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{{Short description|Market town in West Yorkshire, England}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country                  = England
| coordinates              = {{coord|53.691|-1.312|display=inline,title}}
| label_position           = bottom
| official_name            = Pontefract
| population               = 30,881
| population_ref           = (North+South Wards 2011)
| metropolitan_borough     = [[City of Wakefield]]
| metropolitan_county      = [[West Yorkshire]]
| region = Yorkshire and the Humber
| constituency_westminster = [[Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley (UK Parliament constituency)|Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley]]
| post_town                = PONTEFRACT
| postcode_district        = WF8
| postcode_area            = WF
| dial_code                = 01977
| os_grid_reference        = SE455215
| static_image_name        = {{multiple image
| border                   = infobox
| total_width              = 250
| image_style              = border:1;
| perrow                   = 2/1/2
| image1                   = Pontefract - The Town Hall - geograph.org.uk - 5217483.jpg
| caption1                 = [[Pontefract Town Hall|The Town Hall]]
| image2                   = Pontefract Castle (30th April 2023) 002.jpg
| caption2                     = [[Pontefract Castle|The Castle]]
| image3                  = An almost deserted Market Place, Pontefract during the COVID-19 pandemic (23rd May 2020).jpg
| caption3                     = The Marketplace
| image4                 = Aerial photographs of the Pontefract Hospital (20th July 2025) 018.jpg
| caption4                 = [[Horsefair flats|Horsefair Flats]]
| image5                   = Pontefract Museum (3).JPG
| caption5                 = [[Pontefract Museum|The Museum]]
}}
| static_image_caption     = 
| static_image_width       = 260
| london_distance          = 
| london_distance_mi       = 257
| pushpin_map              = 
| type                     = Town
}}
'''Pontefract''' is a historic market town in the [[City of Wakefield]], a [[metropolitan district]] in [[West Yorkshire]], England. It lies to the east of [[Wakefield]] and south of [[Castleford]]. [[Historic counties of England|Historically]] part of the [[West Riding of Yorkshire]], it is one of the towns in the City of Wakefield district and had a population of 30,881 at the 2011 Census.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=13689956&c=Pontefract&d=14&e=62&g=6375159&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1456931390009&enc=1|title=Pontefract South Ward population 2011|access-date=2 March 2016|publisher=Office for National Statistics|work=Neighbourhood Statistics}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=13689955&c=Pontefract+north&d=14&e=62&g=6375158&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1456931773212&enc=1|title=Pontefract North Ward population 2011|access-date=2 March 2016|publisher=Office for National Statistics|work=Neighbourhood Statistics}}</ref> 

Pontefract's motto is {{lang|la|Post mortem patris pro filio}}, [[Latin]] for "After the death of the father, support the son", a reference to the town's Royalist sympathies in the [[English Civil War]].<ref>Padgett 170</ref> Small villages and settlements in the immediate area include [[Stapleton, Selby|Stapleton]].

==Etymology==
At the end of the 11th&nbsp;century, the modern [[Township#United Kingdom|township]] of Pontefract consisted of two distinct localities, Tanshelf and Kirkby.<ref name="Eric Houlder 2012 p.7">Eric Houlder, Ancient Roots North: When Pontefract Stood on the Great North Road, (Pontefract: Pontefract Groups Together, 2012) p.7.</ref>  The 11th-century historian Orderic Vitalis recorded that, in 1069, [[William the Conqueror]] travelled across Yorkshire to put down an uprising which had sacked York. 

On his journey to the town, he discovered that a crossing of the [[River Aire]] near what is modern-day Pontefract had been blockaded by local [[Anglo-Scandinavian]] [[insurgent]]s, who had broken the bridge and held the opposite bank in force.<ref>Orderic Vitalis, ''Ecclesiastical History of England'', 2:27.</ref> Such a crossing point would have been important to the town, providing access to other settlements to the north and east, such as York.<ref name="Ayto & Crofton">Ayto & Crofton</ref> Historians believe that it is this historical event which gives the township of Pontefract its modern name. The name "Pontefract" originates from the Latin ''pons'' for bridge and ''fractus'' meaning broken.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Yorkshire%20WR/Pontefract|title=Pontefract Key to English Place-names|publisher=The University of Nottingham|access-date=2 August 2025}}</ref> Pontefract was not recorded in the 1086 ''[[Domesday Book]]'', but it was noted as Pontefracto in 1090, four years after the Domesday survey.<ref>Frank Barlow, ''William I and the Norman Conquest'' (London: The English Universities Press, 1965) p.95. David Crouch, ''The Normans: The History of a Dynasty'' (London: Hambledon and London, 2002) p.105</ref>

