Mytholmroyd

Mytholmroyd (/ˈmaɪðəmɹɔɪd/) is a town in the county of West Yorkshire, England, near Hebden Bridge and 6 miles (10km) west of Halifax. It is in the borough of Calderdale. It is the birthplace of the English poet Ted Hughes. He became the Poet Laureate and married the American poet Sylvia Plath who is buried at nearby Heptonstall. Its population is roughly 4,200.

Mytholmroyd is the home of Calder High School, the largest Comprehensive School in the Calder Valley. Mytholmroyd Community Centre hosts the annual Dock Pudding Championships in April, and the Mytholmroyd Gala takes place every August.

During the late 18th century, the valley to the south, known as Cragg Vale was home to a gang of counterfeiters known as the Cragg Coiners. The gang's leader, David Hartley, or King David as he was known, was found guilty of the 1769 murder of excise official William Dighton and was hanged at Tyburn near York, on April 28 1770. Two other gang members were also executed for their part in the murder.

Local Government

At a district level Mytholmroyd Urban Distrct Council was set up in 1894. In 1937 it merged with Hebden Bridge Urban District Council to become Hebden Royd Urban District Council. At a county level Mytholmroyd was administered by the West Riding County Council. Both of these were abolished as part of the reforms introduced in the Local Government Act 1972. They were replaced with West Yorkshire Metropolitan county Council, Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council, and Hebden Royd Town Council. From an administrative point of view the Town Council is a civil parish. West Yorkshire County Council was abolished in 1986, leaving Mytholmroyd with just a borough and town council.