Editing Riddlesden (section)

==History==
Riddlesden is mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]] as belonging to [[William the Conqueror]] and being in the [[Wapentake]] of [[Skyrack]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Riddlesden {{!}} Domesday Book |url=https://opendomesday.org/place/SE0742/riddlesden/ |website=opendomesday.org |access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref> The name of the village appears throughout history as ''Redlesden'' and as ''Redelesden'' and it derives from the name of a wooded vale (or farm) of ''Rœd'' or ''Redwulf''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ekwall |first1=Eilert |author-link=Eilert Ekwall |title=The concise Oxford dictionary of English place-names |date=1960 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |oclc=1228215388 |page=5 |edition=4}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Johnston |first1=James B |title=The Place-names of England and Wales |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924028011298 |date=1915 |publisher=J Murray |location=London |page=[https://archive.org/details/cu31924028011298/page/n432 417]|oclc=457619292}}</ref>

The village was historically in the parish of [[Bingley]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Genuki: Bingley, Yorkshire (West Riding) |url=https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Bingley |website=www.genuki.org.uk |access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref> but it is currently in the civil parish of Keighley. There have been proposals in 2010 and 2012 for Riddlesden to have a separate parish which includes nearby Stockbridge and Sandbeds.<ref>{{cite news |last1=White |first1=Clive |title='We want more say in affairs' |url=https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/4867866.call-for-a-riddlesden-and-stockbridge-parish-council/ |access-date=13 October 2019 |work=Bradford Telegraph and Argus |date=24 January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=People must feel their voice will be heard |url=https://www.keighleynews.co.uk/news/9644524.people-must-feel-their-voice-will-be-heard/ |access-date=13 October 2019 |work=Keighley News |date=12 April 2012}}</ref> The ecclesiastical parish is known as Riddlesden St Mary, which is the name of the church in the village.<ref>{{cite web |title=Riddlesden: St Mary the Virgin - A Church Near You |url=https://www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6920/more-information/ |website=www.achurchnearyou.com |access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref> The [[Anglican Diocese of Leeds|Diocese of Leeds]] estimates the ecclesiastical parish to have a population of 4,500.{{sfn|PPSM|2016|p=5}} The village lies in the Ward of Keighley East for the purposes of census data.<ref>{{NOMIS2011|id=E05001356|title=Keighley East Ward (as of 2011)|access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref>

In 1773, the Bingley to Skipton section of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal was opened. Riddlesden had several wharves which allowed for the exportation of coal from the nearby collieries.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gill |first1=M C |title=Keighley coal : (a history of coal mining in the Keighley district) |date=2004 |publisher=Northern Mine Research Society |location=Sheffield |isbn=0-901450-57-X |page=7}}</ref> Coal was mined at Riddlesden between 1700 and the early 1920s.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shand |first1=Alistair |title=Pit shaft discovered during Riddlesden roadworks |url=https://www.keighleynews.co.uk/news/10168099.pit-shaft-discovered-during-riddlesden-roadworks/ |access-date=13 October 2019 |work=Keighley News |date=17 January 2013}}</ref>

The manor of Riddlesden, incorporating both houses (East and West Riddlesden Halls<ref>{{NHLE|desc =West Riddlesden Hall|num=1313939|grade=I|access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref>), was the breeding place of the Airedale Heifer, a legendary heavy cow similar in stature to the [[Craven Heifer]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Speight |first1=Harry |title=Through Airedale from Goole to Malham |date=1891 |publisher=E Stock |location=London |page=178|oclc=5824116}}</ref> A pub called the ''Airedale Heifer'' is located in nearby Sandbeds, just to the east.<ref>{{NHLE|desc=Airedale Heifer Public House and Attached Barn|num=1199346|grade=II|access-date=13 October 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Shand |first1=Alistair |title=Pub opens its doors after major refurbishment |url=https://www.keighleynews.co.uk/news/13508261.pub-opens-its-doors-after-major-refurbishment/ |access-date=13 October 2019 |work=Keighley News |date=30 July 2015}}</ref>