==History==
===Neolithic===
In 2007, an extension of [[Ferrybridge Henge]]&nbsp;– a [[Neolithic]] [[henge]]&nbsp;– was discovered near Pontefract during a survey in preparation for the construction of a row of houses. Once the survey was complete, construction continued.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ferrybridge Henge extension discovered in West Yorkshire|url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/history+%2526+heritage/archaeology/art50167|publisher=Culture24 |date=30 August 2007|access-date=7 December 2009}}</ref>

===Roman===
The modern town is situated near an old [[Roman road]] (now the A639), described as the "Roman Ridge". This is believed to form part of an alternative route from [[Doncaster]] to York via Castleford and Tadcaster, as a diversion of the major Roman road [[Ermine Street]], which may have been used to avoid having to cross the [[Humber|River Humber]] near [[North Ferriby]] during rough weather conditions over the Humber.

===Anglo-Scandinavian history{{anchor|Tanshelf and Kirkby}}===
The period of Yorkshire's history between the demise of the Viking king, Eric Bloodaxe, in 954 and the arrival of the Normans in 1068 is known as the Anglo-Scandinavian age.  The modern township of Pontefract consisted of two Anglo-Scandinavian settlements, Tanshelf and Kirkby.  In Yorkshire, place-name locations often contain the distinctive Danish '-by' i.e. Kirkby and today, the major streets in Pontefract are designated by the Danish word 'gate' e.g. Bailygate.

The Anglo-Scandinavian township, Tanshelf, recorded as ''Tateshale'', ''Tateshalla'', ''Tateshalle'' or ''Tatessella'' in the 'Domesday Book' is today occupied by the town of Pontefract.  The ''[[Anglo-Saxon Chronicle]]'' made a reference to Tanshelf in 947 when King Eadred of England met with the ruling council of Northumbria to accept its submission. King Eadred did not enjoy Northumbria's support for long, and a year later the kingdom voted Eric Bloodaxe King of York.<ref>[http://www.archaeology.wyjs.org.uk/vikingweb/Settlement.htm Towns in Anglo-Saxon West Yorkshire] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213053252/http://www.archaeology.wyjs.org.uk/VikingWeb/Settlement.htm |date=13 February 2015 }}. ''Settlements in Anglo-Saxon West Yorkshire''. Retrieved 30 August 2014.</ref>

When the Domesday survey was commissioned by [[William the Conqueror]] in 1086, Tanshelf was a sizeable settlement. It had a priest, 60 petty burgesses, 16 cottagers, 16 villagers and 8 smallholders, amounting to 101 people.  The size of the population might have been four or five times larger as the only people listed were landholders.  Tanshelf had a church, a fishery and three mills.  Archaeologists discovered the remains of a church on The Booths, off North Baileygate, below the castle. The oldest grave dates from around 690. The church may have been similar to the church at [[Ledsham, West Yorkshire|Ledsham]].  The area of the town market place was the meeting place of the [[Osgoldcross (wapentake)|Osgoldcross]] [[wapentake]].<ref>Hey</ref> In the Anglo-Saxon period part of the modern town was known by the Anglo-Scandinavian name as Kirkby.

===Medieval===

{{main|de Lacy|Pontefract de Lacys' family tree}}
[[File:Pontefract Castle.jpg|thumb|Painting of [[Pontefract Castle]] in the early 17th&nbsp;century by [[Alexander Keirincx]]]]
After the [[Norman conquest of England|Norman conquest]] in 1066 almost all of Yorkshire came under the ownership of followers of [[William the Conqueror]],<ref name=Ilbert>Fletcher 16–17</ref> one of whom was [[de Lacy|Ilbert de Lacy]] who became the owner of Tateshale (Tanshelf) where he built a castle.<ref name=Ilbert/>
[[Pontefract Castle]] began as a wooden [[motte and bailey]] castle before 1086 and was later rebuilt in stone. The de Lacys lived there for more than two centuries<ref>Padgett 54</ref> and were holders of the castle and the [[Honour of Pontefract]] from 1067<ref>Padgett 55</ref> until the death of Alice de Lacy in 1348.<ref>Padgett 85</ref>

[[Richard II of England|King Richard II]] was murdered at the castle in 1400.<ref name=H2G2/><ref>Padgett 106</ref> Little is known of the nature of his demise; Shakespeare may have "adjusted" the facts for his own purposes.<ref>Holmes 373</ref> At least three theories attempt to explain his death:<ref>Holmes 373, 374</ref> either he was starved to death by his keepers, he starved himself to death or he was murdered by Sir Piers (Peter) Exton on 14 February 1399 or 1400.<ref>Holmes 374</ref>

