Otley, Yorkshire Genealogy

England Yorkshire Yorkshire Parishes K-R  West Riding  Otley

Parish History
OTLEY (All Saints),  a market-town and parish, partly in the Upper division of the wapentake of Skyrack, and partly in the Upper division of that of Claro, W. riding of York, 28 miles (W. by S.) from York, 10 (N. W. by N.) from Leeds, 10 (N. by E.) from Bradford, and 196 (N. N. W.) from London; containing 11,143 inhabitants, of whom 3445 are in the town. This place,in the Domesday survey Othelia, is supposed to have derived the name from Othe or Otho, its Saxon proprietor. It formed the principal portion of an extensive manor or liberty, which was granted by Athelstan to the see of York. The archbishops had a residence here, and their successors to this day are lords of the manor and liberty, for which they held courts of quarter-session in the town by magistrates nominated by themselves, though appointed by the royal commission, till, by the act 6th and 7th of William IV., cap. 87, the criminal jurisdiction within the liberty was transferred from the archbishop to the lord lieutenant of the West riding. The episcopal palace was situated on the north side of the town, and the site is now occupied by the Manor House, in the erection of which the strong foundations of the ancient structure were discovered.

The town is seated in the beautifully picturesque vale of the Wharfe, and on the south bank of the river, over which is a neat bridge of seven arches; it is small, but well built, and partially lighted with gas, and, from its situation between the precipitous heights of Otley Chevin and Newall Carr, has a very romantic appearance. A new road from Leeds, avoiding the steep ascent of the Chevin, was completed in 1841, which forms a good line of approach in that direction; and the York and Lancaster, and Manchester and Harrogate roads pass through Otley. The river abounds with smelts, eels, grayling, and trout; and occasionally salmon are taken in it, near the town. In the immediate neighbourhood are several gentlemen's seats, which add much to the beauty of the scenery; the principal are Farnley Hall, Newall Hall, Denton Park, Middleton Lodge, Ashfield House, Westborn Lodge, and Weston Hall, the last the property of a descendant of the ancient family of Vavasour who came from Normandy with William I. The woollen manufacture was anciently carried on to avery considerable extent in the town; 500 of the inhabitants are now employed in two worsted-mills, one paper-mill, and other mills. The market is on Friday, and is well supplied with corn, fat calves, butter, and eggs; a large market for cattle and sheep is held every alternate Friday. A large fair for cattle takes place on the first Monday after the 3rd of August, which is also the feast fair; and there are fairs for spring cattle onthe Wednesday in Easter-week, and two alternate Wednesdays following, and on the Wednesday in Whitsunweek: statute-fairs are held on the Fridays before and after Old Martinmas-day. Quarter-sessions for the liberty, which comprises thirteen townships, are regularly held; petty-sessions are held on the first Friday in every month. The powers of the county debt-court of Otley, established in 1847, extend over the registration district of Otley.

The parish comprises the chapelries of Baildon, Bramhope, Burley, Denton, and Farnley, and the townships of Esholt, Hawksworth, Lindley, Menstone, Newall with Clifton, Otley, Poole, and Little Timble. It contains byc omputation 23,060 acres, of which 3000 are moorland,including part of Romald's Moor, and abounding with stone. The township consists of about 2310 acres, and is principally pasturage, with 150 acres of arable, and150 of wood. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 1. 8.; net income, £160; patron, the Crown; impropriators, F. H. Fawkes Esq., Mrs. Oliver, and Mrs. Ray. The church is a spacious cruciform structure, erected in the Norman style, but has undergone so many alterations and repairs, that little of its original character remains, except the north doorway, which has a fine arch; it contains monuments to the families of Fairfax, Fawkes, Vavasour, and others. At Baildon, Bramhope, Burley, Denton, Farnley, and Poole, are separate incumbencies. There are places of worship for the Society of Friends, Independents, Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists, and Methodists of the New Connexion. The free grammar school was founded by Thos. Cave, who in 1602 bequeathed £250 for its endowment; it was established by James I., and styled in honour of the then Prince of Wales, "The GrammarSchool of Prince Henry." The property belonging tothe school consists of twelve acres of land, producing £26. 13. per annum; the school room was lately enlarged at an expense of £400, and is a neat building in the Elizabethan style, also used as a court-house. There was formerly an hospital for lepers. Lord Fairfax, the parliamentary general, was born at Denton Park.

From: Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 486-491. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51196 Date accessed: 22 September 2011.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes.

This ancient parish (AP) was created before 1813. Church of England records began in 1562.

Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, nonconformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Census records
Contributor: Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Yorkshire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Contributor: Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above. [[Category:West_Riding_of_Yorkshire_Parishes|Otley]