Garforth - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

History

It owes its size to expansion in the 17th and 18th centuries during which the local land-owning Gascoigne family ran several coalmines in the area. The surrounding settlements of Micklefield

Micklefield

Micklefield is a village and civil parish east of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It neighbours Garforth, Aberford and Brotherton and is close to the A1 Motorway. It is in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough. It has a population of 1,852.-Geography:...

, Kippax

Kippax, West Yorkshire

Kippax is a village and civil parish in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, West Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the east of the city, near to Garforth and Great Preston....

, Swillington

Swillington

Swillington is a small village and civil parish near Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough. It is located east of the River Aire and surrounded by streams including Fleakingley Beck. As of 2001, Swillington had a population of about 3,530.Swillington used to be a...

, Methley

Methley

Methley is a dispersed village in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, south east of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is located near Rothwell, Oulton, Woodlesford, Mickletown and Allerton Bywater. It nestles in the triangle formed by Leeds, Castleford and Wakefield, and is between the...

and Allerton Bywater

Allerton Bywater

Allerton Bywater is a semi-rural village and civil parish in the south-east of City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. The village itself is north of Castleford and lies in the WF10 Castleford postcode area...

are all villages that prospered and grew as a result of the coal industry. Nowadays manufacturing and motor-vehicle repair account for more than a third of the workforce in the area

More recent expansion can also be traced to a combination of overall economic success in Leeds, and the fact that Garforth is well served by transport links. The A1 and M1

M1 motorway

The M1 is a north–south motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford. While the M1 is considered to be the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the United Kingdom, the first road to be built to motorway standard in the country was the...

are minutes away, and both have recently been linked by an extension of the M1 which passes to the West and North of the town, with two nearby access points at Junctions 46 and 47. The M1 extension has led to rapid development of commercial, light industrial and residential sites clustered around Junctions 46 and 47. There are two railway stations, Garforth

Garforth railway station

Garforth railway station serves the town of Garforth, near Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the York and Selby Lines and North TransPennine routes. Garforth is east of Leeds....

and East Garforth

East Garforth railway station

East Garforth railway station serves Garforth in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the York and Selby Lines, operated by Northern Rail east of Leeds. The station was opened by Metro on 1 May 1987, to serve the new housing developments in the area.The station is an unstaffed halt, and has wooden...

, both on the mainline route between Leeds

Leeds

, York

York

York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...

, and North Eastern England to Scotland, and between Leeds, Selby

Selby

Selby is a town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Situated south of the city of York, along the course of the River Ouse, Selby is the largest and, with a population of 13,012, most populous settlement of the wider Selby local government district.Historically a part of the West Riding...

and Hull

Kingston upon Hull

Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...

and the Yorkshire

Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

coastal resorts. Effectively, people can commute to or visit a wide variety of destinations quite easily and still live in a self-contained township surrounded by open countryside, woodlands and rural villages.

People

Some famous residents and ex-residents of Garforth include, Chris Silverwood

Chris Silverwood

Christopher Eric Wilfred Silverwood is an English first-class cricketer.Educated at Garforth Comprehensive School in Leeds, as a right-arm fast-medium pace bowler Silverwood made his debut for Yorkshire County Cricket Club in 1993...

, Dave Seaman and Andrew White

Andrew White (musician)

Andrew "Whitey" White is the lead and rhythm guitarist of the English alternative rock band Kaiser Chiefs.-Biography:He is an original member of the band Runston Parva, which later became Parva. He is also left-handed....

, of the Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....

. The town was also the birthplace of Second World War airman, Sir Augustus Walker

Augustus Walker

Air Chief Marshal Sir George Augustus Walker GCB CBE DSO DFC AFC MA was a Second World War bomber pilot and jet aircraft pioneer, later Inspector-General of the RAF and RAF Air Chief Marshal.-Early life:...

of the Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

Transport

Garforth is situated on the A63

A63 road

The A63 is a major road in Yorkshire, England between Leeds and Hull.-Leeds – Howden:The route out to Selby is shadowed by the Leeds-Selby railway....

, which links it with the M1

M1 motorway

and the A1(M), the M62

M62 motorway

The M62 motorway is a west–east trans-Pennine motorway in Northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull via Manchester and Leeds. The road also forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22...

also lies close by to the South of the town. Garforth has two railway stations, Garforth railway station

Garforth railway station

Garforth railway station serves the town of Garforth, near Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the York and Selby Lines and North TransPennine routes. Garforth is east of Leeds....

lies to the North of the town centre, whist East Garforth railway station

East Garforth railway station

which opened in the 1980s

1980s

File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...

lies to the East of the town. Here the town is linked to Leeds

Leeds

, York

York

, Selby

Selby

, Kingston upon Hull

Kingston upon Hull

, Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...

, Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

and Blackpool

Blackpool

Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...

via the rail links. The town rail link to Kippax

Kippax

Kippax may refer to:* Kippax, West Yorkshire, village in England* Alan Kippax, Australian cricketer* Kippax Centre, Australian Capital Territory, a suburban centre in Canberra, Australia* Kippax Uniting Church and Community Centre....

and Castleford

Castleford

Castleford is the largest of the "five towns" district in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, England. It is near Pontefract, and has a population of 37,525 according to the 2001 Census, but has seen a rise in recent years and is now around 45-50,000. To the north...

was closed under the Beeching Axe

Beeching Axe

The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...

of the 1960s. Garforth's bus services are provided by First Leeds

First Leeds

First Leeds is one of the bus companies serving the area of West Yorkshire, England. It forms part of FirstGroup, a company operating transport services across the British Isles and in North America...

and Arriva

Arriva

Arriva plc is a multinational public transport company owned by Deutsche Bahn and headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom. It has bus, coach, train, tram and waterbus operations in 12 countries across Europe, employs more than 47,500 people and services over 1.5 billion passenger journeys each...

