East Ardsley
| East Ardsley | |
| Yorkshire West Riding | |
|---|---|
 St Michael's church, East Ardsley | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SE305255 |
| Location: | 53°43’30"N, 1°32’21"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Wakefield |
| Postcode: | WF3 |
| Dialling code: | 0113/01924 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Leeds |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Morley and Outwood |
East Ardsley is a village in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The village sits six miles south pf Leeds city centre and two miles north of Wakefield: it forms part of the Heavy Woollen District.
Standing as it does between several towns, East Ardsley has become a commuter village.
Name
The name Ardsley is first attested in the Domesday Book as Erdeslau and Eadeslauue, apparently primarily with reference to what is now East Ardsley as opposed to West Ardsley.
The first element of the name comes from the Old English personal name Eard, a nickname form of longer names like Eardwulf, in the genitive form Eardes ('Eard's'). The second element comes from Old English hlæw ('hill, mound'). Thus the name once meant 'Eard's hill' or 'Eard's mound'. The name first appears with the element east in 1459, in the forms Est Ardeslaw and East Ardeslawe.[1]
History
East Ardsley once had a diverse economy, including agriculture, textiles, railways and coal-mining. Its coal mine closed in 1968 – the same year that the nearby Middleton pit closed. On the site of the old pit head now stands the headquarters of Sharp Business Systems, the British arm of Sharp Corporation, which supplies and services photocopiers. The village had many co-op departments all of which are now closed. The old coop on Thorpe Road changed hands to become Moorknoll Upholstery and after that a beauty salon.
Amblers Mill is at the crossroads of the A650 Bradford Road, Westerton Road and Common Lane, ceased textile production and now houses Country Baskets.[2] In 2007 the former railway sidings site started to be redeveloped for housing.
The M62 and M1 motorways intersect near here. The main A650 road from Wakefield to Bradford also goes through the village. The Bay Horse Pub, a long-standing and historical part of East Ardsley can be found on Bradford Road.
The village was also formerly served by Ardsley railway station.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about East Ardsley) |
References
- ↑ Harry Parkin, Your City's Place-Names: Leeds, English Place-Name Society City-Names Series, 3 (Nottingham: English Place-Names Society, 2017), pp. 16-17.
- ↑ "Welcome to Country Baskets | Inspiration from Country Baskets | Country Baskets". https://www.countrybaskets.co.uk.
- Brittlebank, N. East Ardsley – Reflections.