[8] The parish boundaries ran alongside the western and southern edges of Thornton Dale, and then the long section of land to the south-east of Thornton Dale, which would become Wilton Parish, was part of Ellerburn too.

[12] The land in the parish was host to several quarries, and the topography gently rose from 70 feet (21 m) above sea level in the south of the parish (near to the River Derwent) and reached a height of 550 feet (170 m) in the northern parts.

[13] The land around the parish was owned by the Deans and Canons of St George's Chapel, Windsor since the early 16th century.

[14] It was prime arable land and had seen widespread agricultural use before the events of the English Civil Wars.

[15] The name of Ellerburn has been described as an oddity, as the normal description of streams in the area has been with the suffix of beck.