In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Hatfield like this:
HATFIELD, a village, a township, and a parish, in Thorne district, W. R. Yorkshire. The village stands near the Keadby canal and the river Don, 2¼ miles SE of Stainforth r. station, and 3 SSW of Thorne; is a seat of petty sessions; and has a post office‡ under Doncaster, and tliree good inns. ...
The township contains also the hamlets of Bearswood Green, Duiiscroft, Gatewood, Highhouse. Acres, 16, 203. Realproperty, £15, 522. Pop., 1,813. Houses, 431. The parish contains also the township of Stainforth; and comprises 21, 150 acres. Real property, £20, 619. Pop., 2, 567. Houses, 633. The property is much subdivided. The manor belongs to H.M. Ingram, Esq. The old manor house was the birth place of William de Hatfield, the second son of Edward III. Some vestiges of Roman entrenchments are near the village. A bloody victory over Edwin, king of Northumbria, was obtained on Hatfield heath, in 633, by Caedwalla, king of the Britons, and Penda, king of Mercia; and relics found on the battle-field, are preserved in the church. IIatfield chase, partly within the parish, but comprehending about 180, 000 acres, was a mixture of marsh and lake, almost impassable; and was bouglit, in the time of Charles I., by SirVermuyden, and reclaimed at a cost of £400, 000. A hermitage, in the centre of th chase, was inhabited by William of Lindholme, a noted giant and recluse; remained till 1747; and was succeeded by a farm-house. Innumerable oak trees, and some skeletons of deer, have been found in the chase. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of York. Value, £170.* Patron, the Hon. H. A. Coventry. The church is of the time of Henry III., in tolerable condition; consiST.s of nave, aisles, transept, and chancel, with lofty central tower; and contains an ancient font. There are a chapel of ease in Stainforth, an Independent chapel in Hatfield, Wesleyan and Primitive Methodist chapels in Hatfield, Stainforth, and Woodhouse, and a Unitarian chapel in Stainforth. There are also two national schools.
Hatfield through time
Hatfield is now part of Doncaster district. Click here for graphs and data of how Doncaster has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Hatfield itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Hatfield, in Doncaster and West Riding | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/12855
Date accessed: 05th November 2024
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