Although there had been a settlement in the vicinity since Roman times, as evidenced by discovery of the remains of a Roman fort at Slack, just west of the town. Castle Hill, a major landmark of the town, was originally an Iron Age hillfort. Huddersfield itself was noted in the Domesday Book as a village known as Oderesfelt.

Huddersfield was incorporated as a municipal borough in the ancient West Riding of Yorkshire in 1868. The borough comprised the parishes of Almondbury, Dalton, Huddersfield, Lindley cum Quarmby and Lockwood. When the West Riding County Council was formed in 1889, Huddersfield became a county borough, exempt from county council control. Huddersfield expanded in 1937, including parts of the Golcar, Linthwaite, and South Crosland urban districts.[1] The county borough was abolished in 1974 and its former area was combined with that of other districts to form the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire.

Image:Huddersfield1000px(RLH).jpg

Huddersfield has been known as a Market town since Saxon times. Since the granting of University status to the local Polytechnic it is sometimes described as a University Town.

Attempts by the local council to gain support for city status were rejected by the town's population in an unofficial referendum held by the local newspaper, the Huddersfield Daily Examiner. The council did not apply for that status in either the 2000 or 2002 competitions.

According to the 2001 census the population of the Huddersfield urban sub-area of the West Yorkshire Urban Area was 146,234, and the population of the former area of the county borough was 121,620. The wider South Kirklees area had a population of 216,011.

[edit] Civic honours and freedoms

Image:Freedom Scroll DWR Huddersfield (RLH).JPG

On 2 July, 1952, in recognition of historic ties and links with The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding), The Huddersfield County Borough had conferred on the regiment the Freedom of the Town. This gave the regiment the right to march through the town with 'Flags Flying, Bands playing and Bayonets fixed'. Many of the town and district's male residents had served in the regiment during its long history. This right to march was technically lost when the County Borough itself was merged with Dewsbury to form Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council though, unofficially, continued as on 25 March, 1979, Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council gave the Freedom of Kirklees to the Yorkshire Volunteers. The 3rd Battalion was the Duke of Wellington's Territorial Army unit.

However when the 'Dukes' were amalgamated with the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire and the Green Howards' to form the Yorkshire Regiment on the 6 June, 2006. The right to march was finally ended as the award did not give the right, for the freedom to march, to be passed on to any heirs or successors. The majority of the Yorkshire Regiment is now composed of soldiers from the north and eastern areas of Yorkshire. The Yorkshire Regiment has requested the right to march to be transferred to them. However the county Borough no longer exists and so there is no authority to do so. The freedom given by Kirklees to the 3rd Battalion of the Yorkshire Volunteers did not permit any transfer to heirs or successors and effectively that freedom also ceased when the battalion was amalgamated into the East and West Riding Regiment. The East and West Riding Regiment ceased to exist on 6 June 2006, having been merged into the Yorkshire Regiment as its 4th Battalion.

[edit] Institutions

[edit] Schools and colleges

Huddersfield is the home to two sixth form colleges, Huddersfield New College located at Salendine Nook, and Greenhead Collegeplaced first nationally in the 2005 college performance tables http://www.greenhead.ac.uk/. It has one general further education college, Huddersfield Technical College and one establishment of higher education in the University of Huddersfield. The current Chancellor of the University is the actor Patrick Stewart who comes from Mirfield.

[edit] Hospitals

Huddersfield currently has one main hospital, the Huddersfield Royal Infirmary situated in Lindley, plus the smaller St Luke's Hospital at Crosland Moor, which mostly provides geriatric and psychiatric care. Kirkwood Hospice provides care for the terminally ill, and is dependent on private donations and charitable gifts. Greenhead's Princess Royal Hospital originally provided Huddersfield with its maternity facilities until the risks of not being able to get an ambulance to A&E in the event of complications were judged to outweigh the benefits of specialist service provision. It now functions as a day clinic, family planning consultation centre and GUM Clinic.

Recent changes to the services provided by the Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust will change these facilities in 2007 despite a campaign by the local population to retain them in-house.

