Once upon a time, four or five boat owners were moored in Brighouse, and as they sat around talking, someone suggested that they should form a Boat Club.
After some time passed, the Boat Club found itself with 70 members.... Too many to be moored in Brighouse, so the search was started for a new mooring site to be found. Eventually, the present site in Mirfield was obtained, though at the time it was little more than a rubbish tip (click for photos). Members, visiting the site back then, could never have imagine that it would evolve into what we see today.
A meeting of the members was called and the go ahead was given for the move to the new site. Work began in October 1985, the site was a mess and many hours of hard work were put in, picking up stones and filling in the Dry Dock outlet (click for photos). An open day was eventually held in May 1986, though the site still wasn’t much to look at. But after more hard work by the members, the clubhouse was completed and officially opened in October 1991.
At yet another meeting, the question of a name for the Boat Club came up. Several names were suggested such as the “Calder Valley Cruising Club” or the “Calder and Hebble Cruising Club”, but eventually a name was selected and the “South Pennine Boat Club” was born.
Coming closer to the current date, and with the ever growing membership standing at over 150, the S.P.B.C. decided that an extension to the Club House would be advisable. So, at the 2007 A.G.M., a three year project was agreed to carry out the extension work. However, after starting the work, the members tore into the project with their usual over enthusiasm and with the help of a local builder, (for the difficult bits), completed the construction in time for an official opening at the 2008 May Bank Holiday (Click for Photo). At the end of 2008, the club room was further enhanced with an extension to the Kitchen facilities and a folding wall was added between the original room and the new extension, allowing for the club to have either one large room or two smaller rooms.
So what’s next? To provide members with some protection from the elements, while working on their boat, a roof has been built over the Dry Dock (Click for Photo). .This construction has now been completed by the members (2009) and the legs are being tastefully clad in Stone to blend the building in with the rest of the site. Who knows what we will get up to next?
In 2010 the South Pennine Boat Club is looking forward to celebrating 25 years at
its current site, by Battyeford Lock on the Calder & Hebble Navigation. It provides
its Members with access to a covered Dry Dock, a Club House with disabled facilities,
an active Social Calendar and strictly Non-
Welcome to the South Pennine Boat Club
