Bramhope is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in the

City of Leeds The City of Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. The metropolitan borough includes the administrative centre of Leeds and the towns of Farsley, Garforth, Guiseley, Horsforth, Morley, Otley, Pudsey, Rothwell, W ...

metropolitan borough,

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, north of Holt Park and north east of Cookridge. The village is north of Leeds city centre and it is in the LS16 Leeds postcode area. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 3,400. The population had increased to 3,533 at the 2011 Census. It is predominantly made up of large, privately owned houses which tend to be above the average value for properties in West Yorkshire. Bramhope sits in the Leeds North West constituency and the Adel & Wharfedale ward of

Leeds City Council Leeds City Council is the local authority of the City of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in West Yorkshire and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, and provides the majority of l ...

Etymology

The place-name ''Bramhope'' appears first in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...

of 1086 as ''Brahop'' and ''Bramhop'', with later medieval spellings including ''Bramhop(a)'' and ''Bramhop(p)e''. The name seems to derive from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...

words ''brōm'' '

broom A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...

' and ''hōp'' 'a small valley, side-valley off a larger valley', here referring to a small valley off

Wharfedale Wharfedale ( ) is the valley of the upper parts of the River Wharfe and one of the Yorkshire Dales. It is situated within the districts of Craven and Harrogate in North Yorkshire, and the cities of Leeds and Bradford in West Yorkshire. It i ...

, probably the one through which flows Bramhope Beck.

History

The earliest known settlement in the area was a British camp established off Moor Road. The

Romans 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 lette ...

built a road through the area from Adel to

Ilkley Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, in Northern England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within the ...

, traces of which remain in a field near Leeds Bradford Airport. In 1086, Bramhope was the manor of an Anglo-Saxon

thegn In Anglo-Saxon England, thegns were aristocratic landowners of the second rank, below the ealdormen who governed large areas of England. The term was also used in early medieval Scandinavia for a class of retainers. In medieval Scotland, there ...

, Uchill. In 1095 the manor passed to the

Percy The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...

family, and in 1165 was sold to Ralph de Bramhope. In the 13th century the monasteries owned much of the land and had granges where sheep were grazed. The monks used tracks, such as Scotland Lane and Staircase Lane, as they travelled from their outlying granges to

Kirkstall Abbey Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery in Kirkstall, north-west of Leeds city centre in West Yorkshire, England. It is set in a public park on the north bank of the River Aire. It was founded ''c.'' 1152. It was disestablished during ...

. The village had a small population until the 20th century. The Black Death of 1348-49 reduced the number of adults to 34, but this gradually increased to about 400 in 1900. Now it is approximately 3,400. Water was drawn from private wells or the town

well A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

at the foot of Northgate (now Church Hill). The town well was restored in 1991 by the Bramhope History Group, and is located opposite St Giles' Church. The plaque says that the well was exposed in 1991, so perhaps it had been lost for some time.

Churches

At the Dissolution of the Monasteries Henry VIII gave the land to the Earl of Cumberland. In the 16th century the Dyneley family moved into the area and acquired Bramhope Hall. In 1649 they built the Puritan Chapel, which was taken over by the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

after the Restoration. The chapel is one of only a few built during the Commonwealth period. It is said not to have been consecrated but nevertheless was regularly used for church services until 1881–82. The Puritan Chapel was

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

Grade I in 1966. When the chapel proved too small for the growing population, St Giles' Church was built in 1881. The original Methodist chapel was built in 1837 and replaced by the much bigger church in 1896. There is a map showing the location of St Giles and the Methodist churc
here
Bramhope Cemetery, established in 1861, is in Moor Road, but there are still some historical

gravestones A headstone, tombstone, or gravestone is a stele or marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. It is traditional for burials in the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religions, among others. In most cases, it has the deceased's name, da ...

remaining in the cemetery of the Puritan Chapel.

Road and railway

For many centuries travellers to the

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

s in the vicinity used Otley Old Road. However, it was the

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 popula ...

