Cross Hills
Encyclopedia
Cross Hills is a village in the Craven
Craven
Craven is a local government district in North Yorkshire, England that came into being in 1974, centred on the market town of Skipton. In the changes to British local government of that year this district was formed as the merger of Skipton urban district, Settle Rural District and most of Skipton...
district of North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, England that is situated halfway between Skipton
Skipton
Skipton is a market town and civil parish within the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is located along the course of both the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the River Aire, on the south side of the Yorkshire Dales, northwest of Bradford and west of York...
and Keighley
Keighley
Keighley is a town and civil parish within the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated northwest of Bradford and is at the confluence of the River Aire and the River Worth...
.
Location
Geographically, Cross Hills is in AiredaleAiredale
Airedale is a geographic area in Yorkshire, England, corresponding to the river valley of the River Aire . The valley stretches from the river's origin in Malham which is in the Yorkshire Dales, down past Keighley and Bingley, through Leeds and Castleford and on to join the Humber...
at a point where the River Aire
River Aire
The River Aire is a major river in Yorkshire, England of length . Part of the river is canalised, and is known as the Aire and Calder Navigation....
bends east from its north-south course. The village lies on the south bank of the river just above the flood plain, which is wholly agricultural. As its name implies, Cross Hills is surrounded by the hills of the eastern Pennines
Pennines
The Pennines are a low-rising mountain range, separating the North West of England from Yorkshire and the North East.Often described as the "backbone of England", they form a more-or-less continuous range stretching from the Peak District in Derbyshire, around the northern and eastern edges of...
including Steeton Moor (south-east), Cowling Moor (south-west), White Hill (north-west) and Kildwick Moor (north-east). There are views along the Aire Valley itself to the north and east. Rombalds Moor, between Silsden
Silsden
Silsden is a town and civil parish situated in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the northern slope of the Aire Valley between Keighley and Skipton. It is about from the river. Along the lower edge of the town is the Leeds and Liverpool Canal...
and Ilkley
Ilkley
Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in West Yorkshire, in the north of England. Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within the metropolitan borough of Bradford. Approximately north of Bradford, the town lies mainly on the south bank of the River Wharfe...
, is about six miles east of Cross Hills. Skipton is about four miles north and the hills of the Yorkshire Dales
Yorkshire Dales
The Yorkshire Dales is the name given to an upland area in Northern England.The area lies within the historic county boundaries of Yorkshire, though it spans the ceremonial counties of North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Cumbria...
can be seen beyond it.
The village is overlooked by two monuments called The Pinnacles which stand above crags on the Cowling Moor skyline. These are small towers: Sutton Pinnacle is square and topped by a crenelated parapet; Cowling Pinnacle is an obelisk. They were built a century apart by local farmers to commemorate sons who were killed in the Napoleonic War and First World War respectively.
The village is adjacent to Glusburn
Glusburn
Glusburn is a village and civil parish situated in Craven in North Yorkshire, England, with a population of 3,902. It is located on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. Glusburn is the name of the old parish, but the newer part of the village is known as Cross Hills.- History :The village most likely...
, which lies immediately to the west. Kildwick
Kildwick
Kildwick, or Kildwick-in-Craven, is a village and civil parish of the District of Craven in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated between Skipton and Keighley and has a population of 191...
is due north of Cross Hills on the other side of the River Aire. Sutton-in-Craven
Sutton-in-Craven
Sutton-in-Craven is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England that is situated in the Aire Valley between Skipton and Keighley...
is less than a mile to the south-west and Eastburn
Eastburn, Bradford
Eastburn is a village within the Steeton with Eastburn civil parish, in the City of Bradford Metropolitan District, West Yorkshire, England. The road through Eastburn is approximately 1/2 mile long with a post office, chip shop and public house called Eastburn Inn.A locally established group...
less than a mile to the south-east. Cross Hills is separated from Sutton-in-Craven and Eastburn by the beck which flows into the Aire just east of Cross Hills. The beck is known by various names: Surgill Beck, Holme Beck and Eastburn Beck. It forms part of the county boundary between North and West Yorkshire as it approaches the Aire, Eastburn being in West Yorkshire.
Cross Hills is split by the Airedale Line
Airedale Line
The Airedale Line is the name given to one of the rail services in the Metro area of northern England. The service is operated by Northern Rail, on the route connecting Leeds and Bradford with Skipton in the North of England. Some services along the line continue to Morecambe or Carlisle...
of the former Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
. The biggest part is south of the railway and is largely residential with most of the shops and restaurants on or near Main Street (the A6068). North of the railway, former farmland has been given over to light industry and commerce but with some residential property on Station Road which connects the A6068 and the A629.
