Middleton, Leeds

Coordinates: 53°44′34″N 1°33′09″W / 53.7428°N 1.5526°W / 53.7428; -1.5526
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"Middleton, West Yorkshire" redirects here. For the hamlet near Ilkley, see
Middleton, Ilkley
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Middleton
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53°44′34″N 1°33′09″W / 53.7428°N 1.5526°W / 53.7428; -1.5526

Middleton is a largely residential suburb of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England and historically a village in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It is situated on a hill 4 miles (6 km) south of Leeds city centre and 165 miles (266 km) north north-west of London.

It sits in the Middleton Park ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds Central parliamentary constituency. The population of Middleton Park ward - which includes Belle Isle - was 26,228 at the 2011 Census.[1]

Middleton was occupied before the

coal seams that outcropped within its boundaries. At the start of the Industrial Revolution a wooden wagonway was built to link the coal pits to Leeds. The colliery agent, John Blenkinsop designed an iron railway and its first steam-powered locomotive which was built by Matthew Murray in Holbeck
. The coal mines on which the local economy was based lasted until 1968 and the railway is preserved and run by a trust after operating for 200 years.

Middleton Park, a remnant of the manorial estate, contains a large area of ancient woodland and parts of it, where coal was mined, are designated a scheduled ancient monument. It was the location of Middleton Hall and Middleton Lodge, homes to the local gentry.

The village developed along Town Street, a school, chapel and church were built in the 19th century but after the land was acquired by

council housing estate was built on the flatter land to the south, completely changing the rural nature of the settlement. Early transport was provided by a tram line and the Leeds Ring Road was built to Middleton. After the colliery closed the area began to decline and by 2001, had areas of multiple deprivation and high levels of unemployment and anti-social behaviour
. The Middleton Regeneration Board has been established with the remit of addressing these issues.

History

Rustic, brick-built cottages in Town Street known as Top of the town were built for the Brandlings' workers.

The name Middleton is derived from the Old English middel-tun,[3][4] in this case the middle settlement or farm on the road from Morley to Rothwell.

Ilbert de Lacy who had a castle at Pontefract.[5] Middleton Park is a remnant of the manorial estate which existed after the Norman Conquest. In the 13th century the boundary between Middleton and Beeston became the focus of a protracted dispute over where it lay in the dense woodland which covered the area. The dispute between William Grammary and Adam de Beeston was settled in 1209 by single combat and resulted in the construction of a boundary bank and ditch, a stretch of which can still be seen in Middleton Woods.[5]

The Creppings were

Marston Moor in 1644, was another resident of New Hall.[6]

Middleton Hall on Town Street was built in the 18th century for the Brandlings but they chose to live mainly in Durham.

Member of Parliament for Newcastle between 1798 and 1812 and for Northumberland from 1820 until 1826, married Henrietta Armitage of Middleton. The Brandlings appointed John Blenkinsop to manage their collieries in Middleton and he was the hall's occupant in 1809. The hall was destroyed in a fire in 1962.[7] The gate-house serving Middleton Hall still stands today on Town Street, alongside St. Mary's Church and graveyard and original public pathway into the then private, Middleton Park
.

In 1760 the Brandlings built a new residence, Middleton Lodge, designed by James Paine. It was situated in what is now the park possibly on the site the original manor house.[8] Members of the family lived there until 1860 including R.H. Brandling who donated land on Town Street on which the church is built. The Brandling's fortunes declined and the estate was sold to the Middleton Estate & Colliery Company in 1862.[9] William Henry Maude, a partner in the company, occupied the house with his sister in 1871. He died in a carriage accident in the park in 1911. His sister remained at Middleton Lodge after the land had been acquired by the council until her death in 1933 after which the house became the headquarters of Middleton Golf Club. Middleton Lodge was demolished in 1996.[10]

Industrial history

Depression or bell pit, evidence of early coal mining in Middleton Woods
"The collier" at Middleton Colliery, in The Costume of Yorkshire by George Walker, 1814
Middleton street map

There is evidence of coal mining in the

Gin pits using horses to turn the windlass were the next development and the deeper pits had brick-lined shafts and wooden headgear for hauling tubs of coal and miners out of the workings. This type of mine was in operation when Anne Leigh married Ralph Brandling whose family owned collieries in Durham. Brandling's 1,200 acre Middleton estate supplied coal to Leeds but was disadvantaged in the trade by poor roads.[15] Deep mining arrived with the advent of steam engines to pump water out of the mines and keep the workings dry making it possible to raise coal from greater depths. In 1780 a Newcomen engine was installed at Middleton and by 1808 the mine employed 90 hewers and 60 putters.[15][nb 1] The market for coal grew as Leeds and its industries expanded.[18]