[edit] Historical landmarks

Image:Victoria Tower Castle Hill(RLH).jpg

Huddersfield is notable for its abundance of fine Victorian architecture. It has the third highest number of listed buildings of any town or city in the UK.

The colonnaded Huddersfield railway station in St George's Square was once described as 'a stately home with trains in it', and by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as 'one of the best early railway stations in England'.<ref name="pevsner">Pevsner, Nikolaus; Radcliffe, Enid (Ed.) (2002). The Buildings of England: Yorkshire: The West Riding. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-09662-3.</ref>

The distinctive art nouveau clock tower in the village of Lindley (a suburb to the west of the town) was constructed in 1902 by a local mill-owner so that his workers would not have any excuse for being late for work. St Peter's Church, or 'Huddersfield Parish Church' was constructed in 1838 and is located in the town centre near the Pack Horse Centre. This covered shopping area is named in memory of the beasts of burden which ferried the textile industries' merchandise to and fro in the days before the Standedge Canal Tunnel - the longest, deepest and highest canal tunnel in Britain - had been navigated through the Pennines. The Pack Horse Centre stands on the site of the old Cloth Hall. It provides a link for pedestrians between Kirkgate and the Piazza, with its acclaimed triad of interwar public library, early 1970s Market Hall and Victorian Town Hall.

The most conspicuous landmark in the Huddersfield area is Victoria Tower on Castle Hill. Overlooking the town, this tower was constructed to mark Queen Victoria's 60th Jubilee Year and being distiguishable from Macclesfield's tower in that it cannot be seen by rail passengers. A picture of the Victoria Tower features on the New Zealand wine Castle Hill.

[edit] Shopping and entertainment

Huddersfield has a large and diverse shopping area, compared to most towns of its size. One of the central shopping areas is the Kingsgate Centre which was completed in 2001. There is a covered market hall, which has listed building status due in part to its distinctive roof formed by hyperbolic paraboloids, adjacent to the town hall and public library (see Historical landmarks above), and an open market on the opposite side of the town centre.

[edit] Transport infrastructure

[edit] Road

Huddersfield is well connected to the national motorway network via the M1 and M62 motorways. The M1 passes near the eastern fringes of the town about ten miles away. The M62 comes much nearer (about 2½ miles away) and Huddersfield is served by three junctions: Mount (A640, J23 - limited access), Ainley Top (A629, J24) and between Brighouse and Cooper Bridge (A644, J25).

The Huddersfield Corporation built an inner ring road (part of the A62) in the 1970s. The area within this ring road has come to define the central business district of the town. The ring road is effective in relieving traffic congestion in the town centre where many roads are now pedestrianised.

[edit] Rail

Huddersfield railway station enjoys a comprehensive local and regional rail service. However, there are no Intercity services or a direct service to London, with passengers having to change at either Leeds or Wakefield Westgate. Many services are subsidised by the local-government public transport co-ordinator, Metro. A frequent express service operates to the nearby principal cities of Leeds and Manchester and a regular service to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Sunderland, Darlington, Middlesbrough, Scarborough, York, Hull, Manchester International Airport and Liverpool. This is operated by First Transpennine Express. There are also local stopping services operated by Northern Rail which link Huddersfield with Leeds, Dewsbury, Bradford, Halifax, Wakefield, Barnsley and Sheffield.

Image:Huddersfield Railway Station.jpg

[edit] Bus

Huddersfield Bus Station is the busiest bus station in West Yorkshire with a daily footfall of almost 35,000<ref name="hbss">Huddersfield Bus Station. West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive. Retrieved on May 24, 2006.</ref>. The majority of bus services pass through the bus station. Many services are subsidised by Metro who are also responsible for co-ordination, planning and timetabling of services throughout West Yorkshire.

