Thornton-le-Clay is a village 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 ...

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 about north-east of

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

History

The village is mentioned in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

as ''Torentune'' in the ''Bulford'' hundred. There are three references in total. The first as being part of ''Fostun'' manor; secondly as part of ''Bulmer'' manor and lastly as part of the ''Bolesforde Wapentac''. The etymology of the name is Old English and means ''settlement enclosed by thorn bushes''. The suffix relates to the nature of the soil in the surrounding area.

Governance

The village lies within the Thirsk and Malton UK Parliament constituency. It is within the

Hovingham Hovingham is a large village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is on the edge of the Howardian Hills and about south of Kirkbymoorside. History The name 'Hovingham' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appe ...

Sheriff Hutton Sheriff Hutton is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It lies about north by north-east of York. History The village is mentioned twice in the Domesday Book of 1086, as ''Hotun'' in the Bulford hundred. Before the Norman i ...

electoral division of

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 ...

. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the district of

Ryedale Ryedale was a non-metropolitan district in North Yorkshire, England. It was in the Vale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by the River Derwent, Yorkshire, River Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages ...

Geography

According to the 2001 UK Census the population is 187. Of these, 157 were over sixteen years of age and 96 of them were in employment. There were 83 dwellings, of which 48 were detached. The 2011 Census showed a population of 209. Foston Primary School, built in 1844 but much improved and extended, is located on the outskirts of the village. The nearest settlements are

Foston, North Yorkshire Foston is a small village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The population of the civil parish as of the 2011 census was 263. Details are included in the civil parish of Whitwell-on-the-Hill. It is situated close to the A64 road an ...

to the east;

Bulmer, North Yorkshire Bulmer is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 174, increasing to 202 at the census 2011. The village is about south-west of Malton. History Bulmer was the seat of the ...

to the north-east;

Flaxton, North Yorkshire Flaxton is a small village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is close to the A64 between York and Malton. The village lies entirely within a Conservation Area as defined by Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas Act) ...

to the south and West Lilling to the west.

Religion

A Wesleyan Chapel was built in the village in 1822 and a Primitive Methodist Chapel was built in 1858. The Wesleyan Chapel is still in use.

Notable residents

The Rev

Sydney Smith Sydney Smith (3 June 1771 – 22 February 1845) was an English wit, writer, and Anglican cleric. Besides his energetic parochial work, he was known for his writing and philosophy, founding the ''Edinburgh Review'', lecturing at the Royal Inst ...

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of nearby Foston, lived at Thornton in the

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

which he is thought to have designed.

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in North Yorkshire Civil parishes in North Yorkshire