Castleford is a town within the

City of Wakefield The City of Wakefield is a local government district with the status of a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Wakefield, the largest settlement, is the administrative centre of the district. The population of the City of ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

in the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the

River Aire The River Aire is a major river in Yorkshire, England, in length. The ''Handbook for Leeds and Airedale'' (1890) notes that the distance from Malham to Howden is direct, but the river's meanderings extend that to . Between Malham Tarn and Ai ...

and the

Aire and Calder Navigation The Aire and Calder Navigation is the canalised section of the Rivers Aire and Calder in West Yorkshire, England. The first improvements to the rivers above Knottingley were completed in 1704 when the Aire was made navigable to Leeds and the ...

. It is located north east of

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

, north of

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...

and south east of

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. Castleford is the largest town in the Wakefield district after Wakefield itself. The town is the site of a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

settlement. Within the historical Castleford Borough are the suburbs of

Airedale Airedale is a geographic area in Yorkshire, England, corresponding to the river valley or dale of the River Aire. The valley stretches from the river's origin in Aire Head Springs, Malham which is in the Yorkshire Dales, down past Skipton on ...

, Cutsyke,

Ferry Fryston Ferry Fryston is a suburb of the town of Castleford in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield. The appropriate ward is called Airedale and Ferry Fryston. In the 18th century Ferry Fryston was ...

, Fryston Village,

Glasshoughton Glasshoughton is a neighbourhood of Castleford in West Yorkshire, England, that borders on Pontefract. The appropriate Wakefield ward is called Castleford Central and Glasshoughton. It is home to the Xscape leisure centre and ski slope, the J ...

, Half Acres, Hightown, Lock Lane, Townville, Wheldale and Whitwood. Castleford is home to the

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

team

Castleford Tigers The Castleford Tigers are a professional rugby league club in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England, that compete in the Super League, the top-level professional rugby league club competition in the Northern Hemisphere. The club have competed i ...

History

Castleford's history dates back to

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

, archaeological evidence points to modern day Castleford being built upon a

Roman army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

settlement which was called

Lagentium Lagentium or Legiolum was the Roman name for the fort and surrounding civilian settlement which was built around the year 74 by the Roman Empire. The English town of Castleford, West Yorkshire, is now built on what was the fort. Etymology The na ...

(thought to mean 'The Place of the Swordsmen'). Roman funeral urns have been found in modern-day Castleford, giving further evidence to this theory. A Roman milestone was unearthed in Beancroft Road, now believed to be in Leeds City Museum. Queen's Park in Castleford provides evidence of Roundhouses used by the

Anglo Saxons The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

. This was a strategic area due to the views of the entire settlement. The history of the area includes

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

's encampment in nearby Knottingley and Ferrybridge (originally thought to be in Castleford itself) whilst his forces laid siege to Pontefract Castle. Hightown, Castleford, All Saints Church - geograph

Hightown, Castleford, All Saints Church - geograph

In the 19th century, Castleford became a

boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although ...

with the population growing from 1,000 to 14,000 as collieries opened around the town; however, these collieries closed in the 20th century.

Ferrybridge Power Station The Ferrybridge power stations were a series of three coal-fired power stations on the River Aire near Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire, England, in operation from 1927 to 2016 on a site next to the junction of the M62 and A1(M) motorways. The f ...

and

Kellingley Colliery Kellingley Colliery was a deep coal mine in North Yorkshire, England, east of Ferrybridge power station. It was owned and operated by UK Coal. The colliery closed on 18 December 2015, marking the end of deep-pit coal mining in Britain. The s ...

have also closed (in 2015 and 2016 respectively) and used to employ Castleford residents. The newer warehouses and distribution centres in

have brought in many new jobs to the area. In 2008 ''

Grand Designs ''Grand Designs'' is a British television series produced by Boundless and broadcast on Channel 4 which features unusual and often elaborate architectural homebuilding projects. The programme has been presented by Kevin McCloud since it first ...