Education

Education establishments in Garforth include a secondary school, primary schools and a vocational performing arts college.

Garforth Academy, a secondary school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

and sixth form

Sixth form

In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...

for pupils aged 11–18 is located on Lidgett Lane in Garforth. The school itself has over 2000 students and staff. Furthermore, Garforth Community Arts School (situated in Garforth Community College) runs the Garforth Arts Festival

Garforth Arts Festival

The Garforth Arts Festival is an annual arts festival that takes place in Garforth, Leeds, in the United Kingdom. The events take place over a two week period in July, ending with a full-day ‘Playground Party’ on the final Saturday. The festival features a variety of art forms, including comedy;...

, which is a display of artistic works.

Over the street from Garforth is the newly refurbished Strawberry Fields Primary school, formerly known as West Garforth Primary School. As well as Strawberry Fields, Garforth is home to Ninelands primary school, Green Lane Primary School, East Garforth Primary School and St Benedict's Primary School, which is a Catholic school

Catholic school

Catholic schools are maintained parochial schools or education ministries of the Catholic Church. the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...

.

SLP College is a further education college located in Garforth, providing specialist vocational training in dance and performing arts. Originally founded as a dance school, it later developed a full time performing arts course and is now a course provider for the Trinity College, London professional performing arts qualifications. The college is accredited to the Council for Dance Education and Training

Council for Dance Education and Training

The Council for Dance Education and Training * accredits professional training programmes in vocational dance and musical theatre schools* validates the qualifications of Dance Awarding Organisations...

and one of the colleges selected to award the government Dance and Drama Awards

Dance and Drama Awards

The Dance and Drama Awards are a scholarship scheme which subsidises professional vocational training at some of the leading performing arts schools in the United Kingdom...

Sport

Local football teams are Garforth Town

Garforth Town A.F.C.

Garforth Town Association Football Club are an English football team based in Garforth, West Yorkshire. They currently play in the Northern Premier League Division One North, the 8th level of the English football pyramid.-History:...

, Garforth A.F.C., Garforth W.M.C. A.F.C and Garforth Rangers A.F.C.

There are two rugby clubs in Garforth: Garforth RUFC, and Garforth Tigers ARLFC,

There are also two cricket clubs and a Squash and Leisure Centre.

Garforth Golf Club has a course designed by Alister MacKenzie

Alister MacKenzie

Dr. Alister MacKenzie was an internationally renowned, British golf course architect whose course designs, on three different continents, are consistently ranked among the finest golf courses in the world...

Economy

Originally a coal mining area, the collieries of much of East Leeds and surrounding areas closed in the 1960s, although further South mining was still strong in the 1990s and is still prevalent to some degree today. Garforth has increasingly become a commuter town

Commuter town

A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...

of Leeds There is a light industrial estate to the North of the town which provides some employment, such as Ginetta Cars

Ginetta Cars

Ginetta Cars is a Garforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire based British specialist builder of racing and sports cars.-20th century:Ginetta was founded in 1958 by the four Walklett brothers in Woodbridge, Suffolk...

, while the neighbouring Thorpe Business Park in Colton

Colton

- England :* Colton, Cumbria* Colton, Leeds * Colton, Staffordshire- United States :*Colton, California* Colton, New York* Colton, Ohio* Colton, Oregon* Colton, South Dakota* Colton, Utah, a ghost town...

also provides employment. Garforth's rail connections and access to the M1

M1 motorway

, A1(M) and M62

M62 motorway

have made it a desirable area for commuters to live.

Amenities

Garforth offers fewer amenities than other towns in the City of Leeds, such as Otley

Otley

-Transport:The main roads through the town are the A660 to the south east, which connects Otley to Bramhope, Adel and Leeds city centre, and the A65 to the west, which goes to Ilkley and Skipton. The A6038 heads to Guiseley, Shipley and Bradford, connecting with the A65...

and Wetherby

Wetherby

Wetherby is a market town and civil parish within the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Wharfe, and has been for centuries a crossing place and staging post on the Great North Road, being mid-way between London and Edinburgh...

. The town centre now resembles a local centre rather than a town centre. Garforth has a Tesco

Tesco

Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...

supermarket, The Original Factory Shop

The Original Factory Shop

The Original Factory Shop is a discount department store that was established in 1969. It currently operates 170 + stores across the United Kingdom.- Operations:...

department store, several pubs in the town centre, a Co-operative, and several other shops such as newsagents, charity shops, travel agents and banks. There is also a large ex-catalogue shop. Garforth also has civic amenities such as a library and a One Stop Centre run by Leeds City Council

Leeds City Council

Leeds City Council is the local authority for the City of Leeds metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, England.-History:The city council was established in 1974, with the first elections being held in advance in 1973...

. A relatively new appearance on Garforth Main Street is the Baraka Coffee House, which gives all of its profits back to projects in the town, functioning as a Social Enterprise

Social enterprise

A social enterprise is an organization that applies business strategies to achieving philanthropic goals. Social enterprises can be structured as a for-profit or non-profit....

Location grid

External links

Historical and genealogical resource

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.