Chickenley

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Chickenley
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Chickenley
Location within West Yorkshire
Population3,090 
OS grid reference SE 26546 21388
Metropolitan borough
Metropolitan county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town DEWSBURY
Postcode district WF12
Police West Yorkshire
Fire West Yorkshire
Ambulance Yorkshire
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Yorkshire
53°41′17″N1°36′00″W / 53.688°N 1.600°W / 53.688; -1.600

Chickenley is a suburban village in the Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It is part of Dewsbury after being originally a farming hamlet, half-way between Ossett and Dewsbury.

In 1356 it was variously called Chekynlay and Chikynlay. [1]

The Chickenley name could derive from a family name originating during early settlement, corrupted to "Chick" over the years, or a man who had a chicken called 'Ley' and decided to change the name to Chickenley (as the town was previously called 'Cowbob'). An old story is that when a maypole was built in the Gawthorpe area of Ossett in 1840, men from Chickenley came to tear it down.[ according to whom? ] Some of the early settlers to the area were a family of Italian tinkers, the Cascarinos and also of Irish origin the Taylors; these family names still exist in the area.[ citation needed ] After the Second World War a council estate was built in the area. The estate is the largest in Dewsbury and has a doctors and shops within it.

St Thomas More Catholic Church, Chickenley St Thomas More Catholic Church - Maple Road, Chickenley - geograph.org.uk - 711170.jpg
St Thomas More Catholic Church, Chickenley

Chickenley has no Church of England church, although there is St Thomas More Catholic Church, opposite Chickenley Community School on Chickenley Lane. Until recently the estate was linked with the Gawthorpe area of Ossett as part of a Church of England parish. However, it is now part of the large parish of Dewsbury, which has several churches within its area. Gawthorpe's St Mary's Church C.of E. church was at the border with Ossett, but was demolished in March 2011. [2]

The local elections of 4 May 2006 saw the BNP gain the "Dewsbury East" ward, which includes the estate - but the seat was regained by the Labour Party in the 5 May 2007 election.

References

  1. Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, vol. 28, pp. 380-419 (1926)
  2. "The end is nigh for abandoned church...", Thepressnews.co.uk. Retrieved 3 December 2011