Park Square Leeds Then and Now
Then
Park Square in Leeds city centre was built between 1788 and 1810 as a high class residential estate with private garden. Residents also had private pews at the church of St Paul’s (demolished 1906) that stood on the South side of the Square. Park Square was designed for the wealthy and was mainly lived in by merchants, clergy, lawyers and surgeons.
In 1878 John Barran built St Paul’s House. The large warehouse and cloth cutting works stood on the South side of the Park next to the church. This brought daily commuters and smog to the area which led to the wealthy residents moving out.
Park Square was once called the Harley Street of the North due to the large number of doctors holding offices there. Number 8 was home to Dr. Edith Pechey, the first woman to practice medicine in Leeds and the third female doctor in the UK.
Now
Today, Park Square holds a mixture of premises including residential, legal, medical and hospitality. Through all the changes over the years, the Georgian buildings and the park itself haven’t changed much. This has made it a popular filming location in recent years. From television shows such as North Square, Emmerdale and Gentleman Jack to the film Hope Gap starring Annette Benning and Bill Nighy. It’s hard to believe that you’re in Leeds sometimes as the square has a ‘London’ feel to it.
Take a look below at Park Square’s then and now photos 👇
View of the Town Hall from Park Square – Top: 22nd August 1951 Bottom: May 2023
Park Square West – Left: origin unknown Right: May 2020
29 Park Square West – Top:1975-1976 Bottom: May 2020
We love hearing our customer’s stories of Park Square. Whether it’s that they used to work next door or had their wedding photos taken in the Square, we’ve heard lots of lovely memories over the years. It’ll be interesting to see how Park Square changes in the next few decades!
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