God's Own County

If you have a ‘slack bottom’ worry not. Slack is a hamlet approximately 2 miles from the centre of Hebden Bridge. From the Halifax direction there is no right turn up the hill at the Slack traffic lights so you need to use the Heptonstall turning circle.

History

Romans established a small military fort and named it Camulodunum after the ancient Celtic War-God, Camulos at the top of the hill we now call Slack Top. There didn’t seem to be much evidence of the old fort and it was probably abandoned in by the middle of the second century. (British Kingdoms)

Slack Bottom stone ‘itself is very nicely eroded and seems of good age, as well as being a good near-six-foot tall specimen of a standing stone, just above the tree-line south of Hebden Dale. The stone gets its name from the fact that it’s at the bottom end of Slack village (which is actually called ‘Slack Bottom’ – with a house-sign there above the door to prove it!). It may be part of what was originally some original Iron Age walling instead of an authentic standing stone.’ Megalithix

From 1902, a railway ran from Slack to the construction site of the Walshaw Dean reservoirs, carrying men and materials. A shanty town, nicknamed Dawson City, sprang up at Slack.

Slack Top

Situated at a height of 900ft in the Pennines Slack boasts a plant nursery where tough plants flourish “If it’ll grow up here, it’ll grow anywhere”. It is a small nursery, but one of the UK’s top ten suppliers of Alpines. They offer and gave me expert advice on plants for my rockery and claim to have plants for ‘all garden situations – from damp shade to full sun and all things inbetween!’ Attached to the nursery is a naturalistic garden, begun in 1980 and spanning approximately a quarter acre. It is in a beautiful setting overlooking moors and woodland and a deep valley. Slack Top Nursery. The Persicaria plant picture was taken in the garden by the pond.

Slack is good walking country on the opposite side of the valley over Hebden Water to Hardcastle Crags. The National Trust has Four circular walks, ranging from three to seven miles. Gibson Mill is a national trust property and visitors centre using sustainable energy.

Slack Top Christian hostel was rebuilt in 1878, and is situated in the hamlet of Slack, surrounded by beautiful, wild, unspoilt countryside. ‘ Slack Top is for everyone; it is for the whole family, your church group, fellowship, friends to share; but mainly for you.’

Slack Bottom! by le chanoine, on Flickr under creative commons license

Aldborough is a pretty village 15 miles northwest of York and just to the south-east of Boroughbridge. It has a village green and Maypole but is famous for having being built on the site of a major Roman town, Isurium Brigantum, which marked the crossing of Dere Street over the River Ure.

What did the Romans Ever do for Aldborough

• Aldborough was originally called Isurium Brigantum and was probably the base of the Ninth Legion.
• It was the ‘capital’  for the Romanised Brigantes, the largest tribe in Britain.
• Romans left enough remains to create a  museum now run by English Heritage. It contains a number of relics of the Roman town, including some colourful and special mosaic pavements.
• One corner of the defences is laid out amid a Victorian arboretum where  two mosaic pavements can be viewed in their original positions.
• The site museum has an outstanding collection of Roman finds and objects, pottery, ornaments, coins, etc and other ‘hands-on’ aids for children and families.

More Modern Facts

• A plaque near the village green commemorates the RAF crew who lost their lives but avoided crashing into the village.
• The stocks in front of this plaque were removed from the square in Boroughbridge, when the medieval church in the square was demolished in 1851.
• The local hostelry is called The Ship Inn, Aldborough
• In the 18th century Aldborough was a pocket borough returning 2 MP’s when big cities had no representation at the houses of parliament. Pitt the Elder was one such Aldborough MP. (perhaps the Romans taught us this form of government)

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The Skelmanthorpe Band is one of the oldest brass bands in the country founded in 1843. They came first in the 2011 Holme Valley contest and are up for the Grand Shield on 14th May 2011.

Skelmanthorpe History.

• Skelmanthorpe is in the Kirklees area near Denby Dale and has a population of less than 5000.
• Originally Skelmanthorpe was believed to be called Shalman after a Hebrew word meaning peaceable.
• It was established in the 8th century by displaced Jews from Holland.
• The Skelmanthorpe Feast was a very popular event in the 18th century.
• Turning from agriculture to weaving the area became more prosperous.

Kirklees Light Railway

• Steam along behind Hawk, Owl, Fox or Badger, the four friendly steam engines from Clayton West via Skelmanthorpe and Cuckoos Nest to Shelly.
• The 15″ narrow-gauge rail runs through superb scenery on the course of the track laid for the old original Skelmanthorpe line. This line was first opened in 1879 and closed in 1986.
• New this summer at Shelley Station is a picnic area with sturdy benches and a train-themed play area with the addition of a sandpit!

Skelmanthorpe Worship

• The Anglican church of St Aidan has an ikon of St Mary Sumner, hanging in the Lady Chapel. Mary Sumner founded the Mothers Union, an international organization of the Church of England, towards the end of the 19th Century.
  George Frederick Bodley designed this and other churches in the English Decorated Gothic style. He was a friend of several Pre-Raphaelite artists and William Morris.
  Bodley’s parish church designs became influential and include various parish churches plus Queen’s College Chapel, Cambridge, secular buildings for King’s College and Magdalen College, Oxford. Bodley was the also the architect for the Cathedral of St Peter and St Paul, Washington DC; St David’s Cathedral, Hobart, Tasmania; and All Saints Cathedral, Nagpur, India.

• There is a Wesleyan church on Gibb Lane in Skelmanthorpe, a Methodist Church, the Trinity Evangelical Church and Saville Road Hall non-denominational.

Futurology for Skelmanthorpe

• You can see the up-coming fixtures for Skelmanthorpe Cricket club on their web site. There are two crown green bowls clubs based at the Windmill Pub and in the centre of the village.

• Skelmanthorpe along with the neighbouring villages of Scissett, Clayton West and Denby Dale have all been targeted for substantial housing development by Kirklees Council.

• Skelmanthorpe Community Action Group continue to fight for a school crossing, to help protect our children, for improvements to road junctions, to improve safety and for repairs to our failing road system. They also keep an archive

• The next big brass band competition will be The Yorkshire Brass Band Championships 3-4 March 2012 at St. George’s Hall, Bradford

• Jobs or commuterland will be an issue in the area for at least the rest of this decade. Who can say what will happen.