Hessle
Encyclopedia
Hessle is a town
and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire
, England
, situated 5 miles (8 km) west of Kingston upon Hull
city centre. Geographically it is part of a larger urban area which consists of the city of Kingston upon Hull, the town of Hessle and a number of other villages but is not part of the city. It is on the north bank of the Humber Estuary
where the Humber Bridge
crosses. According to the 2001 UK census
, Hessle parish had a population of 14,767.
The centre of Hessle is called "Hessle Square" or "The Square" for short. There are many shops and a small bus station - which was refitted in 2007. Hessle All Saints Church is located just off the Square. Hessle Town Hall was built in 1897 and is situated at the top of South Lane. Hessle Police Station is next door to the town hall at the top of South Lane and the corner of Ferriby Road.
The Upper School site of Hessle High School
situated on Heads Lane is centred around a building donated to the Education Authority by Algernon Barkworth, a survivor of the Titanic disaster. Its education standards remain moderate to high, with it having a Specialist Science College status and achieving some of the best results in the county. Despite having specialist Science status the school has a considerable reputation in the area for its music making. In the late 1960's and 70's a considerable number of students from the school were admitted to Music colleges and ex-students are to be found, now, in all areas of the music profession. In the 13th century Joan Stuteville from this ancient settlement introduced the custom of ladies riding side-saddle on horses.
In more modern times, it has been a centre for shipbuilding
. The largest shipbuilder, Richard Dunston's
, went into liquidation
in 1987 and was bought by Damen Shipyards Group in the same year. Dunston's was closed down in 1994. The location is now used as offices, car sales buildings and a dock for scrap metal and other materials for dispatch to other areas, or to be recycled. Richard Dunston's ship repairs still exists further east along the Humber Estuary, with activity remaining high.
Chalk-quarrying was a major industry at Hessle into the 20th century and quarries can still be seen in the west of the town, the largest being the Humber Bridge Country Park, which is a popular tourist attraction. Part of it is known as Little Switzerland (Little Switz or Switzy for short).
Hessle is twinned
with the French
town of Bourg-de-Thizy
.
Transport to and from Hessle is convenient, with good access to main roads such as the A15, A63 & M62
(via the A63). It also has a railway station
with hourly services to and from Hull
and to destinations such as Doncaster
and York
.
Hessle is at the start of the Yorkshire Wolds Way
, a long-distance footpath and designated National Trail, which crosses the Yorkshire Wolds
and ends at Filey
.
filmed the operation and broadcast some of the footage in the days after the event. They were criticised for this but responded that the victim's family had approved the broadcast. The floods caused the formation of a local residents association, HCARA (Hessle Community Action Residents Association) who worked with various bodies to campaign for improvements in defences against floods in the lower Hessle area. Alan Johnson, MP, as well as representatives of the Environment Agency, East Riding Council and the Flood Forum were among the speakers at the resident meetings. HCARA having operated to facilitate the distribution of news to Hessle residents immediately after the 2007 floods is currently dormant.
As a result of consultation with the residents, the Environment Agency promoted a flood storage scheme which was constructed in a field off Beverley Road in Hessle in 2010/11. The project known as a flood water attenuation scheme involved identifying a field immediately upstream of the urban area, this was then excavated below natural ground level to a depth of around 6 feet. A flow control structure was built on the downstream end of the watercourse and the bank of the Western Drain was lowered on the West Side.
In a very heavy storm, when the capacity of the control structure is exceeded, water overflows into the storage area. After the storm, the (stored) water returns back to the Western Drain through a small diameter land drainage pipe. The lagoon holds around 35,000 cubic metres of water.
The storage area remains dry for the majority of the time and looks from the road side to be a paddock, albeit lower than surrounding fields.
From articles in 1808 and 1836 it is clear that the Feast had become a major event bringing in people from neighbouring towns and villages. With much excitement, racing, noise and jubilee. As ever the youth made it their own. Even in the earliest reports, there are Churchwardens concerns over noisy and drunken behaviour “particularly of the young men of Hull” who visited the parish.
Resurrected around 15 years ago, after many years of absence, the Feast has again become an event of enjoyment and embraced by the whole community of Hessle.
