[4] There is some evidence of Roman occupation around the village, in the form of a white-ware burial at the Lady well, a stretch of Healam Beck, behind the Hall.

Also close to the village on the A1(M), at Healam Bridge lie buried the remains of a Roman Dere Street fort, almost entirely ploughed away.

[6] At the time of the Norman invasion the Lord of the Manor was Rosskell, but the title was granted by the Crown to Robert of Moutiers.

Among the notable people to hold the title were Christopher Wandesford, successively MP for Aldborough, Richmond and Thirsk and briefly Lord Deputy of Ireland.

[8][9] The Hall, which stands in Whinwath Lane on the northern edge of the village, was built c. 1570 for Sir Christopher Wandesford, with alterations in the early 18th and 19th centuries.

Healam Beck flows northwards past the west side of the village as a tributary of the River Swale.