Headingley Library We continue our celebration of the local libraries across Leeds, with a trip to the north of the city. There has been a library presence in Headingley since 1884 when the first branch library opened on an evening in Bennett Road Board School (1882, now the Headingley Heart Community Centre), In 1892 it…
National Libraries Week 2020: Compton Road, Crossgates and Garforth Libraries
PESKY KIDS, ESCAPES FROM TINY TERRACES AND ECHOING FOOTSTEPS… Compton Road Library Compton Road Library opened in 1927 at a cost of £11,332 most of this met with money from the Carnegie Trust, and just like Bramley it has a very similar layout and was built with identical materials. The building was designed to adapt…
National Libraries Week 2020: Armley, Beeston and Bramley Libraries
CLEAN HANDS, A LOVE OF STAMPS, AND ONE FUTURE PRIME MINISTER… Armley Library To begin our celebration of local Leeds Libraries during National Libraries Week, we need to go back to 1868 when the Public Libraries act was adopted by Leeds; it didn’t take long to get organised and by 1870 branch libraries began opening…
National Libraries Week 2020
It’s National Libraries Week 2020 so we decided to celebrate ourselves and the libraries we have provided all the way back to the 1870s when our first ones opened. Local Libraries hold a soft spot in the hearts of their borrowers (no, not the short folk living behind the skirting from Mary Norton’s classic work…
Black History Month 2020: Research
During October the majority of our content on the Secret Library blog will focus on Black History Month, including links to relevant resources held at the Central Library and signposting to external organisations, most specifically relating to Leeds, its history and heritage. Each week will have a different theme – Research, Events, Social Justice, Windrush and…
Learning to see Le Prince
This week on the Secret Library we are delighted to welcome back guest author Irfan Shah, who has previously written for us on Leeds’ contribution to the development of photography. In this article, roughly coinciding with the 130th anniversary of the disappearance of Louis Le Prince (September 16 1890), Irfan shares some exciting news about…
Hidden Nature, Hidden History: Queen Square, St. George’s Field, North Street Recreation Ground, and Little Woodhouse
In our final Hidden Nature, Hidden History post for Heritage Open Days 2020 we include some notable areas just outside our City Centre walking route. We hope you’ve enjoyed the 2020 tour and learning more about the green sites we enjoy today and the history and stories behind them. Queen Square Queen Square was planned…
HOD 2020: Uncovering Hidden Nature with our Historic Herbals
The last in our trilogy of articles to tie in with the final few days of this year’s Heritage Open Days festival: Collections Manager Rhian Isaac shares some of our herbals that have been teaching people about plants and nature for hundreds of years… This year’s Heritage Open Days (September 11-20) has looked a little…
The Secret Library | Leeds Libraries Heritage Blog 