Where In The World
is Stainforth?
Stainforth lies in the borough of Doncaster,
in South Yorkshire, England.
The very first records of Stainforth tell us of a place on the river Don
where traders could cross, hence the original name of Stonyford.
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Doncaster is seven miles to the
south of Stainforth and was once a Roman fort called Danum. The town has
been a major market town since the middle ages, and it was because of
traders traveling along the river Don and stopping at Stonyford that Stainforth
itself was granted a market charter in October of 1348. Today Doncaster
still has a thriving market.
Seven miles from Doncaster is Conisbrough, where there still stands the
remains of a castle which was built at a time when the area from Conisbrough
to Hatfield Chase was under the jurisdiction of the Earl of Warrenne.
The castle was featured in Sir Walter Scott's novel, Ivanhoe and today
has been renovated as a museum and a visitors centre.
Doncaster also has a racecourse where top horse racing meetings are held,
including the well known St. Leger Handicap.
The beginning of the last century saw Doncaster become a major industrial
town. With over a dozen coal mines scattered around it's borough, Doncaster
saw it's outlying villages swell with the influx of miners from other
areas.
The Railway Plant at Doncaster was where several of the world's most famous
railway steam engines were built; including The Flying Scotsman and The
Mallard.
Click on the thumbnail images to
enlarge them
but be sure to close them again before proceeding!
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The Dome (see the little nipple-like projection in
the picture on the left?) & The Yorkshire Outlet. Two examples of
the recent trend of moving commercial parks and leisure centres away from
the town centre.
Recently Doncaster has seen a transformation in it's town
centre, with many shops disappearing or moving to estates which lay outside
the town. Doncaster's pub culture has made it a popular place for revelers
and partygoers and many new pubs have sprung up within the town centre.
Doncaster's football team, The Rovers has been through the worst of times
over the last few years, but hopefully the future will shine brighter
for them and the year 2000 has seen a resurgence at the club.
Places to visit
Being situated more or less in the centre of England, the Doncaster area makes a good starting point or base for anyone wishing to visit the many places of interest Yorkshire has to offer.
The City of York is the most popular place for tourists. Steeped in history, York still has visible evidence of it's occupation by the Romans. The Jorvic Centre tells of the time when the Vikings settled in York, and from whence it's name became Jorvic. In the medieval days of castles and keeps, York was again an important city. The immense Minster and the keep of Clifford's Tower are excellent examples of York's medieval architecture, as indeed are it's City Walls.
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A typical York street - Clifford's Tower - York Minster
The East Coast of Yorkshire has
many attractive seaside towns, most of which are well known in their
own right. Traveling north from the shifting sands of Spurn Point Nature
Reserve at the mouth of the Humber, one passes through Withernsea, a
quiet holiday town with a beautiful sandy beach. Next stop is Hornsea,
famous for it's pottery.
After passing through Skipsea and joining the A165 you arrive at Bridlington.
This traditional fishing town has been a popular place for holiday makers
since Victorian times. The town also has a splendid harbour, protected
by a sea wall and which is a favourite place for sea anglers.
Further up the coast is Flamborough Head, well known for it's lighthouse
and RNLI Life Boat station. Between Flamborough and Reighton, the next
village northwards, is the Bempton Cliffs Bird Sanctuary. This is a
wonderful place to visit as it is the nesting site of a great variety
of sea birds, including razorbills, puffins and guillemots.
After passing through Filey, another favourite seaside holiday place
for many, we come to Scarborough. Well known world wide through the
song "Scarborough Fair", like Bridlington Scarborough has
much to offer those who wish for the traditional British seaside holiday.
After passing through the villages of Scalby Ravenscar and the picturesque
Robin Hood's Bay, the last and most northerly of Yorkshire's east coast
towns is Whitby.
Whitby is a town steeped in history and folklore. Once the town was
home to the whaling ships, and this time was well recorded by local
photographer called Sutcliffe. Examples of Sutcliffe's work can be found
in the many small museums scattered around Whitby.
Bram Stoker added further to the town's notoriety with the story of
Dracula, the blood sucking vampire. In the original tale, Dracula's
coffin was washed ashore, beneath the cliffs atop which stands Whitby's
Gothic style Abbey.
Whitby Jet is a hard shiny black stone which can be carved into ornaments
and jewelry. The jet is obtained locally and sold through many of the
town's shops.
Whitby's most famous son has to be James Cook (1728 - 79), to whom a
memorial stands above the town's distinctive walled harbour. Captain
James Cook sailed on his famous voyages of discovery
to the southernmost areas of the Pacific Ocean. During his voyages he
claimed the east coast of Australia for Britain. He also circumnavigated
New Zealand, and many islands and geographical features of The Pacific
still bear Cook's name.
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The above thumbnails link to views of Whitby Abbey.
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The next row of thumbnails link to photographs showing a view of the town from the harbour, the harbour itself and the view from the steps which lead up to the Abbey, while the thumbnail below left links to a photograph of the fishing boats in Bridlington's harbour. ( I swear, I didn't see the name on the boat until after I took the photograph!) The other two photographs below show fishing scenes from the harbour wall. (They let anyone fish there!)
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The Yorkshire Dales covers a large
area of land in northwest Yorkshire.
Anyone who has ever seen the TV series, "It shouldn't happen to
a vet" based on the book by Yorkshire based veterinarian James
Herriot will know of the natural beauty to be seen by visitors to the
area. Of the many towns and villages that are in the dales, some of
the most popular places include the ruins of Bolton Abbey. The market
town of Thirsk - which now includes the James Herriot Museum is well
worth a visit, as is The Bronte Museum in Harworth. Many of the villages
are popular purely for their beauty. Kettlewell being a fine example.
These thumbnails link to photographs that I took whilst visiting the dales and during which time the people of Kettlewell were holding a scarecrow competition.
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The Humber Bridge. The following
two thumbnails link to photographs of the Humber Bridge. This magnificent
piece of engineering and architecture links the northern bank of the
River Humber, (what used to known as Northumbria), with the south bank,
once called North Lincolnshire but now known as Humberside.
When it was first constructed, the Humber Bridge was the longest single
span suspension bridge in the world. The steel ropes were spun by a
company in Doncaster and support the massive span from two concrete
towers.
A toll is charged for using the bridge but it is estimated that the
cost of the initial outlay will never be recovered.
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The Humber Bridge
Heroes and Legends. There are many folk heroes who's names are forever connected with Yorkshire. For instance, visitors to York can see the cell where the highwayman Dick Turpin spent his last night, before facing the gallows the following morning. Dick Turpin is remembered for riding his horse, Black Bess, in an overnight gallop from London to York in an attempt to escape punishment for his crimes.
The Major Oak
Twenty two miles from Stainforth, in Sherwood Forest in the neighbouring county of Nottinghamshire, there stands an old oak tree. The tree is so old and fragile that it's boughs need to be supported by wooden props. The tree is called "The Major Oak" and is reputed to be the hideout of Robin Hood and "his band of merry men". These days the name of Robin Hood is inextricably linked with Nottinghamshire, but there is much evidence that shows he may have been a common bandit who plied his trade on the Great North Road, just outside Doncaster.