Otley

Toponymy Otley's name is derived from Otto, Otho, Othe, or Otta, a Saxon personal name and leah, a woodland clearing in Old English. It was recorded as Ottanlege in 972 and Otelai or Othelia in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name Chevin has close parallels to the early Brythonic Welsh term Cefn meaning ridge and may be a survival of the ancient Cumbric language. Early history There are pre-historic settlement finds alongside both sides of the River Wharfe and it is believed the valley has been settled at this site since the Bronze Age. There are Bronze Age carvings on rocks situated on top of The Chevin: one such example is the Knotties Stone. West Yorkshire Geology Trust has reference to Otley Chevin and Caley Crags having a rich history of human settlement stretching back into Palaeolithic times. Flint tools, Bronze Age rock carvings and Iron Age earthworks have been found. In medieval times the forest park was used as common pasture land, as a source of wood and sandstones for buildings and walls. Saxon and Medieval The majority of the early development of the town dates from Saxon times and was part of an extensive manor granted by King Æthelstan to the see of York. The Archbishops of York had a residence and were lords of the manor. Their palace was located on the site occupied by the Manor House. The Saxon church was replaced by a Norman one, but this contains much Saxon sculpture. Bondgate was for the workers: bondsmen and tenants. A leper hospital was founded on the road to Harewood beyond Cross Green. An early example can be seen in Otley Museum. By 1900 the printing machinery trade, with over 2,000 people employed in seven machine shops, was Otley's most important industry. After the First World War there was a general shortage of housing in Britain, and much of it was crowded slums. Otley Council prepared one of the first subsidized housing schemes, commencing with relatively open land in Newall on the North of the river in 1920. By the 1960s the outdoor pool was a popular leisure destination and was in use until 1993 when a fault with the pumping system precipitated its closure. Otley Museum Until 2010 Otley Museum was based in the Civic Centre when it was displaced by major redevelopment of the building. In January 2010, its collections, reflecting the town's story from prehistory to the present day, were packed for storage while new premises were sought. Visitors can view items from the collection by prior arrangement at its temporary location at Otley Cycle Club. ==Governance==

Historically Otley was a market-town and the centre of a large ecclesiastical parish in the wapentakes of Skyrack and Claro in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The various chapelries and townships in the ancient parish became separate civil parishes in 1866. The local authority was the lord of the manor until 1864 when Otley Board was formed and many public buildings date from then on. Otley lies in the Leeds North West constituency of the UK Parliament and is represented by MP Katie White of the Labour Party. It is part of the Otley & Yeadon ward on Leeds City Council and is represented by three Liberal Democrat Councillors Ryk Downes, Colin Campbell & Sandy Lay. It is twinned with the French town of Montereau-Fault-Yonne, south of Paris. Otley and Wharfedale ward has a population of 24,000, and Otley itself has a population of 14,348, according to the Census 2001. ==Geography==

Otley lies south-west of York, north-west of Leeds, north-east of Bradford, and from London. The town lies in lower Wharfedale, at a bridging point over the River Wharfe where there is a seven-arched medieval bridge, and is surrounded by arable farmland. The historic town developed on the south bank of the Wharfe, but in the 20th century Otley expanded north of the river, to include new developments at Newall and the Weston Estate. The south side of the valley is dominated by a gritstone escarpment overlooking Otley called the Chevin and to the north is Newall Carr. In 1944, Major Le G.G.W. Horton Fawkes of Farnley Hall donated of land on the Chevin to the people of Otley. This has been expanded to and constitutes Chevin Forest Park. It was from a quarry on the Chevin that the foundation stones for the Houses of Parliament were hewn. To the east and west of Otley are flooded gravel pits, where sand and gravel have been extracted in the 20th century. The gravel pits to the east at Knotford Nook are a noted birdwatching site. Those to the west are devoted to angling and sailing. To the west are the villages of Burley in Wharfedale and Menston. To the east is Pool-in-Wharfedale. To the south is the towns of Guiseley, and Yeadon. ==Transport==

