Croft-on-Tees

Croft-on-Tees is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It has also been known as Croft Spa, and from which the former Croft Spa railway station took its name. It lies 11 miles (18 km) north-north west of the county town of Northallerton.

The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Crofst. It makes no mention of any lord of the manor prior to the Norman Conquest, but names Enisant Musard as lord after 1086, granted to him by Count Alan of Brittany. The lands were subject to many years of dispute until the 13th century. In 1205, King John settled the issue by granting the lands to Roald the Constable of Richmond. His heirs inherited the title until 1299 when they were succeeded by Henry le Scrope of Bolton. Thereafter the lands were held under the Scropes by the Clervaux family. They held the manor until 1590 when the direct male line ceased, but Clervaux inheritance continued via marriage to the Chaytor family into the 20th century. Numerous historic houses survive, including Croft Hall, Jolby Manor, and Monk End Hall.

The etymology of the village name comes from the Old English word Croft meaning a small enclosed field.

Croft was once significant for its spa, first noticed in 1668, and as early as 1713 the sulphurous spring water had acquired such fame that it was sold in London as a cure for ailments and diseases, as described in Robert Willan's study of the sulphur water at Croft, published in London in 1782. A.B. Granville's description of the "Old Well" and the "New Well" described the Croft Spa for which the railway station was both opened and named. It was published in 1841.

The village was once served by its railway station on the East Coast Main Line. The railway still passes near Croft but the station, which was opened in 1841, closed in 1968 and has been demolished.

The 1861 Epsom Derby winner Kettledrum was bred at Croft in 1858.

3 miles (4.8 km) south of Darlington, Croft stands on the opposite side of the River Tees from Hurworth-on-Tees between Clow Beck and Spa Beck and is situated on the A167. The bridge over the Tees between Croft and Hurworth marks the boundary between North Yorkshire and County Durham. The exact point of transition is the fourth of the seven arches. It is a Grade I listed building. The settlements of Eryholme and Dalton-on-Tees are also within three miles of the village.

From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the district of Richmondshire, it is now administered by the unitary North Yorkshire Council. The village lies within the Richmond and Northallerton UK Parliament constituency and the Richmondshire North electoral division of North Yorkshire Council.