Crowle, North Lincolnshire
Encyclopedia
Crowle is a small town
and civil parish on the Isle of Axholme
in North Lincolnshire
, England
. It lies on the Stainforth and Keadby Canal
and has a railway station. Notable buildings in the town include the parish church
, in which can be seen the Crowle Stone
runic cross shaft, and the Gothic revival
market hall.
just north of Crowle and was a busy route for shipping, including international trade.
The Archaeological evidence is sparse but increasing. Late Neolithic / Early Bronze Age flints have been found, as has Roman and Romano-British
pottery. Pieces of amphora
suggest either a higher status building or that Crowle was a trading centre.
The top of Mill Hill was used for arable farming from at least Roman times onwards. Field walking conducted between 2002 and 2004 on the east side of Mill Hill suggests that the arable farming was conducted down towards the 5 m contour. Below this point, the land was too damp and used for pasture. Below about 4 m, very little pottery was found. The land was too difficult to work until the invention of the tractor. The town had extensive fisheries.
Crowle's St. Oswald church has elements of Saxo
-Norman
design. The town seems to have been developing in the 11th century. Over the next 300 years, it grew and had a three-day fair and later acquired another taken from nearby Garthorpe
. It seems to have benefited from the growth in trade, and did not suffer too much from having a Viking army parked up-river at Adlingfleet
during the winter of 1070. Adlingfleet was left as wasteland. The surrounding marshland seems to have dried a little during the warm period around 1000AD.
The town appears to have gone into decline in the late Middle Ages
. This could be for a number of reasons. The end of the warm climatic period saw a growth in the marshland with die-back of many trees on the wetter land. Two villages to the north, Haldenby and Waterton
, were deserted in this period. Possibly the Black Death
affected the town but what was probably more important was the switch of trade patterns; the fair declined and the growth of Hull
may have done for Crowle what it was doing for Beverley
, taking its trade. Silting of the river Don was not addressed.
In the 1620s, Vermuyden drained the land, turning a productive marsh-based peasant economy into a less productive arable system. It was not until the late 18th century that the land was drained properly.
Crowle, along with the whole of the north Isle of Axholme, thrived in the 19th century. Effective drainage, the steam pump, and warping the land (controlled flooding to deposit silt and nutrients) to increase fertility, saw a massive growth in population. Census records suggest some migration from outside the region, including an Irish population.
After 1870, the town went into a sharp decline, as foreign competition in the meat and corn markets was coupled with bad harvests and animal diseases. The population fell from about 3500 to 2500 in 1890.
In recent years, the town has undergone major expansion with residential developments on Mill Hill, Wharf Road, Field Side and Godnow Road. There have also been several infill redevelopments of old farm buildings in the older part of the town.
One of its public houses, The White Hart, is the oldest in the Isle of Axholme.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
and civil parish on the Isle of Axholme
Isle of Axholme
The Isle of Axholme is part of North Lincolnshire, England. It is the only part of Lincolnshire west of the River Trent. It is between the three towns of Doncaster, Scunthorpe and Gainsborough.- Description:...
in North Lincolnshire
North Lincolnshire
North Lincolnshire is a unitary authority area in the region of Yorkshire and the Humber in England. For ceremonial purposes it is part of Lincolnshire....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It lies on the Stainforth and Keadby Canal
Stainforth and Keadby Canal
The Stainforth and Keadby Canal is a navigable canal in South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, England. It connects the River Don Navigation at Bramwith to the River Trent at Keadby, by way of Stainforth, Thorne and Ealand, near Crowle.-History:...
and has a railway station. Notable buildings in the town include the parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
, in which can be seen the Crowle Stone
Crowle Stone
The Anglo-Saxon sculpted Crowle Stone is at the back of the Church of England parish church of St Oswald at Crowle, Lincolnshire.This was originally carved as a cross shaft and until 1919 it was used as a lintel over the west door...
runic cross shaft, and the Gothic revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
market hall.
