Sessay
| Sessay | |
|---|---|
 Sessay, North Yorkshire |
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 Sessay
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| Sessay shown within North Yorkshire | |
| Population | 320 |
| OS grid reference | SE455756 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | YORK |
| Postcode district | YO7 |
| Police | North Yorkshire |
| Fire | North Yorkshire |
| Ambulance | Yorkshire |
| EU Parliament | Yorkshire and the Humber |
| UK Parliament | |
Sessay is a small, linear village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately 4 miles (6 km) south-east from Thirsk, and 2 miles (3 km) west from the A19 road close to the East Coast Main Line.
The civil parish also includes the village of Little Sessay, where the parish church and school are located. In 2013 the population of the civil parish was estimated at 320. The 2001 UK Census recorded the population as 311 of which 266 were over sixteen years old. There were 130 dwellings of which 90 were detached.
The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book as "Sezai" in the wapentake of Gerlestre (from the mid-12th century known as Birdforth). It later became a detached part of the wapentake of Allertonshire. At the time of the Norman invasion, the manor was the possession of the Bishop of Durham and St Cuthbert's Church, Durham. The manor became a Mesne lordship and was held after the Norman invasion first by the Percy family and then by the Darrell family from the end of the 12th century to the late 15th century. When the family line of succession ended, it passed by marriage to the Dawnay family in 1525. One descendant, John Dawnay was made Viscount Downe in 1680. The family still hold the manor.
A railway station was opened at Sessay by the Great North of England Railway in 1841. It closed in 1958.
The topynomy is a combination of the Old English word secg meaning sedge and the Anglian word ēg meaning island or dry ground surrounded by marsh. Therefore, it is literally Sedge island.
According to legend, Sessay was once the home of a giant which was slain by a knight named Sir Guy Dawnay.
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Wikipedia