Masham south-east, lies St. Mary's Church with its large yard. Although Masham is a relatively small town it has two working breweries, Black Sheep Brewery and Theakstons, situated only a few hundred yards from one another. The Black Sheep Brewery sponsors annual folk festivals. Previous performers have included Hugh Cornwell of The Stranglers. The town was also for a long time home to Lightfoot Brewery. this was bought by the Theakston family and closed in the 1920s. The Lightfoot brewery buildings are now used by Black Sheep. The Masham Steam Engine & Fair Organ Rally is held annually, organised by the
Baa, Baa, Black Sheep Baa, Baa, Black Sheep "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" is an English nursery rhyme, the earliest surviving version of which dates from 1731. The words have not changed very much in two-and-a-half centuries. It is sung to a variant of the 1761 French melody "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman". Uncorroborated theories have advanced to explain the meaning of the rhyme. These include it is a complaint against taxes levied on the Medieval English wool trade and it is about the slave trade. In the twentieth century it was a subject of controversies in debates about political correctness. It has been used in