Illingworth is a village within the
Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale
Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, whose population in 2020 was 211,439. It takes its name from the River Calder, and dale, a word for valley. The name Calderdale usually refers to the borough through which the ...
, in
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. The appropriate Calderdale Ward is called Illingworth and Mixenden. The population of this ward at the 2011 Census was 12,739.
It is situated north-west of
Halifax.
Illingworth is one of the Halifax villages that have all become suburbs through urban expansion. Situated on the side and top of a hill, this is an exposed area, and feels cooler than lower down districts.
History
The village also has the former Illingworth Gaol and village stocks. The
gaol
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, English language in England, standard English, Australian English, Australian, and Huron Historic Gaol, historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention cen ...
has an inscription above the door giving the date as 1823 of when it was built. It had four cells. In June 2009, it was advertised for sale by
auction
An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...
br>
An ancient settlement, many old buildings remain, but many have been lost including the old Talbot public house, demolished in the 1930s for a new building to be erected, in a
Tudor Revival architecture, Tudor style with stained glass windows. This in turn has been demolished in 2009.
The Commercial Inn is another pub now demolished, and on its site there are some mews style private housing.
Housing
The old village smithy stands derelict. In the 1970s, some ancient cottages were lost on Church Terrace, as were some farmsteads on the upper west of Keighley Road to make way for the Abbey Park social housing scheme. The greater part of this housing scheme has in turn been demolished to make way for private sector housing.
Housing in Illingworth includes a mixture of social housing: the Halifax council built their estates towards the north of Halifax and more recently new private housing.
Illingworth is on the whole in what could be described as an attractive setting, the countryside is never far away, and there are many ancient buildings, but the village centre has witnessed severe deterioration of the environment with the aforesaid demolitions of the two public houses, and the "tram shelter". which gave a focal point on Wrigley Hill.
Sports
The village of Illingworth has competitive sports teams within the area including Crossleys Juniors (
football), Illingworth St Mary's
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
Club who play in the
Halifax Cricket League
The Halifax Cricket League with cricket clubs in and around the town of Halifax, West Yorkshire, England.
In the league there are also clubs from the nearby Calder Valley, city of Bradford, town of Huddersfield and the Spen Valley.
The leagu ...
and Illingworth A.R.L.F.C. (
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 11 ...
) who play at Mason Green in the
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.
...
.
See also
*
Listed buildings in Illingworth, West Yorkshire and Mixenden
Illingworth, West Yorkshire, Illingworth and Mixenden are villages in the metropolitan borough of Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England, and together with the surrounding area form the Ward (electoral subdivision), ward of Illingworth and Mixenden. ...
References
External links
Villages in West Yorkshire
Areas of Halifax, West Yorkshire
{{WestYorkshire-geo-stub