'' presenter

Kevin McCloud Kevin McCloud, (born 8 May 1959) is a British designer, writer, and television presenter. He has presented the Channel 4 series ''Grand Designs'' since its debut in April 1999. Early life Born in Bedfordshire, McCloud and his two brothers, T ...

and

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

led a community regeneration scheme to redevelop Castleford. In February 2017 Castleford Swimming Pool closed. A new modern leisure facility including a swimming pool is proposed for nearby Pontefract Park.

Economy

Burberry Burberry is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry headquartered in London, England. It currently designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats (for which it is most famous), leather accessories, ...

, the retailer and designer label, has a factory in the town, plans were proposed to close this once a new facility was built in Leeds. However these plans were put on hold in 2016 and the factory is due to remain in the town for the foreseeable future. A large

Nestlé Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...

factory, which produced Toffee Crisp and After Eights for 40 years, closed in 2012 and demolition starting in 2014 to make way for housing. Castleford has previously been home to Dunsford and Wesley Textiles, which at peak business times had three factories in Castleford which have all since ceased production. Castleford had potteries from the early 18th century until 1961, notably the Castleford Pottery (1790-1820) of David Dunderdale, which gave its name to "Castleford-type" stonewares.

Governance

Castleford Civic Centre (24th April 2021) 016

Castleford was established as an

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...

, in the administrative county of the

in 1894 under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

, with an urban district council. Whitwood and

were added to the district in the 1930s. The urban district was incorporated as a

municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

in 1955. Following the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, the municipal borough was abolished on 1 April 1974, it then became an

unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparish ...

of the

, a

metropolitan borough A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts within metropolitan ...

. Castleford is now controlled by

Wakefield Council Wakefield Metropolitan District Council, also known as Wakefield Council, is the local authority of the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council and provides a full range of local government services inc ...

. Three electoral wards cover the town: Airedale and Ferry Fryston; Altofts and Whitwood; and Castleford Central and Glasshoughton.

Amenities and entertainment

The town contains the ''Junction 32'' multi-store outlet shopping village and the '' Xscape'' leisure complex, both in the Glasshoughton suburb at the south of the town. Within Xscape is the large ''Snozone'', which used to have Britain's largest indoor real snow slope; this was later edged out by ''Chillfactore'' in Manchester. It is also home to

Frankie & Benny's Frankie & Benny's (now trading as Frankie's) is a chain of Italian-American-themed restaurants in the United Kingdom run by The Restaurant Group. , it had 90 outlets nationwide. History In 1924, at the age of 10, Frankie Giuliani left Sicily wit ...

and

Nando's Nando's (; ) is a South African multinational fast casual chain that specialises in flame-grilled peri-peri style chicken. Founded in Johannesburg in 1987, Nando's operates over 1,200 outlets in 30 countries. Their logo (also seen as a sort of ...

restaurants. It is also home to a 14-screen ''Cineworld'', which underwent a refit in 2018 and is now home to a 4DX screen and a Screen X. Castleford has an open and an indoor market, a shopping centre on Carlton Street and a retail park; in addition,

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of York ...

Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets, trading as Morrisons, is the fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Scotland, as well as one in Gibraltar. The company is headqua ...

Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when t ...

and

Co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

supermarkets are located there. Castleford Forum Museum April 2017

In December 2013, the ''Castleford Forum Museum'', a library and heritage museum, opened in a new building. The town's library had been in temporary accommodation for two years, while the old site was redeveloped. The existing frontage was kept, while the building further back was demolished. A new three-floor building was then constructed. The town centre has

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

s, bars and social clubs, although the number of these has declined in recent years with leisure becoming focused on the ''Xscape'' complex. In 2000, three nightclubs were situated in the town centre; today, none remain.

Media

The local newspaper is a weekly called Pontefract and Castleford Express.

Transport

Roads

Castleford is only away from the M62 at Junction 32 via the

A656 road List of A roads in zone 6 in Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island ...

. It has other A roads that criss-cross the town and provide access to Junction 31 on the same motorway.

