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Knottingley is a market town in 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 o ...
in West Yorkshire, England on 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 old
A1 road A list of roads designated A1, sorted by alphabetical order of country. * A01 highway (Afghanistan), a long ring road or beltway connecting Kabul, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar * A1 motorway (Albania), connecting Durrës and Kukës * A001 highw ...
before it was bypassed as the A1(M). Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it has a population of 13,503, increasing to 13,710 for the City of Wakefield ward at the 2011 Census. It makes up the majority of the Knottingley ward represented on
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 ...
. Until 1699, it was an important inland river port but, in that year, the Aire was made navigable as far as Leeds, which soon surpassed it. Knottingley continued as a centre for boat building into the 20th century. In the late 19th century, it started glass manufacturing. The town is served by Knottingley railway station. After 1870, the town became known for glass manufacturing. In 1887 Bagley's Glassworks purchased the rights to the first bottle-making machine, invented by a Ferrybridge postmaster. There is a Bagley's Glass gallery in
Pontefract Museum Pontefract Museum is a local museum in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. The collections cover archaeology, archives, decorative and applied art, fine art, photographs and social history. History The museum is located in an Art Nouveau bui ...
. Close to Knottingley was
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 ...
, which had the largest
cooling tower A cooling tower is a device that rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a coolant stream, usually a water stream to a lower temperature. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove process heat and c ...
s of their kind in Europe. Three of these towers collapsed in high winds in 1965. The remaining towers, which could be seen for miles around, were demolished between 2019 and 2022. The town was the last in the United Kingdom to have a working deep coal mine,
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 ...
, until it closed in December 2015.


History

Knottingley means "the clearing of Cnotta's people", from the Old English personal name ''Cnotta'' meaning "
knot A knot is an intentional complication in cordage which may be practical or decorative, or both. Practical knots are classified by function, including hitches, bends, loop knots, and splices: a ''hitch'' fastens a rope to another object; a ...
", describing a small, round man and -''ingas'' "people of" + ''leāh'' "wood, modern lee, not the same meaning as Leah (personal name)". The name was recorded as ''Cnotinesleahemm'' in 1128. During the three Sieges of Pontefract Castle, Oliver Cromwell took residence in the town of Knottingley, believed to be in Wildbore House. The house was later demolished when its land was mined as a
quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...
for the limestone underneath. Knottingley, inextricably linked with Ferrybridge, is a West Yorkshire town whose history is tied to river travel and industry. It has managed to retain certain elements of that industrial history as thriving enterprises today, providing employment for many of its combined population of some 17,000. It was originally an Anglo-Saxon settlement, though the ancient monument of Ferrybridge
Henge There are three related types of Neolithic earthwork that are all sometimes loosely called henges. The essential characteristic of all three is that they feature a ring-shaped bank and ditch, with the ditch inside the bank. Because the internal ...
shows it had significant indigenous habitation long before then. The crossing over the Aire at Ferrybridge was of importance for many centuries. A bridge was built there in 1198, and another to replace it two centuries later. Located on the Great North Road linking London with York and Edinburgh beyond that, the town became an important staging place for the coach traffic on that route. Knottingley was an inland port of some note, long the last navigable point on the Aire until the Aire and Calder Navigation, built in 1704 and widened in 1826, enabled barges to make it to Leeds. Its shipyards built and maintained both inland and seagoing vessels. Pottery was a significant industry for the town from the 19th century until as late as the 1940s, when the Australian Pottery, opened to cater to that country's needs, finally closed. Glass manufacturing continues to be important. The town had
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 ...
operating until December 2015. The demand for coal was helped by the huge
power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many pow ...
at Ferrybridge. Whilst most of the coal bound for Ferrybridge left by rail, some was transported up river using barges, the last of which was delivered in December 2002. The last miners, their families and many former miners marched from
Knottingley Town Hall Knottingley Town Hall is a municipal building in Weeland Road, Knottingley, West Yorkshire, England. The structure, which served as the headquarters of Knottingley Urban District Council, now operates as a community centre. History The building ...
to the Social Club in December 2015.


Sport

A short lived greyhound racing track existed from 1940 to 1946 and again during 1947. The racing was independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body the National Greyhound Racing Club) and was known as a flapping track, which was the nickname given to independent tracks. The venue could accommodate up to 3,000 people. The town is home to a rugby union club, who meet on Marsh Lane.


Education

Knottingley has one high school, De Lacy Academy formerly called Knottingley High School and Sports College. It has several primary schools: England Lane Academy, Willow Green Academy, Knottingley St Botolph's C of E Academy, The Vale Primary Academy and Simpson's Lane Academy. Sixth-form colleges are located in nearby
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 Wak ...
, Wakefield and
Selby Selby is a market town and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England, south of York on the River Ouse, with a population at the 2011 census of 14,731. The town was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire until ...
.


Notable people

* Ambrose Askin, rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s * Tom Askin, international rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s and 1930s *
Percy Bentley Percy Bentley (13 December 1906 − 25 March 1982) was an Australian rules footballer in the (then) Victorian Football League. Bentley was a strong ruckman and great tactician who was a key player and coach for the Richmond Football Club duri ...
, one of four soldiers to be awarded the Military Cross four times * Terry Cooper, former Leeds United & England footballer. *Rev
Thomas Dealtry The Rt Rev Thomas Dealtry (1795–1861) was an Anglican bishop in the 19th century. Life He was born into a poor family in Knottingley in Yorkshire in 1796. Mainly self-taught, Dealtry worked as an usher in a Doncaster school and then as tut ...
born here in 1796 *
Wayne Godwin Wayne Robert Godwin (born 13 March 1982) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played as a in the 2000s and 2010s. Godwin played for the Castleford Tigers ( Heritage № 779), the Wigan Warriors ( Heritage № 971), Hu ...
,
Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...
rugby league footballer, and also played for Knottingley Rockware ARLFC *
Zak Hardaker Zak Alexander Hardaker (born 17 October 1991) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a or for the Leigh Leopards in the Super League. He has played for the England Knights, England and Great Britain at international ...
, Leeds rugby league footballer, and also played for Knottingley Rockware ARLFC * Bill Horton rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s and 1930s for; Wakefield Trinity, Yorkshire, England and Great Britain * Dale Morton, Wakefield Trinity rugby league footballer, and also played for Knottingley Rockware ARLFC * Craig Moss, Keighley rugby league footballer, and also played for Knottingley Rockware ARLFC *
William Sefton Moorhouse William Sefton Moorhouse ( 1825 – 15 September 1881) was a British-born New Zealand politician. He was the second Superintendent of Canterbury Province. Early life Moorhouse was born in Yorkshire, England, and baptised on 18 December 1825; th ...
, a New Zealand politician *
Graham Steadman Graham Steadman (born 8 December 1961) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 2000s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and Yorkshire, and at club level ...
, Former York,
Featherstone Rovers Featherstone Rovers are a professional rugby league club in Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England, who play in the Championship. Featherstone is a former coal mining town with a population of around 16,000 and Rovers are one of the last "sma ...
,
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 ...
& Great Britain rugby league footballer *Professor Austin Tate, Professor of Knowledge-Based Systems at the University of Edinburgh * Ben Thompson, former Marshal of
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city i ...
, Texas; gambler and gunman in frontier Texas and Kansas of the United States * Billy Thompson, a gunman and gambler in the American West, and younger brother of Ben Thompson


See also

* Listed buildings in Knottingley and Ferrybridge


References

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