The

Salamanca", at his Round Foundry in Holbeck. The locomotive's first run, reported in The Leeds Mercury on 27 June 1812, was "witnessed by thousands of spectators and crowned a complete success....".[22] Three more locomotives were built. The Middleton Railway locomotives had a toothed cog wheel which meshed into a rack on the side of the rail, as it was felt this would provide the engines with a better grip when hauling coal wagons.[23][24]

Before 1840, women and children were employed in coal mines and there were frequent accidents. The worst disaster occurred in 1825 at the Gosforth Pit, named after the Brandling's Durham estate, where an explosion of firedamp caused 24 deaths; the oldest a collier aged 48 and the youngest a child of seven.[25][26]

Broom Pit was the deepest at 810 feet (250 m), and longest-lasting of the Middleton collieries.

fireclay to the brickworks.[28][29] Nearly 900 men were employed there in 1940.[28] At the time the collieries were nationalised in 1947, the workforce had reduced to 436.[30] Operations at the pit ended in 1968 as the productivity of the colliery declined.[27][31]

20th century

In 1919, the grounds of Middleton Lodge were leased by Leeds Council for use as a

council houses had been built and the housing estate was considered to be a "garden suburb", but was found to be remote and lacking in facilities by the residents.[34] An early resident was Keith Waterhouse, who wrote about his childhood exploits as the only member of the Middleton Hiking Club, in his book, City Lights.[35]

The area attracted more social housing when the Westwoods and Manor Farm estates were developed in the 1960s. A large private housing estate was built at Sharp Lane after 1972 and 1,300 houses were built at Leeds New Forest Village after 2005.[34]

Governance

Middleton was a township and

Poor Law Union until 1869, when it joined the Hunslet Poor Law Union until 1920, the same year it was incorporated into the City of Leeds.[39]

Middleton is in the

2012 council elections, is represented on Leeds City Council by three Labour councillors.[40][41]

The Middleton Park ward is in the

parliamentary constituency. At the 2010 UK general election the seat was held by Hilary Benn who represents the Labour Party with 49.3% of the vote.[42]

Geography

Middleton is 4 miles (6 km) south of Leeds city centre and 165 miles (266 km) north north-west of London. It is situated on a hill and occupies most of a

coal measures and a bed of fireclay. Several coal seams outcrop in Middleton Park and between them are sandstones and shales.[45]

The township covered about 1700 acres,[36] of which 450 are woodland known as Middleton Woods and contain the largest area of ancient woodland remaining in Leeds.[46] The old village was a ribbon development along Town Street which runs west–east along a ridge and Middleton housing estate occupies flattish land to the south. The high point of Middleton is by the water tower at the western end of Town Street. Middleton is in an area surrounded by three motorways, the M62 motorway to the south, the M1 to the east and the M621 to the north.[34]

Demography

In 2010, the

Jobseekers Allowance which at 8.3% was nearly double the Leeds' average.[47] Middleton Park ward contained 10,649 households in 2001. There were 1,201 households with dependent children and no adult in employment.[48] Of the 1,410 of lone-parent households with dependent children, most were women (1,307) and most had no job. Male lone-parents numbered 95 of which 39 were in full-time employment.[49] Nearly half the households, 5,170, had no car or van.[50]

While all recorded crime was below the Leeds' average, criminal damage was substantially higher and nearly twice the England average.[47] Most crimes committed in the area are violent or sexual offences, anti-social behaviour, criminal damage or arson.[51]

Population change

Population change in Middleton 1881–1911
Year 1881 1891 1901 1911
Population 1,134 1,236 1,268 1,207
Middleton CP/Tn Parish-level Unit[52]

Economy

Shops at Middleton Park Circus

After the closure of the largest employer in the area, Broom Pit, in 1968, a process of decline set in.[27] Middleton is now primarily residential with areas of multiple deprivation and as a consequence, the Middleton Regeneration Board was set up to address concerns including reducing unemployment over a ten-year period.[53]

Facilities in the area include the St Georges Centre, a multi-use building that houses health services including a minor injuries unit and drop-in centre, a library, and a neighbourhood housing office.[54]

Middleton has two main shopping areas, at Middleton Park Circus and the Middleton District Shopping Centre. At Middleton Park Circus there is an

Boots chemist,[56] a Post Office and several independent traders. Also in Spring 2014, Asda
opened a supermarket next to the Middleton District Centre; this should provide over 300 jobs. The District Centre itself has several traders but had failed to develop.

