Some history on Atwick in the East Riding of Yorkshire

Yorkshire | Atwick

© Crown Copyright. Reproduced with kind permission of the National Library of Scotland under the Creative Commons Attribution licence.

The parish of Atwick or Attenwick lies on the coast of the German Ocean, between Skipsea and Hornsea, and contains 2,297 acres of land belonging to Thomas Bainton, Esq., of Arram Hall, Hull; George Mason Gale; Henry William Bainton; J. W. Halden; W. S. Gofton, William White; Trinity House, Hull; St. John's College, Cambridge; Thomas Etherington; and Mrs. Manghan. The soil is a strong clay, subsoil clay, and the chief crops are wheat, beans, and oats. The township is valued for rating purposes at £1,942, and the population in 1891 was 298, a decrease of 22 since 1881.

The manor is not mentioned in the Domesday Survey, but in Kirby's Inquest, about A.D. 1282, it is returned as belonging to Robert de Ros, who held it of the king in capite. Subsequently it was held by the Bulmer's, the Mauley's, the Salvaine's, the Bigod's, the Hasting's, the Ughtred's, and the Constables. The manorial rights have since been a matter of dispute, and the descent of the manor cannot consequently be traced.

The village is pleasantly situated near the sea, about two miles north of Hornsea, and 14 east by north of Beverley. The nearest railway station is Hornsea, two-and-a-half miles distant. Near the centre of the village is an ancient stone cross, raised on three steps, which is said to have been in 1786, 43 chains 61 links from the sea; in consequence of the wasting away of the cliffs, it is now [1891] less than 38 chains. This cross once bore an inscription, but it is now illegible. The Church of Saint Lawrence is a brick structure in the Early English style, and consists of chancel, nave, south porch, and a saddle back tower containing one bell, situated on the north side at the junction of the nave and chancel. The chancel fittings are of oak and pitchpine, those of the nave are deal. There are sittings for 175. The font is circular and ancient. The registers date from 1601.

The church, with one messuage, six oxgangs of land, and a toft, was given by Everard de Ros to the Priory of St. Mary, Bridlington, and it was afterwards appropriated to that convent. After the dissolution of that house, the patronage reverted to the Crown, and it is now exercised by the Lord Chancellor. The living is a discharged vicarage, net yearly value £100, including 25 acres of glebe, and held by the Rev. Edward Gordon, B.A., of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. The vicarage house is a commodious residence of white brick, built some years ago, at a cost of nearly £1,000.

There are Wesleyan and Primitive Methodist chapels in the village, built in 1821 and 1856 respectively. A School Board was formed in 1876, and the present school was erected the following year, at a cost of £707, for the accommodation of 61 children. Children under seven years of age pay 1d. per week; the fees of children over that age are paid out of the income of Fenwick's and Barton's Charity, and the surplus, if any, is accumulated for the benefit of children on coming of age. In consequence of the adoption of the Free Education Act, a new scheme has just been submitted to the Charity Commissioners by the trustees, in which it is proposed to give one-half of the income for educational purposes, and the other half to the poor.

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

Following a fall of Hornsea Cliff in April 1947 an unexploded German bomb, estimated to be between 7501b. and 1.0001b., was been discovered at the foot of the cliffs near Atwick Gap. Warnings were issued by the police for everyone to keep away until the bomb was rendered harmless. The bomb was about 5ft. 6in. on length and 18in. in diameter. Most of it was exposed, except about six inches buried in the soft clay at the bottom of the cliff. Apparently it had been completely buried, but was revealed following a fall of cliff.

Column-2

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

Formerly dedicated to Saint Peter, there was a medieval church at Atwick. Including the construction of a tower, it was restored in 1829.¹ The Church of Saint Lawrence was rebuilt to the designs of Hugh Roumieu Gough of Queen Anne's Gate in London, an architect who had already been engaged in the construction of a school in the parish.² Early English in style, the building is of red brick with a roof of red tiles. Work on the building commenced in 1875 and opened on Monday, January 29th, 1877, the Archbishop of York preaching the sermon. The incumbent at this time was the Rev. Edward Gordon.³

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

There had been an old rectory in the village but this vicarage was constructed in 1837 by the surveyor and builder, Cresser Hebb, of Leven.⁴ The house and associated farmland was sold just after the Edwardian period. Subsequent incumbents had to take up residence either in Bewholme or Hornsea. The house was vacant when the freehold was offered for auction in May 1919, the sale being held at the Victoria Hotel at Hornsea. The sale particulars revealed that the land and farm buildings were let to Charles Smith at the annual rent of £52. The auctioneers pitched the property as suitable for use as a lodging or boarding house.

