Park Square, Leeds facts for kids
Park Square is a beautiful public park in the middle of Leeds, a city in West Yorkshire, England. It's designed in the Georgian style, which was popular a long time ago. The square has lots of grass and is surrounded by old Georgian buildings. Today, many of these buildings are offices, especially for lawyers and legal experts, making it a key part of Leeds' financial area.
The Story of Park Square
Park Square was built over 200 years ago, starting in 1788 and finishing around 1810. It was part of a new, fancy housing area called the Park Estates. Wealthy families wanted to live here. They liked being a bit away from the busy factories and river, but still close to the city's main shops and businesses.
The people who planned Park Square wanted it to feel special. They avoided using words like 'street' for the roads. Instead, they used grander names like 'Row', 'Parade', 'Place', and 'Square'. This was a popular idea in other famous Georgian towns like Bath and Bristol.
The original plan for Park Square included a private garden in the middle. There was also a church, St Paul's, on the south side. This church offered special seating and burial rights just for the people living in the square.
However, the area didn't stay only for homes. In 1878, a large building called St Paul's House was built. It was a factory and warehouse for a famous tailor named John Barran. This building took up half of the south side of the square. It was special because it was the first factory designed specifically for making clothes. The building had a fancy style, inspired by Middle Eastern designs. Later, in 1977, it was updated and turned into offices.
The other half of the south side of the square used to be where St Paul's Church stood. The church was built in 1793 but was taken down in 1906. In 1938, a new office building called Rivers House was built on that spot. It was designed in a style that looked like Georgian buildings. Today, Rivers House has been turned into private apartments. Another building, Vicarage Chambers, is on the site where the church's vicarage (the priest's house) used to be.
For many years in the 1900s, there was a bronze statue in the square. It showed a character from ancient Greek stories named Circe. She was known for turning people into pigs! The statue was moved to the Leeds Museum in 2008.
Who Lived Here?
Many interesting and important people lived or worked in Park Square:
- A very important surgeon named Berkeley Moynihan had his offices here. He was known for doing new things in medicine.
- Sir Clifford Allbutt, who invented the clinical thermometer (the kind that checks your temperature), also had his offices at number 35.
- After getting married in 1808, a famous brewer named Joshua Tetley made his home in Park Square.
- Edith Pechey was one of the first women doctors in the United Kingdom. She also worked hard for women's rights. She opened her own medical practice at number 8, Park Square.
Gallery
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From the South
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Looking westwards from the centre
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Looking east
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Blue Plaque
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Street sign
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Houses on the west side
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Street sign
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Park Square North with blue plaque
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Street sign
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8 Park Square East
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Rivers House
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