Murk Esk

  1. Home
  2. Wiki

Murk Esk
Mirk Esk
A slow-moving river fringed with trees, and the a stone abutment on the left side devoid of a span
River Murk Esk and the remains of a tramway bridge
Relief map of North Yorkshire
Relief map of North Yorkshire
Mouth of the Murk esk
EtymologyMirchesc
Location
CountyNorth Yorkshire
CountryEngland
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationBeck Hole
 • coordinates54°24′29″N 0°44′18″W / 54.4081°N 0.7383°W / 54.4081; -0.7383
Mouth 
 • location
Grosmont
 • coordinates
54°26′11″N 0°43′50″W / 54.4365°N 0.7306°W / 54.4365; -0.7306
Length5 kilometres (3 mi)
Basin size6,500 hectares (16,000 acres)
Basin features
River systemRiver Esk
EA waterbody IDGB104027068060

The Murk Esk is a small river in the North York Moors, North Yorkshire, England. It is a tributary of the River Esk, which flows into the North Sea at Whitby. Mapping shows the river starting at Beck Hole at the confluence of West Beck and Eller Beck,[i] though the watercourses in the upper reaches are sometimes labelled as being Murk Esk.

Etymology

[edit]

The name is first recorded c. 1230 as Mirchesc, and in the following years the spellings of Myrke, Mirk, and Mirke are used interchangeably.[1] It has also been written as the Muir Esk.[2] Knox suggests the name Murk comes from the dark wooded glen that the river flows through,[3] whereas Wright states that it is named after the colour of the water.[4] The name may also share a root with Knavesmire, Gormire and Ainderby Mires, being derived from the Old Norse myrr meaning marshy ground.[5]

The watercourse is sometimes labelled as a river, and at just 5 kilometres (3 mi) in length, it makes it one of the shortest named rivers in Yorkshire (the River Bain being recognised as the shortest named river within Yorkshire).[6][7]

Route

[edit]

The Murk Esk travels mostly over boulder clay from Hazel Head down to Grosmont, but the actual named river of Murk Esk, runs from Beck Hole to Grosmont and covers 5 kilometres (3 mi).[8][9] The route of the beck has been affected by glacial action; the tributary of Eller Beck travels through a rocky valley near to Darnholm, but before the action of glaciation, it took a more direct route northwards towards Grosmont instead of where it now heads west towards Beck Hole.[10] The river runs in the opposite direction (northwards) over the overflow channel from Lake Eskdale that ran southwards towards Lake Pickering; the waters now run along part of the channel to the Esk in the north.[2] The Murk Esk is formed at Beck Hole, where Eller Beck meets West Beck, though some still call the upper reaches of the tributary becks the Murk Esk.[11][12][13]

The Murk Esk is a tributary of the main River Esk,[14] but it itself has several tributaries including Eller Beck (which rises on Fylingdales Moor near to the source of the River Derwent at a height of about 830 feet (250 m) above sea level), West Beck, and Wheeldale Beck.[15][16] The Murk Esk collectively drains an area of 90 square kilometres (35 sq mi).[17][9][18][19] A significant part of the catchment is composed of woodland and moorland as well as some pastureland and a few settlements.[20] As the river passes by Beck Hole, it travels through the SSSI of Beck Hole, cited for its woodland.[21]

On Eller Beck is Thomason Foss[ii] (1-mile (1.6 km) north-west of Goathland), a waterfall which drops 4 metres (13 ft) into a pool which is surrounded by undercut sandstone walls. Above the waterfall, the beck narrows to 3 metres (9.8 ft) in width.[23][24] Mallyan Spout also lies on one of the Murk Esk's tributaries (West Beck).[25]

The footbridge and railway bridge spanning the river at Grosmont, just before the river enters the Esk, are both grade II listed structures.[26][27] The valley of the Murk Esk provided a channel through which the railway could be built connecting Whitby and Pickering in the 1830s traversing the Murk Esk, Eller Beck and the Newtondale valleys; however, traversing the Murk Esk valley required at least eight railway bridges.[28][29] In its final reach through Grosmont, the river cuts through a gorge over which the railway and footbridges cross.[30]

Industry

[edit]

A footbridge across the Murk Esk from the hamlet of Esk Valley (west bank) to Crag Cliffe (east bank) was installed in 2015. A footbridge existed here until 1935 which aided miners and quarrymen engaged in the ironstone and whinstone on the opposite side of the valley to the hamlet to bring their minerals along a tramway across the river.[31] The bridge was washed away in flooding during the 1930s.[32][33] The flooding also marooned an ancient ford in a field, and the river took a deeper course to the north of the old ford.[34]

