Addingham

A Cup and Ring marked rock on top of Addingham Moor

Kite aerial photo of Round Dykes Camp on Addingham Low Moor

There is evidence of civilisation around Addingham as far back as the late Mesolithic, Neolithic and early Bronze Ages, as indicated by the remains of early man in the form of flint tools on Rombald's Moor, which may date back to around 11,000 BC.[4] The first 'fixed' artefacts are the 'cup and ring' marked stones, several of which can be found on top of Addingham Moor and Ilkley Moor to the east, which are thought to date back to the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age, around 1800 BC.[6]

The first evidence of settlements come from the Iron Age – evidence of major tree clearance dating back to 700 BC has been found, as well as quern-stones on Addingham Moorside, which were shaped like small straw beehives and have hence been named 'beehive querns'.[6] While a settlement on the Moorside has never been found, remains of an Iron Age settlement have been found on Addingham Low Moor, today known as Round Dikes.[7] It has been suggested that Round Dikes, along with similar nearby sites Woofa Bank and Nesfield Scar, were summer encampments of the Romans.[8] Little evidence truly remains of the 350 years of Roman occupation, save for the Roman road towards Skipton (now Moor Lane) which, up until the 1800s, was still the primary route between the two settlements.[6]

It is thought that the Craven area, including what now constitutes Addingham, was settled by Anglo-Saxons around 612 AD following the defeat of the local Celtic tribe.[6] Addingham is considered to be one of the earlier Anglo-Saxon settlements because of the ending – inghaem.[6] It is likely that the village was an early Christian centre: Ecgfrith of Northumbria presented the lands in this area to St. Wilfrid in 678 AD, while a letter describing events taking place in 867 AD describes Archishop Wulfhere of York residing in Addingham during the conflict between the Angles and Danes, which suggests there was already a church and a hall in the village – most likely at the site of St Peter's Church – in the 9th century AD.[6]

The Domesday Book in 1086 places the village in the region of Burghshire[9] and refers to the village as "Ediham". The Lord in 1066 was Earl Edwin of Bolton Abbey ("Bodeltone"), who was Lord of several other surrounding settlements ranging as far west as Skipton, Hellifield and Anley,[10] and may have given his name to the village.

The weir of a medieval corn mill that is located near modern-day High Mill has been dated back to 1315, and is one of the oldest medieval structures in the village.[7] Despite this, the main occupation in the 1370s, when poll tax was levied, was agriculture, iron smelting and blacksmithing.[7]

Weir at Low Mill

During the Reformation, Henry VIII dissolved the monastery in Bolton Abbey, and while most of Addingham accepted the Reformation, Richard Kirkman remained faithful to Catholicism and was subsequently arrested in 1578, tried, and executed in York alongside William Lacy.[11] The Roman Catholic Church "Our Lady and of the English Martyrs", which was built in 1927 on Bolton Road, is dedicated to him and to other Catholics persecuted by Henry VIII.

During the English Civil War in 1642, Addingham was probably mainly Royalist, as several villagers are thought to have helped to defend Skipton Castle from the Parliamentarians.[7][12]

The earliest indications of the textile industry in the village can be found in the will of William Atkinson in 1568, in which it states that he left a solitary loom to his son-in-law.[7] The cloth making industry remained stagnant, however, until the 18th century, when revolutionary weaving inventions such as John Kay's Flying shuttle and, later, water-powered machines such as Crompton's Spinning mule, allowed the textile industry in Addingham to leap forward as it entered the 19th century.

John Cunliffe, a cloth manufacturer, and John Cockshott, a glazier and woolstapler, took advantage of the new developments in technology and leased land on the side of the River Wharfe in 1787 at the site now known as Low Mill. They built a spinning mill which enabled yarn to be spun more quickly than by hand and thus increased the production of cloth. A weir was constructed on the river and a wheel installed to provide the power. It was the first successful worsted mill in the world.[7][13]

Suspension bridge crossing the River Wharfe near West Hall, Addingham. The current structure replaced the original 1895 bridge which was washed away in a flood in 1935.

