Welcome to our website
We hope you enjoy looking at our website, which we created in Autumn 2015 to provide information about the history of East Keswick, and about the East Keswick Local History Group. The website is in the course of being developed, with new content being added.
East Keswick is a village 10 miles north east of Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. Its history dates back to the Doomsday Book.
The Local History Group undertakes research into the history of East Keswick and the surrounding area. It has around 50 members and meets regularly in the village. We also have a couple of outside meetings each year. New members are always welcome.
East Keswick is a village 10 miles north east of Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. Its history dates back to the Doomsday Book.
The Local History Group undertakes research into the history of East Keswick and the surrounding area. It has around 50 members and meets regularly in the village. We also have a couple of outside meetings each year. New members are always welcome.
Armistice Day Anniversary
Please have a look at out First World War pages, which contains details of the men associated with East Keswick who died in the War.
There is a Remembrance Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church at 9.15 am on Sunday 11th November, and a civic commemoration at 12.15pm on 11th November at the War Memorial at the top of Whitegates.
Please have a look at out First World War pages, which contains details of the men associated with East Keswick who died in the War.
There is a Remembrance Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church at 9.15 am on Sunday 11th November, and a civic commemoration at 12.15pm on 11th November at the War Memorial at the top of Whitegates.
Our meetings
Anyone is welcome to attend our meetings, which are mostly free to members, and £5 to non members.
Unless otherwise stated, meetings are at 8pm in the Verity Room of East Keswick Village Hall (School Lane, East Kewsick, Leeds LS17 9DA).
Unless otherwise stated, meetings are at 8pm in the Verity Room of East Keswick Village Hall (School Lane, East Kewsick, Leeds LS17 9DA).
2018 Meeting Programme
The first meeting in 2018 is on 1st February. Andrew Brownridge, the Hotel Manager and resident historian at Hazelwood Castle will be giving a talk on "Hazelwood Castle and the ancient family Vavasour". He will be talking about the family home of the Vavasour family for almost one thousand years, whose legacy is it's survival through England's turbulent history.
Thursday 15 March - Katherine Baxter, Curator of Archaeology, Leeds Museum Service, (who spoke to us in December 2017 on the West Yorkshire Hoard) will be talking on "Skeletons - our buried bones". She will be telling us about how the Leeds Museum's exhibition of that name was put together, highlighting the local skeletons, particularly those excavated at Wattle Syke and Dalton Parlours.
Thursday 24th May: This year is the bicentenary of Humphry Repton, the English landscape designer of the eighteenth century. In a talk entitled "The Yorkshire commissions of the landscape gardener, Humphry Repton", Dr Patrick Eyres will highlight Repton’s proposals for Harewood where Capability Brown had already shaped the landscape.
Thursday 27th September: The 2018 Annual General Meeting, following which our member David Taylor will be giving a talk on the history of All Hallows Church, Bardsey.
Thursday 8th November: "Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot and the Yorkshire Connection" - a talk by Tony Morgan, a Tadcaster resident and author of two novels relating to the Gunpowder Plot.
Thursday 13th December (Christmas meeting): James Lomax will speak on "Thomas Chippendale - hero of Wharfedale" before we enjoy some seasonal nibbles and refreshments.
2018 Summer visits
Wednesday 13th June (afternoon): Visit to Ellerton Priory. Ellerton is south-east of York (about 1 hr travelling time from East Keswick). We will have a guided tour of the church at 2pm ( tea available from 1.30pm) , and an opportunity for tea and refreshments later in the afternoon. The organisers have suggested a £5 per head donation plus a contribution to the refreshments. More details will be posted nearer the date. You may also wish to look at the church website http://www.ellertonpriory.co.uk
Monday 3rd September (afternoon): Visit to Hazelwood Castle. Following our talk on Hazelwood Castle earlier this year, we have arranged a tour of the Castle followed by cream tea. Further details on timings etc to follow. The cost per head is expected to be c £12.50.
The first meeting in 2018 is on 1st February. Andrew Brownridge, the Hotel Manager and resident historian at Hazelwood Castle will be giving a talk on "Hazelwood Castle and the ancient family Vavasour". He will be talking about the family home of the Vavasour family for almost one thousand years, whose legacy is it's survival through England's turbulent history.
Thursday 15 March - Katherine Baxter, Curator of Archaeology, Leeds Museum Service, (who spoke to us in December 2017 on the West Yorkshire Hoard) will be talking on "Skeletons - our buried bones". She will be telling us about how the Leeds Museum's exhibition of that name was put together, highlighting the local skeletons, particularly those excavated at Wattle Syke and Dalton Parlours.
Thursday 24th May: This year is the bicentenary of Humphry Repton, the English landscape designer of the eighteenth century. In a talk entitled "The Yorkshire commissions of the landscape gardener, Humphry Repton", Dr Patrick Eyres will highlight Repton’s proposals for Harewood where Capability Brown had already shaped the landscape.
Thursday 27th September: The 2018 Annual General Meeting, following which our member David Taylor will be giving a talk on the history of All Hallows Church, Bardsey.
Thursday 8th November: "Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot and the Yorkshire Connection" - a talk by Tony Morgan, a Tadcaster resident and author of two novels relating to the Gunpowder Plot.
Thursday 13th December (Christmas meeting): James Lomax will speak on "Thomas Chippendale - hero of Wharfedale" before we enjoy some seasonal nibbles and refreshments.
2018 Summer visits
Wednesday 13th June (afternoon): Visit to Ellerton Priory. Ellerton is south-east of York (about 1 hr travelling time from East Keswick). We will have a guided tour of the church at 2pm ( tea available from 1.30pm) , and an opportunity for tea and refreshments later in the afternoon. The organisers have suggested a £5 per head donation plus a contribution to the refreshments. More details will be posted nearer the date. You may also wish to look at the church website http://www.ellertonpriory.co.uk
Monday 3rd September (afternoon): Visit to Hazelwood Castle. Following our talk on Hazelwood Castle earlier this year, we have arranged a tour of the Castle followed by cream tea. Further details on timings etc to follow. The cost per head is expected to be c £12.50.
2019 Meeting Programme
We are in the process of arranging the 2019 programme. Our January meeting is fixed:
Thursday 31st January: Margaret Moseley will talk about "Secrets from the Ledger" - a description of local life from the accounts kept by a 19th century Bardsey schoolmaster.
We are in the process of arranging the 2019 programme. Our January meeting is fixed:
Thursday 31st January: Margaret Moseley will talk about "Secrets from the Ledger" - a description of local life from the accounts kept by a 19th century Bardsey schoolmaster.
Membership
You don’t have to be actively involved in researching local history to become a member. If you have an interest in the history of East Keswick and the surrounding area you should find our programme interesting. For an annual subscription (currently £10) members will receive a newsletter, and entrance to most meetings will be free.
Contact Liz Parr, Secretary, email: ekhistory@gmail.com
You don’t have to be actively involved in researching local history to become a member. If you have an interest in the history of East Keswick and the surrounding area you should find our programme interesting. For an annual subscription (currently £10) members will receive a newsletter, and entrance to most meetings will be free.
Contact Liz Parr, Secretary, email: ekhistory@gmail.com