STILLINGFLEET

The village of Stillingfleet is situated on the northern edge of the Escrick moraine, near the east bank of the river Ouse, some 7 miles south of York. (fn. 1) It lies on either side of Stillingfleet beck, a stream which flows alongside the moraine to the Ouse, and most of the houses are strung out along the dry margins of the valley. The intervening ground, which is still regularly flooded, was formerly known as Town greens (fn. 2) and continued to be common land in 1972. It was probably the beck, which was known as 'the fleet' in the 13th century (fn. 3) and Fleet dike in the 16th century, (fn. 4) rather than the river which gave the village its Anglian name. (fn. 5) Further south the Ouse swings to the east and the Anglian settlement of Kelfield lies on the firm northern bank. Moreby Hall and its park occupy the north-western corner of the parish on the site of the depopulated village of Moreby, the Scandinavian 'farmstead on the marsh'. (fn. 6) Until 1850 the irregularly-shaped parish included the West Riding township of Acaster Selby, across the river; (fn. 7) the history of Acaster is, however, reserved for treatment elsewhere. The East Riding part of the parish covered 4,440 a., of which 1,835 a.lay in Kelfield and 681 a. in Moreby. (fn. 8)

South of the beck the moraine, composed of boulder clay and glacial sand and gravel, in places exceeds 50 ft. above sea-level. Other large areas of boulder clay lie north of the beck, and the rest of the parish is mostly covered by outwash sand and clay, all lying at 25 ft.-50 ft. (fn. 9) Lying still lower are the areas of alluvium beside the river and streams, where the ings were formerly situated. The entire western and southern parish boundary is formed by the Ouse, and elsewhere the boundary mostly follows some of the many streams and dikes which drain the parish. The open fields of Stillingfleet township lay for the most part on the moraine. North of the village there were extensive old inclosures and to the south the commons. The open fields and commons were inclosed in 1756 and the resulting regular field pattern contrasts with the irregular fields of the early-inclosed areas. Kelfield's open fields presumably lay immediately north of the village. In the north-west of the township the field pattern is less regular and the moor lay in the northeast. The open fields and moor were inclosed in 1740 and the remaining commons and ings in 1812.

The low grounds have always been liable to flooding. Frequent floods, which hindered access to the parish church, were the reason for the grant of a private oratory to the lady of Kelfield manor c. 1300. (fn. 10) In 1345 failure to cleanse a dike, probably Stillingfleet beck, and maintain its banks was alleged to have caused flooding at Stillingfieet and elsewhere. (fn. 11) Three public drains were set out at the inclosure of Stillingfleet in 1756, and 6 a. were awarded in lieu of meadow called the common grass, the rent of which had long been used to repair the gates and rails over the outfall sluices or cloughs in the township. (fn. 12) The principal clough at the outfall of the beck into the Ouse was rebuilt in brick by the township in 1815. (fn. 13) It was repaired and improved in 1858, when it took water from eight neighbouring parishes, (fn. 14) and again in the 20th century. Long stretches of the beck have been straightened. At the inclosure of Kelfield in 1812 one public drain was set out and it was ordered that an embankment beside the river should be maintained by the owners and occupiers of adjoining land. (fn. 15) The land allotted at Stillingfleet in 1756 was known as the Bylaw field. By a Scheme of 1971 it was directed that the income from the field, then containing 11 a., was to be used for the general benefit of the inhabitants. In 1972-3 income was £110 and expenditure included payments for drainage and rabbit clearance; £4 was given to the Poor's Land charity. (fn. 16)

The road from York through Stillingfleet to Cawood (Yorks. W.R.) crosses the dike which forms the northern parish boundary by the small Moreby bridge. The bridge was reported to be in disrepair in 1371 and c. 1394, when the townships of Moreby and Naburn were responsible for its upkeep. (fn. 17) From the early 19th century it was maintained by the county. (fn. 18) South of the bridge the road was diverted in 1829 to the east away from Moreby Hall, (fn. 19) and in 1844 a shorter section was diverted further eastwards around the edge of the park. (fn. 20) In 1926 the road was widened near the park entrance. (fn. 21) It continues southwards, as York Road, into Stillingfleet village, where it is carried over the beck by Stillingfleet bridge. The existence of a bridge there by 1301-2 is suggested by the name of an inhabitant, Thomas 'at the bridge'. (fn. 22) In 1818 the bridge was said to be narrow and in disrepair. (fn. 23) It was rebuilt in stone in 1820 (fn. 24) and has one semicircular arch and long approaches across the Town greens. In 1902 the parish council erected two small cast-iron lamps on the end piers. (fn. 25)

From Stillingfleet bridge Church Hill climbs the moraine to join the road from Escrick, which follows the crest of the moraine almost to the Ouse. The latter road continues as Cawood Road by a circuitous route to Kelfield, where it forms the main street. About ¾ mile west of Kelfield, however, a road leads south-westwards from it and is carried over the river to Cawood by an iron swing-bridge built in 1872. Until 1882, when it was taken over by the county, it was a toll-bridge. (fn. 26) Before the bridge was built a ferry, described in 1772 as a horse ferry, (fn. 27) crossed the river at this point. Until 1812 a road led to the ferry across the ings from the west end of Kelfield village, but it was liable to flooding and at the inclosure of that year it was replaced by a new road further north. (fn. 28) The new road, also subject to flooding, had not been completed by 1814, when it was itself replaced by the present road to the bridge. (fn. 29) From the east end of Kelfield village other roads lead to Stillingfleet and Riccall.

From Stillingfleet village Stewart Lane leads westwards and formerly gave access to a ferry, first mentioned in 1734, over the river to Acaster Selby. (fn. 30) The road was liable to flooding and at inclosure in 1756 a new road to the ferry was laid out. (fn. 31) It was described as a bridle road in the mid 19th century. (fn. 32) The ferry, at the north end of Acaster village, apparently ceased between 1892 and 1906. (fn. 33)

Most of the houses in Stillingfleet village stand along side-lanes bordering Town greens, one of them called the Gale or Gale Lane. (fn. 34) In addition to Stillingfleet bridge, paths carried over the beck by foot-bridges link the two halves of the village. The church stands near the north end of the bridge. Most of the houses date from the 18th and 19th centuries but Swallow House may be of the 17th century or earlier. It has a ground floor of brick but a timber-framed upper storey. Later-18th-century houses include Rose Villa, in Stewart Lane. The 19th-century Crab Tree Farm has a wheelhouse. A few 20th-century houses and bungalows have been built in the village and there are ten council houses near York Road and six in Cawood Road. A village institute opposite the church was built in 1927. (fn. 35) The Cross Keys inn stands in the south of the village. There were usually three alehouses in Stillingfleet in the 1750s, two in the 1760s and 1770s, and one in the 1780s and 1790s. (fn. 36) By 1822 there were again two, the Plough and the White Swan. (fn. 37) The former had closed by 1840 (fn. 38) and the Cross Keys is first mentioned in 1889. (fn. 39) A clothing club existed in the 1860s (fn. 40) and a parish library and reading room from the 1870s until at least 1914. (fn. 41)

Most of the houses and cottages in Kelfield village, all dating from the 18th century and later, lie along the main street. To the north, however, a cluster of mostly 19th-century houses has grown up at Moor End on the Stillingfleet road. Manor Farm, at the west end of the village, is a large 18th- or early-19th-century house and its outbuildings include a brick dovecot. Among the few 20th-century buildings in the village are eight council houses, and four others stand in Kelfield Lane. There were usually one or two alehouses in the later 18th century (fn. 42) and in 1822 there was one, the Boot. (fn. 43) It was known as the Boot and Shoe by 1840, when there was also another inn, the Black Swan. (fn. 44) By 1872 they had been replaced by the Grey Horse, (fn. 45) which still existed in 1972.

