Great Barugh: there's new life in the old place

It means rise of land, and can be traced back to the German origins of Anglo-Saxon language, where it would have started out as Berg.

I'm sure there were many practical reasons why Great Barugh and its smaller neighbour Little Barugh were founded a on hill and a slightly smaller hill respectively.

However, as you approach them today, climbing through countryside, and see the panoramic views their positions afford, you can't help but be impressed with the sheer beauty, and the good fortune of the present residents.

Comprising one street, Great Barugh peaks at the top of the hill, where the pub sits on one side and a big old farmhouse on the other side. It swoops downhill towards a plane of fields dotted with farm buildings.

Little Barugh has just a smattering of houses and holiday cottages.

Unlike many Ryedale villages, Great Barugh is not in mourning for the loss of local amenities like a shop, post office or village hall. It never had any to start with!

For many, many years, the village's only real focal point has been the pub, the Golden Lion, which it remains today.

Three years ago, Chris Gossop and Sam Hosking took over as landlord and landlady, and they are already well immersed in village life.

Since they arrived, they have knocked through to make a large dining room so that big events and functions are now possible. And they have certainly been making the most of it.

St George's Day, Yorkshire Day, Trafalgar Day - you name it, they've celebrated it. They also do theme nights, including Italian and Greek, and tonight (Wednesday) they are serving a special Valentine's Day menu.

Many of their events raise money for charity - the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and St Catherine's Hospice are the main beneficiaries.

"People are very generous, and these are two charities that people give real support to in the village, " said Sam.

Trafalgar Day raised a whopping £802 for the air ambulance.

The pub itself dates back to 1632, and was originally three separate buildings - a pub, a butcher's and a tannery.

Experienced publicans, when they bought the place three years ago they decided not to go down the gastro-pub route. "We're surrounded by them here, " said Sam. "So we decided to go down the route of providing good quality pub food, large portions, good value, and remain a traditional village pub, " said Sam.

Just near the pub lives Elizabeth Hallett, a busy woman who looks after a 14-month toddler James, an eightweek-old baby Sarah and 12 cats.

The cats aren't hers though, they're on their holidays at Liz's business, Barn Cats cattery.

"We fell in love with the house first and foremost, " said Liz, who lives with her partner, Paul, an engineer. "I was pregnant with James when we were looking around, so the business was a bonus because it was something I could do that would easily fit around parenthood.

"It's a very quiet village, but very friendly too, " she said. "People know who you are before you've even moved in!"

A close neighbour, Claire Walker, has also just had a baby, Charlotte, a matter of weeks ago - so there are two new residents under two months old in Great Barugh.

She and her husband Lee have live in the village for 15 years, and like it so much that they are buying the house next door to accommodate their growing family.

"I had my little boy Thomas three-and-a-half years ago, and our house has only two bedrooms, so when Charlotte came along and the house next door came up for sale, which is three bedroom, we felt we were so lucky because we could move there and stay in the village, " she said.

Down the hill live some rather more established members of the community.

Phyllis Houlston has lived in the village since 1944, when she married her husband Walter, a farmer, who died three years ago.

She is delighted that some new young families have arrived. Phyllis remembers when there was a butcher's shop in the village, where her mother-in-law used to get her meat for the week.

"I was an old-fashioned farmer's wife, taking tea out to the men during harvest, and I had the poultry to dress for Christmas, " she said.

Opposite Phyllis live Ron and Joyce Ellis, who have also lived in the village all their married life.

"It used to be a lot smaller, " said Ron. "There were only about 18 houses and now there are about 30."

"When my children were growing up we still had a church and a chapel, " said Joyce. "But they have both been converted into houses now."

Ron used to play cricket for Brawby, and still goes to watch the team occasionally, and Joyce was in Brawby WI.

Ron, who served in Greece during the Second World War, was a farm worker and then a lorry driver.

Down at the bottom of the hill, in the converted Methodist Chapel, live Brian and Margaret Dalby. They moved to the village in 1978.

"It doesn't have a lot in terms of amenities but it is a wonderful place to live because there are such nice people, " said Ron.