Our Leeds market is the largest covered market in Europe and has over 100,000 visitors each week. It is a tourist destination with coach tours regularly calling.
As Leeds people know, Marks and Spencers began trading in the covered market as ‘Marks Penny Bazaar’. A clock to commemorate their centenary was unveiled in 1984 by M&S marking the spot where their stall was originally situated.
Incidentally, the former market clock designed by the same architects who designed the Vicar Lane covered market, was moved up to Roundhay in 1915. At the time, it was regarded as unsuitable for a new stall layout. It is now known as the Oakwood Clock.
There was an open-air market in Leeds in 1822 which was held in Briggate. But it was moved to more or less its current location in Kirkgate between 1850 and 1875. Later, the Leeds Corporation, mindful of the newly-built and prestigious Corn Exchange, invited architects Joseph and John Leeming of London to design a new market building which we have today on Vicar Lane. It is a Grade I listed building and quite rightly so. It is a beautiful stone building with shops on the Vicar Lane, Kirkgate and George Street frontages. Between each shop there are sculptures. Inside, the cast-iron work supporting the roof and that around the balconies is magnificent. The roof is further supported by metal pillars with Corinthian capitals.
The market was provided by the former Leeds Corporation, so-called before Local Government Reorganisation in 1974 when Leeds then became known as Leeds City Council. It was aptly called a corporation because it provided many facilities and services to make life better for its citizens, most of which current councils are now unable to do, mainly because of subsequent Government legislations taking away those services and, of course lately, reductions in funding.
The Corporation built houses, schools and swimming pools, it bought Roundhay and Temple Newsam Parks, it employed district nurses, it distributed medical equipment, it supplied home-helps free to all elderly people in need of them, built health centres for local doctors, it ran the ambulance and fire services, it generated electricity, it built reservoirs supplying water to our citizens and it built the many local police stations and regulated and directed local police with a ‘Watch Committee’.
Regarding the last Leeds Corporation Watch Committee, prior to WWII, it prevented Oswald Mosely and his Black Shirts from marching through North Lane and the Leylands which were predominantly occupied by Jewish citizens. It directed the Police to move the march to Holbeck Moor where local people “dealt with them!” The Black Shirts had to make a hasty retreat to Leeds Rail Station, but that is another story.
Councillors who served on Corporations were not paid as they are today. All of them had to have jobs. My former Council (or Corporation) colleague was Cllr Chris Myers. Chris and I represented the former, smaller Holbeck Ward which, at the time, covered the city centre which then had very few residents but included the Market.
Chris worked in a shoe shop situated in Leeds Market. In those days there were always characters hanging around the Market, including well-known ones like ‘Woodbine Lizzy’. Another well-known one was ‘Barnsley Bob’ – an obvious vagrant. His hair was long and straggly, he never shaved, his beard was a tangled mess, and his clothes were in tatters and hardly enough to keep him warm. Now and again, Bob used to call at the shop where Christ worked. Chris who was a kind woman, always gave him a cup of tea and what little food she had to spare.
One day Bob called at her shop and he was obviously unwell. Chris was concerned and asked him if he was alright. Bob replied, “Oh I don’t know Missus. I don’t feel right”.
When Bob had left, Chris who was a member of the Watch Committee, telephoned the then adjacent Market Street Police Station.
Chris, “I want you to pick up Bob”. Response, “Oh B***** H***!”
Chris, “Never mind B***** H***! He is dirty, his clothes are filthy and in rags, but on top of that, he is poorly.”
A few weeks later, Bob appeared again in her shop. His hair had been cut, he was clean- shaven and he had on a decent suit of clothes.
Chris said to him, “Oh Bob you look absolutely wonderful. And you look so well.”
“Aye”, said Bob. “Some b****** had me run in!”
This post was written by Hon Alderwoman Elizabeth Nash
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