Clifton, West Yorkshire
Encyclopedia
Clifton is a small village, near Brighouse
, in the Metropolitan borough
of Calderdale
in West Yorkshire
, England
.
in 1937. The borough was abolished in 1974 when it became part the metropolitan borough of Calderdale
within the Metropolitan county of West Yorkshire
.
and the plateau adjoining it.
s situated at either end of the main street (Towngate); one, the Black Horse Inn, was the Yorkshire Post
pub restaurant of the year 2006. Clifton also has a small hairdressing salon.
Clifton also gives its name to the Clifton & Lightcliffe brass band. This is one of the countries oldest being formed in 1838. The band HQ is in nearby Bailiff Bridge.
. It was first recorded in 1307 and also mentioned by Daniel Defoe
, author of Robinson Crusoe
, in his 1727 book 'A Tour Of Great Brittain'. On the western flank of the village is a long straight ridge, which constitutes the remains of a gravity railway
that was last used to transport coal in 1920 to the (then) municipal gasworks by the Calder and Hebble Navigation
at Brighouse
. There are also intriguing historical connections such as America Lane, the fever hospital and Clifton 'airport' used by Sir Alan Cobham
's Air Circus between the two world wars. The remains of the village well can be seen opposite the school. At the easterly edge of the village is the 16C Kirklees Hall
, whose grounds contain the reputed grave of Robin Hood
. The Hall was the model for 'Nunwood' in Charlotte Bronte's novel 'Shirley'. At the northerly end of the village, there remains evidence of strip farming
, also known as 'open field system'. Originally there were thirty-two strips of land and families would work two or three of these. Beyond were fields known as the Doles; these were common grazing land. Doles Lane, a public right of way, still exists and starts (as Well Lane), opposite the Black Horse Inn. This inn was a meeting place for Luddite
s, the machine wreckers, in the early 19th century. Highley Hall (formerly Crosse Hall), near the war memorial, was a farm until the 1990s. Originally the family home of Richard de Hileagh, constable of the village in the mid 14th century; it is once again a private residence.
Clifton village, a 'Village Design Statement' area, has a Junior and Infant school built in the 1870s (a consistent top performing school - 'outstanding' in successive Ofsted inspections - April 2008 and seventh best in England for SATS level 5 - December 2007).
, and a Methodist
church. Patrick Brontë
, father of the novelist sisters
, was Minister at the nearby Hartshead
-cum-Clifton church.
Brighouse
Brighouse is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Calder, east of Halifax in the Pennines. It is served by Junction 25 of the M62 motorway and Brighouse railway station on the Caldervale Line and Huddersfield Line. In the...
, in the Metropolitan borough
Metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough is a type of local government district in England, and is a subdivision of a metropolitan county. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts, however all of them have been granted or regranted...
of Calderdale
Calderdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the River Calder flows, and from which it takes its name...
in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Governance
Clifton Civil Parish merged with the neighbouring Borough of BrighouseBrighouse
Brighouse is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Calder, east of Halifax in the Pennines. It is served by Junction 25 of the M62 motorway and Brighouse railway station on the Caldervale Line and Huddersfield Line. In the...
in 1937. The borough was abolished in 1974 when it became part the metropolitan borough of Calderdale
Calderdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the River Calder flows, and from which it takes its name...
within the Metropolitan county of West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
.
Geography
The village is situated on the north side of the valley of the River CalderRiver Calder, West Yorkshire
The River Calder is a river in West Yorkshire, in Northern England.The Calder rises on the green eastern slopes of the Pennines flows through alternating green countryside, former woollen-mill villages, and large and small towns before joining the River Aire near Castleford.The river's valley is...
and the plateau adjoining it.
Nearby towns and villages
Culture and community
There are two public housePublic house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s situated at either end of the main street (Towngate); one, the Black Horse Inn, was the Yorkshire Post
Yorkshire Post
The Yorkshire Post is a daily broadsheet newspaper, published in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by Yorkshire Post Newspapers, a company owned by Johnston Press...
pub restaurant of the year 2006. Clifton also has a small hairdressing salon.
Clifton also gives its name to the Clifton & Lightcliffe brass band. This is one of the countries oldest being formed in 1838. The band HQ is in nearby Bailiff Bridge.
