Skipsea
| Skipsea | |
| Yorkshire East Riding | |
|---|---|
 Bridlington Road, Skipsea | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TA168550 |
| Location: | 53°58’42"N, 0°13’13"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 693 (2011) |
| Post town: | Driffield |
| Postcode: | YO25 |
| Dialling code: | 01262 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | East Riding of Yorkshire |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
East Yorkshire |
Skipsea is a village on the North Sea coast of the East Riding of Yorkshire. It is situated approximately ten miles south of Bridlington and six miles north of Hornsea, on the B1242 road at its junction with the B1249 road.
The civil parish, including two hamlets as Skipsea Brough and Dringhoe, was recorded at the 2011 census with a population of 693.
The parish church, All Saints, is a Grade I listed building.[1]
Just to the west of the village, in Skipsea Brough, stand the remains of Skipsea Castle. Built in 1086, the motte-and-bailey style castle has since been destroyed; however impressive earthworks remain. The coast near Skipsea, a mile to the east, is the fastest eroding coastline in northern Europe.[2]
History
The first recorded appearance of the name Skipsea is in the 12th century and the name is of Scandinavian origin, but the actual town-site has been in use much longer.[3]
The name 'Skipsea' appear to be the Norse for 'Ship Lake"; possibly "a lake navigable by ships".[3] This name refers to the village's original location on the edge of a lake, which was suitable for navigation and eel-fishing, that was slightly inland from the sea. This land has since been lost because of erosion, making Skipsea a seaside Village.[3] There is evidence of habitation dating back to the Stone and Bronze Ages because of the 19th century archaeological discovery of platforms, presumably for huts.[3]
The borough of Skipsea Castle was first recorded between 1160 and 1175 and may have been founded by William le Gros, Count of Aumale, who died in 1179.
By the end of the 11th century, both Skipsea Castle and a church had been built, which encouraged the growth of a small town.[3] In the following 13th and 14th centuries, local markets and fairs were granted "variously for Skipsea town, Skipsea manor, and Skipsea Brough manor, presumably all the same and possibly by then meaning Skipsea village".[3]
The village was proposed as a possible site for nuclear testing in the 1950s: the scientists at Aldermaston relented after strong opposition by the local community.[4][5][6]
The Royal Observer Corps used Skipsea as a site for a Cold War observation post. The site was active from October 1959 until its decommissioning in September 1991. The site lay derelict until it was restored by an enthusiast in October 2008.
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Skipsea) |
References
- ↑ National Heritage List 1083824: Church of All Saints (Grade I listing)
- ↑ Halliday, Josh (18 January 2020). "'It's a monster': the Skipsea homes falling into the North Sea". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/18/its-a-monster-the-skipsea-homes-falling-into-the-north-sea.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 A History of the County of York: East Riding - Volume 7 pp 374-405: North Division: Skipsea (Victoria County History)
- ↑ "QI + DND=UK". Best Western. 26 May 2011. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110613212817/http://blog.bestwestern.co.uk/business-traveller/qi-dnd-uk. Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ↑ "Skipsea Tourist Information". http://www.aboutbritain.com/towns/skipsea.asp. Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ↑ Newton, Grace (23 April 2018). "The Yorkshire village that nearly became a nuclear bomb testing site". The Yorkshire Post. https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/the-yorkshire-village-that-nearly-became-a-nuclear-bomb-testing-site-1-9131261. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
- Gazetteer — A–Z of Towns Villages and Hamlets. East Riding of Yorkshire Council. 2006. p. 10.
