Boothtown Blog –
Stories, History & Community Life

Boothtown, Halifax

Boothtown is a historic district on the northern side of Halifax, along the main route towards Queensbury and Bradford. Although now part of the built-up town, it has a history stretching back centuries, when the area belonged to the ancient township of Northowram and consisted of scattered homes, farms and fields. Older records refer to the settlement as “The Boothes” and later “Boothstown”, names associated with the Booth family who once held land in the district.

Boothtown became particularly important during Halifax’s Victorian industrial expansion. One of its best-known landmarks is Akroydon, the distinctive model housing development created by textile manufacturer and philanthropist Colonel Edward Akroyd. Building began in 1861, with architect George Gilbert Scott designing rows of Gothic-style homes intended for workers and their families. The streets were named after English cathedrals and minsters, and the development included gardens and communal spaces. Nearby Bankfield, Edward Akroyd’s former residence, is now a museum preserving important collections connected with Halifax’s history.

Industry, education and community life all helped shape Boothtown. Mills, including those associated with carpet and silk production, provided employment, while churches and schools served the growing population. The area also became associated with Percy Shaw, the Halifax inventor of the road-reflecting cat’s eye, who developed his idea after travelling along the roads around Boothtown. Today, the district combines Victorian architecture, surviving industrial buildings and modern housing, preserving many reminders of the people and enterprises that helped shape Halifax.

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Welcome to the Boothtown Blog

Boothtown is a suburb of Halifax. Its history was dominated by the mills of the textile industry. Boothtown includes Akroydon, a Victorian model housing scheme which was designed in the Gothic style by George Gilbert Scott in 1859 for the workers at the mills of Edward Akroyd.