In the later 19th Century, Horbury Junction began to develop as an industrial suburb of the township of Horbury, particularly through the growth of the Charles Roberts railway wagon works. As the factories developed, so did housing, and although the Horbury Junction parish has never been especially large in terms of population, by the 1880s there was significant settlement. The Wesleyan Methodists were first to build a church in Horbury Junction, sited just across the Millfield Road railway bridge on the corner of Forge Lane. That church closed over 40 years ago: its site is now occupied by housing. The then Vicar of Horbury, John Sharp, who served Horbury between 1834 and 1899 was not the sort of man to sit idly by and see a growing part of his parish left to Nonconformity, and he set about raising funds to create a Church of England Mission Room, situated a little further down Forge Lane from the Methodist Chapel. It opened in 1887: it is still there, though now a private house. It is still just possible to make out the words “St Mary’s Mission” above the door.