A Sunday afternoon or evening walk often meant a walk partly through the village, before breaking away from the ‘built-up’ area, and into the countryside.   The walks I describe all took place in the 1940s and 1950s, so don’t try to follow them to the letter now: There may have been changes.   In fact, in some areas, we all know there have been changes!

The walk through the village(of Kiveton Park, that is – we always considered Wales to be purely an add-on.   In a way, it was at that time (still is, to me).   Before the mid 1800s, Kiveton Park – technically a hamlet, as it had no church of its own – was part of the parish of Harthill until it was transferred to the parish of Wales.   During those times, Kiveton consisted of about a dozen farms, but after the coalmine was opened, it expanded greatly, while Wales, by comparison, stayed as it always had been, a sleepy little place.

In its heyday, Kiveton boasted a population of over 6,000 people, while I would think that Wales never reached 1,000.    And that’s including the cattle.) was always pleasant.   Yes, it was a pit village, and perhaps it was a little dirty, as pit villages tend to be, but it was nice .   And the dirt was only that of an industrial setting, be it steelworks, factories or coal mines, and not the dirt of neglect by its people.    They were as proud of ‘their’ village as anyone anywhere, and kept their houses and gardens clean and smart.   So, it was no hardship to walk through the village before breaking out into the countryside.

At the top of Wales Road, we turned left at the war memorial in the Square into Church Street, and past the old stone cottages.    Further up on the left was the parish church, the church of St John the Baptist, with elements from 1275, and the tower built in 1400s, and newer parts added over the years.    Directly opposite, as is the wont, is the Duke of Leeds public house, although in my day, it was known as the Leeds Arms.

Now don’t get confused; this Duke of Leeds has nothing to do with Yorkshire, except that he built a magnificent home in Kiveton, but the Leeds refers to the castle in Kent.   Off the track completely, and we haven’t really got into the walk, is that the home, which was on Kiveton Lane on the way to Todwick, was demolished in 1811 by the Duke after he lost a wager with the Prince of Wales.   Makes you wonder what would have been demolished if he had won, doesn’t it?

Further on, and past a couple of farms, lay the cemetery, and here you had a choice of path.