Meltham
Encyclopedia
Meltham is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees
, in West Yorkshire
, England. It lies in the Holme Valley
, below Wessenden Moor, four and a half miles south-west of Huddersfield
on the edge of the Peak District National Park
. It had a population of 8,089 at the 2001 census, which was estimated to have increased to 8,600 by 2005.
which has its own school and church. Meltham is situated within close reach of several major cities. Bradford
is 14 miles to the north, Leeds
is 19 miles north-east, Manchester
is 19 miles to the south-west and Sheffield
is 21 miles to the south-east.
Surrounding villages within the Kirklees area include Crosland Moor
, Golcar
, Honley
, Holmfirth
, Linthwaite
, Marsden
, Netherton
and Slaithwaite
.
, Holmfirth High School and Colne Valley High School, all of which are located in neighbouring areas.
, cricket
and rugby league
. The football team, Meltham Athletic FC, currently play in the West Riding County Amateur Football League
Premier Division. Notable honours include the West Riding Challenge Cup in 2005, the Huddersfield and District League on two occasions and the Barlow Cup 4 times (including three in a row 2003-05) . The cricket side, Meltham CC, has won the 1st XI Byrom Shield on 7 occasions and the Sykes Cup 8 times. The 1st XI and 2nd XI currently play in the Drakes Premiership
s 1 and 2 respectively. Notable ex-players include England international cricketer Ryan Sidebottom
, Dilip Doshi
(father of Nayan
), Madan Lal
and Shahid Mahmood
. The rugby league side, Meltham All Blacks ARLFC, currently play in the Pennine League
Division 4.
was set in and around Meltham Parish Church Hall. In addition scenes of long-running BBC
sitcom Last of the Summer Wine
and ITV
drama
Where the Heart Is
used some Meltham houses as character's homes. The scout hut has also been used as well as streets for shooting outdoor scenes.
mill complex that employed over 1,000 workers during the late 19th century. The Brook family originally came from New House Hall in Sheepridge
, moving to Thickhollins towards the end of the 18th century. William Brook married Martha Smith at Bradford
Parish Church - the daughter of a prominent Mirfield
banker. Their sons Jonas, James and Joseph established their business in Meltham Mills, using a goat's head - the crest
from the Brook's coat of arms
- as their brand. The goat's head can still be seen on the old office building to the mill complex and their arms are emblazoned in St. James' Church, in Meltham Mills (which the family built) - a hawkes lure: motto "en dieu ma foy" (in God my trust). Meltham Mills Band also carry the Brook family coat of arms as their official logo. Edward Brook died in 1904 at Hoddom Castle
, the house near Ecclefechan
, south-west Scotland, which he had purchased in 1878. The Brook family were philanthropist
s and built housing in Meltham Mills for their employees, including the convalescent home. They also built Meltham Hall, Helme Church and owned an estate at Enderby
in Leicestershire
. William Brook is buried with his wife Martha in Meltham Church, but his descendants are buried in the crypt underneath St. James Church, Meltham Mills.
Jonas Brook and Brothers became United Threads in 1890 and Sir Hildred Carlile of Ponsonby Hall, Hertfordshire was a Director of the business. United Threads was closed in 1939 - the business was transferred to Paisley
as part of J & P Coats - now Coats Viyella. The factory site was taken over by David Brown Tractors.
John Charles Brooke
, who originated from the Silkstone branch of the Newhouse Hall family was Somerset
Herald
during the 18th century. He was crushed to death at the Haymarket Theatre
in London
following the crowd's clamour to see King George III in 1794. He is buried in St Benet Paul's Wharf
in London.
factory opening in 1939 and closing operations on the site in 1988. The various building have now been converted into a diverse number of industrial units, one housing a Tractor
museum and other large sections containing an indoor Kart racing
track.
Durker Roods, the former home of Sir David Brown
was converted into a hotel and the grounds were sold for private housing.
The town has its own joint Scouting and Guides Association buildings.
Albert Craig
,dubbed the Surrey Poet, was also born and raised in Meltham. His ditties concerned mainly cricket and football.
