Keighley, West Yorkshire – Where I Live
Author: Patricia A. Jones

An article describing my hometown Keighley with details about
living and working in the town and tourism.

`The dark satanic mill town of Keighley' I have never forgotten
that headline from a national newspaper in the late 60s. The
article was about the Keighley rugby league team who are now
called Keighley Cougars.

Back then wherever you looked on the horizon you could see mill
chimneys towering over the rest of the town. The mill chimneys
were gradually demolished and now as Keighley sits in a valley
you can see fields and trees in the distance from almost any
viewpoint.

Keighley in the West Riding of Yorkshire was a huge
manufacturer of textiles, but now the mill buildings that have
not burnt down or been vandalised have been converted into
smaller units offering a wide variety of businesses or homes.

The population was over 51,000 at the 2001 census and
apparently is the third largest civil parish in England.
Approximately 18% of the population are of ethnic minorities,
adding a multi cultural aspect to the town and some fine Indian,
Italian and Chinese restaurants. Keighley is pronounced `Keeth
lee' but to the inhabitants annoyance many people outside
Keighley insist on calling the town Keeley.

Transport

Travelling to and around Keighley is not difficult. We have a
train station and an award winning new closed in bus station in
the town centre with regular transport in and around the area
and easy access to many cities. Bradford is just 10 miles away
and Leeds 20 miles away and of course the Leeds/Bradford airport
is easily accessible.

There are lots of reliable taxi firms in Keighley and I have
found that with using a combination of different transport
facilities and on foot I really do not need my own transport
because everything is within easy reach. It also works out
cheaper than having my own petrol guzzling transport.

Shopping

We have a modern shopping centre and several industrial estates
offering just about everything that you might want to buy. If I
want to buy some new clothes that are a little bit different I
make a day out of it and take a 20 minute train journey to Leeds
and either shop in the city centre or visit the White Rose
Centre.

Keighley has a permanent closed in market and quite regularly
we have visiting continental markets offering a wider range of
goods.

Leisure

We have several parks in the area with lots of green space for
children to run about on and safe fenced off playgrounds,
bowling greens etc. We have a leisure centre in Victoria Park
where you will find a modern swimming pool with slide and a
fitness centre. Victoria Park hosts our yearly gala during the
summer and occasional visiting circuses and fairs. Within the
park you will find Victoria Hall where functions and gigs are
often held.

There is a museum at Cliff Hall in the grounds of Cliff Castle
where exhibitions are often held. For families there is a fenced
off playground and a café. Picnic tables are provided for those
like my grandchildren who prefer to picnic in between running
around. There was a small zoo with guinea pigs and a few
different birds the last time I went in the summer. Years ago
there were monkeys, but now all of the monkeys in the area seem
to reside at a house next door to my mother. Over 50 would you
believe!

In Lund park you will find 2 playgrounds, one for older
children and a fenced off area for the younger ones. There is a
bowling green and a putting green and a bicycle track with
gradients which my 4 year old grandson loves to skateboard on.

Nights Out

There has always been a lot of pubs in the area, maybe because
we have an award winning brewery in the town. If you want to eat
out there are many restaurants offering different cultural
meals. Nightclubs are a bit thin on the ground with just 2
catering for different age ranges and they aren't that good.
However there are plenty of good clubs within travelling
distance in Bradford, Leeds and even further afield at
Wakefield.

Tourism

Keighley is part of Bronte Country, only a couple of miles from
Haworth where the famous Bronte literature family lived. Apart
from traditional means, you can travel to Oxenhope via Haworth
on the Keighley and Worth Valley Line from the Keighley station
on a steam train in the summer. It is a heritage line and has
been used for several film locations that include the Railway
Children, Yanks and the film of Pink Floyds `The Wall' musical.
At the first stop 300 yards from where I live in Ingrow there
is a Museum of Rail Travel. It is also the starting place for
Thomas the Tank Engine days out.

I took my grandchildren last summer and they could clamber on
board Thomas and pull the whistle. There was a show performed
several times during the day for the children and several
stalls. After the show we were able to travel on steam trains
all day for one low cost fee. At each stop there were more shows
and stalls making it a very good day out. Towards Christmas
there is a Santa Special steam train day.

Haworth attracts a lot of American and Japanese tourists who
want to steep themselves in the history of the Brontes. There is
a Bronte museum up a steep cobbled street, the Bronte Waterfall
and of course the moors where the fictional Cathy and
Heathcliffe roamed. There are lots of antique shops and tea
rooms and some good hotels.

Skipton, `The Gateway To The Dales' is 10 miles away. A good
starting point for hiking holidays for those who want to enjoy
the beautiful countryside. Skipton also has one of the most
complete medieval castles in the country and is over 900 years
old. Historical re-enactment events, archery and jousting are
often hosted at Skipton Castle.

10 miles in the other direction is the city of Bradford where
you will find the National Media Museum, which is the most
visited museum outside London. Bradford hosts several festivals,
including the Bradford Festival in June and the Bradford Mela
which is the largest festival of its type outside Asia. There
are 4 theatres in Bradford and for those who enjoy plays it
isn't difficult to get to Harrogate and their playhouse.

Living In Keighley

Although Keighley has often been knocked in the press and by
some inhabitants I do not think that it is a bad place to live.
I feel safe in my home and walking around the streets and I have
easy access to everything that I want. Housing is inexpensive
compared to many other places in the UK. You can still get a 2
bedroom terrace for less than £100,000 or any other type of
dwelling at comparatively low prices.

I have never found it difficult to get employment in or around
Keighley and the employment opportunities are diverse. The
inhabitants are friendly and very much down to earth. We speak
with a Yorkshire accent that is not as broad as some of the
surrounding rural areas, I certainly do not say `ee bah gum' on
a regular basis!

The area in and around Keighley offers much more than I have
mentioned but hopefully this article gives you a good idea of my
hometown.


About The Author: About The Author: Patricia Jones loves
reading and writing about different places and owns a travel
site at http://www.articlesabroad.com She also owns an article
directory at http://bb-articles.com For a wide range of free
products visit http://www.eprofitscentre.com