Rudston

The Ancient Parish of RUDSTON

[Transcribed information mainly from the early 1820s]

"RUDSTON, a parish in the wapentake of Dickering; 5 miles W. of Bridlington. The church is dedicated to All Saints (see Churches for photograph), and the living, of which the Rev. R. Metcalf is vicar, is in the patronage of the Archbishop of York. Pop. 417.

Here stands an Obelisk of great magnitude, which most probably gave name to the village. In Doomsday book it is called Rodestone; some authors have imagined that the erection may be attributed to the Romans, as several tumuli and entrenchments are visible in many parts of the Wolds. We shall make the following extract from Mr. Pegge's account of it, given in the 5th vol. of Archaeologia, when he presented an engraving of the stone to the Society of Antiquaries. "This stone stands about four yards from the north east corner of Rudston church, which is situated on a high hill. Its depth underground, is equal to its height above, as appeared from an experiment made by the late Sir William Strickland. All the four sides are a little convex, and the whole covered with moss. If, as it is there stated, the part underground be equal to that above, it is a most prodigious stone, not less than sixteen yards long; for the part above ground, measures above twenty-four feet. Mr. John Page, a master builder, says, the stone is of a very durable sort, as hard as most marble; that the breadth is 5 feet 10 inches, and the thickness, 2 feet 3 inches, and supposing it to be 28 feet above ground and as much below as above, he computes the whole weight to be, if equal to Portland stone, 46 tons. These pyramids are commonly esteemed to be Danish erections, and for my part I have always been inclined to think them funeral monuments.""

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"CAYTHORPE, (High and Low) in the parishes of Boynton and Rudston, and wapentake of Dickering; 1¾ miles E.N.E. of Rudston, 3½ miles W. of Bridlington. Population 26."

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"THORPE HALL, (the seat of the Hon. Major-Gen. Godfrey Bosville) in the township and parish of Rudston; ¾ mile E. of Rudston, 4 miles from Bridlington, 8 from Driffield and Hunmanby."