===Early modern history===
In Elizabethan times the castle and the town were both referred to as "Pomfret".<ref name=H2G2/> [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]'' mentions the castle:<br />

<blockquote>
Pomfret, Pomfret! O thou bloody prison,<br />
Fatal and ominous to noble peers!<br />
Within the guilty closure of thy walls<br />
Richard the second here was hack'd to death;<br />
And, for more slander to thy dismal seat,<br />
We give thee up our guiltless blood to drink.<ref name=H2G2/>
</blockquote>

[[File:The New Church within the Old, All Saints, Bondgate, Pontefract. - geograph.org.uk - 239265.jpg|thumb|The new church within the old. After [[All Saints' Church, Pontefract|All Saints' Church]] was damaged during the [[English Civil War|civil war]] a new one was built within.]]
Pontefract suffered throughout the [[English Civil War]]. In 1648–49 the castle was laid siege by [[Oliver Cromwell]], who said it was "... one of the strongest inland garrisons in the kingdom."<ref name=H2G2>[http://h2g2.com/approved_entry/A2350108 "Yorkshire's Castles: Pontefract Castle"]; H2G2.com, Not Panicking Ltd.</ref> Three sieges by the Parliamentarians left the town "impoverished and depopulated".<ref name=petition>Padgett 166–169</ref> In March 1649, after the third siege, Pontefract inhabitants, fearing a fourth, petitioned Parliament for the castle to be [[slighted]].<ref name=petition/> The castle was a magnet for trouble,<ref name=petition/> and demolition began in April 1649.<ref name=petition/>  The castle ruins are publicly accessible.
[[Pontefract Priory]], a [[Cluniac]] priory founded in 1090 by Robert de Lacy dedicated to [[John the Evangelist|St John the Evangelist]] was [[Dissolution of the Monasteries|dissolved]] by royal authority in 1539.<ref>{{cite book|section=Houses of Cluniac monks: Priory of Pontefract |title=A History of the County of York: Volume 3 |editor-first=William |editor-last=Page |editor-link=William Page (historian) |location=London |year=1974 |pages=184–186 |via=British History Online |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/yorks/vol3/pp184-186 |access-date=3 October 2022}}</ref> The priory maintained the Chartularies of St John, a collection of historic documents later discovered among family papers by [[Thomas Levett]], the [[High Sheriff of Rutland]], a native of Yorkshire, who gave them to [[Roger Dodsworth]], an [[antiquary]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/collectaneatopo17nichgoog|page=[https://archive.org/details/collectaneatopo17nichgoog/page/n112 103]|quote=pontefract levet.|title=Collectanea Topographica Et Genealogica|first1=Frederic|last1=Madden|first2=Bulkeley|last2=Bandinel|date=1 May 1835|publisher=J. B. Nichols and son|access-date=1 May 2019|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> They were published by the [[Yorkshire Archaeological Society]].<!--by the way, this is a really poor ref, what on earth can be understood by it? Has anyone really read and understood it; if they have I would dearly love to have it explained to me (lucidly please!):[[user talk:jodosma]]
--><ref>''Early Yorkshire Charters: being a collection of documents anterior to the thirteenth century made from the public records, monastic chartularies, Roger Dodsworth's manuscripts and other available sources''; edited by William Farrer. 3 vols. Edinburgh: Printed for the editor by Ballantyne, Hanson & Co., 1914–16</ref>

==Governance==
[[File:Pontefract Registry Office (1).JPG|thumb|right|upright|[[Pontefract Town Hall]], now used as a registry office]]
For local government purposes, the town lies in the [[City of Wakefield]] and is administered by [[Wakefield Council]]. It is divided into two electoral wards, [[Pontefract North]] and [[Pontefract South]]. Pontefract South was represented by two Labour councillors and one Conservative councillor and North ward represented by three Labour councillors in 2022.<ref>{{cite web|title=Your Councillors by Ward|url=http://mg.wakefield.gov.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx?FN=WARD&VW=LIST&PIC=0|publisher=Wakefield Council|access-date=18 June 2016}}</ref> 

From 1978 to 1997, ex-miner and former [[National Union of Mineworkers (Great Britain)|NUM]] branch leader [[Geoffrey Lofthouse, Baron Lofthouse of Pontefract|Geoff Lofthouse]] (18 December 1925&nbsp;– 1 November 2012) was [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP) for the [[Pontefract and Castleford (UK Parliament constituency)|Pontefract and Castleford constituency]]. During this time, he became Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons. When the general election of 1997 was called, he stood down. He was made a peer on 11 June 1997.