Landmarks

Middleton Water Tower

Middleton Park, once the private estate of the lords of the manor of Middleton, is owned by Wade's Charity and leased to Leeds City Council for a

peppercorn rent.[57] It has been one of Leeds many public parks since 1919 covering an area of nearly a square mile, 630 acres (2.5 km2), of which 200 acres (0.81 km2) are of ancient woodland. There is a small lake, recreational areas and a golf course.[46] The reclaimed site of Middleton Broom Pit was incorporated into the park. Two areas of the park, comprising ancient waggonways which are now surfaced footpaths, earthworks and remains of underground workings and shaft mounds, have been designated a scheduled ancient monument.[58]

The Middleton Railway, a preserved heritage steam railway, operates from headquarters and museum at Moor Road Hunslet to Park Halt.[20] It is operated by volunteers.[59] From Middleton, Park Halt is accessed by a footpath that was originally a waggonway. The railway celebrated its 200th anniversary of steam haulage in 2012.[60]

On Town Street, a row of brick-built cottages with stone slate roofs, known as Top of the town was built in the mid 18th century.

listed buildings.[63] In the churchyard is a war memorial erected in 1920.[64] To the west of the war memorial is a gatehouse which stood at an old entrance to the hall grounds.[65][66] The distinctive white concrete water tower
at the high point of the hill is at the south west corner of the park on Town Street.

Transport

Tram on Middleton Ring Road, Lingwell Road tram stop, the terminus before the extension to Belle Isle was built in 1949.

To serve the growing population of the council estate, the Middleton Light Railway, an electric tramway, was built in 1925 by Leeds Corporation Tramways. The tramway from Leeds ran parallel to the colliery line to Hunslet Moor staithes and then headed south through Middleton Woods to a terminus on the Ring Road. As the Middleton tramway largely ran separately to the road it could run at higher speeds than other tram routes in the city; a specific fleet of trams with bogies for a smoother ride were procured for the running of the Middleton service and for most of its operation the Middleton route was not integrated with other city services. The tramway was made into a circular route in 1949 when it was extended to Belle Isle Road and Balm Road in Hunslet. The tramway closed in 1959.[67] Its route through the park is now a footpath.

The original plans for the Leeds Supertram included a line to Middleton, but they were amended to save on costs and the later plans stipulated a terminus at Stourton. The scheme was axed when government funding was withdrawn.[68]

First Leeds, with buses to Leeds city centre, Wakefield, Roundhay, Morley and the White Rose Centre.[69]

Education

Teachers were employed in the village in 1811 and a Sunday school, built by the Brandlings, providing education in reading and writing, was established by 1833 and used for worship before the church was built. The 1833 school was the premises of a national school in 1845. It became Middleton St Mary's C of E School and moved to a new site in 1972.[70][71] There was a secondary school named "Middleton Park High School" on Acre Road in Middleton, but this was closed on 31 August 1999[72] despite a challenge in the High Court over the decision to close the school.[73]

Other schools in Middleton are Middleton Primary School, in the centre of the housing estate which opened in the 1920s,[74] St Philip's Catholic Primary and Nursery School which opened in 1941,[75][76] and Westwood Primary School.[77]

In the Middleton Park ward in 2012, at the

GCSEs, far less than the Leeds average of 53.4%. In secondary education, 16.5% of pupils are persistent absentees missing 15% or more sessions during the school year and 12.4% of 16- to 18-year-olds are not in employment, education or training.[78]

Religion

Middleton was a chapelry of the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Rothwell. In 1497 a chantry chapel was endowed by Gilbert Leygh and dedicated to St Mary the Virgin, it was closed at the time of the Reformation though the building is extant and now a private residence.[79]

Middleton St Mary's Church
built in 1847.

