HAWORTH’S Victorian past has been uncovered during renovation work at the parish church.

An archaeologist working in the graveyard has dug up evidence of the lifestyle of villagers more than a century ago.

Dr Angela Redmond found the remains of Victorian snacks, cockleshells, a marble and other domestic waste.

Dr Redmond was called in during work to complete the restoration of the time-worn, north-facing roofs at St Michael and All Angels Church.

Since April, contractors have been working on replacing the roofs, and included in the project has been some attention to the drainage at the north and west ends of the building.

When a trench was dug in the graveyard at the west end of the building next to Church Street, Dr Redmond was asked to oversee whether any historic artefacts would be revealed.

During the digging, the lifestyle of Haworth’s ages-past residents came to light.

Dr Redmond said: “When we removed the infill from around the church foundations, we found rich soil full of Victorian domestic pottery.

“What was particularly interesting was that some of the pottery came from the Soil Hill Pottery at Ogden above Denholme and Halifax.

“The villagers had quite clearly tipped their broken pottery and domestic waste into the church graveyard.”

Dr Redmond said recovered items also included a number of cockleshells, the remains of Victorian snacks and a small marble ball.

This latest discovery adds to Dr Redmond’s find of a Georgian coin, which was recovered when the drain repairs for the south-facing roofs were completed in 2012.

She added: “It has been a fantastic opportunity to delve into Haworth’s past while the church has been undertaking the roof restoration project.”

The Rev Peter Mayo-Smith, the Rector of Haworth, said: “We’re really grateful to Dr Redmond for giving us such an insight into Haworth’s past and the part the church played in peoples’ lives.”

The repairs to Haworth Parish Church’s north-facing roofs have been part-funded by grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Yorkshire Historic Churches Trust and the All Churches Trust.

The restoration work on the north-facing roofs started in April this year, and the church is expected to re-open later this month after the completion of improvements.

The work also includes a toilet, catering area and reinforced glass door, to help the church better cater for both its congregation and the many visitors who come because the church contains the tomb of the Brontë family.