Sowerby, West Yorkshire

infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Sowerby
latitude= 53.707234
longitude= -1.935608
population =
metropolitan_borough= Calderdale
metropolitan_county = West Yorkshire
region= Yorkshire and the Humber
constituency_westminster= Calder Valley
post_town= SOWERBY BRIDGE
postcode_district= HX6
postcode_area = HX
dial_code= 01422
os_grid_reference= SE042234
london_distance=convert|170|mi|km|abbr=on SSE
static_

static_image_caption=St Peter's Church, Sowerby

Sowerby is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies amongst the Pennines, contiguous with Sowerby Bridge, convert|3.7|mi|km|1 west-southwest of Halifax and convert|7.6|mi|km|1 west-northwest of Huddersfield.

Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Sowerby appears in the "Domesday Book" of 1086, and was one of the most important settlements in its immediate region, long before the domination of Halifax. The ancient district of Sorbyshire, a large stretch of forest centred around the town of Sowerby leading down the Ryburn and Calder valleys and almost up to Halifax itself, was at one time an important Royal chase.

History

The name Sowerby, is made up from the Norse "Sor" for sour and suffixed with "by" representing a parished area. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A793668 Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire - BBC] ] Although outsiders persistently follow the cartographers error in pronunciation, the local pronunciation follows the original Norse. ("saw+bi" as in 'biscuit').

The town appears in the Domesday Book and was one of Calderdale's most important, long before Halifax assumed that particular role. The district of Sorbyshire, a large stretch of forest centred around the town of Sowerby leading down the Ryburn and Calder valleys and almost up to Halifax itself, was at one time an important Royal chase.

There has long existed a local legend describing the former existence of a castle in Sowerby, the truth of which has since been confirmed by excavations upon 'Castle Hill' at the high end of the old town. Archaeologists there uncovered the decayed foundations of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle, a notably unusual find for West Yorkshire.

Governance

Sowerby was the centre of the Sowerby parliamentary constituency until the 1983 general election, when the constituency was expanded and renamed Calder Valley.

Landmarks

Once home to many chapels and churches of several Christian denominations, St. Peter's, an Anglican church of remarkable architectural interest, is now the main focus of religious worship in the town.

Notable people

John Tillotson, 'The people's priest', Archbishop of Canterbury between 1691 and 1693, who became known for his lack of tolerance over certain abuses of the church which had become inherent within the clergy of the time, and also for his insistence on putting into practice that which he preached. A statue of Tillotson still exists in St. Peter's church and an avenue is named after him in the lower end of the town.

The summer home of the MP for Greater Grimsby, Austin Mitchell, is situated within the town, and the mansion of Fieldhouse was the seat of the illustrious Stansfeld family, who contributed much to the local community, including building St. Peter's church.

Another character of note was a certain Robert Hood who lived in the early 1200s and who was established as an outlaw in local magistrates records, this for the crime of hunting the King's deer in a Royal chase. It seems he continued this pursuit without much fear of reprisal as his two sons Richard and John were also later accused of the same crimes. Some amateur historians have pointed out the possibility that in these three we could be looking at another example of the ubiquitous Robin Hood character. However, what marks them apart is that they represent Robin Hood for the first time as a righteous rebel, rather than the brigand he began life as and remained for so long. There has even been low-level speculation as to whether John Hood was in fact the 'Little John' of Robin Hood legend, little referring to the fact he was the younger brother of the two.

ee also

*Sowerby, North Yorkshire

References