Here you can read about what makes Bugthorpe so interesting...
The information here has been compiled from various sources. These include an unpublished history of the village by Dr Ruth Beckett, two unpublished documents provided by Halifax Estates entitled ‘The Halifax Estate in Bugthorpe and Kirby Underdale’ by G.H.R. Kent and ‘A Short History of the Village of Bugthorpe and Survey with Reference to Particular Buildings’ by G. Blewett, and a book ‘I Like My Choice’ by Lord Holderness (1998). Additional sources are cited in the text.
The Name ‘Bugthorpe’
The name of the village has changed over time, being referred to as both Buchetorp and Bughetorp in the Domesday Book according to sources contributing to GENUKI. Later written records refer to Bogethorp and Bugthorp. The use of a ‘g’ became standard but in the mid-1800s, the then lord of the manor Charles Wood 2nd Viscount Halifax, adopted the name Buckthorpe. It has since reverted to Bugthorpe.
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‘Thorpe’ is derived from the norse word ‘torp’, meaning hamlet or outlying farm. The origin of the first part of the name is more controversial. In 1886, Rev. J. W. Appleford wrote ‘A Brief Account of the Parish and Church of St. Andrew, Buckthorpe’, and suggested that Buche-torp, might have been derived from ‘boc’ meaning ‘book’, as a settlement of learning, perhaps home to a community of monks. He suggested that the original Saxon name might have been corrupted to Buge-torp by Normans unable to pronounce the Saxon ‘ch’. ‘The Church of St Andrew, Bugthorpe’ by Dr R. Beckett suggests, however, that Rev. Appleford, was writing in the Victorian period when several village names were altered to sound less uncouth, and the more likely origin of the name is ‘Bugge-torp’. the farm or settlement of a man named Bug or Bugge.
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Bugthorpe through the Ages
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Archaeologists and historians have provided us with a rich picture of life in the area, from tantalising glimpses of pre-historic life derived from Bronze Age burials, to detailed written records of population, land and activities since the 1800s.
Click the links below to find out more about our history.
As the links above describe, Bugthorpe has been largely owned by the Wood Family since purchases by Sir Francis Wood 2nd Baronet in the early 1800s. With further acquisitions over the generations, this land and property now forms the Garrowby Estate within the Halifax Estates. Garrowby Estate is the home of the current Lord Halifax; Peter Wood, 3rd Earl of Halifax.
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In 1998, the late Lord Holderness, uncle of the current Lord Halifax, wrote the book ‘I Like My Choice, The Story of Garrowby’. It was published to mark the 21st birthday of Lord Irwin, son of Lord Halifax, and copies were given to tenants of the Estate. The book includes chapters about the historic owners of Garrowby back to Sir Francis Wood, tales of life in the villages of the Estate recalled by then-residents, and descriptions of the changing nature of the estate management, the shoot, hunting and the Garrowby Stud over the years.
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The links below reproduce extracts from ‘I Like My Choice’, with kind permission of Lord Halifax. The text has been digitised for this website and any errors arising from this process are the responsibility of the website managers, not the author.
