Hambleton District Council

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About the Parish  

The SMEATON WITH HORNBY PARISH COUNCIL which was founded in 1972 serves the Parishes of Little Smeaton, Great Smeaton and Hornby.

Great and Little Smeaton

Situated half way between Darlington and Northallerton these two villages stand on the route of the old Great North Road between London and Edinburgh and together have a population of approximately 300.
Listed in the Domesday Book Great Smeaton was an important coaching stage and two of the original four Inns still remain, these are the Black Bull and the Bay Horse. Many armies have passed through the villages over the years including William the Conqueror on his way north.
The Parish Church of St. Eloy's is the only church in Britain named after this Saint and stands on a site which records suggest was the original location of a Saxon Church from circa.1089.

In recent years like many other villages Great Smeaton has seen the loss of local amenities such as the Village Store, the Butcher's shop and the Post Office but there still remains the Saddlery Shop which has been run by the same family since before the second world war. Great Smeaton also has a popular Primary School which was built in 1972.

Hornby

Hornby as suggested by the name ending could have originally been a Danish settlement and is situated 1 mile to the east of Great Smeaton, the modern day Hornby village and surrounding farms has a population of approximately 140. The main feature of the village is the attractive village green which has many mature trees reputedly planted to commemorate the coronation of Queen Victoria. Located on the green is the village water pump last used in the early 1950's prior to the installation of mains water.

The popular village watering hole is the Grange Arms going back to 1860 and standing nearby is the Methodist Chapel built in 1926.