[[Yvette Cooper]] was elected as the MP for the Pontefract and Castleford constituency at the [[1997 United Kingdom general election|1997 general election]]. In her maiden speech to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]], Cooper said:<blockquote>"It is true that my constituency is plagued by unemployment, but I represent hard-working people who are proud of their strong communities and who have fought hard across generations to defend them. They are proud of their socialist traditions, and have fought for a better future for their children and their grandchildren. In the Middle Ages, that early egalitarian, the real [[Robin Hood]], lived, so we maintain, in the [[Wentbridge|Vale of Wentbridge]] to the south of Pontefract. It was a great base from which to hassle the travelling [[fat cat (term)|fat cat]]s on the [[Great North Road (Great Britain)|Great North Road]]."</blockquote> She held a number of positions in the Labour governments up to 2010 and Shadow Cabinet roles (most notably [[Shadow Home Secretary]]) after the election of that year, but returned to the back benches after the [[2015 Labour Party leadership election (UK)|Labour leadership election of 2015]]. Pontefract and Castleford was merged with the [[Normanton (UK Parliament constituency)|Normanton constituency]] in a boundary change before the [[2010 United Kingdom general election|2010 general election]].

The seat, which had a history of mining and industry, has returned Labour MPs at [[general election]]s. Yvette Cooper polled 59.5% of the vote in the [[2017 United Kingdom general election|2017 general election]] and 48.1% of the vote in the [[2019 United Kingdom general election|2019 general election]].

==Economy==
{{multiple images|
| perrow = 1/2|
| total_width = 220px
| header = Pontefract Market Place
| image1 = Market Place, Pontefract (21st June 2020) 001.jpg
| image3 = Market Hall - geograph.org.uk - 429678.jpg
| caption3 = [[Pontefract Market Hall|Pontefract market hall]]
| caption1 = Market Place
}}
Pontefract has been a [[market town]] since the [[Middle Ages]]; market days are Wednesday and Saturday, with a small market on Fridays. The covered market is open all week except Sundays. It is said by some that Pontefract once held a record for being the town with the highest number of pubs per square mile in the UK,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pontefractherittagegroup.wordpress.com/pontefract/ |title=Pontefract |last=Wollerton |first=Alison |website=Pontefract Heritage Group |access-date=7 July 2020 |quote=It has been said that Pontefract once held a world record for having the highest number of pubs per square mile.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://partynicemag.blogspot.com/2010/04/partynice-guide-to-pontefract.html |title=The Partynice Guide to Pontefract |last=Krasaukas |first=Vincent |website=Partynice Magazine |access-date=7 July 2020 |quote=it is believed that the town now has the highest concentration of pubs in the whole of the UK.}}</ref> but this is likely an urban legend, and the title is held by another town.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.libertygames.co.uk/content/britains-pub-capital/ |title=Britain's Pub Capitals |website=Liberty Games |access-date=7 July 2020}}</ref>
[[File:Haribo Sweets Factory - Sessions House Yard - geograph.org.uk - 576986.jpg|thumb|right|[[Haribo]] Factory]]
The town has a [[Liquorice (confectionery)|liquorice-sweet]] industry; further, the famous [[Pontefract cake]]s are produced, though the liquorice plant is no longer grown there. The town's two liquorice factories are owned by [[Haribo]] and [[Valeo Confectionery]] (formerly Tangerine).  A Liquorice festival is held annually. [[Poet laureate]] [[Sir John Betjeman]] wrote a poem entitled "The Licorice Fields at Pontefract". In 2012, local farmer Robert Copley announced that he would be re-introducing a liquorice crop to Pontefract.<ref>{{cite news|last=Rebecca Smithers|date=30 July 2012|title=Liquorice to grow again in Pontefract|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/the-northerner/2012/jul/30/liquorice-pontefract|work=The Guardian|access-date=27 October 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=2015|title=The Home of Liquorice|url=http://www.farmercopleys.co.uk/the-home-of-liquorice/|work=Farmer Copleys|access-date=27 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028020854/http://www.farmercopleys.co.uk/the-home-of-liquorice/|archive-date=28 October 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Close by is the site of the former coal-fired [[Ferrybridge power stations|Ferrybridge power station]], although the local [[Coal mining|coal mines]] largely closed in the 1990s, which contributed to high unemployment in the local area. The final colliery, [[Prince of Wales Colliery]], closed in August 2002.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wainwright |first1=Martin |title=Britain's oldest mine closes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2002/aug/31/6 |access-date=13 July 2020 |work=The Guardian |date=31 August 2002}}</ref> It has since been redeveloped into a large housing estate named after the colliery.<ref>{{cite web|title=Prince of Wales, Pontefract {{!}} A Project by Harworth Group plc|url=https://harworthgroup.com/projects/prince-of-wales/|access-date=27 December 2021|website=Harworth}}</ref>