Kirklees
The Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 401,000 and includes the settlements of Batley, Birstall, Cleckheaton, Denby Dale, Dewsbury, Heckmondwike, Holmfirth, Huddersfield, Kirkburton, Marsden, Meltham, Mirfield and Slaithwaite...
, 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. It lies in the Holme Valley
Holme Valley
Holme Valley is a large civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 25,049 . Its administrative centre is in Holmfirth. Other sizeable settlements in the parish include, Brockholes, Honley and New Mill...
, below Wessenden Moor, four and a half miles south-west of Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
on the edge of the Peak District National Park
Peak District
The Peak District is an upland area in central and northern England, lying mainly in northern Derbyshire, but also covering parts of Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, and South and West Yorkshire....
. It had a population of 8,089 at the 2001 census, which was estimated to have increased to 8,600 by 2005.
Geography
The valley has been inhabited since pre-historic times and there are two Iron Age sites overlooking the town. Meltham also includes the small village of HelmeHelme, West Yorkshire
Helme is a small village in the Kirklees District, in the county of West Yorkshire, England. It is near the town of Meltham and Blackmoorfoot Reservoir.-References:*http://www.ukvillages.co.uk/Place/12798/Helme-West+Yorkshire...
which has its own school and church. Meltham is situated within close reach of several major cities. Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
is 14 miles to the north, Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
is 19 miles north-east, 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...
is 19 miles to the south-west and Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
is 21 miles to the south-east.
Surrounding villages within the Kirklees area include Crosland Moor
Crosland Moor
Crosland Moor is a district of the town of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England.It begins 1 mile to the south west of Huddersfield town centre. The electoral ward of Crosland Moor and Netherton, in the Colne Valley constituency...
, Golcar
Golcar
Golcar is a village located on a hillside crest above the Colne Valley in West Yorkshire, England, west of Huddersfield, and just north of the River Colne and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal...
, Honley
Honley
Honley is a large village in West Yorkshire, England near to Holmfirth and Huddersfield situated on the banks of the River Holme in the Holme Valley. In 2001 it had a population of 5,897 according to the census.-Education:...
, Holmfirth
Holmfirth
Holmfirth is a small town located on the A6024 Woodhead Road in the Holme Valley, within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Centred upon the confluence of the Holme and Ribble rivers, Holmfirth is south of Huddersfield and from Glossop. It mostly consists of...
, Linthwaite
Linthwaite
Linthwaite is a village in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated 4 miles west of Huddersfield, on the A62 in the Colne Valley...
, Marsden
Marsden, West Yorkshire
Marsden is a large village within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, west of Huddersfield and located at the confluence of the River Colne and the Wessenden Brook...
, Netherton
Netherton, Huddersfield
Netherton is a village, near Huddersfield, in the Kirklees metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is 2 miles south-west of the town centre on the road to Meltham...
and Slaithwaite
Slaithwaite
Slaithwaite is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Colne Valley laying across the River Colne and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, approximately southwest of Huddersfield. The pronunciation of Slaithwaite varies...
.
Education
Meltham itself contains three primary schools, namely Meltham Church of England (C of E) School, Meltham Moor Primary School and Helme (C of E) junior and infant school. Secondary schools serving Meltham primarily include Honley High SchoolHonley High School
Honley High School is a secondary school situated on the edge of the village of Honley in the Holme Valley, West Yorkshire, England. The catchment area is the neighbouring villages of Brockholes, Honley and Meltham. Honley High has around 1,250 pupils aged 11–16...
, Holmfirth High School and Colne Valley High School, all of which are located in neighbouring areas.
Sport
Meltham has active teams in a variety of sports, including footballFootball (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
. The football team, Meltham Athletic FC, currently play in the West Riding County Amateur Football League
West Riding County Amateur Football League
The West Riding County Amateur Football League is a football competition based in Yorkshire, England. Formed in 1922, it has three main divisions and a reserves division, although a number of reserve teams play in the main senior divisions....
