GENERATIONS of Guiseley people have enjoyed a couple of drinks at these two well-known pubs, which both had connections to local transport.

The Station Hotel and The White Cross Hotel have played a central role in the life of the community - and some scenes from their early years are shown in these pictures from Aireborough Historical Society.

The oldest of the photographs, top left, dates back to the 1890s and shows several people and a horse and cart standing outside the Station Hotel.

To capture the image the photographer was positioned across the road in a field which became the site of the Picture Palace and in later years Guiseley Bathrooms. The Picture Palace opened in 1912 and closed in 1959.

A wonderfully atmospheric photograph shows the Station Hotel again - this time with a cow ambling across the road.

The AHS website says: “This photo was taken before the trams came to Guiseley in 1909 and is a bucolic scene with a cow strolling across what is now the A65, one of the busiest roads in the area.

“The Station Hotel has a canopy to the front which has since been removed, children sit beneath a gas lamp in the middle of the road, this is now a pedestrian controlled crossing.”

Another early view of the Station Hotel shows the canopy which was then in place decorated with swagging. Train times are displayed on a noticeboard. It is known that the landlord in 1904 was G Hirst.

The pub was the backdrop to a picture of a charabanc in 1910. The vehicle had clearly caught the attention of onlookers, including a number of children.

In the 1930s there was a tea garden behind the pub, which also had its own allotment.

The AHS website says: “The landlord was W Watson serving Melbourne Brewery Gold Medal ales plus a range of other refreshments. The gardens became overgrown and are now a car park.”

The picture was donated to the society by Deborah Pratt.

The White Cross Hotel stands on a site which has seen many changes in the local area.

The pub and the area take their name from a white cross, probably made from limestone, which once stood as a boundary marker.

An image showing the pub, bottom left, is thought to have been taken before 1934.

The hotel, which bears the “huntsman” sign for Tetley’s ales, was the terminus for trams between 1915 and 1934 when the tram service ceased to run.

A 1953 photograph shows White Cross before the roundabout was built. Otley Road is to the left and Bradford Road is to the right.

A pub sign advertises “Tetley’s Yorkshire Pale Ale”, and a number of vehicles can be seen, including a Morris Traveller.

A later undated picture shows the forerunner of the current roundabout in front of the pub. The Tranmere Café is behind the shelters.

The Leeds tramway was extended to Yeadon in May 1909, and then to Oxford Road, Guiseley in July of the same year. It was later extended to White Cross, which remained the terminus.

Guiseley Railway Station was opened in1865 and was on the Midland railway Leeds to Ilkley line. In 1876 the connection to Bradford was made via Shipley.

The old station buildings were demolished in 1974.

In 1992, ahead of electrification of the Guiseley line, the footbridge was moved to the Settle-Carlisle line and was replaced with a more modern footbridge.