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The first documentary evidence for the village of Melmerby is the entry in the Domesday Book (1086):-

In Melmerby; 6 carucates taxable; 4 ploughs possible. Aldred had a manor there; now the same man has (it) from the Count. Waste.
The whole, 1 league long and 1 wide.
Value before 1066, 8s.

However, some of the field names shown in the Tithe Commutation Document (1847) are much older. There are several names ending in “Garth” which is Old Norse (AD 876–1100), but there are also several “Croft” names, which is Old English (AD 600-1100). This takes the age of the village back another 250 years or so.
The oldest map of Melmerby that I have been able to find dates from 1754 but is difficult to interpret . It was actually drawn to show the details of the Agglethorpe Estate, therefore the details stop at the estate boundary. However, Melmerby is shown in a rough plan in the lower left quarter of the map. Click to enlarge image
A later map, dated 1790, is much clearer. It shows that the village green was once wide and open, with a beck running diagonally across it. Some of the fields shown on this map are sub-divided into long thin strips, and probably represent the remains of the medieval field systems of the village, while several fields around the village today still show the remains of lynchets, probably dating from a similar period. A recent brief survey by a local history class has revealed traces of a much earlier village underlying the present one. It is hoped that a detailed survey of these will be carried out in the near future.

The oldest houses in the village are the older parts of Hillside Farm, Hall Garth Farm and The Old Farmhouse, all of which date from the mid-to-late 17th century. A mid-18th century barn nearby has an older roofline in its western gable – taller and steeper in pitch than the present stone slate roof, and may have originally been thatched with ling (heather).

 Click to enlarge image
Trades directories of 1822/1823 and The Census Returns from 1841 to 1901, the latest available, show how the village population has changed over time:-

1822 – 112 1841 – 110 1851 – 112 1861 – 123 1871 – 96 1881 – 110 1891 – 102 1901 – 79

The current permanent population of the village is 28!

This map of the village in 1842 was taken from a survey of the Melmerby Estate showing the land belonging to Sir William Chaytor, and shows the village green still unenclosed and no obvious track over the moor to West Witton.

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This map of 1856, drawn for Sir Thomas Topham, shows the village more or less as it looks today, with the green enclosed and the road over the moor to West Witton having walls on both sides. Click to enlarge image
This map was also drawn for Sir Thomas Topham and apart for a few changes in field boundaries, where fields have been combined to make larger fields, is little different from how the village and its surrounding fields appear today. Click to enlarge image
Newly rediscovered village trough
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An 18th Century guidestone, dating from when the road through the dale was a carriage route to Wharfedale. The face against the wall reads "Askrigg". The other face has been eroded by weather but should read "Middleham". Click to enlarge image