Premier Division. Notable honours include the West Riding Challenge Cup in 2005, the Huddersfield and District League on two occasions and the Barlow Cup 4 times (including three in a row 2003-05) . The cricket side, Meltham CC, has won the 1st XI Byrom Shield on 7 occasions and the Sykes Cup 8 times. The 1st XI and 2nd XI currently play in the Drakes Premiership
Huddersfield Cricket League
The Drakes Huddersfield Cricket League is the premier cricket competition in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England.The league has been in existence since 1891 and has 30 teams representing suburbs of Huddersfield and villages in the Huddersfield District area...
s 1 and 2 respectively. Notable ex-players include England international cricketer Ryan Sidebottom
Ryan Sidebottom
Ryan Jay Sidebottom is an English cricketer who plays domestic cricket for Yorkshire. He is a primarily a left-arm fast-medium bowler. Sidebottom played his first Test match in 2001 against Pakistan, but failed to take a wicket and was dropped for six years...
, Dilip Doshi
Dilip Doshi
Dilip Rasiklal Doshi is a former Indian cricketer who played in 33 Tests and 15 ODIs from 1979 to 1983....
(father of Nayan
Nayan Doshi
Nayan Dilip Doshi is an English cricketer, who was released by Derbyshire. He is the son of Dilip Doshi, who is a former Indian Test bowler...
), Madan Lal
Madan Lal
Madan Lal Udhouram Sharma is a former Indian cricketer and Indian national cricket coach. He currently coaches Delhi Giants in the Indian Cricket League...
and Shahid Mahmood
Shahid Mahmood
Shahid Mahmood is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in one Test in 1962. He is known for being the first man from Pakistan to take all ten wickets in a first class innings. He again replicated the feat some years later....
. The rugby league side, Meltham All Blacks ARLFC, currently play in the Pennine League
Pennine League
The Pennine Amateur Rugby League, or Pennine League is a rugby league competition for amateur open-age clubs that runs from September to April. The clubs are drawn from West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and the east of Lancashire....
Division 4.
Music
Meltham is home to the Meltham and Meltham Mills Band, which was established in 1846 as a brass band. They became the first band to win the British Open Title three years on the trot, a feat only matched by 5 others.Television
Meltham has been used as part of the location for several television projects. The third episode in 1995's Coogan's RunCoogan's Run
Coogan's Run was a 1995 UK TV series featuring Steve Coogan as a series of odd characters living in the fictional town of Ottle. It was written by various people including Coogan, Patrick Marber, David Tyler, Graham Linehan, Arthur Mathews, Geoffrey Perkins and Henry Normal...
was set in and around Meltham Parish Church Hall. In addition scenes of long-running BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
sitcom Last of the Summer Wine
Last of the Summer Wine
Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom written by Roy Clarke that was broadcast on BBC One. Last of the Summer Wine premiered as an episode of Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973 and the first series of episodes followed on 12 November 1973. From 1983 to 2010, Alan J. W. Bell produced and...
and ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
Where the Heart Is
Where the Heart Is (1997 TV series)
Where the Heart Is is a British television drama series set in the fictional town Skelthwaite.First shown in 1997, it was created by Ashley Pharoah and Vicky Featherstone...
used some Meltham houses as character's homes. The scout hut has also been used as well as streets for shooting outdoor scenes.
Brook(e) family
Meltham Mills was the former site of Jonas Brook and Brothers, a silkSilk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
mill complex that employed over 1,000 workers during the late 19th century. The Brook family originally came from New House Hall in Sheepridge
Sheepridge, Huddersfield
Sheepridge is a district of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It is 2 miles to the north west of the town centre.Sheepridge is situated between Brackenhall, Deighton and Fartown....
, moving to Thickhollins towards the end of the 18th century. William Brook married Martha Smith at Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
Parish Church - the daughter of a prominent Mirfield
Mirfield
Mirfield is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on the A644 road between Brighouse and Dewsbury...
banker. Their sons Jonas, James and Joseph established their business in Meltham Mills, using a goat's head - the crest
Crest (heraldry)
A crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
from the Brook's coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
- as their brand. The goat's head can still be seen on the old office building to the mill complex and their arms are emblazoned in St. James' Church, in Meltham Mills (which the family built) - a hawkes lure: motto "en dieu ma foy" (in God my trust). Meltham Mills Band also carry the Brook family coat of arms as their official logo. Edward Brook died in 1904 at Hoddom Castle
Hoddom Castle
Hoddom Castle is a large tower house in Dumfries and Galloway, south Scotland. It is located by the River Annan, south-west of Ecclefechan and the same distance north-west of Brydekirk in the parish of Cummertrees...