Landmarks
There are many local historical references connected to drift miningDrift mining
Drift mining is either the mining of a placer deposit by underground methods, or the working of coal seams accessed by adits driven into the surface outcrop of the coal bed. Drift is a more general mining term, meaning a near-horizontal passageway in a mine, following the bed or vein of ore. A...
. It was first recorded in 1307 and also mentioned by Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
, author of Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
, in his 1727 book 'A Tour Of Great Brittain'. On the western flank of the village is a long straight ridge, which constitutes the remains of a gravity railway
Gravity railroad
A gravity railroad or Gravity railway is a railroad on a slope that allow cars carrying minerals or passengers to coast down the slope by the force of gravity alone. The cars are then hauled back up the slope using animal power or a stationary engine and a cable, chain or one or more wide, flat...
that was last used to transport coal in 1920 to the (then) municipal gasworks by the Calder and Hebble Navigation
Calder and Hebble Navigation
The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a Broad inland waterway in West Yorkshire, England, which has remained navigable since it was opened.-History:...
at Brighouse
Brighouse
Brighouse is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Calder, east of Halifax in the Pennines. It is served by Junction 25 of the M62 motorway and Brighouse railway station on the Caldervale Line and Huddersfield Line. In the...
. There are also intriguing historical connections such as America Lane, the fever hospital and Clifton 'airport' used by Sir Alan Cobham
Alan Cobham
Sir Alan John Cobham, KBE, AFC was an English aviation pioneer.A member of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I, Alan Cobham became famous as a pioneer of long distance aviation. After the war he became a test pilot for the de Havilland aircraft company, and was the first pilot for the newly...
's Air Circus between the two world wars. The remains of the village well can be seen opposite the school. At the easterly edge of the village is the 16C Kirklees Hall
Kirklees Hall
Kirklees Hall is a 16th century Grade I listed Jacobean hall, close to the English village of Clifton in Calderdale, West Yorkshire. The first evidence of a hall constructed at Kirklees was that of Sir Thomas Gargrave, who conveyed the property to the Pilkington family. Lady Armytage, sold the...
, whose grounds contain the reputed grave of Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
. The Hall was the model for 'Nunwood' in Charlotte Bronte's novel 'Shirley'. At the northerly end of the village, there remains evidence of strip farming
Strip farming
Strip cropping is a method of farming used when a slope is too steep or too long, or when other types of farming may not prevent soil erosion. Strip cropping alternates strips of closely sown crops such as hay, wheat, or other small grains with strips of row crops, such as corn, soybeans, cotton,...
, also known as 'open field system'. Originally there were thirty-two strips of land and families would work two or three of these. Beyond were fields known as the Doles; these were common grazing land. Doles Lane, a public right of way, still exists and starts (as Well Lane), opposite the Black Horse Inn. This inn was a meeting place for Luddite
Luddite
The Luddites were a social movement of 19th-century English textile artisans who protested – often by destroying mechanised looms – against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, which they felt were leaving them without work and changing their way of life...
s, the machine wreckers, in the early 19th century. Highley Hall (formerly Crosse Hall), near the war memorial, was a farm until the 1990s. Originally the family home of Richard de Hileagh, constable of the village in the mid 14th century; it is once again a private residence.
Education
Religious sites
There is an Anglican church (first baptism Goldthorpe Squire 1859, first burial Zillah Ramsden 1860) within the Diocese of WakefieldDiocese of Wakefield
The Diocese of Wakefield is a Church of England diocese based in Wakefield in West Yorkshire, covering Wakefield, Barnsley, Kirklees and Calderdale...
, and a Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
church. Patrick Brontë
Patrick Brontë
The Reverend Patrick Brontë was an Irish Anglican curate and writer, who spent most of his adult life in England and was the father of the writers Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë, and of Branwell Brontë, his only son....
, father of the novelist sisters
Brontë
The Brontës were a nineteenth-century literary family associated with Haworth in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. The sisters, Charlotte , Emily , and Anne , are well-known as poets and novelists...
, was Minister at the nearby Hartshead
Hartshead
Hartshead is a village in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England, west of Dewsbury and near Hartshead Moor.The village has pre-Norman Conquest origins; the Walton Cross dated from the 8th century....
-cum-Clifton church.