Apart from Moreby Hall the most noteworthy of the outlying buildings in the parish is Stillingfleet House. (fn. 46) By the late 16th century there were apparently two or more houses standing near the Ouse towards Riccall. The 'Wele houses' were mentioned in 1598, 'Weilhouse' close in 1604, and a messuage called the 'Wheildhouse' in the 1660s. The name, like that of near-by Wheel Hall in Riccall, refers to a deep part of the river. (fn. 47) The other isolated farm-houses all date from after the 18th- and early-19th-century inclosures. Hill Farm, in Stillingfleet, has a wheelhouse. An inn was built in 1827 beside the ferry in Kelfield. (fn. 48) It was known in 1840 as the Cawood Ferry (fn. 49) and in 1847 as the Ferry Boat. (fn. 50) In 1851 the innkeeper was also the ferryman. (fn. 51) It had probably closed by the 1870s. (fn. 52)

There were 120 poll-tax payers at Stillingfleet with Moreby in 1377. (fn. 53) In 1672 49 households in the two townships were recorded in the hearth-tax assessment. Three were discharged from paying; of the remainder 36 had one hearth, 4 had 2, one had 3, 3 had 4, and one each had 7 and ten. (fn. 54) Kelfield had 85 poll-tax payers in 1377 (fn. 55) and 30 households were recorded in 1672. One was discharged from paying the tax, 16 had one hearth, 7 had 2, 2 had 3, 2 had 6, and one each had 7 and nine. (fn. 56) In 1743 there were 101 families in the whole parish (fn. 57) and in 1764 103. (fn. 58) The population of Stillingfleet with Moreby was 304 in 1801 and it increased steadily to a peak of 422 in 1861, before decreasing to 302 in 1901. The population has remained stable in the 20th century and was 294 in 1971. In 1801 the population of Kelfield was 175, but it increased rapidly to 421 in 1851, the largest intercensal increase, 106, occurring in 1841-51. It subsequently decreased to 288 by 1901 before rising to 346 in 1961; it stood at 314 in 1971. (fn. 59)

MANORS AND OTHER ESTATES.

In 1086 an estate of 1½ carucate in Stillingfleet, which had been held before the Conquest by Ranchil, was in the possession of Hugh son of Baldric. (fn. 60) It apparently passed soon after, with the rest of Hugh's Yorkshire estates, to Robert de Stutville (fl. 1089), (fn. 61) in whose family it descended until it passed to Hugh Wake on his marriage with Joan, daughter of Nicholas de Stutville (d. 1233). (fn. 62) In 1284-5 the heirs of Baldwin Wake were overlords of 3 carucates in the township. (fn. 63) The overlordship subsequently descended like Buttercrambe manor (Yorks. N.R.), passing to Edmund of Woodstock, earl of Kent, whose wife Margaret was sister of Thomas Wake (d. 1349), and later to John de Neville, whose wife Elizabeth was the sister-in-law of Thomas, earl of Kent (d. 1397). (fn. 64) It was probably forfeited to the Crown on the attainder in 1569 of Charles Neville, earl of Westmorland. (fn. 65)

A mesne lordship in one carucate was held in 1284-5 by Jordan Foliot, nephew of Robert de Stutville (d. before 1275), (fn. 66) and the heir of that or another Jordan Foliot held property of the earl of Kent in 1353. (fn. 67) Nothing more is known of it.

In 1240 Robert de Grey acquired a carucate in Stillingfleet from Henry son of Ellis, and in 1244 Robert's brother Walter, archbishop of York, granted him his temporal estate. The latter included 12 bovates in Stillingfleet given to Walter in 1234 by Norman of Heslerton, (fn. 68) and other land there given by William Daubeney, Robert Trussebut, William de Ros, Ralph of Thorpe, the vicar of Stillingfleet, William de Stutville, and William Fairfax. (fn. 69) In 1284-5 Robert de Grey was demesne lord of 2 carucates of the Wake fee as well as lord of the Trussebut fee. (fn. 70) The remaining carucate of the Wake fee was then held by Gilbert de Luthe but by 1346 it had passed to John de Grey. (fn. 71) The manor of STILLINGFLEET descended in the Grey family (fn. 72) until the death of Robert, Lord Grey of Rotherfield, in 1388, when it passed to his daughter Joan, wife of John Deincourt. (fn. 73) Her son William died without issue in 1422-3 and his widow Elizabeth married Sir Richard Hastings (d. 1437). (fn. 74) In 1428 the manor, consisting of 8 carucates, was held by Edward Hastings. (fn. 75) By 1431, however, it had passed to Margaret, sister of William Deincourt (d. 1422-3) and wife of Ralph, Lord Cromwell, (fn. 76) and on her death in 1454 it passed to her sister Alice, wife of William, Lord Lovell. (fn. 77) On Alice's death in 1474 the manor passed to her grandson Francis, Lord Lovell, (fn. 78) on whose attainder in 1485 it was forfeited to the Crown. (fn. 79)

The manor was granted in 1552 to Leonard Beckwith, who was apparently the lessee as early as 1535, (fn. 80) and in 1579 Roger Beckwith sold it to Ralph Ellerker. (fn. 81) It was successively held by Edward (d. by 1587), Randolph, Sir Ralph (d. c. 1640), and James Ellerker. (fn. 82) Upon the death of John Ellerker in 1655 it passed to his daughter Dorothy, wife of Sir James Bradshaw. (fn. 83) The latter's son Ellerker Bradshaw (d. 1742) devised the manor to Eaton Mainwaring, who assumed the additional name of Ellerker, (fn. 84) and at the inclosure of 1756 he was awarded 1,008 a. (fn. 85)

After the death of R. M. Ellerker in 1775 the manor passed to his four sisters, and in 1789 their trustees sold it to Robert Cave. (fn. 86) In 1809 Robert's widow Catherine Cave sold it to James Wood. (fn. 87) Wood split up the estate in 1811, selling the manor and 810 a. to Richard Thompson, about 500 a. to Barnard Clarkson, and 116 a. to John Crosdill. (fn. 88) In 1818 Crosdill sold his property to Thompson. (fn. 89) The manorial estate subsequently descended like Escrick in the Thompson family, later barons Wenlock, and it was increased between 1814 and 1839 by purchases from Barnard Clarkson, George Burnell, John Turner, and the trustees of Francis Sledge. (fn. 90) About 1857 the estate comprised 1,190 a. (fn. 91) In 1919 some 300 a. were sold (fn. 92) and in 1972 the Forbes Adam family held 876 a. in Stillingfleet township. (fn. 93) Leonard Beckwith had a manor-house at Stillingfleet in 1535, (fn. 94) and the estate still included a manor-house in 1789. (fn. 95)

The holding bought by Barnard Clarkson in 1811 was sold to Joshua Ingham in 1820 and by him to Henry Preston in 1827. (fn. 96) It subsequently descended with the Preston family's manors of Kelfield and Moreby and was sold by Beatrice Preston in separate lots in 1956. (fn. 97) A mansion house on this holding, described in 1820 as newly erected, is apparently that now known as Stillingfleet House; now a farm-house, it stands on rising ground near the Ouse, west of the village. It is a square yellowbrick house with pedimented fronts.

