Quernhow, which has also been spelled Whernhowe and Whernou means mill-hill, the first element deriving from the Old Norsekvern meaning a mill stone.[4] How or Howe, deriving from the Old Norse word haugr meaning a hill, is a common element in Yorkshire place name.[5] In this instance, the Quernhow in question is a small hillock on a road that was the dividing line between the parishes of Ainderby and Middleton Quernhow.[6]
The settlement is mentioned in the Domesday Book[7] as being a manor of 5 carucates, once held by Tor, but by 1086 was in the possession of Count Alan. It passed through several families (de Middleton, de Scrope, best and Herbert) before the manor house was left to ruin sometime in the early 18th century.[8] The manor house is known as The Old Hall and is now a grade II listed building[9] but has been listed as being in poor condition and under threat and is listed on English Heritage's Buildings at Risk Register.[10] One of the former occupants of The Old hall, Thomas Best, was a Member of Parliament for Ripon in the early 17th century.[11]
The housing in the village is mostly former estate cottages tied to the manor house. The surrounding area is grassland and is in use for arable farming.[12]
As there is no school in the village, primary school children are taken by a free bus to Pickhill Primary School on the other side of the A1(M).[13] Secondary education for children from the area is at Thirsk School.[14]
Gallery
Sunset at the Old Hall, Middleton Quernhow
A windmill driving a waterpump near Middleton Quernhow
^Chrystal, Paul (2017). The Place Names of Yorkshire; Cities, Towns, Villages, Rivers and Dales, some Pubs too, in Praise of Yorkshire Ales (1 ed.). Catrine: Stenlake. p. 9. ISBN9781840337532.
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