Filey: A History of The Town and its People

By W.M.Rhodes

Filey is known as ‘The Unspoilt Hidden Gem of The Yorkshire Coast’ with its glorious wide golden beach, elegant Victorian houses and well-kept gardens, but what were Filey’s origins? Unlike the neighbouring town of Scarborough, Filey was mentioned in the Domesday Book ‘as a very small village occupied by less than fifty people, and that Filey was worth a reasonable income, with access to good quality timber which was ideal for construction.’ So, were these people Filey’s oldest residents?

Filey a History of The Town and its People, traces the history of the town from Roman times through time. It tells the history of the town’s churches and the influence that the Methodist had on the community. The book also warns of the dangers of the sea, and its treacherous tides, and recalls stories of many people who have lost their lives to the sea over the years. It also recalls the story of The Bonhomme Richard and its notorious Captain John Paul Jones. The book is illustrated with over one hundred photographs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: W.M.Rhodes
• Release date: Sep 26, 2017
• ISBN: 9780995775213

Book preview

Filey: A History of The Town and its People

W.M.Rhodes

Published by W.M.Rhodes, 2017.

While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

FILEY: A HISTORY OF THE TOWN AND ITS PEOPLE

First edition. September 26, 2017.

Copyright © 2017 W.M.Rhodes.

ISBN: 978-0995775213

Written by W.M.Rhodes.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Contents

Contents

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1  Filey’s Roman Presence......  ..........................................  3

Chapter 2  Domesday and Early Settlement........................................... 6..

Chapter 3  Filey-Possible origins of its name.......................................... 8.

Chapter 4  The Gristhorpe Man.........................................................9

Chapter 5  Filey Enclosure...............................................................11

Chapter 6  Filey Brigg (and its dangers)-Spittal Rocks & The Spa Well.......... ...14.

Chapter 7  John Paul Jones & The Battle of The Bonhomme Richard...............28

Chapter 8  Filey Harbour of Refuge..................................................... 45

Chapter 9  Filey’s Churches...............................................................50

Chapter 10  The Local Workhouse.........................................................70

Chapter 11  Filey Builds a new Sea Wall...................................................72

Chapter 12  Changing Street Names & Demolished ‘Yards and Rents.’................76

Chapter 13  The Fishing Industry..........................................................80

Chapter 14  Fishing Disasters...............................................................84

Chapter 15  Filey Lifeboat...................................................................87

Chapter 16  Filey Railway......................................................................92

Chapter 17  Education........................................................................94

Chapter 18  Filey’s Prominent Buildings.....................................................98

Chapter 19  Filey’s Public Houses. (Past & Present) ............................... 114

Chapter 20  Flying..................................................................139....

Chapter 21  Accidents and Murders..........................................................142

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my appreciation to Stephen Eblet, Joanne Cammish., Marilyn Briggs, Ian Nisbet, Richard Emmett, and all the people who contribute to the wonderful Facebook group Photos of Filey Old and New. Thank you for allowing me to reproduce some of your photographs for this book. Also, thank you to Filey Museum which has been a source of fact and inspiration.

Thank you to my editor Maureen Vincent-Northam, and Jeannie Williams for proof reading.

To my husband, Paul, and children Kristian, Becky & Zoe, and all my grandchildren.

Finally, special thanks to Mr Thomas Newlove-Thank you for being you- You are the life and soul of the community.

Wendy M Rhodes

Filey 2017.

Filey A History of the Town and its People

Filey’s Roman Presence

Arguably, one of the most significant events that happened in Britain is the Roman invasion. For over 400 years (and still evident today) the Romans have influenced our language, culture, architecture and geography. Prior to the Roman occupation, Britain had a diminished sense of identity. People tended to be insular and stayed close to their own local tribes. After the Roman invasion people were aware that their national mythology had been defined, and every person in the land was mindful of their ‘Britishness’. In addition, the Welsh were conscious that they were Britain’s natural heirs. Whereas the Scots and the Irish were equally proud that they had not been conquered and occupied by the Romans.

To administer their people, the Romans built towns, and connected these towns by building roads. These roads were built on foundations of clay, chalk and gravel, flat stones were then laid on top. The road sloped in the middle to ditches at either side to allow rainwater to drain. Roads were built as straight as possible to enable their soldiers to travel as quickly as they could, and to ensure there were no enemies hiding in any winding unseen areas. The roads were so well built that many of them can still be seen today.

In Yorkshire, the main Roman town was Eboracum (York as we know it today). Malton was a Roman garrison named Derventio, which was a town of great importance and a base for troops who could easily be deployed if required. To protect themselves from land invasion, the Romans built walls around their cities, preventing fierce barbarian attacks from tribes such as The Huns from Mongolia and Germanic Tribes from the Danube River. To protect their towns for an invasion by sea, early warning look-out stations were built along the coast. These stations could signal each other and alert any sign of danger.

