Farnhill Village Web Portal

Has there ever been anyone famous come from Kildwick ?

Chances are that any name you care to suggest would only be thought of as truly famous by a very few. But in fact there has been a Kildwickian who surely passes all the criteria required to be considered famous.

We are talking about someone who was a major media celebrity, with a massive following among the youth of his day; who was responsible for over 70 publications – several of which are included in the US Library of Congress; had both a building and a piece of music named after him; was awarded an OBE; and had a charity founded in his memory.

There was a major reorganisation of local government in 1974, as a result of which Farnhill became part of North Yorkshire whilst Kildwick was allocated to Bradford Metropolitan District. This article tells the story of the nine year struggle to reunite the "twin" villages.
 

From the dissolution of the monasteries in the 1530s to the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 religious life in England was in an almost permanent state of upheaval. Inevitably Kildwick parish became involved in this and, between the 1580s and 1660, the church was home to a succession of radical Protestant churchmen.

We have updated this article with more information about Kildwick's part in the Pendle Witch Trials and the book on witches and witchcraft written by a curate of St. Andrew's.

The History Group archive contains a number of scans of paintings and drawings of the two villages – some of them quite old, others more recent. Many are unsigned and/or undated. This slideshow contains a selection of them, in approximate chronological order.

This update includes a 1974 painting of Kildwick found in Farnhill Chapel after it had been closed.

Click the image opposite to view.
 

Our archive includes a number of maps of Farnhill and Kildwick. Here are some, dating from 1577 to 2012 in approximately chronological order, made into a slideshow. It's interesting to see how views of the area have changed.

We've updated this slideshow with a copy of the 1889 OS map recently donated to the History Group.

Click the image opposite to view.
 

Once the Kildwick estate was broken up, in 1946, Kildwick Hall passed through a number of private hands and was used for a number of commercial ventures. This article tells the story of these later owners of Kildwick Hall. It also investigates some of the people who were tenants of the Hall when it was still part of the Kildwick estate.
 

From the 16th to the middle of the 20th centuries, the village of Kildwick was owned by the Lord of the Manor. In a series of short articles, we tell the story of the owners of Kildwick Hall and the Kildwick Estate.

The updates made to our articles, originally published in 2017, revise the old texts and prepare for the story of the recent tenants and owners of the Hall, to be published next month.
 

In December 1920, two years after the appalling confusion over Arthur Whitaker’s death in service, his body was laid in its final resting place.

Read the updated article on the three Farnhill men from the Whitaker family, all of whom were involved in the war one way or another. Part of the Farnhill WW1 Volunteers project.
 

As preparations are made for Christmas 2020 (whatever they may be this year) we thought you might like to see a selection of festive recipes taken from old village recipe books and other local sources. Some you may like to try – although the filling for Mince Pies may not be to everyone's liking.
 

This update to our article on the remarkable ships named HMS Kildwick includes two letters from a member of the crew sent to the vicar of Kildwick in April 1945.

We're also taking the opportunity to remind you of the wonderful two-part wartime memoir written for us by Cyril Dennis who, as a teenager, served on board HMS Kildwick during WW2.

Part 1 of Cyril Dennis's wartime memoir
Part 2 of Cyril Dennis's wartime memoir
 

From the Romans to the present day, the road from Keighley to Skipton has changed considerably. The route you would have taken depends on when you were travelling.

In a new appendix to our article on the development of the road from Keighley to Skipton we consider plans dating from the early 1960s for a trans-Pennine route that would have severely impacted Kildwick and the nearby townships.
 

Another update to our piece on the Kildwick and Farnhill Brass Band. This update includes some more information on the early history of the band.
 

A family history that begins in Kildwick in 1671 and continues, to this day, on the other side of the world.