R.H. Brandling of Middleton Lodge gave land on Town Street on which to build a church and parsonage in 1845.

lych gate are designated Grade II listed buildings.[62][63] The church originally had a tall spire[80] which was taken down because of mining subsidence in 1939. There is a tradition that local miners gave either a week's wages or a week's work towards the cost of its construction.[81]

Out of the parish, two more parishes were created as the population increased after the Middleton council estate was built. In 1921 the church acquired a site on the Middleton housing estate on which to build. In 1925 a mission church was built off Middleton Park Avenue. The

Church of St Cross was built in 1933 and became a parish church in 1935 with about two thirds of the Middleton housing estate in its boundaries. [82] In the 1930s the Belle Isle housing estate was begun. The Church of St John and St Barnabus was built in Belle Isle in 1939 but not consecrated until 1947 because of the war. This church became a parish church.[82]

Local

Baptist church on Middleton Park Avenue.[85] St Philip's Roman Catholic Church, a modern building, is situated on St Philip's Avenue.[86]

Sport

A municipal golf club opened in 1933 at Middleton Lodge with an 18-hole course in the park.[87] Middleton Leisure Centre offers a range of sporting and fitness activities.[88]

Middleton Park FC offers football coaching and has community teams for all age groups, from 18 months old to adults.[89] Rugby Union is played by Leeds Corinthians, who have a ground and clubhouse by the Middleton District Centre.[90] Crown Green Bowling is represented by two clubs, one in Middleton Park with two greens and the other in Acre Close was originally the Middleton Tenants Bowling Club that changed its name to the Community Bowling Club when the old Tenants Hall was demolished in 2010 and a new one built.

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ Hewers were men who cut the coal[16] and putters were boys or youths who filled coal tubs and pulled them to either the pit shaft or a place where pit ponies could take over.[17]

