Mark's History 2

24/10/2026

Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer - Wednesday, 24 October 1866...

23/10/2026

Ever Noticed the 19 Wellington Street Ghost Sign???

This old woollen warehouse at 19 Wellington Street was designed by the architect George Corson and built around 1859 specifically for John Sykes and Son. As steam locomotives grew in popularity, businesses favoured premises near the railway station, which eventually led to the decline of the traditional cloth halls. The firm amalgamated in 1866 to become Hudson, Sykes and Bousfield, woollen manufacturers and merchants, using this Venetian Gothic building as their commercial base while manufacturing at Springfield Mills. The Grade II listed property was converted into residential apartments in 2004, though you can still see their original company sign on the front of the building today.

23/10/2026

Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer - Tuesday, 23 October 1866...

22/10/2026

Kirkstall Valley and Kirkstall Power Station...

22/10/2026

From 1845 Meadows To Modern Red Lane Farsley…

The attached overlay map details the historical ownership and occupation of the land now occupied by Red Lane, Wadlands Drive, and Wadlands Rise in Farsley. By comparing the 1845 tithe map to the contemporary street layout, the transition from agricultural clearings to residential housing is visible.

The term "royd," seen in several of the historic plot names below, derives from the Old English word rod, indicating that the land was historically created by clearing woodland to make way for meadow or pasture.

During Farsley's rapid expansion in the 1860s, there was no single commercial developer for these streets. The 1845 landowners listed below sold their agricultural plots in parcels to local builders and influential mill-owning families, such as the Gaunts and Hainsworths. The resulting terrace rows were constructed piecemeal to house the growing population of workers tied to the expansion of local complexes like Sunny Bank Mills.

You can cross-reference the numbers on the provided map with the following 1845 records to identify the specific individuals who owned and farmed this land prior to development.

Plot 271: Owned and occupied by Eli Keightley. Named Bottoms (Meadow).
Plot 272: Named Lower red royd (Meadow).
Plot 273: Named Upper red royd (Meadow).
Plot 274: Occupied by John Turner Senr. Named Part of red royd (Meadow).
Plot 275: Owned by Jonathan Turner, occupied by John Turner. Named Red royd lane close (Meadow).
Plot 276: Owned and occupied by George Andrews. Named Part of red royd (Pasture).
Plot 277: Owned and occupied by Ann Keightley. Named Red royd Lane close (Meadow).
Plot 412: Occupied by Eli Keightley. Named House homestead & near bank close (Pasture).
Plot 414: Named Stoney royd (Meadow).
Plot 415: Owned and occupied by Daniel Hainsworth. Named Close west side of Farsley.
Plot 416: Named Red royd.

22/10/2026

22/10/2026

Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer - Monday, 22 October 1866...

21/10/2026

Who Owned Stanningley and Farsley in 1867???

Step back in time to the summer of 1867, specifically Monday the 15th of July, when local residents gathered at the Fleece Inn in Farsley for a major land auction. The surviving auction plan, surveyed by James Fox of Leeds in June 1867 and beautifully lithographed by Josh F. Masser, reveals exactly how the estates across Stanningley and Farsley in the Parish of Calverley were carved up into distinct lots for sale.

On the Farsley side, the land was divided into large parcels with wonderfully traditional names like Over Close, which was specifically noted as a cricket field, alongside Rawson Close, Lick Barrow, Slack Close, and Wheat Lands. These plots were bordered by newly laid out thoroughfares such as Rawson Street, Wade Street, and Land Street, with neighbouring lands owned by Mrs Hainsworth and the Messrs Vint.

Meanwhile, the Stanningley estate was divided into smaller, more densely packed plots along Town Street and John Street, intersecting with Bright Street and Cobden Street. The plan meticulously records the names of the existing local tenants and neighbours, reading like a roll call of mid-Victorian Stanningley. Names such as Jeremiah Grimshaw, Benjamin Brayshaw, George Hudson, and Sidney Waterhouse are all marked next to their respective gardens and boundaries, situated just off the Leeds and Halifax Trust road. It provides a fascinating snapshot of how these West Yorkshire villages were actively expanding and being divided up for development during the height of the Victorian era.

21/10/2026

The Lady Lane Pub Replaced Overnight…

The story of the Marquis of Granby on Lady Lane actually involves two different buildings. Like many pubs across the country, it took its name from John Manners, the Marquess of Granby and a renowned eighteenth-century military commander who famously bought taverns for his retiring soldiers. The original pub stood at 56 Lady Lane on the corner of St Peter's Square, serving the neighbourhood for generations before being demolished to make way for the new Eastgate. A striking replacement opened its doors at the junction of Bridge Street and Lady Lane on the 10th of February 1933, the very day after the old pub closed. Known for its local Melbourne Ales and a massive curved bar, it became a familiar local landmark. In the 1970s, it was famously the preferred spot for local refuse collectors unwinding after their shifts. Although the pub closed for good in 1984, the distinctive 1933 building still survives on the corner today as office space.

21/10/2026

Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer 21 October 1866...