Communications
The village is well served by road communications as it is close to the main A629 connecting Keighley and Skipton. The A6068 trans-Pennine route from ColneColne
Colne is the second largest town and civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England, with a population of 20,118. It lies at the eastern end of the M65, 6 miles north-east of Burnley, with Nelson immediately adjacent, in the Aire Gap with two main roads leading into the Yorkshire...
forms the village's Main Street and joins the A629 at the large roundabout between Cross Hills and nearby Kildwick. The A6068 forms Colne Road through Glusburn and becomes Main Street at the junction with Wheatlands Lane. This lane joins Park Road which climbs due west out of the village and provides routes to Cononley
Cononley
Cononley is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. In the Aire Valley 3 miles south of Skipton and with an estimated population of 1,080 . It is situated near the A629 creating easy access to Skipton, Keighley and other nearby settlements...
and Lothersdale
Lothersdale
Lothersdale is a small village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Situated near Skipton and located within the triangle formed by Skipton, Cross Hills and Colne. It is a small community of about 200 houses but local amenities include a park, church, chapel, pub,...
.
There are regular bus services between Keighley, Skipton and Colne that all serve the village.
The local Kildwick and Crosshills railway station
Kildwick and Crosshills railway station
Kildwick and Crosshills [sic] was a railway station off Station Road in Cross Hills, North Yorkshire , England. It served the villages of Cross Hills, Cowling, Glusburn, Kildwick and Sutton-in-Craven.-History:...
, opened in 1847, was closed in 1965. It was just off Station Road where the humpback bridge crosses the railway. The nearest station now is Steeton and Silsden
Steeton and Silsden railway station
Steeton and Silsden railway station serves the village of Steeton and the town of Silsden in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated closer to Steeton than to Silsden, and is on the Airedale Line. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Northern Rail. Steeton & Silsden closed on...
two miles to the east.
Amenities
Cross Hills is home to the Old White Bear pubPublic house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
/restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
on Keighley Road which had its own real ale brewery producing Naylor's Pinnacle beers. Due to the need to increase capacity, the brewery was moved in the 2000s to the nearby Midland Mill complex off Station Road. Other eating places include Tams Cantonese restaurant and the Bella Napoli Italian restaurant.
The village has several small retail outlets. The largest retailer is the Co-op store
The Co-operative Group
The Co-operative Group Ltd. is a United Kingdom consumer cooperative with a diverse range of business interests. It is co-operatively run and owned by its members. It is the largest organisation of this type in the world, with over 5.5 million members, who all have a say in how the business is...
, a small supermarket just off Main Street. The Co-op has one of the two public car parks in Cross Hills. There is a SPAR
SPAR
Spar , trades from approximately 12400 stores in 34 countries worldwide and is the world's largest independent voluntary retail trading chain. Spar was founded in the Netherlands in 1932 by retailer Adriaan Van Well and now, through its affiliate organisations, operates through most European...
store towards the western end of Main Street.
The village post office is on Keighley Road opposite the junction with Station Road. It used to be in one of the buildings opposite (now a private house) and the old lettering can still be seen on the lintel above this house's front door. There is now only one bank in Cross Hills and this is at the end of Main Street on the junction with Park Road and Station Road.
The village has a large health centre on Holme Lane and is only a mile or so from the Airedale NHS Trust
Airedale NHS Trust
Airedale NHS Trust is a NHS trust based in West and North Yorkshire, England. It currently Operates Airedale General Hospital and a small hospital in Skipton....
hospital at Steeton. There is a public library and a police station.
The largest secondary and sixth form college in the area, South Craven School
South Craven School
-Summary:South Craven School is a secondary school in Cross Hills, North Yorkshire, England. It is the largest school in the Craven District and carries over 1,700 pupils.As of 2011, South Craven School is a trust school, achieving foundation status in 2006....
, is located in Cross Hills off Holme Lane, which is the road from Cross Hills to Sutton-in-Craven. The local primary schools are in Sutton-in-Craven, Glusburn and Kildwick.
Cross Hills has no Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
parish church of its own and is part of the parish of St Andrew's Church across the Aire in Kildwick. St Peter's Methodist Church, whose hall has an additional function as the local polling station, is just off Main Street in the centre of the village. St Joseph's Catholic Church is on Aire Street, off Keighley Road. South Craven Evangelical Church is on Back Colne Road.
Cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and football are played at Park Fields where Cross Hills adjoins both Glusburn and Sutton-in-Craven. The clubs are Cross Hills FC and Glusburn CC. The Cross Hills tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
and bowling
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
club is located off Keighley Road with three tennis courts and one bowling green.
Herbert Sutcliffe
The great Yorkshire and England cricketerCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
Herbert Sutcliffe
Herbert Sutcliffe
Herbert Sutcliffe was an English professional cricketer who represented Yorkshire and England as an opening batsman. Apart from one match in 1945, his first-class career spanned the period between the two World Wars...
died in a Cross Hills nursing home on 22 January 1978, aged 83.