Previous Feasts include one which occurred in July 2006. It succeeded in attracting over 5000 local residents and visitors to the area and was an entertaining day of charitable money raising, family fun and live music. The event hosted many activities such as a Battle of the Bands which took place on the main stage in Hessle Square, a 'Buskathon' centred down Prestongate and local bands centred on a smaller stage on The Weir. There was also a Boat Race around the streets of Hessle, which was eventually won by army cadets carrying an inflatable float. The event was partly funded and majorly sponsored by Kingston Communications
and Yorkshire Water
who were working in the area at the time.
Hessle Feast returned, after a 3 year absence due to the 2007 United Kingdom floods
, in 2009. It was officially opened by the then Home Secretary
, Hull West and Hessle MP, Alan Johnson
, and the Mayor of Hessle, Frank Kitchen, at 1 p.m..
The most recent Feast day was Sunday 12 July 2009 and entertained crowds over a larger area than previously to encourage more business to the less immediate areas of Hessle. In the Square, the main stage starred the Hessle's Got Talent Final and the Crave and Serenity Fashion Show. The square's stage was compared by KCFM DJ Dave Hudson. Prestongate had further stalls and barbecue
s. The Weir also had a stage with live music played all afternoon. On the Feast day, a World Record
for 'poppadom stacking' was broken on the Weir by the Indian takeaway 'Jolsha', officiated by Alan Johnson
MP. Following on from the Weir is Tower Hill Park, which was mainly occupied by the Army who had assault courses and climbing walls, which, as in previous years, focused on activities for the younger generations. The Feast also reached the area past the library, which held a 3rd stage with live local bands chosen by the Hase Pub. The Boat Race was won by the youth sports team the Norland Sharks who were the fastest at running round Hessle carrying an inflatable boat. The Hessle Feast 2009 Committee was an independent body of unpaid volunteers that organised the event in the Pubs of Hessle. The even was majorly sponsored by KCFM and Hull Colour Pages
, with the additional funding of the local town council.
The next Hessle Feast festival will take place in 2011 and is promised to be 'bigger and better than ever before'.
and Hessle Sporting, which play in the Humber Premier League
Premier Division, which sits at level 13 on the English football league system
pyramid. Both clubs also have a large section of junior teams playing in the Hull Boys Sunday Football League.
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 in the East Riding of Yorkshire
East Riding of Yorkshire
The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority...
, 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...
, situated 5 miles (8 km) west of Kingston upon 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...
city centre. Geographically it is part of a larger urban area which consists of the city of Kingston upon Hull, the town of Hessle and a number of other villages but is not part of the city. It is on the north bank of the Humber Estuary
Humber
The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal River Ouse and the tidal River Trent. From here to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between the East Riding of Yorkshire on the north bank...
where the Humber Bridge
Humber Bridge
The Humber Bridge, near Kingston upon Hull, England, is a 2,220 m single-span suspension bridge, which opened to traffic on 24 June 1981. It is the fifth-largest of its type in the world...
crosses. According to the 2001 UK census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, Hessle parish had a population of 14,767.
The centre of Hessle is called "Hessle Square" or "The Square" for short. There are many shops and a small bus station - which was refitted in 2007. Hessle All Saints Church is located just off the Square. Hessle Town Hall was built in 1897 and is situated at the top of South Lane. Hessle Police Station is next door to the town hall at the top of South Lane and the corner of Ferriby Road.
The Upper School site of Hessle High School
Hessle High School
rightHessle High School is a high school in Hessle, East Riding of Yorkshire near Hull, England.The school is split over two sites. Years 7 and 8 are located on Boothferry Road, with years 9 and above on Heads Lane....
situated on Heads Lane is centred around a building donated to the Education Authority by Algernon Barkworth, a survivor of the Titanic disaster. Its education standards remain moderate to high, with it having a Specialist Science College status and achieving some of the best results in the county. Despite having specialist Science status the school has a considerable reputation in the area for its music making. In the late 1960's and 70's a considerable number of students from the school were admitted to Music colleges and ex-students are to be found, now, in all areas of the music profession. In the 13th century Joan Stuteville from this ancient settlement introduced the custom of ladies riding side-saddle on horses.
In more modern times, it has been a centre for shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
. The largest shipbuilder, Richard Dunston's
Richard Dunston (shipbuilder)
Richard Dunston was a shipbuilder on the Humber. The company started building wooden barges miles from the sea and evolved to pioneer fully welded steel ships of a single design...
, went into liquidation
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
in 1987 and was bought by Damen Shipyards Group in the same year. Dunston's was closed down in 1994. The location is now used as offices, car sales buildings and a dock for scrap metal and other materials for dispatch to other areas, or to be recycled. Richard Dunston's ship repairs still exists further east along the Humber Estuary, with activity remaining high.
