A Walking Tour of Leeds On this tour

A Walking Tour of Leeds On this tour, you will visit five different historical sites around the city centre. Use the map and the photos provided to help you find them. Try to visit all five if you can, it should take you about 2 -3 hours to visit all of them. Once you have arrived, read the information and answer the questions as best you can. Why should we learn about our local history? Just by walking around where we live, we can discover lots about what life was like for people in the past. Looking at buildings, statues and streets can all help historians to better understand what happened in the past, and think about how life might have changed or stayed the same. Luckily for you, Leeds has lots of historical places that you can go and visit! Did you know… the owl is a symbol of Leeds. Around the city there are owls everywhere, on buildings, lampposts and signs, for example. Count as many as you can while on your tour. You will need to be owl-eyed though! 1. City Square, opposite the Train Station In this square lots of different statues. Try to find Joseph Priestley, who was born in Leeds. He was a scientist who is believed to have discovered gases such as oxygen and nitrogen. He also did experiments with gases and created sparkling water – the first fizzy drink! 1. What two items is Priestley holding in his hands? ……………………………… 2. Why do you think the sculptor (person who created the statue) chose these items? ……………………………… 3. Why do you think we have statues in the city centre? ………………………………. . . ………………………………… 2. Wagon Lifting Tower, Wellington Street Before lorries and planes were invented, trains used to be the main way for things like coal, food and post to be transported (moved) around the country. This tower lift would have been used to take the train wagons from the level of the railway track to the ground. The railway track and station (Leeds Central) does not exist anymore. Read the blue plaque on the side of the tower. (There are two, one is low down and one is high up if you can’t read it!) 1. What was the lift powered by? …………………………………. 2. Between what years was the lift used? ………………………………. . .

3. War Memorial, The Headrow This war memorial was put up in 1922 to remember soldiers who died in the First World War. Around 10, 000 soldiers from Leeds died during the war (1914 -1918). Walk around it and look at the statues on both side of the memorial and on the top. 1. Why do you think the statue has been put up in this location? ……………………………………… 2. Why might it be important to have a war memorial in the city? ………………………………………………………………………. . 4. Leeds City Markets, New Market Street Before the building that you see today, the market was open-air and sold pigs and cows as well as fruit and vegetables. The indoor market opened in 1857 and was one of Europe’s largest markets. In 1899, there was a competition to design a new building that would make other towns jealous, which is mostly the building that you can see now (some of it has been damaged by fire and by bombing in WW 2). Michael Marks and Tom Spencer (Marks and Spencer) met in Leeds and had their first stall together in the market from 1884. 1. Go inside and look for Marks and Spencer’s first shop. What price did they sell everything for? ……………………………… 5. Corn Exchange, Call Lane Corn Exchanges were important buildings during the Victorian times. Merchants would come here to sell grains such as corn, wheat and barley, which were peoples’ main food sources. By 1872 there were 160 different merchants selling their crops, from all over America and Europe. Today, Leeds corn exchange is one of only 3 in England that is still used to buy and sell items. 1. Can you find the year the Corn Exchange was built from looking at the outside of the building? Clue: look up! ………………………………. 2. Why do you think Leeds Corn Exchange might have been so successful? (Think about the Wagon Tower from earlier on…) ………………………………… 2. How do you think people might have gotten their food before indoor markets were invented? ………………………………………………………………………….

2. Wagon Tower 1. City Square 3. War Memorial 4. City markets 5. Corn Exchange