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

Atwick Hall fronts Cliff Road, just to the east of The Green. In the late Victoria and Edwardian periods, the hall was home to George Mason Gale, a well-known East Yorkshire agriculturist. He was a successful breeder of hackneys, and took premier honours with his breed of hackneys at the London and County shows. It was claimed that few men were so well versed in ram breeding, and his annual sale of pedigree rams was attended by most English breeders and agents for foreign countries, the worth of his noted breed of rams being highly appreciated in South Africa and Argentina. A staunch Conservative, George Gale for many years had a seat on the East Riding County Council.⁵

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

This inter-war view shows the ancient cross, behind which was the village shop and post-office. At the turn of the 20th century, the sub-postmaster was Edward Jessop who also worked as a cordwainer. In Bulmer's directory, published in 1892, it stated that the "ancient stone cross, raised on three steps, which is said to have been in 1786, 43 chains 61 links from the sea; in consequence of the wasting away of the cliffs, is now [1891] less than 38 chains. In metric measurement this is 764.4 metres. I did a quick measurement in December 2024, and the distance was around 600 metres.

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

Column-3

© Photo taken by author on June 11th, 2023. DO NOT COPY

© Photo taken by author on June 11th, 2023. DO NOT COPY

© Photo taken by author on June 11th, 2023. DO NOT COPY

© Photo taken by author on June 11th, 2023. DO NOT COPY

Column-4

"A correspondent writes that such a thing happened at Atwick on Saturday morning the oldest inhabitants have never known to have occurred before. It was a whirlwind that passed through the village. Even the noise of its approach frightened people out of their houses. Some thought the end of the world had come. The sound it made was like rush of steam from a hundred steam engines on the point of bursting. It smashed in panels of doors, took slates from the roofs, coping-stones from the schoolhouse. Near the village cross, it threw a boy a considerable distance away, and then dashed into a plantation on the other side of the road. I shall never forget the awful sound it made in that wood. The crackling of sticks, of branches, and breaking of large trees quite in two at their thickest part was fearsome to listen to. After that it emptied a large tank of water, and took part of a stack of corn into the air with it. It was amazing to see a huge inverted cone, as it were, 20 yards across in its widest part, flying about in mid-air, and made of branches, straw, leaves, sticks - in fact, everything it could lift. After passing over Atwick, the whirlwind went in the direction of Skipsea. On the road a young lady belonging to the Post Office was knocked down, and so was old man who was breaking stones by the roadside. The whirlwind stole his hat; and, as he saw it carried up out of his sight, nothing will convince him that it is not whirling about somewhere in mid-air still, and likely to remain so, journeying round the world for ever, like a corduroy Wandering Jew."
"Whirlwind At Atwick"
Hull Daily Mail : October 15th 1896 Page 5

"Atwick feast was held on Monday, when there was a re-union of present and past residents and friends. An old former resident now residing in Lincolnshire paid his usual visit, in spite of his advanced age, he having been born at Atwick in 1826, and he was able to walk from Hornsea. The village green was occupied by the iterant showmen, who tempted the lads and lasses to invest their coppers in amusements. In the evening the annual sports provided by the Cricket Club were held in a field lent by Mr. G. M. Gale."
"Atwick Feast"
Hull Daily Mail : July 15th 1911 Page 4

---

References
1. "1857 Post Office Directory, North and East Ridings" : London : Kelly & Co.; 1857. Page 1163.
2. "Building Intelligence : Churches and Chapels" : Building News; March 19th, 1875. p.32.
3. "Opening Of The Church" : Beverley and East Riding Recorder; February 3rd, 1877. p.3.
4. "Postcards From Hull & The East Riding" : Hull Daily Mail; October 19th, 1996. p.117.
5. "Death Of Mr. G. M. Gale" : Driffield Times; April 15th, 1916. p.3.

---