Scargill is a hamlet in the

Pennines The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands running between three regions of Northern England: North West England on the west, North East England and Yorkshire and the Humber on the east. Commonly ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, situated close to the River Greta. The population taken at the 2011 Census was less than 100. Details are kept in the parish of Barningham. It lies within the historic boundaries of the North Riding of Yorkshire, but along with the rest of the former

Startforth Rural District Startforth Rural District was a rural district in the North Riding of the historic county of Yorkshire in the Pennines of northern England. It was formed in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894. It constituted the part of the Teesdale Rur ...

it was transferred to County Durham for

administrative Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, administ ...

and

ceremonial A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''. Church and civil (secular ...

purposes on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

. The name Skargill derives from the old Norse and means simply the gill (small valley) of Skarri (a male personal name). Scargill is a dispersed settlement consisting of a number of farms scattered over a wide area. The centre of the village in medieval times was located around Castle farm, where the remains of Scargill Castle can still be seen. The castle is more accurately described as a fortified manor house and was occupied from at least the late 12th century. Only small fragments of the walls of this early building remain surrounded by extensive earthworks, all of which are scheduled as an ancient monument. The castle was rebuilt in the early 16th century and the gatehouse of this building still stands (Grade II* listed). After being on the English Heritage Buildings at Risk register for several years the gatehouse was restored between 1999 and 2001. It has recently been further improved and is now available as a holiday let. In 2008

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

's ''

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4, Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned online in 2022 for two episodes released on YouTube. Created by television pro ...

'' investigated the restored remains of Scargill Castle, discovered a variety of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

and

Tudor Tudor most commonly refers to: * House of Tudor, English royal house of Welsh origins ** Tudor period, a historical era in England coinciding with the rule of the Tudor dynasty Tudor may also refer to: Architecture * Tudor architecture, the fin ...

buildings. The programme of the dig was first broadcast on 11 January 2009. The small town of Scargill, in North Canterbury, New Zealand, was named by two Yorkshireman in reference to the town of Scargill, in County Durham.

References and external links

Time Team
Time Team: Scargill Castle - the Wedding Present
History

Keys to the Past: Local History - Scargill (County Durham)

The Scargill Website: The History of Scargill

Website for Scargill Castle with a downloadable history

Blog on the restoration of Scargill Castle
{{authority control Villages in County Durham