Waterways

The rivers Aire and Calder have a confluence just north-west of the town and also feed the Aire and Calder Navigation. Whilst it is an industrial waterway, it also hosts tourism with moorings on the Castleford Cut of the Navigation.

Railways

Castleford railway station Castleford railway station serves the town of Castleford in West Yorkshire. It lies on the Hallam and Pontefract lines, south-east of Leeds. Although it was built originally as a through station, regular passenger services beyond Castlefor ...

is situated on both the Hallam and Pontefract lines; these lines connect the town directly with

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

Goole Goole is a port town and civil parish on the River Ouse in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The town's historic county is the West Riding of Yorkshire. According to the 2011 UK census, Goole parish had a population of 19,518, an increa ...

and

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

. All trains arrive from the west and leave in that same direction. In January 2021, the station was completely revamped, providing a modern waiting facility, sheltered cycle parking and changes to the car park layout. Train services used to travel eastwards to

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, via

Burton Salmon Burton Salmon is a village and civil parish in the Selby (district), Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, close to the border with West Yorkshire, and approximately north from Knottingley, on the A162 road. According to the 2001 Census ...

, but passenger workings ceased in 1970 with the section retained for freight workings only. Castleford also had a second service to Leeds that left the station eastwards and swung north onto the former

Castleford–Garforth line The Castleford–Garforth line was a single-track railway line in West Yorkshire, England, connecting Castleford with Garforth east of Leeds. The route was developed to allow coal to be transported from the area, though a passenger service was ...

, which saw services calling at Ledston and Kippax, before arriving in

Garforth Garforth () is a town in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It sits in the Garforth and Swillington ward of Leeds City Council and the Elmet and Rothwell parliamentary constituency. As of 2011, the popula ...

and continuing to Leeds. The

area of the town is served by its own railway station, which is situated one stop beyond Castleford on the Pontefract line.

Buses

In 2016, a new £6 million

bus station A bus station or a bus interchange is a structure where city or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. While the term bus depot can also be used to refer to a bus station, it generally refers to a bus garage. A bus station is l ...

was opened adjacent to the railway station to allow an integrated travel site for the 12,000 people using the bus station per day. Local services are provided primarily by

Arriva Yorkshire Arriva Yorkshire is a major bus operator providing services primarily within and across West Yorkshire, although it also provides service in some parts of South Yorkshire, East Riding of Yorkshire and southern areas of North Yorkshire. It is a ...

, but also by Globe Holidays (Barnsley) and Ross Travel. Routes link Castleford with Leeds, Pontefract and Wakefield.

Education

The town's primary schools for young children are Wheldon Infant School, Castleford Park Junior, Smawthorne Henry Moore, Townville Infant School, Airedale Juniors, Oyster Park Primary, Fairburn View Primary, Three Lane Ends Academy, Ackton Pastures and Half Acres. Castleford's secondary schools for children aged 11–16 are

Castleford Academy Castleford Academy (previously Castleford High School Technology and Sports College, more commonly known as just Castleford High School or Cas High), is a secondary school in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England for children aged 11–16. H ...

and Airedale Academy. The town has a small further and higher education college on the Castleford Campus of

Wakefield College Wakefield College is a Further Education and Higher Education College in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It has provided education in the city since 1868. On 1 March 2022, the college merged with Selby College to form the 'Heart of Yorkshi ...

in Glasshoughton.

Sport

Rugby League

Castleford is a

town. The local team,

was formed in 1926, Castleford was one of the twelve founder members of

when the new league format was introduced in 1996. The 'Tigers' nickname and logo were introduced in 1992 and the clubs honours include four

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves am ...

and one Super League leaders shield. The club have been based at

Wheldon Road Wheldon Road (known as the Mend-A-Hose Jungle for sponsorship purposes) is the home ground of Castleford Tigers Rugby league Club in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England. It is on Wheldon Road, just outside Castleford town centre. The record att ...

since 1927. Castleford also has two other lower league rugby league teams,

Castleford Lock Lane Lock Lane ARLFC are an amateur Rugby league Club in Castleford, West Yorkshire. Their home ground is the Hicksons Arena, part of the Lock Lane Sports Centre. The first team currently play in the National Conference Division One and the Acad ...

and Castleford Panthers. Rugby league in the town was originally represented by

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the ...