Chalk-quarrying was a major industry at Hessle into the 20th century and quarries can still be seen in the west of the town, the largest being the Humber Bridge Country Park, which is a popular tourist attraction. Part of it is known as Little Switzerland (Little Switz or Switzy for short).
Hessle is twinned
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
town of Bourg-de-Thizy
Bourg-de-Thizy
Bourg-de-Thizy is a commune of the Rhône department in eastern France.-Twin towns:Bourg-de-Thizy is twinned with the small East Yorkshire town of Hessle in the United Kingdom.-References:*...
.
Transport to and from Hessle is convenient, with good access to main roads such as the A15, A63 & M62
M62 motorway
The M62 motorway is a west–east trans-Pennine motorway in Northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull via Manchester and Leeds. The road also forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22...
(via the A63). It also has a railway station
Hessle railway station
Hessle railway station serves Hessle in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Northern Rail.This is the nearest station on the north bank of the Humber to the Humber Bridge-Services:...
with hourly services to and from 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...
and to destinations such as Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
and York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
.
Hessle is at the start of the Yorkshire Wolds Way
Yorkshire Wolds Way
The Yorkshire Wolds Way is a National Trail in Yorkshire, England. It runs 79 miles from Hessle to Filey, around the Yorkshire Wolds...
, a long-distance footpath and designated National Trail, which crosses the Yorkshire Wolds
Yorkshire Wolds
The Yorkshire Wolds are low hills in the counties of East Riding of Yorkshire and North Yorkshire in northeastern England. The name also applies to the district in which the hills lie....
and ends at Filey
Filey
Filey is a small town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It forms part of the borough of Scarborough and is located between Scarborough and Bridlington on the North Sea coast. Although it started out as a fishing village, it has a large beach and is a popular tourist resort...
.
2007 floods
On 25 June 2007, torrential rain hit the north-east of England and 100mm of rain fell in a few hours. Several people died across the affected area and the first fatality occurred in Hessle. A 28-year-old man became trapped when his foot was stuck in a storm drain. He was overwhelmed by rising water and although emergency services gave him oxygen he died of hypothermia. Sky NewsSky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
filmed the operation and broadcast some of the footage in the days after the event. They were criticised for this but responded that the victim's family had approved the broadcast. The floods caused the formation of a local residents association, HCARA (Hessle Community Action Residents Association) who worked with various bodies to campaign for improvements in defences against floods in the lower Hessle area. Alan Johnson, MP, as well as representatives of the Environment Agency, East Riding Council and the Flood Forum were among the speakers at the resident meetings. HCARA having operated to facilitate the distribution of news to Hessle residents immediately after the 2007 floods is currently dormant.
As a result of consultation with the residents, the Environment Agency promoted a flood storage scheme which was constructed in a field off Beverley Road in Hessle in 2010/11. The project known as a flood water attenuation scheme involved identifying a field immediately upstream of the urban area, this was then excavated below natural ground level to a depth of around 6 feet. A flow control structure was built on the downstream end of the watercourse and the bank of the Western Drain was lowered on the West Side.
In a very heavy storm, when the capacity of the control structure is exceeded, water overflows into the storage area. After the storm, the (stored) water returns back to the Western Drain through a small diameter land drainage pipe. The lagoon holds around 35,000 cubic metres of water.
The storage area remains dry for the majority of the time and looks from the road side to be a paddock, albeit lower than surrounding fields.
Hessle Feast
Earliest found records of the Hessle Feast date from the 1800s. These have it as an annual event around Whitsuntide (May). A time of enjoyment, when the people of the Parish would gather to celebrate the coming year.Resurrected around 15 years ago, after many years of absence, the Feast has again become an event of enjoyment and embraced by the whole community of Hessle.
Previous Feasts include one which occurred in July 2006. It succeeded in attracting over 5000 local residents and visitors to the area and was an entertaining day of charitable money raising, family fun and live music. The event hosted many activities such as a Battle of the Bands which took place on the main stage in Hessle Square, a 'Buskathon' centred down Prestongate and local bands centred on a smaller stage on The Weir. There was also a Boat Race around the streets of Hessle, which was eventually won by army cadets carrying an inflatable float. The event was partly funded and majorly sponsored by Kingston Communications
Kingston Communications
KCOM Group , formerly known as Kingston Communications, is a UK communications and IT services provider. Its headquarters is in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, where subsidiary business unit KC serves local residents and businesses with Internet and telephony services...
and Yorkshire Water
Yorkshire Water
Yorkshire Water is a water supply and treatment utility company servicing West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the East Riding of Yorkshire, part of North Lincolnshire, most of North Yorkshire and part of Derbyshire, in England. The company has its origins in the Yorkshire Water Authority, one of ten...
who were working in the area at the time.
