Another activity that emphasised the authority of the Lord of the Manor was the perambulation of the parish boundary which was carried out for over 200 years and was led by a representative of the Lord of the Manor accompanied by all the tenants who were expected to walk or ride the boundaries of the parish and mark them with stones, trees and posts. The following report is of a perambulation that took place in 1846.
BE IT REMEMBERED that on Wednesday the third day of June 1846 we the undersigned the steward and bailiff of the Manor of Old Byland aforesaid for the purpose of perambulating the boundaries of the Manor at nine o’clock in the forenoon pursuant to public notice and advertisement in the Yorkshire Gazette, York Herald and Yorkshireman newspapers for three successive previous weeks and being attended by Mr Scott the Agent of the Lord of the Manor, the Jury of the Court, the inhabitants of Old Byland and a large concourse of people on the day and time aforesaid.
First we started from the said village green across Kirby Leys to Ludhill Gate leading to Cold Kirby and thence eastwards down Falling Slack into Nettledale to Rievaulx Bridge and the River Rye as far as the middle stream thereof and thence northwards along the said River Rye as far as the heads adjoining the Lordship of Daleside where we put down a post lettered B and W. We thence turned westward along Tenter Bank adjoining the Lordship of Murton where we found certain trees marked in ancient times as boundaries and which we re-marked and where we placed other posts marked as before.
We then proceeded up to Cadale Mill and from thence still continuing westwards up Sled Hill Slack to Silver Hill up to the High Road called Cleveland Road and upon the ancient Cam at Hambleton up to Weather Stone and then turned eastwards again as the bounder goes to Ludhill Gate where we started where we put down another marker lettered as before. In testimony whereof we have signed our names
John Haxby was Steward of the manor, Henry Scott the agent of the Lord of the Manor and Robert Freer was the bailiff of the manor. Charles Mackereth was the incumbent of Old Byland and George Scott the incumbent of Coxwold. The men marked * were Old Byland tenants and those marked † were tenants of the adjoining Manor of Scawton.
