Black and white photo of the top of cobbled Main Street in Haworth in the 19th century.

The Brontës' Haworth

Learn about Haworth as the Brontës knew it

Today, the West Yorkshire village of Haworth attracts thousands of visitors every year; but what was it like when the Brontës arrived here in 1820?

A black and white photo of a Victorian woman and man in a graveyard with a school house in the background.
Haworth's graveyard was devastatingly full.

Many of the buildings and the landscape you see today in Haworth would have been familiar to the Brontë family. The big difference would have been the day-to-day sights, sounds and smells. 

Back then, the village was crowded and polluted, and despite being perched on the edge of open countryside, Haworth had a death rate to rival big cities. The average life expectancy was just 24, with 41 per cent of children not reaching their sixth birthday.

Traditionally, villagers may have farmed a few acres to feed themselves, and earned a living through hand-loom weaving or wool combing in their own homes. But this was the time of the Industrial Revolution and, increasingly, people moved to Haworth to work in the mills springing up along the river from 1790.

Haworth became overpopulated and, with little by way of sanitation, disease spread quickly. Patrick Brontë commissioned a report into these conditions in 1850, which paved the way for life-saving health improvements in the village.

Photo of a page of typed text.
The 1850 Babbage Report helped to improve sanitation in Haworth.
Black and white photo of two Victorian men and two Victorian women standing outside a public house.
The Black Bull - a favourite public house of Branwell Brontë's - still exists today.

Religion was a big part of many people's lives. Baptist and Wesleyan chapels flourished in the village, along with Patrick Brontë's Anglican church. As well as religious teaching, they offered villagers an opportunity for education and a chance to socialise. 

Walk around Haworth today for a glimpse into its history. Some of the businesses along Main Street have left clues as to their own history, and some would still be recognisable to the Brontës 200 years later!