Banking
Today the name "Halifax" is synonymous with banking and financial services, and the Halifax is a major employer within the town. You may consider it odd to include banking as a historical industry but it has played an important part in the history of the area and there are many visible reminders of this history.

The headquarters of the Halifax Permanent Benefit Building Society built on the corner of Princess Street in 1873. This society was founded in 1853 and by 1918 it had become the largest building society in the country.
In 1921 the Halifax Permanent moved its head office to Commercial Street. A merger with the Halifax Equitable Building Society in 1927 was not just the amalgamation of two local companies; they were also the largest and second largest building societies in the country. Re-branded as the "Halifax Building Society" it became the largest building society in the world.
The Commercial Street site remained the center of the societies operations until a new head office building was opened further along the road in 1973.

Like most provincial towns Halifax had a number of local banking companies who's names are now unfamiliar but who's premises still survive some as branches of familiar high street banks.

The Rawson family became bankers at the beginning of the 19th century. In 1831 they had branches in Halifax and Huddersfield which were united as the Halifax and Huddersfield Union Banking Company. After several name changes and amalgamations this imposing building on Commercial Street became the home of the bank in 1898 which changed its name to The West Yorkshire Bank shortly before it was taken over by Lloyds Bank.

Some locals still refer to this building as "Rawsons Bank"

This Branch of the Halifax Joint Stock Banking Co Ltd stands on the corner of Queens Road and Gibbet Street.

This magnificent building in Elland surmounted by a statue of Britannia, was once a branch of the Huddersfield and Halifax Joint Union Bank.