Another manor of STILLINGFLEET, first mentioned in 1475, when it was held by Ralph Crathorne of the earl of Westmorland, (fn. 98) may have arisen from a reorganization of the estates of Alice Lovell after her death in 1474. (fn. 99) Ralph died by 1490 and was succeeded in turn by his son Thomas (d. 1509) and grandson Ralph (d. by 1517). (fn. 1) Ralph's brother James died by 1543 and was succeeded by his son Thomas (d. 1568), whose heir was his son Ralph. (fn. 2) The Crathornes sold property in the township to William Oglethorpe in 1579 (fn. 3) and to four men, including William Oglethorpe and Nicholas Heslington, in 1615. (fn. 4) At least some of the property was sold by another Nicholas Heslington to Ellerker Bradshaw in 1710 (fn. 5) and subsequently descended with the capital manor.

An estate of 2¼ carucates at Kelfield in 1086, which had formerly been a manor, was soke of Count Alan of Brittany's manor of Clifton (Yorks. N.R.). (fn. 6) The overlordship descended in the earls of Richmond until after 1346, (fn. 7) when it apparently passed to Selby abbey. It was last mentioned in 1534. (fn. 8) Count Alan apparently enfeoffed Hermer (fl. 1089-1114) of the estate (fn. 9) and he gave it Selby abbey before 1145. (fn. 10) The abbey held a mesne lordship in 1284-5 and 1343. (fn. 11)

The demesne lordship descended from Hermer's family to Henry son of Conan (fl. 1201-4), sometimes described as of Kelfield. (fn. 12) It descended to Henry's son Conan and then to his grandson Henry (d. c. 1285), who was succeeded in turn by his son Conan and, by 1311, his grandson Henry. (fn. 13) Henry son of Conan held it in 1346, (fn. 14) and in 1440 it belonged to John FitzHenry, whose heir was his son Henry. (fn. 15) The family held KELFIELD manor until the death of another John FitzHenry by 1496. (fn. 16) His heirs were two daughters, one of whom may have married John Stillington, who was in possession of the manor at his death in 1534. (fn. 17)

It was probably John's son Thomas who was succeeded at his death in 1591 by his son William. (fn. 18) Another John Stillington held it in the early 17th century. (fn. 19) At the inclosure of 1740 Joseph Stillington (d. 1746) received about 570 a. (fn. 20) He was succeeded by his three daughters, two of whom were dead by 1755 when the third, Mary, came of age. Mary died in 1769 and was succeeded by her aunt Dorothy Peirse, whose daughter Mary married the Revd. Edward Stillingfleet. Mary (d. 1804) devised the manor to trustees, (fn. 21) and the estate was split up in 1812; the manor and 384 a. were sold to Barnard Clarkson, 261 a. to Samuel Hague, 201 a. to Robert Brown, and 195 a. to Thomas Mitchell. (fn. 22) Clarkson sold 186 a. the same year to the Revd. Thomas Preston (fn. 23) and the manor and 88 a. to Samuel Hague in 1814. (fn. 24) Preston bought 85 a. from the Revd. C. D. Wray in 1825 (fn. 25) and his son Henry Preston bought the manor and 302 a. from Barnard Hague in 1828. (fn. 26) Other purchases by Henry Preston included 144 a. from Lorenzo Moore, 85 a. from P. B. Thompson, 142 a. from Thomas Mitchell, 42 a. from Barnard Clarkson, and 57 a. from Mary Cock's devisees, all in the 1830s. (fn. 27) The Prestons retained the estate, comprising about 1,320 a. in 1930, (fn. 28) until Beatrice Preston sold it in various lots in 1956-8 and 1966. (fn. 29)

A moated site in the north of Kelfield village may represent the site of the manor-house which Henry of Kelfield held in 1290-1. (fn. 30) The horseshoe-shaped moat, still partly filled with water in 1972, encloses a mound and the small mid-19th-century Manor House. Several depressions, which may have been medieval fish-ponds, lie near by. (fn. 31)

In the late 13th or early 14th century an oratory in her manor-house at Kelfield was granted to Parnel, widow of Conan son of Henry, and by 1303- 4 property in the township had been given by her family to support a chantry there. (fn. 32) The former chantry property was granted in 1570 to Hugh Counsell and Robert Pistor. (fn. 33)

The Stillington family occupied a house of 10 hearths in 1672. (fn. 34) This was probably Kelfield Hall, which was mentioned in 1598 and stood beside the river in the south of the village. (fn. 35) In 1839 the hall was a two-storeyed building with basement and attics, and the irregular main front was four bays long. The second bay from the west end of the front contained the entrance, with a round-headed window above, and the projecting fourth bay had rusticated quoins. This arrangement suggests an old house of medieval plan. A small building with a pyramidal roof surmounted by a ball finial stood close to the house and survived in 1972, at one corner of a level area partly surrounded by an 18thcentury brick wall with central and terminal gate piers. The hall itself was demolished by the Prestons c. 1840. (fn. 36) An adjacent moated site may represent an earlier site of the manor-house.

In 1086 an estate of one carucate and 7 bovates at Kelfield, held before the Conquest by Game, was in the hands of Hugh son of Baldric. (fn. 37) Like Hugh's Stillingfleet estate (fn. 38) it passed soon after the Survey to the Stutvilles and was apparently included in the land given in wardship during the minority of Eustace de Stutville to Saer, earl of Winchester, and after Saer's death to his son Roger de Quincy in 1220. (fn. 39) The overlordship of one carucate of the estate thereafter descended in the Quincy family and is last mentioned in 1346. (fn. 40) In 1284-5 an intermediate lordship in the Quincy estate was held by Roger of St. Andrew. (fn. 41) Nothing more is known of it.

