HUDDERSFIELD
Huddersfield is situated near the confluence of the rivers Colne and Holme, on the eastern foothills of the Pennines. As in Halifax, millstone grit and soft water - both essential to the woollen textile industry were plentiful. Cloth Hall was built in 1766 and the town became a centre for the textile trade - both raw materials and finished cloth. The industry became heavily mechanised in the 19th century and while the Luddites opposed such changes, workers had little option other than to seek employment in the ‘modernised’ conditions. Huddersfield established a worldwide reputation for fine woollen and worsted cloth, and some 22,000 people were employed in the industry by 1911. Even in 1961, there were 182 mills in the area, 95 of them in central Huddersfield.
STATION SPLENDOUR
With dramatic sprawling J.P. Pritchett (Junior) architecture that faced the equally impressive St George’s Square, Huddersfield station (above right) has generated much interest from artists, writers and railway enthusiasts. John Betjeman described it as “the most splendid station in England”, second only to St Pancras. It opened on August 3 1847 and boasted a central portico with eight 68ft-high Corinthian columns and a 416ft-long frontage. Much of the route across Huddersfield town centre is on an embankment contained largely within two retaining walls. As a result, the main building is on two levels; the lower level serving the roadside and the upper for platform access. Trains served the far side of the Pennines, all branches off the Penistone line (including Meltham, Holmfirth and Clayton West), the Kirkburton branch, all routes east to Wakefield and Leeds, and Bradford and beyond. Goods facilities were just as impressive. The original LYR stone structure was converted to commercial use and a much larger brick warehouse was built in 1885, with a hydraulically powered wagon lift. Both would be substantial undertakings in model form.