The start of the 19th century saw the textile industry begin to thrive in the village – existing mills, such as the one at High Mill which had been built in 1787 to produce corn, were converted and extended and used for linen, cotton, worsted and finally silk spinning, while other new mills were built, such as Town Head Mill and Fentimans, the latter of which was built in 1802 originally to spin cotton and was later converted into a sawmill in the 1860s.[13] Several small workshops were also built, as well as three storey high workers' houses, in which the lower two floors would be for domestic use, and the top floor would house the looms, with inter-connecting doors along the row of houses.[7] These buildings still exist today, and examples can be seen on Stockinger Lane.

In 1826, Low Mill, now under the tenancy of Jeremiah Horsfall, was the scene of a Luddite uprising.[7][14]

In the census reports between 1831 and 1861, it was reported that there was a dramatic decline in the population of the village, and the 1841 census stated that this was due to the closure of Low Mill. In the 1851 census, so many of the houses at Low Mill were reported as empty that it is assumed that the mill remained closed until then. By 1861, hand loom weavers had practically disappeared. However, shortly afterwards, Samuel Cunliffe Lister re-opened Low Mill, with commercial operations being handled at Piece Hall at 19 Main Street.

In 1875, the Lord of the Manor, Richard Smith of London, proposed the construction of 20 streets, each with 40 to 50 houses. Small shops lined the Main Street, such as grocers, greengrocers and butchers. An Addingham co-operative society was formed; it prospered sufficiently to buy land on Bolton Road and build new premises and a row of cottages. The old ferry which brought parishioners from Beamsley was replaced by a foot bridge, and around about the same time a horse-drawn bus service to Ilkley was introduced.

By the end of the 19th century, there were five operating mills in the village, three of them owned by Lister, and the village was thriving again.[7]

The village continued to produce textiles until the start of the First World War, and despite high levels of production during the war, the textile industry never really recovered. However, after the bombing of the SU Carburetter factory in Coventry during the Second World War in 1941, production switched to Addingham, at which time up to 1,000 people worked there and prefabricated homes were erected in Ilkley to cater for the sudden increase in employees. The other textiles factories were busy during the war, and the Listers, having produced silk between wars with a German company, were able to use their expertise to produce silk parachutes.

After the war, Carburetter production ceased and Low Mill returned to textiles. For a short time the mills were working hard, as textiles were in short supply. However, the machinery was out of date, and there was a major closure of textile mills throughout the country. In Addingham, the last mill to close was at Low Mill in 1976.

In the meantime, the demand for small, cheap housing increased, and this saw new council houses being built at Moor Lane after the First World War, and at School Lane, Burns Hill and Green Lane after the Second World War. After the closure of the railway line in 1969, a modern housing estate was built where the line used to run, and has since been expanded.

In 1998, textiles briefly returned to Addingham and Low Mill in the form of a Norwegian-based company, Straum (UK), who started production of scoured wool, but this business closed in 2002.[7]

Today, the village is mainly a retirement and commuter community, with several people commuting every day to nearby towns such as Skipton and Ilkley and also to larger cities like Leeds and Bradford.

As the data below suggests, the closure of the majority of the mills between 1831 and 1851 affected the population of the village, with the population dropping by around 600 in 20 years. In 1861 and again in 1881, it is assumed that the population began to grow again due to the re-opening of Low Mill.

Since at least 1960,[31] Addingham has held a village gala in July. It includes a parade, which begins at Green Lane proceeds down Main Street, culminating at the village park, and several attractions including rides and stalls. Each year, there is a different theme for the Gala. In 2010, a traditional fell race organised by Ilkley Harriers, which had not taken place for over 20 years, was reinstated to the agenda.[32]

In 1998, for the first time in living memory, the village was unable to hold a Gala, due to the previous organiser having to step down due to other commitments, and the village being unable to find a replacement.[33] Eventually, a 15-strong team, led by former chairman of the Addingham Civic Society Don Barrett, was set up to organise the Gala, and it took place once again in 1999.[34]

However, in 2000, Barrett claimed that village apathy was threatening the Gala once again and the organisation was in need of volunteers 'before it's too late'.[35] Following a local appeal in the Ilkley Gazette, local Rebecca Carter volunteered her help and was elected Chairman of the new Addingham Gala Committee[36] and the gala went ahead.

