In 1778 the rector of Rise
was allotted 6 a. for the tithes of that part of
Arnold which lay in his parish. (fn. 72)
Figure 29:
Long Riston Church Before 1855
From 1423 Riston was usually served by a
curate, who was sometimes resident there. (fn. 73) In
the late 19th century he lived in the 'parsonage
house', perhaps meaning Rectory Farm. It may
have been in 1907, when Riston was made a
separate living, that a vicarage house in Catwick
Lane was provided, evidently by the Bethells.
After its disuse, it was sold by Richard Bethell
in 1943. From 1922 the incumbent lived elsewhere. (fn. 74) In the Middle Ages and later parishioners of Swine at Arnold were served in
South Skirlaugh chapel. (fn. 75)
In 1743 a service was held each Sunday and
Holy Communion was celebrated quarterly with
c. 45 recipients. (fn. 76) By 1865 there were two services each Sunday; c. 10 people then received at
the monthly communions. In 1884 there were
sometimes three services on Sundays, and by
1919 communion was fortnightly. (fn. 77)
The church of ST. MARGARET, so called
in 1434, (fn. 78) is built largely of boulders with ashlar
dressings, but has been patched with brick; it
comprises chancel with north vestry, nave with
south porch, and west tower. The thick walls
and the proportions of the nave suggest the
church's 12th-century origin, although both
surviving doorways are of the 14th century and
the windows are 15th-century and much renewed. The tower was added in the 14th century. There is now no evidence of the aisle which
was reported to be in ruins in 1663. The outer
walls were ordered to be repaired in 1720, (fn. 79) and
the buttresses against the south wall are probably of that date. A restoration of the church in
1855 included the moving of the porch from the
centre to the westernmost bay of the nave and
the building of the vestry. (fn. 80) The chancel and
chancel arch were probably also rebuilt at that
time. The tower was restored in 1881. (fn. 81)
There were two bells in 1552 and later; one
was replaced by a bell made by Samuel Smith
of York in 1665. (fn. 82) Under a faculty of 1897, one
bell was recast and a third bell made by Taylor
& Co. of Loughborough. (fn. 83) The plate included a
chalice in 1552 and later; it was replaced by
another presented by Peter Nevill in 1785. (fn. 84) The
registers date from 1653 and are nearly complete. (fn. 85)
An unknown person at an unknown date
devised a 4-a. close in Long Riston to provide
rent for the repair of the church. (fn. 86) The income
was £8 a year in the early 20th century (fn. 87) and
£120 in 1990. (fn. 88)
The churchyard was enlarged in 1891. (fn. 89)
At inclosure in 1778 the parish clerk was
awarded rents totalling £7 19s. 5d. for his
sheaves of wheat at Arnold and Long Riston. (fn. 90)
NONCONFORMITY
Missionary visits to
Long Riston were paid by members of Fish
Street chapel, Hull, c. 1800, and a barn was fitted
up for worship in 1803. The house licensed there
in 1803 perhaps comprised the barn. (fn. 91) An Independent chapel was built in Lauty Lane, Long
Riston, in 1837. (fn. 92) It was sold to the Wesleyan
Methodists in 1872, (fn. 93) and services were held
there until 1920; (fn. 94) it was used as a storehouse in
1989. A Primitive Methodist chapel was built in
Main Street, Long Riston, in 1836 (fn. 95) and closed
in 1977; (fn. 96) it was derelict in 1989.
EDUCATION
There may have been a school
in 1636, when a testator is said to have left 1d.
to each schoolchild in Long Riston. (fn. 97) In 1801
Peter Nevill placed 1 a., with a house and
smithy, in trust for the education of poor children; (fn. 98) in 1818 the income of £10 14s. was used
to support 16 children at a school in the parish
which had an average attendance of 40. (fn. 99) In 1833
the endowment was enjoyed by a school
attended by 30 boys in summer and 60 in winter;
a second school was then attended by 25 girls
taught at their parents' expense. (fn. 1) The parish
school, in Main Street, (fn. 2) was one of two schools
which had a joint attendance of 44 at inspection
in 1871. (fn. 3) The endowment passed to a National
school at Long Riston which was built and
opened in 1873 and otherwise supported by subscriptions and school pence; the mixed school
accommodated infants and that year had an
average attendance of 40. An annual government
grant was received from 1874-5. In 1907 the
endowment income was £14 14s. (fn. 4) Average
attendance at Riston Church school in the early
20th century was 50-70. (fn. 5) The school was
granted Controlled status in 1950. The senior
pupils were transferred to the secondary school
at Hornsea at its opening in 1958. The Women's
Institute hall was hired as additional accommodation for the remaining children in 1963, (fn. 6) and
a temporary classroom was provided in 1978. (fn. 7)
There were 24 pupils on the roll in 1990. (fn. 8) By
1987 the endowment consisted of stock, yielding
in 1989-90 an annual income of more than
£8,000, which was used to make grants for the
benefit of young people, including the maintenance of facilites in the village used by them. (fn. 9)
CHARITIES FOR THE POOR
The charity
of Frances Fletcher, who left £100 to provide
coal at Christmas, was created by will in 1879.
The income of £2 11s. from £102 stock was
distributed to 7-8 widows in the 1920s; a similar
sum was still distributed c. 1980, at the incumbent's discretion, but not thereafter. (fn. 10)
The poor of Arnold shared in the eleemosynary charity of Marmaduke Langdale (d.
1611). (fn. 11)