Freda of Wensleydale and the Fairy Well

 The Fairy Well is located in a field on the west side of Harmby village, 1 mile to the south-east of Leyburn in Wensleydale.

 A strong spring emerges on a grassy hillside in the field, with the water flowing into an old metal trough. Tumbled dry-stone walling partly surrounds the trough, while an old Hawthorn tree over hangs the well - a 'Fairy Thorn' perhaps ?

 We first visited the Fairy Well over 30 years ago with Edna Whelan and Ian Taylor, who were researching for their book Yorkshire Holy Wells and Sacred Springs (1989). This was in the days BC (before computers) when research involved reading books, visiting libraries, and contacting people for information. Edna had spoken to a local lady called Freda White who had grown up in Harmby, and knew the history and folklore of the well - even having written a song about it.

Roseberry Topping - Odin vs Saint Oswald?

 A previous post noted that the impressive peak of Roseberry Topping seems to have been regarded as a holy hill in the past.

 Anciently known as Othenesberg or Odin's Hill, this dedication, along with the possible lost shrine altars at Airy Holme, and a nearby placename suggesting a Danelaw Thing gathering location, could point to the hill being one of the main Anglo-Scandinavian religious sites in the region. The hill's dedication to Odin and the old religion, might also explain the later reference to a hermitage being located on the hill top. Perhaps the past history of the hill warranted the presence and prayers of a holy man, and yet a hermitage could also be seen as providing a continuity of religious practice on the hill.