Yorkshire Maypoles No.4 LONG PRESTON MAYPOLE
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Yorkshire Maypoles
No.4 LONG PRESTON MAYPOLE
Barwicker No 30
July 1993
Barwick motorists will perhaps recognise Long Preston as a
village on the A65 between Skipton and Settle, a place to hurry
through as they travel from West Yorkshire to the Lake District. A
short pause there, however, reveals a most attractive settlement of
stone houses and neat gardens, with a sequestered parish church
dating back to the 12th. century. In the centre of the village is
a large triangular green, flanked with mature lime and sycamore
trees, with a war memorial and - a maypole.
The pole is modest by Barwick standards, standing about 25
feet high, painted white and set in wooden upright supports. It
has a set of small hooks where ribbons can be attached and above
these is an elaborate 'crown' of eight garland hooks.
There is no doubting the longevity at' the Long Preston maypole.
Running along one side of the green is the Maypole Inn which, with
its impressive array of hand-pulled ales, is well worth a visit. A
list of past landlords is displayed, the earliest dating back to
1695. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, the name was
changed to the Eagle Hotel, then to the Maypole Hotel and now it
has reverted to its original name of Maypole Inn.
A photograph, preserved in the village and dated 1885, shows a
plain maypole in the same spot. In the inn is a photograph of the
pole ill 1911, bedecked with bunting and a flag, perhaps to
celebrate the coronation 01' George V. The area around it was
referred to in the village as 'The Concrete' and was the site of
weekly cattle and sheep sales and twice-yearly fairs in March and
November. The present-day inhabitants cannot remember a maypole
on the site nor any may time celebrations prior to 1970.
Then, 23 years ago, a small committee of Long Preston
Villagers, supported by local businesses, raised sufficient money to
have 'The Concrete' removed and the whole area grassed over to
make the attractive scene of today. An inhabitant of the village
persuaded a local brewery to supply the village with a maypole and
the then tenant of the Maypole Hotel to stand the cost of the iron
crown. This was made by a local firm to a traditional design and
the maypole was erected on the site.
Each year a May Queen is chosen for a day of festivities on
the Hrst Saturday after the Cup Final. As at Barwick, she is
drawn around the village, with her attendants, in a decorated float
and then crowned. Each metal-framed garland or 'bell' is
decorated, using strips of coloured cloth, by the members of the
women's organisations in the village, sometimes including their own
insignia into the design. These are hung on the maypole, which can
easily be lowered and raised as it pivots on wooden supports.
A trained team of girls from the local junior school plait the
maypole and have become so expert that they were asked to dance
before the Queen at the Great Yorkshire Show in Jubilee Year, 1977.
Not to be outdone, the boys from the school have formed their own
Morris dancing team , which performs at the maypole ceremony. The
1990 event celebrated 20 years at' the ceremony and was attended by
most of the past may queens.
It is clear that the maypole ceremonies at Long Preston, as at
Barwick, have made a considerable contribution to Village life and
have drawn together many strands of local activity. 'We wish the
Long Preaston maypole committee continued success in preserving
this custom.
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