Skipton-in-Craven: The Genesis of the Modern Town, 1865–1914

Abstract

The catalyst for Skipton’s urban growth during the formative period of the modern town was investment linked to organizational change in cotton textiles, in the aftermath of the Cotton Famine. Railway investment also played an important part. Net in-migration, and internal redistribution of population necessitated by the extension of the central business district, were accommodated by speculative house-building to form colonies which were either aligned with or removed from the main factory sites. This gave rise to a distinctive pattern of social and spatial segregation, governed by the need for factories to have access to water for steam raising and condensing. The spatial development of Skipton after 1865 accords with well-established models of urban growth, as modified to fit the circumstances of a small textile town, and the study challenges the oral tradition that urban growth was constrained by the restrictive land policies of the Skipton Castle estate. It also challenges some traditional views about the location of steam-powered factories, the siting of middle-class suburbs, journey to work patterns, and the flight to the suburbs.

Keywords:

• urban growth
• modern town
• cotton textile industry
• textile colony
• steam power

Acknowledgements

I am most grateful to Dr George Sheeran of Bradford University, to the staff of North Yorkshire County Record Office in Northallerton and North Yorkshire County Library in Skipton, and also to an anonymous referee.