2nd February - On Saturday at 2 o'clock the time fixed for the funeral of our late beloved Queen the Memorial Service was held in our Parish Church.
The shops were closed and the mines rested and by general consent the day was observed as a day of rest and quiet.
The bells rang a muffled peal, the minute bell being to toll clear every other round for an hour before the service. The Church proved too small to contain all who wished to enter, some hundreds we are told failing to secure admission.
On the Church doors being opened, the seats were speedily filled, except those reserved for the Urban Council, Volunteers,

31 March. - The National Census was taken.
The population of the Urban District of Skelton and Brotton was 13,240.
The area of the urban district was 4310 acres, with a rateable value of £63,354.
Totals for each village were:-
Boosbeck and Lingdale 3001.
Stanghow 1220.
Brotton 3323.
Kilton 445.
Moorsholm 446.

The total for Skelton was 4796.

This breaks down into:-
Old Skelton - 1529.
Skelton Green - 1578.
North Skelton - 1244.
New Skelton - 445.
The census produced the following statistics.
In 1901 there was no one in Skelton over 90 years of age and only 7 people over 80.
The oldest person was 87.
In fact, only 81 people [1.5%] were over the age of 70 and [one of these was 74 and still working down the Ironstone mine.]
A third of the population was under the working age of 13.
There were approximately 1200 working men in Skelton at this time and 978 of these were employed at the local Ironstone mines.
There has been a myth in this area that many of these miners originated from the failing tin mines of Cornwall, but the statistics do not bear this out.
Only 38 people [0.7%] of both sexes were born in Cornwall.
Whereas, there were 174 residents who gave Norfolk as their place of birth and over 300 from East Anglia as a whole.
Presumably poor agricultural wages and increased farm mechanisation there and the promise of definite work and housing in this area drove them to uproot.
219 people had been born in County Durham.
The mine managers and overseers tended to be those who had earlier experience of the coal mines.
51 females were registered as Dressmakers with 14 people as Boot and Shoe makers and 16 working in drapery.
There were public entertainments at Skelton Institute and elsewhere and, lodging with local families, there were 11 actors and actresses as well as 2 musicians.
98 people were listed as Servants, but these included farm workers who were living in.
4 policemen were named.
165 persons were registered as Boarders.
47 residents gave their occupation as teacher or assistant teacher. Many of these were still in their teens.

5th May - Parish Magazine - On Sunday morning there passed away one whose familiar figure was well known in Skelton.
As verger of the Parish Church for 17 years, Sergeant Armstrong was well known by nearly everybody.
In earlier life he had reached the rank of Sergeant in the Royal Artillery and served with his regiment in the Crimean War.
He was on duty up to the last.

June - Parish Magazine - Events begin to show that "all things come to him who waits". The sites of station, station yard and master's house, the necessary approaches which have been pegged out for months, have now been fenced round and the platelayers of the Company have received orders to lay the rails into the yard and make connections with the main line. It has been announced in the local paper that the tender of Mr Porteous of Guisborough to build the station has been accepted and the contract signed. The plans give a station master's house of pretty design, of a rather unusual style in England, after a Norwegian pattern, in which timber is largely used instead of the familiar brick or stone. This will stand on the west side of the line, while the warehouse, weigh office and sidings will be in the square enclosure on the east side. The passenger platforms will run paralled to the main line starting from the white gates and running southward towards North Skelton.

July 3rd - A local miner records political activity - "Third demonstration at Boosbeck, speakers were Mr. H. Broadhurst, M.P., Mr. H. Wilson, ex M.P., and Rev. A.T. Guttery."

At the Skelton Convalescent Home for Boer War soldiers at 4 South Terrace the matron was a Scotswoman, Mable French.
She lived there with her husband Tom, a blacksmith, and their adopted daughter, Edith Martin age 2.

There were eight patients at this time :-

Tom Thursgood of York, age 23, serving with the 9th Lancers.
Walter Watson of Leeds, age 24, with the 2nd West Yorks Regiment.
Fred Jones from Staffordshire, age 30, with the 19th Prince of Wales Own.

Rigwood was occupied at this time by Edward Hamilton, a bachelor aged 44, who was land agent to Skelton Castle Estate.
In the national census of this year he classed himself as a "Gentleman". He occupied Rigwood with 2 single aunts, Elizabeth and Augusta Dyason. They had 6 servants:-
Annie Hardwick, 30 year old cook;
Eliza Taylor of Boulby, parlourmaid, aged 32;
Annie Sanderson of Grinkle, housemaid, aged 22;
Betsy Sanderson of Grinkle, kitchenmaid, aged 19;
Henry Surtees of Norton, coachman, aged 30 and Richard Smytheyman of Redcar, groom, aged 27.

The houses pictured, 137 to 145 High St, were built at Home Farm by the Whartons of Skelton Castle for their farmworkers, about the same time as the Wharton Arms, 1878.
They appear on the census for 1881.
In 1901 the farm house to the right was occupied by the Farm Bailiff, Jeremiah Wilks from Castleton, a widower age 66 and his daughter Ellen.
Number 143 by George Bannister from Suffolk, a waggoner age 39, with his wife and 5 children.
141 by John Hudson of Loftus, a cartman age 48, with his wife and daughter.
139 by Alonzo Tate, a horseman age 53, with his wife and 4 children.
137 by Thomas Wood of Borrowby, a shepherd age 46, with his wife and 7 children.

John Beagarie of Richmond, aged 22, is boarding at Bridge House Guisborough Rd with head gamekeeper, William Agar and his wife. He is a "Wesleyan Evangelist lay preacher."

Skelton Castle is occupied by William H A Wharton, aged 48, his wife Elizabeth aged 46 and their daughter Margaret aged 6. They had 20 servants in the castle:-

Butler - Frederick Stonor, aged 37 from Holborn, Middlesex.
Valet - Dennis Toyn, aged 33 from Rosedale.
Governess - Celia C Hood, aged 21 from Kirkby Fleetham, Yorks.
Housekeeper - Jessie C Collins, aged 43 from Stovington, Sussex.
Lady's maid - Sarah J Lewis, aged 30 from Ricardine Glos.
Cook - Lilly Winnall, aged 27 from Bradford.
4 Housemaids - Janet Messer, aged 33. Mary Foster, aged 25 from Stockton. Mary Trevor, aged 24 from Malton. Jane Blenkinsopp, aged 20 from Stockton.
2 Kitchenmaids - Mary Mclow, aged 25 from Berwick and Mary A Leadsome, aged 22 from Penby, Salop.
Scullerymaid - Eliza Mothersill, aged 17 from Stockton.
3 Laundrymaids - Eleanor Pritchard, aged 33 from Reading, Berks. Ellen Millington, aged 22 from Flint. Florence Blackwell, aged 17 from Sheffield.
Schoolroom Maid - Jessie Greenwell, aged 19 from Dudley, Worcs.
2 Footmen - John Mellor, aged 29 from Ireland and Daniel Livingstone, aged 19 from Scotland.
Hallboy - John J Elliott, aged 14 from Nenthead, Cumberland.

December 10th - The Church Parish of Boosbeck was created with its own Vicar.
Previously it had been part of the Parish of Skelton.