Cattal

Cattal is first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, as Catale, Catala. The name probably derives from Old English catt 'wild cat' + halh 'nook of land', referring to land in a bend of the River Nidd associated with wild cats.[2] The total tax assessed was described as quite large with a taxable value of 5 geld units. At this time the head of the manor was Aldborough. There were 2 ploughlands in the village at the time of the Domesday Book, and Osbern of Arques was both Tenant in Chief and Lord in 1086.[3]

Cattal Parish

In the 1870s Cattal was described as:

"Cattal, a township in Hunsingore parish, W. R. Yorkshire; on the river Nidd, and on the York and High Harrogate railway, 6½ miles ESE of Knaresborough. It has a station on the railway. Acres, 950. Real property, £1,891. Pop., 189. Houses, 40"[4]

Cattal also has a Roman road running through it. It provided a northward link between the road from Castleford to York via Tadcaster and the York to Aldborough road. The road approached the River Nidd from the south through the 'd' of Bridge and on to the 'Ancient Ford', this line was abandoned when the bridge was built a little upstream of the ford. The present road north from Cattal follows the Roman line, a little west of north to Providence Green and then a little east of north through Whixley, after which it meets the York-Aldborough road. The road known as Rudgate now has a brewery named after it in the nearby town on Tockwith.[5]

A graph to show the change in population of Cattal

The current population of Cattal according to the 2011 census data is 115;[1] this is a decrease in population from 1881 when the population was at its peak at 178 residents. The population decreased steadily from the early census records from 178 in 1881 to 144 residents at the turn of the century in 1901. The population increased during the next two censuses, it grew to 153 in 1911 and 155 in 1921. However population has decreased every census year since 1921 until 1961 with a large dip coming between 1951 and 1961 from 140 to 110 residents.

Chart to show age structure of Cattal in 2

Cattal has an ageing population, with the 73% of the residents of the village being aged 40 or over and having very few young dependants living in the village. With very few amenities in the village this age structure will remain as there are no pull factors for the young population to move to the village.[6]

In recent times an argument has arisen between villages in Yorkshire over who should rightfully hold the title of the geographical centre of Yorkshire. Although most recently in 2012 the prestigious title had been given to the village of Hessay five miles from Cattal, controversy still remains as to where the centre is. The Ordnance Survey used its own detailed records of the county's boundary and the help of a computer program and a field in Hessay was pinpointed as the centre point of Yorkshire. However a similar computer program used four years previous selected Cattal as the geographical centre. To make things complicated further a third village Barkston Ash also claim the honour of being the middle point in Yorkshire as they claim the Ash tree in the village is the midpoint.[7]

The mystery remains but The Victoria pub in Cattal use the idea that Cattal is the centre of Yorkshire to claim that they are the most central pub in Yorkshire.[8]

Cattal Bridge

Cattal bridge is a grade two listed structure which carries Tadcaster road over the River Nidd; the bridge was listed 30 September 1985.[9] It is one of the few crossings over the River Nidd on which Cattal is located. The bridge dates either from the 18th century[10] or around 1800 and was built on the site of a Roman river crossing. The bridge underwent a £78,000 repair project in 2011, during which careful measures were taken to maintain the original character and shape of the bridge.[11] The banks surrounding it are covered in Himalayan Balsam.[12]

Due to the village's proximity to the River Nidd it has a recent history of flooding during extreme weather. Flooding has occurred in the village most recently in 2012 with houses located near the banks of the river put on alert by the environmental agency. During the flooding in 2012 one man had to be rescued from his car near to the Cattal Bridge after the flood waters reached 4 feet (1.2 m) in depth.[13] Also during the floods two donkeys were rescued from a field in Cattal after becoming stranded after the river burst its banks. A specialist team travelled across the North of England for the rescue.[14]

In early 2019, Oakgate Homes submitted an application to Harrogate Borough Council to build a new village just north of Cattal clustered around Cattal railway station. The 4,000 home village would include two primary schools and a doctor's surgery and would be entitled Maltkiln village. Work would also be undertaken on the adjacent A59 to remove crossroads in favour of roundabouts.[15]

Media related to Cattal at Wikimedia Commons