Roman roads bypassed Otley, South of the Chevin and North of Timble, so most of roads in the area were little better than tracks until the 18th century when efforts were made to facilitate trade. The trackbed between Burley in Wharfedale, Otley and Pool is to become a cycleway, footpath and equestrian route known as the Wharfedale Greenway, with possible extensions onward to Ilkley alongside the extant railway. Planning permission for the first phase of the greenway was granted in July 2020. The main roads through the town are the A660 to the south east, which connects Otley to Bramhope, Adel and Leeds city centre, and the A65 to the west, which goes to Ilkley and Skipton. The A6038 heads to Guiseley, Shipley and Bradford, connecting with the A65. To Harrogate, the A659 heads east to the A658, which is the main Bradford–Harrogate road. Otley bus station is run by West Yorkshire Metro and services are operated by First West Yorkshire, Harrogate Bus Company, Keighley Bus Company, and Connexionsbuses. There are local services connecting the town and outlying areas. ==Notable features==

Otley Bridge and riverside Otley Bridge is a 7 span stone bridge and Scheduled Ancient Monument, dating from 1228, which was rebuilt after the flood of 1673 and widened in 1776. It originally had an open-air swimming pool. Market Place While markets have been held from at least 1227 it has only been in the current Market Place from about 1800. It contains the Buttercross (covered area for farm produce, now used for occasional charity events, otherwise rest and shelter for visitors) and the Jubilee Clock, which was erected in 1888 at a cost of £175. It has two plaques, one in memory to two locals killed in the Transvaal War and one expressing the gratitude of Belgian refugees who came to Otley during the First World War. Many of the buildings around are listed. ==Education==

A grammar school was founded by Royal Charter issued to Thomas Cave in 1607 by King James VI and I, who named it "The Grammar School of Prince Henry". In 1918 the foundation was re-established in temporary premises and in 1925 Prince Henry's Grammar School, Otley, in Farnley Lane opened. Otley has a number of primary schools. ==Religion==

. Otley's first church was built in the early 7th century, made of wood, but was burnt down. Substantial changes were made in the 13th, 14th and 18th century, with the Tower Clock dating from 1793. Our Lady and All Saints Roman Catholic Church was opened in 1851. An 1890 Quaker meeting house on Cross Green is now a Gospel Hall. Otley Quakers now meet at the former Courthouse on the last Sunday of each month. Other Christian groups meet in members' homes or rented rooms. ==Culture and community==

Otley has a diverse range of cultural organisations. It has five active Morris dance sides, the Wharfedale Wayzgoose (Border), The Buttercross Belles (Ladies Northwest), Flash Company (Border, Molly, Appalachian & Clog), Hellz Bellz (Contemporary) and Kitchen Taps (Appalachian Step). Drama groups include the Otley Community Players, Otley Youth Theatre (OY), and a thriving arts centre in the former courthouse. There is a poetry society, which meets monthly in the Black Horse Hotel. The town has a Brass Band who perform at many events in the town. It is not a regular contesting band, but won first prize in the unregistered section at their first contest at Hardraw Scar in September 2007 and again in 2008. Since then they have competed in the 1st to 3rd section winning Second prize and Best March in 2014. Otley hosts the annual Otley Folk Festival in September, a Victorian Fayre in December, a carnival in June, and, in May, what is reputed to be the oldest one day agricultural show in the country. An Army Cadet Force detachment is also located in the town. In January 2013 The Guardian newspaper featured an article in its Weekend section entitled ''Let's move to Otley, West Yorkshire''. Hostelries The Black Horse Hotel (original demolished, current from 1901 By 1900 there were over 30 inns, and Otley was said to have "a pub on every corner". Today there are 20 pubs in the town although the Roebuck (formerly known as the Spite), the Chevin and the Royalty are on the outskirts, with the Roebuck located in North Yorkshire. Some of the oldest buildings have been demolished or replaced, but the Red Lion on Kirkgate dates from 1745, the Bowling Green from 1757 (originally a courthouse), the Rose & Crown (originally cottages) 1731. The Old Cock on Crossgate (despite its name) has only recently become a pub, but inhabits former cottages from 1757. These are all Grade II listed buildings. The Black Bull in the Market Place, was allegedly drunk dry by Cromwell's troops on the night before the battle of Marston Moor during the English Civil War and has a 15th-century well in the beer garden. File:Black Horse Hotel at Otley.jpg|Black Horse Hotel File:The Red Lion - Kirkgate - geograph.org.uk - 468541.jpg|Red Lion File:Bowling Green, Otley 7 August 2017.jpg|The Bowling Green File:Rose and Crown Otley 7 August 2017.jpg|Rose and Crown File:Otley Old Cock front cropped 7 August 2017.jpg|Old Cock File:The Black Bull in Otley.jpg|Black Bull File:The Bay Horse, Market Place, Otley (30th December 2013).JPG|Bay Horse File:The Junction Inn, Bondgate, Otley (30th December 2013).JPG|The Junction Inn File:Whitakers, Kirkgate, Otley (30th December 2013).JPG|Whitakers File:The White Swan, Boroughgate, Otley (30th December 2013) 001.JPG|The White Swan File:The Yeoman (formerly the Fountain), Gay Lane, Otley (30th December 2013) 001.JPG|The Yeoman (formerly the Fountain) File:The Ring O'Bells - New Market - geograph.org.uk - 468527.jpg|The Ring O'Bells (now the Otley Tavern) File:The Cross Pipes - Westgate - geograph.org.uk - 1207285.jpg|The Cross Pipes ==Filmography==