For many years, renowned archaeologists have written articles and journals to try to prove that Filey Bay was the Portus Felix, or Sinus Salutaris of the Romans, and that Flamborough Head the Ocellum Promontorium. However, these are theories that continue to be debated. Further speculation remains that Filey was the territorial home to one of the Celtic Parisi tribes (there were four in the North). The Parisi were a small group of people who farmed the chalk hills of Yorkshire and who also traded by boat, most probably a longboat. As a tribe, the Parisi were not as powerful as their neighbours the Brigantes, but were ahead in culture and taught their unrefined neighbours about style, and culinary matters. The Parisi were known to live in British style houses with ornaments and pottery.

The Parisi were originally from Gaul and shared their name with the people who lived in France around the area we know today as Paris. Despite being responsible for the name of the French capital, it is not clear if they shared any other links with the French. This tribe were distinctive, as unlike many others living in Britain between 300 and100 B.C., the Parisi buried their dead under small barrows that were surrounded by small ditches. Some nobles were buried with their chariots, which is the ‘Arras’ culture and a similar style to that of the French and Germans. Another burial style involved a dead person being laid to rest in a grave and a fine sword placed alongside him, while three spears were then thrust into his chest. These unusual burial rituals ceased around 43-45AD. It appears that the Parisi were an ununiformed tribe, who along with their neighbours the Brigantes did not defend themselves against the arrival of the Romans.

We do know that Filey was occupied by the Romans during their invasion. In October1857, following weeks of severe rain a landslip occurred on Carr Naze; three hundred yards from ‘The Summer House’ (once an attraction of the ‘Spa Well’ on Carr Naze in the mid-nineteenth century) and close to the second flight of steps beyond Agony Point, a painter named Mr Jeffrey Wilson discovered the remains of a Roman Fort. Here, he uncovered large stones with tooled surfaces set in mortar. This walled area was rectangular and about 60 feet long by 25 feet wide, with one door opening to the land.

Within these walls were five shaft base stones, one with a carving of a deer and calf, arranged as the corners of a square measuring about 17 feet with one stone in the centre. It is generally accepted that these stones would have formed the bases for pillars on which rested a superstructure. Most probably, there was a raised platform which supported a lighted beacon. Conceivably, the beacon’s attendant and his family lived nearby to light the beacon when required, and keep it bright and strong to carry a signal north and south to warn the ancient mariner of the rocks, and to welcome back the midnight wanderer.

On discovery, it appeared that the structure had been severely damaged, and then set on fire, suggesting that it had been overwhelmed by raiders, presumably from the sea. These five stones are on display in The Crescent Gardens. All clear indications that a Roman township existed in the area. The following year, Rev. Richard Burke, the then owner of Carr Naze, allowed local antiquarian Dr William Cortis to excavate his land. To the south-eastward of the Spa Well he unearthed a variety of Roman remains such as coins, vases, animal bones, charred wood, and traces of masonry.

In 1893, Mr Robert M Robson writes in the Journal of the Society of Architects, of the discovery of oak posts off Filey Brigg. Messrs R &W Cappleman, who had seen three of the stumps, they showed Mr Robson their location, where they found not three, but nine oak posts. Extensive theodolite readings were recorded, which suggested that the posts were the remains of a landing stage used by the Romans when Filey was one of their landing stations. He also implies that there is other evidence pointing to this such as The Roman Roads, the Spittal Rocks, The Fess Rocks, The Quay Rocks, and the artificially flattened surface of the Binks on the north side of the bay. However, despite these findings, to date there is no definite confirmation that this did in fact exist.

Roman stones in Crescent Gardens.

*

Domesday and Early Settlement

The earliest documented evidence of Filey comes from The Domesday Book, which was compiled in 1068 CE on the instructions of William the Conqueror primarily for tax purposes. This review was known as the ‘great survey of England’ and determined how much land and livestock each of the counties’ landowners owned, how much it was worth, and how much tax they should pay. These records show that at the end of the Viking period Filey is recorded for the first time as a very small village occupied by less than fifty people. It states that Filey was worth a reasonable income, with access to good quality timber which was ideal for construction.

It is impossible to know just how old Filey is. It may have been founded between 878 and 1080 or possibly earlier. It is known that the Danes settled in the North between 878-1080. Therefore, it could be that Filey was founded by the Danes who originally came to England as Vikings. However, at this time Filey was basically one large farm, and the name Filey itself suggests that it had more of an Anglican influence rather than a Danish one, as generally farms founded by Danes usually ended with the suffix ‘by’ such as Whitby or Selby. So, this could mean that the Danes did not have the influence in Filey as first thought. However, this is not conclusive. Interestingly, we can detect a strong Scandinavian influence in the dialect of many Filey people, for instance, in terms such as ‘garth’ meaning garden, ‘-uh-wand’ as an expression of surprise or ‘where-be-or-zit’ meaning who or where do you come from? It could be that the Danish Vikings figure more in the ancestry of Filey than we first thought. Furthermore, we can certainly see the Norse influence in the fishing cobles used by the Filey fishermen who adopted the Danish skill of boatbuilding by using the boat building skill of the ‘clinker’ method and overlapping planks of