SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

I was wondering if anyone knew what the old lodge was called that stod were Braimwood school used to be.There's the only reminder of the place on the 2 grand gate posts.One of the gateposts is here if anyone hasn't seen it.http://www.flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/3258274662/All info appreciated as i can't find out what stood there before.Cheers guys     

For what it's worth Phill, the old Godfrey map (1906) shows a long track sweeping clockwise from the road, past the woods above the side of the lake and round to the old Elmete Hall.

Is it Roundhay Lodge? Not sure of the precise location, but I've left a few landmarks on this 1893 map, like the church, so that you can place it.(edited to correct date of map)    

Thanks Chameleon.Your on the ball there Tasa. Well done with the map. Yes it would make sense if it were Roundhay lodge.I must admit that map looks a little confusing. I can tell were places are i.e St Johns church and Beechwood. The Tennis courts throw me and everything else seems a little 'wrong'. I guess it's a 150 year old map and it would have looked very different in those days.I'll study that map some more.I guess Roundhay lodge would have been pretty important judging by those gate posts.It would be good to find out more about it.

Was the school where Elmet Hall was? If so, Roundhay Lodge was just south of the Hall. There is another lodge on the map, at the entrance to Elmet Hall, but it's only marked as "Lodge".

I think Roundhay Lodge (adjacent to Elmete Hall) existed first and looking at maps from a selection of dates, the track I see from Wetherby Road (in front of the old school buildings) seems to arrive with Elmete, and goes straight to the front door!

chameleon wrote: For what it's worth Phill, the old Godfrey map (1906) shows a long track sweeping clockwise from the road, past the woods above the side of the lake and round to the old Elmete Hall. Braimwood school was much lower than Elmet Hall. I think you were on the right lines about the long and winding path upto Elmet Hall. From what I can take on it, this would have been the formal entrance to Elmet Hall as there does not appear to have been a direct access to the hall off Elmete Lane until much later. There was a property to the right of the vicarage described as a lodge, but it appears to be only a small building and didn't warrant a name. The other lodge shown on what is now Elmete Lane, just lower than Roundhay Lodge is known as Beechwood Lodge. I am positive that the gate posts were for Elmet Hall and the lodge refered to was the small building at the side of the vicarage. This building survived untill Braimwood School was built in the early 70's    

There's this aral shot on Leodis.http://www.leodis.net/display.aspx?reso ... PLAY=FULLI need to look into all this in detail really.I've lived round that area most of my life and know nothing of what stood there previous.

Tasa wrote: Is it Roundhay Lodge? Not sure of the precise location, but I've left a few landmarks on this 1893 map, like the church, so that you can place it.(edited to correct date of map)     Elmete Lodge is hgher up, just off the top rdge of your map Tasa, see the curved dotted lines in the bottome left corner sterting at Wetherby Road and running above the Vicarage? It comes back onto the map higher up rumming left to right and off the top edge to the Hall.

There's a small piece in Steven Burt's book of the history of Roundhay Phill -"'James Kitson, the famous locomotive engineer, bitterly opposed such a plan (to develop Roundhay as a Public Park). Six years earlier he hd purchased Roundahy Lodge from the Nicholsons of Roundhay.After demolishing the old mansion he had spent a fortune building a fashionable villa (Elmet Hall in 1865) with extensive landscaped grounds and superb views across the town. He could not stomach the idea of his work people being allowed access to his perimeter fence. He spoke for many when he deplored the loss of the seclusion and privacy and argued that Roundhay was far too distant from the homes of the operative classes. Kitson also feared that eh opening of the park would lead to 'unseemly behaviour', while increased traffic would put a strain on local roads which the Council had no duty to maintain. The 'Roundhay aristocracy' also argued that the authority had no right to enter into such a large building speculation,and presented a petition to Parliament against the purchase"The chapter goes on to describe the protests and counter-protests and how the Council commisioned Atkinson-Grimshaw to paint three pictures of the park to illustrate its beauty to the Commons in support of the proposal. As we know - the park became a reality. It does therefore seem that the driveway did lead to Elmet Hall and not Roundhay Lodge.