The demesne lord of the one-carucate holding in 1219 was Henry son of Walter. (fn. 42) In 1284-5 it was held by Henry of Kelfield, presumably the Henry son of Conan who was demesne lord of the Richmond fee, (fn. 43) Robert the long, and Henry son of Thomas. (fn. 44) In 1343-4 the holding was granted by John Percy to William Aldborough, (fn. 45) and, described as the manor of KELFIELD, it passed on William's death about 1388 to his son William. (fn. 46) The latter was dead by 1392, when the manor passed to his sisters Sibyl, wife of William of Ryther, and Elizabeth, wife of Brian Stapleton. (fn. 47) In 1402 Sibyl and William granted their half of the manor to Nicholas Gascoigne (fn. 48) and in 1417 Elizabeth and her then husband Richard Redeman granted the other half to William Gascoigne (d. 1422). (fn. 49) In 1449 another William Gascoigne granted the manor to Henry Vavasour. (fn. 50) It was later held by William (d. 1500), John (d. 1524), and William (d. by 1566) Vavasour, (fn. 51) and in 1577 John Vavasour sold it to Thomas Stillington. (fn. 52) It subsequently descended with the capital manor. (fn. 53)

In 1591 the manor-house of the Vavasour manor was known as Auburn Hall. (fn. 54)

Eustace de Stutville died in 1241 and by 1244 his widow Nichole had married William de Percy. (fn. 55) The overlordship of the remaining land of the former Stutville estate, sometimes said to be 6 and sometimes 7 bovates, subsequently descended in the Percy family of Kildale (Yorks. N.R.) and was last mentioned in 1392. (fn. 56) The demesne lord was Geoffrey de Basinges in 1240, (fn. 57) and John of Stonegrave and Stephen 'le Tuler' in 1284-5. (fn. 58) Stonegrave's daughter Isabel married Simon de Pateshull, who in 1296 held 4 bovates. (fn. 59) By 1346 the estate, then comprising 7 bovates, was held by Henry Laurence. (fn. 60) Nothing more is known of it.

An estate of one carucate at Moreby in 1086, which had formerly been a manor, was soke of Count Alan of Brittany's manor of Clifton. (fn. 61) The overlordship was held by the earl of Richmond in 1284-5 (fn. 62) but by 1295 it had passed to the heirs of Robert Greathead (fn. 63) and nothing more is known of it.

In 1244 archbishop Walter de Grey granted to his brother Robert his Moreby estate, including land which he had acquired from Agnes de Moreville, Nicholas Palmer, and William Fairfax. (fn. 64) In 1284-5 Robert de Grey was demesne lord of the estates, (fn. 65) which passed like Stillingfleet to the Crown in 1485. (fn. 66) The Crown granted the Moreby land to John Wellisburne in 1528 and he sold it in 1529 to Leonard Beckwith. (fn. 67) Roger Beckwith sold MOREBY manor, consisting of about 300 a., to Edward Talbot, probably c. 1580, (fn. 68) and by 1596 it had passed to George Harvy and Henry Slingsby. (fn. 69) In 1604 Slingsby sold it to George Lawson, (fn. 70) who was succeeded by his son George in 1638. (fn. 71) In 1762 it passed on the death of Marmaduke Lawson to his cousin William Preston. (fn. 72) The estate, comprising 632 a. in 1842, (fn. 73) subsequently descended in the Preston family. In 1956-8 Beatrice Preston sold about 600 a., (fn. 74) but the hall and its 90-acre park were retained (fn. 75) and in 1964 Mr. A. T. Preston repurchased the 139-acre Woodlands farm. (fn. 76)

The Lawson family occupied a house of seven hearths in 1672. (fn. 77) In the early 18th century the house was a two-storeyed building with attics and had a front seven bays long with a central pediment over three bays. (fn. 78) This was the house, known as Moreby Hall and owned by William Preston, which in 1772 stood in a park near the river in the north of the township. (fn. 79) The present large stone-built hall, in a Tudor style, was erected on the same site in 1827-32 by Anthony Salvin for Henry Preston. (fn. 80) There is still a large park.

Another estate of one carucate at Moreby had been held before the Conquest by Fulchri and in 1086 was in the possession of Hugh son of Baldric. (fn. 81) Like his Stillingfleet estate it passed to Robert de Stutville, who granted land there between c. 1089 and 1106 to St. Mary's abbey, York. (fn. 82) The Stutvilles retained property in Moreby until at least 1227 (fn. 83) but by 1284-5 the earl of Richmond was overlord of the whole carucate. (fn. 84) By 1346 it had become part of the Marmion fee. (fn. 85) Nothing more is known of the overlordship. A mesne lordship was held of the earl of Richmond by Thomas of Merston in 1284- 5. (fn. 86)

The demesne lord in 1240 was John of Wistow, who in that year granted the estate to William de Belkerthorpe. (fn. 87) By 1284-5 it was held by William of Moreby. (fn. 88) It passed to the Acklam family on the marriage of Mary, daughter of Henry Moreby, with William Acklam c. 1370. (fn. 89) The manor of MOREBY, known in the 16th and 17th centuries as MOREBY HALL, was held by John Acklam (d. 1551), William Acklam (d. 1567), and Sir William Acklam (fl. 1619). (fn. 90) It passed to Sir William Milbanke (d. 1680) on his marriage in 1659 to Elizabeth, daughter of John Acklam (d. 1643). (fn. 91) In 1787 Ralph Milbanke sold his Moreby estate to William Preston (fn. 92) and it was merged with the capital manor.

The Acklam family had a manor-house, containing a chapel, at Moreby in 1493 (fn. 93) and the house was known as Moreby Hall in 1552. (fn. 94) It still existed in 1612 (fn. 95) but it is not mentioned again, and it was perhaps demolished when the Milbankes succeeded to the estate. (fn. 96) It may have stood near Home Farm, where a field called Old Acklam was mentioned in 1906. (fn. 97)

In 1066 Grim held 2 carucates in Stillingfleet, which in 1086 were held by Hunfrid, Erneis de Burun's man. (fn. 98) The estate evidently passed, like West Cottingwith, successively to Geoffrey son of Pain, William Trussebut, Hilary de Builers, and William de Ros. (fn. 99) The overlordship descended in the Ros family (fn. 1) and was last mentioned in 1454. (fn. 2)

In 1284-5 Robert de Grey was demesne lord of 1½ carucate of the Ros fee. (fn. 3) The estate subsequently descended with the capital manor. (fn. 4)

An estate of 2 bovates at Stillingfleet in 1086 was soke of Count Alan of Brittany's manor of Gate Fulford. (fn. 5) In 1284-5 the overlordship was held by the earl of Richmond, and two mesne lordships were held by Robert the long and Henry son of Conan. Robert of Fiskgate and Thomas son of John held the estate in demesne. (fn. 6) Nothing more is known of it.