In 2001, the Gala was cancelled due to the Foot and Mouth outbreak, but the Gala Committee instead organised a 'Keep It Local' day, which was intended to give the locals the opportunity to support their local business and create a sense of community spirit. The day involved a treasure hunt, morris dancing, and an award for the person who spent the most money in the village throughout the day.[37]

In 2007, after seven successful years at the helm, during which the popularity of Addingham Gala significantly grew, Rebecca Carter stepped down as Chairman and was replaced by Angela Hutton, who had been a part of the volunteering team for three years previously.[38]

Performances of a local pantomime began in 1905 with a performance of Bluebeard. For several years, the pantomime was funded, organised and run by Friends of Addingham Primary School (FAPS), but in 2003, the organisation felt unable to commit the time to organise the project and decided to discontinue its support of the project.[39] This led to the formation of the Addingham Pantomime Group, which has staged the pantomime every February ever since.

Addingham Cricket Club

Since 2009, the pantomime has entered the Wharfedale Festival of Theatre. In their debut year in the competition, they won seven awards, including the Pantomime Cup for Best Pantomime.[40]

Addingham has many sports teams including a football team previously part of the Harrogate and District League. A decision was made before the start of the 2010–11 season to transfer to the Craven and District League due to the closer proximity of most of the teams. In their inaugural season in the league, they finished 10th in Division 4.[41]

Addingham Cricket Club plays in the Aire-Wharfe Senior Cricket League.[42]

The extreme sports scene in Addingham is also thriving with an array of mountain bikers and skateboarders making good use of the facilities and surrounding hills.

On 5 July 2014, the Tour de France Stage 1 from Leeds to Harrogate passed through the village.[43] On 6 July 2014, Stage 2 of the 2014 Tour de France from York to Sheffield, passed through the village.[44]

Work is under way to convert Low Mill into a residential complex. The development will consist of 32 units in the mill building and 22 new houses and 6 apartments. 17 of the units will be reserved for local buyers at affordable prices. The conversion will increase the height of the mill as well as the removal of surrounding buildings to be landscaped.

Addingham Scout Hut, which was demolished to make room for the Medical Centre which has now been built

Planning permission for a motel to be built on an overgrown plot of land near the cricket ground on Main Street was first granted in 1991 and renewed in 1996.[45] In 2001, an application to redevelop the land into nine houses was rejected due to the site being part of a Green Belt site, leading to renewed efforts on a 32-bedroom "budget" motel.[46] In 2005, revised plans for an 'American-style' 30-bedroom motel with less car parking space and a residents only bar were approved, with the Parish Council objecting on the grounds that the new design would be out of character for the village.[47] In 2007, after no visible work had been done, the Parish Council were awarded a £4,000 grant and were able to clean it up and erect a new fence. By 2008, it had once again become overgrown, leading to Parish Councillors urging the Bradford Council to release the site from the Green Belt.[48] In 2010, another bid was made to renew planning permission for a 30-bedroom motel, with three written objections being made to Bradford Council.[49] Since then, no development has commenced on this plot of land and the issue is still to be resolved.

In the process of building the Medical Centre, the existing Scout Hut was demolished. The Parish Council were granted permission to refurbish the site of the present football pavilion. The Parish Council have been working together with the Scouting Organisation and Addingham Football Club on a new scheme to upgrade the facilities for the football club while providing a new home for the Scout Troop, including a potential £85,000 all-weather multi-purpose pitch.[50][51] In February 2012, plans for the extension of the football pavilion were approved by Bradford Council.[52] The Multipurpose Games Area (also known as MUGA to the residents) was opened in July 2013 by the 2013/14 Gala Queen Keira Heckman and local MP Kris Hopkins.[53]