==Amenities and services==
The secondary schools in the town are [[Carleton High School]] in [[Carleton, West Yorkshire|Carleton]] and the [[King's School, Pontefract|King's School]] on Mill Hill Lane, both for pupils aged 11–16. A sixth-form college, [[New College, Pontefract]], is located on Park Lane.

The old Pontefract General Infirmary on Southgate (pictured) was a general hospital; it is the place at which serial killer [[Harold Shipman]] began to murder his elderly patients. Beneath this building is an old [[Pontefract Hermitage|hermitage]], open to the public on certain days. [[Pontefract Museum]], from which the hermitage schedule can be obtained, is in the town centre, housed in the former [[Carnegie library]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wakefield.gov.uk/Documents/libraries/free-public-carnegie-library-pontefract.pdf |title=Free Public Carnegie Library - Pontefract |website=wakefield.gov.uk |access-date=3 October 2022}}</ref>

A new hospital was built on Friarwood Lane and opened in July 2010, with the new name of [[Pontefract Hospital]]; there is now a modern hospital building. Near to the hospital is Friarwood Valley Gardens, a rose garden, a sensory garden, a pinhole camera (formerly an aviary and earlier a Georgian gambling den) and an avenue of cherry trees.

[[File:Pontefract Fire station (geograph 5674705).jpg|thumb|Pontefract Fire Station]]
[[File:Luke William House, Pontefract (23rd May 2020).jpg|thumb|Luke Williams House. The [[Horsefair flats]] were designed by [[John Poulson]] and dominate the skyline in the east of the town]]
The local police force is [[West Yorkshire Police]], with the town's neighbourhood policing team  situated at the new fire station on Stumpcross Lane. The original police station in Sessions House Yard has been demolished since the divisional headquarters for the Wakefield District opened in Normanton and the neighbouring magistrates' court has moved to [[Leeds]], following the closure of the Wakefield and Pontefract courts.

Fire cover is provided by [[West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service]], with one pump (sometimes two) based at Pontefract Fire Station. Formerly located on Stuart Road in the town centre, the station has moved to a new site at Stumpcross Lane, by the A645 at the town's eastern edge. The new fire station provides cover for Knottingley; that town's fire station having been closed as part of the merging of fire cover for Pontefract and Knottingley.

Ambulance cover is provided by [[Yorkshire Ambulance Service|Yorkshire Ambulance service]], whose depot is situated in neighbouring town, [[Castleford]].
[[File:Barracks Business Centre - Wakefield Road - geograph.org.uk - 997478.jpg|thumb|right|[[Pontefract Barracks|Barracks Business Centre, Wakefield Road]]]]
The Territorial Army, Army Cadets and Air Training Corps all have a presence within the town and are based at the historic [[Pontefract Barracks|Barracks]] building on Wakefield Road. It now houses a Rifles Regiment Recruitment team.

==Media, arts and entertainment==
Local news and television programmes are provided by [[BBC Yorkshire]] and [[ITV Yorkshire]]. Television signals are received from the [[Emley Moor transmitting station|Emley Moor]] TV transmitter.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Emley_Moor|title=Emley Moor (Kirklees, England) Full Freeview transmitter|date=1 May 2004|website=UK Free TV|accessdate=20 September 2023}}</ref>

Local radio stations are [[BBC Radio Leeds]] on 92.4&nbsp;FM, [[Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire]] (formerly [[Ridings FM]]) on 106.8 FM, [[Heart Yorkshire]] on 106.2&nbsp;FM, [[Hits Radio West Yorkshire]] (formerly [[Pulse 1]]) on 102.5 FM, [[Capital Yorkshire]] on 105.1&nbsp;FM and 5 Towns FM, a community online radio station that broadcasts from [[Castleford, West Yorkshire|Castleford]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://internetradiouk.com/5-towns-fm/|title=5 Towns FM Radio Online|website=Internetradiouk.com|accessdate=20 September 2023}}</ref>

The local newspaper is the ''Pontefract and Castleford Express''. 