Another Domesday estate, also of 2 bovates, was held by the king. (fn. 7) It had apparently passed by the early 12th century to St. Peter's (later St. Leonard's) hospital, York, which granted it to Henry son of William. (fn. 8) Henry granted it to John son of Daniel, who gave a bovate to Selby abbey. (fn. 9) In 1284-5 the abbey and Warin the calfherd each held a bovate of St. Leonard's hospital. (fn. 10)

Selby abbey acquired other land in both Stillingfleet and Kelfield. In 1205-10 Durand the clerk granted 3 bovates and 28 a. in Stillingfleet to the abbey, (fn. 11) and Richard son of Adam gave unspecified land there, probably also in the 13th century. (fn. 12) In Kelfield Henry son of Conan granted a bovate probably c. 1200. (fn. 13) In 1535 the abbey's property in Stillingfleet was included in its manor of Acaster Selby (fn. 14) and ten years later was granted with it to Sir George Darcy. (fn. 15) Its Kelfield estate was then worth 13s. 4d. (fn. 16) and it was granted in 1557 to James Lambarte and George Cotton, (fn. 17) from whom it apparently passed the same year to Leonard Vavasour. (fn. 18) In 1353 John of Ness and Peter of Crakehall granted a house and an acre to St. Mary's abbey, York, (fn. 19) and in 1557 the abbey's former estate there passed, with that of Selby, to Lambarte and Cotton, and then to Vavasour. (fn. 20) In 1584 3 a. in Moreby, which had formerly belonged to a chantry in St. John's church, Ouse Bridge, York, was let by the Crown to John Johnson. (fn. 21)

The Thompsons of Escrick acquired an estate at Kelfield in the earlier 19th century by purchases of 106 a. from Philip Akam in 1817 and 238 a. from John Eadon in 1839. (fn. 22) It descended with Escrick and in 1972 the Forbes Adam family held 278 a. in the township. (fn. 23)

Stillingfleet rectory was held by St. Mary's hospital, Bootham, near York, from 1318 until 1557. (fn. 24) It was worth £40 in 1291. (fn. 25) In 1535 it was worth £33 13s. 4d., of which tithes accounted for over £31. (fn. 26) In 1557 the chapter of York obtained it and applied it for the support of St. Peter's School, York. (fn. 27) In 1562 it was reported that 10 a. of meadow in Kelfield had long been assigned to the rector in lieu of hay tithes. (fn. 28) In 1650 the rectory was worth £130 (fn. 29) and in 1698 £183. (fn. 30) It was let to the Moyser family for much of the later 17th and 18th centuries. (fn. 31) At the inclosure of Stillingfleet in 1756 E. M. Ellerker, as sub-lessee of James Moyser for the tithes of Stillingfleet and Moreby townships, was awarded 78 a., together with a rent-charge of £92 10s. a year. (fn. 32) In 1838 the Kelfield tithes were commuted for £320 payable to the dean and chapter, (fn. 33) and in 1842 those remaining in Moreby for £80. (fn. 34) The rectorial estate subsequently passed to the governors of St. Peter's School and in 1907 they sold 94 a. to Lord Wenlock. (fn. 35)

ECONOMIC HISTORY.

In 1086 the Stillingfleet estate of Hugh son of Baldric had land for one plough, but Hugh had half a plough and seven villeins had two more. Both before and after the Conquest the estate was worth 10s. Erneis de Burun's estate had land for two ploughs and Hunfrid his man had two ploughs. Two villeins and one bordar were also recorded. The estate had increased in value from 10s. before the Conquest to 15s. (fn. 36)

Some reclamation of the township's waste had taken place before 1205-10, when assarts made by William Trussebut amounted to 18 a., including one in meadow land called 'Hehinge'. (fn. 37) Reclamation evidently continued throughout the 13th century and there were references to land reckoned in acres, presumably assarted, in 1231, (fn. 38) an area of assarts called Green Rudding in 1244, and two assarts near the beck. (fn. 39) In 1244 the archbishop of York granted to his brother Robert de Gray his wood in Stillingfleet and 2½ a. of waste there, (fn. 40) and Stillingfleet waste was mentioned in 1322. (fn. 41) Some reclaimed land became part of the open fields, areas of which were known as Clerkridding and Sleghtholmes in 1399. (fn. 42) The extent of medieval reclamation is indicated by the many 17th-century and later names of open-field land and closes which include the elements 'ridding' or 'intake'. (fn. 43)

The common fields were first named in the late 17th century as Garth End, Clow, Mill, and Far fields. (fn. 44) Rape was grown in Stillingfleet, evidently as a new crop, in 1697. (fn. 45) Meadow land called North marsh and West ings, and commons known as Longlands and Banks, were first recorded in 1716. (fn. 46)

The open fields, meadows, and commons were mostly inclosed in 1756, (fn. 47) under an Act of the previous year. (fn. 48) In all, 1,382 a. were allotted. The open-field land comprised 125 a. in Clow field, 139 a. in Garth End field, 198 a. in Far field, 195 a. in Mill field, 21 a. in Gawtrees field, and 10 a. in Thistle Barf field. There were then three stinted pastures, Longlands containing 270 a., Keys Banks 40 a., and Woody pasture 33 a. Of the 52 'commons' or gates in these pastures 45 belonged to the lord of the manor. Three areas of meadow land lay beside the river and the owners of open-field land had 'distinct and known parts' in them. They were Ings meadow or South ings (fn. 49) containing 57 a., Twings marsh 4 a., and North marsh 15 a. There were also five moors or greens in which all the inhabitants of the township had unstinted pasturage. Town greens were not inclosed (fn. 50) and continued to be used for common grazing until the earlier 20th century, when small-scale milk production became impracticable. (fn. 51) Large moor comprised 196 a., Little moor 70 a., and Lyer green 9 a.; the acreage of Clow green cannot be determined. E. M. Ellerker was awarded 1,008 a. as lord of the manor and 78 a. as lessee of the rectory. The vicar received 75 a. There were 2 allotments of 50-100 a., 4 of 10-49 a., and 2 of less than 10 a.

In 1086 the estate of Hugh son of Baldric at Kelfield had land for one plough and four villeins had a plough there. There was woodland a league long and half a league broad and 8 a. of meadow. In both 1066 and 1086 the estate was worth £1. (fn. 52) Reclamation was taking place in 1210, when Henry son of Conan was licensed to assart part of his wood in the township. The wood was separated from the townships of Stillingfleet and Kelfield by two fields. (fn. 53) In 1219 3 a. of reclaimed land lay in areas called Waltef ridding, Calfhay, and Drihurst. (fn. 54) The last-named was presumably the area called Dryesses, which lay in closes in 1708. (fn. 55) In 1276 a holding included 24½ a. of land which may have been reclaimed. (fn. 56) In 1311 Henry son of Conan was licensed to hold his woodland inclosed and emparked as his ancestors had done, (fn. 57) and Kelfield wood was mentioned in 1322. (fn. 58)

Three open fields, East, North, and West or Thwaites fields, were named in the mid 16th century, and by 1600 there was a fourth, Calfhay field. (fn. 59) The common pastures in the 16th and 17th centuries were the moor and the riverside banks, in both of which beast-gates were enjoyed. Meadow land lay in the marsh and the ings. (fn. 60) Many closes were named in the same period, including Robert Ridding, the Haggs, the town's intake, Hall Warm closes, and the Flaggs, beside the Ouse. (fn. 61)

The open fields and the moor were inclosed by agreement in 1740. Joseph Stillington, as lord of the manor, was allotted 570 a. and two others received 76 a. and 15 a. (fn. 62) Acts of 1746 and 1747 confirmed the inclosure and empowered the Stillingtons to raise money for it. (fn. 63) The remaining meadows, commons, and wastes were inclosed in 1812 (fn. 64) under an Act of 1806. (fn. 65) In all, 233 a. were allotted. Allotments totalling 35 a. were made from the ings, 5 a. from the banks, and 181 a. from both; in addition 5½ a. were awarded from Goose green, 4½ a. from beside the township's lanes, 1 a. from the carr, and 1 a. from waste in the village.