, unrelated to Castleford RUFC, who did not participate in The schism in English rugby and still exist, nor were they predecessors of the current Castleford Tigers who were founded in 1926. The original Castleford rugby league club played in the Northern Union (Rugby Football League) from 1896–97 to 1905–06, and it had one player named

Isaac Cole Isaac Cole (9 April 1886 – ) was an English rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s and 1910s. He played club level rugby union (RU) foCastleford and representative level rugby league (RL) for England and ...

who won a

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 1906 against

Other Nationalities The Other Nationalities rugby league team are a rugby league representative team that usually consists of non-English players. They have also played under the name The Exiles and more recently Combined Nations All Stars. They competed in the first ...

Motorcycle sport

From June 1979 to July 1980, Castleford had its own

Speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

racing team, The Kings, based at the

Castleford Whitwood Stadium Castleford Whitwood Stadium was a greyhound racing stadium in Altofts Lane, Whitwood, Castleford, England. Origins In April 1939 William Burrows and John Cain applied for a betting licence for greyhound racing to be held on a plot of land ...

. The circuit was 202 yards and the team never entered the league – only challenge matches were staged. In the 1960s, motorcycle scrambling used to take place on the north side of the hill at Queens Park. This was often featured on the BBC's Grandstand sports programme on Saturday afternoons and was commentated upon by

Murray Walker Graeme Murray Walker (10 October 1923 – 13 March 2021) was an English motorsport commentator and journalist. He provided television commentary of live Formula One coverage for the BBC between 1976 and 1996, and for ITV between 1997 and 2001 ...

Football

Glasshoughton Welfare play in the Northern Counties East League, Fryston Colliery Welfare were members of this league until they left in 1991 due to ground grading problems. In the 1920s Castleford Town played in the Midland League alongside clubs such as Doncaster Rovers, Chesterfield, Scunthorpe United, Halifax Town, Leeds United (for 1919–20 season only), Lincoln City and Mansfield Town. This league also contained the reserve sides of Sheffield Wednesday, Barnsley, Nottingham Forest, Grimsby Town and Hull City. In 1920 Castleford reached the 2nd round of the FA Cup, losing 2–3 at Bradford Park Avenue. Castleford played at Wheldon Road – when they shut down the ground was taken over by the rugby league team.

Greyhound racing

Castleford hosted two greyhound tracks both of which are no longer in existence. The first was in Whitwood and held racing from 1939 until 2001. The second track was the slightly larger 1,500 capacity

Castleford Sports Stadium Castleford Sports Stadium was a Football, greyhound racing, rugby union and rugby league and multi sports stadium located on the east side of Lock Lane in Castleford, West Yorkshire. It is not to be confused with the Castleford Whitwood Stadi ...

located east of Lock Lane sitting on the north bank of the River Aire.

Notable people

People born in Castleford: * Paul J. Anderson (born 1971), rugby footballer *

Mark Aston Mark Aston (born 27 September 1967) is the head coach of Sheffield Eagles in the Betfred Championship. He is an English rugby league coach, and former rugby league who spent the majority of his playing career with Sheffield Eagles. He also had ...

(born 1967), rugby coach * Arthur "Bruss" Atkinson (1906-1963), rugby footballer * Dennis Baddeley (1921-2006), rugby footballer * Mark D. Bailey (born 1960), professor * George W. Banks (c.1909-????), rugby footballer *

John Beaman John Richard Beaman (born 5 October 1951) was formerly one of the ten States of Alderney Members, and he became the Chairman of the influential Policy and Finance Committee in January 2011. Prior to this, he was the Island’s Representative for ...

