Felliscliffe

History

Felliscliffe was historically a township in the ancient parish of Hampsthwaite in the West Riding of Yorkshire, first mentioned in the Domesday Book as Felgesclif, apparently from an Old Danish personal name Felagh.

The township served Fountains Abbey with flax, with monastery paths leading along Tang Beck, a tributary of the River Nidd, still in existence. Traces of Iron Age and Roman settlements have been discovered in the parish, indicating that it has been inhabited continuously for several millennia.

In 1866 Felliscliffe became a separate civil parish. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the Borough of Harrogate, it is now administered by the unitary North Yorkshire Council.

Location

The parish is west of Harrogate. It includes part of the US intelligence-gathering base at RAF Menwith Hill. Kettlesing Felliscliffe Community Primary School is in Kettlesing.

The parish skyline, on the ridge to the south of the A59, is now dominated by the eight 58 m wind turbine towers of the Knabs Ridge Wind Farm.

Notable residents

John Farrah owned two farms at Felliscliffe before he died in 1907.

References

References

1. "Felliscliffe Parish".
2. [http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_page.jsp?u_id=10430914#tab02 Vision of Britain: Hampsthwaite]
3. (2 November 1086). "Catalogue description Place name: Felliscliffe, Yorkshire Folio: 300r Great Domesday Book Domesday...".
4. Smith, A. H.. (1961). "The Place-names of the West Riding of Yorkshire". Cambridge University Press.
5. "Archaeological Sites in Kettlesing, North Yorkshire, (SE 22 56)".
6. {{cite vob. link
7. "Contact Details". Kettlesing Felliscliffe Community Primary School.
8. "Knabs Ridge Wind Farm".
9. (2017). "Innogy investigates cause of Yorkshire wind turbine blaze". The Telegraph.
10. (December 1907). "In memoriam: John Farrah, F.R.S., F.R.Met.S (1849-1907)". A. Brown & Sons.