A corn mill straddled Eller Beck (sometimes labelled as Murk Esk) near to the second railway station at Goathland; this is why, in the early days of the station's life, it was known as Goathland Mill.[12]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ This watercourse is not to be confused with Eller Beck which flows through Skipton, also in North Yorkshire.
  2. ^ Alternative spellings such as Thomassin and Thomasin also persist.[22]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Ekwall, Eilert (1928). English River-Names. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 151. OCLC 230704197.
  2. ^ a b Osborne, Roger (1999). The floating egg: episodes in the making of geology. London: Pimlico. p. 322. ISBN 0712666869.
  3. ^ Knox, Robert (1855). Descriptions, geological, topographical, and antiquarian in Eastern Yorkshire, between the rivers Humber and Tees. Scarborough: Knox. p. 79. OCLC 84580983.
  4. ^ Wright, Peter (2001). Yorkshire placenames. Skipton: Dalesman. p. 65. ISBN 1855681900.
  5. ^ Morris, R. W. (1982). Yorkshire through place names. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 115. ISBN 0715382306.
  6. ^ Watson, Keith (25 May 1995). "Grosmont Circular". The Northern Echo. p. 20 (51). ISSN 2043-0442. ...and cross the footbridge over the River Murk Esk
  7. ^ Rhea, Nicholas (4 May 1996). "Short rivals". Darlington & Stockton Times. No. 1996–18. p. 15. ISSN 2516-5348.
  8. ^ Reed 1901, p. 17.
  9. ^ a b "Murk Esk from Eller Beck to River Esk | Catchment Data Explorer | Catchment Data Explorer". environment.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  10. ^ Reed 1901, p. 91.
  11. ^ Bagshaw, Mike (2014). Slow Yorkshire Moors & Wolds : including York & the coast. Chalfont St. Peter: Bradt. p. 54. ISBN 9781841625485.
  12. ^ a b Jacobs, Liana (18 November 2023). "All Creatures Great and Small filming locations: Yorkshire Dales pubs, railway stations, estates and shops to visit for free that are featured in the popular Channel 5 and BBC adaptations - There are plenty of pubs, shops and estates you can visit for free that have been featured in the popular series All Creatures Great and Small". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  13. ^ Mills 2006, p. 115.
  14. ^ Henry 1956, p. 13.
  15. ^ Henry 1956, p. 106.
  16. ^ Reed 1901, pp. 44–45.
  17. ^ Mills 2006, pp. 6–7.
  18. ^ "Eller beck from Source to Murk Esk | Catchment Data Explorer | Catchment Data Explorer". environment.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  19. ^ "Murk Esk from Source to Wheeldale Gill | Catchment Data Explorer | Catchment Data Explorer". environment.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  20. ^ Mills 2006, p. 7.
  21. ^ "Beck Hole" (PDF). designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  22. ^ Hudson, Brian J. (2003). "Waterfall attractions in coastal tourist areas: the Yorkshire coast and Queensland's Gold Coast compared". International journal of Tourism Research. 5 (4). Bognor Regis: Wiley: 286. ISSN 1099-2340.
  23. ^ Bartholomew gazetteer of places in Britain. Edinburgh: Bartholomew. 1986. p. 240. ISBN 0702807311.
  24. ^ Fellows, Griff J. (2003). The waterfalls of England: a practical guide for visitors and walkers. Wilmslow: Sigma Leisure. p. 147. ISBN 1-85058-767-1.
  25. ^ White, Geoffrey (1983) [1974]. North York Moors Walks for Motorists (Warne Walking Guides). London: Frederick Warne. p. 52. ISBN 0-7232-2802-7.
  26. ^ Historic England. "North York Moors Railway Bridge Across the Murk Esk (Grade II) (1295689)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  27. ^ Historic England. "North York Moors Railway Footbridge Across the Murk Esk (Grade II) (1174643)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  28. ^ East, W. E. (1932). "the historical geography of the town ports and roads of Whitby". The Geographical Journal. 80 (6). London: Royal Geographical Society: 496. ISSN 0016-7398. OCLC 695467893.
  29. ^ Benham, Philip (2008). An illustrated history of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. Hersham: OPC. p. 18. ISBN 9780860936220.
  30. ^ Henry 1956, p. 113.
  31. ^ "New bridleways across North York Moors". infoweb.newsbank.com. 27 May 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  32. ^ "Gateway to the moors restored after decades". The Yorkshire Post. 9 April 2015. p. 15. ISSN 0140-0460.
  33. ^ "Bridge is launched". The Yorkshire Post. 21 May 2015. p. 6. ISSN 0140-0460.
  34. ^ "New bridge is the missing link". The Northern Echo. 22 May 2015. p. 21. ISSN 2056-4287.

Sources

[edit]
  • Henry, Frederick Denis Cameron (1956). The development of the Eskdale (North Yorkshire) drainage system in relation to the geology of the area (Thesis). Leeds: University of Leeds. OCLC 1063646760.
  • Mills, Carolyn (2006). Dynamics of fluvial fine sediment transfer in the River Esk, North Yorkshire, UK (PDF). etheses.dur.ac.uk (Thesis). Durham: University of Durham. OCLC 912900586. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  • Reed, Frederick Richard Cowper (1901). The geological history of the rivers of East Yorkshire, being the Sedgwick prize essay for the year 1900. London: C. J. Clay and Sons. OCLC 11368522.
[edit]