(born 1951), politician *

Ben Blackmore Ben Blackmore (born ) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a er for Bradford Bulls in the Betfred Championship. He previously played for the Castleford Tigers and the Huddersfield Giants in the Super League. Blackm ...

(born 1993), rugby footballer * Peter Broughton (born 1935), cricketer *

Sonia Burgess Sonia Burgess (born David Burgess; 25 September 1947 – 25 October 2010) was a leading British immigration lawyer. Winstanley-Burgess solicitors, co-founded by Burgess in 1975, became one of the UK's "most respected asylum and immigration law ...

(1947-2010), immigration lawyer *

Mark Burns-Williamson Mark Burns-Williamson, (born January 1964) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner from 2012 to 2021. He was the chair of the West Yorkshire Police Authority from 2003 to 2012 He was a ...

(born 1964), politician * Wilf Burrows (1902-1985), footballer * Abi Burton (born 2000), rugby player * Harold "Harry" Burton (died 2009), rugby footballer *

Mark Byford Mark Julian Byford (born 13 June 1958) was Deputy Director-General of the BBC and head of BBC journalism from 2004 to 2011. He chaired the BBC Journalism Board and was a member of the BBC Executive Board for thirteen years. His responsibilities ...

(born 1958), deputy director-general of BBC *

Fred Carter Fredrick James Carter (born February 14, 1945), nicknamed "Mad Dog" or "Doggy", is an American former professional basketball player and coach, who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eight seasons (1969– 77) for the Balti ...

, rugby footballer * James "Sticks" Clare (born 1991), rugby footballer *

Daryl Clark Daryl Clark (born 10 February 1993) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Warrington Wolves in the Betfred Super League and England at international level. He played for the Castleford Tigers ( Heritage � ...

(born 1993), rugby footballer *

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

(1938-2019), rugby footballer *

Matt Crowther Matt Crowther (born 6 May 1974) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s for the Sheffield Eagles, Huddersfield-Sheffield Giants and Hull FC in the Super League. He is the Head Physio at the Castlefo ...

(born 1974), rugby footballer *

Will Dagger William Dagger (born 21 February 1999) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays for York Knights in the RFL Championship. He has previously played for the Warrington Wolves, Hull Kingston Rovers and Wakefield Trinity in ...

(born 1999), rugby footballer * Jonathan Davies (born 1991), rugby footballer *

Les Dyl Leslie P. Dyl (1 December 1952 – 22 May 2022)Cecil Eastwood (1894-1968), footballer *

Greg Eden Greg Eden (born 14 November 1990) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a er or for the Castleford Tigers in the Betfred Super League, and the England Knights at international level. He has previously played for Cas ...

(born 1990), rugby footballer *

Derek Edwards Derek Edwards (born 1958) is a Canadian stand-up comedian and actor from Timmins, Ontario. He went to Timmins High and Vocational School. In 1995, he was the winner of the Vail National Comedy Invitational in Vail, Colorado. He is the only Can ...

(c.1943-2020), rugby footballer *

Brett Ferres Brett Ryan Ferres (born 17 April 1986) is an English professional rugby league footballer who last played for Doncaster RLFC in the RFL League 1, and has played for England at international level, initially as a and later as a or . He has pr ...

(born 1986), rugby footballer * Richard Foulkes (born 1909), footballer * Tommy Gale (1895-1976), footballer * Sammy Gledhill (1913-1994), footballer * John A. Harman (born 1950), politician *

Jack Hebden Jack T. Hebden (born 1900) was an English professional association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football), right back. Career Born in Castleford, Hebden played for Castleford Town F.C., Castleford Town, Bradford Ci ...

(born 1900), footballer *

Jonny Hepworth Jonny Hepworth (born ) is an English rugby league and rugby union footballer. He played club level rugby union (RU) for Leinster Rugby, Clontarf FC, Leeds Tykes, and, Rotherham R.U.F.C., and club level rugby league (RL) for Castleford Panthers ...

