The village of Saltaire is a renowned UNESCO World Heritage site, and is well worth visiting as a day out or as part of a weekend break in Yorkshire.

A "model village" and an attraction in its own right, Saltaire. as well as its two monstrous mills. was built by Sir Titus Salt to house the 3,000 workers employed there.   The village, on the banks of the River Aire, takes its name from a combination of the river and the village's founder.

Whether he was a caring man or simply a clever capitalist, Sir Titus' aim was to provide healthier living conditions and a better working environment for his staff than those unfortunates who lived in the slums and worked in the "dark, Satanic mills" of Bradford.

Sir Titus moved his business operations from Bradford, where he owned several mills, and in 1853 built his new mills and created Saltaire.  The village had 775 houses on 22 streets, with most of these named for members of his family, and the village's architects, Messrs. Lockwood and Mawson. 

The one facility Sir Titus, a staunch tee-totaller, didn't provide for his workers was a public house, and for many years Saltaire was without a hostelry.  Today, there is a lounge-bar on Victoria Street, humorously named "Don't Tell Titus", and between the canal and the River Aire, there's "The Boathouse" bar and restaurant.

The two huge sandstone mills, which totally dominate the town, were once claimed to be the largest industrial buildings in the world by floor area.  Situated on either side of the Leeds-Liverpool canal, which runs through the village, it was here in these mills that the Salt family fortune was made, and lost, manufacturing fabrics from alpaca wool.

A deeply religious man, Sir Titus' village included the beautiful Saltaire United Reformed Church, the interior of which is pictured. Built in 1859 for the princely sum of 16,000, judging by the wonderful craftsmanship inside and out, it was money well spent.

Look at the upper gallery, and note the position of the chandeliers.

It is alleged that Lady Salt ordered the gallery built so she and other ladies could sit apart from the workers.  Sir Titus, who always sat down below with the workers, duly obliged her ladyship's request and the gallery was built. However, he got his own back on his wife's extravagance by positioning the lights in such a way that onlookers in the gallery were unable to see anything as their view was totally obstructed by the large chandeliers.

Salt, who died in 1876, was given a civic funeral by the City of Bradford.  He is buried in the mausoleum at the rear of Saltaire Church.  He must have been a popular boss - after his death, the mill workers paid for a monument to be erected in his memory.

Saltaire had 45 almshouses for the poor, a town hall, library, school and various other municipal buildings, which are centered around Victoria Square.

The square has four gorgeous carved sandstone lions at its corners, but it is an urban myth that the lions were originally destined for Trafalgar Square but ended up in Saltaire instead.

Legend has it the lions were extremely accurately carved, right down to the very last detail. The inclusion of certain 'appendages' was too much for prudish Londoners of the Victorian era to tolerate, so rather than chiselling off the offending parts, the stonemasons had to carve new lions minus their "equipment" for Trafalgar, and the others came to Saltaire!!

Over the river from New Mill is the pleasant Roberts Park area, which is a good spot for a picnic or watching the cricket, and is also the way to the Shipley Glen Tramway.

Part of the old Salt's Mill is open to the public, being home to a host of shopping facilities and also housing a huge collection of works by Bradford-born artist David Hockney. 

Getting there:

Saltaire is accessible by frequent local trains from Leeds or Skipton on the Airedale line.

By bus, take Keighley & District's 760 service from Leeds calls at Saltaire on the way to Keighley.

Anyone travelling from further afield in West Yorkshire who is likely to be using trains and buses should consider purchasing a "train and bus rover", available from Post Offices and West Yorkshire Metro as a scratch-card.