Shelf is a village in
Calderdale
Calderdale () is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, which had a population of 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 counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...
, England. The village is situated approximately north-east of
Halifax and south-west of
Bradford
Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
, on the
A6036 road. In 2001 it had a population of 4,496.
At the 2011 Census Shelf was measured as part of the
Calderdale
Calderdale () is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, which had a population of 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 ...
ward of
Northowram and Shelf.
History
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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
'' the village is called "Scelf." The place name probably derives from the
Anglo Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to Ge ...
word 'Scelf', suggesting a broad and level shelf of land.
In the period before 1700 Shelf developed from a mixed moorland and forested landscape to a few scattered farmsteads; to a landscape full of activity.
Shelf gained a number of mills and workers cottages during the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...
, and there are a number of historical relics including a stone horse trough and a stone chair milestone originally erected in 1737 which gave rise to the local area being named Stone Chair, Shelf. Prior to 1851, Shelf was a part of the large Parish of Halifax. The Parish Church of Shelf
St. Michael and All Angels Church was built in 1850 and there were a number of chapels of other denominations, including the Independent Methodist
Bethel Chapel, dating from 1853. On a secular level the village was administered by a 'Local Board' established in 1863, and then by the 'Shelf Urban District Council' from 1894 to 1937.
From 1937 to 1974, Shelf formed part of
Queensbury and Shelf, an
urban district
An urban district is a division generally managed by a local government. It may also refer to a city district, district, urban area or quarter
Specific urban districts in some countries include:
* Urban districts of Denmark
* Districts of Germa ...
in the
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...
. Queensbury and Shelf consisted of
Queensbury and Shelf.
Queensbury and Shelf Urban District Council was abolished on 31 March 1974, under 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 ...
, with Shelf becoming part of the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, and Queensbury becoming part of the
Metropolitan Borough of Bradford.
Shelf village centre has many shops and facilities such as a bakery and pharmacy. There is a Village Hall, and a new library was opened in 2009. There is a local
Lidl
Lidl ( ) is a trademark, used by two Germany, German international discount supermarket, discount retailer chain store, chains that operates over 12,600 stores. The ''LD Stiftung'' operates the stores in Germany and the ''Lidl Stiftung & Co. K ...
supermarket. The village is on the route of the
Calderdale Way, a circular walk around the hills and
valleys of Calderdale.
Notable residents
Joseph Jagger
Joseph Hobson Jagger (2 September 1830 – 25 April 1892) was an English textile industry businessman from Yorkshire, who in around 1881 is said to have "broken the bank at Monte Carlo" by identifying and exploiting biases in the wheels of the ...
, a man reputed to have broken the bank at Monte Carlo was born at Shelf although, contrary to popular belief, he did not inspire the song "
The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo."
Lucius Smith the first
Bishop of Knaresborough was born at the Vicarage at Shelf in 1860.
Kathleen Hale
Kathleen Hale OBE (24 May 1898 – 26 January 2000) was a British artist, illustrator, and children's author. She is best remembered for her series of books about Orlando the Marmalade Cat.
Biography
Hale was born in Lanarkshire but brought ...
, author of the series of children's books about
Orlando the Marmalade Cat
Orlando (The Marmalade Cat) is the fictional eponymous hero of the series (of the same name) of 19 illustrated children's books written by Kathleen Hale between 1938 and 1972, issued by various publishers including '' Country Life'' and '' Puffi ...
also lived at the vicarage from 1903 to 1905, and developed her interest in plants, flowers and drawing there.
Edward Hartley
Edward Robertshaw Hartley (25 May 1855 – 18 January 1918) was a British socialist politician.
Hartley began work in a mill at the age of ten, before becoming a warehouse clerk and then a butcher. He became an active socialist in 1885, in reac ...
, an early socialist politician retired to Shelf, and is buried at Bethel Chapel in the village.
Much-travelled footballer
Frank Worthington was born in the village, as was interior designer and TV presenter
Linda Barker. Former ''
Blue Peter
''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC ...
'' presenter
John Noakes
John Noakes (born John Wallace Bottomley; 6 March 1934 – 28 May 2017) was an English television presenter and actor. He co-presented the BBC children's magazine programme '' Blue Peter'' in the 1960s and 1970s and is the show's longest-servin ...
was born at the
Royal Halifax Infirmary in Halifax, but his home was in Shelf.
''
Coronation Street
''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
'' actor
Joe Duttine is also from the village.
See also
*
Listed buildings in Shelf, West Yorkshire
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
{{authority control
Villages in West Yorkshire
History of West Yorkshire
Unparished areas in West Yorkshire
Former civil parishes in West Yorkshire
Geography of Calderdale