Huddersfield's bus operators reflect the national situation; three dominant national operators provide most of the services in the area: First (in Huddersfield & Halifax) who provide most local services across Huddersfield, Arriva Yorkshire, who provide frequent services along Leeds Road towards Dewsbury and Leeds and Stagecoach Yorkshire through its recently-acquired subsidiary, Yorkshire Traction, who provide almost all services in the south east of the town. Other smaller operators include K-Line and FairRider who are both based locally.

In November 2006, a free bus service was launched on a nine month trial. Buses run every ten minutes from 7.30am (from the train station) to 7.00 pm Monday to Friday and from 8.30am to 5.30pm on Saturday. Stops on the route include the bus station, University of Huddersfield, Kingsgate, and the indoor market. The service mirrors such in larger British cities. The service possibly makes Huddersfield the only region to have a "Free Town Bus" as opposed to a "Free City Bus". A video of the bus making a full journey can be found on VirtualHuddersfield.com/video.htm

[edit] Canal

The Huddersfield Broad Canal, originally the Sir John Ramsden Canal, and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal (both navigable by narrowboat and the former by wider craft also) wind around the south side of the town. To the rear of the YMCA in the Turnbridge section there is an electrically operated road bridge, which is still in use, to raise the road and allow boat traffic to pass. This bridge was originally opened by use of a windlass system.

[edit] Development

Huddersfield has seen many new development projects proposed and approved. Some of the schemes approved include:

St George's Quarter scheme, £50m scheme, which includes a 153-bed luxury hotel, retail units, offices, flats and a landscaped public area.
Queensgate Revival, A £200m scheme centred on the Piazza, Public Library and Queensgate Market Hall.
The Waterfront Quarter: A £175m scheme to regenerate land at Chapel Hill.
Huddersfield Media Centre expansion.
The Leeds Road corridor, A new £100m economic zone.
St George's Square Revival
Kingsgate II

[edit] Sport

See:- List of sports and other clubs in Huddersfield

[edit] Association football

Main article: Huddersfield Town F.C.

Huddersfield Town FC is the town's senior association football team, founded in 1908, and currently playing in Coca-Cola League One.

In 1921-22 Huddersfield won the FA Cup and between 1923-26 they became the first club to win the League Championship three times in a row, an achievement matched only by three other teams. The club left its ground on Leeds Road in 1994 and now shares the Galpharm Stadium with the Huddersfield Giants rugby league team.

Notable ex-players include Scottish international Denis Law, Ray Wilson, a World Cup winner with England in 1966 and Trevor Cherry, England international. Bill Shankly and Herbert Chapman are notable former Huddersfield Town managers.

[edit] Rugby

Main article: Huddersfield Giants

[edit] The split

Rugby was first played in the town around 1845 and the Huddersfield Rugby Club formed in 1870. It was in Huddersfield in 1895 that 22 northern clubs held a meeting in the George Hotel. They voted to secede from the Rugby Football Union and set up their own Northern Rugby Football Union on August 29, 1895. In 1922 this became the Rugby Football League.

[edit] Rugby union

Disavowing professionalism, amateurs continued playing at neighbouring clubs until 1909 when the union club was re-established as Huddersfield Old Boys - nomadically playing at five grounds until buying farmland at Waterloo in 1919 and, in 1946, retitling the club as Huddersfield RUFC.

In 1996 the Waterloo junior grounds were sold and a 26 acre, former Bass Brewery estate, at Lockwood Park was purchased for construction of a replacement. With the assistance of a matching £2 million grant from the Sport England, the club has transformed the site into a major sports complex, conference centre and business park.

[edit] Rugby league

Huddersfield is still a focus for rugby league, being represented by the Huddersfield Giants in the Superleague, and the Huddersfield Underbank Rangers in National League 3. The Huddersfield Giants have won the Rugby League Championship seven times, most recently in 1961-62, and the Challenge Cup six times, the last success being in 1952-53.

[edit] Motorsport

Notable local people include James Whitham, former British Superbike Champion, and former British Stock Car Association (BriSCA) Formula 1 driver, Kev Smith.

