BEAUTIFUL BLACKLEY

September/October

The 1880s were busy times for Blackley. The Chapel had over 200 in the congregation and a similar number of children. When James Cartledge built the first Chapel he tempted the Rev. Hindle of Jepson Lane with an offer of Ł50 a year more and the congregation followed him to Blackley. The Rev. Briggs was the next to make changes and he masterminded the building of the present Chapel and The Elms in l879. What rejoicing there must have been with flocks of people walking up from Elland. Today there is only a handful arriving by car and no children in the Sunday School.

Blackley had clay and coal mines from early times. John Cartledge had a pottery at Woodman and James a brickworks at Blackley. They went bankrupt in l823 and Titus Kitchen purchased the property in l868 and continued making pottery.

Samuel Wilkinson made his first move by buying two fields, upper and lower close near the Chapel and in 1882 leased land from Lord Savile and started his own brickworks with his sons Arthur and Fred as managers. Daughter Mary was a Board School Teacher and Betsy a dressmaker whilst Emma and Edith were cotton reelers.

The brickworks prospered. In 1920 Titus and Joseph Kitson sold Samuel the pottery and a brickyard which had started in 1810. Wilkinson’s bricks became known worldwide. In 1982 they celebrated their centenary but sadly they were taken over by Butterly Bricks in 1983. They were great supporters of the Blackley Cricket Club and for many years The President was one of the Wilkinson family.

In the early 1970s whilst holidaying in Scotland we spent a very enjoyable evening talking to the locals in a pub. One man told us of a wonderful hilltop village he visited twice a week. It was like fairyland. As far as the eye could see were twinkling lights. It was sheer magic and he never tired of it. Who was he? The driver of a Scottish clay wagon. The magical village? Blackley, where he arrived at midnight and left at dawn!