| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 54.46°N -0.64°W |
| Official Name: | Ruswarp |
| Region: | Yorkshire and the Humber |
| Civil Parish: | Whitby |
| Unitary England: | North Yorkshire |
| Lieutenancy England: | North Yorkshire |
| Constituency Westminster: | Scarborough and Whitby |
| Post Town: | WHITBY |
| Postcode District: | YO21 |
| Postcode Area: | YO |
| Dial Code: | 01947 |
| Os Grid Reference: | NZ885095 |
| Static Image: | St Bartholomew's Church, Ruswarp (9 June 2006).jpg |
| Static Image Width: | 250px |
| Static Image Caption: | St Bartholomew's Church |
Ruswarp is a village in the civil parish of Whitby, in North Yorkshire, England. It is around 1.8miles from Whitby, at the junction of the B1410 and B1416 roads, on the River Esk and the Esk Valley Line, with trains stopping at Ruswarp railway station. Originally it was called Risewarp (Old English hrīs wearp,) meaning 'silted land overgrown with brushwood'.[1]
Northern Rail serves the station and Bus services connect the village to the surrounding area. The village is served by local shops including Jackson's of Ruswarp,[2] and Colin Duck Grocer and Off-licence. There is a pub, the Bridge Inn and a parish church, the Church of St Bartholomew. Primary education is catered for by Ruswarp Church of England primary school.[3] There was a Post Office on the high street which closed down several years ago after losing the franchise, and is now converted into a private residence.
Crossing the River Esk downstream is a railway viaduct, 120 feet high, built (using 5,250,000 bricks) to carry the Scarborough-to-Whitby line, which closed in 1965.[4] The viaduct is now owned by Sustrans and carries "The Cinder Track", a walk/cycleway along the former Whitby-to-Scarborough railway line.[5] The River Esk was used to power corn mills in the village but the last closed in 1962. The weir that was built to channel water into a mill race has been adapted to power a hydro-electric project on its southern bank. The Ruswarp Hydro project started generating electricity in December 2012.[6]
The village lies on the Esk Valley Walk, a national hiking trail.[7] There is a physically undemanding walk between Ruswarp and Whitby (approximately 1½ miles) mostly along a stone pannierway, known as Monks Trod, signposted from the main street in Ruswarp.[8]
The village also hosts one of the area's tourist attractions, Esk Leisure, which consists of Mini Monsterz Indoor Play with pottery painting and laser tag. Also at Esk Leisure is Outdoor Laser Combat and a Farm Park which previously was 9-hole Pitch and Putt golf that closed in October 2009. Opposite Esk Leisure is Ruswarp Pleasure Boats. Established in 1874 customers can rent rowing boats or canoes to explore the sheltered waters that offer a unique opportunity to access the only migratory Salmon river in Yorkshire.[9] There is also a miniature steam railway for children and adults.
Ruswarp Village Hall caters for community events and classes.[10]
The local Church of England parish is Whitby with Ruswarp, which falls under the boundaries of the Diocese of York and is overseen by the suffragan Bishop of Whitby.
Ruswarp was formerly a township in the parish of Whitby,[11] in 1866 Ruswarp became a separate civil parish, on 1 April 1925 the parish was abolished and merged with Whitby.[12] In 1921 the parish had a population of 6195.[13] Until 1974 it was in the North Riding of Yorkshire. From 1974 to 2023 it was in Scarborough district.