Dewsbury Road Social Club

fevlad · Post by **fevlad** » Sat 08 Mar, 2008 8:20 pm

I'm a member of this fine establishment, which used to be the tetley's brewery social club.Some of the wooden facing on the front of the building has come away revealing in quite attractive carved lettring 'BOSTON BALLROOM & CAFE'can anyone shed any light on this?

Post by **cnosni** » Sun 09 Mar, 2008 6:24 am

fevlad wrote: I'm a member of this fine establishment, which used to be the tetley's brewery social club.Some of the wooden facing on the front of the building has come away revealing in quite attractive carved lettring 'BOSTON BALLROOM & CAFE'can anyone shed any light on this? Ay up fevlad.Not sure of the history,but as im sure you know its now the concert room for the club.It must have been a focal point for the community in the past,along with the park opposite,which on a sunday afternoon would have been very busy in Edwardian times.I believe that the park along with many other parks up and down the country,was the main place to meet a prospective partner.Obviously all above board,in the afternoon and early evening on light nights.Young gentlemen would walk through the park with friends,and so would the young women,and they may over numerous become acquainted and eventually start courting.I read all this in an article in the YEP column Yorkshire Diary,which has some interesting stories on occasion.So i think that the cafe would have been connected to the park and its visitors,with a probable shift in focus by the 1930s/1940s to a ballroom when dance halls became more and more popular.I would not like to say this is historically accurate,but its my little guess.Perhaps writing to the Yorkshire Diary column,and asking them to put out an enquiry to their readers may bring a better response.

fevlad · Post by **fevlad** » Sun 09 Mar, 2008 8:38 am

thanks mateI'll do that

tilly · Post by **tilly** » Fri 26 Aug, 2011 6:50 pm

hicklingmick wrote: Just found this thread..In the 50s it was a dance school and im sad to say I learned to ballroom dance there and did enter competions around the outer leeds area including armley baths when they covered over the pool..MY partner then was my first love who emigrated with her parents to australia in about 57/58 and I never went again to the dance school I WAS ONLY 10 AT THIS TIME..When I went to Cockburn high in 59 I was lucky that at the xmas party each year I could actually dance with all the girls in my year..Now im a lot older Ive only got 2 left feet Hi hicklingmick its good to know you have two feet left Ha Ha

Leodian · Post by **Leodian** » Fri 26 Aug, 2011 10:35 pm

Like you hicklingmick I also went to Cockburn (from 1955-1962). I remember dancing lessons that were held in the gym. It was adolescent time and the lessons were probably the most miserable event of my life. The boys sat on one side of the gym and the girls on the other. For each dance we were told to cross over and ask someone to dance and then dance music would play. When it was the lasses turn to ask I was the lad that no girl would ever want to ask and when it was the lads turn no lass ever wanted to dance with me (I had no attraction to adolescent lasses at all and they made that very clear!). Sadly for her there was one lass that was my equivalent in the girls and as a result we were always the last unpaired and always had to dance together (I still recall her name but I won't give it so as not to embarrass her). Sorry for going off-topic.