Colsterdale is the valley of the River Burn, a tributary of the

River Ure The River Ure in North Yorkshire, England, is about long from its source to the point where it becomes the River Ouse. It is the principal river of Wensleydale, which is the only major dale now named after a village rather than its river. ...

, in the

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales are a series of valleys, or Dale (landform), dales, in the Pennines, an Highland, upland range in England. They are mostly located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, but extend into C ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, England. It gives its name to a hamlet and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the upper part of the dale, about west of

Masham Masham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 1,205 at the 2011 census. The town is located northwest of York and was in the former Borough of Harrogate, Harrogate ...

. The population of the civil parish was estimated at 20 in 2010. The lower part of the dale around the hamlet of

Gollinglith Foot Gollinglith Foot (), historically also spelt Gownley Foot, is a hamlet in the civil parish of Healey in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Burn near the foot of Colsterdale. It takes its name from the moorland ridge ...

is in the civil parish of Healey. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the

Borough of Harrogate The Borough of Harrogate was a local government district with borough status in North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Harrogate, but it also included surrounding settlements, including the cathedral ...

, it is now administered by the unitary

North Yorkshire Council North Yorkshire Council, known between 1974 and 2023 as North Yorkshire County Council, is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire, England. Since 2023 the council has been a unitary authority, being a county coun ...

Although Colsterdale is not in

Nidderdale Nidderdale, historically also known as Netherdale, is one of the Yorkshire Dales (although outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park) in North Yorkshire, England. It is the upper valley of the River Nidd, which flows east from its source, the ...

, it lies within the

Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty The Nidderdale National Landscape is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in North Yorkshire, England, bordering the Yorkshire Dales National Park to the east and south. It comprises most of Nidderdale itself, part of lower Wharfedale, the Wa ...

. Colsterdale is part of the privately owned

Swinton Estate The Swinton Estate is a large privately owned Estate (land), estate in North Yorkshire, England. It comprises some of countryside in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, extending west from the River Ure near Masham. The estate ...

. The Colsterdale towers are towers built between 1895 and 1911 to conduct surveys.

History

The name, first recorded in 1281, means "coalman valley". There was a coal mine here in the 14th century. Colsterdale was historically divided between the parishes of

East Witton East Witton is a village and civil parish in Wensleydale in North Yorkshire, England. It lies south of Leyburn. The western part of the parish is in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and most of the eastern part is in the Nidderdale Nation ...

and Masham in the

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire was a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point was at Mickle Fell at . From the Restoration it was used as a lieutenancy area, having b ...

. The upper part of the inhabited dale, above Gollinglith Foot, was a

detached part An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

of the parish of East Witton (from 1866 a detached part of the civil parish of East Witton Without), but in 1886 was transferred to the civil parish of

Healey with Sutton Healey may refer to: People * Chadwyck-Healey baronets, an English baronetcy seated in Surrey * Healey (surname), people with the surname Healey * Healey Willan (1880-1968), Anglo-Canadian composer Places in England * Healey, Greater Manchester ...

, and in 1894 was created a separate civil parish. In 1934 of the uninhabited Masham Moor (including the uninhabited part of Colsterdale), an area common to the parishes of Masham and East Witton, was added to the civil parish of Colsterdale. The lower part of the dale became part of the civil parish of Healey with Sutton (known as Healey from 1934) in 1866. Pal_memorial

During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Colsterdale was the site of a training camp for the Leeds Pals. There is now a memorial to the Leeds Pals in the dale, erected in 1935. The camp later became a

Prisoner of War camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured as prisoners of war by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, ...

for German Officers. The parish now shares a

grouped parish council A parish council is a civil local authority found in England, which is the lowest tier of local government. Parish councils are elected corporate bodies, with variable tax raising powers, and they carry out beneficial public activities in geogr ...

, known as Fearby, Healey and District Parish Council, with

Ellingstring Ellingstring is a village and civil parish in Wensleydale in North Yorkshire, England, about south-east of Leyburn, and north of Masham. Historically it was in the wapentake of Hang East. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the Borough of Harroga ...

Fearby Fearby is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is located in the valley of the River Burn west of Masham. Nearby settlements include Healey, High Ellington and Swinton. The population of the parish was estimated at 13 ...

, Healey and

Ilton cum Pott Ilton-cum-Pott is a civil parish in North Yorkshire, in England. The hamlets of Ilton and Pott first became associated in the late Medieval period, when both became possessions of Fountains Abbey. Both lay within the parish of Masham, and despi ...

References

External links

Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire Yorkshire Dales {{NorthYorkshire-geo-stub