Kirkby should be called a township, not a village, because in the last year of the reign of Edward I, 1307, John de Mowbray obtained a Grant to hold a fair which lasted for three days starting the day before Michaelmas. The Grant also allowed the holding of a market each Monday. The market was held regularly until about 1816.

The existing Market Cross was erected in 1866. The stone was quarried locally and is said to weigh 14 tons. Under the south-east corner foundation stone is a time capsule which contains four Ripon Chronicles, one Ripon Gazette, two plans of the Market Place and one Nidderdale Almanac containing full particulars of the destruction of the old Cross.

The original Cross was pulled down and broken up by the owner of a house next to the cross. He considered it to be a nuisance to himself and his property. This annoyed the people of Kirkby who started proceedings with a view to compelling him to replace it. He refused, so the villagers pulled down the railings in front of his property and dislodged the corner stones of his house which encroached onto the road. This resulted in the house being pulled down and afterwards rebuilt as the house which now stands nearest to the Cross.

If you have any information or photos we can add to these pages please contact kirkbymalzeard@hotmail.com. We plan to add anecdotal history given by local residents, so if you have any interesting or amusing memories of life in this area please let us know!