In 1086 the estate of Hugh son of Baldric at Moreby had land for half a plough, but four villeins had one plough there. There was woodland one league long and half a league broad and 20 a. of meadow. The estate had fallen in value from 5s. before the Conquest to 3s. (fn. 66) An early example of reclamation was that carried out in 1227 by St. Mary's abbey, which was granted 8 a. from Moreby meadow and a plot of land 'towards the fields', together with sufficient fencing material from Moreby wood to inclose them. (fn. 67) In 1295 a holding included 30 a. of assarted land and 10 a. of meadow. (fn. 68)

Moreby village was apparently never large enough to appear separately in tax assessments. (fn. 69) In 1529 the Beckwith estate there was wholly inclosed but there were still four houses and tofts. Three closes were called Bridgefield, Shawfield, and Southfield, possibly the names of the former open fields. A field called Armetpark and a wood called Southgaile were also mentioned. (fn. 70) The Acklam estate, too, had been inclosed by 1552, although 19½ a. in the Great ings and herbage of the wood were mentioned. The hall was then surrounded by a park. A large number of close names on both estates incorporated the elements 'ridding', 'shaw', or 'hurst'. (fn. 71) There were 160 a. of grassland and 120 a. of arable on the former Beckwith estate c. 1580. (fn. 72) Stinted common rights were still held in the ings in 1747 (fn. 73) and it is not known when they were extinguished. Between 1847 and 1891 the ings became part of the park. (fn. 74)

In 1801 1,321 a., i.e. nearly a third, of the whole parish were under crops, mainly wheat (296 a.), beans (271 a.), and oats (250 a.). (fn. 75) In Kelfield township in 1838 there were 1,386 a. of arable, 250 a. of permanent grass, and 24 a. of woodland. (fn. 76) The township was said in 1856 to be noted for potatoes, rape, mustard, and flax. (fn. 77) In Moreby in 1842 there were 302 a. of arable, 190 a. of grass, and 111 a. of woodland. (fn. 78) In Stillingfleet and Moreby in 1905 there were 1,205 a. of arable, 1,119 a. of permanent grass, and 160 a. of woodland, and in Kelfield 1,143 a. of arable, 429 a. of grass, and 50 a. of woodland. (fn. 79) In the 1930s and 1960s the parish was still largely under arable, but there was much grassland around Moreby Hall in the north-east of the parish, beside the river, and around both villages. (fn. 80) Some woodland remained in Moreby park in 1972, and the Forestry Commission has managed 60 a. of woodland in Stillingfleet township and 35 a. in Kelfield since 1954. (fn. 81)

In the 19th and 20th centuries there have usually been 9-12 farmers in both Stillingfleet and Kelfield and 2-4 in Moreby, and in addition in the 20th century 5-7 market-gardeners at Kelfield. (fn. 82) Of the Kelfield farmers in 1851 3 held over 200 a., 4 held 100-199 a., and 7 held under 100 a., (fn. 83) and of those at Stillingfleet c. 1857 one held over 200 a., 6 held 100-199 a., and 4 held under 100 a. (fn. 84) In 1937 5 farmers at Stillingfleet, 7 at Kelfield, and one at Moreby held 150 a. or more. (fn. 85)

The river Ouse has long played a significant part in the economy of the parish. In 1362 two stakes in the river at Kelfield belonging to the lord of the manor and the archbishop of York, and which presumably facilitated either fishing or navigation, were said to have existed from time immemorial. (fn. 86) Fishing rights belonged to Kelfield manor in 1598. (fn. 87) A fisherman was mentioned at Stillingfleet in 1728 (fn. 88) and at Moreby in 1840. (fn. 89) In the early 19th century the lord of Kelfield manor enjoyed fishing rights in the river. (fn. 90) In 1698 the principal inhabitants of Stillingfleet were associated with a petition against the Aire and Calder Navigation Bill, which they feared would lead to the decline of river traffic on the Ouse. (fn. 91) In 1778 a landing-place in Stillingfleet lay near the mouth of the beck (fn. 92) and in 1812 another at the west end of Kelfield village. (fn. 93) In 1829 Henry Preston had a 'carriage boat' at Moreby. (fn. 94) Stillingfleet landing still existed in the mid 19th century, together with another south of Moreby Hall. (fn. 95)

Weavers were recorded at Moreby in 1394-5, (fn. 96) and a Brick Kiln close was mentioned at Moreby in 1728 (fn. 97) and at Stillingfleet in 1811. (fn. 98) A brickworks may have stood to the west of Stillingfleet village, where in 1847 two ponds and a pump were situated. (fn. 99) By 1840 there were two brickworks in Kelfield, beside the river east of the village, (fn. 1) and in 1851 one of them employed seven men. (fn. 2) Brick-making apparently ceased there between 1901 and 1905, (fn. 3) and in 1972 ponds, outbuildings, and a row of four cottages marked the sites.

There was a windmill at Stillingfleet in 1244 (fn. 4) and in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. (fn. 5) A miller was recorded in the township in 1823 (fn. 6) and in 1847 a post mill stood south of the village beside the Escrick road. (fn. 7) Milling apparently ceased in the 1870s (fn. 8) and the mill was subsequently demolished. A mill may have also stood on Mill hill, south-east of Kelfield village. (fn. 9)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

Court rolls for the manor of Stillingfleet survive for the years 1756-68 and 1772-6, call rolls for 1775-8, and surrenders and admissions for several years between 1758 and 1817. (fn. 10) The court mostly dealt with land transfers, agricultural offences, and petty misdemeanours, and the officers usually appointed were four bylawmen, two affeerors, and a constable. Court rolls for Kelfield manor in 1660-72 mention bylawmen, a constable, and a pinder. (fn. 11)

No parochial records before 1835 are known. Stillingfleet township joined York poor-law union and Kelfield Selby union in 1837. (fn. 12) Seven former parish poorhouses were sold in 1876. (fn. 13) Stillingfleet became part of Escrick rural district and Kelfield part of Riccall rural district in 1894. Both joined Derwent rural district in 1935 (fn. 14) and the Selby district of North Yorkshire in 1974.

CHURCH.

The existing fabric reveals that there was a church at Stillingfleet in the Norman period. It was first mentioned in 1244, when it was served by a vicar. (fn. 15) There was, however, also a sinecure rector, who in 1250, with archiepiscopal sanction, leased the rectory to a clerk. (fn. 16) In 1292 the vicarage was consolidated with the rectory, (fn. 17) but in 1318 the church was appropriated to St. Mary's hospital, Bootham, York, and a vicarage was ordained. (fn. 18) In 1951 the livings of Stillingfleet and Naburn were united. (fn. 19)

The patron in 1275 was Robert de Stutville (fn. 20) and in 1287 Gilbert de Luthe. (fn. 21) In 1311 Gilbert's son Nicholas quitclaimed the advowson to the dean of York, (fn. 22) who that year disputed it with Margaret, widow of Jordan Foliot. (fn. 23) The dean evidently established his right and in 1318 his successor granted the advowson to the master of St. Mary's hospital, Bootham, which he had founded. (fn. 24) It was held by the master until 1557, when it apparently passed with the rectory to the chapter of York. (fn. 25) Since 1951 the chapter and the archbishop of York, as patron of Naburn, have presented alternately. (fn. 26)

