Abstract
MR. BERNARD HOBSON had a difficult task to describe, the West Riding of Yorkshire owing to the wealth ] of the material. The term “Riding” means one-third, so that the area dealt with is only one-third of the county of Yorkshire; but as it includes the densely populated coalfield to the south and the limestone moors to the north-west, it contains areas of special importance and interest. Mr. Hobson has not only ficompiled an instructive summary of the geography, geology, and history of the West Riding, but has also presented it in a form interesting throughout. The most important geographical feature of the area is the Pennine Range, forming its western highlands, which is unique in England from the extent of its subterranean river system. The industrial districts include many important cities; the author's account of Sheffield is of especial interest. The history of man in the area dates from Neolithic times, for Mr. Hobson tells us that no undoubted trace of Palaeolithic man has yet been found, though abundant remains occur only three miles from the Yorkshire border. The area is especially rich in archaeological and historical monuments. In the chapter on the architecture it is remarked that the professional architect arose in the period of James I., before which building had been in the hands of the builder and the craftsman. Apparently, therefore, the end of the great age of building in England synchronises with the rise of the professional architect.
The West Riding of Yorkshire.
Bernard
Hobson
By. Pp. xii + 188. (Cambridge: At the University Press, 1921.) 3s. 6d. net.
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The West Riding of Yorkshire . Nature 111, 180 (1923). https://doi.org/10.1038/111180c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/111180c0