The History Society’s Christmas Meeting is on Wednesday 10th December 2025. This is an informal meeting, with the chance to look at some of the items that have been donated this year, plus a picture quiz (how well do you know doors in Keighley District?!?) and a look back at Christmas in the town fifty years ago. All of this accompanied by tea, coffee, mince pies and brownies.
The meeting is being held in Keighley Creative on Cooke Lane (where Argos used to be), doors open at 7.15pm and we finish around 8.30pm. Entry is free to History Society members and £3.50 for visitors (cash only please).
This is also a chance to take out membership for 2026. Membership costs £15 for the year (or £20 for a couple). If you would like to join the History Society at the meeting, please bring along the right money.
A massive thank you to Karl-Heinz Wustner who spoke to the History Society at the Local Studies Library yesterday (Wednesday 1st October). His talk was entitled ‘Meeting the Meat Demand’ and told the story of how many German families came over to Keighley and West Yorkshire in the 19th century and successfully set themselves up as pork butchers in the town.
Over forty society members and visitors were present in the Library, several being the descendants of these families. The event was a great success, and our thanks to the staff of the Library who made us so welcome.
The History Society’s next talk is ‘Parachutes, Escape Maps and Wedding Dresses’, on artificial silk weaving in the area, to be given by textile experts Pam Brook and Helen Farrar on Wednesday 8th October at 7.15pm in the Civic Centre on North Street.
The History Society has arranged a bonus talk for October, with a visit from Karl-Heinz Wustner, coming to talk about German immigration to West Yorkshire in the 19th century. The talk is called ‘Meeting the Meat Demand’ and will take place in Keighley Local Studies Library on Wednesday 1st October at 2.30pm. There is a £2 entry charge.
This presentation is a joint event between the History Society and Keighley Local Studies Library.
History Society committee member Tim Neal will be giving his talk “Lilywhite Postcards: Then & Now” at Keighley Local Studies Library on Saturday 20th September from 2pm. Entry is free and no need to pre-book.
Tim has an extensive collection of postcards of the town and surrounding areas, and uses some of those produced by the company Lilywhite Ltd. in the 1910s to 1950s to compare the view from back then to the same view today in the 21st century.
The presentation is a joint event between the History Society and the Local Studies Library, and is being given as part of the Heritage Open Days season. There will also be photographs and plans of various major buildings in Keighley on display for visitors to browse.
Keighley Walking Festival 2025 launches this Saturday (13th September) and amongst the dozens of walks on offer, there are several with a history-focus that might be of interest. For more information pick up the festival booklet (available in the Civic Centre, Library and other public venues) or check out the Town Council website.
Saturday 13th September – Joyce and Melissa from the History Society are leading a town centre walk looking at some of the landmarks and how they have changed over the centuries. Starts at 1.45pm from the war memorial in Town Hall Square.
Sunday 14th September – Andy Wade from the Men of Worth Project is leading a walk up to the Wellington Bomber Crash Site above Oakworth. Starts at 12.30pm from the Golden Fleece Pub in Oakworth.
Sunday 14th and Wednesday 17th September – Andrew Heaton and Jean Sugden from the Dockroyd Graveyard Trust are giving a guided tour of the Graveyard, focussing on the headstones. Meet at Dockroyd Graveyard in Oakworth at 3pm (Sunday) or 6.30pm (Wednesday).
Monday 15th September – David Earnshaw and Joyce Newton from Keighley Civic Society are exploring the legacy of George Hattersley. Start at Towngate (near the Bus Station) at 10.30am.
Sunday 21st September – Andy Wade from the Men of Worth Project is leading a history walk around Holden Park in Oakworth. Start at the park entrance at 12.30pm.
Tuesday 23rd September – Tim and Steve from the History Society are leading an illustrated talk along a short stretch of the Leeds-Liverpool canal, reflecting on its history. Start at East Riddlesden Hall (in front of the barn) at 10.30am.
Wednesday 24th September – David Earnshaw and Joyce Newton from Keighley Civic Society are exploring the town’s transport heritage. Start at Towngate (near the Bus Station) at 10.30am.