[edit] Arts

[edit] Music

Huddersfield Choral Society, founded in 1836, claims to be the UK's leading choral society. Its history was chronicled in the book 'And The Glory' to commemorate the Society's 150th anniversary in 2001. The author was a choir member for over 35 years.

Huddersfield is home to the Lawrence Batley Theatre, the annual and internationally-famous Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, the Huddersfield Philharmonic Orchestra and the Huddersfield Singers. As well as its strong orchestral and choral tradition, the Huddersfield area also hosts the Marsden Jazz Festival [2] and, reflecting the town's fondness for popular live music, the now-defunct Ivanhoe's venue is where, on Christmas Day 1977, the Sex Pistols played their last UK gig before embarking on the ill-fated US tour that forms the backdrop to the Alex Cox film 'Sid & Nancy'.

Home-grown musical talent of all kinds are complimented by the student intake to the University of Huddersfield's music department.

[edit] Film and televisual arts

Various long-running television series have been filmed in and around Huddersfield, including: Last of the Summer Wine, usually associated with Holmfirth but which has made use of various locations in the area including Dodlee; Where the Heart Is, filmed in the Colne Valley around Slaithwaite; Wokenwell, shot on location in Marsden; and The League of Gentlemen, which also made extensive use of locations around Marsden. The series will discontinue filming by the end of 2006

Playing lower-key roles in television production with reputations based on their expert knowledge of their subjects, Huddersfield can claim links with Time Team by way osteoarchaeologist Alice Roberts [3] and Life on Earth through local teacher Dr Jeff Carr's encyclopaedic knowledge of polar bears.

[edit] Visual arts

Kirklees Council's Cultural Services also ensure that the art gallery which occupies the top floor of the library on Princess Alexandra Walk offers a balanced schedule all year round which showcases local painters and photographers alongside commissioned artists' shows.

[edit] Cultural Events in Huddersfield

[edit] Huddersfield Festival of Light

This festival takes place in mid November when the town centre becomes illuminated with Christmas lights. A celebrity switches the lights on after an evening display of fireworks and circus tricks. Other attractions include an ice skating rink and a mini train carrying shoppers around the town centre.

[edit] Huddersfield Caribbean Carnival

The carnival, usually in mid July begins with a procession from the Hudawi Cultural Centre in the suburb of Hillhouse, through the town centre to Greenhead Park where troupes display their costumes on stage. West Indian food, fairground rides and various stalls and attractions are available to try. A 'young blud' stage presents Hip Hop, Garage and RnB.

[edit] Kirklees Asian Mela

The mela usually follows on the day after the Caribbean carnival. attractions include Asian displays on the stage including Indian dancing, Bhangra music and Asian garage. Stalls sell an array of Asian foods, Henna designs, jewellery and colourful saris.

[edit] St Patrick's Day

Celebrating the Irish patron saint. The Irish diaspora hold an event on 17 March in Huddersfield town centre. Features including the St Patrick's day parade and various celtic traditions are held.

[edit] Jamaican Independence Day

The Jamaican population of Huddersfield gather at the Fartown pavillion cricket ground to celebrate the annual independence day of Jamaica. A morning congregation at the Hudawi Cultural Centre is followed by a small carnival proccession from the Hudawi Cultural Centre to the Fartown Pavillion. Many Jamaican flags are displayed across the Cricket ground. Stalls selling Jamaican food, clothes and music are found while Reggae and Dancehall is being played from Soundsystems.

[edit] Pink Picnic

Huddersfield's Pink Picnic is held on Castle Hill by the town gay and bisexual communities. The event has been held annually since 1987.

[edit] Politics

Huddersfield had a strong Liberal tradition up to the 1950s and this is still reflected in the large number of Liberal Social Clubs in the town. The current MP for the Huddersfield constituency is Barry Sheerman.

Kirklees Council is notable for being the first in the UK to elect a Green Party councillor.

Huddersfield has four twin towns:

[edit] Demographics

Huddersfield is home to over 146,000 people, 80% of whom are white caucasians, many of them being of Irish or Scottish descent. Other ethnic minorities include Asians from India and Pakistan. Eastern Europeans from the Ukraine, Poland and Hungary. Kurdish and African immigrants, from Nigeria, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The most populous ethnic minority group are those of West Indian descent. Mainly from Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada or Trinidad and Tobago.

