In 1250, a market charter was granted to Henry de Percy, 7th feudal baron of Topcliffe by Henry III.[3] A market square developed and the main route through the medieval town was aligned on an east–west direction, from Albert Hill, Victoria Street, High Street and Cheapside and on through Kirkgate. This road led to Giggleswick where the citizens attended the parish church.[4] The first bridge over the River Ribble was mentioned in 1498.[5]
Daniel Defoe wrote "Settle is the capital of an isolated little kingdom of its own surrounded by barren hills."[6]: p.163 Because of its remoteness Settle saw mostly local commerce.[7] The old roads were pack horse trails[6]: p.105 and drovers' roads along hilltops[8]: p.6 because the valley was soft and swampy before field drainage and the dredging of stream estuaries.[6]: p.105
In the 1700s, textile industrialists supported by traders and landowners campaigned for a turnpike to connect with growing industrial towns. The minute book for the Keighley and Kendal Turnpike Trust shows that most investors were mill owners from the Giggleswick district.[9] In 1827, the trust, having miscalculated the cost of road maintenance, was in debt by £34,000.[6]: p.172 When in 1877 the trust was terminated, the investors received on average 54% of their deposit. The investors benefited because Settle was now well connected and its cotton mills boomed. The mill owners imported coal and, like the heavy industries that exported agricultural lime and sandstone masonry, welcomed the turnpike for access via carrier waggons to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Gargrave. The first passenger stagecoach arrived in 1763. The Mail Coach was running regularly in 1786. The Union coach for passengers ran each way on alternate days in the early 1800s and daily by 1840.[8]: p.5
The "little" North Western Railway reached Giggleswick in 1847 and, in 1849, the railway company constructed Station Road from Giggleswick to Settle. In 1875, the Settle to Carlisle Railway was built and opened to goods traffic; passenger services commenced the following year when Settle railway station opened along with a goods warehouse, cattle pens, signal box and water cranes.[10]
In the late 18th century, cotton spinning became the town's main employment. Bridge End Mill was converted from corn milling to cotton spinning. John Procter operated mills at Runley and King's Mill which were taken over by his son Thomas. He built the row of workers' cottages, Procter's Row in Lower Kirkgate. In 1835, Dog Kennel Mill and Brennand's Weaving Shed, Settle had five mills employing 333 people.[11]
Before 1 April 2023, Settle was in the Settle and Ribblebank ward of Craven District Council and the Ribblesdale division of North Yorkshire County Council. Following local government reorganisation, it is now in the Settle & Penyghent division of the new North Yorkshire Council unitary authority. The division is represented by 1 Conservative Councillor.
Settle is served by a town council made up of 10 councillors. The mayor is elected annually and the current Town Mayor is Councillor Debi Rymer. The Deputy Mayor is Councillor Stephen Hogg.
Settle's market is held weekly on Tuesdays in the town-centre marketplace and in the Victoria Hall, a short distance away on Kirkgate.[21]Settle Town Hall was sold by Craven District Council to a developer in October 2011.[22] The Square is surrounded by local businesses, most of which are family-owned, with some offering items for sale unique to the Settle area. The Naked Man is believed to be the oldest cafe in the country.[23]
The Yorkshire Festival of Story[24] brings internationally known and award-winning artists to the town and has a range of paid-for and free events suitable for all age ranges. The festival attracts visitors from around the world and audiences have more than trebled in size since the first festival in 2010. The event is the largest of its kind in the North of England. The Yorkshire Festival of Story is produced by Settle Stories an arts and heritage charity based in the town.[25]
The Folly[26] is a 17th-century Grade I listed building on the main street. In 1996, the North Craven Building Preservation Trust[27] purchased part of the Folly, restored it and opened it to the public in 2001. The Folly houses the Museum of North Craven Life and hosts exhibitions during the open season. There are permanent displays, including the Settle to Carlisle Railway, Robert (Mouseman) Thompson furniture and local history. The rest of the building has been purchased by the trust. The museum is independent and run by volunteers.
The Gallery on the Green[28] is thought to be the smallest art gallery in the world: drawings, paintings, photographs and other works are housed in a former BT telephone kiosk. Gavagan Arts at Linton Court Gallery[29] is situated in a courtyard off Duke Street. The gallery presents a series of temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.
The Listening Gallery is an audio gallery in an old phone box. The gallery has changing exhibitions and is open 365 days a year and is free to enter. The box is maintained and was created by Settle Stories.[30]
The district has several caves where prehistoric remains have been found, the most notable being Victoria Cave, so-called because the inner chamber was discovered in 1837 on the day of Queen Victoria's accession. The cave is a geological SSSI and scheduled monument. Victoria Cave contained fossil remains. The earliest, at 130,000 years old, include mammoth, straight-tusked elephant, cave bear and hippopotamus, Bos primigenius, Rhinoceros leptorhinus and spotted hyenas (as a bed of hyena bones). They date to an Upper Pleistocene interglacial. After the last Ice Age the cave was used by hibernating brown bear and reindeer. Associated with the later deposits were a harpoon head carved from antler; flint implements and other ornaments. The discovery of flint is noteworthy as it is not found naturally in the area. Craven Museum & Gallery[31] in Skipton has an exhibition of items which includes a bear's skull found in one of the caves.[32]
Cultural
The composer Edward Elgar visited Settle on many occasions to visit his friend Dr Charles William Buck. There is a blue plaque at Cravendale to commemorate this.[33]
Education
Settle has two schools, with Settle Primary School[34] and Settle College.[35] Settle Middle School closed as part of the money-saving measures taken by North Yorkshire County Council.
To the west of the town is Giggleswick School, one of the principal private schools in the North of England, founded in 1512.[36]
Reverend Benjamin Waugh (1839–1908) founder of the NSPCC, commemorated by a plaque on what is now the Neil Wright Estate Agents in Settle town square[39]