Place:Barwick in Elmet, West Riding of Yorkshire, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Barwick-in-Elmet (pronounced Barrick-in-Elmet) is a village in West Yorkshire, east of Leeds city centre. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Romano-British kingdom of Elmet, the others being Scholes-in-Elmet and Sherburn-in-Elmet.

The village is part of the civil parish of Barwick in Elmet and Scholes and sits in the Harewood ward of Leeds City Council.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Earthworks, including a mound and ditch, comprise part of a large Iron Age fort centred on Wendel Hill, near the village. The site was used later for a Norman motte-and-bailey castle and a Second World War observation post. The land is currently under joint ownership, held as a trust (formed in 1996) for the benefit of the community.

An ancient British kingdom named Elmet (Welsh Elfed) included the area. Some scholars believe that the capital of the kingdom was at or close to Barwick.

There is reference to an agricultural settlement in the Domesday Book of 1086. From a taxation survey, it is known that in 1379 there were 197 adults living in about 100 households.

It is believed that William of Orange spent some time in this area leaving behind claims to his offspring, There are still settlers in the village to this day bearing the associated relevant names "Orange and Wilson (Wills son)"

For some time the Manor of Barwick and Scholes was in the ownership of the Gascoigne family of Parlington and Lotherton.

In 1720, the first known school in Barwick in Elmet opened. Morwick Hall was built in the mid to late 18th century for Edward Gray, who was Lord Mayor of Leeds in 1749 and 1768.

By 1821, the parish had a population of 1,481.

The Cross Gates to Wetherby railway line opened in 1874, with a station in nearby Scholes, enabling residents to commute to Leeds city centre. This service remained running until 1965, when the line closed under the Beeching Axe.

Throughout the 20th century, the village grew with many modern houses being built in and around the village by both private developers and the local corporations. During this period many of the older cottages in the village centre were converted into shops and other small business premises.

For much of its history, the village supported a mainly agricultural community. From the late 17th century until the early 20th century many residents were employed in the local mining industry in Garforth, Cross Gates and Whitkirk. Today, whilst still having a rural agricultural feel, the village supports many trades as well as housing for people who work in Leeds and York.

Maypole

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

One of the most notable village landmarks is the wooden maypole high that stands at the junction of Main Street and the Cross, this means that the maypole in Barwick is the second tallest in the UK. The maypole festival (held on Spring Bank Holiday) typically brings large crowds to the area. Every three years, the maypole is lowered, inspected, maintained and re-erected. The festival celebrations include a procession (involving floats decorated by local organisations), children's maypole dancing, morris dancing, a street craft market, the raising of the maypole ceremony and the maypole queen. Traditionally the maypole was lowered and raised manually using an intricate system of ropes and ladders. Although methods have changed in recent years, the maypole is still carried by hand from Hall Tower Hill to the heart of the village. During the raising ceremony, it is tradition for a local villager to climb halfway up the pole to disconnect the guide ropes. The climber is then spurred on by a large crowd to climb all the way to the top of the pole, to spin 'the fox' weather vane (a custom thought to bring good luck to the village). The festival takes place every 3 years, the most recent one being 29 May 2017. The date of the next rise was going to be 25 May 2020 but had to be postponed twice due to coronavirus and will now be taking place on 2 June 2022.

Beside the maypole is what appears to be an old village cross, which is actually a memorial to the dead of the First World War, carved in the old fashioned style.^[1]

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