The village of Haworth is situated on the edge of the Pennine moors in the Worth valley, 3 miles south-west of Keighley and 10 miles west of Bradford. The name Haworth is said to originate from "hedged enclosure" or "hawthorn enclosure" Records are said to date back to 1209 when it was recorded as a settlement. The location Haworth is in provides some fabulous views no matter what form of transport is used to get there.
One of the nicest ways to arrive in Haworth is to catch a steam train from Keighley on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway (KWVR). The line was originally opened on 15th April 1867, running 5-miles up the Worth Valley from Keighley to Oxenhope and lasted until 1962 when it was closed by British Railways. On the 29th June 1968 after a 6 year legal battle an enthusiastic band of volunteers reopened the line and it is still running today. If like me you can remember steam then this is a real trip down memory lane and well worth taking the journey. Now and again they run special days and run a Thomas the Tank engine for the kids so it is worth checking their site for details, a link can be found on our links page.
Haworth probably owes most of it fame to its most well known residents the Brontes who were a family of famous novelists. They moved into Haworth Parsonage from Thornton in Bradford on April 20th 1820. The parsonage where the father Patrick Bronte was the curate, Charlotte wrote Jane Eyre, Emily wrote Wuthering Heights and Anne created The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. The parsonage is now a museum that contains a vast array of Bronte artefacts, owned and maintained now by the Bronte Society. Due to its association with the family the area is commonly known as Bronte Country.
Haworth has also had its moments on the silver screen in films such as The Railway Children, Yanks, Last of the Summer Wine, Where the Heart Is, and it was also featured in Pink Floyds - The Wall.
The main attraction is the quaint Main Street which still has its cobbles and old world feel to it. The village is built on a steep hill rising out of the valley so if you have a wheelchair or pushchair it is going to be a good work out. Because Main Street is cobbled I would not recommend going up it with a wheelchair instead plan your route and tackle it from the top and work your way down. There is plenty of parking dotted around Haworth so taking your car should not be a problem.
Along Main Street there are plenty of shops that tend to cater more for the tourist and sell arts and crafts products, books, antiques and general touristy bits and bats. These are not my type of thing but I am sure a lot of people like them else they would not be there. Among the shops there are plenty of tea-rooms and restaurants where you can have a nice sit down and take in the view and atmosphere of the place. Prices are not bad at these places and you dont generally have to sell your whippet to get a cup of tea. If it is a nice pint of the amber nectar you are after then you are not going to be disappointed there are enough pubs scattered around. At the top of Main Street there is the Black Bull, where Branwell Bronte allegedly declined into alcoholism and opium addiction that ultimately killed him at the age of 31.
Once you have been on the steam train, walked Main Street and visited the Bronte museum (which is behind the church and can be missed) there does not tend to be anything else to do bar going for a walk on the moors. If you walk out onto the moors past the Bronte Parsonage then you may find the Bronte waterfalls which are a bit of an anticlimax when you get there. After saying that there is some superb countryside surrounding Haworth for you to walk.
Haworth does hold various events throughout the year, the 1940's Weekend held in May is very popular, as are the Haworth Christmas events such as Scroggling the Holly and the Torchlight procession.