Cottingley, Bradford facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cottingley |
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 Cottingley Town Hall |
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 Cottingley
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| OS grid reference | SE112370 |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BINGLEY |
| Postcode district | BD16 |
| Dialling code | 01274 |
| Police | West Yorkshire |
| Fire | West Yorkshire |
| Ambulance | Yorkshire |
| EU Parliament | Yorkshire and the Humber |
| UK Parliament |
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Cottingley is a village located in West Yorkshire, England. It's part of the City of Bradford district, found between the towns of Shipley and Bingley. Cottingley is famous for the Cottingley Fairies story, which involves a series of photographs taken there long ago.
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What Does the Name Cottingley Mean?
The name of the village, Cottingley, has a long history. It was first written down in a very old book called the Domesday Book in 1086. Back then, it was spelled Cotingelai.
The name comes from two parts. The first part, Cotta, was likely a person's name. The second part, -ingas, meant a group of people connected to Cotta. So, the "Cottingas" were a group linked to someone named Cotta. This group's name was then combined with an Old English word, lēah, which meant 'open land in a wood' or a 'clearing'. Put together, the name Cottingley once meant 'the clearing of the descendants of Cotta'.
A Brief Look at Cottingley's Past
Cottingley village grew up around its first church, St Michael's, the Cottingley Town Hall, and an old inn called the Sun Inn. This early village was about 2.5 miles from Bingley.
The Cottingley Fairies Story
In 1917, something very unusual happened in Cottingley. Two young girls, Elsie Wright (who was 15) and Frances Griffiths (who was 9), said they had taken photos of fairies. They claimed to have seen these fairies in a small valley, called Cottingley Beck, at the bottom of their garden.
This event led to the famous Cottingley Fairies story. Even today, this story is a big part of the village's identity. Cottingley even has a special event called the Cottingley Fairy Fest to celebrate it. In 1997, parts of a movie inspired by the story, called FairyTale: A True Story, were filmed right there in the village.
How Cottingley is Governed
Cottingley is part of the Bingley Rural Ward, which is a local area within the Bradford City Council. This council helps manage services for the community. The village is also part of the Shipley parliamentary area. This means that people in Cottingley vote for a Member of Parliament (MP) to represent them in the national government. Since 2024, the MP for Shipley has been Anna Dixon from the Labour party.
In 2011, the Bingley Rural Ward, which includes Cottingley and other nearby places like Cullingworth and Denholme, had about 17,895 people living there.
Where is Cottingley Located?
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Cottingley is in the Aire Valley, a beautiful area between Shipley and Bingley. It sits about 100 meters above sea level, with the River Aire flowing to its north.
The roads around the village have changed over time. Long ago, to leave Bingley and go south, people had to cross two bridges, Ireland Bridge and Beckfoot Bridge, to reach Cottingley. A bridge over the River Aire, leading towards Bingley, was built by 1649. It was rebuilt after a big flood in 1664 damaged it.
Today, the main road, the A650 road, runs north of Cottingley. This road was built as a bypass and opened in 2003. The land to the east of the B6269 is mostly flat, while to the west, it rises to about 170 meters at March Cote Farm. A small stream called Cottingley beck flows through a deep, narrow, rocky channel towards the River Aire.
Cottingley is built on a type of rock called Millstone Grit. There are also coal deposits in the area, with some layers of coal up to 75 feet thick. Old mine shafts can be found in the fields near Cottingley Cliffe Road. Some maps from 1852 show these as "Old Coal Pits" or "Coal pits." One mine, called Cottingley Moor Bottom, closed in 1860.
What Facilities Does Cottingley Have?
Cottingley has two churches. St Mary and St Monica is the Catholic church, and the Church of St Michael and All Angels is the Anglican church. The Church of St Michael and All Angels was part of a big project that cost £4.5 million. This project added new meeting rooms, a doctor's surgery, a nursery, and youth facilities, along with 50 new homes. The project started after a war memorial from the 1960s was damaged. News reports about this caught the attention of Prince Charles, who later spoke at the grand opening.
The village also has a primary school on Cottingley Moor Road, which has received good ratings. For older students, there is a secondary school called Dixons Cottingley Academy. The Cottingley Town Hall, which is now a protected historic building, celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015.
Well-Known People from Cottingley
Some notable people have lived in or are connected to Cottingley:
- Dominic Brunt – An actor who lived in the house where the Cottingley Fairy photos were taken in the early 2000s.
- Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths – These are the two girls famous for the Cottingley Fairies story.
- Professor Deborah Dunn-Walters – An expert in immunology, who gave advice to the government during the COVID-19 pandemic.
See also
In Spanish: Cottingley (Bradford) para niños