[edit] Notable people born in Huddersfield

Simon Armitage, poet and author
Lawrence Batley, British entrepreneur
Andy Booth, footballer for Huddersfield Town
David Borrow, Member of Parliament for South Ribble
Sir David Brown OBE, British businessman
Roy Castle OBE, presenter, dancer and entertainer
Lord James Hanson, British and international businessman
Sir Harold Percival Himsworth, scientist
George Herbert Hirst, English test cricketer
Nina Hossain, broadcaster
Derek Ibbotson, Olympic athlete
Gorden Kaye, actor
Anita Lonsborough Olympic swimmer and commentator
Zöe Lucker, actress, known for playing Tanya Turner in the ITV1 Drama Footballers' Wives
James Mason, actor
Wilfred Rhodes, English test cricketer
John Whitaker MBE, Olympic equestrian
Harold Wilson KG OBE, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 1964-70 and 1974-1976

[edit] Suburbs of the town

Ainley Top, Almondbury, Armitage Bridge, Aspley
Beaumont Park, Berry Brow, Birchencliffe, Birkby, Blackmoorfoot, Brackenhall, Bradley,
Clayton West, Colne Bridge, Cowcliffe, Cowmes, Cowlersley, Crosland Moor
Dalton, Deighton,
Edgerton
Fartown, Fenay Bridge, Fixby
Golcar, Greenside, Grimescar
Hall Bower, Highburton, Highfields, Hillhouse,
Kirkburton, Kirkheaton
Lascelles Hall, Lepton, Lindley, Linthwaite, Lockwood, Longley, Longroyd Bridge, Lowerhouses, Longwood,
Marsh, Milnsbridge, Moldgreen
Netheroyd Hill, Netherton, Newsome
Oakes
Paddock, Primrose Hill
Quarmby
Rashcliffe, Rawthorpe
Salendine Nook, Sheepridge,Slaithwaite, South Crosland, Springwood
Taylor Hill, Thornton Lodge, Turnbridge
Waterloo, Wellhouse

[edit] See also

Haddersfield, Jamaica, locally referred to and named for Huddersfield<ref name="haddersfield">'During the periods 1822 - 1832 the 33rd Regiment of Foot, recruited from West Yorkshire was stationed in Jamaica. At the end of the tour 142 men chose to remain in Jamaica, having married and raised families, some of which may have originated from Huddersfield, thereby originating the name. Over 560 officers and men died and were buried in Jamaica during this period, from endemic diseases. In 1861 the regiment formally became known as the The Duke of Wellington's Regiment. The regiment's second battalion was again posted to Jamaica (Newcastle Camp) from the 18th of March 1891 to the 10th of April 1893.' Brereton, JM; Savory, ACS (1993). The History of the Duke of Wellingtons (West Riding) 1702 - 1992. Halifax : The Duke of Wellington's Regiment. ISBN 0-9521552-0-6.</ref>
Wikitravel - Huddersfield

[edit] References

<references /> See also E.A. Hilary Haigh ed. (1992) Huddersfield: A Most Handsome Town - Aspects of the History and Culture of a West Yorkshire Town. Kirklees MC, Huddersfield, pp704.

[edit] External links

BBC Voices - Audio recording Huddersfield residents who have roots in Jamaica talk about storytelling traditions and the generation language gap.
Aerial view of the town centre, South to North
Message Board discussing issues of importance to Huddersfield residents
Google Maps & satellite imagery - Huddersfield de:Huddersfield

eo:Huddersfield fr:Huddersfield it:Huddersfield no:Huddersfield simple:Huddersfield fi:Huddersfield sv:Huddersfield

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Huddersfield"

Categories: Towns in West Yorkshire | Huddersfield and District | Huddersfield | People from Huddersfield

Huddersfield

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Contents

[edit] History