Novelist [[Jack Vance]], in the "[[Demon Princes]]" cycle has named the capital of Aloysius, the main planet in the Vega system, after Pontefract. The hero of the series, Kirth Gersen, has his residence there.

Pontefract made local and national newspapers in April 2020, with a range of art which lay tribute to the key workers and NHS during the coronavirus outbreak. The art was painted by a local mural artist, Rachel List.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Frame|first1=Nick|last2=Hale|first2=Olivia|title='I never expected this'-Pontefract Artist's surprise as NHS tributes are shared across the world|url=https://www.pontefractandcastlefordexpress.co.uk/news/people/i-never-expected-pontefract-artists-surprise-nhs-tributes-are-shared-across-world-2534501|newspaper=Pontefract and Castleford Express|date=9 April 2020|access-date=14 April 2020}}</ref>

==Sport==
The town is home to many sports including rugby, football and squash. Prominent squash players [[Lee Beachill]] and [[James Willstrop]] both train at Pontefract Squash Club. Notable institutions are horse racing at [[Pontefract Racecourse]] and [[Featherstone Rovers]], the area's professional rugby league club.

Pontefract Racecourse is the longest continuous horse racing circuit in Europe at {{convert|2|mi|125|yd|m furlong}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=Course Details&nbsp;– Pontefract Racecourse|url=http://www.pontefract-races.co.uk/course-details/|access-date=4 July 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080821184541/http://www.pontefract-races.co.uk/course-details/|archive-date=21 August 2008}}</ref> It stages flat racing between the end of March and the end of October. A new sports centre is located at Pontefract Park which opened on 12 April 2021, which replaces the old swimming pool located on Stuart Road.<ref>{{cite web|last=Spereall |first=David |date=16 March 2021|title=Pontefract leisure centre set for April 12 opening|url=https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/west-yorkshire-news/leisure-centre-pontefract-finished-last-20180799|access-date=15 December 2021|website=YorkshireLive}}</ref> Two-time European Masters Champion weightlifter Martyn Riley is from Pontefract.<ref>{{cite news |title=Pontefract's Martyn Riley celebrates second European Masters title |url=https://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/sport/other-sport/pontefracts-martyn-riley-celebrates-second-european-masters-title-3080612 |access-date=20 January 2021 |work=Wakefield Express |date=29 December 2020}}</ref>

Pontefract has its own non-league football club, [[Pontefract Collieries F.C.]], which was founded in 1958 and plays adjacent to the former Prince of Wales Colliery off Beechnut Lane. The team, known locally as "Ponte Colls" play in the [[Northern Premier League]] Division One North West (correct as of the 2021–22 season). Pontefract is also home to the Pontefract Knights rugby league football club.

Pontefract RUFC is based at Moor Lane, [[Carleton, West Yorkshire|Carleton]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pontefractrufc.com/news/ilkley-25-pontefract-3-match-report-millard-leads-but-frustrations-continue-2830474.html|title=Ilkley 25 Pontefract 3 Match Report. Millard Leads but Frustrations Continue|website=www.pontefractrufc.com|accessdate=31 January 2024}}</ref> It runs three senior sides as well as a number of junior and girls teams.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pontefractrufc.com/teams|title=Pontefract RUFC teams|website=www.pontefractrufc.com|accessdate=31 January 2024}}</ref> Rugby Union has been played in the town since the 19th century when Pontefract won the Yorkshire Cup.

Pontefract used to boast two cricket clubs, Lakeside CC (based in Pontefract Park) and Pontefract CC (adjacent to Pontefract Collieries FC), but by 2002 neither of these clubs were still in existence, leaving the town without its own club despite giving its name to the Pontefract and District Cricket League. Nowadays cricketers must travel to clubs in neighbouring towns and villages, with the closest being Hundhill Hall Cricket Club based in the nearby village [[East Hardwick]].

==Transport==

Pontefract lies in close proximity to the [[A1 road (Great Britain)|A1]] and the [[M62 motorway|M62]]. Access from the A1 is via a junction at the nearby village of [[Darrington, West Yorkshire|Darrington]], while access from the M62 is via Junction 32 (also for [[Castleford]]) and Junction 33 (also for [[Knottingley]]).

Bus transport is provided by [[Arriva Yorkshire]], operating from [[Pontefract bus station]] as the town's main hub.