Otley Otley is a market town and civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the population was 13,668 at the 20 ...

turnpike road, with its tollhouses, opened in 1842, which routed travellers through the outskirts of Bramhope. It is along this route that motorists today travel between Leeds and the northwest. The

milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway line, canal or boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks; or they can give their position on the route relative to so ...

s along the road were erected in 1850. The

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

was excavated under the village through the Bramhope Tunnel constructed between 1845 and 1849. The tunnel has an elaborate castellated northern entrance and there are many heaps of spoil and several

ventilation shaft In subterranean civil engineering, ventilation shafts, also known as airshafts or vent shafts, are vertical passages used in mines and tunnels to move fresh air underground, and to remove stale air. In architecture, an airshaft is a small, ...

s along its length. There is a replica of the tunnel entrance in

churchyard, erected as a memorial to the 24 men who lost their lives during the tunnel's construction. A railway station has never been built at or near Bramhope.

Schools

A village school was built in Eastgate where the

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

garden is situated. A plaque states "On this site in 1790 a Day School was erected by the freeholders and copyholders of Bramhope Township. It was also used as a Sunday School and Public Meeting Place. Demolished 1961". The school became overcrowded whilst tunnelling work for the railway was going on in the late 1840s. It was replaced by a larger building in 1873 in Breary Lane, next to the shopping parade. The present school, situated on Tredgold Crescent, was opened in 1961.

Community

Bramhope has a Round Table, which organises activities to raise money for

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

. Bramhope has a cricket club which plays at the Recreation Ground on Old Lane. The club plays in the Leeds and Wetherby Cricket League and has two senior teams.

Memorial Hall

Robert Craven Memorial Hall (originally the Craven Institute, 1896) was part of the bequest of Robert Craven, a local farmer. It is now the

village hall A village hall is a public building in a village used for various things such as: United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building which contains at least one large room (plus kitchen and toilets), is owned by a local ...

and administered as a registered

. It has a crown

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), thou ...

green, car park and tennis courts. Inside there are various rooms plus a large hall with stage, which doubles as a

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

court. On the second Saturday of every month a farmer's market is hosted at this hall. The memorial hall also hosts a yearly flower show in the autumn, and a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

club.

Bramhope Scout Campsite

The 13-acre Bramhope Scout Campsite, to the west of the village, is owned by Central Yorkshire Scouts.

Listed buildings

* Grade I buildings: Puritan Chapel, Otley Road (north side). * Grade II buildings: Farmhouse at 1 Church Hill; Barn about 5 metres west of Old Manor Farmhouse; Old Manor Farmhouse (rear portion only); Weaver's Cottage, 4 Eastgate; Methodist Church, Eastgate, north side; Gazebo on north-east corner of garden of Belvedere, Hall Drive (south side); Manor House, Manor Close (north side); Sighting tower, south side of Moorland Road; The Hollies, Old Lane (north side); Portal to north entrance to Bramhope railway tunnel. * Grade II Mileposts: Milepost on east corner of junction with Church Hill and Ditley Road (south side); Milepost at SE 240 441, Otley Road (north side); Milepost at SE 253 432, Otley Road (north side); Milepost at SE 264 421, Otley Road (north side); Milepost on east corner of junction with Breary Lane at SE 255 430, Otley Road (south side); Milepost on east corner of junction with Breary lane east at SE 256 430, Otley road (north side); Milepost on south-east corner of junction with Pool Bank New Road at SE 241 440, Otley Road (south side); Milepost on south-west corner of junction with Pool Bank New Road st SE 241440, Otley Road (south side); Milepost on west corner of junction with Creskeld Lane at SE 258 428, Otley Road (north side). * Related Grade II listing at Otley: Memorial to victims of Bramhope tunnel disaster (''sic''), Church Lane (north side), Otley.

Notable people

* Gold medal Winner at London 2012 Alistair Brownlee and Bronze medal-winning brother Jonathan Brownlee

Gallery

File:Bramhope 015.jpg, Bell on

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...

Church, 1649 File:Bramhope 024.jpg, St Giles'

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

, 1881 File:Bramhope 027.jpg,

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

Church, 1896 File:Bramhope 036.jpg, Old smithy, 1687 File:Bramhope 025.jpg, Old manor farm house, 1691 File:Bramhope 041.jpg, Old school house 1873, now flats File:Bramhope Tunnel north portal 1b.jpg, Bramhope Tunnel north portal with castellated towers File:Bramhope 046.jpg, Sighting tower over Bramhope Tunnel route File:Bramhope 052.jpg, Ventilation shaft serving Bramhope Tunnel File:Air Shaft Bramhope.jpg, Ventilation shaft in centre of Bramhope

Location grid

References

External links

* *
Flickr: Set of images of Bramhope Tunnel
{{authority control Places in Leeds Villages in West Yorkshire Civil parishes in West Yorkshire