Hessle Feast returned, after a 3 year absence due to the 2007 United Kingdom floods
2007 United Kingdom floods
The 2007 United Kingdom floods were a series of destructive floods that occurred in various areas across the country during the summer of 2007. The most severe floods occurred across Northern Ireland on 12 June; East Yorkshire and The Midlands on 15 June; Yorkshire, The Midlands, Gloucestershire,...
, in 2009. It was officially opened by the then Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, Hull West and Hessle MP, Alan Johnson
Alan Johnson
Alan Arthur Johnson is a British Labour Party politician who served as Home Secretary from June 2009 to May 2010. Before that, he filled a wide variety of cabinet positions in both the Blair and Brown governments, including Health Secretary and Education Secretary. Until 20 January 2011 he was...
, and the Mayor of Hessle, Frank Kitchen, at 1 p.m..
The most recent Feast day was Sunday 12 July 2009 and entertained crowds over a larger area than previously to encourage more business to the less immediate areas of Hessle. In the Square, the main stage starred the Hessle's Got Talent Final and the Crave and Serenity Fashion Show. The square's stage was compared by KCFM DJ Dave Hudson. Prestongate had further stalls and barbecue
Barbecue
Barbecue or barbeque , used chiefly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia is a method and apparatus for cooking meat, poultry and occasionally fish with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of...
s. The Weir also had a stage with live music played all afternoon. On the Feast day, a World Record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
for 'poppadom stacking' was broken on the Weir by the Indian takeaway 'Jolsha', officiated by Alan Johnson
Alan Johnson
Alan Arthur Johnson is a British Labour Party politician who served as Home Secretary from June 2009 to May 2010. Before that, he filled a wide variety of cabinet positions in both the Blair and Brown governments, including Health Secretary and Education Secretary. Until 20 January 2011 he was...
MP. Following on from the Weir is Tower Hill Park, which was mainly occupied by the Army who had assault courses and climbing walls, which, as in previous years, focused on activities for the younger generations. The Feast also reached the area past the library, which held a 3rd stage with live local bands chosen by the Hase Pub. The Boat Race was won by the youth sports team the Norland Sharks who were the fastest at running round Hessle carrying an inflatable boat. The Hessle Feast 2009 Committee was an independent body of unpaid volunteers that organised the event in the Pubs of Hessle. The even was majorly sponsored by KCFM and Hull Colour Pages
Hull Colour Pages
Hull Colour Pages and Hull White Pages are the Classified and Residential telephone directories provided specifically for the Kingston Communications service area. Hull Colour Pages became the UK's first classified telephone directory when it was first published in 1954 to celebrate Kingston...
, with the additional funding of the local town council.
The next Hessle Feast festival will take place in 2011 and is promised to be 'bigger and better than ever before'.
Sport
The most popular sport in Hessle is football. Hessle is home to two senior football clubs, Hessle RangersHessle Rangers F.C.
Hessle Rangers F.C. are a football club based in Hessle, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They were formed in 1976.-History:Hessle Rangers AFC was formed in February 1976 when the secretary's son was found wanting for a competitive game of football, so together with a few of his mates in...
and Hessle Sporting, which play in the Humber Premier League
Humber Premier League
The Humber Premier League was formed in 2000 and sits at the 12th tier of the English football pyramid. It began as a single division and expanded to include a Division One for the 2005-06 season. Reckitts won the league five times in the first six seasons of its existence.The league is based...
Premier Division, which sits at level 13 on the English football league system
English football league system
The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for association football clubs in England, with six teams from Wales also competing...
pyramid. Both clubs also have a large section of junior teams playing in the Hull Boys Sunday Football League.
External links
- Hessle High website
- Tranby House - Titanic survivor Algernon Barkworth's Hessle Residence
- hessleroad.com - Large online collection of undated, uncaptioned photographs of Hessle Road, between Hull and Hessle
- Aerial photograph of Hessle, centred on Hessle Square
- Hessle Feast Official Website
- Hessle Sporting Club - Official Website