Goose Eye

Goose Eye
Hamlet
A road twisting through a settlement built of sandstone blocks
Goose Eye
Goose Eye is located in West Yorkshire
Goose Eye
Goose Eye
Location within West Yorkshire
Population85 (estimated 1996)
OS grid referenceSE028405
Civil parish
  • Keighley
Metropolitan borough
Metropolitan county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townKEIGHLEY
Postcode districtBD22
PoliceWest Yorkshire
FireWest Yorkshire
AmbulanceYorkshire
List of places
UK
England
Yorkshire
53°51′42″N 1°57′31″W / 53.8616°N 1.9587°W / 53.8616; -1.9587

Goose Eye is a hamlet in the civil parish of Keighley, in West Yorkshire, England. The hamlet grew up around the mill which was built there in the later 18th century. The hamlet retains its 19th-century industrial character, and it is only 2.5 miles (4 km) west of Keighley. North Beck flows through the hamlet, and its waters were an important part of the development of the village as the power for the mills. The hamlet was notable in the valley bottom, with its 200 feet (61 m) chimney for Turkey Mill. The hamlet is part of the Bradford District.

History

The hamlet was centred around two worsted mills, one of which became a papermill that was used until the early part of the 20th-century, and latterly used to print paper for bank notes. Turkey Mill was built in 1797 to process cotton, but soon ran into difficulties due to the isolation of the mill in the North Beck valley and the flourishing of the nearby Lancashire cotton industry. Turkey Mill then changed to being a worsted mill, and finally, a paper mill. Rag Mill, the most westerly of the mills in Goose Eye, was so-called because its sorted rags to be mixed with wood pulp to produce paper, though it started out in 1791 as Brow End Mill. Rag Mill is now a grade II listed building and has been converted into housing. Likewise, Turkey Mill was converted to housing in 2000, whilst the 200 feet (61 m) chimney, which had become a local landmark, was demolished in 1971. A small quarry also operated near to Goose Eye, which worked the Millstone Grit series for rough rock flagstones.

There are many explanations for the unusual name of the village, with some sources stating that the eye is derived from ea, an Old English word meaning water. Another version suggest the Eye comes the Old English hee which means height; the whole name deriving from the height that geese would fly.

The hamlet used to have its own brewery, named Goose Eye Brewery which started in 1970 in the old paper mill (Turkey Mill) but it moved to a new location in Crossflatts, near Bingley. The brewery was located next to the Turkey Inn, and supplied beer to the pub. The Turkey Inn is a listed building, and besides the two former mills, several cottages and two river crossings are also listed, with all of them being grade II.

Along with the nearby settlement of Laycock, Goose Eye has retained its 19th-century character and the two settlements for a conservation area. The hamlet is just to the south of Laycock and 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) west of Keighley. Goose Eye is in the civil parish of Keighley, and is represented at Westminster as part of the Keighley and Ilkley Constituency. Both hamlets of Laycock and Goose Eye have a designated conservation area, which was approved in 1975.

The steep climb out of Goose Eye uphill towards Laycock become the Cote de Goose Eye in the 2015 iteration of the Tour de Yorkshire cycle race.

See also

References

  1. ↑ CAA 2005, p. 5.
  2. ↑ "Goose Eye, Yorkshire | Gazetteer of British Place Names". gazetteer.org.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2026.
  3. ↑ Keighley, William (1879). Keighley, past and present, or An historical, topographical and statistical sketch of the town, parish, and environs of Keighley. Keighley: A. Hay. p. 60. OCLC 79287832.
  4. 1 2 3 CAA 2005, p. 7.
  5. ↑ Thornes, R. C. N. (1987). West Yorkshire; a noble scene of industry - the development of the county, 1500 to 1830. Wakefield: West Yorkshire Archaeology Service. p. 27. ISBN 1870453 026.
  6. ↑ The South & West Yorkshire village book. Newbury: Countryside Books. 1991. p. 134. ISBN 1853061360.
  7. ↑ Dewhirst, Ian (1975). Yorkshire through the years. London: Batsford. p. 120. ISBN 0713428821.
  8. ↑ CAA 2005, p. 8.
  9. ↑ Stephens, J. V. (1953). Geology of the Country Between Bradford and Skipton. London: HMSO. p. 66. OCLC 5097198.
  10. ↑ Worth Valley walks: 14 short walks west of Keighley. Keighley: Ramblers' Association (Keighley Group). 1983. p. 4. ISBN 0900613505.
  11. ↑ Speight, Harry (1891). Through Airedale from Goole to Malham. Leeds: Walker & Laycock. p. 192. OCLC 05824116.
  12. ↑ Tuffrey, Peter (2012). Yorkshire people at work. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 9781445605159.
  13. ↑ Rahman, Miran (30 September 2017). "Goose Eye Brewery has room to grow at its new base in Crossflatts". Keighley News. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  14. ↑ "Goose Eye | CAMRA". camra.org.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  15. ↑ Speakman, Colin (1988). West Yorkshire. Aylesbury: Shire. p. 44. ISBN 0852639368.
  16. ↑ "Landscape Character Type C: Upland Wooded Valleys" (PDF). bradford.oc2.uk. September 2023. p. 86 (34). Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  17. ↑ "Landscape Character Supplementary Planning Document Volume 10: Worth and North Beck Valleys" (PDF). www.bradford.gov.uk. October 2008. p. 8. Retrieved 3 July 2026.
  18. ↑ Spencer, John (1999). West Yorkshire. Wilmslow: Sigma Leisure. p. 47. ISBN 1850586470.
  19. ↑ "Election Maps". www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk. Retrieved 18 June 2026. Click on the Boundary tab on the left and activate Civil Parish and Westminster Constituencies to activate those areas
  20. ↑ CAA 2005, p. 3.
  21. ↑ Else, David (19 March 2015). "Tour de Yorkshire". Cycling Weekly. No. 6, 351. p. 57. ISSN 0951-5852.

Sources