History
Crowle was one of the last largest pieces of dry land on the north of the Isle of Axholme when the area emerged from Lake Humber after the last Ice Age. The present settlement developed between Mill Hill [a mighty 18 m above sea level] and the River Don. The Don flowed into the River TrentRiver Trent
The River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls to form the Humber Estuary, which empties into the North Sea below Hull and Immingham.The Trent...
just north of Crowle and was a busy route for shipping, including international trade.
The Archaeological evidence is sparse but increasing. Late Neolithic / Early Bronze Age flints have been found, as has Roman and Romano-British
Romano-British
Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...
pottery. Pieces of amphora
Amphora
An amphora is a type of vase-shaped, usually ceramic container with two handles and a long neck narrower than the body...
suggest either a higher status building or that Crowle was a trading centre.
The top of Mill Hill was used for arable farming from at least Roman times onwards. Field walking conducted between 2002 and 2004 on the east side of Mill Hill suggests that the arable farming was conducted down towards the 5 m contour. Below this point, the land was too damp and used for pasture. Below about 4 m, very little pottery was found. The land was too difficult to work until the invention of the tractor. The town had extensive fisheries.
Crowle's St. Oswald church has elements of Saxo
Anglo-Saxon architecture
Anglo-Saxon architecture was a period in the history of architecture in England, and parts of Wales, from the mid-5th century until the Norman Conquest of 1066. Anglo-Saxon secular buildings in Britain were generally simple, constructed mainly using timber with thatch for roofing...
-Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
design. The town seems to have been developing in the 11th century. Over the next 300 years, it grew and had a three-day fair and later acquired another taken from nearby Garthorpe
Garthorpe, North Lincolnshire
Garthorpe is a village located in the Isle of Axholme, in North Lincolnshire, England. Together with Fockerby, which is contiguous with the village, Garthorpe forms a civil parish of about 500 inhabitants.- History :...
. It seems to have benefited from the growth in trade, and did not suffer too much from having a Viking army parked up-river at Adlingfleet
Adlingfleet
Adlingfleet is a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that forms part of the civil parish of Twin Rivers. It is situated approximately to the east of Goole town centre.-History:...
during the winter of 1070. Adlingfleet was left as wasteland. The surrounding marshland seems to have dried a little during the warm period around 1000AD.
The town appears to have gone into decline in the late Middle Ages
Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages was the period of European history generally comprising the 14th to the 16th century . The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern era ....
. This could be for a number of reasons. The end of the warm climatic period saw a growth in the marshland with die-back of many trees on the wetter land. Two villages to the north, Haldenby and Waterton
Waterton, Lincolnshire
Waterton is a Deserted Medieval Village on the River Trent near Garthorpe and Luddington in the Isle of Axholme, Lincolnshire, England. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book. Before the Norman Conquest it was held by one Fulcric who held one carucate of land with a hall.At the time of the Domesday...
, were deserted in this period. Possibly the Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
affected the town but what was probably more important was the switch of trade patterns; the fair declined and the growth of Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
may have done for Crowle what it was doing for Beverley
Beverley
Beverley is a market town, civil parish and the county town of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, located between the River Hull and the Westwood. The town is noted for Beverley Minster and architecturally-significant religious buildings along New Walk and other areas, as well as the Beverley...
, taking its trade. Silting of the river Don was not addressed.
In the 1620s, Vermuyden drained the land, turning a productive marsh-based peasant economy into a less productive arable system. It was not until the late 18th century that the land was drained properly.
Crowle, along with the whole of the north Isle of Axholme, thrived in the 19th century. Effective drainage, the steam pump, and warping the land (controlled flooding to deposit silt and nutrients) to increase fertility, saw a massive growth in population. Census records suggest some migration from outside the region, including an Irish population.
After 1870, the town went into a sharp decline, as foreign competition in the meat and corn markets was coupled with bad harvests and animal diseases. The population fell from about 3500 to 2500 in 1890.
In recent years, the town has undergone major expansion with residential developments on Mill Hill, Wharf Road, Field Side and Godnow Road. There have also been several infill redevelopments of old farm buildings in the older part of the town.
One of its public houses, The White Hart, is the oldest in the Isle of Axholme.