The vicarage was valued at £9 7s. 6d. net in 1535. (fn. 27) It was worth £20 in 1650. (fn. 28) In 1652 an augmentation of £50 a year was ordered to be paid out of North Cave rectory. (fn. 29) The augmentation, if it was ever paid, evidently lapsed at the Restoration. Before 1716 the income from £60 was given by Joseph Stillington to augment the benefice, and from 1716 until at least 1849 interest of £3 a year was paid to the vicar. (fn. 30) In 1734 the living was further aug mented with £200 from Queen Anne's Bounty. (fn. 31) In 1829-31 the average net income was £412 a year, (fn. 32) in 1884 £447, and in 1914 £328. (fn. 33)

Tithes provided most of the income in 1535. (fn. 34) Their payment was disputed in the 1560s, 1590s, 1602, and 1697. (fn. 35) At the inclosure of Stillingfleet in 1756 the vicar was awarded 61 a. for tithes. (fn. 36) In 1838 the vicarial tithes of Kelfield township were commuted for a rent-charge of £143, (fn. 37) and in 1842 those of Moreby for £48. (fn. 38)

At the ordination of the vicarage in 1330 the vicar was given ½ bovate of glebe at Stillingfleet. (fn. 39) In the late 17th and early 18th centuries it was said to comprise 8 a., and the vicar also had an acre of meadow land. (fn. 40) In 1734 15 a. of common land in Stillingfleet and 18 a. in Kelfield were added to the living by the parish and a year later Bounty money was used to buy 11 a. in Osgodby and 2 a. in Cliffe (both in Hemingbrough). (fn. 41) At the inclosure of 1756 the vicar was awarded 14 a. for glebe. (fn. 42) In 1920 the glebe, comprising 111 a., was sold. (fn. 43)

The house in which the vicars had lived before 1292 was assigned to the vicar in 1330. (fn. 44) A vicarage house was mentioned in 1535 and in the late 17th century. (fn. 45) In 1764 it was of brick and tile and consisted of three main ground-floor rooms, together with kitchens, and six upper rooms. (fn. 46) In 1768 it was uninhabitable, but it was repaired in 1770 and a new wing built, consisting of three rooms on the ground floor and three upstairs. (fn. 47) The house, which adjoined the church on the north, was rebuilt in the 1950s. (fn. 48) The cost of the new house was partly met from a trust fund of £10,000 set up in 1947 by Sir Owen W. Wightman for that purpose and to augment the incumbent's stipend. (fn. 49)

About 1336 Nicholas of Moreby built a chantry chapel dedicated to St. Mary in Stillingfleet church and gave property in the parish and elsewhere to support the priest, who was to reside continuously and assist the vicar. (fn. 50) In 1535 the chantry-priest had a house and ½ bovate of land worth about £4 a year. (fn. 51) In 1549 the former chantry property was granted to Thomas Gargrave and William Adam. (fn. 52) The owners of the former Acklam estate at Moreby were responsible for repairing the chantry chapel until at least 1688. (fn. 53)

Probably in the 14th century Henry of Acklam founded a chantry at the altar of St. Anne in Stillingfleet church and endowed a priest to celebrate there. In 1402 the chantry was united with one at Naburn and the priest was ordered to celebrate weekly at Naburn and only on great festivals at Stillingfleet. (fn. 54) Before 1244 1d. a year was given for a light in the church. (fn. 55) Property in Stillingfleet and Acaster Selby given for two lights was granted in 1566 to Francis Barker and Thomas Blackway. (fn. 56)

In 1527, in addition to the vicar and a chantrypriest, four parochial chaplains were recorded, each receiving between £2 and £5 6s. 8d. (fn. 57)

In 1291 the rector also held the living of Langton (Lincs.) and a canonry in Southwell minster. (fn. 58) John of Sandale, rector in 1313, held eleven other benefices and the treasurership of Lichfield cathedral. (fn. 59) In 1662 the vicar Thomas Gilbert, a Puritan, was ejected. (fn. 60) In 1757 the vicar was also schoolmaster at Acaster Selby, (fn. 61) in 1764 he was also curate of Barlby, (fn. 62) and in 1835 he was a canon of St. George's chapel, Windsor. (fn. 63) An assistant curate was employed in the early 17th century and in the 1860s and early 1870s. (fn. 64)

Two services were held each Sunday in 1743 and Holy Communion was celebrated five times a year. About 100 people were said to receive at Easter. (fn. 65) By 1764 communion was celebrated four times a year, but by 1865 monthly celebrations were held with 15-30 communicants. In 1884 there were 20 celebrations a year and in 1914 they were fortnightly. A service was held each Sunday in Kelfield school from at least 1865 until 1914. (fn. 66) In 1972 a weekly service was held at the church.

Matthew Johnson, by will dated 1849, left £50, from the interest on which 15s. was to be given to the vicar for an annual sermon on Ascension Day to the Kelfield Sunday school children, 5s. to the schoolmaster for taking them to church, and the rest to the children who attended church that day. (fn. 67) By a Scheme of 1953 the charity was applied to Stillingfleet Sunday school, that at Kelfield having closed. The endowment then amounted to £56 stock and £6 cash. (fn. 68) In 1974, when the income was £3, no sermon was given because the children attended a service for the deanery at Riccall on that day. (fn. 69)

The church of ST. HELEN is of ashlar and consists of chancel with north chapel, nave with north aisle and south chapel, and west tower. (fn. 70) The nave and chancel appear to be the full extent of the church in the later 12th century, when for its size it was notably well decorated with a carved stringcourse and a south doorway of five orders. (fn. 71) The door is decorated with ironwork which is stylistically a century earlier. (fn. 72) The north doorway was reset in the earlier 13th century when the north aisle and chapel were built. The former has an arcade of three bays, the latter one of two bays, and they may have been undivided. The tower was added at about the same time. New windows were inserted in the south and east walls of the chancel in the earlier 14th century, and the south chapel appears to be that to St. Mary which was built c. 1336. (fn. 73) The chapel has an arcade of two bays to the nave, and there may also at this time have been a porch in the angle between the chapel and the south doorway.

Bequests of about £50 were made for work in the church in 1520 (fn. 74) and this may be the date of a number of alterations, including the play of new windows in the north aisle, the removal of the chancel arch, and the addition of the upper part of the tower. The chancel was in decay in 1567 (fn. 75) and some repairs may have been carried out in the later 17th century. (fn. 76) The nave was reroofed in 1828. (fn. 77) In 1864 the vicar reported that restoration was needed, (fn. 78) and in 1877 a major restoration was carried out by C. H. Fowler. The north and east walls of the chancel aisle were rebuilt, a new Decorated-style east window inserted, and the windows in the south wall of the chancel restored. The south doorway was repaired, the gable above it rebuilt, and two twolight windows inserted over it. A doorway was inserted in the south wall of the Moreby chapel and an arch between the chancel and nave aisles and a new chancel arch built. A gallery was removed and the church reroofed and repewed. (fn. 79)

In the Moreby chapel is a knight's effigy, bearing on a shield the arms of Moreby. It apparently represents Robert of Moreby (d. c. 1337). (fn. 80) Above it is an alabaster and marble wall monument with kneeling figures of two men and two women, erected in 1613 in memory of John Acklam (d. 1611). A window in the chancel aisle has coloured glass containing the arms of Stillington impaling Bigod and an inscription recording that the glass was inserted in 1520 and renewed in 1698 by Henry Gyles of York. (fn. 81) There is a floor slab with brass inscriptions to Cuthbert Harrison of Acaster Selby (d. 1699) and his wife Lennox (d. 1658).

