As with all the Dales, Swaledale and Arkengarthdale have been shaped by the generations of people who have lived and worked there. The buildings and historical features they have left behind, both in the villages and wider countryside, are of national and international significance such as the evidence of
lead mining and the unusual farming system with its pattern of dispersed barns and stone walled meadows and pasture.

The field barns characteristic of Swaledale were used for housing cattle over winter up until the Second World War when changes in farming practices began to take place. Combined, these features contribute greatly to the overall character of the dales, click here for further information.