The History Society will have stalls at two events coming up over the next couple of weekends.
On Sunday 31st August we will be at the Keighley Bus Museum fundraising event in Keighley College car park. The event runs from 10am to 3pm. See the poster for more details.
On Saturday 6th September we will be at Keighley Show, between 10am and 4pm. See the poster for more details, including the chance to buy cheaper tickets in-advance.
Please come along and say hello, and support these local events.
There are several local history events and opportunities to keep an eye out for in July 2025…
Wednesday 9th July – this months History Society meeting in Keighley Civic Centre at 7.15pm. Featuring a talk by John Hindle from the Tungrians (a reenactment group who recreate Roman life in Britannia in the Second Century).
Friday 11th July – Community Curator Heather Millard will be giving her talk on the Butterfield Women of Cliffe Castle, at the Bradford Mechanics’ Institute at 10.30 am. Book a free place via Eventbrite (https://www.eventbrite.com/…/butterfield-ladies-of…)
Thursday 17th July – this will be the next Thursday Talk organised by the Bronte Society, held in the Old School Rooms in Haworth. More information is available on the Bronte Parsonage Museum website, but tickets are free to residents from postcodes BD20, BD21 and BD22.
And all through July the ‘Ice Age Art Now’ is running at Cliffe Castle Museum, admission is free. The museum is open Tuesdays to Sundays (i.e. is closed on Mondays).
We’d like to say a massive thank you to Ann Dinsdale and the team at the Bronte Parsonage Museum for making us feel so welcome during our exclusive visit last Friday (20th June 2025). Nineteen members of the society went on the visit, and we were given free rein to explore the museum (with the incredibly knowledgeable and friendly staff on hand to answer all sorts of questions), look around the temporary exhibition ‘From Haworth to Eternity’, and we got to see some rare, moving, exciting and recently acquired items in the collection that don’t often see the light of day, brought out by Ann in the museum’s collections library. All that and a glass of bubbly too!
Be like Princess Anne, and check out the stereoscopic (3D) images of Keighley from over 120 years ago as part of the members-only session at Keighley Local Studies Library next Saturday (31st May 2025 10am-1pm). [We don’t actually know if HRH is looking at pictures of Keighley – but you could be if you come along!] £2 per person. Please let Tim know if you are thinking of coming.
The next History Society meeting is Wednesday 14th May 2025, starting at 7.15pm, upstairs in the Civic Centre on North Street, Keighley. The guest speaker will be Colin Neville, curator of the Not Just Hockney website about artists from the local area. His talk is entitled “The Courage of His Convictions” and focusses on artist and sculptor George Demaine (1892-1966), who grew up living on Malsis Crescent in Keighley. He studied at Keighley College of Art and then at the Royal College of Art in London. He was a committed Wesleyan Methodist and when he was called up to serve in the First World War he objected and claimed exemption on the grounds of his religious beliefs.
Colin says: “George Demaine, and thousands of conscientious objectors like him, demonstrated a different type of courage to the men and women who served during the Great War, that is the courage of their long-held religious or political convictions not to take the life of another and particularly in a war. It was a courage to stand by these principles in the face of often savage public reaction, military bullying, and harsh periods of imprisonment with hard labour.”
George was imprisoned for three years with hard labour for his refusal to serve in the armed forces or undertake any war related work. The talk illustrates George’s life and work: from art student locally, to his imprisonment, and how he forged a career for himself in the post-war years.
There will also be the opportunity to buy copies of Colin’s different publications on local artists. These usually cost between £5 and £10. Please bring cash if intending to buy.
The History Society’s monthly meetings are on the second Wednesday of each month. Our meetings are held upstairs in the main hall of Keighley Civic Centre on North Street. There is a lift at the front of the building and one inside for anyone who needs it. Doors will open at 7.15pm, and the meeting starts at around 7.20pm. We finish around 8.30pm. Anyone is welcome to attend the meeting. Entry costs £3.50 (or free if you are a history society member). History Society members also have the option of joining the meeting via Zoom.
