We will be undertaking archive research for the duration of the Swartha Wood project and would really like people to get involved.

What we would like to discover is:

• How far back can we go with documentary evidence relating to the wood?
• Who lived and worked in Swartha and the surrounding settlements?
• What can we discover about the occupations of people in Silsden through the ages?
• Has the wood changed in size over time?
• How much more can we find out about Silsden’s industrial past?

 

There are many other avenues of research to explore. If you have an interest in, say, a particular period of history, or place names/surnames, footpaths, buildings etc. please get in touch.

We held a training session for 20 people on 26/11/12, led by Caroline and Anthony from the West Yorkshire Archive Service, who gave a great introduction to using their archives. If you would like to learn about the resources available for research, please let us know by using the contact form on the website.

David Mason of the Silsden History Group has just discovered a reference to Swartha Wood dated 1639. The definition of an Ancient Woodland is that it has been in existence since at least AD1600. This is great news!

Another 17th century reference was found in the Silsden Book of Paynes (bye-laws) and mentions that anyone removing underwood from Swartha Wood will be fined.

 

Further research throughout the 2 years of the project produced fascinating information relating to the small scale industries taking place in Swartha Wood. Charcoal was being made at Swartha in 1736 using the wood left over from bark removal. Oak bark was used in the tanning industry and at least one tannery existed in Silsden up to the last century. To uncover documentary evidence showing that charcoal was being made in Swartha, all the materials needed for this process being found in the wood, was an important find. The particular document sourced was a solicitor’s draft of a contract for these processes to be undertaken by a Mr Keighley of Bingley! There were also clues to the nature of the wood at the time i.e. mentioning that wood could be taken from hedges and fences. This indicates that the dry stone wall boundary will have been built sometime after 1736.

The Silsden Parish Registers of 1768-1812 have been a great source of information about the lives of the residents being a particularly detailed record. For instance, many birth registers of the time only mention the name of the father and the date. These registers give both parents’ names, the child’s, the occupation of the father and the address e.g. Jeremiah Wilson, Charcoal Burner, Brunthwaite Crag. Many occupations relating to the use of wood were found in this register.

Fascinating information on the aqueduct in Swartha was sourced by Yorkshire Water who were very helpful in trying to find out about the construction and the scheme back in the first half of the 19th century. Newspaper articles from the 1850s give a real insight into the lives of the construction workers and how important the scheme was to the residents of Bradford at the height of the industrial revolution. These can be found through Infotrac on the Bradford Library website if you are a library card holder.

We were very fortunate in having the permission of the depositor of the Skipton Castle Estate archives and the help of staff at the Yorkshire Archaeological Society (YAS) for this research. If you would like any more information on the documents, please contact YAS.

A BIG THANK YOU

Thank you to everyone who has helped so much with the archive research for the Swartha Wood project. Particularly:

Caroline Brown - Heritage Outreach Officer and Anthony Hughes - Archivist

Yorkshire Archaeological Society and the depositor of the Skipton Castle collection

Dr Jill Thompson and Jana Wedell, University of Bradford

Silsden Local History Group

Yorkshire Water

We hope that you will attend our final exhibition on 28th and 29th June at Silsden Town Hall so that we can share all our information with you.

Alternatively, please get in touch with us at BEAT.