Gunnerside is a village in
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 is situated in
Swaledale, on the
B6270 road, east of
Muker and west of
Grinton. The village lies between the
River Swale
The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the River Ouse, Yorkshire, River Ouse, that empties into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. The river gives its name to Swaledale, the valley throu ...
and its tributary, Gunnerside Beck, and is within 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 ...
National Park.
History
The name of the village derives from an Old Norse personal name ''Gunnar'' and ''sætr'' meaning hill or pasture.
Gunnerside Ghyll (or Gunnerside Gill), a smaller valley running northwards, at right angles to the Swale valley (Swaledale), was the site of a major
lead
Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...
mining industry in Swaledale from the 17th century to the late 19th century. The beck that runs through the narrow valley, also called Gunnerside Gill, or Gunnerside Beck, rises between
Rogan's Seat and Water Crag, and runs for emptying into the River Swale at the site of Gunnerside New Bridge. The bridge carries the B6270 over the River Swale south of the village; it was rebuilt several times during the 19th century due to flooding. The current structure dates from around 1892 and is now grade II listed.
The area attracts many ramblers who use the foot tracks for exploring the area. Some decide to visit The Old Working Smithy & Museum, established in 1795, for a modest admission fee. The site contains historic items.
Gunnerside is served by the
Gunnerside Methodist Chapel, a part-time post office, a weekly market, a restaurant and some shops selling food items. The chapel was founded in 1789, but rebuilt in 1866. The structure is now
grade II
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
listed. A private building to the north of the crossroads in the village was the site of a medieval corn mill, and in the early 20th century, a bus garage. At the foot of Gunnerside Ghyll is the
King's Head public house
A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...
.
The village primary school is one of two sites of the
Reeth and Gunnerside Schools. At the last
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...
inspection in 2023, the primary school was rated as ''Good''.
Local employment centres on
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...
,
clockmaking,
hill farming,
gamekeeping and
construction
Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...
, the latter concerned chiefly with the maintenance of traditional stone-built field walls, houses and field barns. The latter, also known as laithes, are typically referred to as "cow'uses" or cow houses in Swaledale.
From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the district of
Richmondshire
{{Infobox settlement
, name = Richmondshire District
, type = Non-metropolitan district
, image_skyline =
, imagesize =
, image_caption =
, image_blank_emblem= Richmondshire arms.png
, blank_em ...
, 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 ...
.
Notable people
*
John Close, poet, was born in the village in 1816
File:2014 Fields Swaledale Gunnerside.jpg, Stone barns in the meadows near Gunnerside New Bridge
File:Methodist Church, Gunnerside.JPG, Methodist Chapel
File:Typical yorkshire village B 9079.jpg, Approaching Gunnerside
See also
*
Listed buildings in Melbecks
*
Operation Gunnerside
The Norwegian heavy water sabotage (; ) was a series of Allied-led efforts to halt German heavy water (deuterium) production via hydroelectric plants in Norway in World War II, Nazi Germany-occupied Norway during World War II, involving both Nor ...
, which may have got its name because the participants trained on a moor near to Gunnerside owned by
Charles Hambro.
References
Sources
*
External links
Map of the village buildingsGunnerside.info(web archive)
Gunnerside school
{{authority control
Villages in North Yorkshire
Swaledale