THIS view dates probably from 1901 during the later stages of the rebuilding of North Street, when the road had been widened but the lamps had not yet been set back.

In the distance, opposite the Mechanics' Institute clock-tower, one or two trees still stand out into the road. Indeed, there seems to be some uncertainty as to which is the road and which the pavement!

The theatrical-looking gentleman in the foreground was Tom Waddington, a local entertainer who used to organise Monster Christmas Carnivals at the Temperance Hall, billed as "refined and suitable for all".

Three men behind him are about to enter the Star Hotel, which had superseded "a little old-fashioned white-washed place" and which had sold more ale than ever during its rebuilding. Beyond, a space waits to be filled in.

Although one of the town's main thoroughfares, North Street had been laid out only in 1786, when its High Street end marked the beginning of a Keighley and Kendal Turnpike Road. This point, still colloquially known as the Cross, was so named as the site of the traditional Market Cross, now moved further back into Church Green outside the parish church. The Cross formed the centre of Keighley parish, which comprised a mile radius around it.