Harehills - History

History

By 1850, Leeds had grown through industrialisation, to the North, South and West, however there was a particular lack of development to the East of the city. The existing villages did not seem to stimulate any suburban growth in this area. The mining activity to the East of the city also failed to stimulate growth. At this time there was open countryside only a mile from Briggate. The building of the Leeds tramway along York Road and Roundhay Road began to stimulate some growth, and by the time of the production on the 1906 Ordnance Survey Map, Harehills was an established community. At this time Harehills was home to a purpose built reservoir, owned by the Leeds Corporation Water Works. There were also by this time two large textile factories on Hudson Road, as well as two large brick works, The Harehills Brickworks and the Gipton Brickworks (the latter being on Darfield Road in Harehills and not in Gipton as the name would suggest), there was the York Road Iron Works as well as a few farms, which were quickly redeveloped.

Harehills and the surrounding area also had significant mining infrastructure, with collieries at York Road, Killingbeck, Neville Hill, Osmondthorpe and Burmantofts. However none of these collieries survived beyond the 1960s. Throughout the second half of the Twentieth century, coal was generally brought from Rothwell, Castleford and Pontefract.

Until 1900 the tramways on York Road were pulled by horses, however in 1900 they were electrified. This improved transportation and stimulated further growth around Harehills, Burmantofts and Osmondthorpe. The location of St James' Hospital also stimulated growth in the area. The Hospital quickly grew to be one of the city's main hospitals, and is now the largest in Yorkshire.

By the 1960s, the mining and textile industry in Harehills was dwindling and the area was particularly run down. This led to the development of new housing, particularly around the hospital, such as the building of the Shakespeare high rise flats. Most of Harehills stayed the same, and even now, most of the Victorian terraces and back to backs still stand. Most of the council development around East Leeds was in new communities such as Gipton, Seacroft, Halton Moor, Swarcliffe and Whinmoor. Throughout the latter decades of the twentieth century Harehills' industrial areas generally declined and have been converted into car garages, light warehouses, self-storage centres and such.

Low rental prices coupled with the fact that most could not qualify for a council house attracted many commonwealth immigrants to Harehills, throughout the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Harehills now has significant Asian and Afro-Caribbean communities. Crime and deprivation continue to be an issue in Harehills. Racial tension has caused problems in the area, resulting in rioting in 2001.