(born 1989), rugby footballer *

Keith Hepworth Keith Hepworth (born c. 1942), also known by the nickname of 'Heppy', is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1980s. He played at representative level for Great Brit ...

(born c.1942), rugby footballer *

Gary Hetherington Gary Hetherington (born 1954) is an English professional rugby league executive and former professional rugby league footballer and coach. He is the chief executive officer of the Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. Hetherington made his débu ...

(born 1954), rugby footballer * Thomas Holmes (born 1996), rugby footballer * John Illingworth (1904-1964), footballer * Gill Isles (born 1972), TV producer * Neil James (1961-2014), rugby footballer * Kryan Johnson (born 1994), rugby footballer *

John Kear John Kear (born 25 November 1954) is an English professional rugby league coach who is the head coach of the Widnes Vikings in the Betfred Championship and the Wales national rugby league team. He also works as a pundit for BBC Sport and is a f ...

(born 1954), rugby coach *

Stan Kielty Stanley "Stan" Kielty (20 July 1925 – 31 December 2008) was an English rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s and 1950s, and Coach (sport), coached in the 1960s. He played at representative level for England national rugby league team, ...

(1925-2008), rugby footballer * Brad Knowles (born 1993), rugby footballer *

Shaun Le Roux Shaun Le Roux (born September 27, 1986 in Cape Town) is a professional squash player who represents South Africa. He reached a career-high world ranking of 37 in the world in March 2015. He appeared as a contestant on BBC gameshow Pointless ...

(born 1986), squash player * Christopher "Cliff" Lethbridge (born 1963), cricketer * Joyce Lishman (1947-2021), professor * Walter "Ginger" Lynch (1896-c.1923), footballer *

Dominic Maloney Dominic "Dom" Maloney (born 12 March 1987), also known by the nickname of "Big Dom", is an English rugby league footballer who has played in the 2000s and 2010s. He has played at club level for the Castleford Tigers (List of Castleford Tigers p ...

(born 1987), rugby footballer * Lester Marshall (1902-1956), footballer * Nathan Massey (born 1989), rugby footballer *

Peter Meakin Peter Jeremy Meakin (born 12 October 1942) is an English Australian journalist who has worked as news/current affairs director for all three of Australia's commercial television networks ( Nine Network, Seven Network and Network Ten). Early li ...

(born 1942), journalist *

Roger Millward Roger Millward (16 September 1947 – 2 May 2016) was an English rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1980s and 1990s. A goal-kicking , he gained a high level of prominence in the sport in England by p ...

(1947-2016), rugby footballer *

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi- abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. As well as sculpture, Moore produced ...

(1898-1986), artist *

Viv Nicholson Vivian "Viv" Nicholson (nee Asprey; 3 April 1936 – 11 April 2015) was a British woman who became famous when she told the media that she would "spend, spend, spend" after her husband Keith won £152,319 () on the football pools in 1961. Nicho ...

(1936-2015), expatriate *

Julian Norton Julian Norton (born 3 June 1972) is a British veterinary surgeon, author and TV personality, best known for his appearances on thirteen series of ''The Yorkshire Vet'', which has been broadcast on Channel 5 since 2015. Early life Norton was bo ...

(born 1972), veterinary surgeon *

Steve Norton Stephen Norton (22 December 1951), also known by the nickname of "Knocker", is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s, and coached in the 1990s. He played at representative level for Great Brita ...

(born 1951), rugby player *

Danny Orr Daniel Crawford Orr (born 17 May 1978), is an English rugby league coach and former player. He is an assistant coach for the Salford Red Devils. A Great Britain national rugby league team, Great Britain international representative or , Orr pla ...

(born 1978), rugby coach *

Stephen Payne Stephen Payne may refer to: *Stephen Payne (energy executive) (born 1964), American lobbyist *Stephen Payne (naval architect), British ship designer *Stephen Payne, science fiction editor at ''Starburst magazine'', Visual Imagination and the ''Doc ...