, the house near Ecclefechan
Ecclefechan
Ecclefechan is a small village in the south of Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway.Ecclefechan lay in the early middle ages within the British kingdom of Rheged, and the name is derived from the Brythonic for "small church"...
, south-west Scotland, which he had purchased in 1878. The Brook family were philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
s and built housing in Meltham Mills for their employees, including the convalescent home. They also built Meltham Hall, Helme Church and owned an estate at Enderby
Enderby, Leicestershire
Enderby is a civil parish in the district of Blaby , in Leicestershire, England. It is situated on the south western outskirts of the city of Leicester and has a population of 5,648 at the time of the 2001 census....
in Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
. William Brook is buried with his wife Martha in Meltham Church, but his descendants are buried in the crypt underneath St. James Church, Meltham Mills.
Jonas Brook and Brothers became United Threads in 1890 and Sir Hildred Carlile of Ponsonby Hall, Hertfordshire was a Director of the business. United Threads was closed in 1939 - the business was transferred to Paisley
Paisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
as part of J & P Coats - now Coats Viyella. The factory site was taken over by David Brown Tractors.
John Charles Brooke
John Charles Brooke
John Charles Brooke FSA was an English antiquarian and Somerset Herald at the time of his premature death in 1794.-Early life:...
, who originated from the Silkstone branch of the Newhouse Hall family was Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
Herald
Herald
A herald, or, more correctly, a herald of arms, is an officer of arms, ranking between pursuivant and king of arms. The title is often applied erroneously to all officers of arms....
during the 18th century. He was crushed to death at the Haymarket Theatre
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
following the crowd's clamour to see King George III in 1794. He is buried in St Benet Paul's Wharf
St Benet Paul's Wharf
The Church of St Benet Paul's Wharf is the Welsh church of the City of London. Since 1555, it has also been the church of the College of Arms, and many officers of arms are buried there. The current church was designed by Sir Christopher Wren.-History:...
in London.
Tractor factory
Meltham Mills was also the former base of the David Brown TractorsDavid Brown Ltd.
David Brown Engineering Limited is a British engineering company, principally engaged in the manufacture of gears and gearboxes. Their major gear manufacturing plant is in Swan Lane, Lockwood, Huddersfield, adjacent to Lockwood railway station...
factory opening in 1939 and closing operations on the site in 1988. The various building have now been converted into a diverse number of industrial units, one housing a Tractor
Tractor
A tractor is a vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used in agriculture or construction...
museum and other large sections containing an indoor Kart racing
Kart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
track.
Durker Roods, the former home of Sir David Brown
David Brown (entrepreneur)
Sir David Brown was an English entrepreneur, managing director of his family firm David Brown Limited and one time owner of shipbuilders Vosper Thornycroft and automobile manufacturer Aston Martin....
was converted into a hotel and the grounds were sold for private housing.
The town has its own joint Scouting and Guides Association buildings.
Notable people from Meltham
Meltham was the birthplace of Lance Sergeant James Taylor (25B/82) E Company 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment (2nd Warwickshire), who fought at, and survived, the battle at Rorke's Drift in the Zulu war. Although born in the village, to parents also born there, he grew up in Manchester, but can still be regarded as a native of Meltham.Albert Craig
Albert Craig (The Surrey Poet)
Albert Craig was commonly known as The Surrey Poet, although he never used the term himself, instead signing his pieces as "A.C. Cricket Rhymester".. He would attend cricket and football matches to write verses and short essays describing the players and events, then had them printed on...
,dubbed the Surrey Poet, was also born and raised in Meltham. His ditties concerned mainly cricket and football.