1739 - Winter into 1740 was long and severe. Rivers iced up with damage to shipping.

1740 - John Hall of Skelton Castle married Ann Stevenson, the daughter of Ambrose Stevenson of Lanchester, Co Durham. Ann's dowry was £25,000. [£2.4 million at 2002 values]. John Hall added Stevenson to his own name. Laurence Sterne, who had become vicar of Coxwold, officiated at the ceremony. Hall-Stevenson, clearly spoilt by privilege, later bemoaned this marriage in a letter to his son:-
These advantages [of going up to Jesus College, Cambridge and meeting influential people] were lost to me and blasted by premature marriage ;the scantiness of my fortune forced me to vegetate in the country, and precluded me from every laudable pursuit suggested by ambition."

1744 - Rogues, Vagabonds, and other Idle and Disorderly Persons Act prescribed punishment of up to one month in the "House of Correction" for those who abandoned their wives and children to the support of the Parish, lived idly and refused work or begged alms. A reward of five shillings could be paid to any person apprehending an offender. The Act also prescribed punishments for confidence tricksters and other deceivers. The justices were empowered to impress incorrigible rogues into naval or military service.

1745 - The Jacobite Rebellion. The grandson of James II, "Bonnie Prince Charlie", came over from France, where the Stuarts had been in exile since 1688. He raised an Army of some 5,000 men in Scotland, defeated a smaller English force at Prestonpans and advanced into England with the intention of taking back the throne.
On the 4th December they reached as far as Derby and there was panic in London. News of a large English army heading towards them caused a retreat. The "rebels" won a skirmish at Falkirk, but continued to fall back. Finally on the 4th April, the English, led by the King's son, the Duke of Cumberland. came upon them at Culloden, near Inverness. Some 2,000 of the Prince's followers were slaughtered and the rest chased throughout the land for some time after. The Prince fled "like a bird on the wing, over the sea to Skye" and back to France. There were many recriminations against his supporters. One of these was Lawson Trotter, who had inherited Skelton Castle and sold it in 1727 to his sister's husband. He too made a tactful emigration to France, probably never to return, for he was still there in 1765, when there is a record of him carousing in Paris with Laurence Sterne, the author and great friend of Lawson's nephew, John Hall-Stevenson.

As a result of the government's imposition of Customs and Excise duties on drink, tobacco and a variety of other goods, the smuggling trade grew more and more profitable and the running of contraband from coastal inlets to local villages continued for the next 70 years.

1753 - A gallery is built in the old church at Skelton.

1755 - Building of the sandstone bridge to Upleatham at Skelton Ellars.

1756 - Bulding of the bridge over Skelton Beck on road to Guisborough at Skelton Ellars. See 1909 - Murder in the beck.

1757 - This was a time of corn shortages and 'at present no exportation is allowed from the kingdom.'

1759 - John Wesley preaches in Guisborough for the first time. It is said he also visited Skelton 'several times', but no proof exists.

1760 - The death of George II and the accession of George III

1763 - A 30 ton sloop went aground at Saltburn after the crew had gone ashore and left a boy on board the anchored vessel.
It was carrying contraband including over one thousand gallons of brandy and three hundred gallons of gin.
Two men from Skelton, Tommy Tiplady and Bill Richardson, were to help unload it.
The Customs and Excise tax on a gallon of brandy was over 5 shillings, which was the equivalent of a weeks wages and some thought the high profits to be made were worth the risk of the heavy penalties if they were caught.
Apart from the tax on wine and spirits, a duty was levied on imported tobacco, tea, coffee, linen and even some household items.

1765 - Plaque in old church of Lord's Prayer, placed by church wardens., M Smith and C Foster. Moved with other items on rebuilding.
21st June. The Birth of John Hall-Stevenson Jr, who changed his name to John Wharton in 1788. The alum works at Hagg had a short revival, but by now were not profitable.

1769 - The steam engine was patented by James Watt.

1771 - November. Heavy floods in the Tees area washed away bridges

1773 - The sum of 20 pounds [worth £1.500 in year 2002 values] was left by a Thomas Mawer for the education of 4 poor children from Skelton and nos 4 and 6 Green Road was bought for this purpose for £30 10s 6d. A section of the deeds reads:-

A map of Skelton Estate in 1773 is shown on the next page.
It has been sent by John Dobson, an old Skeltoner and now living in N Walsham, Norfolk. [Redrawn, as the original is hard to show as a webpage.]
The purpose appears to have been purely a record of the land owned by Hall Stevenson of Skelton Castle. Dwellings are hard to make out.
The illustration on the Front of "Crazy Tales", published 1762, [see previous page], which was taken from the engraving above has often been thought to show what the Castle looked like at this time. This map clearly shows that there was no moat in 1773. Half of the Castle is covered by woodland. The entrance road runs past the old All Saints Church directly into the Castle and the outline of the Castle on the map shows the building juts out on the Left of the facade.
If there was no moat across the front of the building at this time, it is hard to believe that there ever was one.
A moat was created at either side of the Castle after 1785, when John Wharton had it rebuilt, but this was created by damming the streams that run either side and filling the natural valleys. To create a moat across the front of the building would have involved the removal of countless tons of earth and by the time of this map replacing it.