(born 1975), footballer *

Daryl Peach Daryl Peach (born 8 March 1972) is an English professional pool player, from Lancashire, who resides in Blackpool, England. He won the 2007 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, where he defeated the Philippines' Roberto Gomez 17–15 in the fina ...

(born 1972), pool player *

Mervyn Pike Irene Mervyn Parnicott Pike, Baroness Pike, (16 September 1918 – 11 January 2004) was a British Conservative politician. The name by which she came to be known, Mervyn, had been the name of her father's best friend, who was to have been her ...

(1918-2004), politician *

Harry Poole Henry Poole (born 31 January 1935) is an English former football player, noted for his swerving free kicks. Primarily a half back, he has the second highest number of appearances for Port Vale. He made 499 league and cup appearances for the ...

(1935-1977), rugby footballer * Gary "Slogger" Price (born 1961), rugby footballer * Colin Roberts (1933-2017), footballer * Donald Robinson (1932-2017), rugby footballer * Ash Robson (born 1995), rugby footballer * Nicky Saxton (born 1984), rugby footballer *

Waen Shepherd Waen Origen Shepherd (born 23 October 1971) is an English composer, actor and comedian. He is best known for his role in The inbetweeners as Mr Kennedy . He is Originally from Yorkshire, England, he now lives in London. Career Following his d ...

(born 1971), composer * Chris Smith (born 1975), rugby footballer * Harry W. Smith (1886-1955), cricketer * Tony "Casper" Smith (born 1970), rugby player * Reginald Soar (1893-1971), flying ace *

Anthony Starks Anthony Starks (11 August 1873 – January 1952) was an English dual-code international rugby union, and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1890s and 1900s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for England and Yo ...

(1873-1952), rugby footballer *

Gary Stephens Gary Stephens (born 23 August 1952) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s as a , and Coach (sport), coached in the 1980s and 1990s. He played at representative level for Great Brita ...

(born 1952), rugby footballer * Harry Street (1927-2002), rugby footballer *

Gay Taylor Gay Taylor (, McDowall; pen name, Loran Hurnscot; 27 September 1896 – 29 November 1970) was an English writer and co-founder, with Harold (Hal) Midgely Taylor, of the Golden Cockerel Press. Early life Ethelwynne (nickname, "Gay") ) Stewart M ...

(1896-1970), writer * John "Jack" Taylor (1877-1951), rugby player *

Bob Tomlinson Robert Tomlinson was an English professional Association football, footballer who played as an outside forward in the Football League for York City F.C., York City, and in non-League football for Castleford Town F.C., Castleford Town and Harroga ...

, footballer * Andrew Townsley (born 1952), cricketer *

David Treasure David Treasure (born ) is an English-born former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s. He played at representative level for Wales, and at club level for Featherstone Rovers (Under-17s), The Junction (Open-Age, 11-A-Sid ...

(born 1950), rugby footballer * Calum Turner (born 1997), rugby footballer * John "Willie" Ward (1873-1939), rugby footballer * John "Johnny" Ward (1940/41-2019), rugby footballer *

Liam Watts Liam Watts (born 8 July 1990) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Castleford Tigers (List of Castleford Tigers players, Heritage № 877) in the Super League. He is an England Knights international. He ha ...

(born 1990), rugby footballer * Noel Wilders (born 1975), boxer * Kyle Wood (born 1989), rugby footballer *

Val Wood Val may refer to: Val-a Film * ''Val'' (film), an American documentary about Val Kilmer, directed by Leo Scott and Ting Poo Military equipment * Aichi D3A, a Japanese World War II dive bomber codenamed "Val" by the Allies * AS Val, a Sov ...

, author *

Martyn Woolford Martyn Paul Woolford (born 13 October 1985) is an English former professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for Frickley Athletic. He has played in the Football League for Scunthorpe United, Bristol City, Millwall, Sheffield Unit ...

(born 1985), footballer

References

External links

{{Authority control Towns in West Yorkshire Unparished areas in West Yorkshire Geography of the City of Wakefield