Esholt

Esholt is a village between Shipley and Guiseley, in the metropolitan district of the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.The name "Esholt" indicates that the village was first established in a heavily wooded area of ash trees.HistoryIn the 12th century, the Esholt estate was owned by Syningthwaite Priory, and Esholt Priory, a Cistercian nunnery dedicated to St Mary and St Leonard was established at Lower Esholt. When the nunnery was dissolved in about 1547 the estate was granted to Henry Thompson by Edward VI. In the 17th century Frances Thompson, the heiress of Henry Thompson married Walter Calverley (1629–1694). In 1709 their son Walter Calverley built Esholt Hall, a Queen Anne style mansion house, on the site of the old nunnery. In 1775 the Calverleys sold the estate to Robert Stansfield whose family remained in possession until 1906 when it was sold to Bradford City Council.To the north of the village was Esholt railway station opened in 1876 and closed in 1940.In 1892 a notable rail crash occurred nearby at Esholt Junction on the Otley and Ilkley Joint Railway.