SCOUT or SCOTE HALL, Shibden near Halifax

[Anne52]

Hi, I am new to roots chat, but have been very interested in the thread which talks about scout hall. Ancestors of mine lived there for many years appearing on the 1841, 1851, 1861 and 1871 census there. The head of the family was James Freeman and he was a farmer of abut 40 acres, or so it says in the census. He was born in Northowram or Southowram depending on which census you look at. His wife was Mary Clarke. The interesting thing is that reading information about Scout Hall itself, I believe that it was owned by a family named Clarke at some time and that the Hall has connections with the silk industry. James Freeman's son Henry went to London where he was involved in the silk trade as a silk mercer in 1861 and a silk warehouseman in 1871. Now the question I have is, does anyone know of this family and whether or not they have links to the Clarke family who owned the Hall? I didn't get the impression that the family were well off, but farming 40 acres is no mean feat and he employed 2 labourers. Thanks, Anne W

[Marmaduke 123]

Hi Anne, welcome to Rootschat! Your James Freeman is the next household to my Barzilla Tempest at Scout Hall in 1861. James Freeman does seem a little different to most of the inhabitants of Scout Hall at the time, but I see from Malcolm Bull's Calderdale Companion that the Clarke family were tenants of Scout Hall, and later owners, until 1864.

I wasn't aware of the silk trade in Halifax and district, but Malcolm has some information about it, which no doubt you have seen.

Anne

[Anne52]

Thanks Anne,  I would really like to prove or otherwise the link to the Clarkes who owned Scout Hall, but at the moment have drawn a blank. I have tried IGI but at the moment all I know about Mary Clarke is that her father was called Thomas who was probably born about 1780. If anyone has any info I woujld be glad to receive it! Many thanks, Anne

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi, Anne, and welcome to Rootschat!
And very remiss of me not to have responded to your posts earlier.  This thread has been a bit on the back burner, and I must re-acquaint myself with all that's been contributed.  I don't think I made any further progress with those really early references to 1725 and even before that, but I'll get focussed on it again now.  Bit late where I am at the moment, so this will all have to be tomorrow now!
Very best wishes, keith

[Anne52]

Thanks Keith, look forward to any info you might have. Since my initial posting, I have found out that Mary Clarkes mother was also called Mary and that she married Thomas Clarke at the Square chapel in Halifax. I am beginning to think that she was not really connected to the Clarke family of Scout Hall, just wishful thinking. I have e-mailed the previous owner Paul Reid, but so far he has not replied. Anne

[Keith Sherwood]

Anne,
As far as I can see I have been unable to add anything to the entry for Scout Hall in Malcolm Bull's excellent Calderdale Companion.  The full account of my 5-times-gt-grandfather's life was given by J R Wesley Weir in the Volume 16 (2008) edition of the Transactions of the Halifax Antiquarian Society pp. 41-66.  But it's fascinating to hear the stories of descendants of other families who have been associated with the place over the centuries.  Such a pity that it appears to be now no more than a ruin - would need somebody with an interest in our heritage (and oodles of money to spend on it) to buy it and restore it to its former (rather eccentric) glory.
keith

[patkin]

My uncle, Earl Brown Hill lived at Scout Hall during the twenties and thirties. I don´t know if he was also born there. I have  a few old photos of the place which I picked up when my aunt died last year.

Russell Atkinson

[leg1ndyoll]

One of the most compact of the calendar houses was built in 1681 – Scout Hall in Yorkshire. This wonderful house – which would give Hardwick Hall a run for its money for the phrase ‘more glass than wall’ – was built for a local silk merchant, John Mitchell, by an unknown designer and includes 365 panes of glass and 52 doors.  Considering the rarity of calendar houses, it’s interesting to consider how this concept suddenly appeared over 70 years after the first and several hundred miles north.  Perhaps Mitchell’s trade had taken him south and he had been to, or heard of, Knole.  Who knows?  What we do know is that this grade-II* house has been on the ‘buildings at risk register‘ for many years and has been derelict since the 1980s.

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi, Russell (sorry it's a very belated greeting - haven't looked on here for a while ), and Leg1ndyoll, and welcome to Rootschat!
Thanks very much for that fascinating extra information on the old place.  Such a pity that it is looking so forlorn these days.  There also seem to be huge gaps in our knowledge about its past...
regards, keith