Whitwell, North Yorkshire

This article is about the village near Catterick. For the village in between York and Malton, see Whitwell-on-the-Hill.

Whitwell is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is 6.5 miles (10.5 km) north west of the county town of Northallerton At the 2011 Census the population was less than 100. Details are included in the civil parish of Great Langton.^[2]

Whitwell
Cottage at Whitwell
Whitwell Location within North Yorkshire
Population	50 (2015)[1]
OS grid reference	SE282992
Unitary authority	North Yorkshire
Ceremonial county	North Yorkshire
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Richmond
Postcode district	DL10
Police	North Yorkshire
Fire	North Yorkshire
Ambulance	Yorkshire
UK Parliament	Richmond and Northallerton
List of places UK England Yorkshire 54.38778°N 1.56616°W / 54.38778; -1.56616

History

The etymology of the name is derived from a combination of the Old English word hwit, meaning white or infertile and the Anglian suffix of wella, meaning spring or stream. Put together they mean White spring or stream.^[3][4] It has also been known as Nether Whitwell in the Whins.^[5]

The manor was a part of the estates of William the Conqueror and later his maternal half-sibling, Robert, Count of Mortain, but the lands were transferred by escheat to Walter Espec of Helmsley who founded Kirkham priory in 1122.^[6] The manor was part of the fee of the Constables whose manor was at Constable Burton^[7] and followed that descent. Around 1240 a mesne lordship was granted to Jollan de Nevill. Other landowners included the Staveley family who claimed land in 1272, though the major landowner were the Whitwell family. At the end of the 17th century, the manor was in the hands of John Belasyse of Worlaby, whose heirs owned a quarter share of the manor thereafter.^[5][8]

Governance

The village lies within the Richmond and Northallerton UK Parliament constituency. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the district of Hambleton, it is now administered by the unitary North Yorkshire Council.

Geography

Whitwell consists of little more than a few houses and a farm. The nearest notable settlements are Scorton and North Cowton.^[9]

Demography

Population[10][1]
Year	1881	1891	1901	1911	1921	1931	1951	1961	2011	2015
Total	51	43	61	56	54	46	44	45	40[a]	50[b]

1. Estimated
2. Estimated