Monk Fryston Hall

Monk Fryston Hall is a house, now operating as a hotel, with origins dating back to the 13th century. It has undergone significant additions and alterations around 1740 and 1897, with a further 20th-century range added to the left which is not particularly noteworthy. Originally built for Selby Abbey, the hall was later extended around 1740 for David Hemsworth and in 1897 by Sir Ernest George ARA. The building is constructed of magnesian limestone with a stone slate roof and is arranged in an L-shape, incorporating an 18th-century wing and a 19th-century extension, along with infill sections of various dates.

The main block consists of two storeys with attics and four bays to the left, with a projecting, gable-ended, two-story single bay to the right. A buttress rises to the second-floor level on the left block. The projecting outer bays feature full-height gables. A 4-centred doorway forms the entrance to the third bay. Mullion and transom windows are a prominent feature, with 6-light windows to the second bay. Most windows are set within hoodmoulds with recut chamfered surrounds and mullions, the second bay having a double-chamfered surround. The first floor mirrors the ground floor with similar mullion and transom windows. A 3-light mullion window with a double-chamfered surround and chamfered mullions is present on the second bay’s first floor. A lancet window sits within a chamfered surround to the third bay. Single lights set in double-chamfered surrounds are found within the gables, though some are blocked. Gables have kneelers and ashlar coping. A wing extends to the right, featuring a two-story, canted bay with five-light mullion and transom windows to both floors, each within a double-chamfered surround, with the ground-floor windows under a hoodmould. A blocked single light exists in the gable. It also possesses kneelers, coping, and remnants of a finial. 19th-century diagonal ridge, end, and rear stacks are present. The rear elevation largely features similar mullion and transom windows. A surviving 13th-century 2-light mullion window with a double-chamfered surround is located in the left gable.

The interior was remodelled following a fire in 1876. Historically, the hall was associated with Selby Abbey and served as the residence for the Master of Works and the Agent of the Abbot, supervising the quarrying of stone for the Abbey.