Citations

  1. ^ "City of Leeds population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  2. ^ Mildetone in the Domesday Book
  3. ^ Mills 1998, p. 405
  4. ^ Mills 1998, p. 406
  5. ^ a b c d e Illing 1971, p. 2
  6. ^ a b Belle Isle Study Group 1985, p. 33
  7. ^ Bushell, p. 3
  8. ^ Middleton Lodge, leodis.net, retrieved 2 December 2009
  9. ^ Illing 1971, p. 22
  10. ^ Belle Isle Study Group 1985, pp. 44–47
  11. ^ Archaeological Survey, .fomp.co.uk, retrieved 23 September 2009
  12. ^ Belle Isle Study Group 1985, p. 30
  13. ^ Belle Isle Study Group 1985, p. 32
  14. ^ Belle Isle Study Group 1985, p. 34
  15. ^ a b Benson & Neville 1976, p. 56
  16. ^ Mining Occupations, Durham Mining Museum, retrieved 21 June 2012
  17. ^ Mining Occupations, Durham Mining Museum, retrieved 21 June 2012
  18. ^ Belle Isle Study Group 1985, p. 35
  19. ^ Burt & Grady 1994, p. 66
  20. ^ a b Railway News (PDF), middletonrailway.org.uk, retrieved 23 September 2009
  21. ^ John Blenkinsop and the cogwheel railway, cottontimes.co.uk, archived from the original on 8 March 2009, retrieved 23 September 2009
  22. ^ Burt & Grady 1994, p. 94
  23. ^ Weldrake, David (14 May 2008), "Middleton History", Middleton Today, retrieved 20 September 2009
  24. ^ "John Blenkinsop", Spartacus Educational, archived from the original on 10 March 2009, retrieved 20 September 2009
  25. ^ Belle Isle Study Group (1985), pp. 41–43.
  26. ^ Disasters – Names, Durham Mining Museum, retrieved 22 June 2012
  27. ^ a b c Illing 1971, p. 23
  28. ^ a b Middleton Estate & Colliery Co. Ltd, Durham Mining Museum, retrieved 22 June 2012
  29. ^ Middleton Fireclay Works, Leodis, retrieved 25 June 2012
  30. ^ Middleton Broom Colliery Ltd., Durham Mining Museum, retrieved 22 June 2012
  31. ^ Middleton Broom Colliery, Leodis, retrieved 22 June 2012
  32. ^ Leach 2009, p. 560
  33. ^ Illing 1971, p. 21
  34. ^ a b c Middleton Regeneration (PDF), leeds.gov.uk, p. 3, retrieved 25 September 2009
  35. ^ Waterhouse 1994, p. 27
  36. ^ a b Lewis, Samuel (1848), "Middleton", A Topographical Dictionary of England, British History Online, pp. 306–310, retrieved 19 October 2011
  37. ^ Youngs 1991, p. 583
  38. ^ Great Preston, workhouses.org, retrieved 20 June 2012
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  42. ^ Leeds Central, The BBC, retrieved 19 June 2012
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  44. ^ Roe 2008, p. 8
  45. ^ Roe 2008, p. 2
  46. ^ a b Middleton Park, leeds.gov.uk, archived from the original on 26 November 2010, retrieved 22 September 2009
  47. ^ a b Leeds Profile (Wards & Administrative Areas) Selection: Middleton Park Ward Geo-type: 2004 Wards, West Yorkshire Observatory, archived from the original on 8 January 2016, retrieved 17 June 2012
  48. ^ Households with Limiting Long-term Illness and Dependent Children, Office for National Statistics, retrieved 20 June 2012
  49. ^ Lone Parent Households with Dependent Children (KS22), Office for National Statistics, retrieved 20 June 2012
  50. ^ Cars or Vans (KS17), Office for National Statistics, retrieved 20 June 2012
  51. ^ Middleton, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS10, Police UK, retrieved 18 February 2016
  52. ^ Middleton CP/Tn Parish-level Unit : Total Population, Vision of Britain, retrieved 18 June 2012
  53. ^ Middleton Regeneration (PDF), leeds.gov.uk, p. 2, retrieved 25 September 2009
  54. ^ St Georges Centre (PDF), leeds.gov.uk, retrieved 30 September 2009
  55. Sainsburys Local
    , retrieved 20 June 2012
  56. Boots UK
    , retrieved 20 June 2012
  57. ^ About the Park, lfomp.co.uk, retrieved 23 September 2009
  58. ^ Historic England, "Middleton Park shaft mounds (1017758)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 21 June 2012
  59. ^ Middleton Railway, middletonrailway, retrieved 23 September 2009
  60. ^ 200 Years of Steam, The Middleton Railway, retrieved 22 June 2012
  61. ^ a b Historic England, "Top of the town cottages (1255814)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 21 June 2012
  62. ^ a b Historic England, "Church of St Mary (1255815)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 21 June 2012
  63. ^ a b Historic England, "Lych gate and flanking walls Church of St Mary (1255817)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 21 June 2012
  64. ^ Middleton Churchyard, War Memorial, Leodis, retrieved 21 June 2012
  65. ^ Middleton Hall, Gatehouse, Town Street, Leodis, retrieved 21 June 2012
  66. ^ Middleton Hall Gatehouse, and entrance, Town Street, Leodis, retrieved 21 June 2012
  67. ^ A History of the Middleton Railway Leeds Sixth Edition 1990, p. 28
  68. ^ Leeds Supertram United Kingdom, railway Technology, retrieved 27 June 2010
  69. ^ Leeds Area (PDF), West Yorkshire Metro, archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2006, retrieved 27 June 2010
  70. ^ Illing 1971, p. 17
  71. ^ Middleton St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Ofsted, retrieved 22 June 2012
  72. ^ "Middleton Park High School". Gov.uk. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  73. ^ "Pupil loses court bid to save school". BBC News. 21 January 1999. Retrieved 24 November 2019. A ruling in the High Court has allowed Leeds education authority to go ahead with plans to close Middleton Park High School, which this year came bottom of the exam league with no pupils achieving five GCSEs.
  74. ^ Middleton Primary School, Ofsted, retrieved 22 June 2012
  75. ^ St. Philip's Catholic Primary and Nursery School, St. Philip's School, retrieved 22 June 2012
  76. ^ St Philip's Catholic Primary and Nursery School, Ofsted, retrieved 22 June 2012
  77. ^ Westwood Primary School, Ofsted, retrieved 22 June 2012
  78. ^ Education & Skills, West Yorkshire Observatory, archived from the original on 8 January 2016, retrieved 22 June 2012
  79. ^ Illing 1971, p. 4
  80. ^ Middleton S Mary's, leodis.net, retrieved 25 September 2009
  81. ^ Illing 1971, p. 5
  82. ^ a b Illing 1971, p. 6
  83. ^ Religion and Place in Leeds A survey and Gazetteer of Places of Worship 1900–2005 (PDF), English Heritage, p. 17, archived from the original (PDF) on 23 March 2012, retrieved 19 October 2011
  84. ^ Middleton Methodist Chapel, leedssouthmethodist.org.uk, archived from the original on 25 December 2007, retrieved 25 September 2009
  85. ^ Middleton Park Baptist Church, yba.org.uk, retrieved 25 September 2009
  86. ^ St. Philip's Roman Catholic Church, Middleton, genuki.org.uk, retrieved 30 September 2009
  87. ^ Middleton Park Golf Club, Middleton Park golf Club, archived from the original on 25 June 2012, retrieved 20 June 2012
  88. ^ Middleton leisure centre, Leeds City Council, retrieved 20 June 2012
  89. ^ Middleton Park FC, middletonparkfc.co.uk, retrieved 4 January 2010
  90. ^ Leeds Corinthians, leedscorinthiansrufc, retrieved 14 May 2015

Bibliography

External links

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