Otley is "Hotton" in the ITV television soap opera Emmerdale, and appears in ITV's Heartbeat where Otley Courthouse is the old Police Station. ITV's DCI Banks also regularly filmed in the town. Otley was also the setting for the drama series The Chase and the ITV dramatisation of ''The Bad Mother's Handbook''. ==Local media==

Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire. Television signals are received from the local relay transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Leeds on 95.3 FM, Greatest Hits Radio Harrogate & The Yorkshire Dales on 107.1 FM, Capital Yorkshire on 105.6 FM, Heart Yorkshire on 107.6 FM, Drystone Radio on 102 FM and Rombalds Radio, a community based radio station that broadcast online. The local newspaper is the Wharfedale Observer. ==Sport==

Otley Angling Club was formed in 1897 by local land owners. It controls the fishing on the River Wharfe through Otley and a coarse fishing pond on the outskirts of the town. It runs regular fishing matches on the river and junior matches on the club pond. Otley Athletic Club meets at Otley Cricket Club. Otley Cricket Club, founded in 1820, play in the Airedale and Wharfedale Senior Cricket League. The club has won the league title 13 times and shared it in 1966. The club has three Senior teams and provides facilities for Juniors from Under 9 to Under 17. The Club play at Cross Green. , the home ground of Otley R.U.F.C. Otley R.U.F.C. play home matches at Cross Green, which was the venue for the Italy v USA fixture in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. In 1979 Cross Green was the site of a victory by the North of England against the All Blacks. Otley R.U.F.C. finished 5th in National Division One in both the 2003–04 and 2004–05 seasons but were relegated to National Division Two at the end of the 2006–07 season. The club won National Division Two in 2007–08 and returned to National Division One for the 2008–09 season. Otley Town Football Club has teams in the Premier division of the West Yorkshire League, the Premier division of the Harrogate & District League and the reserves division of the West Yorkshire League. It runs junior teams including two girls' teams. The club is a Charter Standard football club run by volunteers. The Sunday League team, Otley Wharfeside AFC, play in the Wharfedale Triangle Football League. Otley Cycle Club was founded on 27 January 1927. Its patron is Lizzie Armitstead, an international champion cyclist who was born in the town. It meets regularly and hosts a number of races throughout the year. On 5 July 2014, the Tour de France Stage 1 from Leeds to Harrogate passed through the town. On 3 May 2015, the final stage of the first Tour de Yorkshire came through the outskirts of Otley. On 30 April 2016, Otley was the start of the second stage of the Tour de Yorkshire. ==Notable people==

• Thomas Chippendale (17181779), English cabinetmaker, who was born in a cottage at the junction of Boroughgate and Wesley Street; • Elizabeth Garnett (23 September 1839 22 March 1921), missionary to navvies and author, who did much to improve the life of the navvies working in the area. • Craig Adams, musician, member of The Sisters of Mercy, The Mission and The Cult • Olivia Blake, current MP for Sheffield Hallam • David Thomas Broughton, folk singer and guitarist • Lizzie Deignan, British cyclist • Nick Houghton, field marshall, former Chief of the Defence Staff • Alan Kernaghan, Republic of Ireland footballer • Joseph Ritchie, surgeon, African explorer, and naturalist • Julian Sands, British actor • Mike Tindall, England rugby union captain • The Chevin, alternative rock band • Coyle Girelli, composer and recording artist • Aidan White, professional footballer • Dora Metcalf, entrepreneur, mathematician and engineer • Lucy Chambers, actress ==See also==