Church Fenton, United Kingdom

History

The name 'Church Fenton' means a village with a church in fen or marshland. The village was recorded along with nearby Little Fenton as Fentun in the Domesday Book of 1086, with no mention of a church. However in 1338 the establishment of church was signified by the name Kirk Fenton. The two names have been variously used to describe either the village or a parish including the hamlets of Little Fenton to the south and Biggin to the south-east.

The area was agricultural with some quarry work until the arrival of the Leeds and Selby Railway in 1839, resulting in the development of local industry, including a brickworks and tileworks.

There was also a gas holder and tank works in the 1920s. Further lines to Harrogate, Leeds and York followed, so that at one point there were three stations. All but one were demolished in the 1990s. A row of terraced houses is called Chicory Row indicating the crop which was grown, boiled and bottled locally at one time.

In 1936 RAF Church Fenton was built as a fighter base and took part in the defence of northern cities and the east coast during the Second World War. Later it was used as a pilot training base.

It was historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire until 1974, but is now in the county of North Yorkshire. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the Selby District, it is now administered by the unitary North Yorkshire Council.

From the History section of Church Fenton on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.