There are three railway stations in the town.<ref>{{cite news|date=11 May 1996 |title=Where Richard II came to a sticky end; The town where a king was killed became a great place for growing liquorice |work=The Independent |id={{Gale|A67114376}} }}</ref> {{stnlnk|Pontefract Baghill}} is on the [[Dearne Valley Line]], which connects {{stnlnk|York}} and {{stnlnk|Sheffield}}. [[Pontefract Monkhill]] and [[Pontefract Tanshelf]] connect with {{stnlnk|Leeds}}, {{stnlnk|Wakefield Westgate}} and {{stnlnk|Wakefield Kirkgate}}. There are rail services from {{stnlnk|Bradford Interchange}} to London that stop at [[Pontefract Monkhill]].

The closest airport is [[Leeds Bradford Airport|Leeds Bradford]].

==Notable people==
[[File:Pontefract Library (1).JPG|thumb|right|Opening in 1975, [[Pontefract Library]] is one of the last buildings to have been designed by Pontefract architect [[John Poulson]].]]
* [[Darren Appleton]] (1976&ndash;) Professional pool player, 9 ball world champion, 10 ball world champion.
* [[Thurstan]] of Bayeux, (c.1071–1140), archbishop, died in Pontefract.
* [[Richard de Pontefract]] (?–1320?), [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] [[friar]]
* [[John Ramsden (died 1646)|John Ramsden]] (1594–1646), [[High Sheriff of Yorkshire]], MP for Pontefract in the [[Short Parliament]], and [[Cavalier|Royalist]] soldier
* [[John Jackson (MP for Pontefract)|John Jackson]] (1595?–1637), MP for Pontefract during the [[Happy Parliament]]
* [[Francis Drake (antiquary)|Francis Drake]] (1696–1771), [[antiquary]] and surgeon
* [[Robert Monckton]], (1726–1782), [[Pontefract (UK Parliament constituency)|MP for Pontefract]] and [[British army]] general
* [[John Smyth (1748–1811)|John Smyth]] (1748–1811), MP for Pontefract
* [[Jesse Hartley]] (1780–1860), civil engineer and Superintendent of the Concerns of the Dock Estate, Liverpool; built the Albert Dock and many other parts of Liverpool Docks
* [[Charles Coleman (English painter)|Charles Coleman]] (1807–1874), English painter
* [[Isaac Cole]] (1886–1940), rugby union and league player who represented [[England national rugby league team|England]]
* [[Edward Upward]] (1903–2009), novelist, lived in Pontefract from 2004 until his death in 2009
* [[Barbara Castle]] (1910–2002), Labour Party politician
* [[John Poulson]] (1910–1993), architectural designer and businessman
* [[Don Robinson (rugby league)|Don Robinson]] (1932–2017), [[1954 Rugby League World Cup]] winning rugby league footballer who represented Great Britain, Wakefield Trinity, Leeds, and Doncaster
* [[Malcolm Kirk|Mal Kirk]] (1936–1987), wrestler
* [[Margaret Drabble]] (1939–), novelist, was evacuated to Pontefract during WW2<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/analysis/my-yorkshire-margaret-drabble-1-2300135|title=My Yorkshire: Margaret Drabble|newspaper=The Yorkshire Post|access-date=30 April 2019}}</ref>
* [[Harvey Proctor]] (1947–), Conservative Member of Parliament<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aJPGCwAAQBAJ|title=Credible and True: The Political and Personal Memoir of K. Harvey Proctor|first=K. Harvey|last=Proctor|date=29 March 2016|publisher=Biteback Publishing|isbn=9781785900594|via=Google Books}}</ref>
* [[Mick Jackson (singer)|Mick Jackson]] (1947–), musician, writer of "[[Blame It on the Boogie]]"<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pressreader.com/uk/halifax-courier/20101228/281638186636362|title=Winter chills, boogie nights and dark side of the moon|work=Halifax Courier|date=28 December 2010|via=PressReader|access-date=30 April 2019}}</ref>
* [[Kevin Moreton]] (1959&ndash;), actor known for ''[[Coronation Street]]''
* [[Jane Collins]] (1962–), politician, [[UKIP]], [[Brexit Party]] [[Member of the European Parliament|MEP]] [[Yorkshire]] (2014–2019)
* [[Paul Crichton]] (1968–), former footballer who currently serves as the goalkeeping coach for [[Huddersfield Town]]
* [[Helen Baxendale]] (1970–), actress known for ''[[Cold Feet]]'', ''[[Friends]]'', and ''[[Cuckoo (TV series)|Cuckoo]]''
* [[Paul Newlove]] (1971–), English rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s
* [[Dave Smith (darts player)|Dave Smith]] (1971–), professional darts player from [[Knottingley]], [[Wakefield]], [[West Yorkshire]]
* [[Robert Hanby]] (1974–), former footballer
* [[Dexter Tucker]] (1975–), footballer
