Skipton

Skipton, a market-town in the West Riding of Yorkshire, is finely situated in the broad and fertile valley of the Aire, 26 miles NW. of Leeds. The capital of Craven, it is a gray-looking place, with manufactures of cotton and woollen goods, and is an important station on the Midland line. The castle, once the chief seat of the Cliffsords (q.v.), is of two periods, the reigns of Edward II. and Henry VIII., and is partly a ruin, partly inhabited. The church has some interesting monuments; and there are also a public hall (1861), a grammar-school (1548; rebuilt in 1876-77 at a cost of £12,000), and a saline spring. Bolton Abbey (q.v.) is 6 miles distant. Pop. (1851) 4962; (1891) 10,376. See W. H. Dawson's History of Skipton (1882).