# Rathmell

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Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

For people with the surname Rathmell, see [Rathmell (surname)](/source/Rathmell_(surname)).

Human settlement in England

Rathmell Rathmell Reading Room Rathmell Location within North Yorkshire OS grid reference SD804598 Civil parish Rathmell Unitary authority North Yorkshire Ceremonial county North Yorkshire Region Yorkshire and the Humber Country England Sovereign state United Kingdom Post town Settle Postcode district BD24 Police North Yorkshire Fire North Yorkshire Ambulance Yorkshire List of places UK England Yorkshire 54°02′07″N 2°18′01″W / 54.03528°N 2.30028°W / 54.03528; -2.30028

**Rathmell** is a village and [civil parish](/source/Civil_parish) in the county of [North Yorkshire](/source/North_Yorkshire), England. The population of the civil parish in the [2011 census](/source/United_Kingdom_Census_2011) was 305.[1] It is close to the [River Ribble](/source/River_Ribble) and about three miles south of [Settle](/source/Settle%2C_North_Yorkshire). Other towns and villages nearby include [Wigglesworth](/source/Wigglesworth), [Tosside](/source/Tosside), [Giggleswick](/source/Giggleswick) and [Long Preston](/source/Long_Preston).

Until 1974 it was part of the [West Riding of Yorkshire](/source/West_Riding_of_Yorkshire).[2] From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the [Craven District](/source/Craven_District), it is now administered by the unitary [North Yorkshire Council](/source/North_Yorkshire_Council).

## Origins

Signpost near the village showing directions to local communities and recording the pre-1974 location within Yorkshire West Riding

The name Rathmell comes from Old Norse *rauðr* 'red' + *melr* 'sandbank'.[3] Indeed, the area has a long history of Norse settlement.[4] Rathmell was formerly a [township](/source/Township_(England)) in the parish of Gigggleswick,[5] in 1866 Rathmell became a civil parish in its own right. On 1 April 1938 432 acres was transferred from [Gisburn Forest](/source/Gisburn_Forest).[6]

## Dissenting academy

Rathmell is the birthplace of [Richard Frankland](/source/Richard_Frankland_(tutor)) (1630–1698),[7] the [nonconformist](/source/Nonconformist_(Protestantism)) divine. He was ordained by [presbyters](/source/Presbyter) under the [Cromwellian](/source/Oliver_Cromwell) regime, but was [ejected from his ministry](/source/Great_Ejection) at the [Restoration](/source/English_Restoration). He retired home to Rathmell, where he founded a [dissenting academy](/source/Dissenting_academies), which migrated to [Manchester](/source/Manchester) after his death. This academy was the germ of the institution now known as [Harris Manchester College, Oxford](/source/Harris_Manchester_College%2C_Oxford). The location of the original Academy at Rathmell is marked by a [memorial plaque](/source/Memorial_plaque) on the end of a small terrace of cottages which still bears the name "College Fold".

## Notable people

- [Martin Kaye](/source/Martin_Kaye), resident of the village[8]

## See also

- [Listed buildings in Rathmell](/source/Listed_buildings_in_Rathmell)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2011_census_1-0)** [UK Census](/source/2011_United_Kingdom_census) (2011). ["Local Area Report – Rathmell Parish (1170216777)"](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2011_ks/report?compare=1170216777). *Nomis*. [Office for National Statistics](/source/Office_for_National_Statistics_(United_Kingdom)). Retrieved 11 April 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["History of Rathmell, in Craven and West Riding"](https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/14114). *A Vision of Britain*. Retrieved 15 April 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Rathmell Key to English Place-names"](http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Yorkshire%20WR/Rathmell). The University of Nottingham. Retrieved 8 December 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Muir, Richard (1997). *The Yorkshire Countryside*. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 115. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [1474471153](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1474471153).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["History of Rathmell, in Craven and West Riding"](https://visionofbritain.org.uk/place/14114). [A Vision of Britain through Time](/source/A_Vision_of_Britain_through_Time). Retrieved 8 December 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Relationships and changes Rathmell CP/Tn through time"](https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10465357). A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 8 December 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Stuart Handley, [Richard Frankland (1630–1698)](http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/100085), *[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography](/source/Oxford_Dictionary_of_National_Biography)*, [Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press), 2004.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Kaye, Ven. Martin"](https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/156266). *[Who's Who](/source/Who's_Who_(UK))*. A & C Black. 2007. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U156266](https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fww%2F9780199540884.013.U156266). (Subscription or [UK public library membership](https://www.ukwhoswho.com/page/subscribe#public) required.)

## Bibliography

- Edward Allen Bell, *The History of Giggleswick School 1499–1912*, Leeds: Richard Jackson, 1912.

- Harold Blaxland Atkinson, *The Giggleswick School Register 1499–1921*, Newcastle upon Tyne: [Northumberland Press](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Northumberland_Press&action=edit&redlink=1), 1922.

## External links

Media related to [Rathmell](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Rathmell) at Wikimedia Commons

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Rathmell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rathmell) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rathmell?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.