* [[Chris Silverwood]] (1975–), [[cricketer]] who represented [[Yorkshire County Cricket Club|Yorkshire]], [[Middlesex County Cricket Club|Middlesex]], and England. Former coach of the [[England cricket team|England Men's Cricket team]]
* [[Jamie Davis (actor)|Jamie Davis]] (1981–), actor best known for his roles in Footballers' Wives, Hex, and currently in ''[[Casualty (TV series)|Casualty]]'' as [[Characters of Casualty#Max Walker|Max Walker]]
* [[Rob Burrow]] (1982–2024), former rugby league footballer with [[Leeds Rhinos|Leeds]]; he also has represented both England and Great Britain
* [[Toby Kebbell]] (1982–) actor known for "[[Black Mirror]]", "[[RocknRolla]]", "[[Dawn of the Planet of the Apes]]", "[[Warcraft]]", and "[[Kong: Skull Island]]"
* [[Jamie McCombe]], (1983–), footballer who currently plays for [[Doncaster Rovers F.C.|Doncaster Rovers]]
* [[Paul Green (footballer born 1983)|Paul Green]] (1983–), footballer who plays for Oldham in the [[EFL League One|English Football League]]
*[[James Willstrop]] (1983–) squash player and gentleman. Attended [[Ackworth School]] and in 2012 became World No.1 in squash by beating David Palmer.
* [[Tim Bresnan]] (1985–), cricketer who represented [[Yorkshire County Cricket Club|Yorkshire]], [[Warwickshire County Cricket Club|Warwickshire]] and [[England national cricket team|England]]
* [[Ben Parker (footballer)|Ben Parker]] (1987–), former footballer who played for [[Leeds United F.C.|Leeds United]] and represented [[England national under-19 football team|England U19]]
* [[Oliver Hindle]] (1988–), artist and musician, best known for his band project Superpowerless
* [[Max Litchfield]] (1995–), swimmer, silver medallist in the 400m medley at the European Long Course Championships
* [[Joe Litchfield]] (1998–), swimmer and brother of Max
* [[Joe Westerman]], [[rugby league]] footballer
*Dr [[Harold Shipman]] spent some time working here.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/town-haunted-by-memory-of-young-harold-shipman-7907265.html|title=Town haunted by memory of young Harold Shipman|date=22 January 2005|website=The Independent|accessdate=29 January 2022}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Listed buildings in Pontefract]]
* [[Ackworth, West Yorkshire]]
* [[Pontefract Hermitage]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite book|last1=Ayto |first1=John |last2=Crofton |first2=Ian |title=Brewer's Britain & Ireland |publisher= Weidenfeld & Nicolson}}
*{{cite book|last=Fletcher |first=J.&nbsp;S. |orig-date=1917 |title=Memorials of a Yorkshire Parish |type=facsimile |publisher=Old Hall Press |location=Leeds |year=1993}}
*{{cite book|last=Hey |first=David |authorlink=David Hey |title=Medieval South Yorkshire}}
*{{cite book|editor-last=Holmes |editor-first=Richard |orig-date=1887 |title=The Sieges of Pontefract Castle |type=facsimile reprint |publisher=Old Hall Press |location=Leeds |year=1985 |isbn=0-946534-02-0}}
*{{cite book|last=Mills |first=A.&nbsp;D. |title=Oxford Dictionary of British Place-Names  |publisher=Oxford University Press}}
*{{cite book|last=Padgett |first=Lorenzo |orig-date=1905 |title=Chronicles of Old Pontefract |type=facsimile |publisher=Old Hall Press |location=Leeds |year=1993}}
*{{cite web|url=https://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/sport/other-sport/pontefracts-martyn-riley-celebrates-second-european-masters-title-3080612 |title=Pontefract's Martyn Riley celebrates second European Masters title |work=Wakefield Express |date=29 December 2020 |accessdate=20 January 2021 |ref={{harvid|Wakefield Express|2020}}}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Pontefract}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060220062003/http://www.pontefractus.co.uk/ Local history]

{{NSEW|[[Castleford]]|[[Hemsworth]]|[[Knottingley]]|[[Featherstone]]|[[Normanton, West Yorkshire|Normanton]]||||}}
{{Pontefract}}
{{West Yorkshire}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Pontefract| ]]
[[Category:Towns in West Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Market towns in West Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Unparished areas in West Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Former civil parishes in West Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Geography of the City of Wakefield]]