My grandson has been dragged away from me and his grandma to visit friends of his parents in Saltaire. At a few weeks old he didn't have much say in the matter and I hope that I live long enough to take him to the "Company Village" founded by Titus Salt the great 19th century philanthropist. I can then educate him in the finer arts of Industrial Yorkshire and the development of sport.
Salt built his factory on the banks of the River Aire (hence Saltaire) and the Liverpool/Leeds Canal, perfect for shifting commmodities in and out of his mills.
The great coincidence is that this weekend we have also had staying with us our grandson's other grandparents who live in Hawick on the Scottish borders and who indulge in keeping alpacas. Crazy link coming up then.....Salt was one of the first textile owners in the new industrial world to appreciate the value of alpaca wool and so he specialised in alpaca products. Note the design on Salt's statue.
But as all great philanthropists do, he also provided cleaner work conditions, nice housing for his workers, a school, health facilities, bath houses, churches, a hospital and sports' facilities. having been designated an Unesco World Heritage Site, Saltaire is a fascinating place to visit and of course it is not a museum, but a working settlement that has a bowls club,a cricket club, tennis club and Salts Football Club.
The Hirst Lane sports' ground dates from the 1920s but the club was playing football much earlier than that. Based on past evidence there would have been a break in play during the 1st World War and the club revitalised afterwards. The club house was built in 1937 and the team plays in the West Riding County Amateur League Premier Division (Step 7). The Salts' Reserves play in Division Two.
More recently the Shipley Juniors Club has merged with Salts and if you happened to have watched "Ripping Yarns" on TV the fictional club Barnstoneworth United was based on the football ground. I could go into the story but no doubt you will look up past episodes of the comedy drama.
By the way they play in a delightful pink strip.
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