The font was given by Elizabeth Dure in 1832. The Moreby chapel contains two wooden screens, said to have been made from 17th-century pews and communion rails in 1877. (fn. 82)

There were three bells in 1552 and 1764 (fn. 83) and there are three still: (i) 1626; (ii) 1747, E. Seller of York; (iii) 1626. (fn. 84) The plate includes two silver cups, one made in London in 1639 and the other in Newcastle by John Langlands in 1770 and given by Grace Lawson in that year. There are two silver patens, one made in York by John Plummer in 1657 and given by Ursula Gill in 1726, and the other made in London in 1759, probably by Ebenezer Coker, and given by Grace Lawson in 1770. A flagon was made in London in 1787 and given by the vicar George Hustler in 1874. (fn. 85) The marriage and burial registers begin in 1598 and those of baptisms in 1603. They are complete except for burials in 1623-52 and all entries in 1697-9. (fn. 86)

The churchyard contains a monument to eleven members of the church choir who were drowned in 1833 when crossing the river from Acaster Selby. An additional burial ground opposite the church was consecrated in 1917. (fn. 87)

The private oratory in Kelfield manor-house (fn. 88) had apparently become known as Kelfield chapel and was used by all the inhabitants by the earlier 16th century. In the reign of Henry VIII the vicar used the income from ground called Vicar ing to provide a priest to celebrate there weekly. (fn. 89) In 1572 it was reported that the 'chapel' priest had also been supported by contributions from all the inhabitants. (fn. 90) A room in the possibly medieval Kelfield Hall was known as the 'chapel' as late as 1805. (fn. 91)

NONCONFORMITY.

In 1569 the vicar of Stillingfleet was found to be distributing seditious and papist literature. (fn. 92) Two families, the Acklams of Moreby and the Stillingtons of Kelfield, were Roman Catholics in the later 16th and early 17th centuries and six Roman Catholics were reported in 1676 and one in 1743. (fn. 93) There was one family and a single Quaker in the parish in 1743. (fn. 94)

Methodism was introduced into the parish in 1769 (fn. 95) and houses were registered for dissenting worship in 1774, 1787, 1797, 1809, 1811, and 1812, and a barn in 1813. (fn. 96) A room known as the 'chapel' in Kelfield Hall was registered in 1805. (fn. 97) The first chapel in the parish was built by the Wesleyan Methodists in Kelfield in 1815. (fn. 98) A chapel at Stillingfleet was registered in 1819 (fn. 99) and in 1884 the Wesleyans had 18 members there. (fn. 1) Both chapels were still used in 1972. The Primitive Methodists built a chapel at Kelfield in 1852 (fn. 2) but worship had ceased there by 1894. (fn. 3) It was used as a storeroom in 1972.

EDUCATION.

Children from Stillingfleet and Kelfield townships may have been taught at Acaster Selby grammar school from the 15th to the 18th centuries. (fn. 4)

In 1743 the vicar reported that £1 6s. a year had been left for teaching four children in Kelfield. (fn. 5) The donor was later said to be 'the Revd. Mr. Turey'. (fn. 6) Mary Stillingfleet, by will dated 1802, bequeathed £400, the interest to be used for teaching Kelfield children, (fn. 7) and in 1819 20 poor children were taught free and a further 20-30 paid fees. (fn. 8) The school's annual income was over £21 in 1823, (fn. 9) and in 1835 there were 30 pupils. (fn. 10)

A new school was built in 1849 (fn. 11) and in 1871 there were 46 pupils. (fn. 12) In 1880, when the average attendance was 38, most of the income came from voluntary contributions and school pence. (fn. 13) The school first received an annual government grant in 1881. (fn. 14) From 1906 until 1936 attendance varied only between 41 and 65, but in 1937 the senior children were transferred to Riccall and in 1938 there were only 26 pupils. (fn. 15) In 1951 the school was closed and the remaining pupils transferred to Riccall. (fn. 16) The school had been converted to a house by 1972.

There was a school at Stillingfleet in 1819 with 40-50 pupils, supported by subscriptions and fees. (fn. 17) In 1835 there were 70 pupils, 16 of whom were supported by subscription, 12 by assessment, and the rest by fees. (fn. 18) By 1840 the school, which still stands in the south of the village, was united with the National Society. (fn. 19) A new school was built in the centre of Stillingfleet in 1855 and in 1858 most of its income came from voluntary contributions. (fn. 20) An annual government grant was first received in 1859. (fn. 21) In 1871 there were 41 pupils (fn. 22) and in 1906 57. Thereafter until 1938 attendance varied between 29 and 60. (fn. 23) The village hall was used as a classroom in the 1950s. (fn. 24) In 1961 the senior children were transferred to Barlby secondary school (fn. 25) and in 1963 the school was closed and the remaining pupils transferred to Riccall. (fn. 26) Both buildings survived in 1972, the later one converted to a house.

In 1865 the vicar reported having taken evening classes for several years, but that attendance was irregular. (fn. 27)

CHARITIES FOR THE POOR.

Elizabeth Stott, by deed dated 1693, gave 2 a. in Stillingfleet, the rent of which was to be distributed annually in bread to the poor of the township, and ½ a. in Kelfield, the rent of which was to be equally divided between the poor of Stillingfleet and Kelfield. (fn. 28) Before 1735 Francis Wilkinson gave £8 and William Cowling £5 to the poor of Stillingfleet. In that year it was agreed that the three bequests, together with 5s. a year left by Eleanor Wray at an unknown date, should be distributed jointly. Bread worth 10d. was to be given each week and the vicar was to contribute about 15s. to make up the cost. In 1766 it was agreed that the deficiency should be met from church offerings. (fn. 29) In 1823 £4 rent from the 2 a. given by Elizabeth Stott was still distributed weekly in bread, but 16s. from the ½ a. was distributed in cash. It was reported that Wilkinson's and Cowling's gifts had apparently: been lost c. 1784. The poor of Kelfield benefited in 1823 from land worth 4s. a year given by a Mr. Newstead. (fn. 30)

Frances, dowager Lady Howard, by will proved in 1716, bequeathed money to provide coal for Escrick and other villages, including Stillingfleet. (fn. 31) After 1862 Stillingfleet received 1/7 of the income.

By a Scheme of 1971 it was provided that the income from the Poor's Land and Howard's charity should be used jointly for payments to the needy. The endowments were then 2 a. for the Poor's Land and £79 stock for Howard's charity. In 1972-3 the joint income was £6; none was distributed and there was a cash balance of £23. (fn. 32)

Stillingfleet benefited from the charity of John Hodgson for parishes in York poor-law union. (fn. 33)

Footnotes