John Wesley Plaque 2

John Wesley Plaque 2

John Wesley, a key figure in Non-Conformist history, paid several visits to Spen Valley and preached at the building pictured below, opposite Hightown Post Office. Now two houses, in Wesley's day it was a Theyked (thatched) chapel with a Sunday School. Wesley is thought to have stayed at Lower Blacup Farm, Ashbourne Way, off Hightown Road Cleckheaton, during his time in Spen Valley. Pictured above, Lower Blacup Farm is a historically important place. Built in the seventeenth century, its owners were weavers as well as farmers, and the farm bore witness to the Luddite uprisings of 1812. The farm building still stands in 2014 but will soon be surrounded by houses, as new developments swallow up green space in the Spen Valley.