[5] Richmal Mangnall, author of an innovative schoolbook, was educated at Mrs Wilson's School at Crofton Hall.

[citation needed] By the early 1900s, Lord St Oswald had built houses at New Crofton, known locally as Cribbens or Scribbens Lump, for the workers of Nostell Mine.

One theory is that the monks built the underground church to pray and worship in private, the monastery attached to Nostell Priory being dissolved by Henry VIII in 1540.

[4] Crofton Castle was built in Towers Lane in 1853 by John Blackburn in the style of a Gothic manor house, complete with a parapet.

Many schoolchildren and some adults have reported seeing a white figure standing at the back window, locally known as the Grey Lady.

[citation needed] Today, Crofton is seen as a commuting village, with many inhabitants leaving daily to work in nearby cities such as Leeds and Wakefield and to a lesser degree Sheffield and York.

The village also boasts several pubs: the Cock and Crown, on the A638 road, the Royal Oak, and The Manor.

Also serving drink are a working men's club and the Crofton Community Centre, formerly known as the Nostell Miners' Welfare.

Crofton made national newspaper headlines when a noted motel in the village, The Redbeck, had stayed open for 21 years without ever closing, working its way through renovations, leaks and power cuts.

The walk comprises around 3–4 miles of ash path, with some being concreted (remnants of the old opencast mining area).

Use in some years is marred by surges in the tick population, which particularly affect dog walkers and farm cattle.

[citation needed] In July 2017, the Secretary of State for Transport announced the decision to route the West Midlands to Leeds leg of the future high-speed rail link HS2 through the eastern side of the village.

At the same time, it was announced that a large maintenance depot, proposed for south of the village, will be built east of Leeds.

[citation needed] In 2021 the Secretary of State announced that the eastern leg of HS2 was cancelled Crofton is in the centre of what is locally known as Rugby Land, with the local team Crofton Cougars contributing to the maintenance of the rugby league tradition.

In 1920 Edwin Sowerby murdered his former girlfriend, 19-year-old Jane Darwell, at Crofton School in front of several witnesses.

[17] Crofton is located on the A638 road that runs between Wakefield and Doncaster and serves as the village's lifeline.

[citation needed] Crofton is located 26 miles (42 km) from Leeds Bradford International Airport, which has flights to European and Asian destinations such as Paris, Milan, Rome, Alicante, Tenerife, Larnaca and Islamabad.