A History of Haworth -- Michael Baumber (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

A History of Haworth -- Michael Baumber

Many Haworth residents feel there's a lot more to their village than those famous writing sisters.

Michael Baumber certainly thinks agrees, and his comprehensive history of the area reflects this wider interest.

He gives as an exhausting -- and at times exhausting -- insight into religious, social and industrial life.

The Bronte name does appear several times, but this is mostly referring to father Patrick's activities.

While the girls were roaming the moors, scribbling in private or dying tragically, Rev Bronte was playing a leading role in Haworth life.

This was something Emily, Anne and Charlotte didn't appear to do: and as Baumber says, after their deaths "in the West Riding there was a distinct antipathy to the Brontes".

There are plenty of other books devoted to the life, work and influence of the Bronte siblings. What interests Baumber more is the nitty-gritty of life in a typical cluster of Pennine villages: Haworth, Stanbury and Oxenhope.

Over 318 pages -- illustrated with dozens of photographs -- he highlights the Worth Valley's history as never before.

The first third follows the area from the Ice Age, through feudalism, reclamation and Civil War, to the 18th century domination of Methodist pioneer William Grimshaw.

In many ways these chapters could be the early story of any Northern community as it grew in size and complexity.

At times the prose reads like an extended list of people and places but it's interesting to spot the first appearances of names still known locally: Heaton, Midgley, Emmott, Pighells.

The book becomes more readable -- and ultimately fascinating -- when Baumber moves into the last 250 years, the timescale contracting and the focus tightening.

Chapters are generally devoted to specific issues -- religion, local government, textiles, the railway, general village life and world wars.

A final chapter brings Haworth's story into the 21st century, mentioning Bronte tourism, traffic problems, school catchment areas and even car clamper Ted Evans.

Michael Baumber's A History of Haworth is equally definitive as Ian Dewhirst's History of Keighley, ideal both for Haworth residents with a deep interest in their village's past, and others with a more general interest in Northern rural or industrial history.

* Cost £20 from Reids bookshop, Cavendish Street, Keighley, or by contacting 0845 370 0067 or customerservices@booksource.net.

David Knights