Many people have been campaigning against the MMR vaccine for children in recent months -- but such protests are nothing new in Keighley.

A band of townspeople took a stand against vaccination in 1876 and were imprisoned as a result.

The story of these "prisoners of conscience" is told by Keighley reference librarian Pauline Barfield in a new book.

She has written one of the 11 chapters of local history featured in the paperback Aspects of Bradford 2.

Another chapter takes readers on a tour of Haworth graveyard with Ann Dinsdale, the librarian at the village's Bront Parsonage Museum.

Other chapters look at Lister Park, Bradford, hydrotherapy in Ilkley, Bradford Methodism, the Fountain Brewery, Westgate Infirmary and 18th century local life.

Pauline says the story of the vaccination protest contains farce and tragedy, heroes and villains, and a chorus of townspeople booing and cheering.

She adds: "Keighley hit the headlines in a story of deeply-held beliefs and the determination of a group of men to take the consequences of upholding them."

Keighley had grown rapidly from a village to an important industrial town, the population trebling between 1801 and 1851.

Overcrowding in areas such as Westgate, Pinfold, Baptist Square and Turkey Street had led to disease among the poor, prompting the government to order compulsory smallpox vaccinations.

A National Anti-Compulsory Vaccination League campaigned against such state intrusion into family life, and by 1873 a Keighley branch was well established.

Members gained control of the local board of health, which was responsible for vaccinations, but after refusing to carry out the jabs they were arrested.

The Keighley News at the time condemned the public demonstration that accompanied the "lawlessness", and said townspeople should be ashamed of themselves.

Ann Dinsdale, in her chapter about Haworth graveyard, looks at life and death during the time of the Bronts and reveals the stories behind some of the names on the gravestones.

She tells how the cemetery contributed to the poor health of the village, with gases from the corpses escaping into the atmosphere and spreading disease.

Among the people mentioned are Tabby Aykroyd, who worked at the Parsonage while the sisters were writing, and Branwell Bront's masonic friend John Brown.

Aspects of Bradford 2 costs £9.95 from bookshops. It is published by Wharncliffe Books, of 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire S70 2AS (phone 01226 734222).