is a large town in
North Yorkshire ,
England . It is part of the larger
Harrogate local government district. The town, with
Knaresborough , had a population of 85,128 according to the 2001 census.
Prior to the discovery of its naturally
Iron and
Sulphur rich water, Harrogate was two minor villages (High Harrogate and Low Harrogate) close to the historic town of
Knaresborough . The first mineral spring in Harrogate was discovered by
William Slingsby in
1571 , who found that water from the Tewitt Well possessed similar properties to that from the springs of the Belgian town of
Spa , which gave its name to
Spa Towns . The medicinal properties of the waters were more widely publicised by one Edmund Deane, whose book, ''Spadacrene Anglica, or the English Spa Fountain'' was published in
1626 . Following this Harrogate developed considerable fame as a spa town.
Today the site of the Tewitt Well is marked by a dome within the Stray, an area of open parkland some 200 acres (800,000 m²) in size that runs through the centre of the town. The Harrogate Stray was created in
1778 by an
Act Of Parliament . Other wells can be found in Harrogate's Valley Gardens and the Royal Pump Room museum.
Harrogate was granted status as a
Borough in the
12th Century , and was primarily a centre for agriculture and the woollen industry.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Harrogate was extremely popular among the English elite and was frequented by nobility from around Europe. Its popularity declined after
World War I . During
World War II , however, Harrogate's large hotels accommodated government offices that had been evacuated from London. This paved the way for the town's current function as a commercial, conference, and exhibition centre. The town hosted the
Eurovision Song Contest in
1982 .
Harrogate was the winner of the
2003 Britain In Bloom in the category of 'Large Town'. From there it went on to win the European
Entente Florale competition in
2004 . This reprises its win in the first ever Entente Florale competition in
1977 .
In
2005 Harrogate was stated as the UK's 3rd best place to live. It is also the most expensive area outside West
London within
England .
There are many fine examples of building and architecture about the town, including the Royal Hall theatre, a Grade II listed building designed by
Frank Matcham . As the only surviving
Kursaal {Link without Title} in Britain, the Royal Hall is an important national heritage building. Restoration work is due to begin in early 2006.
Harrogate is now one of Europe's largest exhibition and conference centres and has many guest houses, hotels and restaurants catering for the regular influx of visitors. The town also acts, to some extent, as a , and is part of the
Leeds City Region , the city at the centre of the financial region. Road transport to Leeds is via the
A61 road.
The town is served by three railway stations: "Live Music Pub Of The Year" award, in 2004 and 2005, and has hosted musicians such as
Van Morrison ,
Jools Holland ,
John Martyn ,
John Cooper Clark ,
John Otway and
Rolan Bolan.
Rugby and
Football are both popular sports in Harrogate.
Harrogate Town FC situated on Wetherby Road play in the Nationwide North division and finished 6th in the 2004-2005 season. They have a natural, good-natured rivalry with NCEL Premiership team
Harrogate Railway FC , located at Station View.
Harrogate RUFC is based at Claro Road.
